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Hans Bool - EzineArticles.com Expert Author
Changes often comes in stages. Before 2004 I worked as a business consultant, (project) manager and business architect for large companies. Since then I developed a new online consulting formula. And recently I have an additional focus in writing articles and books.
[View Hans Bool's Extended Author Bio]
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- Wait For Me in Heaven (Maruja Torres)
[Book-Reviews:Fiction] Sometimes you read a book because you think; "he this author I've heard of" and you find a book of her and decide to read it. In my case the title of the book "Wait for me in heaven" (original title in Spain: Esperadme en el cielo) reminded me of another book I'm also reading from Christopher Moore - A Dirty job. It's not the title but also about Death.
- Investment Management Equals Change Management?
[Business:Change-Management] Simple formulas are often wrong or do not grasp the whole issue. Of course, but sometimes a simple formula shows a very important relation.
- Some Basics About Greenhouse Business Architecture
[Business] Greenhouses are one of the perfect examples of business architecture where new business development is solved by the architecture of a new sort of organization; only by means of the greenhouses - which were used before for other purposes in a more private atmosphere - the products (fruit and vegetables) could be grown irrespectively of the natural climate. Basically the new business development is more of the same but by extending the production possibilities.
- How Valuable is (Corporate) Safety?
[Business:Workplace-Safety] These are not real corporate values, but can be understood as "protected values." There is often no question about safety and security although the level of provided (corporate) safety is open to discussion.
- Corporate Values - Profitability
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Not long ago the CEO of Citi announced by the famous e-mail that the group was profitable again. It was one of the factors in the turning-point in the falling financial market.
- While Europe Slept - Introduction
[Book-Reviews:Non-Fiction] I must have been one of them, because I didn't notice this book, which was published in 2006. The Spanish translation is from 2007, which is what I read (From Isabel Gonzalez- Gallarza).
- Cultural References in Fiesta
[Book-Reviews:Fiction] Fiesta, or the Sun also rises, is the first novel of Hemingway. Before reading it I read his last novel: the old man and the sea. Both have something in common...
- Legacy From Vincent Van Gogh (Letters to Theo)
[Book-Reviews:Non-Fiction] How many possibilities do we have to learn from the artist himself about his life? Amsterdam, 18th of August 1877. Later I had breakfast with a slice of dry bread and a glass of beer; that is a means that Dickens recommends to those who are near suicide.
- A Family Business - Or Familiar With the Business?
[Business:Management] A family business is often a strong business with a strong culture. Everybody seems to know what "the family" wants for the business and what this means for the organization.
- The Transformation of Oslo
[News-and-Society] Architecture is about building. In the design process previous to new buildings there are many criteria to evaluate such a new building. One of them is the connection of the new with the existing, another criteria is how the new building is able to make a transformation of the old and existing architecture.
- Another Corporate Reminder - Trust
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Trust, not only companies are based on them, but every other transaction in the world is. Would you trust the following: We build trust by acting ethically, transparently and consistently. Trust goes hand-in-hand with credibility.
- Corporate Values - People Matter
[Business:Workplace-Communication] This value is often combined with the clause: Quality. For example, we know that our people are the most valuable asset and make the difference.
- Will the E-Book Change the Novel?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:E-Books] One of the mayor factors in change of culture comes from changes and developments in technology. For instance, the mobile phone changed our live... The e-book changes the way we read. But will it change the novel too and how?
- Formula-One and the Bonus-Culture in Business
[Business:Management] Sport is a suitable metaphor for business. Formula-1 for instance offers the reasonable fit in comparing investment banking with sport. ING started to sponsor the Renault team some years before the top of the investment market.
- What Does the Language Distribution on Wikipedia Reveal About Culture?
[Reference-and-Education:Languages] What does the language distribution on Wikipedia tell about culture? That the highest entries are in English seems logical. But how about the difference in number between Spanish Wikipedia entries and the Dutch ones?
- Some Basics About Organizational Culture
[Business:Management] Corporate values belong officially to the domain of culture. Managing culture is an abstract topic and often people (managers) are skeptic about it. But this is due to the fact that advisors and consultants do not agree on the definition of culture or make it too difficult to understand... But it isn't all that complex.
- Organizational Culture - Business (First) And Organization (Next)
[Business:Management] As Culture is defined as what people do and how they do it, how does this work in the organization? How to manage culture?
- Tender is the Night - Cultural and Other References
[Book-Reviews:Literary-Classics] "Tender is the Night," from the same author F. Scott Fitzgerald, however is more contemporary and serving more of a niche market by offering a story of an American family in Southern France.
- Scoop by Evelyn Waugh
[Book-Reviews:Fiction] A scoop is a term that is part of the journalism slang: "a news story, particularly connotating a new or developing story with aspects of importance and excitement, normally an exclusive for the journalist involved (wikipedia). The Spanish word for Scoop is "primicia."
- Change in the Great Gatsby
[Business:Change-Management] As important literature is being filmed these days, one could wonder why The great Gatsby isn't part of this trend. Probably because the book was adapted to television in 2000, at an appropriate moment during the divide of the old and the new economy; matching very well the East Egg West Egg divide in the book.
- Corporate Reminder - A Positive Work Environment
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Recently a marketing campaign in St Petersburg in Russia promoted the "smile." Due to the crisis people felt more insecure and the campaign was focused on the attitude and atmosphere. An incentive to improve the climate. And a way for people to bond where they all share the same problems. A smile can make a difference.
- Corporate Values - Speed, Agility & Acceleration
[Business:Workplace-Communication] All fine but these are not corporate values. Values are personal or can be translated to individual employees. What do you communicate to an employee you are going to hire: "no matter what you do, but do it fast!" That is a secure way to fail.
- Knowledge is Valuable, Just That
[Business] What kind of company or organization would value know-how most? It is similar to "expertise," but expertise is associated to the expert, someone who knows very much about a certain - specific - topic.
- Corporate Values - Business Ethics Versus Staff Morale
[Business:Ethics] There is a difference between morale and ethics and the best way to show this, is to add: "staff" and "business". Business ethics is in general more specific and focused on good-practices in business; like that of a company's practices in market behavior, in sales practices (intimidating clients) or accounting practices, etc...
- Are Singles Recession-Proof?
[Relationships:Singles] Trend-watchers claim new trends every time, and the trend of the happy-single got noticed some time ago. But how fundamental are some of these trends?
- How Productive is the Gambler?
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Casino-Gambling] In these days where the financial corporations receive full blamed for causing the financial crisis, it may be an idea to look at the gambler. Did the gambler have a role in all this?
- What is the Spanish Banesto (Recovery) Model in Finance?
[News-and-Society:Economics] The CEO of the Spanish bank BBVA proposed to use a best-practice to save banks. This way work in 1993 for Banesto.
- Requiem For a Spanish Peasant
[Book-Reviews:Fiction] Ramon Sender was born in Huesca in the North of Spain in 1902. He was a journalist and writer. The novel was first published in Mexico under the title "Mosén Millan" in 1953 and got its current name -- Requiem for a Spanish Peasant -- since 1960.
- Corporate Values - Evidence Based
[Business:Workplace-Communication] This value is predominantly used in healthcare environments where a physician or medical specialist uses a practice that is based on evidence. This means that the specialist doesn't adapt new measures, techniques or methods until there is prove that it works.
- From Everyman to Elegy - The Translation of a Novel
[Book-Reviews:Literary-Classics] Everyman is a novel of Philip Roth. The title refers to a medieval play under the same name.
- Corporate Values - Open Communication
[Business:Workplace-Communication] This is a value that is focused on the organizational process and a reason to select this value into the corporate values statement is that the organizational process is more important that the result. This may apply for those companies where the result is not a clear cut product but rather a somehow intangible, not transparent service. Think of governmental organizations, universities, etc.
- Client Relationship Management With Shareholders
[Business:Management] CRM has been the buzzword for years after the now already common standard of ERP. Everyone knows what the best-practices of enterprise resource management are. But how about CRM and CRM for shareholders?
- Corporate Values - Stakeholders' Interest
[Business] A "normal" company operates in a business environment of suppliers of which it receives valuable resources and customers to whom it sells added value in form of products and services. Modern business however has become more and more complex and the concept of "community" entered the business scene; an organization is more than a static entity that offers products and services to consumers.
- Chesil Beach - Ian McEwan
[Book-Reviews:Literary-Classics] Sometimes you are overwhelmed by comments on a subject or in this case a book. In Spain this book has often received positive attention and critics and I was curious reading it. All this attention, however inflating the expectations, didn't lead to a disappointment after reading the novel. On the contrary.
- Managing Diversity
[Business:Workplace-Communication] When (Live) searching the internet for "diversity and corporate values" the first page shows six technology (related) companies: IBM, Abbacus Technology, Dell, Google, HP and AT&T. Another company on the first page is the BBC; they state in their mission: to be the most creative company in the world.
- The Power and the Glory (Graham Greene)
[Book-Reviews:Literary-Classics] This is an interesting novel about the role of faith and religion in life that is represented by two main heroes in the story. The priest and the lieutenant, or the hunted and the hunter, because the lieutenant is hunting the priest as the catholic faith and practice is forbidden at the time in Mexico. A fact the novel has been based on.
- Healthcare ASP Part 2 - The IBA Healthgroup
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] One of the fears of hospital management is that they partner a Application Service Provider and that this partner becomes insolvent. The IBA Healthgroup recently bought a ASP which made them a strong global player. The other side of this fear is that a good software package will always be bought by someone, as in the (same) case of iSoft.
- Healthcare ASP Part 3 - An ASP Example - Isoft
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] The strategy of Isoft is to offer Application Services (ASP) for Health Care organizations. Lorenzo is their product name, an application dedicated to the health care sector and which uses a service oriented architecture. This means that each hospital or health care provider can tailor and tap the services just according to their needs.
- Comparison of an Investment Fund Management Approach
[Investing:Mutual-Funds] In the Netherlands there are two popular investment funds. There is also a site where the characteristics of funds can be compared. I've tried it for those two funds and came up with a peculiar fact, when looking at the last (5 years') performance of both funds:
- Health Care & ASP Part 1 - Introduction
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] Hospitals are one of the organizations that have the highest information density. This means that the business that is organized in a hospital is very independent on information.
- Character Building - The Ramadan Experience
[Self-Improvement] Some example get labeled: don't try this at home. In this case of "Ramadan" I have to say: I didn't try this myself. But I'm wondering how the culture of Ramadan would influence one's character.
- Life is Elsewhere (Kundera)
[Book-Reviews:Literary-Classics] The Czech President Vaclav Klaus who is currently presiding the European Union, said the EU Is Becoming a Soviet Union Look-Alike... I found it a good moment to dig into the Czech's past and have a look at their literature. For instance - Life is Elsewhere, from Milan Kundera.
- Signs of Our Time - Public Infrastructure Gets Some Attention
[Business:Management] Not only President Obama announced vast investments in public infrastructure and healthcare, school, etc also in China the government prepared a recovery plan investing in infrastructure. Is infrastructure the only thing they can do, or is there more to it? There is in fact. It is not a coincidence.
- How Business Intelligent Are the Search Engines?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] Search Engines -- we all know -- are relatively new companies which have no comparable benchmark in business or in organizing. The SE business is unique.
- Organizing is Like Trading
[Business:Productivity] In the organizational caverns of a company we encounter professionals that normally operate in a pure business environment. One of such a professional is the trader.
- Basque Elections - The Morning After
[News-and-Society:Politics] The Basque Country in Northern Spain is a place where social life changes. Slowly. What happens in this Basque Country influences Spain and visa versa.
- Differences in the European Stock and Bond Market
[Investing:Stocks] There are some interesting developments in the European marketplace as individual member states have their own problems to solve. Individual member states get rated for their governmental bond market, according to the government budget deficit and outstanding debt. For instance the Netherlands has a higher debt rating than Spain as the market reckons that Spain may default sooner than The Netherlands.
- Where Are You Going Navigator?
[Business:Strategic-Planning] These days it is hard to figure out how companies are really doing. Last year's profits (if any) and current 2009 outlook (negative) gives something to go by. But it isn't much. So an interview with the CEO may help. And indeed, as we are looking for confidence, some extra information can make the difference.
- Company Profiles - Cardinal Health
[Business] Cardinal Health is now an "$87 billion" global healthcare products and services company dedicated to making healthcare "safer and more productive." But it all started in 1971 - with Cardinal Foods -- when founder Robert Walter opened a small distribution center in Ohio. Eight years later the distribution branched into pharmaceuticals when the company purchased a drug distributor and became known as Cardinal Distribution (2).
- Employee Job Satisfaction - A Luxury Problem?
[Business:Management] Not long ago I heard about a company who got rid of their Employee Job Satisfaction (EJS) surveys. Boldly stated they found that job satisfaction was a semi-objective figure that didn't quite fit anymore: employees seemed bored to fill in the list, it was not clear what to do with the exceptions (the 20 percent of employees who were less satisfied whereas most other 80% were) and there was no relation to the success of the business.
- Corporate Wide Passion
[Business] Recently I read about a consultant who was invited by a client hoping to find their passion. At first I found that astonishing, but then I thought, Yes, that's not that odd. We often don't realize where our passion lies after we talk about it with someone.
- Productivity Measurement in a Banking Environment
[Business:Productivity] Applying productivity measurement to a banking environment is possible on different levels. On an employee level one should know first what this employee role is in relation to the overall business process and (thus) how this process is organized. The question can be summarized by: what should I do?
- Empowerment As a Corporate Value
[Self-Improvement:Empowerment] Empowerment is a concept that was invented by consultants. The idea was that once they would leave, the professionals in the organization would be able to apply what they had learned; they were empowered to do the job. In previous situations consultants left and took the knowledge with them.
- New in Spain - Doctor Mateo
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Movies-TV] For those who are somehow tired of Dr. House and who happen to live in Spain there is a new soap: Dr. Mateo. It is one of the innovations on television of a unique formula.
- Exotic Places in the World - Lazkao
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] People often travel to places because there is something to see. There is always something to observe, but what is that exactly? A museum, the architecture of a building, nature, a cultural event, a historical monument... Or a place where a celebrity has lived. It is also possible that people visit a landscape where a film was recorded.
- Company Profiles - CEC - Leaders in Education
[Business] Career Education Corporation (CEC) was founded in 1994 and according to their own statement, has become one of the world's leading providers of quality post-secondary educational services. Gary E. McCullough is currently the President and Chief Executive Officer of CEC.
- How to Design a Shared Service Center (2)
[Business:Customer-Service] Professsionalization leads to a higher overhead costs. In this case the professionalization is achieved as the distributed activities are grouped together and centrally planned, whereas they were performed at the local business level previously.
- How to Design a Shared Service Center (1)
[Business:Customer-Service] Whether a shared service center is suitable and under what circumstances is subject to the situation in which it is to be designed. One motive to setup a SSC is the professionalization of an organization.
- Organizational Change by Trusting Customers
[Business:Change-Management] Does change come as a necessity or because people want it so badly? Normally it is the former; problems add up and there is no normal way out improving things. To escape "this one," we need a change.
- Culture and Different Sorts of Teams
[Business:Workplace-Communication] There are different sorts of teams that require a different kind of management approach. First of all there is a difference between operational teams and project teams. A project - think of Ocean's 11 - is a team of professionals that are selected because of their expertise.
- What Will the Crisis Do to the Euro?
[News-and-Society:Economics] A crisis will make people stronger. Of course it is also possible that a crisis will lead to (personal or business) bankruptcy. But will the Euro collapse as some predict?
- Some Characteristics of an Engineering Culture
[Business:Industrial-Mechanical] Every profession has its jokes. For instance about economists. An example of an engineering joke is this one: what's the difference between a mechanical engineer and civil engineer? One builds bombs the other builds targets.
- Levels in Measuring Productivity
[Business:Productivity] There are three main levels in which productivity of an organization can be measured. The most common level is that of the company itself. It is basically the output achieved related to an "amount" of human resources.
- Productivity - Whistleblower Versus Fraud Detective
[Business:Productivity] One of the few presents that Harry Markopoulos received was a silver whistle. What if he was perceived as a detective, what present would he have received, an authentic Sherlock Holmes magnifying-glass?
- How Do You Write?
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] Strange question? Wrong title? Well, there are three or more ways to write and each of them influences the process of writing.
- The Actor at Work
[Business:Management] Maybe you have heart this one, when a manager is not performing well that he blames this on the situation; "I'm officially in charge but nothing else is arranged," he refers to a separate room, a budget to hire employees, are in the situation of a project manager, who is responsible but without any authority.
- Company Profiles - Rhoen Klinikum
[Reference-and-Education] According to their own -- Rhoen Klinikum (RK) -- investors' information, the healthcare market is in crisis- and weatherproof: Medically necessary treatments are not exposed to the economic cycle but to a decisive extent depend on the demographic structure of the population. But it is also common knowledge that sick leave is proportional to economic prosperity; employees are afraid to loose their job during a crisis. Wouldn't this also count to a certain extent for the hospital market?
- Company Profiles - Citi Solutions
[Business] There is hardly any information on this company, internet is nearly blank on the firm, with a single exception: "Has anybody got any experience of a financial services firm called Citi-solutions. They are part of the ubiquitous Citigroup somehow?"
- What is Going On - Microsoft Versus TomTom
[Computers-and-Technology] As there is only very little news available on this topic, how is one to interpret this information. This is my first impression.
- Arise Sir Tom Jones
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] A biography is often a story of change. In this biography the changes of the protagonist and the lives around him go hand in hand.
- Company Profiles - Fresenius Medical Care
[Business] Fresenius Medical care is a producer of dialysis equipment and offering services in this field of (chronic) kidney failure. The best known of these kidney supportive functions is hemodialysis which became routine in the 1960s.
- Homo Faber (Max Frisch)
[Book-Reviews:Literary-Classics] The first scene of a novel often marks the setting, the opening is to show what it important and where to concentrate on. The main symbol this novel opens with is that of the airport. One association could be ...
- The Journalist at Work
[Business:Careers-Employment] In the office we often come across the career in a new context, like the arbiter, the police officer, the judge... and even the journalist although you might think it's hard to imagine.
- Abel Sanchez (Unamuno)
[Book-Reviews:Literary-Classics] Abel Sanchez - a story of passion -- has a similar style as Mist, but the relatively story encompasses a whole lifetime and is written without too many details a plain and ordinary story. At first sight.
- What Exactly Do You Mean by We Value Teamwork?
[Business:Team-Building] "We value teamwork," who doesn't one might ask? In order to add teamwork to the list of corporate values, one must know what exactly is meant with it. Often with values there is a certain focus.
- Changes in the Stock Exchange Market - Dark and Visible Trading
[Investing:Stocks] While stock market activity (trading) is slowing down which is felt by companies like the Deutsche Boerse and the NYSE Euronext, new trading platforms silently enter the market scene. Chi-X is a relatively new company that offers stock trading and exchange according to their own information at a lower price, and higher execution times.
- Company Profile - MAN
[Business] MAN is a company with a history of more than 250 years. It started with the construction of an iron mill in 1758 and grow into the engine business after 1897 when Rudolf Diesel built the world's first functioning Diesel engine...
- Company Profiles - Grifols
[Business] Grifols is a producer of biotechnological products and services for the healthcare sector. The website starts with a strong statement: "What matters most: People." More difficult it is to evaluate the site and the annual report on this statement.
- Portrait of a Librarian
[Business:Careers-Employment] The function of a library is to offer information. The Collection of books and other informational material fulfill a memory function in live. We print and publish and collect to keep in touch with the past.
- Nature Calls
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] The news reads something like; "Darwin 200 years alive." And the controversy is about who created men: God or some random process of natural selection that created apes first and evolved into men as we know ourselves?
- Productivity Profile of a Spy
[Business:Productivity] Intelligence is valued in many situations and also in the business environment. Business Intelligence can lead to competitive advantage. But in the game of competition there is always deceit; in sport it is done through the use of drugs and business it is about spying: what if your intelligence is not enough? Try to get some from the competition.
- Do You Believe - For Example, In Prophecies?
[Self-Improvement:Spirituality] In an interview (Humo), Patrick Geryl responds to the question what he will do when the 2012 prophecy will not happen, "will you commit suicide?" "Those who do not act now are suicidal!" Patrick Geryl is one of the followers of the 2012 prophecy predicting that the earth will be destroyed by a catastrophe and only a few will survive.
- Company Profiles - Veolia
[Business] Veolia is a company founded at the dawn of the industrial era and the start of urban development and focused on water, waste, energy management and transport. As urban development changes continuously, the question for the future is how 8 billion of people on the planet and "half of them in urban environments" will impact: water, waste energy and transport. Looking forward requires first of all looking back.
- Characteristics of a Good Reader
[Self-Improvement] It appears that Osama Bin Laden writes poems. I learned this from a book title from Charlotte Mutsaers which refers to one of his poems. The world is full of surprises.
- The Author (Pamuk) And His Work (The White Castle)
[Book-Reviews:Literary-Classics] The question: "is literature art?," is one that seems as open and unresolved as the definition of literature itself. But if literature isn't art, what is it then? The result of a craft similar like the work of a carpenter? Or that of the architect?
- Flying to the South
[Book-Reviews:Multicultural] Flying to the South is a provisionary title I gave to the novel of Ian Gibson, an Irish Hispanist. The official and literal title would be "the wind of the south or Southern Wind (Viento del Sur).
- The New Architecture of Microsoft
[Business] Microsoft is going to introduce shops, similar to those of Apple. Nobody really knows or understands how this new store-concept is going to be implemented and how it will evolve in the near future, but the first step is taken and speculations follow. This is one of them:
- Who Was Velazquez?
[News-and-Society] What it this, another trial pursuit, the latest hype or candid camera? When reading about Francis Bacon -- and about the influence of his life on his paintings -- whose work is currently exhibited in the Prado museum in Madrid, I dwelled upon another painter: Velazquez. In the same article, Felix de Azua unveils (el Pais 16th of February) the fact that Velazquez as we know from Las Meninas, is not the Velazquez we think he was.
- Organizational Awareness
[Business:Management] The "new" manager that has not yet chalked his management slate and starts freshly with its new assignment becomes aware of (the) organization. This change starts with a change in his role where he is now cataloged as a manager after having build-up experience in a specific field of expertise. In the first month the new manager realizes that his (business) expertise is no longer the driving force and he has to build confidence in a new area.
- Business Awareness
[Business:Management] Management is not difficult on itself but it becomes hard as often organizational issues take the lead. If you think about it why management was or is needed you will come to the role of the professional who normally knows what to do. So why do you need management?
- Management - Organizational Awareness Versus Business Awareness
[Business:Management] The manager has to balance his abilities between the business and the organization. This is exactly what makes one a manager; he must bridge the gap between business and organization... Think about the tennis player. His "business" is to win a match, a tennis game. But this is not the only thing.
- The Author (Schlink) And His Work (The Reader)
[Book-Reviews:Fiction] In an interview I read about Jack Nicholson commenting that he once visited a museum and watched a Van Gogh painting. As he was observing the work, he noticed that people were looking at him... That is indeed a paradox of our times; a valuable painting is not as valuable as meeting a famous film star live... Of course, the painting will stay there on the wall.
- Corporate Values - Conviviality
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Corporate values have a purpose and therefore each value has a certain focus to serve that purpose. Some values are focused on... Conviviality ... It has not a specific goal as many other values have, but it indirectly serves the organization.
- The Day Before Signing the Contract
[Business:Career-Advice] The new-born manager looks back on his past (experience) before he addresses this new step in his career. His professional career was in this type of business he knows very well, but now he has been asked to become a manager of the team. It's a different kind of responsibility.
- Fiat's Brand History
[Automotive] The history of a company's logo not only reflects the changes of the company, but most of all that of time. Particular in Fiat's history is the change of color.
- A Symbolic Move in Argentina
[News-and-Society:Politics] Why did you take so long, is a question often asked? Why or what was the reason that change took so long? Argentina as an example, but the parallel in business is near.
- Guidelines and Hidelines
[Business:Management] Guidelines are sort of indications of where to go. They offer a direction; left or right, straight (continuing current strategy) or they serve to indicate a deviation, etc.
- Part-Time Contracts in Spain
[News-and-Society:Economics] Part-time contracts are still not very common in Spain and as an exercise on change I think that this is directly related to another topic of inequality between men and women in the workplace. The work of men and women is not equally valued which is often the case, but more persistent in Spain. And this is of influence on the structure of the labor contract.
- About Spain - New Man New - Business?
[Book-Reviews:Non-Fiction] Some changes are merely look-a-likes. Is that the case with post-machismo in Spain? It could be one of the conclusions of "The New Man New"
- Productivity Profile of a Guide
[Business:Productivity] A guide shows you the way. This can be for existing or un-chartered territory.
- How to Decently Unsubscribe Subscribers
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Email-Marketing] Even in a rapid developing world of the Internet one might imagine that there are enough best-practices to copy because they have proved reasonable, efficient or otherwise suitable. The copy-paste-culture should help to spread solid habits.
- The Cash-Flow-is-King Metaphor in Management County
[Business:Management] That Cash-is-King seems to be widely accepted in the investment world. But this has not always been like that. And to go a step further, one should say that what really is important is cash-flow: how does wealth matter if you cannot generate income out of it?
- Focus on the Smokers' Culture May Help the Individual Smoker to Quit Smoking
[Health-and-Fitness:Quit-Smoking] The stop-smoking discussion is most of the time focused on the individual smoker and is attended by measures that the smokers should follow. These sometimes include alternatives like the plasters that help during the process or something like chewing gum that gives the then idle mouth something useful to do...
- The Chief Architecture Officer
[Business:Careers-Employment] The first page results for Chief Officer on Google include: Chief Executive Officer Chief Information Officer Chief Petty Officer Chief financial Officer Chief Happiness Officer () The next page continues with chief procurement officer, chief security officer, chief operational officer and chief risk officer or chief talent officer are also in use probably to be found a few pages further.
- The Foolish Writer
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing] According to Susan Sontag, a writer should accommodate at least four of the following (human) beings (1): The obsessive fool The idiot The stylist and The critic The story didn't elaborate on these four and the Internet is blank on the subject too. So I used my imagination. Writing as an obsession?
- Google's Chrome - A First Impression
[Shopping-and-Product-Reviews] My first impression of Google's Chrome? I'm glad that you ask.
- The Benefits of a Quarterly Dividend Policy
[Investing] The saying Cash-is-King has been used quite some while. But many companies have not yet fully adapted their course to benefit from this wisdom.
- Apologize - Yes Or No? (The Golliwog Doll Affair)
[News-and-Society] We live in sensitive times it seems. And "mistakes" are easily made. The question then is do you apologize or not. Is an apology a sign of strength, or weakness or neither of them?
- Well Done, Angela
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] The current Pope, the German Joseph Ratzinger, is one of the world leaders; leading the Catholic Church. Another leader, and also German, Canceller Angela Merkel openly criticized a re-appointment made by the Pope of a bishop because the bishop in question is a holocaust denier.
- Life Often Starts When the End is Near
[Self-Improvement] Writing or talking about death is still a taboo. And that is strange as it is the most natural thing that happens to all of us although in many cases death-causes are not purely natural. That is perhaps another taboo.
- Father Dies, Legacy Remains - Hans Beck
[Business] Little information is found on this man. What do we know of the man behind playmobil?
- The First Real Change in the Biography of the Manager
[Business:Management] On his career path, the manager has dealt with some change. But one change has been especially important as this change is nearly irreversible; the step from professional, expert or specialist towards manager. This change is most of all about a change of focus on the type of work and on responsibilities.
- Profiling Software - A First Step in Managing Risks
[Computers-and-Technology:Software] Managing risk is like searching for credibility... or for a lack of it. If you look at a bridge with a solid fundament you can assess the risk visibly and think "when the materials are real and sound this bridge must be suitable." When you observe a new bridge prototype with a modern avant garde-like style, a first assessment on risk should be skeptic like: "how is this going to be strong enough?" Only checks and rechecks will help to ease peoples feeling that "this new and modern structure" will be save and secure enough.
- I'm a Product of My Generation
[Self-Improvement] As the end of the year approaches, it is time to evaluate... "how have I done," what's next. Take some distance from daily nuisances and linger on the past perhaps.
- A Manager is Not Exactly a Soccer Coach
[Business:Management] Although it is always tempting to use the sports coach as an example for the role of a manager, but one should realize immediately that the manager is not a coach. The main differences reside in three topics: career, team and culture. The career of a sport-professional is hardly to compare with that of a business professional.
- Yet, I'm Servicing a New Generation
[Business:Change-Management] What do you mean ... "yet?" "I am a product of my generation," was to let you think about where you were born, in what kind of an environment and under what kind of condition. What if I was born in the nineteenth century somewhere in 1860? If you turn this up-side-down you get another statement: although I am a product of my time; I am servicing a new generation.
- The Biography of a Manager - The Coach As an Example (1)
[Business:Management] Quite sure that most managers know the basics of management. But then, what? What do I do as a manager?
- Profile of a Chief Risk Officer
[Business:Management] The Chief Risk Officer (CRO) is part of the CEO's management team. At the end of the year, the CEO checks how he has done. How does he do that? What are the performance metrics of the CRO? And what role does the CRO play in the team?
- The Biography of a Manager - The Coach As an Example (2)
[Business:Management] What do I do as a manager... What about the individuals (and their careers) in the team... What about culture and style? These were some of the first topics in the biography of a manager. The next topic is something every manager has been dealing with throughout the whole of his career.
- Managing Change in Consulting is Managing Ownership
[Business:Consulting] One of the issues where consultants are dealing with is with ownership. Ownership may become the obstacle that makes that the ideas, concepts and methods of the consultant are not fully accepted. In change terminology: resistance.
- Understanding Culture - The Military Language
[News-and-Society:Military] Understanding culture is understanding language. In this example the focus is on the military language.
- The Competitive Advantage of the Architect
[Business:Consulting] When writing about competitive advantage, one immediately thinks about Michael Porter. When extending his field of analysis one could wonder whether some professionals have competitive advantage over others. For example: does an architect have a competitive advantage over a business consultant or an advisor?
- Change in the Automotive Industry - Chrysler and Fiat
[Automotive] The case is that of the Chrysler and Fiat alliance. It is an operation that doesn't involve cash. This seems logical in these "cash-is-king" times. Chrysler will cease 35% of its capital to the Fiat group.
- Change and the Next Step - Obama 2.0?
[News-and-Society:Politics] For those who are searching for change and cases where change happens need only to look at Obama; it is one of the biggest change agents of our time. And what more can you write about it. Well probably the fact that this thought change is not going to be what many think.
- Credit Rating Companies - Some Basics
[Finance:Credit] When you search the internet for the largest credit rating agencies you are offered a top 3 led by Moody, Standard and Poor's (S&P) and Fitch Ratings. S&P is part of a larger company: McGraw-Hill Publisher. And this relation can help to explain some basics about credit rating companies.
- Maintenance Versus Projects (1)
[Business:Management] Much of our live is ruled by this dilemma. The choice between maintenance and (new) projects.
- About the Culture of Risk
[Business:Management] When analyzing risk with Google Trends it appears that the search for "Risk" declines lightly but the search volume increases at the same time. A first deduction is that the factor risk in our lives is quite stable, and even declining over the last years. It maybe something people get used to. One must take into account that risk is a very broad area.
- Back to the Future - Citigroup
[News-and-Society:Economics] Understanding the future of the financial industry is understanding what is going on now. And where we are coming from.
- Functional Use of (Psychological) Profiling
[Reference-and-Education:Psychology] Movies can be inspiring for hackers. In National Treasure Nicholas Cage remembers some details about a person which helps him to find the right password to hack a security system. A simple detail is only that, but when more facts of someone are gathered a psychologist is able to determine a psychological profile. And that on itself can help to find out passwords.
- Portrait of Journalism
[Business:Career-Advice] An interview with Ben Bradlee offers the context for some characteristics of journalism. The interview offers an accurate sketch of what journalism is all about. But one event is the most striking and from it we can learn that some competences are required in any field.
- Maintenance Versus Projects - Part 2
[Business:Productivity] Maintenance versus new projects is fundamental in understanding organizations. It is a dilemma that all companies have to deal with. But when digging into the matter, the organization is handled and formed by people; individual specialists and managers.
