Practical Process Improvement
Improve processes with four simple questions.
Business Leadership: Finding Breakthrough Ideas
What is your batting average for breakthrough ideas? When is the last time you, metaphorically speaking, went outside the lines of the coloring book, out of the book altogether, and created a masterpiece on the living room wall? There’s nothing wrong with following standard procedures or well-established practices. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,”…
Building a Business with FACTS
Building a business is like riding a rollercoaster. There are times of anticipation as you climb slowly to the top, and times of thrilling swoops and turns. There are also times of sheer terror, when you’re certain the cars are headed off the track and you are doomed to plummet to earth in a final…
9 Tips for Successful Team Facilitation
Team facilitation can make or break the best intended planning session. You gather your team together, set aside one or more major chunks of time, and launch your agenda. And you come away with a dynamic, focused plan and enthusiastic support… or not. There are no guarantees that your brainstorming or strategic planning sessions will…
Change Management – Don’t Get Blown Out of the Water!
Change Management: Danger Ahead Change management is like sailing into a minefield. One wrong turn can take a simple project and transform it into a bloodied mess. You’re progressing on schedule and on plan, only to be blindsided by something that throws you into damage control. A critical component has been discontinued. Contractors find asbestos…
Boomer Time vs. Millennial Time: Bridging the Gap
Comparing the Baby Boomer sense of time to Millennial time can lead to the very logical conclusion that the generations exist in parallel universes. “They’re never on time!” wail the Boomers “They’re always on my case!” grumble the Millennials. In a stab for intergenerational harmony, here is one take on mutual understanding and narrowing the…
Find Your Leadership Batting Average
In the leadership game, are you batting 500 or struggling at the bottom of the league? You are playing in the majors. And like any major league player, you skills need to be razor sharp. Rate yourself onthe following ten items; each is worth 50 points. Do you have the financial and other reports…
Happiness is an Efficient Meeting – 7 Tips Plus an Agenda Template!
When was the last time you were in an efficient meeting? When did you last walk out of the room thinking, “Wow! That was the best use of time, ever!” Whether the organizer or a participant, use the following tips to boost effectiveness. Know why you are meeting. Are you meeting to share information, or…
When Business Technology Backfires
When technology backfires, the results can get really ugly. Rather than building business, the best laid plans can cut you off at the knees. If you’ve ever upgraded your technology infrastructure, you’ve probably researched the field, and selected the latest elegant system which, according to the reassuring sales representative, is the answer to all your…
Profit and People: The Bottom Line
What is the bottom line for business? Revenues minus expenses is the stock answer, and it is absolutely correct. But what are the true expenses, and what is the true bottom line? Expenses are the payments made to generate profits. When profits are threatened, expenses may be cut. And sometimes, to save the company, the sacrifices…