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Due diligence in donating to charities
Wednesday, February 28th, 2007

People are often happy to help, if they know that the assistance will be used in the manner that is intended. Many businesses are happy to help as well. A challenge that arises though is how to help people in developing parts of the world. Often, we have little or no experience with the other parts of the world or with charities in those areas.

We may not want to contribute through a government organization because, in all too many cases, our donations may be used to reduce the government’s commitment to the effort. How can we investigate the charity’s background and be certain that it is legitimate? Even if it is legitimate, how do we compare the charities to be sure that we are contributing to charities that will be more likely to use the money or other resources efficiently and effectively?

One resource that seems to be well organized is Charity Navigator.  While the organization has a nice website, its Charity Navigator’s credibility is increased by the substantive content on its website.  In looking at the website, one of the things that stood out was its decision not to accept donations from the charities that it rates.  While there are ways around such positions, its decision is consistent with an organization that wants to provide objective ratings.  Such donations could create bias in the ratings.  The organization says that it is registered under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code as a nonprofit.  This is a representation that can be easily verified.  Another fact that stands out is the organization’s history.  Many organizations choose to provide little history about themselves.  The more one says, the greater the risk is for an organization to make a mistake about its history.  Still if an organization says very little, it is possible to be left wondering if the organization is “real.”

According to Charity Navigator, ACCION International, Women for Women International, and Mercy Corps received high rankings.  After identifying potential charities, it is a good idea to discuss the charities with people who are involved in the area of interest to learn about their reputations.  After all, is due diligence any less important in selecting recipients of charitable dollars than in conducting strategic sourcing (procurement) and sales activities?

Posted in Business Tips, Corporate Citizenship | No Comments »



Five simple steps for dealing with complex tasks
Monday, February 26th, 2007

In business, school, and life, people are faced with complex tasks.  When faced with a complex task, it is important to have a game plan.  Often, people are frustrated because they try to deal with the complex task at that level.  What can they do instead?

The best approach is to break the task down into smaller pieces that they can deal with. 

Last week, a student complained that she had been given too much information to understand a task.  After explaining that she needed to learn to deal with such situations, the student said that everyone was telling her this.  It seemed to me that she needed a little more guidance so I suggested that she sit down with the instructions that she had been given, a writing tablet, and a pen and take the following actions: 

Step 1.  Read each sentence and decide what is required by that sentence.

Step 2.  Write down what she needs to do to comply with that instruction.

Step 3.  Repeat the instructions for each sentence of the instructions.

Step 4.  Arrange the tasks in a logical order.

Step 5.  Execute the steps and mark each step off the list as the step is completed.

If when she breaks down a sentence she still does not understand that sentence, she should break it down into even smaller pieces until she does understand what is required.

This approach is very simple.  I used to think that it was so simple that saying it would offend people.  In many instances, people struggle with issues like this.  Rather than doing things for people, it seems to me that a better solution is to help them learn to do things for themselves. 

Posted in Solving Problems, Tips for Students | No Comments »



Solving the business law puzzle
Friday, February 23rd, 2007

Business law students may understand the material in the text, and be unable to apply it in their daily lives.  It seems to have little relevance for them, or so some say. 

What can instructors do?  How can they address challenge?  Perhaps this tactic used in yesterday’s business law class will give you some ideas.

This semester, we have discussed the foundation for business law, torts, intellectual property, criminal law,  sources of law, and courts.  Yesterday, we used a different approach.  Students learned from the newspaper. 

After dividing the class into small teams, each team selected a story from the front section of the newspaper.  Students spent 10 minutes reading the newspaper and discussing their articles with their team to see what issues the spotted.  

Then, students told the rest of the class about the article, how it related to business law, and why it mattered to people from a business perspective. 

Do you use approaches like this?  How do you feel about such approaches?  Your feedback and suggestions for improving this approach is welcome.

Posted in Business Acumen, Solving Problems, Tips for Students | No Comments »



Law of attraction and law of observation
Thursday, February 22nd, 2007

Over the past couple of years, I have interacted with many who talk about the law of attraction.  I am not a fan of the law of attraction, especially not in its extreme cases.  Instead, I believe in the law of observation.  Okay, so it isn’t a law.  I just used the term to describe an obvious situation that occurs in consulting all the time. 

Let’s talk about the law of attraction, the law of observation, and what it means for us as business people.

Law of Attraction 

Some talk about a law of attraction.  With law of attraction, some think that one is actually attracting the thing involved.  In extreme cases, the people may actually believe that accidents occur because people are subconsciously thinking about them. 

Perhaps people can get so caught up in thinking about such issues that they cause the situation to arise, in some cases.  For example, if I am concerned about being careful that I don’t fall, maybe, my caution causes me to think about lifting my foot, rather than allowing it to come up naturally.   Still, I cannot imagine people attracting illness or injury to them.

Law of Observation

What makes more sense to me is what I call the law of observation.  It is a lot simpler.  All it says is that one is more likely to see what one is expecting to find or what is so far removed from the realm of possibilities that it grabs our attention.  This means two things.

