Misrelate

The interview is meant to be a conversation in which you largely do the responding - But, you can do some of the questioning. The organisation interviewing you will want to find out whether you are suitable to the position and you will want to find out if the organisation and placement is right for you. So, do your research and gather the data you need to satisfy yourself that this post is where you want to be working for the next few years. Work out the answer to the following questions:

• What will be my obligations?
• How will I fit into the unit?
• To whom should I report?
• Where does he/she fit in the structure?
• Who am I responsible for?
• How experienced are they?
• What do you expect me to do in the first 6 months?
• How will you measure my performance?
• Who are your customers?
• What is the direction of travel for the organization?
• What are the job advancement prospects? What would be a reasonable timescale in which to expect this?
• What is the nature of the payment system here? [Do not bring this up too early in the interview - wait until they are sold on you.]
• What are the travel requirements for this placement?
• Will relocation be required now or in the future?
• What kind of training is there?
• When will you decide on the appointment?
• What is the next step?

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Are you one of those bosses that people just love to hate? Maybe successful, maybe very intelligent, maybe organized and moving forward but just can’t get along with people. Communication and other people skills are as important to the success of your business as your talent, knowledge and entrepreneurial drive. After all, you cannot do it all by yourself and you need good people.

I remember being a very arrogant and egotistical program director back in the mid 1970’s when my boss called me into the office and flat out told me “Mike, you got talent and drive but you need to learn some diplomacy”. I’ll never forget that meeting. This mentor taught me things like no matter how great my idea was it was probably going nowhere if I couldn’t convince, persuade or lead people to buy into it. I learned that very few people want to negotiate with a bull-head. And if they do because they must then they will resent it for a long long time. Some will even look for the opportunity for payback. I relearned things that were taught to me in elementary school. Things like “you attract more bees with honey than vinegar”. As a 7 year old the key word there was bees so who cared, right? As a businessman the key word had become attract. Same sentence different meaning. Things like “smile and people will smile back at you” or “extend your hand and the other person will shake it”.

It doesn’t take a lot of extra effort to be a nice boss. As a matter of fact it’s a whole lot easier to be nice than it is to be a hard-ass. And the payoff is so great in a happy and productive workforce that I can’t reason why some bosses still act in a totalitarian, dictatorial way. How do your people perceive you? I’m not talking about being a wimp and saying yes to every unreasonable demand an employee makes. I’m talking about listening, caring, empathy, leadership and, oh yes…diplomacy.

Mike Shannon is the owner of Shamrock Business Coaching, a coaching practice that helps business owners increase profits. You can visit Shamrock Business Coaching on the web at: http://www.ShamrockCoaching.com.

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Diligently managed assets of a business organization can make a lot of difference in its profit percentages. Judicious control over all tangible and intangible assets of a company makes sure that there are no leaking funds in the organization and all assets are utilized at maximum capacity. An inefficient management of resources and incorrect information about the objects in a commercial establishment may lead to drainage of finances and in turn adversely affect company’s performance.

Realizing the importance of asset management in any company’s performance has led to newer advanced strategies in this field of trade. Entire business management consists of host of issues comprising of cost management, capital budgeting, expense accounting, financial planning and reporting and many other similar topics. Asset management constitutes a large percentage of managing concerns in an organization. Apart from administering tangible goods, raw materials, finished products, vehicles, buildings and many other such items modern businesses also need to manage their intellectual assets.

Asset management is a comprehensive term and usually requires professional handling of the situation. There are many commercial asset-managing firms that offer services for administering various resources of the company. Many software are presently available in market that enable efficient managing of a companies assets. Traditional asset management meant dealing mostly with fixed assets in their every stage of life cycle. Entire infrastructure related to factory establishment comes under asset management.

Monitoring the whereabouts of assets, ensuring the availability of all resources required in an industry whether easily available or scarce is an integral part of managing assets for that company. Finalizing purchasing requests, valuation, depreciation, asset receipts, maintenance, warranties, user data and other related physical attributes of an asset form a major role of an asset manager.

Optimal judgment about methodology applied for managing assets of different enterprises differs according to their unique characteristics. No one procedure that has been successful for one concern can guarantee similar affluent results for another enterprise with different objectives.

Professional asset managers are also required to fix emergency problems arising due to unanticipated reduction in production capacity or a major break down in plants machinery, etc. the training received by them during their learning and skills learnt through experience facilitates a asset manager to handle every job diligently. Regular maintenance of assets ensures an adequate potential of asset manager while, recovering quickly from unpredicted adverse situation test the actual capability of asset management in a company.

The asset manager is liable to provide information about vast enquires related to it. The actual cost at procurement, vendor’s details, the department and the particular team that is using it, the physical location, depreciation and any other data related should always be available at any point of time. All this helps in efficient running of a business enterprise. Decisions as when new machinery needs to be purchased or the firm could carry on with just repairing old machinery and judgment about whether the concern should buy an asset or should lease it depends on information provided by the asset manger of the company.

