Hengsbach & Associates

Evaluation & Mentoring of Individual Managers

2011-12-12T13:47:00.006-06:00

What's good for your employees is good for your managers.

In a previous article I outlined how I went about gathering information regarding, and then assisting, individuals in your sales force. My belief is that everyone, from the CEO to the newest line worker, is accountable. Accordingly, each associate should be open to a review of not only their performance, but a look at HOW they go about getting it done.

Certainly, each person's results against his or her goals and objectives comes first. But if a trail of disappointed or frustrated customers, internal or external, is left in their wake, this must be corrected every bit as much as the numbers themselves. Perhaps we've experienced a great customer or a solid employee leave us over poor communication, no sense of urgency, or overly aggressive behavior.

Too much is at stake for us to fail to address these issues.

The approach I take with managers is very similar, as it should be, to individual employees. Most all of what I do begins with 1 to 1 interviews which include personality profiles for not only the manager, but those around them. By talking with persons involved with the particular manager, both reports & others who may work with them in a more casual manner, I can begin to paint a realistic picture. Others, including upstream & downstream employees assist in getting it right.

When all this data is viewed in light of every one's personality profile,it's rare that it isn't quite accurate.

The next step is to discuss the findings with the CEO. The findings may vary from extremely positive to disturbingly negative. The CEO will know intuitively how accurate the study is, but more importantly the data confirm it. My goal is to explain the interactivity & why certain results follow, to make the results crystal clear & understandable.

Obviously, action taken is much easier when it's favorable. The CEO & I can reinforce behaviour. There might even be a discussion about a possible promotion or pay raise with the manager & CEO.

If the findings are negative, it becomes bit more delicate.

I will then discuss them with the manager to the end of determining how well they understand and accept the findings. This is critical because it is far more "doable" for any of us to make necessary changes if we understand the challenges. It will also most likely make a difference with the CEO if the manager is open to change, all things considered. How to move ahead is then up to the CEO, as it should be. There might be a Performance Improvement Plan or at least coaching issues that are pursued.

This process is simple you may say. It IS simple I would say, but it MUST be to keep the emotion out, and the process fair to all. If done right, change can take place without threatening anyone. Improved results then will follow.

Evaluation & Mentoring of Individual Sales Persons

2011-11-16T16:41:00.001-06:00

Niching companies through Tactical & Strategic Planning, mentoring Ownership & Top Management, & evaluating & assisting the sales forces constitute the bulk of my consulting business. It is what I not only do best, but find the most fulfilling.

However, the marketplace is certainly in a dynamic mode now, and my existing and potential clients seem to have a long standing issue that makes for a new need. It is the individual analysis of, and developing a plan for, the individuals in Sales.

Because of an economy that forces staff reduction to remain profitable, and an extremely competitive marketplace, poor results put more pressure on Sales. And it often tends to single out individual performances.

The quandary for the company is to make sure everyone is performing w/out going on a witch hunt. This is where a neutral third party, often a consultant, can help. Without this objectivity, frustration can creep in, & may be the cause of making potentially large mistakes. I've seen good sales people run off through faulty peer or management pressure, and I've also witnessed non-performers hang around due to distaste for confrontation, or a concern for the person's longevity.

Objectivity, facts and data, must be brought to the process. Interviews need to be conducted without bias. Fellow workers, peers, and even customers (with permission) may be contacted. Performance figures will also be gathered and held up to expectations & benchmarking.

At the same time, it must be discerned if the sales person has everything he or she needs from the company. Training, management support, clear goals, technology, equipment, and a motivational sales remuneration plan come into play here. The wise focus on results, meaning volume, profitability, & customer satisfaction, not politics or even popularity.

The findings are then presented to management in written form with pertinent supporting data. Recommendations are included for moving forward, which can involve everything from promotion and taking full advantage of strengths, to improvement suggestions for weaker areas complete with a mentoring plan, to consideration of a Performance Improvement Plan.

This may seem harsh to some, but these are the realities of accountability, clearly from management to the newest employee.

Hengsbach & Associates

Business Gets in the Way of the Blog

2011-06-07T17:16:00.000-05:00

Several weeks ago, I wrote my last blog, citing that things were in the process of getting busier, and that the writing of the "Book" had been side tracked. Four months' later, I'm writing this one about the blogs being suspended.

For you that follow my articles religiously (yes there are a few), I apologize, but there just hasn't been time. If my client activity is any indication, our economy is picking up, even though it is hard to feel that way considering its fundamentals, like unemployment, foreclosures, and housing starts.

For me, it has been two primary accounts, one quite large, & one small to medium. One within the printing industry, and one outside it. Charter Steel is a billion dollar company in Saukville Wisconsin; they have asked me to do a SWOT Analysis, within the Strategic Planning arena. JP Graphics is a $5-10 million company, and is an offset, sheet-fed, 4-color printer in Appleton, Wisconsin.

They are each very different, but are similar in that they each have great people and strong leadership. I'm honored to work with each of them.

More to follow, but I just wanted to get you this update. Thanks for your patience & understanding.

Getting the Most From PIW Seminars

2011-03-04T17:03:00.000-06:00

Although the recent Planning Seminar was an overwhelming success with the participants (4.75 of 5.0 overall approval rating), the attendance from the PIW membership, was less than expected.

Despite Michael Makin's emphasis on the importance of planning with our businesses, and his contention that PIA Profit Leaders put much more into training & learning than the average, seminar attendance, pretty much whatever the topic, continues to be light.

Is it the cost? Even with the Economy & the slow recovery being what it is, this doesn't seem to be the case. The usual price of $159 for members for an entire day is more than reasonable, and discounts are provided for multiple attendees from the same company.

Is it the time involved? Possibly. Certainly, layoffs over the last 2 years have served to add work to all of us. We've had to learn to live with less help to get the total job done. Even many owners have found themselves wearing more hats, and having less time to be the leader they want to be. Still, we must realize that when we reduce investing in our people, we are at the very least mortgaging our future. A wrinkle here is to have half-day sessions, but with the travel time involved, it's not always effective.

Is it the topics? Again, possibly. However, the PIW staff repeatedly solicits ideas from the membership, to tell them what's hot and what's not. It seems hard for them to put together a program that the membership will "flock" to. Witness the Digital Workflow Seminar Joe & Judi asked me to put together last September. We had 20 people attend (and again the approval rating was very high), but given the importance of the topic (in my opinion), it should have been double that amount.

Is it the presenters? Let's not be prideful here; we should again examine the possibilities. Generally speaking, the seminar facilitators & speakers must be experienced & more than competent to even make it to PIW's radar screen. And with the feedback ratings given the attendees, less than knowledgeable, incisive, and helpful presenters are not invited back. One fact that seems to make a difference though, is to invite well known personalities. Michael Makin & Jac Garner are two examples. The downside, excepting Michael & Jac, is the best known are not always the most competent on the given subject.

From my standpoint this pretty much covers the issues potentially affecting attendance. But if I've missed something, please let Judi, Joe, or me know; your input will be invaluable. Remember, different points of view, or even disagreement can be, are, and will be treated as a gift. We all want to get better each day; this can be a way to do just that.

PIW Planning Seminar Top Rated at 4.75 0f 5.0

2011-03-03T16:06:00.000-06:00

Business Gets in the Way of the Book

2011-02-02T14:17:00.001-06:00

It looks like February, and part of March, will be a lean month for my split personality, the "author." The book, Achieving Greatness through Mutual Accountability will have to wait.

The old saying goes, "Be careful for what you wish for", and I have been striving for new clients. I find them through such things as referrals, seminars, newsletters, & my PIW Membership. And it all requires time.

Accordingly, the processing of the data gathered and the actual authoring itself have been relegated to the back burner for the month of February.

The PIW Strategic Planning Seminar I am giving is set for February 17th, and requires much preparation. I will present the all-day conference using over 85 Power Point slides, and 30 articles, many of which I have written, over the last 3+ years. Thank God for that, but it is still a sizable job to put it all together.

Following that, I will be processing the Seminar ratings (what can I learn/do better?), and following up issues that arose that day.

Then comes the Book Manufacturers Institute (BMI) IT & Digital Roundtables in Chicago, the second week of March. As BMI Training & Education Committee Chairman, I am responsible, along with BMI's Executive Director, for putting them together. Over 40 people from all over the Country will attend. Great stuff, but again it takes time.

So please don't fret about my lack of Blogs in the next few weeks; know that I am well, and more than occupied. And most importantly; the Book still rules!

PIA 2011 Forecast Part 1, Trends & Tactics

2011-01-24T05:47:00.001-06:00

When my copy of this long-awaited document finally arrived in the mail today, it was not anticlimactic. Well put together in a logical progression, it provides an effective complement to our individual and collective efforts in building growth & profits. What a nice painting of the picture Michael Makin and his folks accomplished in putting together a complete and comprehensive report.

I was honored to be a small part of a very distinguished group of contributors; such as Patrick Sweeney of Caliper; Steve Creasey of Bobst North America; & Bob Elliott of CPIA.

Since deadlines are well ahead of the publish date, these articles were written several weeks ago. In going through mine again, as part of the whole picture, it seemed to fit in well. The "must" of Planning, Committing, Leading, Organizing, and having the Courage to change, were mentioned by Michael in his introductory message.

Take some time to go through your issue; it should provide your team and you with some well thought-out information with which to finish the framing of your year.

PIW Planning Seminar Content

2011-01-20T13:44:00.000-06:00

The February 17th PIW Seminar on Planning may be the most useful day you’ve ever spent!

This will be an interactive day with lots of discussion. Bring your questions.

Here’s what will be covered:

Why plan? What are the benefits? Consequences of not Planning
Types of Planning: Informal, Tactical, Operational, Scenario, Strategic
How do you begin? The advantages of Budgeting & Forecasting Commitment from the top
Why involve others in the Process? Is the answer really in the room?
What is a Process anyway? What does it get us?
The role of a facilitator Advantages & Disadvantages Who should it be?
Should I hire a consultant? Advantages & Disadvantages
The importance of “Fierce Conversations” What are “Fierce Conservations?”
The value of questioning, opinions, & disagreement
Mission, Values, & Vision Definition of each What makes these so critical?
The invaluable 4 Quadrant discussion of customers & products
The 3 Value Disciplines of Market Leaders: Customer Intimate, Operational Excellence, & Product Leadership
Core Competencies How to discover them How to take advantage
Complete Outlines of each Strategic Planning Meeting What should be accomplished in each? How?
Can Planning time be shortened? How?
How to experience awesome meetings with complete buy-in What, and what not, to do
The importance of Focus & Niche How do we get focused? What are the advantages of Niche?
How is Competitive Advantage attained?
The Why & How of Internal Scanning Finding your sweet spot & building on it
Facing your weaknesses Moving away from them Shoring them up w/o spending excessive time and money
Questionnaires/Interviews/Tools to gathering information
External Scanning Looking at the marketplace, customers, controllable & uncontrollable factors
The P.E.S.T. Analysis Porters Five forces S.W.O.T. Analysis
Questionnaires/Interviews/Tools to gather information
Setting goals Goals should be S.M.A.R.T.E.R.
Developing Competitive Strategy Strategic Focus & Formulation to achieve goals
Action Planning Developing Objectives with Time Lines to support Achievement of Goals
Assigning “Champions” with ownership of responsibility What makes a “Champion?”
Importance of continued Commitment from Owner
HOW TO WRITE THE PLAN Developing your “authors” from within
Creating a viable Format The importance of an Executive Summary
Eliminating rhetoric & redundancy CREATING A PLAN YOU WILL USE
The priceless discussion/scribing, of time, people, core competencies, equipment, material, & technology
Implementation: Why does it fail all too often? Avoiding those pitfalls
Using your Champions to create a subculture of success
Details, Details, Details - making them fun, using the appropriate personality styles
Completion/Approval of Plan Celebratory Lunch
Communicating Plan to Employees Obtaining Company-wide buy-in as you do
Quarterly Evaluations Measuring, Monitoring, Deviations, Changes? Peer Circles to get it done

Whew, what a day? If you leave without some great insights, handouts (I have more than 30 of them ), & ideas, I’ll be amazed!

Strategic Planning (SP) Step #2

2011-01-11T08:46:00.000-06:00

The second gathering comes after three other tasks have been completed: Step #1, the discovery of your Mission, Values, and Vision (MVV's), and Team Selection. Please see those three other articles.

This as most of the Strategic Planning Team (SPT) gatherings is off site (keeps interruptions to a minimum), but near the company offices, for most of the day. This will allow for the members to spend some time, early and/or late, to cover operational responsibilities.

The President (P) begins with a strong commitment for SP from the top. A crucial step. P explains the why and what of the Planning effort. He/she reviews the Team Selection criteria, and why each was chosen. Next comes the "how", which points to the need for their sense of urgency, critical thinking, and contributions. Diversities of thought are valued, and in fact validate the Process. He/She is making their own sacrifice in allowing the Facilitator (F) to lead. Control is being sacrificed in order to achieve the greater good for all. It's all about "Fierce Conversations." See separate article.

F then briefly gives an overview of the Steps, complete with time line, and his/her style of being there for them. Next the findings of the group discovering the MVV's is reviewed and discussed for validity. Perceived inaccuracies are ironed out; conclusion is verified.

Finally an overview, as always, is given for the next Step, along with reading material needing study. Questions & answers will complete this first Team Step.

Step #1 Strategic Planning (SP)

2011-01-04T08:17:00.000-06:00

As I'm preparing my material for giving an upcoming Planning Seminar for Printing Industries of Wisconsin (PIW),I realized I never wrote a blog or articles for the first two meetings of SP. Since I want to have handouts for all, I'll create them here.

Accordingly, here's what should take place, and why, It assumes you've made the decision to begin the Process, and that you've chosen a facilitator or hired a consultant.

The President/CEO (P) meets with the Facilitator/Consultant (F) to get the ball rolling. After settling the basics of engagement, (P) briefs (F) on the current situation of the company, including financials, strengths & weaknesses. Obviously the purpose/results desired will be discussed, as well as how SP will meet this need.

If the President is not familiar with, or hasn't done, formal planning previously, the depth of the interchange is increased. Time, resources such as people, machines, & money are brought into the mix such that (F) gets the picture being painted.

If there are unique individuals or Family-Owned issues, this is the time for them. In short, F should be given a crash course in looking at the company from an executive standpoint. Agreement should be reached on time line.

Next comes F's turn in discussing Team selection, and what type of person is needed. That person is not a stereotyped clone, but rather just the opposite. It's very critical for the team to be a diverse group of people in terms of background, personality style, and discipline. Please see the separate article on SPT Selection.

Provisions should be made at this time for discovering the company's Mission, Values, and Vision (MVV). The ideal time is between this first gathering & the second. F & P will meet with 4-6 people, probably not the Team members, to accomplish this. They will be longer standing employees from various departments that understand who the company is, where it's been, and where it's going. As with the SPT, F will be in charge, not P, for the same reasons.

Finally, something that permeates through all this communication is "Fierce Conversations" Please see separate article. It is extremely important that P embraces the approach that F uses.

There's a tremendous need for unanimity here, which makes this start crucial to success.

Michael Makin & the Importance of Planning

2011-01-03T17:53:00.001-06:00

As we printers all know, Michael, was here last month to help Printing Industries of Wisconsin celebrate our 75th Anniversary. Prior to the open house, Michael spoke to the member leadership regarding our future.

While he did not paint a rosy picture for everyone, there were some positives for those who were forward looking and Profit Leaders. Digital Print played a prominent part, as did our changing role of content providers. Certainly there are threats, but in them opportunities as well.

It was very interesting to me to hear him say, as he discussed forging our future, that planning was one of our collective weakest areas. From what I see day to day, I would agree, but after all, I'm a consultant & you might expect that. Still, Joe Lyman, Judi Wolters, and I had already agreed to put on a seminar on Planning in February. Fortuitous timing.

Later on, at the open house, I spoke with Michael about the upcoming seminar, and he was pleased, which was gratifying to hear.

Mark your calendars for February 17th.

In this interactive session, we will discuss several types of planning: informal, Strategic, Tactical, Operational, & Scenario. Resource availability, along with plenty of information & handouts will be provided. The goal is to stimulate creative ideas you can take back to your organization to foster growth & profitability.

Watch for another announcement to come from PIW next week. As always, feel free to contact me if you have further questions.

See you there!

Ichak Adizes - Mutual Trust & Respect

2010-12-16T14:36:00.001-06:00

In my last article, as well as throughout my career, I have consistently put an emphasis on "how" we do things, not just the "what'. Here, I'd like to tie this together with a man I admire, Ichak Adizes. His version is MT&R - treating each other with mutual trust and respect. I couldn't agree more.

What does this mean in the workplace? How we involve our people in their own management? How we tailor together their approach to getting results that serve both?

It starts with sincere leadership that forges a culture of working collaboratively. This involves listening, being willing to change things for the greater good, even when it may involve personal sacrifice, for the manager, person, or even the company.

Mutual means that even though there are different levels of responsibility, we approach each other as equal people in terms of discovering a solution.

Trust is being able to let go, not having to control everything. It's recognizing that the answer most often is "in the room", if we will only listen for it. It's also allowing others to make mistakes and learn from them. It is believing in the goodness of each other when given a chance.

Respect means even when we are the boss, we are superior to no one. God made us equal in dignity, even though talents may have been given in different forms. He expects us to treat each other accordingly, as we would our family.

It is these values that have driven how I am to approach putting "The Book" together. It should be a magical journey!

"The Book" Interviews Near Completion

2010-12-08T12:53:00.000-06:00

By the end of this month, the interviewing of H/R Managers, Top, and Middle Management will be completed. The journey has been an incredible one; from New York to Illinois; from Michigan to California, people have been most cooperative and helpful.

What have I learned? Well, for starters, it's not nearly just about the Performance Review (PR). It's about having a passion for what one does and how it is pursued. It involves not only competency, but caring. It means building mutual trust, not simply going through the motions. And certainly it encompasses the creation of success and sharing it.

Some time ago (see my blog, July 28, 2010 "To Write a Book, Part 2"), I discovered that writing a book involves letting it carry you along. It's much more effective than imposing your will on it. And so it has been with the interviews.

I began with a list of questions (see my blog, Nov 27, 2010 "Interviewing for "The Book"), This helped me immeasurably with thought organization and putting those interviewed more at ease. What I discovered however, was that each person had their own approach to things and responded best to forging their own order and emphasis. It would flow much more smoothly and I would get more content of a higher quality.

Ichak Adizes in a Christmas blog, "Where is God" recently made reference to the importance of what he calls MT&R, Mutual Trust & Respect. Not only was this important in the process of interviewing, it has emerged as an integral part of "The Book". These, along with a hand full of other values will shape it as I prepare to begin writing after the first of the year.

Publishers & the Digital Print Revolution, Part 2

2010-11-30T11:39:00.000-06:00

We are continuing here with the evaluation of John Biggs' article on the impact of digital technology on the Publishing Industry.

Amazon, Borders, and Barnes & Noble all offer self-publishing to their customers. Biggs calls it the vanity press. We in the industry have seen an incredible growth in this area in just the last year. This is now possible for under $100. An ISBN number is provided, as are royalties on titles sold through the store.

Amazon will do it for 30% on each book. Not a bad offer, particularly if the author doesn't expect much in the way of sales. I guess that's where the vanity press comes from.

Some best-selling authors have abandoned the book entirely in favor of digital distribution. They liken printed paper books to vinyl records. They have my attention; that's a scary thought!

Seth Godin is one author who's taken it to the extreme. He distinguishes publishing from printing. Publishing, he says, is all about taking the financial risk, and finding the readers to buy their book. He maintains that the Internet makes it far easier to find and keep readers, making the Publishers less valuable.

Content Aggregation is something I've made a big deal of, probably more than most in our marketplace. Interestingly enough, the Director of Product Management at Google, Ying Wang (no, I didn't make that up) insists that Google is not a traditional publisher, but an aggregator.

All of this is quite remarkable. I have gained new respect for Mr. Biggs. But the upside is that now we can read our book almost anywhere, even on our computer. And, to those who don't have the resources like many of us, loving to read & learn, and building a personal library, will be within the reach of most.

Those of us, who have been blessed working in this market for so long, will be fine - as long as we embrace the challenges and find the positives in it.

Publishers & the Digital Print Revolution

2010-11-30T09:52:00.001-06:00

An article was recently written by John Biggs, regarding the effect of E-Readers on the Publishing industry. This was rather unique to start with, because John has quite an Internet presence on topics from humor to technology. He is the former editor-in-chief of Gizmodo.com.

What added to this unlikely course of events was that the article caught my wife's eye (I guess that means she pays attention to what I do) in the Delta Sky Magazine on a return flight from Minneapolis. Not exactly where I spend my time keeping up with the Book & Print Industry!

Nevertheless, John also writes for the New York Times & Popular Science, among others, and does his homework. Actually, he's quite an inspiration to me: if he can do it, why not me?

Let's get to the article. He gives a nice rundown of the different Readers available, from the Kindle to the Nook, with the iPad, Kobo, Libre, and Sony in between. His point is that while the end is probably not at hand, this technology is changing the way we publish, distribute, and read the written word. And do not limit this to only books; newspapers, magazines, & other content is impacted as well.