- Bologna & Reforming the European University
[News-and-Society] According to the European Union Website, Europe has around 4,000 higher education institutions, with over 17 million students and 1.5 million staff. "Some European universities are amongst the best in the world, but overall potential is not used to the full."
- The New Architecture of Bologna - The End of the Greek Theatre?
[News-and-Society] Another change is about the reform of the European university. And another paradox of our time is that precisely in Greece there is opposition against the academic reforms projected by the European "Bologna" directive.
- Language and Culture in Spain - What a Joke
[News-and-Society:International] Spain is often a world apart. Once you understand Spain, you understand the world... A little incident is striking for what is happening here sometimes. This is obviously all about Culture.
- Social Responsibility & The Corporate Values Statement
[Business:Ethics] Corporate Values reflect a company's culture. The values make that the culture is to be communicated which is a difficult task. To understand a suitable value statement for a company, one should understand what culture is and whether the statement really represents the culture of the company.
- Managing Culture is Managing Language
[Business:Management] Understanding culture is understanding language. Now this is a very difficult task as language is so broad and diverse. Yet in companies the language is ...
- Credible Career Steps - An Investment Approach
[Business:Career-Advice] A career is a sequential of jobs that - when you place them one after the other - show a path that leads to some direction. The investment parallel (for some an inappropriate metaphor these days) may help to face and plan your career path.
- It's Strategy Time Again
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Now in the situation with a decline in economic expectations many companies revise their organizational structure. The main dilemma to either centralize or decentralize pops-up in favor of the first when business forecasts are weak which is what is happening at the moment.
- Brand Equity As a Corporate Value
[Business:Branding] Both brand and equity are two complex terms and concepts, so you might wonder whether they cause a problem in the corporate value statement. But there are valuable reasons to include this value in the corporate values statement.
- Productivity Profiles - The Air Traffic Controller
[Business:Productivity] From the film "pushing Tin," with John Cusack we get an idea of some of the competences of an Air Traffic Controller: managing stress in a "focus and control" environment. A comment on amazon.com about the film states that the central theme of the film is that everybody makes mistakes how well they do in life.
- Incompatibility in Organizing Multiple Businesses Efficiently at the Same Time
[Business:Management] The airline industry is like no other focused on controlling costs and therefore on efficiency. Managing the availability of employees is one of the measures to gain efficiency. Business intelligence can support this process where daily and near future traffic is predicted and human resources are subsequently reserved and allocated.
- Business & Literature
[Business] Is there anything new under the sun? When I searched for the saying I found that the original came from the Bible: it appears to be a phrase adapted from the Book of Ecclesiastes.
- Sprinters, Speeders Or Turbos - What's In a Product Name?
[Investing] ABN AMRO started this new investment game with the Turbo. It is a product that offers private investors a tool that was limited to hedge funds.
- What Errors in Newspapers Reveal
[News-and-Society] Errors, faults and mistakes are of all times. In a volatile medium like that of the Internet errors become quite visible and we are used to them and tend to give them little attention. In a more professional medium like a newspaper, errors are more seldom and therefore they meet more resistance from readers.
- The New Mayor of Rotterdam (2)
[News-and-Society] The new mayor or Rotterdam who has been recruited last October was sworn in this week. "I'm a mayor for everybody, irrespective of their ethnic background, or political party," was one of his first statements.
- What Went Wrong With Wedgwood?
[News-and-Society] Was it management, the organization or just the business? "For centuries Waterford Crystal has captured light over and over again. In the hands of artists consumed by their craft, light has embraced, danced and cascaded through beautifully cut crystal," explains the annual report of (April) 2008.
- Leadership As a Corporate Value
[Self-Improvement:Leadership] Some values are more focused on the internal organization, on organizing on what is important from the company's identity... other values are more concerned about what happens outside, on the business and world that is changing. Leadership is an example of the latter.
- Business Architecture - The P2P Network Organization
[Business] Buildings around us are directly visible and we can examine their unique structure, its style the function they offer (hospital, library, palace, houses, etc). In business this is even so interesting but not directly visible.
- Scary Movie About the US Economy
[News-and-Society:Economics] I was tipped by an investment site and I would pass it to those who haven't seen it. The movie is sort of frightening, it starts with little tension, then more as small pieces of information are revealed and the picture becomes clear.
- Retention - Manager, Management Or Both?
[Business:Management] Retention is a topic that pops up at these hard economic times. Under normal circumstances of growth there is not too much focus where the revenue is made; new prospects or existing clients, new product developments, new additional services, as long as the targets are achieved.
- Supporting Kids - The Mom Or Dad Way
[Home-and-Family:Parenting] Beware that this may be too much of a stereotype, but there are two main different approaches in supporting (your) kids; I would call them the Dad Way and the Mom Way. Both apply most of all to sports, but perhaps they have a broader role, perhaps this applies too in the office, in the activity of supporting employees.
- Evidence Based Practices
[Business:Consulting] One way to describe this value of evidence based is like this: "we are dispassionate and objective. We evaluate and learn from what we do. All we do, all we advocate and all we support is based on sound evidence."
- Company Profiles - HSBC
[Business] HSBC is an icon in the financial world. It is currently the largest bank in the world. The only real global bank with presence in 83 countries.
- Signaling Change - Hero Calls For Help
[Business:Change-Management] A new crisis, although this one many of us could have seen it coming: it's about the automotive sector. Some changes take a long preparation, but finally they cannot be stopped. The failed merger of Chrysler with Daimler that lasted nearly ten years was a signal for this change we are now experiencing.
- The Roles of a Manager - A Family Metaphor (2)
[Business:Management] The people part is where the manager communicates with the team members. The Family Metaphor is about the way this communication could be characterized; the manager communicating as a parent, as a child, as a partner or as a sibling towards the team member.
- Business Architecture - Siemens Vs Philips
[Business] If Philips was not Dutch but founded in Germany would it than have been called Siemens? Philips has changed radically over the last decades. From a dedicated supplier of consumer electronics, the company is now focused on healthcare.
- Do You Value Professionalism?
[Business] "We seek to apply the best possible skills, knowledge and experience to all our services to clients," is one way of describing professionalism. The basics are indeed about: skills, knowledge and experience.
- The Competitive Advantage of Argentinean Call Center Agents in Spain
[Business:Sales-Teleselling] What is the cultural background of your call center employee... And why is this important? It is not always important, but imagine that you live in Spain. Then agents with an Argentinean background have a competitive advantage.
- Biography of a CEO - Ben Verwaayen
[Business] The Context of the biography is located in the French company Alcatel that has recently merged with the American Lucent. The merger started in December 2006 with many difficulties: losses, a shrinking market share, aggressive competition from China, and a stock plumbing more than 60% of its value (which is - taking into account the financial disasters - not that unique).
- Business Architecture of Fraud
[Business] Business architecture is about the architecture of the various businesses within one company. Banks for example have designed so-called Chinese walls. These are not walls as you would see in real architecture, but they are virtual walls that separate one business (unit) from the other, in cases where both may not influence each other.
- Do You Value Learning?
[Self-Improvement] Learning is a corporate value that makes sense. That doesn't mean it can be used for each and every company. One examples of learning in a values statement is: "We are committed to developing the skills and capabilities of all our staff. We value knowledge, ideas and skills. We learn from experience."
- What is Client Friendly?
[Business:Sales] You might wonder "who is my client," which is a marketing topic. But besides the description of your client, client-friendliness can be defined.
- Entrepreneurship As a Corporate Value
[Business:Entrepreneurialism] An advantage of this value is that it is an easy value to communicate and to remember. Entrepreneurship is something that most people have a positive idea about.
- Courageous - More Than a Simple Value
[Self-Improvement:Inspirational] Courageous is not a very common value. It can be best compared with a value like "passion" which is also focused on emotions. If organizations want to use this value the first thing they should ask is: why?
- Biography of a CEO - Peter Loescher
[Business:Management] Peter Loescher became president en CEO of Siemens in 2007. His background in healthcare must have been one of the elements that Siemens was looking for. Healthcare is one of the three main sectors of Siemens' focus (next to energy and industry).
- Corporate Values - Lean (but Not Mean)
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Lean is a value that is not often used, and there is a reason for it: it is very particular. It is one of those values where you should wonder: what would clients think of this? Why do you value leanness? What does it mean for us? Is the product mean, focused on the economical market.
- Productivity Profiles - Medical Specialist Vs Physician (Vs Hospital)
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] Sketching the productivity profile of the last mentioned (the hospital), one could say that the hospital offers the facilities and the support (equipment and infrastructure) so that individual specialists, the more generalistic physicians and nurses (m/f) can perform their activities ... all in order to serve clients or patients. The hospital management forms the part to organize the whole by defining policies outlining strategies, etc.
- Have Fun!
[Business:Workplace-Communication] "We stimulate in an environment for people to have fun," that is one way of phrasing fun as a corporate value. Fun is a very focused corporate value that can be used for certain companies, but obviously not for all and this is not only true for Fun but also for values like "Passion." When to use Fun as a value?
- Company Profiles - The Latest Impressions on Santander and BBVA - Part 4
[Business] The law, "When things can go wrong they will," currently applies to Santander. Only a few months ago this bank was valued as one of the more secure in the world. Now this image is somehow under pressure as new events occur.
- Creativity As a Corporate Value
[Self-Improvement:Creativity] How important is creativity as a corporate value, when should it be used and how can you use this information in your career? Creativity: "we encourage initiatives where solutions, approaches can be different than the current ones."
- How Text-to-Speech Technology Can Improve the Quality of Articles
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] Speech-to-text software conversion technology is already used in many areas, and so is the opposite: Text-to-Speech. The first can be used to speed-up article production by recording text and to have it automatically converted to text which can than be uploaded to an article-publishing site.
- The Role of Fraud in Culture
[Business] Bernard Madoff was not an innovator. He is one of the many, but in this case it took so long to discover: fraud. The original trademark for this kind of fraud carries an Italian name: Charles Ponzi started it and he exported the formula to the US.
- Do You Value Performance?
[Business:Careers-Employment] Performance is a value that is concentrated on flow, on action and results. It is used to make sure that "the troops" are moving. There is often a need for dynamics.
- Independence As a Corporate Value
[Business:Careers-Employment] Independence is a value that gives direction in the world of networking. But rather than autonomy, independence is focused on an own identity and role that is not isolated from the rest.
- Corporate Values - Become the Best
[Business:Workplace-Communication] This is a value that is not often seen in the market: "We go for the extra mile to ensure that we deliver excellent service in all that we do." Global Perspective. Learning from the best in the world, we aim to become the best in the world. (toyota-industries...
- Common Sense, Where Are You?
[Business:Management] The company Philips has invented the lemma "sense and simplicity," which supports their vision on appliances: they must be smart and easy to use. The lemma is quite accurate in a world that becomes more and more complex and hard to understand.
- Do You Value Integrity?
[Business:Careers-Employment] This is the cliche of the corporate values, but sometimes it is just what organizations need. Integrity is also the value that is most used. And that is logical because the value is quite universal. Nearly every company could use it.
- Company Profiles - EDF
[News-and-Society:International] To date, the French state is by far the largest shareholder of: "Electricite du France". Only a small percentage (about 13%) is free for public trade. The so-called: free-float.
- Corporate Values - Innovation
[Self-Improvement:Innovation] Innovation as a corporate value; I would not use it..."Innovation is a driving force in our company. It enables us to create new products and technologies as well as processes." The above statement is more of a wish what the company would like the achieve than a statement about value what it likes to be.
- Corporate Values - Expertise
[Business] Expertise can be described as: "We build our strength on functional knowledge and being recognized as the authority in what we do." A similar value is "Knowledge":
- Company Profiles - Ithmaar Bank
[Business] Ithmaar bank is interesting from a business architectural viewpoint because it represents Islamic finance. Ithmaar Bank was incorporated in the Kingdom of Bahrain in 1984 initially under the name of Faysal Investment Bank of Bahrain E.C. (FIBEC).
- Corporate Values - Customer Satisfaction and Customer Focused
[Business:Customer-Service] Corporate values, they are still used. Why should a company not use them? The only reason not to use them would be if they are meaningless and (therefore) not "alive." Values should when used be part of the day-to-day business, they should be used throughout the organization, if not they are useless.
- Business Architecture - Will Audit-Only Make It?
[Business] Arthur Levitt, former chairman of the SEC led a commission to examine the state of auditing and the accountants firms. One of the main topics in this investigation is the feasibility of the Audit-Only accountant firm.
- Managing Culture - People-CMM
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Culture can be described as that what (a group of) people do. They organize activities because of certain business requirements. They have found solutions for certain problems that arise in this business environment.
- Corporate Values - Collaboration
[Business:Workplace-Communication] "We build relationships within our organization, between the departments and domains, between agencies and between individuals (to meet client needs)." Another example: "We act with integrity, loyalty, trust, and mutual respect. We work as a team beyond organizational and geographic boundaries to achieve superior results.
- Judge (Of Character)
[Business:Productivity] A judge listens to the pleas, watches the process in the law court and sometimes depending on the law-system, takes a decision. But how does this apply to judgment in the office? Judgment is used at work too.
- Manager - What Side Are You On?
[Business:Management] It is easy to come up with thirty types of managers, to name a few only think of: the sales manager, marketing manager, operations manager, logistics, HRM, Finance, a CFO, a business development manager, a product manager, quality manager, etc, etc... But where are the real differences in these examples. What is key for understanding the managers' main focus? There are many ways to define the management main focus but one of them is straightforward but nevertheless not applied often.
- Team Selection - A Systematic Approach
[Business:Team-Building] Some use astrology in selecting teams. Raymond Domenech, the French coach admitted he used astrology as a means for team selection. If I recall, "scorpions" were left out because they would destabilize the team.
- A Personal Mission and Vision
[Business:Careers-Employment] Companies have a mission (statement) and this mission is derived from a vision about the near future and the role of the company in it. Does this apply to your career to?
- Decisive Moments in Your Career - The Kennedy Example
[Business:Careers-Employment] One question in managing ones career is: do I plan everything in advance, do I have a mission or ... do I leave my options open for an opportunity to come by? There are many examples of either case. But which did it for John F. Kennedy? How did he enter politics?
- Medical Decision Making in Hospitals - Beyond Simple Evidence
[Business:Management] Why is a hospital so difficult to manage some may ask? Is the business unlike any other business? Are the professionals unique?
- Productive Differences - Engineer Versus Medical Specialist
[Business:Productivity] In what way are engineers similarly productive to medical specialists? The field of the engineer is in design, repair and development of systems and products. The medical specialist is wholly dedicated to the repair (cure) of the human body (or mind).
- On Productivity - The Philosopher and the Monk
[Business:Productivity] At the end of the day... You come back from work, or whatever you have done that day, before you go to sleep you take a moment and reflect: "How have I done? Have I done the right things?" or perhaps you may wonder: Am I a better person than yesterday?
- The Thief at Work
[Business:Productivity] If the work environment is like a micro-society within a society, an economy within an economy, wouldn't there also exist thieves as in real life? Of course.
- Real Madrid, Schuster and (No) Change
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] Real Madrid is one of the few clubs in the world with the highest budgets. But will it be enough to survive? Or will soccer be the next area, after finance that will face problems? It is possible. Money or finance is not always enough to achieve the right results.... Replacing a coach won't always be enough to change the course of events...
- Productivity Profiles - The Clown
[Business:Productivity] One of the (few) organizations that explicitly use the clown is the hospital. They use the clown for the children who are hospitalized and to offer them a good time. The little patients really need some kind of diversion because they are still very dependent on their basic emotions. Emotions rule their life and they have not yet developed a rationality to understand what is happening with them.
- I'm Begging You
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Whenever you visit big cities there is always a beggar to find. The beggar is productive because he receives money, although it is hard to find out how much. In difference to a street musician and street performers, the beggar just sits still waiting for a donation.
- The Cost of Flexibility
[Business:Management] Organizing within a company is similar to the way companies do business with other companies. In the B2B world contracts play a very important role.
- Acknowledging Change During Growth
[Self-Improvement:Techniques] Changes you experience during your life often come unannounced. We face changes that are visible, some familiar examples include becoming a parent, marriage or partnership and moving to another place.
- A Productive Change - From Trader to Coach
[Business:Change-Management] It started with hackers who were contracted as security-officers. They were smarter as the average employee in that area and they could find leaks where others would not look. These hackers worked low profile, they were not famous.
- Nursing - Lessons From Nightingale
[Health-and-Fitness] Nursing is the activity of helping patients recover after being cured, but still in need of special care. (Interesting is however the concept of nursing which is not limited to the healthcare. Relations also require nursing).
- Economy Doesn't Lie
[Book-Reviews:Economics] The title of this article is not of my own, but the translation of a book title, invented and written by Guy Sorman. A great title. Perhaps for the title, it is one of those books I would like to read, the many on the to-do list... Guy Sorman writes about economic progress and stresses the importance of good decisions making in the field of economic politics. Or economic policies.
- Manage Your Manager
[Business:Management] When is it time to do so? First of all you need to understand the basics of organizing and management. You can't manage your manager if you are not on equal terms with your manager. You must accept each others roles and see your manager as a partner who can work for you.
- The Value of Diplomatic Relations
[Business:International-Business] I was not surprised to hear that the US got Northern Korea off their blacklist. The one thing the country doesn't need at the moment is more enemies. A lot of east-Asian countries were not amused by the Lehman bankruptcy. These countries are paying much of the debt of the US.
- Undervalued - The Ambassadors' Role in Business
[Business:Productivity] The ex prime minister of Spain - Mr. Aznar - countered the slogan of the Traffic authority with the following words: "...and who told you that I want you to drive for me?" The official slogan is like this- "There are many reasons not to get killed this Eastern, choose yours and do it ... (because) we can not drive for you."
- Productivity and the Career CatWalk
[Business:Productivity] ... There she is... serious, investigative and calm... ladies and gentleman we present you the first model, starting in alphabetical order - the accountant. This career catwalk is different than the traditional catwalk. You will not find an overview of the latest fashion but rather a series of careers and -- this is very important -- what it is that makes this career so special.
- Productivity Profiles - Politician Versus Activist
[News-and-Society] Sometimes it is hard to say where one ends and the other begins. Was Al Gore somehow already developing as a Climate activist when he was still a politician?
- Sports Management - How to Prevent Injuries
[Recreation-and-Sports] Sports management is similar to business management: there is a fun part - playing - and there is the part of the necessary preparations, which is normally less appreciated. The higher the league, the harder is it to manage those sports specialist who -- although just in their twenties -- think to know it all.
- Mission or Vision?
[Business:Strategic-Planning] What is more important and when to use either of them? "We have to get organized." Is what you often hear for a club, a non-profit organization or another institute of which the business is not all too clear.
- Confidence Based Operating - Film Stars and Surgeons
[Business:Management] Some studies offer insight of which one might wonder whether we need it. But one study may lead to another. In this study the context is a hospital environment. In only in one case it refers to the real (hospital) world, in the other it is only on television.
- The Biography of Mikhail Gorbachov - Part 3
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] 1991, chronicle of unannounced catastrophe. The title of the next two chapters refers to the book of author Marquez (Chronicle of an announced death). The parallel is obvious: 1991 is the year of the Putsch.
- The Biography of Mikhail Gorbachov - Part 2
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] To appease the changes Gorbachov started to use his perestroika as an international campaign, without moving around at home. It is the time of the Chernobyl incident of which the biography doesn't mention nearly anything. An exploring of the world outside starts. Gorbachov reminds that he didn't know what a credit card looked like when the public opinion had noticed Raisa buy earrings. To export his ideas to the western world he publishes his book called perestroika.
- About Strategy - Cuba Libre
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Is big still beautiful? GM, Chrysler and Ford... Citigroup? Are these the leaders of tomorrow or the laggers of today waiting for a change? There was a time - during or just before the previous dot.com crisis, that small was even more beautiful. Until small became big too.
- Sweden Joining the Euro
[News-and-Society:Economics] A Chinese online newspaper reported that ... more Swedes agree to accept Euro. Timing is the most interesting about this news. Why now, all of a sudden?
- The Biography of a Manager
[Business:Management] The biography of a manager is an elaboration of an existing idea. Peter Drucker stressed that the first task of every manager consists in deciding what business to move in. In a more general way you could rephrase this and refocus this viewpoint towards the proposition: "what are you going to do, to achieve your goals in life?"
- Productivity Profiles - The Artist
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Visual-Graphic-Arts] The next thing that comes to your mind is probably: I like his work or I don't. The artist himself would be comfortable with a grey-like answer: "I like it a bit," or, "it's indifferent to me. What ever. I don't care." That would be an insult. The work of the artist is appreciated with feelings and emotions. Rational explanations follow.
- The Biography of Mikhail Gorbachov - Part 1
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] Having visited Moscow (and Minsk) in 2007 I became intrigued by this country, its people its history, how else could it when you have stayed in the beautiful historic hotel Sovietsky? But understanding a lot of modern Russia?
- Change in the Biography of Mikhail Gorbachov
[Business:Change-Management] We live in a unique world and in a unique time, but that doesn't mean that all is new and different. The biography of Gorbachov is full of change. Somewhere in chapter four I found this passage:
- The Original Function of Interim-Management
[Business:Change-Management] A product can be used differently according to the perception and the requirements of the user. Although systems are not really a product, their use varies from the intention of the client. And even functions can be used differently. Like the function of interim management. The usage has changed over the last years.
- The Future of London and New York As Financial Centers
[Finance] "Do not write off New York and London," is the title of an article written by Michael Skapinker in the Financial Times (30th of September). According to his opinion he figures that those two cities will remain leaders in Finance despite the negative publicity in the last month.
- Navigation Between Rhineland and Cowboys
[Business:Management] Charles Wyplosz argued that "French and German anger misses the fact." (1) A reason for what he calls a back-lash of Anglo-American capitalism and globalization is the delicate balance between individualism and solidarity.
- Strategic Infrastructural Development in Spain
[News-and-Society:International] One of the most well known examples of game theory is the prisoners' dilemma, in which the outcome of someone's decision depends on the decision of the other "player" in the game. Another example of game theory is where bluffing may or may not affect the decision of the other. Poker playing must have influenced the development of game theory.
- Impact of the Depreciation of the British Pound on the Spanish Economy
[News-and-Society:Economics] The construction and housing crisis in Spain weight heavily on the economy because of the high percentage of real estate and construction in the structure of the economy. Recently the depreciation of the British pound adds a new risk to the Spanish economy. Because part of the real estate sector is also related to residential tourism.
- How to Cause a Conflict?
[Relationships:Conflict] If we know how to cause a conflict, we may understand better how to solve one too, or even how to prevent a conflict. In some cases conflicts are productive, in others they are not.
- Company Profiles - The Latest Impressions on Santander and BBVA - Part 3
[Business] The story continues. The difference between in stock-price between Santander and BBVA show a bigger gap every day. What is the last issue that provoked this gap?
- Universal (Proverbial) Wisdom About Change
[Business:Change-Management] There is so much knowledge available about change that has rooted itself in our language(s). In this article I have gathered a lot of these sayings. Some have to do with a change of status, or flow. The tide never goes out so far but it always comes in again.
- What Comes First - The Leader Or Leadership?
[Business:Management] Chicken or Egg? Yet, relevant for the leadership discussion.
- How to Improve on Concentration
[Self-Improvement:Techniques] Concentration is important because without it we wouldn't finish any task properly. When someone is concentrated, she directs its mental or physical powers to a single activity. This activity can be a few things. We normally think that concentration on a single activity requires very limited and specialized activities. But think about a project manager.
- Harmony Without a Conductor
[Business:Management] The title of the above article is: "the conductor-less orchestra." The orchestra serves as a parallel for organizing activities with less management, or even no management at all.
- Casualties of the Crisis - Sport and Culture
[Finance:Personal-Finance] More sport, less crime and a healthier society, it seems so simple. But the problem: there is not always enough money.
- The Best Specialist Becomes a Manager - Maradona As Coach
[Self-Improvement:Coaching] Why, some may ask. Because "everyone" has done it? Cruyff for example. He was one of the best soccer-players. And he became a successful coach.
- Product Or Service Culture & Corporate Values
[Business:Workplace-Communication] The focus of this article is on corporate values in relation to the issue of product or service culture. How do corporate values reflect either culture and is there any difference at all?
- Some Basic Differences Between a Product and Service Oriented Culture
[Business] Identifying the main tendency of the organizational culture is more and more important in managing change. Change is often the most important issue that defines a successful strategy from an unsuccessful one. And part of this is whether the envisioned change is feasible, because: Culture + Change = Problems.
- Language As a Risk Factor in a Majorcan Hospital
[Business:Ethics] Language rules impact the organization where they are applied. In this example a governmental decree states that sanitary employees are obliged to use a specific (Catalan) language. What will this mean for the organization?
- Company Profiles - The Latest Impressions on Santander and BBVA (2)
[Business] Santander's President Emilio Botin saw the crisis as an opportunity to expand the banks' foreign presence: ... it acquired a stake in Sovereign Inc. in 2005 and 2006 and expanded this stake recently. It bought Alliance & Leicester Plc and branches and deposits of Bradford & Bingley Plc in the U.K.
- Change - Here and Now, One of the Best Example in Present Days
[News-and-Society:Politics] The clouds have gone. "Change" has been massively elected above experience and a continuation of the current policy. The high-turnout indicates this too; people voted more than average. And as the economical situation deterred over the last weeks or month, change became more and more the item of the elections.
- Company Profiles - The Latest Impressions on Santander and BBVA
[Business] Santander was the only bank that profited for the buy of ABN AMRO, Both Fortis and RBS experienced problems with their part of the acquisition. That was one of the reasons that Santander was only slightly affected by the credit crisis, the other reason was that their exposure to it was near zero.
- Using the Concept of Maturity Levels in Organizations
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Some managers are just like kids. In that way they resemble some employees, who struggle with the same problem of maturity. But it is not all that bad behaving as a kid at work, but sometimes it causes problems.
- Cultural References in the Biography of Napoleon
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] There are many views on a biography. The historic view is one that dominates the biography of Napoleon, written by Andre Maurois. But there is also another view, like this one in which culture is the axle around which the story can be explained. In the story revealed by Maurois there are many cultural references, although many of them are not fully elaborated.
- Stop Violence, But How?
[News-and-Society:Crime] Violence. When I think of it, the first thing that comes to my mind is a name of an ex-general and dictator, whose name was: Viola (he who violates). That summarizes is quite well: force someone to do something against its free will.
- What is a Healthy Culture?
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Humanities] Psychology is the subject that analyzes human behavior. Sociology describes in the same why the behavior of social groups. Anthropology or cultural science analyses behavior of specific groups. With the risk of oversimplifying, one could argue that with psychology one studies human behavior, culture is about studying group-behavior. Could we than make the same comparison to introduce the concept of a healthy culture, referring to the mind of the organization?
- Management Formulated
[Business:Management] There is a large number of management types, like sales management, operational management, human resources management, etc, etc. So there are also many different areas for managers to operate and specialize in. Management is a very broad domain, which has drawn attention from the academic world to the successful entrepreneurs who have written about it.
- Don't Throw (Old) Knowledge Overboard When Changing Rules
[Business:Change-Management] Some people have waited for this crisis to happen. They rub their hands in a sense of self-satisfaction now that they see a collapse of a system, a management approach and they pull their own ideology out of the closet. In that, they discard completely any positive element of the other method and propose to do things completely different: a switch of at least 180 degrees.
- The Reason McCain Will Win
[News-and-Society:Politics] It is not about the picture where Obama stumbles just near the finish and McCain beats his rival in the last second of the race. It is neither about another contrarian's opinion, just for the sake of a lucky guess.
- A Cultural View on Global Terrorism
[News-and-Society] I think if we try to understand more about the sick we learn more about health. If we study the insane, we might get to know more about sanity. If we understand terror we may get a grip on peace?
- Learning by Doing - Simple But Costly
[Business:Management] To define the essentials of a company one could say that a company is an official legal entity to do business and to do so it needs an organization. It all starts with the business, with what someone wants to achieve, with the market in which, the product X, and clients of type Y (retail, for example). It starts with an idea.
- The Price a CEO Pays For a Free Corporate Advice
[Business:Management] "Corporate advice is free," said someone some time ago - a banker in the managing board. How does this work?
- From Europe to Africa by Train (2)
[News-and-Society] Someone didn't value the first article on this subject, why would that be, I wondered? It's just an idea, but the vision behind it is about migration flows and how to balance these so that flows go either way, from and to developing countries...
- Cooperation in the Financial Crisis - The Argentinean Pensions Example
[News-and-Society] "Own banks first," said someone lately commenting on the affects of the financial crisis and the response of the individual governments. The Dutch Nationalized a bank and the emerging countries have learned quickly.
- How to Manage a Personal Crisis
[Self-Improvement] If you observe the media during the crisis they invite more speakers who are extremely bearish. Go with the flow, seems the adagio. It looks reasonable, why would you predict a turn in a depression when there are no signs yet? That is risky.
- Post Crisis Banking Architecture - Cultural Changes
[Business:Workplace-Communication] When people think of and talk about changes that are required in the financial system, they bring in a lot of structural elements; the most visible is the risk management system. There is however a cultural element that needs to change too. Culture is a broad area, but one essential part is related to the rewarding system.
- The New Mayor of Rotterdam
[News-and-Society:International] Mayors in the Netherlands are not chosen, but appointed by the city government. Last week an interesting candidate got selected for this new position, in the second largest city in the Netherlands, Rotterdam. Ahmed Aboutaleb, a Moroccan-born Dutch politician holding dual citizenship - Dutch as well as Moroccan - has been appointed mayor of Rotterdam..
- Sourcing Strategies - Inditex Versus H&M
[Business:Outsourcing] Sourcing is a topic on every managers' plate. Once you have decided to enter a market you will have to determine where and how you will allocate your resources. Inditex and H&M are two companies with a leading position in retail clothing industry. The companies have been compared in various studies; "Zara fashion follower, industry leader," which details some differences... This article focuses only on one of these difference.
- Post Crisis Banking Architecture - The (Virtual) Office
[Business] The post crisis banking architecture will change. The crisis has revealed some weaknesses of the banking system which will have to be solved. Although the position of the virtual and real office is not one of the highest priorities, it may be an area where changes can be expected.
- Management Basics - Mind Your Own Business
[Business:Management] If people would mind their own business life would be boring. But it would help organization if employees would mind their own business. The easiest way to manage an organization is by picturing it as a network, hierarchy or other form of small atomic business units; ...
- It's All a Matter of Experience
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] Joe has it, Sarah doesn't really, John has it, Barack has less. And it is only one element in which they differentiate. Experience.
- Lesson From the Nobel Peace Laureate
[Self-Improvement:Leadership] Interesting interview with Martti Ahtisaari...About peace: every road to peace starts with a rupture of the past. Germany did it, Russia didn't (meaning that they hadn't faced Stalin and his crimes).
- What Comes First - Advisor Or Client?
[Business:Management] The Advice process consists of two agents and the advice. The advisor is one agent, the client is the other. The advice comes last in this process. It is the result of interaction, communication and (call it) a final "prescription." But what comes first: client or Advisor?
- What Managers Sometimes Forget When They Delegate
[Business:Management] "Please do this for me," that is what the delegation starts with. It is possible to delegate something to a secretary or to a professional in the team of the manager.
- The Invisible Side of Discipline (8 Medals in Less Than 25 Minutes)
[Self-Improvement:Goal-Setting] Discipline is like an iceberg, from the outside you don't see much of it. How impressive the winning minutes were, they are nothing against all that effort you do not see, that gets no media attention.
- Somewhere Between Culture and Nature - Forest Fires
[News-and-Society:Environmental] One Thursday (weeks ago) was the first time that a forest fire spread itself near our town. It was still far enough not to get worried, but the fire nearly reached the boundaries of remote urbanizations; only 50 to 100 meters more down where the first houses were located.
- Are Networking Stocks Next?
[Investing:Stocks] Networking has been a real theme the last years. There are many networking stocks listed on the Stock Exchanges. What will happen to them?
- If You Can't Beat Them
[Business:Change-Management] "If you can't beat them, join them," that is how the saying goes. I would like to know who had said that and in what situation.
