Want to build a fast-growth business? An expert explains the four aspects of your business you should be focusing on.
Business coach and consultant Jim Schleckser has spent years trying
to understand how start-up and small business CEOs budget their time.
Not surprisingly, the best CEOs--the ones that are able to grow
highly-profitable, fast-growing companies--had a lot in common.
As part of the CEO Project,
a boot camp for entrepreneurs, Schleckser advises CEOs and company
founders on the most important areas of their business to focus on. At
the core of his advice, Schleckser believes CEOs need to put the
blinders on and focus on what truly drives growth. Here are the core
components Schleckser says you should focus on.
Business Model
"Time spent on your business model
drives growth," says Schleckser. Most importantly, CEOs should aim to
increase the proportion of recurring revenue in their businesses
"Lock revenue each year," he says. "And when you decide to sell your business, you'll get higher offers."
Schleckser
also challenges CEOs to raise prices. "Pricing drives profitability,"
he says. "I recommend you go home and raise your prices 10 percent."
Lastly, CEOs need to have a product so strong, he calls it the "mafia offer," an offer your customers can't refuse.
Talent
Schleckser believes all CEOs need to add "Chief Talent Officer" to their title.
"Better players on the field means better performance," Schleckser
says. The silver lining of the recession was that plenty of talented
workers are looking for jobs--now is a good time to snatch up great
employees at a reasonable price.
"You're able to get talent now that you couldn't get years ago," he
says. "You need to be out there looking for talent all the time. Put a
few of the A-players in, it's like magic in changing the business
performance."
Process
What seperates good companies from great companies are those that are
able to differentiate their brand based on better processes. What does
that mean in practice? Schleckser advises CEOs to always being
developing new product lines, adding value to current processes,
eliminating waste, reengineering processes, and standardizing methods.
"Go the extra mile," he says. "Design processes that fulfill promises to your clients."
Leadership Approach
At the beginning of the company's lifecycle, CEOs are involved in all
aspects of the business. But as the company grows, the CEO needs to be
able to defer power to managers.
"It feels great to close a sale," says Schleckser, "but if a CEO is out selling, he's not doing his job."
The point is to foucs on the aspects that will drive future growth,
and that often means taking the CEO out of his or her comfort zone.
http://www.inc.com/eric-markowitz/what-high-growth-CEOs-do-differently.html
10/5/12
Why You Can't Do It All
The simple rule for start-up survival is to focus on the 80/20 rule-the 20% of tasks that generate 80% of the benefit.
My first year at business school, I thought my professors were trying to kill me. Each night, I had more reading and homework than could possibly get done in one evening even if I stayed up all night. I quickly realized that one of the key lessons of survival was prioritization--figuring out what portion of the work was most important and what just was not going to get done.
I remember one night, working on a term paper with a group of students. We had worked hard on the paper and we all thought it was in good shape. We had other work to complete that night and were not anxious to pull an all-nighter so we were ready to move on. One of the team members, however, felt it was not "A" material and wanted to keep working on it. I remember thinking even back then that this guy did not "get it."
My life in start-ups has been the same experience as business school. To survive and flourish, you have to quickly figure out what is "important" and what is "noise." You can't do it all...
Both at my former company TripAdvisor as well as my current company Car Gurus, we have a saying: follow the 80/20 rule, technically known as the Pareto principle. The Pareto principle tells us that 20 percent of the inputs account for 80 percent of the results. You have to cut through the noise, figure out what tasks represent the 20 percent with the greatest leverage and focus on those tasks. Find those projects that make a big impact and ignore EVERYTHING else.
Is it difficult to step away from fire drills and turn away from the mounting volume in your inbox? Absolutely. But if you don't, your days--and your team's days--will slip away without having addressed the projects that will really drive your business.
The sooner you figure out how to apply the 80/20 rule and run with it, the better off you'll be. There are 100 things you can focus on each day, and it's up to you to parse the data, decide what projects or features have the greatest leverage and get the product to market as fast as you can.
Don't forget, you can't do it all....
http://www.inc.com/langley-steinert/why-you-cant-do-it-all.html
My first year at business school, I thought my professors were trying to kill me. Each night, I had more reading and homework than could possibly get done in one evening even if I stayed up all night. I quickly realized that one of the key lessons of survival was prioritization--figuring out what portion of the work was most important and what just was not going to get done.
I remember one night, working on a term paper with a group of students. We had worked hard on the paper and we all thought it was in good shape. We had other work to complete that night and were not anxious to pull an all-nighter so we were ready to move on. One of the team members, however, felt it was not "A" material and wanted to keep working on it. I remember thinking even back then that this guy did not "get it."
My life in start-ups has been the same experience as business school. To survive and flourish, you have to quickly figure out what is "important" and what is "noise." You can't do it all...
Both at my former company TripAdvisor as well as my current company Car Gurus, we have a saying: follow the 80/20 rule, technically known as the Pareto principle. The Pareto principle tells us that 20 percent of the inputs account for 80 percent of the results. You have to cut through the noise, figure out what tasks represent the 20 percent with the greatest leverage and focus on those tasks. Find those projects that make a big impact and ignore EVERYTHING else.
Is it difficult to step away from fire drills and turn away from the mounting volume in your inbox? Absolutely. But if you don't, your days--and your team's days--will slip away without having addressed the projects that will really drive your business.
The sooner you figure out how to apply the 80/20 rule and run with it, the better off you'll be. There are 100 things you can focus on each day, and it's up to you to parse the data, decide what projects or features have the greatest leverage and get the product to market as fast as you can.
Don't forget, you can't do it all....
http://www.inc.com/langley-steinert/why-you-cant-do-it-all.html
Are You at Risk of Employee Fraud?
Do you wonder whether you could ever be the victim of employee fraud?
Stop wondering--you could. "Something like three out of every 10
businesses will have employees who steal," reports Janine Driver, author
of You Can't Lie to Me, who spent years training FBI, CIA, and ATF agents in how to spot dishonesty.
No matter what business you're in it can happen, she says. "One dentist worked with the same assistant for 30 years," she says. "Then her house was being foreclosed, so she forged his signature cosigning a loan." The woman paid her loan and the fraud would have gone undetected--except that the bank sent the dentist a congratulatory note when it was paid off. "It's not the homeless person out on the street stealing from us, but the person we trust," Driver says.
In spite of her expertise, it's even happened to her. With a busy speaking schedule, Driver had a management company handle her bookings, as well as invoicing and processing payments. One day, out of curiosity, she followed up a text from her bank acknowledging a deposit--and discovered that the payment had come from a booking several months earlier. Come to find out, the company had been withholding money, often depositing it long after the payment was received. "At the time, they owed me about $8,000, but they'd been borrowing and paying back for years," she says. When she consulted an attorney about it, he told her she was the sixth fraud victim to contact him that month.
The fraud 'triangle'
If fraud is widespread and even the smartest pros don't always see it coming, how can you hope to protect yourself? Begin by being aware of what Driver calls the fraud triangle. In the fraud triangle:
1. The employee has access to money, valuable goods, or other assets;
2. The employee is facing some financial pressure, such as a child in college or a looming home foreclosure;
3. The employee can somehow justify his or her actions, perhaps feeling that he or she deserves higher pay or should be compensated for extra time on the job.
If all three elements are present, Driver says, the likelihood of an employee committing fraud are very high. Protect yourself by making sure you're aware if any employees are facing financial difficulties. You want to know so you can be understanding and helpful, but you should also keep in mind that an employee in this situation is likelier to turn to crime. Obviously, you need to be especially vigilant of anyone who has access to your company's bank accounts.
How much of this résumé is true?
Though you can never completely screen for fraud, Driver says careful hiring can help reduce the risk. For one thing, she recommends getting a credit report before signing someone on, a step that more and more employers, including the federal government, are taking. If someone's facing the sort of financial trouble that might lead him or her to steal, chances are it'll turn up.
She also recommends asking job-seekers to certify that all their answers will be true at the top of an application--before they fill out the rest--rather than at the bottom where it's traditionally found. "If people have already lied, they'll mentally justify it and sign," she says.
You can take that method a step further by having a two-part interview process, she adds. Begin by having a preliminary interview with an associate. At the end of the interview, the associate tells the applicant that while he or she seems like a good candidate for the job, you're meticulous and will check every single item--so any inaccuracies should be corrected before the person's résumé gets passed along to you. And then the associate should ask: "On a scale of 1 to 100, how accurate is it?"
The answer will be illuminating, Driver promises. "Almost no one will say 100%. They'll say 90%, so you ask about the other 10%." The answer might be that the applicant can't remember whether a job started in May or June. Or it could be that he or she was fired from a previous position.
This tactic can be surprisingly effective. "We see it in law enforcement," Driver says. In one interview, an agent asked a suspect how much of his statement had been true. "99%" came the answer. So the agent asked which 1% was inaccurate. Answer: "My involvement in the crime."
http://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/how-to-lower-risk-fraud-at-your-company.html
No matter what business you're in it can happen, she says. "One dentist worked with the same assistant for 30 years," she says. "Then her house was being foreclosed, so she forged his signature cosigning a loan." The woman paid her loan and the fraud would have gone undetected--except that the bank sent the dentist a congratulatory note when it was paid off. "It's not the homeless person out on the street stealing from us, but the person we trust," Driver says.
In spite of her expertise, it's even happened to her. With a busy speaking schedule, Driver had a management company handle her bookings, as well as invoicing and processing payments. One day, out of curiosity, she followed up a text from her bank acknowledging a deposit--and discovered that the payment had come from a booking several months earlier. Come to find out, the company had been withholding money, often depositing it long after the payment was received. "At the time, they owed me about $8,000, but they'd been borrowing and paying back for years," she says. When she consulted an attorney about it, he told her she was the sixth fraud victim to contact him that month.
The fraud 'triangle'
If fraud is widespread and even the smartest pros don't always see it coming, how can you hope to protect yourself? Begin by being aware of what Driver calls the fraud triangle. In the fraud triangle:
1. The employee has access to money, valuable goods, or other assets;
2. The employee is facing some financial pressure, such as a child in college or a looming home foreclosure;
3. The employee can somehow justify his or her actions, perhaps feeling that he or she deserves higher pay or should be compensated for extra time on the job.
If all three elements are present, Driver says, the likelihood of an employee committing fraud are very high. Protect yourself by making sure you're aware if any employees are facing financial difficulties. You want to know so you can be understanding and helpful, but you should also keep in mind that an employee in this situation is likelier to turn to crime. Obviously, you need to be especially vigilant of anyone who has access to your company's bank accounts.
How much of this résumé is true?
Though you can never completely screen for fraud, Driver says careful hiring can help reduce the risk. For one thing, she recommends getting a credit report before signing someone on, a step that more and more employers, including the federal government, are taking. If someone's facing the sort of financial trouble that might lead him or her to steal, chances are it'll turn up.
She also recommends asking job-seekers to certify that all their answers will be true at the top of an application--before they fill out the rest--rather than at the bottom where it's traditionally found. "If people have already lied, they'll mentally justify it and sign," she says.
You can take that method a step further by having a two-part interview process, she adds. Begin by having a preliminary interview with an associate. At the end of the interview, the associate tells the applicant that while he or she seems like a good candidate for the job, you're meticulous and will check every single item--so any inaccuracies should be corrected before the person's résumé gets passed along to you. And then the associate should ask: "On a scale of 1 to 100, how accurate is it?"
The answer will be illuminating, Driver promises. "Almost no one will say 100%. They'll say 90%, so you ask about the other 10%." The answer might be that the applicant can't remember whether a job started in May or June. Or it could be that he or she was fired from a previous position.
This tactic can be surprisingly effective. "We see it in law enforcement," Driver says. In one interview, an agent asked a suspect how much of his statement had been true. "99%" came the answer. So the agent asked which 1% was inaccurate. Answer: "My involvement in the crime."
http://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/how-to-lower-risk-fraud-at-your-company.html
10/4/12
Are You Leading Your People, or Just Running a Company?
Best-selling leadership author Simon Sinek explains 5 ways to really look after your employees.
After safely leading 22 members of the Air Force through combat in 2002, Lieutenant Colonel Mike "Johnny Bravo" Drowley, an airman in the United States Air Force, told best-selling leadership author Simon Sinek that there are fates worse than death: accidentally killing one of your own men, or going home alive when one or more of your men does not.
That mindset--total devotion to your people--translates into a crucial leadership lesson to those individuals who are in charge of different kinds of "troops:" entrepreneurs.
"Johnny Bravo commands the kind of loyalty the rest of us couldn't buy," says Sinek, in remarks that kicked off the Inc. 500|5000 conference Thursday morning. "Without a doubt, he will be there for them. This is how trust is formed."
Sinek, the author of Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action, challenges entrepreneurs to build similar loyalty and trust with employees.
"Because you own the company, you're the boss," said Sinek. "But you're not a leader until you make it your job to look after others."
To begin truly looking after your team (to do more than just run your company), ask yourself two questions: "Why are you building a business in the first place?" and, "At the end of your life, what do you want to be the reason you built your business?"
Here's five ways Sinek says you can turn your answer to this question into day-to-day action:
Roam the halls.
Talk with your employees. In person. Don't hide behind technology. If you're sending out e-mails to find out how people are doing, you're not listening.
Recognize good work publicly.
Sure, sometimes you need to discipline employees, but--when they do a nice job--let them, and the whole team, know it. Small acts of kindness go a long way.
Tell the personal story of how you got started--often.
Sinek points out that the best businesses are founded to address real human problems--problems entrepreneurs have passion for. Let your employees know how the original idea came to be, and all the challenges you faced plowing ahead in spite of them. Create lore.
Mark what you represent.
Sinek is a big believer in symbolism. The more you stand for something, the more your logo--and other markers--serve as a symbol to employees of who you are. For this reason, also consider the power of your company's color theme, and, for example, the clothes you choose to wear.
Give employees responsibility.
