November 2003 Volume II
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IN THIS ISSUE
1. Who We Are
2. THANKS for making Success Planning a success!
3. Actually heard at the Office: Lack of execution
4. ASK AL: measurement
5. IT Testing Maturity Model Assessments
6. Catch us in public
7. SAVE THE DATE
WHO WE ARE:
Advantage Leadership, Inc. serves two communities:
o Organizational leaders who want to grow their businesses and improve their bottom line results
o IT managers and quality professionals who want to improve software quality, IT results and integration with the business.
Visit our website, http://www.advantageleadership.com, to see our products and services.
SAVE THE DATE: February 12, 2004
THANKS!
Thanks for making our new book, Success Planning: a ‘how-to’ guide for strategic planning, a big success! Your response tells us that we have met your needs for a straightforward, powerful planning methodology. Several companies and nonprofits bought sets to provide their entire planning team with the tools to develop and execute a successful plan. Organizations are both using our facilitation and doing it on their own. Either way, they report our practical approach is working. Want to read our “Do’s and Don’ts of Strategic Planning” based on the book? Follow this link to the AMA Moving Forward newsletter: http://w2.mailsubs.com/offers/enter.asp?F=T&SEID=111886155-7977
Examine the book or buy it on our website http://www.advantageleadership.com/book.html or check it out on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0972624503/102-6108067-4786567?v=glance&s=books&vi=reviews
SAVE THE DATE: February 12, 2004
ACTUALLY HEARD AT THE OFFICE
“You did a great job on your strategic plan. I hope you are getting the results that you wanted.”
“We had our first board meeting following our planning session. Our agenda was so long we really didn't get to finding out where we were with the goals we set…Next month we will.”
I’m no longer surprised by such dialogue but I do get discouraged. What could the leadership team be discussing on that long agenda other than their progress against their goals? It’s a great mystery why people take the time to develop a plan but don’t find time to execute and track it. If leaders are going to continue along their tactical path anyway, they probably shouldn’t bother to make a plan since it is an academic exercise with no ROI. Is this too harsh a statement? I don’t think so. Don Jonovic of Family Business Management has stated it succinctly: THE PLAN IS THE BOSS. Would you tell your boss or board you were too busy to carry out your assignments? “The dog ate my homework” doesn’t work in this “dog eat dog” economy, Dog! (Pardon the mixed metaphors but I couldn’t resist.)
The purpose of the plan is to guide your action as you work toward reaching your goals. Assigning metrics to each goal, objective and tactic allows you to measure your progress. At least once a month, look at the data and determine if you are on track. (The measurement intervals will depend on what you are tracking.) Here’s a sample dialogue:
“Are we on track?”
“Yes!” “Great. Let’s keep going. Could we improve?”
“Are we on track?”
“No!” “What kept us for meeting the target? What’s the root cause? What do we need to do to get back on track? What else will be impacted? What change to the plan do we need to make?”
When the plan is the boss, it’s not a question of did we look at results, it’s “what did the results tell us? What action is necessary?” Organizational leaders who make the plan the boss make progress toward their goals. Their businesses grow. Their employees have a clear sense of where they are going and what they need to do to get there. John Wooden, legendary UCLA basketball coach, prophesied what happens to non-planners: Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail.
Getting the results you want is dependent on executing your plan and continually evaluating what you need to do to stay on track. So, avoid endless tactical agendas and manage your functions strategically. Make the plan your boss today!
For more information on how to plan, execute and decide strategically, read our new book, Success Planning: a ‘how-to’ guide for strategic planning. It’s available on our website, http://www.advantageleadership.com/book.html and on Amazon, http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0972624503/102-6108067-4786567?v=glance&s=books&vi=reviews
SAVE THE DATE: February 12, 2004
ASK AL
Question: Do you find that many companies are not “measurement” oriented so that it is hard to get them focused on how they know they have been successful?
AL: My experience is that many companies are not measurement oriented and others measure the wrong things.
First, measurement is scary. People are afraid to face the actual situation. If you don’t look at your checkbook you don’t have to face the fact that you’re overdrawn! One of our clients calculated for every dollar of customer rejected product, they had to sell $18 more to off set the full effect.
Secondly, measurement has been misused in many companies to punish people or reward the undeserving. Corporate politics revolve around the “numbers game.”
Thirdly, even companies that do measure often measure the wrong things or put too much emphasis on the wrong things. They look at quantity and productivity not quality. For example companies are more likely to look at the number of calls or appointments a salesperson made rather than at the closing ratio. They look at whether a software project was on time not whether the user was delighted with the new functionality. They look at how much was produced, not how much good product reached the customer.
Finally, measuring the right things is often difficult. Quality measures are often not as obvious or easy to execute as productivity measures.
Dr. Deming enjoined people to "manage by fact." He wanted them to measure their mission critical processes first to see how they performed. He opposed the rather arbitrary nature of most “quotas” because of two important facts. First, if the person doesn’t have the means, the tools or the capacity to make the quota, discouragement and failure follow. Secondly, Dr. Deming pointed out that when you set a quota and have no reliable data on the capacity of the process, you may be stopping far short of what you could achieve.
Data and their analysis provide us with insight into a process and what it is capable of achieving. Dr. Deming called it listening to the voice of the process. Once you know what the process is capable of, you can decide what you need to do; either changing the process to improve the results or continuing to monitor it because it produces reliable, acceptable results and there is no need to tinker with it. Measure. Measure the right things. Measure the right things right.
Have a question for AL? Send it to: rebecca@advantageleadership.com
SAVE THE DATE: February 12, 2004
IT TESTING MATURITY MODEL ASSESSMENTS
Advantage Leadership, Inc. has teamed up with Wind Ridge International, LLC to offer a unique assessment of your Information Technology quality functions based on the Testing Maturity Model. This approach allows you to understand the current state of your IT quality functions and provides guidance for improving your software quality. For more information, read about the model at http://windridgeinternational.com/Articles.htm or contact us at rebecca@advantageleadership.com
CATCH US IN PUBLIC
Attend one of our public seminars in general, IT or quality management. Call for the latest topics, dates and sign up info. 305-652-3466
o Writing Testable Requirements – Dallas, December 8
o Improving software quality through Inspections – Dallas, December 9
o Developing and leading teams of technical professionals – Chicago, December 15 - 17
SAVE THE DATE: FEBRUARY 12, 2004
SPECIAL STRATEGIC PLANNING SESSION FOR COMPANY CEOS, PRESIDENTS, OFFICERS, BOARDS OF DIRECTORS OR OTHER LEADERS
During this session, you will develop a strategic plan for your organization. A pre-session will help you define your niche to be more profitable. A post-session will enable you to execute your plan. Registration will be limited to allow for intensive coaching to focus on your particular needs. The planning session will take place February 12, 2004 in Ft. Lauderdale.
Call for details. 305-652-3466