- Legacy and Change
[Business:Change-Management] Legacy is often an impediment for change. A legacy is some kind of a inheritance from the past, but that doesn't really fit with the actual situation.
- The Problem of Wealth
[Finance:Wealth-Building] Could there be a problem with wealth, one might wonder? If we observe the damage of the financial crisis, one should admit that there is indeed a problem and that has all to do with confidence.
- How to Improve Stock Exchange Systems
[Investing:Stocks] Stock Exchanges are more and more technology driven. The information systems SE uses, can be improved by using a technique that is entering all kinds of domains these days.
- Beware of Positive Climate Dictatorship
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Although you might not believe me, I endorse the EzineArticles policy on promoting a positive climate. The more positive, the better chance a message gets delivered.
- Do They Deserve a Second Chance? (2)
[Business:Change-Management] This is a tiny study on change management. It is a moral question we should ask ourselves. But it is also about whether we believe in change.
- Towards Intelligent Software - A Virus Scanner Example
[Computers-and-Technology:Software] To date, four visitors have rated my article with an average of 2, which means that they do not agree with "A product life cycle - some examples." This maybe due to the fact that they do not like the example I used about the evolution of Microsoft's operating system.
- Productivity Profile - The Prophet of Doom
[Business:Productivity] Would you hire such a professional, knowing he is a prophet of Doom? Is this a productive role? And, do you need this role in the organization? And is such a prophet more or less the same as a devil's advocate?
- Productivity Profiles - The Police Officer
[Business:Productivity] "We forbid you to sell-short." This is what you could call a police officer speaking, telling you what to do and most of all what you shouldn't.
- The Scapegoat of the Financial Crisis
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] It is quite clear who is the scapegoat of the financial crisis. It also seems a managed act. The only bank that didn't get rescued, that (CEO) is being treated as the scapegoat.
- Who Sells More - Professional Or Amateur?
[Investing] Stock prices are falling and I heard an analyst say, "those who are selling today are selling because they have to." But who is that, the amateur investor or the professional?
- Productivity Profile of a Diplomat
[Business:Productivity] It is not easy to describe some main characteristics of a diplomat. But one way to get some idea about its role in society think about a hero.
- The American Dream Versus the European Reality
[Self-Improvement:Success] Whether the financial crisis has impact on the "American dream," is somehow uncertain, but at least it will have some effect. "Everything is possible, as long as you try hard enough," seems like a nice dilemma, but how many cases do we really have. Most of these cases get mega attention and people think that they are the standard.
- Financial Crisis Versus Hospital Infections
[Business:Management] Is there a relation between the financial crisis and a hospital infection? Not a direct relation that a crisis causes an infection, but there is a resemblance between the two. The link is risk. And risk management.
- Wouter Fortuyn
[News-and-Society:Politics] Pim Fortuyn was a politician who's influence changed the Dutch society and politics. Although I and many others were not an advocate of his ideas, one main point impacted the society massively... Wouter Bos is the current minister of Finance ...
- Rothschild's Pigeons, Or How to Spread a Rumor
[News-and-Society:Economics] Napoleon got defeated by the British in the battle of Waterloo. The real hero however of this operation was not a marshal, but a banker: Nathan Rothschild; "he didn't fire a gun; he wasn't even near the fight." But he was in the possession of carrier-pigeons.
- Financial Crisis, Disaster Tourism and the Role of the Media
[News-and-Society:Economics] "Why Ireland will destroy the euro," is a headline from CNBC. I didn't read the article, but it must be about the unconditional government support for the Irish banks. Good or bad?
- European Leadership (A Space Odyssey)
[News-and-Society:Politics] I often wonder these moments what to fear more; the American Crisis that spreads over the world, or the so-called European Leaders that are trying to control it in Europe. The recent weeks the confidence in Europe diminishing, visible by a declining Euro against the dollar (now 1,35 from 1,60 during the more moderate times of the crisis). I think it started with the French President, which is a man who likes to take personal leadership regardless what it will mean for the rest of Europe.
- The US Versus Dutch Article Markets - A Cultural Impression
[Writing-and-Speaking:Article-Marketing] Article markets over the world show some interesting cultural differences. As many markets, the US article market is one of the largest, if not the largest and best developed. For a good definition of article markets I mean the free article markets and not the professional articles from scientific areas (medical, law, tax, science in general, etc). These are highly regulated and moderated by companies (like lexus-nexus).
- Possible Impact of a Recession on Book Publishers
[Writing-and-Speaking:Book-Marketing] Timeless building is a title of a book you categorize as being part of timeless books. Some of the published books are. Many others are contemporary. The contemporary books you further divide into the need-to-know and nice-to-know market.
- Will Ezines-Directories Be Hurt by a Recession?
[Writing-and-Speaking] Companies that are highly dependent on internet and technology have not faced a real recession since the collapse of the internet-bubble in the beginning of this decade. How will ezine-directories be affected by a possible recession?
- Company Profiles - The Rabobank
[Investing] Most other banks have a very strong culture which is exported from the head office. ABN Amro has been a good example lately where the local offices have developed a friendly and open culture to attract clients and to support them. Yet it was the central (head office) organization that made the strategic mistakes which caused the bank to lose its independence.
- Crisis Management - Some Lessons From the Recent Crisis
[Business:Management] Many blame certain companies for insufficient crisis management. But is that reasonable? How many of us have experienced crises like these and would they have done better. Yet...
- Crisis Opportunities - Interim Management
[Business:Management] Such dire climates we are in right now will show what type of manager will float and who will drown. Many will, and this is therefore the right period for interim management.
- Would You Give Him a Second Chance?
[Business:Change-Management] If people take advantage of your confidence or your good intentions, would you give them another go? Does it make a difference whether this is a love affair or a normal business relation? And are these situations really different?
- Teaching Is - Educating Or Teaching, Or Both, Or - I Don't Care
[Reference-and-Education] We teach, Parents educate, is the proposition of a policy I heard a while ago. That made me think?
- The Easier the Read, the Harder the Change
[Business:Change-Management] And visa versa...People often buy books in order to change or improve themselves. My proposition: the easier the read, the harder the change. This means if the book is an easy read; it is very likely that you are so impressed at the beginning and your expectations are inflated, but this is often more air than anything substantial.
- The Value of Multiple Banking Systems
[News-and-Society:Economics] One of the positive by-products of the financial crisis is the knowledge that we should glad to have several banking systems. I have not opposed to the introduction of the euro and I still think that it is a good idea, but the real value of the euro will be proved in these hard times. Now is the moment of truth.
- The Southern Pigs
[News-and-Society:Economics] When Writing about the biography of Maradona I mentioned the rivalry between Britain and Spain. I have never realized that this superficial conflict is so deeply rooted. The recent incident: "The Southern Pigs," an idea of the FT. People who have read the article in Spain are not happy about it...
- Real Estate Projects - Location, Location, Location
[Real-Estate] Not long ago a real estate project on the South coast of Spain failed. It was a relatively large project focused on people who had retired. I heard about the project when they were working on it and it was in those days when you now say - near the end of the construction boom. But that was not the real and only problem.
- What is the Main Competence of a CFO?
[Business:Management] I know an ex-CFO who had a background in macro-economics. Although I was surprised to understand that he had left I could understand his "move:" he was too social. A man with a competence of which many Human Resource Managers would be proud. A real people manager.
- Dog Or Technology?
[Pets:Dogs] Where I live people have massively chosen for dogs, but I would recommend them to use technology. The advantage of a dog over an alarm system is that the first is portable and mobile enough to use both in urban areas as well as on the country side. But this is the only advantage.
- What Should You Fear More - War Or Peace?
[Self-Improvement] This is a very nice story I recommend everybody to read: it finishes with a beautiful ending: "Relax!," she said. "It's not important! The story is about our fears and it is very accurate these days.
- How to Change - The Robin Or Marian Attitude
[Self-Improvement] I'm charmed by the Miss Marian's approach, but I think that Robin Hood is much more effective in managing change. Marian decided to stay where she was in the village; Robin takes the rebel attitude and left to come back later. Armed.
- Breaking Hollywood Rules - Joanne Woodward
[Arts-and-Entertainment] I'm always impressed by people who are able to guide their own way apart from the crowd, even if the crowd is a community of celebrities. In this case the context is that of one of the most emotional unstable markets: Hollywood.
- What the Crisis Showed Us - Global Finance, But Local Knowledge
[Investing] I think it was Joseph Stiglitz who - when interviewed - explained that a lot of people outside the US are not aware of the construction of a mortgage contracts in the US. It appears to be if I understood well, that when a person in the US buys a house ...
- How to Change a Corporate Culture - The ABN Amro Case
[Business:Change-Management] The investment market is like the dating market; the ugly little duck can turn into a desirable prince(s) after someone has given it some attention. And what happens next, all of a sudden the former duck gets surrounded by a chain of new admirers. They all want her.
- How to Get More Disciplined
[Self-Improvement:Goal-Setting] The term discipline could be associated with a lack of variety. If you are disciplined you are doing the same all over again. No changes of menu during the week. Is that true?
- Loyalty - Back on the Agenda?
[Business] Loyalty is a main characteristic of a dog. You hit them, you punish them severely and you ignore them. And what do they give you in return? Exactly: they stay with you! They are loyal.
- From Europe to Africa by Train
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] There is a tunnel from Britain to the continent; the Euro-tunnel: "The tunnel consists of 3 interconnected tubes: 1 rail track each way plus 1 service tunnel. Its length is 31 miles, of which 23 miles are underwater. ..." A new idea resembles much of this previous initiative, but the project is much more ambitious:
- How to Prevent a Style Conflict Between Customer Service and Sales
[Business:Customer-Service] A (sales) manager once told me that every complaint should be treated as an opportunity. Treat the complaint with care and you will win a loyal customer. The difference between sales and customer service is that for the first client contact dominates and administrative tasks occupy only a second priority.
- Follow the Investment Guru's Next Step
[News-and-Society:Economics] "The worst of the crisis in Wall Street is over,'' said Buffet on the 3rd of May. Yesterday he announced to buy a 5 billion stake in Goldman Sachs. How to evaluate these steps? Would you now follow the leader?
- Openness - How Vulnerable is Your Culture?
[Business] Some countries more than others. Some companies more than others. The subject is: openness.
- Paul Volcker Leaving the Fed
[News-and-Society:Politics] A biography of Alan Greenspan - written by Bob Woodward - starts with the period when Volcker was still the president of the Federal Reserve. It sheds some light on the change ritual in getting a new president.
- How to Advertise in Bear Market - A Supermarket Example
[Business:Advertising] Many have pointed that consumer confidence has changed over time. Not the level of it which is quite low these days, but how this index is determined. The new factor that influences customer confidence is the level of the stock index. Higher stock-quotes increase consumer confidence; more wealth translated directly into buying opportunities.
- Those Good Old Days
[Business:Change-Management] Change is like that: you often realize the change when you are in the middle of it, or at the end of it. Things move in trends, Wall Street is not the only domain where they know all about that. The trend of the dollar (against the euro), the trend of the Dow Jones (bearish), the trend of the economy itself (diminishing growth, increasing inflation), etc.
- The Show on Capitol Hill
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] Salespeople, salesman are good at selling, there is no question about it. Some are better than others. But the role of the salesman is not limited to the salesrep. Others can perform this role and do that often. They have to selling these days is part of any job.
- Will History Repeat Itself - Speculation Against the Fed?
[Investing] In the eighties there was this system called the EMS and it got attacked twice during those years in 1982 and 1985. Soros was held responsible for one of them.
- Virtual Or Real - How Many Different Faces Are There in Your Book?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Social-Networking] In Madrid an experiment showed that "amigos" on Facebook didn't turn out to be friends in real life. The initiators organized a "fiesta" for their facebook members, but "very few felt like showing their face behind their nick-name... 6000 invitations converted into only 500 visitors." (1)
- The Credibility of Communication Channels
[Communications] Send an e-mail, chat, make a phone call, fax or send a letter... Or... just go there. This last option is more and more limited, virtual communication is still growing. More and more offices are closed to the public and if you want to talk to someone -- and verify that the organization really exists -- you are left with a limited number of communication channels.
- How to Feel Save and Secure
[Self-Improvement] "There is no external source of safety," (1) is what I read from a blog written by Deepak Chopra and I agree with it. I also think that there is another view on the topic of feeling save and secure. First of all for companies or organizations.
- Company Profiles - UBS
[Business:Management] The complexity of markets is managed by simple rules. Nobody - this becomes clear these days - understands the impact of the financial network where one or two chains are being destroyed. Markets are driven by simple rules.
- Do They Deserve a Second Chance?
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] This is a tiny study on change management. It is a moral question we should ask ourselves. But it is also about whether we believe in change.
- Time-to-Market in the Financial Sector Covers More Than Delivering New Products Or Services
[Business:Management] Time-to-market is a concept derived from the production sector. It measures the time it takes from designing a new product or service until its launch on the market. Financial institutions do launch new products and services all the time, and in that area the time-to-market is especially important. Timing is more important in the financial world than in any other world.
- About Biographies - Diego Maradona
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] It is hard to write about this book, about this biographer, about politics and soccer and supporters. Most of all about the soccer game: you are either in favor or against. Barcelona or Madrid, Manchester or Liverpool, or in this case, Argentina or England.
- Consultants' Slang - About Processes and Functions
[Business:Management] Recognize this: the external consultant is using a language you no longer understand. We first have to look at the "Business process." Right, you think, but what is it and why is it important?
- Company Profiles - Unilever
[Business] Unilever is a corporation that has historically concentrated on two product lines derived from oil and fat like butter and soap. Now these main elements are still visible in the product categories Foods & personal care.
- Project Management - Art Or Profession?
[Business:Management] Management means order, control and this is truer for project management than for operational management. Operational management is more prone to the opportunities that popup day to day; it requires a more flexible approach. Project management is more focused on a single objective and that must be achieved.
- Productivity Profiles - The Trader
[Business:Change-Management] Not only managers, but also specialist perform in their daily job a role like that of another career. We are all sometimes playing the advocate, judging others, or register like real accountants or even pointing at rules like a policeman. Do we also play the role of the trader? Perhaps when ...
- The Secret Weapon of the Consultant
[Business:Human-Resources] What is the secret weapon of the consultant? Does he or she have a weapon at all? Although the war-metaphor is perhaps not the most appropriate, the secret weapon of the consultant is more than just a "tool."
- 3 Billion Euros - The Value of a New CEO
[Business:Change-Management] It happened today. Unilever announced that they have found a new CEO, in anticipation to the foreseen retirement of the current CEO at the end of this year. In a financial market that was in decline, Unilever was one of the few stocks that climbed 1,23 euros more than 6%.
- Company Profiles - Telefonica
[Business] Telefonica is thought to be one of the most stable companies that is represented in the Spanish stock exchange IBEX 30. The idea is that in these times with increased uncertainty, the stable cash flow offers the investors a steady outlook. The risk is therefore perceived to be low.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 11
[Business:Management] This part is the core of any business architecture... It is the part of the architecture that deals with the constructions that are used in the human resources domain. On the other hand this is about the characteristics of the human side of the organization.
- How to Avoid Organizational Stress
[Self-Improvement:Stress-Management] "Why Pinocchio wants to become a boy," is a book written by Herlinde Wynants. She is an internist working for the Antwerp University Hospital. Over her career she has examined the causes of stress and has developed a treatment, as well as an approach to avoid the over-exposure of stress.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 15
[Business] Once the organizational mock-up is designed -- this is some how a re-engineering of the organization -- the next step is to increase the performance of the organization. Business architecture -- as said before -- is about checking the performance of an organization. The example used is the F1 car and its driver.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 14
[Business:Management] The mock-up for business architecture plays a complete different role as the traditional and real mock-up for the architect. The architect of a hospital will talk and communicate with all the stakeholders and as a result of this process combined with his creativity will result in a mock-up.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 12
[Business:Management] Organizational policies in the healthcare sector are a difficult area to manage. The reason is that these policies have a generic character but should serve a specific application.
- Change and the G8
[News-and-Society:Politics] Why does change happen in one situation and why not in another. Some changes are like leaders, other lags and have to be dragged along.
- Returning Expats - Why Do They Have Such a Hard Time?
[Business:International-Business] How often is it that the travel-metaphor is used to support change management. In this case of the expatriate, returning home, the metaphor and the reality are about the same; change.
- The Corporate To-Do-List
[Business:Management] Organizations are like (a bunch of) people and people have things to do. The most well known application in the person efficiency area is the to-do-list. This is a simple list where you write down "what you need to do." This can be a daily list or a pictured vision where you want to go. A first step perhaps...
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 10
[Business] Infrastructure is an organizational component that is often taken into account at the tail of projects. Infrastructural solutions require planning and offer the basic support for the rest of the organization.
- Psychological Profile of a Murderer
[Book-Reviews] Ismael Gil is a psychologist and someone who has sketched ... profiles of a murderers. In his book he is not so much interested in the motive of the murderer. This would be the field of the homicide detective. His interest is focused on the psychological traits of the person committing the murder.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 13 - The Mock-Up
[Business:Management] When you have walked around the hospital and have made an inventory of all the main organizational elements it is time to build the organizational mock-up. The mock-up is like the mock-up the architect has constructed when designing the hospital. But this mock-up is visualized differently.
- The Main Pitfall of an Engineering Culture
[Business] During a crisis, communication is more important than anything else. It is a simple rule that management tends to forget. During a crisis and the way it get solves tells much about the culture of the organization.
- Strategic Thinking
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Those who follow the situation on the stock exchange may have noticed that a lot of strategists are quoted on their vision. When there is trouble people recur to their strategic plans; why was it? What are we doing this for? and shouldn't we change into another direction.
- Inflation - A Sign of Weakness?
[News-and-Society:Economics] I'm buying cafe and newspapers regularly so I know what they are priced at. I also know that many companies are against the dogmatic price rising at the first of January. Price changes are often announced during the first half of the year. The first of July is also a good moment to raise prices.
- Dividend Policy - A Long-Term Investment
[Business:Accounting] Recently, a few companies have found a savings opportunity: dividend payments. "We can save 150 million if we skip this year's dividend." Is one of the messages in the newspaper.
- The Whole Financial Crisis - Caused by a Single Man?
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] Think about it. A single man causing such a crisis, what could that be?
- What is the Best Debt Management Approach?
[Finance:Debt-Management] As it seems the winter is arriving in the economic landscape. What does this mean for debt-management?
- Wanted - Whistleblower
[Business:Workplace-Communication] When thinking about the financial crisis one could ask where those whistleblowers have hid. And most likely the answer is that in these times of performance management the role of the whistleblower has become obsolete. How else could things have gone that far?
- Gender Distribution in Organizations
[Business:Management] "Gender bilingual organizations" is a find of Avivah Wittenberg-Cox. She wrote a new book, "Because, like every author, I thought there was a book screaming to be written." The book presents seven steps to building "bilingual' organizations."
- Kondratieff Waves - Do They Exist?
[News-and-Society:Economics] When looking at Google-trends there is some search volume on the term "Kondratieff," but all entries have a European origin. I have checked EzineArticles.com too and the search for "Kondratieff" delivers no results. If the Kondratieff wave exists ...
- Malaga's East Coast
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] The capital of the province Malaga is also called Malaga. It's a coastal city in the center of the province, which makes that there are two coasts on either site of it. Both are very different, even when they belong to the same province.
- Malaga's West Coast
[Travel-and-Leisure:Destination-Tips] The capital of the Malaga province is also called Malaga. It's a coastal city in the centered in the south of the province, which makes that there are two coasts on either site of it. Both are very different, even when they belong to the same province.
- Language & Emigration to Spain
[Reference-and-Education:Languages] When immigrating to Spain, You will often end up in one of the "Autonomous communities." Much of these have their own language.
- Language & the Impact of Living Abroad
[Reference-and-Education:Languages] Most people live in the country where they were born, only a percentage live in another country. They have emigrated and live as foreigners in a new environment. The more time people spend in a foreign country, the more they will adapt to it. It is a process of change. The real change however comes with the new generation: kids.
- Trader Versus Investor - What is the Main Difference?
[Investing] Financial Investor, Financial account manager, .... Trader, they are all involved in investments. The account manager as a spokesman / adviser for the clients' portfolio, the financial investor and trader direct involved with their own portfolio.
- Partners & Suppliers in the Oil & Gas Services Sector - Part 1
[Business] There are 16 companies in this (sub) sector, most of them of Norwegian origin, two from the Netherlands and three from Britain, two from France and one from Italy. These companies have been selected from a sector overview of Goldman Sachs, focused on European companies as part of portfolio of a single analyst.
- Productivity Profiles - The Lawyer
[Business:Productivity] The term lawyer has a general use, in practice the activities of a lawyer is split up into two "careers;" that of the barrister and the solicitor. "Solicitors have more direct contact with the clients, whereas barristers often only become involved in a case once advocacy before a court is needed by the client." (Wikipedia).
- Partners & Suppliers in the Oil & Gas Services Sector - Part 2
[Business] The second part of the view on partner and supplier in this sector. Prosafe comprises a parent company and the business division Offshore Support Services, the world's leading owner and operator of semi-sumbersible accommodation/service rigs.
- Would You Smoke in a Public Toilet?
[News-and-Society] Smoking is a habit, many people have developed during their lives. It can be seen as a social ritual, where the smokers take a break connect to others for example during work. Smoking has been limited to a large extend lately. Many public places are smoke-free.
- Productivity Profiles - The Financial Guru
[Business:Productivity] When there is more fear in the market, (private) investors are more in search for opinions about what they should do. The financial Guru may offer "help."
- Productivity Profiles - The Judge
[Business:Productivity] "I'll be the judge of that," is an expression which is not proprietary to the official judge. Like everybody can opinion about the economy without having a career in economics, everybody can be and most people are some decisive moments in their life:
- Company Profiles - Adidas
[Business] In the 2007 Annual report, Herbert Hainer the CEO of Adidas discusses some of the issues of the previous year (2007). One of the issues is about the integration of Reebok. Two years ago, Adidas surprised investors with their bid for Reebok.
- How Search Engines Work - By Real Life Algorithms
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] There is a lot of litter on the street, and the weird thing is that those things that do not belong there (litter, etc) is what catches your eye first. The search-engines seem to have adopted this rule. The virtual world is like the real world as this is concerned.
- The Wanninkhof Case
[News-and-Society:Crime] Recently the Spanish public TV chain RTVE broadcasted a miniseries about the so called "Wanninkhof Case." Rocio Waninkhof was the daughter who was reported missing one day in 1999.
- Respect According to Giuseppe Tringali
[Business:Workplace-Communication] In an interview with the newspaper CincoDias, Giuseppe Tringali claimed that respect is a fundamental value in business, but his view is unique. It is not just respect; he also shows how it is obtained.
- Change Management in Argentina
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] This is a short story about change we all can learn from. The plan failed. The context: Argentina.
- A Cultural View on Scientology
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] "In architecture, everything is interesting." In the same kind of reasoning, every type of company or institution is interesting when observing business architecture. In some cases, like this one, some mayor characteristics can be derived not from the company (the Church of Scientology) itself, but from its clients or in this case followers.
- Barclays Move
[Business:Strategic-Planning] ABN AMRO preferred Barclays as the bank by which it would be acquired in 2007. The market determined that another party would acquire ABN AMRO in the end. It was the Consortium formed by Santander, RBS and Fortis that overbid Barclays offer.
- Company Profiles - SBM Offshore
[Business] In 2007 the last "tranche" of not core activities was divested: airport infrastructure. Since then, SBM Offshore is purely focused on offshore services in the energy market.
- Esperanto - Example of a New Construction For an Old Problem
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Humanities] Architecture is about building and constructions to solve problems. A house could be seen as a construction for a problem of security. Living in a house is much safer than living in an open space. Likewise other constructions are sought for different problems. In such a light one could examine a new construction of the language Esperanto.
- The Euro - Esperanto in Financial Markets
[News-and-Society:International] Esperanto means in its own language: "one who hopes." The euro is also introduced in relation to hope. Hope for a better financial world (limited to the Euro zone where it got introduced).
- Productivity Profile of a Banker
[Business:Productivity] Recently we have witnessed some mayor leadership from banks; one bank informed their clients to beware of a global crash on the stock markets, the other banker publicly declared a "meltdown" of US financial markets. After these declarations one could ask; what is the profile of a banker?
- The Brand Value of a Currency
[Finance:Currency-Trading] Currencies are much more than a "simple" brand, but part of the value or exchange rate of a currency could be attributed to its "brand." The brand of a currency is the trust it expresses or the trust as it is perceived by the market.
- Change in Residential Tourism - Where Are the New Market Possibilities?
[Travel-and-Leisure] Many changes come unexpected. And, they are often driven by market forces. The stock market is a good example of an area that deals with continuous changes... Such a sector-related change is also possible and to be expected in the business markets, for example in the housing market, real-estate or more specific (residential) tourism.
- The Art of Scoring a Penalty
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] This year too, penalties were part of the whole game towards the Cup Final. And dominating this "art" of taking a penalty is a must for any team with serious aspirations.
- We Can
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] Recently the Spanish team landed at the airport. They are now heading to the center of Madrid were they will be received and where they will celebrate: a victory and a change that was made possible.
- Company Profiles - Santander
[Investing:Stocks] Morgan Stanley, Barclays, UBS and HBOS leave, Santander enters. We are talking about the Dow Jones Global Titans 50 index.
- The Profile of an Ideal Supporter (2)
[Recreation-and-Sports] You have bought your ticket for the World Cup and the game begins. What should you do? Being a supporter is a tough job... The ideal supporter is both supporting as well as a good sport.
- Savings - The Latest Trend in Speculation?
[Investing] It will be hard to find a new trend in the world of finance these days; the financial crisis is hardly over. Trends in the financial market are often accompanied with similar movement in society. Bungee-jumping and hedge funds developed in parallel.
- Electricity Failures in the First World
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] It happens and more often than I would have expected. That something as basic as electricity becomes unavailable is sometimes hard to imagine. There are many reasons. Sometimes it's due to maintenance work on the central in the neighborhood. Some other times it is due to extreme warmth where the cooling installations fail.
- Are the Analysts Too Pessimistic All of a Sudden?
[Investing] It is raining ... (Investment) banks adjust their stock performance expectations downwards and in many cases change their overall advice to a less positive (Neutral - from Buy - or Sell - from Neutral) opinion. Recently - newspapers quoted the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) that it had warned their customers for a stock crash... The same bank RBS had to admit that it's exposure to the credit crisis was more than expected and had to issue new debts. The bank was positive when buying parts of ABN AMRO less than a year ago.
- Company Profiles - TomTom
[Investing:Stocks] TomTom is a relative young company that showed spectacular growth in the previous years in sales of navigation tools. TomTom is market leader in navigation software closely followed by Garmin. In that area however there are continuous changes. One of them is focused in this article; the digital maps which form the basic of the navigation software.
- Take Your Loss During an Outsourcing Project
[Business:Outsourcing] When two parties decide to cancel their agreement, both will be affected by this decision. In an outsourcing project, it is under most circumstances the sponsor who will decide to break the contract.
- Will Britain Ever Join the Euro?
[News-and-Society:International] The Euro is a recent project in the history of currencies. The new currency was introduced more than five years ago. One way of examining a possible success of the euro is to see whether other countries would follow and also convert their currency to the euro. A better way to check this would be to focus on Britain. If they would join the euro, one could call the euro a real success. So the question is: will Britain ever join the Euro?
- Analyst + Performance Management = Investor
[Investing] The famous Chinese walls inside banks should protect the leak of classified information between investors on one side and analysts on the other. But beyond such a virtual wall, one could ask oneself whether there is big difference between the analyst and the investor.
- Domenech's System
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] Every coach must have some kind of a system or method in coaching a team. Most of these systems, or strategies, or whatever you might call them are invisible. Domenech uses astrology in his preparations to coach a team.
- Company Profiles - Gamesa
[Business] In an interview with El Pais, the president of Gamesa - Guillermo Ulacia - elaborated on the change of the company over the recent years. Ulacia came to Gamesa in the year 2005 with the objective to refocus it towards the alternative industry mainly. Before that, the company was also focused on other industries like aeronautics being a producer of frames for airplanes.
- Spanish News
[News-and-Society] According to the opposition, Spain under Zapatero will fall apart. I wonder whether it will ever go that far. What surprises me as a foreigner in Spain is the national pride broadcasted in the Spanish media.
- Company Profiles - Engel & Volkers
[Business] Engel & Völkers is a real estate agency that is focused on a niche market of the well-to-do. The company was founded in 1977 by Christian Volkers, todays CEO. The world wide expansion started in 1989 with the opening of an office on Mallorca in Spain. Only 30 years later...
- Words Matter, Also in Spain
[News-and-Society:International] Sales is amongst other things, about using the most appropriate words. That "words matter," is not proprietary of Obama. If you want to connect to people, words are as powerful as images, and ... the right phrasing does matter.
- Fresh Banking in Spain - Stock Brokerage Commission Fees
[Business:International-Business] Commission structures bank charge their clients have often a product and or service-oriented component. Product-oriented structures have a lot of fixed fees, real service oriented structures are variable.
- How to Get the Best of Both Worlds
[Investing] Perhaps not in the US, but in the Netherlands saving is hot (again) these days. I wonder whether those people have turned their back to the investment market at the same time. Hopefully not. The investment climate however has turned quite rough lately. And a switch to (increased) savings is not at all without logic.
- Company Profiles - Deutsche Boerse
[Investing:Stocks] The Deutsche Boerse (DB) is a company that owns stock exchanges in Germany and which manages many other exchanges in the world. The company is listed on the German DAX since 2001.
- Telemarketing Combined With Voice Broadcasting - Some Advantages
[Business:Marketing-Direct] "Don't call us, we call you," is a saying that you would tell others than you would like to hear, because you will never hear something from this person again... There are moments were you are longing for a call, until you understand that it is a telemarketer, that was not where you were waiting for. It starts with a friendly voice on the other side...
- Company Profiles - BME
[Business] In June 2008, there is not yet an annual report of the last fiscal year (2007) on the site available. Whether this is functional is not clear. Form the 2006 report we gain some insight in this company.
- The Tragic End of a Peace Performance
[News-and-Society:International] If I remember well, Tommy Cooper died on stage due to a heart attack, while performing an act. Is there any resemblance with his death and that of Pippa Bacca, the Italian Art performer where newspapers have been written about extensively due to her death. For those who don't know the story, she wanted to express a peace message to the world by hitchhiking to Jerusalem.
- Company Profiles - VDM
[Investing:Stocks] VDM is a company that is affected by the rapid changes in trading on the stock-exchanges. Innovations that led to a higher stake of information systems on the exchange, has changed the scene for traders like VDM.
- Productivity Profiles - The Detective
[Business:Productivity] Hercule Poirot and Sherlock Holmes are two famous detectives who are also both fictional characters. For long, the character of the detective has inspired television makers and authors. There is something mythical about their life and they are admired for different reasons; Philip Marlowe, for being the "lone wolf," and his sense of humor.
- Dali & I - A Story About Style
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] The newspaper ABC dedicated a page to the book that has been published recently: Dali & I - A surreal story. The article started about the famous moustache of Dali followed about his care for personal hygiene and about his work. The headline says it all: ...
- Market Sectors Offered by Google and Yahoo
[Investing] (When I look at the differences between Yahoo and Google finance, this is what came to my mind).
It seems that the information offered by Google is more advanced. Yahoo was first in offering this service, but Google has added some extra features, like these on market sectors.
- Multicultural Projects - US and Europe Teaming-Up
[Business:International-Business] Multicultural projects add an extra dimension to the complexity of projects. Normal projects require human resource management. Larger projects for which a number of different disciplines are involved require the management of the element culture.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 9
[Business] Hospitals are organization with the highest information density. This means that information is highly wrapped-up in the business process, or what is about the same: the business is organized by computers or information systems.
- Loyalty in Spain
[Business:International-Business] Loyalty is often rewarded like in most countries: in the supermarket and in other retail business for example the clothing business. Then there are the more international loyalty programs: like the airlines-loyalty programs. In Spain this is not too different. Except for a few areas for which there is no loyalty what so ever: these are...
