I believe success is just a fleeting moment when your realities match your expectations.

I also realize, for many, the number of those moments they experience overtime defines what they (and perhaps others) see as a successful life.

So why are some people more successful than others?

I have met many people in many lands over my life and although opportunities for some seem limited, even amongst those in the direst of circumstances, there are some people that make a great success of their life. I am talking about success when it is measured against the relative or real opportunities that exist for individuals due to the circumstances of their existence.

What is it that helps some rise whilst others languish in mediocrity?

Obviously there is no simple answer however I have noticed some common traits in those that succeed.

The first pillar of success (or trait that successful people seem to have) is that: “those who succeed invariably believe that SUCCESS IS A CHOICE”.

I read an article titled “SUCCESS IS A CHOICE!! It is that simple…” by a Jim McGilvary where he told a story of business woman who could not get her business to where she wanted it to be. He said in the article:

“I told her and I am telling you:

• Make no more excuses for not having success

• Hold yourself accountable for the good and the bad

• STOP the negative thinking

• STOP worrying about the “naysayers”

• Laugh in the face of the unknown and…

• Make the choice right now, that you will do what it takes to have success.

He goes on by saying:

“I will leave you with one last thought: To fail is to have tried. To try [in itself] is to have success. You cannot have success without some failure. Choose to try, whether you fail or succeed. You cannot have success without trying. Keep choosing to have success and you will have it. It is as simple as that.”

Now perhaps his advice is a little glib and it is not quite “as simple as that” particularly for those who are very in difficult situations, however if you think about it the logic is quite sound.

So point one is you must choose to succeed.

The second pillar is:

The need to have a STRONG PERSONAL VISION

In the video “The Power of Vision” Joel Barker explores the value of having a strong personal vision of a positive future. He stresses that this is a key, not only to success, but in some cases to survival itself. In one segment he tells the story of Viktor Frankl and says; “this remarkable man is the author of the outstanding book Man’s Search for Meaning.” Frankl he explains was a prisoner in Ausweise and Barker tells how “his strong sense of having a future saved both his life and the life of others.” The survivors had a common trait and he says… and I quote:  “all of those who made it through had [or at least believed they had] something significant yet to do in their future”. A vision of a positive future is a powerful driver in us all.

The third pillar is competence.

All people will naturally gravitate to those whom are competent. So what is competence? “ Competence is: ‘the ability to create and apply a solution to a particular problem’. Whether the problem is a leaky tap or a brain tumour competent people will always be sought after and success usually follows them. How do you become competent, learn, fail, re-learn, adjust, practice and hone your skill and build your knowledge and experience. There are no shortcuts.

The fourth pillar of success (or personal trait) is the ability to win during times of change and uncertainty.

Notice I didn’t say cope. Coping is just not good enough for success, we need to find ways to excel in a constantly changing universe. The skills you will need to do that are primarily an ability to stay focussed on your goals, a willingness to remain optimistic and an attitude of persistence and high levels of commitment. You need to have the strength of character to stay true to your vision even in times of great uncertainty. You will also need to develop an ability to analyze situations, deal with half-truths and minimal information and with all that still seek out and grasp opportunities to thrive.

Finally the fifth pillar is: To be able to work well with others.

That means you have to become a student of (and reach some reasonable level of understanding of) human nature. You must to succeed be willing to engage in politics. Politics is always present when humans are together whether at social outings or in the workplace. As part of working well with others you must become expert in communication… particularly the “learning to listen” part of communication. The are many articles and posts on this website covering the issues (or art) of communication and I commend them to you.

So what is success, other than what I have said so far it’s a lot of hard work, which of course is the reality of our existence… because… nobody… truly gets a free ride. Wait you say what about those that are born into successful rich families. Well they have the same problem as the rest of us, often their realities just do not match up to their (or even others) expectations.

The “survive or thrive” checklist

1. Have you given yourself time to think and analyze the new situation (reality) thoroughly calmly and properly?

2. Are you able to ensure you can avoid misinterpretations and have you, through questioning effectively, gathered enough information on how things will be to make a rational decision on what the change will mean to you?

3. Have you looked for the opportunities a changed state will bring you rather than being driven by the fear of negative results being imposed upon you?

4. Have you inserted yourself in the change process so you are able to influence the outcomes that are important to you? (As opposed to becoming a negative, head in the sand naysayer.)

