Promoting risk taking and eliminating fear of failure.

It would be a mistake to try to avoid all mistakes. Indeed, it would be a colossal blunder to attempt doing things right the first time, every time. In todays light speed economy, ('new' economy and 'old' economy) if you don't fall on your face both regularly and painfully, you are likely to end up dead instead. The only people not making mistakes are ones playing their game without risk and without novelty - and I might add - without progress. If your company cannot accommodate, even reward, failure - in the long run, you cannot succeed.

Why? Doing things wrong, is the number one - perhaps the only - source of innovation. David Kelly, CEO of design firm IDEO, says, '...enlightened trial and error beats the planning of flawless intellects...The reason is simple: the best solutions to most problems are rarely the most obvious.' James Joyce said it poetically, 'Mistakes are the portals of discovery.' Think about it. What did you ever learn by doing something right the first time?

IBM's rumored motto about mistakes is legendary: Fail Faster. Since the road to success is paved with failures, the faster you move through them, the faster you might find a way which works. Don't prolong the agony, get it over with quickly, learn the most you can, and move on. IDEO's Kelly says it succinctly, 'we fail faster to succeed sooner.'

World leaders and scientists have wonderful legacy of being wrong in a big way. Edison's tolerance for 'mistakes' is renowned. The European 'discovery' of America was a mistake. Even the invention of Teflon was a mistake.

Great companies also have a long and gallant history of failing. AMC's Gremlin was a big flop, but paved the way for ever-popular hatchbacks. What about New York City's World Trade Center, one of the first 'cities in a building,' remained half-empty for almost a whole decade. There are many famous failed computers, including Apple's Lisa and Newton or the Palm Pilot's predecessor, Zoomer - evidence that failures breed innovations rather than stifling them. Not all business failures are so glorious. 65 out 100 business startups vanish without a trace within five years and 90% are gone within ten years. But we need these failures - without them there would no companies to survive.

If you are in the surgery business or fly airplanes for a living, you may not want to make any mistakes. But for the rest of us - especially if you are in a technology business - doing things wrong is prerequisite to doing things right. As the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein said, 'If people did not sometimes do silly things, nothing intelligent would ever get done.'

Internet Time doesn't simply mean working 18-hour days. It means trying lots of ideas, making mistakes, and killing off bad results quickly. Many 'old economy' managers still want to take their time and make sure everything is thought out - all the I's dotted, all the Ts crossed. Don't do it! You no longer have that luxury - if you ever did. Don't slow down your development cycle, speed it up.

In the spirit of failing quickly, here are a few ideas and tips for you to try out. Some will work for you. Others will not. Try and fail.

Don't penalize mistakes, encourage them. How about rewarding them? Create a bonus for the most brilliant (or most flagrant) mistake of the month. Put risk-taking mistake-makers' faces on your website or in your newsletter. Many companies say they encourage mistakes, but really intimidate and punish the mistake-makers. As soon as you begin to do that you foster a better-safe-than-sorry attitude. Instead, put your money where your mouth is.

What about having a regular meeting dissecting the mistakes-of-the-month, trying to learn their lessons. Train people to savor their mistakes, and understand the strange paths which led them astray.

Use rapid prototyping. This technical-sounding phrase simply means doing things quickly without trying to get them into final form, making mistakes and swiftly fixing them. Get something up and running - anything that resembles your desired solution. Then fix what isn't working. And fix, and fix, and fix. This may be the best way to do product development in Internet Time, also known as creative trial and error.

When things go wrong, do you sound a hunt for the guilty? Don't cast blame - commemorate mistake makers as heroes. One of the reasons mistakes go undetected - and progress slowed - is that people aren't willing to take 'credit' for their errors. Rather than calling attention to things which are off course (and risking their careers), they prefer to bury them for as long as possible.

Use the concept of a 'breakdown.' When your car breaks down, do you blame the driver, or do you just fix the problem? When a project or a process is veering off course, treat it like a breakdown. Rather than spending time deciding who did what wrong, do this: restate where you are, where you want to go and figure out what will get you back on track. During the Iran Contra Scandal, President Reagan intoned, 'Mistakes were made.' There was no admission of guilt. No fixing of blame. Perhaps we can learn from this brilliant locution.

Create a company of learners with a formal debriefing policy. Without one, learning from mistakes is just one more accident. Debrief everything - good, bad or indifferent. Use the four-stage catechism of the learning organization: What worked? What didn't work? What was missing? What do we do next?

One way to really get things moving on a project is to declare a 'state of emergency.' Emergencies mobilize people. They bring out the whatever-it-takes attitude, especially when they know that 'mistakes' will be tolerated, and that mistake-makers will be lionized.

Forget about total quality and zero defects. You can't afford it, especially in this day and age. Think of the 80/20 rule, or extend it to 90/10. There is a level of quality beyond which 'mistakes' are a viable economic alternative. Unless the outcome of your product or service impacts life or death, the cost of perfection cannot be justified. Use the errors you generate as opportunities to improve your production process and practice great customer service.

Remember, the hallmark of progress is making mistakes.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Even though asset management has been common around for quite a while it’s existance among industries has only been apparent in the last few years. People do have quite a number of questions regarding asset management especially if they have interest in employing the utilities of asset management companies.

Asset management refers to the method that a company or a special asset management firm catalogues assets like equipment chairs, tables, computers and technology also including buildings owned by a company or an individual. The monitoring of the actual location of these assets,means that may be employed for the managing of assets, and amortization accounting depreciation values along with the resale values of these assets are also part of asset management.

Asset management gives you an easier time and makes it more efficient to manage the assets owed by the company or the individual and looks into ways of investing these assets for added returns. Collective investment schemes, pension funds, private banking and wealth management are some of the ways which deal with assets that renders asset management more beneficial and increase one's assets.

Asset management involves a lot of different processes which are all designed to increase the productivity companies have or individuals. The services of asset management involive plannit and procurement, as well as the accounting of costs through disposal, tracking the location of assets and accounting tasks such as amortization and depreciation. Asset management also establishes contact with suppliers which may make it easier for companies to contact these suppliers for service, warranties and replacement.

When you keep track of important information like a person’s assets Assets should be properly tracked. It is important to know where the place of purchase was who uses these assets, where they are which suppliers support itand possibly lease expirations. And the right disposal period may help managing and optimizing the assets of the companies or the individuals.

Author: Paul Abbey

About the author:
P Abbey owns and operates http://www.assetmanagementbest.com/fcassetmanagement.html F&C Asset Management

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Goals are critically important for the success of a meeting. You must know what you want so you can ask for it. And the participants need to know what you want so they can help you get it. Without goals, a meeting becomes a journey without a destination.

Unfortunately, many meetings are called without goals. So, you hear people start meetings by saying, 'Well, what do you want to talk about?' This is similar to walking into a factory and asking, 'Well, what do you want to make?' You could end up with anything from ant farms to xylophones.

