IBM Midmarket CEO Study: Collaboration and Transparency Key to Providing An Edge IBM continued its rolling tide of market insights with the announcement this morning of its global study of midmarket CEOs. The headline: Nearly twice as many smaller- and medium-sized business CEOs see creating a more collaborative work environment with a higher level of openness and transparency as a top priority compared to the findings from the IBM CEO study conducted in 2010. A total of 45 percent of midmarket CEOs see the need to create a more open business environment, a close to 50 percent jump from two years ago. The study also unearthed the following: Impact of Social: Changing The Way Products And Services Are Marketed CEOs also discussed the whirlwind of “social”change they’re witnessing. Despite the surge in social media adoption around the world, only 15 percent of midmarket CEOs are using social media platforms to connect with the individual consumer today. Rising Complexity, Escalating Competition Drive Partnering Greater Openness, Transparency, And Focus On Talent Like this:
Bad Service Can Be Good Business - Bill Taylor by Bill Taylor | 9:30 AM August 8, 2012 It’s hard not to be surprised by what you read in the newspapers these days, but a recent report in the New York Times left me downright floored. Richard Bove, a high-profile securities analyst who focuses on bank stocks, wrote a commentary that excoriated Wells Fargo for lousy service — so much so that he announced he’d moved his business to a different bank. But that same commentary praised Wells Fargo as a company and upgraded its stock to a buy! Bove’s basic argument? Fair enough, let’s rethink. But there is a method to the no-frills madness of CEO Michael O’Leary and his colleagues. You don’t have to like Ryanair to love its strategic confidence — and to understand why it treats customers the way it does. Not talking to customers certainly makes it hard for certain categories of customers, especially older users who aren’t adept at online interactions. But back to Richard Bove. I’m sorry, but I think this is backwards.
IBM Launches New Mobile Collaboration Platform, Integrates Big Data Search and Analytics Another mobile content collaboration platform? Big Deal! Except this is from IBM, and while we know that IBM does collaboration quite well already, the difference with the newly released IBM Content Navigator is that it also integrates with its data analytics and Big Data capabilities, making it a pretty formidable tool for workers on the road. Mobile Content Access Basically this is a new IBM mobile platform with a couple of added extras that will really give it some muscle. We don’t really need to go into the importance here of access to information via mobile device; study after study has shown, if sales of smartphones and tablets were not enough to convince. But there’s all kinds of access, and if you are working in an enterprise that has some of IBM’s bigger on-premises solutions than you’re really going to miss them if you can’t get into them remotely. Content Navigator While many mobile platforms are built with this in mind, some are better at it than others.
The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown | 10:00 AM August 8, 2012 Why don’t successful people and organizations automatically become very successful? One important explanation is due to what I call “the clarity paradox,” which can be summed up in four predictable phases: Phase 1: When we really have clarity of purpose, it leads to success. Phase 2: When we have success, it leads to more options and opportunities. Curiously, and overstating the point in order to make it, success is a catalyst for failure. We can see this in companies that were once darlings of Wall Street, but later collapsed. Here’s a more personal example: For years, Enric Sala was a professor at the prestigious Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California. What can we do to avoid the clarity paradox and continue our upward momentum? First, use more extreme criteria. By applying tougher criteria we can tap into our brain’s sophisticated search engine. Second, ask “What is essential?” Conducting a life audit.
Social curation is much more than just a market In 2010, “curation” popped up on tech blogs and VCs’ radars. Since then, people have been asking whether curation is a legitimate trend, a new market to be exploited, or just the latest buzzword. Some people, including GigaOM writer Bobbie Johnson, have wondered if curation is a bubble, and if it is, when is it going to burst? One of the characteristics of online activities that transcend simple markets is that they are analogous to behaviors that seem to be hardwired into humans. Humans also love to collect things — from tiny stamps to shiny cars. Compared to creating original content, curation is even easier. Our love of curation is being further democratized on the Web with the explosion of tools and startups that approach curation in different ways and with different business models. Some examples of curation services include the following sites: Pinterest, in case you’ve been living under a rock, is a site for collecting and sharing photos and videos. I agree with his perspective.