5 Based on what you have understood of your changed reality have you researched what shills you will need to develop to thrive in a new environment?

6. Are you focussing on the long-term or just frazzled by the moment and are you actively planning to ensure your future well being?

7. Are you able to match your values with the new situation if knot have you developed and exit strategy?

8. Have you gathered around you a positive group to ensure you can maintain emotionally supportive relationships during what is a natural period of stress?

Change is the only constant… who said that? Best of luck if you are going through a period of change, try to mange the process well.

Seeing life as a continuous learning experience plus being prepared to change our attitude and to let go of our proven ‘norms’ will not only help us overcome our fear, it will prepare us to deal with a new reality. Example; how many people for years worried about the cold war. Some became so paranoid they dug shelters and stocked them with supplies. Is the world full of holes stuffed with stale or rotting food? The one key to winning during change is to learn how the process is being implemented and to seek new competencies (through training) that you will need to operate in the new environment.

Tip: One great way to become more rational, less fearful and reduce our level of stress and worry during change is to sit and try to think of what we were worried about this time last year. Can’t remember? Most of us can’t. Remember (and believe), this time next year today’s woes will fade also.

In line with the need to see life as a continuos learning experience we should be prepared to fail and then analyse our failures to see how we can do things better the next time. If we are not prepared to fail we will be unable to make decisions and ‘a bad decision is better than no decision at all’. Just imagine if the first time we tried to stand up and because we failed we couldn’t decide whether to try again or not. Think about crawling to work for the rest of your life. How many times do sporting greats fail before they break a world record? Every failed putt, throw of the ball or toss of the javelin leads to a bank of knowledge that improves our performance. You really only fail if you don’t learn from the experience.

Hang on… what about hang gliding? Breaking the change process into smaller digestible pieces is the same principle as learning anything new. The old adage that people learn by ‘littles’ is a truism that can help. If we are going to accept change and overcome our fear we need to jump from small ledges before attempt large cliffs. If we break the change process into its smallest pieces our nervousness will be reduced. It also stands to reason that if we can see where we are going we are more confident than if we are leaping into the dark.

“ONLY I CAN CHANGE MY LIFE. NO ONE CAN DO IT FOR ME” – Carol Burnett

Change – Looking Ahead and Getting Others Involved

If we implement a change process we need to shine a light on the future. The best way is through a plan based on the various scenarios we have regarding the future. We must then effectively communicate a sound vision, develop the plan and succinctly explain the role of each of the stakeholders. This means we have to understand and advise every individual of their role in where they and we are heading. In my experience the only real question ever asked when a meeting on change is held is “WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO ME”. This question is often disguised as some technical enquiry regarding future operational difficulties… however it is the only question that is on the minds of those involved in change. If we don’t give or get a satisfactory and personal answer to their or our concerns fear levels (and resistance) increase enormously.

A close relative of mine was working for an advertising company that was being taken over, (the Big Change) and I offer the following story for your consideration. At the end of the process he ended up with a better job in the “merged” organization. As the company I was working for at the time was also being taken over I asked his advice. This is what he said, ‘fear of not knowing what is going on leads to resistance so you must be involved in the change process to the point of being seen as an active participant, particularly when critical decisions are made. Don’t avoid your responsibilities, volunteer and devote time to engineering the new situation… help the process don’t hinder it. Don’t hold a false and fruitless loyalty to the way things were. Listen to everything and ask for explanations. Avoid only hearing what your pre-conceived ideas are telling you about what may be happening and constantly seek to understand. Stay open and honest and speak the truth and… the hardest of all… control what you can however let go of that which you cannot’, or as another colleague of mine once put it, “don’t waste your energy fighting battles you can’t win”. It worked well for me!

If the outcomes of inevitable change aren’t the best possible for us, at least we should see what you could learn from the evolving situation. Buy the way I took his advice and ended up with an operation twice the size of that in my pre-takeover company and a much better salary and benefits package to boot.

“THE UNIVERSE IS CHANGE; OUR LIFE IS WHAT OUR THOUGHTS MAKE IT”. Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121 AD – 180 AD), Meditations

Refs:
Overcoming People’s Fear of Change – Douglas Howardell, http://www.theacagroup.com/overcome.htm
Change Happens, by Joe Flower, http://www.well.com/user/bbear/change1.html
Choosing Strategies for Change, By John P. Kotter and Leonard A. Schlesinger
Harvard Business Review March/April 1979
Organizational Behaviour Stephen P Robbins, Prentice Hall International Editions (seventh edition Part 5)
Change Happens, by Joe Flower, http://www.well.com/user/bbear/change1.html

Firstly often individuals don’t realise that what they are going through is a result of severe pressure that are creating dramatic periods of change in the organisation.