Thus, your first step is to write out a statement of the results that you want to have by the end of the meeting. I want to emphasize that you must write out the goals for the meeting. This forces you to define exactly what you want. Certainly, if you're unable to express your goals on paper, you can expect to have difficultly explaining what you want to the attendees.

Writing goals also provides important benefits. It allows you to consider, explore, and discard possibilities. And then you can show the goals to others to obtain their comments and suggestions.

Asking for help preparing goals is especially useful when working on complex or controversial issues. Now you can 1) use their comments to refine the goals, 2) win support for your goals by including others in their development, 3) gain information on issues related to the goals, 4) uncover issues that may conflict with the goals, and 5) develop strategies for achieving the goals.

Once you complete the goals for your meeting, put them on the agenda. That helps everyone focus on your purpose for the meeting. And it significantly increases your chances of ending with the results that you wanted.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Many people believe that they conduct effective meetings, when all they really do is host a party filled with official sounding chit chat. Or worse, they deliver a monologue that bores everyone. In either case, their meetings produce little.

Here's how to hold a short, effective staff meeting.

1) In general. Keep them short. Most staff meetings should last less than an hour. You want your staff to spend their time working on things that earn money for your business, not sitting in meetings. Keep them positive. Negative meetings contain insults, ridicule, and attacks. These activities create caution and resentment, which always costs your company money. Keep them interactive. Your staff consists of intelligent people. Put them to work in your meetings to advance the effectiveness of your organization.

2) Share news. Give the members of your group one minute to report on progress made in their area of responsibility. You'll find that this results in bullet point reports of essential information. It also prevents people from philosophizing, explaining, justifying, criticizing, and engaging in other unproductive activities. Plan a time budget: 8 to 10 minutes.

3) Teach something. Invite a guest expert to give a 10 minute presentation on some skill or technology that benefits your group. Tell the expert that you want a logical explanation of practical ideas. You can also ask members of your group to take turns delivering brief tutorials on topics that benefit the others. Plan a time budget: 10 to 15 minutes.

4) Practice skills. Create team learning activities that sharpen or teach skills needed in your business. For example, you could role play job skills (especially useful for sales teams), solve puzzles (useful for high tech groups), or take quizzes (useful for everyone). Ask group members to take turns bringing an activity that reviews or teaches a valuable skill. Follow this activity with a brief recap of key ideas. Then ask the group members to give a fifteen second report on how these ideas can be applied to improve their work. Plan a time budget: 10 to 20 minutes.

5) Solve problems. Give each group member a minute to describe a challenge that hinders work on a current project and then let everyone propose solutions. Suggestions should be brief and free of self aggrandizing explanations or motivational sermons. This process also requires a positive, supportive environment to succeed. If this is used to ridicule, insult, or criticize the individual, then people will be reluctant to reveal issues that need attention. Plan a time budget: 3 to 6 minutes per person.

6) Use a facilitator. A facilitator will help you conduct meetings where the results matter. That way, you can participate, rather than spend your time managing the meeting. A good facilitator will know group decision making processes that move your meeting toward results everyone supports.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

I've had my own business since I was 9 years old. I've started, bought, sold and helped out in many different kinds of businesses over the thirty some odd years since then.

I've done everything I've always wanted to do, and I've had a lot of fun. Some of the highlights: I worked on Wall Street, I helped take a company public and I threw one of the biggest VC names in the country out of my office. I've worked with some of the biggest names in the online and offline space, and I've seen the insides of a lot of the biggest companies in the US.

I made my first million the old fashioned way - I worked my butt off. And I've got a lot to show for it, for which I am both humble and grateful. Understand this - I am a successful entrpreneur and I am proud of it.

Why am I sharing all of this with you? I'm getting there.

People always ask me if I have any advice for being successful. They ask if I could name the things I think have contributed the most to my success. I'd like to share my observations from thirty years of business experience. They are applicable both online and offline.
Here are my top ten tips for success:

1. Always make sure all of your emails and phone calls get returned. I make a lot of contacts and requests via email, phone or even in person. I am absolutely shocked at the number of people who don't bother to return the request. It is classless and disrespectful to ignore someone's request, and it makes them angry. Angry people tell other people how you have wronged them. The fewer people out there talking ill about you the better.

When I was at Modem Media I got between 1000 - 3000 emails a day. I was buried in emails. My assistant went in and cleared out emails when she could, forwarding the ones she knew she or one of my underlings could handle. But she left the rest for me. I would spend at least an hour a day returning them. Sometimes all I said was Call so-and-so or Thanks for the heads-up, but most of them got answered. The priority was clients, then managers then normal people. If you're not going to answer correspondence from clients or peers, don't give anyone your email address. Funny thing about most of us�if you have an email address and invite us to use it, we expect an answer. I've written three emails to Darren Rouse at ProBlogger.net. He has not answered a single one. While I think some of his stuff is pretty good, I find his unresponsiveness disappointing and I don't find him as authoritative as I used to.

I sent an email to the President of Staples (the office supply chain) on a Saturday afternoon a few years ago. I got a personal response from him the next day (Sunday), and we resolved my problem with the help of one of his EVPs. If he can respond to one of my emails, so can Darren Rouse.

2. Help anyone who asks. It doesn't matter what it is - if someone asks you to help them and you can do it, do it. Whether it entails rolling up your sleeves, writing a check, giving some valuable time or just answering a question from someone who doesn't know as much as you, suck it up and do it.

3. Always know more than most people about your industry or business. I've always been a technologist, so this has been engrained in me since I was 16. Read about things in your field every day. Go to a seminar or trade show every now and then. Participate in discussions or forums, on or off-line. It will keep you connected to the people in your industry and make you a guru. The Internet is an amazing tool for getting this done.

4. Treat your employees like gold, because they are. In my own businesses my employees get away with a lot. They are well paid, get surprise perks all the time and can come and go as they please. Some take advantage, but they don't last long. Being a jerk to your employees will always come back to bite you. It will also mean that you'll get hosed a few times, but you probably would have anyway.

Make the workplace fun, comfortable and as casual as you can. Show your employees by example how you want them to treat customers and co-workers. They are going to follow your lead. If they hate coming to work it will show in what you produce.

At Modem Media I organized a yearly barbeque in the front parking lot. We had pork, BBQ sauce from Texas and lots of other stuff I'm not going to get into here. It was a small gesture but it went a long way.

5. Acknowledge everyone who helps you advance, especially those who did not gain from it. This is another thing that I am shocked more people haven't caught on to. I said in an earlier post that I regularly comb my log files for people who have social bookmarks pointing to this blog site and send them a quick email thanking them. I stopped counting the number of people who email me back shocked that I would take the time to thank them. Why shouldn't I? They took time out to help promote my blog, and got nothing in return. A thank you acknowledges their time and effort and solidifies them as an ally. Trust me�you need all the allies you can get.

