Organizational IQ

What is your organization's IQ (intelligence quotient) ? By this I do not mean how smart it is, but how aware it is and how it operates in its own, unique environment. Do customers find it easy or difficult to do business with your organization? What type of feedback does your company receive from its business partners? What about you? Do you find it easy to get things done within your organization or does everything simply seem more difficult than it needs to be?
This blog is posted by: Dennis Rose

What is your organization's IQ (intelligence quotient) ? By this I do not mean how smart it is, but how aware it is and how it operates in its own, unique environment. Do customers find it easy or difficult to do business with your organization? What type of feedback does your company receive from its business partners? What about you? Do you find it easy to get things done within your organization or does everything simply seem more difficult than it needs to be?

The concept¹ of organizational IQ traces back to research work done at Stanford University and is defined as a measure of how organizations assimilate information and put together their decision and information architectures. Much like a personal psychological IQ, an organizational IQ relates to how an organization can take in information, process it, makes decisions based upon that and then put those decisions into action. However, a company therefore regarded as smart or dominant in their particular market segment does not necessarily have a high organizational IQ.

I once worked for a small start-up that focused on optical character recognition technology based scanners. Their one and only product scanned typed paper pages, converted the words into text streams that were then fed into word processing software or databases. The productivity savings for law firms, hospitals, government agencies and just about anyone who had to re-type a lot of paper documents into computer systems was significant and made the product very successful. The company had a gifted technical leader and generally the core technology of the firm was considered leading edge at the time I joined them. The management style of this company, however, was very centralized and a bit parochial. People outside of the headquarters location were treated as “doers” (e.g. go get the order, go do the repair) rather than as team members. It was surprising, even after factoring in that it was a start-up, that the product marketing manager was also the marketing communications manager and the events manager and the technical publications manager. Even if she had wanted to, she didn’t have enough time left in her schedule to seek out any input from the field or to review what we voluntarily chose to send her. There was little to no collaboration between HQ and the field. The executive team rarely met with customers, analysts or the trade media, as they were more concerned with the engineering road map. Most of their external relationships went no further than a few professors at the renowned engineering university that the chief technology officer had graduated from.

These factors led to a near absence of being in touch with what the market wanted and market shift in packaging of OCR scanners that would soon have a large impact on our business. Two competitors introduced smaller desktop scanners with the ability to easily support more type styles at a lower price, as they standardized their scanning engines on commodity PC class chip sets. All at once, we had competitive offerings that were more easily connected to the rapidly growing base of PCs being adopted for the first time by customers, while also being less expensive and more versatile than our company’s product. To make matters worse, our company failed to react to the new competition, refusing to supply the field sales and SE personnel with competitive analyses for these new products or to suggest selling strategies designed to protect our market share until we could respond. The engineering leadership of the firm even dismissed the competitive desktop models as a “passing fad”. In the end, my employer lost significant market share and ran out of cash before they were able to bring a new product to market. They subsequently went out of business.

In this situation, the company had no functioning process in place to ensure sufficient awareness of external information such as changing market preferences, the shift of word processing from mini-computers to desktop PCs and threatening competitive movements. Having external information awareness is a critical element of an organization’s IQ. A company cannot possibly expect to be able to react to changing events if they do not know that events are indeed changing. Yet, we see numerous examples of companies with stove-piped or blocked communication channels lose growth momentum and market share – or sometimes go out of business altogether – because their internal structure, process or culture prevented them from seeing “the big picture” in their market.

In addition to external information awareness, it is critical for an organization to then disseminate or share that information. Information has no value unless it is shared with the people who need it. Many of us have encountered at least one person in our careers that initially seemed to be the smart “go-to” person that knew everything. Unfortunately these people sometimes turn out to be information hoarders that hurt the organization more by holding back useful knowledge instead of proactively sharing it with others that could benefit from it. I worked with an IT manager many years ago that was the proverbial “keeper of the keys” in terms of any knowledge about IT systems, processes, operations, forthcoming IT initiatives, etc. He bathed in the glory of being the only one who knew what was going on with our IT systems. Finding out the most basic information about scheduled down times, desktop rollouts, application fixes and even printer network path names was difficult. As a result, line managers invested time and budget into systems that were inexplicably taken offline or retired, costs were duplicated when the field offices bought low-value assets like laptops not knowing the IT manager had a room full of them that he had told no one about. As the company grew (I sometimes wondered how!) the “drag effect” he created became intolerable and his behaviour was called into question and he was eventually fired. The region I worked in, however, had a lot of catching up to do as compared to the other international regions where the IT leadership had been open, sharing and highly collaborative at both a strategic planning and tactical execution level to help drive the business forward.

Assuming an organization does have external information awareness and also shares the information that it gathers, it still needs to be able to process that information to make meaningful and effective decisions to run the business. The decision architecture of a company has a lot to do with its culture. Organizational culture will often determine whether decision-making authority or empowerment is highly centralized, entrusted to the people with the best first-hand knowledge to make the decisions or whether it lands somewhere between these two scenarios. An effective decision architecture allows people who have the relevant information to act on it without having to waste time relaying information up and down the hierarchy². If executive management is involved in deciding tactical issues such as product names, launch dates, where the 100% Club trip will be held and the like, then they are not doing their jobs. Their primary role is to develop a vision and strategy for the company and to develop the organization’s overall ability to execute to that plan. Micromanaging disempowers people and eventually leads to a breakdown in accountability within middle management and their teams and devalues the roles of people who really ought to be making those decisions. In many cases, good people leave under these conditions. Companies with poor decision making structures and practices tend to then suffer from not only attrition and the costs that go with it, but also an inability to react quickly to changing market conditions. As the second half of 2008 has shown us, things can change rapidly – very rapidly.

If an organization is able to remain aware of what is happening externally, share that information with all relevant team members and then make decisions efficiently, then they are likely to be in a position to focus on their core business objectives. Without any of the preceding three conditions being achieved, focusing becomes difficult as an organization struggles with incomplete information, the inability to collaborate across teams and uncertainty over who should make decisions in reaction to changes or better yet, in anticipation of them. With the conditions set for increased organizational focus, it becomes easier for teams to prioritize, to avoid distractions driven by process ambiguity and to become more decisive in the face of changing market conditions.

The final principle of organizational IQ is continuous innovation. The ability to constantly examine and reinvent products, services and processes is a hallmark of successful companies. McDonald’s expansion into breakfast foods, Nike’s success in expanding their market share with teens, tweens and Generation Y consumers through their “design-your-own shoe” NikeID offering and Toyota’s similar “design-your-own-car” Scion product line are examples of established companies that seek to listen to the market and reinvent themselves. These types of companies tend to proactively disrupt their established markets to either expand them or reinvigorate growth and profitability within them.

A company that is able to orchestrate external information awareness, information sharing, effective decision making , organizational focus and continuous innovation is likely to achieve a high organizational IQ. Research studies at Stanford University³ have shown that organizational IQ is a key success factor for businesses. This research, which studied hundreds of companies during the 1980s and 1990s showed that organizations which exhibited high organizational IQ had higher, sustained growth rates than those who did not. Many of the firms which were measured to have low organizational IQ and did nothing about it went out of business or were eventually acquired by stronger companies.

Clearly, all of us would like to work in an environment where there is high organizational IQ. Organizations with these characteristics tend to be market leaders that succeed in reinvesting in their operations and people, thereby creating broader career opportunities for their team members. All of us have an opportunity to contribute to the five principles of external information awareness, information sharing, decision-making, focus and continuous innovation. We can approach this through shaping the culture of our organizations and through building and using systems and processes that help to facilitate it. A lot of it starts with basic communication skills....becoming an effective listener and then sharing information in a collaborative sense to make the team more effective. Unlike an individual’s psychological IQ, which experts say can only be increased to a limited extent in adulthood, an organizational IQ can be increased to a great extent and more quickly. As you think about your own employer, or perhaps a prospective one, assessing and contributing to their organizational IQ is perhaps one of the greatest opportunities you will have with them. Doing your own assessment of your organization’s IQ, or perhaps leading one with your team, is a good place to start.

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¹ = Haim Mendelson and Johannes Ziegler in their book Survival of the Smartest

² = Ibid

³ = Ibid

This blog is posted by: Dennis Rose

WYSIWYG – The Art of Perfect Execution!

Those of you who like me saw the early days of the Personal Computer age would recollect the phrase WYSIWYG (“What You See Is What You Get”) - when the computer monitor screen started supporting serious graphics display capabilities. When the image on the monitor was close enough to the quality of the printout that the printer spewed out when you hit the print button! Wow! Still considered a milestone in the history of personal computing!

