Chaos Theory and March Madness

As an ice breaker for the Red Cross First Aid/CPR/AED course I taught the other day, I asked about their March Madness brackets. Answers included: 

• Great!
• Ok 
• I don't want to talk about it, and 
• I’m not following it.

While listening to their responses, I was struck by how the progression of a bracket over the life of the NCAA tournament mimics the effect of market place chaos.

Following the analogy of chaos theory to March Madness, business leaders make decisions and adjust strategic plans to either gain or retain an advantage over their competitors. These decisions are based on knowledge of internal circumstances, the current market conditions, past performance, and the risk/probability of other known and unknown factors.

For the NCAA teams, the known factors are their team’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) and a study of what they believe are the same for their opponents. Business is no different. 

In most cases, the higher tournament seeded teams (or larger competitors) spend more time preparing to play other higher seeded teams than the #14, #15, or #16 (smaller competitors). 

After all, the higher the seed, the better the team, and the better the probability of winning, right?

Not always…just ask #3Duke about their loss to #14 Mercer in the first round of the tournament. Now chaos ensues for the other higher seeded teams who had spent more time preparing to face Duke later in the tournament, and less time preparing for the possibility of facing Mercer.

From a business perspective, interacting with competitors is a common occurrence and decisions - or chaos - made by one competitor often affect the others like a ripple on an otherwise smooth stream of water. Other times, the ripple quickly becomes a tidal wave.

For example, the volatility of world markets can have a profound effect on any business, large or small. Consider the level of chaos that ensued during the 2013 financial crisis in Cyprus when the government announced it would tax all Cyprian bank accounts as a means of propping up the banking system, and qualifying for emergency loans from world financial bodies.

Up until then, the thought of a tax on banking accounts insured by federal governments was inconceivable. The possibility, although highly unlikely, now exists and businesses all over the world, regardless of size must include this scenario in their financial crisis management planning.

In short, good business leaders have the innate ability to identify and act on opportunities created by chaos. They are able to do so because they plan well, and take both the conceivable and inconceivable into consideration.

With the chaos caused by all of the Cinderella teams enjoying the Dance this year, only one of my five bracket entries really has any hope left. Interestingly enough, it’s the bracket I thought was the least likely to succeed.

How is your bracket doing?

Before founding her own consulting firm, Dawn Gannon served as a respected management professional in the military, higher education, and healthcare fields for 25 years. As a Lean/Six Sigma Green Belt, Dawn’s commitment and personal mission to improve the lives of others through service to the community focuses on providing administrative and volunteer management, consumer education, public outreach, event planning, relationship-building efforts, and strategic planning. She is the author of the Management in Motion blog, and has written a number of articles for RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association on the topic of childfree living.

How Do You Plan for the Unimaginable?

I am an unapologetic bibliophile. 

I simply love to read books. Although I’ve had a Kindle for several years and it is rarely out of reach, especially when I travel, I love the feel of my fingers running along a row of books; especially older, leather-bound books. There is something about the smell of leather and ink, and the exploration of a story that is soothing to me.

But what if there were no more books? It’s unimaginable, right? Even in today’s technologically advanced society, the idea of never picking up a printed book again is unfathomable.

In business, as in life, crisis management begins with identifying the unimaginable, the imaginable, the probable, and then planning how to mitigate the damage IF they happen.

Being caught off guard by the unimaginable is manageable if you routinely engage in, and actively fund, crisis management planning.

However, being unprepared to deal with a crisis of any type or size can be catastrophic and is, unfortunately, often fatal. 

In their book, Managing Crises Before They Happen, Mitroff & Anagnos point out that unlike in previous centuries, today crises are an unfortunate fact of life. Some are minor and affect only your own business, but in a global economy even small events can cause ripple effects that become tidal waves all over the globe.

At the risk of sounding like a management professor by quoting Mitroff & Anagnos, crises fall into one of seven categories:

• Economic
• Informational
• Physical
• Human Resource
• Reputational
• Psychotic Acts
• Natural Disasters

Regardless of the type of crisis your business faces, having a well-defined crisis management plan is essential to its survival. Good crisis management plans include:

• Identifying the type of risks that are possible, probable, and unimaginable (see bulleted list above)
• Determining the ramifications of the possible, probable, and unimaginable
• Identifying mechanisms for recognizing, preparing for, responding to and learning from crises
• Planning for the allocation of the company’s PR, HR, IT, culture, organizational systems and other resources before, during and after a crisis
• Open, frequent communications with all stakeholders so that everyone knows what their responsibilities are during a crisis.

In short, the unexpected will happen, and sometimes even the unimaginable happens. The key to surviving the unimaginable is careful, thoughtful crisis management planning.

So now I’m curious to hear what others think about crisis management.

Please take a moment to share what works for you, what doesn’t, and the best or worst advice you have ever received on the topic. 