Managing and Motivating Employees in Their Twenties - Michael Fertik - The Conversation by Michael Fertik | 3:10 PM January 19, 2011 I’ve been lucky to work with some awesome employees in their twenties. While that formative decade is long and dynamic for each person; in a companion post I’ve offered some observations on the differences between Generation Z and Generation After-Lehman; there are some consistencies in how best to manage and motivate excellent twenty-somethings. Younger people are especially hungry both to learn and to receive affirmation that they are doing a good job. I’ve found the best ones are generally much more motivated by incremental education and acknowledgement than they are by a modest bump in salary. Of course, the same qualities that make younger colleagues so responsive to the education and praise you offer may also make them susceptible to negative feedback loops, so be mindful of the context into which you toss them. The best managers of younger employees are people who would otherwise love teaching for a living. Ask frequent questions.
12 Most Mind-Blowing Content Curators to Follow There is a real art to content curation. Not only do you have to find worthy content, but you have to find a way to deliver that to your audience. This is not as easy as it sounds. Following are my top 12 sources for mind-blowing information. 1. Doug Rice You may not know this, but regular 12 Most contributor Doug Rice curates the best reads on his blog every month. 2. His design blog has literally blown my mind. 3. Maria Popova, author of Brainpickings, is one of the most well-known curators online. 4. 12 Most We cannot forget 12 Most. 5. Open Culture curates resources for life long learners. 6. I know that Lisa Barone has left Outspoken Media, but she left an archive of amazing links. 7. The world cannot get enough of these. 8. Every week Kristi Hines offers “Fetching Friday.” 9. Sonia of “Logallot” shares great content. 10. Are you itching for a new business idea? 11. Michael Stevens, aka the Bearded Nun from “Key of Awesome,” has a YouTube channel called VSAUCE. 12.
11 Important Life Lessons To Learn From Steve Jobs by Celes on Oct 7, 2011 | ShareThis Email This Post Yesterday morning, I was busy writing the preparation post for upcoming 21-Day Meditation Challenge (Which is now up: 21DMC, Day 0 – Preparation. For those who don’t know about 21DMC, it’s a 21-day meditation challenge from Oct 8 to Oct 28. As I took a quick glance at my Twitter timeline, I saw a message which said, “RIP Steve Jobs”. When I first saw it, my first reaction was: “Is this a joke?”. But things like that don’t get joked around. I quickly scrolled down the searches, clicked into Steve’s Wikipedia (always a good objective information source) and saw that the page had been updated with the date of his death and a section on his passing. Now, I can’t claim to know much about Steve Jobs nor do I make a point to follow any updates about him, Apple, iPod, iPhone or any of the “i” products. By way of this post, I would like to drive awareness on how boldly he had led his life, and 11 personal development lessons we can learn from him.
Pinterest analysis: PBS, USA Today engage with readers most effectively Several websites, including this one, have published articles recently about how journalists are using Pinterest. But none of these offers data-based analyses that measure whether newsrooms are using Pinterest to engage effectively with readers. As a way of measuring engagement, follower counts are a basic metric. So, I submitted a request to three newly launched Pinterest monitoring services. Pinerly was the only monitoring company of the three that provided exactly what I requested quickly and enthusiastically. Follower counts The Wall Street Journal emerged as the only newsroom in our group of 13 to exceed 5,000 followers on any single board, and eight of The Wall Street Journal’s boards surpassed 10,000 followers. Most followed content Travel boards curated by the Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle and USA Today topped the list of most followed topics among this group, tied with food boards by the Denver Post, Los Angeles Times and Orange County Register. Repins to pins ratio
How to Execute a Turnaround Sometimes things go horribly wrong. You lose your mojo. You find yourself in a slump. It’s not the end. One: Control Your Thoughts The first thing to do when you need to turn things around is to control your own thoughts and beliefs. What you tell yourself when you need a turnaround is critical. The most important thought that you need to control is your belief that a turnaround is possible, especially if you are in leadership. Be positive and hopeful. Two: Get Back to Fundamentals Most of the time when you need a turnaround, it’s because you have in some way failed to execute the fundamentals. It’s difficult to implement something new under the best of circumstances. Don’t think new. Three: Create a Sense of Urgency and Mission It’s important to create a sense of urgency without creating a sense of panic. By laying out the path forward, you provide a vision of how the turnaround will be achieved. The status quo will work with all it’s got to prevent you from creating a sense of urgency.