Secondly many implementers do not realise that change for the organisation means dramatic and often difficult periods of change for the individual (either at work or in their personal lives).

Thirdly there is often as a result of a ‘poor’ organisational culture a lack of clarity about the organisations goals and expectations.

Fourthly there is a central problem of poor communication by managers and the organisation.

Fifthly There is poorly planned and poorly implementation of the allocation of tasks usually for which staff are not trained.

Sixthly There is for all the reasons below a natural resistance even outright refusal to cooperate when individuals are being asked to do something very different from their normal tasks.

Of course residence is always an emotional response to the pressures of change!

So what are the reasons for resistance?

(Note regarding 10 points below: Original article is Copyright (c) 2003 A. J. Schuler, Psy. D. Permission is however granted to copy this article as long as the following information is included: Dr. A. J. Schuler is an expert in leadership and organizational change. To find out more about his programs and services,  call (703) 370-6545. or visit  homepahe of full article can be found at http://www.schulersolutions.com/resistance_to_change.html Please note I have edited the article and added some of my own thoughts on residence to change.)

1. THE CHANGE PROPOSED IS SEEN AS GREATER THAN THE RISK OF STAYING THE WAY WE ARE A basic fear of the unknown “Making a change requires a leap of faith” and particularly belief that you will reach a better state. “Making a change is all about managing risk” which is difficult if we are heading into the unknown.

2. WE NATURALLY FEEL CONNECTED TO OTHERS WHO ARE IDENTIFIED WITH THE OLD WAY
“We are a social species.”  “We feel a loyalty to those that guided us and worked with us in the past and we are hard wired that way in its ‘not a trivial’ matter to overcome that natural attribute.

3. PEOPLE HAVE NO ROLE MODELS FOR THE NEW ACTIVITY OR NEW WAYS OF OPERATING
Just communicating a vision is not enough. In the early stages of the change process you must get a core group of influencers on board with your idea, so that you or they can demonstrate how the new way can work.  For most people, seeing is believing.  Less rhetoric and more demonstration can go a long way toward overcoming resistance.

4. PEOPLE FEAR THEY LACK THE COMPETENCE TO CHANGE AND/OR THE ABILITIES  NEEDED TO GAIN THE SKILLS REQUIRED
This is a fear people will seldom admit however, change in organisations necessitates changes in skills and many will feel that they won’t be able to make the transition very well.  A successful change campaign must include effective new training programs.

5. PEOPLE FEEL OVERLOADED AND OVERWHELMED
A change effort, is usually accompanied by a fatigue factor that keeps people from moving forward, even if they are telling you they believe in the wisdom of your idea.  Upheaval is tiring and people may resist change just because they are tired and overwhelmed. The perceived risk in a changed scenario activates people’s fears and the basic fight-or-flight response we all possess will come into play and fear can produce its own fatigue. You’ve got to motivate and praise accomplishments as well, and be patient enough to let people vent (without getting too caught up in attending to unproductive negativity).

6. PEOPLE HAVE A HEALTHY SKEPTICISM AND WANT TO BE SURE NEW IDEAS ARE SOUND
It’s important to remember that few worthwhile changes are conceived in their final, best form at the outset.  Listen to your skeptics, pay attention, because some percentage of what they have to say will prompt genuine improvements to your change idea.

7. PEOPLE FEAR HIDDEN AGENDAS AMONG WOULD-BE REFORMERS
Let’s face it, reformers can be a motley lot.  Not all are to be trusted.  Perhaps even more frightening, some of the worst atrocities modern history has known were begun by earnest people who really believed they knew what was best for everyone else. Many reformers have created chaos in the past.

8. PEOPLE FEEL THE PROPOSED CHANGE THREATENS THEIR NOTIONS OF THEMSELVES
Sometimes change on the job gets right to a person’s sense of identity and even attacks their sense of self worth. As a result, people may feel that the intrinsic rewards that brought them to a particular line of work will be lost with the change.  When resistance springs from these identity-related roots, it is deep and powerful, and to minimize its force, change leaders must be able to understand it and then address it, acknowledging that change does have costs, or conversely (hopefully) larger benefits.