Oh, and if you have a favorite book, I'd be happy to read it. 

Thanks for sharing!

Before founding her own consulting firm, Dawn Gannon served as a respected management professional in the military, higher education, and healthcare fields for 25 years. As a Lean/Six Sigma Green Belt, Dawn’s commitment and personal mission to improve the lives of others through service to the community focuses on providing administrative and volunteer management, consumer education, public outreach, event planning, relationship-building efforts, and strategic planning. She is the author of the Management in Motion blog, and has written a number of articles for RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association on the topic of childfree living.

Time Management, Blah, Blah, Blah

It seems like everyone has something to say about time management these days. 

“If you manage your time right, you can get everything done on time.”

“Time management starts with determining your priorities; determine what is most important and go from there.”

Yeah, well, blah, blah, blah to you, too. As the Geico commercial points out, “everybody knows that.”

After being inundated with information on time management this week, I did just what they all wanted me to do: I started looking at my own time management practices.

Granted, life is always busy for one or more reasons, so taking a look at your time management process and practices every once in a while is not a bad idea. I equate it to reviewing your strategic plan periodically to ensure you are on the right track. If you need to make adjustments, you can, and then keep on moving along.

No man goes before his time – unless the boss leaves early.

–Groucho Marx

One of the more interesting articles I saw this week included one from Sue W Chapman and Michael Rupured at the University of Georgia, who listed 10 strategies for better time management:

     1. Know how you spend your time

     2. Set priorities

     3. Use planning tools

     4. Get organized

     5. Schedule

     6. Delegate

     7. Stop procrastinating

     8. Manage external time wasters

     9. Avoid multi-tasking

   10. Stay healthy

After taking a look at their list and comments on each one, I can now see where my time management issues are. I just need to move #6 up to #1 and get going.

What about you? 

What works for you and what would you suggest to someone who came to you for advice on managing their time better?

I'd love to hear your ideas and suggestions, so please comment!

Keeping Your Work Environment Positive Begins Within You

EDITOR’S NOTE: This week, Management in Motion is pleased to welcome a guest blogger, Kristen Darcy, an award-winning author, fertility coach, motivational speaker and expert on the emotional aspects of infertility and other life challenges.

Do you realize that you might spend more time with your work family than your own family? Given that time creates a familial dynamic, do you sometimes wonder how you keep the peace at work without assuming a parental or sibling role?

Creating work place awareness or developing a culture by design begins within.  

Early in my career, I worked with an all women staff at my mother’s nursing home (nepotism and those issues comprise a whole other article). There were moments when the employees acted like sibling rivals. Most of the arguments were about who was going to wear the fancy white hairnets, which everyone originally perceived negatively. Then, employees started complaining when they didn't get that one white fancy hair net. Since we were all teens this made sense. We were all competing for the perceived wanted item. 

What was most disconcerting to me at the time was the "back stabbing" chatter, such as “Can you believe her?” “What’s up with that?” and so on.

Fast forward to when I opened my learning center. Once again, it was an all-women environment, though a more grown up version that still functioned like a family.  The atmosphere was littered with side bar conversations where one person was pitted against another or one faction opposed to another one.

Uniting the workforce, in my humble opinion, begins from the top down. It has to be cared for each and every day by each employee from the inside out.

The intent to do no harm and uplift the environment might be in the mission statement but how do you translate that into your daily interaction with your fellow employees?

Confucius’ statement, “Remember, no matter where you go, there you are” is a perfect mirror to create a work environment of peace.  

What bothers you the most about someone could be making you aware about an opportunity to work on yourself? For example, you might be critical of a coworker who is late, doesn't finish a project on time, or is a complainer instead of a solution provider.

What do these people trigger within you?  Do they trigger judgment, resentment, or frustration?  Ask yourself how you feel, and then follow up with: “What do I need?” Then you can focus on coming from a perspective of peacemaking, and offering solution driven action steps instead of complaining.

Once a well-respected, hard-working and caring teacher came into my office to announce that she just had it!  She was done with the chatter and sniping coming from another teacher.  That day my tolerance level was a bit low. Upon hearing the “same song, different verse” energy, I stopped what I was doing to bring the other well educated, caring, and loving teacher into my office, forcing the two women to have a face to face conversation. I was done with their negative energy.

That day, I learned there are unconscious patterns that trigger life experiences and play out in the work place.  Here’s the kicker. Most are not even aware that an old pattern or script is playing out, and that an autopilot response ripples out, creating unease.

I also learned it’s never about the other person and what they do, e.g., leaving five minutes early, leaving the lunch room a mess, fill in the description of the complaint.  It is the meaning you are assigning to these interactions that creates the lack of peace or positive energy. 

So, what do you need?  What are you feeling?  How do you create peace within so that it vibrates out into the workplace, family life, and world?