We who are involved know this, but have we truly internalized & accepted it? What are we doing within our own organizations to complement (not fight) it?

He makes another simple but startling point: Publishers have figured this out, that paper cannot compete, period. If they have figured it out, what does this mean for we who not only print, but repurpose, distribute, and store (hopefully) their content?

The business model is taking advantage of no (or little) distribution cost. But the real value-added is in the enhancements they're now adding like animation, video, and audio. They are providing apps for PCs & Macs as well as smart phones.

In the interest of space & time, I will finish this article in mine following.

Interviewing for "The Book"

2010-11-27T06:53:00.001-06:00

Gathering data & interviewing H/R Managers, middle managers, and President/Owners has been most fruitful. My purpose is to determine what exactly is going on in the trenches of the best companies. In this manner, I will not make the same mistakes Samuel Culbert made in his book, "Get Rid of the Performance Review".

Not only will I be accurate, factual, and unemotional, I will be able to document what I say while helping others to understand the "why".

To prepare the approach, as well as assist those willing to be interviewed, I made a list of questions, which also ensures that nothing is missed in the intensity of the interview itself. Starting in this way also allows me to stress confidentiality for them, their people, and the company itself.

Here's the list:

Questions for Book interview 11/10

Confidentiality – Whatever you share will be “scrubbed” taking persons, places, and companies’ identity out. You will be given full recognition to the extent you approve. You will also approve, before publishing, any & all manuscripts. This is being recorded with your full knowledge and approval.

Tell me about your background in management and H/R.

How do you get the most out of your people?

How do you help them find satisfaction in what they do?

Is their happiness important to their performance? How do you help them find it?

Can you give me a story regarding the above?

How would you characterize your management style? Why are you in that certain mold?

How does the Performance Review (PR) fit in?

What is most troubling to you about using the PR? Can you illustrate with a story?

Would you stop using it (the PR) if you could? Why?

How would you replace it?

If you had the power, what would you change about it?

What do you especially like about it?

If you had the power, how would you best make use of (this) these thing(s)?

How does the manager rating the employee help or hinder the process? Example?

What would you change about how the rating manager administers the PR? Why?

Talk about top management’s involvement. How does it affect the PR? Example?

Would you like to see change in your boss’s support, or lack thereof, of the PR?

Do you believe that H/R Managers as a profession support the PR? Why or why not?

What else would you like to say that hasn't been asked? Thanks so much.

The Consultant's Responsibility in Project Implementation

2010-11-27T06:52:00.000-06:00

Previously, we looked at how to effectively implement a project undertaken by a consultant to foster desired change within the organization. And we focused on the responsibilities of Top Management. In this article, we will concentrate on how the consultant should assist in the process.

Assuming that the proper time has been spent interviewing and observing the appropriate areas, gathering data, and evaluating all, the findings are given to top management. With approval, the time is at hand to implement the agreed upon changes. What might the consultant do to facilitate and energize this process?

1) The consultant must work closely with the President, keeping her/him briefed on successes, challenges, & setbacks. There should be no surprises here.

2) The consultant must not have an agenda. First of all, it is not the consultant's company. It is also not his role to force or even steer the changes. Rather, he/she should facilitate and help the company DISCOVER its way.

3) The consultant must be discreet & trustworthy. Confidences should not be betrayed; rather, the findings should be "scrubbed" for anonymity. If one wants honest answers, there cannot be a consequence associated with truth telling.

4) The consultant must be capable of "Fierce Conversations". Communication must be truthful, uncomplicated, & caring. It's direct & to the point, but professional.

5) Value must be given for the cost to the customer. Not only should the desired results be attained, they should be commensurate with the billings. This means taking into consideration the size & resources of the organization, and balancing it with the task to be done. Look at revenue generated, short & long term with the cost.

6) Results should be given in writing, with a complete review of services rendered versus the cost. Furthermore, this should be given face to face with at least the President. In larger companies, it may be given to the Board. This is also an opportunity to discuss what else, if anything, needs to be studied.

With everyone, meaning employee, top management, and the consultant, following these guidelines, success will be that much closer for all.

The Importance of Implementation

2010-11-04T12:23:00.001-05:00

We consultants make quite a big deal of interviewing people, gathering facts, and evaluating the data. Where we sometimes can be lacking is in explaining how we can actually help in stimulating the necessary change.

This implementation is critical to ensuring that you realize & gain the value you pay for in the project. Because implementation is a PROCESS, like most good things, let's take a look at it here in some depth.

Another way to look at it is to ask what results are we wanting/needing, and what do we have to do to attain them. Let's make a list:

1) Embrace the change. The irony here is that we sometimes are fearful of the very outcome that we need and want. Questions pop up like; Will I be found lacking? Will my people be angry, or rebel? Will the recommendations create stress? Will the company grow from it? Talk through these thoughts with your management team. Changing the status-quo means taking a risk, but there is so much more to be gained than lost.

2) Be a confident leader. The way we carry ourselves will be contagious. Be available, communicate in an honest & straight forward manner, and answer questions head on.

3) Listen to your people. If you have assembled the right team, the answer lies within the room. Treat your employees accordingly and they will rise to the occasion, and be a part of the solution.

4) Give the project your commitment from the top, time-wise, & financially, Nothing can doom a change more than top management apathy. And if the change has merit, it should be adequately funded. Otherwise, only lip service is being paid.

5) Be willing to make sacrifices yourself. Nothing is better received from your rank and file than a president who's willing to work harder, be paid less money, or agrees to support a decision he/she is against.

These are all things you can do in the company leadership role to imporve the implementation process. We'll discuss the responsibilities of the consultant next.

The Book Has a Title!

2010-10-27T18:03:00.000-05:00

As my writing journey takes more focus, I decided to come up with at least a descriptive title, so I can refer to it specifically, rather than just "the book." I did this realizing that my publisher will change it anyway. For the better I'm sure.

Here goes: "Rebuilding the Performance Review: the Key to Job Satisfaction & Top Performance." Now you can see why I've labeled this a "descriptive" title; it is obviously too long, but it serves its purpose for now.

Speaking of my publisher, I have received some very nice support from Arthur Chou of Velazquez Press in Southern California. He has assured me his help which, as a first time author, I dearly need. If they don't publish it (because of the topic/discipline), he will assist me in getting it published elsewhere. This is a nice favor given the way our economy and electronic books have adversely affected the marketplace for new books.

Meanwhile the background work continues. I am in the middle of interviewing H/R Professionals, as well as middle and upper management. This will help me several ways: First, it will effectively solicit opinions on the PR as a whole, while gathering data and field material, which will allow me to document why I take some of the positions I do. Secondly, it will allow for some story telling, which I believe is a great way to make a lasting impression. Finally, it will also provide a sort of bibliography which will help the book be well grounded.

Thanks to all of you who are contributing!

Theory Behind the Digital Workflow

2010-10-21T16:43:00.001-05:00

The previous article reviewed lessons learned for executives at the recent BMI Digital Roundtable that I was fortunate enough to help put together. As promised, this article will focus more on the ideas & strategy behind digital print/workflow.

In the past, with print, the customer provided the art/content, the printer produced it, and then it was distributed by the printer, customer, or a third party.

With the digital workflow, it's more like the art/content is produced, sometimes from a variety of sources, and the file created may allow for multiple output. The digital printer/workflow then, depending on what needs to be done, may use it as is, or repurpose it. Then they print & distributes it either traditionally or digitally, and may send it to a third party for their distribution electronically. Finally, the file is either stored by the printer, or sent back to the customer.

From this, the additional value added can be seen, part or all of which may be available to the printer, turned printer/digital workflow company. Therein lies the opportunity for additional revenue.

If I haven't confused you enough yet, consider an even more direct method, which is already happening: The consumer (the customer's customer)provides the content directly to the digital printer/workflow, then distributes it themselves. This is seen in self published books, or large box stores, for example.

Finally, an off-shoot of the above is distributed print, which is creating content, distributing, and then printing or electronically making it available in multiple locations.

Here's the point. The business model is changing, so to be successful in the digital workflow, we need to understand these changes, see them within our customers, and then figure out where we can help them the most.

This "figuring it out", is all about having and/or acquiring the talent, assembling a team, and embarking on the planning journey. If you as the top executive can support it from the top, you have a great chance of succeeding.

Book Manufacturers' Institute Digital Roundtable - Another Success!

2010-10-12T13:51:00.001-05:00

Last week, I had the privilege of helping to put together another learning day for printers getting involved with Digital Technology. This one was the Digital Roundtable for Book Manufactures Institute (BMI). Much like the Digital Seminar I facilitated for Printing Industries of Wisconsin (PIW) the week before, most of the discussion and questions surrounded the entire workflow rather than just the print side.

Here are some of the best points made, in the hopes that they will help you in your journey as a printer turned Content Aggregator:

1) Look at your organization as a provider of content, potentially in differing ways besides just print. This is the way your customers are moving, and will define what they need from you in the future.

2) If we accept the above premise, then the electronic files we used previously for only print output will be needed for varied output. In any given market, for example, it may be a web download, sent to a digital device such as an iPad, or printed traditionally, or digitally. This is why some say, "the file rules".

3) If we in turn accept this logic, we begin to see how important our IT and Pre-press Departments are. Accordingly, we need to hire, train, and retain exemplary folks who will help us give the customer what they want, THE WAY THEY WANT IT.

4) To be successful within the digital workflow, we need to find our niche, just as we do with the traditional workflow. Ideally, it will complement our traditional core business and existing customer base.

5) Success comes much more consistently when a planning process is followed. Here, an outside facilitator will markedly improve your chances of defining your opportunities, setting goals, & measuring success.

6) To do that, we as executives need to understand this opportunity well enough to fund and support it. As with most good things, the commitment must come from the top.

From a philosophical standpoint, this is the basic management part of leading your team to success in this new world of digital.

More will follow, in terms of the technical side, in further articles.

deally

PIW Digital Workflow Seminar: A Success!

2010-09-28T06:58:00.001-05:00

The consensus from the 24 people representing 19 companies that participated in this Digital Workflow Seminar, was that it was effective on many fronts while answering all questions presented. It was an honor to have Hengsbach & Associates facilitate the day-long PIW sponsored event.

The speakers consisted of Jac Garner, President of Webcrafters, who spoke on the executive management's role; Diana Schwarzenberger IT Manager of LeHigh Milwaukee who did a nice job with Pre-Press & IT issues; Marc Johnson of H/P who handled print engine technology & upstream downstream customers; & Jerry Sturnick of Xerox on Bindery & Finishing opportunities.

As Facilitator, I spoke first to "set the table" for the other speakers, who in the above workflow order presented the challenges & opportunities facing we who have previously been just printers. Because of digital technology, we now output not only print, but digital media for the Web, and electronic devices. Accordingly, we are now Content Providers, with printing only being a part.

It's fair to say that the workflow was the star of the day. If we take care of the customers "file", it will allow us to provide it back to the customer in the way they want and need it. We therefore must have strong people in our companies in IT & Pre-Press areas, while understanding the entire workflow. This is the future.

A nice ending to the day came with the speakers and I forming a panel to answer any and all of the attendee questions. We had several that were submitted prior to the seminar, as well as some that came up during the day. We spent just about an hour in this mode, and did not stop until all had been answered.

The ratings of the attendees averaged 4.35 out of 5 overall, which was excellent. When asked if the day was too complex (5) or too elementary (1), they rated it 3.15 (3.0 would be perfect).

Thanks go to Judi Wolters of PIW for working behind the scenes to make it the success it was, and the speakers for their professionalism.

Advantages of Mergers & Acquisitions in the Digital Workflow

2010-09-27T18:35:00.001-05:00

While preparing for the PIW Digital Workflow Seminar it became apparent that strong IT & Pre-Press departments & individuals were critical. If that's not the current condition of these areas in your organization, it can be time consuming and costly to develop them. Meanwhile, opportunities can be lost.

One way to answer the challenge was exemplified by Jim Pentecost, President of Dickinson press in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I remember meeting with Jim this last spring & discussing the issue. He was concerned that he did not have the experience within, and that, since he was new to digital production, there were limitations there as well.

A couple of months ago, Jim called me to say he & 2 other companies had pulled off a joint venture, with each organization providing something that the other two did not have. Very creative, and very effective.

Another possibility, for those of you who have the financial strength, might be an acquisition, and/or a merger. With this alternative, one has more risk, but also control. At the same time, depending on the scale of the transaction, it might reduce time required to enter a phase of the market, while expanding horizons for your current customer base. And it could very well add new customers as well.

M & A is always an option (it works both ways); don't fail to consider it.

Advantages of Joint Ventures in the Digital Workflow

2010-09-03T15:09:00.000-05:00

The expansion of the Digital Workflow within the Print Industry continues to have a profound effect on its printers. Challenges, especially for the smaller companies, arise most pointedly in finding the resources to provide the content to their customers in ways differing from traditional print.

Content Aggregation (CA) is the accepting the file(s), from one or multiple sources, manipulating them to enable output in a variety of ways, and, if required, storing them securely for retrieval at a later date. Because this requires detailed & evolving software knowledge and new technology, it takes time, talent, and funding, all of which may not be available to the average printer.

One solution that is beginning to emerge is the creation of a Joint Venture. What one company doesn't have, another may. By combining forces, talent, technology, and capacity can be assembled in a timely manner that is affordable & cost effective.

For example, one organization may be growing rapidly & have a great customer base, but not have the funding needed. Another may have the IT & Pre-Press talent with a strong software base, but not the production capacity. Yet another might have a strong distribution base capable of various delivery methods, but lack the others.

By getting together they can reasonably quickly put together a program that is affordable to each, gives the customers what they want, and is actually profitable.

The downside is that there can be a risk involved to, what is often, get involved with your competitors. Keeping an open mind, and perhaps choosing partners who are only peripherally competitive, will help. And if you documenting carefully & secure sound legal advice, there may be a very nice upside.

The Call for Case Studies

2010-08-27T17:47:00.001-05:00

As stated clearly before, the case studies, as provided from H/R managers that I've worked with and known over time, will be an integral part of the book. The time is at hand when I will begin to receive them from those who wish to contribute, and have an important part in the book's development.

A bit over 2 months ago, I sent out the preliminary call, which had gratifying interest & response. Now I am asking for outlines of case studies that the managers believe make, or refute, a certain point. It might be one which resulted in improved accountability for a previously marginal employee, Or, it could be about a manager abusing his/her power using the P/R, and how that wrong was righted. Another may address how culture was bettered through understanding what results achieved, or conduct, was acceptable, and that which was not.

The outlines can be simple; creating more work for the already taxed H/R Manager is not what's desired. Rather the idea is simply to initially communicate 3 things: 1) What was the existing problem or situation? 2) How did proper & intended use of the P/R address it? 3) What was the outcome? Three or four sentences will do.

From these outlines, I will select the ones that serve to prove points made in the book surrounding the appropriate use of P/R's. Since these will be a main source of supporting data, there will hopefully be many of them used. Accordingly, if you send a case study in, it most likely will be used. If you send multiple cases in, I can almost guarantee that at least one/some will be used.

Once your case is intended for use in the book, you will be asked to provide a bit more detail to ensure that it is understandable and relevant to the issue. Anonymity of company and persons will be provided in all steps of the process.

My hope is that this has been kept simple, and will be not only easy, but fun to do. And you'll be doing something in support of your fine profession, that some, like Professor Culbert are maligning.

What is Planning, and How Might We Begin?

2010-08-27T16:32:00.001-05:00

When discussing the role of planning with potential clients, I try to explain the "why" before I get them comfortable with the 'how'. To some, planning seems to be a waste of time: action is what they want. Results and improving outcomes are in fact what it's all about, but without planning, actions can be meaningless, if not expensive & counter productive.

So let's begin slowly. Planning can be a casual conversation with your CFO, or a discussion of an equipment purchase with your Executive Committee. Perhaps it's putting together an Operational Plan for improved efficiency, or it might be committing to Strategic Planning.

In any case, it's preparing for your future by understanding who you are, what your customers want, the inside & outside dynamics you face, and then taking appropriate action to secure the outcome you desire.

An extremely important consideration not always understood is: at what point & at what depth should others be involved? It then becomes a process? A process is involving others in a decision in an organized manner, gathering data & opinions, and "discovering" together the correct course of action. Discovering means no agendas; it is what it becomes.

When other people are added to the mix, especially if you're the "Big Boss" & they don't interact with you on a day to day basis, the situation becomes more complicated. Why? It may not be what you think.

Most people are willing to work, and if you've chosen & hired & trained well, competent and informed. I believe their intentions are generally good, and they want to do what's right. So if I'm accurate, what can go wrong?

Well, human nature moves each of us toward positives & away from negatives. In the work environment, this means performing tasks that add value, are recognized, and rewarded. It also means avoiding others that are counter productive, involve criticism, or have negative consequences.

If this process part of of planning is taken into a hierarchical environment, it can mean not getting honest answers and feedback. And without "Fierce Conversations", the process turns into pleasing the boss(es). This, of course, fouls the whole endeavor, because there's not really consensus, understanding, and buy-in, although it may appear that way.

Even if some good decisions are made, efficiency is reduced because everyone's not pulling in the same direction. These are the consequences of an Owner/President who says, "I don't understand why this endeavor failed; we had total agreement" Unfortunately, the total agreement was to keep the boss happy.

Unfortunately, this situation happens all too often, but it can be avoided. How so? With a third party who is impartial, has nothing to gain, and has a knack for putting even the most reticent at ease. It may be a business associate, or a consultant, but should be an experienced person not associated with the company.

He or she will create a very "flat" environment with no one in charge (especially The Big Boss). There are no foolish comments or questions; everybody's contributions are equal.

Only in this way will honest feedback be given and received. The answer basically is in the room, and will only be discovered under these set of circumstances. This is so simple, and yet so complex.

Successful and experienced people (owners) tend to think they can do anything. They (& I'm including myself) have big egos and believe that most everyone will "tell it like it is" & not patronize them. In my 30+ years, I can tell you it just isn't reality. Accordingly, the last thing they may want to do is to ask someone from the outside to come in to get this done. It involves giving up some control which is incredibly difficult for many executives. Yet when they don't, success is at best 10-15%.

Please, if you're on the Planning team, don't let your President make this mistake. And if you are he or she, have the courage to ask someone outside of the organization to facilitate.

Defining the Book's Shape

2010-08-03T14:39:00.001-05:00

My wife doubles as my editor, and she has raised a valid question, "Why are you providing all this information on how the writing is going?" She is concerned that this might be too much information. I understand, but it is provided for those who are contributing to the process, primarily the H/R Managers.

My hope is that these articles will give them insight as to how the book is coming along, which in turn will make them, and their case studies, a bigger part of it. If that is not what's going on, feel free to scan through, or simply ignore these.

As I've stated previously, writing a book is an adventure. What is surprising, is that it emerges on it's own, if I'll simply let it. What's not so easy is to organize it, structure it, so that it progresses and flows. My goal is to have it state it's points in a way that makes sense to the readers, while stimulating thought & leaving an impression on them.

Because this is my first book, it would have been much easier if I'd chosen to research the process before I began. This was not done, purposely, as an attempt to create a fresh, honest, and "from the gut" document. I know this will drive my publishing friends crazy, but that's the way I want it. And they will get the last say (hopefully not laugh) in the process when they edit it.

Professor Culbert gets the credit (or blame) for negatively inspiring me. Writing pages & pages of notes, thoughts, values, and retorts has forced me to not only crystallize what I don't believe, but what I do believe. In another few days, I will be at the end of this phase.

Sitting there will be 100 or so pages of material that will foster another 200 or so as I fully develop the thoughts. In between, I am called to create an outline, which many would have developed at the onset. But to make the point very clear, I want it to outline itself without me making arbitrary decisions. Reviewing the 100 pages will do that for me.

Some of the decisions to be made along the way are: 1) How many chapters/pages will be devoted to responding to the good professor? 2) What do I personally see as the pros & cons of the PR? In other words, what do I believe in vs. with what do I disagree? 3) What related tools do I want to evaluate, such as the 360's? 4) How do I want to leave the reader?

The impact of the book, to me, is everything. For example, as much as I take issue with Culbert's book, it certainly made an impression on me. I have to give him credit. I was left with no alternative but to take action. Is that call to action my purpose in writing the book? I don't think so.

In searching my motives, it seems to be more of a thought provoking attempt at improving the way we look at our people, and honestly treating them well. I want them treated professionally, and with dignity. Culbert obviously wants this for the employees, but in attacking authority & management, he ignores meaningful relationships, positive mentoring & guidance, including what is done right, and what needs improvement, These are the very things that help employees elevate performance and develop a sense of satisfaction.

Putting structure into the mix at this point helps define the shape of the book without forcing the issue.

To Write a Book, Part Three

2010-07-28T12:31:00.001-05:00

As the journey continues, it remains a joy and privilege. Strangely, it involves discovering values you didn't necessarily know you had, and with a level of passion perhaps surprising.

