Business Perspectives

Many firms hire consultants who have experience in their industry. The premise is if a consultant has experience in my industry then they should understand our issues. True or Fasle?

The answer is both true and false. True, a consultant who is familiar with your business understands the "constraints" your business and the customer faces from an industry perspective. False. Those who are outside a "system" are most likely to see obvious "systemic fixes". Being to close to a "system" may in fact be a detriment to improvement. Sometimes being to close to a problem is in fact part of the problem.

Being to close to a "system" can create internalized beliefs about the systems capabilities and how it should work. Rather than using innovative thinking some consultants have "canned answers" as to what has worked for others. Every company has its unique "systemic" attributes. Issues like culture, size, demographics, market dynamics, human resources etc. All create a combined definition of "systemic attributes". Very few companies have the same "systemic attributes".

An outsiders who is grounded in the principals of "systemic thinking, understanding variation, the dynamics of psychology, and how technology adds value" to a "system" can be more effective than one with experience in a specific industry.

An example: Much has been written about "benchmarking against the best" While learning what the best is doing is a sound proclamation for learning, copying what the "best in class" do may not be a sound principle of improvement. Given that every "system" has its own unique attributes copying what others do may in fact increase cost and complexity.

Case in point: In the early 80's every major vehicle manufacturer adopted what Japan had instituted as "Quality Management". Deming even was called to all the major U.S. automobile manufacturers to teach what he had taught Japan. His first proclamation what "Management owes the system thus management must lead the systemic changes using profound knowledge". Now 20 years later has the leaders of American automobile manufacturers made the necessary changes?
Market, economic factors and consumer satisfaction results led us to a simply conclusion. No they have not!

Consider Ford, GM, Chrysler and their current condition. Each tried to institute "quality". Each made some progress but simply not enough. All internalized "Quality" and each made it a department rather than a duty of leadership. In other words, their thinking was flawed.

So how can a qualified consultant add the greatest value to your organization?

First, they can provide an alternative view of what your company does and how well it does it without being invested in existing beliefs. Outside thinking can be the greatest value a consultant can provide.

Second, a good consultant will tell the CEO or Chairman the facts without fearing of repercussion. A good consultant will not base his feedback on opinion or politics rather he/she will be armed with data to prove an assessment which supports the very changes that need to be made, like it or not.

Third, a good consultant will make a commitment to help the organization through a change process by insuring internalize of the thinking behind the methods and processes that substantiate needed changes. Thus enabling the organization to sustain change by itself.

Fourth, a good consultant should always provide more value than clients expect. Value both in less cost than expected and in sound advice and recommendations that enable an organization to reach beyond its objectives without the consultant.

Finding a consultant can be easy but following these guidelines can help you determine if you've found the right one.

Insights to Success

Create That Winning Feeling by Bob Proctor

I believe we would all agree that having a winning feeling is prerequisite to achieving outstanding results. A person can’t possibly expect to win if they’re constantly focusing on failure! The real secret here is to capture that winning feeling of success as often as you can to create the environment necessary to succeed.

If you’ve been a little down in the dumps, feeling insecure or perhaps not feeling as confident in your ability as you’d like, I have a great tip for you. My suggestion to anyone looking for a success track to run on, or to a person who is looking to get back on one, is to start capitalizing on short-term victories. That means specifically focus on tasks you can achieve daily. The principle is to start with an adversity over which you can succeed, and gradually take on more and more difficult tasks. Nothing succeeds like success.

Another technique used by many people in developing or maintaining a winning feeling is what we call the reflection method. Think back during a time where you were really successful at something… we all have times to which we can relate. It could have been a sale, a particular speech, a school play, or standing up to the town bully. Each one of us can reflect back on a moment in time to recapture that winning feeling.

Professional sports coaches often replay winning games of the past for their team prior to a big game to stimulate and create a winning feeling!

Years ago, a good friend of mine had left his job and a company that he had worked with for many years. He was one of the top VPs with his company and had done extremely well. He had left because he wanted to start his own business. I told him he could use one of our offices until such time as he was ready to open up his own office.

