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I heard this back a few years ago. The boss yelled, “Get me a good lawyer but not the one with two hands!”

“Huh?” secretary was puzzled.

Boss continued “…I mean don’t give me a lawyer that says ‘on one hand, we should do….and this. On the other hand..we do..’”.

It is not difficult to fathom what’s good professional service (and bad service of course). Just switch roles.

When we as clients, walk out of the lawyers office why should we be feeling indecisive thinking “should I do this, or this, or this….” after hearing what the lawyer said. Or after our tax accountant’s visit, we feel so indecisive listening to his advise about “..approach this manner….or taking this route.. or this option..”.

Even at the office level, how often is it that staff comes out of the supervisor or manager’s room after long discussion, and says “so what does he wants us to do?”

And so it is with everything else. Even in major consultancy projects, the consultant will leave volumes of the completed project papers, complete with executive summary, appendices, schedules, the whole works. If you’ve been a client of such consulting, have you got the feeling that (after going through the papers) “so what’s the consultant asking us to do?”.

Whether you’re a staff subordinate, consultant, accountant, doctor and everything else, it is good to practise role playing. We see things more clearly.

For professional services, if you are the consultant, after considering, explainining the issues involved, options, etc - you should state clearly which is the option you would go for if you are in his shoes. Some call this “putting your money where your mouth is…” And I would strongly add “and OFFER TO TAKE YOUR CLIENT’S ‘SEAT” and run or make it happen for him…” if your client is uncertain it would work. As a consultant I do not only tell you what I think you should do, I offer to do it for you for I am absolutely sure it works.

Again role playing is important and common sense - we’re either consulting or receiving consulting advice. As a client in charge of the project, I would appreciate and respect the consultant who not only leaves the stacks of project papers on my table, but offers to help me run and make it happen anytime. He is soooo confident.

Don’t we love a good doctor, manager, lawyer, accountant if they offer clear guidance and ‘one hand’ solution.

Afterall if we read carefully in between the lines, all professional firms have a disclaimer clause. We know they are giving their opinion only and never in the executive role.

James NK Khoo is the owner of Qwenkay Information http://www.qwenkay.com a company providing support for content management systems software and accounting software. Contact james@qwenkay.com

The Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBoK) became an accepted standard (as established by the Project Management Institute) that is still widely used in many industries around the world. At a basic level, many of the methodologies advocated by PMBoK and Six Sigma have a great deal in common. Both seek to establish a sound plan; identify and communicate with stakeholders; conduct regular reviews; and manage schedule, cost, and resources.

Six Sigma is not just another project management initiative or process improvement program. Six Sigma is not just a new term for project management nor is it a mere repackaging of old concepts. It is more than that because it is a robust continuous improvement strategy and process that includes cultural and statistical methodologies. Six Sigma is complementary with existing project management programs and standards but differs in significant ways. Both disciplines seek to reduce failures, prevent defects, control costs and schedules, and manage risk. Generally, professional project management attempts to achieve these goals by encouraging best practices on a project-by-project basis, often through the mechanism of a project office that promulgates policy, provides templates and advice, promotes appropriate use of tools such as critical path method, and perhaps performs periodic project reviews.

Too many project management methods have failed not because they weren’t adding value but because you couldn’t measure the effectiveness of the methodology or quantify the value added by process changes. Six Sigma provides a structured data-driven methodology with tools and techniques that companies can use to measure their performance both before and after Six Sigma projects. Using Six Sigma, management can measure the baseline performance of their processes and determine the root causes of variations so they can improve their processes to meet and exceed the desired performance levels.

Six Sigma allows managers to take their projects to new levels of discipline and comprehensive commitment. For standard project management ideas, you can approach them ad hoc and implement them as you learn them. You can’t do Six Sigma halfheartedly, and that is a good thing. Six Sigma is not for dabblers. You can’t implement it piecemeal. If you’re in, you’re in deep, and you’re in for the long haul. Again, that is a good thing because that level of commitment not only gets everyone involved and keeps them involved but also leads to more substantial and far-reaching change in your processes.