Here's an example. I've always thought it fair to challenge authority, though with dignity and fairness. Questioning, asking why, has always seemed not only prudent, but almost a requirement. At the same time, when relating this to Professor Culbert's book, I find I'm puzzled at not only his questioning the right of management to correct poor performance, but appalled at his labeling bosses evil and self-centered.

The point is that I do respect authority, certainly likely from my instructor pilot days in the Air Force. However, I believe with all my heart that competent and caring coaching and guidance helps to create excellence. Perhaps I am more of a rules follower than I thought. But the boat needs a captain; it needs a course. Decisions must be made by qualified hands, lest it become a rudderless ship.

Here's another. I know I am a positive person. My cup is most always full. I believe strongly that people respond much better to constructive & caring feedback, and concentrating on what they do well, not poorly. And I also have a strong pull towards, what Susan Scott says in her book, "Fierce Conversations". We must be clear, direct, and good communicators of less than satisfactory performance. Caring and professional, but to the point, so there's complete understanding.

The surprise is that I have a curious blend of firm, no nonsense communication, but at the same time, I must listen, understand, and care about the person I'm coaching. Keeping that in balance, & in the form that the recipient relates to, is the challenge.

Here's a final thought that was prompted: When we coach/critique others as their manager, do we do it in a manner that works for their own good, or ours? The easy answer is both, however, I believe it should be first for the employee. Remember, if you concentrate on genuinely helping your people, the company grows too.

To Write a Book, Part Two

2010-07-28T12:28:00.001-05:00

As I write this book, I don't have a title. Rather, I will continue with the journey of writing it until it makes itself known.

In my limited experience with writing, I have learned to let the message, or story line, carry me along. I've found it better to let it take on a life of its own than to force it. Forcing results, for me, culminates in dead ends and what some may call "writer's block". Allowing it to emerge & flow allows for discovery; and discovery is way better than control.

My underlying theme is a good deal more than critiquing the good professor. I have found it to be a simple belief in the noble & good side of people. We all make mistakes; we are self-serving at times. But I believe most of us rarely will knowingly do something serious for our own good while being hurtful to others.

We certainly, as leaders & managers, are called to not only be responsible, but to teach responsibility. And in a team, corporate culture, we will have more success, learn more, gain more satisfaction, and have more fun when we help others succeed. Zig Ziglar has been a favorite of mine for 30 years now, and my favorite quote from him is, "If you'll help enough other people get what they want, you'll get what you want."

That's what I believe, and that's what Professor Culbert seems to miss. While authority can be misused, it is not bad in itself; we would have chaos without it. And leadership can be self-serving, but it can also be inspiring and bring out the best in each of us.

Evil is not a person, or a thing, or a position. I believe it is the misuse of the goodness and wonders that God has given us. Simply put, even the best of strengths carried to an extreme becomes a weakness. Goodness is balance, moderation, and realizing where it all comes from.

Pretty tall order, writing this book.

To Write a Book

2010-07-26T16:49:00.001-05:00

Over the last few weeks, for the first time ever, I have been driven with a good measure of passion, to write a book. It started with reading a book from a UCLA professor, Samuel Culbert, called "Get Rid of the Performance Review". A letter to the editor of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel resulted, which was published 4 days later.

Following that, I wrote two further articles that were sent to clients, potential clients, and friends. The response was quite gratifying, but what really tipped the scales were the 20 or so H/R Managers that I know from the Print Industry, previous companies, and the Book Manufacturers Institute (BMI) H/R Roundtable. Since Professor Culbert's book directly attacks H/R, many were very concerned.

Because of that fact, I decided to ask these managers to send me case studies that illustrated the importance of mutual goals, accountability, and successful coaching through regular communication and the PR. I asked them to "scrub" the studies for the Company & name of employee.

As some are preparing these, I am making copious notes on the professor's book that not only foster the need for a response, but stimulate further thinking about what else needs to be said on how we treat our "associates" as I have long called employees.

Finally, it hasn't hurt the process at all that I've had a publisher, for some time now, who has been insisting that I write a book. Bingo; here it is before me!

It is already becoming a journey towards creating something with meaning.

The Final Answer to Operations/Sales Issues

2010-06-16T19:36:00.001-05:00

The heart of the matter really becomes apparent with the consultant conducting non-manager employee interviews. The focus here needs to be with the field sales representatives, & Customer service people, as well as representatives from Operations & Finance. The emphasis is on what helps & hinders them getting their job done.

In a motivated workforce, much will come out here. It is not simply a gripe session, but neither should the feedback be discouraged. The more passionately they respond, the more they want their challenges understood, the more likely they will be able to ultimately see how their counterparts in other areas of the organization are frustrated. Guided in a positive way, which is done best by a neutral & fair third party, empathy is created, as is the importance of being a team.

The consultant next gathers the data, and "scrubs" it only to create anonymity. Otherwise it should not be touched, and allow for the importance and passion to come through.

These findings are then presented to the President and his/her management team that were first assembled. This is the time for real understanding and acceptance of the situation, even if it's fraught with negativity. There should be discussion, debate, and final consensus. Led by the President, the managers need to accept the challenge of bringing the organization together.

Then, facilitated by & with the consultant at first, & later by the managers, individuals are brought together to listen, and hear, what their counterparts have felt and said. From this frank exchange will come a list of "To Do's" for each of the 2 person teams. It might be spending a half-day with the other to witness what each person's job is like. it might be reviewing together certain past jobs that were particularly troublesome, and coming to a joint conclusion as to what could have been done differently.

Finally, each 2 person team will eventually report back to the President & Management team with its findings and recommendation for changes. The solutions become real, personal, and meaningful in this manner.

As time goes by, and with a competent consultant, you should find that your folks will do more and more of this on their own, and without the consultant and management. They will create via the process, the culture you've been looking for.

Finding Answers to the Operations/Sales Question

2010-06-15T07:07:00.000-05:00

Previously, we examined the often-created levels of frustration between Sales & Operations/Finance caused by an imbalance between the two in acceptance and processing of jobs.

It's good to start out with everyone being thankful that we have the problem, because w/out customers and orders, we wouldn't have challenges.

Having previously contended that the answers lie within, let;s continue on that premise. First a process of communication and understanding must be undertaken. This is best done by a third party who is knowledgeable about the issues, but impartial in his/her approach.

If you doubt the need for a third party, I will emphatically state that you're making a huge mistake. Why? In a nutshell, your employees have incredible pressure, pride, and job satisfaction. If that isn't enough, consider that your customers will be affected profoundly & negatively.

It all starts at the top. A reputable consultant will first gather the managers involved, within a positive and listening environment, most ideally with the President/CEO present. They will be taken through a realization exercise that will help all understand that what they're experiencing is not only common, but typical in the print manufacturing business.

Next, the issues will be uncovered (without blame) and agreement should be reached on what the issues are, and how they inhibit employees jobs and/or adversely affect the customer and/or the company. Solutions are not discussed here, but rather a simple understanding of every one's problems.

Typical issues from the Sales standpoint are:

1) We can't get the pricing or delivery commitment we need to get the order.
2) If we tell the customer we can't fill one of their requests, they'll not
do business with us again.
3) If we aren't totally accepting of the changes the customer needs, we will
not be given further business.
4) Why aren't we more customer oriented, instead of company oriented?
5) Our prices are too high, we can't compete.
6) An order is an order, shouldn't we be happy to get it?
7) Etc, etc.

Typically, the issues from Operations/Finance might be:

1) Sales has too much freedom, they commit to pricing or delivery we simply
cannot do.
2) Our production people try their best to maintain delivery commitments, and
along comes a bunch of changes from the customer. Why do we tell them we
can do it?
3) Why isn't the company more planned and process driven? After all, we have
to make money.
4) The more focused we can be the better it will be for customers and us. Why
can't we sell what we plan for?
5) Why does Sales over promise?
6) Why can't Sales forecast accurately?
7) Etc, etc.

The intent here is to begin positively. and with support from the top. The conclusion follows next.

Managing the Differences Between Operations & Sales

2010-06-15T07:05:00.000-05:00

After 30+ years in the Print business, there are certain recurring themes/problems/opportunities that constantly arise. One of the most prominent is what often is a battle between Sales & Operations regarding how incoming business should be handled.

Should we simply be grateful for anything we’re able to sell, or should we be rather conservative in what we accept? In a nutshell, are we Operations or Sales driven? And, by the way, what about the customer?

Let’s first look at some of the issues:
1) Pricing and profitability
2) Requested turnaround time/delivery
3) Production capabilities
a) Expertise b) Equipment
4) Capacity
5) Major customer needs, dynamics, & influences on how we do business
6) Last minute changes from customer
a) Specifications such as substrates or special effects
b) Content c) Artwork
d) Quantity, up or down e) Bindery
f) Shipping instructions g) Expedited delivery

When any one of these (let alone multiple occurrences) take place, depending on current workload, staffing, financial condition, etc., stress is created between Operations, Sales, and often Finance. How should this be resolved is the question.

I have seen it all, from Sales dominating, pushing anything and everything in, to Operations and/or Finance being so restrictive that significant volume is lost. One blames the other, and a lack of accountability results. High levels of stress occur, and nobody wins, including the customer.

Let’s examine the problems created before we look for solutions.

When Sales is undisciplined, soliciting or even accepting jobs not suitable or profitable for the company, a sacred thing called throughput is damaged. So is profitability. Operations is asked to produce a job without the best tools to do so. Often times delivery is compromised due to the extra effort Operations puts into production.

When Operations and/or Finance, with their procedures and detail orientation, are inflexible in what is accepted, volume and opportunities for growth are lost. Sales feels demotivated and inadequate when they’re unable to meet their goals.

How should these issues be resolved? As usual, my contention is that the answer lies within.

More on the Performance Appraisal

2010-06-02T13:33:00.000-05:00

In a previous article, I discussed a recent book by a UCLA professor, Samuel Culbert. He advocates doing away with the performance appraisal (PA) & holding management accountable INSTEAD of the individual. Now I believe management must be accountable, but so must the individual. We are all in it together.

What I cannot tolerate, though, is his contentions that: 1) H/R's mission is power retention; they only support the performance appraisal to secure & enhance their job. 2) Managers only care about themselves & don't respect the individual.

Let's take these one at a time:

1) Here are a few quotes from Professor Culbert's book: "The H/R department is insistent upon the PA to ensure themselves a secret police-like power base." "HR individuals keep the PA to give themselves more power, but most don't have a clue what their people actually need." " H/R wants authority. This is a power grab pure & simple." I'm not making this up! Is everyone who's not a line worker evil?

OK, OK. Let's say Professor Culbert had some bad work experiences. How long ago was it? He implies through his studies that his perception is the norm, but he cannot be in touch. I have been in the workforce for over 35 years, and while there are bad examples out there, they are not the norm. So let's not throw the baby out with the bath water. Keep the PA and take responsibility for doing it right.

2) Here are further quotes regarding the PA and management: "The PA hampers straight talk." "360's are biased & not objective." "How often have you heard a manager say, 'Here is what I believe,' followed by 'Now tell me what do you think?' and actually mean it? Rarely, I would bet. Bosses seldom show that kind of respect." The first 2 quotes have some validity to them if not administered correctly, but the last one is very much out of line. Me thinks the professor has an authority problem.

As teachers of our children & grandchildren, there should be a responsibility for objectivity in their contentions, especially when emotional and negative. By labeling management as oppressive & non-caring, Professor Culbert does us and himself a disservice.

To end on a more positive note, PA's should facilitate a professional and caring exchange of values & thoughts as well as the actual level of performance. I have long been a fan of Susan Scott's book, Fierce Conversations. 360's can, if managed poorly, do more harm than good. It took a great deal of effort, but my experience with them is that they elevated the whole team to a new level.

Let's use our tools well & responsible, not throw them away. And, let's not use irresponsible examples to justify throwing away EVERYONE'S accountability.

Time to Fire Performance Review? Not on Your Life!

2010-05-31T18:41:00.001-05:00

An article interviewing Samuel Culbert, the author of a new book, "Get Rid of the Performance Review", was in our local newspaper 2 days ago. Although a very passionate person, I have seldom felt so outraged as by this book. As with so many good things, Mr. Culbert "throws the baby out with the bath water" in his effort to be politically correct.

To be fair he does espouse several things with which I agree; we'll cover those now.

First, he encourages dialogue, and he wants management to take responsibility for productivity, which is more than fair, if the individual is accountable for their job performance as well. More on this later.

Secondly, employees should have a big part in how the assignment is accomplished, and share that with their superior. A consensus can be reached, and therefore they're in it together. Total agreement here.

Thirdly, Professor Culbert implies that management is at fault for not getting involved enough. Once again I agree here; management must "roll up its sleeves", assist positively, and foster joint accountability. Definitely true, but also more comments are required, and will come later.

Finally, he implies that Performance Reviews are used for "companies to justify firings & layoffs." He further states, "If people aren't learning the lessons implied by the mistakes they're making, it will be obvious and easy enough to get them out the door and on the road. You don't need a checklist for that." Wow; he is really out of touch here. It makes me wonder how long it's been since he has been in an actual workplace.

To respond, let me start from the top. The uppermost problem in ALL of the workplace now is accountability. Yes, management must be accountable, but so must the individual. The only way this is accomplished is to MUTUALLY agree upon goals, measure them, and then evaluate the results. Certainly much of this is handled in regular and candid one to ones, constructive feedback, and coaching, but at some point, the goal has been achieved or it hasn't. If it has, then mutually celebrate, if it hasn't, what needs to be changed, funded, or approached uniquely to succeed? Still at some point, there has been success or failure, or somewhere in between. We learn and move forward, but we do need a record of how we did, all of us, management included.

As for management "rolling up their sleeves", I'm in favor of that, but "joint accountability" does not mean management takes the blame, and the non-performing employee skates. Management must get results, but so must individuals.

Sadly, Professor Culbert believes employers are the bad guys, lurking around with their performance reviews, just waiting to catch someone fouling up so they can fire them. Nothing can be farther from the truth. Good companies know that excellent employees are very hard to find, and therefore want to the utmost to take care of them.

Certainly, in hard times such as we've seen recently, employers, when faced with layoffs to reduce cost, will choose many from the poorest performers. If this is wrong, from where should they better choose ? If the answer is seniority, can you accurately tell me that it is better for the company to choose by tenure which will include some of the best performers? Wouldn't you like to keep your best? Isn't this better for the future of the company and jobs?

A final note. The author made the grand point of stating that it's easy to get non-performers out the door. Where has he been? Does he see his non-performing but tenured peers at UCLA let go? How much documentation (rightfully so) does it require to fire any given worker in management OR from the ranks?

Let's keep the Performance Appraisal, but let's do it right, and win together.

Should Give & Take be Give & Receive?

2010-05-26T15:03:00.001-05:00

Those of you who follow my articles know that I admire Ichak Adizes. He is an international lecturer & consultant with not only great insights, but values.

He was lecturing recently about trust in the marketplace. He had emphasized a tough but fair approach, and one that would truly be a win-win for each party. You'd expect this of him, but what was unique, was that at the end of the talk, he was approached by a man who gave him an interesting thought: Shouldn't give and take be give and receive?

This was very fascinating to Ichak, and is so to me as well.

Certainly, we would agree (on paper at least) that we shouldn't, in good faith, just grab what we can, if we can. Rather, it might be inferred, might we expect to receive something in return, IF we are gracious in our approach? This makes sense, but it might be a bit soft for some of us when in tough negotiations; would we really get what we expected in return?

However, this wasn't the man's point. He said that taking is easy (probably for we type A's), but receiving is hard. Hmm, something to think about. One has to be willing to acknowledge what was given. There is emotion in receiving, and perhaps even a concession that the other has been fair, or even compassionate with you.

How do your challengers (negotiators) feel about you? Does it matter? Are you a better of worse negotiator for receiving rather than taking?

Can we REALLY Make Money in Digital Print?

2010-05-21T16:46:00.001-05:00

I remember more than 10 years ago, when in the company I would later run, as VP Sales, recommending that we begin the journey into digital print. At the time, we were printing (UV offset) overhead transparencies for the Educational Publishing market.

College publishers served the professors at the universities who wrote the books being printed. And the professors wanted the transparencies as teaching aids for their lectures. So to secure the book business, the publishers provided the overheads, usually at no cost, to the authors.

The big challenge was to improve the service to the professors while decreasing the cost (which ate into the publishers' profit). We provided a solution. With the aid of our pre-press & IT persons, a consultant wrote software for us to attach to the publisher's website. Meanwhile, we digitized/prepared the files with the publisher. What resulted was that the professor could go to the publisher's website, & choose not only which slides she wanted, but in the order she wanted. Delivery was in about 4 days (quite good back then!)

Meanwhile, we had grouped several Printronix printers (a blast from the past) and tied them to what was then an Indigo (now HP) press. We also constructed a climate controlled work area for not only the press, but finishing equipment like drilling, cutting, and wrapping. The collation sequence was handled in the software we created with H/P.

We would then summary bill the publisher monthly, which was very clean while reducing expense since the professor only ordered what she wanted. Previously, they were ordering the whole set, which could be as many as 200.

Did we make money? Yes we did. Not a lot, due to the learning curve, build out, and custom software.

But it did 2 very critical things for us: 1) It got us in the game way before 99% of the marketplace. This would eventually grow into expanded digital production for book components (covers and jackets), and other classroom materials. Eventually we had H/P, Xerox, and Kodak presses and an exemplary understanding of the workflow and marketplace.

Secondly, and just as importantly, it secured a great deal of additional business because we could serve all of the customer needs. If we got the digital portion, we would get the offset as well, and vice-versa. We also got the jobs at a higher gross profit level because our competition couldn't do the same.

What's to learn from this bit of history? Well, it's the same now, really. It's a bit scary, it's a challenge, but the winners will jump in and start the learning process. When you do things that others cannot, or will not, do, you win; it's that simple. Hire and develop good people, and together you will discover the right course of action!

Content Aggregation

2010-05-21T11:29:00.001-05:00

Content Aggregation is defined as: "Bringing together content from multiple sources for retrieval at a later time," In the broader sense, it means taking care of the content, from one source or many, and being able to store & output it to a variety of "delivery" methods.

Previously, I stressed the importance of it to the future of Print. So it makes sense to take an even larger look at it. I believe Content Aggregation is the key to profitability as we look to our future. More on making money later.

But for the time being,for the sake of this article, let's assume I'm wrong. What if we spend time and money on learning the workflow & delivery methods & this whole digital thing is overblown? I submit that we would still be in much better shape to face the future than if we ignored it.

Here's why. To really become knowledgeable, we must immerse ourselves in it. This does not mean simply outsourcing digital print, but developing IT people, and assembling a strong pre-press group. As you involve Customer Service, Sales, and the Marketing folks, you will discover what your customers want and need, possible niches, and how to move forward.

This is how futures are developed in the face of technology. I love it when we let our most competent people guide us. Great leadership is listening to your employees & customers, and going where they take you!

Are We Printers, or Content Deliverers?

2010-05-12T07:58:00.000-05:00

As the Digital Workflow increasingly influences our print market, one thing becomes quite apparent: We are no longer simply printers. We will certainly continue to print a wider variety of subjects, and communicate through images & the written word, but our horizons are expanding as we speak.

The center of this is not even digital print, but rather (call it what you may) the electronic/digital/digitized file. When the content of the file is in digital form, it enables a wide variety of output. Yes, it can be printed traditionally, most commonly offset, but it might also be printed on a digital press, sent to an iPad, or downloaded on the Web.

So we see, everything surrounds the file, not the printed word. Heresy you say!? Since I've gone through the same thought progression, I understand. But I have come to the conclusion that it's just the way it is; I don't have a choice.

Therefore, even if we intend to traditionally print within our customer base and niche, it's in our best interest (putting it mildly) to completely understand the file. In fact, we must now focus on the file first, because our customers may require multiple delivery methods, manipulation, integration, and even storage. Those that are most ready & able to deliver these in a versatile, secure way, will win.

What I've just explained, perhaps even too simply, is called Content Aggregation. As we learn, this is the place to start.

More on this to follow.

Responsibilities of Sales Management

2010-04-29T07:35:00.000-05:00

Much of the time, when sales production is not growing in volume and profitability, the "monkey" is placed on the back of the sales representatives. While sales must be held accountable, it all starts from the top. If even the best of sales forces is not led, trained, funded, measured, and recognized properly, its accomplishments will be significantly diminished.

My position on clear accountability of the sales force has been documented in several previous articles. Make no mistake, they are on the very front of the firing line, and must get results. However this article will address their leadership.

Simply put, the VP of Sales (or equivalent) has a responsibility to act. It is not just a productive thing to do, it is a requirement. Those not endowed with the mettle to do so, should assume another role in the organization. Yes, this seems terribly harsh, but lack of accountability up and down the group is the number one cause of poor sales performance.

Technology, especially in the print industry, is creating change swiftly; so swiftly that even when successful we cannot afford to stand pat. Our troubled economy has many doing just that now, and unfortunately, they will be the losers as the recovery grows.

