วันเสาร์ที่ 23 กุมภาพันธ์ พ.ศ. 2551

How To Make Meetings More Productive

Author : Joe Love
Meetings are a fact of business life, but most of them are frustrating and time-consuming. The results are rarely worth the time and effort of the many people involved. Yet meetings are a sensible way to handle many kinds of discussions, problem-solving sessions, presentations, and general updates on what's happening.If you learn to plan, structure, and participate in meetings effectively, you will be able improve your own time management and productivity as well as that of other participants.For a meeting to be effective, the preparation must start long before it ever starts. You first have to determine the purpose of the meeting. The best way to do this is by writing down the purpose of the meeting in one clear sentence, and the expected outcome in another. For example, "To decide on a marketing plan and determine the implementation responsibilities for everyone in the group. To be completed by September 30th.Once you have determined the purpose you need to consider the other available communication media that are available to you for that purpose. For example, could you address the issue or solve the problem by communicating by e-mail? So much valuable and productive time is wasted by having meetings on things that could be effectively dealt with by other forms of communication.If you must have a meeting, first select the participants based on their abilities to contribute to and profit from the meeting. If participation is important, and it usually is, limit the number of participants to five or six. It's difficult for a dozen or more people to participate effectively in a discussion.Prepare a draft agenda. List the items the meeting can usefully discuss, and the times allotted to each topic. Then circulate this draft agenda to the participants, and set a firm return date for their comments.Once you've received all the comments back from the participants, prepare the firm agenda. Include the topics to be discussed, the date, time, place of the meeting, a list of participants and their functions, and how messages will be delivered to the participants during breaks in the meeting.You should then arrange the logistics of the meeting, such as the room, any necessary audio-visual support that is needed, and the amenities such as, pencils, notepaper, water, and coffee breaks. Always prepare sufficient copies of any documents to be used at the meeting. If the flow of the meeting would smoothed by an advance reading of certain documents, then make sure you send them to the participants prior to the meeting.Select a meeting leader. If it is going to be someone other than yourself select that person based on his or her ability to make the meeting work. Always select someone to take notes. And it is always a good idea to prepare an attendance sheet, not to record who is late or absent, but rather to help the note taker prepare the meeting minutes.Once you have all the preparation in place for the meeting, start it on time. The people who are on time deserve this courtesy. When you start the meeting on time you are sending a message to all the participants that this will be an orderly meeting which deserves their listening attention.The leader of the meeting should start off with an orientation speech lasting three to five minutes. This should serve as the foundation for the entire meeting. It also orients the participants on the procedures of the meeting, provides an information base, and reaches clear agreement on how the meeting should proceed.After the orientation speech the meeting leader should review the agenda and reinforce the purpose of the meeting. It's alright to modify the agenda if any last-minute developments have to be taken care of. As the leader moves into consideration of the agenda items, he or she should summarize and note any action items or agreements. A good leader should always keep his or her eye on the clock and match the meeting's pace with the time available. If people know that the meeting will start and end on time, they won't be distracted by worry that the meeting will run overtime.The person leading the meeting is crucial to the success of any meeting. A strong meeting leader or chairperson is a person who can adapt leadership styles to different groups, members, and tasks. A poor leader is the person who uses only one role, usually authoritarian, when the group expects another.The role of any meeting leader is closely linked to the purpose of the meeting. For example, a meeting to inform subordinates of a decision calls for one approach whereas a meeting to gain the commitment of employees to carry out a decision made by upper management would require a completely different approach.To be an effective the leader of any meeting the leader must consider all the participants as equals. He or she must respect each person for having information and judgment at least equal to and often superior to his or hers. And it is this attitude from the leader that will set the appropriate tone for the meeting.Effective meeting leaders recognize that dissent is essential. They make it a plan that disagreement and constructive criticism are encouraged and expected in any group deliberations. It is the only way to achieve free and open participation in decision-making.
This is why it is very important that the leader makes absolutely clear the role of each participant in the decision-making prior to the meeting.A meeting cannot be successful and productive without active participation from everyone involved. As a participant, you should always prepare for the meeting, and then have something to offer. You should be prepared to influence the group effectively and manage conflict if it arises. If you haven't received an agenda prior to the meeting, ask the meeting leader or chairperson for one.Conduct research into topics or problems that will be discussed so that you can offer stimulating, well-grounded views. If you're strongly involved in the topic or problem, try to sell your ideas in advance to the other participants.To really enhance your contributions to the meeting you first have to organize them. Think before you speak. If what you're going to say is complicated, rehearse it before the meeting. Make one point at a time. Speak clearly and forcefully, offering strong factual support for each point rather than vague statements.Listen to the discussion among the participants. Then speak when your contribution is relevant. When you do speak, talk for only thirty to sixty seconds but do it a way that is both fluent and forceful. And limit yourself to good ideas. Don't feel you have to respond to every point mentioned. If the conversation has moved past your point, don't try to backtrack. And when your are listening, monitor your non-verbal signals. Facial expressions can speak volumes. So can yawns and doodling.Once the meeting has finished, make sure the minutes are promptly prepared. It's important to understand that the minutes are not a transcript. They should be concise, giving the meeting date, time, place, and purpose. The minutes should also have the names of the participants, any conclusions, agreements, action items, assignments, and any open items. They should not be a summary of the discussions or point out who said what and who disagreed with whom.Once the meeting is finished every participant including the leader should review the meeting in his or her own mind. And every participant should ask himself or herself, "What did I learn that would be useful in planning, conducting, and following up other meetings?Copyright©2005 by Joe Love and JLM & Associates, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.Joe Love draws on his 25 years of experience helping both individuals and companies build their businesses, increase profits, and achieve total success. He is the founder and CEO of JLM & Associates, a consulting and training organization, specializing in personal and business development. Through his seminars and lectures, Joe Love addresses thousands of men and women each year, including the executives and staffs of many of America's largest corporations, on the subjects of leadership, self-esteem, goals, achievement, and success psychology.Reach Joe at: joe@jlmandassociates.comRead more articles and newsletters at: http://www.jlmandassociates.com
Keyword : success, business success, business planning, business development, management, leadership,

The Key To Success: Build Those Relationships!

Author : Regi Adams
Powerful relationships are the key to effective work environments, and goal attainment. Powerful, healthy relationships are the pulse behind any great endeavor and achievement. It must never be forgotten that every organizational structure, flow chart and arrangement ever conceived, merely represented the relationships which formed these structures. It is said that genius is often found in that which is simple. What can be more simple than treating your people as partners in the creation of business success.Valuing the contributions of associates is expressed through the following behaviors:1. Learn the life stories, hopes and dreams of your associates. View them in a total inclusive manner. Acknowledge both the professional and personal aspects of his/her persona.2. Draw upon the combined experience of your team. Ask the associates questions ,probe them for knowledge in addressing real world business concerns. Think of your team as your organization's personal think tank. You will find that many of your company's best ideas will come from your associates.3. It is not enough to simply listen to your associates, but implementation of their ideas and suggestions is important. Ideas gained through the brainstorming process must be put into practice in order to gain true value. The implementation of associate suggestions shows that you take their intellegence seriously and consider them instrumental in the future success of the organization. Implementation exhibits a sincerity in wanting to get everyone involved in the process. This step, is the first step, in creating a deep sense of ownership within the organization.4. The final piece to relationship building is accountability. Accountability establishes the value level that a team places upon its existence and performance. Holding associates including yourself, accountable for set behavioral standards, establishes the legitimacy of the team goals and protocol. Holding individuals accountable is not always a pleasant experience; however it is an absolutely critical element, in creating successful teams and successful people.Regi Adams is a business coach, educator and writer for Bascom & Adams Business Solutions. Regi has conducted his human based approach to professional development within multiple Fortune 500 companies. Regi's philosopy on exceptional business performance is that "all success starts with people". Thus Regi's approach to creating high performance organizations is by creating high performance teams, made up of high performance people.Information on Bascom & Adams Business Solutions programs and services can be found at http://www.bascomadams.com
Keyword : Performance, Business excellence,relationships,success,effective management, leadership,oraganizatio

How Do Your Job Candidates See You?