6. Befriend your competitors. This is another one that should be second nature. Yes, you are all competing for customers, but you're all frogs in the same pot of boiling water. I own the biggest wine shop in my hometown. If we don't have something that a customer wants we will call another shop and see if the customer can get it there. It was a shock to both customers and competitors that I would send customers to another store. It say it's good for the customer, so it's good business.

7. Keep your sense of humor�it's huge. My second day at Modem Media I was sent to John Hancock's Boston HQ. Modem had been working on Hancock's online/offline strategy for months. It wasn't finished and there was a lot of tension. After two days me and the head marketing weenie were called on the carpet by a screaming middle manager.

She said You have been disappointing me for two months! and continued reaming us. I waited a few beats and said Excuse me�I have only been disappointng you for a couple of days. Color drained from the marketing weenie's face, but I could tell the client was trying hard to keep from bursting out in laughter.

8. Overdeliver to your customers, let them know you are watching out for their business, and treat them like friends. I spent a lot of time on the Compaq campus in Houston. We were competing with Price Waterhouse for Compaq Direct's technical business and PW had the ear of Compaq's CTO or CFO or some such person.

But I had the trust of the person directly under that exec, and he was the one doing the work. My team was on top of everything, and we covered his back. He knew he could count on us, and he knew that we could help him navigate the jungle. We lost the account for a while, but we still had a retainer for me to fly in once a month to help out. I would fly out there, we would have lunch and I would fly back. Sometimes the conversation was technical, sometimes it was marketing-related and sometimes it was purely personal.

We eventually got the contract back because my guy knew we were part of his success, and he knew he could count on us.

9. Get a hobby, hot tub, motorcycle, drag race car, whatever. You need a transition away from business to something else. Make sure you have one. It will give your mind an opportunity to disengage and allow you to background process all of the stuff you are thinking about. Moving stuff from the conscious mind to the subconscious mind is like exercising using different muscles - it will help get results. I can't tell you how many times I have resolved problems while riding on my motorcycle.

10. Be very careful who you choose to advise you, but have a go-to team, and always defer to someone smarter than you. People mean well, but it takes far less courage to poke holes in someone's idea than it does to accentuate the positive. Keep some solid advisors around you. I have a team of all-stars that includes my wife (very practical), my attorney (one of the best business attorneys in the US), my other attorney (one of my good friends and another practical guy), and my accountant (very serious but very financially adept).

I think I know everything and I will defend my positions viciously. All of my advisors are smarter than me about something, and often they can convince me to go to their side because I remember that.

One last observation - don't give up.

Regardless of the crap you read about getting rich quick, it doesn't happen that way most of the time. Some of us make it look easy, but it isn't. That doesn't mean you can't do it.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

There are many different kinds of office team building exercises that can be used to help improve your company's internal communications, morale, trust, and cohesiveness. Team building exercises are undertaken in a spirit of fun, but also play an important role in strengthening your ability to function as a unit.

Team building exercises can be used occasionally, such as to augment your annual general meeting, or on a more regular basis to help maintain productivity. They can also be used as a form of crisis management, such as to help address fears during a period of change, or as a response to a need for radical restructuring in order to meet the challenge of a new competitor, for example. Team building is useful for introducing new employees, strengthening ties between existing staff, or as a fun way to bring together individuals who don't often interact.

Having your team members work together in any endeavor that takes them out of the ordinary office realm can be an interesting exercise in communication and cooperation. To facilitate this, consultants often organize activities that use arts, sports, games, or any structured form of interacting that requires teamwork. In some cases this creates a visible, or otherwise tangible example of what you can accomplish together - such as each person playing a percussion instrument that all together creates a piece of music; linking arms to create a chain that demonstrates the importance of each individual link, and so on. In other cases, the activity requires brainstorming and the combined effort of all to solve a problem.

The dual purpose of having fun and learning together makes for a day that is relaxing and enjoyable in itself, as well as providing lasting results as you develop your skills as a team. A large amount of research has gone into the development of specialized programs, books and services that can help your company achieve its productivity goals and improve employee relations. The wide variety of creative solutions offered includes everything from cooking together, to outdoor adventures, scavenger hunts to simulations of extreme sports� Take some time to explore the possibilities and find new ways to enhance your office environment.

Browsing the websites of consultants is a good place to start to find some fun ideas you can implement yourself, or with the help of a professional. Most programs are designed for maximum flexibility and can be tailored to meet the needs of almost any group, large or small. Incorporate some creative team building into your next boardroom meeting, or be extra adventurous and arrange for some outdoor activity. The return on investment is not something to take lightly. The benefits of maintaining an enjoyable work atmosphere includes improved mental and physical health, higher productivity, and more. Find out what the right team building exercises can do for you.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

There are great benefits to owning a franchise. You often can sell goods and services that have instant name recognition and can obtain training and ongoing support to help you succeed.

But be cautious before you sign on the dotted line.

1. Know How Much You Can Invest - A franchisor may tell you how much you can afford to invest or that you can't afford to pass up this opportunity. Before beginning to explore investment options, consider the amount you feel comfortable investing and the maximum amount you can afford.

2. Know What Type of Business is Right for You - A franchisor may attempt to convince you that an opportunity is perfect for you. Only you can make that determination. Consider the industry
that interests you before selecting a specific franchise system. Ask yourself the following questions: Have I considered working in that industry before? Can I see myself engaged in that line of work for the next twenty years?

3. Realistically Evaluate Your Own Background and Skills - If the industry does not appeal to you or you are not suited to work in that industry, do not allow a franchisor to convince you otherwise. Spend your time focusing on those industries that offer a more realistic opportunity.

4. Take the Time to Comparison Shop - Talk to or visit several franchisors engaged in the type of industry that appeals to you. Get answers to the following questions:
- How long has the franchisor been in business?
- How many franchised outlets currently exist?
- Where are they located?
- How much is the initial franchise fee and any additional start-up costs?
- Are there any continuing royalty payments?
- How much?
- What management, technical, and ongoing assistance does the franchisor offer?
- What controls does the franchisor impose?

5. Get Substantiation for Any Earnings Representations - Some franchisors may tell you how much you can earn if you invest in their franchise system or how current franchisees in their system are performing. Be careful. The FTC requires that franchisors who make such claims provide you with written substantiation. Make sure you ask for and obtain written substantiation for any income projections, or income or profit claims. If the franchisor does not have the required substantiation, or refuses to provide it to you, consider its claims to be suspect.

6. Avoid High Pressure Sales Tactics - You may be told that the franchisor's offering is limited, that there is only one territory left, or that this is a one-time reduced franchise sales price. Do not feel pressured to make any commitment. Legitimate franchisors expect you to comparison shop and to investigate their offering. A good deal today should be available tomorrow.

