Get Out of Your Comfort Zone and Find New Action

Author : Don Monteith
Big easy chair. Cool one! Games back to back. This is the
life. Hard day at the office or the plant. On the road. In
the field. Any excuse will do. Too tired for anything new. Learning takes effort. Trying new stuff. Building. Seeing "down" the road.Surely you can see the sign. Don't park here! UNLESS you have
decided your road is finished - DONE! New business - great rewards are ready for the picking when you get outside of your old comfort zone and energize the team.GET UP!Simply do something different. Turn around. Move the worn out furniture. My wife did last week (I still don't like it!). At least she has not "messed" with my office. Just the new focus on the present means out with the old - in with NEW stuff.Take a new route. Try a new restaurant. Go to work 1/2 hour
earlier. Get off work at noon. Test the waters! Surprise your
spouse with flowers or a new fishing rod.Nothing earth shaking! Simple changes in your routine can
liven up your day. Add a spark to your step. Take time to
smell the roses. New perfumes. Notice beauty! People/things.LITTLE BY LITTLEDo NOT change everything at once. At home or the office. It
will upset the norm. Disturb the troops. Others will simply
not understand.Your staff will go bonkers. Water cooler talk will be crazy
with YOU as the subject. Has he/she lost their mind? Our goal
is to add ENERGY. Change gets our adrenaline pumping. A new
excitement fills the air.Others will want in on the new ACTION. Most of us can use a
little more excitement in our lives. At home and the office
are good "working" ground. Watch your business grow with the
renewed interest and enthusiasm. Home life, too.==============================================================
ACTION TIP - YOU are the catalyst to success. Waiting on others can be fatal to your growth. Set NEW goals. NEW challenges. Begin with small changes. Make LIFE exciting. Give your Business ACTION leadership.
==============================================================Don Monteith spent 32 years as co-owner of several franchises and a personnel/staffing business. Every year, his firm placed hundreds of job candidates in their dream job. Today, Don shares his business and career expertise through his newest websites on the Internet. Lots of FREE ideas - suggestions - ready for your perusal and study.http://www.Career-Coaching-Central.com

http://www.HowToGetYourDreamJob.com
Keyword : career,jobs, personnel,employment,staffing,hiring,employer

Leadership Revisited: Shedding Light on the Importance of Execution Leadership

Author : Rich Fredricksen
As strange as this might seem, leadership is an abstract concept to most managers. While it seems logical that leadership is an essential element in terms of management, it is often a concept which is overlooked, simply because managers perceive it to be too grandiose and intangible to detail. In fact, neglecting leadership has harmed management in many ways. Here are a few observations about those holding leadership positions:• Most leaders are waiting to be told what to do• Most leaders are operating at least one level below their position• Leaders do not think (or act) like they are running a business• Leaders can easily point out the problems with other groups but have trouble critiquing their own operation• Managing stakeholders is a mystery to most leaders• Ideas exist for better performance but leaders do not know how to organize and focus their plansSo what is leadership exactly? Merriam-Webster defines it as "the office or position of a leader; the capacity to lead; the act or an instance of leading." These seem to be pretty abstract definitions, which may be why many management professionals are not performing up to par.Before explaining what leadership is, it is important to detail the traits of a superior leader. These traits are clarity, confidence, and courage. Clarity is the ability to engage the organization around your plans and objectives. It means providing clear and unambiguous expectations, and communicating in simple terms. Confidence refers to a positive attitude with which to build a team. Confidence is well thought out and challenged plans and approaches, and the ability to overcome obstacles. Courage, of course, is the willingness to take risks.While keeping the "Three C's" in mind, I have devised a list of habits for leaders to follow. We call it the leader's daily dozen:1. Set the example. This involves practicing your own values and the values of the organization, having a positive attitude, and creating a climate of integrity.2. Measure. Strong leaders should know what metrics drive performance, and should use metrics to understand and improve.3. Develop leaders. Not only should leaders develop their own skills, they should also work to develop leaders. By supporting, challenging, trusting and teaching your team, you will mold your workers into leaders.4. Communicate. This involves selecting the best medium for communicating, planning your own communications, and listening well to others.5. Simplify. Sort through the complexity of situations in order to reduce churn. Make sure to remove obstacles and focus on the critical issues.6. Create ownership. By involving your employees in the planning of tasks, and helping them understand "why," you generate commitment from the group.7. Provide clarity. Give clear, well understood instructions, and be unambiguous in your vision and goals for the group.8. Manage risk. Be mindful and consider what is around the corner, and build risk management into all of your groups' activities.9. Deliver results. Lead for results and continuous improvement, and always remember that performance matters.10. Take action. This involves creating a sense of urgency within the group. Work to accomplish tasks that move the group forward. Always take accountability.11. Reward success. Always acknowledge positives and don't just manage the negatives. Make sure to always reward the efforts and successes of your people.12. Think. Make time to think and reflect. Try to understand the situation beyond my perspective.By discovering these habits and learning to take on the traits of a superior leader, success will surely follow. Leader's are guaranteed success when these habits are observed.Rich Fredricksen is the founder and Principal of Strong•Leader, an organization that works to help individuals and organizations achieve success by improving their execution capabilities. PFG has created a unique program called Strong•Leader to help these organizations and leaders deliver results while developing sustainable leadership and execution skills. Rich is a graduate of The U.S. Military Academy with a BS in Engineering Management. He has an MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.
Keyword : Leadership,

