Creating and Leveraging Networks

When you have a project or an issue in front of you that you don't know how/where to start on - what's your approach?

I like to think in terms of sets of people. 

1. People I work closely with.  This is usually the first place we start.  We look at the people around us, ask a question across the room or throw an idea out there for a response.
2. People I know in the organisation.  Not in my direct team but people
3. People spread more widely in the organisation.
4. People I know outside the organisation.
5. People I don't know at all.  This is the best bit.  By belonging to groups and asociations you can gain access to people's contacts and details with ease.  One great example of this is LinkedIn and another is Twitter.  With LinkedIn you can look at your friends friends and try and source an answer that way.  The other more informal network I use is Twitter.  What you can do is tweet a question, hash-tag (#) a particular word for emphasis and see what the Twitter universe throws back at you in the way of an answer.

I love throwing out emails to random people whom I have never met and have no idea about who they are or what they do.  Sometimes the results can be simply amazing.

 

QUIT WASTING MY TIME!

Of the 60+ meetings per month attended by professionals, research indicates that over 50 percent of this meeting time is wasted.
That translates to 4 days of lost productivity per professional every month if each meeting is one hour long!
Can you afford not to invest in more effective meetings?
Do the math for yourself. How much could you save with even a 25% improvement in the productivity of your virtual and in-person meetings?
(Original post: http://myriam-musing.blogspot.com/)

What are you looking at?

Do you lead forwards...

Or backwards...

Some managers enjoy having reports that quite clearly state where the company has already been.  They pour themselves into how the financials are performing for the past quarter.  They love seeing statistics appear in front of their eyes that tell them where they have come from and where they have been,

The rear view mirror exists to enable you to be aware of what is behind you and serves as a reminder of where you have come from.

I prefer to manage by having reports that look forwards.  Have you ever noticed that the windscreen is always at least 20x bigger than the rear view mirror?  When you drive where is your attention focussed?

Creating Ongoing Returns on Investment

The New Zealand tertiary education system is set up in such a way that anyone and everyone can have access to higher education.  Along with assisting people to enter the education system the Government also gift students with extra money for living and everyday expenses.

So given that the Government are investing so much time and money into the sector - they (quite rightly) expect a return on their investment.  Legislation was introduced in 2010 that says that students can access a maximum of 7 years funding assistance and that if any student fails more than 50% of their studies in a given time period they become ineligible to recieve help in the future.

The problem is that there are plenty of students who will fail their study but ought not to be penalised for having tried.  So what has happened is a shift in the thinking and approach of educators to their students.  Where previously tutors may have thought "You know what? Tough.  The student didn't come to class and so they failed.  Not my problem".

Don't get me wrong 98% of tutors take a healthy interest in their students and will often go well beyond the call of duty to assist their learners.  What is happening now is that behavior of assistance is being internalsied and reinforced by management as a central pillar of the classroom and teaching culture.

So we seek to create a culture of caring for those whom we don't see quite so often due to all sorts of circumstances.  Part time students, mums, dads, people without transport, people have been told they are dumb.

At the same time we are undergoing a "brand" review to freshen up the way we project ourselves into the community about who we are and what we do.  My sincere hope is that the two walk hand in hand.

Ultimately community and care of each other is what we are all about.  The way we look at each other within our 'four walls' is just as important as the message that we broadcast to others outside of our organisation.

What we are seeking to provide to the Government, to the students and to the community is an ongoing return on investment.  An investment that will eventually not only raise GDP, living stndards and quality of life but also instill confidence and mana in the learners.

We do this through support, through manaakitanga and through trusting in each other.

The week in review - lessons from reflection

What a week that one was!  May I never have one quite the same again please.

• Monday - submit CV.  Then submit CV again just in case the first email didn't go through.  Amazingly the first email didn't go through so sending the same email from a different address was a lifesaver. 

  Lesson - always have a plan b/plan c.

