Agents2Change - Smart Business Thinking

There are no shortcuts to good management, Silicon Valley

One of the rising trends with the silicon valley based industries has been to create a fun ‘anything-goes’ type workplace to encourage its (usually) young teams to feel relaxed, see work as fun and generally hang out with the guys in a cool, happening place.

That’s great, and I’m all for making workplaces fun and enjoyable places to be, except when this is done as a shortcut to managing people well and giving them the skills and setting them up to succeed.

But the iPhone generation is getting wise to the all bells and no whistles approach to employment and starting to realize that work stops being fun and cool when you are just not getting the nuts and bolts support to do your job.

Google, despite its reputation for being an employer of choice has an average tenure of 1.1years  according to a survey last year by Payscale.  Others are not far behind, with many of the high-tech companies failing to get an average tenure above 2 years.  This compares to an all-sectory average of at least 4 years.  Even factoring age into the equation,  (under 25’s being the most mobile workforce), we still see that something is turning more people off than on in these high-octane environments, so what is it?

The fact remains that there is no shortcut to good employment practices.  Yes of course offering employees a free iPad and an unlimited supply of Mars Bars sounds amazing.  But if that goes with unlimited work hours, unmanageable workloads and poor or just plain absent managers, then reaching for another candy bar rarely fills the gaping hole that is left.

In an era where everything needs to be cut down to 144 characters or less, management has become a cliché.  But like all industries that are on the rise in their trajectory, the plateau and the inevitable decline will come at somepoint.  And when organisations don’t have a bottom-less pit of resources, the lack of stability will hurt and cost more than can be sustained.

So as high octane as the party might feel, far better to wean off the party poppers now and start to build more sustainable, grounded organisations, that can still be agile, creative and be motivating for everyone involved.

What do you think?  Share your thoughts or comments here.

 

Conscious Leadershp - some wise words from Deepak Chopra

We spend a lot of time here discussing the behaviours of leaders and looking to how they can engage better with their poeple and be more effective as decision makers.

Much of the challenge for modern executives is the lack of any time to reflect; to think; and to weigh up options  before acting.   What are really essential attributes to be able to function well are viewed by many as luxuries that they can't afford.  The difficulty with this mindset is the negative impact it has on the person and on their organisation's performance.  Something we are all too readily reminded of by the global crisis caused by the unthinking actions of key executives across the banking and financial community. 

In his article, Deepak reminds us that if you examine the rise of a typical leader, the ability to look and listen decreases as power increases. That's a trend you need to be aware of. At the outset, a future leader often rises out of a group to present a grievance or to offer a new idea or way of doing things. Hands-on experience motivates him (or her), and the group supports his efforts because they recognize a need to be fulfilled.

 

But leaders at the top are often enmeshed in corporate politics and insulated by immediate aides. The notorious White House bubble that isolates presidents also encloses any leader who lives inside a small circle. Here are some pointers about looking and listening all the way up the ladder.

Read more ..

 

About us:

Agents2Change specialises in organisational change and implementation and supporting leaders to do this in an engaging and energetic way.  We would love to hear your feedback on tihs or any other issues and we can be reached on : [email protected]

 

 

Bye Bye BlackBerry. How Long Will Apple Last? - Article from Forbes

When we look at game changing technology, it's often tempting to have a myopic perspective.  If we look back just 5 years ago, Blackberry was the be all and end all of the Smartphone market and Apple was less than a twinkle in the eye.  But as Blackberry are just going through a major re-trenching effort, due to falling profits and poorly focused products, we are reminded of how quickly things can change.  Just five years ago, “BlackBerry” was virtually synonymous with “smartphones.” It was well on its way to becoming a generic trademark, like Kleenex or Band-Aid, that would seemingly forever be associated with its entire sector. “For many, the Blackberry is a must-have gadget, a wireless hand-held computer that can send e-mail and make phone calls,” noted a 2005 NPR story on the “CrackBerry,” as some BlackBerry addicts referred to the device. (Incidentally, the story compared the BlackBerry to the Palm Treo, an equally popular device at the time.)  Read more here: via www.forbes.com

Trouble at the Bleeding Edge – Or how the Mighty Fall

Earlier this week we talked about challenges at the Leading edge of change.  But what about at the other end of the spectrum?  It’s a salutary reminder of the unrelenting pace of change, when you hear that Eastman Kodak have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.  It is a mighty fall from grace, given the near monopoly status that Kodak held in the world of photography for over 125 years.  Yet it is also a stark reminder of the dramatic changes that our digital based economy has wrought. 

Kodak was once viewed amongst the world’s most innovative companies, providing innovation not only in the camera but also in the development and print field of photography.  Yet in the last 30 years it has gradually slipped further and further from the mainstream, as smaller more agile competitors, better able to respond to the rising tide of digital technology started to take its place, alongside that of the multi-media smartphone. 

Management arrogance is one of the accusations for its demise.   Yet perhaps its biggest failing was not realizing that the moment to change had arrived and passed it by; quietly and swiflty.   It is one of life’s truisms that the moment to change, is just when everything seems to be going swimmingly.  It is at the point of our greatest successes when we have to consider its demise and therefore the need to innovate and change. 

The Danger of resting on one’s laurels

Whilst Kodak fades to black, we can see a similar struggle occurring with Research in Motion's (RIMs) Blackberry.  Once the smartphone of choice for Executives around the world, it has become more and more obscured by the rise of Apple products and the demand for tablet-based technologies. 

Blackberry like Kodak is accused of failing to read the market conditions and consumer choices.  Being unclear where its core market base lies – ‘are we the smartphone for executives, or the consumer product for young people?’.  This fuzzy marketing focus has led to inconsistent R&D (such as the disastrous launch of the Storm and Playbook and the lack of a single OS platform for software development).

Fuzzy leadership  and poor engagement are also cited for Blackberry's demise.  As we fully embed ourselves in the digital age, companies that fail to provide a figurehead to tell their story, or those that don't engage their customers through the infinite options of social media are at risk of being ignored, overlooked and eventually shunned completely by their once loyal customers.

Engagement & responsive-ness, the new watchwords

How can you ensure that you are listening to and engaging your customers as you develop your products and services?

• The world’s most innovative companies all have a strong and clear strategy, communicated by a strong and clear leader
• Using social media – twitter, facebook, youtube etc., as well as the traditional media channels ensures the widest possible circulation
• Creating closed loop marketing opportunities e.g. Once an Apple product owner, one naturally migrates to the next Apple product.
• Anticipating rather than responding to trends – this one of course is the silver bullet, but the world’s most innovate see this as their raison d’étre.  What are you doing to anticipate?

About us

Agents2change works with some of the world's largest companies on change and implementation issues.  We'd love to hear your thoughts on this blog, innovation or change in general.  Share your comments here or email us on [email protected]