Next time an employee asks you a question, respond with a question: "What do you think we should do?" Don't just dictate the course of action. Train employees and give them the skills they need to be decision makers, and then give them the ability--and responsibility--to fail. Start by doing this in circumstances when a failure's consequences won't be so detrimental.
"Your company exists not to make money," says Sinek. "Your company exists to advance something, to do something more--and it should be for other human beings."
http://www.inc.com/allison-fass/leadership-simon-sinek-on-truly-leading-employees.html
After safely leading 22 members of the Air Force through combat in 2002, Lieutenant Colonel Mike "Johnny Bravo" Drowley, an airman in the United States Air Force, told best-selling leadership author Simon Sinek that there are fates worse than death: accidentally killing one of your own men, or going home alive when one or more of your men does not.
That mindset--total devotion to your people--translates into a crucial leadership lesson to those individuals who are in charge of different kinds of "troops:" entrepreneurs.
"Johnny Bravo commands the kind of loyalty the rest of us couldn't buy," says Sinek, in remarks that kicked off the Inc. 500|5000 conference Thursday morning. "Without a doubt, he will be there for them. This is how trust is formed."
Sinek, the author of Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action, challenges entrepreneurs to build similar loyalty and trust with employees.
"Because you own the company, you're the boss," said Sinek. "But you're not a leader until you make it your job to look after others."
To begin truly looking after your team (to do more than just run your company), ask yourself two questions: "Why are you building a business in the first place?" and, "At the end of your life, what do you want to be the reason you built your business?"
Here's five ways Sinek says you can turn your answer to this question into day-to-day action:
Roam the halls.
Talk with your employees. In person. Don't hide behind technology. If you're sending out e-mails to find out how people are doing, you're not listening.
Recognize good work publicly.
Sure, sometimes you need to discipline employees, but--when they do a nice job--let them, and the whole team, know it. Small acts of kindness go a long way.
Tell the personal story of how you got started--often.
Sinek points out that the best businesses are founded to address real human problems--problems entrepreneurs have passion for. Let your employees know how the original idea came to be, and all the challenges you faced plowing ahead in spite of them. Create lore.
Mark what you represent.
Sinek is a big believer in symbolism. The more you stand for something, the more your logo--and other markers--serve as a symbol to employees of who you are. For this reason, also consider the power of your company's color theme, and, for example, the clothes you choose to wear.
Give employees responsibility.
Next time an employee asks you a question, respond with a question: "What do you think we should do?" Don't just dictate the course of action. Train employees and give them the skills they need to be decision makers, and then give them the ability--and responsibility--to fail. Start by doing this in circumstances when a failure's consequences won't be so detrimental.
"Your company exists not to make money," says Sinek. "Your company exists to advance something, to do something more--and it should be for other human beings."
http://www.inc.com/allison-fass/leadership-simon-sinek-on-truly-leading-employees.html
What Science Says About Successful Bosses
Over the past year, I've been writing a book about the future of sales and marketing with Howard Stevens, chairman of the leadership assessment firm Chally.
As part of a decades-long research project, Chally has gathered
extensive personality data about 150,000 salespeople, including 9,000
sales managers.
Last week, I had a conversation with Howard where he described the results of a statistical analysis on the cumulative data on sales managers. While the data set is specific to sales, I believe that personality traits that emerged apply to any management position.
According to the success vs. failure statistics that Howard shared with me, successful bosses tend to be:
1. Humble Rather Than Arrogant
Failed bosses defined their role as some form of telling people what to do. Employees perceived them as obnoxious know-it-alls who wouldn't let them do their job.
Successful bosses put themselves and their own egos into the background. They focused on coaching employees to perform to their highest potential.
2. Flexible Rather Than Rigid
Failed bosses couldn't tolerate change themselves and so found it nearly impossible to get their employees to embrace necessary change.
Successful bosses knew that adapting to new conditions requires personal flexibility in order to inspire similar flexibility throughout the rest of the team.
3. Straightforward Rather Than Evasive Failed bosses tried to manipulate employees using half-truths that left false impressions. When employees realized they've been fooled, they felt resentful and disloyal.
Successful bosses gave employees the information they need to know to make the best decisions, even if that information is difficult or sensitive.
4. Forward Thinking Rather Than Improvisational Failed bosses often attempted to run their organizations ad-hoc, constantly shifting gears and directions, creating a more-or-less constant state of confusion.
Successful bosses had a plan and made sure that everyone understood it. They adapted that plan to changing conditions but did so carefully and intentionally.
5. Precise Rather Than Vague
Failed bosses created mushy goals that employees found difficult to map into actual activity. As a result, the wrong things got done and the right things didn't.
Successful bosses let employees know exactly what was expected of them, in sufficient detail so that there was no ambiguity about goals.
6. Patient Rather Than Ill-Tempered
Failed bosses blew up and threw fits when problems cropped up. Their employees became more afraid of doing things wrong than eager to do things right.
Successful bosses confronted problems by listening, considering options, deciding on the best approach, and then communicating what needed to be done.
http://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/what-science-says-about-successful-bosses.html
Last week, I had a conversation with Howard where he described the results of a statistical analysis on the cumulative data on sales managers. While the data set is specific to sales, I believe that personality traits that emerged apply to any management position.
According to the success vs. failure statistics that Howard shared with me, successful bosses tend to be:
1. Humble Rather Than Arrogant
Failed bosses defined their role as some form of telling people what to do. Employees perceived them as obnoxious know-it-alls who wouldn't let them do their job.
Successful bosses put themselves and their own egos into the background. They focused on coaching employees to perform to their highest potential.
2. Flexible Rather Than Rigid
Failed bosses couldn't tolerate change themselves and so found it nearly impossible to get their employees to embrace necessary change.
Successful bosses knew that adapting to new conditions requires personal flexibility in order to inspire similar flexibility throughout the rest of the team.
3. Straightforward Rather Than Evasive Failed bosses tried to manipulate employees using half-truths that left false impressions. When employees realized they've been fooled, they felt resentful and disloyal.
Successful bosses gave employees the information they need to know to make the best decisions, even if that information is difficult or sensitive.
4. Forward Thinking Rather Than Improvisational Failed bosses often attempted to run their organizations ad-hoc, constantly shifting gears and directions, creating a more-or-less constant state of confusion.
Successful bosses had a plan and made sure that everyone understood it. They adapted that plan to changing conditions but did so carefully and intentionally.
5. Precise Rather Than Vague
Failed bosses created mushy goals that employees found difficult to map into actual activity. As a result, the wrong things got done and the right things didn't.
Successful bosses let employees know exactly what was expected of them, in sufficient detail so that there was no ambiguity about goals.
6. Patient Rather Than Ill-Tempered
Failed bosses blew up and threw fits when problems cropped up. Their employees became more afraid of doing things wrong than eager to do things right.
Successful bosses confronted problems by listening, considering options, deciding on the best approach, and then communicating what needed to be done.
http://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/what-science-says-about-successful-bosses.html
10/3/12
6 Vital Decisions You Must Make to Succeed
If you want to turn your great idea for a start-up into a real business, it won’t just happen because you want it to. In fact, the odds that you can succeed are stacked against you. And while you’re trying to beat those odds, you will be putting your reputation, the time of your co-founders, and possibly the cash of your friends and family at risk of loss.
Over the past two years, I have been interviewing start-up CEOs--about 180 at last count--in a quest to figure out what makes the difference between the few who succeed and the many who fail. You can read the result in my new book, Hungry Start-up Strategy: Creating New Ventures With Limited Resources and Unlimited Vision, coming out in November.
Here’s a hint for you: It all depends on how well you make six vital decisions.
1. Set goals
When you start your venture, you will probably have nothing to offer the people you will try to recruit. Yet I talked to many company founders who were able to recruit outstanding people and raise capital from some of the most prestigious of venture capitalists.
To do that, these founders set three kinds of goals. The first--for recruiting others--was a mission that gave the new venture so much meaning to those recruits that they could not resist.
The mission will only get you so far, though--you will also need a long-term goal for investors, something like going public in five years or finding a corporate acquirer. And you will need to set short-term goals that will help you learn what you need to do to grow without burning through your resources.
2. Pick markets
If you can set goals, you’re far from out of the woods. After all, you need to figure out who will use or buy your product. And to do that, you will need to pick the markets that you’re going to target.
Two hints for picking the right market--you have to have a personal passion for solving that market’s problem, and the customers in that market must see your product as a compelling answer to a problem that none of your competitors are solving.
3. Raise capital
It goes without saying that everyone has bills to pay. So if you are going to hire people or buy supplies, you will need money. But where can you get it?
The best place to look initially is probably your customers. If you can get them to pay you more for the product than it costs you to build it--and cover your fixed costs--you are going to be in a good position. You might also try to get your suppliers to extend you favorable payment terms. If neither of those suffices, you can try tapping your own bank account or your credit cards.
You can probably forget banks unless your start-up has some kind of collateral that the banks can seize or sell if you don’t repay.
And I’ve found that you may want to match your efforts to raise money from other people (friends and family, angel investors, venture capitalists) to the stage of your start-up’s development, moving up that ladder as you ramp your sales.
4. Build the team
You can’t do it all yourself, but resist the urge to hire friends unless those friends have skills in areas critical to your venture’s success that complement your own. I found that the most successful ventures do a great job of dividing up the work that must be done among the most talented people. And they create a culture that binds them all together to focus on shared goals.
5. Gain market share
To grow, you must get customers to use your product and eventually pay. But I found that many customers are afraid to get too dependent on a start-up that could go out of business and leave them in the lurch.
To overcome that, you have to offer the customer what I call a quantum value leap (QVL), a product that solves a problem that customers care about better than the competition, and to give that solution away. If that QVL actually delivers, those early customers will tell all their friends. And you can eventually upgrade the product and start charging customers to use it.
6. Adapt to change
You might think getting those five decisions right would be enough, but you would be wrong. That’s because customer needs, technology, and competitors all evolve, and the very success you achieve by making those first five decisions well could doom your venture to destruction.
Unless you can adapt to those changes--seizing new opportunities and guarding against evolving threats--your customers will flee and your venture will decline. I found that winning ventures follow three approaches to keep this from happening--one of these is to craft a vision of the skills at which the start-up must excel and to make acquisitions and strategic hires to close the capability gap.
If you want to beat the odds and win in the start-up game, you must make these six vital choices the right way. Otherwise, you’ll let down yourself as well as your co-founders, customers, investors, and employees.
http://www.inc.com/peter-cohan/6-vital-decisions-you-must-make-to-succeed.html
7 Ways to Make Customers Love You
The greatest compliment anyone can receive in the business world is "I just love working with you." That's especially true when that compliment comes from customers, because it means that you'll be getting their business time and time again.
Here are the seven rules for getting customers to love working with you, based upon conversations with Jeffrey Gitomer, author of the The Sales Bible and Dr. Earl Taylor, master trainer at Dale Carnegie:
1. Make building the relationship more important than making the sale.
2. Create opportunities for the customer to buy, rather than opportunities for you to sell.
3. Have meaningful conversations and never give a sales pitch.
4. Be curious about the customer as a person and let the friendship evolve from that.
5. Don't try to be a hero who swoops in to solve the customer's problem.
6. Believe in your heart that you and your firm are the best at what you do.
7. Deliver exactly what you promised to deliver, no matter what.
http://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/7-ways-to-make-customers-love-you.html
Here are the seven rules for getting customers to love working with you, based upon conversations with Jeffrey Gitomer, author of the The Sales Bible and Dr. Earl Taylor, master trainer at Dale Carnegie:
1. Make building the relationship more important than making the sale.
2. Create opportunities for the customer to buy, rather than opportunities for you to sell.
3. Have meaningful conversations and never give a sales pitch.
4. Be curious about the customer as a person and let the friendship evolve from that.
5. Don't try to be a hero who swoops in to solve the customer's problem.
6. Believe in your heart that you and your firm are the best at what you do.
7. Deliver exactly what you promised to deliver, no matter what.
http://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/7-ways-to-make-customers-love-you.html
Best Interview Technique You Never Use
Eventually, almost every interview turns into a question-and-answer
session. You ask a question. The candidate answers as you check a mental
tick-box (good answer? bad answer?).
You quickly go to the next question and the next question and the next question, because you only have so much time and there's a lot of ground to cover because you want to evaluate the candidate thoroughly. The more questions you ask, the more you will learn about the candidate.
Or not.
Sometimes, instead of asking questions, the best interviewing technique is to listen slowly.
In Change-Friendly Leadership, management coach Rodger Dean Duncan describes how he learned about listening slowly from PBS NewsHour anchor Jim Lehrer:
Listening slowly can turn a Q&A session into more of a
conversation. Try listening slowly in your next interviews. (Not after
every question, of course: Pausing for five seconds after a strictly
factual answer will leave you both feeling really awkward.)
Just pick a few questions that give candidates room for self-analysis or introspection, and after the initial answer, pause. They'll fill the space: with an additional example, a more detailed explanation, a completely different perspective on the question.
Once you give candidates a silent hole to fill, they'll fill it, often in unexpected and surprising ways. A shy candidate may fill the silence by sharing positive information she wouldn't have otherwise shared. A candidate who came prepared with "perfect" answers to typical interview questions may fill the silence with not-so-positive information he never intended to disclose.
And all candidates will open up and speak more freely when they realize you're not just asking questions--you're listening.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/best-interview-technique-you-never-use.html
You quickly go to the next question and the next question and the next question, because you only have so much time and there's a lot of ground to cover because you want to evaluate the candidate thoroughly. The more questions you ask, the more you will learn about the candidate.
Or not.
Sometimes, instead of asking questions, the best interviewing technique is to listen slowly.
In Change-Friendly Leadership, management coach Rodger Dean Duncan describes how he learned about listening slowly from PBS NewsHour anchor Jim Lehrer:
Duncan: He urged me to ask a good question, listen attentively to the answer, and then count silently to five before asking another question. At
first that suggestion seemed silly. I argued that five seconds would
seem like an eternity to wait after someone responds to a question. Then
it occurred to me: Of course it would seem like an eternity, because
our natural tendency is to fill a void with sound, usually that of our
own voice.
