Career, Executive Coaching, Career Survival and Executive strategies backissues

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EXECUTIVE STRATEGIES

A free monthly newsletter for anyone who is interested in
EXCEEDING their goals by RECOGNIZING OPPORTUNITY or IMPROVING EFFICIENCY.

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see the information at the bottom of this message.

Copyright 2001 Wayne McKinnon. All rights reserved.

Vol. 2 Number 1 - June, 2001
Publisher: Wayne McKinnon info@ITcoach.com
http://www.ITcoach.com
(C) ITcoach.com 2001
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IN THIS ISSUE
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1. CURRENT EVENTS: What does it mean and where is the opportunity?

2. LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: I thought I was wrong but I was mistaken...AGAIN

3. CONTRIBUTING TO THE BUSINESS: This month's reason Why you may not be getting the results your expect

4. MARKETING TIP: Increasing market share in a cost effective manner

5. WEBSITES OF INTEREST

6. PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY TIP

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1. CURRENT EVENTS: What does it mean and where is the opportunity?
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A few years ago during a meeting, one of my clients spied my cell phone hanging
from my belt, and commented, "oh, you are one of those people that feels the need
to constantly be by the phone." I assured him it was turned off and never on when
I have reserved time for meetings.

Since most of my business is done away from my office, my cell phone served more
as a convenience feature for checking my voice mail and reaching my clients.

Wireless e-mail is just starting to catch on but is still in its early days.
challenges include integrating with existing corporate e-mail systems, as well as
deciphering the meaning within multiple e-mail messages with attachments.

Giving everyone in your organization a taste of what it would be like to limit their
messages to a few lines of text would be a useful exercise in concise communication.

These devices are a less intrusive way of remaining available to respond to matters
that only you can handle. But for the executive who has people to deal with urgent
matters, hand-held e-mail is a great way to avoid surprises by simply monitoring
what is going on while you are away from your desk.

If your organization does dabble with this technology, why not take the opportunity to
establish some clear communication "best practices" when you first introduce it.

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2. LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: I thought I was wrong but I was mistaken...AGAIN
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After pondering the vast number of issues on a busy executive's mind, I condensed
them down to what I call the two root instigators for change.

-New opportunities
-better efficiency

I thought that when it came down to it, that was all there really was, I was wrong...

More recently what I have realized is that while many organizations say that improved
efficiency is valuable, other than manufacturing processes, many organizations are
willing to ignore inefficiencies. If you really want to improve efficiency, tie it
to the third instigator that I have identified - Reducing risk!

It seems that not getting in trouble is far more motivating than doing better for many
organizations and individuals.

If you can reduce risk AND improve efficiency in the process, you are more likely to
receive support for your initiative.

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3. CONTRIBUTING TO THE BUSINESS: This month's reason Why you may not be
getting the results your expect
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Since the common theme in this issue deals with new ways of doing things, why
not focus on the way we make these new ways known? Any time you introduce a new
process or technology, don't make assumptions that everyone will just "get it"

By that I mean that different people in differing roles will have different perceptions
about how they are supposed to do things. We commonly think of these as best practices.

When introducing anything new, you probably have some goal in mind
otherwise there would be no need to change. But in order to know if you are achieving this
goal, some clear measurement of success must be established.

Frequently, the goal in introducing technology is simply "to get it working".
We need to go beyond this and find out how it is working, and more precisely,
how is it contributing to the business goals, and then ask why!

For good results: - capture and share as best practices.
For bad results: - uncover the challenges and seek input on how to do it better.

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4. MARKETING TIP: Increasing market share in a cost effective manner
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Regardless of the business you are in you have those who you consider your clients,
in other words, if those people did not exist, you would no longer be needed.

Be clear on who those people are and why. Tune into their changing priorities
so that you continue to have a reason for being, beyond simply filling a position.

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5. WEBSITES OF INTEREST
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=> http://www.vcall.com

Interesting for two reasons:

1. If you are an investor or own a company, Vcall provides virtual investor relations
2. If you are looking for examples of how technology can be used to improve communications
this is one example

=> http://www.theboatcard.ca/

Three reasons that may interest you:

1. If you are a pleasure boater in Ontario Canada, this site provides a free on-line course
that prepares you for the boater's safety test that will soon become mandatory

2. Another example of how government regulation has provided an entrepreneur the
opportunity to provide a valuable service, in this case using the internet as the
method of delivery

3. One simple example of on-line learning (computer Based Training) done well.

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6. PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY TIP
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To deal with e-mail overload:

-sort mail into folders of action items vs. information items
-delegate action items where appropriate, but be clear on you expected involvement
-schedule time for action items that you cannot delegate and then remove them from your in-box

I use my in-box to get a quick glance at how things are going throughout the day, so it should be
relatively empty at the start of each day. (I accomplish this by keeping a "new mail folder"
that I have created to transfer the noise into at the end of each day).

When I move messages to project folder and such, I treat them just like my paper files,
and add items to my task list before storing them. This removes the fear that I might
forget to do something important, and as a result, both my desk and my inbox remain clean.

When I scan this or any folders, I make extensive use of my e-mail programs ability to
sort based on recipient, date received, or subject.

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FREE ARTICLES FOR YOUR PUBLICATIONS
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I have many articles available for reprint in your
publication, company newsletter, etc. You may use
articles written by me that you see in this newsletter. Back issues
can be viewed at http://www.ITcoach.com/articles

All you have to do is print the article in its entirety along with the by line at
top and the credits, and complete contact information at the end of each article.
I would appreciate a tear sheet or electronic copy too. Thanks

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Wayne McKinnon
The Executive Technology Coach / ITcoach.com
Suite531, 900 Greenbank Rd.
Nepean, Ontario Canada K2J 4P6
(613) 860-1384, Fax (613) 825-4895
mailto:info@ITcoach.com
http://www.ITcoach.com

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