In any event, I happened to be in the office one afternoon and Grant, who normally was very upbeat and positive, was really having a difficult time. After a few moments of small talk, it became apparent what the problem was. Grant had hit the terror barrier and the possibility of starting his own company was overwhelming him… he just didn’t think he could do it. Here’s a man who had risen to the top of his field, made a high six-figure income for years… and yet was still having doubts as to his ability to start his own company.

I asked Grant to go home, get a notebook and start to write down all of his accomplishments, as far back as he could remember. The look on his face was priceless – I’m sure he thought I’d lost my mind. I told him that the accomplishment could be small or large… it didn’t really matter. The point was to focus on something positive. I still remember him asking, “Well, what if I only fill half a page.” I just smiled and asked him to do his best and start writing.

Monday morning came and Grant was back in the office with a notebook full of accomplishments. I smiled and said, “You must have been fairly confident, you picked up a good sized notebook!” We both had a good laugh. Grant went on to build a multi-million dollar financial planning company and later franchised the operation to extend across Canada and the US!

This is a great exercise for anyone needing a bit of a boost. What would give you a winning feeling of pride and satisfaction? Remember… a winning feeling is a confident feeling and one that forgets misses, and reinforces successful attempts.
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Management Tampering

Our firm has had a diverse experience in many industries. From Healthcare, Insurance, Wireless, Transportation and Real Estate we've seen over a hundred companies from the inside out. What is a repeated behavioral problem is "Management Tampering" which does nothing more than increase cost and create further problems. What is "Management Tampering"? It is simply coming to conclusion on a solution without throughly understanding the root cause of a problem.

In many of our engagements we've witnessed complex process problems that had driven cost up. Upon analysis of the problems we've consistently discovered that the problems were caused by previous attempts to solve problems. The attempts were nothing more than what we call "shot gun solutions" being someone, somewhere, at sometime simply though they had the best idea which they thought would solve a problem. The fact is that previous solutions only created further problems, increased cost and the ongoing "shot gun approach" created yet a another series of problems which only further increased cost. The cycle is a like cancer eating away at productivity and profitability. When will management STOP THE MADNESS?

The answer is only when they see and understand that problems are systemic and solutions need to be systemic as well. This requires an understanding of how things are connected, how the connection cuts across multiple processes, how interconnection relates to outcomes or results. Learning the "how" requires a change in mindset. Changing mindsets requires education but many managers already think they know it all and they are the Kings because of their title or position in a company. The biggest barrier to improvement is the "mindset" of management. We have found that employees, for the most part, want change and can contribute to effective change. There isn't a customer in any industry that would want better service, an improved or innovative product at great value and all at the lowest possible cost. So what is the biggest barrier to fulfilling these opportunities, Management!

What does it take to change "mindsets"? Sometimes it takes a shock treatment: loss of market, employee turnover, loss of profit etc etc. Even when these events occur sometimes it still doesn't create the awakening needed for change. Leadership is needed to set a new tone, a new direction and new mindsets.

The alternative is to recognize the need for change, learn new methods, adopt a new philosophy and gain new directions and new confidence. However, this is a hard road for entrenched mindsets and one that requires a recognition that new knowledge is needed. Where will the new knowledge come from? Who has it and how can it be gained, used and executed effectively? Until there is recognition of these issues progress cannot be made and repeated mistakes will be the method for going forward into chaos.

Personal change is a requirement of transformation. However it is the toughest challenge of all change initiatives.

From Impossible to Possible

A reporter was writing a story on my career as a technology forecaster and business strategist, and asked me why I have been so excited about technology all of these years. I explained to her that technology allows us to turn the impossible into the possible. Most of the things you and I do on a daily basis were, at one time, impossible. For early man, sitting in a chair was impossible; they would have to find a rock or a stump if they wanted to sit.

How have humans been able to redefine what is possible since they first set foot on the planet? The answer is, technology. Technology enables us to turn the impossible into the possible. History reveals that when a new tool is combined with a compelling vision, the world can be changed.

Imagine what it might have been like when some long-ago inventor showed off the first wheel. He or she might have said, "I'll change the world with this." As you might guess, word spread very slowly.

