Management
Your project teams may be hiding problems and negative information
An interesting article was published in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology Volume 41, Issue 2, pages 401 428, February 2011. It is clearly demonstrated that as a project get's closer to completion, decision makers are more likely to conceale problems that may jeapordize it. This interesting work was undertaken at George Washington University using undergraduate students. The crux of the analysis is that a 90% complete project meant that 81% of decision makers were likely to hide nagative information or problems.
Corporate Fraud's shocking statistics
The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACDE) published an interesting report in 2010 entitled "Report to the Nations on Occupational Fraud and Abuse". They break down their operational analysis into 3 distinct categories : Asset Misappropriations Corruption Schemes Financial Statement Fraud Interestingly, they were able to show correlation between the rank of the fraudster and the value of the fraud (aka the higher the rank, the higher the value of the fraud.) Numerically, a fraud perpetrated by an owner/general manager is usually 3x more costly than that perpetrated by a "
Why you should you allow working from home and how to do it right
What are the benefits of teleworking? Before we talk about how to do it properly, I want to take a minute and quickly brain dump some of the benefits of teleworking. Not every organization will identify with every one of the items on this list but you should be able to pick out a couple that are applicable to your reality. The environmental benefits Whether you believe in this point because of your commitment to the environment or simply because of the monetary savings it provides, this is a reality most organizations will highlight.
Empower your people to perform
Over the last couple of month, I have written many articles extolling the benefits of empowering your employees. In case you have not read them, the Coles Notes version of the concept is that you are no longer a manager but a coach. Your job is to train and support your people. Your success is determined by their success. So what should you do to ensure their success? Growth Most of your employees should be knowledge workers and they want a clear path for growth.
When should you confront a co-worker?
The Rule of 3 Over the years, I have had the opportunity to participate in many interesting activities, from parachuting and bungee jumping to traveling and trying new exotic cuisines. A long time ago, I learned a simple trick called the rule of three. The basic breakdown is: First time Just do the activity Second time Learn how to do it properly Third time Do it again to determine if you like or enjoy it In a professional setting This has served me well, and over the years I have started to use this for other aspects of my life.
Power Decision Making
I encourage all of you to write in and share you concerns and opinions about the business world. I also enjoy receiving requests for possible future articles. This entry is a response from one of my readers in Dubai. The request The reader wanted guidance on decision making. How to “make” a decision, how to defend it and what to do when it is wrong. The decision making process I have coached hundreds of people and decision making seems to stress out many of them.
Rule 2 of delegation
QuickTip - Setting the right expectations Early on in my career, I was committed to perfection. Everything had to be done perfectly and methodically. Although the idea of perfection is admirable, you quickly realize that waiting for perfection often means you miss incredible opportunities. It is often better to get started on the right foot and get it done rather than aim for perfection and miss the bus. How does this apply to delegation? Simple, if you expect perfection from yourself, you will expect it from others.
Rule 1 of delegation
An important tenet of efficient and effective time management is the art of delegation. Anytime I talk about delegation with an executive, they either support it or avoid it like the plague. Their reaction is predicated on past experience. When delegating a task, executives often forget the first golden rule of delegation: training and communication. In order for the work to be performed to your satisfaction, you need to ensure that you communicate your requirements and expectations to the other person clearly and concisely.
When choice cuts into profits and margin
Until recently, most executives operated under the impression that consumers demand choice and lots of it. You could walk into any electronics store and see 5 different versions of the same computer system (each with only minute differences). But is this really what the modern, educated and busy consumer is demanding? Early this year, I read a research paper by Forrester Research (1) that discussed the experiential difference between the typical Personal Computer and the iPad. The author discusses the fact that the iPad has a “curated” experience.
Employee ideas may save your company
Most organizations are now powered by knowledge (in contrast to the manufacturing era of the 70s). Ideas are the engine of growth in the new global knowledge-based economy and executives are always on the lookout for the next big one. Many of the larger companies are so committed to finding the next big thing that they spend unconscionable amounts of money renting high-priced consultants. Most organizations I work with don’t realize the goldmine they are sitting on. There is a huge fountain of fantastic ideas right under your nose and you probably don’t even realize it.
Should you reward the good or punish the bad?
The old management mantra says “Reward the good and punish the bad”. The fact is most of you have limited time and often have to prioritize tasks. So which one would you prioritize? The pre-eminent academic paper on the topic is called “Bad is stronger than good” and can be read here : http://www.csom.umn.edu/Assets/71516.pdf They methodically walk you through the research and clearly demonstrate that negative information, experiences and people are far more impactful than positive ones. The ideal situation is where you reward and accentuate the positive and get rid of the negative.
Managing cultural differences
Note: My series on conversational hypnosis is not yet complete but I decided to change the topic a little to ensure I cater to my different readers. I have spent the better part of the last 10 years managing larger organizations with international footprints. The allure of cheaper labour costs has been too strong to ignore for most organizations. For most, this is a new experience and most are ill-equipped to handle the cultural changes that come with this type of expansion.
When change is inevitable
In every organization and at every position, managers are expected to manage change. As the old axiom goes "Change Is the Only Constant". Managing change is not difficult if you have the correct mindset. In this post, I will walk you through some of the high-level steps. It is important that you go into the situation with the proper mindset and realistic expectations. UNDERSTANDING A CHANGE In order to manage organizational change efficiently, you need to first understand what change is.