What erodes courage to act is fear and lack of confidence. While the approach should be reasonable and caring, it cannot be a popularity contest. As with parenting, the "tough love" approach works best. Acknowledging poor results, not accepting them, is the beginning.

Coming next, is involving the force in crafting the solution. This secures buy-in; then the journey towards improvement can be undertaken. And rightfully so, management will have led the way.

Managing the Salesforce: Leadership & Courage vs Aggressiveness & Threats

2010-04-14T13:21:00.001-05:00

How should an under performing sales group be treated? Certainly fairly & as professionals, but also with a sense of urgency to improve results. After all, the whole company is depending on its sales people to bring in the business that not only feeds the whole organization & gives the ownership a good return, but serves its customers.

I often find, however, that one extreme or another is taken. Either the sales group is attacked and told their jobs are in jeopardy, or they're treated with kid gloves fearing excessive push-back and mass exodus. As with most things in life, a well planned process should be undertaken. It needs to be an assertive, no nonsense approach, but one that looks at individual as well as collective results.

Remove emotion; you lose support from your people when you over react. Rather than making frustrated decisions unilaterally, take the time to listen to your people, both within the sales group and outside of it. Care about them as well as the company. The answer usually lies within. Discover together what is being done well, as well as what needs to be improved.

Be in touch with your customers and their expectations. Not only sales management, but top management should talk directly to them. They'll be happy to tell you what can be done better.

Measure and compare. What has changed? Why? Have you trained well? Have you given the team direction, a purpose, and a way to succeed? Is it supported by the company? Is it funded adequately?

Finally, if you have done your job well, most excuses have been removed. It will then be time to put together a written performance improvement plan, individually and collectively, to achieve what you must. This should be simple, direct, and to the point, complete with goals, time lines, and measurements.

More to follow, but if you've been the leader you should be, your courage and care should have you well on your way.

Entitlement Epidemic: Only in Sports?

2010-04-13T15:35:00.000-05:00

Two weeks ago, an article appeared in USA Today that I was particularly drawn to. Christine Brennan, in the sports section, wrote on the Entitlement Epidemic she saw taking place within our most successful athletes. Ben Roethlisberger, Gilbert Arenas, & Tiger Woods were cited, but there could have been several more.

My question is, isn't it the same in business? We need only look at Enron, Arthur Anderson, & AIG. Didn't these leaders think that they were owed a good living, were owed a special lifestyle, were entitled to power & wealth?

When things go bad, much of the time our vanity or arrogance is at the root. We fail to see warnings because of the glasses through which we see. We justify irresponsible conduct because we've worked hard and DESERVE it.

Well, here's a news flash: It isn't going to get any better until we as leaders, we as a society, we as parents, we as a faithful people, stop making it our most important goal, something we just cannot live without. Our false gods destroy us.

As a consultant, I have to turn away from a deal that might be financially lucrative if I have to misrepresent my abilities. Or leave a client who sidesteps ethical issues.

Christine concluded her article with not a lot of hope, if each of us continues to spend our time and money on the wrong things. It is up to each one of us to make a difference each day and change the outcome. If we consider ourselves to be blessed by all we have, and not entitled, we will make everyone proud in the right way.

Meeting #7 for Strategic Planning (SP)

2010-04-08T14:16:00.000-05:00

This meeting is the last one, and serves to put together the final document, provide for implementation, and ensure it will be monitored & evaluated. It should be held on-site, followed by a celebratory luncheon, also on company premises. It will be especially effective to do it in this manner so that the entire organization can see the importance & unanimity attached to this accomplishment.

The individual writers will have assembled between meetings, and have the sections pieced together, as outlined previously. They will have added the necessary details and supporting data. Accordingly, the document will be presented at this meeting in final draft form.

Ideally, each member of the Team should have received the draft a few days before this meeting. This will save time and needless petty disagreements
during the final meeting, since each person will have ironed out all but the most crucial items. Minor correction &/or typos should not be an issue.

When the plan is completed, there should be a discussion of: “Was the overall purpose/result achieved?” Again, the answer should be a resounding yes, but the conversation should serve to showcase the accomplishment.

The Implementation is the most important step of all. Be wary of having such a feeling of euphoria with plan completion that a letdown occurs. Again, if you have followed the process, you will have accountability with champions for each step of the plan. Follow the plan & timeline. Plan communication of the plan to the Company; buy-in is important.

Monitor the progress at regular intervals, preferably quarterly to start. Monitor, measure, & evaluate. It is OK to deviate, but understand WHY you are deviating, and update the plan to reflect the new direction.

Have mutual accountability. “Peer Circles” are especially effective here. Are the goals & objectives being achieved within the timelines? If not, why not? What new things are we learning? Do we still have adequate resources? What should be changed?

And finally, remember, when the plan is finished, the real work just begins!

Meeting #6 for Strategic Planning (SP) Part 2

2010-03-29T12:51:00.001-05:00

In the previous article, we were in the midst of writing the Plan when time and space ran out. What follows now will complete the collective effort with an outline of the Plan. This should simplify putting the plan together which sometimes can seem much more complicated than it is.

General Format:

1) Don't make your format something more complicated than your organization is. Be true to your culture, values, and preferences.

2) In larger organizations, the draft may go outside the company to financial institutions, attorneys, or investors. If so, organize it such that confidential information can be eliminated.

3) Do have an Executive Summary - Not everyone is as close to the Plan as the Team.

4) Include a Historical Essentials section describing how the organization got where it is currently.

5) Mission, Vision, Values.

6) Goals & Strategies agreed upon during the process.

7) Action Planning with time lines.

8) Description of the process - This is the basic "who, what, why" information along with lessons learned.

9) Financial Planning - Funds & resources needed.

10) Operations Plan - Activities to be accomplished over time.

11) Budget Reporting - Previous & next year's expenditures & income.

12) Approval Process

13) Monitoring & Evaluation of Plan - Who's responsible for what & how frequently.

14) Communication of Plan - How is this done, who gets it, and which parts?

This is only a general outline, however, following this (hopefully) flexible outline should take the formality and guesswork out of the exercise, and take any pressure off those who may be vulnerable.

We are near the end; Final Plan Approval is next!

Managing Through our Values is Good Business

2010-03-26T13:35:00.000-05:00

Although I have previously written on this topic several times, I feel compelled to continue to expand it. Perhaps it's because we continue to see an increase in results justifying the means, whether it be with our governmental system, within our organizations, or in our personal lives.

Previously, I have focused on the spiritual, the moral/ethical arena, and even the noble or fun side. As I've pondered this more and more, however, I've come to the conclusion that msking our values paramount is simply good business.

I especially appreciate a good quote, one that is succinct, to the point, and quietly profound. Yesterday this one popped up out of nowhere while I was doing some methodology research; "It is through values that people respond" (Barry Doublestein). Most of us would accept the importance of two areas in our organizations where consensus for importance rests: our people, and how we communicate with them. How can we do any better than to inspire our folks to thought, discussion, & action?

Values are what people live and die for; they excite, They motivate. Those of us "burdened with a few miles" have seen what an enthusiastic, motivated work force can accomplish. They will constructively question, work for the common goal, and go well beyond the norm to do what's right BECAUSE IT'S RIGHT.

Values also INVOLVE people. Through interaction, a team atmosphere is created where each is driven to understand why they do what they do. I was fortunate enough to have been given the reins to run Visual Systems, a nice mid-sized company, for 5 years. Largely through value orientation, we were able to attain record growth AND record profit while doing what was right for our customers as well as associates. They were incredible people who understood and embraced the values of our owners.

A corollary quote is: "The function & duty of a quality human being is the sincere & honest development of one's potential" (Bruce Lee). If we lead employees to respond, interact, and do what's right, we will develop not only them, but our organizations. No laziness; no shortcuts here. Striving harder to excel becomes fun, and the norm. This is how everyone wins.

How can this not be good business?

Individualizing Mentoring Plans

2010-03-25T12:00:00.000-05:00

At the highest level it is called executive coaching, but mentoring is something that all too often, many executives do not directly or indirectly provide for their people, even though he or she may desire it for themselves. This is another area about which I've written a good deal, but one now that wants to be additionally refined.

Customizing the program to the needs of the mentee is what I'd like to focus on presently. Commonly, consultants, or even psychologists, have a predetermined approach where they will follow a process, which is good, but which can fail to address specific needs or current issues.

What I like to see is a period of inventory taking to discover exactly where the person is in their management development, before the program even begins. Issues outside the workplace can influence significantly, such as family matters, interests, upbringing, and even health. Yes, in this day and age of HIPPA, and confidentiality in general, it can be problematic. However, to the extent that the mentee is comfortable sharing more information, more effective results will be gained.

Personality profiles are a must. This is an area that IS easily entered. It is extremely helpful in helping the person recognize who they are and how they interact with others. It can explain why interacting with certain people or performing tasks may be more or less rewarding.

The mentor should be a facilitator only; he should not drive the process, the mentee should. This may be more challenging with a mentee who is begrudgingly participating, but if they will take ownership, for their own benefit, the results will be markedly different.

It may be helpful to talk with the person's supervisor ahead of time, although care should be taken here. Will the interchange prejudice the mentor? In general, I believe that it is better to have the discussion after time has past rather than at the outset.

Once all this is accomplished, the process can be tailored to the person, planned, and undertaken. There needs to be a beginning and an end. Objectives should be discussed, developed, and monitored. Without written goals, a time line, and progress evaluations, you won't know if you have succeeded.

Finally, the mentor should make herself available for periodic questions or meetings to help the mentee with the continuing journey.

Meeting #6 for Strategic Planning (SP) Part 1

2010-03-24T11:43:00.000-05:00

As with most SP meetings, this will be held off site for reasons previously stated.

The time is now at hand to document, put in writing, the culmination of your efforts to date. This is where, if you've managed to build commitment into your process, you'll see the Team shine. It is the reason that HOW you've done WHAT you've done is so critical.

Start with a discussion of the Goal Setting from the previous meeting. Especially important is WHY goals are being set the way they are. Extra care must be given to help EVERY member understand, and be a part of, the decisions made. Remember, the value is in the disagreements.

Objectives for the goals must be built, with time lines. Ownership
responsibilities, that were emerging as the momentum grew, must be documented/assigned to their champions. This is the "least sexy", most mundane & detailed portion that will test every one's true position in the process. The outcome may be regarded as "fun", but the doing is work.

Weaved through the entire plan is the allocation of resources: the people, time, equipment, material, technology, & money to implement the Plan.

With this background, the question becomes, how do we write the Plan? If you've chosen & supported your members well, the answer is in the room. It is in the room, not only because of the talented members, but because they have all been put through a process that has taught them each to play their role and add value in whatever way they're able.

Here are some specifics that will help you: 1) The Action Plans should support the organization's Mission, Values, & Vision. 2) If you have a larger rather than smaller SP team, you may want to limit the number of writers. This will help continuity, and simplify/shorten the process. At the same time, everyone should be CONTRIBUTING to the writers. 3) Since these are drafts, keep them simple without every detail. 4) The drafts can be reviewed by the Team itself, or the Board. It also may be of help to involve certain employees for specific input.

In the interest of time and space, we will divide this meeting outline into 2 parts. The second part follows.

Meeting #5 for Strategic Planning (SP)

2010-03-03T15:43:00.000-06:00

This meeting will be held off site for reasons previously stated.

Up to this point, the SP Team has come together to establish rules of engagement, gather data, discuss opinions/points of view, and analyze. Special emphasis has been placed upon the needs of your customers, strengths & weaknesses of your organization and competitors, and opportunities to add value and achieve growth.

If the process is working, you should be poised to shore up weaknesses, build on your strengths & take advantage of opportunities that are a fit (or can be) for your focus, core competencies, and culture. This is not to say that there won't be some stretching, which should be embraced, because it is a prerequisite for real growth.

Therefore, the time is at hand to set goals for where you're going, and how you're going to get there. This is a critical time in your SP endeavor, and yes, there is a process to assist you in accomplishing it.

An easy way to look at it is to consider that goals should be SMARTER:
Specific; Measurable; Acceptable (consensus); Realistic; Time Line; Extending (stretching); & Rewarding.

Be careful here, however, to discuss & agree upon your broad goals; the specifics will come at the next meeting where you will Action Plan. Examples might be to introduce a new product that delivers what your customers want while taking advantage of your core competencies. Or you might choose to broaden an underutilized production area that would enable you to reduce cost & pass at least some of the reductions on to the customer.

If you did your homework in Meeting #4, you used Porter's Five Forces to analyze your marketplace. With that information at hand, opportunities should have emerged, and been discussed. Now is the time to formalize & reach consensus on them. There is a wealth of other methods of discernment available here with which your facilitator can assist you.

Another one is a Goals Grid, similar to the four quadrants used in the previous two meetings for customers & products, except that it deals with four questions regarding your goals: What do you want to achieve that you don't already have? What do you want to preserve that you already have? What do you want to avoid that you don't have? What do you have now that you want to eliminate? Answering these questions as a group, and the discussing that follows should be lively, enlightening, and steer you toward meaningful goals.

There are many other aids that can be used. In the interest of time and space, we will not list them here, but your facilitator should be well versed in providing them to you.

Finally, there should be significant homework here for all. By the next meeting, where you will build Action Plans, your goals need to be formulated clearly. Drafts of agreed upon goals should be assigned to volunteers (ideally the biggest advocate). A paragraph with the SMARTER goals will be fine, & will provide a nice platform upon which to build your Action Plans.

At this point momentum should be significant as real progress begins to be seen.

Meeting #4 for Strategic Planning

2010-02-18T13:04:00.000-06:00

The 4th meeting is again held off-site, as most are, for reasons previously stated.

During this meeting, the environmental scanning continues, but this time it moves from the external to the internal for the focus. Simply put, you take stock of those factors outside your organization that individually add up to influencing your success or failure.

Three processes are commonly used to assist you in identifying & discussing these outside influences:

1) Porters Five Forces - this looks at market entry barriers, customers, suppliers, & product elasticity, & their competitive relationship with each other.

2) SWOT analysis - strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, & threats. We looked at this in meeting #3, but only from the internal standpoint. During this meeting you will look especially at this outside the organization, and with your competitors.

3) PEST Analysis - political, economic, social, & technological factors that especially influence the opportunities and threats of the SWOT analysis. These are generally outside your competitors.

Finally, in the "taking stock", the team will use all or some of primarily four tools. They are surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, & open forums. In discussing these, you will: develop a common perception; identify not only strengths & weaknesses, but trends & conditions; and create honesty and openness to changing conditions. Your facilitator will be able to recommend the right tools for you.

Having outlined all of this, it is extremely important on how it's presented and discussed. As I've said many times before, the answers lie within the organization. The trick is to bring them out, especially when trust may be lacking. A facilitator is invaluable here, a third party with no agenda.

I was talking to an executive in a nonprofit recently who was charged with bringing together two "opposing" sides of the organization. One wanted to build the engine, one was charged with making it run. Without communication and focusing on the "customer", serious flaws emerged; the "disjoint" developed to the point that the future was threatened. He realized, because he was too close to it, that he needed to go outside to a facilitator to help handle the delicate situation.

As a rule of thumb, when you're hearing every thing's fine, & only positives and not problems, you're in trouble. If you check your ego at the door, keep centered on getting better no matter who's challenged, and use help when appropriate, you'll be fine. It may not be what you expected or wanted, but it'll be the right thing.

The Most Important Thing in Our Life is . . . ??

2010-02-17T14:35:00.000-06:00

A very powerful book has recently come out called Counterfeit Gods, by Tim Keller. It takes a religious approach, but certainly would stand alone as a business book as well. It begins by asking us what we work for; what can we not do without; what do we absolutely live for?

A modern, succinct answer might be success, money, true love, and the life we've always wanted. Throw in a great sex life and one might have the bases pretty well covered!

Why then are there suicides like we've seen at Bear Stearns, HSBC Bank, & others? Why did Madonna write, "My drive in life is from this horrible feeling of being mediocre? My struggle has never ended & it probably never will."

Andrew Carnegie wrote, "Man must have an idol. The amassing of wealth is one of the worst species of idolatry." But money is only the most visible; there are many others. Even good things, like a successful business, our children, or even volunteer work, can be our idol if carried to an extreme. If we can't function well in a given area without perfection, something's wrong.

No one thinks they're greedy; we think we're entitled. The problem is that we as humans are built with insatiable "wants" (not needs). Stop and think. Don't you tire of even a good thing? That boat that I bought was so cool when I first launched it. But then, over time it didn't seem as special; there were other things to do, newer & more unique. We all remember the Law of Diminishing Return in Econ 101: the first chocolate bar is great, the second good, and by the time you eat four you get sick!

Balance is a terrific antidote. Without it we become fixated and irrational. We must keep everything in its perspective, & control our craving for things that end up being empty promises, hollow achievements, and controlling.

So who or what should be at our pinnacle? Tim maintains it's God, who said, "You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men but, I know your hearts." Tim maintains, and I agree, that there is only one way to change what's in your heart: by giving Him yours & asking for His help.

To some of you, I know this seems radical, but know one thing: God is one terrific businessperson!

Meeting #3 for Strategic Planning

2010-02-04T12:39:00.001-06:00

The third meeting is scheduled off site close to headquarters from 9-4 so that each member is able to handle their daily routine (e-mail, phone calls, 1 to 1's, and paperwork) before and after. If you find it difficult to begin on time because of this, you may find 7:45-3 easier. Respecting their time & responsibilities will reduce their concerns and thereby increase participation.

The goal is to get everybody on the same page regarding some basic marketing issues. It may seem elementary but, believe me, if you have truly put together the diverse team needed for maximum value, you must take the time. They, by definition, will approach things differently.

An effective way to begin is to have a discussion as to why customers buy from you. Consensus should center around providing a unique product/service better than your competition. Whether it's faster, lasts longer, more cost effective, or one of a kind, if you are the winner, you have provided something unique: unmatched value. Your core competencies make this possible.

How do you provide value? Introduce & discuss core competencies. Examples in the print industry might be special substrates, large format, file manipulation, specialized bindery, or 2-day turnaround. And WITHIN each of these areas you've probably exceeded expectations further, such as within a product line like insurance, advertising, or health care. There are many more, but the idea is that whenever we can focus to the point where few or no one else can do the same, we win.

What follows next, much of the time, is that you discover you're not unique enough, or you're a "me too". If so, no wonder you've experienced declining margins, lost volume, or are unable to compete on large opportunities.

The discussion should then lead to what your customers want that you're not providing. This may start out rather broad, and may be unpleasant to hear, but it should not be suppressed. Because you are now thinking like your customers, this is a time where a discovery of weaknesses can lead to a positive vision of your future success. Worry about HOW you'll do it later, and concentrate on the value that your customers will pay to get.

This is a natural time to talk about your ideal customer, and opportunistic vertical markets you may want to explore. This must be discussed thoroughly & documented carefully. If you don't have everything you need to meet these needs (almost always), then it's productive to talk about your customers (prospective as well as existing), and products needed (new as well as existing).

The Four Quadrants should emerge here. Make sure all understand why targeting existing customers with existing products is easier than new customers with new products. Here, the foundation should be laid upon which future decisions are made.

Now that the realization has sunk in that you have much work to be done, the direction you take needs to be based on data. This is where your internal scanning is introduced. One way or another, you must take stock, from as many of your employees as possible, of where you stand objectively. Questionnaires & focus sessions are very helpful here. They can be purchased or you may choose to create them internally.

The feeling in the room as you complete this 3rd session can manifest itself in many ways. Don't worry if many seem overwhelmed with what's needed to be accomplished. Others may be very excited with the challenge ahead. This diversity of attitudes & approach is part of what will make you better; it facilitates them coming together as, & appreciating the team.

Should Your Company be Whale Hunters?

2010-02-03T14:49:00.001-06:00

This will be the third, and last (for now) article regarding the book, "Whale Hunting: How to Land Big Sales & Transform your company." As remarkable a strategy this is to rethinking your Sales approach, it is not for everyone. This is not only my contention, but clearly stated by the authors as well. What follows here is a compilation of some of their concerns reinforced, with the addition of mine.

Here are the areas you should evaluate before plunging forward with the enthusiasm of a new convert. They are intended to foster questions & discussion with your team of potential hunters, not to advocate a negative decision. They are in no particular order.

Financial Resources. Are you solvent & healthy enough to withstand the "fall & winter"? Preparation is time consuming & costly. Although it is not truly an "all or nothing" approach, it is probably much closer to it than you've previously experienced. Remember that business cyclicality is one of the worst problems faced within the printing industry. In the short run, this could add to the challenge.

Culture. How big of a cultural change will you need to begin the hunt? Have you been team oriented, or have you been a group of individuals? I have seen a strong Sales group carry an organization, and while I don't believe it's the way of the future, the leap away from that approach will most likely be a difficult one.

Competency. Do you have the talent within your organization to fulfill all the roles? If not, can you train to improve it, or must you acquire some of it outside? Talented harpooners, for example, are extremely rare. Take a realistic look at what you have before you move ahead without it.

Commitment. Are you ready, as CEO or President, to give & command support from the top? Just as with Strategic Planning, the passion for the Vision must come from you.