Technically speaking ‘WYSIWYG’ actually symbolizes all innovations, inventions, progressions and discoveries that have radically impacted our world, our civilization, our lives and everything it holds! It also represents an intrinsic character that every successful individual represents. It is called the power of Visualization – What you SEE is What you GET!

From Rosa Parks to Martin Luther King to Barrack Obama is an incredible journey that was based on rights, equality, freedom and change. It started with someone visualizing about what the world ought to be rather than accept it as it is – a small step was taken. Over the years the vision broadened taking into its fold other aspirations, hopes and dreams of many more people. The visual grew in scale and the impact feeding off the millions of people whose lives it touched finally peaked on an early November day when history was rewritten as America elected its new President!

I enjoy many sports and do so because participating or even just watching top class sportspeople fires me up physically and emotionally! I have often read and observed these greats – seen them focus on the incredible power of Visualization. I have seen what their coaches take them through as they help them stay relevant in the highest levels of the game!

Whether it is golf, tennis or other categories (especially individual sports), watch the intense gaze of these top pros between strokes, as they go though their motions or during a game break. Their eyes are focused but the gaze seems to be far away – looking at nothing, totally insulated from whatever surrounds them! They are actually mentally playing out their next moves on a high res mental video screen over and over! Seeing exactly what they are going to do next, soaking in it, visualizing it – then they take every conscious thought off their minds and execute that mental video! Sure enough the result is quite close to what they visualized if not better! I have tried this myself when playing and depending on my preparedness and commitment, I sometimes do get the result!

Why sometimes? Why not always? The key to successful visual results is “Preparedness”. Quite obvious, right? Trust me, I have come across many instances where I have seen trained professionals going out into execution mode without adequate preparedness … now that does not work, regardless of your caliber!

So, here is how I see the buildup whether at the workplace or in the playing field. Dare to dream in the area of your interest and set some personal goals that you are totally committed to (the more audacious, the better as long as they are practical). Next, know the rules of the game (a.k.a the Standard Operating Procedure within organizations), employee handbooks and functional operating guidelines are the normal sources – check! This is crucial but most people ignore it or do not spend enough time on. Being an absolute master of the rules will allow you to take advantage of the rules or lack of it while being fully aware of the downside.

Next totally absorb the Core Base skills required to be successful in the position that you are in and then seek out the Incremental Skills that will make a difference to your performance in – this is where you start to get ahead of the pack. While the Core Skills are usually documented and relatively easy to build, the Incremental Skills are not! Reason why most people are quite weak in this department! Seeking internal and external mentors, wide networking and constant referencing – a healthy reading habit is a wonderful tool are some options available to you. Most often I have noticed that top performers are very comfortable in discussing and expressing their views in topics way outside of their principal areas of competency! On the contrary the average player is quite limited even in what should be supposedly their zone of competency.

Follow this with very hard work (no shortcuts here!) regardless of your talent and thoroughly practice the skills you have acquired. Pitch it in every conceivable situation and see how you do, socializing this learning with like minded friends, colleagues and family is one way to get it done. I can literally hear you say – “Easily said … where is the time or the opportunity?” Totally agree, but you need to make both available if you win at this game!

The Power of Visualization will only work when your inner self is totally confident that you can faultlessly deliver what you have learnt. The only way to make this possible is when you physically repeat the action over and over again – be it presenting to a customer, writing a document, driving a golf ball down the fairway or executing a slick cross court volley. Relentless practice will make your mind and body absolutely rehearsed and comfortable in delivering the desired outcome. Practicing over and over will also convince your inner being that you can do it! It gives the power to the mind to play the video of perfect execution picking up pieces from the hard work it saw you do while you were building and rehearsing the skill.

What unfolds next is brilliant – you are there preparing to do what you are supposed to, eyes (customers, colleagues, friends, adversaries) watching you. You know your stuff and are fully prepared with countless hours of learning and practice. Now play the mental video .. visualize the end result clearly – you have delivered a brilliant performance, everyone is blown away by what you have done, profusely congratulating or applauding you... Next, take every other restraining thought off your head and execute. You have done it…..

I am doing the same here, visualizing that you will have benefited from the perspective of this post. I am sure you have!

Art of Tequila @ Work and Play: Lick – Slam – Suck!

Without wanting to sound too presumptuous, I think most people slam Tequila as a symbolic tool to celebrate success, demonstrate machismo (or the female version of the act – whatever its called) and even as a means to get that quick ‘headiness’ prior to heading for the dance floor!

Even at the workplace the same pattern follows. Folks, very often high achievers start at new organizations or in new roles within their current organization, slam down a snifter of high adrenaline and head out to the dance floor without looking out for oncoming traffic. Casualties are commonplace! Read on and I will show you how the Art of Tequila showed me an important trail to Workplace and Leadership success!

Mid November, I was in the midst of this 2000 mile road trip up the California coast with a couple of pals – we call it the “Wild Hoggers’ Drive”. Midway, we chanced upon this Mexican cantina nestled within the gorgeous rolling hills of Carmel (for the Clint Eastwood fans, he was the mayor of this city (Population: 45,000) for a while, and also sits on the board of the Pebble Beach Golf facility not too far away.

Baja Cantina. 7166 Carmel Valley Road. Carmel. CA 93923
http://www.bajacantinacarmel.com/index.html
(Manager: Ian Penniman. Look him up if you are there, he is quite a character!)

Besides gorging on the fantastic Mexican fare of succulent meats on the sizzler, freshly toasted tortillas, gorgeous burritos and enchiladas and my personal favorite, the Chimichanga, I actually got an impromptu lesson on the art of Tequila appreciation. So here goes…

Tequila according to the Wiki…
Tequila is an agave-based spirit made in the area surrounding Tequila, 65 kilometres in the northwest of Guadalajara and in the highlands (Los Altos) of the western Mexican state of Jalisco. Tequila is most often made at a 38–40% alcohol content (76–80 proof), but there are more potent types of tequila produced with 43–46% alcohol content (86–92 proof). It is a common misconception that tequila is fermented from cactus. Agaves and cacti are unrelated. The Aztec had previously made a fermented beverage from the agave plant, which they called Octli. When the Spanish conquistadors ran out of their own brandy, they began to distill this agave drink to produce North America's first indigenous distilled spirit. The tequila that is popular today was first mass-produced in the early 1800s in Guadalajara, Mexico.
There are two basic categories of tequila: Mixtos and 100% Agave. Mixtos use up to 49% of other sugars in the fermentation process, with Agave taking up the remainder. Agave sugar is fructose-based, and is easier for the human body to break down. Mixtos use both glucose and fructose sugars.
With 100% agave tequila, Tequila Blanco is harsher with the bold flavors of the distilled agave up front, while Reposado and Añejo are smoother, subtler, and more complex. As with other spirits that are aged in casks, tequila takes on the flavors of the wood, while the harshness of the alcohol mellows.


A Dummy’s Guide to Drinking the Potion @ Play and Work
Play First….
Where it comes from, Mexico, tequila is drunk straight, without salt and lime. In the most popular style of consumption, a single shot of tequila is often served with salt and a slice of lime, called "tequila cruda" and follows the "Lick-Slam-Suck" routine. The drinker moistens the back of their hand below the index finger (usually by licking) and pours on the salt. The salt is then licked off the hand, the tequila is then slammed down the throat and the fruit slice is quickly sucked. It is common for groups of drinkers to do this simultaneously. The salt lessens the "burn" of the tequila and the sour lime fruit balances and enhances the flavor. DO NOT DO THIS if you are drinking higher-quality categories though, 100% agave tequila with salt and lime is likely to remove much of the flavor.
When served neat (without any additional ingredients), tequila is most often served in a narrow shot glass called a caballito ("Little Horse" in Spanish). The margarita glass, rimmed with salt, sugar, or plain, is a staple for the entire tequila/fruit mixed drink genre, including the margarita itself.
Tequila – Meal Combination
Tequila is commonly bottled in three to five categories:
Tequila Blanco ("white") or Tequila Plata ("silver") or Tequila Oro (“gold) – white spirit, un-aged and bottled or stored immediately after distillation, or aged less than two months in oak barrels. Jose Cuervo (the brand that you have most likely consumed) is a good example and the one that is mostly popular with you – usually consumed as a cocktail or a pre dinner drink
Tequila Reposado ("rested") – aged a minimum of two months, but less than a year in oak barrels. Usually served with Mains. I tried out the Cabo Wabo from Sammy Hagar’s (of Van Halen fame) distillery and actually fancied it more than his music!. http://www.cabowabo.com/
Tequila Añejo ("aged" or "vintage") and Extra añejo ("extra aged" or "ultra aged") – aged between 1-3 years in oak barrels. This is a post dinner ‘cognac’ category fare . My restaurant host strongly recommended Don Julio 1942 (Premium vatted – 5 years from a numbered bottle. No less!) to titillate my taste buds and give me that warm settling post meal feeling which it did incredibly well! http://www.tequila.net/tequila_reviews/anejos/don_julio_1942_anejo.html

Now about Work…
Work-life is not any different. As you get into a new organization or a new role…
· Measure up the environment first and understand the moving pieces, the priorities, the influencers and the personalities. Do not rush to the proverbial “dance floor” first. Instead determine the areas where you can immediately add value, seek buy-in from the primary stakeholders – be comfortable in your base and then ‘execute’ – similar to the process of downing the Tequila Blanco! Make sure that you “lick the salt” to prepare the environment and level off the intensity of the new actions and changes that you will likely enforce. Next “slam” it in and get into the execution mode with total commitment and intensity – if change is involved it needs to be introduced quickly, gradual change are fraught with risks. Finally “suck” in the results of your execution (like the sour lime you are meant to suck after downing the potion) to balance the outcome and enhance the flavor of the results. Constant communication with the rest of the team and candid feedback on what is working, what is not and what adjustments to the plan are being made and why are great flavor enhancers.