There are many challenges facing project managers: data gathering and analysis, problem solving, understanding and evaluating existing processes, developing and tracking measurements in a standardized manner, and making quantitative evaluations. Six Sigma methodology provides tools and techniques to help a manager be successful in all of these challenges. This success is accomplished by means of understanding what the methodology is, how it is applied, and how it used.

Six Sigma is not simply another supplement to an organization’s existing management methods. It is a complementary management methodology that is integrated into and replaces the existing ways of determining, analyzing, and resolving/avoiding problems, as well as achieving business and customer requirements objectively and methodically. Six Sigma can be applied to operational management issues, or it can directly support strategic management development and implementation. Six Sigma’s set of tools are more broadly applicable than those commonly applied within typical project management. Six Sigma is more oriented toward solutions of problems at their root cause and prevention of their recurrence rather than attempting to control potential causes of failure on a project-by-project basis.

The breadth, depth, and precision of Six Sigma also differentiate it from typical project management. Six Sigma has a well-defined project charter that outlines the scope of a project, financial targets, anticipated benefits, milestones, etc. It’s based on hard financial data and savings. In typical project management, organizations go into a project without fully knowing what the financial gains might be. Six Sigma has a solid control phase (DMAIC: Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) that makes specific measurements, identifies specific problems, and provides specific solutions that can be measured.

Six Sigma is a robust continuous improvement strategy and process that includes cultural methodologies such as Total Quality Management (TQM), process control strategies such as Statistical Process Control (SPC), and other important statistical tools. When done correctly, Six Sigma becomes a way toward organization and cultural development, but it is more than a set of tools. Six Sigma is the strategic and systematic application of the tools on targeted important projects at the appropriate time to bring about significant and lasting change in an organization as a whole.

Peter Peterka is President of Six Sigma us. For additional information on Six Sigma Green Belt or other Six Sigma Certification project programs contact Peter Peterka.

Peter Peterka is the Principal Consultant in practice areas of DMAIC and DFSS. Peter has eleven years of experience performing as a Master Black Belt, and has over 15 years experience in industry as an improvement specialist and engineer working with numerous companies, including 3M, Dell, Dow, GE, HP, Intel, Motorola, Seagate, Xerox and even the US Men’s Olympic Team. For partial list look here. Peter is a certified a Master Black Belt and holds an MS degree in Statistics from Iowa State and a BS in Chemical Engineering from Purdue. Peter worked for 3M over 10 years where he gained extensive experience applying Sigma Methodologies to a variety of processes.

Peter has successfully developed Six Sigma deployment strategies and training for Product and Process Development, Manufacturing and Business Process Improvement. His broad experience across many technologies helped him gain insight on how to apply Six Sigma methods to Business Processes.

The growth and survival of business in the dynamic environment depends upon the development of new products. Organizations must always be on the lookout for new opportunities and exploit the opportunities by creating new products and services. That’s where the role of business process management outsourcing comes in.

Needless to say, new product development holds the key for the survival of an organization. New products do not come about by themselves. They are the result of the ingenuity of creative people in the organization. As such, it is obvious that new product development is the function of organizational creativity. In other words, it depends upon how creative an organization is with new ideas because any organization can only be as creative as its people.

Creativity, in general, may be defined as an “escape from mental struckness”. In the organizational context, it may be viewed as new insights that point to better ways of dealing with reality. It involves a departure from conventional thinking to non-conventional thinking. It entails establishment of a relationship between the hitherto unrelated things, ideas or concepts.

Just as individuals differ in their ability to translate their creative talents into results, organizations also differ in their ability to translate the talents of their members into new products, processes or services. When talking about business process management outsourcing, organization members must believe that change will benefit them and the organization. Some resistance to change is found in many organizations for fear of losing position, learning new skills, etc. Such a resistance to change has to be overcome by clarifying the need and urgency for change. The adage that routine drives out the non-routine has to be revised and must be made the other way. Managers in the organization, from top to the down must make it clear in word and deed that they welcome new products and services.

Business Process Management provides detailed information on Business Process Management, Business Process Management Software, Business Process Management Systems, Business Process Management Solutions and more. Business Process Management is affiliated with Corporate Performance Management Solutions.