Author : Eric Garner
Have you ever wondered how you come across to the candidates you interview? Here are 9 interviewer types. Work out which is most like you and you'll know just what your candidates go through at interview.1. The Stickler. The Stickler is someone who likes to plan the interview down to the last detail. He or she believes there is a right way to interview. Once they work it out, they'll stick to that format every time. Interviews with Sticklers tend to be highly structured, formal, polite, and business-like. They'll rarely run over their allotted time. Sticklers believe this approach will enable them to make accurate selections.2. The Helper. The Helper is a people-person. The tone of their interviews is invariably friendly, warm and sociable. They will offer coffee and biscuits, hang up people's coats for them, work out their best route home, and accompany them all the way from the interview room back out of the building. Because of this, interviews feel more like a nice chat than serious business.3. The Performer. The Performer sees an interview as a major promotional opportunity. They will talk up the job, the organization, and themselves. They come over as attractive, charming, and seductive. They want you to like them. Performers like their candidates to be as attractive as they believe they are. They must look in fashion and be able to quote all the latest ideas and buzz-words about the job.4. The Prober. The Prober sees the interview as a chance to get to know a person at a deep meaningful level. Because of this, they may ignore a structured approach and take longer than they need to. The have a knack of spotting stars and uncovering the real qualities that a person has. They may get bored with dull candidates and are likely to be attracted to individualists who, like themselves, have a touch of something special.5. The Observer. The Observer sees the interview as essentially a one-way process in which they can gather information on the candidate while giving little away about themselves. Nothing escapes their attention. They can pick up on a little detail and also see the big picture. To encourage people to talk, the Observer comes over as interested, curious and charming.6. The Questioner. The Questioner approaches every interview in two minds: will this person be a safe bet or not? The way they find out is with lots of questions, checks, tests, and references. Only when they feel safe with a candidate will they support them. Then they will become the greatest advocate for giving them the job.7. The Enthusiast. The Enthusiast is someone who likes to get switched on by a candidate, especially if they share their own enthusiasms. They are often impatient people who may be so busy that they they turn up half-way through the interview or leave before the end. Enthusiasts may do more talking than the candidates as they love nothing better than an audience.8. The Boss. The Boss likes to let candidates know that they're in charge. They think that the best way to find out about others is to put them on the spot, test them, or confront them. They are the most likely interviewers to use stress tactics. Boss interviewers warm to candidates who are strong and brash like them, or who are willing to be loyal followers in their team.9. The Avoider. The Avoider likes to melt into the background at interviews. In a panel, they will defer to others. Alone, they will defer to the candidate. Their philosophy is not to control the process but to simply sit back and let things happen. Curiously, this hands-off approach often allows the best candidate to come through naturally.So there you go. Next time you interview, instead of focusing all your attention on your candidates, have a peek at your own style. You may learn a lot more about you than you do about them.© Eric Garner, ManageTrainLearn.comFor instant solutions to all your management training needs, visit http://www.managetrainlearn.com and download amazing FREE training software. And while you're there, make sure you try out our prize quiz, get your surprise bonus gift, and subscribe to our fortnightly newsletter. Go and get the ManageTrainLearn experience now!
Keyword : recruitment,hiring,selection,interviews,interviewer,interviewer types,interview techniques

Just Jump: Moving Your Business to the Next Level, Part 1

Author : Kim Beasley
What are you facing as a business owner that keeps you from moving to the next level with your business? Where are you missing out on growth opportunities for your business? Have you been afraid to move in a new direction with your business?Then you need to read this article because it will help you to "JUST JUMP" into those business opportunities that will help you manage your business better. "JUST JUMP" is a phrase that describes how you as a business owner need to act in regard to moving into a new business direction. If you business is stuck in a rut, then you need to take on the attitude to "JUST JUMP" into something new.Below are "JUST JUMP" business management opportunities that may help you to move into a new direction for your business. Do not try to take on to much at once. Assess your business and see which ones apply to the new direction of your business and "JUST JUMP" into them.
"JUST JUMP" Business Opportunity 1: Assess your industry and see what past trends orchestrated the direction of business management in your industry. This is helpful because it will allow you to learn what key business performance indicators are the driving forces in your industry. This information will allow you to determine how to develop a business management plan that not only incorporates past trends of your industry but also some of the future trends."JUST JUMP" Business Opportunity 2: Partnering to grow your business reach is a component of business management that may help your business to grow. Determine which are overload areas for you and that you can outsource to business partners. Make sure that you have a contract in place with your business partners that allow for a two-way outsourcing network. Partnering with other business owners may allow you to free up your time so that you can continue working on your business management plan as you seek for new partners that you can set up a two-way outsourcing agreement."JUST JUMP" Business Opportunity 3: Learn to network online and offline to grow your business management skills. One of the most valuable lessons that I learned was that offline networking is just as important as online networking. I was successful in networking online but once I implemented networking offline, my business exploded and I gained just as many clients offline as I did online. Networking should be a vital part of your business management opportunities because this will help you "JUST JUMP" into success.
These three "JUST JUMP" business management opportunities are just the start to what you can do for your business to move it to the next level.Kim Beasley earned an MBA in eBusiness and a Bachelor's in Human Resource Management which has allowed her to develop Agape3, Inc. Agape3, Inc. is an umbrella business for A3 Strategy Planning (http://agape3.com, Strategy Planning), A3 Web Design (http://a3webdesign.com, Web & Blog Design) and My Business Connection (http://mybusinessconnection.net, Internet Radio Show). Kim focuses on helping your business to grow and be successful. If you want to see your business JUST JUMP to the next level, then you want Kim Beasley as a member of your team.
Keyword : business management, business owner, strategy planning, business strategy planning, Kim Beasley

Ten Tips for Creating a Terrific Appraisal System

Author : Dick Grote
Based on my experience in helping dozens of companies create performance appraisal systems that actually work, here are ten tips that will help any company create a new performance evaluation system that will provide useful data and be enthusiastically supported by all system users.One — Get top management actively involved. Without top management's commitment and visible support, no program can succeed. Top management must establish strategic plans, identify values and core competencies, appoint an appropriate Implementation Team, demonstrate the importance of performance management by being active participants in the process, and use appraisal results in management decisions.Two — Establish the criteria for an ideal system. Consider the needs of the four stakeholder groups of any appraisal system: Appraisers who must evaluate performance; Appraisees whose performance is being assessed; Human Resources professionals who must administer the system; and the Senior Management group that must lead the organization into the future. Identifying their expectations at the start helps assure their support once the system is finally designed. Ask each group: "What will it take for you to consider this system a smashing success?" Don't settle for less.Three — Appoint an Implementation Team. This task force should be a diagonal slice of both appraisers and appraisees from different levels and functions in the organization. The implementation team is responsible for accomplishing the two major requirements for a successful system. First, developing appropriate appraisal forms, policies and procedures. Second (and the task too often overlooked) assuring a successful deployment.Four — Design the form first. The appraisal form is a lightning rod that will attract everyone's attention. Design the form early and get lots of feedback on it. Don't believe anybody who tells you that the form isn't important. They're wrong. If you're designing a new form internally, make sure it assesses both behaviors and results.Five — Build your mission, vision, values, and core competencies into the form. Performance appraisal is a means, not an end. The real objective of any performance management system is to make sure that the company's strategic plan and vision and values are communicated and achieved. Core competencies expected of all organization members should be included, described and assessed. If your mission statement isn't clearly visible in the performance appraisal system, cynicism will likely result. Values become real only when people are held accountable for living up to them.Six — Assure on-going communication. Circulate drafts and invite users to make recommendations. Keep the development process visible through announcements and regular updates. Use surveys, float trial balloons, request suggestions and remember the cardinal principle — "People support what they help create."Seven — Train all appraisers. Performance appraisal requires a multitude of skills — behavioral observation and discrimination, goal-setting, developing people, confronting unacceptable performance, persuading, problem-solving, planning, etc. Unless appraiser training is universal and comprehensive, the program won't produce much. And don't ignore the most important requirement of all: the need for courage.Eight — Orient all appraisees. The program's purposes and procedures must be explained in advance — and explained enthusiastically — to everyone who will be affected by it. Specific skills training should be provided if the new performance management procedure requires self-appraisal, multi-rater feed-back, upward appraisal, or individual development planning.Nine — Use the results. If the results of the performance appraisal are not visibly used in making promotion, salary, development, transfer, training and termination decisions, people will realize that it's merely an exercise.Ten — Monitor and revise the program. Audit the quality of appraisals, the extent to which the system is being used, and the extent to which the original objectives have been met. (One of the great advantages of an online performance appraisal system is that all of these data are available instantaneously.) Provide feedback to management, appraisers and appraisees. Train new appraisers as they are appointed to supervisory positions. Actively seek and incorporate suggestions for improvement.A company's performance appraisal process is critically important. It answers the two questions that every member of an organization wants to know: 1) What do you expect of me? and 2) How am I doing at meeting your expectations? Using these ten tips will help you develop or select a system to will give accurate and complete answers to everyone.Dick Grote is one of America's most successful and best-known authors, consultants, and speakers on performance management, leadership and building organizational excellence. He is the Chairman and CEO of Grote Consulting Corporation in Dallas, Texas, and the developer of the GroteApproach web-based performance management system – on the Web at http://www.groteapproach.com.
Keyword : employee,performance,management,review,evaluation,software,system,appraisal

