http://www.pacificarticles.com en-us http://www.pacificarticles.com N/A rchamria@gmail.com Mon, 08 Sep 2008 12:38:42 -0500 20 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2412/1/Hard-Work-Is-Bad-Management---Business-and-Personal/Hard-Work-Is-Bad-Management---Business-and-Personal.html Bad management has so many, and far reaching consequences. Jenny woke tired. Her business was growing and the hours she was putting in demanded more and more of her time. She raised her head from the pillow, stumbled out of her now empty bed, and went to the kitchen. Still half asleep she put the kettle on for her morning cuppa and slowly walked to the bathroom. There on the floor were yesterday's clothes. She'd barely had the energy to slip from her work gear and climb into the bath to sip her chardonnay before bed, let alone pack her clothes away tidily. christopher_wlker@pacificarticles.com (Christopher Walker) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2400/1/Managing-Change-The-Simple-Approach/Managing-Change-The-Simple-Approach.html Change management is treated by many as an ethereal topic; a mystical process overlayed with a lot of "magic happens here". Or a process described by one of eight major models of change which by their very nature remains high level.In my experience, there are four main parameters to be considered to make change happen. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2399/1/Changing-Behaviour-Lessons-from-Safety-Training/Changing-Behaviour-Lessons-from-Safety-Training.html Changing people's behaviour with regard to safety is a time consuming, difficult business. General training does not have the immediate and emotional rewards of safety training. Changing people's behaviour without those rewards is even more difficult.The lessons that organisations have learnt in making safety training effective are, therefore, all the more instructional for general training. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2398/1/Leaders-Awake-This-is-Urgent-and-Important/Leaders-Awake-This-is-Urgent-and-Important.html It is the leader's accountability when the important and urgent becomes the important and never done. Leader's who do not accept the accountability do not deserve to be in the position of leadership. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2397/1/Managing-Change-Baulking-at-the-Leadership-Challenge/Managing-Change-Baulking-at-the-Leadership-Challenge.html Leaders, it is said, have the responsibility to "do the right things" and managers have the responsibility to "do things right". In doing the right things leaders make decisions. My observation is that too many people in leadership positions are baulking at the challenge of making tough decisions. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2396/1/Communicating-Change-Dont-Let-Them-Hear-It-on-the-Grapevine/Communicating-Change-Dont-Let-Them-Hear-It-on-the-Grapevine.html When do you tell employees about bad news? When do you tell them about good news?Organisations that fail to think through their communication strategy are leaving their future at the mercy of the grapevine. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2395/1/Leading-Change-Its-24-7/Leading-Change-Its-24-7.html Leading change is tough and lonely but also rewarding as true leaders of change will witness the development of other leaders following in their footsteps. When that happens, it is worth being on show 24x7. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2394/1/Change-Management-When-Less-is-More/Change-Management-When-Less-is-More.html Organisations which fail to prioritise their projects and activities in alignment with their goals risk getting lost in a mire of directionless activity instead of taking a clear set of actions to reach a goal or goals. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2393/1/Managing-Change-Make-Conscious-Decisions/Managing-Change-Make-Conscious-Decisions.html Leaders make two types of decisions. They are ether conscious decisions or unconscious decisions. The former are traits of true leaders the latter are traits of phoney leaders. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2392/1/Managing-Change-Overcoming-Organisational-Inertia/Managing-Change-Overcoming-Organisational-Inertia.html Organisational inertia is the lack of ability of an organisation to react to external and internal shocks. The inability to react, for example, to a competitor’s dramatic change in prices, or a new government policy or a rapid decline in a country’s gross domestic product, is organisational inertia.To avoid being part of the organisational inertia we need, in those first six weeks of a new role, to do at least two things. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2391/1/Accountability-and-the-Art-of-Plausible-Deniability/Accountability-and-the-Art-of-Plausible-Deniability.html Leaders who duck accountability by using the technique of plausible deniability or other techniques lose the trust of the very people that they need to follow them. They, conversely, win the admiration of the unscrupulous as an "operator."When we lose trust we can no longer lead. Of that, there is no denying. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2390/1/Focus-on-Learning-Not-Training/Focus-on-Learning-Not-Training.html Nearly every organization I have ever worked for or with has a serious problem with training. They concentrate on training rather than learning.The first indication of a problem is that the mediums chosen to impart learning are the poorest at retaining learning but are the easiest to organise. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2389/1/Business-Process-ManagementCompany-Policy/Business-Process-ManagementCompany-Policy.html All organisations I have worked for and with, have had a tranche of policies which are out of date, do not fit the environment in which the organisation now finds itself and cause significant levels of inefficiency and ineffectiveness.The solution to this often unseen problem is to review all policies and processes, which are three or more years old, for their purpose. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2388/1/Making-Change-Happen/Making-Change-Happen.html Managing change requires a leadership team with project management, communication and analytical skills with a high degree of results orientation. The latter is important as when a journey of change is embarked upon, the environment in which the change is being implemented immediately changes. A changing environment often calls for changed tactics to achieve the same result.More than that it requires the leadership team to have a vision for what the change can bring to the organisation and to individuals and a passion to make that change happen. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2387/1/Managing-Change-Ten-Signs-of-Organisational-Decay/Managing-Change-Ten-Signs-of-Organisational-Decay.html Organisations that regularly take a good hard look in the mirror at themselves tend to avoid the worst of sudden changes in fortune. They may choose to do so at their annual retreat or at an annual challenge session where the executive team complete a “what if” analysis to see if their strategies and tactics are still suitable to achieve a goal which is still appropriate.Organisations when facing the implications of a sudden change in fortune that complain about their bad luck start or continue the steady decay into irrelevance. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2386/1/Managing-Change-What-Would-You-Do-If-You-Were-Not-Afraid/Managing-Change-What-Would-You-Do-If-You-Were-Not-Afraid.html If you are managing change consider the following from the book "Who Moved my Cheese?"; “If you do not change, you can become extinct”. Use the statement to provoke a reaction and get a discussion going. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2385/1/Making-Change-Happen-In-Search-of-the-Silver-Bullet/Making-Change-Happen-In-Search-of-the-Silver-Bullet.html Too many organisations search for a “silver bullet” to fix their human resource problems. They search for a singular, narrow approach to improve performance when a broad holistic approach is required. The result of focusing on a narrow approach to improve performance is unintended consequences delivering reduced performance instead. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2384/1/Training-Using-Games-to-Embed-Learning/Training-Using-Games-to-Embed-Learning.html Too much training is boring. Too much training barely raises itself above level one in Kirkpatrick’s four levels of training evaluation. That is, the reaction of students; what they thought and felt about the training. Too much training ignores the learning needs of the participants. Too much corporate training spending is wasted. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2383/1/Managing-Change-Unintended-Consequences/Managing-Change-Unintended-Consequences.html Leading a change programme is a risky business, for the leader and the lead. The law of unintended consequences applies in full as change involves people. People see the the starting and finishing points and the intention of change from their point of view and act accordingly. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2382/1/Managing-Change-Motivating-People/Managing-Change-Motivating-People.html Motivating people is a myth. People cannot be motivated by others. They are motivated from within. Leaders can however, set up an environment in which people are able to motivate themselves. Developing an environment that improves employee's motivation is hard work. There is no one size fits all solution, as motivation is driven by "what's in it for me". kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2381/1/Change-Management-Clear-Strong-Goals/Change-Management-Clear-Strong-Goals.html If your team is lacking in productivity and performance then as a leader, check your organisation's goals. Are they clear, singular, numeric, time based and audacious, with supporting short-term goals? Have you communicated the goals persistently and consistently? Are you using performance management to ensure that you have a team with the right behaviour, skills and knowledge to achieve the goals? If not, the problem may not be your team, it may be you. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2380/1/Changing-Organisational-Culture-Requires-a-Change-in-Leadership/Changing-Organisational-Culture-Requires-a-Change-in-Leadership.html Changing culture is not so difficult. Culture usually only raises its head as topic when results are not what we want and we provide leadership that allows an unsuitable culture to develop. By all means use some tools to help understand and monitor culture, but we must provide a change in leadership to change culture. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2379/1/Change-Evolution-or-Revolution/Change-Evolution-or-Revolution.html What is better evolutionary or revolutionary change? Whilst revolutionary change is often required in an organisation, it can be a sign of poor management that has been unable to instil a culture of evolutionary change. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2378/1/Change-Management-Training-Is-Not-Enough/Change-Management-Training-Is-Not-Enough.html Training as a tool for changing people's behaviour to better achieve the goal organisations set for themselves is a failure. Most organisations do not think through the design of their training enough to make it as useful a tool for employee developemnt as it should be. Hence they do not get sufficient return on their investment. kevin_dwyer@pacificarticles.com (Kevin Dwyer) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2377/1/How-to-Choose-a-Six-Sigma-Black-Belt-Project/How-to-Choose-a-Six-Sigma-Black-Belt-Project.html The first challenge that Six Sigma students encounter is selection of a black belt project. This usually occurs either right before training begins (many programs encourage you to identify a "problem" process to work before your first day) or some time during the first week of training. This article will help you narrow down the possibilities so that you choose a successful project. curtis_judd@pacificarticles.com (Curtis Judd) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2372/1/Lean-Manufacturing-Preparing-Employees-for-The-Organizational-Change/Lean-Manufacturing-Preparing-Employees-for-The-Organizational-Change.html When a company or an organization is planning to go into and adopt lean manufacturing, necessary preparations have to be made in order to maximize the full benefits of lean manufacturing. jb_anthony@pacificarticles.com (JB Anthony) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2368/1/Send-Flowers-to-the-Living/Send-Flowers-to-the-Living.html Tired of the turnover blues? Perhaps a change in management style can turn the tide. To see where you stand with your team members, walk through the kitchen and ask, "Who made this?" If the reaction is "Wasn't me" or "What's wrong with it?" you'll know they are expecting something negative to come out of your mouth. That's a good indicator that you have the opportunity to be more positive (i.e. "send flowers to the living"). t_j_schier@pacificarticles.com (T.J. Schier) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2367/1/Habla-Espanol/Habla-Espanol.html How much would you pay to find your next manager or future franchisee? Companies routinely spend thousands of dollars to find applicants outside their company. Why not spend a bit of time and money to provide current employees the necessary skills? For many employees, it begins with learning the English language. t_j_schier@pacificarticles.com (T.J. Schier) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/2366/1/Looking-Back/Looking-Back.html There is a marked difference between the quick-service companies that are celebrating an anniversary this year and the foodservice products that are doing the same. To wit, little has changed about the Tater Tot since it first appeared in grocery stores 50 years ago. Quite a bit has changed at Burger King during that same time span. t_j_schier@pacificarticles.com (T.J. Schier) Fri, 29 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/1177/1/How-To-Change-The-Unconscious-Organizational-Culture/How-To-Change-The-Unconscious-Organizational-Culture.html Do you know what impact your organizational culture is having on the performance of your company? Did you know that the culture is based in deeply entrenched and often hidden beliefs that individuals bring in the door with them? If you want to change this read on. nickarrizza@pacificarticles.com (Dr. Nick Arrizza, M. D.) Sat, 15 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.pacificarticles.com/articles/1019/1/Change-Management-No-More-Fear-Of-Change/Change-Management-No-More-Fear-Of-Change.html The fear of change is the greatest menace to personal and organizational success. By trying to force change in such circumstances only serves to traumtize further individuals constrained by such a fear. This deepens the resistance to change and therefore is counterproductive to the goal of achieving success. There is a better way. Read on. nickarrizza@pacificarticles.com (Dr. Nick Arrizza, M. D.) Fri, 14 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0500