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This video goes over the management 4 majors functions.

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Four Functions of Management | Business 101 - Principles of Management - #4

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This article was helpful in going over managerial effectiveness. I think this would be particularly helpful for anyone in management.

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My wife spent a good amount of time yesterday listening to Jon Kabat-Zinn on videos giving lectures on mindfulness, so I listened to some of them too. I liked them. I hadn't heard of Dr. Kabat-Zinn (a professor and leading teacher of mindfulness and stress reduction), though I had heard of mindfulness.

Truth be told I didn't know much about mindfulness ( defined by Wikipedia as the psychological process of bringing one's attention to experiences occurring in the present moment, and having its roots in Buddhist traditions). But I'd thought about the term a lot related to management without being fully aware of its precise meanings and origins.

My general impression was that, whatever it meant, we needed more of it in management. A lot more.

For what it's worth, I don't believe I heard the word mentioned once in my 24 years in Fortune 500 management. Nor did I ever hear it while I was getting an MBA.

For what its worth, we tend to have a certain skepticism in management to anything that's hard to show pretty darn quick ROI on.

Though I did notice there seems to be some growing use of mindfulness in business, as Jeanne Meister wrote an interesting "future of work" article on how companies including Aetna, Intel and Google, among others, were starting to integrate mindfulness into their leadership practices.
Positive implications for management
This seems to me a really good thing. Anything that makes managers more carefully and thoughtfully attuned to those around them, including the employees they manage, should have positive implications for their management. It only stands to reason: The more you understand, the better you can manage and motivate.

With national employee engagement levels consistently mired around the 30% level, this suggests 70% of employees aren't emotionally committed to their companies. In short, not exactly a ringing endorsement of management effectiveness.

I've long been intuitively sympathetic to what may be called introspective approaches to people-management. I wrote a whole book on this general concept called The Type B Manager, advocating a quieter, calmer, more reflective managerial approach... without fully realizing my thinking was sort of a second cousin to mindfulness.

This is a big subject that deserves (and I hope to provide) additional treatment in the future, but for this blog, here are three qualities I'd consider foundational attributes of mindful management.

Self-awareness. I've said it before at different times and in different places, and I'll say it again: Without a reasonable degree of self-awareness, you can't be a highly effective manager. Without some awareness of how you're coming across to others and how they perceive you, it's hard to thoughtfully exercise authority over the long term. Without an accurate idea of how your employees are responding to you, you'll always be (avid fly fisherman speaking here) a trout swimming upstream. Meaning against the current.

Empathy. Studies have shown that empathy (the ability to understand and share the feelings of another) is a critical driver of successful management -- and that only 40% of "frontline leaders" are "proficient or strong in empathy." This stat doesn't surprise me -- if anything, maybe sounds a little high. People are usually selected for management more for reasons of authority than empathy. Though as noted earlier, the ability to understand employees (what their issues are, what motivates them and what doesn't) is no doubt part of managerial success.

Patience. Amid the chronic deadlines and stress of the working world, employees appreciate working for managers who are patient, as opposed to say, those who are short-tempered. Why wouldn't they? This I can say with confidence: A management coaching style that patiently supports an employee when he or she needs help will 9 times out of 10 (at least) be better received than an Old School command-and-control style focused more on authority than assistance.

None of this should be hugely surprising.

Management is after all the practice of accomplishing work through others. How we treat those others is a key element in this workplace equation.

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How Mindfulness Can Make You A Better Manager

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My wife spent a good amount of time yesterday listening to Jon Kabat-Zinn on videos giving lectures on mindfulness, so I listened to some of them too. I liked them. I hadn't heard of Dr. Kabat-Zinn (a professor and leading teacher of mindfulness and stress reduction), though I had heard of mindfulness.

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This article focuses on gamestop and innovation. The company has suffered in recent years. This ties to chapter 1 and the management process

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The video game industry is a large and fast-growing industry, but despite its niche within it, GameStop ( GME) has not, for years now, really benefited from any of this upside. In fact, since the end of 2014, the market cap of the business has declined materially, falling from $3.90 billion to the $1.38 billion that it is standing at today. Even as the rest of the industry passes it by, the firm appears to be on the slow march toward bankruptcy, with its latest sale, perhaps, seen as another possible opportunity to botch. What I see when looking at GameStop, though, isn't the failure the firm has been recently, but the potential it has if only management uses its asset sale to invest in the business appropriately.

Pain but potential

One good thing about GameStop is that management always has been incredibly transparent when it comes to its sales figures. Not only does the firm disclose region-specific data as segments (with Technology Brands as a separate segment), it also provides a breakdown of several different categories of sales like New Video Game Hardware, New Video Game Software, and more. Looking through this information can give investors a better understanding of where the strengths and weaknesses of the retailer lie.

*Created by Author

For instance, if you look at the graph above, you will see a breakdown of all sales categories (except for the Technology Brands category since management just sold the largest chunk of that off to Prime Communications for $700 million) for the past three fiscal years ending in 2017. Over the past three years, most of these categories have seen sales declines, with three notable exceptions: Video Game Accessories, Digital, and Collectibles. Digital's revenue is more or less flat during this timeframe (posting a very modest increase of only $0.9 million in revenue between 2015 and 2017), while the other two categories have performed well.

The most impressive area, to me, has been undoubtedly the firm's Collectibles business. Revenue between 2015 and 2017 exploded higher, growing from just $309.7 million to $636.2 million. So far in 2018, sales are up again, having risen 19.9% to $284.1 million year-over-year on a year-to-date basis. Clearly, management should continue to invest in this space, but that's not now, nor is it ever likely to be, the core of the firm. Today, that core rests with three sets of operations: New Video Game Hardware, New Video Game Software, and Pre-Owned content.

Both "New" categories of sales will ebb and flow based on industry releases, there's no doubt about that. Whenever new consoles, for instance, are released, these categories will see sales spike, but as a rule, as the number of retail outlets owned and operated by GameStop decrease, the flows will become smaller. What's more is that, while the software side of "New" sales possesses fat gross margins, they can't compete with the Pre-Owned margins, which can be seen next to the margins for all the other categories in the graph below. However, sales from the Pre-Owned category also continue to fall because of fewer retail outlets and, perhaps to a lesser extent, because of the rise of DLC (downloadable content).

*Created by Author

What we're left here with are a set of highly profitable and growing (but small) non-core businesses and core businesses that are in decline in one way or another. This isn't healthy for the business. And at a time when most other parts of the industry appear to be thriving, GameStop is closing stores and struggling to stay relevant. This brings me to what could really help the firm, especially now that management has some cash to work with.

An asset sale leads to opportunity

Earlier this month, the management team at GameStop announced that they struck a deal to sell off all of its Spring Mobile division to Prime Communications for $700 million. It's impossible to know exactly how much of an impact this sale will have on the retailer today because batched together with this to make up its Technology Brands segment is its Simply Mac business and, up until selling off its final 63 stores earlier this year for $3.8 million, its Cricket Wireless business. Given that Spring Mobile accounted for all but a few dozen of its remaining 1,336 Technology Brands locations, it almost certainly accounted for a vast majority of the segment.

While some investors may see this sale as a defeat, since it shrinks the retailer's physical and sales presence further, I see opportunity here, but in a new line of business that the company has barely dipped its toes: Video game design and publishing. Right now, video game developers are monumental in size compared to GameStop. Of the big players, Activision Blizzard ( ATVI) is an undeniable behemoth for a studio, with a $38.2 billion market cap. EA ( EA) is second with a market cap of $25 billion, and even Take-Two Interactive ( TTWO) dwarfs GameStop in size with a market cap of $12 billion. It's also worth mentioning that they weren't always so big in size. Activision, for instance, back in 2014, had a market cap of just $13.8 billion, so it has nearly tripled in size in just a few years.

Even though some investors might question if the space is now crowded and the opportunities for expansion gone, the data says otherwise. Newzoo, in one article, revealed that the video game industry should expand, between 2012 and 2021, at a CAGR of around 11%. Today, if the numbers are correct, the global industry accounts for nearly $138 billion in sales annually, and this number should expand to more than $180 billion by 2021. In the video game space, the largest area of growth is forecasted to be mobile, which will see revenue expand from $70.4 billion in 2018 to $106.3 billion by 2021. That's a growth rate of 14.7% per annum.

For GameStop, now is as good a time as ever to jump into this space. The firm will be receiving, on a gross basis, $700 million from its asset sale, plus it has $279.6 million in unrestricted cash and cash equivalents that it can play with. Operating cash flow this year will likely be between $350 million and $400 million, meaning that some cash could still be added onto its balance sheet by the end of this year too. In addition to all of this, GameStop has only $819.2 million in debt, leaving a debt/equity ratio of just 0.39. Realistically, the firm could probably borrow between $500 million and $1 billion to finance this kind of venture, and so long as the company approaches it the right way, it couldn't be worse than the wasted money spent on buying back shares like with the 13.4 million units bought back since 2014.

All of these resources could enable GameStop to build for itself a nice studio, and between opportunities to merge with any or buy up some smaller players in the industry, the potential is there. Investors who really know GameStop well know that the company has at least thought of moving in this direction in the past. After all, back in 2016, the firm partnered up with Insomniac Games to release a game titled Song of the Deep, but with only 0.35 million copies sold, it's hard to call that a success. To truly thrive in this space, management needs to invest heavily in talent and technology.

Takeaway

Right now, the future for GameStop looks bleak to me. Yes, the firm is still standing, but as its market cap change has proven over time, the market is pessimistic about the retailer's long-term survival. However, with a large amount of cash now on hand, a small amount of debt, and with its business already tied heavily to the video game industry, having the firm move in a big way to capitalize on the video game space, especially if their area of focus centers around mobile, could be the victory investors need.

Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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GameStop: Management Can't Afford To Stop Innovating

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The video game industry is a large and fast-growing industry, but despite its niche within it, GameStop ( GME) has not, for years now, really benefited from any of this upside. In fact, since the end of 2014, the market cap of the business has declined materially, falling from $3.90 billion to the $1.38 billion that it is standing at today.

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This was the first thing covered in module 1. I thought this was a good example of the Management Process.

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We covered sustainability in chapter 2, this article shows the top 25 companies in 2018.

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Just in time for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, an annual assessment of the world's most sustainable companies emerges, highlighting large firms from around the world whose sustainability in various categories puts them in a league of their own.

The report, in its fourteenth year, is compiled by Corporate Knights, a Canada-based financial information company and magazine whose focus is how business and societal and ecological benefits can go hand in hand.

In compiling its report, Corporate Knights looked to publicly-disclosed data-financial filings, sustainability reports, etc.-from some 6,000 financially healthy companies across the globe, in all industries, with a minimum annual revenue of $1 billion. Key factors Corporate Knight included in its analysis included energy use, carbon, waste and clean air production. Also taken into account were innovation expenditures, taxes paid, the diversity of leadership, leadership compensation, suppliers the companies work with, pension fund health, safety ratings, employee turnover and the link between sustainability targets and senior executive pay.

Companies that appeared on the previous year's ranking were automatically included in the analysis and all firms that made the top 900 were contacted for data verification before the results were boiled down to a final 100.

For a look at the top 25 companies on Corporate Knights' sustainability list, scroll to the end of this article.

Topping the list this year was Dassault Systemes, a French firm that designs engineering software that assists organizations in waste reduction. According to Corporate Knights, the company bested all others in the sustainability ranking by having strong female representation on its board, having a smallish gap between the pay of its CEO and its average workers, and paying more than 26% of its earnings in taxes over the past five years.

Behind Dassault is Neste, a Finnish company that deals in renewable diesel and other petroleum products. Within the next five years, according to Corporate Knights, more than half of its revenue will come from renewable fuel and bio-material. In third place we find Valeo, a company based in France that manufactures automotive parts. It earned its place in the top three by pushing out products that help auto makers reduce emissions.

Overall, the U.S.-based companies held 18 spots on the ranking. French firms held fifteen places, U.K.-based firms added ten and Germany six.

Among the results of its analysis, Corporate Knights discovered that companies on its list of 100 most sustainable had three times as many female top executives than the average multinational firms generating over $1 billion. They also paid 27% more in taxes.
The Top 25 Most Sustainable Companies, with Sustainability Scores

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The World's Most Sustainable Companies, 2018

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Just in time for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, an annual assessment of the world's most sustainable companies emerges, highlighting large firms from around the world whose sustainability in various categories puts them in a league of their own.

