management

being “too busy” may signal a need to reprioritize.

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

some firms encourage expanding workloads, creating questionable tasks or keeping people occupied under the pretense that their actual activities provide real value. what is the meaning of busy, really? and how are outcomes from efforts measured for value?

more: a rapidly changing business environment requires flexibility | organizational change starts and ends with people | busyness isn’t the same as productivity | staff orientation: a little investment goes a long way | managing information overload | 6 types of non-listeners
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

part of the illusion of being busy is that you can master many things at the same time. it certainly would keep you busy (or occupied) but you won’t nurture new skills and discover what your real aptitude is to help yourself and/or your firm.
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what is your firm’s social contract?

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

you read about companies every day: those that separate themselves from the competition by disrupting the norms and those that remain steadfast, much to their detriment. for the former, think about amazon, uber, netflix and other “change agents.” now, think about the latter: jcpenney, kmart and sears.

more: swot’s the purpose? | another meeting?!?! … sigh | organizational trust: top-down and bottom-up | how can change management really produce change? | trust: one building block of success
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as the late chairman and ceo of intel, andy grove said, “success breeds complacency. complacency breeds failure. only the paranoid survive.”
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if they’re necessary, so be it. but set some guidelines.

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

when in doubt, call a meeting. jeez! how many hours in the u.s. are cumulatively wasted on a daily basis with meetings? are they really necessary?

more: busyness isn’t the same as productivity | is your firm’s culture a magnet or a repellent? | building teamwork under covid pressure | make your writing count | etiquette never goes out of style | make news, not noise | take that extra breath with email | effective communications in the age of covid |the new covid-19 workplace: are you prepared?
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

if yes, do you employ rules of courtesy, such as strongly encouraging punctuality? do you have a clearly articulated agenda that was distributed in advance of the meeting? if yes, did it provide advance notice about any preparatory work or research expected to be done by the participants? finally, will the meeting be structured in such a way that it will allow for participation by the complete group?
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do you really need to go to that meeting?

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

did you ever notice when you call an associate, a friend or a business of any type, more often than not he or she will always respond with “i’m really busy” or “i’ve been jammed up”? it does not matter the time of the year, much less the time of week or day.

more: is your firm’s culture a magnet or a repellent? | organizational trust: top-down and bottom-up | how can change management really produce change? | trust: one building block of success | make your presentations memorable | have a real-life conversation | is your message open to interpretation?
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

has busy become too colloquial and is simply a throwaway line? what is actually meant by “busy”? or, more specifically, what is the condition of “busyness”?
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psst … it includes checklists.

by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting

running a professional services business requires the ability to manage multiple types of strong-minded and -willed individuals.

more: advice to new accountants | what does the client want to see? | 6 ways to increase your fees … if you dare | the clients that got away | upselling made painless
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it works, but it needs a discipline and a model to follow.

here is mine:
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more activity doesn’t mean better productivity.

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

how many people believe they thrive on doing at least two things at a time and believe that they are achieving optimal results? when you are on the phone, do you ever hear the clack, clack, clack of the keyboard in the background of the other party? or if you are in the middle of a conversation do you sense that the other party has to put you on hold because there was someone who may have entered his or her office? or, finally, you use a hands-free device for your conference call, do you put it on mute and then conduct in-person conversations in your office, or go through your email?

more: building teamwork under covid pressure | how can change management really produce change? | trust: one building block of success | make your presentations memorable | exchanging knowledge has no downside | political correctness or just common courtesy?
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

what happens? you lose the essence of the conference call; you may have been given an assignment you missed or you did not respond to questions that were directed toward you. what does this tell the host of the call or the other participants? not only are you rude, but you may be the person who will throw a wrench into the spokes of an initiative that everyone is invested in.
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the pandemic only highlights problems that existed before the office buildings were bolted shut.

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

with the covid outbreak, businesses of all types have had their teams work remotely while trying to ensure that the team structure was secure.

more: how can change management really produce change? | managing information overload | 6 types of non-listeners | listening: how a conversation works | exchanging knowledge has no downside | political correctness or just common courtesy? | syncing up for the covid era
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

how to communicate with and ensure trust with each team member has presented challenges – some having to do with issues that normally occur even in an in-person setting, in pre-pandemic times.

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