Project Management: Performance Metrics Matter

Author : Ryan Leibowitz
A study has shown that many project managers do not sufficiently keep track of the performance metrics of their teams. This results in consistent cost overruns, going over schedule, failing to meet expectations in quality, and seeking new employment elsewhere. Think about it, what are you managing really if you don't even know the metrics? Is management merely a process of simply checking off to do lists for you? It shouldn't be. Here's why.

In order for management to make decisions, data is critical. Data shows helps you define your benchmarks, and also define forecasts for improving upon baselines for continued company expansion and growth. Things such as Total Quality Management, Improvement Teams, Standards and Measurement departments, Process Management, Quality Circles, Six Sigma, etc are not just buzz words people. Pick a system for measuring and quantifying your data and quickly measure the lifeline of your project vis a vis your overall goals. Find out where your bottlenecks are, find out where the cost overruns are taking place, and quickly identify why your Widget sales are declining before it becomes an irreversible money draining problem. This allows you then to take action whether hiring an operations consultant to integrate processes, or in the decision to release staff in certain non-critical areas.

Metrics need to be constantly monitored and measured. Charts, graphs, and summary data need to be reviewed on a regular time table whether it's weekly, monthly, or quarterly basis. From then you can then navigate your business or department towards a profitable plateau. Failure to comply with these very basic performance metrics analysis could result in flushing valuable time, money, employee morale, and reputation down the proverbial toilet if these things are ignored in your project or managerial role.

A rule of thumb is that ANY system in place for measuring performance metrics is better than having none at all. If you are in a dynamic environment and already have 2 or 3 projects in the air, then feel free to gradually introduce these factors based on your industry line.Monitor progress with free project management software and improve your management abilities via project management program training.
Keyword : project management, management, time tracking, total quality management

The Differences Between Line and Project Management

Author : Hans Bool
The first difference between these two is that line or middle management is mainly about operational and to a lesser extent about tactical management.
Operational management is about managing daily activities. Tactical management is the "layer" between operational and strategic management; "How do we get there," is one of the questions the tactical manager is dealing with.In that sense, the project manager of program manager for who manages various projects, is the tactical manager. He or she is concerned with the issue of transforming the organization to its future form.The operational manager addresses most of its energy to directing people. Motivating, delegating, controlling, etc. in order to perform activities and gain results. On the short term the other resource categories are fixed.The project of program manager is concerned with planning. How to prepare for the near future and reserve resources for doing this.One important issue that is just rising between these two (operational and tactical) management areas; "should we close the shop during this period?" and "What will the client notice?" The dilemma is that in order to serve future clients you need to invest and focus on the long term that might impact the current performance. Clients will notice this...Another important issues between these two is that the operational management receives most of the information. Information that is required for longer term projections and planning. But also information that is volatile.
In small business management these responsibility are combined in the role of operational management. The challenge is the same; how do we focus on the longer term, not forgetting about the targets of this year.For both situation the best solution is to plan: the budget for the current year should include the activities and investments that are for the longer term. The more you can plan for the near future, the more energy you save for current business issues.In the mean time you should not forget that only the operational business defines the success for the future. Information about these two is like a critical success factor.© 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.
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Keyword : CSF, Critical success factor, line management, project management