Diversity of Skills & Personality. Do you have the proper mix and balance of differing views and skills to make the PROCESS successful? Without debate & the resultant improved methods & consensus, the meticulous nature of the approach is lost. Remember, the devil is in the details.

Change. Are you ready to change the game, rather than just try to play it better? Whale Hunting is all together different than what most people have been doing. Change is not easy; there will be push back from customers as well as your employees.

Margin Erosion. Whales like the best possible price. And because you may not be totally ready yet with your cost reductions when you land your first, you may have to temporarily cut your price as admission to the continuing hunt. This is a corollary of Financial Resources.

Pride. Are you willing to be told how you will do business? Whales are very demanding and have a penchant for thinking they know it all, which in some cases is true.

Whale Hunting is certainly here to stay. These questions are not meant to dissuade anyone; just keep your eyes wide open and do your homework. Good Hunting!

Similarities (& Differences) Between Whale Hunting & Strategic Planning

2010-02-01T18:18:00.000-06:00

This article will continue to address the currently popular book, "Whale Hunting: How to Land Big Sales & Transform Your Company." Previously outlined was a brief synopsis of the approach of aggressively pursuing large account (Whales) acquisition & development.

As I use and study several of its methods and perspectives, it becomes more & more apparent that there are many similarities between Whale Hunting(WH) and Strategic Planning(SP). In fact, one complements the other.

Both SP & WH are processes very specifically defined, requiring a commitment from the top, and both require significant data gathering. Similarly, knowing yourself and your competitors is required by each. Both require extensive knowledge of your potential and existing customers, although WH demands a more meticulous effort.

Each touches every area in the organization, but again, WH is more thorough , and stresses understanding & contribution from literally everyone. Again, subjectively, I would say that SP at least begins a bit more internally based, with taking stock of who we are & where we've been, while WH is driven by the Whale, around which everything revolves.

The internal & external scanning of SP is similar to the target filters of WH, but here again, WH takes it a step further with weighting & analysis. At the same time SP, if it chooses to, can get very detailed in the gathering and analysis of data.

One of the most congruent approaches is in the identification of the company's unique competitive advantages. This understanding of core competencies, both current or perhaps desired, is crucial to the success of both. And both realize the importance of understanding your culture & changing it if necessary.

The most obvious dichotomy is the "all or nothing" attitude of the WH. Although it is not as extreme as it seems (existing & smaller accounts can still be pursued), it definitely is more intense. SP is a bit more about consistent performance over time yielding the results we want.

Another difference is that of changing the game; it is critical to WH, whereas with SP, it's a bit more important to understand and play the game. Additionally, there are more roles to learn with WH than with the more traditional approach of SP. Finally, WH does not tolerate incremental growth where SP does.

Areas that at least somewhat differ are the potential of customers, how we actually grade each actual & potential customer, & a smaller team approach with SP versus the wider team (the entire company) with WH.

When all is said and done, OR, at the end of the day, they each offer the other a great deal. One really does complement the other!

Whale Hunting for your Biggest Accounts

2010-02-01T16:16:00.000-06:00

If you've not already done so, add this book to your reading list: "Whale Hunting: How to Land Big Sales & Transform Your Company". It's been out for a couple of years now, achieving popularity because of using the Inuit Indians (Eskimos) of Northwestern Alaska to teach us the importance of capturing large accounts.

Much as the Inuit understand the significance of harvesting even one whale, compared to an elk, seal, or polar bear, so we should realize what landing an account 10-20 times our average would do for us. One whale will feed 30 Inuit for an entire year. What would it mean to your company to land a whale?

The Inuit prepare all year by making and honing their gear, selecting people for specific roles, & training for the hunt. This takes complete commitment, patience, and a team effort. The children even participate as scouts to spot the whales when they first begin to appear in the early spring.

A successful hunt brings the whale to the beach where it is harvested by the entire village, processed, and preserved. Everything is used except the head, which is taken back out to sea in respect for the whale. The oil, food, and clothing are distributed according to who performed what, and the needs of the village itself. After a celebration, the process begins again for the next year.

The similarities to the sales process for landing a "whale" account are impressive.

1) Leadership must focus the organization top to bottom.
2) Employees must be willing to learn new roles, and to perform them flawlessly.
3) Everyone must agree to do the hard work.
4) The process must be managed meticulously.
5) Results are everything; everyone wins & loses together.

The book is a good read because of the story line which is easily related to our businesses, and the changes & challenges we've encountered in the marketplace. The effort however, approaches overwhelming. Accordingly, the result must truly be a whale!

Although whale hunting isn't for everyone, which I will address in a separate article, it is more than worth a look. As with most things, there is a great deal to be learned by examining and evaluating the process.

Meeting format for Strategic Planning (SP)

2010-01-27T05:59:00.000-06:00

Meeting 1) President/CEO (P) & Facilitator (F) – On Site
Current situation. Overall purpose/result plan is to achieve. How SP meets this need. Mutual agreement on time line. Importance of support from the top. Guidelines for Strategic Planning Team (SPT) selection. Importance of “Fierce Conversations” & relationships.

2) President, SPT, Facilitator – Off Site, entire day 8-5.
(P) – Support comes from highest level. Critical need for SP to meet overall purpose. Criteria for member selection – individual differences & contributions, critical thinking. Sense of urgency. (F) – Overview of entire process & time line. Importance of participation; differences are gifts that make us stronger. Fierce Conversations. Creation of Mission, Values, & Vision Statements. Existing culture; is cultural change needed? Why?

3) Marketing Basics – Off Site 9-4
The Four Quadrants. Discipline of Market Leaders. Core Competencies. Focus & Niche. Competitive Advantage. Environmental Scanning, internal. What do we sell? What do our customers buy? How are we unique? How do we add value? What is ideal customer for us? Target vertical markets? Questionnaires/gathering information. What are our weaknesses?

4) External Scanning – Off Site 9-4
Marketplace characteristics. Who are our competitors? Why do customers buy from them instead of us? How do we attempt to beat or avoid competition? SWOT Analysis. Questionnaires/gathering information.

5) Setting Goals – Off Site 9-4
Build on strengths & take advantage of opportunities. Shore up weaknesses; avoid when possible. Strategic Formulation to achieve goals. Strategic Focus. Competitive Strategy.

6) Action Planning – Off Site 9-4
Objectives with time lines must be built. Ownership responsibilities, assign champions. It’s all about commitment! How to write the final plan. Allocation of resources - critical discussion of time, people, equipment, core competencies, money, material, & technology.

7) Final Plan Approval – On Site 9-12 followed by celebration luncheon. Corrections. Communicating to employees. Was overall purpose/result achieved? Follow-up plan.

8) Quarterly Evaluations – On Site
Measuring, monitoring, evaluation, handling deviations.

The Basic Terms of Strategic Planning

2010-01-26T16:17:00.000-06:00

The Milwaukee BizTimes dedicated its January 22nd issue to “Positioning your company for THE REBOUND”. Several CEO’s were contributors, namely Bob Arzbaecher of Actuant. Although the consensus was not all hearts & flowers, there was agreement that what we do in the next several months is critical to our organization’s long term goals.

With our business cycle entering a slow, though steady improvement, there is some guarded optimism. The rationale appears to be, & rightfully so, preparing to capture market share while growing in a planned, profitable way.

History also shows that major opportunities abound in times of economic recovery. As Bob says, “Manufacture a rebound. Strategic Planning (SP) is the natural process to “discover” and create your future success.

Because SP is a major focus of my consulting business, to add value to those considering the process, I decided to put together a brief synopsis of SP and a typical meeting schedule. In preparation for that, this first posting will be one of commonly used terms.

Glossary

Benchmarking: normalizing results from competitors & other representative companies to compare performance and create a standard.

Core Competencies: areas of expertise found in the members of an organization that make it unique.

Customer Intimate: a value discipline satisfying special customer needs through specific knowledge of the customer.

External Scanning: gathering data & taking stock of the environment outside the company.

Facilitator: a neutral party without an agenda experienced in leading a group process to discover a successful course of action.

Fierce Conversations: speaking & listening honestly, as though each conversation is the most important you will ever have.

Goals: specific levels of accomplishment necessary to achieving some larger result.

Internal Scanning; same as external, except within the company.

Mission: why the organization exists.

Objectives: specific accomplishments that must be completed to achieve the goals of the plan.

Operational Excellence: middle market products at the best price with the least hassle.

Organizational Assessments: methods used to rate the organization, often with internal scanning.

Process: involving others with varied skills, viewpoints, & experiences in decision making.

Product Leadership: offering products that push performance boundaries.

Resources: people, money, equipment, technology, and materials needed to implement the strategies.

Smarter Objectives: specific, measurable, acceptable, realistic, time frame, extending, rewarding.

Strategies: processes/methods pursued to achieve goals.

SWOT: strengths weaknesses, opportunities, threats; a method of evaluation to help discover the most effective course of action.

Tasks: activities needed to implement the plan.

Value Disciplines: three desirable ways in which companies can combine operating models & value systems to be the best in their market.

Value Proposition: the promise to deliver a particular combination of price, quality, selection, convenience, etc.

Values: inherent in everything you do and how you do it.

Vision: the passion that motivates us to strive for success.

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The Growing Fundamentals of Digital Print Demand

2010-01-20T07:55:00.000-06:00

Being dedicated to the Print and Book industries, I often encounter some form of the question: How involved do I have to be in Digital Printing? Although circumstances dictate the specifics, the answer is, COMPLETELY. For those of you thinking this sounds dramatic, rethink the issue.

I don't care whether you're RR Donnelley, or a small local printer, your life is changing before you. Change or die; it's that simple. When we emerge from this horrible economic funk we're in, which we surely will, the game will have changed. Those glorious long runs of several shifts, or even days, have waned.

The "why" of this is interesting. Not only is there a great need for smaller quantities to reduce inventory, obsolescence, and total cost, there is also an information explosion that demands today's knowledge & content. Just as social media has put us in the "now" mode, so has our very culture. Answers must be complete and completely current.

What results are not only short runs that demand quick turnarounds, but short runs that demand currency. The fact that this costs more is not the issue; timeliness & currency are. What matters is that it is worth the relatively small additional cost to have it the way we want it, when we want it. Why am I willing to purchase my "one click" book for a couple of bucks more on Amazon? I get it now, it's easy, & it's hassle-free.

Here are some fundamentals from the book industry: Page count for both manuals and books will experience real growth in the next 10 years. During this same time frame, digital books will also grow in page count as well as number of books. Orders will be up in number, but continue to decrease in size. If we want to be a part of this, we must plan now, according to our customer base, while leveraging & improving our core competencies. In short, we must change in an orderly fashion.

Good ole' responsiveness to the demand will identify the winners & losers. Which will you be? What do you need to rethink to make it happen?

Taking Care of the Survivors

2010-01-19T15:56:00.000-06:00

A recent article in Business Week caught my eye, focusing not on reductions, but rather the (hopefully) best producers that remain. It was refreshing to see the emphasis where it really belongs: taking special care of your most valuable resource, your core people.

Restructurings have been a major part of the corporate landscape in the last 15 months, so much so that there isn't much left. At least, new options must be considered, but an even more responsible approach is to take special care of our "cream of the crop" employees that have survived. This not only helps their retention, but assists in preparation for future opportunities.

We need to manage the layoff process, but too often a disproportionate amount of time is spent with that, rather than involvement with the surviving talent. Chances are their workload is heavier, they may be making less money, and experiencing higher stress levels.

The article makes an excellent point that loyalty has been damaged, and these best people are now vulnerable to headhunters and your competition. Do you have a plan to retain them? How involved have they been made in solutions? Have they been rightfully made a part of the solution?

It involves sincere and effective communication. This fosters understanding and commitment, reduces rumors, & adds a personal touch. Handle the tough questions, continue to have fun, and celebrate successes. These are the ties that bind.

Get Off the Wagon & On the Bus

2010-01-19T14:34:00.001-06:00

When you have been around as long as I have (am I experienced, or just old?), patterns develop, especially with the seasons. One of the most significant times is the New Year. Procrastination is conquered, action is taken, & we plunge forward. This year, many took action to eliminate further jobs & continue to reduce cost. Not fun; when will it end?

Two metaphors that speak to where most of us are with this now are: Pulling the Wagon; & Getting on the Bus.

The wagon (company) is big; it is heavy; and it takes substantial effort to move it forward. We need every able bodied person (all employees) pulling it. But some people are sitting on the wagon, wanting to BE pulled, rather than using their energy & talent to innovate & problem solve (pull). We need forward movers, not dead weight; we need solution crafters, not more problems.

The bus (company moving forward) is motorized, so the challenges are different. It moves forward because it has its own energy source (passion), but it has limited seats, and only the most qualified & prepared passengers can get on. Talent, values, and work ethic are critical to success; make your seating chart accordingly.

When all is said & done, these are your most critical choices to make. It’s not just about cutting a certain number of bodies representing a certain level of cost; it’s ensuring you have the number and talent level of employees available for the upturn that will surely ensue.

How are you leading the movement?

The Importance of Mission, Values & Vision in Strategic Planning

2010-01-06T13:43:00.000-06:00

Strategic Planning (SP) is all about your organizational hopes & dreams for the future. Since our individual dreams are bound to be at least somewhat different, there likely will be some challenges, or even conflict in formulating them. Hence the need for consensus.

The most effective beginning of this process is to come together on what your mission, values, & vision (MVV) are. Without a foundational agreement on these, moving ahead in a unified manner is very difficult.

Mission is not only why the company exists, but what it wants to accomplish. It is your approach to your market & customers. It is the why of providing what you provide. Mission must be regularly reevaluated to make sure it reflects the dynamic situation you face.

Values are present in everything you do; they are the how of what you do. They are the way you treat others in getting the job done, internally & externally. They are your guiding light.

Vision is passion; vision is what keeps us going even when it's not fun, too difficult, or unlikely to succeed. It is what gets some to "charge the machine gun nest", or to keep getting up when repeatedly knocked down. Unbelievable things can get done through vision; that's why we need to come together to brilliantly paint the picture.

MVV are what binds you together. They describe your goals, where you're going, and how you intend to get there. They keep you on track, focused, and moving together as a team. You know where you are, and because you're measuring results, you know what changes need to be made.

Failing to begin the SP process in this way will cause frustration down the road. As the saying goes, "pay me now, or pay me later".

To get the most out of this process, you'll need to assemble a team that is diverse in their personality styles, comes from different areas/disciplines, and has a variety of competencies. One person may be an eternal optimist, another a contrarian. One may be a risk taker, another risk averse.

The real value is in the differences. Without them, your point of view is limited; mistakes are made. With them, it may not be as much fun, which is where the facilitator earns their keep, but a balanced conclusion can be reached that misses little.

So if we begin with MVV, & build a foundation on it, everyone understands the value of their part in the process, buys in, & great things happen. This is the most effective way an SP program is begun.

Perspective & Decision Making

2010-01-06T06:13:00.001-06:00

We've all seen examples of our bias, or point of view, keeping us from a solution. One of the most popular was the challenge of connecting all the dots on a sheet of paper without ever lifting our pen or duplicating a line already drawn. Our frame of reference kept us from success by staying within the box. When we removed that self-imposed stipulation, it was easily done; hence "think outside the box" was coined.

There are others now, but the message is the same, although the puzzle challenge is different. A colleague of mine, Ichak Adizes, found one that required putting a puzzle of a plane together to make a square, but it required that you have the plane flying upside down to do it. As an Air Force pilot, I have flown inverted (upside down) many times; it is not a big deal. But do you think I could put this puzzle together? Not on your life. . . until I was told to turn it upside down!

And so it goes; we must stay open to the facts & data before we decided to "impose" a solution. The more experienced we are, the more we are a solution in search of a problem. Put another way, we jump to conclusions; or even worse, we've "been there, seen that" and become a Kia, a "know it all." And if you haven't noticed, Kia's are not liked and wrong much of the time.

In a business, we use data to clearly identify the problem which, when analyzed, will point the way to a solution. Too often, there is an immediate reaction to a problem when first suspected that sends us on the wrong journey. Take the time, and have the patience & discipline to wait to "discover" the action to be taken.

In the consulting world, I often make the comment that, "I believe I should recommend/decide very little; rather my job is to facilitate your discovering the solution." This is not always lived up to, but an aspiration strived for.

The Top 10 Sales Mistakes

2010-01-05T17:47:00.001-06:00

As I've done before, since lists are so popular, I thought I'd share yet another with you: the most commonly seen errors in managing a sales force. As with many lists, this won't include all (there are more than 10), and my order will probably differ from yours. The hope is that it will foster ideas & provide assistance as you look at your own operation.

1) Paying your sales people on volume instead of value added profit. Great sales people are creative; they will follow the recognition and money. If you not only ask them to sell more profitably, but pay & recognize them accordingly, your results will be stunningly better.

2) Pricing job types or customers identically. First know your core competencies, what you do best, and then price to bring those jobs in. This goes for customers as well; you make more money with customers who value what you provide & cooperate.

3) Having a less than effective or non-existent training program. As a guideline, it should be written, & at least a syllabus directed program that provides a smooth transition into the company & its culture, which many overlook. Obviously, each person must be taught according to their background & experience level, ideally from members of the sales force as well as management. Field sales calls MUST be made together with senior sales persons as well as managers, and at least weekly 1 to 1's conducted with each sales person (ongoing) to assist in their development.

4) Not providing realistic forecasting. Most organizations forecast, but rarely do it right. The disjoints usually involve the sales people not liking it (they'd rather DO than PLAN), or management "beats up" sales for not forecasting high enough. What happens next is that sales tells management what they want to hear, & everybody suffers as a result.

5) Failing to have concrete and realistic goals. Given the challenge, a good sales force will rise to the occasion. Without knowing what's needed or expected, Sales will be a rudderless ship.

6) Lack of measuring and rewarding for outstanding performance. What is measured will be done. We as people in general, and sales people in particular, will rise to a challenge. And we like to be recognized for getting it done. Recognize & celebrate.

7) Avoiding "Fierce Conversations" that hold each person accountable. In many companies, this should be at the top. Some confuse having an employee oriented organization with one by a "mister nice guy". Constructive & caring criticism is a gift; use it often.

8) Allowing an imbalance (either way) between operations and sales on delivery requirements. I often hear, "We are a Sales run company", or "Operations always calls the shots"; each is not a good thing. Balance & consensus should rule, but this doesn't happen without a planned & fair approach coming from the very top.

9) Asking your sales manager to sell as well as manage. In small companies, or in certain circumstances, this needs to be done, but should not be permanent. What happens most of the time, is that training and development of the sales force suffers, especially if the manager is only paid on their sales volume.

10) Always believing your customers when they tell you your price is too high and/or your ship date can be beat. As much as we want to give customers what they want, this is a different issue. On matters of price & delivery, and sometimes even quality, a more traditional customer will try to force your performance by thinly-veiled problems. Play the game if they do, and know why it's being done.

11) Mixing sales force types within the same division or company. Considering a direct sales force (your employees), independent reps (self-employed, but loyal to you for your product line), & brokers (self-employed, loyal to no one), it is a real challenge to have a mixture, let alone all three. Rarely, I believe, are brokers the answer. They generally operate on a price basis, and often add little value, which erodes profits, and makes for more fluctuation in production levels. But mixing them is usually disastrous because they compete with each other and confuse customers.

OK, so there are eleven! More to stimulate your thinking. Whatever the relevance of each, the process of discussing them will be a positive venture.

Should Employees Satisfaction Come Before Customers?

2009-12-29T15:16:00.001-06:00

I have often gone on the record as saying, if forced to make a choice between a great customer or great employee, I would choose the employee every time.

Now, thanks to a great new book out called "The Employee Satisfaction Revolution", there is much support for my passion of taking care of people, pleasing them, and enabling them to excel. In this very way, I get to have my cake and eat it too, delighting in great customers AND great employees!

The first chapter formalizes a long-time premise of mine: employee satisfaction is a source of competitive advantage. It is tangible, measurable, and can add actual value to the bottom line. Motivated people attract other motivated people; we seek others with values similar to ours. It's not an accident if your customers make fewer complaints, if your workers do also.

It all starts with a culture of trust, ample communication, empowerment, and actually having fun. Employee satisfaction results in satisfied customers, low turnover, increased productivity, improved recruiting, and financial success with a great bottom line.

Basically, dedicated employees WANT to go the extra mile; it's only natural. Going to greater lengths creates better business results; the data confirms it. Volume not only increases, but so does profitability; customers will pay more for the same product if their experience in getting it is superior.

This study, done by a PhD., is very well documented. It is a quick read; get a copy and experience it for yourself.

Especially in these troubled economic times, it is refreshing to see a conclusive case study that documents how important our employees are to our bottom line. Instead of cutting staff deeper, perhaps we should take some of this to heart. When the recovery comes, as it surely will, how effective will each of us be in retaining our top folks so we can beat our competition, win the very best customers, and have an ever-increasing bottom line?

The Next Threat: The Vook

2009-12-29T15:15:00.001-06:00

As I follow the progress of the Digital Revolution & the Book, it seems there is a new challenge around every corner. The newest one is the Vook.