Lehrer: If you resist the
temptation to respond too quickly to the answer, you'll discover
something almost magical. The other person will either expand on what
he's already said or he'll go in a different direction. Either way, he's
expanding his response, and you get a clear view into his head and
heart.
Duncan: Giving other people
sufficient psychological breathing room seemed to work wonders. When I
bridled my natural impatience to get on with it, they seemed more
willing to disclose, explore, and even be a bit vulnerable. When I
treated the interview more as a conversation with a purpose than as a
sterile interrogation, the tone of the exchange softened. It was now
just two people talking...
Just pick a few questions that give candidates room for self-analysis or introspection, and after the initial answer, pause. They'll fill the space: with an additional example, a more detailed explanation, a completely different perspective on the question.
Once you give candidates a silent hole to fill, they'll fill it, often in unexpected and surprising ways. A shy candidate may fill the silence by sharing positive information she wouldn't have otherwise shared. A candidate who came prepared with "perfect" answers to typical interview questions may fill the silence with not-so-positive information he never intended to disclose.
And all candidates will open up and speak more freely when they realize you're not just asking questions--you're listening.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/best-interview-technique-you-never-use.html
Best Way to Introduce Yourself
Who is the most important audience? Hint: It's not the people you meet.
Whenever you introduce yourself, the person you meet is not the most important audience.
You are the most important audience.
Here's why.
I like to ride bicycles. I'm not super fit. And I'm not super fast. But I like riding, and in weak moments occasionally even think of myself as a "cyclist."
So occasionally I ride in mass participation events like gran fondos. The average participant tends to be a serious cyclist: Many are triathletes, some are amateur racers, and occasionally even a few professionals show up. I live in a valley between two mountain ranges, so our events are not for the faint of fitness.
I was standing in the start area for a gran fondo that involved climbing four mountains when a man rolled over towards me. My guess is he picked me out since I was clearly one of the older riders in the field. (That was a delightful sentence to write.) As he stopped he struggled to unclip from his pedals and almost fell.
"Morning," he said, the bass in his voice turned up to 10. "I'm Louis Winthorpe III*. I'm the CEO of WeKickSeriousButt Enterprises."**
"Jeff," I said. I shook his hand.
"I am really looking forward to this," he said. "I could use the break to recharge the old batteries. Just in the last few days I've had to finalize a huge contract, visit two of our plants, and sign off on plans for a new marketing push."
How do you respond to that? "Wow, you've been busy," was the best I could manage.
"Oh, not really," he said, trying and failing to seem humble. "Just same stuff, different day. I just wish I wasn't so busy. I only have time to do the shorter course today. I would have absolutely killed the long ride. What about you?"
"I'm afraid the long ride is going to kill me," I said.
"Feel free to latch on to my wheel," he said, referring to drafting in another rider's slipstream. "I'll tow you along for as long as you can hang with me." Then he slowly and carefully clipped into one pedal and wobbled away.
Cocky? Full of himself? Sure, but only on the surface: His $12,000 bike, pseudo-pro gear, and "I rule the business world" introduction were an unconscious effort to protect his ego. What his introduction really said was, "While I might not turn out to be good at cycling, that's okay because out in the real world, where it really matters, I am The Man."
While he introduced himself to me, he was his real audience.
And that's a shame. For the next six or eight hours he could have just been a cyclist. He could have struggled and suffered and maybe even rekindled the ember of youth inside us that burns a little less brightly with each passing year.
How do you introduce yourself? When you feel insecure, do you prop up your courage with your introduction? Do you include titles or accomplishments or "facts" when you don't need to?
If so, your introduction is all about you, not your audience.
Instead:
See less as more.
Brief introductions are always best. Provide the bare minimum the other person needs to know, not in an attempt to maintain distance, but because during a conversation more about you can be revealed in a natural, unforced, and therefore much more memorable way.
Stay in context.
If you meet another parent at a school meeting, for example, just say, "Hi, I'm Mark. My daughter is in third grade." Keep your introduction in context with the setting. If there is no real context, like at a gran fondo, just say, "Hi, I'm Mark. Good luck."
Embrace understatement.
Unless you're in a business setting, your job title is irrelevant. Even if you are in fact the CEO of WeKickSeriousButt Enterprises, just say you work there. To err is human. To err humble is divine.
Focus on the other person.
The other person is the only person that matters. Ask questions. Actually listen to the answers. The best connections never come from speaking; the best connections always come from listening.
That day I rolled into the finishing area well over six hours later. I stopped and slumped over my handlebars beside a small cluster of riders who had finished well before me. They were already changed and working on a post-ride beer.
One of them looked over and said, "How was it?"
"It sucked," I said.
They all laughed, and he said, "And it was awesome, right?"
I smiled, because it was. He reached over and gave me a fist bump. "I'll grab you a beer and you can tell us all about it," he said. I looked forward to the conversation more than the beer. Acceptance and camaraderie are earned by effort, not granted by title.
At that moment I happened to see Louis, sitting alone as he packed up his gear. I felt a twinge of sadness because he never allowed himself to just be a rider. He never gave himself the chance to fit in, enjoy a shared purpose, and to simply be a cyclist among cyclists.
When you introduce yourself, embrace the moment and the setting for what it says about you in that moment, not in comparison to your titles or accomplishments.
Just be whoever you are, skills and struggles and triumphs and failures and all. You are your true audience, even when you introduce yourself.
Always be yourself--especially to yourself.
* Clearly not his real name. (Trading Places!)
** Not really, but not far off.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/a-great-way-to-introduce-yourself.html
Whenever you introduce yourself, the person you meet is not the most important audience.
You are the most important audience.
Here's why.
I like to ride bicycles. I'm not super fit. And I'm not super fast. But I like riding, and in weak moments occasionally even think of myself as a "cyclist."
So occasionally I ride in mass participation events like gran fondos. The average participant tends to be a serious cyclist: Many are triathletes, some are amateur racers, and occasionally even a few professionals show up. I live in a valley between two mountain ranges, so our events are not for the faint of fitness.
I was standing in the start area for a gran fondo that involved climbing four mountains when a man rolled over towards me. My guess is he picked me out since I was clearly one of the older riders in the field. (That was a delightful sentence to write.) As he stopped he struggled to unclip from his pedals and almost fell.
"Morning," he said, the bass in his voice turned up to 10. "I'm Louis Winthorpe III*. I'm the CEO of WeKickSeriousButt Enterprises."**
"Jeff," I said. I shook his hand.
"I am really looking forward to this," he said. "I could use the break to recharge the old batteries. Just in the last few days I've had to finalize a huge contract, visit two of our plants, and sign off on plans for a new marketing push."
How do you respond to that? "Wow, you've been busy," was the best I could manage.
"Oh, not really," he said, trying and failing to seem humble. "Just same stuff, different day. I just wish I wasn't so busy. I only have time to do the shorter course today. I would have absolutely killed the long ride. What about you?"
"I'm afraid the long ride is going to kill me," I said.
"Feel free to latch on to my wheel," he said, referring to drafting in another rider's slipstream. "I'll tow you along for as long as you can hang with me." Then he slowly and carefully clipped into one pedal and wobbled away.
Cocky? Full of himself? Sure, but only on the surface: His $12,000 bike, pseudo-pro gear, and "I rule the business world" introduction were an unconscious effort to protect his ego. What his introduction really said was, "While I might not turn out to be good at cycling, that's okay because out in the real world, where it really matters, I am The Man."
While he introduced himself to me, he was his real audience.
And that's a shame. For the next six or eight hours he could have just been a cyclist. He could have struggled and suffered and maybe even rekindled the ember of youth inside us that burns a little less brightly with each passing year.
How do you introduce yourself? When you feel insecure, do you prop up your courage with your introduction? Do you include titles or accomplishments or "facts" when you don't need to?
If so, your introduction is all about you, not your audience.
Instead:
See less as more.
Brief introductions are always best. Provide the bare minimum the other person needs to know, not in an attempt to maintain distance, but because during a conversation more about you can be revealed in a natural, unforced, and therefore much more memorable way.
Stay in context.
If you meet another parent at a school meeting, for example, just say, "Hi, I'm Mark. My daughter is in third grade." Keep your introduction in context with the setting. If there is no real context, like at a gran fondo, just say, "Hi, I'm Mark. Good luck."
Embrace understatement.
Unless you're in a business setting, your job title is irrelevant. Even if you are in fact the CEO of WeKickSeriousButt Enterprises, just say you work there. To err is human. To err humble is divine.
Focus on the other person.
The other person is the only person that matters. Ask questions. Actually listen to the answers. The best connections never come from speaking; the best connections always come from listening.
That day I rolled into the finishing area well over six hours later. I stopped and slumped over my handlebars beside a small cluster of riders who had finished well before me. They were already changed and working on a post-ride beer.
One of them looked over and said, "How was it?"
"It sucked," I said.
They all laughed, and he said, "And it was awesome, right?"
I smiled, because it was. He reached over and gave me a fist bump. "I'll grab you a beer and you can tell us all about it," he said. I looked forward to the conversation more than the beer. Acceptance and camaraderie are earned by effort, not granted by title.
At that moment I happened to see Louis, sitting alone as he packed up his gear. I felt a twinge of sadness because he never allowed himself to just be a rider. He never gave himself the chance to fit in, enjoy a shared purpose, and to simply be a cyclist among cyclists.
When you introduce yourself, embrace the moment and the setting for what it says about you in that moment, not in comparison to your titles or accomplishments.
Just be whoever you are, skills and struggles and triumphs and failures and all. You are your true audience, even when you introduce yourself.
Always be yourself--especially to yourself.
* Clearly not his real name. (Trading Places!)
** Not really, but not far off.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/a-great-way-to-introduce-yourself.html
4 Tips to Dramatically Improve Any Skill
Practice does not, in fact, always make perfect. Here's an easy way to make sure all that work pays off.
Picture someone you know who is incredibly talented: an athlete, a musician, a scientist.
You probably wish you had been born with some type of gift, right?
You were.
That's the introduction to Daniel Coyle's The Little Book of Talent,
a cool book filled with 52 easy, proven methods to improve almost any
skill. It's a great guide; in just a few minutes you'll think, Oh, wow,
several times.
Here's an example. You want to get better at something. At anything. Just going through the practice motions provides little or no results, though, so the key is to make sure you use a method that follows the R.E.P.S. gauge:
Let's take a brief look at each.
Reaching and Repeating: Practice should require you to operate at the edge of your abilities; in short, you have to consistently reach and constantly repeat.
Say you're leading a training session. Should you:
1. Call on one person, ask a question, and have him or her answer it, or
2. Pose the question first, and then randomly choose someone to answer (and maybe even turn the exercise into a game)?
The second is the best approach, because everyone has to reach, every time--even if he or she isn't called on. Call on John from accounting, and I know I don't have to answer the question; I can sit back, check my email, and wait until you eventually call on me. I don't have to reach but--maybe--once.
Always put yourself--or the people you're training--in a position to reach, over and over again.
Engagement: Practice must command your attention and make you feel emotionally invested in striving for a goal.
Say you're trying to perfect your slide transitions for a presentation. Should you:
1. Run through the whole presentation 10 times, or
2. Try to hit each transition perfectly, without mistakes, three presentations in a row?
Running through your presentation 10 times in a row will feel like death; trying to be perfect three times in a row turns the exercise into a game you care about.
Make sure the outcome of every practice session is something you will care about: You'll try harder and be more engaged, and you'll improve more rapidly.
Purposefulness: Practice must directly connect to the skill you want to build. (Sounds obvious, but often what we practice has little to do with what we need to accomplish.)
Say you feel nervous and intimidated when you have to speak to a group. Should you:
1. Rehearse at home, alone, until you know your material inside out, or
2. Practice speaking to small groups of people in less formal settings, like in a meeting?
Although solo rehearsing certainly helps, the only way to perform well under the pressure of an audience is to actually practice speaking to people. No amount of solo practice will prepare you for the nerves you'll feel when every eye in the room is on you.
Strong, Speedy Feedback: Practice must provide an immediate and consistent flow of accurate information about performance.
Say you're studying for a certification exam. You purchased a sample test guide. Should you:
1. Take a complete test and wait until the next day to see how you did, or
2. Complete a section and immediately grade your answers to see where you went wrong (and right)?
Take the test in chunks. Check your results right away. Immediate feedback is the best feedback; you'll better connect the dots because you're in the flow. Waiting even a day for feedback creates a mental distance and a lack of engagement that are really hard to overcome--which means much of the time you spent trying to learn was wasted.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/4-tips-to-dramatically-improve-any-skill.html
Picture someone you know who is incredibly talented: an athlete, a musician, a scientist.
You probably wish you had been born with some type of gift, right?
You were.
"We are often taught that talent
begins with genetic gifts--that the talented are able to effortlessly
perform feats the rest of us can only dream about. This is false. Talent
begins with brief, powerful encounters that spark motivation by linking
your identity to a high-performing person or group. This is called
ignition, and it consists of a tiny, world-shifting thought lighting up
your unconscious mind:
"I could be them."
Here's an example. You want to get better at something. At anything. Just going through the practice motions provides little or no results, though, so the key is to make sure you use a method that follows the R.E.P.S. gauge:
R: Reaching and Repeating
E: Engagement
P: Purposefulness
S: Strong, Speedy Feedback
Let's take a brief look at each.
Reaching and Repeating: Practice should require you to operate at the edge of your abilities; in short, you have to consistently reach and constantly repeat.
Say you're leading a training session. Should you:
1. Call on one person, ask a question, and have him or her answer it, or
2. Pose the question first, and then randomly choose someone to answer (and maybe even turn the exercise into a game)?
The second is the best approach, because everyone has to reach, every time--even if he or she isn't called on. Call on John from accounting, and I know I don't have to answer the question; I can sit back, check my email, and wait until you eventually call on me. I don't have to reach but--maybe--once.