• Tuesday - Christchurch earthquake.  Members of my team had older children caught up in the drama along with project team members that I know.  A day of stress, worry and ultimately disaster for Christchurch.

  Lesson - you never know when or where a crisis may appear.  You as a manager have to lead, understand and be flexible with your team.

• Wednesday - Marketing workshop.  A very interesting session whereby the group reflcted in the marketing practices of our organisation - both good and bad.  Congratulations to Rob who somehow managed to hold the workshop together and had some very good ideas.

  Lesson - if you don't have something constructive to say, don't say anything at all.

• Thursday - head down, bum up.  Thursday was intense.  Trying to catch up on missed work due to the extended workshop of the day before.

  Lesson - meetings chew up time.  Plan ahead, delegate and avoid meetings with little reward or outcome.  Don't do meetings for the sake of doing meetings.

• Friday - customer service 101.  Two hours spent with students arranging courses for 2011.  Two more hours spent on following up students who either aren't turning up or we think will struggle in 2011.  (Time well spent indeed!)  Then to finish the week - two emails.  One apology and two good news emails.

  Lesson - time spent on people is always a valuable use of your time; and always try to end the week on a good note.  If you have had issues with a co-worker then try and fix them before you leave for the weekend.  Reinforce positive events that have happened and fix up any molehill issues before they blow out to be mountain sized issues.

I wonder what next week will hold?

Using technology realistically

via EduGeekjournal.com

While this video is centred mainly on the development of an online course there are quite a few lessons in this video that go wider.  Here is what I picked up -

• Online development isn't instant.  Rome wasn't built in a day.
• Online anything takes, time, work and practice.  Practice makes perfect.
• Have a road map or development plan and stick to it.  Cutting corners at the beginning will only mean that you will have to correct those mistakes again later.
• If you are doing something online - ask an expert for help.
• If you are going to create something - make it great!
• Just because you have done well in printed media absolutely does not mean you will have what it takes to make it in an online medium.
• Don't be overawed by others trying to use their postition as leverage to get you to give in.
• Just because it's online doesn't mean that it is going to be engaging.
• Don't mess with a female with pink or red hair!

Marketing that means something!

Many, many months ago I emailed the good people at Dilmah with a query about one of their products.  I never subscribed to any emails or newsletters.

What's great is this -

• Dilmah added me to a mailing list but haven't abused that fact.
• This email came through last night.  It is honest and sincere.

Now THAT'S what I call marketing!

 

Thinking of you Christchurch

Dust off your achievements and put them out there!

It has been 18 months to 2 years since I last sat down and updated my CV/resume.  In years gone by I tried to keep my CV current with each of the things I was doing along the way but I never felt like I had achieved anything really significant.

So I left the whole exercise to rest and gather dust.  Then I was prompted recently to sit down and write up my CV and to make it current again.  The difference between the 2009 version and the 2011 version?  Immense.

Here are the key differences -

• Accomplishments.  Achievements take time.  It's just like money - you either win the lottery all at once, or like the rest of the world, you work at it one step at a time.
• Language.  Describing the work you do the skills you bring and your abilities changes over time.  I find myself using more jargon and verbs rather than nouns and static language.  The aim is to use words that tell others that ultimately you can help them and assist them to succeed.
• Self view.  Confidence comes and goes but having a record of your achievements certainly helps.  On those days when you are struggling to get by you can pull your CV out of the drawer and remind yourself that you are actually pretty good!

I recommend that you undertake a CV writing exercise if it is only for fun.  Compare what you write and the history you have made against an old version and see what the differences are.  You may or may not find yourself applying for a new job but that is not the purpose of the exercise.

The purpose of the exercise is to remind yourself that you have value and are a valuable contributor to your team and for your employer.  If you do decide that your CV is pretty good and you are confident in yourself - why not hang it out where people can see it?

(Hint - try sites like LinkedIn and Seek)

Motivation anyone?