9. PEOPLE ANTICIPATE A LOSS OF STATUS OR QUALITY OF LIFE
Real change reshuffles the deck a bit.  Reshuffling the deck can bring winners . . . and losers.  Some people, most likely, will gain in status, job security, quality of life, etc. with the proposed change, and some will likely lose a bit.Some people will, in part, be aligned against change because they will clearly, and in some cases correctly, view the change as being contrary to their interests.

10.  PEOPLE GENUINELY BELIEVE THAT THE PROPOSED CHANGE IS A BAD IDEA
The truth is, sometimes someone’s idea of change is just not a good idea.  Sometimes people are not being recalcitrant, nasty, or foolish when they resist.  They just see that we’re wrong. ?It pays to be mindful that a failure to listen to and respond to people’s rational objections and beliefs is ultimately disrespectful to them, and to assume arrogantly that we innovative, change agent types really do know best.

CONCLUSION

I am currently involved with a charity organisation that is trying to implement a change process based on a more positive vision of the future. This change process is being undertaken at the behest of the organisation’s international headquarters which has seen a decline in world wide membership numbers. A large number of the ageing members of the club are of course resisting as they want things to stay as they are and have always been. The process has in my estimation been badly managed principally due to a poor level of communication and a perceived lack of transparency. The truth is (as I see it) that a lot of the objectors have been too tired or lazy to get involved in the process and don’t understand the why, let lone the how of the process. Additionally due to the large amount of documentation many just can’t be bothered to keep up with developments. This organisation is in danger of imploding due to a core group of individuals that fall either partly or wholly into one or many of the groups above.

It will be interesting to watch the outcome.

p.s. If all this change is too much you may need this… resume example

The fear of change comes from our natural suspicion of the unknown or of things we don’t understand. As youngsters we develop techniques to protect ourselves and over time we develop our “success formula”. This formula comprises standards of behaviour or perspectives on situations that we learn will give us our desired optimum result. To be involved in a change process we need to walk away from our own success and do something unfamiliar, a very onerous task. However the risk of not being able to change in a time when everything around us is moving and shifting will lead us to even bigger problems in the future.

As there are no signposts, road rules or speed limits in the infinite unknown and the risks seem to be enormous, how can we cope with (if not drive out) the fear? The old cliché that “familiarity breeds contempt” is a good place to start. The military uses this principle to train troops and it obviously works. The more we practice the skill of how to cope in an unfamiliar or fearful situation, the better chance we have of making our response to it automatic. If you need to think about what to do you will be lost. Example; try to hit a tennis ball while consciously thinking about it… you can’t, for success, it has to be a reaction. Think of the unknowns, speed, curvature, trajectory, spin, bounce, deceleration rate, angle of deflection, racquet speed, string tension etc etc… all unknowns. How do the best performers cope with or in fact thrive with all these unknowns… practice, practice, practice. So what do we need to do, place ourselves in unfamiliar situations, learn from the failures and overcome our inability to function in the unknown.

MANAGEMENT EXCELLENCE COMES FROM SUCCESSFULLY WORKING WITH HALF-BAKED IDEAS AND MAKING RISKY, FORWARD LOOKING DECISIONS.

Overcoming the fear of change!

Mental practice, practice, practice… A tip, under stress we are most likely not to ‘be all we can be’, so we must learn to react automatically based on an ingrained ritual of behaviour. Great news, practice can (at least at the beginning) be ‘mental’, as our subconscious can’t differentiate between imagined and real experiences. Reactions are subconscious so we can and should start by imagining ourselves doing well in unfamiliar situations to help our subconscious mind learn to cope with stress.

Another major issue is honesty. An honest approach will always help to reduce fear. Example; in the 2000 US presidential elections both candidates talked openly about embarrassing issues, personal shortcomings and past indiscretions. Why… to remove the fear of being exposed. They where then seen I suggest by the voting public as men of integrity. We need to own up to our personal shortcomings and difficulties if we are to free ourselves of our personal guilt over our imperfect past. If anyone has a perfect past I suggest you head for Rome immediately, there’s someone there that wants to meet you. This honesty needs to extend to our feelings as well as our actions. A willingness to express our feelings about a situation should not be that hard. As managers we are trained to constantly express our feelings regarding the performance of those we lead. Why not manage upward and start to express our feelings about situations created by those we follow. Remember though being judgemental or critical will evoke a natural and often distasteful result and is to be avoided. We are however all entitled to have feelings about situations. Anyone who is a manager and has had training in giving feedback (a critical management competence) knows the value of this instinctively. If you work in a place where feelings are discouraged, all the change management techniques in the world will not help and you should make the ultimate change… seek employment elsewhere. Why… because your organization is probably on the way out.