Always put yourself--or the people you're training--in a position to reach, over and over again.
Engagement: Practice must command your attention and make you feel emotionally invested in striving for a goal.
Say you're trying to perfect your slide transitions for a presentation. Should you:
1. Run through the whole presentation 10 times, or
2. Try to hit each transition perfectly, without mistakes, three presentations in a row?
Running through your presentation 10 times in a row will feel like death; trying to be perfect three times in a row turns the exercise into a game you care about.
Make sure the outcome of every practice session is something you will care about: You'll try harder and be more engaged, and you'll improve more rapidly.
Purposefulness: Practice must directly connect to the skill you want to build. (Sounds obvious, but often what we practice has little to do with what we need to accomplish.)
Say you feel nervous and intimidated when you have to speak to a group. Should you:
1. Rehearse at home, alone, until you know your material inside out, or
2. Practice speaking to small groups of people in less formal settings, like in a meeting?
Although solo rehearsing certainly helps, the only way to perform well under the pressure of an audience is to actually practice speaking to people. No amount of solo practice will prepare you for the nerves you'll feel when every eye in the room is on you.
Strong, Speedy Feedback: Practice must provide an immediate and consistent flow of accurate information about performance.
Say you're studying for a certification exam. You purchased a sample test guide. Should you:
1. Take a complete test and wait until the next day to see how you did, or
2. Complete a section and immediately grade your answers to see where you went wrong (and right)?
Take the test in chunks. Check your results right away. Immediate feedback is the best feedback; you'll better connect the dots because you're in the flow. Waiting even a day for feedback creates a mental distance and a lack of engagement that are really hard to overcome--which means much of the time you spent trying to learn was wasted.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/4-tips-to-dramatically-improve-any-skill.html
How to Make Huge Decisions
The power of a group is great when you need to get things done. When you need to make a huge decision, not so much.
Opinions. Feedback. Advice. Guidance. Counsel.
Consensus!
Yuck.
Granted, it's natural to look for input when we need to make decisions. And if asking for advice doesn't come naturally, the business world trains us to actively solicit opinions, bounce ideas off other people, and run our ideas up proverbial flagpoles in order to harness the amazing brain power of the many to make awesomely incredible decisions.
Sometimes that approach works... but sometimes it's the worst approach to take when you need to make a huge decision.
The main power wielded by group thinking is the power of the middle ground. Groups grind away the edges and the sharp corners. After all that input and feedback and devil's advocacy what remains is safe, secure... and similar.
If you want to be different--if you want to achieve "different"--the only opinion that truly matters is yours. Group decisions give you an out. Other people can be at least partly responsible. Other people can be wrong.
When you make the decision, everything rests on you: Your vision, your passion, your motivation, and your sense of responsibility.
So you'll try harder if only to prove others wrong. You'll fight through every obstacle and roadblock, if only to prove yourself right.
You will do everything possible to make it happen.
So when you need to make a huge decision, this is how to get input and opinions--while still making sure you, and only you, make the final decision:
1. Take a "crazy" idea.
Choose something you believe in late at night but in the cold light of day hesitate to try.
Or choose an idea you've been told will never work.
2. Then seek data, not opinions.
Input from other people is useful, but only if you see that input as data points and not opinions.
Opinions carry extra weight, like the weight of credibility (he's really smart, so I'm sure he's right), the weight of guilt (if it turns out he's right, I'll never hear the end of it), or the weight of safety (yeah, there probably is a reason no one has tried this before).
"I think you're crazy to try to open a store in that market," is an opinion. It may be accurate, may not be accurate; it's still just an opinion.
If you value the person's opinion, ask them how he or she arrived at that opinion. Always look for the data behind the conclusion.
Otherwise ignore everything that isn't data--warnings, cautionary tales, and well-intentioned but poorly founded advice--since you already know all those things anyway.
3. Evaluate the data.
Data analysis is easy when opinions and "weight" are stripped away.
Make a pros and cons list. Apply sensitivities. Be objective. Be smart. You know how.
4. Decide how strongly you believe...
Analysis will only take you so far, since critical thinking tends to steer decisions towards conventional wisdom.
An innovative product only looks like a sure thing in hindsight. The emergence of a new industry only seems inevitable after it has emerged.
At some point, someone believed when others didn't.
5. ...then decide if that someone is you.
If you believe when others don't--and a major portion of that belief is based on analysis, not gut feel--then go for it. Start a business. Sell a business. Enter a new market. Take a chance on a new product.
Go for it, knowing you'll go harder and faster and longer because the only person that really matters made the decision.
You.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/how-to-make-huge-decisions.html
Opinions. Feedback. Advice. Guidance. Counsel.
Consensus!
Yuck.
Granted, it's natural to look for input when we need to make decisions. And if asking for advice doesn't come naturally, the business world trains us to actively solicit opinions, bounce ideas off other people, and run our ideas up proverbial flagpoles in order to harness the amazing brain power of the many to make awesomely incredible decisions.
Sometimes that approach works... but sometimes it's the worst approach to take when you need to make a huge decision.
The main power wielded by group thinking is the power of the middle ground. Groups grind away the edges and the sharp corners. After all that input and feedback and devil's advocacy what remains is safe, secure... and similar.
If you want to be different--if you want to achieve "different"--the only opinion that truly matters is yours. Group decisions give you an out. Other people can be at least partly responsible. Other people can be wrong.
When you make the decision, everything rests on you: Your vision, your passion, your motivation, and your sense of responsibility.
So you'll try harder if only to prove others wrong. You'll fight through every obstacle and roadblock, if only to prove yourself right.
You will do everything possible to make it happen.
So when you need to make a huge decision, this is how to get input and opinions--while still making sure you, and only you, make the final decision:
1. Take a "crazy" idea.
Choose something you believe in late at night but in the cold light of day hesitate to try.
Or choose an idea you've been told will never work.
2. Then seek data, not opinions.
Input from other people is useful, but only if you see that input as data points and not opinions.
Opinions carry extra weight, like the weight of credibility (he's really smart, so I'm sure he's right), the weight of guilt (if it turns out he's right, I'll never hear the end of it), or the weight of safety (yeah, there probably is a reason no one has tried this before).
"I think you're crazy to try to open a store in that market," is an opinion. It may be accurate, may not be accurate; it's still just an opinion.
If you value the person's opinion, ask them how he or she arrived at that opinion. Always look for the data behind the conclusion.
Otherwise ignore everything that isn't data--warnings, cautionary tales, and well-intentioned but poorly founded advice--since you already know all those things anyway.
3. Evaluate the data.
Data analysis is easy when opinions and "weight" are stripped away.
Make a pros and cons list. Apply sensitivities. Be objective. Be smart. You know how.
4. Decide how strongly you believe...
Analysis will only take you so far, since critical thinking tends to steer decisions towards conventional wisdom.
An innovative product only looks like a sure thing in hindsight. The emergence of a new industry only seems inevitable after it has emerged.
At some point, someone believed when others didn't.
5. ...then decide if that someone is you.
If you believe when others don't--and a major portion of that belief is based on analysis, not gut feel--then go for it. Start a business. Sell a business. Enter a new market. Take a chance on a new product.
Go for it, knowing you'll go harder and faster and longer because the only person that really matters made the decision.
You.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/how-to-make-huge-decisions.html
9 Things You Wish Job Candidates Knew
Sure, you'll consider their qualifications. But admit it: This is what you're really looking for during interviews.
Job candidates say a lot during an interview. As the interviewer, so do you.
But there's a lot you wish you could say to job candidates well before the interview ever takes place:
1. I want you to be likable.
Obvious, sure, but also critical. I want to work with people I like and who like me.
So I want you to smile. I want you to make eye contact, sit forward in your chair, and be enthusiastic. The employer-employee relationship truly is a relationship--and that relationship starts with the interview (if not before).
A candidate who makes a great first impression and sparks a real connection instantly becomes a big fish in a very small short-list pond.
You may have solid qualifications, but if I don't think I'll enjoy working with you, I'm probably not going to hire you.
Life is too short.
2. I'm taken aback when you say you want the job right away.
Oh, I do want you to want the job--but not before you really know what the job entails. I may need you to work 60-hour weeks, or travel 80% of the time, or report to someone with less experience than you... so hang in there.
No matter how much research you've done, you can't know you want the job until you know everything possible about the job.
3. I want you to stand out....
A sad truth of interviewing is that later I often don't recall, unless I refer to my notes, a significant amount about some of the candidates. (Unfair? Sure. Reality? Absolutely.)
The more people I interview for a job and the more spread out those interviews, the more likely I am to remember a candidate by impressions rather than by a long list of facts.
So when I meet with staff to discuss potential candidates I might initially refer to someone as, "the guy with the handcuff-ready stainless steel briefcase," or "the woman who does triathlons," or "the guy who grew up in Romania."
In short, I may remember you by "hooks"--whether flattering or unflattering--so use that to your advantage. Your hook could be your clothing, or an outside interest, or an unusual fact about your upbringing or career.
Better yet your hook could be the project you pulled off in half the expected time, or the huge sale you made.
Instead of letting me choose, give me one or two notable ways to remember you.
4. ...But not for being negative.
There's no way I can remember everything you say. But I will remember sound bites, especially negative ones.
Some candidates complain, without prompting, about their current employer, their coworkers, their customers.
So if, for example, you hate being micro-managed, instead say you're eager to earn more responsibility and authority. I get there are reasons you want a new job but I want to hear why you want my job instead of why you're desperate to to escape your old job.
And keep in mind I'm well aware our interview is like a first date. I know I'm getting the best possible version of "you." So if you whine and complain and grumble now... I know you'll be a total downer to be around in a few months.
5. I want you to ask lots of questions about what really matters to you...
I need to know whether I should hire you, but just as importantly I need you to make sure my job is a good fit for you.
So I want you to ask lots of questions: What I expect you to accomplish early on, what attributes make our top performers so outstanding, what you can do to truly drive results, how you'll be evaluated--all the things that matter to you and to me and my business.
You know what makes work meaningful and enjoyable to you. I don't. There's no other way to really know whether you want the job unless you ask questions.
6. ...But only if the majority of those questions relate to work.
I know you want a positive work-life balance. Still, save all those questions about vacation sign-up policies and whether it's okay to take an extra half hour at lunch every day if you also stay a half hour late and whether I've considered setting up an in-house childcare facility because that would be really awesome for you and your family.
First let's find out if you're the right person for the job, and whether the tasks, responsibilities, duties, etc. are right for you.
Then we can talk about the rest.
7. I love when you bring a "project."
I expect you to do a little research about my company. That's not impressive; that's a given.
To really impress me, tell me how you will hit the ground running and contribute right away--the bigger the impact the better. If you bring a specific skill, show how I can leverage that skill immediately.
Remember how I see it: I have to pay you starting day one, so I'd love to see an immediate return starting day one.
8. I want you to ask for the job... and I want to know why.
By the end of the interview you should have a good sense of whether you want the job. If you need more information, say so. Let's figure out how to get you what you need to make a decision.
If you don't need more information, do what great salespeople do and ask for the job. I'll like the fact you asked. I want you to really want the job--but I also want to know why you want the job.
So tell me why: You thrive in an unsupervised role, or you love working with multiple teams, or you like frequent travel. Ask me for the job and prove to me, objectively, that it's a great fit for you.
9. I want you to follow up... especially if it's genuine.
Every interviewer appreciates a brief follow-up note. If nothing else, saying you enjoyed meeting me and are happy to answer any other questions, is nice.
But "nice" may not separate you from the pack.
What I really like is when you follow up based on something we discussed. Maybe we talked about data collection techniques, so you send me information about a set of tools you strongly recommend. Maybe we talked about quality, so you send me a process checklist you developed that I could adapt to use in my company.
Or maybe we both like cycling, so you send me a photo of you on your bike in front of the sign at the top of the Col du Tourmalet (and I'm totally jealous).
The more closely you listened during the interview, the easier it is to think of ways to follow up in a natural and unforced way.
Remember, we're starting a relationship--and even the most professional of relationships are based on genuine interactions.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/9-things-you-wish-you-could-say-to-job-candidates.html
Job candidates say a lot during an interview. As the interviewer, so do you.
But there's a lot you wish you could say to job candidates well before the interview ever takes place:
1. I want you to be likable.
Obvious, sure, but also critical. I want to work with people I like and who like me.
So I want you to smile. I want you to make eye contact, sit forward in your chair, and be enthusiastic. The employer-employee relationship truly is a relationship--and that relationship starts with the interview (if not before).
A candidate who makes a great first impression and sparks a real connection instantly becomes a big fish in a very small short-list pond.
You may have solid qualifications, but if I don't think I'll enjoy working with you, I'm probably not going to hire you.
Life is too short.
2. I'm taken aback when you say you want the job right away.
Oh, I do want you to want the job--but not before you really know what the job entails. I may need you to work 60-hour weeks, or travel 80% of the time, or report to someone with less experience than you... so hang in there.
No matter how much research you've done, you can't know you want the job until you know everything possible about the job.
3. I want you to stand out....
A sad truth of interviewing is that later I often don't recall, unless I refer to my notes, a significant amount about some of the candidates. (Unfair? Sure. Reality? Absolutely.)
The more people I interview for a job and the more spread out those interviews, the more likely I am to remember a candidate by impressions rather than by a long list of facts.
So when I meet with staff to discuss potential candidates I might initially refer to someone as, "the guy with the handcuff-ready stainless steel briefcase," or "the woman who does triathlons," or "the guy who grew up in Romania."
In short, I may remember you by "hooks"--whether flattering or unflattering--so use that to your advantage. Your hook could be your clothing, or an outside interest, or an unusual fact about your upbringing or career.
Better yet your hook could be the project you pulled off in half the expected time, or the huge sale you made.