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Ths article talks about the trends likely to see in the workplace in 2018. As we are nearing the end of 2018 I found this interesting especially the trend regarding harrassment in the workplace. A number of workplaces decided not to do christmas parties this year because of the "me too" movement.

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One word comes to mind when I think of 2017: unprecedented. The events of the past year have tested companies in a number of ways and changed mainstream discourse about the role corporations should play in advancing and addressing social and global challenges. There's no turning back. In 2018, the expectation is that companies will continue to expand their activism on, and investment in, the issues that matter to their employees, customers and communities. Here are some key trends to look for.
The beginning of the end of workplace harassment and inequality
In February, Susan Fowler published her whistle blowing essay about sexism and harassment during her time at Uber. By the end of the year, the stories piled up and #MeToo took off, making it abundantly clear that women in every industry have had to deal not only with rampant sexual harassment, but also with corporate cultures and policies that are designed to keep them quiet and disempowered. If 2017 was about speaking truth to power, 2018 will be focused on concrete change, both in terms of internal reporting policies and addressing workplace inequality. As part of this, we're likely to see companies take a hard look at the gender makeup of their leadership teams and boards, and implement real steps to increase the number of women on both.
Expanding the diversity conversation
The past year has been a landmark one for women in the workplace, but it's important to remember that diversity initiatives need to address so much more. "The diversity conversation has to become broader -- it seems to be more and more focused on gender. It's got to be about more than women," said Cecily Joseph , vice president of Symantec. Symantec defines inclusion as "creating a workforce that embraces every culture, language, age, sexual orientation, disability, background and experience - and giving a voice to those differences." As the population and workforce continue to grow more diverse, companies will need to focus on creating company cultures, experiences and products that speak to a wide range of identities and perspectives.
Focused and forward-thinking brand activism
Much of the CEO and corporate activism we witnessed this year came in response to presidential announcements. Leading CEOs issued reactive statements on everything from the immigration ban to public lands legislation to the transgender military ban to white supremacy to the decision to withdraw from the Paris agreement. We'll continue to see this, and it's important. But we can also expect more focused action, with companies designating social or policy areas where they can make the most impact and devoting more resources toward proactive initiatives.

"Business leaders have been heard in important new ways this year in opposition to withdrawal from Paris; the hate seen on the streets of Charlottesville, and the immigration ban," said Aron Cramer , CEO of BSR. "It will be crucial in 2018 for business leaders to add to this by stating what they are for: namely an effort to ensure that an economy in flux takes into account the disruption of employment; the need to invest in new technologies that will usher in a clean energy revolution, and also support for collaborative, multilateral solutions to global challenges."
A shift from disaster recovery to climate resilience
Along these lines, with the influx of natural disasters we saw in 2017, companies will invest more resources into prevention, mitigation and climate resilience rather than just recovery. According to BSR's report, The Future of Sustainable Business , no company will be immune from the consequences of climate change. To protect their businesses, supply chains and communities, companies must invest in innovative technology, redefine business models, and support policies that can address critical climate-related challenges.
More CSR in the C-Suite
With the heightened expectations on corporations as influencers in the social and environmental sphere, more companies are bringing CSR into the C-Suite. "We definitely see an increase in the elevation of corporate citizenship roles to executive status," said Katherine Smith , executive director of the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship (BCCCC). According to research from BCCCC, the number of companies directing corporate citizenship from the C-Suite has increased nearly 75 percent compared to five years ago.
Higher standards for suppliers
We talk a lot about how consumer expectations and demand have contributed to companies becoming more purpose-driven and sustainable. This year, we'll see more companies drive that same demand as they evaluate potential suppliers. "I believe we'll continue to see large companies use their power as customers to drive improvements in responsible business practices through their global supply chains, by setting increased expectations around transparency, holding suppliers accountable for environmental performance and human rights issues, and collaborating on industry-wide initiatives to address system-level challenges from human trafficking to water conservation," said Suzanne Fallender , director of corporate responsibility at Intel.
Prioritizing privacy and data protection
With all the headlines in 2017, data breaches flew comparatively under the mainstream media radar. But according to Symantec's Joseph: "Privacy and data protection should be (at the) top of the agenda for CR issues in 2018. That has been on the radar for many years by top executives. With these ongoing breaches, it is clear that all companies need to protect personal information more diligently." According to the State of Corporate Citizenship Report , consumer data protection and privacy is the number one area where executives expect to increase resources over the next two years.
Another unprecedented year ahead
As 2018 unfolds, it's likely that companies will continue taking unprecedented action to accelerate social and environmental progress. I expect we'll see companies step up on two issues in particular: women's reproductive freedom (see Cecile Richards' speech at the BSR Conference) and sensible gun laws (check out the Gun Safety Alliance ). Research shows that the majority of Americans support these issues, and many companies will likely face increasing pressure from their employees and customers to take a stand. I look forward to seeing who the pioneers will be.

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8 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Trends To Look For In 2018

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One word comes to mind when I think of 2017: unprecedented. The events of the past year have tested companies in a number of ways and changed mainstream discourse about the role corporations should play in advancing and addressing social and global challenges. There's no turning back.

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Whether its gender or ethnic diversity this article covers how these companies outperform their competitors by more that 15%. . This was covered in chapter 3.

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Diversity and inclusion are topics on many executive agendas. Companies should be working to create more diversity within and outside of their organisation, because firstly, it's the right thing to do, and secondly, it makes business sense. Companies in the top quartile for gender diversity outperform their competitors by 15% and those in the top quartile for ethnic diversity outperform their competitors by 35%.

If you want to create a diverse solution or product, you need a diverse team and leadership. So, how can companies reach those targets, create more diverse products and outperform competitors?
Top-level buy-in
Executive buy-in is a necessity. A shift in industry cannot be expected without engaging those who pull the strings. This means companies must engage people which D&I strategies do not usually directly affect. Executive buy-in should focus on highlighting the business benefits of having diverse teams and inclusive environments. When employees "think their organisation is committed to and supportive of diversity, and they feel included,' their A 2016 study by Fenwick and West showed that the largest 150 Silicon Valley public companies averaged only 14 % women directors and an average of only 0.8 women executive officers. Additionally, almost ability to innovate increases by 83%. As an executive, your role should be focused around running your company in the best way possible, which empowers your employees. Executives need to embody any diversity and inclusion strategy - writing down words on a piece of paper does not make a culture, having leaders which embody and live it does. 58% of main boards in the FTSE100 currently have no ethnic minority presence.

Having top-level buy-in is only one step in any strategy. Organisations must create environments which allow people to bring their whole, true selves to work and understand they can climb the career ladder internally - they should feel a sense of belonging. Leaders cannot continue to look and sound the same, as this directly forms the unconscious/unchecked bias that these traits are associated with success. Companies need to create environments where people of all races, genders, sexuality, religions, socio-economic backgrounds (and everything in between) can thrive and realistically see themselves as leaders within the industry. To foster this culture, companies need to have a theme of allyship throughout the organisation.
What is allyship?
Allyship can take many forms - the overarching themes to follow are:

1. Openly sponsor someone within your organisation from an underrepresented/marginalised community

2. Speak your sponsee's name when they aren't around

3. Share their career goals with influencers

4. Recommend them for stretch assignments which allow skill-set growth and career progression

5. Invite them to high-profile meetings

6. Open endorse them publicly

Allyship gives visibility and credit to under-represented groups, ensuring their voices are heard and actioned accordingly.

Humans need to see people who look, sound and have similar backgrounds to them in their leadership and organisation - additionally, they need to see people who do not look, sound or have similar backgrounds to them. The industry needs to embrace diversity and inclusion because tech does not have just one face.
Reworking company policies
An organization's policies are crucial in embodying their on-paper diversity and inclusion strategy. Companies should work to provide parental leave, annual leave, flexible working hours, opt-in benefits, medical care and recruitment processes which can be tailored to embrace different needs and situations. A crucial part of forming inclusive policies is simply asking what your employees need and want - form employee resource groups and ask people what they think works well and what your organization is missing. Listen, form a strategy which actions this feedback in an appropriate timeframe, listen again and be prepared to adapt and rework your ideas of what's needed.

Unconscious bias should be readily discussed in your organisation and regular training given to all levels of the organisation on recognizing privilege and bias. Typically, underrepresented groups of employees are in junior or mid-tier roles meaning these people are actively working with middle-management in their daily roles. Simply providing training for executive level/partners will not directly positively affect the environments in which these people work in - companies need to invest in training middle-management to ensure they understand any bias on their part, their role in empowering their team members and their ability to make the tech industry of tomorrow better than the one which exists today.
Switching up recruitment avenues and tactics
Moreover, diversity and inclusion strategies must focus on the talent pipeline in conjunction with empowering the current organization's talent. Recruitment avenues and processes must go further to reach an array of talent which may not be feasible through standard recruiter pools. Partnerships should be formed with non-profits and organizations dedicated to helping underrepresented groups excelling in industry, allowing organizations to directly support and empower diverse potential future employees. Interviewers should not fall into one demographic and gender neutral language should be used in job applications.

A shift in diversity won't happen without time and financial investment. There is no magic spell to fix the issues the industry faces, but by taking steps internally and externally, we can expect an impact in what the tech teams and leaders of tomorrow look like - and ultimately, a healthier bottom line.

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Embracing Diversity And Fostering Inclusion Is Good For Your Business

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Diversity and inclusion are topics on many executive agendas. Companies should be working to create more diversity within and outside of their organisation, because firstly, it's the right thing to do, and secondly, it makes business sense.

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I found this article interesting as it discusses a woman CEO at a flight school located right here in Jacksonville FL. We covered this material in Chapter 3

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Appointed the first teen board member of the Denver Bar Association and awarded the "Budding Barristers Award" as the first prosecuting attorney for Denver's teen court program, she's stood out as a groundbreaker, especially in areas new to women.

Donnell Vigil knew as early as the fourth grade, after learning about Susan B. Anthony's equality work and reading her words, "a man's rights are nothing more and a woman's rights are nothing less," that she wanted to make a difference and stand-up for women's rights, too.

She's accomplished that and more from practicing basic values her parents taught her by example - being fully vested in goals and not quitting, creating opportunities and asking for the job, and helping other entrepreneurs to continually enhance her growth and motivation - that in reality are difficult to do.

As a result, today she's making a name for women in the male-dominated aviation industry.

With current Federal Aviation Administration statistics showing that women only make up seven percent of all licensed pilots in the United States, being a female owner and president of a flight school is even more rare.

Since 2013, when Vigil was appointed Quasar Aerospace Industries president, she made improving its subsidiary flight schools, Atlantic and A-Cent, her central goal while facing the worst discriminatory obstacles in her career.

"I've always believed if you're determined enough you can do anything you want in this world and break the glass ceiling because it's glass," said Vigil. "As a woman and minority [Hispanic and American Indian], I've experienced lots of discrimination by people not taking me seriously, being mistreated and sexually harassed, but you have to battle through it and not back down when trying to establish and run a business. I've run into the most obstacles being in the aviation industry as a woman."

Located at Herlong Airport on the west area of Jacksonville, she's turned A-Cent into a one-stop shop for aviation where students can grow from zero flight time hours to earning a commercial pilot's license, become instrument rated and even train as a flight instructor. A-Cent provides flight training and FAA and Federal Communications Commission testing but has expanded the business with aircraft rentals, air tours of the city, a pilot shop to buy needed learning materials and aircraft parts, and commercial drone training and testing.

Vigil's expanded her fleet of a Cessna 162 Skycatcher, a Cessna 172F, a Cessna 172SP and a Piper Aero IV, to include the Enstrom 280 helicopter and will soon provide helicopter flight training and aerial tours.

Vigil also hosts a "rusty-pilot" workshop with the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association where reoccurrence training, including ground and flight reviews are given to pilots that haven't flown in a while. She's also in the process of applying for a 135 charter certificate to fly folks to destinations and with Sevis to aid International students who want to become FAA pilot certified to obtain an M1 visa to study here as a trade school designation.

"I like to find areas within the aviation industry that are untapped markets and offer them," said Vigil. "There always will be more to come watching the industry and maximizing our potential."

Working 16-hour days to make it all happen, Vigil is also the CEO of two publicly traded companies on the OTC Pink market-Green Energy Enterprises, a retail hydroponic grow store, and International Star, a mining company. She's the mother of four children, ages ranging from five to 24.