‘SOMETIMES BEING TIRED, SCARED, DE-MOTIVATED OR DISAPPOINTED IS A NATURAL PART OF THE REALITY OF WORK, WE JUST NEED TO ADMIT IT’. (author unknown)

Ref: Why it matters, by Joe Flower, http://www.well.com/user/bbear/change16.html

The new world is becoming a worrying a scary place for many employees. A large proportion of ‘old economy’ workers who rely on outdated competencies, are finding themselves out in the chilly land of unemployment and at a much younger age. Mergers acquisitions and redundancies are on the increase. In an attempt to maintain the status-quo many seek ways to resist change in their organizations through union action, demonstrations or even by just hiding in the belief that past levels of competence and already learned shills will see them through the future . This resistance of course weakens their company and creates difficulties as modern organizations attempt to aim more accurately and a revolutionary marketplace. The inevitable outcome is that rather than managing/coping with change in a gradual and positive fashion these same people often end up at the sudden and violent end of a takeover (or bankruptcy) and they are then forced to make radical changes in a hostile environment.

Those who do not share what is becoming an increasingly powerful vision of the future are attempting to fight the world’s current (and inevitable) direction, much as many ‘scared’ generations of resistors have done throughout history. More than at any time in the past we are seeing the demise of inept, slow moving, old style, governments, associations and of course corporations. To use just a few examples, old style American manufacturers, Japanese Manufacturers, Greek, Spanish and Italian Governments and of course many ex Arab Governments. Even on a regional scale ‘old Europe’ seems to need to break their own Euro-zone rules due to resistance by the local old thinkers unable to embrace new market realities. The most highly publicized resistance to change can be observed as crowds gather when world trade organization and international banking institutions meet to discuss the future of ‘the global village’.

In 1633 Galileo was denounced by the Inquisition and forced to recant his belief in Copernican theory… however…

THE SUN WOULD NEVER REVOLVE AROUND THE EARTH, NO MATTER HOW LONG GALILEO WAS LEFT TO ROT IN JAIL

So what do we do?

Resistance is futile! How many manual ledger keepers, people that use typewriters, skilled metal workers or for that matter floor traders do you see about you. I can still remember some years ago seeing a demonstration of a prototype automatic teller machine and watching fascinated young bankers as they looked at it in awe and wondered what it all meant. Lets not star on bankers, their old style operations and attitude have cost the world billions. Even when legislation is passed in an attempt to enforce better management practices they still can’t change their way-wood management habits, UBS being a great example.

The first thing we need to do is acknowledge that by nature we all tend resist, or at least try to deny, change; we all tend like the old ways of doing things and the comfort zone we have created. Rubbish Richard you may think and you could be saying to yourself… many of us embrace change, including our staff, we are part of the future. To see where the level of resistance is try this game (source unknown) at your next meeting… just for fun. Ask your staff to face each other in pairs and look closely at their partner. Then tell them to turn away and secretly change two things about their appearance. They will do things like move their pens, take off their watch, undo their tie etc; leave the changes to their own imagination. Then have them face each other again and tell their partner what has changed (about their partner). They will proudly boast about a two out of two result and you should congratulate them for their astute observations. Say nothing more except ask them all to sit back down; (I bet most sit in the same seat each meeting). Now watch and be amazed, I guarantee ninety nine point nine percent will re-adjust their appearance back to they way it was before the game started. Then ask yourself are we really breeding a staff compliment that accepts the changes that can take us into the future, or are they just telling us they are change oriented because they know that’s what we want to hear.

“I DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY PEOPLE ARE FRIGHTENED OF NEW IDEAS. I’M FRIGHTENED OF THE OLD ONES” (John Cage)

More change coming part 2…

You as a new recruit might have more talent than existing team members however they have more experience.

It’s a privilege, not a right, to play/work in a top team regardless of how talented you are.