7. Study the Franchisor's Offering - Do not sign any contract or make any payment until you have the opportunity to investigate the franchisor's offering thoroughly. The FTC's Franchise Rule requires the franchisor to provide you with a disclosure document containing important information about the franchise system. Study the disclosure document. Take time to speak with current and former franchisees about their experiences. Because investing in a franchise can entail a significant investment, you should have an attorney review the disclosure document and franchise contract and have an accountant review the company's financial disclosures.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Let me ask you a question; do you think you would notice a gorilla on the court during a basketball game? Not if you were doing the task that subjects at the University of Illinois were asked to do.

I am often asked by those who eventually become clients, ' How is learning to think in a different way going to help my pain?, My pain is real, it's not just in my mind!' To answer this, let's focus on the power of our attention, the resulting perceptions, and what role that can play in the experience of pain.

Our attention acts as a filter...a powerful filter! It can, and does, direct all resources to specific tasks and away from others.
In a very famous experiment on this subject, Daniel Simons and Christopher Chabris conducted a study at the University of Illinois that had shocking results. The subjects were asked to watch video of a basketball game, and, were tasked with one thing; counting the number of passes made by the players in white shirts only.

At one point on the video, someone in a gorilla suit walked through the group playing the game, and then stood in the middle of the screen before walking off again. Over half of the subjects watching MISSED the gorilla!

Our ability to notice things consciously is very, very limited. When the subjects had their attention riveted on certain things, it actually deleted those things that didn't match, even when they were right in front of their face. Whenever I am faced with a client that has an 'overactive' conscious mind that wants to 'intrude' while we are doing a trance induction, I simply utilize this principle and literally overload their conscious mind with 'other' tasks. But what about the clients ability to experience this after they go home?

A phrase that I use more and more on initial sessions is, 'Let's get this out of the way now; I can't make you DO anything!' Many times people will say, 'Can you make me stop smoking?' Oh, believe me, I could.

Sit in front of me, let me put a gun to your head, and I guarantee you will stop smoking. But that's not my line of work.
I am a coach with some extremely impressive tools, and a great deal of skill in knowing where and when to use those tools, however, those tools are only to elicit, unleash, and initiate the resources within the client.

I am an active participant in a teaching process; the process of learning to use your brain to do phenomenal things. And, when my clients are good students, (and almost all clients suffering from pain are) then what can seem like magic very often occurs.

Our attention is always on something, always! What our attention is on will create the largest part of our reality, and we tend to see and experience more of what we focus on, 'good' or 'bad'. Isn't it true that the last time you bought a car, or a new dress or suit, that you almost immediately started seeing those things everywhere? They were there the whole time, but the new relevancy of that car, suit or dress in your life, literally shifted your attention, thus bringing what had always been there into your awareness.

Mastering the skill of shifting our attention can be one of the most empowering tools around. I teach people how to begin mastering this skill. I can assist people in not seeing, hearing, or feeling some things, and seeing, hearing, and feeling other things. Everyone can learn! In fact, everyone already does it daily, just not in a way that serves them well.

So, don't be so sure that you could never miss a gorilla on the basketball court. More importantly, if this principle is at work in your life, (and it is) what 'gorillas' are you missing in your daily experience because of your habitual focus of attention?

Author: chloebeth66

About the author:
Vincent Harris is a Body Language Expert and the Author of 'The Productivity Epiphany' Get his FREE Ebook, 'Advanced Body Language: The Science of Making Great First Impressions' valued at $29 at http://www.vinceharris.info


Article source: Free Management Articles.

Customer security is one of the prime considerations of any retail outlet today. Whilst implementing key marketing strategies in order to promote products and increase sales, retail managers also need to be thinking about how safe their customers feel in-store and ways they can improve the attractiveness of their space for shoppers.

Lighting

Good lighting is a key aspect of the customer experience. Stores require lighting that allows customers to see what they are doing and to ensure that no area of the shop is dimly lit or dark, as this is where thefts or attacks could occur. This is particularly important in fitting room areas and in toilet and baby-change facilities where customers are out of the general flow of the shop and there is a reduced staff presence.

CCTV systems

Customers are comforted by the presence of CCTV systems in retail stores. They know that these systems are designed to prevent crime and automatically feel safer in an environment where cameras provide a deterrent to would-be criminals. A CCTV system also often means at least one member of staff dedicated to security and this also makes customers feel more at ease.

Space

The retail environment is one that's constantly under threat from petty crime - from shoplifting items to pick-pocketing customers. This type of crime is easier to commit in small, crowded shops, where people are more tightly packed into a space and it is difficult for staff, security cameras or general shoppers to see what is going on. It's easy for people to put goods in their bags without paying for them or to steal a handbag and be out of the shop before anyone's realised. A key way to defeat this type of crime is by arranging your goods so that there's more space in the store. This makes it immediately more obvious if someone is acting suspiciously, and customers are more likely to be aware if someone is too close to them or demonstrating threatening behaviour.

There are various other ways that you can make your customers feel safe, but lighting, space and visible CCTV security go a long way to reassuring customers that they are shopping in a safe environment. The safer and more confident your customers feel, the more likely they are to spend money in your store.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

At some point in your business' life, you might be contacted by someone in a far-away land who's heard about your business somehow (probably through the Internet). This will be your first encounter with the international market. For many businesses, once you've conquered your local area and done business by post or email with other areas of the country, dipping a toe into international markets seems like the next big step.

Preparing to Export.

When you're preparing to export your products, there are quite a few things you need to do. Firstly, make them as light as possible for the purposes of international shipping. Check that you'd be able to get the things you're selling to the place where you plan to sell them without it becoming prohibitively expensive. Next, check if there are any customs requirements -- you might find that either your own country or the target country has laws that will require you to register what you're sending and perhaps pay extra taxes. On the other hand, selling internationally may mean that you don't have to charge your own country's sales tax.

Obviously most of these things don't apply to non-physical products. One thing that you still need to be careful about, though, is currency fluctuations -- how stable is the currency you plan to start trading in? If it has problems, you might want to price products in your own currency instead.

Look for Niches All Over Again.

When you're trying to sell things to international customers, you need to make sure that there is a market in each country. Something that is very useful and in-demand in your country might just cause confusion abroad -- or, likewise, something that's only moderately popular where you are might be seen as revolutionary.

If you're not sure, you could talk to a few local businesspeople about how they think your product would be perceived, and they may be able to suggest a suitable target market for you. As always, research is key.

Produce Internationally, Supply Internationally.

If you're going to start exporting, you might want to consider importing as well. If you buy in bulk, you can generally get things far cheaper from developing countries, especially the 'Asian Tiger' countries like China, Taiwan, Indonesia and South Korea. Give it a try -- you could be delighted to find that they can make your product for a fraction of what it costs you, and all you have to do is a little quality control.