- Mergers Require Knowledge Management
[Business:Management] There are many business reasons why company profit from a merger. It is often a simple exercise of balancing the financial and economic pros and cons. The element culture however is much more difficult to convey in value.
- Quantity Time
[Home-and-Family:Parenting] I have often wandered what it was; a good parent. We all know that it is not something you can study although there are some (million) books on the subject. Perhaps it is about spending quality-time with your kids ... or maybe not.
- Company Profiles - Euronext
[Business] Some company's complexity is hidden behind a simple façade. What would be more simple to provide a platform where people can trade stocks? This is like central market where buyers and sellers meet. The arbiter establishes prices by means of an order-book. There is not much more to it...
- Company Profiles - Mapfre
[Business] Mapfre is a Insurance company. Due to its history it has a complex structure, which is changing over time and will change more in the (near) future.
- Next Steps in Climate Awareness - Separate Bicycle Paths
[News-and-Society:Environmental] Whether it is climate awareness of the problem of high oil-prices, I imagine that the contribution of the last factor has been more of a motivator for (local) governments to act. For four years that I live in Spain I hear about local government initiatives to make minor changes to the road infrastructure: a minimal gesture that is not without strategic impact: a special drive-way for bicycles. Four years were needed to overcome resistance over this topic.
- About Mergers and Marriages
[Business:Management] Mergers take place as long as we remember and the parallel with a marriage is not only a parallel, marriages where the predecessors of (business) mergers. Think of the marriages between the kings and queens in medieval Spain: Isabel of Castile and Fernando from Aragon.
- What Did We Learn From the Financial Crises?
[Investing:Stocks] Whether we learned from the financial crisis is yet to be seen. There is though a shift in productivity going on in the financial world. I think it is temporarily.
- Ignacio Hernando De Larramendi
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] He said himself that he "accidentally entered the insurance business. First in the state Security Institute, than at the British Royal Insurance Company where he could agree with the strategy and had to leave. He entered Mapfre in 1955, which was at a crisis at that time.
- A Keyword Rich URL Is - Against the Rules
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] Some sites do it, others don't. Some online newspapers have the heading wrapped-up in the url, others just use numbers or a meaningless Url.
- Company Profiles - Bayer
[Investing:Stocks] A Constant Change. Portfolio management is a constant item on the management agendas of large companies like Bayer. In a changing business environment they need to rethink their strategic portfolio constantly:
- Three Reasons She Should (Not) Do It
[News-and-Society:Politics] Now that Barack Obama has been acknowledged to win the democratic nominations, the question is; What Will Hillary Clinton do? Here are three arguments I can think of why she should join Barack Obama's campaign.
- On Coaching Change - A Networking Issue
[Self-Improvement:Coaching] Recently someone asked me,"aren't you in coaching?" - I said I was not. "I'm more in consulting and organizational advice."
- Noise Reduction in Spain (Waiting For Another Opportunity)
[News-and-Society:Environmental] Some trends fade fast because without noticing it a new stronger trend has entered the scene. Last year there was a tendency visible in Spain targeting the noise-pollution. Unfortunately, the trend lived only very short because two of two reasons.
- Company Profiles - ASML
[Investing:Stocks] This story is about change and growth. A company that came out-of-the-blue and is now number one in the field of wafer steppers. This is the so-called back-end part of the semiconductor-device fabrication. This phase is dominated by a lithographical process in which the circuit is projected on the silicon slices. In the adjacent phase - the front-end - the transistors and other components are being placed on the chip. ASML produces the back-end machines.
- Company Profiles - VanderLande
[Business] Although at first sight the business of this company may seem diverse, the products it offers all support only one process: distribution. "Vanderlande Industries is dedicated to improving its customers' business processes and competitive position by providing Automated Material Handling Systems. Our systems enable fast, reliable, labour-saving goods handling in distribution centres, express parcel sortation facilities and the manufacturing industry, as well as baggage handling at airports."
- Just Stick to Your Rules - Evidence From the Financial Crisis
[Business:Management] The first article I have written (1), is a concise summary of the book about the same subject: the parallel between investment management and business management. The idea is simple; in business management as in investment management managers are continuously seduced by information, new products, new market opportunities and other ideas and possibilities that come from the outside. In business management managers often hold on to a strategic plan which they design and continuously evaluate.
- Microsoft and Yahoo - Fatal Attraction Or - Finding Lolita?
[Computers-and-Technology] I Agree with Icahn, although I think that his idea is only to cash yahoo's value, where he doesn't bother about the new outcome; a takeover or merger amongst "equals." This view on a possible merger between the two is only concentrated on the cultural effect.
- Seven Reasons to Invest in Foreign Stocks
[Investing:Stocks] This week featuring in Business week: "Warren Buffett visited Frankfurt, Lausanne, Madrid and Milan to assess the investment possibilities of Europe's big family-owned businesses. He said he was not perturbed by the strong euro. Mr Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has so far made very limited investments outside the United States."
- Company Profiles - DSV
[Business] The core of this company profile is centered on mergers and acquisitions. DSV acquired - some say it was to be a merger amongst equals - the Dutch Frans Maas group.
- A Closer Look at the Hospitality Business (3)
[Business] Reservations are used in industries where capacity is at stake and where the distribution of capacity needs to be organized as efficiently as possible. Examples are: the airline industry, hotels and other recreational services like (Movie) Theaters, and also hospitals, although the reservation there is based on a previous screening. In all these cases the supply of capacity is offered by a differentiation of price which controls the stream of clients.
- What About This Feature For the Global Article Market?
[Writing-and-Speaking:Article-Marketing] This is a global market, people tell each other, and that is a good thing say others.
Where this global thingy becomes a bit of a problem is the article market. One reason I would consider to stop writing articles could be linked to this: not only the effort it takes me to think in a sort of American-Dutch-English requires too much energy I rather spend on something else.
- Thank God the Oil Price is Rising
[News-and-Society:Energy] Yesterday I noticed an advert of an automotive company that offered a maximum gas price when buying a new car. A cutting edge invention, I thought. If that won't help people to drive through the crisis what would help them?
- Do You Trust Your (Virtual) Bank?
[Finance:Personal-Finance] The credit crisis has challenged the stability of the financial infrastructure. In the end all is back to normal, but some banks' images have been damaged.
- Towards a Single Global Currency?
[Investing] Some initiatives or ideas count on direct acceptance. Then the problem is: who do we do it? Other ideas might be feasible but count on resistance from the day they get announced. A single global currency would fall in the second category for me.
- Company Profiles - Daimler AG
[Investing:Stocks] Daimler AG is a vehicle manufacturer. But there is quite a story about this company and its (brand) name.
- Galeazzo Ciano
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] From some biographies you only start to understand the meaning after reading a few chapters. The cover of the biography also helps to understand why the life of a man was important. In this case, it is no secret that the Count Ciano developed a (writing) habit that proved priceless for understanding the development of the (pre) World War II.
- Company Profiles - Cirsa
[Business] Cirsa is completely focused on gaming (machines). This company was founded in Barcelona in 1978 by Manuel Lao Hernandez. Today, according to the website, the company employs more than 12000 people, owns 200 subsidiaries and is present in more than 70 countries.
- On The Biofuel Debate
[News-and-Society:Energy] Every opinion on a subject is biased by your own background. On the biofuel debate, I tend to go for a contrary approach. There is so much resistance against bio fuel that I think, why don't we give it a go.
- Learning From Others' Mistakes
[Business:Change-Management] Learning is said to be very important. We need to learn continuously, because markets, organizations and technology, etc changes the way we were used to.
- System Integration - Organizational Issues
[Business:Management] A company's business must be organized. People are hired, some of which are contracted. Then there is a distinction between normal business and special projects. The latter brings additional resources management challenges. If the project is about implementing a large system that consist of component that have different suppliers, the project requires: system integration.
- If You Are Intelligent, You Don't Speculate
[Investing:Stocks] I often speculate with a limited amount of money, and in most cases I loose. When reading the profile of Jerome Kerviel I understood that he hadn't be noticed to be quite intelligent. He (rather) worked for many hours a day and was not exceptional being a trader. As I understood well, he lost a few positions and didn't accept this loss and dedicated to cover one position with the other which led to a pyramid of losses.
- About Biographies - Luciano Pavarotti
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] Many biographies about the life of Pavarotti has been written already. This one is from Roger Alier part of a series of biographies which got published by ABC in Spain.
- The Self-Help Paradox
[Self-Improvement] When rethinking this article and searching the web I found a book that was already published in 2003: the self-help paradox... There is another view on the self-help paradox.
- Business Architecture Of Hospitals - Part 8
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] One of the main topics in current hospital management is about risk management and specifically risks dedicated to infections. The main point in managing this risk is that all employees have a stake in managing this risk. Secondly, systems or tools can help to reduce the risk, but a system can not eliminate the risk nor held responsible for the risk.
- Understanding Culture - Drinking Beer Or Wine
[Food-and-Drink:Wine-Spirits] People often communicate about culture and problems in the culture of a company as a stand-alone item. Like it would be possible to change the culture leaving everything else untouched. That idea is wrong as will be explained by this metaphor of beer and wine drinking.
- About Biographies - Lula Da Silva
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] The biography on the life of Lula da Silva by Leonardo Diaz, is written in a chronological order. A very well chosen form.
- From Blogging To (Economic) Conversations
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Blogging] That blogging has changed journalism seems to be accepted all over. Of of the principles of blogging became possible by the development of internet as a new communication technology. Before the internet there was mainly a face2face communication, phone communication and the postal communication. E-mail came first and internet changed the last ten yours of our communications history.
- Julian Deathblow - Or - Changes In The Dutch Culture
[News-and-Society] You can judge the developments in a country by remarkable events. In Italy the return of Berlusconi is a sign that the country is in deep trouble, people hope that an previous hero / leader will be able to change the situation. In the Netherlands a recent incident sheds some light on the progress of cultural integration of various ethnic groups.
- Company Profiles - Avis
[Travel-and-Leisure:Car-Rentals] Warren Avis -- who died last year at an age of 92 -- was the founder of Avis Rent. "A decorated bomber pilot with the U.S. Army Air Corps in World War II, Avis formed his car rental company in 1946 at airports in Miami and Ypsilanti, Michigan, with an investment of $85,000 (£42,500).
- Company Profiles - Infineon
[Business] In 2000, the first reporting year, Infineon's annual report was written in a euphoric style: The company was "beating its sector," and reported a EPS of 1,83 against 10 cents for the previous year. The euphoria can be explained even more when we take into account more earnings data (the 10 cents in 1999 where preceded by -1,29, -0,16 and 0,19 in 1996). The revenue growth "outstripped the semiconductors sector. Volker Jung was chairman of the supervisory board, Ulrich Schumacher chairman of the management board.
- The Social Cost Of Chewing Gum
[Finance:Taxes] The idea behind this article is not really about chewing gum. The idea came when discussing a world famous investment approach. I don't think it to be very special but in particular reckoned that any company that looks like a winner or otherwise outperforms others in growth of profits, could end up with problems. Although many things remain the same, change affects most companies.
- A Symbolic Fire
[Real-Estate:Property-Management] Some incidents have a symbolic meaning. An recent example, perhaps not perceived as such, is the destruction of the architecture faculty of the University in Delft.
- History Of A Woman
[Book-Reviews:Fiction] "I'm being attacked by feminist, but the man end up worst in this book," says the author of "The history of a woman." (1). The translation, history of a woman, is probably not the right one.
- Company Profiles - NH Hoteles
[Travel-and-Leisure:Hotels-Accommodations] NH Hoteles differentiates itself from other hotels in their focus on business travelers. Hotels make up 93% of their business and real estate five percent. The company is trying to escape the dependency of its business on Spain and it diversifying quickly in other countries which it does by takeovers and autonomous growth.
- Company Profiles - Accor (2)
[Investing:Stocks] The services business is about vouchers. This represents only less than 10% of the overall business (11% according to the 2007 Annual report), but offers an interesting synergy with the hotel business.
- Company Profiles - Solvay
[Investing:Stocks] In the category "what stock to invest in," this article sheds some light on the chemical / pharma sector. In this case the company is: Solvay.
- Company Profiles - Accor (1)
[Investing:Stocks] Accor is a company in the hospitality business, a French chain of hotels. The company profile offered in this article, and the next where more details are shown, discusses some main characteristics of this company.
- Company Profiles - Sol Melia
[Travel-and-Leisure:Hotels-Accommodations] In 2006 Sol Melia (with an accent on the a) celebrated it 50th anniversary. Striking fact about this hotel chain is the ownership: it is a family business.
- Basques Against Basques
[Book-Reviews:History] Another useless killing a few days ago and the unofficial result of the recent elections in Spain offer a good opportunity to spend some time on this Basque problem that is part of Spain. "Basques against Basques" is a book that got published last year. Of course it has not been translated in another language than Spanish, and it probably will not either, but I think it is very interesting not only for Spain, but for Europe and the world.
- Time to Say "NO"
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Some people have under different circumstances difficulties in saying "No" to others. In organizations that is a frequent issue where employees or managers are sent to a training to dominate this competence.
- Company Profiles - Sanofi-Aventis
[Business] Back in 1999, Sanofi was the second largest pharmaceutical in France and number seven in Europe according to the 1999 annual report. Now the combined company is the number one in both France and Europe.
- Company Profiles - Abengoa
[Investing:Stocks] Abengoa is a company that has changed over the last years. The annual report of 2001 opens with "Abengoa, your partner in technical resources and solutions." The current Website shows: Abengoa, innovative solutions for sustainability."
- Business Architecture & The Formula One
[Business:Management] Another view on the importance of business architecture, different than The "Da Vinci case (1)," comes from the Formula One (Grand Prix). The Formula One offers a different but very interesting case as a parallel for business management. The Formula One is different from other sports much because of the vehicle.
- The Financial Crisis - Is It Really Over?
[Investing] In order to check or verify whether the financial crisis is over (on Wall Street) one might listen to worlds' most influential investors, like Warren Buffet. Or shouldn't one do so in this case?
- About Spain - Principles of Socialism
[News-and-Society:Economics] In the new PM's cabinet in Spain there have been quite some changes. Although the successful campaign and previous mandate the Socialist government is still in the lead. One portfolio in this cabinet didn't change. And that is of economic affairs, led by Mr. Pedro Solbes...
- About Spain - Change & The Economic Dilemma
[News-and-Society:Economics] Every model is an abstraction that adds noise to the communication. It's the risk of over-simplification. However, the advantage of a model is that it offers a starting-point for a discussion.
- Tribute to The Coach - Frank Rijkaard
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] I'm glad that I'm not the only one with a very limited memory. Some already blame Rijkaard for the "bad" results of the last two years on the league. But this year they ended second only After Real Madrid and last year too if I'm not mistaken.
- About Hitchcock's Biography Written By Donald Spoto
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] Hitchcock's biography written by Ronald Spoto starts with an anecdote in which a large gathering of people waited for Hitchcock to arrive to accept an award. This is in 1979 just before the death of the film director. In this way the book opens with a flashback.
- Business Architecture and Investments - D'Ieteren
[Investing] There are some real beautiful business examples out there. This is one of them. A valuable example of unique business architecture.
- Watching Stock Quotes (Without Acting) is a Waste of Time
[Investing:Stocks] Does this happen to you? You are connected to you online broker, you watch your portfolio, you observe stock-quotes but you do not change anything. You repeat this ritual every now and than. If you summarize this time, you have "invested" quite some time in just plain watching.
- The Function of Analysis
[Investing:Stocks] Many people who are dealing with investments know the following saying: paralysis by analysis. If people can be "paralized" by analysis, what would be the reason of that?
- Change & Buy - The-Winners Strategy
[Investing:Stocks] There are many different strategies to invest in the stock market. You may base your advice on a tip of a guru, or base a decision on technical or fundamental analysis. There is also a strategy that is called "buy-the-winners."
- Profile of a CEO - Gerard Kleisterlee - Part 2
[Business:Management] The problem of shareholder focus is also that the shareholders (or the market in general) has only a limited idea - a simple view - about complex companies. So, is the company perceived by the market? "What good is being in lighting and medical if your stock moves with the SOX semiconductor index?"
- Profile of a CEO - Gerard Kleisterlee - Part 1
[Business:Management] In the book "Let's make things better," Marcel Metze describes two important parts of the Philips organization. "The production division focused on the design, development and production of equipment. Philips is player in solutions for light, household and medical equipment.
- Profile of a Company Change - ACOMO
[Business:Change-Management] Previously the company name was Amsterdam Rubber. Good business names (1) are those where the name supports the meaning of the business. Amsterdam Rubber was a good name. The business however was dedicated to a market that was - unlike today - not very popular. Today, commodities like rubber are "hot."
- Booming Plastic Surgery, Booming Claims
[Health-and-Fitness:Beauty] In Malaga in the South of Spain, the number of estatic surgery operations increase highly. Growing numbers of middle-aged men embarking on second marriages are trying to turn the clock."
- The Risk of Opportunities
[Business:Management] Opportunities are situations where you (or the organization) has to respond quickly in a unique situation, not likely to happen again (soon). For instance. You walk in the street and before you know it you bump into someone who was talking on the phone and didn't notice you. In the "accident" some papers fall on the ground and you help the other getting them. "I'm sorry I wasn't paying attention..."
- The Business Architecture of Conglomerates - Acciona (Spain)
[Investing:Stocks] Conglomerates are companies with a diversified business (model). They were popular in the sixties when the investment approach was less specialized. In those days companies could improve the risk/return profile by diversifying the business with operations from other sectors. In that way the risk was reduced by a harmonization of revenues from different sectors.
- Productivity Profiles - The Ambassador
[Business:Productivity] The ambassador is productive at the background. This is one of the main features of the ambassador: he is a networker, someone who favors the "Silent diplomacy" but is in the end the one who will solve important conflicts. Without you knowing it.
- Productivity Profiles - The Architect
[Business:Productivity] The architect is one of the more versatile roles in the productive scenario. Versatile or not, to become an architect one has to study construction engineering. But that is only the start...
- How To Evaluate Values - An Example From A Pharmaceutical Manufacturer
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Having values is just not enough: it's this set of values and only this set that fits this organization. That what it communicates. very strong!
- How To Evaluate Corporate Values - An Example From The Field Of Logistics
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Corporate values can be evaluated. How would an organization do this? Imagine after a workshop there is a first set of values. And someone who has not been involved in the discussion is invited to check them. What criteria would he use? When are the values ok? And how do you know this?
- Productivity Profiles - The Nurse
[Business:Productivity] Being a nurse and famous seems like a contradiction. Florence Nightingale was both: nurse and famous. She was the daughter of the wealthy landowner...
- Made In China
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] YouTube -- what else -- shows a pro-china propaganda for the Tibetan occupation (1). And in some point they may be right. The west has it's own occupied regions... Some propaganda should be allowed. If countries would like to boycott the games they should also be able to do that. It is strange that despite the protest, there is no boycott announced by any country.
- Change & Investment - An Expected Increase in Future Revenues
[Investing] Another example of Company changes comes from AKZO Nobel. This company was "a conglomerate, a residue of a previous economic era when people thought that the different business parts would positively influence the whole company results and that investigations for one business unit might give positive results for other units. That was hardly the case.
- Sharing the Same Principles - Blogger and Journalist
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Blogging] In the ongoing debate on whether the blogging industry will change the face of journalism, on could wonder where the real change is to be found in this development. On several subjects bloggers offer more insight (information) than journalists that have to wait for official procedures in verifying sources and other procedures that delays the broadcast of the story. There are also in absolute terms much more bloggers than journalists.
- Business Architecture - The MS Yahoo Merger
[Business] If Microsoft succeeds in the takeover of Yahoo, what will that mean for business architecture of the new company? Some ideas...
- Change & Investment - An Expected Decrease In Future Revenues
[Investing:Stocks] Stocks are valued by profits, dividends and their growth-rate. And Investors in stock are risk-averse, or investors have a risk/return preference. When selecting a company to invest in (stocks) one criteria will be to but stocks with a stable (long-term) growth rate of earnings.
- The New Coach - What Can He Do? The Valencia Case
[Business:Change-Management] The productivity profile of a coach didn't include a very important issue: change. A coach is a manager of a team and responsible for the performance of the team. When a team is under-performing for some period of time, like was the case with Valencia, than the (new) coach is not only a coach but also a change manager.
- Corporate Values - Accountability
[Business:Management] To understand the corporate value "Accountability" imagine the role of the accountant in the organization. First a definition; a clear definition of accountability is available at Wikipedia: "Accountability is defined as "A is accountable to B when A is obliged to inform B about A's (past or future) actions and decisions, to justify them, and to suffer punishment in the case of eventual misconduct" To simplify the work of the accountant in the organization one could say that he or she registers all transactions that are done during the operation.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 7
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] The scene of surgery will change however. Medical specialists that operate with the robot will need constant practice. This is the same for normal surgery...
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 6
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) or laparoscopic surgery is already a field of surgery that is gaining from the traditional surgery... These "traditional" minimally invasive surgeries change the surgical method of the surgeon. But this change is minor to the change of the Robot-assisted surgery method of da Vinci.
- Da Vinci Inside
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] "Da Vinci Inside," is a simple metaphor to explain the importance of business architecture. We all know the the slogan "Intel Inside." The little sticker on new PC's and notebooks has a high promotional value. A simple sticker like that is a guarantee for quality. The buyer of a PC is now able to buy a notebook of an unfamiliar brand but still be confident that the quality is good enough. "Intel inside" equals: "quality".
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 5
[Health-and-Fitness:Healthcare-Systems] For the hospital it is important to be cost efficient, the suppliers wants to achieve growth in profits. The hospital must strive for independent solutions and investigations in this area. New innovations will change the scenario.
- What Does "Time = Money" Mean For A Standard Service?
[Business:Productivity] We all know the equation, time = money, but in the post delivery business they know this better than anyone. A few weeks ago I received a letter that took exactly 12 days to deliver. It was a normal A4 size of letter from a company.
- Productivity Profiles - The Coach - Part 4
[Business:Productivity] Fabio Capello is the last coach described in this article. Every coach develops an own approach as time goes by and experiences add up.
- What Kind Of (Virtual) Key Do You Use?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Security] What is your key? The internet is sometimes just like the physical world. To enter a building you need a key.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 4
[Business] This has both an operational as a strategic impact. ESRD patients are a group of patients that have a chronic disease. These require a different kind of attention than other patient-groups. To organize a hospital efficiently, the management must know what types of businesses have to be "channeled by" the organization. Besides patients with a chronic disease, there are patients that require urgent treatment, a traumatic-oriented service or other that have a rare disease which treatment can be planned together with the other operations.
- About Style - Leadership Circles
[Self-Improvement:Leadership] A Leadership Circles (LC) is an implementation of a management development (MD) program. Many companies work on such a program and LC's is a construction where the leaders are visible examples. One of the main characteristics is just this visibility.
- Productivity Profiles - The Coach (3)
[Self-Improvement:Coaching] The problem with style lies in the management of it. A style evolves like a rational consequence of a approach to solve a problem. In business the problem is to get the right performance, in sport it is to win. An approach to organize could be to focus on the "right way" on the process and procedures. But this doesn't automatically mean that the performance targets will be met.
- Productivity Profiles - The Coach (2)
[Self-Improvement:Coaching] What does a business coach do and what can they learn from sports coaches? This article explores some characteristics with examples in the area of football. In business, the manager adopts, amongst others, a coaching role, where he leads a team of managers or specialists.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals - Part 3
[Business:Management] Hospitals are complex organizations and that is mainly because of the complexity of the business. This article elaborates on this topic by focusing on a single element of the hospital business: the dialysis treatment.
- Business Architecture of Hospitals (1)
[Business] Before entering the business architecture of Hospitals, this article recapitulates some basics about business architecture, previously published. Business architecture is concerned with the way a business (as offered by a company) is build-up. The idea is that in order to foster a business, an organization is to use resources.
- Networking - Out Of Strength Or Weakness
[Business:Networking] Recently I stumbled upon the announcement of a new network / community, focused on investment advice. The network was open for all investment advisors. The first thing that came to my mind was: how peculiar the timing of this opening.
- When Nine-to-Five Is Not Enough
[Business:Workplace-Communication] As outlined in the article, Nine-to-Five is All You Need, such a confined schedule helps you to better organize activities and set priorities. But that is for you, personally, it is not necessarily true for the organization is a whole. Every organization has to deal with a healthy conflict of the individual requirements of the employee opposed to needs of the organization.
- Limitations Of A Cost-Benefits Analysis
[Business:Accounting] Cost-Benefit (CB) Analysis is a powerful tool to assess project initiatives or activities and to take decisions by using the outcome of the analysis. But there are disadvantages too.
- The Competitive Advantage Of Standards (OOXML Versus ODF)
[Business:Human-Resources] Standards and infrastructure are related. In most cases they provide boring discussions. Unless there is profits involved: the competitive advantage of standards.
- ZP's Women
[News-and-Society:Politics] Zapatero, the Prime Minister (and "ZP" in Spain) is the ultimate responsible for this new cabinet. His choice is quite unique but therefore not without risks.
- A Closer Look At The Hospitality Business (4)
[Business:Careers-Employment] Another FAQ in the hospitality business architecture is: how do all the individual hotels coordinate their work in a way that different hotels have the same image?... "That is not our style." Or: "that is not my style." How do you no that something is not your style?
- Sports and Innovation - The Formula One
[Recreation-and-Sports:Auto-Racing] Sport an innovation go hand-in-hand. Ice-skating is well known for its continuous renovations of skates, in swimming the suits gain on aqua-dynamics but what about the Formula One?
- The Economics of Pride
[News-and-Society:Economics] Pride has its influence on economics. It starts on a micro-economic scale. A (cultural) factor that must taken into account when making a macro-economic forecast.
- UEFA Quarter Final - Bayern - Getafe (3-3)
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] Rules define that in some situations an equal score (3-3) is sufficient to name a winner. But who was the real winner of this game? The powerful Bayern that played in a -- for their "status" -- mini stadium of 19.000 spectators, outside their own country against a less stronger opponent, or the home team supported by their King and others VIP supporters, in an underdog position?
- Business Architecture of Hospitals (2)
[Business:Management] Business Architecture starts with ... the building, but be careful, not to "interfere" with the real (physical) architecture. The type of building defines quite a lot of the organization in sense of logistics. Here too architects have copied from what they have seen before in other sectors. The pavilion model for example is also used to structure prisons, where each pavilion could accommodate different kind of prisoners, and respond in this way to different organizational requirements.
- Fresh Banking in Spain (2)
[Finance] Recently I read a "letter to the editor," in a local foreign newspaper. The British author couldn't understand how "things work here." in Spain. The subject was banking...
- Open Architecture - No Guarantee for Dynamics
[Business] Architecture is often used as a parallel for building and construction in other areas than the original physical environment. Architecture has an "accommodating" function; people can live and work because of the existence of buildings and infrastructure, etc. Thus, although buildings are fixed and static they can accommodate a...
- Productivity Profiles - The Actor
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Movies-TV] Today I heard about the death of Charlton Heston. In his biography I read that he became political active and that he was the president of the National Rifle Association...
- Your Own Space Odyssey
[Self-Improvement] This article is about space and about odyssey, not about the book 2001 -a space odyssey. The latter of the two terms can refer to the mythical Odyssey or to his journey. Your own personal space odyssey is about your personal quest for ... (more) space.
- A Closer Look at The Hospitality Business (2)
[Business] The idea behind business architecture is that every business has its own bridge to the organization. Every business is organized in the way that best fits that business...
- A Closer Look at The Hospitality Business (1)
[Business] Hotels offer interesting material for business architecture because its business is quite unique and if the business is unique the organization will be too. Besides this the architecture of one business may and often will serve as an example in another business. In this case, hotels are set as examples for hospitals, which have only recently turned into a more client focused approach.
- Freedom is Not a Corporate Value
[Business] Companies differentiate from other organizational forms like that of a Nation in the sense that either follow a different set of values. One of those values that is part in one (the nation) but not in most others (companies) is the value of freedom.
- Understanding this Amazing Spanish Culture
[News-and-Society:International] The Spanish economy is similar to that of the US in the fact that it is a consumption-based economy, rather than oriented to savings which is the Dutch economy. This fact is one of the contributions of a very interesting cultural element.
- From Nine-to-Five - That's All You Need
[Self-Improvement:Time-Management] I cannot remember the name of a Dutch minister who limited his work to a normal nine-to-five schedule. I've always found that intriguing. The more I think about it, the more I reckon it to be true; if you cannot do your work in eight hours, you are likely to set the wrong priorities.
- An Organizational Change Pattern
[Business:Change-Management] The following companies have very little in common at first sight: DSM, ING, Wolters. They are all multinational corporations but operating in a diverse number of sectors: (Bio) Chemicals (DSM), Finance (ING) and Business Publishing / Information providing (Wolters). Yet there is something interesting about their CEO...
- Profile of a (Book) Composer
[Writing-and-Speaking] The process of writing a book could be compared with composing. The composition of a song or more complex that of a symphony, for example. The parallel fits not completely because in composing the goal is to use the composition as a guide for distributing musical resources in the orchestra. The book composer writes with a single resource and not with the goal to use the work as a musical guide.
- A Unique Legacy - The Organizational Cell Concept
[Business:Management] A recurring element in Business architecture is "designing" the right organization for a specific business. Some types of business gets easier organized than others. In the end of the eighties there arose a new concept out of the bleu. Eckart Wintzen was the "architect" of the business and the organization. BSO - Buro voor Systeemontwikkeling - was the name of this Dutch company. It offered consulting services to other companies. And the organizational cel-concept was what made the organization unique.
- The Spanish Contribution to the Eurovision Songfestival
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Humor] When you live in a foreign country you need time to understand the culture. If you focus on the humor part of the culture you can come up with many differences easily. Not only the content part of humor can be different but also the form; what was popular in one culture can become popular in another but many years after. This is like paintings: some countries have shifted their focus to a new modernist style while others still prefer the classical form. The contribution to the songfestival shows that Spain is changing.
- Should I Leave or Should I Stay?
[Business:Change-Management] This is how most relations end: first you find someone "new," then you end an existing relation. More ethically would be to do it the other way around, but that is without taking into account one important element...
- The Cost of (Not) Socializing
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Everyone that goes to a pub, or any social event knows about the costs of socializing. As a Dutch I know this "hurts," therefore the Dutch probably invented "going Dutch." There is no rationality behind socializing. Some pay more than others but if you are going to check on this the event will lose its social character.
- The Investment Crisis - Where Are the Real Leaders?
[Investing] On the day - in the credit crisis dairy -- that Bear Stearns got saved by the US government, one might wonder where the real heroes are. Where are the real leaders amongst all those that have followed their financial neighbors?
- Portrait of a Change in Style - ING (2)
[Business:Change-Management] ING is changing under the management of CEO Michel Tilmant. The change is most of all a re-styling, but the impact is visible.
- Portrait of a Change in Style - ING
[Business:Change-Management] ING is changing under the management of CEO Michel Tilmant. The change is most of all a re-styling, but the impact is visible.
- The Island of the Five Lighthouses
[Book-Reviews:Fiction] Interesting about this book is its combination of content and form, it is a mix between prose and management literature. It start - in media res - where the protagonist has just finished a presentation and despite his effort and preparations he understands that his "message" wasn't received well. An old friend and professor conforms his feeling and tips him to visit the island of Menorca. He knows that his friend owns a house there. It's the island with the five lighthouses.
- Study on Change & Culture - The US Elections
[News-and-Society:Politics] This is a "macro" view on culture and change in a context of the elections in the US. The ingredients are limited to the importance of change and culture on a high level and the background of the candidate, not the message they carry. What will happen "135 years after?"
- Writing is Not Enough To Be Successful - Lulu Wang & The Purple Prose Award
[Writing-and-Speaking:Book-Marketing] Writers are a special kind of entrepreneurs in the sense that their work is not easy to separate from who they are. Writing is one, but being successful requires something extra.
- About Writing a Biography
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing] Writing a biography is a process. You start writing or gathering information in a chronicle way. That is the easiest way to start. But a biography has to add something to this timeline. Like a character in a novel you could ask where did he change? Or, did he at all?