Are Managerial Controls Pulling Down Your Growth

Author : R.G. Srinivasan
Managing a new and growing business requires a vision far beyond what the average manager can even begin to comprehend or understand. This vision may be the ingredient which separates a leader from a manager.As the business grows, the top manager or the founder/owners turn control freaks as they believe they need to nurture the business at each step of its infantile existence step lest it falls and fails. They turn perfectionists and involve in every aspect of business believing that they are the best and most capable to run the business. This effectively kills emergence of new leadership, throttling the business growth.Controls are also camouflaged as systems orientation. Too much control spell the death of dynamic decision making and ultimately blunting the competitive edge and operational efficiencies. Many of the early successes of the new business and a quick death shortly thereafter are an indicator of too many controls killing the initiative and creativity.So the mentor and guide becomes the problem instead of a problem solver.What should the owner/ceo do to avoid the the control syndrome?Check Your EgoAs the CEO or Owner you believe you know best. You also believe because it is your money at stake you have a higher interest and responsibility in protecting your own and stakeholder value. Most owners or ceo's believe people working for them are not as knowledgeable and involved as you are. Even the smallest of mistakes they make are blown out of proportion as an excuse to step in. In fact your managers may know better how to run your organization than you do.Business chiefs who cannot let go of the controls often end up stunting their business; Opportunities are lost as too many controls deter any effective decision making and exploitation of dynamic business trends.Define Your RoleAs head of a growing organization you need to define your role and role of all your managers. The owner/ceo needs to help others to be productive and manage better rather than to manage on their own. Once you see how effective your managers are, you could cut back on your involvement in micro management and focus on the broader aspects of growth and development.Take it Step by StepOnce you decide to be less meddlesome, plan on how you are going to reduce your involvement day by day. This will enable your managers to appreciate your intentions and respond to increased responsibility more positively. It would also help them to find their own footing and get accustomed to taking major decisions.Trust Your ManagersTrust and empowerment is the surest way to nurture talent. When the manager knows that you trust them to deliver, they would go that extra mile to keep the trust you have reposed on them.Finally the leader has to realize that unless more leaders are created one cannot grow. You can do only so uch and if you want more you need people who can duplicate your own success. All business growth depends on a vision of creating value for as large a group – include customers, employees, shareholders, promoters, partners, vendors – as possible if you really want to build an organization that would be a future legacy.R.G. Srinivasan is a managerial professional, Writer and Author. He writes a regular blog on management thoughts with interesting articles, resources, personal experiences and links useful for any manager at http://management-thoughts.blogspot.com
Keyword : managerial controls, managing growth,leadership,management systems

Quality Management: Organizational Needs

Author : Leon Chaddock
Any business out there can benefit from quality management. Whether you are producing thumb tacks or if you are producing IT equipment, there is little doubt that they need to be of the highest levels of quality. Yet, as your business grows, you will find it farther and father difficult to manage quality management. Because it is so very important, though, you need to find a way to make sure it is dead on.What solutions are out there?You know that you need quality management but finding the most effective way to get it may seem difficult. The good news is that there are a large number of options that can help you. From organizations that specialize in quality management to software programs that you can use. You can invest in having your staff and managerial levels of employees trained more efficiently to produce the desired results as well. So, there are options out there to help just about any organization get the quality management that they need.What good will it do?Do you ever get the feeling that you are investing dollar after dollar into your business whether it is through marketing or improving efficiency and somehow you still need something more? It could be that your product is not the same inside and out. If you deliver to your customer 100% the same product time and time again, they will know that they can rely on you and they'll keep coming back. It takes time, yes. It takes money as well. But, quality management is a benefit to you many times over.Investing in quality management in one form or another is an excellent way to get the products and services that you produce to the consumers in a manner in which they will be thrilled about. It will provide you with the help that you need to take your business to the next level as well. Considerations in quality management should be made.for more information please see http://www.quality-management-info.co.uk
Keyword : Quality management

Managers Reward Behaviors They Want Repeated

Author : Bill Lee
This basic management principle will go a long way toward helping managers raise the productivity of their organizations. Yet, in their haste to get the job done, many managers forget this principle and focus more on punishment than reward.Back in my corporate life, my company hired a management trainer to come into our organization to help us fine-tune our management skills. I'll never forget one of the techniques he used to teach us this principle.First, he sent one of the seminar attendees out of the room. Then he asked one of us to hide a playing card. If I remember correctly, the card was hidden inside one of the books on the shelf in the meeting room. The attendee was then called back into the room and asked to find the playing card.Of course, he had no idea where to look, so one of us was given a small bell to ring when his movements took him in the direction of where the card was hidden. If he turned the wrong way, the bell was silent.It was amazing. In just a couple of minutes he was standing in front of the bookshelf. In another minute, he had the correct book in his hands and flipped through it until he found the playing card. Grand total: Maybe three minutes.Then the seminar leader tried the opposite approach. He sent another attendee out of the room and another playing card was hidden. Only this time when the attendee returned to the room, he received a stinging slap on the upper arm with a rolled up newspaper each time he made the wrong move; that is, when he moved in the wrong direction.Instead of continuing to use a trial and error approach like the first attendee used to successfully find the playing card, this attendee froze to avoid both the discomfort of the newspaper and the humiliation he felt in front of his peers. He simply stood still. He quit trying.Lesson learned: Employees learn faster and more comfortably when managers use rewards versus punishment to achieve desired behavior. The sound of the bell ringing rewarded positive behavior and the sting of the newspaper punished negative behavior.Another example is when an employee violates a company rule. It's important to take immediate action. If other employees observe that you have allowed one of their fellow employees to violate the rule -- and you take no corrective action -- that is the same as rewarding negative behavior. You are sending the message that being a few minutes late is okay. Every organization must have minimum conditions of employment and enforce those minimums.I worked with a manager on a consulting assignment recently who complained to me that he had been unable to get one of his employees to meet deadlines. Yet he had taken no action. In fact, he had never even sat the employee down and dealt with the unacceptable behavior. When I interviewed the woman, she had told me that her relationship with her manager was excellent. As it turned out, she has actually received a raise just a few months earlier and her review was totally positive.If managers want different results, they must reward the behaviors they wish to see more of. Most employees want to please their supervisor. Most employees want to do good work. Managers generally get the behavior that they reward.Bill Lee works with managers who want to put more money on the bottom line and salespeople who want to improves sales and gross margin. Bill is the author of Gross Margin: 26 Factors Affecting Your Bottom Line. $29.95 plus $6 S&H. Bill is also author of 30 Ways Managers Shoot Themselves in the Foot. $21.95 plus $6 S&H.

http://www.BillLeeOnLine.com

Or call 800-808-0534 to order via voice mail. All credit cards accepted.
Keyword : reward, punishment, incentives, behavior, positive behavior, conditions of employment, rules

Is Your Performance Review System Outdated?

Author : Doug Staneart
One of the most common complaints we hear from interviewing employees in the construction industry is, "I never get useful feedback about how I am doing my job."Most companies today use a performance appraisal system or a performance review system that was invented decades ago in a much slower business economy. So data that is given to employees in annual, semi-annual, or even quarterly reviews tends to be outdated by the time it is received by the person who could benefit most from the information—the employee.In addition, the measurements that are in place in these appraisals are typically arbitrary and subjective. When I was in college, I had an internship with a major Fortune 500 company. At the end of the 3-month internship, my performance was reviewed by the other members of my department. All of these people thought that I was an exceptional intern, but they had to judge my performance based on the same five-point scale that they were judged on. I still remember the ache in the pit of my stomach when I saw all of the threes and fours on the document. My boss explained to me that very few people ever received fives, as that would leave little room for improvement. After reading and re-reading the document, I was left with the same question that many employees today are asking: Did I or did I not do my job well?In today's fast-paced economy, these traditional systems just don't work. Performance appraisals should be short, no more than ten-minutes, and should focus on the results expected from the employee's current position, and how effectively the employee's current goals are being met. For example, a Project Manager may have a number of different results that are expect from his or her performance. Is the project on schedule? Is it under budget? Are the company quality standards being met? Is the customer satisfied? Are employee expenses in line?All of these results can and should be measured consistently. Intangibles can also be measured such as morale (through employee surveys, workplace absenteeism, and turnover,) leadership (productivity, development of people, and problem-solving skills,) and work ethic (are goals consistently met, are goals challenging, and are project completed timely.)With this system, a manager can schedule monthly "mini-interviews" taking just minutes. These sessions are valuable because they open lines of communication and they give the manager a chance to update the progress of the employee in different result areas. If the employee is performing above expectations, then this is an opportunity to shine and set new goals, and if the employee is performing below expectations, then corrective actions can be taken.These "mini interviews" make annual appraisals a piece of cake, because the employee and the manager now have as many as 12 separate measured checkpoints along the way that show how the employee has performed over the last year. This annual review now has documented facts to base an appraisal on. The employee sees that he or she was on budget 95% of the time versus receiving a four out of five, or that he or she is ranked in the 90th percentile of managers within the company based on leadership.This system, although not foolproof, can greatly reduce the stress and tension associated with Performance Appraisals. Companies using this type of system show dramatically higher productivity within months of implementation.Doug Staneart, doug@leaderinstitute.com is CEO of The Leader's Institute, www.leadersinstitute.com, specializing in leadership, public speaking, and team building training for individuals and groups. He can be reached toll-free at 1-800-872-7830.
Keyword : performance review, employee management, employee review

Are YOU an Outstanding Manager / Leader?