Instead of letting me choose, give me one or two notable ways to remember you.
4. ...But not for being negative.
There's no way I can remember everything you say. But I will remember sound bites, especially negative ones.
Some candidates complain, without prompting, about their current employer, their coworkers, their customers.
So if, for example, you hate being micro-managed, instead say you're eager to earn more responsibility and authority. I get there are reasons you want a new job but I want to hear why you want my job instead of why you're desperate to to escape your old job.
And keep in mind I'm well aware our interview is like a first date. I know I'm getting the best possible version of "you." So if you whine and complain and grumble now... I know you'll be a total downer to be around in a few months.
5. I want you to ask lots of questions about what really matters to you...
I need to know whether I should hire you, but just as importantly I need you to make sure my job is a good fit for you.
So I want you to ask lots of questions: What I expect you to accomplish early on, what attributes make our top performers so outstanding, what you can do to truly drive results, how you'll be evaluated--all the things that matter to you and to me and my business.
You know what makes work meaningful and enjoyable to you. I don't. There's no other way to really know whether you want the job unless you ask questions.
6. ...But only if the majority of those questions relate to work.
I know you want a positive work-life balance. Still, save all those questions about vacation sign-up policies and whether it's okay to take an extra half hour at lunch every day if you also stay a half hour late and whether I've considered setting up an in-house childcare facility because that would be really awesome for you and your family.
First let's find out if you're the right person for the job, and whether the tasks, responsibilities, duties, etc. are right for you.
Then we can talk about the rest.
7. I love when you bring a "project."
I expect you to do a little research about my company. That's not impressive; that's a given.
To really impress me, tell me how you will hit the ground running and contribute right away--the bigger the impact the better. If you bring a specific skill, show how I can leverage that skill immediately.
Remember how I see it: I have to pay you starting day one, so I'd love to see an immediate return starting day one.
8. I want you to ask for the job... and I want to know why.
By the end of the interview you should have a good sense of whether you want the job. If you need more information, say so. Let's figure out how to get you what you need to make a decision.
If you don't need more information, do what great salespeople do and ask for the job. I'll like the fact you asked. I want you to really want the job--but I also want to know why you want the job.
So tell me why: You thrive in an unsupervised role, or you love working with multiple teams, or you like frequent travel. Ask me for the job and prove to me, objectively, that it's a great fit for you.
9. I want you to follow up... especially if it's genuine.
Every interviewer appreciates a brief follow-up note. If nothing else, saying you enjoyed meeting me and are happy to answer any other questions, is nice.
But "nice" may not separate you from the pack.
What I really like is when you follow up based on something we discussed. Maybe we talked about data collection techniques, so you send me information about a set of tools you strongly recommend. Maybe we talked about quality, so you send me a process checklist you developed that I could adapt to use in my company.
Or maybe we both like cycling, so you send me a photo of you on your bike in front of the sign at the top of the Col du Tourmalet (and I'm totally jealous).
The more closely you listened during the interview, the easier it is to think of ways to follow up in a natural and unforced way.
Remember, we're starting a relationship--and even the most professional of relationships are based on genuine interactions.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/9-things-you-wish-you-could-say-to-job-candidates.html
Multiple access points for the same SSID? (Multi-AP Roaming Network Background)
I need to upgrade my existing wireless infrastructure and
this time I want 2 access points to cover my house, since I get blind
spots no matter what with a single AP, I have physical cabling to my
central network available for both access points.
But I would really like these two to interoperate seamlessly as a single SSID. How do I do this and what are the features the new AP's I'm buying need to support? (Product recommendations are welcome.)
But I would really like these two to interoperate seamlessly as a single SSID. How do I do this and what are the features the new AP's I'm buying need to support? (Product recommendations are welcome.)
Multi-AP Roaming Network Background
There's no magic to making multiple-AP (roaming) 802.11 networks work. Wireless clients just assume that all APs with the same SSID are configured similarly and are all just different points of access to the same underlying wired network. A client will scan all channels looking for APs publishing the SSID it wants, and will pick whichever one suits it needs best (usually that means whichever one shows the highest signal strength).Once on the network, clients stay with the same AP as long as it's meeting the client's needs (i.e. as long as it's signal strength is above a "good enough" threshold). If the client later thinks it could be better off with another AP on that network, it'll do periodic scans of all channels looking for other APs publishing that SSID. If a scan turns up a candidate AP that's enough better than the AP it's currently on, it'll automatically roam to the other AP, usually without so much as a missed frame.
Assuming both APs are configured similarly and are connected to the same underlying network, roaming is seamless and invisible to the user (except nerds like me who run tools to watch for these things). Roaming events are invisible to applications using the network, although some low-level parts of the network stack might be notified of the event, so that, for example, your DHCP client can double-check that this new AP really is connected to the same network, so it can be sure your DHCP lease is still valid on this network.
Some other users' Answers and Comments on this question erroneously suggested that wireless protocols or features like wireless relay or WDS might be needed for roaming, but this is absolutely incorrect. Those features are just ways to replace a wired Ethernet backhaul with a wireless one.
For the sake of completeness, I should mention that there is a set of technologies, some proprietary, some standardized in IEEE 802.11F, known generally as Inter-Access Point Protocol. IAPP is a method by which generally enterprise-class APs can communicate with each other over the backhaul to optimize client roaming. But that's just an optimization, not a prerequisite for roaming. Roaming works "well enough" on networks both small and large without any IAPP going on.
Configuration Suggestions
Give both APs the same network name (SSID), the same security type (WPA2-PSK recommended), and the same wireless security passphrase. Many clients assume that these kinds of settings will be the same across all APs with the same SSID.Since you already have the cabling in place, use wired Ethernet as your backhaul. This saves your wireless bandwidth for your portable/mobile devices that actually need it, instead of wasting in on stationary devices like APs that could reasonably be cabled up.
If you have another device on the network, such as a broadband home gateway, providing NAT and DHCP service, then put both APs in bridge mode (turn off NAT and DHCP service). You generally only want one box on your network acting as a NAT gateway or serving DHCP. If you don't already have another device on your network doing NAT and DHCP, and you need those services, then you can have one of your APs do it. Have the more "upstream" AP (the one that's closer, topologically, to your broadband modem) do NAT and DHCP, and make sure that the wired Ethernet connection to the other AP comes from the first AP's LAN port. Also make sure that the "downstream" AP is in bridge mode. I call this out because I've seen people make the mistake of leaving NAT and DHCP enabled on both their APs, and I've seen clients that aren't smart enough to realize that, say, the 192.168.1.x/24 network they're on now is not the same 192.168.1.x/24 network they were on a moment ago in the other room. I've also seen users get confused in this situation where two laptops in the same house had 192.168.1.x addresses, but couldn't ping each other because they really on two separate IP networks behind two separate NATs.
Channel is one key setting you do want to vary from AP to AP in a roaming (multiple AP) 802.11 network. To maximize bandwidth, leave your APs to automatically select the channel to use, or you can manually pick different, non-overlapping, and hopefully unoccupied channels to use. You don't want transmissions to/from one AP to compete for bandwidth with transmissions to/from the other AP.
Additional Considerations
The rest of this answer is just a bunch of general "how to maximize your home 802.11 network bandwidth" tips, not specific to your question of two APs with the same SSID.Consider taking this opportunity to fully modernize
If you're already buying a new AP and taking the time to reconfigure things, I'd recommend using this opportunity to replace your existing AP as well, by buying two of the latest APs that support simultaneous dual-band 802.11n technology. That way you can support both the 2.4GHz band for older clients that are 2.4GHz only, as well as the less busy 5GHz band for more bandwidth. It's becoming a "best practice" to set your 2.4GHz 802.11n radio to 20MHz (HT20) channels so that it leaves some of the band free for things like Bluetooth to use. This limits your 802.11n transmission rates in 2.4GHz to ~130mbps instead of 300mbps, but allows other non-802.11 2.4GHz devices to still work okay. In 5GHz, where there are many more channels available and they're all generally much less busy, you're encouraged to use 40MHz (HT40) channels to get maximum throughput.I know that Apple's latest AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule (but not AirPort Express) are simultaneous dual-band 802.11n, and they also support 3-stream (a.k.a. "3x3") 802.11n, for transmission rates up to 450mbps
If you're stuck with older single-band-at-a-time APs
If you don't need to support any older 2.4GHz-only devices, use the 5GHz band since it is generally less busy, and you can use HT40 without starving Bluetooth and other uses.If you're stuck supporting 2.4GHz-only devices with single-band-at-a-time APs, be careful of your channel selection. In the 2.4GHz band, the channels overlap to a great degree. However, channels 1, 6, and 11 don't overlap at all, so those are good choices to pick manually. You could use a Wi-Fi network scanner like NetStumbler, iStumbler, many "war driving" tools, etc. to see which channels are in use by other APs visible from where you are. If you suspect you have non-802.11 2.4GHz interferers in your area, such as Bluetooth, microwave ovens, and many (but not all) cordless phones, baby monitors, wireless webcams, and wireless room-to-room A/V senders, you could go all-out and get a spectrum analyzer like a Metageek Wi-Spy to find which channels are the least noisy where you are.
http://superuser.com/questions/122441/multiple-access-points-for-the-same-ssid
10/2/12
3 Employees You Need To Fire. Now
You know the saying: Hire slow, fire fast. Here are the people you need to get rid of, right now.
There’s no more challenging job than being the person who has to fire people. Everyone else gets to talk about what a tight-knit, stick-together group the company is (just like a “family” of friends), but you’re the one who has to deliver the bad news over and over again. It’s not easy or always popular to be the boss, but then good leadership isn’t a popularity contest. If you were unpopular in high school, you’re already one step ahead of the game.
But the fact is, your company is only as good as its weakest employee. Here are the folks you need to fire - sooner rather than later.
No effort, no heart Sometimes it’s a breeze. We try to immediately fire any employee who doesn’t try or doesn’t care. These are the cardinal sins in a start-up, so there isn’t much angst in letting these folks go. Then the job gets harder.
All effort, no results The next tier of troublesome employees are those who try hard but just cannot do the job. They are totally sincere, but incapable (or no longer capable) of doing the job that needs to get done. There are good people who are perfectly able to do a job poorly for a very long time before anyone has the time, interest, or guts to ask the hard questions about results rather than effort. These people need to go too, but you need to be fair and firm with them. Do them a real favor and tell them the truth.
Poor fit Then there are the employees who are basically hard-working and dedicated, but who (for better or worse) can’t fit into the corporate culture. Every business that I’ve been involved with has ultimately been about hard work mixed with a healthy dose of paranoia. We had lots of ways to reflect this ethic and plenty of signs all over the place. “Hard work conquers everything.” “Effort can trump ability.” “Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean that someone's not out to get you.” And so on. And almost everyone we hired got the message and drank the Kool-Aid. Even the people who just wanted a “job” pretty much worked their butts off.
But every so often, we’d hire someone who was just too healthy and well-adjusted to succeed among our tribe of crazies. We used to say that a relaxed man is not necessarily a better man. In one business, our internal motto was “let our sickness work for you.” It turned out that it was important to let the other people see you sweat even the smallest details. That way, they knew you cared. If you weren’t just a little bit crazy about the work and the business, you were slightly suspect or worse.
I remember one former employee who wrote me a long letter asking for a more complete explanation of why he didn’t succeed with us. Here is part of what I wrote:
Our company is [on] a very fast track, run by a bunch of workaholic perfectionists. We all believe that that’s what it takes to win against pretty fierce odds. And this is simply not the right place for everyone - especially people who want to have a family, outside interests and a normal life. I think it’s very likely that you’re simply too nice and too well-adjusted to work with the crazies around here and that’s shame on us - not you. But it’s the way things are. We wish you all the best.
Ultimately, all of these situations come down to a basic choice. You can make one person miserable when they lose their job, or you can end up with a crappy company where everyone’s miserable because you don’t have the guts to do the right things for the business. Once you start to carry people along who aren’t performing, you take a tremendous double hit. Yes, you pay the price for the poor performer’s activities, but that’s nothing compared to the real harm. As soon as you fail to consistently fire non-performers, you start to lose your best people. That’s what kills the company.
http://www.inc.com/howard-tullman/three-employees-you-need-to-fire-now.html
There’s no more challenging job than being the person who has to fire people. Everyone else gets to talk about what a tight-knit, stick-together group the company is (just like a “family” of friends), but you’re the one who has to deliver the bad news over and over again. It’s not easy or always popular to be the boss, but then good leadership isn’t a popularity contest. If you were unpopular in high school, you’re already one step ahead of the game.
But the fact is, your company is only as good as its weakest employee. Here are the folks you need to fire - sooner rather than later.
No effort, no heart Sometimes it’s a breeze. We try to immediately fire any employee who doesn’t try or doesn’t care. These are the cardinal sins in a start-up, so there isn’t much angst in letting these folks go. Then the job gets harder.
All effort, no results The next tier of troublesome employees are those who try hard but just cannot do the job. They are totally sincere, but incapable (or no longer capable) of doing the job that needs to get done. There are good people who are perfectly able to do a job poorly for a very long time before anyone has the time, interest, or guts to ask the hard questions about results rather than effort. These people need to go too, but you need to be fair and firm with them. Do them a real favor and tell them the truth.
Poor fit Then there are the employees who are basically hard-working and dedicated, but who (for better or worse) can’t fit into the corporate culture. Every business that I’ve been involved with has ultimately been about hard work mixed with a healthy dose of paranoia. We had lots of ways to reflect this ethic and plenty of signs all over the place. “Hard work conquers everything.” “Effort can trump ability.” “Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean that someone's not out to get you.” And so on. And almost everyone we hired got the message and drank the Kool-Aid. Even the people who just wanted a “job” pretty much worked their butts off.