As a manager strides into the office among the employees, that manager has the power to positively shift the outlook of the employee for the entire day. You, as manager, are the most vital well-spring of motivation and morale among your employees.

Words, gestures, even the expression on your face spell the difference in how an employee perceives your opinion of them. These unconscious actions tell the employee how you feel about them, what they mean to you and how valuable they are to you as a manager and to the organization.

Letting the employee feel needed and appreciated is a key factor to maintaining maximum employee morale and motivation. If your employees feel that they play a key role in the company by the work they provide, then they are much more likely to say that they like their job and to strive to better themselves at that job. For many, feeling valued is just as important as high pay, and promotions.

Build zest with these tactics:

1.Let them feel your presence. Coming to work and announcing your arrival is a great way to motivate employees and put a smile on their face first hour of the day. Striding through the doors and simply saying good morning with a smile on your face can make all the difference in the world.

2. Verbal Acknowledgement. This kind of commendation doesn’t have to be over dramatic or exaggerated, most times showing respect for your employees by saying simple things like please and thank you are easy and effective ways to motivate your employees. Simply saying “you did a great job” when the employee deserves it is sure fire way that verbal praise can work to motivate employees.

3. Lay clear expectations. Communicating deadlines, milestones, and job objectives are essential to completing company mandates efficiently. Sometimes these things are reported very well but they may change. Usually these changes are not discussed in detail and therefore it causes employees to feel that they are either not important enough to be told why the changes are taking place, or that the manager has made a mistake. Neither of these thoughts will lead to a motivated employee. One way to prevent this is to always get some kind of feedback from the employee about the job so that you are certain that he knows what is expected. If there is a change in a project, inform the employee why. Keep them part of the solution to the problem.

4. Provide employees regular feedback. Let the employee know when he is doing a commendable job. On the flip side, let the employee know when you are not pleased with the outcome and state your reasons. This is a great opportunity to let the employee know how they can do better next time. Ask the employee if there is anything that you as a manager can do to help with the change. Solicit feedback from the employee. Talk it over and enjoy a real discussion. This will make the employee feel like you are not offend about the job, but that you are genuinely concerned and willing to help rectify the problem.

5. Generate consequences. Make sure to not only tell the employee when you are satisfied with the work, but also provide recognition for marvelous work. A personally written thank you card is an effective and inexpensive way to do this. When an employee fails to meet company expectations, it is demotivating to other workers, after all, they may think, “If he isn’t doing it why should I?” That is why it is so important to broadcast consequences for those who do not perform as expected. Be consistent with consequences among the staff.

Employees will love working with you and you will enjoy working with them as you take a few minutes out of your day to butter their emotions. Spend time with employees during and after work. Demonstrate that you care and value them as important members of the company.

***
Joseph R. Plazo is a busy man. He had been directing multiple enterprises since he achieved financial independence at 22. While juggling corporate endeavors, he writes books and relaxes with active sports. Airsoft is his passion.

Today, he connects with men and women all over the world to spread the revolutionary gospel of savvy semantics and behavioral change technologies. His rallying cry is Make Life Magic!

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Succession planning, like any business acumen, is both an art and a science. That is to say, there are many proven strategies that can and must be followed so that successful transition can occur.

Too often organizations address the succession challenge through the rearview mirror. They wait for someone to step down or even worse, be removed. Then and only then do they entertain thoughts of who or what should happen next?

One of the reasons little forethought is given to succession is evident in the fact that it rarely shows up in corporate business plans. Companies are quite diligent in forecasting-out 3, 5 and even 10-years but most of what they plan has more to do with finance, P&L, product evolution and little or no emphasis on who or how future leaders will captain the corporate ship.

It’s no secret senior executives, especially those new to the position, see themselves as bulletproof. In their minds, talk of succession is analogous to talk about potential failure - they will be there forever - so they have little appetite for negativities like that preferring rather to concentrate on positive things like how they will make the company successful - perhaps in perpetuity?

Professional consultants like Pat Micallef, VP of international consulting firm The Meta Group, takes a strong position when he says, “The success of any corporate succession, is predicated on the strength of the company business plan, and, it goes without saying,” he says, “leadership change is integral to future corporate strategies and should be built-in. The success of which, however, [succession planning] hinges expressly on whether or not the architects of the plan have a clear understanding of three important criteria:

It is here we begin so see more clearly that succession planning is an integral part of a much larger stratagem, more complex, perhaps, than seen at first blush.