Your place in any team is temporary and it will be in every team you work with, or as he put it, “Your jersey is rented. You’re replaceable”

Developing sound levels of emotional intelligence is essential. “Don’t get sensitive, be coachable.”

“Habits create who you are and if you’re habits aren’t changing, you ain’t changing.”

Never be late for meetings, it shows a lack of commitment and loses you the trust of others and of course their respect.

“Be a good listener.” This is a learnable skill, if you have a problem with it… fix it.

Work hard to earn the trust of the leader and senior team members.

Adapted from a summary of “The Incredible Speech New NFL Recruits Got This Year” (June 29th 2011) – on the Business Insider Website. Read the full article at: http://www.businessinsider.com/15-career-tips-from-herm-edwards-nfl-speech-2011?op=1 where they also have the link to the actual speech on YouTube

Important point: Fitting into a new team is never easy however the tips here and of course the full list referenced above will give any new recruit a good start. I once conducted a survey in a company I worked with an asked existing staff if they accepted new company hires immediately because the company had put the trust in the new hires by employing them in the first place. The emphatic answer was no, not for some months until they had “proved themselves”. Lets be honest whether its formally documented or not all new jobs come with a six month probation period. Guess who decides if you pass probation or not, your peers and ‘subordinates’… not the management, however they will see how you relate to the team, the team will inform them on how well you fit and if you don’t you’re out.

Things you should not do if you are being bullied

Starting a get even campaign by trying to secretly sabotage the bully or employing physical violence to counteract verbal attacks. It can also be counter productive trying to enlist the sympathy and help of inappropriate co-workers as in my experience often onlookers will pretend support as they enjoy watching the demise of either the bully or the one being bullied.

Things you should do to counteract an office bully

The first issue is to take the stance that its not your fault. I know this sounds obvious (and perhaps difficult) however some people I have met in my career seem to internalize the problem and blame themselves for what happens and live, or just exist, with a victim’s mentality. If you take this view of life it will be hard to overcome the injustice that is being inflicted upon you. You have to overcome negative feelings and realize that you are entitled to be how you want to be, feel how you would like to feel and that no one has the right to attack your feelings or try to diminish your sense of self worth. Employers have the right to judge your work in relation to their needs however no one has the right to question your values, feelings and emotions. If you need a strategy to get you started on a more positive outlook read something (or go to a course on) “affirmations” and/or “positive self talk”. Two things to remember here, they are clichés however they are true: “the most important words you will ever hear are the words you say to yourself about yourself when you are by yourself” and that “insanity is doing the same thing every time and expecting a different result”. You must using whatever means you can put real effort into either developing (or maintaining) your positive self image,

Many will advise you to enlist support of co-workers, this however as I said previously can be dangerous. You must report the bullying  behavior to the appropriate internal or external authorities. To do this you will need to keep a record of the incidents, even as I suggested in a recent tweet go to the lengths of recording your conversations with the bully. You must document your positive work outcomes particularly if someone in a position of power is taking credit for your work. You need to get support by going to your human resources department and/or any organization in your area set up to help with these situations. Often institutions such as social services or other quasi legal entities exist to handle these types of situations. If no improvement is forthcoming you must have the courage to take formal legal action. I realize that taking a formal approach to the bullying will put your job in jeopardy however letting yourself be bullied is a slippery slope of misery that can end in disaster.

There is also some interesting perspectives and positive outcome examples at:

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/WorkingWounded/story?id=468009

Before you go to read their advice its wise to remember if all else fails you may end up by changing employers. If you need to do that here is a resume example to get you started on your new direction. I certainly however hope you do not need to use it because of being bullied. Changing jobs is a drastic action however you need to realize you deserve to work in a reasonable environment and this will sometimes mean you need to find an employer with a more positive work culture where bullying is not tolerated.

As managers (or for that matter effective staff members) it is a wise career move (our responsibility) to make up for our personal inadequacies from a work point of view. We can do this by seeking professional advice in the specialist areas that are critical to our department’s, division’s or company’s success. Some questions we should be asking of ourselves:

Do we currently invest astutely in developing the areas outside our technical area of expertise?

When looking for training, public relations, advertising, marketing, financial or accounting advice is it just a tender process where we choose the cheapest, or is it a… ‘they are the best in their field’, decision?

