Tag Archives: Management

On the Job Leadership Learning for Beginners

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leadership trainingAt the age of 16, I was discouraged with the focus of many of my peers and in somewhat of a slump. As a solution, I decided to set my focus on planning a Russian School graduation ball. I did not realize that this would be one of the most formative experiences of my youth. A group of eleven Russian School graduates embarked on this project with me. Together, we planned a ball for 200 attendees, prepared talents to perform and refined a choreographed Waltz which was (almost) perfection. (Okay, maybe not perfection; we were 16 after all.)

To fundraise for this daunting project we needed to establish and create: community dances, an espresso stand, baked goods and hand crafted jewelry. As the assigned leader for this task, I was thrilled to be in charge. In my teenage mind, this unfortunately meant that now I have control over 11 peers and can exercise it to my heart’s content.

There is a danger in taking on a leadership role without the proper humility.  My group was creating a graduation for themselves, not me. No one wants a leader, boss, project manager or director who is taking advantage of their group. They want a parental figure that they are comfortable enough to seek advice from, but yearning to impress.

Here are some tips that I learned through this leadership position:

1.      Do not put the blame on anyone (yourself or others.) If you put it on yourself, you will feel guilty and your group will feel like they can blame you as well. Blaming someone else can be problematic because it may just be your perception. Address the problem as a separate entity and keep things objective.

2.      Never single a group member out. This may sound like the first point, but it differs because this refers to singling a group member out in general (blame or praise, good or bad). If someone makes a mistake or does something well, I found it is more productive to approach this privately. Doing this keeps a strong personal connection with each group member, making each individual feel important and comfortable.

3.      You’re not the only leader. Being in a position of authority, it may be tempting to think that all the weight is on your shoulders. At the same time, it can trick you into feeling that you are entitled to the authority. Yet, the group that you are in charge of is leading you. This is true in any group setting. Without the other people, you would be leading yourself. With community, you are strengthened – so thank your group members.

4.      Be a calm optimist. Another mistake that I made was a façade of positivity: everything was cheery, blissful and the event would be perfect. While it is important to have hope, it is important to see clearly and calmly what the outcome could be. By doing this, you can address any outstanding issues.

5.      Instill an entrepreneurial spirit in your group. You can assign your group various, tedious, menial tasks and take all the glory. However, this will not create a beautiful finished project. What is important is to instill hope and an image of the grandeur that the group is working towards. This keeps the group going- hope, not domination.

There are many methods to being a successful leader and it is important to keep in mind that each situation can be very individual. However, I have found these lessons to be helpful in many areas of my life. What I would like to instill more than anything: every single person leads and inspires in a different way, but it requires effort and initiative to cultivate this quality.

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BIOS Philosophy

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Organizational Philosophy:  

MIND, BODY, SPIRIT, EARTH

We are all connected

 The BIOS Philosophy is the study of Green, Healthy, Holistic, Organic, Sustainable and Energy Efficient living; combined with the firm belief that teaching others to do well by doing good can produce a powerful, positive change in the world capable of bonding all race, creed, color and religion.. The BIOS concept was first articulated by Steve Schappert 2004 relevant to healthy home building and has evolved to its current definition.

Vision:

To create a global organization that is dedicated to research, education and marketing of green products and services. We are creating an employee owned company with a multilevel profit share program so everyone can recruit people with greater ability than themselves and earn from them in the process, while propelling the company forward.
Values: 
Loyalty: Bear true faith and allegiance to customers and each other.
Duty: Fulfill your obligations.
Respect: Treat people as they should be treated.
Selfless-Service: Put the welfare of your customer and coworkers before your own.
Honor: Live by these values.
Integrity: Do what’s right, legally and morally.
Personal Courage: Face fear, danger or adversity both physical and moral. These values serve as our moral compass to guide us, through the maze of intellectual, philosophical and emotional issues that encompass our life. Every leader should personally ascribe to these seven values, include them as an integral part of their leadership philosophy and share them with all of their recruits.

Caring for people: The organization has two imperatives, do right by the customer and take care of our people and their families. While these imperatives may seem to be in competition with each other, successful leaders have always found the balance.

Leader development: The organization will encourage formal schooling, leader training within the organization and empowerment. Leader development is a lifetime process that blends education, training and experience. There is no substitute for one on one training and our mentor program must be developed as second to none. Leaders and supervisors must delegate to subordinates to encourage leadership growth within the organization. A sense of pride in performance is created when people are given the tools to make good decisions, and act upon them.

Managing change:

Change is not always easy for an organization’s members. Quite often the biggest human resource issue is managing change. Making a change doesn’t require anyone to admit they were wrong, it requires everyone to admit that everything evolves, and the choices are usually as simple as change or parish.