I understand that this approach is particularly useful for clothing products, which are labour-intensive yet can be produced cheaply and well by these countries. Note that you're unlikely to be exploiting anyone -- the country you're importing from simply has a lower cost of living. To be extra sure, shy away from offers of having things made in developing countries or dictatorships.

Try to Be Culturally Sensitive.

When you're dealing with international customers, you need to take their culture into consideration. In some countries everyone knows English, while in others they would be offended if you didn't get your materials translated. For all you know, the name of your product might be a rude word in some language or another, or the marketing might be focusing on benefits that people from some countries are unlikely to respond to.

This is one of the reasons why you're best off selling to countries that you have some experience with. Ideally, you should have the ability to speak the language, as well as having spent some time in the country. Failing that, read as many guides as you can and see if you can meet with people of that nationality socially.

Note that you should be especially careful about dealing with countries where there is some history or possibility of political unrest, as you can lose a lot this way.

You Are Not a Jetsetter.

Finally, remember that it's a bad idea to start flying around the world to pitch your products or meet your customers, especially in the age of the Internet when almost everything can be done from your home. Did you really get into home business to throw away your profits on expensive flights and hotels? Exactly.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Owing to recent leaps in technology, it has made it easier to manufacture video Products for sale on the web - it may also be true that you've been hurling around more ideas than you know where to go next with. This is an easy trap to fall into so it's important to do some brainstorming for conceptions initially, but always be sure to put a limitation on your concept development stage. If you let it draw on, you'll never get anything completed. Set deadlines for yourself even when you think you don't have to. Don't fool yourself into believing that you're making progress toward your goal when in fact you haven't gotten anything done.

The failure to concentrate on one project and take it over to successful completion is a perfect sign that you're dilly-dally. If you get a insight for creating some other video product each day, but you still haven't made a finished production to sell on the Internet, make up your mind to do something about it now. Suppose your family all say you're a natural comedian and you've been playing around with the thought of producing a comedy routine or skit. One way to get it done is by marking priorities, sticking to a plan, and making deadlines.

Set a day to shoot the video and stick to it by approaching this as if you were making a project for rent. When you force yourself to get things finished, you'll begin to observe a large difference in the outcomes you get. How much time you give yourself depends on how much time you can in reality spend working on the job, of course. If you're making this in the evening or on the weekends, you evidently need more time than a full-time Internet marketer who is planning a promotional video recording for a website. Get up 60 minutes earlier if that's the only way you can find time to do it and approach it as a project for one calendar month by setting your filming for one month from now - then stop thinking about it and begin composing a script. Individuals who get things complete recognise that there is never a exact time to start whereas people who wait for divine guidance before they begin a script ne'er get started. As Jack London said, 'You can't wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club'. You have to get something written on paper to spark links between ideas and my hottest thoughts always come during the composing process - never in the 'thinking about what to write' stage.

Experience has taught me to just begin publishing and get it all down on paper so when I make a first draft in front of me, that's when I get inspired. I see all sorts of things I ne'er would have seen without the stimulus of the ideas that came seemingly out of nowhere as I was working on the first draft of my script. So stop thinking about it and get a script on paper, then revise, shoot it and put it up for sale on the Internet - but get started today.

Author: Paul Abbey

About the author:
P Abbey owns and operates http://www.documentmanagementfast.com/imanagedocumentmanagement.html Imanage Document Management

Article source: Free Management Articles.

There it is. That blank screen with the little blinking line. And everything sounds so mundane.

Jake's Bakery will serve the best cakes in the county. (Yawn.)
I researched the industry and found that it is fail-proof. (Yawn.)
We came together to form a really good business. (Yawn.)

It's kind of like, 'Hey, what's your sign?' Everybody knows why everybody is here, but can't I come up with a better opening line?

Even the most prolific writers get blank screen-itis. To help you get back on your pizazzing path, here are some places to look for inspiration for your business plan.

1. Your competitors' websites. Seriously. Somebody put a great deal of time and effort into those websites. What do the headlines say? Is there a neat turn of phrase that you can turn again into your business plan concept?

2. Industry ads. Who better to put on your side that Madison Avenue advertising executives? Real pros have been at work here. They have had to distill major ideas into a few lines, a few catchy phrases. Study your industry publications for jewels that you can pick off their pages.

3. Your own 'Eureka!' moment. When was it that you knew, you just knew that the business was going to be a reality? When was the moment that you really caught the energy of the idea? Capture that moment and put it into print. It just might capture an investor or two, as well.

4. A video of your favorite comic. There may not be any good lines you can use, but you will be amazed how laughter releases your creative nature.

5. Blindly typing. A friend swears this works, although I haven't used it successfully. Close your eyes, or just turn off the monitor on your computer. Then start typing. Type for about ten minutes, anything and everything you can think of about your business. After ten minutes, look at it. What is it in the stuff that you wrote that you felt was so important that you just had to get it down in writing? If it was that important, odds are you've found your key idea.

6. Tell a story. Grab your favorite aunt or uncle, or just imagine them, and tell them the 'story' of your business. What you tell them is probably what you need to tell the investor as well.

7. Skip the introduction. Sometimes the first part is better written last. Go to the biographicals or the industry information, or the financials. Go where you feel the strongest pull. The area that has the greatest pull is probably the area that you need to promote the most anyway.

8. Meditate. For those adept at visual meditation, visualize the finished business plan in front of you. Open it up and see what's there. (I wouldn't recommend this for beginning meditation practitioners.)

9. Shift into disaster mode. Imagine that a disaster of some sort is about to strike, a hurricane or an earthquake perhaps. If you could save only one piece of your business, what would you save? If it's your patent, then that is probably the most important part. If it's your Director of Marketing, well, so be it. Whatever it is, decide why that piece is so important - this may be what your introduction should focus on.

There is no right way or wrong way to start. There is only your way. Each and every business plan discovers its own written path. Yours is there too.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

If you think that your employees' poor performance on their designated jobs is costing you a whole lot of lost profits, then instead of just doing a total overhaul of your employee roster, why not try to do some employee motivation tactics to get them to actually come around and be able to save your company from looming bankruptcy. It really is fairly easy and simple to rouse some employee motivation, you just have to take these techniques to heart:

People nowadays are concerned of the lack of importance that is being put into health care plans. Is your company one of those companies that do not provide their employees with the health benefits that they should be entitled to? This is a possible reason why your employees' morale are down. You need to reassess the situation and try to give them the health benefits that will ensure them that they will be protected by the company that they have been loyal to even in their times of sickness. Always remember that a happy worker is a satisfied worker so make sure to use this employee motivation tool in order to give your employees' morale a much needed boost.

Remember, companies are usually employed with some women who will, most often than not, become mothers. So it is highly important that you know their needs especially during the time when they would want to avail of their maternity leave. It is important that your company, no matter what kind of product or service you offer, is always sensitive to your employees needs, no matter what their gender is.