Are any of these other areas of expertise sometimes ‘in company service departments’, used as a dumping ground for inadequate individuals so we can avoid the hard decision of sending inadequate staff on their way?

If we seek advice do we then learn from the advice we are given or do we ignore it because we don’t like to change?

A real example:

A now non-existent finance company I once worked for sent a senior technical expert to conduct a study overseas on trends in his field. He came back told the company what they had to do, which included the setting up of an ‘out of the hierarchy’, non standard business department. Someone was going to lose control of a major business area and have his traditional power base eroded. So the answer was no…! The ‘expert’ left and went to a very small competitor who within 6 months was making nice profits from the new business opportunities developed, probably in excess of those of our entire operation. How dumb is that! The same finance company commissioned an in depth study of their business practices by a world-renowned leader in their field (at the behest of a major shareholder I believe) and then refused to implement the recommendations. The reason for the failure to adopt the new ways of doing things was that it was going to cost too much and again (probably more importantly) dismantle some traditional power bases. Two years later when the company was still struggling the consultants where back to do the expensive survey/study again… too late the 40% major shareholder became the 90% shareholding parent and intervened with its own rules, suddenly they just a department of ‘the bank’.

DON’T ASK QUESTIONS IF YOU DON’T INTEND TO LISTEN TO ANSWERS AND… NEVER STOP QUESTIONING!

So what are the issues we must think about to avoid being myopic and locked in the past and what are the causes of financial trouble directly attributable to inept management?

1. Lack of foresight or disinterest in the future (other than how to get the next promotion)

2. Inept or even zero monitoring of the market and incorrect use of the gathered information.

3. Allowing dangerous or incorrect debt levels in relation to our operation.

4. Failure to address financial issues including constantly asking if our debt to equity ratio is reasonable or how adequate is our return on funds invested, or are we using short term borrowings to fund long term projects (and all that other boring stuff)?

5. What about technology, are we being bypassed or are we leveraging on the new technologies available?

6. How are our key relationships… key clients, financiers, suppliers and distributors? Are we, to use an old example, Ford and do we use Firestone tyres on any of our products? I wonder if ford and firestone (little “f” s intended) have ISO certification.

7. Quality Quality Quality is a must and I don’t mean certifications, I mean a management and staff attitude that really puts quality as a priority. I once watched as a file was quickly constructed a day before a quality audit (to serve as a good example), the audit was passed and the few hundred other files where never touched. Now is that quality or Bullshit Baffling the Brainless (big “B” s intended) and pardon my language.

Also we need to consider (if the surveys on failure are correct)…

8. Whether we expanding too slowly, or too quickly?

9. Linked to that are we so diversified that we’ve walked away from our core competencies, and or are we even aware of what our core competencies are?

10. We need to ensure we are not too dependant on one customer (or supplier), the finance company I mentioned lent an amount approximately equivalent to its paid up capital to three major borrowers in one industry, all of whom went bankrupt… oops!

11. We should also constantly check to see if we are overstaffed (the American Government and the Australian Public Service perhaps?).

12. We constantly need to check that our control systems are adequate, does our accounting, manufacturing, sales activity system give us the answers we need on a day to day basis?

13. What is the profit per employee, what is the ratio of sales staff to administration, how big is the personnel department and do we have a bureaucratic purchasing department?

14. Finally the team… is there dissension among the management team (or is it a team at all?) or has the team and our business reached the “level of its own incompetence”?

15. The big issue of course is to decide if there is a lack of leadership by the senior executives, or worse the chief executive. One small example of a leadership failing: Do we have a problem if all the middle management attends major training programmes because it is compulsory however the senior management doesn’t come because it’s optional? If training (and the change process) doesn’t start at the top the participants are likely to say things like “that’s OK in theory, ‘but’ that’s not how the boss acts back at the office” and a disconnect between what is needed and what actually happens occurs.

PHEW… no wonder effective managers are busy!

Cash flow and sales… next post!

Refs:

http://www.tuta.hut.fi/studies/Courses_and_schedules/Isib/TU-91.167/Old_seminar_papers/Ojala_Juha_final.pdf

Time to question where you are? Resume Blank | Resume Form | Resume Examples | Resume Sample | Cover Letter Fill in the free online blank resume form (positive statement examples), a handy self-analysis to evaluate the commercial realities of what you have to offer current or potential employers.