Vigil ended up in Jacksonville by finding a need and surpassing it. Having had her own legal company and working with various law firms, she wanted to go back to the corporate world where she could drive at becoming a CEO. Living in Wichita, Kansas, that would mean joining an aviation company.

Starting as an office manager with Apex Engineering, she soon was promoted to the PR representative for their safety team. As her legal knowledge became known, she developed contracts resulting in on-going, million-dollar relationships and created a new position for herself, contract and legal analyst.

"I've always learned if you don't ask for it, then don't complain when you don't get it," said Vigil. "When you want a job, literally say, 'I want this job.'"

Then when Quasar was negotiating to buy Apex Engineering - she instigated these contracts, too - she was recruited by Quasar to join their team and ended up becoming their president in three years.

"If you do right by others, others will do right by you," said Vigil. "I think I've made it this far because I enjoy sharing knowledge. Some folks see others only as competition but I know that helping those around me not only makes them stronger, it makes me stronger." You can reach Vigil at www.a-centaviation.com.

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Flight school CEO takes off in male-dominated business

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Appointed the first teen board member of the Denver Bar Association and awarded the "Budding Barristers Award" as the first prosecuting attorney for Denver's teen court program, she's stood out as a groundbreaker, especially in areas new to women.Donnell Vigil knew as early as the fourth grade, after learning about Susan B.

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With the holidays upon us I really thought this was a great article to tie in international management and how the trade war in china can affect consumers this holiday season. We read about this in chaper 4.

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CLOSE

In light of the ongoing trade war with China, some Americans are pausing and adding more thought to their holiday shopping plans this year.

Some 93 percent of Americans said they plan to make purchases this holiday season, according to a new NerdWallet survey, conducted by The Harris Poll, of over 2,000 U.S. adults. Of those, 44 percent said they will compare prices of products more closely because of the trade war.

Tariffs have dominated business and economic news throughout 2018.

In an economic back-and-forth between countries, the United States has imposed tariffs on certain products imported from China, such as seafood, furniture, electronics, appliances and cosmetics. China has imposed tariffs on certain products imported from the United States, such as food and vehicles.

About half of Americans are paying close attention - 53 percent of Americans said they are very or somewhat closely following the U.S./China tariffs/trade war, according to the NerdWallet survey.

Shoppers are taking precautions

Despite this split, some American shoppers will be taking steps to ensure they don't overpay this holiday season.

We asked those who plan to make purchases this holiday season how the tariffs/trade war with China will affect their purchasing (e.g., gifts, food, decorations) from November 2018 through January 2019, and nearly three-quarters (73 percent) cited some sort of impact:

* 44 percent said they will compare prices of products more closely.

* 22 percent said they will avoid buying products made in China.

* 19 percent said they will avoid buying products that are impacted by the tariffs.

* 16 percent said they will buy fewer gifts than they normally would.

More: 3 tips to avoid overspending on Black Friday

Consumers may feel the taxes soon

Tariffs will have an impact on prices, although consumers might not notice it quite yet, according to Thomas Prusa, a professor of economics at Rutgers University.

"There is too much trade being subject to tariff to think that American consumers aren't going to feel the effects of this," Prusa says.

Select products, such as home appliances, have already seen higher prices. But there's often a lag between tariff implementation and price increases, so some products that retailers are selling this Black Friday and holiday season won't be affected yet.

For those products that are affected, Prusa says the impact may be largely hidden in the prices.

More: Amazon drops $25 minimum for free shipping through holiday shopping season

And despite perhaps taking more precautions, Americans won't stop shopping altogether.

"I would say it's probably going to be a good holiday season because the overall economy is strong," Prusa says. "That being said, it probably won't be as good as it might otherwise be because of the higher prices coming from the tariffs."

How to save money

In response to higher prices and in anticipation of potential future price increases, consumers can begin preparing for holiday shopping now. Here are a few ways to plan ahead and save money:

* Build a budget: Write out a holiday shopping budget and give it breathing room, in case some items cost more than you anticipate.

* Monitor prices: Keep an eye on the products you're interested in buying well before you plan to shop. Track prices over the next month or two so you can recognize a good sale when you see one.

* Earn cash back: When possible, take advantage of cash-back apps like NerdWallet's to earn a percentage of your eligible purchases back.

* Take steps after your purchase: Use price-adjustment policies. Many stores will give you money back if the product you purchased goes on sale in a week or two after you buy it.

More: These 8 retailers can't afford a disappointing 2018 holiday shopping season

Methodology

This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of NerdWallet from Oct. 11-15, 2018, among 2,004 U.S. adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/shopping/2018/11/22/trade-war-china-taxing-holiday-shopping/38443657/

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Americans' holiday shopping plans are being taxed by Trump's trade war with China

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CLOSE In light of the ongoing trade war with China, some Americans are pausing and adding more thought to their holiday shopping plans this year. Some 93 percent of Americans said they plan to make purchases this holiday season, according to a new NerdWallet survey, conducted by The Harris Poll, of over 2,000 U.S.

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This article is about Crown Mobility which is a company that helps with global management of businessses. It explains the new immigration program they are putting in place.

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DANBURY, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 28, 2018-- Crown World Mobility (CWM), the world-renowned provider of domestic and international end-to-end workforce mobility solutions and talent management strategies, is set to launch its new and highly anticipated Immigration Program. The program is designed to help administrators, human resources professionals and managers who oversee international employee transfers-saving companies time, reducing risk and easing the process for these professionals and the employees being sent on international assignments.

This new program will provide solutions ranging from simple moves with temporary work visas to more complex needs including candidate selection, long-term planning and ongoing compliance monitoring.

The new Immigration Program is based on three pillars:

Global Vigilance - Up-to-the-minute knowledge of 120 countries and their immigration policies.Employee Support - On-the-ground support to walk employees and management through the relocation process, tackling any unexpected changes and all administration.Compliance Support - Ongoing case tracking with skilled legal insight ensures clients maintain compliance for all employees working abroad.

While the program will be available worldwide, locations of initial focus will include Asia, Europe, United Arab Emirates and Latin America. The program will be officially launched globally by November 30 th.

About Crown World Mobility: Crown World Mobility ( www.crownworldmobility.com ) is a division of the Crown Worldwide Group, established in 1965 and headquartered in Hong Kong. Crown World Mobility helps corporations manage global talent and talented individuals perform on the global stage. In a world that seems to be constantly shrinking, managing a globally mobile workforce creates challenges for any organization. These challenges are human in scale-global assignments involve the everyday lives of transferees and their families. But there are policies to navigate, formalities to coordinate and legalities to adhere to-at the same time as concentrating on a new assignment and getting a job done. Crown's approach is to work with all stakeholders to find the right solution, implementing a global mobility program that is successful for the whole organization. This often means finding a unique solution, which Crown has the experience and capability to deliver.

CONTACT: For Crown World Mobility

KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA CONNECTICUT

INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TECHNOLOGY DATA MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONSULTING HUMAN RESOURCES

SOURCE: Crown World Mobility

Copyright Business Wire 2018.

PUB: 11/28/2018 01:35 PM/DISC: 11/28/2018 01:35 PM

Copyright Business Wire 2018.

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Crown World Mobility Launches New Worldwide Immigration Program

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DANBURY, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 28, 2018-- Crown World Mobility (CWM), the world-renowned provider of domestic and international end-to-end workforce mobility solutions and talent management strategies, is set to launch its new and highly anticipated Immigration Program.

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McDonald's is almost at 10% of global fast food market. This article shows their stock gains globally and how they are able to keep growing.

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McDonald's Corporation ( - Free Report) , the world's largest fast-food restaurant chain, reached the billion-dollar brand status through sustained product innovation and geographic expansion. With almost 10% share of the global informal-eating-out market, there is ample scope for it to grow in the future as it boasts a scale advantage compared with its peers.

Resultantly, with an impressive share price appreciation and a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), the stock is a profitable investment choice at the moment. Shares of McDonald's have gained 11.4% over the past six months, outperforming the industry 's rally of 8.8%.

The company delivered better-than-expected earnings for the 17th straight quarter when it posted third-quarter 2018 results. Moreover, its earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate, the average being 6.1% in the trailing four quarters.

Let's delve deeper into factors that make McDonald's a lucrative pick at the moment.
Impressive Same-Store Sales Growth
McDonald's sales-boosting initiatives are driving global comparable sales. In third-quarter 2018, comps grew 4.2%, marking its 13th straight quarter of positive comps. Moreover, U.S comps were up 2.4% in the period.

In order to drive comps in the United States, representing about 40% of the company's business, McDonald's aims at improving focus on growing guest traffic. In this regard, the company is accentuating operational excellence, product innovation, offering a value menu and rolling out more limited-time offerings.

In addition to this, the company is undertaking digital initiatives to serve customers more efficiently. Notably, nearly all of its U.S. restaurants now use digital menu boards. Further, McDonald's continues to roll out mobile order and pay, with a new curbside check-in option. Meanwhile, McDonald's is increasingly focusing on delivery to provide augmented convenience to customers. The company provides delivery from over 15,000 restaurants.
Refranchising Initiatives to Boost Earnings
McDonald's adopted a de-risking strategy by reducing its ownership of restaurants through refranchising. Notably, in January 2017, the company entered a partnership and sold the control of its China business, thereby, reducing its own share to 20%. McDonald's intends to add over 1,500 more stores in the region within the next five years. Currently, nearly 95% of the company's restaurants are franchised.

In addition to the sale of its assets in China, McDonald's is looking for similar deals in markets of South Korea, Japan and Southeast Asia. In fact, it already completed several other important refranchising transactions, including Singapore, Malaysia, the Nordics and Taiwan. These partnerships are part of the company's efforts to streamline its business and focus on the quality of its offerings.

We note that refranchising a large portion of the system reduces the company's capital requirements and facilitates earnings per share growth. Arguably, earnings growth is of utmost importance for determining a stock's potential as surging profit levels often indicate solid prospects (and stock price gains). In 2018, McDonald's earnings per share are expected to grow 16.5%.
Valuation & Dividend Yield Look Cogent
Looking at McDonald's Price-to-Earnings Ratio (P/E) in the trailing 12 months, investors might be willing to pay more as the company is undervalued compared with peers. Its P/E ratio for the trailing 12 months stands at 24 while that for the industry is 25.3.

Meanwhile, McDonald's current dividend yield stands at 2.2% compared with the industry's figure of 0%.
Other Stocks to Consider
Other top-ranked restaurant stocks are BJ's Restaurants ( - Free Report) , Darden ( - Free Report) and Dunkin' Brands ( - Free Report) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Earnings for BJ's Restaurants, Darden and Dunkin' Brands for the current year are projected to increase 66.5%, 16.8% and 16.9%, respectively.
Looking for Stocks with Skyrocketing Upside?
Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana.

Ignited by new referendums and legislation, this industry is expected to blast from an already robust $6.7 billion to $20.2 billion in 2021. Early investors stand to make a killing, but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look.
See the pot trades we're targeting>>
Zacks Restaurant Recommendations: In addition to dining at these special places, you can feast on their stock shares. A Zacks Special Report spotlights 5 recent IPOs to watch plus 2 stocks that offer immediate promise in a booming sector. Download it free "

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McDonald's (MCD) Gains 11.4% in 6 Months: More Room to Run?

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McDonald's Corporation ( - Free Report) , the world's largest fast-food restaurant chain, reached the billion-dollar brand status through sustained product innovation and geographic expansion. With almost 10% share of the global informal-eating-out market, there is ample scope for it to grow in the future as it boasts a scale advantage compared with its peers.

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Apple has focused on entering emerging markets and has seen a steady increase in sales.

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BI Intelligence
This story was delivered to BI Intelligence Apps and Platforms Briefing subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here.
Apple is in talks with the Indian government to manufacture the iPhone and other products in the country, according to statements from two government officials obtained by the Wall Street Journal.

This is likely part of a larger effort by the company to catalyze iPhone sales in India, a market that surpassed the US as the No. 2 smartphone market after global leader China.

This is the second piece of news in the past week highlighting Apple's ambitions to have a larger footprint in emerging markets. Apple is also making a significant $44 million investment in a research and development center in Indonesia over the next three years as part of a larger effort to get iPhones cleared for sale in the country by its government.