Mansi aggarwal writes about asset management journal news. Learn more http://www.assetmanagementjournal.com.

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“Effective leadership is not about making speeches or being liked; leadership is defined by results not attributes.”
Peter F. Drucker

Follow this story. Have you met Paul? Paul calls himself a great leader. Paul points to the success of his organization. Paul keeps communication to a minimum so that he can control what his employees know. He tells his staff he’s protecting them. His employees do a great job because they want to keep their jobs. Unfortunately, Paul’s employees hate him. If you want an effective team, you better be communicating with them. Effective leaders understand that fact. Many organizations keep a scorecard on their performance. In the leadership world, researchers also analyze leadership effectiveness. Yukl, author of Leadership in Organizations, notes that there is no accepted definition for leadership effectiveness; however, it can be seen as the consequences of the leader’s actions for followers and other stakeholders. Indicators of leadership results are varied. However, the avenue business only looks at a leader’s organizational unit performance of its work tasks.

One of the most intuitive tools for leadership effectiveness is evaluating the follower satisfaction of its leader. As a young employee, I watched the implementation of a 360-degree appraisal system for my organization. To make it work, employees were promised anonymity in this computerized system. It was a reality check for most managers. Employees were encouraged to be honest. Individuals obtained feedback from customers, suppliers, direct reports, and first line supervisors. Some were pleasantly surprised while others were shocked. Egos were deflated. Do you feel that your employees can give a candid feedback about your leadership effectiveness without any career consequences? If this is not the case, today is a perfect time to improve your relationship with your staff. You can start today!

Reference:

Yukl, G. (2002). Leadership in Organizations. Delhi, India: Pearson Education.

(c) 2006 by Daryl D. Green

Daryl D. Green has published over 100 articles in the field of decision-making (personal and organizational), leadership, and organizational behavior. Mr. Green is also the author of two acclaimed books, Awakening the Talents Within and My Cup Runneth Over. He is a columnist, lecturer, professor, and management consultant. Mr. Green has a BS in engineering and a MA in organizational management. Currently, he is pursuing a doctoral degree in strategic leadership. For more information, please email Mr. Green at pmla@att.net or visit his website at http://www.darylgreen.org.

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Everything comes to those who hustle while they wait -Thomas Edison

Thomas A. Edison was one of the most prolific inventors of all time. His inventions continue to shape our daily lives decades after his death in 1931. He fundamentally changed our lives by giving us indoor lighting, records, movies, batteries, and hundreds of other objects we have come to believe we can’t live without. He patented over 1,000 objects during his life. His advice to “hustle” while you wait gives us some insight into how he became a legend.

Many people who dream of changing their lives are in a “waiting” time in their lives. For financial or personal reasons they are not yet able to leave their current jobs, move to their preferred geographical area, or start that business they dream of. During these waiting times you can do much to lay the foundation for your dreams. Here are some ideas that can get you started as you begin to move towards a life you compose rather than one you fell into:

*Research your dream job or business. Learn all that you can about it. You can easily become an expert about any topic in 3-6 months. Read, search the web, interview people who already work in the field, and do all that you can to learn about the history, trends and topics that are important in your field. When the time comes to move forward, you will have a solid knowledge base.

*Develop your network. Meet others who are in your chosen field. Nothing leads to success faster than having a solid support network in place. Don’t fear competition, just meet as many people as you can in that field. This networking will help you understand what it takes to succeed and give you the support you need to make those first steps. Nothing increases learning faster than having a mentor who can show you the way. You will increase your confidence and your learning pace, and you may even get “lucky” and find a job or your first client.

*Lay the groundwork. Write your business plan. Draft a press release. Outline your book. Learn how to design web pages. Any progress is movement forward and that momentum can help propel you towards the life of your dreams. As you develop skills and create the platform for your new life, new ideas and opportunities will come your way.

No matter where you are in developing the life of your dreams, you can “hustle” while you wait. Even if you have no idea what you want yet, you can create a foundation that will support your new life. No effort is wasted. The skills and knowledge you gain will fit into your new life in some way.

As I searched for my dream and mission I researched dozens of topics. I am consistently amazed at how many of those “dead ends” have helped me to develop my current business. Learning how to edit, write copy, design web pages, research, and even cook have all helped me to build a stronger foundation for my roles as a life coach and infertility coach. Don’t wait for the perfect time to arrive, begin today to move forward and the universe will meet you with more opportunities than you can now imagine.

Julie Renee Callaway is a life coach and motivational speaker specializing in helping professional women overcome obstacles in their lives to discover their divine mission and create lives of meaning, beauty and fulfillment. You can get a free report “Seven Ways to Tell You Are Climbing the Wrong Ladder” at http://www.composeyourlife.com

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