First, if I expect to see difficulties ahead, I usually see difficulties ahead.  If I expect to see smooth sailing ahead, I usually perceive the future to be smooth sailing.  This result can occur, regardless of the facts. 

A key factor is how one chooses to view the situation.  Is the glass half full?  Or is it  half empty?  The fact is that half of the glass is half full and the other half is half empty.  Which part is the person focusing on though?

Often, people seem to miss obvious approaches and solutions.  Typically, this occurs when people have a clear focus and are concentrating so hard on what they are seeking that they lose sight of other possibilities. 

Second, the law of observation also means that, if something far removed from the realm of possibilities occurs, it is noticed.  In this situation, people do not necessarily react favorably.  They are surprised and remember what this blog has said about surprising people?  Here is an example.

Implications

It seems to me that the law of observation tells us to take a step back and reconsider the situation from time to time.  Rather than developing tunnel vision, think about other possibilities. 

At times, we may be caught up in the details of the project.  Four steps come to mind that can help us prevent and deal with the issues.  These steps are:

  1. Developing a written plan for evaluating progress, complete with checkpoints.
  2. Following the plans that are written out consistently so that one is not tempted to skip the evaluation.
  3. Having someone remind us to do the evaluation.  This person is essentially a santity check, as a friend used to say.
  4. Make a presentation to the clients about the status at that point.

What is your experience in this area?  Do you believe in law of attraction, law of observation, or some other law?  How do you use your beliefs to be a better business person?

Posted in Planning Tips, Solving Problems, Training | No Comments »



Nothing is actually free
Wednesday, February 21st, 2007

From time to time, postings in this blog have discussed “free” items.  Here is one such article.  Talking with a friend today led me to realize that others might be laboring under the mistaken impression that there is such a thing as “free.”

Although people talk a lot about “free” advice or free assistance, very little advice or assistance is actually free.  One is paying for the “free” advice, in some way. 

The price of “free” advice may come in many forms such as:

  1. Time
  2. Effort
  3. Efficiency
  4. Reduced confidence
  5. Additional resources
  6. Damage to the relationship
  7. Lower priority for the advisor

The recipients have the right to decide that the cost is worth incurring.  The person providing the assistance may feel that he or she has been taken advantage of.  Instead of looking at the situation as a negative, why not look at it as a positive? 

When one discovers that the other party is only interested in the free help, one knows not to invest a dime in saving or improving the relationship.  Instead of saving the relationship, one should thank one’s lucky stars that the person has learned about the other party’s true motivation and the value that one has.   Then, one should run, not walk, to the nearest exit. 

As soon as one gets shed of the prior relationship, ask what led to the situation.  By understanding what happened, one can minimize the risk of seeing it repeated.

Posted in Business Acumen, Business Tips, Solving Problems, Tips for Students | No Comments »



Teaming for success
Tuesday, February 20th, 2007

When one is trying to grow a business, it can be challenging if one has to do so by oneself.  What choices does one have though?

Building relationships with similarly situated individuals can add tremendous value.  By building relationships with individuals who are similarly situated, one may identify opportunities to:

  1. Share resources
  2. Pool knowledge
  3. Make referrals
  4. Exchange ideas
  5. Participate in joint marketing
  6. Collaborate on business ideas

This is all common sense, right?  One would think so.  In fact, one is likely to find a lot of small business owners who are trying to start a business by themselves, rather building relationships.

Often, existing relationships are not especially helpful because people are at different stages.  Associating with people who are well past one’s current situation is often frustrating and a waste of time for both individuals.  Instead of helping each other, the people are likely to frustrate each other.

If people are similar levels, they are able to help each other and team with each other.  They see the world from similar enough perspectives that they can relate to and learn from each other.  Where one person has a strength, the person is able to share knowledge.  When the need is something that another member of the group has dealt with, there is no stigma attached to asking for help. 

Selecting individuals who are different from oneself is a critical success factor for such activities.  If individuals are too similar, one may have challenges because the individuals have perspectives that are too close so they limit each other.  At the other extreme, if one chooses individuals who are too different from oneself, it may be impossible for the people to communicate effectively.

What tips do you have for creating a successful team in such situations?  Have you done so?  What worked?  What would you change? 

Posted in Business Acumen, Solving Problems, Tips for Students | No Comments »



Puzzle for Building Business Acumen
Monday, February 19th, 2007

From time to time, I am asked for puzzles that will help people apply the textbook information to real world situations.  Below is an assignment that I am giving students in my online Principles of Management Class next week.  Perhaps this assignment will be helpful to other instructors as well.

Bill has just been promoted to manager of a restaurant.  He is building a case for innovation at the restaurant.  He wants the restaurant to change from a reactive mode to one in which the restaurant plans business activities and is proactive.

Applying what you have learned from this class and your own experience, write an essay for Bill to use in making his case for innovation and planning. Identify specific, actionable steps and tools that Bill can use.

After completing your essay, please provide peer editing for others in the class.  Suggest both substantive (content) and format changes for each other.  This will help you and the others improve their writing.

Point Allocation:

10 Points for your final version.

 5 Points for the feedback given to others in the class. 

Posted in Business Acumen, New Ideas, Training | No Comments »



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