Author : Dominick Borzomati
Wisdom is one of the primary characteristics of an outstanding leader - leaders have an insatiable curiosity for discovering and learning new things. Leadership and learning go together. If you have determined that your learning is behind the curve, then recommit yourself to seeking it out at every opportunity, in every conversation, around every corner. Do you have a process for continual self-improvement? Get hooked on the improvement habit. Here are some tips:· Spend your time with optimistic, growing people.· Become a reader. If you are not one already, this is an important source of learning and reflection. Many great books are available to inspire, guide, and instruct your improvement effort.· Become a teacher. Give internal and external presentations on your area of expertise. Volunteer to present at the next professional conference you were just going to attend.· Become a writer. Do you write in a journal for yourself? You can write articles for associations you belong to, your local paper, or internal newsletter.· Become a speaker. I find that some of my best insights come from trying to articulate (or write) my thoughts.· Become a listener. You can get hundreds of hours a year of education, inspiration, information, and instruction by listening. Try listening to audiotapes in your car.· Become a student. Attend workshops, seminars, and training sessions. Take college courses.· Keep your commitments. Call back when you promised (or before). Meet your deadlines. Show up on time. Under-promise and over-deliver.· Put quotes, goals, reminders, and vision statements where you will see them throughout your day. Keep changing them and moving them around so you don't start to look past them.· Develop a personal improvement plan. Schedule time for personal and professional improvement as if your career depended on it. It does.My name is Dominick Borzomati with DWB Associates. We are Business Development Specialists and have been since 1993. We work with individuals committed to moving themselves and their businesses to the next level.At DWB what we do is ALL about YOU...Our programs focus 100% on YOU, they address YOUR needs, and concerns. They help YOU to clearly identify opportunities, enhance YOUR strengths, clarify YOUR market position and YOUR competitive capabilities and provide YOU with a clear and concise understanding as to where YOU are and where YOU need to go. Most importantly they provide YOU with a series a simple actionable steps that YOU can choose from that will enable YOU to move YOURSELF and YOUR business to the next level.
Keyword : Leadership Characteristics, simple solutions, ideas, suggestions

Is it Time to Fire A Few Customers?

Author : Gloria Berthold
Do you want to improve the profitability of your company? Then it may be time to consider firing a few customers. You can make an informed decision about this difficult situation if you first clearly identify who are you profitable and unprofitable customers.Profitable Customers:
While these customers amount to 20% of your total number of customers, they will generally account for 80% of your profitable business.General Characteristics:-Buy from you repeatedly.-Value the service you offer them.-Accept the pricing structure you have established.-Discuss the options with you before making a final decision.-Trust you to perform the service you have contracted for.-Refer you to their associates.-Pay their bills on time.Unprofitable Customers:
This category also accounts for another 20% of your customers, but they can cause 80% of your headaches.General Characteristics:-The service they want is not what you normally provide.-The price is always an issue.-He will add extra services or products after the original contract is agreed upon.-She will not want to pay for any extra services requested.-The service is never acceptable.-He is slow to no-pay.-She spread negative stories about your company.As a business owner or manager, you have the opportunity and responsibility to ask the right questions and provide the best level of service possible for the price paid. While we all have room to learn about improving our business and the service we provide, this article is about identifying those customers who, no matter what you do, will end up being unprofitable.Once you have identified who the profitable clients are, you can create a profile of them. This profile will identify various characteristics such as type of business, size, location, number of employees, etc. You may have multiple profiles for different categories of clients.The profile of your profitable clients will help you target to whom you want to market. You can also eliminate those prospects that match the profile of your unprofitable customers. Why waste time and money marketing to those marginal, or worse yet, the unprofitable prospects? Wouldn't it make more sense to spend your marketing budget on developing specific targets that match the same profile as your most profitable clients?This process can actually reduce your marketing expenditures and increase your profit margin at the same time. Don't wait until the end of the year to begin this process. Begin it right now and you will gain better control over your bottom line.Gloria Berthold is president of Marketing Outsource Associates, a database marketing firm specializing in the identification of profitable prospects in both the commercial and government markets. Her strategy includes identifying profitable customers, creating a profile of the most profitable customers, locating prospects that match similar profiles, creating a schedule of contacts with the prospects and executing the schedule on time and within budget. For more information visit http://www.targetgov.com
Keyword : Marketing,business development,strategy,profit,marketing plan,business plan,sales strategy

What's the Secret Code?

Author : Larry Galler
As a youngster I loved reading spy / adventure novels. They were always exciting and adventuresome. In most of them there was a "secret code," used to communicate without fear of "the other side" being able to decipher communications and understand what was transpiring.I have observed that, in many businesses, a "Code of Conduct" is also a "secret code." When I hear a businessperson say, "They should know that's not the way we do things here" I ask whether they have a written policy regarding that issue. I might as well ask if they have a process for creating gold from water so I guess that the way they want their company to perform is a secret. Few small and mid-size companies have defined professional and performance standards for the company and its staff. Yet all employees need (some even seek) standards that define boundaries and ethics. If a "Code" is a secret and not defined, employees will individually set standards on their own resulting in chaos, uneven delivery of service, and efforts working at cross-purpose.
A "Code of Conduct" can be defined starting with a definition of "The Ideal" (The "Ideal" way we greet customers, the "Ideal" way we fill out our time cards, the "Ideal" way we bag the groceries, etc.) and commit the "Code" to writing.Having a "Code" demonstrates that management cares about the people and the work culture, affects retention and productivity, creates a climate of unity which establishes trust, and allows the guidelines to manage rather than management micro-managing everything.I lost my taste for spy / adventure novels as I matured and found other interests more exciting. As a business matures it finds that managing by system (A written Code of Conduct is just one part of that system) allows the company time, energy, and resources to continually move forward based on higher staff performance and the ever higher expectations of the customersLarry Galler coaches and consults with high-performance executives, professionals, and small businesses since 1993. He is the writer of the long-running (every Sunday since November 2001) business column, "Front Lines with Larry Galler" Sign up for his free newsletter at http://www.larrygaller.com

Questions??? Send an email to larry@larrygaller.com
Keyword : performance standards, ethics, clear communications

Defend Your Management Approach With a Credible Attack

Author : Hans Bool
Whether you call it a management methodology, approach, style, manner, way or even a system, if it lacks one aspect it will not be effective.If you are leading a team or department you are to communicate your tactics. You must tell either how you want activities organized or what the results should be. If you are combining both, people will wonder: "which one is the most important". If you will not choose, others will choose for you. Yet others, being a team of twenty employees, might make their own choices. And all those choices added up will most certainly lack coherence.They credited George Soros for cracking the bank of England in 1992. But was it really on his account (only) that the European Monetary System (EMS) fell apart? Excuse me for bringing up such an old history, but history appears to repeat itself sometimes. Credibility was one of the major reasons why the EMS was not sustainable. Credibility is not a topic for the economic section only. Even there it is about management; the management of the EMS, management (and control) of inflation, management of the treasury. The same fundamentals apply. For which in this case it is all about being credible.Credibility is a psychological factor that is always present in management. Many projects that are lined up will not count on commitment because of a scope or objective that fails to be credible. Or that available resources that are in no proportion to the required output. There are many other examples.
It is your job however to have them sorted out before you start managing.© 2005 Hans BoolHans Bool is founder of Astor White a traditional management consulting company where Internet is the main interaction medium. By offering online tools we can address management issues in hours what normally would take days of consultancy. Astor White. Committed to your management issues. On a distance.
Keyword : Credibility, credible