Did you hear your answer?  If yes, then what are you doing to nurture that need?

Peaceful working on you and your shadow parts (aka the triggers) creates peace in whatever environment you find yourself. 

So once again, “Remember, no matter where you go, there you are.”

Here’s some homework:

Take time to write down five things you like about your “work” you.  Perhaps it’s your organizational skills, your communication style, or maybe your ability to cut through all the minutia and keep everyone on task?  Write down the five you dig about yourself.

Now write down the five traits that irritate you the most about your co-workers?  What do they have in common? How can you look at the irritants and what can you learn about yourself to create peace?

Peace within ripples outward! 

Kristen Darcy is an award-winning author, fertility coach, motivational speaker and expert on the emotional aspects of infertility and other life challenges. Kristen also consults with fertility providers and organizations, teaching them how to attract and retain clients by emotionally treating patients and providing the ultimate patient experience.

Kristen is the advisor, supporter, and friend infertile women need. Kristen Magnacca was one of the first former patients and fertility survivors who addressed the mental and emotional crisis of infertility. She is the author of the groundbreaking Girlfriend to Girlfriend: A Fertility Companion (First Books Library, 2000) as well as the award-winning Love & Infertility: Survival Strategies for Balancing Infertility, Marriage and Life (LifeLine Press, 2004). Love and Infertility is the inaugural recipient of the Hope Award, Best Book Coping, from RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association and 2014 is the tenth anniversary of its publication.

Kristen testified before the US Senate in the spring of 2000 about the importance of government funding for fertility research and holistic treatment. She has been highlighted in national publications and broadcast media including NBC’s The Today Show,Woman’s World magazine, PBS’ Health Week and The Boston Globe. She also is a former board member and volunteer for RESOLVE of New England. 

Learn more about Kristen at www.kristenmagnacca.com.

  

I Quit!

Your VP for Research and the Associate VP of Marketing have both resigned in the last 30 days to take positions with different competitors. 

Disappointing, yes; but nothing to worry about, right?

However, your HR Director just left your office after sharing startling statistics on employee retention, which suggests that very few stay with your company for more than 2 years, especially in the Research and Marketing departments.

What is going on, and why hasn’t this been brought to your attention before now? Or, has it and you just didn’t understand what was actually being conveyed?

Perhaps you should talk with your remaining leadership team members, and ask your HR Director to initiate an employee survey to ascertain employee satisfaction and solicit feedback for improvements. 

Based on the information already provided, it seems certain that an organizational strategic change initiative is in order. Maybe it’s the politics, or the culture, or the work process itself. Maybe it's a little bit of all of those, and more.

For example, a friend came to me recently for advice on how to deal with some issues she was facing at work. Since we have been friends for a very long time, she knew I had faced similar challenges, and wanted validation for the options she saw as viable for her particular situation.

It seems the politics in her organization have completely taken over good management practices. Until now, she has done her best not to participate in the games her colleagues seem to enjoy and clearly benefit from based on the promotions and frequent public “at-a-boys” they receive, while she and her efforts are overlooked. 

Regardless of her qualifications and superior work performance, her unwillingness to play the game has cost her two promotions and given rise to the perception that she is not a team player. 

As we see it, her options are: 1) start playing the politics game and build additional strategic relationships within the company so that she is seen as a team player and can start getting the recognition for her efforts, or 2) find a new position with a different company.

Now is not the 

time to be complacent

Based on the resignations noted at the top of this blog and like my friend’s situation, could politics and a culture that supports promotions based on the participation in cliques be the core issue in your organization?  

Before you shake your head and say, ‘of course not,’ make sure that the survey conducted by HR includes questions about culture, politics, upward mobility and team cohesion.

Better yet, contract an organizational development professional to provide an unbiased company evaluation, and then work with them to design a strategic change initiative to address the issues revealed.

While it may appear that the culture of promotion via politics is widely accepted, it really isn't. In fact, it is patently toxic to the success of your organization!

Now is not the time to be complacent, thinking that these resignations and the data from HR are just small bumps in the road. 

Now is the time to lead by example, to take action to ensure your organization becomes the one everyone wants to work for; not the one they use to get experience and then leave for better opportunities.

  

Before founding her own consulting firm, Dawn Gannon served as a respected management professional in the military, higher education, and healthcare fields for 25 years. As a Lean/Six Sigma Green Belt, Dawn’s commitment and personal mission to improve the lives of others through service to the community focuses on providing administrative and volunteer management, consumer education, public outreach, event planning, relationship-building efforts, and strategic planning. She is the author of the Management in Motion blog, and has written a number of articles for RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association on the topic of childfree living.

When All Hell Breaks Loose

“We have to make quick decisions or all Hell will continue to break loose. I can’t believe we didn’t see this coming!”