A Vook is, "a new innovation in reading that blends a well-written book, high quality video, and the power of the Internet into a single complete story." This allows you to enhance the story as you read with the video, connect with the author(s), and tie in your friends through social media, all on one screen, without switching between platforms.

The nice part is that it can truly enhance the reading experience, adding not only more pleasure, but helping retention in a learning situation. Another upside is that it will probably increase the amount of reading, especially in the lower grade levels.

Concerns, for me at least, are there as well. My first question is how can the intellectual property issue be adequately handled at $2 & $3 a copy in some cases? Secondly, my laptop is not a book, or even an e-book, let alone my Blackberry. It's a very cool thing, but how will the use of it actually shake out? How much availability of authors will there really be on-line at any moment in time? And will this be another technological development that serves to reduce the actual amount of reading and books in circulation?

If you go to vook.com you can at least familiarize yourself with what Vook is and how it works.

Let me know your thoughts; it will be interesting to see how this develops.

The One-Hundredth Blog

2009-11-25T07:02:00.001-06:00

When I started my business in January of 2008, the decision was made to write a business blog as part of the whole process. Little did I know then that it would become an integral part of my operation.

The commitment was made to keep it strictly business, and to specifically add value to the markets I served: Print, the Book, Family-Owned, Sales Growth, Strategic Planning, & Executive Mentoring. Because much of on-line material is poorly written & self-serving, I was also determined to be brief and to the point; hopefully a 3-4 minute read would be the maximum.

Talking to those who are readers now, remembering back on how I felt, and looking back at that first post, it seems to have developed accordingly. What has been a surprise is the way in which I have been able to use most of the postings after the fact.

Issues develop, within all markets, and they are made up of multiple pros & cons. These make for good blogging topics. In looking at them objectively, if I decided to write about them, a good deal of preparation was required. In researching them, there has been unexpected learning on my part, which has enabled me to use these issues to add value to current & potential clients. Threads of content, best business practices, and sound advice resulted, almost by accident. With high standards, while putting my thoughts on paper, they became more refined, better organized, and have provided more value to the client.

I also began to use them in public speaking engagements and magazine articles. They were also reprinted in article format and used for marketing pieces that established & supported not only that with which I was competent, but gave insights as to how it might be accomplished. As I have stressed all along, how we perform is often more critical that what we actually do.

During the Holiday Season, the pace slows for some of us. Accordingly it might be a good time to page back & review those you may have missed. There are at least 8articles on Digital Print (such as Digital Print & the Future of the Book 2/14/08 & Twilight of the Books 2/27/08); 8 on Sales issues (such as Energizing Sales in Tough Times 1/29/09 & Sales Turnaround in 30 Days 4/1/09); 5 on Family-Owned (such as 10/15/08 Getting Family Owned Businesses Right: Ten Principles that will Make Everyone's' Lives Easier 10/15/08 & Subjective Dynamics of Family Owned Businesses 6/29/09).

There are also 11 on the Book & it’s future (such as Bill Gates & Textbooks 6/27/08 & The Kindle Achilles Heel 9/15/09); 13 on Executive Mentoring (such as Executives & Fierce Conversations 9/10/08 & Accountability - An All too Rare Gem 6/23/09); 6 on Strategic Planning (such as Is Your Growth Random, or Planned & Focused? 4/24/08 & Discovering the Value of Strategic Planning 9/8/08); and 9 on Difficult Economic Times (such as Navigating Through the Perfect Storm: A Counter intuitive Approach can Strengthen Your Emergence 12/5/08 & EQ - Emotional Intelligence: Its Importance to Economic Recovery 3/24/09).

As always, let me know your thoughts; they help define who I am, and who I hope to become.

The Business Side of On-line Communication

2009-11-25T07:01:00.001-06:00

At the risk of seeming older & “frumpier”, I feel the need to state some of my concerns surrounding Face Book, Twitter, & texting and e-mail in general. Certainly, it’s OK to have the right & need to communicate & express ourselves on-line, especially as a younger person. What we often fail to see, however, are the consequences to family, & other friends. When peers, clients, & suppliers come into play in the business world, it’s even more complicated.

Here’s the problem: When we are face to face with another person, why would we want to spend time communicating to others who are not present? The issue is the same if a businessperson is reading his e-mail on his Blackberry while in a committee or customer meeting. In this case, multitasking is not a strength. Our “in person” attention, when given to another, is a gift. It is also much more effective.

For years now, I’ve witnessed managers spending most of their day immersed in e-mails instead of venturing out of their office to be WITH most of the senders! These folks are not ignoring others directly when they over-rely on their e-mail, but they are ignoring them nonetheless.

Here are some suggestions:

1) Do your texting, Face Book, & Tweeting when you are alone, not even in front of others, let alone when you are supposed to be interacting with them.

2) To accomplish #1, budget a certain amount of time for your social networking; then stick to it. Don’t allow it to take more of your time than you wish.

3) Just as you should develop an e-mail routine while in your office, create one while traveling with your Blackberry. Both should be accomplished in private & take a finite amount of time, otherwise, why would you spend the time & money to travel?

4) Evaluate the benefits of all your time spent communicating, including written, electronically, and face to face. Your methods should be accomplished from a decision based on not only what you need & want, but what your family, people, suppliers, & customers want.

Please understand. I believe electronic communication has not only entered our world permanently, but for the better. We just need to control it for the greater good, like much of the rest of our lives. People, real in-person people, and our relationships with them,
will still remain the most important ingredient in our happiness & success.

Books & the Triple Whammy

2009-11-17T16:49:00.002-06:00

It seems like just a few months ago . . . the Book Industry was believing that printed books, as we have known them, would pretty much endure for ever. Even despite the periodical economic fluctuations and the new threat of the e-books, it seemed sacred.

Some of us, at the risk of being zealots expressed concern (see my blogs: 2/13/08 Kindle Evaluation; 2/14/08 Digital Printing & the Future of the Book; 2/27/08 Twilight of the Books; 4/10/08 In Case You Haven't Noticed. . .; 6/27/08 Bill Gates, PC's, & Textbooks) Some ignored it completely; most were in between.

Enter an unprecedented economic collapse in 2008, in the midst of growing Kindle & other e-books use. Follow that with electronic delivery of intellectual material, and throw in a $40 million multi-year contract, for a computer-based teaching system, between Houghton Mifflin Harcourt & the Detroit Public Schools, and there is realization that the Book is in crisis.

The economic problems will moderate at some point, but better minds than I (PRIMIR) say that the "handwriting is on the wall." The Print Industries Market Information and Research Organization (PRIMIR) states that the e-book is already affecting the College textbook market as is the electronic delivery of content. Now with the Houghton contract in Detroit, the way is shown to drastically affect the El-HI textbook market.

Printing Industries of America (PIA) has recognized this & is sounding the call. Book Manufacturers Institute, of which I am a member, has accepted the importance of the entire digital workflow. They are establishing a Digital Roundtable where members may gather to share their questions, answers, and other information on the whole workflow. I was fortunate enough to have been asked to facilitate this endeavor, and look forward to assist in creating our new future.

Where does this leave us? Well, as I stated in the "Twilight of the Books", almost 2years ago: "...we should be willing to change ourselves, & the way we look at things, and do them. Why? Because it is the right thing...and the status quo will kill us."

When Should You Assemble an Advisory Board?

2009-11-17T16:49:00.001-06:00

Recently a client of mine, knowing that I enjoy teaching & learning through reading, gave me an article on assembling a Board of Advisers. This is a topic many medium sized businesses should at least consider, Family-Owned and companies with unclear succession plans, especially so. Don't be lulled by our current down economy; times will change, and we need to systematically provide for our future, especially when questions surround it.

The question I'd like to put forward here is: Should we embark upon Strategic Planning (SP) before, or following, establishing the Board? When putting the Board together after SP, the Board assists and guides in the implementation of the Plan. The "what" has been decided; the "how" is what the Board addresses.

When the Board is established before SP, it will have a significant impact on new products and markets, expansion or contraction of existing ones, & even Succession Planning (SSP), depending on how it's empowered. Both the "what" & "how" are influenced by the Board. I say this because it has been my experience that SP leads to SSP, if that issue exists, which is often the case with Family-Owned businesses.

Often, within a Family-Owned Business, the direction (for future good or bad) has been set. If the business is healthy, all are comfortable, & in agreement, then the Board assembly issue can happen later, or not at all. If doubt and/or conflict regarding the future exists, then it may be time for at least a consultant, and perhaps later a Board.

The point of all this is to make a PROCESS (see 10/28/09 blog) of determining your future by considering and anticipating these issues. What worked in the past has no guarantee for the future; listen to those around you. If more experience is required, then summon the help you need.

Paper - Friend or Foe? Part Two

2009-10-30T16:57:00.003-05:00

Continuing with comments on Charlie Carr's article on paper use (see previous post), he advances other reasons paper is critical to our lives, our economy, and our future:

* Paper is Biodegradable. When we look for environmental problems, one of the biggest is material that will not decompose. Most plastics, metals, electronic devices, appliances, many of which we refuse to/or cannot stop using, are included. Paper is not among these.

* Paper is Recyclable. Thirty seven percent of US pulp is produced from recovered paper. In 2007, this averaged about 360 lbs for each person in America. By 2012, 60% of the paper we consume will be from recovered paper.

* Paper is a Significant Part of our Economy. Yes, there will be those who say that needs to change, perhaps with some merit, but in the meantime, in the midst of unprecedented economic woes, and a Stimulus Package costing us billions, what are we to do? Facts are that paper products are $393 billion annually, and the industry employs 2.9 million people, compared to 1.2 million in the auto industry.

* Paper is Efficient. Many paper products. such as books, are used for centuries. It is easiest to read and use over electronics. And it allows for the combination of tactile & visual learning, making education easier and more effective.

The next time someone is critical of paper, perhaps you now can set the record & them straight.

Paper - Friend or Foe?

2009-10-30T16:57:00.001-05:00

As a consultant, I make an extreme effort to avoid politics & "political correctness". Not only is it bad for business, it also seems to drag one into emotional arguments where there is no winner, only losers. Recently, I encountered an example that passionately called me involving not only my roots, but my current business.

Normally, I only devote one paragraph to my introduction, but today it may be three; please let me apologize in advance. My education is in the pulp & paper business. As a forester, I developed a strong respect for the "multiple use" forest, primarily conservation, some preservation, and treating trees as a renewable resource. My business now caters to printing & the book industries, two giants that have intensively used paper, with trees as the main source.

Recently, Charlie Carr, the Chief Strategist at Mimeo.com wrote an article defending the use of paper & our forests that brought this to a head for me. I had to write my own version of support. So let's just blame Charlie & get at it, OK!?

Without naming names, we've all seen & heard many say, "Save the trees", or "Be environmentally responsible: think before you print", or "Preserve our resources". This may sound good on the surface, but closer examination, as Charlie nicely provides, shows otherwise.

The use of paper has been made to seem evil by some. The facts are, that due to reforestation (seeding and planting trees), forests in the US have actually grown over the whole last century. And it is projected to do so in this one. In commercial forests, where over 95% of our pulp comes from, net annual growth exceeds harvest, AND losses to insects & disease, by 47% each year. Not exactly Armageddon for our trees.

To keep the articles a reasonable length, this topic will be concluded in the next posting.

Power: the More You Relinquish, the More You Gain

2009-10-28T15:29:00.000-05:00

Recently, during one of my speaking engagements, when in discussion about leadership in troubled times, a member of the group said something rather profound. We were talking about having courage to take action, and the importance of involving your people in solutions.

One person focused on communication. Another said he played it close to the vest, & that his folks needed a strong leader. Still another said he considered himself a good leader, but not as good as the sum total of his group. He found that: "The more power I give away, the more power I gain." Nicely said. As is so often the case, I learn more from the groups I address than any other source.

When I asked him if I could use his quote (he said yes), I told him I would use it with credit given. He is Bob Kattman, a PhD, & Director of the Office of Charter School at University of Milwaukee. It's nice to know that people like he are teaching our children & grandchildren.

What makes his piece good is that we do get more in return when we decide to give something up. Relinquishing control frees others up to "make mistakes faster", learn, and problem solve creatively. At the same time, we are teaching others to do the same. An open culture results where blame is not needed and folks understand the real mission: win by working together to serve the "customer", serving each other.

Might this be the origin of the word "empower"?

How will you use yours today?

The Answer is in the Process

2009-10-28T15:27:00.000-05:00

Over the years, I have found a valuable resource that has served to teach, develop, & grow me as a person: TEC/EA. TEC (The Executive Council) & EA (Executive Agenda) have given me close to fifteen years of support and learning. I have been fortunate to be associated with them.

Several months ago, as they do every quarter, they sent out an article that really resonated with me: The Answer is in the Process. Especially now, in unprecedented (in our lifetime) poor economic times, we strive for answers. Using a process to find them means solutions are all around us in the sum total of our people's experiences. Pat Murray, a TEC Chair, likes to say, "the answer is in the room."

For those of you who follow my articles, you know how much I value involving others and "discovering" the appropriate solution. Surround yourself with great people, listen to them, and when appropriate, have the courage to let go.

But when I began my business career, fresh out of the Air Force as a pilot, I was full of confidence (great), and also some arrogance (not so great). I forged ahead, solved my own problems, probably created some more, and floundered a bit. When I realized how critical using a process was, things came in focus.

Trusting the process is the key part of getting the most out of it. What does trusting the process look like? Here are a few examples:

* Involve diverse individuals, not with similar backgrounds
* Have the courage to be honest in stating problems, successes, & failures
* Be open & listen to others' point of view
* Exhibit patience, solicit ideas, especially from the reticent
* Respect differing points of view; they most always add value

Make leadership a process; learn it, practice it, then transfer it to your team.

Strategic Planning in Difficult Times

2009-10-28T15:25:00.000-05:00

Those of you following my articles and blog know that I place the highest value on Strategic Planning (SP). Unless we create our future through a process, considering things like our core competencies, & why our customers buy from us, corporate growth is an accident. For most of this decade, prior to the collapse a year ago, we were spoiled with constant gowth. Bad habits developed. When success comes too easily, we lose discipline.

Now, as a result of the recession, the game has changed; drastically changed. In the Print Industry, where many of us make our living, most will wait for the upturn. The back side of the economy, where we reside, will dictate that. However, it will take time, perhaps as much as another year. Meanwhile, should we limp along defensively, losing more ground, or accelerate our recovery and emerge stronger?

It is not a rhetorical question, but many seem to treat it as such. If we do nothing, that is what we will achieve. Especially in down times we should plan more than ever. We have the time to do it, and do it thoroughly. It costs little, perhaps only for the facilitator. Instead of cutting staff so deeply, or laying off the survivors, keep your best & most innovative working. Assign them the challenge to forge a better future for all.

Enough of the pontificating; let's examine two additional components of SP, that will serve us well, especially now: Benchmarking & superlatives.

Bench marking is especially effective in unusual times, as now, where we are not in a status-quo, or stable situation. Normally, I like to set my own standards, and really put some reach in them. Where we are now, though, makes it difficult to discern just how poor (or well) we're performing. Bench marking "normalizes" results, and grounds us in reality so we don't frustrate our people by reaching unrealistically, or under achieve by setting a goal too low.

Superlatives: I love this one. Someone once said that unless our product or service is truly unique, the first or last, most or least, ugliest or most beautiful, - you get the drift, we're just an also ran. Simply put, we must strive to do what we do in a one of a kind way. After identifying the particular/potential customer need, we then can FOCUS on delivering it better than anyone else. Growth & profits result.

The Kindle Achilles Heel

2009-09-15T14:56:00.000-05:00

Many of you that follow my blogs know that almost 2 years ago, I purchased one of the first Kindles sold. Since that time, I have written articles on the Kindle, and electronic books in general. Since I am on my third one already, I feel qualified to comment on what I see developing in general.

My love of the publishing & book industries has led me to believe, perhaps somewhat biased, that the printed book would survive just fine, thank you. Recent developments have convinced me otherwise.

Technology, AND THE WAY WE NOW EMBRACE IT, has developed so quickly, that the product has far surpassed anticipated improvements. Accordingly, I believe the hardbound book, as we know it, is in some difficulty. Yes, it will survive, and it will always play a role, but a diminished one. Just like the checkbook, letter writing, & movie theatres.

Reasons are: 1) It's easier than ever to comfortably read & navigate. 2) Downloads come in about 10 seconds, after 1 click. 3) At $9.99, I was among the very first to have Dan Brown's new book, The Lost Symbol, at a $20+ savings over the bookstore price. 4) Being able to adjust the font size is a key for middle-aged & up folks who buy a good share of the hard bound books. 5) It is lighter & smaller than most hard bounds, easier to take on trips, and doesn't require but a fraction of the space your expanding library might. I could go on, especially regarding the technical end, but you get it, as I do.

There is a glimmer, however, and I don't pretend Amazon isn't smart enough to fix this problem, but there is a current flaw that is slowing the process: Quality control & Customer Service, or the lack thereof.

Recently my second Kindle locked up, crashed, or whatever. Being reasonably competent on-line, I went to Amazon's website to either report the problem, or find a number to call. It took me about 20 minutes to find the phone number after my effort failed to find a way on-line. Obviously, they do not want you to know their customer service number. We who feed them are a problem for them. Not very impressive.

After my service person and I determined it was unusable, they agreed to send me another on for $99 + shipping & handling. Hmmmmmn, after spending $399 (well above what it needs to be), it did not set well to spend another $100. But, oh well, these things happen and let's move forward.

In a few days I had my new one, charged it overnight, and then could not get it unlocked & released to me even after scrolling through the tutorial again. Another call to customer service got that fixed, but where was my library of books from the old one? Oh, they have to be transferred and that takes another call. Finally, after about 10 days, I had it back and functioning after missing my entire cruise trip vacation with it lifeless in my suitcase.

Enough of my whining, but someone better wake up at Amazon or this might take a long time.

How Many Hours Should it Take?

2009-09-15T05:35:00.000-05:00

As I work with management and staff, a common question I get is, "How many hours should I expect my associates (employees) to work? Or, "How many hours should I have to work to get my job done?" As usual, this is a complex issue, and also a simple one.

First the complex part. The starting point is a job description. There has to be one, however I still find situations without them. So spend the time to put it together; it should be a positive experience for everyone.

With this in hand, then the job must be rated & then fit into a pay scale, exempt & non-exempt, that hopefully also is in place. This should also be accomplished so that all are on the same page in terms of "an honest days' wage for an honest days work". This is also an excellent exercise to determine where you stand as a company, against your competition, in paying your people.

The pay level decision is a decision that each organization has a right to make. It just needs to be realized that the decision will have consequences which you should think through. For example, if you choose to pay higher than average, you will be able to hire & retain a better calibre of people (assuming you treat them well), but will also experience a higher cost to do so. Similarly, if you pay lower than average, you will save the cost difference, but may have difficulty attracting competent associates & have higher turnover.

Now that the more complicated portions are done, it gets less complicated for the associate. If they are paid fairly, treated well, and held accountable for performing their job, as described, then the simple answer becomes, "whatever it takes."

OK, OK, it can't literally be "whatever it it takes". However, if you have a well intended employer treating a well intended associate, then there should be a spirit of give and take. Things like covering for each other to make sure the job gets done & the customer gets served should be automatic. So should arrangements be made by management to arrange for someone to see that piano recital for an hour on Thursday afternoon.

It's simple: Just do it. One hand washes the other, what goes around comes around, yadda, yadda, yadda.

Departmental SWOT Team Fundamentals

2009-09-14T17:28:00.001-05:00

One of the more progressive practices that has gained acceptance in the last few years has been that of assembling SWOT Teams in companies to improve departmental performance, Cross-functional employees are called together, for a short period of time, to evaluate a department and discover how it might be improved to better serve customers and grow the business: hence the term SWOT.

Given this, I thought it might be productive for you to see the guidelines that have been formed to maximize results of these teams:

FUNDAMENTALS - Team environment. Although there is a facilitator & a scribe, the playing field should be level with all being equally important. This markedly increases candid & professional communication.

No dumb answers or points - Every one's entitled.

Disagreeing is encouraged. Diversity of opinion makes us stronger.

Participation is not optional - If the meeting ends & you haven't spoken, something;s wrong.

"To Do" assignments are expected to be completed on time & in an exemplary fashion.

TIMING - Meetings will generally be from 6am to 8am so as to minimize operational interruption.

FORMAT & CONTENT - The department is to be evaluated first on strengths, secondly on weaknesses, thirdly on opportunities, fourthly on threats, and Lastly on Up & Downsides.

From this, "To Do's" will be assigned involving data gathering, measurements, and analysis.

A SECOND MEETING - Will then conclude the process for the department. Decisions will be recommended with courses of actions, goals, measurements, and documentation.

Mentoring Guidelines

2009-09-14T16:48:00.000-05:00

One of the most sought after services I find in working with family-owned companies is that of training and developing presidents who find themselves in the position without adequate training. This may be due to a unexpected retirement, a sudden death in the company leadership, or simply an immersion for a variety of reasons.