But every so often, we’d hire someone who was just too healthy and well-adjusted to succeed among our tribe of crazies. We used to say that a relaxed man is not necessarily a better man. In one business, our internal motto was “let our sickness work for you.” It turned out that it was important to let the other people see you sweat even the smallest details. That way, they knew you cared. If you weren’t just a little bit crazy about the work and the business, you were slightly suspect or worse.
I remember one former employee who wrote me a long letter asking for a more complete explanation of why he didn’t succeed with us. Here is part of what I wrote:
Our company is [on] a very fast track, run by a bunch of workaholic perfectionists. We all believe that that’s what it takes to win against pretty fierce odds. And this is simply not the right place for everyone - especially people who want to have a family, outside interests and a normal life. I think it’s very likely that you’re simply too nice and too well-adjusted to work with the crazies around here and that’s shame on us - not you. But it’s the way things are. We wish you all the best.
Ultimately, all of these situations come down to a basic choice. You can make one person miserable when they lose their job, or you can end up with a crappy company where everyone’s miserable because you don’t have the guts to do the right things for the business. Once you start to carry people along who aren’t performing, you take a tremendous double hit. Yes, you pay the price for the poor performer’s activities, but that’s nothing compared to the real harm. As soon as you fail to consistently fire non-performers, you start to lose your best people. That’s what kills the company.
http://www.inc.com/howard-tullman/three-employees-you-need-to-fire-now.html
10/1/12
Sending mail from Excel with CDO
What is CDO doing
The example code is using CDOSYS (CDO for Windows 2000).
It does not depend on MAPI or CDO and hence is dialog free
and does not use your mail program to send email.
Briefly to explain, this code builds the message and drops it
in the pickup directory, and SMTP service running on the machine
picks it up and send it out to the internet.
Why using CDO code instead of Outlook automation or SendMail in VBA.
1: It doesn't matter what Mail program you are using (It only use the SMTP server).
2: It doesn't matter what Office version you are using (97…2007)
3: You can send a range/sheet in the body of the mail (some mail programs can’t do this)
4: You can send any file you like (Word, PDF, PowerPoint, TXT files,….)
5: No Security warnings anymore, really great if you are sending a lot of mail in a loop.
Read this!!!
This code will not work in Win 98 and ME.
You must be connected to the internet when you run a example.
It is possible that you get a Send error when you use one of the examples.
AFAIK : This will happen if you haven't setup an account in Outlook Express or Windows Mail.
In that case the system doesn't know the name of your SMTP server.
If this happens you can use the commented green lines in each example.
Don't forget to fill in the SMTP server name in each code sample where
it says "Fill in your SMTP server here"
When you also get the Authentication Required Error you can add this three lines.
.Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/smtpauthenticate") = 1
.Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/sendusername") = "username"
.Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/sendpassword") = "password"
Don't remove the TextBody line in the code. If you do you can't open the attachment (bug in CDO).
If you don't want to have text in the body use this then .TextBody = ""
Note: It is always possible that your firewall block the code (Check your firewall settings)
Can you use CDO on your machine?
Let's try a basic example first.
The code below will send four text lines in the body of the mail to the person in this line
.To = "ron@debruin.nl"
Change ron@debruin.nl to your own mail address before you test the code.
If you read the information above you know that if you have a account in Outlook Express or
Windows Mail you can Run the code below after changing the mail address.
But if you not have a account in Outlook Express or Windows Mail you also need the commented
green lines in the code. Remove every ' before every green line and fill in the name of your SMTP server
where it says "Fill in your SMTP server here"
1) Open a new workbook
2) Alt F11 (to open the VBA editor)
3) Insert>Module
4) Paste the code in this module
5) Make your changes
6) Alt q to go back to Excel
When you use Alt F8 you can select the macro and press Run.
Now wait a moment and see if you receive the mail in your inbox.
Note: If you get this error : The transport failed to connect to the server
then try to change the SMTP port from 25 to 465
Use the GMail SMTP server from Google.
http://gmail.google.com
You can find the code in the workbook with examples that you can download below.
There is more information about the code in the workbook.
Note: You must have a Gmail account to try this example.
Download workbook with more examples
You can download a example workbook with eighth examples.
Download Example workbook with all the code
Attachment examples:
Module file1 = Workbook
Module file2 = One worksheet or more
Module file3 = Every sheet with a mail address in cell A1
Body examples:
Module body1 = Selection/Range or whole worksheet
Module body2 = Personalized Mail
Module body3 = Every sheet with a mail address in cell A1
Module body4 = Small text and text from a txt file
Note: the body examples in the workbook are using the function RangetoHTML in
the "bodyfunction" module of the workbook.
Gmail example:
Module gmail = Use the smtp.gmail.com server from Gmail to send mail
Tips and links
CDO sheet template
Check out this sheet template if you want to send every sheet to a different person.
Or want to send one or more sheets to one or more recipient.
http://www.rondebruin.nl/mail/templates.htm
Set importance/priority and request read receipt
For importance/priority and read receipt you can add this in the With iMsg part of the macro before .Send
' Set importance or Priority to high
.Fields("urn:schemas:httpmail:importance") = 2
.Fields("urn:schemas:mailheader:X-Priority") = 1
' Request read receipt
.Fields("urn:schemas:mailheader:return-receipt-to") = "ron@debruin.nl"
.Fields("urn:schemas:mailheader:disposition-notification-to") = "ron@debruin.nl"
' Update fields
.Fields.Update
Changing the To line
If you want to mail to all E-mail addresses in a range then use this code
instead of .To = "ron@debruin.nl"
The example below will use the cells from sheets("Sheet1") in ThisWorkbook (workbook with the code)
It is possible that you must use ActiveWorkbook or something else in your code to use it.
Change the To line to .To = strto
Or to more people
.To = "Jon@something.com;ron@something.com"
Or you can use a address in a cell like this
.To = Sheets("Sheet1").Range("C1").Value
Change the Body line
Plain text :
Note: see also the example in the workbook to send all text from a txt file (Module body4)
If you want to add more text to the body then you can use the code below.
Instead of .TextBody = "This is the body text" use .TextBody = strbody then.
Dim strbody As String
strbody = "Hi there" & vbNewLine & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 1" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 2" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 3" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 4"
Or use this if you want to use cell values
Dim cell As Range
Dim strbody As String
For Each cell In Sheets("Sheet1").Range("C1:C20")
strbody = strbody & cell.Value & vbNewLine
Next
Or this one
Dim strbody As String
With Sheets("Sheet1")
strbody = "Hi there" & vbNewLine & vbNewLine & _
.Range("A1") & vbNewLine & _
.Range("A2") & vbNewLine & _
.Range("A3") & vbNewLine & _
.Range("A4")
End With
Links
.TextBody = "file://Yourcomputer/YourFolder/Week2.xls"
'If there are spaces use %20
.TextBody = "file://Yourcomputer/YourFolder/Week%202.xls"
'Example for a file on a website
.TextBody = "http://www.rondebruin.nl/files/EasyFilter.zip"
HTML text :
If you want to create emails that are formatted you can use HTMLBody (Office 2000 and up) instead of TextBody. You can find a lot of WebPages on the internet with more HTML tags examples.
.HTMLBody = "
"Please visit this website to download an update.
" & _
"Ron's Excel Page"
Tip: Or send a complete webpage, instead of HTMLBody or TextBody use
.CreateMHTMLBody "http://www.rondebruin.nl/copy1.htm"
Or file on your computer
.CreateMHTMLBody "file://C:/test.htm"
Copy the cells as values
If you want to paste as values the sheet must be unprotected!!!!!
Or Unprotect and Protect the sheet in the Sub also.
See this page for example code that you can use
http://www.rondebruin.nl/values.htm
Test if you are online
You can use code like this in your subroutine to avoid errors if you run the code
when you are not online (example below is for a dial up connection)
For checking other connections check out this great website.
http://vbnet.mvps.org/
Links to more information about CDO for windows 2000
MSDN
Search for "CDO for Windows 2000" on MSDN
Paul R. Sadowski
http://www.paulsadowski.com/WSH/cdo.htm
www.aspfaq.com
http://www.aspfaq.com/show.asp?id=2026
http://www.rondebruin.nl/cdo.htm
The example code is using CDOSYS (CDO for Windows 2000).
It does not depend on MAPI or CDO and hence is dialog free
and does not use your mail program to send email.
Briefly to explain, this code builds the message and drops it
in the pickup directory, and SMTP service running on the machine
picks it up and send it out to the internet.
Why using CDO code instead of Outlook automation or SendMail in VBA.
1: It doesn't matter what Mail program you are using (It only use the SMTP server).
2: It doesn't matter what Office version you are using (97…2007)
3: You can send a range/sheet in the body of the mail (some mail programs can’t do this)
4: You can send any file you like (Word, PDF, PowerPoint, TXT files,….)
5: No Security warnings anymore, really great if you are sending a lot of mail in a loop.
Read this!!!
This code will not work in Win 98 and ME.
You must be connected to the internet when you run a example.
It is possible that you get a Send error when you use one of the examples.
AFAIK : This will happen if you haven't setup an account in Outlook Express or Windows Mail.
In that case the system doesn't know the name of your SMTP server.
If this happens you can use the commented green lines in each example.
Don't forget to fill in the SMTP server name in each code sample where
it says "Fill in your SMTP server here"
When you also get the Authentication Required Error you can add this three lines.
.Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/smtpauthenticate") = 1
.Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/sendusername") = "username"
.Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/sendpassword") = "password"
Don't remove the TextBody line in the code. If you do you can't open the attachment (bug in CDO).
If you don't want to have text in the body use this then .TextBody = ""
Note: It is always possible that your firewall block the code (Check your firewall settings)
Can you use CDO on your machine?
Let's try a basic example first.
The code below will send four text lines in the body of the mail to the person in this line
.To = "ron@debruin.nl"
Change ron@debruin.nl to your own mail address before you test the code.
If you read the information above you know that if you have a account in Outlook Express or
Windows Mail you can Run the code below after changing the mail address.
But if you not have a account in Outlook Express or Windows Mail you also need the commented
green lines in the code. Remove every ' before every green line and fill in the name of your SMTP server
where it says "Fill in your SMTP server here"
1) Open a new workbook
2) Alt F11 (to open the VBA editor)
3) Insert>Module
4) Paste the code in this module
5) Make your changes
6) Alt q to go back to Excel
When you use Alt F8 you can select the macro and press Run.
Now wait a moment and see if you receive the mail in your inbox.
Sub CDO_Mail_Small_Text()
Dim iMsg As Object
Dim iConf As Object
Dim strbody As String
' Dim Flds As Variant
Set iMsg = CreateObject("CDO.Message")
Set iConf = CreateObject("CDO.Configuration")
' iConf.Load -1 ' CDO Source Defaults
' Set Flds = iConf.Fields
' With Flds
' .Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/sendusing") = 2
' .Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/smtpserver") _
' = "Fill in your SMTP server here"
' .Item("http://schemas.microsoft.com/cdo/configuration/smtpserverport") = 25
' .Update
' End With
strbody = "Hi there" & vbNewLine & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 1" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 2" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 3" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 4"
With iMsg
Set .Configuration = iConf
.To = "ron@debruin.nl"
.CC = ""
.BCC = ""
.From = """Ron"" "
.Subject = "New figures"
.TextBody = strbody
.Send
End With
End Sub
Note: If you get this error : The transport failed to connect to the server
then try to change the SMTP port from 25 to 465
Use the GMail SMTP server from Google.
http://gmail.google.com
You can find the code in the workbook with examples that you can download below.
There is more information about the code in the workbook.
Note: You must have a Gmail account to try this example.
Download workbook with more examples
You can download a example workbook with eighth examples.
Download Example workbook with all the code
Attachment examples:
Module file1 = Workbook
Module file2 = One worksheet or more
Module file3 = Every sheet with a mail address in cell A1
Body examples:
Module body1 = Selection/Range or whole worksheet
Module body2 = Personalized Mail
Module body3 = Every sheet with a mail address in cell A1
Module body4 = Small text and text from a txt file
Note: the body examples in the workbook are using the function RangetoHTML in
the "bodyfunction" module of the workbook.
Gmail example:
Module gmail = Use the smtp.gmail.com server from Gmail to send mail
Tips and links
CDO sheet template
Check out this sheet template if you want to send every sheet to a different person.
Or want to send one or more sheets to one or more recipient.
http://www.rondebruin.nl/mail/templates.htm
Set importance/priority and request read receipt
For importance/priority and read receipt you can add this in the With iMsg part of the macro before .Send
' Set importance or Priority to high
.Fields("urn:schemas:httpmail:importance") = 2
.Fields("urn:schemas:mailheader:X-Priority") = 1
' Request read receipt
.Fields("urn:schemas:mailheader:return-receipt-to") = "ron@debruin.nl"
.Fields("urn:schemas:mailheader:disposition-notification-to") = "ron@debruin.nl"
' Update fields
.Fields.Update
Changing the To line
If you want to mail to all E-mail addresses in a range then use this code
instead of .To = "ron@debruin.nl"
The example below will use the cells from sheets("Sheet1") in ThisWorkbook (workbook with the code)
It is possible that you must use ActiveWorkbook or something else in your code to use it.
Dim cell As Range
Dim strto As String
On Error Resume Next
For Each cell In ThisWorkbook.Sheets("Sheet1") _
.Range("A1:A10").Cells.SpecialCells(xlCellTypeConstants)
If cell.Value Like "?*@?*.?*" Then
strto = strto & cell.Value & ";"
End If
Next cell
On Error GoTo 0
If Len(strto) > 0 Then strto = Left(strto, Len(strto) - 1)
Change the To line to .To = strto
Or to more people
.To = "Jon@something.com;ron@something.com"
Or you can use a address in a cell like this
.To = Sheets("Sheet1").Range("C1").Value
Change the Body line
Plain text :
Note: see also the example in the workbook to send all text from a txt file (Module body4)
If you want to add more text to the body then you can use the code below.
Instead of .TextBody = "This is the body text" use .TextBody = strbody then.