· As you cement your initial wins and move to the next hierarchical levels, your strategy should be more in line with the Tequila Reposado. You are more seasoned and so are your actions – you start to build longer term plans, a very strong team, determine what you need to delegate and what cannot happen if you do not do it. All this while watching the near term executions that you have delegated to the next level, like a hawk – no misses here! As your successes line up, broaden up your stakeholder support. You are the primary conduit for your group to the rest of the organization – add value at both ends.

· The next level is the Tequila Anejo – you have now attained ‘vintage’ status in your role – you develop the longer term strategy for your unit that will eventually impact the broader organization, you grow your people into bigger positions with broader responsibilities and mandatorily build succession plans at all levels. You start planning your move to the next level while being fully committed in leaving you unit better than when you took it on!
Other Tequila Trivia:
· There are over 100 distilleries making over six hundred brands of tequila in Mexico
· Over 2,000 Tequila brand names have been registered. Due to this, each bottle of tequila contains a serial number depicting which distillery the tequila was brewed and bottled in. Since there are only so many distilleries, multiple brands of tequila come from the same place.
· A one-liter bottle of limited-edition premium tequila was sold for $225,000 in July 2006 in Tequila, Jalisco, by the company Tequila Ley 925. The bottle is a two-kilo display of platinum and gold. The manufacturer has received the Certificate from Guinness World Records for the most expensive bottle of liquor ever sold.
· In 2008, Mexican scientists discovered a method to transform 80-proof (40% alcohol) tequila into diamonds. This process requires heating the tequila to over 800 degrees C (1,400 degrees F) to vaporize the tequila. The tequila particles are then cooled and settled upon steel or silicon trays in an even, pure layer and you have them … diamonds!
· Mel Gibson's anti-Semitic outburst when arrested for drunk driving was attributed to tequila consumption.
· Sammy Hagar, rock star (singer of the bar anthem "Mas Tequila") and owner of Cabo Wabo Tequila described tequila's stigma as, "the stuff that you go, 'I will never drink that as long as I live,' and you have gotten sick in college on rot-gut tequila." This image of tequila as the instigator of particularly egregious intoxication and hangovers is pervasive.
· In music, singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette wrote an ode to tequila entitled "On The Tequila" for the Flavors of Entanglement sessions, and says tequila has helped her balance things out in her life.
· In the United States, National Tequila Day is July 24.
Wonderful education and as always my pleasure to share this with you budding Tequila connoisseurs! Enough said … Viva La Mexico!

The End Game of Leadership – Who owns it?

I was chatting with a friend recently who is treading a new path through a set of interesting initiatives, challenging the conventions of ‘How things can be?’ rather than ‘How things are’.
· I was chatting with a friend recently who is treading a new path through a set of interesting initiatives, challenging the conventions of ‘How things can be?’ rather than ‘How things are’. One thought led to another and he gave me his belief on how he views the actions of a leader to evolve

· He says, that the leader is responsible for defining the vision. In doing so he challenges conventions, thinks outside of the box, morphs past success ‘methodologies’ to suit the present circumstances and most of all, knows how to dream!

· Defining the vision is quite easy, what follows is way difficult …. structuring and articulating the vision! Giving it shape and spell it out in words that are understood by all involved. Every successful vision ever put into action has had a very common thread .. simplicity! If a vision starts off by being hard to understand, the articulation, the planning and the implementation that will follow will be hard to understand as well. The result, you guessed it right .. hard to understand!!!

· Articulation of the vision calls for ‘empathy’ – seeking other people’s perspective, their views, their circumstances and their relevance to the vision. Irrespective of the skills and abilities of the leader, he or she does not know it all! Even if she does, her thoughts & experience represent her ‘nuclear’ perspective based on her personality and her surroundings.

· I have seen good leaders consider the result of their contribution (and the efficacy of their vision) by ‘impact’ and ‘scale’ they deliver to their team’s results over the long term. ‘Impact’ created by examining and consolidating as many variable attributes to a vision in a logical manner as possible and ‘Scale’ created by broadening of the scope of the vision so that the vision touches as large a macrocosm as possible over extended time periods.

· Next comes implementation and execution and this is where my friend laid out a very different view that he subscribes to – and I see his point. He believes that very often leaders spend too little time in conceiving the vision and articulating it. They are way to keen to get into executing the vision!! Eager to close off the campaign, roll out the score card on the table as quickly as possible and start congratulating all involved. In the process they garner short term tactical results and fail to milk the ‘Impact’ and ‘Scale’ of the vision.

· Instead how would it be if the leader patiently carves the vision, articulates it expertly to his team making it as simple as possible. He then empathizes with and openly solicits his people’s feedback selectively but ensuring that as many conceivable variables are covered. The leader then constructs the unique nuances that are identified through the ‘empathy & feedback’ process into the fabric of the vision, making it optimal, powerful and relevant.

· Every member of his team now understands the vision, knows that it has been examined and tested as robustly as practical, believes in it and supports it from their mental core. The leader then steps away and watches his team (led by the next tier leaders) drive the execution rather than leading the execution himself! He takes in the bigger picture, stays on top of the results and makes modifications and tweaks where needed

· So why will the leader be confident that his team will pull it off? It is because he himself believes in the vision, he believes in the process through which the vision was crafted and he believes in his people. He believes that by trusting the implementation to them, the true impact and scale of the vision will be realized!

· What about the people? They trust their leader’s ability, his candor, his fairness, credibility and integrity. In the back of their minds, they know that there is an outside chance that their leader’s and their own collective wisdom might prove incorrect and the desired results might fall thru. These thoughts are however far out weighed by the belief that the direction their leader has shown will deliver the desired results on a sustainable basis and represents their collective best interest. They execute in earnest and most often good results follow…

· It is not surprising that good leaders without fail attribute the success of a campaign to their teams while carrying the heat of failure on their able shoulders…

Networking – Getting it Right!

Metcalf’s Law (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metcalf) fascinates me. It states that the value of a telecommunications network is proportional to the square of the number of connected users of the system (n²).

• Metcalf’s Law (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metcalf) fascinates me. It states that the value of a telecommunications network is proportional to the square of the number of connected users of the system (n²). Attributed to Robert Metcalfe in regard to Ethernet, (geek speak for a common form of computer network) Metcalfe’s law characterizes many of the network effects of communication technologies and networks such as the Internet, social networking, and the World Wide Web. Boy, are these networks powerful!!!!!
  
• The concept, expectation and impact of networking have changed dramatically as the world and the means for networking have evolved. From an individual engagement involving two people that serves mutual needs – the networking scope has scaled to involve communities seeking similar goals and aspirations. These ubiquitous networks deliver different levels of efficiency and are being used to extract varied levels of value. The evolution of supportive, easy to use technology has played a big role here!
  
• I do not associate Networking with financial gains alone. I have seen friends closely associated with the church, healthcare and other humanitarian pursuits where networking (or Support Groups) get people with similar psychological and physical challenges together to bond, share and support each other. These are incredible efforts and underline the selflessness of the people who organize these groups and invest their time to help others.
  