This strategy is likely partly driven by the fact that Apple's growth in developed markets has flatlined. Apple reported declining iPhone sales year-over-year (YoY) in the US and Greater China during Q3 2016, which drove overall iPhone sales to decline 5%. However, iPhone sales saw YoY growth in Latin America, India, and South Asia during Q3. Apple CEO Tim Cook swore a return to growth in 2017, and may be focusing on that latter set of markets to do so.

But although there's plenty of potential to capture new audiences in emerging markets, Apple's unlikely to succeed there due to sky-high price points that don't align with cost-conscious consumers who make up the large majority of the population in these regions. About 80% of smartphones sold in India cost less than $150, according to Bloomberg, and half cost less than $120. Comparatively, the average selling price (ASP) of an iPhone in Q3 was $618. Even Apple's lowest cost phones are too expensive for most consumers in markets like India and Indonesia.

Apple may be attempting to establish a presence and build name recognition in these markets early, before the middle class sees a surge in growth. A similar shift is what enabled Apple to succeed in China, which has added over 43 million citizens to the middle class from 2000 to 2015 to total 109 million. India had about 23 million adults in its middle class in 2015, out of a total population of 1.25 billion.

The global smartphone market is expected to slow considerably over the next few years. Despite a record-setting holiday quarter, 2015 was likely the last year of double-digit growth for smartphone shipments.

Mature markets were at the heart of this year's deceleration. Adoption has reached new highs in key markets in the United States, Europe, and China. The pool of first-time buyers in these countries is shrinking rapidly, and sales are now primarily coming from phone upgrades.

Meanwhile, emerging markets will continue to see robust shipment growth. India and Indonesia, in particular, will help fuel a large share of the shipments growth within the global smartphone market over the next few years.

BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report on smartphones by country that forecasts the market through 2021 to reflect slower, stabilizing growth in the long term.
Here are some key points from the report:

The global smartphone market is still growing at a steady pace due to more widespread adoption in emerging markets. We estimate the global market will hit about 2.1 billion units shipped in 2021.

Shipments growth over the past few years has been driven by the falling price of smartphones, which has made handsets more accessible in emerging markets. The average selling price of a smartphone in India nearly halved between 2010 and 2015.

With relatively low smartphone penetration, we forecast Indian smartphone shipments to grow rapidly over the next five years. Nevertheless, India has a long way to go before it surpasses China as the world's leading market for smart handsets. India is estimated to account for roughly 10% of the global smartphone market in 2016, considerably less than China's 30% share.

The global platform wars are over, even as smartphone adoption continues to rise across various markets worldwide. Android and iOS are estimated to account for 97.3% of global platform market share in 2015, compared to 96.3% last year.

Apple closed the year with another strong quarter on the back of its iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus launches. Still, the vendor saw a slight decline in YoY growth of its share of the market in the face of stiff competition from Samsung and Chinese vendors such as Huawei.

In full, the report:

Forecasts global smartphone shipments through 2021.

Explores why India is the next high-growth smartphone market.

Breaks down the global smartphone platform wars.

Discusses smartphone vendor performance market share.

To get your copy of this invaluable guide, choose one of these options:

1. Subscribe to an ALL-ACCESS Membership with BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. >> START A MEMBERSHIP

2. Purchase the report and download it immediately from our research store. >> BUY THE REPORT

The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you've given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the smartphone market.

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Apple is focusing more on emerging markets

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This story was delivered to BI Intelligence Apps and Platforms Briefing subscribers. To learn more and subscribe, please click here. Apple is in talks with the Indian government to manufacture the iPhone and other products in the country, according to statements from two government officials obtained by the Wall Street Journal.

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The artcle explains the planning process and how they are working to create a safe driverless experience.

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How ADAS Is Paving the Way for Autonomous Driving

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Vehicles with varying levels of driving automation are on the road now-maybe even that unassuming minivan in the next lane-and the reality is that the automotive industry is in a period of transition, where advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) are paving the way for fully autonomous vehicles.

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Planning and decision making for the future

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Planning and decision making for the future

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This discusses how CFO's can plan for the future and the steps needed.

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The evolution from the Wright brothers' first successful flight in 1903 to transatlantic flights that connect the world in a ubiquitous way didn't happen overnight. It took decades of research and planning and an ongoing commitment to take calculated risks and make decisions to explore the unknown for great reward.

Finance, in both its function and its transformation, is also driven by evolution. As businesses move forward amid continued disruption, evolution is not only a natural progression - it's a necessity for survival. To this end, processes are evolving; best practices are being adopted and, in many cases, enabled by advancements in technology

For corporate finance teams, steady evolution driven by technology remains paramount to its future success: Each advance forward signifies an important shift from data collectors and reporters to business partners and strategic advisors.

As the CFO of a cloud planning company, I see first-hand how the corporate finance function needs to help guide the business through heightened volatility, uncertainty, and risk. For finance leaders specifically, here are five considerations that can help achieve and sustain success in an increasingly dynamic business environment.

1. Behind every great strategy is an even broader and deeper set of data

As markets grow more dynamic, how companies operate within these markets must be equally agile. Today's CFOs need to be strategists; they need information from across the business to make timely decisions more than ever. Yet behind every great strategy is the data used to inform it. If finance teams aren't equipped with a reliable, integrated view of operational, financial, HR, sales, and marketing data from across the organization then they will struggle to establish a single version of the truth.

To make better, faster decisions, leaders should be tapping into and gleaning insights from both internal and external data - such as demand, exchange rates, or commodity price volatility - and incorporate these into dynamic, enterprise-wide plans. A recent study commissioned by Anaplan revealed that 82 percent of aggressively growing companies favor this kind of continuous approach to planning and incorporate market data into their plans within days or weeks.

By seizing the opportunity to go beyond traditional planning approaches of the past, a Connected Planning approach enables real-time decision-making and provides the business with a clearer picture of how corporate objectives align with financial plans linked to operational tactics and market events.

When changes are made in one area of the business, any impacts, big or small, are immediately visible across the enterprise. This level of business agility is nearly impossible to achieve with traditional approaches. Leaders need to evaluate the full scope of information needed for effective business decisions in real or near real time.

2. Are your people, processes, and data interdependent - or independent?

Business planning environments are increasingly more continuous, intertwined, and interdependent, yet planners struggle with inefficiency. Nearly 75 percent of total respondents in our State of Connected Planning research reported that they take weeks or months to incorporate market changes into planning processes. To avoid the deadly wait for information, leaders should consider leveraging planning technology that connects people, processes, and data in a single, unified interface.

I experienced this business cohesiveness firsthand at Seagate Technology. We decided to implement a Connected Planning approach in 2014 with the Anaplan platform and used it initially for revenue forecasting. The implementation proved so successful that it went viral, surging from 100 internal users to thousands of users, and was easily adopted and implemented beyond finance throughout the business to become our holistic planning ecosystem. As a result, our overall spend was reduced, our agility increased, and managing change was faster and easier.

3. The right technology helps you see around corners

Keeping up the pace amid disruption and volatility can be challenging, especially using historical-looking point solutions or spreadsheets. The ability to use advanced analytics for predictive modeling assures that historical data can be used to make better decisions that shape the future. Technology with "what if" analysis and scenario-planning capabilities can help businesses gain real-time insight to better understand the implications of business decisions that span across functions.

Robust technology is imperative to operating with agility through periods of uncertainty. Consider the business uncertainty over the past 12 months: U.S. businesses debated the Jobs and Tax Act proposed by President Trump and whether it would go into effect December 31 or January 1, a single day of difference that would incur far-reaching business and tax implications.

Portions of the year also focused on tariffs and trade, and in response, businesses had to be increasingly agile adjusting their supply chains. Using tools without these predictive capabilities can leave decision-makers in the dark on what might happen in the future. Connected Planning methodologies, and the technology that supports them, can enable timely, reliable forward-looking decisions by replacing discrete, opaque, siloed, and offline toolsets.

4. Looking for hard-to-find business opportunities? There's an algorithm for that

Machine-learning technology, along with predictive and advanced analytics, can reveal deep insights from external and internal data around business drivers and trends to inform and influence more insightful business decisions. Machine-learning methodologies applied within a financial planning platform, for example, can quickly analyze historical sales data, weather, and social media to discern their impact on customer demand.

This information can then be used to create more reliable forecasts, a more accurate financial outlook, and help inform better decision-making while still maintaining a holistic view of planning across the company.

5. Trading up: Move past silos to digital collaboration

According to state-of-planning research, 74 percent of companies plan more frequently now than they did five years ago, yet only 15 percent of businesses execute on all of their plans. For finance, teams have traditionally spent too much time collecting and validating data rather than business partnering and driving collaboration.

Here are three considerations that can help increase high-value collaboration:

1. Build a team of teams. Talent is key to better business performance. Ensure that your business has well-defined individuals and a shared consciousness of the goals you need to meet.

2. Make your routine routine. If you're spending too much time, and experiencing friction points on items that should be automated, determine how to automate them for improved efficiency.

3. Move analytics to action. Infuse analytics into your decision-making. Many business professionals are still reconciling spreadsheets. Adopting Connected Planning technology allows decision-makers to make credible, real-time, enterprise-wide decisions based on data and analytics. No more tedium.

Looking to the future, finance teams can continue to explore and uncover new opportunities through breakthrough analytics and automation, especially as efforts focus on finance-led, Connected Planning approaches. From a holistic vision to ongoing revision, today's finance leaders are on an evolutionary journey of continuous learning and business empowerment.
David Morton is Executive Vice President (EVP) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Anaplan. Dave is a seasoned finance professional with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry, including global leadership roles encompassing corporate financial planning, revenue consolidation, manufacturing, pricing, and sales operations. Before joining Anaplan, Dave was the Chief Accounting Officer at Tesla, Inc. Prior to that, he spent over 20 years at Seagate Technology. Sponsored posts are content produced by a company that is either paying for the post or has a business relationship with VentureBeat, and they're always clearly marked. Content produced by our editorial team is never influenced by advertisers or sponsors in any way. For more information, contact sales@venturebeat.com.

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5 essentials every CFO must consider today in order to shape the future

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The evolution from the Wright brothers' first successful flight in 1903 to transatlantic flights that connect the world in a ubiquitous way didn't happen overnight. It took decades of research and planning and an ongoing commitment to take calculated risks and make decisions to explore the unknown for great reward.

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The article addresses the importance of employee feedback.

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Regularly assessing employee satisfaction can help create a transparent environment and allow issues to be tackled swiftly. Jim Barnett at employee engagement company Glint explains the value of getting constant feedback from staff.
With the number of organisations experiencing talent shortages at its highest since 2006, holding on to top talent is crucial at the moment. According to the Manpower 2018 Talent Survey, 45% of employers are unable to find the skills they need.

But by creating an environment where employees feel heard and valued, organisations can discourage staff from looking elsewhere. Employee feedback will help employers validate any hunches about how staff are feeling, spot problems early and find out what is working and not working, so that employers can act before problems arise.

Time to retire the annual satisfaction survey?

To make the best decisions, HR teams need clear information about what staff think and feel on a regular basis. The traditional methods for understanding employee sentiment, however, provide data that is neither clear nor timely.

The typical approach used by many organisations is the cumbersome engagement survey, some of which might have 50 or more questions to answer.

Surveys seek to capture a range of opinions, which are analysed manually and returned to leadership teams weeks later. This means that information is slow to reach managers, if it does at all, which diminishes their ability to make timely improvements.

The process is so time-consuming that most employers only attempt to measure engagement every one to two years, often resulting in employees feeling unheard and undervalued.

But advances in technology have made gathering and understanding employee feedback much more effective; real-time employee engagement analysis is now possible, enabling managers to see team-level sentiment and trends as issues arise.

Technology that uses design principles and organisational development makes survey-taking more enjoyable for employees and allows employers to analyse the results sooner. This means that surveying on a quarterly, or even monthly, basis becomes less cumbersome.

The contribution of AI

Artificial intelligence (AI) helps personalise the process, allowing employers to derive meaningful information from survey results. Natural language processing and machine learning can extract meaning from open-ended feedback, identifying patterns and putting employees' thoughts and feelings into context.

It can also highlight emerging problems by analysing historic trends that would typically be hidden without a data science intervention. Such systems also learn over time, allowing more accurate predictions about employee sentiment to be made.