The Howl Issue #3

Author : Rick Johnson
I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and looking forward to an even better Christmas. I personally am now getting into the Christmas spirit after spending all day Saturday and most of Sunday putting up the lights outside and helping decorate the tree. As this year comes to an end and we celebrate the holiday season, most of us have a lot to be thankful for. I know I count my blessings everyday and look for opportunities to reach out to others that may need help, support or encouragement. Have a wonderful holiday season and a prosperous New Year. Reach out to someone.If you missed Issues #1 & 2, e-mail: rick@ceostrategist.com for copies of these issues.This month's issue contains:• The Housing Bubble --- Is It Finally Ready to Burst?"• First in a series on "The Challenges Facing Family Owned Businesses"--- How can you turn over your business to your children without creating chaos?• Kids and Guns• 15 Revealing Questions To Ask A New Sales Candidate• Client Corner --- "My Kids Can't Cut It"The Housing Bubble --- Is It Finally Ready to Burst? ---- Economists have been predicting the burst of the bubble for the past five years. Every year they have been wrong. 2005 was supposed to be the year when things really started to slow down. Low and behold, 2005 was another banner year. Those in the building supply business are sitting around smiling as they count the profits. I am not an economist, thank God, but maybe, just maybe the economists are going to finally be right as some signs are beginning to show that may indicate a slow down in the housing boom. And of course, the auto industries problems, specifically General Motors with their recent layoffs and plant closure announcements just adds strength to this conjecture. What's the old saying? "So goes General Motors, so goes the economy."Sales of existing homes fell almost 3% in October and the decline could have been higher except for the demand created by the surge of Hurricanes, especially Katrina. The level of unsold homes in October was at its highest peak in nineteen years. Some of this may be attributed to the fact that prices have risen at a pace not seen in twenty five years. A chief real estate economist stated; "The housing boom has likely passed its peak. (We have heard this before) The boom is winding down. I expect continued softening in housing." (David Lereah, chief economist for Realtors.)Economists also predict that the buildup of unsold homes across the nation would dampen the surge in prices that saw 69 cities report double digit price increases this summer compared with third quarter 2004. Another prediction is an additional ½ point increase in interest rates by June of 2006 which could create a slow down in price increases to about 5% next year.In reference to new construction, it also has shown signs that the bubble may be ready to burst. Housing construction and new building permits were down sharply in October. The Commerce Department reports that construction of new homes and apartments fell by almost 6%, which was the biggest decline in seven months. Applications for new building permits fell almost 7%, which is the biggest decline in six years. Nariman Behravesh, another expert chief economist stated, "We are likely to see a steady downward trend in housing activity over the next few months. Mortgage rates are at the highest level seen in more than two years." National Association of Home Builders said a new survey showed builder optimism fell in November, the largest amount since the September 11th terrorist's attacks.So, is the bubble ready to burst? Many economists seem to thinks so. However, the statistics cited have been cited in the past. The predictions of a bubble burst have been reported in the past. On the other hand, some economists disagree at least partially. David Seiders, chief economist for home builders stated that he believed that sales of both new and existing homes, while still setting records for a fifth consecutive year in 2005, will only see a small 5% decline in 2006. This would represent a very soft landing (5% is not much considering the growth we have experienced over the past five years). Do they really know? Who knows? Maybe that's why Roosevelt said he would only deal with "One Armed Economists." So they couldn't say, "On the other hand"…Be cautious in 2006. Don't panic but don't bet the farm. Initiate a contingency planning process. If you don't need the plan in 2006, so what, sooner or later the economists might get it right and that contingency plan that you have tucked away will become invaluable.__________________________________________First In A Series On Family Owned Businesses------ In 2006 we will try to cover many of the issues and challenges in "The Howl" that face privately held family owned businesses.
Every family owned business faces difficult challenges. Readers are encouraged to e-mail rick@ceostrategist.com with comments, questions and topics for discussion related to the challenges faced by family owned businesses.How can you turn the business over to your children without creating chaos--- This is probably the toughest question any business owner that has family working in the business will ever face. However, the answer is simple. The answer is….. It depends. It depends on how well you (the owner) have prepared yourself and your child for this transition. Have you planned this out? Has your successor been trained, developed and prepared for the transition? This is pretty easy if you only have one child in the business and he/she just happens to be the next Jack Welch of wholesale distribution. This child has worked outside the business for someone else for a minimum of five years. They have completed their MBA and they worked their way up in your organization starting in operations or customer service. They don't walk around with their silver spoon visible and they don't wear their family title on their sleeve. "Piece of Cake!"Let's face Reality--- That scenario, although it certainly does exist, is the exception and not the rule. In most cases privately held businesses generally have several family members working in the business. When the president has more than one child in the business, things start to get more complicated. Before we dive into that challenge, "How do we select the next President?" let's review a few statistics.• Family business is the driving force behind the US economy providing over 50% of our employment• 59% of family owned businesses have only 1 or 2 owners• 25% of family owned businesses surveyed in 2004 stated they would seek non family member CEO's for succession• Key areas that family owned businesses seek advice and counsel on include:--- Strategic Planning--- Organizational Design--- Operational Effectiveness--- Leadership Development--- Succession Issues--- Compensation--- Sales Effectiveness--- Risk ManagementNow, how do you decide on who should be the next President? If you are not one of the lucky few described in the opening scenario and you have multiple family members working in the business, your stress level is already at a high point. First, many if not all family members working in the business have feelings of entitlement to some degree. This is generally true of at least one if not all of the president's kids. Choosing the next president becomes even more difficult if the children have used their name as a title instead of the actual title of the job function they performed and the position they hold in the company (This is often unintentional and some kids don't even realize it). This difficulty increases exponentially if none of the kids have demonstrated a high level of competence, respect for all employees, leadership skills that pattern the servant style and at least some promise of potential to fill the president's shoes.Although the majority of parents would prefer that their children take over the business and carry on the family legacy, this is not always the best option available. I know it is difficult for any parent to admit that their child may not possess the skill sets necessary to take over as President of the company. However, that situation actually does exist in many family businesses.What are the options if Junior isn't ready? --- The first two questions to ask yourself are: "Will Junior ever be ready?" "Does Junior have the ability to learn how to become President?"As difficult as it is to accept, your answers to these questions alone are not good enough. If you have a Board of Directors, you should solicit their input and recommendations. Hire a Human Resource Consultant to do an assessment of not only Junior but other executives in your organization that may be qualified for the Presidency. Conduct 360 degree reviews to get input from peers and subordinates. Precisely define the Presidents role and responsibilities and match these requirements to Junior's skill sets. If you don't have a board, create one before the transition. Include the following action items as part of the transition plan:• Create a development transition training program for the new President (This should be designed as an internship)• Clearly define the former Presidents role after the transition. Will he remain and come into the office? Will he become Chairman of the Board? What responsibilities will the former President retain?• Manage the expectations of other family members. Do not allow family tension to create tension in the business. This could lead to employees taking sides.• Use your attorney to cover all legal issues• Create a real Board of DirectorsThe Family business can be complex--- The family business structure can be complex and confusing. This is especially true when numerous family members work in the business. The business is composed of interdependent relationships between functions and people that depend on the ability to work toward common objectives. A family owned business with multiple family members has twice as many opportunities for mistakes, resentments and complacency. Teamwork is essential and effective communication is critical. It is of paramount importance that employees are recognized as the true reason for success. Family issues must not penetrate the business environment. Holding family business meetings, off site, on a regular basis is highly recommended.These meetings should be used to air feelings, check boundaries and clarify roles and responsibilities as they are being played out. The President must keep his finger on the pulse of the company culture and environment. Family members must be challenged as issues arise that are detrimental to the long term success of the company. Some companies create a "Code of Conduct" just for this reason. Regular confidential employee surveys are also a useful tool in this regard. (E-mail rick@ceostrategist.com for a complimentary copy of "A Guide to Leadership Succession in the Family Business")It's your company, it's your legacy and when all the cards are played it is still ultimately your decision. Listen to your employees, listen to your executive team, get some outside advice and then ----- trust your instincts as a professional business person. Remember, you can always sell the business or bring in an outsider as President.__________________________________________Kids and Guns ------ I'm probably going to get a lot of negative feedback about this but so be it. Just prior to sitting down for Thanksgiving dinner I was reading the local newspaper and came across an article titled, "How young is too young to hunt?" The newspaper had a picture of a young boy, 6 years old holding a .223 caliber rifle with a scope. He was all dressed up in camouflage gear. The article talked about this young boy killing his first deer when he was five years old with one shot from his .223 caliber rifle. The boy himself was excited as he talked to the reporter."I shot it right behind the front shoulder. Dropped it right in its tracks," the boy said. This boy of six stands 4 feet tall and weighs 50 pounds. He's a good student that earned an award for responsibility in kindergarten that year. KINDERGARTEN!But he'd rather be hunting. "I like it," he said. "Shooting a gun and shooting at the animals and killing them."The article went on to talk about an eight year old girl that made headlines last month by shooting the first black bear of the season. This was in Maryland and there is no minimum age limit for hunting. You have to be sixteen or eighteen in most states to drive a car but you can shoot a .223 caliber rifle with a scope at 5 years old. Now, I have to say that although I am not a hunter, I am not opposed to hunting. I am also not opposed to guns. I own one myself. After all, it's legal to carry a concealed weapon in Florida (It's a matter of state pride that we return fire in a drive by!) But, I do shudder when I think about a five or six year old in the woods with a .223 caliber weapon, even if they are with their Father who may be an expert hunter. A .223 caliber rifle can kill someone or something a mile away. Beyond that, how do we determine that the maturity level and the responsibility level of a six year old are such that what is learned about weapons in the woods stays in the woods when that child begins to mature?Yes, the federal government spent a lot of money on a study that said, "Guns do not turn children into criminals." This study concluded the best way to reduce firearm related violence is to buy them a gun and teach them how to use it responsibly. Give me a Break!Let's not forget, guns are unregulated consumer products. In Texas guns are said to kill six children and teenagers every week of every school year. I personally believe that guns and kids are a volatile combination. Between 1996 and 2000, 1,541 children died in Texas from gun violence and for every child that died, four others went to the emergency room for gun related injury. Six out of ten child suicides are completed using guns. And this is just in Texas.To close my RANT and OUTRAGE about a five year old with a .223 caliber rifle, I want to site a project called the "Lion & Lamb Links". This was a study that asked the question, "What do you think your pre-schooler would do if he or she found a real gun---- after repeatedly warned NOT to touch a gun." The results of this project are shocking.First a police officer was brought into a class of 60 children. His message was clear and precise. "Don't touch guns --- they are deadly and dangerous. If you see a gun, leave the area. Tell an adult." The children were asked to repeat his words and they could answer his questions. They were later left alone with disarmed guns and the majority of the children picked them up and shot everything in sight. This was reported by Hardy in a NY Times editorial.The second study with a different group of children lasted five days. The children were instructed on how to make good choices, how to resist peer pressure and how to distinguish toys from dangerous objects, guns. The results were the same. When left alone the children began playing with the guns just as group one did. Most of the six year olds could tell the difference between the toy guns and the real guns but they played with them anyway.Ask yourself, would your kid play with a gun, even if you trained him in the woods to hunt? Does your six year old have the maturity to handle the knowledge about something as deadly as a gun?I apologize in advance to my gun distributor friends. But I've got to say, I would be awful nervous hunting in the woods knowing there were 5, 6, 7 & 8 year olds in those woods with loaded rifles. In fact, you won't catch me near the woods during hunting season._______________________________________________________________15 Revealing Questions To Ask A New Sales Candidate1. Tell me about why you want to succeed at sales.2. Where does your sales passion come from?3. What is the last sales book you read?4. Tell me about the last book you've read on creativity.5. Tell me about the biggest sale you ever made.6. What was the biggest reason you got it?7. Tell me about the biggest sale you lost.8. What do you say when a prospect says, "I want to think it over"?9. What do you say when a prospect says, "I'm satisfied with my present supplier"?10. What do you say when a prospect says, "Your price is too high"?11. How often do you listen to or read personal development information?12. When did you attend your last seminar?13. How do you improve your presentation skills?14. What is your most creative approach to follow-up?15. Give me your 30-second personal commercial. Your elevator speech.These are just a few examples to get you started in the interview.__________________________________________Client CornerRickI just turned 70 years old. I am ready to turn over the reigns of my company to one of my three sons. I own a ____parts distributor with revenues that should exceed $48 million by year end 2005. All three have worked in the business for the past 15 years. I don't want to sell and I really want one of my sons to carry on the family legacy. My problem --- I don't know which son to hand the Presidency to. I hired a consultant to do an assessment to help me make a decision. The consultants, after doing a battery of tests and interviews determined that my current Vice President of sales is the only internal candidate that is qualified to take over as President. This gentleman has been with me for 25 years, he's a great guy, and I have no doubt that he can do the job but he is not one of my sons. To complicate matters even more, the son that I was leaning towards handing the Presidency to got the worst rating of anybody on the 360 degree review. In fact, the consultant privately advised me that I should consider getting this son out of the business before my transition into retirement. They also advised that one of my two remaining sons may be able to step it up and take over the reins in three to five years. He is 45 years old now. I can't wait that long to retire. What do you recommend?George ------ Mid WestDear George:You are facing quite a dilemma. Obviously, the easy answer is to sell the business. However, I take it from the passion in your memo that you will not consider that option. At 45 years old your son should be ready to take over as president now. If he is not ready now, chances are not great that he will be ready in 3 to 5 years. You haven't done a very good job as his coach and mentor. That being said, if you are adamant about one of your sons taking over the business you might want to consider this scenario. Appoint your VP of sales as your successor with the understanding that one of his primary responsibilities is to develop your son to take over the company in three years. Make sure that you are generous to this VP in constructing a contract that makes him well if something happens to you and your sons decide to throw him off the bus. If your son doesn't develop enough to really run the company in three years, you might consider leaving your former VP of sales in the role of President and appoint your son CEO. He could be the outside face for the company, carryon the family name but have your President run the business on a day to day basis. This assumes that your son is willing to play that role and supports the President in his day to day role. It is not the ideal solution but it is an option that can be considered. However, be very cautious in determining what your sons are willing to accept and how they will react. A family legacy means nothing if the business goes down the tubes due to internal strife caused by intolerable family issues. This is a short answer that requires a lot more discussion.Good Luck and let me know how things progress.Rickhttp://www.ceostrategist.com E-mail rick@ceostrategist.com for prior issues of The Howl. Dr. Rick Johnson (rick@ceostrategist.com) is the founder of CEO Strategist LLC. an experienced based firm specializing in leadership and the creation of competitive advantage. Rick received an MBA from Keller Graduate School in Chicago, Illinois and a Bachelor's degree in Operations Management from Capital University, Columbus Ohio. Rick completed his dissertation on Strategic Leadership and received his Ph.D. on April 15, 2005
Keyword : Executive management, family business, board of directors, succession,