• With Networking becoming a core skill in every individual’s profit and non-profit go to market model, differentiation in how you network is crucial. So here are 10 tips that I have picked up from my time at work – I am not the Oracle from the mountains, these are lessons that I have either triumphed or suffered for…
  

1. Understand who you are? Analyze your strengths and weaknesses – no one is perfect! Then place your best foot forward judging the circumstances of the engagement.
2. Treat people with respect and grace in every instance irrespective of the level of your familiarity. An unassuming exterior often sheaths very capable personalities within
3. Assume a longer term goal from the relationship – do not focus on instant gratifications. Just like you would be forming an opinion about the individual you are dealing with so would the other. Let the engagement evolve rather than force it..
4. Keep every relationship ‘alive’ even after the immediate objective is served. Many a great opportunity of a larger mutual leverage is lost because the people involved took a short term perspective of the relation
5. Make an impact on people when you meet them, especially for the first time at gatherings – they should remember you even after you have moved on! Appropriate compliments, graciousness, eye contact, intelligent questions or observations and great listening skills will be your check list., ‘Charisma’ by the way is often overrated!
6. Make a conscious effort to make people comfortable in your presence – refer to the checklist above. Watch out for a shifting gaze, a nervous laugh or extended silence from the other person as tell tale signs of discomfort!
7. Be a fabulous listener – there is a reason why you have two ears and one mouth (boy, do most of us struggle!). A superior listener gathers far more from a conversation than someone with an over eagerness to speak. Besides, good listening skills add balance to an engagement and provides an even keel for a conversation
8. Absorb the other person’s point of view and ask intelligent questions during your interaction, be it in person or electronic (emails, social networking sites etc)
9. Refer people you know to other people you know – if you promote others, they will promote you. Keep compatibility and common interest in mind though while facilitating these introductions
10. Come out of each engagement making the other person feeling generally optimistic, more self aware and possibly knowledgeable than before they met you
    
    I look forward to all of you building valuable, fulfilling, engaging and incredibly rewarding networks in every sphere of your lives..

First Among Equals: Effort or Attainment

I have mentioned this in one of my previous posts … I do not cease to be impressed by the kids these days. They are intuitive, articulate and down right smart!

. My 12 year daughter and I are out on our scouting/hiking trail over the weekend, the Singapore sun was beating down on us but fortunately the breeze was holding – so it was okay! Before she could get into one of her teen tantrums on ‘how the weather sucks’, I decided to engage her in conversation. She loves a spirited chat and I reckoned it was the best way to keep her mind off the heat!

. “What is more important, effort or attainment?”, she blurted out. She went on to say that her projects in school were being graded on those two parameters. I chided her on what she thought was more important and she said, “effort definitely. If the effort is in place, attainment will follow.” What better way to set expectations with the term results due just round the corner!

. I reasoned with her but did finally agree that in a learning environment, I would rate ‘effort’ higher than the immediate ‘attainment’ at least in the very short term. Very often institutions of learning are too focused on grades rather than the actual learning process. This makes the whole process very mechanical and sadly exposes students to developing that behavior I absolutely dread in the workplace – “doing without understanding why they are doing what they are doing”! (See my other post on this topic). Consequently, I also agree that with the right level of effort, intellect and disciplined application, attainment is bound to eventually show up.

. In my career, I have faced similar dilemma while judging employee productivity, performance and development. I have seen many ways in which performance is mapped and measured. While the usual ratings – Top, Strong, Solid, Needs Development & Manage Out or derivatives of these are quite common, I have in instances used a broader framework in judging employees within these categories i.e. the ‘What’ and the ‘How’.

. The ‘What’ actually alludes to the ‘Attainment’ while the ‘How’ alludes to the ‘Effort’ that my daughter was talking about. Usually the Top and the Manage Out categories are ‘absolute categories’ while the other three intermediate categories have a ‘What’ and ‘How’ flavor i.e. we rate the individual’s performance with an emphasis on ‘What’ results he achieved and ‘How’ the result was achieved.

. In a typical workplace, What and How are both crucial but considering the fact that the primary goal of the business is to generate shareholder value – the What (Attainment) shows up as the first among equals!

. Before we get too ahead of ourselves, the How (Effort or the right kind of Effort) is not far behind! Results at any cost where the How defies the prevailing strictures and governance is definitely a no-no with definite longer term ramifications. We are all seeing plenty of these instances in the midst of the current financial crisis!!!

. So we rounded off the conversation unanimously agreeing that school might be a better place for learning and experimentation where ‘Effort’ deserves a slight advantage. Workplace on the other hand is far more exacting, demanding and impatient. Experimentation is fine and even encouraged in some places but needs to be maturely managed so that it is not at the expense of ‘Attainment’ of overall expected financial or operational results!

. As she flirted with another topic I just wanted to have a last word on the school before my daughter could forcibly move me on – ‘Just ensure that your grades show up good! ‘Effort’ wins when you are in a class session, but ‘Attainment’ sure comes tops on exam day – I am learning fast on how to set my expectations clear with this smart kid walking beside me – she gave me a quizzed look, but I bet she knows what I meant. Never too late!

Step by Step: How the Financial System’s Coffin was Nailed!

In my conversations with people these days many quiz themselves on how a financial crisis of this dimension was conceived in the first place …. So here’s my attempt to piece the disaster together. I am not an economist by training, but will nonetheless try and build a layman’s model of what led to this doomsday!
. In my conversations with people these days many quiz themselves on how a financial crisis of this dimension was conceived in the first place …. So here’s my attempt to piece the disaster together. I am not an economist by training, but will nonetheless try and build a layman’s model of what led to this doomsday!

. Like any terminal illness, all this did not happen in a day, a week, month or even a year. Years of neglect, greed & improper governance were the root of the crisis. Lets take a peek…

. The financial world at the turn of the twenty first century created radically different trends with Asia generating massive surplus riding on the macroeconomic waves in China & India. The US on the other hand faced current account deficits despite being preceded by a Clinton era where the President actually turned around a deficit laden economy and balanced the budget before his term was over

. Despite the dodgy financial fundamentals in the US, the Bush government’s foreign policy was built around massive spending – a significant portion of which was linked to defense expenditure incurred in Afghanistan & Iraq

. Instead of Americans paying this bill, foreign borrowings (presumably the surplus from China) funded the spend while taxes were cut and interest rates were kept low at home– a surplus of cheap money was built for general consumption, falling into the hands of people, many of who did not know how to use it wisely!

. Stock, securities and real estate flourished and equity that was generated through asset appreciation related gains were reinvested in more of the same instruments and used for other forms of consumption, may of them needless (also called conspicuous consumption)

. The evolution of the ‘Free Market Economy’ in the US also radically changed innocuous financial instruments which I believe was built during the Clinton era to increase home ownership and labeled Collaterized Debt Obligations (CDO) into vicious financial tornadoes which coupled with sub prime mortgages extensive financial leverage practices and risk tolerance by established financial instruments broke the proverbial camel’s back in many places!!

. In parallel the excessive import related deficit of the current administration quickly eroded all the budget surplus benefits that the Clinton administration drove – the US dollar faced downward pressure and suddenly creditors both domestic and foreign had better options to route their funds

. Federal reserve had no choice whatsoever but to raise interest rates (despite a slowing economy) as the dollar fell and commodity prices rose driving an inflationary climate progressively

. As Interest rates rose, some of the sub prime mortgagees began to realize that the interest rate rise had suddenly turned their mortgage payments unaffordable. The snowball began small but grew rapidly and soon led to situations where lenders started revaluing the risk which in turn led to de-leveraging of assets!

. Large scale divesture of risky assets followed in increasingly illiquid markets while at the same time radical fall in asset valuations dramatically impacted balance sheets of very prominent establishments. The establishments had no choice but to raise capital till the money market ran dry as paranoia ran high amongst investors!!!

. Thus is the story so far as banks stop trusting each other and inter bank lending virtually stops – interest rate cuts do not help as the cash level in bank vaults continue to stay low (as the banks stop lending to each other) affecting both the individual and the corporation alike!

. The US administration has heeded the internal advisory and has stayed out of any direct involvement way too long – by the time Paulson, Bernanke and his cronies got involved it was too late! The bail-out plan that was prescribed by the Presidential decree was mired with conflicting opinions of why the common tax payer should bear the brunt of a trillion dollar rescue package needed to fix the greed and misdeeds of a section who have amassed massive wealth and are running scot free, still ‘very rich’!

. The financial community internally and externally lost all confidence – investment withdrawals and redemptions followed, causing the breakdown of financial systems worldwide and complete pandemonium!

. While the US government’s corrective policies have had scant impact with even the US arranged meeting of the G7 nations, the European Union’s follow up actions of injecting cash into their banking system and guaranteeing credit facilities have set the bank collaboration going freeing up the financial system and setting the world markets on an upswing!

. Still a long way to go before the tremors subside but any buck in the trend is welcome. Borrowing the lessons of greed (see my other Post), I hope the world will learn and end up being a better place going forward as we painfully navigate through the quagmire that is our own creation!