The availability of this information in a digestible format will free up time for both HR and managers, so they can spend more time coaching and developing their people, which will in turn enable a more people-centric workplace and help fuel success.

Getting managers on board

Technology that uses design principles and organisational development makes survey-taking more enjoyable for employees and allows employers to analyse the results sooner"

While the technology exists to make getting continuous feedback possible, it is of little value if managers are unsure how to use it. Managers need to be trained on the importance having regular conversations with their teams in order to get the full benefits from it. Such conversations can sometimes be difficult to fit in on top of their day-to-day tasks, but it is a big part of a manager's role and is crucial to enabling transparency.

Managers usually need to be coached in how to use more frequent feedback: a new data point does not necessarily mean a new action plan is required to solve an issue, for example.

They also need to adopt a continuous improvement mindset. Getting useful feedback should be given the same level of priority as other goals and employee satisfaction should be considered a critical measure of a project's success.

Actions to improve the employee experience need to be visible and continuous. Getting regular feedback and tackling issues as they arise leads to happier and more successful workers who are more likely to stay at an organisation for years, rather than months.

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Faster feedback will create a happier workplace - Personnel Today

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Regularly assessing employee satisfaction can help create a transparent environment and allow issues to be tackled swiftly. Jim Barnett at employee engagement company Glint explains the value of getting constant feedback from staff. With the number of organisations experiencing talent shortages at its highest since 2006, holding on to top talent is crucial at the ...

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This chart shows the importance of employee satisfaction. If your employees are happy it will lead to more production and happy customers.

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This article explains the difference in managing vs leading. It takes being a great leader to be a good manager.

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Learn More "

When I first started my CQUniversity MBA (Leadership), I worked through what my personal career objectives were and what I needed to do to deliver on my goals as a manager. But three months into my study, I've realised what I'm actually learning is what a leader looks like in the 21st century.

Abraham Zaleznik wrote in the Harvard Business Review that Business leaders have much more in common with artists than they do with managers.

It lines up with CQUni's modern MBA, which covers disruption in the workforce, the difference between leading physical and virtual teams, and what style is more important to an effective organisation - managing or leading?

The old workplace - in which managers simply told employees what to do - has changed.

Today, employees want to be involved in management and organisations expect employees to work in teams and share in decision making.

So even if you're not interested in being a manager, many leadership skills will become necessary to succeed in a modern workplace.

If you are aspiring towards leadership, the development needed comes in two phases: good management, and true leadership.

Managers and leaders are often used interchangeably, here are some of the biggest differences between the two that the CQUni MBA (Leadership) course material identifies:

An organisation needs both good leaders and good managers to succeed, however rarely can someone naturally have the traits of both straight away.

Most businesses will present staff with an opportunity to be promoted into management through good performance and then support them with management training; but the development it takes to become a good leader is more complex.

Leaders need to be able to influence how people think and help shape a company's direction with fresh ideas and approaches to solving problems. Their relationship with staff is based on empathy and connection, not just authority.

While managers may prefer working with people, they also need to maintain minimal emotional connection and can therefore lack the empathy that a leader possesses. Managers look for order, structure and control in delivering on a company's goals.

Meg Whitman, former CEO of Hewlett Packard, recently discussed the strategy she took when restructuring what was then a challenged business.

One of the first questions she faced was 'why didn't you initially focus on what was wrong with HP, when you first began your role as CEO'?

Meg's response: most managers have an instinct to fix what is wrong, but her leadership approach was to identify what they were doing right and to do more of it.

She ensured her approach connected with the hearts and minds of staff and consumers, so they were equal drivers of the new strategy. Working through their strengths and breaking down the problems, HP successfully split into two distinct businesses, Printing & Ink and Enterprise lead by Meg and her teams.

There's an easy way to the think about the differences between leaders and managers: managers have people who work for them, but leaders have people that follow them. A successful business requires both to get people to align to a shared vision and successful business outcomes.

If you're interested in finding out whether you're a leader or manager, I suggest taking this quiz (as objectively as possible).

There is so much I want to learn, and there will never be enough time to spend learning. My personal journey continues with CQUniversity - not without general work and personal life distractions. The benefits are already clear, as I employ new ways of thinking and considering situations at work to benefit the company, our staff and me personally. It has been a really great experience so far.

Marc Ashton is the Victorian Sales Director forAllure Media, the next generation media company that partners with opinion leaders, influencers and entrepreneurs. Look out for the next article from Marc as he works through his MBA.
Whatever the size and scope of your role in business, CQUniversity's MBA (Leadership) will give you the practical leadership and management skills to be better at it. It's a real MBA, and also nothing like other MBAs.

READ NEXT: I have a young family and a busy job - here's how I got started with an MBA

NOW WATCH: Ideas videos
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There's a difference between a good manager and a good leader - but organisations need both to be successful

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When I first started my CQUniversity MBA (Leadership), I worked through what my personal career objectives were and what I needed to do to deliver on my goals as a manager. But three months into my study, I've realised what I'm actually learning is what a leader looks like in the 21st century.

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This discusses the many ways to motivate employees.

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I thought this was a fantastic marking stunt by Burgerking that other companies could learn from. They offered a whopper for a penny as long as you drove to mcdonalds first and then left. It got alot of people talking and may have even grown their customer base.

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burger king trolls mcdonald's with 1 cent burger promotion  - cnn

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Burger King trolls McDonald's with 1 cent burger promotion

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Burger King wants people to download its app. So it's sending them to McDonald's for access to a one-cent Whopper.

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Anyone can be a manager but to be really successfully and lead a company to success it takes these 11 traits.

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Successful leaders are the power and intellect behind their organizations. They are the visionaries charged with steering their brand around pitfalls. They must know when to seize opportunities and how to rally employees to work hard toward their company's goals.

Effective leaders transcend the title of "manager" or "boss." They have found a way to achieve the right combination of charisma, enthusiasm and self-assurance, probably with a healthy dose of luck and timing.

It may seem like some people are just gifted with these skills, but the truth is most leadership traits can be learned and sharpened with time and practice. You can begin building your success by developing these 11 must-have traits of a powerful and successful leader.
1. Self-Managing
It's hard to manage others effectively if you can't manage yourself. Self-managing means being able to prioritize your goals and being responsible for accomplishing those objectives. As an effective leader, you must be able to regulate your time, attention and emotions, while remaining aware of your strengths, weaknesses and potential sources of bias.

Exceptional leaders are adept at handling stress and balancing their personal and professional lives. But you must also remember the importance of compassion and be able to respond to people and events in an appropriate way. Remember to maintain self-control and discipline in your actions, though you should avoid becoming overly reserved or inflexible.
2. Acting Strategically
A forward-thinking, open-minded approach is necessary for today's leaders. According to a Harvard Business Publishing report, Leading Now: Critical Capabilities for a Complex World, "Leaders must always be prepared to adjust their strategies to capture emerging opportunities or tackle unexpected challenges." Thinking strategically is an ongoing process that involves assessing your business environment. You can cultivate strategic thinking by:

* Being curious and genuinely interested in your company and wider business environment,

* Being flexible in your mindset and trying new approaches and ideas,

* Focusing on the future and thinking about your company's operational conditions, and

* Maintaining a positive outlook.
3. Being An Effective Communicator
Powerful leaders know when to talk and when to listen. They are effective communicators and are able to clearly and succinctly explain to their employees everything from organizational goals to specific tasks. If people don't understand or aren't aware of your expectations, they will fall short, so the more specific you can be, the better.

You need to be able to communicate on all levels: one on one, to the department and to the entire staff, as well as via phone, email and social media. Communication is built on a steady flow of verbal and nonverbal exchanges of ideas and information, so work on being approachable and involving people from different levels.
4. Being Accountable And Responsible
Successful managers know how to use power and authority appropriately without overwhelming or overpowering employees. Effective leaders hold themselves accountable and take responsibility for their own mistakes-and they expect others to do the same. They can work within established procedures, and be productive and efficient in their decisions.

They appreciate the importance of supporting and encouraging individuality while also understanding organizational structures and the need to follow rules and policies. They are able to balance different perspectives while taking appropriate action.
5. Setting Clear Goals And Persisting In Achieving Them
Here is a boiled-down version for acquiring charisma: Set clear goals and be determined and purposeful in achieving them. Back it all up with unshakable self-confidence. If you radiate enthusiasm and are truly excited about what you're doing, people will be naturally drawn to you.

Remember that writing your goals down is key to the success of both you and your company. But accomplishing those goals takes time. If you give up, so will everyone around you. To be a successful leader, you must be willing to keep going when others are tempted to throw in the towel.
6. Having A Vision For The Future
Exceptional leaders have the ability to look into their company's future and make clear, concrete goals that will benefit their organization. They are confident and optimistic, inspiring enthusiasm in those around them.

Being a visionary is about managing change while striking a balance between stability and growth. You must incorporate new approaches without getting distracted from the main goals.

Being a visionary means understanding that continuous change is occurring all around you, so what worked in the past may not always work now. Practice being adaptable and agile as you implement new strategies and allow your business model to evolve over time.
7. Managing Complexity
Leaders must be problem solvers who can make decisions under rapidly shifting circumstances. Learning to lead in a complex environment is a vital skill for any leader. Even before any definitive information is available, effective leaders must assess a situation's complexity and choose appropriate courses of action.
8. Fostering Creativity And Innovation
According to a Harvard Business Publishing report, that means being able to scan the environment in search of subtle trends and indicators of disruptive change, and establish practices that allow your organization to respond swiftly.

Leaders must have the courage to risk experimentation and encourage creativity. Doing this will foster the innovation that will steer your organization to new destinations and around the twists and turns of a changing business landscape.
9. Team Building And Promoting Teamwork
The key is to always be persistent in pursuing your goals, and open minded and flexible in how you get there. Encourage the people around you to spend at least 15 percent of their time exploring new ideas through brainstorming and prototyping.

Successful leadership is built on the people around you. Team building is essential to leading a diverse and unique group of people with distinct personalities, motivations and skills.
10. Creating Lasting Relationships
Strong teams and teamwork are key to achieving many of things on this list, such as fostering innovation, effective communication and achieving your organization's goals. If you recruit and develop the right team, you will be creating an unstoppable force that will drive your organization's success.

Compelling leaders do more than just inspire others to follow them; they know how to motivate their employees to strive wholeheartedly for their company's goals. Employees who feel valued and appreciated, who feel like what they do makes a difference, will feel invigorated to push harder to achieve success for their company.
11. Learning Agility
Outstanding leaders also understand that they need to be effective at networking, not just to advance their own careers, but for the benefit of their organization. By creating a vast and varied network of people, leaders establish impactful relationships with customers, clients, partners and even competitors.

Truly great leaders know that the strength of their leadership is built on their ability to adapt to suddenly changing circumstances and to know how and when to seize on opportunities amid a changing landscape.

Having an insatiable curiosity will fuel your desire to constantly learn and grow. Learning agility hinges on developing critical thinking skills, being accepting of uncertainty, having social and emotional intelligence and always having the desire and determination to push forward.

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11 Powerful Traits Of Successful Leaders

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Successful leaders are the power and intellect behind their organizations. They are the visionaries charged with steering their brand around pitfalls. They must know when to seize opportunities and how to rally employees to work hard toward their company's goals. Effective leaders transcend the title of "manager" or "boss."

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Ford was able to turn its business around by following Lean Six Sigma management techniques

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3 min read

Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you'll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.

In 1999, nearly a century after its founding, Henry Ford's car company was in the midst of a personal crisis. A number of quality issues had caused customer satisfaction levels to plummet, and Ford Motor Company's prestige-as well as its overall global ranking-had dwindled as its competitors refocused their own efforts on superior craftsmanship.

Such a predicament has the potential to tank an entire brand, but not in Ford's case: In less than two years, it was back on its feet with $300 million added to its bottom line and a two-point increase in customer satisfaction.

How did Ford manage to turn itself around, and so quickly? Two words: Six Sigma.

Six Sigma is a collection of management techniques with the specific goal of reducing waste. It's typically divided into five phases-Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control-and often used in conjunction with another approach known as the Lean method, which emphasizes streamlining and efficiency.

Ford had been using the Lean method for decades. In fact, its early assembly lines are often credited as the birthplace of the philosophy; Ford and Lean are essentially synonymous. And when the motor company made a point to restructure itself with the addition of Six Sigma methodology, it was able to thrive in the 21st-century market.