Senior executives rise to the top based mostly on their unique and proven skills tacitly believed by corporate board members or company owners to be the stuff necessary to champion the needs of the corporation. In a perfect world, the corporate cream rises to the top in a comfortable and timely fashion - but we don’t live in a perfect word - in fact, one could argue we live in a more imperfect world than we’d like to believe.

With that in mind, companies and industries the world over, are addressing the reality that a decade from now, their entire business landscape will be completely different!

Randy Moore, VP of York Region based Mister Transmission, knows the future looks bright for the products and services he sells. Mr Moore knows also, in a very short time, customers will have a greater choice - thanks to the Internet - to acquire similar solutions. The fact that Randy sees this as more of an opportunity than a challenge is recognition that even his marketplace is not static - this is a tribute to his positive and assertive outlook.

Company architects are [or should be] focused more diligently on grooming future executives on the strategic needs essential to run the business profitably in their NEW marketplace in the near future.

Let’s face it; few executives get by today without a reasonable understanding of how to work a computer, the Internet, Excel, PowerPoint and so on. Just a few short years ago, it wasn’t uncommon for senior exec’s to rely totally on assistants for technical support - rendering their [exec] desktop computers as entertainment devices showing pretty fish and flying toasters.

What will tomorrow’s corporate executives need to know? Will they need to be experts at computing? Will an MBA Degree be enough? Will the future of the company dictate a better understanding of Corporate Law - International or Domestic - Human Resources Issues, Strategic or Crises-Management expertise, Techno-Mechanical knowledge? … etc.

In order to groom the next generation of corporate management, planners must be absolutely clear on what [broad-based] tactical skill-requirements will be essential for corporate leadership and growth. A clear and unequivocal business plan in tandem with future leadership skill-set-deliverables is the integral ingredients necessary to ensure the success of leadership succession.

No one’s saying the CEOs of the future have to be experts in all fields or in all disciplines. Nevertheless, it will be increasingly more important that senior exec’s have a comprehensive understanding for the challenges and disciplines for which they are ultimately responsible and therefore must manage.

Although for some the challenge to find or make the next great corporate leader may seem daunting, we can take some comfort in what former President Ronald Reagan once said, “Great leaders are not measured by what great things they do but rather by what great things they get others to do.”

Bottom Line:

Succession Planning is strategic, tactile and deliberate involving a clear understanding of how corporations need to change in lockstep with strategies designed to groom future leaders to meet the need. Successful ‘Transitionists’ understand Succession Planning is both an Art and a Science.

About The Author

Paul Shearstone aka The ‘Pragmatic Persuasionist’ is one of North America’s foremost experts on Sales and Persuasion. An International Keynote Speaker, Author, Writer, Motivation, Corporate Ethics, / Time & Stress Management Specialist, Paul enlightens and challenges audiences as he informs, motivates and entertains.

To comment on this article or to book the Pragmatic Persuasionist for your next successful event we invite to contact Paul Shearstone directly @ 416-728-5556 or 1-866-855-4590

www.success150.com or paul@success150.com.

The most important part of a Business Plan is the Executive Summary. The Executive Summary is generally only two pages and is an overview of the pertinent information contained within the business plan itself. Generally Venture Capital Executives, Angle Investors, or Investment Bankers will read these two pages and either put you into ’sounds interesting pile’ or ‘trash can pile.’ Your Executive Summary must be complete, honest, and it must be compelling.

Many times entrepreneurs will write a rough draft Executive Summary and then write their business plans. Then go back and re-write the Executive Summary after re-considering all the important points. You should be able to give your executive summary to just about any competent person and after they read it, they should not have more than one or two questions. Below is a sample Executive Summary I have prepared for this discussion on an non-existent product, which is under consideration by at least one entrepreneur to make this widget a reality and available to the public.