Greed is Good …. The Parable from Wall Street!

It was in my freshman undergraduate year that I watched Oliver Stone’s ‘Wall Street’ and was thoroughly impressed by the ‘style’ of the ‘Street’ not to mention Michael Douglas’ Gordon Gekko character that personifies the summary and celebration of free market capitalism (“I am not talking about the regular Wall Street stiff, flying first class and being comfortable, I am talking liquid! Rich enough to own your own jet, rich enough not to waste time. 50, a 100 million a year.. a player!)

. The movie closes with Gekko ending up in prison but not before very successfully hammering down ‘Greed’ as a ‘Virtue’ for the continued innovation and evolution of mankind and human spirit! I hear that a sequel might be in the works with Gekko (now a free man!) emerging in today’s financial hotspot … Shanghai, China!

. Lets ponder on Greed though – I want to do this because of the potentially negative label that the word carries stemming from the seven deadly sins! I tend to some what agree with Gordon Gekko’s summation. The manifestation of Greed emerges from the individual’s perspective of the word. Every achievement of any proportion arises out of greed … greed drives desire, leading to focused actions, which leads to results. Greed therefore leads to actual results that benefit an individual, a group, community, nation or mankind depending on the intensity of the action!

. The scale and the benefit that the ‘greed’ led action drives defines the nature of ‘greed’ and is possibly what Gordon Gekko was alluding to when he labelled it as ‘Good’. From Aristotle, Archimedes, Gandhi, Luther King, Edison, Gates, Jobs to even Mr. Buffet, there is an incredible internal motivation to build innovative ‘models’ in tech, human rights, government and finance followed by superior execution that provides ‘ incremental value’ to millions of people over decades – much more than initially perceived

. So what is that ‘internal motivation’ that led these individuals to do what they did? Controversial as it may sound, seems like it was ‘Greed’ (as in ‘an intense desire with a perceivable outcome’) for accomplishing their objective that gave meaning to their lives and defined their destinies. In the process they positively touched generations around the world. This greed (whilst not totally ‘Selfless’) does not seem bitter rather it sounds ‘Good’ to most of us!

. On the other hand as the world today reels under the largest financial catastrophe of our lifetime, I question were ‘Greed’ sits in the equation. The Sub prime mortgages, the collateralized debt obligations and the leveraged positions that are breaking the largest financial institutions were not meant to be what they finally evolved into! So who and what led that evolution … well it is the other form of ‘Greed’ … the stuff that sent Gekko behind bars!

. So how is this form of greed different? Well, it still drives massive benefits but specifically to an individual or a small group of individuals at the expense of a much larger majority! “While Richard Fuld of Lehman was pleading with Secy. Paulson for Federal rescue, Lehman was recommending to its compensation committee four days before bankruptcy filing that three departing execs should receive more than 20 million in “special payments” (Straits Time Singapore, 8 Oct 08). Another example of how this industry squandered on executive compensation at the expense of the hapless shareholders and the tax payer in general who has to contribute to the 700 billion bailout package to save the US economy

. I fervently hope that we will see collaboration between the government, regulators and the industry worldwide to tidy over this mess as quickly as possible with not too severe global impact! (I am the eternal optimist). I am also quite certain that in the aftermath of this debacle more stringent governance measures will be implemented as the pendulum shifts to the other extreme! Massive changes in work processes will be implemented and workflow will get more complicated and long drawn … learning from our mistakes is laudable, all good stuff!

. The ultimate test however will be TIME and the human nature … so we are back to ‘Greed’. Greed will drive humanity again into taking little chances, small shifts from the dictum in the name of innovation and value creation to drive the economy and the industry! Government, regulators and the industry will all be drawn into the party till we are hit by another tidal wave … the cycle will be complete!

. Good or bad, ‘Greed’ will live on and we will have to learn to deal with the Gordon Gekko…..

F1 Singapore 2008 – Super Race, Super Show!

The inaugural F1 night race has placed Singapore on the map as a world class location for high visibility global events! The practice runs, the qualifying round for the pole position and the grand finale were executed with the obvious finesse that is associated with any F1 event. The infrastructure was almost equally flawless in supporting the event in its first year in front of 130,000 on site audience and 500 million television viewers worldwide! Fantastic!

. Local outfits had the opportunity of doing brisk business & enjoyed brand visibility despite a rather gloomy macro economic environment. Congratulations go out to Singtel & everybody else associated with hosting the event! Following all the kudos, Singapore has to continue to seek excellence by taking pages from city circuit venues like Monaco, who have hosted similar races for more than 79 years.

. As a spectator at the event, I felt inadequacies in transportation, extended road blocks, seating coordination & food outlets while the drivers had to contend with bumpy road surfaces and soaring track temperatures! Mental notes need to be taken to fix these next year!

. Singapore & all of us also have many a lesson to learn from the races themselves. Team Ferrari’s debacle after taking 2 out of the 3 positions from the Pole in the finals - then getting totally knocked out in the final run! Lessons like team co-ordination & collaboration or the lack of it can ruin the best laid plans as Ferrari experienced during Filipe Masa’s fatal pit stop.

. Also a lesson that ‘Hope’ is a winner’s best friend from a despairing Alonso who stood with virtually no chance after the qualifiers but then eventually won the race on Sunday driving with grit & hope. A lesson that Winning is not necessarily brought about by excelling individually but also by seizing the opportunities created by the opponents’ shortcomings as experienced by Alonso who started off by virtually trailing the entire lineup.

. All in all an excellent demonstration of speed, discipline & collaboration and also the pitfalls and failures that so characterize us as human beings. Big win for Singapore and a big win for the human innovation and spirit!

. As the season wraps up with the final race in Brazil, I salute Louis Hamilton, the 2008 F1 Champion for his single minded focus, dedication and ability to act at the right time in the right way that saw him screech into the ultimate winner slot by securing a position in the first five at Sau Paolo in front of a bewildered Masa who did everything right in the final race and his legions of loyal Brazilian fans!

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Why put ANY effort when you do not know the WHY?

Kids are smart these days. I cannot make my daughters do ANYTHING unless they know WHY they need to do it and WHAT they will gain if they do so?

. I do not blame them because there is a perfectly good reason why they ask these questions. No task or initiative that consumes time and energy should really be done unless the people involved know the ‘Why’ (the reason why they need to spend time doing the task) and the ‘What’ (the foreseeable outcome of the task).

. Sounds like a no brainer.. right? Any doubts, check with the first kid you meet on your way home! However skeptical you are, there is always a Why & What to everything. What matters is - Do you look for it?

. Go to any workplace teeming with intellectual capital and see how many Why? & What? are traded across the work floor. Candidly speaking, hardly!

. Most employees go about doing their tasks because they are told to do so. Naturally this leads to at best mediocre passion, energy, creativity, innovation which finally leads to (you guessed it right..!) mediocre results .. what else?

. The individuals toiling away all day have no clue regarding consequential impact of their effort on the final result, have no interest in recommending improvements, suggesting new ideas and no avenue to taking pride in the final result that crowns their effort. And all this because they did not bother to ask the Why & What .. does this sound like a serious compromise of impact or what??

. I have tried asking the cause of this apparent lack of inquisitiveness – fear, lack of preparedness, embarrassment, doubt and even stress are some of the candid responses I get. Map these attributes with those linked to non-performance within individuals and teams & your make a startling discovery … they match!

. I take pride in practicing & encouraging everyone in my direct and extended teams to NOT do anything unless they understand WHY they are doing it & WHAT outcomes they are doing the task. Once they do, they are on a natural high to achieve the expected outcome. I see many of them adopting this attribute and actually practicing on me..

. Not that I mind at all … leadership skills in an individual or a group environment always requires the ability to seek and explain the Why & What in every situation whether it is demanded or notI wish my daughters were more forgiving though…

Do One, Two, Three things at a time ... Really!

I often think multi-tasking or high bandwidth multi communication processing is over hyped, over rated and frankly unnecessary! I have seen no dearth of sub-ordinates, peers and even superiors speak about these qualities as a part of their professional skill in glowing terms but still do not seem to make much headway with it!

. I do believe that the sophisticated organ that we call the brain is very capable of processing an amazing number of instruction sets and also the fact that we hardly utilize the capacity of this organ. But be aware though that getting things done in the real world is not just about the brain!

. Long ‘Must Do’ to-do lists that individuals draw up for parallel attention without any clue regarding the commitment and effort involved in accomplishing them also concern me

. In my professional life, I often come across two extreme mental faculties amongst people while most of us fall somewhere in between – Type One, mostly is in eternal awe with their daily routines, in what they need to do, unable to prioritize between the tasks in hand or do not have the information or possible skills to tackle the task they have been handed!