Ford is a case study in just how the Lean and Six Sigma techniques can be used to continuously improve a company's operations. And it's not the only company pursuing said processes when it comes to project management: Amazon, 3M, Motorola, Boeing, and other industry leaders have all found success with these schools of thought.

With all of this in mind, it should come as no surprise that an accredited, globally recognized certification in Lean and Six Sigma looks mighty fine on one's résumé. A bundle such as Simplilearn's Lean Six Sigma Project Manager Courses & Certifications package can provide you with just that, plus essential skills and training in these proven project management methods.

Over the course of 37 hours of online lessons, you'll learn about 106 real-world examples of Lean and Six Sigma usage across various industries that explore how and why these methods are so effective. As an added bonus, the bundle also includes two glossaries of industry terms and acronyms, as well as coursework on another school of thought known as Minitab, which is used to improve the function and output of statistics-based projects.
The Lean Six Sigma Project Manager Courses & Certifications bundle is normally valued at $2,299, but for a limited time, you can visit the Entrepreneur Store to get 720 days of access to this valuable training for just $79-a savings of 96 percent.

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Be More Efficient: A Can't-Miss Deal for Learning 'Six Sigma' and 'Lean'

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3 min read Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you'll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. In 1999, nearly a century after its founding, Henry Ford's car company was in the midst of a personal crisis.

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Now more than ever, Information Management is extremely important due to the risk of hackers and data breaches. This article provides some tips.

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In this special guest feature, Dr. Werner Hopf, SVP Data and Document Solutions at Serrala, suggests that whatever your organization's information management goals are, CIOs, data owners, and IT departments should consider using the following best practices to refresh your organization's information management plan, so they are able to retain information safely and securely over its lifecycle. Previously, Dr. Hopf was the CEO and Archiving Principal at Dolphin. With more than 20 years' experience in the information technology industry, 14 focused in SAP, Dr. Hopf specializes in SAP Information Lifecycle Management initiatives including Data and Document archiving, SAP Archive Link Storage Solutions and Business Process solutions. His experience spans both large and mid-sized companies across all major SAP modules. Having worked on SAP projects across North America and Europe, he has extensive experience in global markets and is well known for his expertise.
Businesses are experiencing an exponential growth of data in today's digitized world and those that know how to manage this valuable asset will be better prepared to innovate and compete in the years to come. Organizations need to control the storage of and access to information from the moment of its creation throughout the information lifecycle, in accordance with policies and regulations. Companies that choose to ignore the importance of managing information are at risk of data breaches or hacks which can be costly, including reputational damage, loss of business, or possibly fines.

Whatever your organization's information management goals are, CIOs, data owners, and IT departments should consider using the following best practices to refresh your organization's information management plan, so they are able to retain information safely and securely over its lifecycle.
Archive Information as soon as Possible after it is Business Complete
Archiving is the best way to ensure efficient, cost effective long-term retention of information. To achieve the best results, automate the archiving process so that archiving is done consistently and without error. Also, adjust the data residency period (the period data is active in your production system) according to the data in question. Some technical data can be archived almost immediately, whereas, other business transactions such as information on a product purchase will need to be retained longer.

Due to the complex relationships that can exist within and between business objectives (for example a complex customer order involves quotes, contracts, delivery information, billing and more), it is a good idea to consult data management experts to determine the best archiving approach for your company. You'll achieve better results in less time. Using software to automate the process will also significantly increase the speed and accuracy of the archiving process.
Use Cost Effective Storage for Archived Information
To ensure maximum performance, your production systems typically use the highest performing, expensive storage in your IT landscape. Although, because archived information is not accessed as frequently as production data more cost-effective storage options should be considered for your archive repository. Cloud storage is ideally suited for archived data because it is low cost and infinitely scalable. However, there can be latency issues when accessing data in the cloud, which can make it better suited for storing data that is not accessed frequently and that needs to be retained for long periods of time.
Modernize Content Management Solutions
Many organizations maintain a separate content management repository for documents and other unstructured information. When reviewing your information management requirements, ensure that the content management solution you are using is capable of meeting your current and future information management needs. Many content management systems were implemented years ago and do not have the same features and flexibility of newer cloud-based solutions that provide a better solution at a more reasonable price.
Decommission Systems that Are No Longer Viable
One of the biggest risks many organizations have is the older systems they keep in operation only for reporting purposes. These systems are often vulnerable to hacking because they do not meet modern standards for data privacy and security. They are also costly to operate as companies continue to pay maintenance fees, pay for the staff to support the systems and for the space to store them.

Retiring these legacy systems provides double the value for companies because it can both save money and reduce risk. With an information management structure in place, the critical business information that resides in these systems can be archived and moved to a central archive repository, thus ensuring that the information is stored securely and accessible to meet long term audit requirements.
Automate Information Retention to Ensure Compliance
Many companies continue to keep data well beyond its useful life and in some cases beyond the time they are legally allowed to retain it. To ensure compliance with policies and regulations, automate the application of retention rules that align with your retention policies. An automated process will ensure data is automatically reviewed when it reaches end of life and ultimately purged according to policy. Automated retention policy enforcement ensures that current staff will be able to keep up to date with and manage the data review and destruction tasks according to corporate policies and regulations.
Improve User Access to Archived Information for Reporting, Audits and Other Queries
Two of the biggest challenges of managing large amounts of information are 1) accessing archived information quickly for reporting and other business purposes and 2) extracting the information you need to respond to audit inquiries, customer disputes, or other requests. Business users often struggle to access archived data using separate tools and processes. If they need to extract that data, it can take hours, days or even weeks of time working with the IT department to identify, extract and prepare the data required.

Many modern solutions exist to enable users to quickly and accurately report on archived information or to pull archived data from enterprise systems according to specific business requirements such as tax reporting, privacy audits, and more. Consider the cost of these solutions against the time and effort your staff use to perform these tasks and implement software solutions to make this process faster and easier. In the end, you will have a competitive edge and be better prepared to innovate.
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Top Tips for Refreshing the Information Management Lifecycle - insideBIGDATA

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In this special guest feature, Dr. Werner Hopf, SVP Data and Document Solutions at Serrala, suggests that whatever your organization's information management goals are, CIOs, data owners, and IT departments should consider using the following best practices to refresh your organization's information management plan, so they are able to retain information safely and securely over its lifecycle.

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Both are essential for a business to be successful. This article explains how to use both to your advantage. Such as eliminating distractions and time management.

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Productivity and quality are both required and highly regarded in all organizations worldwide. This is the dream of every great employee and business manager - to have or work in a company that is both productive and provides high quality. However, the two terms are not identical, nor do they exist one without the other in a workplace.

'There is no avoiding productivity or quality, at least not if your goal is to attract traffic and increase revenue. However, exaggerating one over the other is also a bad idea. The ideal solution is an equilibrium between the two' - advises Charlie Teen, one of the assignment writers at a popular writing service.

There is a lot of truth in this. Productivity and quality go together in building a great work ethic and a success for yourself. If you manage how to handle and implement them both, your personal development and professional success will thrive. However, failing to recognize the difference and the key variables between both can be detrimental for your strategy.

Before we teach you how to keep both in the middle, let's differentiate between the two.

Productivit y represents the rate at which your services or products are being developed or performed, or how well the task is being completed. Measuring the productivity requires taking into account many factors, including type of work, number of hours work, requirements for the job, etc. Regardless, this is still a grand and integral part of your success.

Quality is much different than productivity. People can want and constantly attempt to be productive, but this does not mean that the results will be of good quality. At times, the timing will be wrong and despite productivity, there will be no quality. Other times, you will be required to produce a specific product or service or perform a set task, and regardless of your productivity, the approach will simply be the wrong one.

In some cases, one is more desirable than the rest. However, the importance of quality and productivity must be proportionate for best results.

The question that arises here is: Is it possible to implement productivity and quality at the same time? The answer is a big yes. All you have to do to achieve this is analyze the goals and tasks and see which one is required more. Once you know this, you can lean more on one or the other side, but you mustn't eliminate any.

How does this work?

For example, if the task is more on the productive side, such as documentation that has to be filled often, you need to lean toward this approach. You will require a faster approach that guarantees productivity, but also demands quality. However, if the task is more on the quality side, you need to dedicate all the time and resources necessary to achieve this. In this case, quality is obligatory, so there is no room for quickly finishing the enquiries.

Improving these is the trickiest task you will have, but the most worthy of them all. There are so many solutions you can opt for, and choosing the right one is essential for your success. If you test them one at a time, this will result in grand losses in terms of time, reputation and money.

It is only by combining these two that you can actually turn into a success, and the following tricks will help you get on track without the grand losses that result from bad planning.

1. Leverage Data

At times, you will feel like you are doing fine, but still wish to improve. Other times, your progress will be below the expected and planned. To be able to oversee what works and what doesn't, you need data.

And not just any data. All the key data, and the accurate data.

More specifically, you need the large sets of data called big data, those who reveal the progress and patterns that demonstrate your actions and strategies. When you have all this data in front of you, you can explore it and use it to increase quality and decrease costs. That's the primary goal of a productive and quality work.

If you want to increase your productivity and quality, you need to leverage all the data at your disposal and make a clever, informed plan. There is no point into rushing to do something without a clear idea in your head. Forming a fine plan and a schedule is key to being productive and providing high quality.

2. Manage Your Time Effectively

That schedule and plan you have isn't there without a purpose. Follow it at all times. If you feel like you are too tired or lack motivation to achieve something, take a break. No one can work at optimum productivity.

3. Eliminate Every Distraction

Distractions are your biggest enemy when it comes to both productivity and quality. These can make you lose focus, which makes you less productive. Because of it, the quality of your work will be damaged.

4. Love What You Do

You will never be able to maintain the motivation and quality unless you love what you do. The ultimate way to increase productivity is to enjoy your actions. Just find your passion and follow it.

If you constantly lack motivation and cannot be productive or provide quality in the workplace, that is no reason to quit. Even if this is not something you love, you can still fulfill the rest of your time with such hobbies and feel more energized later on.

5. Complete the Hard Things in the Morning

The most dreaded tasks are what keep you stressed and worried and prevent you from doing your job well. No matter how hard you try or how productive you are, such worries can have a bad effect on your work.

To avoid this from happening, cut to the chase. Get on the hardest things you have to do first thing in the morning. Once you are done, you will feel more liberated and motivated during the rest of the day.

6. Reward Yourself

Small rewards can make you feel appreciated and motivate you to work more, even if you give them to yourself. Every once in a while, get yourself some reward for a task done well or a difficult stage of your plan you successfully completed.

Such approach will help you diminish the chances for productivity failure and assist you in continuing the quality work you have been doing. A simple day off watching your favorite TV show or a cup of hot cocoa can make all the difference for you.

7. Implement the Two Minute Rule

Have you heard of the two-minute rule? Implementing this rule into your life will help you rid of the procrastination and lower your stress levels. This is the idea: when you see a task that can be done in two minutes or less than two minutes, do it first. Eliminating all these small tasks from the beginning will make the workload seem smaller, and you will be able to focus on the key tasks without distractions.

8. Stop Aiming for Perfection

Many people mistake quality with perfection. These are not the same. A thing does not have to be unrealistically perfect to be realistically good. The reality is almost never perfect, so stop aiming toward the impossible.

If you set achievable and calculated goals for yourself, quality is easy to reach. If you keep aiming toward doing the impossible, you can be as productive as it gets, but this won't yield high quality.

9. Your Surrounding is Important

Have you noticed how disturbing and distracting the surrounding can be? When you are performing a task, something as simple as lighting or room temperature can ruin your mood and cause you to make mistakes.

If you want to be more productive and yield quality with your actions, do some preparations ahead. Outfit your office or home with elements that are aesthetically pleasing. These are known to increase the productivity by 15 percent.

Have you decided on your next strategy for fulfilling a goal? Don't forget to find the middle between productivity and quality. One cannot survive without the other and your quality won't survive without this combo.

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Productivity vs Quality: How to Keep it in the Middle - The Good Men Project

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Productivity and quality are both required and highly regarded in all organizations worldwide. This is the dream of every great employee and business manager - to have or work in a company that is both productive and provides high quality.

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Motivating your most creative employees means rewarding innovation and challenging them. This article digs deep into how to keep your most creative employees happy and motivated.

