Latest Articles
- Information – an Office’s Gold
As America moves to service based industries the raw materials needed to bring a service or product to market is information. This is the “gold” in an office. With today’s technology we are able to collect, measure and quantify our leads and customers. The question then becomes what do we do with that information?
- BPs Lack of Seeing the Big Picture
No matter what side of the political fence you fall, BP failed to take the proper quality control measures. As the weeks pass more information is coming to light how the organization cut corners with safety to keep costs down. Safety is not the place to take short cuts. In the long run this can cost you thousands of dollars and possibly your business. In BP’s case it is running in the billions not to mention what it is doing for their stock value. The ramification of poor quality control is costly. So how could a corporation
- Make Your Bottom Line Grow
No matter what size your organization doing things as efficiently as possible is not only ideal it is necessary in the new world economy. One area that can be significantly improved is the office. In fact, 60 to 80% of costs associated with providing a service or product to market is administrative. If you were able to reduce these by one third how much could you increase your cash flow?
- Proper Planning Can Ensure Success
Planning is the backbone of success. Not doing it can cost thousands of dollars, man hours and resources. Proper planning can save you money, increase your cash flow and help fulfill your mission. Here is a simple tool to aid in ensuring your success.
- Working Between Departments Means Faster Cash Flow
When you look at a traditional organizational chart it has silos which contain various departments and the people overseeing and working in those departments. In today’s business climate where information is your company’s gold this can be troublesome. Why, because the right hand may not know what the left hand is doing. We have all [...]
Having An Effective Meeting
I am involved with a couple of organizations that need to have meetings to make things happen and move an event or goal along. One thing that my experience has taught me is communication is key when working with multiple people. Without communication each department or person involved can not help each other or the business succeed. Staff meetings are very useful if run properly. If not they can become a black hole of poor time management. So what are some of the guidelines for an effective meeting?
• A start time
• An end time and keep to it
• A concise agenda
• A meeting “manager” that makes sure everyone stays on topic and on time
• Goals to be reached
• Deadlines for those goals
• Actionable items that the staff can begin right after the meeting
• Questions about topics or goals
• Date and time of next meeting
Everyone who attends should come with a list of items or questions that they need answered at the staff meeting. This also helps people stay on track. If possible email the agenda prior to the meeting so everyone is aware of what topics will be covered. These simple guidelines can make the difference between a productive meeting or a complete waste of everyone’s time. Let me know what has worked for you and your organization.