- Corporate Values - Fairness
[Business:Management] Designing a set of corporate values requires at least knowledge of the business of a company and of the culture of the organization. It is then the task to align both by an appropriate set of values. By doing this you will notice that certain values fit one company whereas they are unsuitable for another.
- Business Architecture - Porsche and it's Relation with VW
[Automotive] Last Year the Stock of the company Porsche climbed from around 1300 euros to about a maximum of 1800 euro's. My first impression not supported by any knowledge was that the stock price reflected the architecture - most of all reduced to a single most element of the architecture: it's style - of the company. Many other companies would have split the stock so that the liquidity of the shares would improve, but - so I thought - this must be against the style of a company of such an image. The high price matches the uniqueness of the label Porsche and the elevated prices of its cars.
- Books I Would Like to Read - Chronicles of a Nomad
[Book-Reviews:Biographies-Memoirs] Chronicles of a nomad is a book I would like to read. It is from the Spanish author FRANCISCO LOPEZ-SEIVANE RUIZ. I was triggered by the book because of a program on CNN+ where the author was interviewed.
- The Spanish Sport Paradox
[Recreation-and-Sports] Gold in volleyball, silver in basket, gold in formula one, silver in tennis, hockey, etc, etc. The Spanish sport medals add up to an amazing collection year in year out. Except for ...
- After The Nobel Peace Price - What is Your Next Career Step?
[News-and-Society:Politics] Productivity is first of all about what you Do. There is no role description of a vice president but we can be sure that it is quite different than that of a environmental activist. The (vice) president is a trouble-shooter: an broker between all kinds of stakeholders...
- El PAIS is Changing
[News-and-Society] One of the leading newspapers in Spain "El PAIS" has changed its style, layout and content, from today onwards. The lemma of the newspaper is now - the global newspaper in Spanish (it used to be: independent morning newspaper). The impact of going global is felt at school...
- Xing and The (Stock) Value of Networking
[Investing] What is the stock value of networking? XING is a German company that is listed on the stock exchange since December 2006. The company itself is also an exchange that markets contacts.
- A Change in the Management Advice Approach - Online Management Advice
[Business:Management] The traditional advice approach is one where the advisor gets invited by a manager of a certain company. The advisor is presented to the various members of the management team or organization. He gets informed about the situation, becomes engaged in discussions after which the advisor will assemble the facts and creates an opinion about the problem and the most suitable solution.
- Management Advisor - Know Your Client
[Business:Management] The contribution of the external advisors in supporting companies (on business or organizational issues) is open to a continuous dispute. As a professional in that area I would like to contribute to that discussion with the following argument, advisors need to know more about their client.
- Eurobasket Final 2007 - The Decision of the Coach
[Recreation-and-Sports:Basketball] Another view on the Spanish team playing the final and how it was managed.
- Corporate Values - Honesty
[Business:Workplace-Communication] If you have this value in your corporate statement, this is what you should consider: get it out. First of all because it is a cliche. It has no real value because people will rate it low on credibility. Not only costumers will do this, but also employees will accept the value and than will not realize what it really means.
- Performance Management in a Service Environment - What Is Your Real Goal?
[Business:Customer-Service] There are many ways to evaluate the quality of a product... The quality of a service cannot be measured in the same way. The introduction of any system will have to serve a goal. What is you real goal when implementing Performance management?
- The Dilemmas of Sponsorship - Lessons From the Madeleine Case
[Business:Sales] The activity of Sponsoring is like the hedge funds business; it can be very rewarding, but it is not without risks. As the Madeleine example shows.
- Judging Websites - Necessity or Luxury?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] In the world of literature there are two parties; those who favor the canon and those who are against a central list of best books. In such a context; how would you rate the following initiative: Judging websites?
- Managing the Transition - Change From Work to Holiday and Back
[Business:Change-Management] Changes come in all kinds of flavors. One is where you detach your rhythm from work into the world of vacation... and back into work. A change is managed by a transition. In this transition you have to do all kinds of things. In case of managing a holiday you have to change your state of mind.
- The Roles Of A Manager - A Family Metaphor
[Business:Management] Where most people agree on when discussion the tasks of the manager it is that management is about... Then there is a people part, call it the people manager a term that has gone into disuse, where the manager communicates with - most of all - the team members... A model could help us out here, comparing the interactive role of the manager with the various roles in the family environment.
- The Impact of Collaboration on Productivity
[Business:Productivity] Collaboration is a concept that is more and more used these days in business, public and private space. What makes collaboration so special and - regarding change - what does it change?
- Reasons Not to Use Corporate Values
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Although a corporate value system can be of strong guidance, there are of course reasons to not use such a "system."
- Abstention - Is That How You Solve An Obsession?
[Health-and-Fitness] Some while ago I read an interesting interview with Susanna Tamaro, the bestselling author of "Follow your heart," a book I had read year before. Since then never heard anything about her really, until I stumbled upon the interview. I never knew that...
- Mergers in the Airline Industry - Effect on Air Planes
[News-and-Society] Not long ago Air France took over the Dutch airliner KLM. Currently Iberia is on focus by British Airways but also by Air France KLM, as rumors go.
- The Third Step in Sales
[Business:Sales] The third step in sales is about closing the contract.
- Focus On Corporate Values - Friendliness
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Values are a useful way to communicate a desired way of organizing, but they are also a source of conflict. Let's take this one, the first value expressed by a servicing company: Being friendly (more general stated as: friendliness).
- Change Versus Improve - Two Sides of the Same Coin
[Business:Change-Management] Always a good question to ask when dealing with a possible change is: Why? Why don't we improve instead?
- Increasing Return on Investments in Developing Countries - a Closer Look
[News-and-Society:Economics] The diminishing returns of investments in developed countries should turn developing countries into profitable investment opportunities, because in developing countries this relation is just the opposite; any new investment will generate increasing returns, because of the low level of investments.
- Some Effects of Translation on Culture
[Reference-and-Education:Languages] It must probably better to read a translation and understand a book than struggle with the original text and loose the essentials. You cannot do without translation.
This article is about situations in which translation is very common – like in Spain.
- How to Scope a Project
[Business:Management] This is for those who experience finished budgets before the project delivery. This happens when you fall from one situation into the other. Especially with maintenance. You start with a simple remodeling and you see more and more things to improve and change.
Making a planning is a first step in protecting your budget. But a plan requires a scope. The scope tells you what is "in" and what out of scope.
- Is the Tour de France Ready For a Change?
[Recreation-and-Sports:Cycling] Change is needed when current measures are no more showing affect. Change is also needed when there is a continuous unsatisfying situation. Change also requires a first step. The first step is often set by a leader. A leader who is willing to change the situation, or at least who is willing to set a first step.
- Pay-Per-Use - Do You Think it is Fair?
[Business] You observe a change. Instead of paying per offer (timeslot) you now pay-per-use. And you will think, "he, this is fair." But do you know whether the price you pay is fair at all, including this last pay-per-use change? No, you can't know this for sure.
- The Productivity Behind Flexibility - Remodeling Your House
[Home-Improvement:Remodeling] Have you ever remodeled your house? Normally this includes the top two changes; that of a new kitchen and bathroom, but there is more. Especially when you have got an old house and your urge to make changes in the living room is limited by the number of available wall plugs, or the restriction of changing the location of the washing machine because there is no water available in other rooms.
- Zen and the Art of Swimming Pool Maintenance
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Philosophy] One way to explain philosophy is to see it as a way of life. A simple swimming pool serves very well as an example of the art of and complications in life.
- How To Inculcate Values Upon Your Children
[Home-and-Family:Parenting] A parent is one of the most important leaders in the world. Think about it, you are able to improve the world by giving the best example to your kids so that they will be better children. Too good to be truth? "Children Learn What They Live," is a book written in 1972 by Dorothy Law Nolte and Rachel Harris...
- Business Architecture - The Article Publishing Example
[Business] Business architecture is about understanding the main characteristics of any business. The objective is to understand what makes this business special and valuable. This example is about the article publishing business.
- Partnership as a Change Example
[Business:Change-Management] There are many examples in which situations change. Like the merger or partnership in business. This will impact the organization. To understand such an impact of a partnership between two companies think of a marriage (or a look-alike).
- Leadership and Leaving University Before Graduation
[Self-Improvement:Leadership] Culture is often an important factor in success. The entrepreneur however who is starting a business can not profit from culture because there is none when starting up. Culture starts with a group.
On the runway to an entrepreneurial business, the cultural background however is relevant. Let’s focus on the role of the university.
- The Sales Advantage of The Internet Shop
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Ecommerce] There is something interesting about the sales process on the net. Where do you find the hidden advantage of the internet shop?
- Change - Accept the Loss of Productivity
[Business:Change-Management] One reason why people do not like change is that they will loose productivity when going into a change or transformation. A change is like stopping the car, looking back evaluating the distance traveled, before hitting the road again in a slight new direction. The stop causes an emotional discomfort, "knowing" that if you would have continued you might have reached your destination earlier.
- About Spain - Things That Will Never Change
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] The leader of the Basque country, Ibarretxe, claimed that Picasso's Guernica should be "repatriated" to the Basque country. This simple (and rephrased) fact is the trigger for this article.
Spain is full of surprises, but somethings do not change.
- Change - Make Sure You Have Got a Good Excuse
[Business:Change-Management] Any change must be communicated. Some managers tell a story others show facts and either of them serves as a message to others to rationalize the change. Even if the reason is purely emotional, there must always be a story. But a story alone is not enough...
- Changing To a Service Oriented Approach- An Example From Logistics
[Business:Change-Management] The main business process of logistics is typically a product oriented approach. Delivering a package could already be seen as a service. But more will change for a real service oriented approach.
- The Drivers' Metaphor - Are You a Good Manager?
[Self-Improvement] When comparing business with sports you can derive insight in the way to win, to compete, to get to the top (mountain expedition)... To understand the essence of management another type of metaphor is helpful, for example the drivers-metaphor; a manager needs to steer, lead a direction, accelerate, fuel team with incentives to get into a next gear...
- Rules of the Game - The "De Juana" Case
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] There is a frequent used dimension in cultural analysis which is about the way in which status is attributed... This cultural dimension serves companies in their quest for excellence. Many companies have banned seniority (status on age and experience) for something as performance management.
But there is another area in which this cultural dimension could be applied to explain and investigate how rules are derived and how governance is formed. In this exercise the focus is on the status of a dangerous ETA terrorist in Spain: "De Juana:"
- Productivity Profile of A Teacher
[Business:Productivity] To understand the productivity profile of a teacher a first thing to look at would the characteristics of the salary. There is no "market" salary. The service the teacher is offering is not to...
- Business Architecture and Influences From the Financial Market
[Business] "I explained the accountant why this difference occurs." An entrepreneur is explaining the mismatch in the books for which the accountant was reluctant to sign off the final statement. "but he didn't understand me... this guy knows everything about margins and other ratios but he is not open to understand how my business really works." In his first book, "Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture," Venturi posed the question, "Is not Main Street almost all right?" Sometimes it is alright, but for who?
- The Influence of Flexibility on Productivity
[Business:Productivity] When a manager demands an employee a more flexible attitude, will this have impact on the productivity level of the employee? And in which situations is this reasonable?
- Corporate Values - An Example From an Investment Company
[Business] A Corporate Values statement can be assessed by using a few criteria. One such a criteria is the way in which these values match the characteristics of the company. It makes sense when different types of companies value other behavior. Therefore to understand the meaning of a corporate values statement you should first look at the type of company. In this case we are dealing with an investment company.
- Understanding Spain - Just Take it Easy
[News-and-Society] There is a saying in Spain that says: Tomorrow is the busiest day of the week. I think it is beautiful invention. It conveys a certain joy to life. Life is already difficult enough so let's not be too serious about it. Take it easy.
This is a beautiful example were things are taken easy ...
- Business Management - How to Become More Flexible?
[Business:Change-Management] The issue of being flexible concerns both individuals as companies or organizations. It is a very extensive topic. To understand the basics about the issue, think about a personal topic, like the summer holidays. Have you already arranged everything or do you wait until the last minute. Flexibility is linked to choice and tradeoffs: A choice regarding time, money and features. The purpose of becoming more flexible is to serve ... change.
- Change - More Than a New Construction
[Business:Change-Management] A popular instrument to achieve change is the introducing of a new construction. This can be anything like a new building, a new product, a new system or even a new law.
But is the construction on itself enough to fulfill the change?
- How to Deal with the Reactive Versus Proactive Dilemma?
[Business:Entrepreneurialism] A reactive style, whether personal or business wide, is a reasonable choice for organizing activities. The main idea behind this style is that the agent waits for a trigger before acting. Such a method is quite "safe" because resources are "saved" until they are really needed. However, it could also become more expensive to wait for the last minute.
- Managing Change - By Analysis of Rituals
[Business:Change-Management] Rituals are an easy target when dealing with change; they are visible and provide an extra example of how the organization works. Therefore when including the analysis of rituals in a change program you will gain an extra source of control to manage the change.
- The End of - (Six Sigma) Before You Follow-Up the Advice
[Business] In A recent BusinessWeek issue if found the title: “the end of the Six Sigma culture?” In short, the article related the former success stories of six sigma with a current demand for creativity which didn’t result in a support for Six Sigma.
When reading such a title you might think, "ok, if no longer Six Sigma, what then?" What will follow? But you could also think; "does this (negative six sigma advice) affect us at all?"
- Visions on Change And Then the First Step - An Example From (Internet) Telephony
[Business:Change-Management] Technology provides often a source for change. But also, technology is responsible for the fact that changes do not happen as swiftly as possible. And one main ingredient in this dilemma is that existing technology is still suitable. Like the pair of shoes that are still valuable to use, they are only out of fashion.
- Corporate Values in The Spotlight - Respect
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Corporate values can help organizations and management of these in the task of organizing. The first step in doing so is finding those values that matter. This is not a simple task because there are many different organizations and there are even more values to “choose” from.
Some values are focused on behavior... "Respect" is one of them.
- Teamwork And The Importance Of Documenting
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Documentation is an important task in the organization. Those who ever watch television series like CSI know that documentation is important. Documenting the crime scene is one of the first steps in solving a crime. The goal of doing this is very simple - by documenting data and information during such a process...
- Profile of a Book Reviewer
[Writing-and-Speaking] I hope you found this review of the reviewers' role helpful, especially for the productivity part which deals - like many roles in the productive process - with the question - WHAT am I doing exactly?
- Corporate Identity - The Relation Between Culture and the Company's Product
[Business] All larger companies and all those who have been in the market for several business cycles are prone to an (identity) crisis. Corporate identity and the product of the company are related. This is quite important when dealing with change.
- Corporate Values or How to Manage Employees by a Simple Guideline
[Business:Workplace-Communication] The way in which corporate values are described tells a lot about a company. And therefore they offer some valuable information to guide the organization. A simple set of four to five values describe much of the priorities and preferences in the organization. The first value is the most important. Here is an (another) example:
- The "New" Seven World Wonders Contest - Does Alhambra Need a Push?
[News-and-Society] In this fierce battle each and every country is shipping its best marketing budget to the game. One country is shouting harder than the other. And the accidental tourist and potential visitor will ask – who will win? Will Alhambra climb on the podium of the worlds seventh wonders?
If politics is in the game and comparing this contest with the last Nobel it very well could be...
- Solving a Health Problem - Is Your Government Becoming Too Heroic?
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] This is a question about architecture? It is about whether the role of your government fits the society it is managing. And a specific example is what limitations a government has to face in solving healthcare problems.
- Tourism in the South of Spain - The Shift to Quality
[Business] Some changes that appear to be very complex are driven by very common principles. Take for example the shift to quality tourism in Spain, how does this process gain momentum?
- Beyond the Facelift - How Fundamental is Your Change?
[Business:Change-Management] One of the reasons why companies often favor young people over more experienced employees is that these less experienced workers are more easy "to..."
- About Article Markets (and Air-Miles)
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] What would be a good way to compare the article market with using something we already know? The metaphor of a currency market is not quite accurate. The metaphor of airmiles seems to fit better...
- Exploring Culture in Spain - The "Costa del Sol"
[Travel-and-Leisure] Take a moment of your time and wait near a traffic light. Then observe the pedestrians. On the "Costa del Sol," you will find out that people cross the street not bothered by the color of the light. Observe again and see for yourself that...
- Productivity and the Success of a Project
[Business:Productivity] It is a wide spread secret that many business projects fail or never meet their original deadline or plan and are only saved because of a continuous and renewed budget increments.
There are many factors that contribute to the success of a project or the failure of the same. This viewpoint of this article is about project success and productivity.
- Business Architecture & Management of a Competence Center
[Business:Management] Organizations are just like architectural buildings a way to manage activities. Religious activities require a "church," recreational activities require most of all space, but in general the form that is chosen for the building will shape the way in which the activity is performed. Imagine an Olympic swimming final in a pool with a length of just 25 meters. Serious activities require a serious form, in this case 50 meters. Just as in business. But the same (serious) form might also cause friction.
- Productivity Shifts - From Police Officer to Reporter
[News-and-Society:Crime] The introduction of mobile phones changes our lives. A mobile phone makes it possible to shorten the distance and the time to communicate. More recent versions of mobile phones are enhanced with cameras. These features make new changes possible in society. By using a camera someone is able to record and later to report an incident that otherwise would never have been possible on such a large scale.
- About Spain: 11 - Your Lucky Number
[News-and-Society] The Game industry but specifically the lottery is a core element in the Spanish culture. Most popular lotteries are the state lottery “the big one” (el Gordo) and "the child" (el Niño) which pay the highest premium. One organization plays a central role in this environment.
- On Culture - Amateur Versus Professionals (1)
[News-and-Society] Internet (web 2.0) is changing the world. Communities and most of all the Blogs are one source of change. This is affecting journalism. Blogs have entered the journalist stage and their contributors could be described as the amateurs in contrast to the professional and the incumbent market that is sourced by (real) journalists.
- Author or Authority (And Who Cares)?
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing] This is a serious title on a serious topic. Author or Authority is a question to be respond by the client.
- Tribute to a Goalkeeper
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] The UEFA league final played last Wednesday was a real excitement; only in the last five minutes Espanyol scored the equalizer. Penalties were required to select the Cup winner. The role of the keeper was apparent, unlike most of the time however.
- Improve Communication - Focus on Core Qualities
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Sometimes we do not listen to someone else, because of a simple reason; Something in the message triggers us and makes that the content of the message gets lost whereas the attention gets focused on all those futile things around it. This is a pity because communication is the oil of the organizational motor; insufficient communication will make the engine slow down. There are simple "tricks" that will help you find a positive side.
- Profile of a (Commercial - Central - World) Bank
[News-and-Society:Economics] Banks play a mayor role in the overall economic productivity, without really producing anything. Therefore a bank is quite unique. And powerful. In order to increase productivity the bank intermediates between those who have too much (savings) and those with a current lack of means. Savings are potential investments and a bank is key in making these productive.
- Morning Rituals - How to Start Your Day?
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] Transitional rituals are those rituals that are called in to support a transition. Marriage is such a transitional ritual and so is the (fe)male bonding night before. The function is to help with a fresh start and to end a previous stage. A same kind of ritual could help you start a new day. You need to do only two things, finish the previous day (night) and energize yourself for the new one.
- On Corporate Culture - It's the CEO
[Business:Change-Management] The CEO of a company represents a company's culture. Important –- regarding change -- is whether the role of the CEO is more that of a manager who is safeguarding the current culture or one who is leading a (cultural) change.
- Anatomy of an Information System
[Computers-and-Technology] Systems and most of all information systems invade our personal and or business lives. This simple overview could be used to understand some basics about systems and their place in an organization.
- Introduction of a PDA in a Restaurant
[Business:Productivity] A PDA -- personal digital assistant -- is a system that makes it possible to increase to overall productivity of an organization. A restaurant is only one place where the tool could be used. The introduction of a PDA in a restaurant will impact the organization in various ways.
- Identity - Change and Propensity to Influences
[Self-Improvement] There are many categories in music; mainstream or the various roots and all the new branches that branch out continuously. But there is also something interesting about listening to music and hearing tones:
"Perfect Pitch or Absolute Pitch is the ability to recognize tones without first hearing any reference tone. A person with perfect pitch can tell you whether a note is F, Eb, C# by recognizing the inherent quality of the individual tones-
- An Example of Nearly Unobservable Changes in Life - Walking Speed
[News-and-Society] Some changes are measurable but because of their gradual character it requires years to notice the change - a study that investigated the pace at which Bach’s music was played over the decades. It appeared that the younger-
- Sun Exposure - Balancing Short- And Long-Term Satisfaction
[Health-and-Fitness] There is a lot of hidden wisdom in habits and customs. One such a habit is where local Spanish inhabitants leave the beaches around lunchtime and return at five. The logic behind this rhythm is that by avoiding the most dangerous period of sun-exposure, you could save yourself some significant health problems. That is one way of understanding culture: how large groups have handled the risks of nature. And one risk of nature is still present: sun exposure.
- The Manager's Productivity Profile
[Business:Productivity] A manager - and in a slightly different setting also the team leader or project manager - needs to operate in four management areas. Each with its own characteristic and challenges.
- Dress Code in Business - Some Considerations
[Business:Ethics] On one end of the dress-code dimension we find the Iranian measure in which women are fined if they do not use their veil. A measure that got introduced only recently. The other end of the dress-code discussion is the complete freedom that some tourists exhibit when visiting a sacred building. In business you need to choose a side; somewhere on the wing of total freedom or just on the other side of the center imposing a simple code.
- A + B - N (AMRO) Bank
[Investing] The investment market is like the dating marke- the ugly little duck can turn into a desirable prince(s) after someone has given it some attention. And what happens next, all of a sudden the former duck gets surrounded by a chain of new admirers. They all want her. Or him.
Currently on the scene is- ABN AMRO.
- The Second Step in Sales
[Business:Sales-Management] The second step in sales is quite simple. It is about the immortal on-liner...
- Productivity Profiles – The Coach
[Business:Productivity] ... The main objective for these coaches is to increase the productivity of the manager or team. Doing so, the coach can only make one mistake as far as productivity is concerned. Avoiding that one will automatically help the coach in achieving its goal.
- Standardizing the Mobile Phone Connectors - The Korea Case
[Communications:Mobile-Cell-Phone] The Korean government ... issued a standard that mobile phone adaptors should share a universal connector. Unregarding the brand of the phone, providers will have to comply with a universal connector. This seems a very wise decision of the Korea government. "Japan and China are said to follow this example soon."
- Change Lessons From Slaughterhouse Five
[Business:Change-Management] Some changes happen because of some incident or accident. Someone got fired because of an unforeseen reorganization. How do you handle such a change? Do you pursue a revenge or will you search for a new way for your life?
- Change - Just Do It!
[Business:Change-Management] Changes with an overseable impact are best suited with a "Nike" approach: Just do it. Only in a few cases where you have made a big miscalculation you will end up with more problems than you started with. But in most other situations you benefit from the speed and can run swiftly through the resistence...
- Managing Between The Process and The Output
[Business:Management] One of the main roles of a judge in a trial is to defend the (fair) process. The judge has only a minor influence in the outcome (or result) of every trial...
Business management is much more output driven. This is because people know WHAT they want and this knowledge is a bases to guide the management process. Specification of the output is the main ingredient in project management, but also for operational management.
Yet it is not always clear how this output should look like. Then What (or How)?
- Indicators - From a Personal Source
[Finance] Indicators as useful in the decision taking process. There are many publicly available indicators. Others have a more private source and are not public availability. You can personally derive these indicators...
- Another Truth About Persistence
[Self-Improvement:Success] "An investment is a speculation that has failed." This is a stock-exchange truth: people who think to turn rich overnight by speculating will end up with an investment portfolio they hold-on to because they are not willing to take the short term loss. They defend their investment "strategy" with the slogan: "This is a long-term investment."
How would this parallel suit the persistence discussion?
- The First Step In Sales
[Business:Sales-Management] Most if not all sales processes consists of three steps. The first one is a very simple one. It is such a basic step that many tend to forget to use it. Even in a normal communication process this activity is also required, but often source of confusion when the complete step has been skipped or ignored. But whether it is the internal sales process, communicating the goals and activities to pursue or the external sales process, it starts with...
- Corporate Claim Culture - Benefit or Burden?
[Business:Change-Management] Are you wondering why (utilities) companies are so reserved in providing information? More than once I asked (facing an incident) whether “there has been a problem with the central, or ..." I always got the answer, “not that we know of, but please tell me your problem."
- Culture And the Success Behind Mergers
[Business:Change-Management] If you are searching for television drama with a hospital ambiance, there are quite some options. At least two compete for the viewer: "Gregory House" and "Grey's anatomy." Both series serve this article about mergers and culture.
- Your Not-To-Do List
[Self-Improvement:Organizing] Picture yourself entering a supermarket, with a to-do-list. In a mechanical way you hit the rows and grab the items that are on the list. On your way out you think quickly whether you have left something out, but you can think of anything...
- Company Policies - Guiding Clients And The Internal Organization
[Business:Management] "A policy is a plan of action to guide decisions and actions..."
Policies are useful when you are dealing with structural changes. A government for example might want to guide the continuous traffic problems in the big cities knowing that traffic will grow and space will become scarcer.
- Will Fresh-Banking Survive In Spain?
[Business:Change-Management] This article is about Change. About a change that will, or will not happen. Resistance is one of the main players. Spain is changing rapidly and so is banking in Spain. There is already more competition due to the arrival of internet banking a few years ago (Bank Inter). But so far the competition has been dominated by local banks. Just think how it was fifteen years ago:
- System Design Principles - All-In-One Versus Best-of-Breed
[Computers-and-Technology:Software] Complex systems are often designed by using simple rules and principles. One (of many) such an organizing principle is about choosing a All-in-One Approach or the other - Best-of-Breed design.
- A Performance Management View On Tipping
[Business:Customer-Service] In this view the idea of tipping is compared with performance management. The client is the one who evaluates the performance. And as tipping is often used in restaurants and bars, the client is the customer who is receiving the service.
- Backwards Compatibility - Are You Prepared To Bear The Costs Of All Those Innovations?
[Computers-and-Technology] Everyone who has recently bought a new (version of a) operating system may encounter this: after installing your new operating system or buying a new notebook or PC one or more external devices do no longer function properly. In best case you will have to buy new software in the worst case new equipment.
- A Normal Product Life Cycle - Some Examples
[Business] A product consists roughly of two main elements. The function of the product – what it does or is capable of doing and the usability of the same: how it does it.
Product developments starts often focusing on the first element. Compare for example the evolution of the windows operating system. When the first windows (95) arrived...
- Your Investment Approach - Is It or Is It Not the Economy?
[Investing] Investing in the stock market it like canoing on a river, "just go with the flow". Some tracks are easy but you never know whether to encounter a steep waterfall just after the next turn.
"It's not only the economy stupid," heads the economist explaining that the recurring controversy about what is leading – the cause of a decline – remains until today unsolved. There are two camps. Some who argue that...
- That Special Thing About Communication... What Was It Again?
[Business:Workplace-Communication] We all know what communication is. Because we all know the theory and example from school... a sender, a receiver a channel and the message. Than there is noise and interference, interpretation, etc etc. All true.
But there is one characteristic of human communication that if often forgotten. And that is the very simple rule that communication...
- Organizing And Reorganizing Your Business Process
[Self-Improvement:Organizing] It is often difficult to understand the differences between those two concepts - the organization on one hand and the business process on the other. But basically the business process is the result of the way that activities are organized - through the construction of a formal organization. The (business) process is focused on stock and flow of artifacts and the other (the organization) is centered around resources, like...
- A Game of Will Power - Government Versus Terrorist
[News-and-Society] Picture this. You are driving your car in a one-way street - in the right direction - and all of a sudden there appears another car, driving right at you. There is no space to turn. You stop your car and wait until the other puts his in the back-gear. But this does not happen. You wait some more and notice that the person behind the other steering-wheel signals you to go back- What do you do?
- Your Networking Profile
[Business:Networking] There are many reasons why people network. With the four situations and characteristics that are described here you are able to check your network profile.
- Implementation of the Purchase Process: Partnership or Supplier
[Business] Do you recognize this. You arrive at the store for a new mobile phone and just the model you had targeted is not available... It is a simple example, but stock delivery could make all the difference in you business. For different part of the purchase process you may choose either a supplier or a partnership.
- Motivation to Enter the War Zone
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] Clint Eastwood recently produced two films about the second world war, one from the viewpoint of the American soldiers (Flag of our fathers) and the other - letters from Iwo Jima, from the side of the Japanese soldiers... one very interesting motivator ... showed up in the comments about this film.
- Breaking News: an Interview With the Devil
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] An opinion about the publication of an "interview" with a supporter of terrorism by the British Times.
- Climate Change – Your Next Step
[News-and-Society:Environmental] Those who turned of the lights for five minutes should contemplate a next step. What will it be?
- New Business Development and a Change in Style
[Business:Small-Business] There are many ways to develop new business. In this example a transport business complements its activities with storage. The new business however requires a new approach. A new style. Much of this comes from the kind of activity. Something you should take care of.
- Maintenance: A Change Opponent
[Business:Change-Management] There are many activities that oppose to change initiatives. Maintenance is one you probably wouldn't reckon to fit the profile, yet it is a very powerful element fighting change propositions. And possible without the intention of doing any harm.
- Time Management & Leaving Home At The Right Time
[Self-Improvement:Time-Management] Do you recognize this? You are in a hurry. You rush to arrive at time, but unfortunate the traffic is heavier than expected and no matter how you push things you are to miss an important meeting. So what happened? It is very simple: you left home too late. But than comes the real question. Why?
- Infrastructure - Enabler of a Higher Productivity
[Business:Workplace-Communication] But there are other infrastructural elements much closer to home, think about the maintenance of your website and the role of an infrastructure. This is not about hosting but the simple use of a style sheet, the small css-file a template which is used by all other web pages.
- A Productivity Profile – The Referee
[Business:Solo-Professionals] A game is where opponents meet in a confrontation with the objective to beat the other party for example by finishing the game with the highest score. The referee is a professional who is in charge to check whether the rules are followed by both parties. Two main elements make whether the referee is succesful during the game.
- Climate Change Awareness (February the 1st From 19:55 – 20:00 CET)
[News-and-Society:Environmental] The Climate Change issue needs individual commitment, and awareness is a first step: "February the 1st From 19:55 – 20:00 CET"
- How to Integrate as an Immigrant – Your First Year
[News-and-Society] How do you manage your life in a new culture? Part of the answer is to do with integration. This is a serious topic. In a time where migration flows become larger and larger integration become more of an issue. But let's have a look at the individual case, not the large flows of people, but one person or family that gets to live in a new country, city, home and in this new neighborhood.
- The Information Highway Metaphor - Where Does It (not) Fit the Scene? (2)
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] This part of the article focuses on the main differences.
The debate that there is not enough bandwidth and that the information highway requires a lot a investments is difficult to verify. Who knows, perhaps this whole idea of traffic jams on the net is only a invention of the cable and phone suppliers to trigger some new money flows.
Another difference is that the problem with the physical infrastructure is national or global, whereas the internet challenges are local. Only the connections from the ‘backbone’ (the city) to your home require high investments; as others call this
- The Information Highway Metaphor - Where Does It (not) Fit the Scene? (1)
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] The highway metaphor is often used and one of the best metaphors. This article elaborates by digging into the differences and similarities.
- A New Consumer Law in Spain-Not Only Protecting The Consumer
[Legal] There is a new consumer law in Spain. Finally. But think about it; laws are reactive – first there is the incident, then the law to prevent the future ones.
First the incidents. What is the problem?
- The Traffic Shift - The Impact of Article Writing on Your Site Traffic
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Traffic-Building] There is still a lot to find out about the impact of article marketing and the traffic that it will generate to your site. Quite obvious is the shift in your site traffic from writing articles...
- Productivity Profiles - Blogger Versus Journalist
[Business:Solo-Professionals] The rise of blogging has not really changed journalism yet, but will keep on influencing journalism. The autonomy of the journalist is at stake and cooperation with the blogosphere will be a new requirement...