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Executive Summary

Decades of psychological research suggests that creative people are quite different from others when it comes to personality, values, and abilities. And managing creative people tends to require special attention and consideration. To keep your creatives engaged, maximize the fit between their natural behavioral tendencies and the role they are in, and then surround them with with good implementers, networkers, and detail-oriented project managers. Few things are more demotivating than being asked to do very easy and unchallenging work, and this is especially true when employees are creative, so be sure to challenge them, and apply the right amount of pressure to projects - not enough pressure will lead to a lack of motivation, and too much of it will create stress that inhibits one's ability to think creatively. Organizations that provide their most talented people with personalized development plans and mentoring opportunities, and that promote a culture of support and inclusion, will benefit from increased creative performance.

Yuji Karaki/Getty Images

In any team or organization, some individuals are consistently more likely to come up with ideas that are both novel and useful. These ideas are the seeds of innovation: the intellectual foundation for any new products and services that enable some organizations to gain a competitive advantage over others. However, organizations are often unable to put in place the right processes, leadership, and culture to turn creative ideas into actual innovations, which causes even their most creative employees to underperform. This mismanagement of innovation is further exacerbated by the fact that managing creatives tend to require special attention and consideration. Indeed, decades of psychological research suggests that creative people are quite different from others when it comes to personality, values, and abilities. In light of that, here are eight evidence-based recommendations to get the most out of your creative employees and to stop them from underperforming:

Assign them to the right roles: No matter what industry or job people are in, they will generally perform better when you can maximize the fit between their natural behavioral tendencies and the role they are in. This is why the same person will excel in some roles but struggle in others. Thus, if you want your creative employees to do well, you should deploy them in tasks that are meaningful and relevant to them. In fact, research shows that while creative people are generally more likely to experience higher levels of intrinsic motivation, they also perform worse when not intrinsically motivated. There is therefore a higher cost and productivity loss when your disengaged employees are creative; but the benefits of engaging them are also higher.

Build a team around them: It's been said that there are "no statues of committees," but innovation is always the result of coordinated human activity - people combining their diverse abilities and interests to translate creative ideas into actual innovations. Just try managing a team full of creatives and you will see that very little gets done. In contrast, if you can surround your creative employees with good implementers, networkers, and detail-oriented project managers, you can expect good things to happen - such are the benefits of cognitive diversity. Whether in sports, music, or regular office jobs, creatives will thrive if they are part of a team that is able to turn their ideas into actual products and services, freeing them up from implementation.

You and Your Team Series

Thinking Creatively

Reward innovation: You get what you measure, so there's no point in glorifying creativity and innovation if you then reward people for doing what they are told. Paying lip service to innovation will frustrate your creative employees, who will feel underutilized if you show indifference to their creative ideas and imaginations. Conversely, if you actually incentivize people to come up with new ideas, to think outside the box, and to devote some of their energy to improving existing processes, products, and services, you will notice that even those who are not naturally creative will attempt to do things differently and contribute to innovation.

Tolerate their dark side (but only up to a point): Everybody has a dark side, defined as his or her undesirable or toxic behavioral tendencies. Research has shown that creative individuals are naturally more irritable, moody, and hard to please. Furthermore, because of their imaginative disposition, creatives may come across as odd or eccentric, and they often specialize in making simple things complex, rather than the other way around. However, these non-conformist and individualistic tendencies also provide some of the raw ingredients for creativity: it is usually those who are likely to question the status quo and defy existing norms and traditions that push the most for innovations to happen. As the artist Banksy recently posted on Instagram when he made one of his art works self-destruct at a recent auction (just after the buyer spent over $1.3 million on it): "The urge to destroy is also a creative urge". In contrast, if you only hire people who are well-behaved and do what you tell them, you can forget about innovation! However, it should be needless to say, no matter how creative employees are, there is no excuse for misbehaving or harming other employees and the organization.

Challenge them: Few things are more demotivating than being asked to do very easy and unchallenging work, and this is especially true when employees are creative. Data show that in the U.S., 46% of employees see themselves as overqualified for their jobs. This makes it critical to push your employees beyond their level of comfort. Failing to do so will significantly increase disengagement, turnover, and poor psychological health. Investigating this issue, researchers found that situational factors can mitigate these effects. Organizations that provide their most talented people with personalized development plans and mentoring opportunities, and that promote a culture of support and inclusion, will benefit from increased creative performance. Providing such opportunities may be a heavy lift for some organizations, yet failing to do so will risk losing their creative talent to competitors.

Apply the right amount of pressure: It is often said that necessity is the mother of invention - if a problem must be solved within a given timeframe, it probably will. Yet research shows that working in high-pressure environments can harm an employee's well-being and in turn reduce their productivity. Yet, when it comes to maximizing one's creative output, applying some pressure can be a good thing: indeed, scientific evidence indicates that there is an optimal amount of pressure to drive creativity. Not enough pressure will lead to a lack of motivation, and too much of it will create stress that inhibits one's ability to think creatively. Managers must get this balance right and induce a moderate (optimal) amount of pressure by first defining resource boundaries and expected output, and then clearly communicating their support for the creative process.

Promote cognitive diversity: When organizations look to hire new employees, their "fit" with the culture is often an important selection criterion, and there is good reason for this (see again point 1). Evidence suggests that employees whose psychological profile and skills match the organization's culture and mission are more motivated and productive. Yet, if organizations are pursuing innovation, they should in fact promote cognitive diversity amongst their teams. Specifically, leaders should build teams whose members have compatible, yet significantly different, psychological profiles. This is because teams that are cognitively diverse are more likely to view problems differently and produce better decisions. This rule also applies to leaders: if you want leaders to drive any sort of transformation or entrepreneurial activity, you are better off hiring moderate misfits than perfect fits!

Be humble: With narcissism on the rise, humility is an underrated virtue in today's society. Narcissists often become leaders thanks to their charisma, charm and confidence, which helps them attract followers and persuade others that they are more competent than they actually are. Yet such leaders are rarely more creative, even when they manage to come across as innovative to others. In fact, leaders who want to produce a creative team should practice humility. A recent study found that a leader's humility was a significant predictor of a team's creative output, as they evoke feelings of safety, trust, and cooperation among their followers. To practice humility, leaders should become more willing to publicly admit their mistakes and limitations and become more forthright in displaying appreciation and giving credit where it is due (Elon Musk should take notes).

As individuals are increasingly turning to self-employment and entrepreneurship, organizations are at risk of losing the talent needed to drive growth and fend off disruption. The ability to successfully manage and retain creative talent is therefore critical. While stories of innovative and revolutionary breakthroughs speak of their organic and mythical origins, the reality is that turning creative ideas into an actual reality is hard - and it requires great leadership. Fortunately, there is enough evidence to help leaders develop an effective strategy to not just manage, but also leverage, their creative employees.

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Executive Summary Decades of psychological research suggests that creative people are quite different from others when it comes to personality, values, and abilities. And managing creative people tends to require special attention and consideration. To keep your creatives engaged, maximize the fit between their natural behavioral tendencies and the role they are in, and then surround them with with good implementers, networkers, and detail-oriented project managers.

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I thought it was important to post this because it highlights how far the automobile industry has come with quality control. The largest recalls in history all took place before 2011

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The Chrysler Group's recall of 13,000 Dodge Chargers and Chrysler 300s due to anti-lock brake problems might be the newest car manufacturer slip-up to make headlines, but it certainly isn't the largest - or the most expensive. Throughout the years, the auto industry has let some devastating design flaws slip through the cracks of the production line. As a result, some of the country's most popular cars have been subject to recalls exceeding more than a million models at once at truly staggering costs to their manufacturers. Here's a look back at the five most financially damaging car recalls of all time.

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The Chrysler Group's recall of 13,000 Dodge Chargers and Chrysler 300s due to anti-lock brake problems might be the newest car manufacturer slip-up to make headlines, but it certainly isn't the largest - or the most expensive. Throughout the years, the auto industry has let some devastating design flaws slip through the cracks of the production line.

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This article explains how recruiting has changed over the years and what companies should be focused on.

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The tech industry exists to create the next big thing. That's what makes our space so exciting and what fuels the modern-day gold rush to Silicon Valley. We're on a mission to reinvent every single industry -- from finance to health care, automotive to education. Silicon Valley is the relentless force upending the stodgy, closed-off practices of old.

And disruptive ideas are the most highly valued asset, enabled by consultants, analysts and media feeding everyone's anxiety that if you're not ahead of the curve with the latest tech, you've already fallen behind. Silicon Valley is coming to eat your lunch.
Move Fast, But Please Stop Breaking Things
Today's reality is that the shine has come off Silicon Valley in the wake of security breaches, secret data monetization practices, hyped products and overpriced valuations. The Valley's mantra of "move fast and break things" has proven to do exactly that. The World Wide Web is the Wild Wild West where misinformation spreads without check. As a result, tech companies and leaders are no longer looked at with the same deference or given the same leeway as they once were.

Despite this, you can't pick up an analyst report, trade or business publication without finding a headline that isn't hyping up blockchain as the latest must-have tool that businesses are already missing the boat on. However, if you ask a chief human resources officer or any member of the C-suite, "What is blockchain, and how will it impact your function?" they simply don't have the time to care right now.

When there are more job openings than Americans looking for work, employers are laser-focused on recruiting, retaining, developing and rewarding their workforce -- not hypothesizing the potential impact of distributed ledgers on their business. Companies are in the fight of their lives to recruit the best talent and sustain their success. They need technology vendors to support them now and focus a little less on emerging technologies to upend their business models.
Create Value By Getting Back To Basics
As the founder of one of the world's leading recruiting technology providers, I believe in the power of big data and artificial intelligence (AI) to provide more personalized job-seeking experiences and inform better hiring decision making. And I'm heartened by the growing adoption of artificially intelligent, smarter job-matching algorithms to take job seekers directly to potential employers and bypass the middlemen job board aggregators.

But when you're solely focused on changing everything, you don't meet clients where they live and work every day. It's our responsibility -- our purpose, really -- to direct our abilities to deliver more substance than sparkle, more solution than aspiration.
Innovate With Singles, Not Home Runs
Our recruiting technology enables more than 4,000 companies to attract, hire and onboard more than 4 million people each year. Although we invest heavily in technology that looks three-plus years out, the most sought-after request from our clients isn't related to machine learning or advanced predictive analytics -- it's to automate the most vital part of their hiring process: making the actual job offer.

Creating, approving, managing and extending job offers is an entirely manual, painstaking and inconsistent process involving recruiters, hiring managers and HR department and business leadership, all of whom need to agree upon and finalize key terms like salary, incentive compensation, title, reporting structure, etc. It's an involved process, compounded by the need to be legally sound and compliant.

Companies tend to update previous job offers to save time and, as a result, terms are often confused, appearing unprofessional and untrustworthy to the recipient. The offer acceptance process itself is then delayed to the point they lose the candidate to a rival employer. We, along with the entire industry, missed this need completely.

So, late this summer, we launched the industry's first dedicated software solution for job offers -- and the response was overwhelming. A seemingly basic tool revolutionized a critical step within the talent acquisition process, found fast adoption among our customers and was quickly recognized as a breakthrough product by our profession's largest conference.
Three Tips to Deliver Substantive Solutions
If you're a business leader, here's how you can deliver more substance than sparkle:

1. Kaizen: Make continuous improvement an essential part of your culture. The unrelenting focus on quarterly performance and reducing costs acts as an unintended barrier to innovation. But by rewarding ideas that create efficiency in everyday work, you align innovation with the bottom line. Our "Not to Do" award recognizes employees who eliminate bloat by automating, re-architecting or killing an ineffective practice or system. When hiring, seek people who have a record of making pragmatic change for the better.

2. Focus: Never stop solving the problem. It took James Dyson 15 years and 5,127 prototypes to get his original idea for a vacuum cleaner to the market (in 1993) and end Hoover's dominance. Dyson then continued to reinvent vacuuming with incrementally better products. At iCIMS, we've seen the big HR software solution providers gobble up recruitment software startups, but it always results in subsumed and ultimately subpar talent acquisition solutions. Relentless focus drives deep expertise.

3. Think long-term: Many Silicon Valley tech startup founders go into business hoping to cash out in a couple of years. By thinking 10-plus years down the line, you'll focus on shaping the industry and creating sustainable products and value. According to an Inc. article, "Amazon's focus on strengthening its strategic position, at the expense of short-term profits, is well-documented. But this refusal to compromise has given the company purpose and direction -- and has transformed Amazon from online bookseller to global retail empire."