. Even if they can prioritize tasks they have problems communicating where they need assistance & from what kind of skill set. The other set, Type Two set are the supremely confident (the high bandwidth multi tasking types) for whom doing one or two things is way below their intellectual zone and highly demeaning. They are in an eternal rush to take one more than others and complete it quicker than the others. Both types actually end up taking on more than they can chew or what is needed to be chewed and suffer from the consequences – lower quality of work and demonstrating stress symptoms even without realizing!

. The pains associated with Type One are more apparent - confusion, doubt, fear & frustration in not being able to complete the task as required! Consequently, the pains associated with Type Two though more discrete still make the individual and the organization vulnerable.

. The Type Two does not function alone like any one else, they have to interact and succeed with others around them and as they ascend the leadership ranks the leverage and dependence on others increases. Even if they individually can focus and handle multiple tasks on their own, their quality of external communication and their ability to interact and deal with different people and the roles that those people play deteriorates as they take on more tasks.

. Also the people that the Type Two deal with (assuming that they too are carrying the same task) may not necessarily be able to operate in the same multi-tasking mode that the Type Two’s can. The resultant collaborative work quality usually suffers!

. So instead of taking on big bites how about this – irrespective of the mental category you are in, take two or three tasks at a time based on the priority. Then plan to complete each of them within a pre set time period. If you cannot prioritize the tasks or have doubts regarding the time you need to allocate for completion, seek advise from your Supervisor (Do not Suffer in Silence – see related post).

. Handle these two or three tasks with focus, diligence and collaboration. Seek ‘Quality’ all the way. Not just yours but the quality amongst your co-workers as well. Get a high quality job done!

. As you focus on these two or three tasks, you have automatically prioritized them with a time allotment, you now think more clearly because you are attending to these tasks alone and you are working them towards completion either individually or with your team

. As one or more of these prioritized tasks that you are working on gets done, replace them with the next task on the basis of priority from your to-do list and so on. Do this and see how things work …. I will take Quality anytime in lieu of Quantity!

. So what happens when you hit the wall with a task that you do not seem to be making any progress with? Well as soon as you hit the time that you allotted for the task or even prior, judge the priority of the task compared to the tasks still pending. Based on your conclusion either slot the task further down your priority list to be attended to later or if it is immediately crucial then research the task more, socialize with your team members, think about possible alternate options & seek guidance from your supervisor.

. I missed out mentioning honest expectation setting in the midst of all this. As you handle your two to three things and other tasks show up simultaneously with near time delivery expectations – determine its priority in line with what you have in your plate or your current queue. If you have tasks further down the queue that have an equal or a higher priority, then do not be afraid to set the right expectations for a delayed delivery, prior to taking the task – people will respect you for that.

. However, if there is any way in which a new task with a high level of urgency can be prioritized based on the circumstances, then by all means do so. Make sure that the beneficiary is aware of what you have done for him. Adds on as a favor in you ‘frequent flyer’ miles bank

Matrix Organization Reporting Lines - Why Suffer in Silence??

Today’s organization has become diverse and complex even compared to what it was five years ago. Multiple business units, product lines, functional groups and territories require separate reporting lines to ensure that the required checks and balances are in place. These checks and balances then ensure that the objectives and goals of each of the constituencies are met.

. Organization structure wise this means the need to create multiple reporting lines within an operating unit or what is loosely termed the ‘matrix-organization’

. Individually this means that a particular position might be required to report into two supervisors – one via a ‘Solid-line’ and to the other via a ‘Dotted line’. The primary difference between the two is that the Solid Line Manager is responsible for investing on the headcount, the operation expenses related to the headcount and has a larger say in defining the goals of the position, the performance evaluation and the development of the individual. The Dotted Line Manager provides functional or knowledge cover, aligns the other critical functional groups to the individual and helps the individual generally succeed in the role

. I have often noted within the organizations that I have worked for (all of which implemented the matrix organization) that positions which fall within these environments are more aligned to the supervisor that the position interacts with on a more frequent basis irrespective of the nature of the reporting lines. This observation obviously assumes that the leader is capable, well respected and adds value to the sub-ordinate

. Enough on the reporting models, what does this mean to the individuals. Well, I have realized that the work life for the individual with two or more reporting lines is not rosy at all. Especially so if the two managers are not aligned in the goals and priorities related to the position. Even if they thankfully are aligned, it does not mean that the directions provided to the sub-ordinate are precise. Very often one expects the other to make these essential communication and both end up not doing it.

. The employee on the other hand fails to realize the priorities associated with his role, is confused regarding the measurements of her success and does not know who to reach out to seek guidance or advise when needed

. If you are ever in this situation ….. STOP! Bear in mind that YOU and only you are accountable for your success or the lack of it! No one understands you or your problems better than YOU! No one wants to fix your problems more than YOU .. so who needs to make the first move when you are faced with this confusion amongst ranks .. of course YOU!

. In our periodic Organizational boot-camp events, I get the opportunity to address our new hires as a part of the New Hire induction process. Its great to meet these folks and admire their passion for the organization that they have just joined and the roles that they have begun to play … super! What I always tell these enthusiastic lots is Never Suffer in Silence and Never Do Anything Without Understanding Why You Are Doing What You are Doing (more about the second one in a separate post)

. So how do you stop suffering in silence? Well, start off by defining exactly what you need clarity on and/or what area you exactly seek assistance for? Poorly defining what assistance or guidance you need leads to your supervisor questioning whether ‘you need help with the solution or are you a part of the problem?’

. Then communicate it frankly. Be honest in your approach – do not claim to know stuff that you do not know! And make sure that you are heard … your supervisor may have other priorities but remember what you owe to yourself. So make sure that you are heard!

. Assuming that this goes well and your supervisor hears you and then provides you with the needed recommendation and guidance. Make sure that you have understood him. Do not be embarrassed to ask questions and clarifications at this stage (many unfortunately do!).
As a leader, I am far more willing to re-clarify and re-explain till people are sure that they understand. Once they confirm that they do understand, I expect them to do so, right? What disappoints most supervisors is when people say they understand (when they do not) and go off and make the same mistakes that they would have without the guidance!!! Defeats the entire purpose and effort behind the coaching.

. Once you are successfully past this stage commence implementation. Keep your supervisor informed and seek inspection, guidance or just check notes on the progress on a periodic basis The frequency and intensity of this step depends on the complexity of the task.

. Finally on the successful completion of the task, inform the supervisor and thank him for his advice and guidance (again, many forget to do this)! Your supervisor will definitely be more accommodative to guide you the next time around!

Goal Setting - Does Stakeholder Participation make sense?

Like most people in my job description, things begin to really hot up as the year end approaches … the feeling of accomplishment in the past year, the excitement of the coming year, the rum laden fruit cakes and the wine and chocolate hampers that do the circuit to be shared with friends and family .. the year end is a simply wonderful time for all!

. Closing the year with all business revenue, margin, share, productivity and utilization goals accomplished is always a must do. However the intellect focused on closing the quarter and the year is constantly bombarded by the incessant flow of data requests for setting the goal for the next year

. In my early days as a people manager, I would be grossly offended by this ‘distraction’ related to next year planning when closing the financial year seemed like the most important thing on the planet to me. Over the years I admittedly wizened up as I began to appreciate the ‘other’ activity

. As we approach the year end we are typically in quarter four – i.e. three quarters have come and gone by and unfortunately the results will not change. Even the fourth quarter is mostly done and depending the nature of your position and your business you might have minor to meager influence on the final results at that point

. The following year on the other hand lies ahead like the proverbial ‘fresh sheet of snow’. You can (based on your position) at least partly determine what your individual, team or organization’s footprint will look like on that brand new surface. Does that not warrant some time, reflection and attention… easy choice, right?

. The Planning exercise for the following year usually has a Quantitative (revenue, margin, share, opex etc.) and a Qualitative (initiatives, go to market, coverage gaps, partnerships, resources, skills and infrastructure) component – make no mistake, both are equally crucial! Most organizations focus unduly on the Quantitative element while the smart outfits get the operating teams to focus on the Quantitative planning and goals to determine the ‘What’ while the Qualitative planning provides the ‘How’.

. It is unfortunate and alarming that most organizations spend very little time planning and more specifically socializing the next year goals with the broader set of people who are expected to deliver those goals

. That said, it is within every leader’s prerogative to socialize Quantitative and Qualitative objectives for the following year with some relevant people within her team after familiarizing them thoroughly with the overall organizational strategy framework.