2005 Business Plan for The JoggingLight

The JoggingLight is a Brand Name of the parent company, “The Human Group, LLC. of Alpine Meadows, CA. The JoggingLight is a new innovation in miniaturization of LED lighting using electromagnetic induction for increased visibility while walking or jogging. These lights will require no battery source, but rather work of the vibrational energy, which comes from human movement while walking.

The JoggingLight will provide light and safety to consumers who want piece of mind while exercising at night. We also intend sell these units to industry, neighborhood watch groups, military and security professionals as well. By increasing the light while engaged in such activities we will reduce injury, crime and allow folks to exercise after dark to stay at their ideal weight, thus improving their health.

We intend to sell these items to consumers through Internet sales, Television Infomercials, specialty high-tech stores, as our primary strategy for consumer sales. Industrial, military and security sales will be done through direct sales meetings with purchasing agents, procurement officers as well as bidding on official solicitations.

We will start by producing the first units in-house and may later expand such operations or outsource the manufacturing within the United States or US Territories as needed.

Our mission is to sell these units to anyone wishing to own them anywhere in the world and making the JoggingLight easy to purchase online and in selective retail outlets. We also intend to explore other possible markets when and where we see demand, which we can fulfill, while making a significant profit. We will strive to provide quality lighting for the human endeavor, which uses no external power source such as batteries and constantly explore additional market sectors to sell our JoggingLight Concept in, while continuously innovating.

The Human Group is a closely held corporation with Mr. Bob Smith as President.

Other than small flashlights, miner’s hats and hand held lights, which generally use batteries there is currently little competition in this sector. Jogging and walking lights, which have harnesses are cumbersome, irritating and too heavy, with poor battery life. There is one flashlight company with a “Shaking Light” however it too is cumbersome and too heavy to use while jogging and there is no way to attach it. We do, however, expect copy companies to start up. This is not too alarming, since they will go through a similar learning curve and we do not plan on letting up on our new market exploits or innovations including space and NASA.

When selling to retailers we will require timely payments, upfront initial orders and intend to continually ramp up efforts online and through infomercials to maintain adequate cash flows incase of extended receivables as we expand.

Our target price to consumers will be $29.95 plus shipping and handling on our e-commerce website and Infomercial sales campaign. At this price we can expand without excessive capital requirements after the initial capitalization. Phase II will be to enter the selective retail sales market with companies such as Sharper Image with retail and catalog sales.

To finance this operation, we will need $ 300,000 of capital, which will come from investors, personal friends and family. This will enable Kevin Humphrey to remain in complete control of The JoggingLight Brand throughout its development. It is very important for start-up personal high-tech products companies to remain in control until they reach critical mass and are large enough to afford adequate payroll to attract experienced executives and build a corporate structure. This money will be used for;

Patent and Legal Work

Legal Business and Organizational Fees

Building of Prototypes

One year of salary to Primary Staff

E-commerce Website

Compelling Infomercial TV Video

Brand Art Work

Packaging Material

Parts and Supplies Inventory to Build Units

Business Operational Costs for 6-months (travel, phone, etc.)

Kevin Humphrey will draw a salary of $5,000 per month for the one-year and dedicate 10-hours per day to running of the company 5-days per week and will carry out the necessary steps and sales calls in this business plan to make this possible. Prototypes will be build, consumer tested and/or sold and this money will become part of cash flow. Each rendition will be digitally photographed for history on the company website. This business will remain a Garage Start-up” until sufficient orders warrant additional space to fulfill demand. We will absolutely max out or home business capacity times two before moving into a more costly location. (Please see attached start-up costs breakdown).

With more and more people throughout the world concerned about their weight and health the JoggingLight solves a need and an untapped consumer niche. There are indeed additional applications in the security industry and military sector as well as Space. We see the total need for JoggingLight and subsequent applications at 100 million units with plenty of additional currently unknown and unseen “killer aps” out there waiting for a well positioned company to take advantage of and we intend to be that company.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Now then, at this point the entrepreneur would work thru the business plan and then come back to the Rough Draft “Executive Summary” and then re-write it to make sure everything matches. In doing so the Executive Summary would be tightened up and checked for duplication of content and accurate information. I hope this case study helps you in the formation of your Business Plan, specifically your Executive Summary which is the most important part. Think on this.

“Lance Winslow” - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/