It can foster a wide range of responses in the son, daughter, or relative that encounters higher expectations than they may be ready to meet. Frustration can lead to counterproductive behavior that hurts everyone.

If an independent person, usually a consultant, who, by virtue of being seen as neutral, can gain the trust of the newly crowned executive, some pretty remarkable turnarounds are possible. Enter the mentor.

Having been fortunate enough to have been a mentor, in a wide variety of roles, I have learned a great deal, some things the hard way. Here's what I've absorbed over the years in the form of ground rules:

1. The mentor's sole purpose is to serve the mentee.

2. The success or failure of the process is contingent upon mutual trust.

3. There is tremendous value in diversity of opinion (each person might learn something) and honesty (saying what needs to be said in a caring way.

4. The mentor's responsibility is to prepare and consistently deliver needed content & perspective that facilitates the mentee's professionalism & personal growth.

5. The mentee's responsibility is to study, evaluate, & discuss the content and perspective brought forth. Growth is a journey as well as a destination.

6. Sessions should be regularly scheduled & a top priority on each person's schedule. Because of body language and innuendo, they should be done in person whenever possible.
.

New Beginnings: Moving Ahead

2009-09-03T14:49:00.000-05:00

September is such a great month! Not only does it start a beautiful fall season with mild temperatures & vibrant color, it also unofficially signifies a time for new commitments. School starts in earnest; we might even take a class. Or decide to support a church or community project. It's the time when we often decide to take action.

Many of you have challenges, problems, or opportunities. You know you need to seriously consider them for your organization. Labor Day is Monday; fall unofficially starts Tuesday. What should you tackle this year? Where do you want to be going into 2010?

Let's talk. Most of you know your issues well, but somehow they haven't gotten started. I provide the spark and the passion to get the project underway. If I don't have the experience to help you, or if I don't have enough time with ongoing client activity, I'll tell you. I'll also have the courage to tell you what you may not want to hear (in a caring and professional way). I also set time and expense boundaries so they fit your needs and provide you the value you deserve.

For my part, I'll be contacting many of you this month. You have needs/wants; I have the ability to help you discover the solutions. You also will have personal references available at the President & Chairman of the Board level.

Indeed; the time is at hand.

Great Expectations, Meaningful Experiences: A Privileged Summer

2009-09-03T14:24:00.000-05:00

For those of you wondering what's happened to my postings in July & August, (there must be a few of you?!) here's the scoop: It's been an intense and remarkable time for growth.

July saw significant client activity with excellent fact gathering & decision making on multiple fronts. Sandwiched in there was a memorable fly-in fishing trip to Canada with my friend and church pastor.

August began with virtually continuous client work. Two consecutive days were interspersed involving sponsorship of the Chicago Book Clinic & Printing Industries of Wisconsin golf outings. It was an honor to support two fine organizations. The month then ended in grand fashion with Wendy's & my delayed honeymoon on a Mediterranean cruise.

OK, so what? Why do I call it "A Privileged Summer?" Although I had virtually no free time, I was doing what I love and do best - helping good clients get better. Wonderful people surrounded me - my clients, my friend, and my wife. Much was learned - diverse points of view, each with merit; humility; finding goodness in many things; and getting closer to my Christian roots through visits to Corinth, Ephesus, and Rome.

So yes, it has been a wonderful two months, but it's now September. What comes next?

What If We Don't?

2009-06-30T12:24:00.000-05:00

Today, I would like to expand upon an article I received from TEC, The Executive Council, regarding spending money on our people during the down economy. George Buckley, CEO of 3M, was asked if he really should be spending money on training & leadership development. He was specifically asked, what if these people leave the company? He answered, what if we don't & they stay?

It's no mistake he's one of the most influential leaders we have now. The good ones know that they can take advantage of their competitors' fears and make substantial gains BY INVESTING IN THE RIGHT THINGS. People are our most valuable resource, why not excel by using the additional time we have now to invest in them?

I have spoken & written on this until even I am tired of it! So here's a bit more inspiration.

We must continue to develop our bench strength, our future leadership, even when we're cutting jobs. Wow! Talk about counter intuitive, but right on. We must watch cash, & differentiate from our competitors, but our future depends on our leadership.

This develops trust, continuity, and self-confidence; these are all qualities critical to leadership in turn improving and developing our people.

It's not what if they do, it's what if we don't?

Subjective Dynamics of Family-Owned Businesses

2009-06-29T16:24:00.000-05:00

When I begin work with many companies whose owners are the family, I am often presented with a fair amount of data relating to the area(s) they want "fixed". This is very helpful, from a distance, in identifying causal factors that limit or diminish performance, or show lost opportunities.

At the same time, Family-Owned businesses are different. The family unit, regardless of whether they own a business or not, is a more emotional entity than a corporate organization. Accordingly, more subjectivity like concern for parents, siblings, or nieces & nephews might, though not always, enter into decisions.

Today, in this article, we'll look at how family-owned businesses do differ, and how some of the subjective things can influence results. As I've said many times before, HOW your employees or the ownership sees & does things can assist or hinder performance. By understanding some common challenges that often arise, steps can be easily taken to mitigate problems and restore performance to the level desired.

Typical questions to consider:

1) Do your employees understand that family-owned businesses differ from others? The ownership, whether it be mom & dad, the family collectively, or second & third generation, may have certain family goals, which is their prerogative. These might include things like, providing job opportunities, training & development of the children, grooming members for top management, or mom & dad's cash out & retirement. If this is not understood and presented in a positive way, resentment can build, taking away from performance.

2) Are Family-owned policy & procedures explained & documented ? In your corporate manual, there should be a "Family-owned" section outlining, for example, how hiring decisions will be made when a family member is involved, how the decision will be made when employees are competing with a family member for a promotion, or how family members are to be compensated.

The key here is to have it out there for everyone to see. I like this because, if it can't stand the test of being out in the open, maybe it should be re-considered. And if it is published, then the employees should support it; if not, it is their prerogative to leave the company. Lou Gentine & Sargento do a magnificent job of this.

3) Is company morale affected by the actions of the ownership within the company, or among the owners themselves? This is critical. Everyone, owners & employees alike must understand the difference between ownership & management. Oftentimes I see, especially in the second generation, a passion to perform, to excel, and even to please mom & dad. This can result in the children, with good intentions, interfering with day to day operations, and other managers by going directly to them. If the reporting structure is violated, confusion, stress, and resentment can build.

Another detrimental dynamic found in some instances is sibling rivalry. Whether it's one child wanting to get promoted first, or second guessing each other, this can be really damaging. With clear identification of rules, conduct, and structure, this can be kept to the boardroom where it belongs. And then, it must be discussed in a professional & caringly manner to avoid the inevitable notice of the employees, and the hurt that can potentially be brought to the family.

The Biggest Lesson in Worzalla's Turnaround

2009-06-23T16:12:00.000-05:00

Charlie Nason, the President of Worzalla Publishing, is a good friend of mine that I saw last week at the Lindenmeyr Paper Annual Outing. Knowing that over the past few years, Worzalla has fashioned an incredible evolution recovering from significant erosion from China, I asked Charlie to share with me how it was accomplished. He said it would be difficult to say in a few words, but that he would e-mail me, which he did the following day.

He outlined three things: 1) Willingness to Diversify 2) Right-Sizing the Operation 3) Effective Communication These in themselves should not be surprising to many of us, especially those that read the Harvard Business Review. However, I happen to know a good deal about Worzalla & Charlie, and I think there is an incredible HOW here that Charlie is too modest to tout.

First, the background: Worzalla is 100% employee owned and has been that way for some time. Charlie realizes that he only is President for as long as the employee owners choose to have him. Accordingly, and because Charlie is naturally a person who sincerely cares about his people, he has stayed close to them.

When China began to negatively impact the U.S. print industry, he went on an extended trip to learn everything he could. Upon his return, he was very vocal in his concern for American Industry, and his people. When their erosion in 4 color book printing declined drastically as a result, the first place he went was to his people. Because of his relationship with them, he chose to trust them to be part of the solution.

So yes, they rid themselves of 4 sheet fed 4 color presses & replaced them with 2 new presses and increased capacity by 23%. HOW they did this was to work together with each other to involve everybody in the solution. What this did was to achieve incredible buy-in due to the complete understanding of the situation and their response. When folks understand and are treated as equals, they will do most anything to achieve a goal.

And yes again, they did reduce staffing from as many as 625 to 360 full time ESOP employees. Even though their sales dropped from $61 million to $44 million, it then recovered to $65 million, all with just the 360 employees! You you can just imagine how much more profitable they are.

And finally, yes once more, it was the communication that did it. They not only kept everyone a part of the solution, but they updated them regularly on progress. They close their plant once every quarter to have an employee meeting where their sales activity and financials are shared. Equipment acquisitions, training, and manning issues are also reviewed. Questions can be submitted ahead, and answered in front of everyone.

To sum it all up, Charlie stated, "If your people know where you are going, (and are part of the effort) it makes it easier for them to step up and follow!"

Thanks Charlie for the information and data, but as Paul Harvey used to say, "Now you know the REST of the story"

Accountability - an All Too Rare Gem

2009-06-23T15:13:00.000-05:00

Today I had the good fortune to pick up an article written by a man I've quoted before, Ian Cook, of Vistage. He has previously had much to say about managing through our economic crisis. In today's article, he focused on accountability, and here, I will build on what he wrote, using my words.

What I liked most was that he advocates FOSTERING accountability, not FORCING it. To facilitate is not to demand, but rather expect. To lead is to place the responsibility within your people, not allowing them to shift it to you, or taking it from them when things go bad.

He advocates building clear goals with lots of latitude around HOW to achieve them; he tells them WHAT must be done, and then expects them to accomplish it their way. By letting go with the how, he allows them to learn and grow stronger.

Ian states that we must resist the temptation to jump in when they're struggling and solve the problem for them. Yes we might decide to help them, but then we should step back again and allow them to continue the attempt.

Along the way, we need to stay in touch, but only with the big picture; allow them to work on the details; remember, the devil is in them!

Also, remember to acknowledge their progress, especially when they take on more responsibility. Encourage them not to be afraid to fail; failing is only a temporary state. Failing is often the fastest way to learn. We consistently need to reinforce positive behavior.

In summary, don't tell your staff the detailed what to do, but rather the overall goal, then let them work together (teams are great with effective leadership) to get the results. Celebrate when they do; you'll be not only growing in responsibility, but growing your people and bench strength.

The bottom line is that accountability need not be an unpleasant task. Instead, make it a productive one.

How to Manage in Times of Crisis Part 3

2009-05-28T11:50:00.000-05:00

This article resumes with quotes from Ichak Adzies new book. He continues on with integration issues for the organization.

What does not kill you makes you stronger. Act. A crisis is your time to show your true colors as a leader. Look inside, because that's where the solution is. You cannot control the outside, but you can control the inside.

You believe the danger is that while you manage the long term solution, you'll go bankrupt. So what do you do? You must manage on multiple fronts - cash and systemic integration. And preserve your strengths.

Be cautious about firing people. Get rid of the non-producers, but you should have done that long ago. Why does it take a crisis to make you do the cleaning up? If you are 20lbs overweight, do you cut off a foot? Now your weight is fine, but you don't have a foot. In tough times, what do you do personally? Throw one of the kids out on the street so others can eat?

It doesn't make sense to cut critical people. Cut fat, not muscle. How much will it take to re-place, re-hire, & re-train good people later on. Conserve your assets so when the upturn occurs, you are ready to roar again. Alternatives are to have everyone work fewer hours, or challenge your folks, with their additional time available, to come up with innovations and efficiencies. In so doing, you will also preserve the culture of mutual trust & respect you have built with human resources.

Every organization needs to align 4 sub-systems: 1) Your purpose 2)Responsibilities 3) Structure of authority 4) Reinforcing behavior. Tell everyone you want to hire, this is our value system; if you don't share these values, don't work for us.

Be careful with authority. As the company grows bigger & bigger, the founder can't make every single decision, so he delegates. First he delegates the right to say "no", but keeps the right to say "yes". Layers of "no-sayers" develop, & bureaucracy results. You have to pass the problem and its solution up to where there is authority to say both yes & no.

We'll end the review here. It is my fervent hope that you have gained as much from these insights as I have. Please do yourself a favor and buy the book!

How to Manage in Times of Crisis - Part 2

2009-05-28T10:06:00.001-05:00

This is a continuation of the previous article with quotes from Ichak Adizes. He continues on with why change causes problems.

Everything, your company & even you as a person, is a system, and sub-systems comprise it. When there is change, sub-systems do not change at the same rate; therefore gaps are created. Gaps create problems, because there is misalignment. If you are age 47, but 17 years emotionally, 30 years spiritually & 70 years intellectually, these conflict. Similarly, with your company, perhaps sales changes direction very fast, but accounting is much slower, and H/R may hardly exist. Problems; disjointing/disintegration happens.

The faster the company grows, the less information top management has. With incomplete or inaccurate information, management may make flawed decisions. Meanwhile, H/R is hiring tomorrow the people needed yesterday; the company's sub-systems are operating at different speeds. Problems turn to crisis.

More innovations were made in the 20th century than cumulatively in the history of civilization.

If change causes disintegration, and disintegration causes problems, what is the solution? Integration. And the most effective way is to integrate proactively, not reactively.

THOSE WHO FREEZE, DO NOTHING, & ALLOW THE CRISIS TO TAKE OVER THE ORGANIZATION, CAUSE ITS DEMISE. Worse, they may disguise the problems with actions that make the organization look good only delay the inevitable crisis. Some organizations do nothing because they are waiting for the storm to pass. WRONG.

Success is not about how rarely you fall down, it's about how quickly you get up.

I am not smarter than anyone else; I just identify my mistakes faster and correct them faster.

In a badly managed company, people do not trust one another; it is easier to attack each other than the competition. What happens? The enemy has a better opportunity to kill us all. So, in times of crisis, more than anytime else, trust is critical.

If you're falling apart, how can you take care of others? Take care of yourself. Keep together by 1) Slow down, meditate or pray. 2) Keep your family together, give hope. 3) Call your friends; help them & ask for their help. 4) Address the fears your employees have; be honest. 5) Call your clients; help them. Remember, if your clients go bankrupt, so will you.

How to Manage in Times of Crisis

2009-05-27T10:54:00.001-05:00

I continue with my theme for May, reviewing business articles and books. Small, but power packed, is the best description of this book from Ichak Adizes, world renowned philosopher, author, and teacher. He is the father of Shoham who's article on being proactive, not adaptive, was reviewed earlier.

This is a must, not only for your library, but for your desk. So much of it is incredibly profound, you'll want to refer to it often. Accordingly, this will be a compilation of quotes you can remember and continuously apply, ESPECIALLY NOW.

He starts with Albert Einstein; "A crisis can be a real blessing to any person, to any nation, for all crises bring progress. It is in crisis that inventiveness, discoveries, and grand strategies are born."

Adizes - Crisis is a rapid change. It's all about strength, or lack thereof; if you're robust, change makes you stronger. But if you're weak, change can kill you.

Change is nothing new; what is new is that the rate of change is happening faster. And when we solve problems, change creates more: so we will always have problems. Therefore, if you have problems, relax! You are in good company.

You are as big as the problems you can handle; problems are a sign of growing. In Chinese, the word for problem and the word for opportunity is the same!

Do you want me to be a problem or an opportunity? You decide. If you don't do what you need to do, I will be a problem. If you react appropriately, I will be an opportunity. Which do you want me to be?

A problem left untreated, becomes a crisis. Our worldwide financial crisis did not happen overnight. It began with problems left untreated over time.

The crisis involves your competition, too; everybody has the same problem. Who is going to survive? Those who are most capable of change. Crisis makes the weak die faster and the strong grow faster. So the key to making a crisis an opportunity is to be strong BEFORE the crisis develops.

If there is no change, the mediocre catch up. We need to be more agile, to change faster than the competition-or at least as fast as the market is changing.

There's much more to come, so we'll continue in the next article.

What Not to Cut in Tough Times

2009-05-27T10:07:00.001-05:00

For those of you who follow my articles and business blogs regularly, you know that I have made my focus on issues surrounding how we lead and manage in these difficult economic times. In a recent publication, the Printing Industry of Wisconsin (PIW) outlined several "don'ts" to keep in mind as "you develop your business strategy for 2009 and beyond." Here they are with some discussion to shed further light:

1) Don't cut your advertising budget. Above all, your actual & potential customers need to know you're alive and well; you don't need them going elsewhere when every order is critical. This is also a way to gain on your competition who does.

2) Don't skimp on attending events. You may need to so some judicial prioritization here, but you still must be out there; you might be missed. You also want to keep abreast of new technology and ideas.

3) Don't be afraid to give something back. Share your ideas, give talks, teach a class. This establishes you as an authority and can attract new customers.

4) Don't be afraid to spend money on used equipment if you can get it at the right price. Also, if you need cash, perhaps there is something that can be sold; use PIW.org.

5) Sell your way out. Take advantage of competitors' cut backs and mistakes. This is the time to gain new customers from your competitors.

"This too will end." And you need to be healthy & in good shape when it does.

Do You Have the Fire in the Belly?

2009-05-26T19:07:00.000-05:00

My wife graduated in Nursing from the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh. The other day I picked up her alumni magazine, Engage, to read an article touted on the cover entitled "Fire in the Belly". Although it was pretty much written to promote successful graduates, as it should be, HOW the alumni had succeeded really impressed me.

One stated that it's the willingness to take a risk that often characterizes an entrepreneur; "You're a gambler, marathoner, chameleon, and sea captain." Wow, what a combination, and very well put!

Some focused on "finding out what their customers hated", and removing that irritant. Netflix was cited as an example in eliminating late fees for movie rentals.

Another was in the reusable packaging sector, and found themselves shipping a good deal of cheese. But cleaning the pallets & containers was a chore, and one that no one wanted to do. So they decided to provide that service & found that the cheese producers regarded it "music to their ears".

Others made it their goal to run an organization without politics because life is too short. Imagine that, no agendas, or doing things just to please the wrong person. Easier said than done, but I admire the approach, and the irreverence, to challenge the same old way of doing things.

The common denominator that defined these successful entrepreneurs was the "fire in the belly" - the ability to live and breathe your business. There was also a supreme level of confidence along with a tolerance for challenges & change.

I find this very uplifting now, given what we're going through. It's very inspirational to witness this in our younger people, who sometimes can put us older folks to shame.

Do you still have the "fire in your belly?"

Ten Minutes, Ten Months, Ten Years

2009-05-18T17:12:00.000-05:00

Suzy Welch, wife of Jack, who is an accomplished business person in her own right as former editor of the Harvard Business Review, has come out with her first book called 10-10-10.

The premise of the title & book is that when making decisions, whether they be business, family, or pleasure, we should consider the upside/downside/consequences in a frame of the next 10 minutes, 10 months, and 10 years. Too often, depending on our age & personality style, we either live in the distant future, or perhaps like many teenagers, for instant gratification. Even considering only the mid-range, we could miss short run benefits, or long run successes. Her point is that we should consider all three.

This is a simplistic approach, but I've found that often times, the more obvious is often lost because we make it more complicated. Remember that it's not only in the knowing, but in the doing. This is also a balanced approach, and looking at more sides of an issue is rarely flawed.

As we lead our folks and run our companies in these challenging times, we've seen many get extremely short run oriented. Perhaps we've had to, just to survive. But living only for today will not serve us well; we risk emerging less than we could have been considering the longer range.

Another advantage of screening our decisions this way, is that we tend to moderate our thoughts by considering the different time frames. In looking forward to how we might emerge, and how different conditions will be in 10 months, and especially 10 years, we gain more of a positive light. This balancing effect improves our outlook and allows for perhaps a more complete decision.

Talk with your managers about 10-10-10; ask them to broaden each other, and you, considering a wider time frame in all of your decision making.

Is Adapting Too Little Too Late?

2009-05-18T17:10:00.000-05:00

For quite some time I have admired Ichak Adizes, his articles, philosophy regarding sound business practices, and intelligent ways to look at how we approach things. Now his son, Shoham, is writing and has produced a fine piece on how we should face our current challenging and fast paced environment. He has called it, "Don't Adapt - Pro-act".

He points out that adapting is simply not enough. Because the dinosaurs adapted too slowly, they perished. Biologists have noted that as the rate of change increases, more and more species go extinct, despite their ability to adapt. Isn't business similar? Customers are demanding change faster because the markets demand it. What results is that we try to meet needs that have come and gone; we are simply too late. We have to only look at the automobile industry; wow.

So what are we to do? Well, we need to predict the future, to forecast more effectively, before it is being felt. We cannot do this with our heads firmly in the sand or paralyzed with fear. We must risk or we will eventually perish; it's that simple. We can waste away slowly, or we can move now: be proactive not reactive.

Executive leadership must guide their people to the same page, to see the same threat, so all can meet the challenge together and head-on.

Our global market complicates this; we not only have our domestic state of affairs, but things can be very different in other cultures, in other countries. We need to understand each other and band together to understand and conquer our challenges.

To be proactive is to have the sourage to stay ahead, instead of reacting to the past. Don't be giving too little too late.