- Extend Your Day By Introducing A Siesta
[Self-Improvement:Time-Management] The word "siesta" is used for describing the time off between two and five in which many traditional shops, beyond the influence of the big cities, close in Spain. The other siesta is the time right after lunch in which many people still take a nap. This latest siesta is the topic of this article. And it is efficient unless...
- A Productivity Profile - The Accountant
[Business:Solo-Professionals] A productivity profile is an overview of some main characteristics of - in this case the productivity of the accountant.
- Should You Be More Explicit When Managing Change?
[Business:Change-Management] Should You be More Explicit When Dealing With Change? A simple question with two simple answers.
- Internet - Differences Between Real-Time and Online
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] "Online" in Business means that a visitor of a website is able to use the functions that are offered through the same website. Examples are: A contact form or the subscription to an e-mail newsletter...
- A Change Dilemma – Do I learn Too much?
[Business:Change-Management] Change and learning are highly correlated. Think about it:
We learn at school and we change. This is a gradual change. The process of learning makes that we open up and see new possibilities we previously not imagined. We continue to learn at high school or university and there we change even more. The knowledge that we have gathered becomes a powerful source with which we can select what we want.
- The First Five Years of the Euro - A Positive Evaluation
[News-and-Society:Economics] The relatively new European Currency - The Euro - has just passed its first five years' lustrum. Five years for a new currency is not enough to elaborate a full evaluation because that would require a longer existence to analyze the development over a mayor economic cycle of about eleven years.
Yet a concise evaluation shows anything but a negative outcome for the Euro.
- Negotiating With Basque Terrorists - Yes or No
[News-and-Society:Politics] Should a government negotiate with terrorists? This has been a debate in Spain for at least the last months.
NO, says the Popular Party – Yes, is the actual situations, leaded by President Zapatero. However, due to the latest situation this turned to NO too. President Zapatero has stopped all dialogue with the Basque Terrorist Organization.
- Change and the New Years' Resolutions - Keep It Short
[Home-and-Family:Holidays] For the celebration of a change there exists the transition ritual. Well-known are the student Rags. Transitions rituals serve to overcome or to guide a change. The importance of a change ritual is that it attracts attentions to the change and this increases the commitment of the stakeholders.
The New Years Resolutions are part of such a change ritual. If you have prepared these, make sure that you are able to manage them, and that is by-
- Man (40) Looking For a Change
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] There was this series on the television called thirtysomething picturing the roundabout of men (Michael, Elliot and Gary) and women (Hope, Ellyn and Melissa) in their thirties. Although there are some alterations during those years related to work and private life, the real changes come often when you turn 40. The two main elements that drive many (other) changes are both present...
- The Serrano Ham Ritual
[News-and-Society] One aspect of the ham ritual is the analysis of the quality of the ham. You will learn soon differences between ham from a male and a female pig and that the 'black hoof' (Jamon Iberico - Pata Negra) is categorized as... But the main ritual around the ham is not the quality nor the price. It is about what I would call "tapas at home."
- An Additional Challenge For The Article Writer
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] An additional challenge when writing articles is not to do with the amount of articles to write, nor with the quality of each individual article, but with something else. Think of your article production as a business. What is then very important?
- The Economy in Malaga – Too Much Eggs in One Basket
[Real-Estate:Investing] The variation in economic activities in Malaga is limited. The construction sector absorbs thirty percent of the internal product. Tourism is traditionally the most important sector in Andalusia and even more important in Malaga. This means that two economic sectors represent more than the half of the economic portfolio in Malaga, and... any economy that is based merely on two sectors is vulnerable.
- How To Manage Long Term Environmental Influences (1)
[Business:Change-Management] The environment is the number one change driver; either for your personal change “program” or for organizational moves. The environment brings the necessary conditions for change. But on short term there seems no need...
- Xing to the eXchange
[Investing] Xing is going to the exchange. The IPO is planned for the seventh of December. This means that there already is a demand for the company’s stock on the financial market. To predict the development of the stock price however would be speculative. Yet are there some indicators of a near future development of the stock?
- Working For A Salary - Why Not?
[Business:Team-Building] You probably know them too, those sites, people or opinions against the concept of a (monthly) salary. Some argue that there are much better ways to earn a living and that people should get paid for their real contributions; either per brilliant idea, the amount of sales they bring in, or any other contribution to the organization. But besides the fact that most people are satisfied with this fixed monthly income (although perhaps not with the amount) the function of a salary is more important than you might imagine.
- The Budget of Your Personal Values
[Finance:Budgeting] Statistics from the personal values assessment reveal an interesting fact that fits human behavior. It is all to do with the budget principle and the incompatibility to comply with this principles. We all know the reasons - we want too much and we are not always able to make choices.
- Goal Setting And Productivity
[Self-Improvement:Goal-Setting] The way you set your goals influences your productivity, or your productivity choices influence the way you set your goals. Some goals are related to quantities, others have a quality dimension and often you are dealing with either of them. There are two types of goals
- Points System & Fraud - The Drivers License Example in Spain
[News-and-Society] Systems are used to control a situation. A pension system is designed to control the pension payments, a points drivers license system is used to control traffic and safety. The idea behind the points is that drivers that are recurrently causing accidents are punished with a loss of their drivers license. Such a (memory) mechanism has been introduced in Spain recently but it is unknown what the effect on traffic and safety has been up to now.
What does have become visible is the effect on escape routes with the introduction of the points system.
- Organizing Principles and Design Choices – the Pension System Example
[News-and-Society:Economics] A system is an organization that is specialized in performing a certain function. A pension system for example is specialized in managing pensions. As systems are designed and built by human beings they operate according to certain design or organizing principles.
Systems are needed and designed continuously and the way such systems are designed will lead the functioning of the organization that uses them. To see this have a look at the pension systems that is used in your country.
- Environmental Trends – Increasing Noise Pollution
[News-and-Society:Economics] Some countries more than others. some cities more than others, some streets more than others… yet noise is everywhere and noise problems will continue to increase in time.
- An Example of Internal Synergy - the Single Global Currency
[News-and-Society:Economics] There are those project initiatives that will not produce a concrete result but which could be considered anyhow. Especially large corporation cope with these some moment in time. For example in situations where the various units -- in countries all over the world -- use different software programs to support Office Ware, Accounting or other administration functions.
In line with this it is interesting to observe a similar initiative: the site ...
- About Style - Picasso Versus Dali
[Arts-and-Entertainment] Style is a concept that is used in many areas. In arts for example it denominates a certain characteristic or typical way of.... painting. In fashion it is used to describe a certain tendency to dress. And style is also used in architecture to express more or less the same - way - in which a building is made - classic, modern, gothic, etc. And even organizations have their style in organizing activities.
What can we learn about the differences in style of the two painters...
- The Euro and The European Union – A Second Wake Up Call
[News-and-Society:Economics] Lately it is easy to find news about the relation between Italy and the Euro – for example this one: “Italy's love affair with the euro is due to cool” Italy seems to be struggling with the euro and with its own economy. It appears to be the case that the Italian economy is especially vulnerable for the global markets in which it operates ...
But this is just part of the game, something the union should be able to cope with, all is part of growing up.
- Time Management and Culture
[Self-Improvement:Time-Management] Different countries have their own preferred or default way in managing time. The two main protagonists in managing activities (time) are:
- Prepared to Take Your Loss
[Business:Change-Management] Some planned changes in life turn out to be less promising than expected. What should you do in such a case?
- Joining the Internet Trend – Security Issues and The Weakest Link
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Security] One of the changes that has come with the internet era or the network economy is the fact that -- as the word “network” expresses -- business is more fragmented over a variety of entities which are linked by chains. In line with this trend, companies ought to focus on a core business and therefore the additional value is provided by a partner or supplier somewhere in the same network.
All this makes the internet economy and any business in it more vulnerable. What choice do you have in that setting?
- Infrastructure - Enabler of a Higher Productivity (3)
[Business:Management] "All roads lead to Rome," is the saying. The same method -- of centralizing infrastructure -- was used centuries later when the British designed and developed the Argentinean railroad system; all the railroads lead to Buenos Aires to ship the goods back to Britain.
And even today in 2006 the same construction method is still visible, not in the rail roads system, but in telephony; all the telephone lines lead to ...
- Change - Not Without Having a Break
[Business:Change-Management] Is it possible to change without having (using) a break? For instance you write a series of articles, day in day out without losing one, you just continue writing about different topics, but with the same mindset.
- Banks, Internet and Security - An Example From Spain
[Finance] Security is a theme that will preoccupy us for ever. It is the answer to the most important enabler for doing business on the net: trust. And banks are one of the key suppliers of trust.
How the various banks in different countries are dealing with this topic reflect some of the culture behind internet.
This is an example from Spain - compared with the situation in the Netherlands.
- Marketing and Sales in A Presentation
[Business:Presentation] When giving a presentation you are engaged in both a marketing and sales activity.
- About Style and Organizing - The Slow Food Example
[Arts-and-Entertainment] Style is the outcome of a choice. Style is about the choices you make in life. You are often not aware of the stressful life you live and of the choices you "make" because they are so easy to follow. The culture of time management and fast food is dictating your life, and before you know it, you end up in a certain lifestyle.
But fortunately there are communities and organization that offer alternatives. Some of these pop up as the result of a countertrend. Almost any trend in society has its counterforce ... and in this light you could see the initiative ...
- Your Organization On The Couch
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Take a moment and think about the following diseases; depression, paranoia, schizophrenic, dramatic or compulsive. If you do not come up with an example, you could think about Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson in “As Good as it gets”):
- The Migration Trend - Some Basics
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Humanities] Migration is one of the influencing factors that change our lives. And apparently migration is a trend that will continue to influence our lives.
Migration is the collective noun for both immigration and emigration. We all know what that is; we are all dealing with it, either direct or indirectly.
This article provides an overview of different sources on the topic.
- Your Corporate Values – Another Example
[Business:Management] Corporate values provide a very powerful communication tool. For the internal organization the values can be used to derive the company principles. And these provide a steering mechanism by answering the question how should we act if these ... are our values?
- The Life Cycle of Your Article
[Writing-and-Speaking:Article-Marketing] Read this if you are an author.
Think about your house? And check whether all your rooms are used, or is there a space that gets no attention, perhaps because of the location or because of the fact that the chamber has no window...
An article that is not read is like a room that is not used, it has been written (built) once, but it doesn’t really fit anymore... For whatever reason.
- Live Reported From the Stock Exchange: GOOG (+23%) - YHOO (-30%)
[Investing:Stocks] Where are both stocks (and companies) now in this highly competitive game?
- Principles - Efficiency in Organizing Your life
[Self-Improvement:Organizing] Before you do or act you think - And if you think that you do not think before you act, you have already thought (because the specific issue resembles a similar situation that is good enough to act in the same way).
We all use principles. They guide our daily activities, they pilot us the way we act and do things. They provide a
- Trends - Philanthropy
[News-and-Society] Once there was a man who discovered - what now is called the 80-20-rule ... Bill & Melinda Gates foundation was created in 2000 ... Now, six years later, philanthropy is big business as a British channel (4) starts a reality show where millionaires are to ...
- Your Propensity to Change - How Far Would You Go?
[Business:Change-Management] It is easy to dream about an exotic island. It takes a bit more to prepare a trip to this island and spend some time there. But the real challenge is to take your stuff and migrate to this little island.
Knowing your propensity to change is knowing - in advance - how far you would go.
- Managing the Quality of Information
[Business:Management] Information processing is a business process that resembles a normal production process with familiar demands for managing both the quantity processed as well as the quality of the output.
- Style and Your Website - Style Elements
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Web-Design] "Style and your website - an introduction," is about the importance of style. But what makes one style unique? What are those style elements that differentiate your site from others?
- Style and Your Website - An Introduction
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Web-Design] We all know what style is; if you walk on the street you see how people are dressed, some more classic, others according to the latest fashion and others like ...
Websites are like people, they need some dressing up. Whiteout color and form they are like a mute voice.
At the moment the main internet structure is still hypertext based. It is very likely that visual aspects will dominate the web in the future which will mean that ...
- About the Spanish Stock Market - Still the Place to Be
[Investing:Stocks] The Ibex 35 is outperforming other stock exchanges in Europe. To date the ibex 35 has gained 23 % over 2006. In comparison, the Dutch stock exchange (AEX) has gained only 11% this year.
There is obviously a reason for this. The question is, "'what do you need to know in order to invest there?"
- Sponsorship and Sports – The ING Example: Running & Formula One
[Business:Branding] Sponsoring is one of the ways to build and fortalice a brand. And sport is always a good target. ING has chosen both Running and (only recently) Formula One - an interesting choice given the fact that ING is Both Bank and Insurer...
- The Floodgates of Sales
[Business:Sales] The floodgates of sales are not what you will probably think that they are. Like the floodgates of eloquence, where they - the gates - are opened and the viewer is overwhelmed by ... a stream of words.
In sales you do not need a stream of words. It is myth that only "the extraverted" are the best in closing a sale. Why would it? Do you think that you can only persuade a prospect by a stream of words, by a constant flow of one-liners?
- Change and Pressures to Innovate - The Coca Cola Case
[Business:Change-Management] Think about "Coca Cola," and tell me what you come up with. (I'll just wait a moment ...)
Possible associations are with:
Companies like Coca Cola and McDonald's are forced to change because of trends that affect their business in a negative way.
- Resistance to Change - Credibility at Stake
[Business:Change-Management] People often resist to change. Some resistance is productive because after dealing with this resistance the outcome of the planned change has altered... It is also possible that the announced change is perceived as only the first of a sequence of measures. "What is behind all this," people will think...
- How to Deal with Unnecessary and Unproductive Resistance
[Business:Change-Management] Understanding that people could possible resist your planned change would help to prevent the same resistance later on when the measures are implemented.
- The Nobel Prize Ritual - Time to Read Again
[News-and-Society] The Nobel Ritual in selecting a new candidate (for literature) is interesting as a cultural process. But it is also a trigger to start reading again.
- Strategy and Organizational Change - The Arrival of the New Airbus Model A380
[Business] The fundament of any corporate culture is based on productivity. So it is the main productivity focus of a company that influences much of the corporate culture.
To see this relation,
- Rituals and Identity – The Case Of October The Twelfth
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Humanities] A ritual is the celebration of an important event. Sometimes the importance of the event fades or the celebration changes due to some reason.
Rituals are important because they forge the identity of a group. And it can also be used to rebuild the identity of a group.
- Expert Status: Influence on the Reader
[Writing-and-Speaking:Article-Marketing] Would you just buy the latest novel of John Irving, knowing that he is an expert? And when would you reckon an article writer to be an expert? Authors receive their expert-status after having written a single article.
- Change, Growth And The Life Cycle (2)
[Business:Change-Management] Each stage has a development task and a person should resolve this task before he can move forward to a next phase -
Change is like that, you need to deal with the challenges of one stage, before you can more wholeheartedly to the next one
- Change, Growth And The Life Cycle (1)
[Business:Change-Management] Once there was a couple with serious problems in their marriage. They asked the advice of a counselor in a last attempt to resolve their conflict. After some sessions, the counselor confronted the couple with the bottleneck;
- Client Focus and the Impact on the Internal Organization - An Article Publishing Example
[Business:Management] Article marketing is just like a real business; there are the employees (authors), the publishing system and the redaction (the internal organization) and there are ... the clients (the readers). The goal is to get satisfied clients.
And there is always a problem. For example the article-parts-problem. This is a normal business problem. An organization should arrange its business between internal efficiency requirements and external (client) demands.
- Personal Change Management - It Starts When You Finished Your Career
[Business:Change-Management] Only a limited number of careers and the people that finished these will do exactly what is in line with the expectation of the career. For example:
You study medicine, follow a specialization and you finish as a surgeon. You work as a surgeon most of your life. Even if you would switch your practice to another country, your job - being a surgeon - will be much the same.
- Manage the Transition to Your New Job
[Business:Change-Management] Consultants are often involved in a change in job assignments. Some jobs take more time then others. Some consultant have different assignments at the same time, but a new assignment always brings a introduction period with it.
Not only consultants, but everyone involved in a job switch will be faced with such a transition. How should you handle such a period?
- Optimism and Short Term Credits in Spain
[News-and-Society:Economics] A recent article in a Spanish newspaper revealed that short term credit in Spain reaches one billion euro this years. This announcement interested me, because the Dutch are famous for their propensity to save; they export more than they import, which is just the opposite in Spain where the imports outweigh the exports.
- Change, Bears and Bulls and a Positive Mindset
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] The stock exchange in Madrid reached a new all-time-high.
There are all kinds of markets. The investment market is characterized by animal behavior - the bear (market) and the bull (market). Emotion and investment go hand in hand. Fear and greed are two emotions that dominate the investment arena. Fear fits best with the Bear (market) greed with the bull.
- Guiding Change on Your Way in Closing A Sale
[Business:Sales] A recent announcement in a Spanish newspaper stated that Spanish Women use only three out of ten pairs of shoes. Buying a new pair doesn't automatically mean that the old shoes will no longer be used.
But often this is the case -- at least for many other products; A washing machine, a television (although you could buy a new and move the old one to the dormitory). Think about buying a new car and you will keep all of your old vehicles.
When you are to close a sale you should manage this change.
- Sales is About ... Now or Never
[Business:Sales] You are preparing for you next call. Or you are to visit a client in a face-to-face presentation or demonstration. What happens in this short period determines the sale. If the client of prospect does not buy from you in this private encounter he or she will never do. You have only one opportunity... And it is ...
- XING
[Business:Branding] Xhanging a brand name requires a lot of energy. OpenBC, the networking company, has taken mayor this step to change their (brand) name. From now on, they are called XING.
- Networking -- How to Miss an Opportunity
[Business:Networking] In a good relationship between friends it is possible that, for instance, the two friends will not see each other for quite a while. The relation can take it. Both lives can take a different turn; one has a new job, the other a new relation and for some period both have less contact. But after a while you meet again, and the friendship is as ever before.
Networking is not quite like this. Take for instance this example; two people know each other for quite some time. They have exchange links on a mutual business network -- LinkedIn or openBC -– but they haven't met lately. All of a sudden...
- It's Time To Say "Goodbye"
[Business:Change-Management] "Partir c'est morir un peu," is a French saying about a worldly theme. "Millions" of novels have been written about the subject. And we all have our own experience on the matter and this experience, the way you have learnt to say goodbye is what characterizes you. Your biography to date.
- About Culture and Rules
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Humanities] Culture will never be a category on whatever (ezine) directory. It is just too broad a subject. And it doesn't solve anything. In fact it is only causing problems. YET, it is such an interesting topic ...
Take this ... about international soccer culture and local cultures, it is not possible to hide these rules, you can just observe them by watching television.
- The Scope of Your Competence
[Business] The little incident caused by the Pope's lecture in Germany is quite a normal "competence" problem in organizations.
One of a recurring issue in business is to manage the variety of specialists. No matter how your company is organized, with departments, autonomous domains, or units or a networking environment, the scope of the various specialists is often an issue.
- Creativity in the Street
[Arts-and-Entertainment] With so much theft and robbery in the cities, one should just be glad to return home safely and unaffected. For that reason, street artists are a joy for the eye: harmless and giving some extra color to the often grayish street life.
- Flexibility As a Criteria for Information Systems
[Business:Change-Management] Today more than before, flexibility or maneuvrability, is important when designing or buying information systems. This is a new kind of thinking where it is no longer sufficient to construct an information plan for the near future and design systems as planned. Plans do change often and before your system is implemented there is already a new technology available that provides other opportunities.
- Goal Setting in Business and Sport - The Individual Versus the Team
[Self-Improvement:Goal-Setting] By defining a (personal) goal you compel yourself to answer the question; "what do I want to achieve?"
Business is often compared with sport and similarities are indeed striking. For instance, both are dealing the concept of "a goal."
Defining a goal for a game of soccer seems easy; it is ...
- About Price and Value, Business and Art, Leaders and Followers, America and Europe
[News-and-Society:Pure-Opinion] That price and value is not the same, is something we have learned at school. But that we are managed by prices and not by value(s) is strange. Let's take a closer look.
- Medium (Weight), Media and Models – Attention for Anorexia and Obesity
[News-and-Society] The company Dove is leading a new trend. They advertise with "real" and normal women rather than with exceptional models. I’ve not noticed other companies advertise like this, maybe there are, but Dove is sure one of the companies who have a stake in the ongoing catwalk-discussion; "Is the current norm for a catwalk girl still normal?"
- The Productivity Profile of a Religious Leader
[Self-Improvement:Leadership] In what way is a religious leader productive? He or she can be productive in one or more of the four following roles.
- One of the Most Conservative Organizations in the World
[Business:Change-Management] If you want to know more about innovation, it is sometimes useful to observe other organizations. To dig into the world of those organizations that are quite the opposite of innovation and learn more about those forces that are required to conserve. And not without a reason...
- Pushing Innovations – The Barajas Airport in Madrid
[Business:Management] Electronic tickets, who has not used them yet? You receive an e-mail from your airline company, with the reservation code you enter the Airline site, select a seat, print the boarding pass and you are done. But not a lot of people (users) use it this way. This is a problem for the airliners who have recently invested in a new and innovative infrastructure. The extra and additional costs for the infrastructure needs to be recovered soon... So this requires a certain push.
- Management Incentives - They Are Just (Like) Peanuts
[Business:Management] You are visiting a bar where you order a beer. After a little while you receive your beer and you are happy to see that you get something in addition: some peanuts. "That is a nice little attention," you think...
- Immigration Issues in Spain
[News-and-Society:Politics] "After years of disagreeing on nearly everything, the ruling Socialist party and the opposition (PP) agree that there must be no more amnesties for illegal immigrants arriving in Spain." This is the openings heading of the Leading newspaper El Pais in Spain (today), after another arrival of African immigrant. More than 5000 immigrant have arrived at the Spanish coasts the last month and a half. "But true to form, they - The ruling party and the opposition - disagree on how this pledge should be put into effect."
The amnesty policy - a step in the wrong direction - is now abandoned. But is it enough?
- Trends in Spanish Tourism - A Shift to Residential Tourism
[News-and-Society:Economics] One of the trends in Tourism is residential tourism. Each year thousand of families move from their home country to a new place on earth. This could be for the sake of a better climate -- whether tax, investment, leisure, or just the weather -- or because of any other reason.
It's a real change and challenge for the traditional tourist sector.
- Are You Prepared For a Seasonal Change?
[Business:Change-Management] The amount of sun light that you may receive throughout the year is a variable linked to seasonal development. If you start to observe this seasonal cycle at the beginning of the winter season, than the days -– that part of the day with daylight -- will increase every day, but only with a differential of seconds or minutes. Than, before the summer is even started the lengths of days start to shrink again.
How do we confront these changes that are not to discern on a daily basis?
- Vivaldi's Four Seasons And ... How Do You Value The Summer Season of Life?
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Music] Music -- like any other art -- tells a story. In this case the story of life. You could analyze life by means of the four seasons through two main viewpoints; an absolute or a relative version. Vivaldi obviously chose the ...
- Internet Footprints - Leaving Your (Brand) Name on the Web - Really a Benefit?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] It's a morning ritual, where a few people are walking or running down the beach, the bulldozers are cleansing the sand, erasing all trials of the previous day.
Cleansing your internet prints is hardly possible. After a day of surfing they are all over the web world and there is no way to erase them. And therefore you should know why you leave them there. Are you (is your company) aware of this, and what do you think is your (commercial) gain?
- A Strategic Plan - A Lot of Money, Without Any Value
[Business:Strategic-Planning] A planning is like milk that you leave a day outside the fridge. Luckily, not all milk gets spoiled easily. But even the fact that a plan is overdue before you know it, the ...
- Organizational Learning, Maslov Learning Stages and Knowledge Management
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Ask someone at your organization about the way decisions are taken and most probably you will hear –"I don't really know." But then, when you are in a meeting and someone enters the discussion with a creative new idea, you all of a sudden know what will happen with this proposition : "no way, this will not make it!" And how did you know?
- Standards – Ruling Our Lives
[Business:Management] When you have bought a new TV you expect the plug to fit the socket. When you buy a video disk you expect it to fit your recorder. When you buy a new tire, you would like it to fit the wheel. When you write a document you want it to open on another computer with a different word processor.
- Assessments - Who is Testing Who?
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Maybe you remember when you were at school and there was a new teacher. How was that first day? The teacher was to "examine" the class, "What kind of children do we have here?" But at the same time - at least I remember - I thought, "What kind of teacher do we have here?"
- Web Design and CMS - A Good Match, But When?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:CMS] To use a CMS for you Web Design could be a good idea. There are situations in which you rather would not use one. Here are some advantages and disadvantages.
- Web Design and CMS - an Introduction
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:CMS] A CMS -- or Content Management System -- is a system to setup and maintain content. And this articles focuses on systems to support the content of your website. The system provides you with standard functionality to setup a site, to use a database, to standardize new web pages, al by means of some prefabricated routines, modules and tables. As any other standardized system, a CMS delivers some standard functions which can be parameterized; you are flexible up to the space left from these parameters.
But when should you use such a system? There are some advantages and disadvantages to consider. This part is a small introduction to content management systems that are used for Web Sites.
- Me Too – Heritage From Our Childhood
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] "Listen to children and you will learn," you will probably agree with me. Children are creative, unbiased, sincere, playful, competitive, enchanting but also demanding and okay you probably know - But there is one habit that they do not loose for the rest of their lives. And this habit could become quite an issue later on.
- Change and the Other Side of the Amazon
[Business:Change-Management] "The motorcycle diaries," is a movie about two friends who travel through South America in the early fifties. Their journey starts At Buenos Aires and is to finish at Caracas.
The film is interesting on itself, but even more interesting to explain the way to lead change. The picture shows a scene that is especcially important for those who want to consolidate change.
- The Rise of E-learning - Why?
[Reference-and-Education:Online-Education] Learning is big "business" -
And E-learning is a logical next move.
- Learning on a Distance - Pros and Cons
[Reference-and-Education:Online-Education] Those of you who have experience with self study already know what learning on a distance is about. In the simplest form, learning on a distance is when a student studies the course material at home. For questions there are separate course meetings, electronic forums and in the last case a private chat or mail session with a tutor. One step beyond education on a distance is online learning.
There are a number of advantages and disadvantages.
- New Real Estate Categories – Should We Worry Yet?
[Real-Estate:Investing] The introduction of new and extended categories about Real Estate reminded me of the stock market, the period just before a decline
- How To Calculate a Service Level
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] One of the questions you get served when your investment profile is determined is this question. "How would you define an exception? Is that an event that occurs 1 out of 50 times, 1 out of 100 , or "
- UK Organ Donations - Changing From Opt In To Opt Out?
[News-and-Society] The current "opt in" system of organ donation - where individuals are asked to register their willingness to be a donor after their death - has been the subject of debate for many years. The current way is called the "altruistic approach." Altruistic in the sense that you donate for free without any incentive. The opt out is a mechanism that functions with “presumed consent,” asuming someone is willing to donate unless they register their objection by an opt out by recording the unwillingness to give organs in writing.
- Opt Out Versus Opt In - Some Basics
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Email-Marketing] You have probably experienced this. You are eating your dinner at six or seven and then, the phone rings. "Do you have a PC at home?" this is one question but there are millions of them, from an unlimited amount of companies. E-mailing under Opt Out was also a sort of cold-calling...
- Law And Feedback Loops - Lagging the Developments in Society
[Legal] The process of change is often accompanied by feedback loops. A Feedback loop starts with an event. This event is acknowledged by people and according to the appreciation of the event, people may respond. This response in its turn could lead to a force to adapt and influence new events.
In law there are also these feedback loops and these loops are more extended compared with other areas in society. Laws seem to behave more conservative than others rules, and probably for a good reason.
- The Impact of Terrorism on Our Productivity
[News-and-Society:Economics] A recent decision of a pilot to return to base was perhaps not a precedent but marks very well the economical problems we are facing with terrorism. If we assume that there is only one "box" of money, then the (extra) amount that is spend on security will diminish the amount that will be available for other areas. And this will not only affect government but also private companies.
- Infrastructure - Enabler of a Higher Productivity (2)
[Business:Management] We know infrastructure from such basic things as gas, water and electricity. They have always been there and they are so basic that you do not know what to do when it is not there. A day without electricity during a hot summer can give a real problem.
Internet is also part of infrastructural support. One important characteristic of infrastructure is that it serves a group of people in the same way. It comes with a standard. The water you tap from your home is of the same quality as the water you will find in a restaurant.
But the level of an infrastructure could vary from one supplier to the other and according to the service level you have contracted it.
- Racial Profiling - The Right Accelerator?
[News-and-Society] Racial profiling is of present interest because of the increasing demand for security around the world. (Racial) Profiling is practiced especially at airports at the moment, or at least that is where the critique is.
- Profiling - Some Useful Examples
[Business] Profiling is an investigative activity in which someone searches for specific elements that characterizes a thing or a person, a social group or even an organization.
Profiling is used in many different businesses. In the consultancy business you encounter profiling when a consultant is to do a job and learn (or teach) the basics about an organization. About some main characteristics and about the question: what makes this specific organization interesting and where would you ...
- Performance Management, Productivity and The Decision of The Pilot
[Business:Management] The more productive we are, the more we get paid. Seems logical, but is it true? All depends on the definition of productivity on an individual level. Take for example the decision of the pilot.
A plane from North-West Airlines is heading to India. Above Germany ...
- Infrastructure - Enabler of a Higher Productivity (1)
[Computers-and-Technology] Infrastructure is a broad area of activities, processes, technology that supports either private (consumption) as well as industrial purposes. An example of infrastructure that links both areas is internet... Another example is the infrastructure that changed the Video.
- Argentina and Culture - Soccer as an indicator?
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] Every country is unique in a certain way. And to understand the culture of a country you must have experienced this culture. Culture is something that is so extent, that in order to opinion about it you need to be very focused. For example, by comparing one specific aspect of the culture with the culture you know best – that of you native country.
- Science and Society - Scientists Lost in Space
[News-and-Society] One of the tasks of science (and scientists) is to show the true nature of things. The Pluto case shows indeed the truth nature (of scientists): They are only ...
- Change From Science - Focus on the Stakeholders
[Business:Change-Management] There are two main directions of change. The first is about resistance, the energy that is spend to keep a change from influencing you, of your organization. The other is the promotion of change. This is exactly the opposite direction. In both cases you need to analyse the stakeholders for understanding why the change is resisted (in the first case) or why it is proposed (the second case).
The recent Pluto statement -- about redefining the definition of a planet - - is a typical example of the second case...
- Science and Society - How Science Changes Our Lives
[Reference-and-Education:Science] Science is a relatively isolated island in the societal landscape. As every other community, practicing scientists speak a dialect of the common language.
- Personal Change And Learning To Type With More Than Two Fingers
[Investing] There was a moment in time where we learned to use the qwerty-keyboard. Using one finger on the left hand, one finger on the right; and Go! But is it enough? Also in communication we could benefit from some wider style palette...
- Did You Ever Break A Leg?
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] Like in the movies -- When Polly Came -- you have to choose between taking and avoiding risk. In the first scene of this movie, we see how Philip Seymour (I forgot his name in the film -- as all other names of this film...) nearly breaks his leg. Did you ever break something?
- About Spain - Fiesta and Siesta
[Travel-and-Leisure] When asked, the president of Spain mentioned the word "Generosity" a the most beautiful word. His opponent Rajoy brought "Word" (palabra) itself as being the finest amongst the Spanish (Castilian) words.
- Forest Fires, (Human) Nature and Culture – Where to Start the Change?
[News-and-Society] This year the Forrest fires in Spain have "chosen" an exceptional area. Galicia. Exceptional, because Galicia in the north-west of Spain, is not by nature a very arid area. Until July of this year, 36,000 hectares are destroyed by fire. This is about fifty thousand soccer fields. Galicia that has recovered another catastrophe a few years ago (caused by the Prestige Oil Tanker) is now attacked again, but this time the attack comes from within (society).
- Productivity in Spain - Where are the Opportunities? (2)
[News-and-Society:Economics] In Fact, the implicit relation between a long working week and a lower than average productivity needed some more explanation. Therefor this appendix...