Paradigms or Bust

Author : Graeme Nichol
It's amazing, people we meet and know are all striving for success, in business or their personal lives but they rarely achieve it. Or rarely do they think they have achieved it.
Why is this? They have a mindset that holds them back. We read about this and similar statements and then laugh it off as some mumbo jumbo foo foo stuff.Why? Well probably because of our education and backgrounds. The more educated we are the more we ask; "How can that #@$bleeping stuff be of any value to me?" Then we realize that in many ways our education was designed to create workers who didn't challenge the conventions and wisdoms!One of the powerful mental attitudes we have is our individual paradigm under which we operate. This paradigm for all intents and purposes is created through our learning and our experiences. The good stuff and the bad. Now it's the bad stuff we are trying to shy away from to move ahead with our lives and careers. Well, we could learn from the bad stuff as well as the successes. Build on the successes for even greater rewards.The 'knowing doing gap'. We know what to do but just are not doing it, or enough of it!We know that our brains are living organs that are programmed by us on a daily basis. What we tell our brain is what our brains allow us to do. The synapses of the brain and associated chemistry are what create our memory.One of the great things about science is its assumption that what we think we know today will probably be proven wrong tomorrow. Developed theories, by earlier scientists are essentially platforms enabling us to climb higher, as Sir Isaac Newton said, "If I have been privileged to see farther than others, it's because I stood on the shoulders of giants."It's only by asking questions, challenging the assumptions and the "truths" taken for granted at a point in time, that science progresses. The Pythagorean Brotherhood knew this and tried to keep control of knowledge. They only wanted their brotherhood to succeed. They didn't succeed and society has developed and thrived as a response!What if this turned out to be true for our personal lives, our individual growth and progress? What if we could challenge our assumptions and do things we never thought possible? Guess what? You can. It is true. When you break free of your assumptions about yourself, you will grow more than you ever thought possible.It's amazing to see how many businesses falter under limiting beliefs. We can't sell so many! That will never work here… We tried that… are all limiting their success.In developing strategic plans; do we look at our belief systems, collectively and individually? No. We do SWOT analyses and Porters' 5 Forces but we don't look at the factors inhibiting success within the individuals creating the plan. Or the factors affecting the learning disabilities of the organization. So if we can create new paradigms that will take the organization and its staff to new successes, wouldn't that be powerful?Including your limiting paradigm and developing a powerful new paradigm going forward is what will lead us to success.Isn't this interesting? What is amazing is that this is a core part of the Best Year Yet Process. Test it out for yourself as a free introduction at http://www.bestyearyet.com/Personal/BYYONew1.cfm?lang=US please ut the code283 in so I know how many of my readers looked at this!By Graeme Nichol of Arcturus Advisors. Please visit their website at http://www.arcturusadvisors.com. Arcturus Advisors works with the Best Year Yet process to help business teams increase their productivity and performance by ensuring that team members are all on the same page and pulling in the same direction.
Keyword : Paradigms. planning ,strategy, limiting beliefs

In-sourcing an ERP Supplier - A Quick Match of Profiles

Author : Hans Bool
If your company is -- in the make-buy-outsource decision -- taking the step to "Buy" it will face a lot of challenges. This doesn't mean that a decision to Make would leave you with less uncertainties. If you do opt for addressing your resources in making your own systems you will face the same level of challenges, but these ones will stay within your company. You do not have a benchmark, because you have chosen to build a proprietary solution that is specific only for your situation. There is no way to check whether you did a good job.In this sense, the step to Buy is a new one. You have chosen to go for a more best-practice approach and in the area of Enterprise Resource Planning; there are many vendors that provide packages.Such a package should not only serve your company but many others too. There are various ways of handling such a ERP selection process. In this article I'll focus only on the in-sourcing question. This is a question about architecture.The Supplier of the ERP Package – the architect – has constructed the package according to specific principles. This is visible in the style of the solution. Also, the design of the functionality (of the package) is focused according to the demands of a target group. This would result in a scope that addresses the ERP package. Thus, the package is the result of architecture; ideas that a made concrete in the solution to solve a need in a specific area (scope). In this particular case: an ERP problem.The problem behind ERP is how to optimize your internal process. This is not a simple equation, but rather a complex question of "aligning" or "integrating" the various activities in an optimal way. This is most of all an informational problem.The solution found by each specific ERP supplier will differ according to their architectural approach. It is this approach that you should match with your own.So the question of selecting an ERP package is about selecting an approach that would best fit your own organizational style and character. In other words, it should match your business profile.This can be done by assessing the architecture behind the ERP solution and compare this with your business profile. This comparison (Quick-scan) is something that you could plan at the level of selecting a long-list. It will also help you once you start implementing the system of your choice.© 2006 Hans BoolHans Bool is the founder of Astor White a traditional management consulting company that offers online management advice. Astor Online solves issues in hours what normally would take days.
You can apply for a free demo account
Keyword : ERP selection, business profile, matching

The Pareto-Principle and ... Benchmarking

Author : Hans Bool
The pareto-principle or the 80/20-rule was born after observations of Mr Pareto that many things in life were unequally distributed.A famous example was "that 20 percent of the people owned 80 percent of the wealth."This rule is very powerful because you can use it in many areas. One example is when dealing with projects; you know that 80 percent of the work is caused by the (last) details (20 percent). So in project management it is common practice to uncover risks as soon as possible. The thought behind this is that if you can solve the greatest risks you can solve everything.Also the argument in favor of standardization is that 20 percent of the details or exceptions cause 80 of your resources. Thus the more you are able to standardize, the more you can benefit from cost savings. This will only be the case if you sell "NO" to your customers, which is something very daring.The question with, not only, these two cases is one where you may ask: "How do we know whether we have reached the 80 percent level?"Some projects are "nearly finished" during a long time. "We are nearly there. (that's what you said last month...)" The problem might be in that case that the 80 percent level is not measured.A benchmark could very well serve to grasp this 80 percent level. For example, if you are to redesign your organization you may go for a best practice. This is a standard that has been in the market. It is not innovative – because previously used -- but it sets a measurable direction. If you choose so, you need to be sure whether this standard really is the best fit.This fit analysis is something you might ask your management advisor to prepare for you. If it is well selected the last 20 percent will finish on time.© 2006 Hans BoolHans Bool is the founder of Astor White a traditional management consulting company that offers online management advice. Astor Online solves issues in hours what normally would take days.
You can apply for a free demo account.
Keyword : Pareto-Principle, Benchmarking