Diversity: We recognize and embrace the differences in people, all the backgrounds and experiences that will make us a unique and powerful organization. This diversity will allow us to find better solutions. We will listen to every member and foster an open-door policy… change will be the norm. We will not tolerate those who do not value diversity in the organization.
Maintain a sense of humor: James Thurber remarked that “Humor is a serious thing. I like to think of it as one of our great and earliest national resources which must be preserved at all costs.” You have to know how to laugh, especially at yourself. Humor can very often diffuse a potentially tense situation. For those serious-minded pragmatic leaders, Gillian Flynn’s article “Career Advancement May be a Laughing Matter” suggests that “. . . a good sense of humor helps build personal rapport and a greater spirit of cooperation.” A suggestion—when all else fails, you had better be able to laugh!

The BIOS Business Cycle TM: BIOS is the Greek word for life and The BIOS Business Cycle TM describes the process of achieving the triple bottom line by positively impacting people, the planet and profits. First you review your overall sustainability and apply cost effective improvements. Second, invest these new profits in marketing that promote the good things you do. Lastly, as your business grows you will be able to do more good things. This creates a perpetual motion of good that inspires others, and helps you create deep bonds of loyalty from your customers.

 

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Supplier Day Conference

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Meetings are sometimes held around conference ...

Meetings are sometimes held around conference tables. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“The Supplier Day concept works very effectively for creating a partnership, cost reduction, and collaboration with your Suppliers if it is done right.

The first step is for the coordinator, typically the head of Supply Chain Management, Materials Management, or Purchasing Management to write an invitation letter, with an agenda and time frame, to Suppliers of the same commodity or mixed Suppliers with a topic/subject matter
A Supplier Value Analysis (VA) questionnaire should be attached to the invitation/agenda letter for input from the specialist in their field, the Supplier themselves. There should be a due date on the VA questionnaire for submission before the date of the Supplier Day for the coordinator and Suppler Day cross-functional committee to study. This form will be discussed, and implemented after the Supplier Day if it is an effective VA , Cost Reduction, submission. Typically this form is discussed behind closed doors during the Supplier Day to further brainstorm, and possibly implement, the Supplier Cost Reduction idea(s).
A welcome to the Supplier Day with a date and name of all Suppliers should be in the lobby to greet the Suppliers as they arrive for the Supplier Day.
Coffee is available, with perhaps some breakfast bakery, to greet your Suppliers on the Supplier Day. If you wish, you can hand out literature about your company hosting this event.The agenda is followed, and time monitored, by an accountable person of the Customer’s cross-functional Supplier Day team, during the Supplier Day, so time does not go astray and the Supplier Day does not take longer than the time allotted by all concerned in the Supplier Day. Typically it should go from 9 AM to 2 PM, with a light lunch served in  the Supplier Day Conference Room.
The coordinator opens the meeting with a warm welcome to everyone attending, and reviews the agenda, and the goals and objectives of the Supplier Day meeting. The Suppliers next get a chance to present them selves and their product lines. They should be presenting, alphabetically. There must be a time limit on these presentations monitored again by the timekeeper of the cross-functional Suppler Day coordinating team.
A short, but effective, plant/office/operations tour follows or can come before Supplier presentations, depending on the agenda.
A break for lunch, and informal discussion, follows the tour.  Next are the private meetings to discuss the VA questionnaire submissions, any contract discussions, or collaborative exchanges. These one-on-one meeting times are monitored, as well, by the accountable time monitoring person to keep the agenda on track, time wise.There can be more than one, one-on-one meetings going on at the same time, by different cross-functional team members hosting separate one-on-one meetings.The rest of the Suppliers can be brainstorming on other subjects like the plant tour while waiting for their one-on-one sessions to take place with other cross-functional Suppler Day members available to facilitate these meetings.
After the one-on-one meetings are complete, everyone returns to the conference room for the end of the Supplier Day Conference.Any final comments are welcome, and the coordinator then closes the meeting thanking everyone for their attendance and participation. Feedback report cards can be given to the Suppliers who attended this conference which can be used to improve the next Supplier Day conference.
The cross-functional Supplier Day team can meet after the Supplier Day conference is completed, to critique the Supplier Day, review the effective Cost Reduction ideas submitted for potential implementation and calculate the Cost Savings from the Supplier Day, and whatever subject matter needs to be reviewed at that time.”
Chuck Intrieri
One of the The Good Word authors
Charles M, Intrieri Consulting
Professional Value Analysis/Value Engineering Administrator/Consultant
Profile also on LinkedIn
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