Effective Performance Management

Author : Michael Beitler
Recently the Aberdeen Group completed a study on performance management. They found that companies with best-in-class employee performance management systems produce 50 to 70 percent more revenue than those that don't have a good system. That finding gets my attention.We also know, from earlier studies, that top performers are four times as productive as the weakest performer in an organization.Bob Rogers, the president of Development Dimensions International (www.ddiworld.com), has said, "The majority of the workforce is randomly trying to achieve success without any real understanding of how success is measured for them in the organization." The need for an effective employee performance management system is clear.An effective employee performance management system establishes goals and measures results regularly.A major performance management problem in organizations today is ignoring poor performance. Ignoring poor performance tells everybody that mediocrity is acceptable. In a hyper-competitive world this is deadly. The negative impact on even the top performers is only a matter of time.Typically, managers can identify poor or mediocre performance, but they choose to ignore it. Very often these managers have past experiences when they did not receive positive support from higher management when they attempted to confront poor performers. A lack of high level support leads to a culture of "looking the other way."Senior leaders in the organization set the tone for performance expectations. Developing managers throughout the leadership pipeline requires training and rewards for effective performance management. Managers must be trained and evaluated on their ability to provide feedback to employees about performance. Developing employees is a critical task for all managers.Organizations must make the role of every employee clear. At Dell Computer, the company's "The Sole of Dell" program shows how every employee contributes to the success of the company. Michael Dell believes individual accountability begins with his role and the roles of senior management.Every organization must make performance expectations and performance measurements clear. Only with clear expectations and measurements can we compete in any field.Dr. Mike Beitler is the author of "Strategic Organizational Learning". Read 2 free chapters from the book online at http://www.strategic-organizational-learning.com
Keyword : performance management, management development, performance measurement

Staff Retention - is It a Big Issue for Employers?

Author : John Schonegevel
A Big IssueBig Issues are those that cost your organisation money – lots of money. On that criterion, staff retention is, for many companies, right up there with the biggest of their big issues. And, given the current vacancy and staff turnover levels in many organisations, it has the potential to become an ever bigger issue. Unless you do something positive about it now.Let's look at some numbers;Our 'typical' business services firm employs around 1,000 people and has a staff turnover of 15% per annum. We have developed a Financial Impact Model which enables us to assess the impact of losing and replacing staff. This is clearly most accurate when using specific company figures, but still gives useful input at a more generalised level.Applying the model, we estimate that the total costs (direct and indirect) of 15% staff turnover to this company are around £1,300,000. Or somewhere between 20% to 50% of its annual profits!Of course this is an oversimplification. Indeed, some level of staff turnover is both expected and required. But what level? What cost is acceptable? And, assuming that it is lower than the current level, what can be done to improve staff retention so that the desired level is achieved?Mitigating the challenge of staff attrition.We suggest that managers;1. Recognise that staff retention is a Big Issue. This can be achieved by ensuring it is measured. And in sufficient detail across the various functions, roles and levels within your organisation. Put the business management spotlight on retention. Don't sideline it as an 'HR issue'. It isn't. It is an issue for general management as well as HR.2. Calculate the financial implications. They are likely to vary significantly between organisations and indeed between departments and teams e.g. the organisational and costs structure and profit drivers of an outsourcing function will result in different loss and replace costs to those of a management consulting unit. Consider using a specialist to help you work through this.3. Understand why people leave. Survey after survey show similar results. People don't generally leave because of pay; in fact salary is generally considered less important than career progression, seeking new challenges and achieving greater recognition. Again you may wish to explore the specific reasons that affect your organisation. If so, how about exit surveys and structured interviews?4. Establish a programme to improve staff engagement and enthusiasm. These same surveys also point out the solution to improving retention rates. Provide your key staff with the means to continually improve the impact and contribution they make to your business and to their own personal development. Help them to understand how they can have frequent 'Career Bests' in their daily work. Help them to understand how they can improve their performance over time, taking on greater challenges, building their capabilities and matching their skills and passions with the organisations needs. Help them recognise that career development doesn't just mean a promotion into a more senior role. Rather it means moving through different stages of contribution, each one adding more value to themselves and to the business.Build the coaching competencies of all your supervisory and managerial staff. Our research has shown just how important it is that supervisors and managers know how to enable high performance and commitment.5. Set clear expectations. Employers and employees have shared responsibilities for personal development. Be clear as to what they are and how they are agreed. Build this into your development management system and link it to your performance management process.6. Measure it. Once you've built a programme, make sure that its impact and value is measured against costs and results. Above all measure all your supervisory staff on their ability to reduce staff turnover and to build teams of committed, effective, engaged and enthusiastic staff.And if you would like to discuss any of these issues with a specialist, talk to me on +44 (0)1252 727980 or email info@new-frontiers.co.ukJohn Schonegevel is a Director of New Frontiers.New Frontiers helps employers retain and develop great people. We specialise in developing and sustaining high performing people at work. High performance comes from skilled and motivated staff, working smoothly towards achieving clear goals.We work to change peoples' behaviours enabling them to increase their impact and value at work and significantly grow the contribution they make to their employer's business results.Our role is to support people in taking responsibility for meeting both their employers goals and their own, increasing their capabilities and so leading to sustained high performance, full engagement and ongoing enthusiasm at work.New Frontiers is a Novations Consulting Partner
Keyword : staff turnover, staff retention, organization development, human resources, organisation development