When it comes to having a good health plan for your employees, you must be sure that your health plan is actually of any good or else it would not really do any good to your employees' morale. Make sure that the health plan will be able to cover all their basic needs and it wouldn't really hurt if you throw in some added kicks.

Basic health care plans that you can use for employee motivation actually covers the following: full coverage for any basic illness or injury, coverage of hospital payments in case the employee has to be checked-in at the hospital or if there are some minor surgeries that need to be done.

Added benefits to further boost employee motivation through a health care plan is through having their dental health covered as well as their optical needs, eyeglass subsidies as well as free dental cleaning and check-ups will be a good treat for your employees and will surely be a great added employee motivation move.

Apart from having a good health care plan for your employee motivation tactics, you must also be able to provide for them some other additional care such as an insurance plan which they can rely on in case something bad happens to them when they are still of service to your company. Even if this employee motivation move will not be availed by the employee's family during the time of his or her service, your employee can still choose to continue on paying for the premiums of the insurance plan even after he or she has retired from your company. Unfortunately for your employees, once they resign from a job position at your company the said insurance plan will be revoked since the company will not be able to pay for your insurance premiums anymore (remember, all the payments from these employee motivation tactics will actually come from the employee's salary).

Another great employee motivation move for loyal employees of your company is to have a car loan ready for them, employees who have already served some considerable amount of years in the company should be entitled to a car plan wherein deductions from their salary will be used to pay for their vehicle of choice. This is a great employee motivation move since those who are cannot afford a car (a brand new car at that!) would actually want to continue staying in your company because of this added employee motivation benefit.

From time to time, especially during special occasions, you need to be able to give your employees some added morale boost by organizing events or parties that will foster camaraderie among your employees. A little good time certainly wouldn't hurt anyone and this will all be in the spirit of good ole' company fun. Employee motivation directed events such as Christmas parties and company picnics are surely a welcome treat to your seemingly overworked and over fatigue employees.

You must also remember to give your employees some time to unwind like providing your regular employees the benefit of having a two-week paid vacation leave. That's the least you can do for your employees who you have been held captive for the majority of the year in your office.

These are really simple and easy employee motivation tactics that you can do in order to boost your employees' morale and to be able to ensure a good upkeep of your company.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

If you're an employer or a manager then work place absence is costing you money, inconvenience, and upsetting your customers. And as we all know, not all days taken off work are due to genuine sickness. Many employees 'take a sickie' because their morale is low and they just don't like or can't do their work.

The challenge for employers and managers is to make people happier at work. And if people are happy at work then they are less likely to take a day off every time they wake up with a stuffy nose.

Some bosses think that paying more money, improving job security or working conditions is the answer. It isn't and it's also something that can be very hard to achieve.

People who employ or supervise other people need to become more tuned to their employees' emotional needs and find out what really motivates them. This is also much easier to achieve than paying more money or improving job security, however there is no quick fix.

To reduce the amount of absence there are three steps you need to consider.

Firstly, pick the right person for the job. You need to get better at interviewing and selecting people.

Take more time over it;pay more attention to the applicant's

human side rather than their qualifications or experience. Get to know them better.

Find out what makes them happy, how well they get on with other people and how much energy and enthusiasm they have. Make sure they know what they're getting into and be sure the job suits them.

Secondly, you need to believe in your people. If you've interviewed well and picked the right person for the job then you need to trust them to do that job. You need to constantly demonstrate to your people that you trust and believe in them by what you say, your tone of voice and your body language.

If you believe that your people are not to be trusted, that they're unable to make a decision without checking with you. That they'll turn up late and go home early, then that's exactly what they'll do.

If on the other hand you believe that they'll do their job well, that they can be trusted to make decisions and they'll give you a fair day's work, then it is more likely this is what you'll get.

As with all theories there is no guarantee that it will work every time, however the majority of employees are reasonable people and if you treat them as such then they are more likely to behave in a positive manner.

The third and probably the most important thing you can do to reduce abscence and motivate your people is to give them feedback and coach them.

This is where so many employers and managers fall down in dealing with their people; they're hopeless at giving feedback. Many managers are uncomfortable telling staff how they feel about their work performance.

Most employees want to know how they are performing in their job; they want to know if they are doing it right or how they could do it better.

If you really want to motivate your people then you need to give them feedback on what they're doing well and what needs improvement.

When you notice an employee doing something you do like, tell them about it. When you notice something you don't like, tell them about it.

Do it as soon as possible. Acknowledging a job well done is not much good six months later. Also, if you don't immediately call someone's attention to something you're not happy about, then they'll assume its okay. Either that or
they'll think you didn't notice or you don't care.

Do it in private. Why is it some managers still feel its okay to reprimand someone in front of their colleagues? Even the mildest rebuke can have a negative effect on morale.

When you do speak to the person use 'I' messages. Say things like 'I liked the way you did that' or 'I'm unhappy with the way your reports are always late and I'd like your views on why this is.'

Avoid 'You' messages such as 'You're doing great.' That can come across as patronising or insincere. 'You're doing that all wrong' may cause conflict, lower
morale and may not sort the problem.

Focus on one or two things. Don't run off a whole list of attributes or misdemeanours. Also be specific about job behaviour, focus on what the person did or didn't do, don't make a personal attack.

Employees will feel happier if they perceive their employer or manager as a reasonable and fair individual - someone who is quick to praise but also says when they're not happy about something.

The message is - if you want motivated staff then make their work interesting, give them feedback and give them the feeling that they're involved in the business.

We can make the job more interesting by giving people more responsibility, assigning projects and by training and developing them. We need to regularly give people feedback on how they're doing; focussing on what they're doing well rather than on what is not so good. To meet their need to feel involved we should regularly communicate both formally and informally. We could also involve staff in meetings they might not normally attend.

These steps will take time and thought however they'll make a huge difference as to how employees feel about their work. If they feel good and gain satisfaction from their work then they're less likely to find a reason to 'take a
sickie'.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Despite widespread agreement that effective expense management is critical to business success, there's still one aspect of expense management that tends to be handled badly. And it's costing many businesses millions each year! Ironically, it's a cost that can be drastically reduced (all but eliminated) overnight.

I'm talking about the processing costs associated with purchases. They're called 'transactional processing costs'; they're not the cost of the purchase itself, but the cost of the transaction.

The Dollar-Value of Transactional Processing Costs

The end-to-end cost of processing high volume, low value purchases (such as travel, entertainment, contract labor hire, training, employee claims, stationery, publications, books, kitchen supplies, etc.) can be exorbitant. In fact, in many cases, it's higher than the purchase cost itself (even with the efficiencies delivered by an ERP application). The reason for this is that the total cost-to-transact includes many associated activities such as processing, administration, and bank fees, to name just three. In a typical business, 90% of purchases are low value; they represent less than 10% of total company purchase spend. But because the cost of each transaction is normally much the same regardless of the purchase price, in reality, these low value purchases cost far more than the big purchases. Consequently, the majority of available company resources (e.g. employee time, effort, and money) may be dedicated to managing the low-value, high-volume transactions that constitute a relatively small percentage of overall company expenditure.

