Let’s get one thing straight right from the start. Corporate Performance Management (CPM) is not a software solution. Instead it describes a management approach that should help organizations to better execute corporate strategy. Gartner initially defined the term as “the methodologies, metrics, processes and systems used to monitor and manage an enterprise’s business performance.’
Most businesses recognize the importance of creating a quality experience for customers doing business with them. The thing that many business owners overlook is how their internal workflows and information management systems serve to either support or impede the delivery of a well-rounded positive customer experience. Growing businesses must adjust their processes and improve their…
Constructing or selecting a team is not the same as team building. The latter focuses on team cohesion and cooperation, whereas the former, by definition, precedes this exercise in camaraderie.
An effective team requires a balance of skills and team member styles. The problem with most departmental teams, and even executive teams, is that certain team member styles tend to be over-represented in particular functions. You end up with nearly everyone in the team exhibiting one particular style and therefore competing with each other for that one team member role, while other styles and roles go begging.
A model I was introduced to many years ago delineates eight distinct team member styles:
How long should ERP implementations take? How much do they cost? How long does it take to recoup these costs? How long does it take to realize the benefits of the new system? These are the magic questions asked by thousands of companies around the globe.
With so much money at stake — after all, some ERP implementations can cost millions of dollars — the timing of such a technology project is critical.
The answer, as you might expect, is that it depends on many different factors.
Customers base lots of buying on the face behind a brand, the story of the brand, the derivation, ethics, values and ultimately, who they are being an ambassador for when they buy. This brings the social presence and touch points with a CEO even more into focus and more importantly, a reason to exist at all. On Social Media Today last week, Leon McLean also refers to the trust-factor in a brand when the CEO is visible and engaging.
I’ve finally reached my personal threshold of hearing the half-sentence: “We outsourced because we couldn’t find enough qualified candidates to fill our open positions…” The rest of that sentence being: “… at the price we wanted to pay”. And that last part always seems to get left off. It’s much easier to blame the educational systems, youth, parents, government, and society in general than admit to our own ineffective management.
Let me suggest a few alternate explanations for why any given organization might experience trouble finding qualified candidates
The Right Time…
Like most good things, there is a right time and place for challenging the troops to reach beyond what they believe possible. The right time is after the decision is made. Once the course is charted, charging up the troops to give it their all is crucial.
Churchill’s speech occurred after his decision to continue resisting the fascist onslaught. He wasn’t asking the people whether they could face the challenge ahead – he already knew they must. He was preparing them for that challenge.
…And The Wrong Time
The wrong time to motivate the troops to take on stretch goals is before the decision is made.
In business half truths pose substantial problems. Why? People may have their own biases as they interpret data and information. How untrue and dangerous could half truths be for providing business insight?
Unfortunately there’s something that organisations around the world have in common: most of their staff training programs leave a lot to be desired.
That might sound harsh, but it baffles me that so many companies (often with impressive products, processes, services or systems) fail when it comes to corporate training.
It’s a shame –after all there’s no doubt that a well designed and structured training program is essential for organisations to improve performance through its people.
As marketers, we need to not only thoroughly question every new item of spend. We also need to look at what we are already doing – those basics that we often overlook. Are we doing things efficiently? Do the processes we have in place make the best use of the time and resource we actually have? Are there some simple changes that could make a big difference to results? Sounds good. But where can those quick wins be found?