Casual Articles - Business

Changing Organisational Culture Requires a Change in Leadership
Changing culture or “the way we do things around here” need not be as difficult as it first seems. We often make it more difficult for ourselves because the first and most important change often needs to come from us as leaders.We can make it doubly difficult if we build a project around a focus of changing culture. It can appear that we are changing culture for changing sake. We can also get lost in the forest of consultant jargon, models and methods and miss the trees of the objective we are attempting to reach.To adequately discuss what changing culture is, we need to start with a definition of what organisational culture is. A useful tool for this amongst the plethora of tools available is the Cultural Web dev

g and kept on ticking. After 18 months of frustration, Timex wanted out of the partnership it created in India. It all started a decade ago when it was illegal to export watches into India. Timex wanted into the market and proceeded to select a local watchmaker as its partner. Unfortunately Timex should have spent more time on due diligence and asked around a bit more about the partner to be. Timex assumed it could dominate the relationship and have the Indian manufacturer carry out its manufacturing needs on cue.

Was Timex surprised? The head of Timex’s joint venture in India, Robert Werner was quoted in a Los Angeles Times article as stating, “Until its Indian joint venture, Timex had been accustomed to owning companies outright, and its problems in India were a learning experience for many at Timex.” He said It took Timex six months of negot

Employee Time Clock And Restaurant Point of Sale Systems - A Perfect Marriage
The History Of The Employee Time Clock And Point of SaleThe concept of punching a time clock has been around since the industrial revolution of the early 1900's. However, it was not until the invention of the electronic cash register in the early 1980's that employees could clock in/out on the cash register. This eliminated the need for a punch card and greatly increased accuracy and reduced manpower needs in calculating time worked for payroll purposes.While the need for employees to clock in and out on a terminal started off simple the requirements of government have greatly increased the demands placed upon management. There are a host of different labor laws, tip reporting requirements and lab

Caveat Pars, partners beware!

Partnering, as with any activity, has its unexpected challenges and pitfalls. Actually, this is probably more so than in traditional adversary relationships. In adversary relationships you must always watch your back. In relationships based on trust or what is perceived as trust, one can be lulled into a false sense of security. While you need to protect yourself from these dangerous situations, you do not want to create them by exhibiting the wrong attitude.

To keep your alliances healthy, conflict should be dealt with immediately. This is your best chance for moving forward in any relationship. But, improperly challenged, conflict can be the death sentence to an alliance.

Alliance conflict emanates from five core areas:

1. Values

2. Goals

3. Facts

4. Procedures

5. Misinformation

Conflict doesn't have to be a roadblock to a successful alliance if you and your partnering alliance members are willing to resolve the conflict at the core level, in a timely manner. In fact, the resolved conflict can lead to a stronger relationship through improved communication. Unfortunately, conflict that is left unresolved will lead to fatal flaws that will erode the relationship.

Some of the more common areas of conflict in alliance relationships are accessibility, culture clashes, hidden agendas, management tenure, poor communications and unrealistic expectations. Many advocates and consultants for alliances believe that the alliance mortality rate is around 50 percent.

If you wait to build partnering relationships until all the potential pitfalls are unearthed, your industry will pass you by. Others, who you might have considered as possible members for strategic alliances, might be aligned with your competition. Be realistic though, as with a spouse, partnering alliance members don't change with time. They do not become, who and what, you want them to be. But rather, evolve to whom and what they desire. If you suspect core problems, you probably are accurate in your assessment and the chances for a successful alliance is greatly diminished. Partnering, like marriage, will not change people. What it does do, is to remove the facades, and exposes the good and bad.

Trust in others and the belief that alliance Partnering starts at the top are crucial elements to your success. These two topics are frequent causes for failed Partnering agreements when they're not followed. Also, in alliance agreements, be cautious of things you can't see now but may experience later. Little things like the small print in a detailed alliance contract. Don't let your enthusiasm cloud your judgment.

Just because you're working with a company of integrity, it doesn't mean they will look out for you. Even in a Partnering relationship, you are still accountable for your own success and well-being. Make sure your bottom-line expectations take into account that servicing the partnering agreement is going to require extra resources. Be certain of everybody's alliance partnering goals. Here are examples of potential Partnering pitfalls. Be aware of them before you enter an agreement. Your chances for success will increase.

At Timex:

Timex, for example, forfeited $60 million in lost revenue and learned about the challenges of Partnering overseas. You could say it took a licking and kept on ticking. After 18 months of frustration, Timex wanted out of the partnership it created in India. It all started a decade ago when it was illegal to export watches into India. Timex wanted into the market and proceeded to select a local watchmaker as its partner. Unfortunately Timex should have spent more time on due diligence and asked around a bit more about the partner to be. Timex assumed it could dominate the relationship and have the Indian manufacturer carry out its manufacturing needs on cue.