How to Reduce Transactional Processing Costs

An increasing number of businesses have taken steps to address this issue, and have enjoyed substantial operational savings and direct bottom-line improvements. They've significantly improved their operational efficiency and, in many cases, reduced their transactional processing costs by more than 90% per transaction. This represents substantial cost savings when considering the volume of transactions most companies process each year.

So how did they do it? What is the opportunity for those companies that still employ traditional methods?

Today, many businesses have found a straightforward, effective and efficient answer to this question. They employ a simple solution that combines the use of a traditional credit card with expense management software.


How does this work in practice?

The Process: Your employees use a corporate credit card to procure goods and services. The electronic transaction is sent to their individual PDA or PC (via any network or internet connection). The employee confirms the transaction and charge with the click of a button, and a fully coded transaction is then posted to your chart of accounts. You then make a single payment to the credit card provider for all purchases made using the card during the month. Everything is managed automatically in real time, including all of the controls, business rules, and management notifications that ensure purchases are approved and comply with corporate policy.

The Result: You're able to consolidate thousands of payments into a single transaction. With the supporting systems, you can analyze expenses and implement controls on a real-time basis.

Case Study

A company processes around 50,000 payment transactions per year, of which 80% (40,000) are low-value/high-volume non strategic expenses. By implementing a ProMaster expense management system, they are able to save $56 per transaction, delivering a total cost saving of $2.24m per year (40,000 x $56.00 = $2.24m). Admittedly, this includes both 'hard' and 'soft' savings, but the business case is real, and is proven to deliver results in all industry sectors including R0I within six months.

Conclusion

For years now, companies have been using credit cards as a corporate payment tool for travel and entertainment costs. The extension of the concept into general business procurement has been made possible more recently by the release of new products from card issuers and the development of sophisticated expense management software systems that provide immediacy of control. Today the concept is a key addition to corporate improvement project portfolios, covering all non-strategic low value spends and potentially far more.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

1) Ask everyone to arrive five to ten minutes early. This gives everyone time to socialize, obtain coffee, or organize materials before the meeting. It also ensures that everyone is present at the scheduled starting time. Make this part of the agenda.

2) Discuss sensitive issues with the key participants before the meeting. Use this as an opportunity to listen and gather information on the issues. From this you will understand the different views, needs, and histories. This information can help you prepare the agenda and conduct the meeting. In addition, you may be able to facilitate solutions or strategies for solutions before the meeting. In either case, the result will be a more efficient meeting.

3) Plan small meetings that focus on a single issue. People work more effectively over short periods of time (such as 45 minutes). This also allows you to match experts with issues for more productive meetings.

4) Only invite those who can contribute to at least 50% of the items on the agenda. For meetings lasting more than 30 minutes, invite special participants only to the part of the meeting that deals with their contribution.

5) Send copies of the minutes to everyone who could have been invited for informational purposes. They can read the minutes in a small fraction of the time that they would have been spent in the meeting.

6) When invited to a meeting with a vague (or missing) agenda, ask: what role will I have? Why do you need me? If your impact is minor, refuse to attend and use the time for other work. Meeting planners often attempt to add importance to a meeting by inviting prominent members of the organization.

7) If the chairperson seems to have allowed the meeting's intent to drift, ask: 'What do you want to achieve?' or 'How can we help you?' or 'How will we know when we are done working on this?' These questions can help focus the meeting on a goal.

8) If a meeting seems out of control, suggest adjourning and reconvening at a later time. This will allow you to clarify goals, prepare strategies, and better understand the issues.

9) Reflect the content of key points. This ensures that everyone has the same understanding of the key point. Although this is one of the chairperson's responsibilities, it can be filled by anyone else in the meeting.

10) Prepare a list of questions, ideas, suggestions before the meeting. Then you can focus your attention on the discussion in the meeting.

11) Watch the listeners instead of the speaker. Their faces and body language will tell you whether they agree or disagree, which can help guide you participation in the discussion.

12) Work with a sense of appropriate urgency. Life is finite, and the discussions in meetings should be the same. Plan a time budget and then use it to guide your meeting. Spend extra time only when an issue warrants it.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Last week I talked about how to take a vacation when you're the leader of the band. This week I want to talk about summer sales. Many sales people and just as many business owners bemoan their annual summer sales slump. Their numbers are down and they just can't understand it.

It's as if their whole business is paralyzed because sales dry up or customers are on vacation. In my experience, that's hogwash. When you take that attitude, you are selling yourself a bill of goods not worth the paper it's printed on.

There is no need to punish ourselves about this (perceived?) seasonal drop in sales, or slower pace of sales. Instead, it's important to realize the natural cycles people and businesses go through.

In sales for 15 years, I found July and August were totally different than the rest of the year. Peoples' heads are somewhere else - they don't want to be sold anything.

That said, there are a number of things those of us on the vendor side can do to offset this tendency.

1. These seasonal sales slumps are an opportunity to do aggressive marketing - which can range from:

- developing promotional copy ( web, direct mail,newspaper/magazine advertising)
- writing articles for a publication
- pounding the pavement for speaking engagements - small and large, near and far
- researching new niches - use the 'extra' time to identify new markets
- visiting potential strategic alliances - build your marketing channels

2. Remember, that a week off always precedes an off week. Don't beat yourself up about it. You need the time off too.

3. Use this situation most wisely by allocating time during this season to seriously work on both your vision and your 3 year plan. From those two pieces, you can continue on to developing new strategies, promotions, products, services, and offerings.

My attitude is that these summer doldrums create the opportunity to build a new level of momentum in your business. That momentum can set you up for a strong and busy fall schedule.

So if sales and business activity are lighter or quieter right now, take advantage of the time that is freed up to lift your sights to the long term vision you have for your business. Spend some time on the pieces that will get you there.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Is it happening to you... a million small business ideas swimming around in your head.

Then when you think you are on to a really good one, it all starts again. Is my idea viable... can I get it to work... how will I get it to work?

When you are finally confident that your idea is a goer, start reading everything that you can get your hands on about small businesses. Join local business groups and talk to other small business owners and do not let them go until you find out what you want to know.

Find out how THEY did it.

Try & squeeze as much information from them as you possibly can. Being members of business group & like-minded they will be more than happy to help you.

IDEA #1: Know Thy Strengths & Thy Enemy.

Conducting a SWOT analysis is an excellent small business idea.
Great... so what is it?

