Author Archives: cmartial

“If you don’t understand people, you don’t understand business!”

Simon Sinek is pretty much on vogue. No wonder why.
It feels great, yes it feels great to hear this. This will to humanize what we have been taking years to robotize.

Ourselves.

This talk is about you, your company and society at large. But not every society, not every company, not everyone…

In a world that is more and more complicated to a point where it is actually becoming complex, we need to have a sort of higher I or a WE that is not just a sum of every I… To achieve that, we should get back to basics: try to do something or collaborate (-but really-) with your colleagues, help your friend or relatives.
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How to give a useful feedback?

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Have you ever received a feedback such as you simply don’t understand what to do with it? Never…? Me neither!

See some samples:

- You need to delegate more!
- I’d like you to be more committed
- You are not strategic enough
- I heard that it was said that you…
- … you list them!

This evaluates, interprets, judges … but does not describe the actual behavior to improve!!!

Cc Smashing magazine

Cc Smashing magazine


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IT and productivity gap

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IT does help to bridge the gap. Of course!

You remember the article that went like: “IT Doesn’t matter (Click)“. Published in May 2003 in the HBR.

The point in that article was simple: If your IT does not provide an edge that your rivals miss, then you are not taking any competitive advantage over that rival. Today every company has email, data storage, networks, etc… Therefore, IT, in the article was compared to electricity, you need it, but it is only a cost for a commodity.

There was something important missing there: Electricity is not evolving, I mean 220V are 220V! IT wise: what was true in 2003 turned obsolete few years later. The point is to be able to adapt and jump onto the right new technology! Electricity is ubiquitous, IT is not. I never seen a company not having an IT bottleneck somewhere; that situation where the company’s digital organisation is simply below expectation.

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Leading – Trust – Management

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I was writing about Leadership here (Click). While I still agree about the word cloud (Scottish humor included!), a much simpler definition came through Simon Sinek: “A leader has followers {periode}”. And that is simply true, all the rest is management!
Watch:

Great leader can be really bad at management! And the way round of course is also true, these are simply different things.

So what about trust then? Read More →

Edward Snowden & the NSA @ TED

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We are having a long debate with some colleagues about Edward Snowden: Hero or Zero? No in between choice, a sort of binary attitude! Of course, it is not that simple, but it is sometimes good to choose side… What do you think?
We did not reach an agreement, and in the end of the day, it only shows the level of people’s trust in the institutions at large.
Listen to him:


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Decentralize or Centralize? Why?

Why Decentralize?
Wished outcomes:

  • - Flexibility in operations
  • - Sensitivity to the client and the constraints
  • - Empowered and accountable Professionals
  • - Increase customer proximity
  • - Approach internal services to users
  • - Increase the time response
  • - Countering the bureaucracy
  • - Closer Service
  • - Service more accessible
  • - Better understanding of the constraints (link)
  • - Information channel to the top executives

MIT Decentralize or Centralize?
(http://sloanreview.mit.edu/files/2008/12/3822-ex2-lo7.png)
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Notes Organisation Structures and Models Analysis (2)

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What are the four main attribute that must concern the manager when it comes to create his/her company model of organisation?

  • Environment (The list of significant (external) factors is defined – Appreciate each horizon of certainty (1-5 years) and express the Central tendency? Put that tendency onto the scale: No exceptions, Few Exceptions, Periodical Exceptions, Regular Exceptions, Frequent Exceptions)
  • Autonomy (Who defines the objectives or Allocate the resources? Who creates the Operations rules, manage the exceptions or evaluates the results?)
  • Segmentation (How do you segment your organisation? By functions? By products? By regions? Etc.)
  • Coordination (What coordination mechanisms to support the chosen organisation?)

This is a sample of the model’s graphic representation:
Model1_all

When the organisation model is coherent, the line is quite straight. So:

    An organization whose units’ configuration is uniform allows the use of standardized management tools and greatly facilitates its control. This keeps its management quite easy and its coordination is simpler, and therefore, management costs are lower.

    An organization whose units’ configuration is diverse limits the use of standardized management tools and therefore its control is more complicated and, of course its management is more complex and demanding. Complex coordination and management costs are higher.

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