- Models That Color Your Presentation (2)
[Business:Presentation] In the article "Choose Your Favorite (Model)... you'll find different kind of models that are available for the presentation purposes. The model André Sapir used is one of ... The advantage of using a model is that it clearly represents the issues you want to discuss. In the case ...
- Stock and Flow in Knowledge Management
[Business:Management] The concepts of stock and flow are often used when dealing with knowledge management. The stock of knowledge would be the level of knowledge of one employee (or even a whole organization) and the flow of knowledge would indicate the amount of knowledge that is transferred between people; the usage of the knowledge in organizing activities.
- Certification of Your Profession - A Step in Personal Branding?
[Business:Branding] Much in business --as on the stock exchange - moves in trends. Not forever thought. Some trends will fade away when others amplify. And certain important incidents may cause new trends to start or others to finish abruptly.
Certification of professionals is a also trend. Two parties benefit from this certification process.
- Organizing Dilemmas A Never Ending Story (2)
[Business:Management] This dilemma is one of the most common management dilemmas. It is not constraint to large organizations that focus - to name one - on implementing a shared service center, but also small companies are dealing with this problem - even a computer programmer faces the same dilemma
The main cause of this dilemma lies in the fact that - And the implications are:
- Consistency and Raising Kids - Really That Important?
[Home-and-Family:Parenting] You should be consistent when you raise your kids. That is probably something you would easily agree with as a parent.
Kids are well off with a set of guidelines that help them grow. Nothing is more frustrating than when you come home and you do not know what to expect from your father or mother. Today they say this, tomorrow they respond completely opposite to the same issue... All true, yet, how do we know whether all these issues are similar... And what is consistency exactly?
- Knowledge or Information Management: What Comes First?
[Business:Management] During "office hours" when there are no changes in your organization, the relevance of knowledge management is minimal. Imagine that your business is involved in selling bikes and this business is prosperous. But than, all of a sudden there is a fall in demand. You verify with the suppliers of the motors and indeed in other areas the demand declines. You are just selling them, and you need to decide what to do... What do you need and in what sequence?
- Allen's Matchpoint
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Movies-TV] Matchpoint? "That must be about a game," you think, how could it be otherwise? And with a decor as London you would guess (without having seen the movie) the games is tennis. In fact it is all spelled out that the game is tennis, with the ball that touches the net in the openings scene. But is it really?
Here just "another" interpretation. (with a minimal spoiling...for if you haven't seen it yet)
- Organizing Dilemmas A Never Ending Story (1)
[Business:Management] This organizing dilemma is one of the most common management dilemmas. It is not constraint to large organizations that focus -- to name one -- on implementing a shared service center, but also small companies are dealing with this problem. Even when you are a programmer you deal with this one.
- Managing Your Kids
[Home-and-Family:Parenting] ... parents are responsible for the growth and well being of the kids. They have the children under custodian. And in such a situation, the parents are like managers; they decide what the daily menu will be; from nutrition and education to play, sport and rest. Parents have no degree in raising kids ...
- You Are the First Enabler of the Learning Organization
[Business:Change-Management] There is an inherent relation between learning and change. Think about how you changed when you grew up; during those years where you absorbed most new knowledge and experience is where you changed most. And then there comes a time where we tend to learn less. After we have finished school or graduated the urgency to learn ...
- Trivial Pursuit - Who Won the Tour The France 2006?
[Recreation-and-Sports:Cycling] The Tour de France has finished more than a month ago. Landis was celebrated as the winner, but soon appeared as the protagonist in a doping issue. Two tests were taken, and both of them were found positive. That's where I lost sight. Is there yet a new winner? Should the Tour history be rewritten? This is probably what Pereiro from Spain is hoping for; he could become the official tour winner - Yet, whatever happens
- Productivity in Spain - Where are the Opportunities?
[Business] According to these statistics, the Spanish working week is - with an average of 38.2 hours - amongst the ...
- About Productivity in Economics
[News-and-Society:Economics] Productivity is an economic concept which measures the efficiency of production. This is represented by a simple ratio of the resources that are required to produce a certain output.
The ratio could be calculated for labour (human resources), capital or land, but the last two have little significance.
Labour efficiency does make sense because it indicates the "efficiency" of the human resources, said differently ...
- Your Investment Approach: Top-Down or Bottom-Up, or Somewhere in Between?
[Investing] A top-down approach; what do we mean with that?
Image you are to design a portfolio management system that automatically updates an investment portfolio. New stocks are automatically selected, some stocks in the portfolio are replaced by others and some are sold without an additional following up.
- Your Guide When Living Abroad
[Business:Change-Management] For those of you who are interested in culture, will probably know that there are many books on the subjects.
Interest in culture is important if you are an expatriate who accidentally dwells in another country and is shocked by the way people live and work.
If your bookshelf is already stocked you might consider to read
- Business Rituals - Some Pitfalls
[Business] To focus on business rituals could help your organization to strengthen its style; if people know "how" to do things, than many of the organizational problems are half solved. Rituals are ceremonial activities that repeatedly take place in an organization. Many organization will exhibit similar rituals.
- Management Advice: The Third Option
[Business:Management] From the Stock market we have imported the analyst approach in providing an advice to the investor (manager). There are three main options. Yet, there is something strange about these three...
- How to Handle the Well-Meant Advice
[Business:Change-Management] You find them a lot. The advice to change product X for Product Y because Y is endowed with superior features, higher overall quality, etc. in fact, such an advice is about changing from one provider to another. And the product can be anything as simple as a Web browser or complicated as an information system.
And because there are so many of these – well meant – advices, they might make you hesitate. Should I really change this product? And already? "I've bought it one a few weeks ago," or "we implemented the information system after six month of hard work..."
- Information For The Day Trader
[Investing] There are two basic types of financial orders. And one of them has established a complete new market opportunity; (day) trading.
- So What Do You Value in Your Team?
[Business:Team-Building] Think about yourself and your will think about others. That is, if you are teaming up with colleagues or with friends. But what do you value? And what does this mean for your contribution to the team. But first things first...
- Is Your Organization in Need For a Serious Upgrade?
[Business:Management] But how do you know this? What is old and what requires renewal? And of course there is not such a simple line that divides both worlds.
Yet, we all need an upgrade once in a while, and your business can not escape this one either. But where do you start? And when do you start?
- Business Rituals – Why Bother?
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Habits and customs are activities that take place in a ritualized way. Because of their ceremonial character they are easily recognizable. And they serve for something; the main goal of an official ritual is to control the emotion with which the activity is involved.
The rituals that we recognize most are those in which our own (family) life is involved ... In business there are even so many rituals, some of them easy visible as such ...
- So What Do You Value in Your Career?
[Business:Careers-Employment] Some jobs require more affection than others. Normally affection is a private value, something you will find among the ones that are dear to you. So is "family happiness," although it helps if you have a job you do not have to worry about. There are many more values. What are they and how can they help you in your career...
- So What Do You Value?
[Self-Improvement] Some like to be famous. Maybe not when you ask them point-blank; it might be embarrassing to express it. And why, you may ask, what is the purpose of being famous? And now that you know this, how will it influence your focus? Or how will these other values influence your decisions?
- About (Business) Rituals
[Business:Management] The term ritual has a religious connotation, but is also used in the anthropologist field where it is used to understand different cultures... Apparently in the beginning of the previous century a Swedish "Lutheran archbishop and theologian who in 1930 received the Nobel Prize for Peace," was said to have changed the central notion of ...
- Change Guided By A Mathematical Formula
[Reference-and-Education] The mathematical language is a very powerful language. First of all because all, those that have learned to use the language will understand each other. Whereas a normal language is prone to all kind of misunderstandings.
The following change formula speaks for itself. Although - some additional comment could help.
- Change And The Deja Vu
[Business:Change-Management] "Here we go again," does this sound familiar? Some changes do indeed resemble a history that seems to repeat itself. Maybe you have experienced a deja vu ...
- Success, Sacrifice And The Silver Medal
[Self-Improvement:Success] Mathematically you would say there is a not a difference between one and two (2 – 1) on one hand and between three and two (3 – 2) on the other. In both cases the difference is one (1). But when dealing with emotions there seems to be quite a difference. This is what a study revealed about the Olymplic Games
- What To Do Before the Implementation of Performance Management
[Business:Management] The Implementation of Performance management is quite a large project. With so many projects that fail in the attempt, you require a certain step before you start this project...
- Development And Testing of Systems
[Computers-and-Technology:Software] Testing of systems is quite an extended area. There are many ways in which a system could be checked for errors. Black-box testing for example is a way in which a system is examined without "looking under the hood;" you check the output of the system without the knowledge of the system itself.
Although essential, testing is an activity that is not always highly valued (especially by developers). Developers and testers have a different view on the same system...
- Search and The Three Search Engines
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] "Did you know that only 1,1 percent of the top results of the four leading search engines are the same." This text is from a banner on the first page of dogpile.com. That is a search engine that compares the results of the other (three) search engines.
- Switching From The Unofficial To The Official Book Market
[News-and-Society:Economics] Most economies are equipped with two economic infrastructures; two different markets for the same goods. You will not only find this in less developed economies with a parallel currency market (next to the official currency market). But even in developed countries there is the black market as opposed to the legal white market. Less dramatic differences are there between the official stock market and the over the counter (OTC) market.
The book market is still a very big market, which covers different sub types, for instance the second hand market. The book market is a place where publishers sell books and where readers buy them.
But what if you have selected one market -- as an author -- and you want to switch later on ...
- How to Select Your Donations
[Business:Ethics] There is an unlimited drive to innovate in nearly any area. And the easiest way to innovate is to copy a concept that has been invented in an adjacent or remote area.
And so it is with the concept of Donations.
- Listen To the Self Development Guru (But Do Not Forget Who You Are)
[Self-Improvement] If you are to act as some of the self help guru's dictate you should- But before you follow-up their advice you should not forget Who you are and Where you came from.
- A Writing Experiment
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing] Writing is normally a top down process. You gather some information, create an idea, elaborate a clue and write the article (book, essay, story, etc). Bottom-up writing is writing in which you start with the words; the most important ingredients. In this case ...
- Choose Your Favorite (Model): 1,2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or 9
[Business:Workplace-Communication] There are various models to find (on the internet) and they all want to communicate something to us. The question raised in this article is: what model would you choose, if there is only one criteria: the number (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9) of outcomes.
- How To Get Consensus in the Team Without the Members Noticing it
[Business:Team-Building] Those who are not in favor of systematic approaches and (communication) methods should read about this way to facilitate the communication process. The objective: getting consensus in the team about a difficult topic.
- Feedback - When Nature Gets Even
[News-and-Society:Economics] Finally you could escape for two weeks. You needed this, after month of hard work. And than you want only one thing -- sun & beach. The moment you arrive at your holiday resort and you prepare for a dive in the see ...
- Stress and Handling Incompatible Activities
[Self-Improvement:Stress-Management] Is stress something personal or pure business, or … something in between?
- One of the Productivity Roles of an Advisor
[Business:Management] The advisor is productive in a variety of ways. In this example the role of the consultant resembles a lot like that of a
- The Additional Task of an Internal Advisor
[Business:Management] The internal advisor can be a specialist of any field in (the) organization. What more should an advisor do than giving just an advice?
- Time Registration - More Than Just Overhead
[Business:Management] One of the many differences between project management and operational management involves the use of time registration. Time registration is the basis for project management to function properly, whereas for operational management time registration is not often used.
Yet, using time registration adds overhead which pays back easily. To see this ...
- The Advice Process Starts With a Question
[Business:Management] Obviously, the advice process starts with a question. But who will pose the question? Is it the advisor or the one, let’s say the manager, who asks for an advice?
- Points and the Driver's License – What More do You Need?
[Automotive] It is not used in the Netherlands, it is in France and it has also recently been introduced in Spain. The driver’s license combined with a points system. The idea for such a system is that the drivers habit can be measured over a longer period. And with it the system will be able to influence persistent (dangerous) behavior.
What more do you need for a new system to work properly?
- Procrastination, Discipline and the Cold Shower
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] Some call it the problem of procrastination, a personal organizing problem; You leave the tough stuff for the latest moment. But it could also be a disciplinary problem. It is about finding the right balance in work. The right balance in selecting the ...
- Use Your (Six) Hats to Give Feedback
[Business:Workplace-Communication] "Feedback – What’s in it For Me?" was about the motivation to give feedback. But where should you start? The six thinking hats from De Bono offers a very good start.
- Feedback – What's In It For Me?
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Of course there are enough reasons not to give feedback ... But for those who always look for a -- "what’s in it for me," will find enough value in giving feedback; try to look at it in this way;
- Innovation Expenses - Finding the Right Balance
[Business] Keeping-up with all new developments costs a lot of time and money. What approach could you choose and what do they mean for your business.
- If You Want to Lead More You Need to ...
[Self-Improvement:Leadership] If you want to be more of a leader, you should check those moments where you normally are much of a follower. For instance ...
- The FIFA Rules Are no Longer Enough
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] And then the world cup ends… The last game between France and Italy is probably exemplary for the quality of soccer these days.
Acting on visible actions alone is not enough. The stress of the game leaves no time for any referee to take the right action. The system of yellow and red cards is no longer enough. In order to increase to quality level of soccer the FIFA needs to introduce something like ...
- A Strategic Move by a Military Organization
[News-and-Society:Military] The word "strategy" is rooted in the military area. Just take a look at the following military organization:
- Enterprise Software, Integration Issues and New Trends
[Computers-and-Technology:Software] Oce, a leading provider of digital document management technology and services, published it’s financial figures ... The CFO of Oce commented ... about the pending decision in the area of Enterprise software. At the moment, Océ and the company Imagistics that has been acquired last year, both use a different ERP solution. The decision to take is about selecting a single solution (provider)...
- Soccer, Sales and the Quality of the Product
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] After beating Holland and England, Portugal is finally stopped by France. A very important detail matters. The French style also helped, but most of all, Portugal's productivity wasn't just enough; they were too much focused on (Excuse me, it's again about the World Cup)
- Change and The Unproductive Moments During Your Journey
[Business:Change-Management] The travel metaphor is an old but still useful metaphor to use in change management. Take for instance this viewpoint. You are on a business trip for a week or so. During that, you aren't able to conncect to the internet, nor to continue your work in another way - Is that a problem?
- Performance Management - Before Implementing a System
[Business:Management] Performance management is about controlling the performance of the organization. Most of the time this starts by the financial figures that are set as a guide for the company. We target a certain return on investment, an efficiency ratio or a profit per share ratio. These ratios provide a guide for management because they represent real targets.
But then what?
- The Profile of an Ideal Supporter
[Self-Improvement:Coaching] You have bought your ticket for the World Cup and the game begins. What should you do? Being a supporter is a tough job. But you can do it; Go on, be a tiger!
- The Checklist - More Than A Simple List
[Business:Management] A checklist is for more than one reason a tool that will support you when managing your business. “A Simple list,” you might think, but it could mean all the difference.
- How to Control a Project Without Formal Project Management
[Business:Management] You will probably have experienced this. You are the sponsor of a small project. It is not really a heavy project but the activities are not part of the daily routine. Also there is some risk involved, basically it is a project without a real plan. You did however agree date on which the work would be done...
- 7 Factors That Make Up A Winning Team
[Business:Team-Building] Sport is often used as a metaphor in business ... what will make a team win the games? There are several factors – all present in either area (business and sport):
- The World Cup And The Forecast Ritual
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] Brazil seems to be the World Cup favorite, but will they meet the expectations?
- About Spain, Television And The Distribution of The World Cup
[Recreation-and-Sports:Football] The society in Spain is not only divided by autonomous communities; the country is also split into private and public areas. Amongst them, in television.
- How To Receive Support For Your Plans
[Business:Management] There is more politics in business than there is business in politics. It is hard to tell what came first, but in both areas you need supporters for you plans.
The question is; how do you receive this support?
- The World Cup – Of Advertising
[Business:Marketing] Click on the Google Image and you get the search results for "2006 World Football." But during nearly two hours, something else happened...
- Performance Management Up to the Individual Level
[Business:Management] Every serious company traces its performance in some or other way. Performance management is a mechanism to control business activities. With the introduction of the Balanced Score Card, performance management became more interesting, because it widened the scope of performance management with non-financial figures... How to link corporate performance measurement to indivudal performance management?
- How Search Engines Handle Content and Link Strategies in Their Own Way
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] Check this in the following way: (by) searching for an article that you or someone else has written and take this marketplace as a source. Select an article heading - copy it to your search engine and check the results. Do not forget the embrace the article heading with quotes, otherwise the search engine will not deliver it on the first line
- Another Article Writing Rule That (Not Only) Increases Your Production
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] I've seen it come by often. This practice improves your discipline, which is a success factor in many other areas too.
But there is another article writing rule:
- Your New Year's Resolutions: What is the Status?
[Self-Improvement:Goal-Setting] "Yeah, can't this wait until the end of the year?" No, it can not...
- Heading For a European Constitution (5)
[News-and-Society:Politics] ... So, there seems to be a trend in which the number of independent Nations increases in the European territory. Will this trend influence the independence developments in Spain?
- The Maturity Level of an Infrastructure
[Business:Management] Although not at the center of action, Infrastructure can make a difference. You will notice the maturity of an infrastructure when incidents occur.
- How (Not) to Convince Your Audience Sending a Personal Letter
[Business:Marketing] The first step is a short but serious opening. Not too personal:
- Heading For a European Constitution (4)
[News-and-Society:Politics] A technical view on the past developments in Europe and what this could mean for the future...
- The Man, The System And The Incident: A Human Tragedy
[News-and-Society] Some accidents uncover a reality that you would never expect. Two years ago a tragic train accident caused the death of nineteen people. Today, the factor was accused to be responsible for this accident.
- The Spanish Rail, Standard Deviation and Innovation
[News-and-Society:Economics] Infrastructure is a term to describe all those nearly invisible activities that are needed to support other productive economic functions.
If not centrally governed - like the Spanish Railway system - it will give different kind of problems, one of them
- Selling Property in Spain Using Multi Listing Systems
[Real-Estate] The most important part of A Multi Listing System (MLS) is the database... Yet, the sales of MLS is not skyrocketing in Spain. What seems to work in one culture shouldn’t necessary provide the same success in another culture...
- What is the Problem With this House? It's Only for Sale
[Business:Sales] Maybe ... no, you must have seen them. Those Advertisements. They are different from what you normally see when a House is for sale... To sell a product as expensive as a house you engage (the client) in a game where ...
- Personal Productivity - Where it All Starts
[Self-Improvement:Organizing] Is personal productivity about - getting more done in less time? And does this equally apply in any different situation? ... think about a teacher ...
- Presentation, the Content and Eight Other Ingredients
[Business:Presentation] Many ingredients are required for a presentation. Content is one of them. No presentation can live without it. Yet the idea behind presentation is not so much the content... but in fact the presentation (itself), but what would that be?
- Track and Tracing - Beyond The Power of Individual Players
[News-and-Society:Economics] One area in which a law altered the rules quite a bit is the Food business. The General Food Law (GFL) that entered in force in (January) 2005 (in Europe) triggered a big change.
Probably the real trigger is to be searched among the incidents we all know about; The mad cow disease, bird flu and other threats that are evolving rapidly. And our health is at stake.
- Track and Tracing – From Barcode to RFID
[Computers-and-Technology] Search for "Tracking & Tracing" and you are overwhelmed by a response from producers, distributors, retailers and consumer organizations.
One innovation in this area is the evolution of the barcode. We are all familiar with this code which looks like a little invisible burglar caught and send behind bars...
- The Q of Your Organization
[Business:Team-Building] ... One example ... from Peter Senge that is often quoted is the anomaly in which a team of intelligent managers with individual IQ's of about 120 constitute a team with a collective IQ of half this figure.
- A Small History of Women's Rights (in Switzerland) - For a Change
[Arts-and-Entertainment:Humanities] We all know Switzerland. It is a small country with no connection to the see, a fact that makes the country already special. Top of mind, thinking about Switzerland you will probably mention – watches or the banking secret.
But did you know this ... a beautiful example of change and management...
- The Search Engine Is Searching For A Strategy
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] The search engines themselves are also continuously searching for a new strategy. What options are available?
- The ERP Implementation And Solving Some Issues Down The Road
[Business:Management] Your business is constantly changing. We hear this once in a while ... but think for yourself the devices and products you have bought, but that did not always change your life. An ERP implementation may fall in this category.
- Blogging Versus Email Newletters - Do You Need Them Both?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Blogging] After you have clicked on the article link and before the text is fetched, you think -- "What Do I think about this one?" You must have an opinion even though the issue (of blogging) is still fresh.
- Investing In Art - Starting All Over Again?
[Investing] If you are curious to invest in something else than real estate or stocks, art might be an option. Previous investment experience (in real estate or in financial markets) will most certainly determine your approach when exploring Art investments.
- About Spain - Changes in the Ibex 35
[Investing] This article comments on the changes of the Spanish main Stock Exchange Index, the Ibex 35 over the period from 2000 to 2006.
- Vending Machines (2)
[News-and-Society:Economics] According to the European Vending Association (www.eva.be) the Consumers' increasingly nomadic lifestyle is a great opportunity for the vending industry.
- Vending Machines
[News-and-Society:Economics] A vending machine is a combination of different products. The machine itself could be compared with the smallest scale supermarket without a sales force.
- A Vision, The Strategy and The Princess
[Business:Strategic-Planning] A vision statement should communicate two things. One is open for the public, the other should only be shared within the organization. And there is a relation between a vision and your strategy.
- Your Corporate Values - Reviewed
[Business:Ethics] The values below are selected from a company with internet presence. The management of the company has put significant effort in setting the values up. This can be deducted by the number of corporate values that are selected.
- The (Missing) Link Between Thoughts And Action
[Business:Change-Management] Not only during the disturbing periods of change, but in day-to-day management situations too: action is always essential. There are situations however where your team slows down to stop.
- Goals – The Mountain, the Mountain Bike and You
[Self-Improvement:Goal-Setting] This is about personal goals and about the easy way to set such a goal. One of the main problems with goal-setting is not the activity to target a goal, but to select one that seems reasonable; not too easy but still serious. And the hard part comes at the end, when you hear all those voices ...
- The Marketing Rule From World's Most Famous Author
[Business:Marketing] Marketing is the art of informing people about products or services. Article production certainly helps, and ... the oldest marketing rule is invented by also ... an author. A world famous author.
- The Area Where To Look For When There is a Problem
[Business:Workplace-Communication] There is a problem. Somewhere. Nothing unusual but these things happen in every organization... Where would you look first? There are four areas to explore.
- The Wall - Will It Solve The Problem?
[News-and-Society:Economics] Architecture is about design, building and about transforming space into something that is of functional use... And that is what is going on at the border with Mexico...
- Ruby on Rails - an Introduction
[Computers-and-Technology:Software] Searching for "Ruby on Rails" will give you only two responses. When you search at ezines, that is. I found that very curious...
- Should You Be Afraid of Open Source?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Security] A philosophical question about open versus closed developments...
- Champions League Final 2006: Arsenal FC (1) – FC Barcelona (?)
[Recreation-and-Sports:Soccer] The Champions league just finished. And there is a winner.
- The Knowledge You Need to Start This (New) Investment Game
[Investing] This is the situation. You are in front of a new investment decision. You have asked Mr Knowsit over there, you consult your best friend, you inform in a indirect way about a certain issue – "Why do you ask," is the response and at the end, loaded with information and opinions you have gathered, you think by yourself:
- How To Increase The Acceptance Of Your Innovation
[Self-Improvement:Innovation] And there it is. Finally the innovation we have all been waiting for...
- Incidents That Will (Not) Influence You
[Self-Improvement:Attraction] A few days ago I received a Tantra. You know. This was a nice one, although after reading the first sentence I got the picture which took away most of the fun. In fact it was not funny at all. It started with the impression of a man, mesmerized by a little package that was lying there in a drawer. Untouched. "She would open it on a special occasion..."
- Collecting Stamps And Incredible Return Rates
[Home-and-Family:Crafts-Hobbies] "There is no such a thing as a free lunch," but we keep on searching for it - Even so, we will have to wait for the lawsuit to get the real story about the personal wealth of Fidel Castro.
But what about the return on investments on collecting stamps?
- The Balance Between Long Term and Short Term Focus
[Business:Management] Whether you are working for a corporate organization or you are manager of a small business...we all deal with the topic of short term versus long term focus. This is a real challenge to solve. Although...
- About Spain - "What a Country"
[Book-Reviews:History] Spain observed by foreign reporters; more cultural diversity in one book is sheer impossible.
- We Have Lost Another Zen View
[News-and-Society] Architecture and buildings influence how people think and act.
A hidden tragedy; it just happens.
- What The Young Master Shows Us
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] There are so many examples we can learn from. What the young master shows us is not talent. At least, not talent alone...
- Motivation at Work
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] Motivation is often tempered by the incredibility of management (directives)...On a personal level you will encounter the same relation; what (kind of work) do you value and to what voice (style) do you listen?
- Some Thoughts About Knowledge Management
[Business:Workplace-Communication] What should be your focus when you are to manage knowlegde.
- When the Trip Has Finished Starts the Hard Work
[Business:Change-Management] Do you recognize this; you have come back from a holiday, you get back to work and the same day at five o'clock (or the next day at four) you seem to have forgotten about your holiday. The energy and fine ideas that you brought back with you are fading away once you are behind your desk.
- Heading For a European Constitution (3)
[News-and-Society:Politics] The current European strategy could be seen as an innovative one favoring change more than improvements. Change in the sense of the admission of "new" member states. Recently the European Union has been extended with 10 new member states and two more will probably follow in 2007 (Bulgaria and Rumania). The admission of Turkey or Croatia is not clear yet.
- Bolivia - From "La Paz" to "La Guerra?"
[News-and-Society:Politics] La Paz – the capital of Bolivia – is about four thousand kilometre above sea level. The President of this country, Morales, must have a good overview from this height. Still we all should wonder whether his vision point in a comfortable direction.
- Organizations That Are Leading Change
[Business:Change-Management] All organizations deal in some way or the other with change... Many companies follow ow change that has been set in the market.
A small group of companies or institutions deal with change in a different way; they are more in the lead of change. They could be pictured as change leaders.
- How to Diminish Project Failures
[Business:Change-Management] Projects are widely used to implement changes. Yet the duration of a project is also a risk factor.
- The Productivity Profile – The Starting Point for Any New Strategy
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Each company has its own productivity profile that determines much of future or new (business) developments... And is a starting point for any new strategy.
- Advice on Using The Following Two Keywords
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] Reading this article may be of interest if you are using the following two keyowrds for your business (products): "Quality" or "Luxury."
- Manage and Focus on the Exception
[Business:Management] Exceptions to the rule...(these) are in fact emphasising the same rule. But what about the exceptions themselves? How do you manage these?
- How to Get Your Business More Disciplined
[Business:Management] Discipline is very important in organizations as it is for organizing you personal life. If you want to achieve something in sports or any other area you cannot without. But what is it exactly?
And...what is the number one enemy of discipline?
- About Spain - Some Business Statistics and Tendencies
[News-and-Society:Economics] According to the authority on Spanish statistics (INE), Spain accumulated 2.942.583 companies in January 2004. This represents about 7.2 companies for each 100 inhabitants (which is nearly double the amount of the number in the Netherlands, which is 4.0)
It is generally a known fact that in Spain the Small & Medium Businesses (SMB) outnumber any other business. Less well known is another interesting figure...
- How to Influence the Article Production (as a Reader)
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] You could influence the article production obviously by contributing as a producer. Yet it is also possible to influence this production as a reader. And this is very important...
- The Threshold Level for a Sound Internal Communication
[Business:Workplace-Communication] The style of your organization reflects the way systems are built and used by members of the organization. Interfacing is a common issue between departments and systems; "what should we pass, when and how?" Regardless the Style of your organization, there is a threshold level for internal communication to gain credibility to your client.
- Presentations – Lessons Learned (at School)
[Business:Presentation] We are to absorb so much knowledge that we tend to forget what we have learned when we where still at school. Maybe you remember the time when you where asked to read out loud in front of the class.
- How Does Internet Affect The Way We Communicate?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] How does the internet Affect the way we communicate and what does this mean for Marketing and Sales?
- Heading For a European Constitution (2)
[News-and-Society:Politics] Recently I read a discussion about Europe in which a central banking system like that of the US was taken as example. The idea was to support the Euro not only with a monetary policy but also with a fiscal policy, which is not done at the moment in Europe. The question is should we compare ourselves with the situation in the US?
- Incompatibility of (Business) Characters
[Business:Management] Quote:...Compared to 2004, the number of divorces in the Netherlands rose by nearly 2 thousand to 33 thousand in 2005. Incompatibility of characters ... and ... are most frequently mentioned as reasons for divorce.
In order to compete, we know from Michael Porter and other strategist who have written about the subject, companies tend to differentiate. And these minor differentiations end up in the products and services we (consumers and other businesses) buy from them. The same differentiations that will make that one solution of on typical product or service will not cooperate – will not be compatible – with other similar solutions.
- Three Different Types of ERP Systems
[Computers-and-Technology:Software] Does any Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system equals any other ERP system? And if not, where are all those differences? Or at least what are some main differences to make a first rough selection?
- Heading For a European Constitution
[News-and-Society:Politics] When you observe the political developments in Spain, it is hard to imagine a Europe beyond the current European Union. The Basque country is aiming at further autonomy, and shortly there will be a referendum about the constitution (Estatut) of Catalunya.
Should we Europeans want to go beyond a union as it is at the moment? Should we prepare for a united states of Europe?
- Knowledge Management - Lessons From Martin Luther
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Sometimes you need to go back in time -- say four hundred years -- to understand that things have not changed.
- Attention! Using Projects For Guiding Change - Small Versus Large Organizations
[Business:Change-Management] There are many similarities between large companies on one hand and small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) on the other hand. Many concepts that may have been developed for large organizations are applicable for small businesses.
Large organization could benefit from (forgotten) methods that are used by small businesses. Especcially when dealing with change.
- Investment Strategies – Choosing Between the Specialist and the Generalist
[Investing] It is common knowledge that in business you need to focus. How would this -- focus -- relate to different investment strategies?
- What's in a Company Name?
[Business:Branding] You can hardly influence the development of your child by selecting whatever name... When talking about business however there is only one option; The name you choose will -– as a cultural element -– influence your business. How do companies handle this issue after a merger? Some examples from the Dutch Stock Exchange.
- One Minute Self Assessment & Integration – Stocks or a Mutual Fund
[Business:Management] This title is some how misleading, but on the other hand it figuratively explains just the main point. The question is about integration. When you buy a mutual fund you are free from integration problems – those are handled by your fund provider.
If you prefer to select (the best) stocks your self, you will have to do the integration on your own.
Figuratively speaking, because the real one minute assessment is about business management; how to integrate different solutions...and, what is your preferred approach?
- Resource Management and Strategy (3)
[Business:Strategic-Planning] If it is all part of the same game –- strategy and operation, marketing and human resources, finance and technology –- how than, should you play this game?
- About Spain, Immigration and the Satellite Dish
[News-and-Society:Politics] You can't judge a book by its cover. Can't you -– in the same way –- judge an experience you have not lived? After moving to a foreign country, I have placed myself in the skin of a foreigner. Giving interesting insights...
- Resource Management and Strategy (2)
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Resource management is like managing a matrix; each side influences the other...
The next step: from now to tomorrow.
- Resource Management and Strategy
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Resource management is like managing a matrix; each side influences the other.
What is the scope or resource management and what is the challenge?
- About Spain, Marbella, and The King
[News-and-Society:Economics] Marbella is situated on the south coast of Spain; La Costa de Sol. It is one of the most distinguished cities in this southern region. Distinguished most of all because of glamour. Unfortunately, this glamour is fading away slightly. Maybe not in the last place because of the death of king...
- What to Consider When You Face an Expensive Consultant
[Business:Consulting] Consultants tend to be expensive. What should you consider before you hire someone.
- When Politics Dominate Your Organization
[Business:Strategic-Planning] There are many resemblances between politics and management. One of them is that they both share the development of Policies. Where should your company differ from a political institution in order to be successful?