Preparing to Soar

2009-04-30T12:43:00.000-05:00

As we chart our course out of the economic crisis, we understand that courage is required in large doses. Our great American icon, the Bald Eagle, provides an interesting lesson. First a question: would you jump out of a tree, several hundred feet above the forest floor, never having flown before?

Somewhere in the 2 to 4 month period, the fledgling eagle learns to fly. Flying is not an easy task. In preparation, mom & dad feed it constantly until it weighs more than they! Then the with-holding of food begins, and weight loss follows. All along, the parents fly by the nest with food in their talons or mouth. But instead of coming into the nest, they fly by to tempt the eaglet. As the fledgling gets critically emaciated, it becomes desperate for food. Sooner or later the eaglet, as the parent passes by, dives out for the food, misses, and has to glide, flap, and flounder his way to the ground. The parent then drops the food by the eaglet as a reward. During the next several days the parents look after the fledgling, teaching it to fly and hunt. This only happens following the jump; no jump, no learning. No learning, certain death.

Aren't we like the bird, safe in its nest, knowing we need to take the plunge, wanting the food (reward, outcome), but paralyzed by fear, & not acting until things become totally desperate? What is the final motivation for the fledgling to jump? Well, it's starvation and sure death, versus jumping to an "unsure" death. The bird understands the choice, and whether by instinct or a more intelligent decision, it not only survives (90% of the fledglings who jump out of the nest survive to fly, hunt, and mature), but thrives.

We often wait so long to become more aggressive in our stance that we risk choking our people and materially damaging the organization. We then emerge weaker and less able to compete. Our competitors leave us behind and our customers seek them out rather than us. As the "intelligent life", we need to overcome the fear with logic & reasoning. We must summon the courage to "lead" taking the plunge.

The last 2 articles, Recognizing Opportunities . . ., and The Fundamentals of Courage . . . made the logical point. The data shows & confirms it. We must act, and the time to act is now.

Hopefully, the fledgling eagle has made the emotional point; just take the jump!

The Fundamentals of Courage & Taking Advantage

2009-04-29T13:50:00.001-05:00

The Kellogg/Post story (previous article) is enlightening. So often if we learn well from history, we have the opportunity to change the end of the story; we don't reside in the past & its failed actions. In addition to the studies & outcomes, I believe there are three fundamental areas of opportunity now existing that call us to action: low interest rates; low real estate/occupancy costs; and the availability of good people.

As the famous hockey player, Wayne Gretzky said, "I don't skate to the puck, I skate to where the puck will be." Similarly, with the economic recovery, we must look forward to where our market will be in 6 months/year +, and build the organization, people, and resources to serve and take advantage of it. If we do that better than our competitors, we will emerge the winners.

It's fairly easy to understand that if we do nothing, the best we can be is at the same relative level as when we started. Don't we want to be stronger, better prepared, and more responsive to our customers? That's the real reason that doing nothing should not even be close to an option.

First, let's examine cash flow and the cost of money. "Cash is king" has been the favored phrase during the economic crises, and rightfully so. However, as we hit bottom & begin recovery, the opportunity is at hand to invest in growth at an extremely low cost, building a more agile organization. This of course is due to the Economic Stimulus and the resulting low interest rates. Never again, for several years at least, will we see them this low. And as others get on the bandwagon, the rates will go up; if we delay too long, we'll miss the opportunity.

At the same time, real estate values are at 20 year lows, both in the private as well as business sectors. So there exists a window here as well, to buy land for expansion, or existing space, at an extremely attractive rate. If you have leased property, it's time to extend and renegotiate that lease, whether it is due or not. During the recovery, this opportunity will be lost as well as the glut is dissipated. Accordingly, the window for action is probably this Spring.

The most important resource is your people; take special care of them. Hire the very best, of the highly qualified and experienced talent available, resulting from short sighted competitors and companies who cut back too deeply. Give them a new home. Invest in training and development to maximize that talent and you'll have a deepening pool of loyal folks who'll serve your customers well. Geometric improvement can be achieved this year; next year will be too late.

Recognizing Opportunities, as the Economy Begins its Slow Recovery

2009-04-27T18:17:00.001-05:00

If in fact, the bottom has been hit, the question is, how do we move forward now? Are there opportunities, and if so, what might they be? Is it in fact time to get a bit more aggressive and carefully plan a stronger & better future than before?

We should move forward thoughtfully. Here's a poignant example from the Great Depression: Kellogg & Post. The New Yorker Magazine wrote of it last week. In the beginning, both were involved in the packaged cereal market with no clear leader. When the Depression hit, no one knew what would happen to consumer demand. Post did what many companies recently have done, reducing costs, cutting budgets & advertising. Kellogg, on the other hand, doubled its budget, moved aggressively into radio advertising, and introduced Rice Krispies. In the four years it took the economy to bottom out, Kellogg raised profits 30%, & became the market leader in the process.

You'd think, that with stories like this, companies now would want to do the same, but what we've seen is most behaving like Post. They hunker down in a survival mode, cut spending, & make fewer acquisitions even though the costs to do so are down. They preserve instead of grow; they just want to get it over with.

There are studies proving companies that maintain spending during down times do significantly better than those who don't. A 1927 study by Roland Vaile showed organizations that kept advertising steady or higher saw significantly better sales than those who didn't. During the 1981-82 recession, firms increasing advertising
saw a "precipitous rise" in the next 3 years following. And in a McKinsey study of the 1990-91 recession, it was found that companies who remained market leaders, or became serious challengers during the downturn, had increased their acquisition, R.& D., and ad budgets, while companies at the bottom had reduced them.

Wow! The message is clear: the future winners will be those of us who act now. Yes it takes courage, but it must be done. Please look at the data; let's not repeat the mistakes of the past.

We may think that only the strong can afford to be aggressive, but the fact of the matter is that recessions create more opportunity for challengers, not less. Note that when advertising is reduced during down times, the challengers have more opportunity to stand out, and the investment is more effective. In the 1990-91 recession, Bain & Company found that twice as many companies leaped from the bottom of their industries to the top, as did so in the years before & after. What wouldn't we all give to move from the bottom to the top?

Here's the clincher. Two gentlemen from academia, Peter Dickinson & Joseph Giglierano have stated that companies now a days are worrying about two kinds of failure: "sinking the boat" (destroying the company by making an aggressive decision) or "missing the boat" (letting a great opportunity pass). Today, most companies are far more worried about sinking the boat than missing it. That's why jumping from last to first, or becoming a Kellogg, is a possibility. That's also why it takes so much courage to do it.

Who are we?

Who will we become?

Some Great Thoughts From Our Own Craig Faust

2009-04-19T18:23:00.000-05:00

Prior to making final preparations for my talk for the International Business Association Wednesday night, I was going through the PIA (Printing Industries of America) Magazine. I came across a very fine article, "Prepare for the Upturn-Think Big, Think Small", from Milwaukee area's own Craig Faust, President & CEO of Hi-Liter Graphics, in Burlington.

I have followed Craig for some time now; first becoming acquainted with him through Jim Lacy of Inland Press, which Craig had purchased. Craig has quietly done things right, stood by his principles, and built a fine organization. The way he puts people first, even in difficult times, is especially noteworthy.

In the article, he focused on the opportunities that abound if we prepare for the inevitable upturn, stay disciplined, and increase our marketing efforts. No standing pat with Craig, or as he puts it, no paralysis.

Something which I have been emphasizing repeatedly is stating the importance of Strategic Planning, and the necessity of going through the process. Craig makes the point that, "Profit Leaders... have survived and grown by understanding their business profile and following their Strategic Plans."

On taking care of his employees: instead of just laying off people, he recognizes the need to invest in & keep his best people to be in position to reap the benefits of the upturn. Instead of cutting training expenditures, he makes the point that Profit Leaders outspend lesser performing printers.

Through their research, PIA has determined that innovative technology is most important to their members. Craig believes in involving his people in problem solving and new solutions. He shares information with them such as waste, spoilage, job costing, and even gross margin, to facilitate it. They believe that finding a less expensive way to produce a job is a better way to compete than selling it at a lower price.

We've all heard the expression, "the devil is in the details." At Hi-Liter the discipline is in the details. They are very serious about Lean Manufacturing, have budgets that track expenses compared to last month & last year, and watch their ratios.

In short, when we look positively to the future, take care of our people, plan and focus on the correct things, stay disciplined, and reduce costs rather than margins, we are simply practicing good business. It not only gets us through the downturn, it prepares us in the most effective way for the upturn.

Creativity sells, not only in troubled times, but in all times.

Have We Hit Bottom Yet?

2009-04-19T14:26:00.000-05:00

Those of you that follow my writing know that I am an eternal optimist. I have been consistent in my recommended thoughts and actions in these challenging times.

During the last 6 weeks, the dazzling bear market rally has been over 25%, so my natural tendency is to think that we have hit bottom. While we may have, I feel compelled to balance potential enthusiasm with a reality check.

A week ago Friday, there was an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal. While there is no shortage of those who think we may be poised to be led out by the recent success of the financial sector, including one of President Obama's top advisors, there are also warning signs that should get their due.

The current crisis is unprecedented in 75 years; so do we really think that we could recover so relatively quickly? Perhaps, perhaps not. Skeptics point to another possible correction before the real recovery where more jobs will be lost & consumers will "hunker down." Job loss could create another round of contracted spending & lower corporate profits. Thomas Lee of JPMorgan Chase thinks there will be another 8 to 10% drop in the market.

Another line of thought has the non-financial sector falling off through lower earnings, and since the financial segment is not out of the woods yet, we could be dragged down. All the trauma we've been through has many in a very conservative, cautious mode. Who can say they're wrong?

Finally, Howard Atkins, Wells Fargo's finance chief said that while they had adequate reserves, and he was "very comfortable" they had already taken appropriate write-offs, he would not rule out taking more in the future. It seems everyone has a disclaimer.

Accordingly, I will not be any different. I believe that we DID hit bottom, and that a slow but steady recovery is at hand. The disclaimer is that we don't experience another "911" sort of experience, and that government spending somehow gets under control.

Sales Turnaround in 30 Days

2009-04-01T10:49:00.000-05:00

My previous article addressed corporate leadership climate, and specific attitudes that may now be prevalent in our turbulent economy. Much of this appears to be a focus on protecting assets, a reluctance to take risks, and limiting expenditures to only those that generate short term income.

Over the last several months, I have intensively analyzed this topic, conducting research, interviewing executives, & writing articles, some of which have been published. Later this month, on the 22nd, I have been asked to lead a discussion on it at the Independent Business Association of Wisconsin(IBA Wisconsin)Roundtable.

My interest has been driven by a need to discover what kind of assistance my clients want in this environment. Perhaps I have been slow to "get it", or maybe, since I own a consulting firm, a part of me doesn't experience the same dynamics. At any rate, my immersion has served to forge an understanding and a clarity which is not only wanted, but needed.

Simply put, results must be improved, and they must be improved NOW. Let's not look down the road too far; most of us are hemorrhaging too badly. If we're going to act on something, especially when requiring funds, let's get a very timely return. We cannot afford to invest in the long term when we are so busy just trying to survive. It's not that I agree with all of this (I'd like to see a bigger emphasis on taking care of our people), but it's what I see most often.

Now that's been settled, how and what do we turn around? Well, sales of course. Most executives have already cut costs, eliminated non-essential spending, and streamlined the work force. The flip side of reducing costs is to increase revenue: increase sales. If we take this at face value, and in light of the above, the question becomes, how can we revitalize sales quickly without spending a lot of time & money? And how can we do so carefully monitoring results so that the time frame is reasonable, and wasting precious cash is prevented?

How about a Sales Turnaround in 30 Days? If . . . IF this could be accomplished in a structured fashion, it would meet the above criteria: short term, relatively small cash outlay, defined time frame, specific goals, and measured results. Sounds good you might say, but what can be done in that short period of time?

Here's how I am accomplishing it: I will go on site with the ckient for a total of five days in the month, not including time spent off site with phone & e-mail. During the 5 days, I will interview members of sales management, the sales force, customer service, & operations. Customers, with approval, are interviewed via phone & e-mail. The sales force and selected management, customer service, & operations folks will be asked to complete a 10 minute personality profile.

With sales management, I will need access to marketing plans, previous & current sales goals & performance, previous & current sales remuneration plans, gross profit & value added performance, turnover, training plans, and other appropriate reports as needed.

At the end of the month I meet with top management to discuss improvement opportunities. Such things will be included, but not limited to: hiring effectively, aligning sales remuneration with corporate goals, increasing time in front of the prospect/customer, reducing turnover, improving training to reduce time in developing senior sales people, increasing sales $/sales person, facilitating sales management development, increasing incoming gross profit & value added, profitably providing customers exactly what they want, & facilitating a cooperative spirit between sales, customer service, and operations.

The client's investment is limited to only my 5 billing days + expenses. With my 35 years in the business, the upside far surpasses the downside. If the choice is to do nothing with it (difficult to imagine), we all still learn much, which serves us well in the future. Much more likely, if the choice is to take action on some or many of the recommendations, the sky's the limit as to what can be accomplished.

The client can choose to facilitate implementation, or I can help them with some or all of it as they move forward. Even in this economy, there is so very much to gain, and so very little to lose.

When can WE begin?

President & CEO Confidence Levels

2009-03-31T08:51:00.000-05:00

As I observe how most corporate leadership is performing in our economy, concerns arise. Whether it's worry over the stock market, the government, or too much or too little bailout, our consumer and corporate confidence is at an all time low. Here's what I see many executives wanting to do:

1) Survive - live to fight another day; wait for stability
2) Protect cash - spend nothing unless it's direct expense or generates revenue
3) Take few risks - protect instead of create
4) Make no changes - the known is less stressful than the unknown
5) Attack expense - increase profits by cutting costs, and not growing revenue
6) Grow only the short term - if results are immediate, do it; if not, don't

Let's look at each of these with a bit of analysis:

1) Survival to me means we hold the status quo; we don't rock the boat, we wait for a less stormy sea. We pick a better time. This may be fine for the here and now, but hunkering down with a low profile is seldom the right thing to do in the longer run. We miss opportunities and we lose by wasting them.

2) Protecting cash is one of the most prudent things we can do in the short run. However, when we hit bottom and start recovering, we need to aggressively invest it. The return will be geometric because growth has been stuffed under the burden of our worry for so long. Are we at the low point now? I think we are very close.

3) Taking few or no risks does not mean we are static, but rather that we are actually back sliding. How did our organizations get to where they are now? Not by doing nothing. Again, this can work when used sparingly, but not with a steady diet. The trick is to do your homework, take well calculated risks, and reap the rewards.

4) Failing to change that which is broken is fatal. When we recognize policies, procedures, or routines that are flawed, we must take action. We cannot pretend that they don't exist. Our people see them too, and are demotivated when change doesn't happen. Fix it and learn. If it's still broken, then fix it again. Instill courage; that's what leaders do.

5) Cutting expense is another thing we must do in tough times. However, when we don't also invest in future growth, our folks may think there won't be much of a future. Morale continues to suffer. We again miss the opportunity to make money to offset our losses. We are growing, or we are contracting. Making mistakes of commission, rather than omission serves us so much better.

6) Living only for the near term can be short sighted, even if one's intentions are good. It can miss the solid, well planned things that make living worthwhile. Again, adjusting our sights higher and longer is easier as we approach the bottom, but I see some failing to act now, that will cost the company in the longer run. Continue to invest in your people and your customers. The preparation for future success starts now.

In the next article, we will look at the Sales Force and see how we might bridge the action gap on this list of leadership traits.

Doing Ideas for Leadership in our Down Economy

2009-03-24T16:41:00.000-05:00

The following six categories of ideas have resulted from several months of research, years of experience, and the previous articles. As promised, the hope is that they will aid you as you continue your battle to emerge from our economic challenges leaner, stronger, and more successful than ever.

Aggressive – renegotiate leased space; plan for expansion in 2010; increase media, newsletters, and presentations; collaborate within your marketplace; outsource low value added products & services; network, collaborate, brainstorm; seek out and publicize good news; expect much, pay well

Conservative – micro-manage cash flow; conserve cash; keep discipline paramount; reduce insurance costs including health, life, and disability; reduce travel; curtail meetings; know your break even; observe and monitor behavior closely; provide a counter balance to all the negative media releases; use off time to test and evaluate employees; protect what's especially valuable to your company; lead and explain with honesty

Obvious – eliminate products that are not profitable; hold people accountable; develop complementary products & services; lay off underutilized employees; combine duties and reduce positions; reduce number of suppliers; embrace Lean initiatives; follow your Strategic Plan; market, market, market, listen to customers; be proactive with your bank, no surprises; cross-train employees; collaborate with customers; do more with less; use excess time to add more value

Counter-intuitive – hire the exceptional talent that is available; increase marketing budget in growth areas; call on new customers, especially those who’ve never listened to you before; spend money to increase sales rather than to simply cut costs; increase spending, focusing on things that can increase efficiency like new equipment, customer service, and energy reduction; cut costs, not good people; increase middle management and line training; “fire” your marginal clients; re-evaluate company’s position in context of changing marketplace; make downtime productive; increased specialized training; cut costs with thoughtfulness

Fostering Change – readjust goals to make more realistic; find new customers in resilient sectors; look at global markets like never before; eliminate everything that doesn’t add value to your target market; reduce investment in everything that is over offered; increase investment in everything that is under offered; create new elements of value; try, and learn new things; brainstorm on improving work flow; set (collaboratively) lofty goals and then let your managers achieve them; have courage to lay off bottom performers rather than by seniority; look for unhappy customers from you competitors; embrace new technology to add value; seek out new suppliers with new ideas

Maintaining the Status Quo – devoting personal time one to one to improve morale; expand your competitive advantage; communicate to, and stay close to your people; meet one to one with each of your people; increase morale building events; celebrate successes; recognize needs of families such as a spouse being laid off; walk through the operation daily; people are everything, attract & retain the best

EQ - Emotional Intelligence: Its Importance to Economic Recovery

2009-03-24T11:44:00.000-05:00

Previously, we examined the importance of the Thinking side of Leadership. With that established, we are now going to formalize it by calling it EQ, or emotional intelligence. Since many others have discussed it's importance, it justifies its own topic here.

One of the most important things learned from The Great Depression of the 1930's was that attitude was crucial. FDR went so far as to say that economic recovery was impossible without emotional recovery.

Noted Economist Alan Beaulieu in a recent webinar said we must, "lead with confidence and optimism, with the attitude that we can beat this business cycle." Nick Tasler of TalentSmart stated, "Peoples ability to control and use their emotions effectively is a profound indicator of their business success." It is estimated that 58% of an individuals job performance is attributed to high EQ.

In a recent study, TalentSmart found that, "70% of the most skilled business decision makers also score in the top 15% in EQ." They also found that leaders with a low EQ not only rank among the lowest, but also fail to recognize that their judgement is being tainted by their impatience, anger, or other strong feelings.

Let's compare traits of high & low EQ people:

Low EQ people tend to:

Speak out of frustration, even when it won't help the situation
Avoid others when bothered or stressed
Deny ownership of their emotions and their impact on their thinking
Instead of listening when they are challenged, they become defensive
Become task oriented instead of people focused
Ignore tension, hoping it will go away

High EQ people tend to:

Only speak out when it will help the situation
Keep lines of communication open even when frustrated
Accept ownership of their emotions and others' affect on them
Stay open to feedback & criticism
Show others by their actions and attitude that they care
Embrace the challenge of tension and facilitate positive expression of it

With all this in mind, what in general should we do?

Focus on emotional recovery by:
1) Being aware of our emotions
2) Set a positive tone
3) Show that we care

Now that we've sufficiently prepared for taking our organization through the proper steps to economic recovery with the proper EQ, we'll next examine the actions, or Doing side.

The Doing Side of Leadership in our Down Economy

2009-03-20T14:31:00.000-05:00

This article is a continuation of how we each might lead when faced with the adversity in our recent economic environment. We previously looked at the thinking side of our response, and then in depth at EQ, emotional intelligence, to do so. We will now examine actions we might take as a result.

If we have objectively and positively evaluated what we've seen and experienced, the decisions we make, the actions we choose to take, will be the most effective. We will have used our positive EQ.

Most good choices begin with a good foundation. These can be aggressive or conservative, obvious or counter-intuitive, fostering change or maintaining the status quo. There is room for all of these at any given time; accordingly, the alternatives must be well thought out through a good process.

Let's take a look at what the components of a good process might be:
1) Collaborative - synergy through playing off each other
2) Objective - using facts & data to see clearly
3) Diverse - respecting each other's point of view
4) Toward our collective strengths
5) Away from our collective weaknesses
6) Supportive of our Strategic Plan

Within this framework let's list some categories of ideas of what can be done with our foundation:

Aggressive

Conservative

Obvious

Counter-intuitive

Fostering Change

Maintaining the Status Quo

So as to add as much value as possible to your organization, in the next article, ideas will be listed under each area. In this way, you can analyze not only what you're considering doing, but also in what area it may fall. Hopefully this can be at least a discussion point among your people and you.