. Socializing goals bottom-up leads to three specific values – firstly, it creates a sense of belonging, individual value and pride within the team, a feeling that their judgment and opinion matters in the organizational context; second, it brings up feedback and outlook from the trenches which lead to creation of potentially new initiatives, strategies and mindset to tackle the upcoming annual objectives; thirdly, planning Quantitative goals provides an avenue to do the necessary check and balance to determine whether the Quantitative goal is within the practical ‘zone’ and can be attained with a stretch

. In setting Quantitative goals, I have always preached a bottom-up and a top-down approach. A bottom up approach is fair because it provides the downstream participation and perspective based on several influencing factors. Both are welcome in considering and determining what goals need to be set, which needless to say needs to be top-down

. While seeking bottom-up feedback, it is crucial that the right set of expectations are set with the contributors – think like a shareholder of the company, size the opportunity correctly – if the final results differ significantly from your outlook you obviously will not look good, be aware that the Quantitative goals that you will be ultimately expected to work on will be determined with the consideration of many data-points including the ones you provide. The goals therefore might differ significantly from your recommendation. The right expectations upfront allow people to go through the exercise with the right mindset and prevent any potential heart burn downstream

. Try these out and see how you go. All I am preaching is commitment for ‘involvement with reason’ in lieu of ‘coercion’, ‘collaboration’ in lieu of ‘conflict’ and ‘participation’ in lieu of ‘alienation‘ in every stage of the next year Planning process ….. whatever the state of quarter four may be!!!!!

Driving Organization Vision – Keep Visors & Shades on!!

• Organization, department and even team Visions are hugely instrumental in providing guidance and momentum, even passion and excitement to operating teams!
• A Vision can range from a GRAND organization wide shift to a FOCUSED department initiative for revenue growth, expense optimization or new business development. The principle of unfolding the Vision will be the same - the scale will vary
• If many chefs in a kitchen or many surgeons in a surgery concern you – then you get a good feel of what too many Visionaries or Visions can be for a smaller team or even for an organization
• Ability to conceive and build a Vision is a specific capability, not a general skill and does not even need to be one! Translating the Vision into specific short term measurable goals and actions, then laying out the implementation path is another competency. Thereafter, leading and participating in the implementation of the Vision & delivering predictable results is the third mutually exclusive competency
• I have realistically seen these skills demonstrated by three very different profiles of people. However, I have seen exceptional circumstances within small groups where the same individual demonstrates two or all of these three competencies
• I am laying this out upfront because for the successful implementation of a Vision all these 3 roles need to be understood, differentiated and used. Related ownerships and accountabilities need to be set for each of the roles – do this and see the Vision unfold into real world results!
• The Vision is conceived by the proverbial "Visionary" (lets call this individual or group A), normally the head of the operating group - this is a very 'macro view' that lays out the broad based direction the leader(s) wishes the group to take based on individual or collective judgment. The 'Vision' at this stage is usually skeletal, possibly over simplified and can be usually understood by a selective few who are either closely associated with the working and thinking process of the leader(s) or involved with the core functions of the group (lets call them Team B).
• It is very risky to spill this 'unbaked' Vision outside of Team B. The unbaked Vision can very likely send wrong signals to the rest of the fraternity, de-focus people from their immediate job functions or simply confuse them regarding the relationship of the new Vision to their current way of doing things. So do ensure that the broader team has their visors and shades on at this time
• Having people with competencies around "translating the Vision into specific short term measurable objectives and laying out the implementation path" come in handy at this time. This is usually contributed by Team B. Team B articulates the "Why?" behind the Vision and provides meat to the initial skeletal structure. They also lay down short term goals and metrics that will be implemented by usually more than one functional group. While doing this, Team B should explain the rational of each goal and metrics in a manner that the downstream teams will understand. They also prepare plans and methodologies on how these function specific goals and metrics will be sold to the downstream functional leaders first who will then communicate this to their teams (Team C).
• This stage requires over-communication between A and B as well as B and C-Team Leaders as the Vision starts to settle in. New Visions also introduce ‘change’ that Team C members normally resist – the intensity for resistance grows as you go down the hierarchy. Complement this by reinforced top down communication, document & broadcast best practices demonstrated by the early adopters while highlighting & rewarding the early wins or proof points. In parallel also take in feedback from rank and file, especially on ‘what is NOT working’. These often prove more valuable than they apparently seem and ensure that the vision gets further fine-tuned to deal with the real world!
• The ‘Rolling out the Vision’ to Team C Plan also includes relating the new activities that emerge out of the implementation of the Vision to the current roles, responsibilities and compensation of those involved. If changes are needed, this is the time to do so rather than leave it till later
• Very often the Vision does not have a bearing on Team C's immediate objectives - this can be a potential melting point that needs diplomacy, communication skills, tact and most importantly courage from Team B and Team C leaders to help align. Exceptions regarding compensation (where absolutely needed) should be considered for specific pivotal roles who are critical for the success of the implementation especially within Team C
• Once Team C has bought into the Vision, implementation commences. Team B and Team C leaders need to be very vigilant during this phase and ensure that the goal completion and related metrics are on track – constant feedback to leadership and the participants is recommended. More importantly, they should continually do the checks and balances to ensure that A's Vision or Team B's implementation path are realistic and achievable based on feedback from the trenches. I recommend periodic, structured communication between teams A, B, C to accomplish this
• Often adjustments and modifications early in the implementation process based on internal, adjustment or even competitive circumstances results in a more impactful realization of the Vision. Conversely, I have seen many an implementation turn lackluster because the teams did not consider changing external circumstances while implementing the Vision that was originally conceived in a different time and place
• Assuming the implementation is going fine, constant periodic feedback to the team is still recommended till the goals that the Vision aspired start showing (the Vision might be more of a continuum). At this time the leader ought to announce the accomplishment of the immediate goal to everyone involved, lay out the learning and formally conclude the (shorter term) exercise. Do not forget to celebrate success thereafter and reward or recognize the high achievers
• For longer term organizational level Visions – short to mid term goal-setting, performance measurement, feedback, adjustment of the Vision, communication of progress and reinforcement of the Vision to all involved are crucial ingredients that keep the Vision alive and fired up!
• Try this out in your own roles but make sure that the people are wearing the right visors and shades based on their roles as the Vision unfolds…..
• I got some feedback regarding opportunities for Team C to contribute to corporate vision. My answer ... ABSOLUTELY! I see many organizations reaching out and rewarding people at every level for creating and contributing to innovation and new initiatives within the organization. I support and applaud such practices.

Making TeamWork Work!

• Organizational productivity starts to crawl and competitive advantage goes out of the window if organizations fail to accomplish 'Teamwork' or more appropriately 'Cross-functional Teamwork'. Building effective teams is hardly a walk in the park for most business leaders and operational managers!
• The way around is to determine the kind of team-work methodology the organization currently practices that does not measure up, seek alternate methodologies & models needed to perform optimally, then re-start the process.
• Be aware of some basic guidelines though …Get the team mentally prepared to work together – different people need different levels of preparation to do this. Some even need specific handholding and assurances to be able to work with others
• Teams and teamwork go through several stages of evolution before beginning to function cohesively. Guidance, counseling and open communication is key in these stages
• Next, do ensure that the team has a ‘What’ and a ‘Why’ of their goals clearly defined – people (especially individual achievers) do not necessarily enjoy being in a group situation of compromise and consensus unless there is a clear understanding of the goals and the reasoning (read individual benefits) behind the goal
• Right after laying down the broad objectives, do ensure a precise team objective with quantifiable and measurable outcomes. Ideally, its best to set milestones along the path of the ‘What’ so that the team can measure progress and success as granularly as possible and make changes as appropriate along the way
• That said, leaders should not rush to assess team performance too early in the cycle – it generally preferable to let the unit mature before any assessment on the productivity of the team is done
• It is natural for teams to experience ‘teething problems’ as they come together – I begin to worry if all team members continually put on their game face and pretend that all is well and overtly anxious to demonstrate how well things are working
• Different teams need different levels of hand-holding and guidance depending on the team’s composition and the complexity of the task
• Leaders need to be able to determine which teams need guidance and which ones need to be left alone.
• Quantifiable goals and metrics that I mentioned earlier facilitate the process and serve as tools for teams to determine if they need guidance or need to modify and adjust their strategy
• Successful teams leverage individual strengths and competencies while merging these competencies across a broader ‘team fabric’ that lends a larger value to the combined competencies than the sum of individual parts.
• Finally, do not forget to encourage the team to celebrate success when the mission is accomplished! Celebrating leaves pleasant memories for the team members to feed on even when they have disbanded! It also creates a strong foundation of future engagement amongst two or more members should a suitable opportunity present itself!
  
