Managing Communication

The NZ Herald published this story about a lady got the sack for sending emails that others thought were confrontational and caused ructions in the workplace.

A few points of interest to ponder come out of this story -

• Were the emails the real issue?
• Was her communication style behavior the real issue?
• How do you approach your work colleagues when you have issues?
• How do you communicate in your emails?

I have recently changed the layouts of my email's so that I have specific questions and actions bullet pointed so the receiver knows exactly what I am after. For example if I am asking a co-worker about the progress of a project I will format the email like this -

"Hi Josh,

Can you please update me on where the marketing project is at the moment. I am particularly interested in knowing -

• Who and when will the marquee bookings be confirmed?
• Who is co-ordinating the printing of the brochures?
• When will the brochures be printed?
• When can we distribute the brochures?

I look forward to your prompt reply,

Regards, Jonathon."

The plan is to get the most information out of the email recipient in one go that way you don't have to repeat yourself.

I can't help but think the sacked woman's email style was also indicative of her person-to-person style...

Goals

Do you know where you are going? How do you know if you are going to get there?

Psychologist. Dr Alice Boyes has written some excellent posts on goals and what they mean to us.

I will share a few of my thoughts and will let you seek out Dr Boyes blog for more info.

My thoughts on goals -

1. Write down your dreams - where do you want to finish?
2. Work backwards - if you can see the finished product - what got you there?
3. Separate the end point - into the different paths.
4. Work out which path will get you where you want to be the soonest and easiest.
5. Complete the simple path - get some wins and then start on the harder bits.

Start with the end in mind, figure out what got you there - and go at it!

Time Tracking - Lego Style

Check out this cool way of following what you do all day!

Lego Powered Time Tracking.

This is a very colourful way of seeing how you spend your time!

Time to move on?

It is important to know when your time is up. Time to move on and seek out new ventures.

It is also important to know when to wait for further opportunities.

How do you know when your time is up? Try these pointers -

• Boredom. Your job holds little or no interest.


• Lack of appreciation. You aren't being rewarded for your efforts.


• No drive. You just can't be bothered going to work and start to take more and more sick days off.


• Lack of career movement. Been stuck in your role for too long? A sure sign.


• Not getting any more authority. Think you deserve it but aren't getting it?

I consider all of these as signals that your time may be up. Exiting correctly is another blog post subject that I will follow up on at a later time.

Management Glossary

Do you ever get stumped by words that others use?

How about management terminology's?

Fortunately (for the uninitiated) Business Balls.com have come up with a Business Dictionary.

Here a few examples -

• Bean Counter - An informal derogatory term for an accountant, especially one who is perceived or suggested to be overly concerned about expenditure detail;
• Just-In-Time - JIT. A manufacturing system in which materials and components are delivered immediately before they are required, in order to increase efficiency, reduce waste and minimise storage costs;
• Vicarious Liability - Having legal responsibility for the actions of another, e.g. the liability of an organisation for the actions of its employees.

As expected some are amusing, while others may just come in handy for the uninitiated!

People Don't Change

Michael Kanazawa wrote this brilliant article called -

"People Don’t Hate Change, They Hate How You’re Trying to Change Them"

It's all about why people refuse to change.

Interestingly - people are happy to change!

They leave because they get bored or stagnant...

How's your organiztion?

Change Management

McKinsey Quarterly.com have republished one of their great articles on Change Management and people.

Here's a brief overview -

1. Provide purpose. People want to know what's in it for them.
2. Reinforce the message. Emphasise the message repeatedly.
3. Skill employees for change. Train them and prepare them before and during the change process.
4. Consistent role models. Choose some key people to model and example the types of change that the organisation wants to achieve.

These messages are as true today as they were back in 2003 when the article was first published.

(Original article: The psychology of change management, Emily Lawson and Colin Price)

Smart Recruitment

Want people to sell your product for you? Why not use people's networks to your advantage?

The good people at Vodafone New Zealand's HR department have come up with this great angle for their recruitment drive.

"Have you been made redundant? If you are a natural sales person, or a well connected business person, we can offer you a silver lining in your redundancy cloud! This exciting challenge will appeal to a wide variety of people, and could suit those from the finance/insurance, car sales and real estate industries (husband/wife teams are very welcome too!), along with well connected sales people and business managers from any industry."

How does it work? Find people who -

• Have been made redundant


• Are good at selling things


• Know people in a wide range of industry's


• Are willing to take a risk and set themselves up as roving sales people.

It might just work...

Job Life

In the same way that careers have determined lengths of time on them so too do jobs.

The question is - how long will the job you are in last? What will you do when your current job disappears?

Change is the only constant. Jobs change, technology changes - do we change with it?

Do a stock take on your current job asking these questions -

• If I wasn't here would anyone notice?


• Could anyone do my job?


• What parts of my job are specialised?


• Which parts of my job are generic?


• What parts of my current job will help me to gain employment in the future?

Interesting huh. By knowing what the length of life our current roles have, this can help us to focus on what to do next.

The Right Product

The secret to marketing (and business in general) is to sell the right product at the right price.

Example - last night I went to McDonald's with the family - 2 adults and 2 kids. I looked at the menu board but couldn't see any deals that were value for money that could allow everyone to eat well. So what did we do?

We went down the road to Burger King instead. Why? They have bundled dinners available after 5.30pm that gave all of us a good meal at a good price. There was - ease of choice, the price was right, everyone was happy. Plus there were plenty of customers!

You have to sell to people based on their needs, drivers and motivations - not yours.

Interestingly Slate.com have an article about why McDonald's are doing well through the recession (compared to restaurants and cafes).