Articles by CBAssociates

Published, Newspapers and Technology, February 2000

Some Old, Some New, But all to Keep

As we were going into the next century those New Years' resolutions we all make are more meaningful this year. Some might argue they have a whole year before committing to the resolutions as the new century does not start until 2001.

A neighbor, when asked about his, stated he is just going to keep plowing ahead and retain the few bad habits he has so he has something to look forward to improving. We have another neighbor that if she had realized her cumulative weight goals over the last 12 years she would weigh about 10 pounds.

Then there was the production manager, when queried about his goals for the New Year, responded that the corporate operational goals were more than he could handle and he did not need to add any of his own.

My personal resolutions are not very interesting, but some I heard on the street are worth sharing.

"I am going to plan better," is a popular resolution. In fact, this may be the number one resolution for managers. Of course, it is the first duty of managers, by the classic definition of Plan, Organize, Motivate and Control. However, it is the aspect of the job we seem to struggle with.

It is so easy to get caught up in the problems of the day and let the day's events control your schedule. It does seem that planning is an event rather than part of the job for many executives. Rather than using every day to work towards a plan, too often every day becomes a challenge to conquer. An event occurs and it becomes the total focus.

Brian Donnelly, a retired executive of Gannett taught me a good lesson about planning and making a point of doing thoughtful planning every week. Like clockwork the department heads would have appointments with him on Monday morning and we would discuss items that needed to be accomplished. Many times the list included reminders of what we had not completed.

He was able to do this because every Sunday afternoon while watching football he would fill a yellow pad with his plans for the next week, which of course, included work for us. He was well organized and he kept us organized. That hour or so he spent was one of his secrets to success.

"To fail to plan is to plan to fail," was a motto I had printed on production calendars some where around 15 years ago. It is amazing to me how many people remember that motto. The motto says everything in just a few words.

A great bridge master, Charles Goren received a letter asking how many times should a person shuffle the deck. To which he wrote: "Thrice, never twice. That will be $500 dollars". In this case there were two messages, both short and memorable.

That seems to be the goal and/or wish of some managers. Kept it short and too the point.

Hopefully, some will start with their mission statement. Companies go to a great deal of time and expense developing these very elaborate statements that no one can remember and do not seem to serve any ongoing useful purpose.

A coach for one of the bowl teams when ask what he told his team to prepare them for the game responded: "Respect them, but do not fear them." That says a lot in a few words and it is easy to remember. It must have been effective as they won.

It takes more time to be concise, but the value is enormous. I belong to the school of: Make your point in less than a page, but only send me a memo if I have to pass it on.

To bring the disadvantage of new technology under control, is another item up there on the top ten list.

E-mail has cut down on interoffice memos, but it has exploded the number of words a manager has to read in a given day. Some, like myself, have resolved that if an e-mail exchange turns into a discussion it will be terminated after two embalm. E-mail is a great vehicle to exchange information, but a lousy method to discuss anything.

Hard feelings develop over embalm that would never have developed had the people been face to face. Some people will say things over the Internet that they would never say in person. Using technology for its good and avoiding the bad part is a real challenge.

I will be interested in how everyone feels about instant chat when it can be done throughout a system. Some people will use it and abuse it by interrupting others whenever they are on their computer.

Phone mail. Love it or hate it, or both at different times. The other day I answered my phone when I was working late. The person on the other end was taken back as he expected and in fact wanted my phone mail. Seems he was trying to get the responsibility of contacting me off his to do list, but really did not want to take time to talk.

Here is a resolution I would wish for some. When leaving numbers, speak slowly. It is amazing to me the number of sales folks that race through their phone numbers. Like e-mail, it is a great devise to leave information, but a lousy place to discuss anything.

The list of resolution goes on and on. Some that are on the list ever year are: start and end meetings on time, be less busy, have time to read the reports that come over the desk, return call within the same day and stay organized. Planning will help most accomplish their goals.

Let's hope we have better luck with our resolutions than our neighbor lady has had with her diet and that the new century turns out to be very special.

Chuck Blevins & Associates
©Copyright 2002

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