  Ten ways to drive a successful Teambuilding Exercise
  
  1. The nature of the initiative determines the character of the team that is being built.
  2. The event should include variety in content.
  3. Watch the agenda. Link the activities in the exercise as close to the work life circumstances
  and instances as possible. People are smart & seek personal wins – they tune off if the task
  is irrelevant to their actual roles and responsibilities
  4. Planned milestones should be preset, quantifiable and measureable. They should be
  reviewed with diligence on pre set dates
  5. Stay clear of conflicts – maximum alignment is key! Conflicts though healthy (if managed
  appropriately) still delay the processes and prevent alignment
  6. Frequent team meals are welcome – a team that eats together; stays together!
  7. Build in ‘recall’ – humorous conversations, quips & actions with funny tasks and
  challenging, innovative outcomes make the session memorable and impactful
  8. Introduce multiple instructors – beside livening up content, they bring a more balanced and
  varied perspective.
  9. Relate the exercise that you are conducting with the big bad world outside – make sure that
  the team understands the relevance
  10. Don’t expect the event to fix everything! Treat this as a good start for better things to come

Celebrating Success – A Way of Life!

• I am a huge believer in celebrating success – celebrating accomplishments. After all what is the point of succeeding if we do not have the time, inclination or opportunity to take a moment to celebrate it!
• I love doing it and its rubbed onto my wife and daughters where the whole family finds every opportunity to celebrate accomplishments. After all, these celebrations give a meaning to the hard work that goes in towards achieving virtually anything – nothing worth doing is really easy
• Celebrations also set the platform to launch the next target accomplishment. Its very much like trekking up a mountain peak despite all the adversities. Would it not be wonderful to stand on the pinnacle for a while and enjoy the beautiful sights all around that the summit provides you – soak it in .. after all you have earned it. View it, feel exhilarated by it and then set out for the next goal which will provide you with greater accomplishment and a nicer view.
• In my field sales days I spent years in a software company where the ritual of celebration was taken very seriously. As a rep walked in with a purchase order, he would ring a cow-bell that was suspended in the office lobby – brilliant stroke. All of us reps would ring the bell with joy and pride as we held our purchase orders while everyone around would cheer! This not only made our days but created a deep desire for accomplishment and recognition.
• I have seen smart organizations use celebration of success as a classical non-monetary tool for employee motivation and retention of top talent. Keeping great people is not about just paying them big bucks – simple acknowledgement of people’s efforts and accomplishment goes a long way… The flip side is quite predictable!
  
• My daughters are growing up very aware that their parents not only love them unconditionally but have a lot of pride and respect for all their successes and accomplishments however insignificant they may seem. This is shaping their character, attitude and their bonding with their parents. Employees within organizations are no different.

Malaysia 2008 - The 'Caring' Budget

Malaysia has unnecessarily pulled the brakes on its economic progress further through its political inadequacies within a prevailing global macro economic slow-down. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi himself labelled the latest budget a “caring budget”, with most of the policies meant to address the immediate problems faced by Malaysians especially the impact of spiraling inflation on the price of food and fuel! These accommodating measures have also created a perspective among critics that the budget is angled towards a favorable election, though hopefully it does have a placating effect on the populace - which translates to a more stable socio-political environment for businesses to prosper.

As Malaysia tries to expand its business influence in the region, the government also recognises that the country’s ability to continually grow its pool of diverse skilled workers along with strong fiscal incentives will play a critical role in attracting foreign direct investment. This understanding is reflected in the budget with substantial government spend allocated for training and education and the incorporation of the Knowledge Workers Development Institute. In terms of fiscal measures, the Government has also several tax exemptions for businesses while hiring and investing in Malaysia and will also lower corporate tax to 25% in 2009. These definite steps taken to address inflation, education & business viability will hopefully support the country’s progress within the prevailing circumstances.

Standing Tall while “Cold-Calling”

• I often hear people grudging cold calling. Its human nature … nothing out of the ordinary!!! Every human seeks comfort within the ’known’. Venturing out into the unknown & speaking to a stranger with a high probability of being rejected is brave enough! Leave alone making a positive impression, getting his attention, then influencing the person and actually selling something – wow!
• Cold calling is NOT easy and lets be frank, I have not met many people who have raved about how much they ENJOY cold calling! Meet new people – absolutely yes, meet them and sell them something – not many takers!
• After all the whining settles down lets get the baseline right – cold calling is a must & every successful sales person goes through the grind as they build their turf and throughout their tenure they set aside some time for cold calling.
• Irrespective of how rich your pipeline or account list is, it is wise to protect your territory against tangible and intangible risks. The best way to do it is by GROWING it – I cannot think of any other better way than constant cold calling
• Now that I have smudged you with the reality, let me also give you some good news! Cold calling actually becomes easier (& even challenging and fun) as you gain in experience and have some wins under your belt. The quicker you learn the skills & garner the wins the quicker the fun begins – so its good to pick up the tips!
• Start with the premise that it is okay to be fearful of doing something! Going ahead despite the fear is what bravery is all about!
• The basic human fear that comes into play is the fear of rejection. Plan your effort in such a way that you stay clear of rejection as much as possible
• Do your home work – choose your target prospect profile based on all available data regarding the typical customer of your product or service. Seek advice & guidance as needed
• Identify prospects who can be introduced to you by an existing customer – this will make things a little easier
• Learn your stuff. You should be able to articulate your offering well enough to earn your prospect’s attention and subsequently his trust & respect. This will help cement a relationship & will make the journey ahead easier
• Make your prospect comfortable – drive a dialog instead of a monolog. Get to know the person – the likes & dislikes, current challenges, goals, personal wins, concerns/risks, needs. The more you know, the stronger your position will be
• Be sensitive to your prospect’s time or the lack of it. He should want to meet you again – not get rid of you
• Do not spill your entire value proposition in the first meeting – keep some goodies for subsequent encounters
• Work towards building him a solution that addresses his problems rather than trying to sell him a product
• If through your interaction you determine that the prospect genuinely does not have a need for what you have to offer at the time you approach him – acknowledge it, let him know and walk away. Stay in touch and be assured that you will be contacted when the time is right
• These are the cold calling beliefs that shaped me – not that I specifically loved doing it, but nevertheless I did it, very seldom got rejected and built long term relationships that serve me even today.
• Knowing how to deal with the unknown, turning virtual strangers into trusting customers and friends slowly grows on you! It gets to the point where it begins to actually tickle you & challenge you. All the while helping you build the strong platform of self confidence on which your successful professional career will stand!
• Stuff we try to avoid are not all that bad after all!

Oops! We have Solved the “Wrong” Problem!

• We have become very efficient in living in a world filled with instant gratification where every external stimulus deserves an immediate (almost in a nanosecond) response!!!
• Just look around and see people with their cell phones, blackberries, in discussion sessions – eager to speak, to respond, almost itching to do so..
• I have myself been in sessions where I have coached people to ‘listen between the lines’ and understand others perspective before responding. Its amazing to observe how people instead of ‘listening’ are actually mentally rehearsing their own lines while someone else is talking, just waiting for the other person to conclude
• Some of the North Asian cultures encouraged ‘thinking’ followed by a consensus based response – contemporary business cultures are unfortunately erasing these great habits!
• I have come across many situations where talented, result oriented individuals and groups get together to study a situation and define the underlying problem. Being a part of the instant gratification ‘culture’ & faced with tight deadlines, they often define the problem, well … ‘wrongly’!!!
• They then set about in full steam to solve the ‘wrong’ problem and do a good job at it! All the while there is a lot of visible activity, the reporting hierarchies are happy with the development & in some instances the individuals are also rewarded or publicly recognized
• Strangely though when the initial euphoria settles – the desired results are not visible. Some of the ‘participants’ then own up and confess that they expected better results while some try and sweep the data under the carpet & forget about it…
• The crux here is the value of the ‘thinking exercise’, be it individual or collaborative. The proverbial sharpening of the axe before beginning to chop down the tree
• An imperfect situation that needs to be fixed absolutely demands the time for thinking and analyzing to determine what is causing the imperfection – the problem itself. Often what meets the eye and seems like the obvious cause is not it!
• Matrix organizations & formation of cross functional groups presents opportunities for gathering varied perspectives on the same set of circumstances & data.
• If you are a team member leverage these varied views, contribute yours and encourage the team to take a balanced view based on the consolidated set of opinions.
• If you are a leader and do not necessarily want to make a consensus based decision, ask questions, challenge individual views and take holistic view of the surrounding circumstances or data to define the problem before commencing the “fix”
• While it is mostly a drag to dwell long on the problem instead of setting out in light speed to solve it – you will serve yourself, your team and your organization well in terms of time, effort & investment by choosing to define the problem better