Risk Management - Selecting Potential Sub-Contractors

Author : Michael Russell
The risk management of a project at the top level is complex enough, but when the infeed from outside companies has to be considered as well, it becomes even more so.Starting with the receipt of an invitation to tender from a potential customer, the steps to be taken to manage the risk associated with selecting suppliers are as follows.The project technical lead must review all the technical documentation received from the customer. Following the project team's decision that certain items need to be sub-contracted, the technical lead will write, or have a representative write, a technical requirements specification for each item to be sub-contracted, which will form part of the sub-contractor invitation to tender.In addition, all other members of the project team will review the areas of their own particular discipline (quality assurance, configuration management, etc.) and write their own specifications for flowing down to the sub-contractor invitation to tender.For each item to be sub-contracted, a procurement package will be compiled. This will contain whatever documents are deemed necessary depending on the complexity of the item in question, but as a minimum the aforementioned technical specification.To start the risk management process, all documents to be included in the procurement package will be peer reviewed. This involves at least one person of the same discipline comparing the customer requirements with those included in the sub-contractor specification to ensure that nothing has been omitted.A list of potential suppliers for each item of supply is then drawn up. Ideally, in terms of risk mitigation, there will be a minimum of three companies thought to be capable of fulfilling the technical requirement for each item, preferably more in the first instance. This list is then reduced to a manageable number (the ideal three) by reviewing the possible sub-contractors in terms of the following.Companies who have supplied goods in the past:- Quality and reliability of items supplied
- Timeliness of delivery
- Adequacy of documentation
- Attitude, flexibility and co-operation of personnel
- Ease of contract negotiation
- Pricing policy
- After sales service, including warrantyCompanies who have not supplied goods in the past- Reputation in the market place
- Quality assurance certification
- Financial stabilityThis list is not exhaustive but contains the most important areas to be considered. The most objective way of reviewing the above, is to weight each one in order of importance, devise a scoring mechanism, create a grid to be completed by each member of the review team and calculate the numbers. This method isn't foolproof but is as close as it possibly can be.At this stage, the project risk has already been reduced because the best few of the potential sub-contractors have been chosen to compete for the sub-contract.Alternatively, the selection process has shown that there is only one supplier capable of fulfilling the requirements. This requires quite different handling and will be the subject of a future article.
-------------------------------------------------------
Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Risk Management
-------------------------------------------------------
Keyword : risk management, suppliers

Interested in Leadership, or Committed to Becoming a Leader?

Author : Jim Clemmer
"Nothing is impossible; there are ways that lead to everything, and if we had sufficient will we should always have sufficient means. It is often merely for an excuse that we say things are impossible." — Francois de La Rochefoucauld, 17th century French philanthropist and social reformerMany managers in leadership roles have stunted personal growth. Their "years of leadership experience and learning" is formal education (usually technical and/or management) followed by a year or two of experience multiplied twenty or thirty times. Here's an all too typical dinner conversation I had with a senior manager in the middle of a two-day improvement workshop I was running with a senior management team. The company was in crisis. It was struggling just to stay even in its industry."What do you do to personally improve the leadership skills we discussed today?""I am afraid I don't get much time to do anything.""How many leadership or organization effectiveness books do you read a year?""One or two if I am lucky.""What about seminars, workshops, or executive learning forums?""Well, I did get to one... No, that was two years ago.""Do you listen to audio tapes in your car?""No, I am either winding down, gearing up, or talking on the phone.""How often does your management team meet to review progress, reflect on its performance, and plan for improvements?""This is the first meeting we've had in a few years."The 20th century American critic and novelist, John Gardner, once said, "all excellence involves discipline and tenacity of purpose." Both are critical elements in leadership development and personal effectiveness. Our tenacity and clarity of purpose and vision can help to spin the daily, weekly, and monthly disciplined habit strands. These become the cables that will either raise our performance or drag us down. "Paying the price" of personal improvement often focuses too much on the pain and sacrifice. I've found instead that focusing on the gain of improvement, by keeping my preferred future and purpose firmly in front of me, has been my biggest improvement habit booster.It's impossible to put an exact number of hours on the time that effective leaders invest in their own personal improvement. But I would peg the minimum around ten percent. So if we work 50 hours per week, that's about 20 hours, or two to three days per month. The type of personal development varies widely. Reading is my single biggest personal development catalyst. I started getting up 45 minutes earlier to exercise and then read personal development or spiritual material, pray and meditate for over almost two decades now. It's proven to be one of the best habits I ever developed for starting my day with more energy and constant refocus on my life's highest priorities.I read organization improvement and leadership development material in the evenings or weekends when I am at home or on airplanes (it's all too easy to dribble away this wonderfully rich, uninterrupted reading and thinking time) and hotel rooms when I travel. I find reading with a pen and my notebook computer nearby the most beneficial. I've also found that listening to audio cassettes in my car is a terrific way to catch up to speakers or authors I want to hear and conference presentations.There are as a many learning styles and pathways to personal development as there are leaders using them. A partial list includes: books, magazines, newspapers, and newsletters; special education or business television programs; customer research; pilots, experiments and "clumsy tries"; personal coaching and mentoring; benchmarking internal and external "best practices"; seminars, workshops, and skill development sessions; performance review, assessment, celebration and refocus; operational planning and strategy development sessions; customer, supplier, and internal team/organization member feedback; system and process measurement systems; audio and video tapes; computer, on-line, or multi media programs; peer groups and networks outside our organizations; teaching and training others; industry conferences and trade shows; university or college courses; keeping a personal journal; self evaluation, reflection, and improvement planning; consultants; and study tours.Many roads lead to learning. There is no best road. The key is to develop a multitude of interconnected personal learning approaches and the discipline to make our continuous personal improvement a lifelong habit.Jim Clemmer is a bestselling author and internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, workshop/retreat leader, and management team developer on leadership, change, customer focus, culture, teams, and personal growth. During the last 25 years he has delivered over two thousand customized keynote presentations, workshops, and retreats. Jim's five international bestselling books include The VIP Strategy, Firing on All Cylinders, Pathways to Performance, Growing the Distance, and The Leader's Digest. His web site is http://www.clemmer.net/articles
Keyword : leadership, leaders

So What is Ownership?

Author : Peter Hunter
Peter A Hunter, author of Breaking the Mould looks at the concept of ownership and argues his case for why change the British Airways way doesn't always fly.In order to create a performance improvement we have to do something different. If we don't how can we possibly expect to make a change?So our problem is finding out what it is that needs changing.Many management models have been tried all with varying levels of success, from Kaizen to Six Sigma, TQM and a host of others.These models are not wrong, but they all suffer from the same failing.Somewhere in each instruction book there is a phrase that equates to the following: "The key to the successful implementation of this model is ownership."Then we turn the page and begin the new chapter without ever coming across the instruction that tells us how to create that 'ownership'.Ownership is a concept that has been used and abused for years but very few people are able to give it any meaningful definition.Without understanding what it is, how is it possible to create the conditions to allow it to happen?
I prefer to think of ownership as the way that we feel about something.If it is mine, I own it, I will take care of it.If it is not mine I won't take care of it, why should I? I don't own it!The problem we have just created is that we have just defined ownership as the ability to care about something.
That concept may be very well in a soft, pink, cuddly way but it hardly has a place in a business conversation.
We want to talk about percentage points, hard savings, value add and other assorted sexy business type words.Businessmen don't want to talk about caring.But wait a minute! How many people ever wash a hire car?
Not many.
Why should they?
If the hire car doesn't belong to me, why should I care?And yet most of us take care of our own cars.
They don't come with washing instructions and nobody tells us to wash them, but we do and lovingly maintain and care for them because they are ours.After two years the hire car that we did not wash has a residual value of practically zero because nobody will buy a car that has been driven for two years by people who did not care for it.The hire car company has no option, the hire car is scrapped.Meanwhile and in the same time period your car has attained its own residual value.
It is worth ten or twelve thousand pounds.You can realise that value by selling the car or you can continue to use it reliably for another ten years.Suddenly the care that we gave the car has paid off.
We can now say that the value of that care is the cars residual value of ten or twelve thousand pounds.A residual value that the car we did not care for does not have.Now we have a solid measurable effect on the bottom line that is directly attributed to our ability to care.The suggestion at the beginning of this article is that we have to first understand what we have to change before we can figure out how to change it.I suggest that what we have to change is the way that people feel about their work.
We have to allow them to start to care about what they do.The first reaction to the suggestion that we can change the way people feel about their work is that it is nonsense.How on earth can we change the way people feel and where is the profit in it?We have already seen where the profit is, and changing the way that people feel about their work is something that happens every day and is as often as not reported on the news, except that we don't recognise it for what it is.Several years ago I watched an interview with Rod Eddington, the then Chairman of British Airways(BA).He was understandably complaining about the market share that he had lost to Ryanair, Easyjet and the other budget airlines.But he was also being quite bullish about it. He explained that in the previous three years he had reduced British Airways operating costs by five per cent.What he didn't admit to was in those same three years he had also made sixteen thousand of his staff redundant.So how did the remaining British Airways staff feel when they found out that 16,000 of their colleagues had been made redundant?Did they feel good about it? Did it make them feel secure? Did it increase their trust in BA? I don't think so.But think back a few years to the time before the redundancies.What sort of person used to work for a company like BA?Well they were the types that had dreamt about being a pilot since a young age or the stewardess whose flippant answer to the question: "Where are you going for the weekend?" was truthfully and smugly, "Barbados".British Airways staff were people who competed for their jobs and having won, were living their dreams and getting paid for it.
They were proud, motivated, and they cared about what they did.Three years later and the redundancies had changed the way they felt about their 'dream' jobs.This is the sort of change that occurs with monotonous regularity in industry.A caring and productive workforce is changed by what is done to them by their managers into one that turns up for the pay check and has no other interest in being there.British Airways changed the way their staff felt about their jobs.But they changed in the wrong direction.They are not the only organisation to have done so.To create a sustained performance improvement we need to change the way people feel, but we have to do it in the right direction.We have to allow staff to start to care about what they do.If this sounds difficult, consider, most people want to do a good job, they want to care about what they do.The only thing that stops them from caring is what is done to them in the work place.To make the change all we have to do is to find out what is stopping the workforce from caring, then stop doing it to them.Peter A Hunter
Author-Breaking the Mould
http://www.breakingthemould.co.ukIf you have ever experienced or learned something which you then knew was instinctively right - you will never have forgotten it.
Peter Hunter learned something years ago which, regrettably, most of us have still yet to learn.
When we do - once we have understood the simplicity of his book 'Breaking the Mould' - it will transform our lives forever!
Vic Baxter – Business Workout.
Keyword : article submission, articles, writers, writing, publishing, ezine, email marketing, email newsletter, email