- Switching Bodies With The Organization
[Business:Team-Building] The script of the movie "Freaky Friday" is a very simple one. And also profound in the way that in all our daily relations we should try to figure out who we are talking to. Put yourself in someone else's shoes...And Imagine this time: the shoe is your organization...
- Some Speculative Thoughts About Strategy Featuring Boeing and Airbus
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Who could be more aware of the fact that time flies? Who, other than both Boeing or Airbus? Airbus is a European company, Boeing is US based and that is why ...(speculation # 1).
- What Are The Business Rules Of Your Organization?
[Business:Management] The theory of Behavior finance shows us the influence of emotions in the decision-taking-process. Because of various reasons, we use rules that are not always rationally sound.
What Are The Business Rules of Your Organization? How do they balance between ratio and emotion?
- A One Minute Self Assessment: A Rational or Emotional Decision
[Investing] There are many ways in which emotions influence your investment decisions. This influence of (emotional) behavior on finance is a (not that of a) new branch of the finance theory.
The question you should ask on this matter is:
- Problems & Why They Don't Get Solved
[Business:Management] It is possible to find about 2,050,000,000 “problems” on the internet.
Often, problems do not get solved...They saunter around like orphans that are not taken care of...
- About Spain - What Rules Do You Think Will Apply?
[News-and-Society:Politics] Apart from what will happen with the Basque country, the (pacific) struggle for autonomy in similar "States" like in Catalunya will be outdated before a new treaty is even signed.
Why would that be?
- About Spain - a Historical Day?
[News-and-Society] You do not have to understand Spanish in order to “decipher” the current heading of El Pais (www.elpais.es).
The cartoon incident would most probable never have occurred in Spain...
- Where to Make a Difference When Raising a Child
[Home-and-Family:Parenting] Do you influence your kids in a special way? Does your child management approach make a real difference, and how would you know? This is one of the biggest problems; we can't really tell whether our method to raise a child is a good one.
Yet you can do some harm...
- About Spain - the Spanish Language and Delicate Issues
[News-and-Society:Politics] Politics in Spain: never a dull moment. The man-to-man combats can only be taken figuratively as if you were attending a theatre; this can't be real.
As in Spanish soccer, two parties dominate the political scene (on national level); PSOE and PP. This week however, the contest was predominately a gender debate.
- Corporate Values - Before You Get Them Out in The Open...
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Defining corporate values is a useful exercise. It is part of the communication process where you invest in alignment of teams. Even though different teams or departments will each have their own tasks and responsibilities, you want them to share some same principles. For example;
- Benchmarking and Performance Management (2)
[Business:Management] A mutual fund could set a benchmark as a target for the performance...For individual portfolios that carry more than stocks only but include currencies and bonds, it is more difficult to define an appropriate benchmark.
And that is exactly the problem with benchmarking as an performance management instrument in organisations. How are you to measure a performance if every company is unique and wants to deviate from the standard?
- Productivity Roles of a Leader
[Self-Improvement:Leadership] There are four productivity roles for a leader to manage his or her daily agenda. Some require more energy; some other is merely to get started. You are all familiar with these four, but you would probably imagine a different distribution of these. Yet, this first role is the one that needs most attention...
- How to Increase Productivity When Managing Multiple Disciplines
[Business:Workplace-Communication] If your computer is infected with a virus you might have to restore your data at one moment in time. This is like going back in time. Time you could have spend on production. There are other incidents that require you to go back from where you came from. A nuisance if your time is limited...
- Program Management and Strategy Alignment (2)
[Business:Strategic-Planning] ...When your company is dealing with more than one project and this occurs for the larger companies, you face the challenge to align these projects with the main strategy.How do you make this happen?
- Business Patterns - The Reservation
[Business:Management] Every time you enter a restaurant, you should check whether they use the reservation concept...
...Business Patterns are very useful concepts. There are also many pattern and these are useful because they help you solve issues where others have been dealing with before. The queue is one of them that is used in nearly any business today...Why are reservations important, who will use them and what do they solve for your business...And what problem do they bring?
- Differences Between Products And Services
[Business:Change-Management] What are some of the main differences between products and services? And when are these differences relevant?
- What Do You Need to Align Business With IT
[Business:Management] Discussions about IT and Business alignment are often about closing a certain gap, one that was "opened" in an earlier stage. The question is how did your company get in that situation? Why was there such a gap? And more important; is there really a gap, or are we talking about different views on the complexity of your business. And, how do we solve this?
It's not a real secret, but not less important...
- How to Organize Without Losing Flexibility
[Self-Improvement:Organizing] Are you easily taken by surprise? And then what; still no problem.
Organizing is not always needed if you can improvise. Yet, even a small business needs to be organized in some kind of a way. You can’t run a business by only improvising. So what should you do?
- How to Improve Team Results by Using the Belbin Team Role Concept
[Business:Team-Building] The team with the "best" players will not always provide the best team results. This holds true for teams in organizations as in sports. The question is what drives a winning team? That question has triggered many investigations with interesting results you can benefit from implementing them.
- Three Reasons Why a Company Might Choose to Outsource
[Business:Outsourcing] A normal reason why a company might choice to outsource activities or business processes is to do with focus. This is about the "idea" that outsourcing of supportive activities would streamline the organization and make it more competitive.
That competition and focus are highly correlated can be demonstrated by...
- Try to Keep Politics Out of the Decision Process
[Business:Management] There are many factors that influence the decision process when managing (change). The amount of participation around an issue is one. The choice in favour a gradual or radical pace of the process is another. This topic is about whether you can control the problem with a technical and or economical solution or that the solution is very much influenced by a social and political environment.
- Why a Manager Should Meditate
[Health-and-Fitness:Meditation] Yes, if you are a manager you should meditate. There is no exception possible. You cann't escape this one. But first, let’s have a look behind the reason.
- Outsourcing And (Reducing) Transaction Costs (End)
[Business:Outsourcing] ... Ronald Coase brought the transaction cost theory to the world...the (market) inefficiencies could be eliminated by organizing transactions within the same organization...
So what you need to do is:
- Outsourcing And (Reducing) Transaction Costs
[Business:Outsourcing] Nobel Prize winner in economics, Ronald Coase, brought the transaction cost theory to the world, which postulates (amongst other things) that organizations exist because of market inefficiencies. According to this theory, a market is also (part of) an organization. If there is no (external) market you can organize that specific market activity within the organization and save transaction costs.
Why is this relevant for outsourcing?
- Change By Switching Business Rituals
[Business:Change-Management] Every morning you wake up, eat and -– most days of the week -- you go to work. By that time you have already finished a set of daily habits. But at work, there are even more waiting for you; starting with the computer: Switch on.
And then, what do you do next...
- About Spain, Subtitles, Dubbing and Predicting a Change
[News-and-Society:Economics] Some potential changes are not in fact changes yet and the question is: will they ever be?
As a foreigner in Spain used to read subtitles rather than listen to a voiceover – in case of foreign languages -- you would certainly hope that they will. A change from dubbing to subtitles would be a welcome one. But will this situation change?
- About Gradual And Radical Changes
[Business:Change-Management] We all have been involved in changes. A simple move from one house to a new one count as a real experience. What did you most (dis)like about the move; the radical change on the day that you delivered the key and entered the new place, or the long gradual adaptation period afterwards?
Each change comprises a time frame, which depends on the scope of the change. The larger the scope of the change, the more difficult to manage...
- Change Management And Participation
[Business:Change-Management] Related to the topic of problem-or-solution-oriented change is the topic of participation. But this issue of participation is more delicate than the previous one.
This is about the amount of space for negotiation around the proposition. The proposition however is something that also needs time to ripe; or has there already been prepared one? Is the path to which the developments will lead already entered or is your organization gathered at a square and considering a next move: in any of the directions that are accessible from the square?
- Each Change Has Its Most Preferable Tactic
[Business:Change-Management] Think about the situation where your company is receiving more phone calls than it can handle, not for one day but every day for weeks, the customers and prospects are waiting minutes of valuable time. They will loose their patience. And your company is losing even more - You can solve a mathematical problem ending up with a solution. If your organization is facing a change, than the problem solving equation is more complex -And you are there in front of a decision to take
- A Personal Reminiscence Of a Gradual Change
[Business:Change-Management] The second industrial revolution: reinventing your business on the Web, is a book that I received from (former) professor of MIT John Donovan when I attended his conference in Paris in 1999 about the same topic. I recently re-opened the book accidentally and found an interesting part about change management...
- What to Do When Everything Has Already Been Said
[Business:Presentation] They say that in literature everything has already been said (written). If you want to write a novel, you should differentiate on style rather than on anything else.
And this is not less true in business. Our “Style Compass” seems familiar with elements from the model of Myers-Briggs and also with the Competing Values Framework. And perhaps with many other concepts.
Recently I found another reference with similarities; the so-called...
- About Spain - Infrastructure
[News-and-Society:Economics] These About Spain articles are not about tourism, although Spain is a beautiful country.
They are meant to function as a reference for management and organization. Spain is the decor to which common business issues are mirrored. Each company is struggling with certain issues, just in the same way that a government and the inhabitants of a country are dealing with similar topics; distribution, priorities, communication, investments, infrastructure. (Corporate) Governance. And many others.
Dutch, about Spain, in English. I hope you'll understand
- A Personal Strategy: Do You Have One?
[Self-Improvement:Attraction] Have you thought about you personal strategy (yet)? If (not) so, than you should read the following book (you probably know about the existence);
...
"Could you please tell me what this test has to do with strategy?" Yes, I can...
- The Three Pillars of Successful Resource Management
[Business:Management] The first part of this article assumes that your company is listed on the stock-exchange. Please stay tuned...
As consumers we are continuously seduced by advertisements. And luckily we all know what we want and what we need so we can handle this continuous stream of challenges.
Perhaps less sexy but even so often, your business is seduced in the same way...
- The Three Pillars of Successful Portfolio Management
[Investing] Before any success – in nearly any area of expertise – you need some preparations. This could be a theoretical background or years of experience.
Let’s say that you have been there. The preliminaries are over. Then the question is; what are the pillars of successful portfolio management.
- Be Aware of The Article Production Hype
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Ezine-Publishing] Not only the stock exchange experience will learn us that expectations are sometimes inflated. For some trend it could take years before becoming a real hype. But then, when the expectations are no longer met you should be prepared... For those who are in the Article production business.
The threat comes from on aspect which is easily underestimated...
- About Quantity and Quality When Writing Articles
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] Interesting discussion I followed yesterday, about the numbers-game. And whether a search-engine could figure out whether an article has original content... Would you please excuse me not agreeing with this numbers game, more if it is about writing (articles).
- The IBEX 35 Index From Raw Data to Useful Information
[Investing] Most countries have a stock-exchange where you can trade the stocks of the various companies. If you are starting the investment game, the stock market just looks like a raw list of data... What could you do about this?
- Negiotiate By Creating More Space
[Business:Negotiation] Negotiation is about creating that extra bit of space.
You probably know the example of someone who is unfamiliar to you and who is getting too close. There seems to be a private zone that surrounds us. we feel uncomfortable if people get near us. We all need our (private) space.
- The Three Sides of The Change Box - And The Contents of The Box
[Business:Change-Management] If the three sides of the box are about; the fundaments of the change, the organizational scope and the depth of the change or the impact, than there is still something missing.
It is not an important part. In fact, for managing change you should not give it too much attention...
- Business Patterns - The Queue
[Business:Management] Business Patterns are very useful concepts. The queue is one of them that is used in nearly any business today, especially in call centers. You remember this when you hear the music and an iron voice telling you: "Please stay on the line..." Why are queues so important and what do they solve for your business?
- The Differences Between Line and Project Management
[Business:Management] Any company is dealing with both types of management. In a small businesses environment the role of operational line management and tactical project management could be combined.
If your company is dealing with both types in different roles and departments than one issues is critical for the success of the organization...
- What's on The Menu Today?
[Business:Sales-Management] A restaurant is good example of a “company” that is dealing with the dynamics of consumer demands...The next question is; what is on the menu? This is a question all sales organizations are dealing with...
- The Three Sides of The Change Box
[Business:Change-Management] Picture a change as a huge box – the change box, with three sides: the fundament, the depth and the breadth and not to forget what's inside the box: the content.
The depth of the change has already been discussed by "the change checklist – define the impact."
The breadth of a change is about
- Organizing - Nature Versus Nurture
[Self-Improvement:Organizing] The First law of nature is about self-preservation; every man for himself and let the devil take the hindmost...You could still find this dichotomy in organizations if you concentrate on the preferable way of organizing activities: individually based or by means of teamwork...
- Benchmarking and Performance Management (1)
[Business:Management] Comparing outcomes could be fascinating. For example if you are eager to know whether there are more divorces in Hollywood than on average?
To measure the length of someone you can use a yard-stick, ruler or a measuring tape. If you have taken the measure, you can than compare it with others. If you want to compare the performance of activities, or the level of a competence or capability, you can use a benchmark.
- Do You Need to Solve Every Issue (Right Away)?
[Self-Improvement:Organizing] You do not have to solve every issues that you (and other members in the organization) come across.
It would be nice to solve everything at once, but some issues need some time. So what should you do?
- Some Thoughts About the Unequal Language Distribution on the Internet
[News-and-Society:Economics] This article is about strategy; information that will not impact you today, neither tomorrow, but maybe in the end. How will the languages on the Internet develop in the future and how will it effect the development of our society? It is about information, knowledge and about the (unequal) distribution of languages on the Internet.
You can skip this if you are looking for a solution for a problem. Especially, if needed on the short term.
- The Investment Challenge: Selling When Stock Prices Are Rising
[Investing] There are these automatic portfolio management systems. They operate with the precision of a Swiss watchmaker...
...Once you have questioned your risk-return profile, you will be challenged to stick to the profile. And that is not easy.
- How to Increase the Chance of a Match When Networking
[Business:Networking] Networking is a productive activity. But to benefit the productivity to its full extent you should network the way you would organize other activities...
...Think for this last example about dating someone, and you communicate about mutual interests. The better the match, the more of a chance that both agree in a next step.
- The Change Checklist - Define the Impact
[Business:Change-Management] Is any change really about change, or could it be an improvement? Is the situation afterwards any different or is it more of the same. In either way, the impact can be very high. As we can see with the inauguration of a new terminal at the Barajas airport in Madrid. This article gives access to a simple change checklist previously described.
- The Service Level Agreement - The Glass is Never (Completely) Full
[Business:Management] Positive or negative thinking is sometimes visualized by a person expression his or her vision about the level of a glass, being either half FULL or half EMPTY.
A Service Level Agreement is doing just that; expressing when the glass is full and when not. You need such an SLA when...
- Oil - Beyond Upstream and Downstream
[News-and-Society:Economics] The state of the union signals the end of a trend. Follow the developments in the energy markets...
- Online Management Advice - Don't Get Too Close
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online] ...Think about the smoking campaigns, and think about the DNA investigations. It has all to do with prevention. Looking in front of us and anticipate. If time management is about balancing urgency and importance; as a manager you should balance both prevention and cure...
- The Investment Management Guide to Business Management
[Business:Management] Investment is about allocating different investment instruments into a portfolio in such a way that this portfolio is aligned with your personal profile.
How is this done in business management...
- Live Reported From the Stock Exchange: GOOG (-16%) - YHOO (-17%)
[Business:Management] Both companies have reported earnings. The stock prices are now back to more fundamental levels. Following this virtual competition is about the parallel of external (stock market) competition and the internal competition that companies are dealing with. And about the side effects...
- In Five Steps Towards a Financial Plan
[Finance:Personal-Finance] You can start making a financial plan today. It is not very difficult and you can elaborate it once you start to see the benefits from it. It takes only five small steps, and you can present an overview to "the stakeholders."
- 100 - A Psychological Barrier, Or Just A Number?
[Investing] When analyzing the stock market you can trust on many investment methods. Technical analysis or fundamental analysis are the two most common. As with many things in life, you need both... but which way would you prefer?
- How to Know What You Know (3)
[Business:Change-Management] ...In many situations we act without even knowing why we act the way we do...This is no longer desirable when your organization is changing too often...Knowledge Management is (amongst other aspects) about making the “private” knowledge “publicly” available...So that you can bridge the Knowledge Gap...But your organization was not used to this. Different teams applied different principles...And now what?
How to address this new set of principles so that knowledge management is adopted in the primary process?
- A Watch List Will Keep You Awake
[Investing:Stocks] Nobody is perfect and therefore no portfolio is perfect. They say that the market is always right, so there will always be something wrong with your portfolio. Or to put it more positive - there is always something to improve. And therefore...
- Find Your Style and Jack Up Your Article Production
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] Do you have problems in finding topics to write about, or do you hesitate once you are to trust your thoughts to the public? In that last case, you cannot hide for your style. But once you have found it, it will boost your article production (if you want to).
- Organizational Style & Preventing Conflicts
[Business:Workplace-Communication] Many conflicts in organizations pop up because of an unclear organizational (team) identity. Style is one "way" that should guide you swiftly through difficult situations. You could prevent many conflicts by presenting a clear style guide.
- Balance Your Portfolio With This Option
[Investing] You can balance your portfolio with different investment instruments; most common are - bonds, stocks and mutual funds. However, these are all faced into one direction. And that is (sometimes) not enough. So you should add something else.
- Negotiate - Show Your Cards, Not Your Emotions
[Business:Negotiation] Negotiating is not quite the same as playing poker. Although… there are those cards and emotions... The game is about combining these in a special way...
- Business Architecture & Management - Information Systems
[Business:Management] Information systems represent an core element in organizations. They are influenced by different forces within your organizational building. This article presents a simple overview of this complex area.
- The Knowledge Broker & How to Speed up ERP Selections
[Business:Outsourcing] An ERP (or any other system) selection demands many dedicated resources during an long period. You can save both time and money if you request a knowledge broker.
- The Lifestyle of Your Organization
[Business:Careers-Employment] Behind any product you buy unfolds the style of the orgaization that designed and produced the product.
- You Need One Special Kind of a Vision to Motivate
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] A vision is often used to motivate people. You need two kinds of visions. One of them is familiar, but this one can be ineffective. The other is "designed" to motivate.
- The Smallest Intervention You Can Think Of
[Business:Change-Management] Change is amongst other things about intervention. Significant interventions provoke resistance. Think of another way. And you can stay close to what you learn at home.
- Awareness for Problems that "Never" Occur
[Business:Management] Some problems never occur. And therefore we are not aware of them. But every now and then they appear. Like an old enemy you had forgotten about.
- Sales Management and CRM - Digging Into the Memory
[Business:Sales-Management] Having the central memeory, you can setup the sales management on a client centered approach. Before this you need to dig into the data...
- The Most Important Management Rule
[Business:Management] There are many rules. Rules of thumb. Different rules, some are whispered in the alley, others are left behind bars. This one will see the daylight.
- There is no Need to Get Organized - Unless...
[Self-Improvement:Organizing] There is really no need to get organized. Well, maybe there can be one small tiny reason.
- The Conductor of the Orchestra Doesn't Play-2
[Business:Management] We are back from the concert. Back to our organization, where the issues are waiting. There is a lot of work that flows...
- The Conductor of the Orchestra Doesn't Play
[Business:Management] Yesterday...I went to a concert. It was a real classic. I mean, it was a classical orchestra with violins, cellos...In fact there appeared to be four groups of instruments;
- Motivation - No Money Involved
[Self-Improvement:Motivation] Motivating others is like advising. But how would you advise yourself if you have to? There is a simple way (out).
- Should You be the (Sole) Owner of That Solution?
[Business:Strategic-Planning] There are different kind of solutions. Only in special situations you should be the owner. For the rest you can just follow the market.
- How to Know What You Know (2)
[Business:Change-Management] How do you know what you know? Why do you (all of a sudden) need knowledge management and where is the gap? Are there (structural) changes in the organization?
- How to Increase Your Article Production (I Forgot to Mention This)
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] Although the essential may have been said, you always take the risk of forgetting something. But if you apply the rule of the previous article well, issues you forget to address will not be too important.
- Sales Management and CRM - Setting up the Central Memory
[Business:Sales-Management] Sales management changed with the introduction of CRM. For both larger enterprises to the smaller companies the management of the central memory became an issue.
- How to Know What You Know (1)
[Business:Change-Management] How do you know what you know? Knowing this is one of the first steps in knowledge management.
- (Internal) Solutions and (External) Results
[Business:Management] Balancing solutions and results is a real challenge. But possible. If you know how to do it you have found a simple strategy.
- Just Another One Minute Assessment: A Sabbatical or Early Retirement?
[Home-and-Family:Retirement] Why would you take a sabbatical? Just to refill. A long holiday, or is there something else? A personal Strategy.
- A Free Corporate Values Assessment
[Business:Workplace-Communication] You shouldn't always check and recheck the corporate values. Normally they do not change. But if you do, look for a tool that supports the process of finding a the values that fit your organizational profile.
- Models That Color Your Presentation
[Business:Presentation] Models can color your presentation. It may save you using words. They also bring you new dilemmas when using them.
- The Pareto-Principle and ... Benchmarking
[Business:Management] The pareto-principle is very useful especially if you combine it with a benchmark.
- Business Architecture And Profit Centers
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Business Architecture is about using architectural concepts in organizations. It is not only about design, but also about filling the organizational space with constructions; the various forms that you have chosen to implement a functional need in order to serve a certain purpose. There are many functions in a company.
- Come on Hillary, You are Next!
[Self-Improvement:Leadership] Some thoughts about the presidential changes in Chile.
- A Compass - You Cannot Do Without One If You Want To Manage Your Business!
[Business:Management] We are all concerned with time and (stop)watches. Yet if you could find an (organizational) compass you are probably much better off.
- Program Management and Strategy Alignment
[Business:Management] How would you best organize an alignment of a portfolio of projects?
- Two Types of Project Managers
[Business:Management] The concern of a project manager is to deliver a project on time, on budget and with the quality (functionality) as defined. The Time and Budget aspects are relatively clear and straightforward. The quality aspect however is often open to discussion.
Different Project Managers handle this topic each on their own specific way.
- Search Trends & Management
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] How to setup a simple trend analysis for searches in your area of expertise.
- There is No Such Thing as a Standard Solution
[Business:Management] Finding and agreeing on a standard is a difficult and recurring business issue.
- Are You Often Told to Mind Your Own Business?
[Business:Careers-Employment] Mind your own business! Alright...but hang on, what is my business?
- Off-Shoring and Strategic Partnership
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Off-shoring is another way of managing resources. It will benefit you only if it is combined with something else.
- Do Not (Intent to) Change What is Fixed And What Should Remain Fixed
[Business:Change-Management] If you are preparing a change you should first search for some specific elements in your company. They are easily to be found.
- Live Reported From the Stock Exchange: GOOG (+13%) - YHOO (+2%)
[Investing] How is the giant doing in the race, what is at stake and what about the side effects of competition? Can this article meet your expectations?
- A Simple but Effective Strategy
[Business:Strategic-Planning] There are many strategy models to follow. For one you do not need a complex model. It is a simple guide.
- Requirements - Visit Our Showroom
[Business:Management] Information management is matching demand and supply. A visit to the Showroom can speed up the requirement process.
- In-sourcing a CRM System - Some Questions You Should Ask (Yourself).
[Business:Management] How would you select a long-list or even a short-list of CRM Suppliers?
- In-sourcing an ERP Supplier - A Quick Match of Profiles
[Business:Management] What should you do when you are to select an ERP system from a long list of suppliers?
- About the Make-Buy-Outsource Question & Interfacing With Third Parties
[Home-and-Family:Parties] Where should you focus your energy when dealing with third parties?
- How to Balance Your Team
[Business:Management] You are to hire a new employee. The candidate seems to be very suitable for the job. Yet you have your doubts...
- How to Balance Your Portfolio
[Investing] You should ask yourself one question and you will find out if your portfolio is balanced.
- Is it Possible to Start With a Clean Slate?
[Investing] The counter that measures your investment return is set back to zero. Could you start this year with a clean slate?
- How to Increase Your Article Production
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] What should you do if you want to write more in less time?
- One Minute Self Assessment - Discipline
[Investing] How disciplined are you with managing your portfolio?
- How Balanced is Your Score Card?
[Business:Strategic-Planning] A simple question; how balanced is your score card. Sometimes a difficult one to answer. Yet there is a solution.
- Knowledge Management, the Generalist and the Specialist
[Business:Management] How do you manage the knowledge of others, without interfering with the subject?
- Your First Job Sets the Tone for the Rest to Come
[Business:Careers-Employment] So you should be carefull and that is why we go to school for. It is like playing football and the ball is out. And it is your turn to get the ball back in...
- The First Question to Ask an Interim Manager
[Business:Management] The interim manager enters your office. There is right away one question you should ask yourself about her (in this case) presence.
- How to Manage When Everybody is Your Client
[News-and-Society:Politics] How to manage when everybody is your client. This article doesn't provide a solution. Only attention to the problem.
- When the Entrepreneur Becomes a Manager (Again)
[Business:Entrepreneurialism] There are differences between a manager and a entrepreneur. But they do not last for ever.
- How the Entrepreneur Becomes a Generalist
[Business:Entrepreneurialism] The Entrepreneur is somewhere in the middle between a specialist and a generalist.
- Managing Innovation - - Leaving Before the Party is Over
[Self-Improvement:Innovation] Innovation is leaving before the party is over, how do you do that in business?
- Strategy and Trend Alignment
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Trends are, unlike hypes, valuable friends in business.
- Do Not Try to Catch Them All
[Investing:Stocks] There are many ways to invest. There is only one that fits you best.
- A Conflict Grows When Leaving a Small Business Unattended
[Business:Small-Business] All of a sudden the rules of the game change. The conflict could have been prevented.
- One Minute Assessment: Cost & Revenue
[Business:Management] It’s IRS time; your tax-declaration process is a good indicator for your main preference -- focusing first on cost or on revenue.
- Teambuilding by Visiting the Internet
[Business:Team-Building] How do you build a team that is already present? The least you want is that there is a commun understanding. How would you achieve that?
- Change Management and Expectations
[Business:Change-Management] When managing change, expectations are like communicating vessels between current insight and future risks. Negotiate well, knowing that every future has more risks than you can imagine.
- Management, Change and... Stakeholders
[Business:Change-Management] Do not forget the stakeholders. Make a view of the categories and within this view elaborate on subsets.
- Business Architecture & Management - Some More Useful Elements
[Business:Management] If you apply the rules of (business) architecture in management you will be able to build a coherent business. Have you ever seen a church with a roof vault somewhere in the middle? If you walk in a library you see books.
- Business Management & Culture: Not Invented Here
[Business:Management] The Not Invented Here "syndrome" will solve itself with the evolution of internet.
- Business Management (and the Action Man)
[Business:Management] About a simple investment rule that embraces time-boxing.
- Change Management And Getting Invited For a Date
[Business:Change-Management] Resistance is a nuisance. You want to carry on, get up to speed but all kind of people are pulling your sleeves with a lot of questions, criticism and other hindrances that slow you down.
- Writing Articles, Pictures, Movies and Books
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] Is the time that you dedicate on writing articles competing with time needed for writing books?
- Outsourcing And What You Can Learn From Previous Insourcing Experiences
[Business:Outsourcing] We normally have little outsource experience, yet enough insource experience you could learn from.
- Supplier Selection and the Importance of a Style Match
[Business] There are many issues with selection of software packages like CRM and ERP.
Matching the Style of the supplier (materialized in the package) with your own, supports the selection process. Only if you do this during the initiation phase.
- Improve Your Sales Skills, By Observing Lawyers
[Business:Sales] What the sales manager can learn from a lawyer.
- Creativity & The Brainstorm Rule: What You Should Not Forget
[Self-Improvement:Creativity] We can all be creative if we want to. An easy signal warns you when you are out of the creative mode.
- Competition & Side Effects: Live Reported From the Stock Exchange: GOOG ($415,59) - YHOO ($40,91)
[Business] Competition is something we are all familiar with. How to deal with the side effects.
- Creativity - Untie Yourself From All Those Strings
[Self-Improvement:Creativity] To create something new you have to let go of something old. The baby is born after the string is cut.
- Business Architecture & Management - What You Need to Know
[Business:Management] Architecture is (normally) about buildings, cities and infrastructure (and the like). You can see it around you and everybody has an opinion about it. You either like the style of that building or you don't and all the nuances in between.
- Do Not Confuse Your Team by Giving Different Signals
[Business:Management] There are different approaches in management; it is your job to be clear and consistent in the approach you use.
- Defend Your Management Approach With a Credible Attack
[Business:Management] Whether you call it a management methodology, approach, style, manner, way or even a system, if it lacks one aspect, it will not be effective.
- The Unhappy Couple: Change and Improve
[Business:Change-Management] In order to change, there need to be an urgency. In the story below, there is none.
- A One Minute Self Assessment on Personal Productivity
[Business:Management] We can be productive in many ways. It is up to the manager to set the guidelines...
- Read the Necessary and go Back to Where the Action is
[Self-Improvement] Internet is a nice source of information. There are free advices to find in nearly any area of expertise. Advices and information you can learn from. There is nothing wrong with reading it. Although.
- How to Get Rid of Your Ego!
[Self-Improvement:Coaching] A consultant, advisor and anyone that is communicating with others need to be able to listen. Yet, we all want to show our expertise.....
- Miscellaneous Advice to a Young Hacker - Grow Up!
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Spam-Blocker] Letter to a hacker.
- Do Not Dump Your Articles on the Market in Batches of 20 to 30!
[Writing-and-Speaking:Writing-Articles] Do not dump your articles in batches. For obvious reasons.
- Focus on Style if you Want to Manage Culture
[Business:Management] Culture is difficult to analyse, to understand, to communicate. Yet important in any business. To improve your management expertise on this topic, start with one aspect of it. Style.
- Take Your Loss
[Investing] Managers take many decisions. As in investing you cannot expect them to be all perfect. There are some decisions that you should try to revoke. Take your loss once in a while.
- Commitment: A Door to Open
[Business:Management] Is commitment something you gain on the way, or do you need it right from the start?
- Quick-Loose
[Business:Management] Why should you invest in long term if you can win on the short?
- Don't Wait For Your Wake-up Call
[Self-Improvement:Inspirational] Structural changes origin from the past. You are safe if you keep track of the relevant one's for you business.
- What a Mutual Fund Can not Provide You
[Investing:Mutual-Funds] Stocks have one essential atribute that differentiates them from mutual funds.
- Do Not Wait Too Long To Follow The (New) Trend
[Business:Change-Management] Change management is like investment. It is your task as a change manager to make sure everybody follows the new trend.
- Management Of Change - Keep Things As They Are
[Business:Change-Management] Management of change is not seldom focused on finding new structures. Try to postpone this and reap the benefits of a real and lasting change.
- Focus on Your Personal Productivity Strength to Prosper Your Business
[Business:Small-Business] For small-business owners it is important to concentrate on personal strengths. Small business management is about organizing economic activities and your personal economic background defines the fundament for your business.
- Business Management - Be Aware Of Fear And-Greed
[Business:Management] The investmentgame offers a rich source of examples you can learn from. This article focuses on the fear-and-greed mechanism which is both present in investment management as in business management.
- Outsourcing - Watch Your budget!
[Business:Outsourcing] The succes of Outsourcing will depend on a credible productivity shift; Activities that remain after the outsourcing, should be more productive than before. This can only be the case when you have a balanced strategy.
- Search Engine Optimization: What Style Suits You Best?
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO] Search Engines (SE) know everything about what people have been looking for in the past. What your SEO strategy for the (near) future should be depends on your Style.
- Improve Your Strategy by Taking Decisions
[Business:Strategic-Planning] Strategic planning is not only about what to do, but also about how to do things. Sometimes, important decisions are left to be taken, which will leave the organization with a burden to carry along the strategic way.
- Management of Infrastructure - Who Dares
[Business:Management] Infrastructure is always the last point on the management agenda. This article explains why and gives a startingpoint for managers that are dealing with this topic.
- Management of Growth - Just Stick to Your Rules
[Business:Management] We all want to be unique.
However in your organization it is wise to share some same rules.
Through the increasing number of specialist and new management areas within one company however, it is ever more difficult to align the different management views on important business issues.
Investment managers already know that if you want to beat the market you've got to stick to your investment profile and to your rules.
We show you how you can achieve this in your organization.
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