Dim strbody As String
strbody = "Hi there" & vbNewLine & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 1" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 2" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 3" & vbNewLine & _
"This is line 4"
Or use this if you want to use cell values
Dim cell As Range
Dim strbody As String
For Each cell In Sheets("Sheet1").Range("C1:C20")
strbody = strbody & cell.Value & vbNewLine
Next
Or this one
Dim strbody As String
With Sheets("Sheet1")
strbody = "Hi there" & vbNewLine & vbNewLine & _
.Range("A1") & vbNewLine & _
.Range("A2") & vbNewLine & _
.Range("A3") & vbNewLine & _
.Range("A4")
End With
Links
.TextBody = "file://Yourcomputer/YourFolder/Week2.xls"
'If there are spaces use %20
.TextBody = "file://Yourcomputer/YourFolder/Week%202.xls"
'Example for a file on a website
.TextBody = "http://www.rondebruin.nl/files/EasyFilter.zip"
HTML text :
If you want to create emails that are formatted you can use HTMLBody (Office 2000 and up) instead of TextBody. You can find a lot of WebPages on the internet with more HTML tags examples.
.HTMLBody = "
Dear Ron de Bruin
" & _"Please visit this website to download an update.
" & _
"Ron's Excel Page"
Tip: Or send a complete webpage, instead of HTMLBody or TextBody use
.CreateMHTMLBody "http://www.rondebruin.nl/copy1.htm"
Or file on your computer
.CreateMHTMLBody "file://C:/test.htm"
Copy the cells as values
If you want to paste as values the sheet must be unprotected!!!!!
Or Unprotect and Protect the sheet in the Sub also.
See this page for example code that you can use
http://www.rondebruin.nl/values.htm
Test if you are online
You can use code like this in your subroutine to avoid errors if you run the code
when you are not online (example below is for a dial up connection)
For checking other connections check out this great website.
http://vbnet.mvps.org/
Public Declare Function InternetGetConnectedState _
Lib "wininet.dll" (lpdwFlags As Long, _
ByVal dwReserved As Long) As Boolean
Function IsConnected() As Boolean
Dim Stat As Long
IsConnected = (InternetGetConnectedState(Stat, 0&) <> 0)
End Function
Sub Test()
' Randy Birch
If IsConnected = True Then
MsgBox "Copy your mail code here"
Else
MsgBox "You can't use this subroutine because you are not online"
End If
End Sub
Links to more information about CDO for windows 2000
MSDN
Search for "CDO for Windows 2000" on MSDN
Paul R. Sadowski
http://www.paulsadowski.com/WSH/cdo.htm
www.aspfaq.com
http://www.aspfaq.com/show.asp?id=2026
http://www.rondebruin.nl/cdo.htm
9/29/12
7 Ways to Earn Respect as a Leader
Are you feeling disrespected by your employees? It may be that you're failing in one of these seven areas.
Do you wonder why some people naturally gain respect, while others have to command or, worse, demand it?
Earning respect is in direct correlation to treating others with the same. Showing respect sounds like a basic skill, and yet somehow complaints about being disrespected run rampant around coffee rooms and bathrooms in companies around the country.
Are parents and teachers shirking their responsibility for turning everyone into good little citizens that can play well with others? Perhaps, but more likely, cultural norms have changed. Families allow for greater familiarity, and schools are more focused on test scores and class sizes than they are on teaching little Johnny and Susie to stand out as leaders.
But whether you are the executive in charge or a contributing team member, your ability to earn respect will impact your emotional happiness and ultimate career trajectory. Some people in authority believe they are entitled to respect simply due to their position or experience, but this sort of respect diminishes over time and can ultimately hurt the company culture.
Here are seven tips to help you be the leader who earns respect rather than just demands it.
1. Be consistent.
If you find you lack credibility, it's probably because you are saying one thing and doing another. People do pay attention to what you say until you give them reason not to by doing the opposite. You don't have to be predictable, just don't be a hypocrite.
2. Be punctual.
Nothing makes me lose respect for someone more then being made to wait. Time is the most valuable commodity for successful people. Missing appointments or being late demonstrates a total disregard for the lives and needs of others. Get control of your calendar.
3. Be responsive.
The challenge with contact management today is there are too many ways to communicate. Between Twitter, Facebook, Messenger, text, phone, Skype, and Facetime, people are in a quandary to know what is the best way to reach you. And even with all the channels, some people still don't respond in a timely manner, leaving colleagues hanging or chasing them. Limit your channels and respond within 24 hours if you want to appear communication worthy.
4. Be right much of the time, but be comfortable being wrong.
The simple way to be right is to do your homework and state facts that are well thought out. Still, you may have to make a best guess now and then even when information is too scarce to know for sure. Take it as a qualified risk, manage expectations, and if you're wrong, smile and be happy you learned something that day.
5. Forgive others and yourself for mistakes.
If you're not erring, you're not trying. Healthy leaders encourage experimentation and create environments of safe failure. Encourage people to take mitigated risks, and set an example for how to shake off a failure and bounce back.
6. Show respect to others when they are wrong and right.
Disparaging people who make errors will reflect worse on you than those who err. On the flip side, any jealous tendencies toward those who succeed will surely be noticed by those around. Live as if in a glass body. Assume all can see inside your heart.
7. Help those who are holding you back, but not too much.
Good leaders help those around them succeed by overcoming weakness. But respect is lost quickly for the boss who placates habitual troublemakers at the expense of the group's success. Know when to support weak players, and cut them loose when they clearly hamper the result.
Too many people today assume leadership positions without consideration for their impact on others. The leadership vacuum in business today allows them to stay as long they manage acceptable results. Ultimately, your personal leadership legacy will not be remembered for your M.B.A., your sales numbers, or the toys you acquired. Most likely, it will be the positive, personal impact you created, one follower at a time.
http://www.inc.com/kevin-daum/7-ways-to-earn-respect-as-a-leader.html
9/21/12
Don't Just Buy Local, Buy Personal
Buying local is great, but to really support local entrepreneurs, go one step farther and buy personal.
A small business near me closed down. I feel terrible because it's partly my fault.
Every entrepreneur has big dreams. Many have small budgets, though, so they do the best they can.
They hope for great word of mouth since they have no marketing budget. They hope quality and service will turn an otherwise terrible location into a destination. They have passion and desire in abundance, and hope hard work and persistence will overcome any roadblocks.
In short, they hope.
And every day, people like me crush their hopes.
Granted in this case I'm only a little to blame. I knew the little clothing store was doomed the day it opened. It seemed obvious, just from driving by, that the owner loves clothing and fashion and hoped to build a business out of that passion, but it seemed just as obvious the business would eventually fail.
We've all seen entrepreneurs open new ventures that we can tell will soon go under. I'm sure you drive by a few every day. (If you're like me you sometimes make a little mental bet on how long they'll stay open. Six months is usually a safe estimate.)
I never stopped in this particular store. While I could say was more convenient to shop elsewhere, the truth is I didn't stop in because I never saw any cars in the parking lot. I was uncomfortable with how I would feel, and how the owner would feel, if I looked around and didn't buy anything.
I would feel guilty. I'm sure you've walked out of a store empty-handed and felt like you somehow let an eager, enthusiastic, bright-eyed owner down.
The owner would feel disappointed. Every business is an extension of its owner, and when a business is struggling perspective is in short supply.
You know you won't make every sale, of course, but remembering that it's business, not personal, is almost impossible. The customer who doesn't make a purchase in some small way rejects your business... and therefore, by extension, rejects you.
Each potential customer carries the power of validation or rejection.
That's a power I didn't want. But I should have, because I could have made a difference, however small.
Each of us can make that difference. Instead of buying local, go a step further and buy personal.
Put aside price/value calculations and rational market theory and survival of the fittest and take a chance on a new or struggling entrepreneur. Buy a few items from a local mom and pop. Hire the small restaurant down the road to cater a non-critical event. Call a new vendor and ask for a quote.
Sure, you already have established vendor relationships in place, but why not give other small businesses the opportunity to win you over? In the process you may find a great new vendor... or you might not.
But what's the worst that can happen?
You might spend a little more. The meal might not be great. The quote might miss the mark. That's okay. No matter what happens, be gracious. Be complimentary. Say something nice. Say thank you.
Pick a small business and give it a chance. Will you, alone, keep it afloat?
Of course you won't. I couldn't have saved that clothing store. But I could still have made a meaningful, even if momentary, difference.
At the heart of every business is a person with a dream, and few things are sadder than realizing your life will fall short of your dreams.
So stop in. Take a look around. Provide a moment of hope.
A little extra hope may be all that entrepreneur needs to keep going.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/dont-just-buy-local-buy-personal.html
A small business near me closed down. I feel terrible because it's partly my fault.
Every entrepreneur has big dreams. Many have small budgets, though, so they do the best they can.
They hope for great word of mouth since they have no marketing budget. They hope quality and service will turn an otherwise terrible location into a destination. They have passion and desire in abundance, and hope hard work and persistence will overcome any roadblocks.
In short, they hope.
And every day, people like me crush their hopes.
Granted in this case I'm only a little to blame. I knew the little clothing store was doomed the day it opened. It seemed obvious, just from driving by, that the owner loves clothing and fashion and hoped to build a business out of that passion, but it seemed just as obvious the business would eventually fail.
We've all seen entrepreneurs open new ventures that we can tell will soon go under. I'm sure you drive by a few every day. (If you're like me you sometimes make a little mental bet on how long they'll stay open. Six months is usually a safe estimate.)
I never stopped in this particular store. While I could say was more convenient to shop elsewhere, the truth is I didn't stop in because I never saw any cars in the parking lot. I was uncomfortable with how I would feel, and how the owner would feel, if I looked around and didn't buy anything.
I would feel guilty. I'm sure you've walked out of a store empty-handed and felt like you somehow let an eager, enthusiastic, bright-eyed owner down.
The owner would feel disappointed. Every business is an extension of its owner, and when a business is struggling perspective is in short supply.
You know you won't make every sale, of course, but remembering that it's business, not personal, is almost impossible. The customer who doesn't make a purchase in some small way rejects your business... and therefore, by extension, rejects you.
Each potential customer carries the power of validation or rejection.
That's a power I didn't want. But I should have, because I could have made a difference, however small.
Each of us can make that difference. Instead of buying local, go a step further and buy personal.
Put aside price/value calculations and rational market theory and survival of the fittest and take a chance on a new or struggling entrepreneur. Buy a few items from a local mom and pop. Hire the small restaurant down the road to cater a non-critical event. Call a new vendor and ask for a quote.
Sure, you already have established vendor relationships in place, but why not give other small businesses the opportunity to win you over? In the process you may find a great new vendor... or you might not.
But what's the worst that can happen?
You might spend a little more. The meal might not be great. The quote might miss the mark. That's okay. No matter what happens, be gracious. Be complimentary. Say something nice. Say thank you.
Pick a small business and give it a chance. Will you, alone, keep it afloat?
Of course you won't. I couldn't have saved that clothing store. But I could still have made a meaningful, even if momentary, difference.
At the heart of every business is a person with a dream, and few things are sadder than realizing your life will fall short of your dreams.
So stop in. Take a look around. Provide a moment of hope.
A little extra hope may be all that entrepreneur needs to keep going.
http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/dont-just-buy-local-buy-personal.html
9/11/12
How to Manage Managers
When you work for yourself, as most entrepreneurs do, the
notion of "managing" those you have hired to do just that may seem
quaint in light of all the work you need to catch up on. But as the
company you started begins to grow, and you hire more and more people to
fuel that growth, it is a good idea to take a step back from the
day-to-day grind and consider what it might mean to both you and your
company if you devoted some of your time to thinking about how best to
manage your managers. After all, the more people you empower to make
decisions, and that free you up to think more strategically, the faster,
at least in theory, your company can grow.
"Don't fall into the trap of believing that management is an indefinable art," says Ed Muzio, CEO of Group Harmonics, a workplace consulting firm in Albuquerque, New Mexico. "It's not. The key to managing anyone is to set clear performance expectations in advance, and hold the person accountable. That may be more difficult to do for managers than direct workers, but it's no less important."
How does one best managing a manager anyway? Here are some strategies to consider:
Managing Managers: Set the Vision
The first key to managing your managers is to make sure your managers know what they're managing toward.
One way to do this would be sharing clear short-term (one year) and long-term (three- to five-year) business plans, says Jenni Luke, national executive director of the Step Up Women's Network, a national membership organization for women: "This provides measurable goals to achieve in the short term and gives long term vision for the business so that when managers must make decisions independently, they have the proper strategic context in which to make them."
Another approach to aligning your vision with your managers, says Jill Morin, CEO of Kahler Slater, an interdisciplinary design and consulting enterprise in Milwaukee, is to ascertain answers to questions such as:
Managing Managers: Document the Details and Communicate
As a boss, one of your goals should be to make sure that your managers have all the tools necessary to do their jobs well. As part of that, you should make developing an employee handbook, which contains policies on issues like vacation and over-time as well as structured feedback regarding performance a priority. "Having the handbook will help you set expectations with the team before problems arise, and they will arise," Luke says.
Managers need to understand not only the "what" but also the "why" behind any strategic plan," says Morin. That way, they can offer their own ideas on enhancing and executing the plan, and do so without needing your involvement every step of the way.
"Yes, Jack Welch said it first, but you cannot over-communicate the vision, goals, and strategies for the business, especially if your managers are smart, committed, and passionate about achieving success," she says. "And why would you have hired them in the first place if they weren't?"
Bi-weekly individual meetings and bi-weekly team meetings serve the purpose of checking progress against goals but also enable the sharing of best practices and experiences that others on your management team can benefit from, says Luke. Then, supplement these regular meetings with quarterly meetings focused on the bigger picture such as budget, product or program development or long-range planning so that the managers know they will be expected to contribute to this top-level thinking and planning. "Giving your managers the freedom to do the work and engaging them in planning should engender a sense of ownership in the success of the business unit which is exactly what you need," she says.
