Archives for January 2013

That $#@%$# said WHAT*?!?! Can you believe it?

January 7, 2013 by Tom Leave a Comment

Have you ever gotten really upset about something that someone said, only to find out that what you HEARD wasn’t what they said?

This clip from “You Bet Your Life” does a great job of making clear how we miss each other.

How does it happen? We get too busy, and we *think* we know what they meant!

3 tips to make sure that you “get it” when talking to others

Believe the best
Mirroring works
Lead with intent

1. Believe the best –

Some people are jerks, but most of us don’t intend to offend – so when you’ve got a choice – believe the best about the other person.

2. Mirroring works –

“So if I heard you right, you’re saying….Is that right?” You’ll be amazed at how powerful this is, and how much time it will save

3. Lead with intent –

Many times when we have a miscommunication we follow up with “But I didn’t mean *that* – what I meant was…”

Why not start with your intent?

For example “My goal is to make sure that we get the details in the report right this month. What can I do to help make that happen this time?”

Now: Are we in North, South Carolina, or are we in Due West, South Carolina

Are you making this classic strategy mistake which squeezes your margins?

January 2, 2013 by Tom Leave a Comment

Great strategy allows you to either

Demand much higher margins OR
Offer services at lower costs.

When you offer more value to your customers it’s an easy thing to ask for higher margins.

How can you add more value to existing offerings? What do they want? What else do they buy before of after they buy your stuff? Can you make that easier, faster, cheaper, better for them? That’s addinge value!

More value=better 2013 strategy=More 2013 PROFITS!

Turn your strategy into action & action into PROFITS!

http://ActionOrientedStrategy.com

Employee Engagement – What's the secret?

January 2, 2013 by Tom Leave a Comment

In this wide ranging conversation I speak with Dr. Peter Bamberger, an expert in human relations, and we cover some powerful ideas to help increase engagement.

How do you reduce the risk of giving employees autonomy?
What can we do to design jobs that people actually like to do?
What do business processes have to do with incredible leadership?
Does money matter to technology folks?
When is it a good thing to let a decent performer quit?

Want to know more? Contact me to request my Free Employee Engagement Report: “Turn Your ‘Renters’ Into ‘Owners’ – 6 Ways To Increase Employee Accountability.”

About Dr. Bamberger:

Dr. Peter Bamberger holds a PhD in Organizational Behavior and HR Management from Cornell University and is currently on the Faculty of Management at Tel Aviv University’s graduate school. He has written extensively on issues related to HR and performance management.

Peter A. Bamberger’s research focuses on peer relations and helping processes in the workplace, employee emotional wellbeing, and compensation strategy. Co-author of Human Resource Strategy (with Ilan Meshulam Sage, 2000) and Mutual Aid and Union Renewal (with Samuel Bacharach and William Sonnenstuhl ,Cornell Univ. Press, 2001), Bamberger has published over 70 referred journal articles in such journals as Administrative Science Quarterly, Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review and Journal of Applied Psychology. He served as Associate Editor of the Academy of Management Journal from 2007-2010.

Which of the 5 keys is missing from your 2013 strategy?

January 1, 2013 by Tom Leave a Comment

According to Hambrick and Frederickson

There are 5 key areas to strategy:

Arenas: Where will we do it?
Vehicles: How to do it?
Differentiators: How will we win?
Staging: Which moves will we make first? and
Economic Logic: How will we profit?

Most strategic plans only address 1 or 2 and ignore the rest.

Which one is missing from YOUR strategic plan for 2013?

http://ActionOrientedStrategy.com

Turn your strategy into action and action into PROFITS!

240-668-4799

Archives for January 2013

That $#@%$# said WHAT*?!?! Can you believe it?

3 tips to make sure that you “get it” when talking to others

Believe the best

Mirroring works

Lead with intent