Governance vs. Adding Value - The Role of the Board of Directors

Author : Jim Crocker
Q. What's the biggest complaint CEO's have about their Boards?
A. "The Board is a waste of time - it doesn't add any value."Q. What's the biggest complaint Board members have about their Boards?
A. "This Board feels like a waste of time - it doesn't feel like we're adding any value."Q. What's going on here?
A. Who said the role of the Board is to add value?It's not - at least not in the context of masterminding the next I-Pod or the next strategy for outsourcing production to India. That's up to the management team.The role of the Board is to govern - some Boards are even called Boards of 'Governors'. There are 5 key elements of governing effectively:
ensuring that the organization has the right CEO
ensuring that the organization has a strategic planning process
learning the business and the industry well enough to have a well-formed perspective on benefits and risk of the organization's strategic direction
monitoring to ensure that strategies are being executed as planned
monitoring to ensure that the Board is governing effectively
The Board role is a mix of three things:

out-front leadership (CEO and planning process)
knowledge and insight (business of the organization)
monitoring and compliance (measurement and policies).
Managing this mix is the responsibility of the Board chair. There isn't a more important role in the organization. Staffing the Chair role requires careful planning and insight.There are 6 key qualities of a good Board chair:
time to do the job - there are more time demands on the Chair than on anyone but the CEO
solid team builder - getting the Board on the same wavelength and creating a good working relationship with management
good delegator - there's a lot to do; the only way to get it all done is through other people
comfortable with process - the mechanics from running meetings to information disbursement are almost as important as what the Board talks about
strategic - able to lead and keep the Board focused on the high leverage issues, not minutiae
firm - knowing how to take and keep control when members, stakeholders disrupt effective workings of the Board
Overall responsibility for the Board falls to the Chair. However, strong committees are also vital to a Board's success. These committees enable the Board to stay focused and up to speed on issues like audit, compliance and human resources. A recent study shows that the average large corporate board in the US and Canada has between 4 and 5 committees.So how should organizations deal with the quiet disconnect between management and the Board over the Board's role? Does it even matter?I have a few thoughts.First, if there is an underlying tension between the Board and management it is natural and healthy. While overall goals of the Board and management are aligned - success of the organization - at the end of the day management's role and the Board's role are different: management operates and the Board judges management's performance.Second, Boards and Board Chairs need to be more explicit about their roles - with themselves and with management. By being more explicit - "our role is to govern and to assess management's performance" - Board's set expectations for their role that don't set directors or management up for disappointment.Third - and Boards seem to be doing this - Board's need to get better at their governance roles. Governance in particular is not simple. While some issues are black and white, many require in-depth knowledge of law, business, policy, and decision making process. Only by stocking Boards with diverse, independent and experienced directors can consistent, timely and correct governance decisions be made.Typically, larger business organizations are more advanced in performing their governance roles. Smaller organizations, and too many not-for-profit organizations appear to struggle with governance and seem destined to continue doing so.Board composition is a key factor. Small company boards are frequently over-stocked with self-interested parties: investors, service providers, friends and family. Not-for-profits, even the ones that attract strong, experienced board members, frequently also attract, or are mandated to include, representatives from stakeholder groups who may have little or no Board experience.In summary, I believe it DOES matter that Board's explicitly identify that their primary role is governance, and what that means. By explicitly defining their role, Board members and management teams get more satisfaction from their Board involvement. Everyone quickly comes to see that by providing strong governance, the Board IS making a significant contribution to the organization.In 1983 Jim started his consulting career with CMA Consulting. However, what goes around comes around, and as a consultant, Jim has found himself leading several companies on a consulting basis. Currently that includes a small, fast growing software company that is harnessing the web to create a significant revolution in processing of P&C insurance claims.Through Boardroom Metrics Jim offers CEO Coaching and Management Consulting to both public and private companies. He provides significant insight on management, governance and technology issues faced by executive management.
Keyword : board of directors, board role,

Hurlock's Study: Praise verses Criticism

Author : Richard L Williams
Research studies can be intellectual, academic, difficult to understand, and sometimes even irrelevant to our specific application. But there are other studies that can be very insightful and help us understand how better to do our job. There is one such study that I would like to discuss in this month's column. The information is so timely and connected to managing others that I think we all need to read and think about what the researchers discovered. The unique part of this study is that the researchers were not studying adults, but rather children. I know this may sound strange to you; however, what we learn from the study can be directly related to managing adults. So don't get caught up thinking this study doesn't relate to your job because the subjects were children.In this case the people studied were fourth and fifth grade students and the situation was how they performed in a math class. The variables introduced by the researchers were the type of feedback the students received after they took math exercises and quizzes.Dr. Elizabeth Hurlock wanted to know what reactions there would be when fourth and fifth grade students received different types of feedback on their math performance. She specifically wanted to know if it was more effective to praise, criticize, or ignore students' performance in math. And she wanted to know what would happen when students were subjected to each of those conditions. The outcome was to be decided by how many math problems each student had solved 2, 3, 4, and 5 days after receiving the different types of feedback.For her study Dr. Hurlock divided the students into four groups. In the first group students were identified by name and praised in front of other students for their good performance. Students in the second group were also identified by name in front of other students, but they were criticized for their poor performance. Students in the third group were completely ignored, although they were in the classroom to hear the other students being praised or criticized. A fourth or control group was moved to another room after the first test. Students in this group took the same tests, but they received no comments on their performance whatsoever.Now, here is what Dr. Hurlock learned. Students in the groups that were praised or criticized performed better after the first day. Then their performance changed dramatically. The students who were criticized showed a significant decline in their test scores, and by days 3 and 4, they were performing equally with students in the group that had been completely ignored.By contrast, the students who were praised experienced a major improvement after the second day that was sustained through the end of the study. By the fifth day of the study, the group that received praise showed much better performance than the other groups.
Look at the accompanying graph to see the scores of the four groups. It's startling, isn't it? Wouldn't you think that the results of this study should be standard reading for every schoolteacher in America? Sounds like it, doesn't it? But there is just one problem. Dr. Hurlock's study was conducted in 1925, that's eighty years ago! Unfortunately, the study wasn't seen as important in 1925, and, therefore, hasn't changed much behavior in the classroom since. But the results are so convincing that I would like to draw a parallel to managing adults with praise, criticism or indifference.Some managers believe that giving positive reinforcement to employees is an indication of managerial weakness. So in an attempt to appear strong and in command of the situation, they become masters of inflicting emotional pain through criticism, sarcasm or indifference. Those three tactics are called the Three Pillars of Contempt, because the most common reaction to being subjected to them is to feel contempt toward the perpetrator.With an effective management development program, school teachers and business leaders can discover that reinforcing positive performance with supportive feedback is far better than creating a contemptuous atmosphere with sarcasm, criticism or indifference. Like many things in managing others, how your employees perceive you is what really counts. Your intentions are nice and noteworthy, but they are actually irrelevant. As every psychology student learns, "perception is reality." And because it is reality we must be concerned with how we come across to others; in other words, how others see our behaviors is more important that our intentions. To do otherwise is to be foolish and ineffective.As a manager you need to be aware of the power of positive feedback along with the dangers of trying to motivate others or change behavior with the use of criticism, sarcasm or indifference. Positive reinforcement has been proved by Hurlock's study and many other studies to be the best method of getting your point across to others. It is unfortunate that so many managers haven't been convinced of that fact. Watch your own style of giving feedback for the next few weeks. Monitor how much you offer praise as supportive feedback verses how often you lapse into the Pillars of Contempt. The first step in improvement is always awareness. Increase your awareness and then work to modify your style.Dr. Richard L. Williams is a business consultant specializing in performance coaching, quality improvement, team development, leadership development and organizational development/diagnostics.To learn more about management development programs that can help empower your people through effective communication, please contact a CMOE representative at 888-262-2499.
Keyword : management development program