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Leadership

Forget Users, External Customers is Where Its At.

Are you a victim of the internal customer, the one that is forever changing their mind chasing the next big thing? You spend months streamlining processes using cross functional teams delivering IT systems that provide the business outcomes you set out to achieve. Another successful project brought in on time and on budget. Yet many of these celebrated project never will fulfil their full potential as they often forget include the external customers (suppliers, paying customers, etc.).

over the years we find ourselves into serious trouble when we focus too much on the end user of the software application being designed. You tend to focus on making it an easy as possible for the internal employees to do what’s expected, the internal management team are pleased that their teams are being catered for. Don’t you want to make it easy for your external customers to deal with you, streamline the supply chain. all to often the two objectives are in direct conflict.

Creating a self-service mindset within your design processes, regardless if you’ve adopted enterprise architecture, you can offset many of the process tasks to the most practical. Purchase order progress maintained by suppliers; credit limits, overdue accounts visible to paying customers. If you start with the external view then move inward to where you have greater influence then you will stand a greater chance of delivering ‘real’ value and lasting significant benefit. Don’t rely on your internal users to hold the answers to the best solution. Obviously you need to ensure they are consulted and informed, but the drive needs to be outside in.

That’s right, no more internal-only applications. If you are looking at HR expense management, your billing systems, or revamping the inventory management systems, everything impacts your external customers. everyone needs to understand that success must be measured from multiple view points. Be brave an challenge some of the businesses practices you could save huge amounts by removing costs and building relationships with the outside world.

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Leadership

Getting Things Under Control

Do you ever feel like your life has gotten out of control? Some days, it’s easy to feel that way and we’ll all feel that way some days.

No matter you set goals, how hard you visualize results and affirm a positive outcomes, every once in a while your going to feel like life’s has one off the rails. Carefully laid plans in tatters. People you relied on, abandon you. A health or family crisis, a financial surprise or an earthquake puts you back to square one.  Suddenly you feel as if you’re out of control, and lost at sea.

At times like this, there are a few things it may help you to remember. First of all, no one can control every aspect of his or her life, and adversity comes to all of us, no matter how moral we are, and no matter how good our attitude is. Bad things happen to good people all the time.

Second, it’s important to realize that there is one and only one thing in life that is completely within your power to control, and that is your response to what happens to you. When you find yourself overcome with feelings of fear, helplessness, doom and gloom, you can put the brakes on these feelings by gently but firmly choosing to shift the focus of the thoughts that are running through your mind.

Your feelings are a direct result of the thoughts you think, and setting aside some time every morning and evening for positive visualization, affirmation, or guided meditation is a highly effective way of getting these thoughts back under your control again. Try it. You will be surprised at just how well it works.

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Business, Management

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions…..!!!

Do you sometimes wonder how to make great decisions? What do you do when when you’re not sure where to start? Let me tell you a story about me, my brother and some cars. (stick with me it will make sense)


Many years ago both me and my brother decided that we needed a classic convertible “toy” car for the summer. Not only so we could look great with the roof down but as a little engineering project. We approached  our decisions in very different ways, I looked for something small and easy to store: an MG Roadster. My brother on the other hand fancied something a bit more full bodied: a Triumph Stag, clearly he has more room in his garage and was thinking of using the car not just when the sun was shinning.


As the search took shape my brother found a good looking white Stag and after some haggling paid £1000. It looked and sounded great, it had a couple of odd rust spots but nothing that a bit of hard work couldn’t resolve. Me, I struck it lucky when I found a Roadster with only two owners, father and son, had been kept in a garage since new and still had all the original leather covers. After having a new soft-top made and fitted the total cost of £2000.

“OK, we have some good news and some bad news.

The first summer we both enjoyed our purchases, the weather was definitely made us feel we had made wise decisions. Once the frost of winter passed we began the annual service and road worthiness checks. This is when the story started to change as my little MG only needed minor work; oil, brakes pads, etc..(don’t worry not going to get technical), unfortunately my brother didn’t have a  spring in his stride when he spoke to the mechanics.


“OK, we have some good news and some bad news. The good news we know why you had trouble changing gears, the bad news is it will cost £750 to fix.”


Well my brother had little choice but to agree and handed over the cash. Both now cars fully functional and summer looming, we used our toy cars everything the sun shone , but the winter arrived all to soon and they were put away until the new year.


When spring arrived and the maintenance regime began my brother noticed a rattling from the rear of the Stag. Another conversation with the mechanics left him with a quandary.


“We’ve got some good news and some bad news. The good news is we have found the cause of the noise, your rear axle mounts need replacing. Bad news is it will cost £1000.”

“The good news is we have found the cause of the noise.”

This is a difficult question to answer as my brother knew that the Stag in good condition was worth £2500, but if he didn’t fix the axle the car would be worth £1500 at best. Either way he is going to lose money what should he do, sell the car as is and cut his losses or fix the car?


I know what happened in real life but what would you do?

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Thoughts

“Mentors”

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What is a mentor and what do they do? Are your chances of success increased by having a mentor? These are good questions to ask yourself, and today I’ve wondered too.

 

In these days of the internet there are many open-source and the free available sophisticated tools to support those who want to be successful. But one of the most valuable and gifted assets anyone can have is also one of the oldest. I’m talking about a mentor – someone who can show you the ropes, avoid obstacles, and navigate around scary politics to help get you where you want to go.

 

Mentors are people who have achieved success themselves and want to pass along what they’ve learned to others. They don’t usually tell you what to do – that’s not their role – but they do help you weigh your options and think through decisions.

 

With the pass of change to the way the business world works the power of a mentor seems to becoming a double edged sword. When neither your mentor nor more than a very small number of people have ever experienced the new technologies or recognises the potential impact to the industry their power is challenging your opinions and perceptions.

 

Who are you mentoring and who is mentoring you?

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