In order for us to express our spirit in the work that we do, we must carve out the time to do it. At the date of publishing this blog post, it’s the first week of the New Year. I don’t know about you, but I’m carefully deliberating how I’m going to best spend my …

Customer Service Training: Disaster Prevention & Accountability We all know the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is engaged in the important work to prevent customer service disasters involving extreme loss of life, and because its job is so important to us, the TSA as the big dog in charge has been getting the brunt of the …

Three Sub-Systems This post is the third in a series on Leading in Complex Human Systems. In my last two posts, we began our review of The Butterfly Model of Human Systems. The Model suggests that larger world of  human systems are composed of three major subsystems: The Face-to-Face System–what happens “in the room,” in …

Wouldn’t it be good to know that every decision you take over the next 12 months will be the right one. This may sound impossible but there is a way to significantly increase the likelihood of your decisions being correct. The secret is understanding. Without understanding we are very likely to make bad or the …

Engaging in reputation management is not a choice, but a necessity The availability of easy online publishing tools has given everyone a voice and the power to reach an audience. This can be a very positive thing, what with fans, evangelists, and brand ambassadors helping to spread the word. On the other hand, it opens …

Speak and Act with Data Irrespective of the type of industry or nature of business, Quality Management tools and programs including Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen, ISO 9000 & BPM all share one fundamental dependency. It’s called data. Whilst approaches, techniques and duration of these programs will differ, data, on the other hand, will always be …

Do you have great ideas but can’t seem to get people to listen? A recent email from a frustrated manager who, like many of us, has great ideas but finds it difficult getting them accepted and implemented. Perhaps a boss is too busy putting out fires to pay attention. Or, in the give and take …

Offered by SEOmoz.org, “The Beginner's Guide to Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is an in-depth tutorial on how search engines work.

In my last post, I discussed being able to identify signs of employee burnout. The first step is to recognize burnout; however, if you do what should you do? Below is a list of things you can do if you notice the signs. What can you add?

Retrospective: Fundraising in the Insecure Economy Over the years, the biggest mistake that many non-profits made was believing that Grants from Corporations, Foundations, and Governments would continue at former levels. Giving by foundations and corporations is dependent upon their available resources, and during the recent “low period” in the stock market their assets shrank dramatically. …