It is a technique for discovering:
� Your own strong points & weak points
� The opportunities that are available to you
� The strength of your competition

You will discover the areas of your business that require improving, equipment or infrastructure that you may need for specific opportunities and the best way to compete against your competitors.

IDEA #2: Who Are My Customers?

Including a target marketing strategy in your small business marketing mix is a great idea, particularly if you will be doing business to business marketing. Once you discover who your customers are, it is then a simple matter to adjust you marketing to suit.

Bingo...

Business is so much easier if you know where your customers are and what their concerns are. Other beneficial small business ideas include a budget which will help you to stay on track & not over spend on your marketing efforts.

This can be a very simple document such as an XL spreadsheet, where you can record & compare actual costs and successes with your estimated figures.

IDEA #3: Be It Ever So Humble, There is No Place Like Home.

I now work from home, it is terrific. I was renting a 290 square foot office for years. I would drive to the office every morning, sit there all day on my own & drive home... madness. It took me a while to catch on until one day... a blinding flash of the obvious.

'Hang on... I don't have to do this'

So I cleared out the spare bedroom at my home & moved the office in. Customers do not care, I tell them it is a cost saving exercise so that I can keep my prices low plus, I can access my network 24/7 so my response time is quicker.

What a fabulous idea Peter, they said.

IDEA #4: What Type of Business Venture?

What small business idea takes your fancy? Whatever it is, I suggest you consider writing a business plan so you can figure out where you are going & the best way to get there.

Depending on your type of business you may need some small business software. Many businesses can be started in a spare bedroom, a spare corner or even the kitchen table with very little money and... you can use the family PC.

IDEA #5: The Web is a Must To Consider.

It is just way too big not to.

This possibly has the most potential of all small business ideas in terms of near zero entry cost, almost no infrastructure and the amount of money that can generated. Never before has there been a marketing option with virtually unlimited potential, which can be established & run from the kitchen table.

'We need to think about that for a moment'.

You can have a web site up & running literally within hours. And... you can do it sitting at the kitchen table while you are shelling the peas for dinner tonight. You can sell your own goods & services or receive a commission for selling the products & services of other people. You can set up a Google AdWords account and, believe it or not, be on the front page within one hour.

Or... you can spend more time on an organic growth strategy and pay nothing for your traffic.

'So... the world is your oyster'

The sooner you get those creative juices flowing the better because those that dream up the best small business ideas are the ones eating at the better restaurants.

Author: Peter Kirkham

About the author:
Author & small business owner Peter Kirkham has written a terrific collection of small business ideas & proven, low cost marketing strategies that shows fellow small business owners how to increase
profits & create a steady flow of new customers into their businesses... FOREVER. They are all available in his
FREE Customer Attraction Kit.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Strategic planning is a method of planning events in a strategic manner in order to accomplish the goal at hand. This type of planning works by looking at the whole picture and you then figure out how you are to get from one place to another. Probably the most important example of strategic planning is that which is done in the military. In this example, we could say that the strategy is to overtake an area while the tactical planning is how you will fight each battle. The strategy is the plan to get through the whole picture.

Now, take this to the leaf of business strategic planning. Strategic planning can work in a number of ways in a business environment. For example, you may want to make a plan to get the business from one level to the next. Depending on what that is, you can make a plan that the business will follow to achieve the end results. Here are some ways in which this type of planning can be put into place.

- Financial aspects such as profit, loss, increasing sales or lowering costs.

- In human resources, you can devise a strategic plan to recruit new hires, to promote individuals, to staff a location quickly.

- Also, you can use strategic planning in your business marketing plans. How you will market, where you will market, and how much you will spend in those areas are all determined through the strategic planning.

Like any other things in business, though, you also have to have back ups when it comes to your strategic plan not working. This will help you to find the right choices each time. Because you will have something in place to handle things when they go bad, you will feel more confident about your plans. Strategic planning is something that any company or business can use quite effectively.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Buhler stresses the thought that it has come to the point that an organization very survival may depend upon whether or not the organization is innovated. But in order for it to be innovated the right culture must exist. Therefore, key management must look at the organization critically to determine when and where innovation should take place. They must be given the 'go ahead' by the policy makers (stock holders and board of directors) to start the process of innovation utilizing their respective talents and encouraging and accepting input from employees. All of the above must include customer involvement on an ongoing basis.

The author makes the comparison of 'Building an innovative culture' and the key role that managers play in shaping, reinforcing and supporting this new culture. There must be tolerance of risk taking and openness to change. The openness to change is often times reflected in the organization commitment to learning new ideas. Employees must be giving encouragement to raise question and offer their input.

Here the author indicates that the organizational structure must be able to support an innovative organization, which they can either enhance or destroy. The organization must be given enough slack so that a flexible structure can be built. If an organization is highly bureaucratic it might stifle innovation. Should this be the case the author suggests that a new unit be created that is separate from 'the old structure.' He relates this strategy used by General Motors when it developed its Saturn division. He states further that those organizations that are more decentralized and have open communication have more innovative possibilities.

In his final management plan, 'Cross-functional teams' he indicates that these types of teams have been able to more effectively integrate people in process across organizational levels. This team made up of the organization's employees, are from various functional units within the organization. In other words, the various units working with each other rather than the traditional independency. This cross functional team can also spot immediately where a particular customer's need is to be met.

In comparing these types of managerial plans I believe all are required in building an innovative organization. There must be built innovative culture set forth by the managers and involving employees at the ground level. This provides openness and ownership for this culture and for change. The structure of the organization plays important role in the openness for innovation. Where there is strict bureaucracy it must become flexible. For further success in building an innovative organization the various units must become cross-functional so that customer needs can be easily recognized and built into the organizational changes.

I believe through building an innovative organization and the role that manager's play that is developed a new environment and social consideration of management planning. The new environment comes via of building the innovative culture and the different relationships that have developed between employees and management where all are working for a common cause for the good of the organization. All involved can declare victory for the organization. Therefore, they are better able to serve customers, better market and sell their product or service and in turn produce a profit for the stockholders.

Author: Tom Feinberg

About the author:
Tom Feinberg has spent more than 15 years working as a professor at The University of Maine. Now he spends most of his time with his family and shares his experience about term papers. Tom Feinberg is a right person to ask about college term paper.

Article source: Free Management Articles.

Gilber Orduz became President and CEO of PRECISSIVE, INC � in November, 2003.
Mr. Orduz was the Vice-Chairman of the communications Subcommittee and also served on the Telecommunications Subcommittee, the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, and the Environment and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee
Mr. Orduz has also managed his own advertising & marketing consulting firm, where he worked with numerous Fortune 500 companies around the country. In addition, he served as one of the youngest Chapter Executive Director of the PRECISSIVE, INC �.

Author: GILBER ORDUZ

About the author:
Gilber Orduz became President and CEO of PRECISSIVE, INC � in November, 2003.


Article source: Free Management Articles.