The telephone was another great invention, but just as inventions before it, word still spread slowly. Let's face it, who would you call?
Today Is Not Like Yesterday
When there is a tectonic shift out at sea that triggers an earthquake, tidal waves are created. Because of the great depths of the ocean, the waves are very small, yet the energy from the earthquake can cause the small waves to reach speeds of up to 500 mph. As the waves get closer to shore and the water becomes shallow, they slow down and build, often to great heights.

A few professional lookouts, in this case technology forecasters and futurists whose job it is to look out at the horizon, saw the approaching waves of technological change. Most of us, however, spend little time looking at the horizon. Instead we concentrate on avoiding the obstacles in our current path. Using this tidal wave metaphor, the dot com wave caught by many businesses and individuals by surprise and as the wave subsided, it washed many of the bad business models out to sea.

When a tidal wave strikes, it is usually followed by a few more waves. The next e-business wave of technology-driven change is fast approaching, and once again, few are ready. I would call this wave a "smart" wave because venture capitalists and stock market investors learned a great lesson from the first wave: a plan for profitability and an understanding of sales, marketing, fulfillment and customer service, among others are important.
The Quiet Revolution
Today, word spreads quickly! Customized news comes to us via many avenues, including television, PDAs and cell phones. Microsoft has recently introduced smart object technology that uses radio waves to broadcast news, sports, stock quotes and other information to everyday objects like a watch, bracelet or key chain pendant that have a smart object receiver.

When AOL introduced instant messaging many years ago, it allowed users to detect the online presence of buddies - people we may want to communicate with whenever they are online - and instantly communicate with them by typing a message. Instant messaging is no longer limited to typing short messages. The latest application of instant messaging allows you to talk with and even see the people with whom you are communicating. Even cell phones will allow you to detect when your buddies have their cell phones on so you will know that if you call, they will be there to answer.

When a technology satisfies a social need, a revolution is created. One of mankind's social needs is to communicate. Every time a technology like smoke signals, the telegraph, the telephone and the Web, to name a few, has allowed us to lift the bar on our ability to communicate, a revolution in how we live, work and play followed.
Real-Time Events
Thanks to the Web and other telecommunication technologies, new ideas and events spread almost instantly around the world. We have been watching events from around the world in real-time for over a decade. Remember the first Gulf War and seeing the live video on CNN of the bombs being dropped? Years later, I'll never forget walking into the lobby of a hotel in Brussels, Belgium and seeing a crowd gathered around a television with live video of the World Trade Center just as it collapsed. Now, that's instant messaging.

As our laptops, cell phones and PDAs become multimedia Communication Age devices, we will experience yet another shift in how we live our lives and conduct our business.
Should Is More Important Than Could
When I look beyond communication technology and look at nanotechnology, biotechnology and many others fields, I see that technology will continue to allow mankind to redefine what is possible on the planet, turning the impossible into the possible. We will discover many new things we can do. The key to shaping a positive future is to separate what we could do from what we should do. By focusing on what we should do, we can shape a better tomorrow for all.

Can Consultants give you a competitive advantage?

So you think your company has no competition. Highly unlikely - competition is everywhere. Maybe there isn't a "direct" competitor who provides EXACTLY what your company offers, but there are undoubtedly elements of your products that buyers can get from other sources, potentially at a cheaper price. Plus, any company that is perceived by buyers to be in your space should also be considered a competitor.

So how can you ensure your company maintains a competitive advantage? According to a report published by the Aberdeen Group in March 2001, a good place to start is strategic e-sourcing. The report states there are many ways in which you and your company can "e-source" all your purchases, and in turn, earn greater market share.

Aberdeen describes strategic e-sourcing as "the process of using web-based technologies to support the identification, evaluation, negotiation, and configuration of optimal groupings of trading partners into a supply chain network, that can efficiently respond to changing market demands." What does that mean? Essentially, using online resources to purchase goods and services will make your job easier, give your company a competitive edge, position you to respond more quickly to your customer's changing needs, and in turn secure market share.

