WE CONQUER BY CONTINUING

Be encouraged, change is never easy but if we consistently continue to make the change it happens.

I was encouraged today by the feedback I received from a technician who attended a personalised CLIP System workshop for a Howick company, this is what he said........

"I am making full use of the DRT, I make sure that as soon as I do anything it is written down under tech notes. It works really well, tracking jobs has become a breeze! I am also doing my little list in the morning of what jobs I want to get done during the day, having a target and getting to tick them all off feels great.
It is only scribbled in a notebook for now, but I am working on a decent spread sheet.

Thanks again for the talk, I was a bit dubious about all those lists at first but now I can see how well they work!"

This company has an amazing tracking package to track the jobs in and out but they were not using it effectively as well as not having any focus tools in place.

Well, we work shopped around a holistic view to co-ordinating one's job, covering - risk management, cost management, continuity of service and customer service, using the CLIP System as a foundation - the result has been rewarding for participant and myself.......... how great is that.

Don't be afraid of change - embrace it.... you'll be amazed at the results.

AMAZING MINDSET

Recently during a CLIP System workshop I was "floored" by one persons business mindset.... We were discussing various aspects of managing risk, including that of poor workmanship.

Firstly one needs to define what "poor workmanship" is..... well in my mind it is "anything done by a worker that is below standard or detrimentally affects, ultimately, customer service excellence."

Managers would normally assess the situation with factual evidence, address this with the worker, counsel the worker, develop the workers skills, amend anything within the processes and procedures that could be wrong or at the very least make an effort to correct the problem....... BUT to my amazement this manager "works around the sub-standard worker".

So with this outlook in mind, to mention but a few - what affect does this managerial outlook have on the business?

1) RISK will not be managed - having a poor worker is in its self a risk

2) COST will not be managed - having a "hanger-on worker" is costly both financially and from a productivity point of view

3) FRUSTRATION within the work environment will be largley increased

4) CUSTOMER SATISFACTION will be at risk

5) SACRIFICING integrity, efficiency and productivity will be evident

6) PRESSURE on other workers will be evident and not appreciated

There are MANY more affects that this outlook will have on the business as a whole and on the team, which is not fair to the company or the team.

Perhaps managers need to go back to the basics and look at the definition of the word "manager" - the Oxford dictionary says this:

1) A person conducting a business institution
2) A person controlling activities of persons or team

If we go a bit further, what does it mean to manage? The Oxford dictionary puts it this way:

To handle, conduct, organize, regulate, take charge of, take control of, cope with, make proper use of........ etc.

Right, now that we understand the definitions of manager and manage - how does the mindset of working around a sub-standard worker, fit into the management roles and responsibilities -beats me.

REMEMBERING TO REMEMBER

Working today with a team of ladies I found a common lack of knowledge, when handling emails - they are not using the FLAGGING methodology of flagging emails by DATE and TIME.
This brings unbelievable stress because the emails that are just flagged without date and time management, will continually be in your face.

My standard rules, when teaching people how to manage their reminder system, are quite simple
1) The inbox is for emails that you have NOT read. Once they have been read you either handle them and move them into the correct folder or flag them correctly to handle at a later stage
2) The sent box must be kept clear - once sent place in the correct folder or flag for follow up with date and time

Now, really that doesn't take much effort, IF YOU DO IT CONSISTENTLY, but if you don't, email management can become your worst nightmare.

After handling 450 emails per day, that had to be answered, I learnt the hard way and the above management idea works wonders. Stress off, reminder system reminding and integrity in tact.

Try it, all you have to do is REMEMBER TO REMEMBER to manage emails in as specified above. Let me have some feedback, if you found this tip useful.... I'd love to hear from you.

YOU ARE NOT ALONE......

After following up on my last workshop around the CLIP System... I received a couple of emails from participants saying "I just can't make the change, I just don't know where to start"...... well you are NOT alone

Change is NEVER easy and will always take some effort BUT, in saying this making a mindset change within the work environment is even harder.

The pressures within the workplace are a reality BUT if change is needed for the person and the company to progress and develop, then change has to be made or the consequences will be detrimental.

SO, to implement administrative change within your workplace or that of your employees one has to embrace the thought of change and go for it.

The easiest way to start making a change is to firstly accept you need to change, and secondly introduce FOCUS TOOLS that will do just that, keep you focussed and thereby manage your risk, cost, continuity of service and service excellence.

The CLIP SYSTEM methodology does this for you and is very easy to implement. A good example would be for each person to have a "TOTAL WORK CYCLE" focus check list, covering what it is they do daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly.

To do this you need to follow the steps below:
1) List everything you do and when you do it
2) Look at the list and establish a few MAIN category headings, like Admin, HR, Finance, Social media
3) Slot the items on your list under the appropriate category
4) Prioritise your list under each category
5) Draw-up a check list now, that will enable you to control this work load on a daily basis

The most important thing to remember is "YOU have to make a start if you expect to make a positive difference within your workplace.

SO - GO AHEAD AND DO IT

POSITIVE FEEDBACK

'Your CLIP system is proving very empowering for family staff and a source of jealousy for other staff. This is a good problem to have!!!' - these are words from the Director of Ethembeni, a client of mine .......

What a good feeling to know that the people I am working with from his organisation are finding the CLIP SYSTEM useful.
Positive feedback is a wonderful booster and reinforces the fact that we must "keep on keeping on" and that we do "conquer by continuing".

I have had a great day just because someone took the time to pass on something positive to me.....MAYBE WE SHOULD ALL BE LOOKING AT DOING THAT MORE OFTEN.... what do you think?

AS 2012 SETTLES IN

As 2012 settles in I am sure we are all wondering what the future holds for us. The thing is, we can sit around and wonder OR we can make it happen.....
In business, whether it be our own business or you are working for a company, things need to happen:-

• A plan for 2012 needs to be drawn up, using a holistic view of where you are now and where you want to be by the end of 2012
• Budgets and targets need to be set, so that the company stays focussed
• Processes and procedures for everyone involved in the organisation need to be in place, if you want to manage risk and cost
• ABOVE ALL - Check lists need to be introduced as control tools for everyone, within the organisation, and even those who overlap onto your business externally.

The sky is the limit - stay focussed, keep the vision, stay fast to the mission, manage risk, manage cost, manage time, regroup often, prioritise accurately, know your customers better and GO FOR IT.... MAKE IT HAPPEN. All the very best for 2012

EXCITMENT REIGNS

I am in my element - I am holding my first CLIP System work-shop for youngsters between the ages of 16 and 22 -Yeah!!! The 10 September 2011 will be a memorable day for me in the future.

The CLIP stands for "check Lists for Improved Productivity" - this is a business/self help book I wrote and I have been work-shopping around it quite a lot lately.

It's all about having the right "business" mindset and being able to manage risk, cost and customer service by using the simple check list methodology as a control tool.......NOW ISN'T THAT JUST REALLY EASY.

Of course the angle I'll take when coaching the youngsters will be slightly different, but at the end of the day 'RISK MANAGEMENT" is what it's all about, even at school, college and university. Deadlines have to be met, arrangements have to be made, plans have to be formed and social events have to take place.........

So, keep checking my blog and I'll let you know how it went.