MBA in a Blog

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Gimme a Break...
2007-10-08 11:10:00
(Those of you who know me will know that I really want the Kit Kat more than the break!)For those of you who are regular readers, you'll notice I had a bit of a hiatus while some visitors were here.I've never been very good at taking time off - really taking time off that is, and switching everything off. No matter how hard I try, it seems that my mind is constantly working on something, even if my computer is off. I'm actually rather proud of myself for not blogging while I was on holiday, even if that is counter to good blog practice.It's only been recently that I've understood the importance of taking breaks. My business coach asked me if I would work-out seven days a week without giving my body a rest. Of course not! She then asked why I would work like that - and seeing it in that light, it really doesn't make sense to work 24/7. Your mind, like your body, needs time to recharge, refresh, and re-energise. Knowing that makes me see that taking a break from work is as great...
More About: Break , Gimme

Jack of all Trades, Master of...?
2007-09-19 11:03:00
Last night I went to the opening of a friend's first photography exhibition. His work is stunning - it leapt right off of the wall at me. He tends to photograph people when he is travelling, and his photos are very 'of the moment' - perfectly capturing the mood of the location/person, and making you want to jump into the photo to be with them. Although I had seen digital copies of his work before, the prints amazed me. And - his talent amazed me, because I know this person as a PhD aerospace engineer.It's both funny and a little sad how we box people into their job titles. It's also been a constant challenge for me in my career. In 20 years, I've been a salesperson, rocket scientist, consultant, pastry chef, manager, and Board member. I've worked with organisations that are large and small, entrepreneurs with great ideas, and in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. I've delivered results in jobs that have ranged from the mundane, to the unique, to the difficult, t...
More About: Jack , Master , Aster

Ask Questions, Don't Make Statements
2007-09-18 10:53:00
I had lunch yesterday with one of my 'best bosses', and I thought I'd share with you a very useful piece of advice he gave to me.I worked for him as a client-side programme manager during a fraught, consultant-led IT design/installation/implementation. It was a really difficult piece of work, and I was sometimes amazed by how little the consultants seemed to know about how long the system would take to build, how the organisation would adapt to it, and how much resource would be required throughout the implementation process.Since I'm not a shrinking violet, I often voiced my concerns about how things were working for the part of the organisation that I represented. One day, my boss said to me, "You know, it's good that you're not afraid to speak up on our behalf. But - ask questions, don't make statements".Hmmm, a less adversarial approach. I could try that!So instead of going to meetings and telling people all of the negative things I was seeing and thinking, I focused on a...
More About: Questions , Make , Statement , Temen

Not Everything I Know About IT
2007-09-14 04:55:00
1. You can never save your work often enough. If you can't remember or be bothered to hit the 'save' button every now and again, you can usually set your computer up to auto-save.2. If you can't find a document you've been working on and haven't yet switched off your computer, it's probably in a temporary folder somewhere.3. If you have switched off your computer, tech support might be able to retrieve it, but while they're trying to find it you should start re-writing.4. When you call tech support, remember it's not their fault that you lost something and while it's important to you, it's probably not top of their priority list. It's not usually the computer's fault either, and they're usually pretty protective of their machines/system.5. No matter what you say or how much charm you lay onto tech support, they really do think you are *that* stupid.

ISTJ, Implementer/Completer-Finisher, Logical Thinker, Driver...
2007-09-13 12:27:00
Even though I really love psychometric and personality testing tools, I always get a little nervous when I'm applying for a job and am told that they'll be used as part of the assessment process. That's because most people don't use them correctly.First off, what are they? Psychometric tests are a standard test that assess a person's verbal and numeric ability, possibly also some aspects of their personality. Think SATs and GMATs, and you've got a psychometric test. Personality tests basically assess how a person interacts with the world around them, what sort of nature they have, and/or how they might respond in certain situations. The most famous of these is probably the Myers Briggs.Seems straightforward, so what's the problem? These tests are indicators only (some of them actually have the word 'indicator' in the title). They help you understand personal preferences and how someone might perform. They're not going to predict ability or behaviour 100% of the time. If yo...
More About: Driver , Logical , Logi , Nish , Thinker

RIP: Anita Roddick
2007-09-11 10:50:00
I know that I said my next blog would be about psychometric/personality testing, but I was saddened this morning to log onto my computer to see that Anita Roddick , founder of The Body Shop, died yesterday.I started shopping at The Body Shop when I lived in NYC, back when they were still re-filling the plastic bottles so that you weren't constantly throwing them away when the shower gel was gone. The organisation really made an imprint on my brain, though, when I moved here to the UK. The shops were running an ad campaign, showing a picture of a voluptuous woman and words to the effect of "Only eight women in the world look like supermodels" - not a single product mentioned. I loved that this organisation cared more about making their customers feel good about themselves than selling them something.Ms Roddick was a unique figure in the world of business - one of the few female entrepreneurs and business leaders here in the UK, and an unflagging advocate for animals, women, and the e...

Hiring People - Beyond the 'Beer Test'
2007-09-10 12:03:00
I'm not your stereotypical MBA in that I really like managing people. One of my favourite parts of the people management process is hiring people - but it's so easy to get it wrong. Here are a few of my top tips:1. Trust your heart. I once interviewed someone who ticked all of the boxes, but he and I just didn't click. Thankfully, the organisation I worked for had two managers interview each candidate in the first phase, one right after the other. The other manager asked what I thought of the candidate, and I tried to be positive about all of the things he could add to our organisation. Then my colleague said, "But do you think anyone here would want to go for a beer with this guy?" (the 'beer test') - and in my heart I knew the answer was "No". While in my head it seemed wrong to turn someone away who could do the job, it really is best for all parties to stop the process if the personalities don't work. This doesn't mean you should only hire people who are just like you, bu...
More About: People , Beer , Hiring , Test

It's Easier to Gain Forgiveness than Permission
2007-09-07 11:28:00
This is probably a dangerous first post for a blog on management, but this is one of the earliest memorable lessons that I learned. In my first job as a sales rep, I had an idea for a new sales programme, but no budget. I didn't need a lot of money, so I asked my district manager how to go about securing budget from the region. We discussed my idea - which, if it worked, was a low investment, high impact programme - and she advised me to pay for it out-of-pocket and try to claim the expenses back rather than go through the process of getting a budget approved. She very firmly said, "It's easier to gain forgiveness than permission". Her rationale was that formally applying for budget would take a lot of time, and if I could get the programme running quickly and show some success, I would get much more in the long-run from the region in terms of financing and personal recognition. If the programme didn't work, we hadn't spent tons of money and it was likely that they would forgive...
More About: Permission , Forgiveness , Missi