Aberdeen notes the trouble with traditional sourcing practices is that they are riddled with complex and labor-intensive process. When companies cross over to an e-sourcing approach all these processes can be streamlined, improving the sourcing cycle and negotiations, while providing enhanced access to supplier intelligence. Simply put, using an e-sourcing tool provides:

Easy access to a greater variety of vendors
A baseline for the "going rate" for products and services
An apples-to-apples comparison of vendor offerings and capabilities
A decision-support tool for more informed purchases
As you probably know, to achieve profitability and remain competitive, companies are faced with increased pressure to perform at optimal efficiency. E-sourcing creates that significant advantage needed, especially for companies who have consistent, challenging competitive threats. Aberdeen states that in hyper-competitive markets such as high tech, companies will find themselves with reduced opportunity to compete, and will have less pricing flexibility if they come to market too late. It is imperative that companies "align themselves with products and supply partners who will make them more successful in bringing new products to market more quickly and at a lower price than ever before." And this would be a difficult task if it weren't for the advent of the online sourcing solutions.
Can one supplier really make a difference in a company's success? Probably not. But a series of bad suppliers can. With the size and multi-division, most companies don't even know if they use bad suppliers more than once. Just imagine, if you use those same suppliers quarter after quarter or year after year, the results can be devastating. Many successful companies have already taken advantage of these web-based tools. According to Aberdeen, organizations using web-based sourcing technologies have been able to do the following:


Identify and negotiate with a broad range of qualified suppliers
Reduce process costs for sourcing engagements
Shorten sourcing cycles by 25% to 30%
Reduce time-to-market cycles by 10% to 15%
Negotiate an average of 5% to 20% unit price reductions
Extend strategic sourcing to a wider range of products and services
Enhance collaboration and knowledge sharing
This article is brought to you by eWork Markets, an excellent online sourcing solution for companies and individuals to procure consulting services. Take advantage of what many other companies already know about strategic e-sourcing - go to www.eworkmarkets.com and post your consulting project today.

Consultant Myths and Truths

Ever been in a meeting and somebody said "let's just get a consultant in here to help us." Well bringing in a consultant might be a good idea, but then again it might not.

Statistics show that only 4% of buyers of consulting services can claim they are very satisfied with the results of the consulting engagement. That number is staggering when you consider that hundreds of billions of dollars are spent on consultants each year.

Buyers of consulting services have the power to help their consultants succeed. Matter of fact - the buyer is REALLY the key to a consultant's success!

The most common projects to fail are what I like to call the "knee jerk project." These are projects where clients are quick to jump and say "I want this fixed!" without fully understanding what needs to be fixed. Prior to hiring a consultant, the company should ask questions like is it really a problem, what specifically is the problem, can the problem really be fixed, what are some scenarios of potential solutions, and what does the end product/project look like? In other words, what do you want the consultant to accomplish?

Additionally, even when the project is well thought through, consultants aren't magicians who wave their wand and suddenly make all the bad things in a company go away. If there are internal barriers that would prevent a problem from being fixed, no consultant can fix it, no matter how much experience they have or how much they charge you.

Another project likely to end in failure is the "band aid project." Many companies are willing to spend a small amount of money on a consultant who can really only provide a patch, rather than paying more money for one who is tasked with providing a long term, sustainable resolution.

For example, don't pay a company to set up a lead management software program unless you are going to pay them to make that software communicate/exchange data with other pertinent company software programs and business practices. Short cuts may provide immediate gratification but their benefits are short lived. If you can't afford to do it right, wait until you can.

Finally, let your consultant do what they do best - their job. If you are constantly pointing out "this won't work" or "we tried that" then their ideas won't be fresh. First let them present the ideas then suggest improvements. They won't always be right on the money, but if you stifle ideas then there is no point in hiring them. Let them do the work and don't second-guess every step of the way. Be open-minded and more often than not they will slip in an idea you never considered.

Before you hire a consultant you need to make sure the objectives are realistic and achievable, that you both agree to a Statement-of-Work with set expectations and a communication vehicle for milestone tracking, and that all internal barriers are removed before any of the work begins. Don't waste your money if you are going to set your consultants up for failure.

Article written by Emarket.com
http://www.eworkmarkets.com