Managing Managers: Measure Tasks
A key part of knowing how well a manager is doing is to establish straight-forward quantitative measures based on the performance of their team, says Luke, who suggests looking at objective goals set in your business plan such as:
1. A good manager creates short- and long-term goals for all staff.
2. A good manager sets realistic standards and targets to measure progress to plan.
3. A good manager provides specific, objective feedback on an ongoing basis, informing, enlightening and helping staff members improve their performance.
"For managers to succeed, they need time to learn to manage" she says. "And then, once they do, they need to be held accountable for their results."
"When you add all that up, it means that you need to clearly communicate to your manager what you expect them to accomplish through his or her staff," Muzio says. "For example, you might say, 'Your job is to make sure the five people who work for you make 400 widgets each week,' or, if the goals change, 'your job is to make sure each of the five people who works for you has a clear performance target, hits the target, and together those targets roll up to the output goal you and I set together each month. You can vary the structure, but keep the simple focus: Your job is to make sure your people produce what is necessary."
Managing Managers: Manage Behavior
Employees usually don't quit businesses, they quit bosses. That means that while tracking how a team performs quantitatively is critical in evaluating a manager, "it should also be an equal priority to assess qualitative measures of skills such as leadership, strategic thinking, and business development instincts, which can be a far more challenging task," says Luke.
That's why you want your manager to maintain positive, functional relationships, Muzio says. "Don't dismiss expectations about relationships as soft or emotional; they are extremely practical," he says, pointing out that it costs at least two- to three-times an employee's annual salary to find a replacement. "Good interpersonal relationships lead to output consistency and group longevity. A manager who leaves unhappy, dysfunctional relationships in his wake is a manager that will cost you money in employee complaints and turnover."
So how can we actually measure and evaluate to these standards? Waagen suggests tips such as:
1. Look for telltale signs of bad management, such as missed deadlines or unusually high absenteeism or turnover. Chances are, if you do not see these key signs, the manager is doing a pretty good job.
2. Walk around and talk with the manager's direct reports. Are employees engaged and involved? Are they excited by their work? Do they appear to have a clear idea of the specific tasks or projects they need to accomplish and why?
3. Interview employees. Ask them when was the last time they talked with their manager? Probe whether or not they are happy on the job. Their responses can provide terrific feedback.
Managing Managers: Be a Coach, Not a Referee
Even the best managers mess up sometimes, and "people problems" – which are usually brought to your attention when a subordinate comes to you to complain about his or her manager - are often the cause, says Morin of Kahler Slater. She suggests that you resist the temptation to get directly involved or, worse, to fix the problems yourself.
"Instead, use these challenges as opportunities to coach your managers on how to deal with conflict – personally, professionally, and productively – rather than ignore or dismiss it," she says. "Then you can circle back to assess progress."
One of the mistakes any CEO can make is forgetting to look in the mirror. Said another way, keep a close watch on your own behavior as a way to inspire your managers to emulate you, says Marilyn Suttle, a Detroit-based personal and professional development coach. To do that, she suggests asking yourself questions like:
http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/08/how-to-manage-managers.html
"Don't fall into the trap of believing that management is an indefinable art," says Ed Muzio, CEO of Group Harmonics, a workplace consulting firm in Albuquerque, New Mexico. "It's not. The key to managing anyone is to set clear performance expectations in advance, and hold the person accountable. That may be more difficult to do for managers than direct workers, but it's no less important."
How does one best managing a manager anyway? Here are some strategies to consider:
Managing Managers: Set the Vision
The first key to managing your managers is to make sure your managers know what they're managing toward.
One way to do this would be sharing clear short-term (one year) and long-term (three- to five-year) business plans, says Jenni Luke, national executive director of the Step Up Women's Network, a national membership organization for women: "This provides measurable goals to achieve in the short term and gives long term vision for the business so that when managers must make decisions independently, they have the proper strategic context in which to make them."
Another approach to aligning your vision with your managers, says Jill Morin, CEO of Kahler Slater, an interdisciplinary design and consulting enterprise in Milwaukee, is to ascertain answers to questions such as:
- Do they embrace your organization's vision?
- Are they on board with your core beliefs, your values, and your mission?
- Do they have a clear image of what the future holds when the business achieves its vision for success?
Managing Managers: Document the Details and Communicate
As a boss, one of your goals should be to make sure that your managers have all the tools necessary to do their jobs well. As part of that, you should make developing an employee handbook, which contains policies on issues like vacation and over-time as well as structured feedback regarding performance a priority. "Having the handbook will help you set expectations with the team before problems arise, and they will arise," Luke says.
Managers need to understand not only the "what" but also the "why" behind any strategic plan," says Morin. That way, they can offer their own ideas on enhancing and executing the plan, and do so without needing your involvement every step of the way.
"Yes, Jack Welch said it first, but you cannot over-communicate the vision, goals, and strategies for the business, especially if your managers are smart, committed, and passionate about achieving success," she says. "And why would you have hired them in the first place if they weren't?"
Bi-weekly individual meetings and bi-weekly team meetings serve the purpose of checking progress against goals but also enable the sharing of best practices and experiences that others on your management team can benefit from, says Luke. Then, supplement these regular meetings with quarterly meetings focused on the bigger picture such as budget, product or program development or long-range planning so that the managers know they will be expected to contribute to this top-level thinking and planning. "Giving your managers the freedom to do the work and engaging them in planning should engender a sense of ownership in the success of the business unit which is exactly what you need," she says.
Managing Managers: Measure Tasks
A key part of knowing how well a manager is doing is to establish straight-forward quantitative measures based on the performance of their team, says Luke, who suggests looking at objective goals set in your business plan such as:
- Is your manager achieving revenue targets?
- Are they operating on budget?
- Have they developed new customers?
1. A good manager creates short- and long-term goals for all staff.
2. A good manager sets realistic standards and targets to measure progress to plan.
3. A good manager provides specific, objective feedback on an ongoing basis, informing, enlightening and helping staff members improve their performance.
"For managers to succeed, they need time to learn to manage" she says. "And then, once they do, they need to be held accountable for their results."
"When you add all that up, it means that you need to clearly communicate to your manager what you expect them to accomplish through his or her staff," Muzio says. "For example, you might say, 'Your job is to make sure the five people who work for you make 400 widgets each week,' or, if the goals change, 'your job is to make sure each of the five people who works for you has a clear performance target, hits the target, and together those targets roll up to the output goal you and I set together each month. You can vary the structure, but keep the simple focus: Your job is to make sure your people produce what is necessary."
Managing Managers: Manage Behavior
Employees usually don't quit businesses, they quit bosses. That means that while tracking how a team performs quantitatively is critical in evaluating a manager, "it should also be an equal priority to assess qualitative measures of skills such as leadership, strategic thinking, and business development instincts, which can be a far more challenging task," says Luke.
That's why you want your manager to maintain positive, functional relationships, Muzio says. "Don't dismiss expectations about relationships as soft or emotional; they are extremely practical," he says, pointing out that it costs at least two- to three-times an employee's annual salary to find a replacement. "Good interpersonal relationships lead to output consistency and group longevity. A manager who leaves unhappy, dysfunctional relationships in his wake is a manager that will cost you money in employee complaints and turnover."
So how can we actually measure and evaluate to these standards? Waagen suggests tips such as:
1. Look for telltale signs of bad management, such as missed deadlines or unusually high absenteeism or turnover. Chances are, if you do not see these key signs, the manager is doing a pretty good job.
2. Walk around and talk with the manager's direct reports. Are employees engaged and involved? Are they excited by their work? Do they appear to have a clear idea of the specific tasks or projects they need to accomplish and why?
3. Interview employees. Ask them when was the last time they talked with their manager? Probe whether or not they are happy on the job. Their responses can provide terrific feedback.
Managing Managers: Be a Coach, Not a Referee
Even the best managers mess up sometimes, and "people problems" – which are usually brought to your attention when a subordinate comes to you to complain about his or her manager - are often the cause, says Morin of Kahler Slater. She suggests that you resist the temptation to get directly involved or, worse, to fix the problems yourself.
"Instead, use these challenges as opportunities to coach your managers on how to deal with conflict – personally, professionally, and productively – rather than ignore or dismiss it," she says. "Then you can circle back to assess progress."
One of the mistakes any CEO can make is forgetting to look in the mirror. Said another way, keep a close watch on your own behavior as a way to inspire your managers to emulate you, says Marilyn Suttle, a Detroit-based personal and professional development coach. To do that, she suggests asking yourself questions like:
- Do you shy away from conflict?
- Do you demand and force rather than encourage and inspire?
- Do you ask questions and solicit input from others in the company?
http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/08/how-to-manage-managers.html
9/6/12
5 Power Questions for Your Sales Team
Smart questions bring in good answers. If you want to know what's really
going on at your company, make sure you're asking the right ones.
Your interactions with your sales team have an obvious impact on business--and the questions you ask can enhance or degrade your company's performance.
By asking the right questions, and then carefully listening to the answers, an astute leader can influence and gain insight into an employee's business competence and morale, as well as a team's overall effectiveness. As a bonus, you'll enrich morale by showing your sales team you understand their key concerns.
Here are five smart questions that can give you a deeper understanding of employees, the business, and the competitive marketplace.
1. What is the biggest obstacle to adding new customers?
Reps are cautious to court new accounts if they believe the company will not be able to service them effectively. So the answers to this question can reveal operational issues, such as a lengthy procedure for setting up new accounts or order processing problems within your company.
On the other hand, if you get the answer, "Only my lack of time," that's good news: It says that all systems are in good order and that morale is likely high.
2. What is working and what isn't?
Such open-ended questions will quickly identify chronic complainers as well as uncover significant problems. When asking this question, be prepared for fix-it requests that may or may not be valid, such as, "We need more samples," "Delivery is too slow," or "We are not competitive." You may need to do some digging to find out whether the problems really need solving.
Most importantly, answers to this question communicate morale. If the responses suggest that little or nothing is working, then you have a morale issue. That's a sales killer, and a leader should uncover and fix causative issues.
3. What are your most (and least) significant opportunities
The answers to this question indicate where a sales team is focusing its attention. The answers may signal that a sales team is operating contrary to company plans--perhaps spending time on a product or service that is not in the company's best interest, for instance. You may also uncover an opportunity that management has not previously identified.
4. If you had a magic wand and could fix one problem, what would it be?
This question forces a targeted answer to avoid a rambling discussion. A wise leader will ask why an employee picked a particular answer, and follow up by soliciting suggestions to correct it.
While the specific answer may give you additional insight into business challenges, it's the suggestions that indicate the depth of a salesperson's business understanding. An unfeasible answer implies a shallow understanding; practical answers convey a solid business understanding.
5. Who is your toughest competitor--and what are they doing right?
One of a leader's most important duties is to stay current with competitors. Your sales force faces the competition each day; team members should have the best on-the-ground reconnaissance.
Once you know the competitive landscape, you can proceed with "risk vs. opportunity" analyses. What you do not want is to find out after the fact that you could have avoided a sales failure by countering competitive activity.
By asking power questions of the sales team, leaders keep in touch with team morale while staying informed about the competition and showing that they care about the team's success. When issues need correction, take action quickly, and give credit to an idea's originator--both clear signals that a good leader is in charge.
http://www.inc.com/john-treace/sales-management-power-questions-sales-team.html
Your interactions with your sales team have an obvious impact on business--and the questions you ask can enhance or degrade your company's performance.
By asking the right questions, and then carefully listening to the answers, an astute leader can influence and gain insight into an employee's business competence and morale, as well as a team's overall effectiveness. As a bonus, you'll enrich morale by showing your sales team you understand their key concerns.
Here are five smart questions that can give you a deeper understanding of employees, the business, and the competitive marketplace.
1. What is the biggest obstacle to adding new customers?
Reps are cautious to court new accounts if they believe the company will not be able to service them effectively. So the answers to this question can reveal operational issues, such as a lengthy procedure for setting up new accounts or order processing problems within your company.
On the other hand, if you get the answer, "Only my lack of time," that's good news: It says that all systems are in good order and that morale is likely high.
2. What is working and what isn't?
Such open-ended questions will quickly identify chronic complainers as well as uncover significant problems. When asking this question, be prepared for fix-it requests that may or may not be valid, such as, "We need more samples," "Delivery is too slow," or "We are not competitive." You may need to do some digging to find out whether the problems really need solving.
Most importantly, answers to this question communicate morale. If the responses suggest that little or nothing is working, then you have a morale issue. That's a sales killer, and a leader should uncover and fix causative issues.
3. What are your most (and least) significant opportunities
The answers to this question indicate where a sales team is focusing its attention. The answers may signal that a sales team is operating contrary to company plans--perhaps spending time on a product or service that is not in the company's best interest, for instance. You may also uncover an opportunity that management has not previously identified.
4. If you had a magic wand and could fix one problem, what would it be?
This question forces a targeted answer to avoid a rambling discussion. A wise leader will ask why an employee picked a particular answer, and follow up by soliciting suggestions to correct it.
While the specific answer may give you additional insight into business challenges, it's the suggestions that indicate the depth of a salesperson's business understanding. An unfeasible answer implies a shallow understanding; practical answers convey a solid business understanding.
5. Who is your toughest competitor--and what are they doing right?
One of a leader's most important duties is to stay current with competitors. Your sales force faces the competition each day; team members should have the best on-the-ground reconnaissance.
Once you know the competitive landscape, you can proceed with "risk vs. opportunity" analyses. What you do not want is to find out after the fact that you could have avoided a sales failure by countering competitive activity.
By asking power questions of the sales team, leaders keep in touch with team morale while staying informed about the competition and showing that they care about the team's success. When issues need correction, take action quickly, and give credit to an idea's originator--both clear signals that a good leader is in charge.
http://www.inc.com/john-treace/sales-management-power-questions-sales-team.html
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)