Business | Teik Oh

Managing Hostility in your Team

Feb 06 2015

One of the joys of running your small business is dealing with your staff.

I’m not being sarcastic – I really do mean that dealing with your staff is a joy, because if you have chosen well, they are hard-working, more often loyal than not, and they bring a different dimension to work. They are a relief during the day when you can talk football or the latest instalment of the soap opera, they are also a source of support when a business problem means you need hands to the wheel or just moral support.

If they are none of the above, perhaps you didn’t choose well and need to look again.

Of course there is also the other side. You have a responsibility to your staff, they sometimes don’t work the way you work and it can be irritating, they sometimes disagree.

But these are not the worst engagements with your staff (and I’m talking good staff whom you do want to retain). The worst engagements are when two of them have a dispute.

When the relationship between two of them rises to the point of hostility, how do you manage the situation and keep the team on track? Read More

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Decluttering Your Business

Feb 02 2015

Every now and then, it’s time to declutter!

Whether it’s your home, your office, or your life, over the years you build up “stuff”. When you buy that cute vase or an extra office chair or you accumulate responsibilities, it all builds up. Personally I find it refreshing to just get rid of stuff from time to time.

It clears your mind, there’s less visual and intellectual junk to manoeuvre around, and you can see fresh and new ways to move on and ahead.
Well, decluttering works in your business as well.

Think for a moment, and I’ll bet you will recognise the clutter that has built up around you without your knowing it. Management guru Peter Drucker said “much of what we call management consists of making it difficult for people to work”. This is so true. Management demands better (or is it more?) communication so our email inbox is bulging, we are in touch 24/7 on smart phones and tablets. Management is careful to avoid inefficiency, so everything is check-listed, and has to be signed off step by step adding layers to “efficiency”. Management is all about planning so half our day is filled with meetings. Management is all about achieving goals so we end up with endless objectives and to-do lists to tick off.

Some of this clutter in our business lives is actually a necessity. Read More

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Communication – Part #172

Jan 30 2015

I talk about communication a lot, which is why this is probably part 172!

However joking aside communication is probably one of the most critical skills anyone in business, or working in a customer-facing role must master.

It is communication that allows you to convey your vision to your team and to your customers. It is communication that leads people, communication that melds a team into a productive group of people working as one, rather than a group of individuals working “together”. It is communication that builds trust in you, and it is communication that tells your customer you are on his side.

In “Communication – Part 172″ (and I am being facetious) I’d like to deal with how professionals communicate with their clients. I have already written elsewhere about how you should avoid jargon, but this time let me talk about how communicating your skill needs more than knowledge about your skill, it needs experience about how your skill is used to help.

Let me set the scene.
Read More

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5 Steps to a Happier and More Productive Workplace

Jan 26 2015

These are lean times. Many businesses are letting go of staff and expecting greater productivity from those left. Businesses that have resisted the temptation of cutting costs by cutting the salaries bill also need to make sure the team is more effective than ever.

A productive and effective business is comprised of team members that are both happy and productive.

So, how do you create such a workplace?

Indeed, there are “happy” places, but not all are also productive. The trick is to ensure that workplace satisfaction, or “happiness” is linked to the creation of an effective and productive workplace.

While there are studies that list 6 or 10 or 12 factors, I believe the following 5 are the key factors to create a workplace that attracts and retains the most effective and productive staff.

1. A workplace with a strong Vision and Mission, and which values reinforce pride in membership.
Read More

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How to Prepare a USEFUL Strategic Plan

Jan 19 2015

Does this sound familiar?:-

It is about 5 years since your company did its last strategic plan, and you, or your Board have been reminded that it is good governance to renew it. You can’t actually see a reason to do it in practical terms – the economy has been what it is and the business has been doing what it can. After all, was your last prediction of the future any good?

Nevertheless you decide to do it. You hire a facilitator and ask for a quote. When the facilitator (if they are worth the money) asks for preparation time that may include research into your industry and company, along with interviews with stakeholders, and prices her quote accordingly. You receive the quote and negotiate it downwards, removing these “extraneous” tasks and leaving the task of facilitating a day’s workshop and writing it up.

You organise a day’s retreat for the Board and senior staff. You hold the meeting, everyone has a good time away from the office, you all contribute to discussion and feel satisfied that you have thrashed the issues. The facilitator writes up the plan, you review it and “implement” it.

In a few months, the exercise is forgotten.

Familiar?
Read More

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Managing Hostility in your Team

Decluttering Your Business

Communication – Part #172

5 Steps to a Happier and More Productive Workplace

How to Prepare a USEFUL Strategic Plan