The Power of the Forklift for Your Business
The forklift is one of the most powerful pieces of equipment for any warehouse operation, and every manufacturing or shipping company will need at least one forklift in order to conduct its daily business.The operation of a forklift is of course quite easy to understand, and every person reading this article no doubt already knows what a forklift is and what it does. In addition to the traditional forklift, of course, there are specially designed fork trucks that have been designed for moving pallets around by hand. These fork trucks can be very valuable for moving products around where space is tight, and no special training in driving a forklift is required to operate this piece of equipment.Of course where la

Procedures

5. Misinformation

At Timex:

The Opportunity of Private Labeling
I was having breakfast at a local restaurant the other day when I noticed on the table there was a bottle of hot sauce with the restaurant’s name on it. I was impressed because I knew this was no chain – it is just a small independent restaurant who was taking advantage of private labeling. It is one of a growing number of small restaurants that enhance their brand by putting their own name on products.First, let’s be clear about what I mean by Private Labeling. According to Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, private label products or services are typically those manufactured or provided by one company for offer under another company's brand. So this covers everything from Wal-Mart brand products to the small restauran

you by. Others, who you might have considered as possible members for strategic alliances, might be aligned with your competition. Be realistic though, as with a spouse, partnering alliance members don't change with time. They do not become, who and what, you want them to be. But rather, evolve to whom and what they desire. If you suspect core problems, you probably are accurate in your assessment and the chances for a successful alliance is greatly diminished. Partnering, like marriage, will not change people. What it does do, is to remove the facades, and exposes the good and bad.

At Timex:

Hard Money Business Loan - The Facts About a Hard Money Business Loan
The cost of starting up an enterprise is high; most advisers recommend that you have at least $50,000 capital on hand "just in case" when you begin your own venture. This is meant to be for unknown problems and glitches, not the actual equipment and running costs. You really need that buffer to create a comfort zone to allow your venture to operate until it takes off on its own. But cheer up. If starting an enterprise is costly, you can usually get all the advice you will ever need or want for free.But when this nest egg begins to decrease and your venture just hasn't taken off, how do you remain current on all of the financial obligations? Do you consider obtaining additional financing or is debt relief counseling

can't see now but may experience later. Little things like the small print in a detailed alliance contract. Don't let your enthusiasm cloud your judgment.

At Timex:

The Perils of Positive Thinking
Something bothered me about the teeth of the consultant who was sitting in front of me, on the other side of the helpdesk. I couldn’t identify what it was immediately. I was at my bank’s foreign exchange division, hoping to get some advice on an upcoming business trip. As the positive and friendly consultant was talking, I suddenly realized what seemed out of place for me. Embedded in his front tooth was the ultimate symbol of business success - a gold dollar sign! I struggled to concentrate on our conversation. I caught myself in forced contemplation and my curious mind was analyzing why he chose this unique form of expression. I was ambushed by the realization that it was because he was working in foreign exchange. Different

Today, Timex is happily partnered with Indian watchmaker Titan Industries, which is a subsidiary of Tata Group, one of the largest corporations in India. The Timex-Tata joint venture went to market in late 1992 and in its first year sold 400,000 watches. Two years later annual sales leaped to 1.9 million watches.

At Donnelly Corporation:

Founded in 1905, Donnelly Corporation started as a glass mirror manufacturer and supplier for the turn-of-the-century (1900) furniture industry. Today, through joint ventures and strategic alliances, they have operations in 12 countries. With net sales in 1998 of over $763 million (13.7% increase over 1997), they are successfully Partnering around the globe.

Dwane Baumgardner, chairman & CEO at Donnelly feels strongly about what it takes for Partnering to work. When we visited at their Holland, MI headquarters he said to me, "If you have management that is not operating on the basic believe, that it has to start at the top, those beliefs have to be held and permeated throughout the organization. For example, with employees (approximately 5,500 in 1999), if you have to believe your people can be trusted, that they want to work together in a supportive and cooperative fashion. The same must be true with another company; you have to believe when you form a strategic alliance that they will operate with the same motive that you operate. If you don't have those beliefs, I think you're going to run into problems."

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You probably don’t think much about the hard hat, but if you didn’t know it, it can be a life saving device. While many areas of construction use these hats, it should be something that more people use. Think about all the times that you are in risk of falling off a ladder or having something fall on you. There are many reasons to wear a hard hat, but did you realize the various types that are out there?

Visual branding is a great way to create big impact at a special event such as a launch, customer relations dinner or trade show. Although some people think of this as a wasteful self-indulgent practice, shrewd marketers know that a focused visually branded event can leave a deep impression on customers and prospects amidst a flurry of competitors.

A lot of companies have gotten it right in the digital realm, only to drop the ball once you meet them on the physical plane. People show up to shop and retailers don't always have a good grasp of what to do with them.

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