I suspect all of us have been in this situation more times than we care to admit, whether we were leading the effort or simply a cog in the decision-making wheel. 

You have been there a time or two. What did you do? 

Either way, the answer brings to mind two additional questions:

• How did you make your decisions?
• Did they turn out to be the right ones, or should you have done something else?

Lately, I’ve seen a lot of blogs and research articles on how the quality of leadership affects the decision-making process. I realize that it seems to be obvious that a good leader makes good decisions, while a poor leader makes poor decisions. One of the more interesting articles I have read on this topic lately, found in the Harvard Business Review, expands on this theory while exploring the question of how a poor leader affects his/her subordinates and vice versa.  

While the authors present some interesting conclusions to their research, I find that I need to delve a little deeper, and ask the elephant-in-the-room question: given the same information and resources, what causes a leader to make a good or bad decision when all Hell breaks loose?

Is it a lack of training or support from upper management or the Board? Is it a slight hesitation due to a fear of choosing the wrong option? Or, perhaps choosing to do what has worked before – although safer – did not adequately address the needs and requirements of the current situation.

Regardless, as you are putting out fires and salvaging what you can from the ruins, making good decisions require good leaders to:

• Identify and focus solely on the exact issue. There will be many other side issues that appear to be important, but are really only manifestations of the core challenge.
• Identify and evaluate your options, both inside and outside the proverbial box. Although your gut instinct will generally point you in the right direction, you need facts and figures to support your decision.
• Just do it. Do not hesitate; make the decision and let it go. The old saying, “timing is everything” is just as true in business as it is in life.

In short, good leaders focus on solving the actual problem and make fact-based decisions quickly when all Hell is breaking loose. Poor leaders hesitate and make decisions without adequate information to support their choice of fire companies to put out the flames.

 Before founding her own consulting firm, Dawn Gannon served as a respected management professional in the military, higher education, and healthcare fields for 25 years. As a Lean/Six Sigma Green Belt, Dawn’s commitment and personal mission to improve the lives of others through service to the community focuses on providing administrative and volunteer management, consumer education, public outreach, event planning, relationship-building efforts, and strategic planning. She is the author of the Management in Motion blog, and has written a number of articles for RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association on the topic of childfree living.

Sleep is Over-rated

EDITOR’S NOTE: This week, Management in Motion is pleased to welcome a guest blogger, Johnny Slater, founder of Lochshire Technology. 

For the last few weeks I have had an extreme problem with being able to sleep. I just can’t make myself sleep, no matter that I walk around completely exhausted.

I'm beginning to understand why. I feel something growing inside me that once was there but has been missing for a very long time. I have become aware of a growing sense of passion and restlessness regarding my long absence away from the online work I started so many years ago.

Three years ago I stepped away from everything I was doing to take care of my wife. It was something that I needed to do, and I did gladly without any regret. I always put my family first above all else, so there was no question that my wife and her needs would come before mine.

However, recently I have had the opportunity to slowly dip my foot back into the waters and take small steps towards rebuilding what once was. The restlessness is the fact that I have been away for so long that I just can't wait to get back into it full time and my mind just can't stop coming up with new ideas.

The passion is that it is something that I love doing and something that I was born to do. I love the freedom that having an online business affords me, and the ability to run a business and still be here for my family means more to me than anything ever could.

Life has a way of throwing roadblocks in front of you and most people tend to get bogged down instead of finding ways to go around. My sincere wish for everyone who reads this is that you find your passion and follow it, where ever it may lead you. Get out of your comfort zone and follow your dreams.

Don't let setbacks and roadblocks

stop you from following your chosen path.

Look for ways to go around, above, or under any situation that stands in your way and be prepared to have to put your travel on hold for a time every once in a while.

However, never sacrifice your passion. If you have to take time off from what you want to do to take care of what you need to do that is completely fine, but never completely walk away from your dreams.

If you step away for a time and then come back later, you just might find you get even more from your path and you appreciate it even more for having to step away for a time.

I can't describe the feelings I have been experiencing lately. I am full of a renewed sense of who I am and what I want to accomplish with my life, and I hope everyone could feel the sense of renewed self confidence that I have begun to experience.

I think I have rambled enough for someone who hasn't had a decent night’s sleep in a week, so I guess it's time to try to get 2 hours of sleep before I need to get the kids up for school. 

Goodnight to all. 

Johnny Slater is a programmer, internet marketer, and founder of Lochshire Technology, an ecommerce solution firm. From simple single purchase scripts to total membership solutions, Johnny has spent years creating software that is easy enough for beginners to use, but also has the power that veteran marketers need. He not only creates some of the most powerful solutions available, but backs them up with a level of personal customer support not found anywhere else. Find out more about Johnny and Lochshire Technology at https://www.facebook.com/lochshiretech