From Co-creation to Collaboration: 5 pillars for business success inShare255 Guest post by Steven Van Belleghem (@steven_insites) & Tom De Ruyck (@tomderuyck) In the last months, my colleague Tom De Ruyck and I did some research on structural collaboration between companies and customers. We all know that collaboration is not only possible with clients, but that it also can be done with employees. Co-creation, crowdsourcing and open innovation Co-creation is hot. In a recent survey, we found that 3 percent of companies have experience with the developing of new products together with consumers. Structural collaboration is the type of collaboration in which customers are involved in ALL decision processes within a company. In a recent Harvard Business Review-article the author stated that all company questions can be better addressed by companies who have a willingness to collaborate with their customers (Scott Cook, ‘The contribution economy’, Harvard Business Review, 2008). From co-creation to collaboration in three steps The three steps: 1. 2. 3. 2. 4.
PDCA PDCA (plan–do–check–act or plan–do–check–adjust) is an iterative four-step management method used in business for the control and continuous improvement of processes and products. It is also known as the Deming circle/cycle/wheel, Shewhart cycle, control circle/cycle, or plan–do–study–act (PDSA). Another version of this PDCA cycle is OPDCA. Meaning[edit] Continuous quality improvement with PDCA Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results in accordance with the expected output (the target or goals). Implement the plan, execute the process, make the product. Study the actual results (measured and collected in "DO" above) and compare against the expected results (targets or goals from the "PLAN") to ascertain any differences. Request corrective actions on significant differences between actual and planned results. Note: Some modern trainers now also refer to the "A" as "Adjust". About[edit] PDCA was made popular by Dr W. See also[edit] References[edit]
Peer Support for Network Weaving I’m doing some network coaching with a small group of network weavers and thought I would share with you some coaching frameworks and practices that help people quickly adopt and adapt network approaches. Especially with a new domain such as network weaving, people may need some training to learn about network concepts and practices before they can apply them. However, I’ve learned that the smaller the training unit (5-15 minutes max), the more likely it is that people will be able to apply the learning. The next step is creation of peer support. The process of peer support looks like this: · each person gets time to explain a challenge or issue (focal person) · others in the group ask probing questions that help the person better understand the challenge · Others offer advice or resources · The focal person summarizes new insights they have gotten · The focal person describes a next step they will take to address the challenge Peer support groups can be virtual or face-to-face.
5-why Analysis using an Excel Spreadsheet Table | Karn G. Bulsuk: Full Speed Ahead Find out how to visualize your five-whys analysis by putting it into a spreadsheet, including a downloadable five why template and tutorial. Part 2 of a four part series on 5-whys. By Karn G. Bulsuk More information: An Introduction to 5-whys, 5-whys Analysis using a Fishbone Diagram and The Weaknesses of 5-WhysDownloads: 5-whys Template Download and Step-by-step example on how to perform a 5-why analysis Visualizing your 5-whys analysis in a table is the best way to show the causal links between your causes and the ultimate root causes. Imagine that there is a company called Alencia which specializes in receiving outsourced executive recruitment work, where they match talent to specific jobs and receive commission for doing so. In the past year, demand has boomed and their business has expanded rapidly, but at a price: while demand has increased, capacity has remained the same, leading to a large back log of job requests. Setting Up the Excel Sheet The First Why The Fourth Why Root Causes