According to years of surveys of business failures the most common cause of their demise is the lack of money. OK that’s a ‘no-brainer’ Richard everybody knows that, HOWEVER where does the money come from and what sort of money is critical? Well money comes basically from three places:

1)     Capital (investors) – too little of that and we are obviously doomed from the start

2)     Efficient and effective operations i.e. control of costs and the ability to obtain the maximum outputs for the minimum inputs (the management and the staff) and

3)     Cash flow from sales (the customers).

Assuming that our organisation has adequate capital, lets look at the other two areas.

Firstly to maintain EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE OPERATIONS, what are critical money issues for us as managers/leaders?

Record Keeping and Financial Control (the easy stuff first) – do we and our team really understand how to read the trends in the financial reports or… do we just do a yearly budget and wonder at the end of the financial period why we missed the target?

Do we constantly review the budget in light of changing conditions in our industry, technology or our market’s tastes?

How often do we update our projections in light of changing circumstances and do we use adequate financial control mechanisms? Are we still doing obsolete annual budgets or are we engaged in a worthwhile an ongoing process i.e. a living document?

Are we constantly assessing what we do and asking if our activities are real value adders or just habitual energy suckers?

Silly things can happen, are we over controlling the petty cash and under controlling the major purchases or project expenses just because they are approved in the budget? It does happen in real life.

Not too long ago I had a discussion with a senior executive who was dismayed by the fact that their annual budget was being prepared to give the business owners a good dose of “what they wanted to hear” rather than to provide a true indication of the state of the market and the real prediction (or at least best guess) as to the true potential for the upcoming year. This same company was often three or four months behind in balancing its actual figures in spite of it having a “giant accounting department” by its industry standards.

A personal question you may consider: BASED ON WHAT HAS ALREADY BEEN SAID, IS OUR COMPANY HEADING FOR SUCCESS OR FAILURE AND IS IT TIME TO GO SOMEWHERE SMARTER?

Critical company success factors as they relate to competence:

a)     The ability of our team to make the correct money or business decisions – is our business managed by people with sound industry experience and/or are we educating our staff on the industry they belong to or do they just specialise in ‘their job’? Businesses managed by people without prior management experience have a greater chance of failure than firms that are managed by people with prior experience. How well educated and competent are our managers?

b)     Are we hiring or training to make sure we have effective management or are we only promoting from within, mainly based on length of service and loyalty? Are we just handing out big titles to keep the staff happy and give them an unjustified salary increase so they won’t leave and make us start all over again? Don’t laugh in a couple of countries I worked in… it happens all the time! Educated people have a greater chance of making a business succeed than those who are not educated. What is our company’s ongoing education policy do we provide incentives for our critical employees to improve their knowledge and expand their perspective? Also it is important to understand that businesses that cannot attract and retain quality employees have a much greater chance of failure than firms that can.

c)     Do we attract quality staff and are we seen as an employer of choice or do we constantly resort to taking the best of a bad bunch?

A few more searching questions

Do we plan to make money? Businesses that do not develop revenue/profit driven and specific business plans have a greater chance of failure than firms that do.

Does everyone on staff know what our corporate vision and mission is?

TEST: Go outside and ask a few people what the corporate vision and mission are and when you’re though stressing out (or crying) go and kick the corporate communications director/manager/officer in the head.

Do we test our plan against our values, for that matter, do we plan at all, are we ALL really working to a plan… or is it just another day at work?

Do we have an action plan for each strategy and then make sure we know who is to take the action… and by when… and how to measure each action’s success or failure…and do we then replan based on the outcomes? I have conducted a lot of planning sessions with and for a variety of organisations and everybody likes visions, missions, goals, objectives and strategies and participants readily contribute to the brainstorming. Unfortunately as planning sessions progress and when we get to the real work and I ask “who will take the actions”… silence… or at best reluctance.

PLANS WITHOUT STRICTLY IMPLEMENTED AND MONITORED ACTIONS ARE JUST A WASTE OF TIME.

Refs:
10 reasons why businesses fail, Home Office/Jeff Wuorio http://www.bcentral.com/articles/wuorio/150.aspFlusche, Van Beveren, Kilgore, P.C.
http://www.fvbkcpa.com/articles/E-toolbox_ Articles/Why_Small_Businesses_Fail.htm

http://www.tuta.hut.fi/studies/Courses_and_schedules/Isib/TU-91.167/Old_seminar_paper/Ojala_Juha_final.pdf