Delegation For Managers: What Should You Do And What Should You Delegate?

Author : Anna Johnson
As a manager, you're expected to decide what needs to be done, gather the resources to do it, and then decide who does what.Okay, managing is a little more than that, but it certainly does include setting goals, gathering resources, and delegating tasks.Now, if you're like many managers, there sometimes isn't any clear line between the work you think you should do, and the work you think your staff should do.In fact, you may not be a "pure" manager (is there such a thing?) in the sense that you are expected to do some of the "doing" as well as the "managing".For instance, you might roll up your sleeves and get behind the counter of your store now and again... you might go out on the road and sell at times... you might handle some of the consulting projects yourself... you might do a range of tasks that mirror those that your staff do.Of course, you want to make the most of your time -- and the time of the people who work for you -- in order to generate the best possible results from your team as a whole.So how do you decide who does what? How do you decide what you should do, and what your staff should do?Now, you're probably well aware that just because someone enjoys doing something it doesn't mean they're good at it... so I won't insult your intelligence by suggesting that you allocate tasks purely on the basis of what people like to do.On the contrary, your rationale may be: "whoever is best at doing a particular job should do it."Unfortunately...Bzzzzzzz! Wrong -- thanks for playing!Sorry, I couldn't resist.I know -- it seems logical that if you, or someone else -- is better at a certain task than anyone else, then you or that other person should do it.But many times this does not generate the most overall value!I'm not going to bore you with theory, but there's an economic principle called "comparative advantage" that, when applied to management, essentially says that when allocating tasks among people, each person should not do what they are best at, but what they are "most best" at.In other words, each person should do the things that generate the most value for the group as a whole.So, let's say you run a consultancy. We'll keep it simple and imagine you can do two things very well -- you're an excellent manager, and you're an outstanding consultant. In fact, you're better at managing and consulting than each of the consultants you employ.Now, given that you're the best consultant you have, you may be tempted to forego some of your management duties to spend more time consulting.But before you do so... ask yourself: what is likely to generate the best overall results (as in revenues, profits or however else you measure results)?Is it focusing wholly on managing, or doing less managing and more consulting?The answer is, of course, that it depends on what you are "most best" at. If you're better at managing than consulting -- in the sense that for every hour you spend managing your team you indirectly generate greater results than what you generate for an hour you spend consulting -- then you should spend all your time managing. Regardless of how much you enjoy consulting, and regardless of the fact that you're better at consulting than everyone else in your firm.The principle of comparative advantage equally applies to allocating and delegating tasks to everyone in your team... and outside your team too -- for example, outsourcing.In fact, it applies to allocating every kind of resource you have.So I encourage you to use this approach -- you might be amazed at how much more time it gives you... and how much better the productivity and performance of you and your staff.Anna Johnson is the author of the How To Manage People System, which includes her controversial new book, How To Manage People (Even If You're A Control Freak!) (ISBN 0-9775175-0-0). For invaluable advice on managing employees, claim your copy of Anna's FREE 12-page report, How To Be An Outstanding Manager -- The 8 Vital Keys To Managing People Effectively.
Keyword : managing employees,delegation,project management,small business management,business