What this showed me was that solving for old problems can still be extremely innovative. Innovation doesn't have to be disruptive or come completely from left field. It can be incremental and well-considered. It's important to always have your eye on what's next, of course, but don't let it distract from what your users currently need. We can and should do both.

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All That Glitters Isn't Going To Transform Your Business

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The tech industry exists to create the next big thing. That's what makes our space so exciting and what fuels the modern-day gold rush to Silicon Valley. We're on a mission to reinvent every single industry -- from finance to health care, automotive to education.

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Suggests the number of subordinates that should report to one manager.

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I thought this was a good illustration of the different types of authority.

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Banks must be willing to change in order to be successful and for Strategic planning to work. The article explains what banks are doing wrong and how to improve.

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Is your financial institution getting the most out of your strategic plan? The future of every banking organization depends on the development and implementation of a strategic plan that's well thought out. But strategic planning without action is worse than doing nothing at all.

Subscribe to The Financial Brand via email for FREE! The benefits of strategic planning are well documented. Done well, a strategic planning process allows organizations to set a direction, providing objectives and goals that are used for assessing progress across the organization. Strategic planning also allows organizations to be proactive, by better understanding opportunities and threats that may be on the horizon. Being proactive can improve differentiation versus the competition and enable the efficient deployment of resources. Finally, a strategic plan increases operational efficiency, helps to increase market share and profitability, and makes the overall business more sustainable in the long term.

Unfortunately, just having a strategic plan is not enough.

At many financial institutions, the strategic planning process fails because the planning is done simply to say that bank or credit union has a plan. If an organization is not committed to implementing the strategy, the planning effort may turn into a demoralizing factor .

Other reasons may doom a strategic plan. A plan may fail if the right people are not involved in the process. Or if the effort is just a minor iteration of past annual efforts. Or if there is a complete naivety about marketplace conditions including opportunities, threats and changes that could impact the institution's future viability.

However, the biggest planning issue in the financial services industry doesn't usually center on inadequate involvement in the process, lack of goals and objectives, inability to assess the marketplace realities, or even a lack of commitment.
The biggest barrier is the inability of many banks and credit unions to change.
The best planning efforts will never drive positive outcomes if institutions don't commit to, and invest in, strategies that will change the way they do business. This shortcoming has plagued the industry for several decades. The impact of not adjusting to market realities has been camouflaged by positive financial results (in most cases).

It is time to commit to changing the entire strategic planning process and taking steps that support your plan ... or stop wasting your institution's time and money on a process that will never produce the desired results. The demise of those organizations that are just going through the motions of strategic planning may not occur in the next 2-3 years, but the marketplace will soon reward the banks and credit unions that have prepared for a new banking era.

Talk is Cheap

Every year, the Digital Banking Report does research on the Trends and Predictions for the upcoming year. For the past few years, the top trends mirrored the top strategic objectives mentioned by financial services organizations worldwide. The top five areas that almost every organization agreed upon as being important for success (in slightly different orders each year) were:

1. Improving the customer journey

2. Applying data and advanced analytics

3. Digitizing the organization

4. Building better payment solutions

5. Reducing operating costs

These are all valid objectives, with the prioritization of these objectives being different at every organization. The problem is that in other research done by the Digital Banking Report, and virtually every consultancy, financial industry influencer, and even financial organization, the progress on any of these objectives is far less than the potential. In many cases, there is even evidence that organizations will say they are moving forward on an objective, but investment (human and financial) does not reflect this 'commitment'.

In other words, many organizations are not backing up their strategic plans with definitive action. They are not embracing disruption of "banking as usual." This is a recipe for failure - and reinforces that the strategic planning process at many organizations must change immediately.

CX in Banking is Terrible

Despite being the primary stated strategic objective for most financial services organizations, most customer journeys have not changed much since the early 1980s. This is not because the consumer hasn't changed - most banks and credit unions have not adjusted to market realities.

More than 50% of banking transactions are now conducted through digital channels. This not only impacts how a consumer researches and selects their financial institution, but also how transactions are conducted. While consumers initially did only rudimentary transactions via online banking or a mobile device, more involved engagement is now desired. This is the result of consumers being exposed to non-banking tech organizations (Amazon, Google, Facebook, etc.) that have simplified everything from purchasing products to digitizing every component of a travel itinerary.

Consumers want simple ways to interact with their financial institution that will be contextual to their personalized needs. In the majority of cases. they do not want to visit a branch unless absolutely necessary. They want financial solutions that are proactive and reflect real-time activities and needs, not pre-scheduled product campaign messages that provide minimal value.

Financial organizations of all sizes have the ability to use data and advanced analytics to proactively engage with consumers in ways that will save them time and money. In return for this enhanced value proposition, consumer will be more satisfied, more loyal and will deepen their relationship. Most institutions must re-calibrate how they engage with their customers and members to reach the potential that strategic planning is meant to achieve.
( Read More: Banking Needs a Customer Experience Wake-Up Call )
From 'Great Reports' to Personalized Engagement

Virtually every strategic plan goal or objective requires the application of data and advanced analytics to maximize success. No other industry has access to more individual transaction, behavior, and demographic data than banking. Unfortunately, while most banks and credit unions have data organized to see product and organizational metrics, significantly fewer have applied this insight in a way that can differentiate the organization from a customer or member perspective.

With the influx of new competitors that are offering better financial solutions by combining data, analytics and digital technology, traditional financial institutions need to prioritize the entire data and analytic function. As with the other strategic planning objectives, knowing that this must be done has not resulted in a significant change in investment or talent deployment.

According to the Digital Banking Report, investment in machine learning and artificial intelligence initiatives remains focused on risk and fraud elimination as opposed to improved consumer engagement. These are iterative improvements in the use of data and analytics as opposed to the transformational improvements needed.

If there is one priority that most banks and credit unions must commit to in order to make the strategic planning process impactful, improving the collection, cleansing and deployment of data is probably number one.
( Read More: Competitive Survival in Banking Hinges on Artificial Intelligence )
Being Digital vs. Digital Banking

It is much easier to deploy digital solutions than to be a digital organization. "Being digital" requires a rethinking of entire processes from the core of the organization as opposed to turning paper into PDFs. Unfortunately, most organizations either don't understand the difference, or are unable to move away from traditional banking enough to think like a technology organization.

An excellent example of "being digital" is when mBank in Poland wanted to build a digital lending solution. As opposed to simply converting all of the lending paperwork into digital forms, management completely rethought the way digital technology, customer data, and revised back-office could work together to reduce friction and increase loan customers.

mBank put all involved departments from the bank in one room, at one time, with the goal of offering the majority of their customers a loan within 15-seconds. The team had to rethink application processes, credit scoring, risk, fraud, approval criteria, up-selling processes and deployment of mobile offers so that over 75% of their customers had a standing offer for a small personal loan delivered on their mobile device.

The result was not only an increase in loan volume, but increased customer satisfaction and a cultural shift within the organization that there was a commitment to becoming a digital bank. The most enlightened banks understand that to become truly digital they need to update their systems back to front. This will fulfill the business need for product agility, where banks and credit unions can offer the right products, over the right channel, and at the right time.

Payments Under Attack

One of the first banking services to be impacted by fintech firms and big tech organizations was payments. From merchant services (impacted by Square, Paypal, etc.) to payment transactions (Apple Pay, Google Pay), to P2P (Venmo, Facebook, Square Cash), every part of the payment product line has moved away from traditional financial organizations. In a world where payment transactions represent some of the most robust insights about a consumer, this shift is not favorable.

"Organizations are increasing investment in payments solutions to improve the customer experience and to support new solutions, focusing the most on P2P payments, mobile wallets and debit cards," according to Fiserv. "Organizations believe P2P payments and mobile wallets are increasing in importance compared to other payment solutions, with most organizations believing real-time payments and P2P provide significant opportunities in the future."

Regardless of which app rises to dominance, as the boundaries between point-of-sale and digital commerce become increasingly blurred, the ultimate winner in the race to make payments a more seamless, less time-consuming experience will be the consumer - but only if organizations act on the strategic planning goals that have been set around this important product set.
( Read More: Banks Play Catch Up With Technology As They Concede The Battle for Payments )
Shift from Cost Reduction to Revenue Enhancement

Almost every strategic plan in banking includes a major section around reducing costs. The challenge is, how far can costs be reduced without impacting the customer experience or limiting investment in important strategic initiatives?

Today's consumer is wiser than ever around statements made by banks and credit unions regarding "product improvements" and "simple and easy". They have come to expect that these statement usually are nothing more than 'lipstick on the cost reduction pig' presented by financial institutions as 'benefits' to the consumer. That is why ATMs were introduced and why mobile banking was promoted so heavily by banks and credit unions - to reduce costs. Consumers want to know, "What's In It For Me?"

Instead of focusing on costs, organizations must look at ways to generate revenue as well as value for the consumer. Many financial institutions are only recently adjusting to a world in which insight can create value, while big tech firms have been living in this world for years. These firms are leveraging usage intelligence, feature-based packaging, and flexible consumption as part of their monetization strategies to use insight to generate more revenue.

Armed with new strategic objectives and initiatives around applying data and insights, banks and credit unions can begin to use digital technology not just to save money, but to generate new value for consumers and new revenue for themselves.

Moving From Annual to Real-Time Strategic Planning

Fundamental changes in the financial services industry provide both challenges and opportunities to strategic planners. There is an increasing need to build agility into the strategic planning and execution process, if banks and credit unions want to thrive in the digital age.

This requires modifications to the existing planning process. Bringing agility into strategic planning requires accurate forecasting followed by accelerated decision making through a lean process. Swift execution through strong collaboration of stakeholders and linked incentives beyond annual target setting is also required.

Digital tools and advanced technologies can be valuable facilitators of agility. Their benefits range from strategic analysis, decision making to multichannel execution. Ultimately, a continuous strategy planning process needs to be built which can be executed on demand.

Jim Marous is co-publisher of The Financial Brand and publisher of the Digital Banking Report, a subscription-based publication that provides deep insights into the digitization of banking, with over 150 reports in the digital archive available to subscribers. You can follow Jim on Twitter and LinkedIn, or visit his professional website.

This article was originally published on November 28, 2018. All content © 2018 by The Financial Brand and may not be reproduced by any means without permission.

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Banking Industry Must Move from 'Strategic Planning' to Real Action

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Is your financial institution getting the most out of your strategic plan? The future of every banking organization depends on the development and implementation of a strategic plan that's well thought out. But strategic planning without action is worse than doing nothing at all. Subscribe to The Financial Brand via email for FREE!

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This is a good example of an international joint venture. Both companies have just agreed to terms.

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Embraer and Boeing have approved the terms of a joint venture and are waiting on Brazilian government approval before the partnership starts operating.

The deal, which has been long anticipated by the industry, will see Boeing pay US$4.2 billion to own 80% of the commercial aircraft and services operations of Embraer, which will retain ownership of the remaining 20%. The joint venture is pending approval by the Government of Brazil.

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Once the transaction has closed, the joint venture will be led by Brazil-based management, including a president and chief executive officer. Boeing will have operational and management control of the new company, which will report directly to Dennis Muilenburg, Boeing's chairman, president and chief executive officer.

Embraer will retain consent rights for certain strategic decisions, such as transfer of operations from Brazil.

In a statement, Paulo Cesar de Souza e Silva, Embraer president and chief executive officer said, "We are confident that this partnership will deliver great value to Brazil and the Brazilian aerospace industry as a whole. This alliance will strengthen both companies in the global market and is aligned with our long-term sustainable growth strategy."

The companies have also agreed to the terms of another joint venture to promote Embraer's KC-390 multi-mission medium airlift for the defense sector. Under the terms of this proposed partnership, Embraer will own a 51% stake in the joint venture, with Boeing owning the remaining 49%.

The transaction is intended to close by the end of 2019.

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Embraer and Boeing agree partnership terms for joint venture | Aerospace Testing International

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Embraer and Boeing have approved the terms of a joint venture and are waiting on Brazilian government approval before the partnership starts operating. The deal, which has been long anticipated by the industry, will see Boeing pay US$4.2 billion to own 80% of the commercial aircraft and services operations of Embraer, which will retain ownership of the remaining 20%.