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Madhavan T Gopalachary Articles
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Why family managed businesses fail? - Click To Read Article Get better before getting bigger The Missing Qualities of top leaders and strategists - Click To Read Article We are being increasingly surrounded and swamped by giant companies headed by mediocre leaders. The same phenomenon is seen in almost all spheres of life. It is the age of mediocrity. Leadership examples from real life - Click To Read Article One need not be a General or a CEO or a President or a Chairman to be a called a leader. Motivation and Morale - Click To Read Article This article discusses reasons for low morale at workplace What is a business cycle? - Click To Read Article Economists have always been puzzled by business cycles and this brief article explains what is it all about. Three most powerful women leaders the world has ever seen – Indira Gandhi, Margaret Thatcher and Golda Meier - Click To Read Article The entire above woman wore pants and most of the males around them were either nervous wrecks or bumbling idiots. They were all normal women with families and grown up children. None of them had extraordinary education or formal training. They achieved their greatness by sheer hard work, discipline and focus. They were self-driven, combative, aggressive, and assertive and at the same time retained their femininity, grace and charm. We all have a lesson to be learnt. Every one of us can become a good leader, if not a great one, but we must have vision, discipline and focus, backed by hard work. Employee Retention - Click To Read Article It has been estimated that the cost of replacement can be as high as the annual cost of an employee. When you add the cost of training, induction and the opportunity costs, the cost of losing people can turn out to be very expensive. This article covers why employees leave and what can be done to retain them. Using web mail for both office and personal use - The issues - Click To Read Article Use of web based mail by employees is an universal problem. Enough has been written about it and I have given my views in this page. Companies and employees have to choose between personal freedom and company security. I don't think there is much of a choice. Top 10 Global Media Brands - 2007 as per MMG Brands Rankings - Click To Read Article We at MMG Brands are pleased to release our top 10 global media brands as above. As per our methodology, the rankings are not based on size alone. The media business is different from the rest. One needs deep pockets. Hence, we have categorized them separately. Business Ethics Consumer Rights and Complaints The Case of McDonalds Coffee Albuquerque New Mexico USA - Click To Read Article In this article we have highlighted the ethical and legal problems for businesses in respect of consumers. The reason we picked on this case is because it became a cause celebre, a butt of several jokes and made people do some soul searching on the prevailing Tort system in USA. Balance sheet or profit and loss statement which is better - Click To Read Article I came across the above Google search query at my site today and I got my topic to write about. Most ask this question and focus on the P&L statement rather than the balance sheet. It is wrong and if you are an experienced person you will know the reason why ? The challenge, myth and role of Corporate Strategy - Click To Read Article The challenge, myth and role of Corporate Strategy Business Ethics - Problems in Natural Environment - The Exxon Valdez Incident - Click To Read Article Only 28 countries of the world had more annual income than Exxon in 2005, based on the purchasing power parity method. The bottom 150 countries collectively may not have their annual GDP equal to that of Exxon. Paradigm Shift - Click To Read Article This article clears the cobwebs around what is a paradigm shift Mr Lee Iacocca The Transformational Leader - Click To Read Article Business management is all about leadership. Management scholars like Tichy, Devanna, Westley, Mintzberg and James Mcgregor Burns studied various leaders and have written volumes on the subject. It was Burns who coined the term "Transformational Leader". Amongst all modern business leaders, Mr. Lee Iacocca epitomizes transformational leadership.He is also termed a "Bricoleur" which means a person who visits junkyards and salvages them into meaningful products by innovation. This is characterized by his being responsible for one of the most successful models in US car history by using existing platforms or engines or both. Is Quality Policy Statement Necessary - Click To Read Article This article discusses basic quality issues Marketing to Women - Click To Read Article Marketing to men and women is different. The situation today is that more and more women are becoming the decision makers, irrespective of the nature of the product. Women, generally, prefer honesty, integrity and ethical behavior. Women are more difficult to please. Women are very difficult to understand. People often say that even God does not understand the behavior of women, though he created them. Any marketing person, who does not take women very seriously, will be making the biggest mistake of his or her life. Mr. James Burke - Leadership in Crisis Management - Click To Read Article PR will not be effective in the absence of top class leadership. The best example is the use of PR by J & J during the 'Tylenol' cyanide poisoning crisis. Customer complaints handling at McDonalds - Click To Read Article There is no motivation to perform as temps and in such low paying jobs. Tips to waiters are generally low in fast food joints. Money at that level is very important. People are at the first level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Cost Cutting – when it should be done? - Click To Read Article I read an article by Ms. Carol Hymowitz in the Wall Street Journal titled ‘Jeffrey Immelt defends GE’s wide reach’ on July 11, 2008. Mr. Jeffrey Immelt is under fire for missing his first quarter target by 5.9%. According to the report, Mr. Immelt attributed the primary reason to the poor economic condition that is prevailing. I am giving some of my observations. Profit and Loss Account Statement - Click To Read Article In the earlier article we have covered the balance sheet. In this page we will talk about the subject of "Profit and Loss" statement. These two statements along with cash flow statement are the most important components of an annual report of a company. Mr. Robert Townsend - Profile of a great leader - Click To Read Article No other business leader and writer has influenced me more in my career than the great Mr. Robert Townsend. I hold him in the highest esteem for his forthright leadership. Thank you very much Sir. Very few managers have the integrity and honesty advocated by him. Promoting People and thereby putting round pegs in square holes - Click To Read Article When promoting people, if the talent of individual is not taken into consideration, organizations will just manage to put round pegs in square holes while promoting people. Many organizations are just doing that and blithely unaware of it. As management consultants when we tell them that, you must personally see the reactions of the concerned people. Donkeys and Dogs in Management - Click To Read Article I have a very good friend Mr. Natesan Sukumar whom I know from 1973. He is a top pharmaceutical industry executive having worked for organizations like Pfizer. He is now the Chief Compliance Officer at MSD (Merck, Sharp & Dohme) India, a subsidiary of Merck, USA. He sent me the following story or tale by e-mail. I am happy to reproduce it verbatim. Thanks Suku. Model of Business Leadership Dr Jack Welch - Click To Read Article Dr. Welch was a mover and shaker. He made GE one of the top, most admired and valuable companies and it occupies an exalted position in the business world. Whatever the academics, critics, researchers and management scholars may say, they can't deny that his consistent results over four decades speak for themselves. Dr. Welch has proved that a great crisis manager can also be a great growth manager. Please see my article titled 'Leadership examples from real life and history'. Business Ethics - Blood Money - Social Issues - Click To Read Article I have raised some questions for debate and coming to a consensus. However, this is a social and a moral issue and it is for the respective societies to decide. Does technology impact business cycles? - Click To Read Article Good corporate governance is the key to survival and growth and for that we need business leaders who have to have the courage of Sir Winston Churchill, the brains of Albert Einstein, the wisdom of Socrates, the foresight of Nostradamus, the empire building skills of Alexander the Great, the ruthlessness of Chengiz Khan in removing corruption, perseverance of Abraham Lincoln, the integrity of Sir Thomas More and the empathy of Mahatma Gandhi. Performance Related Pay - Click To Read Article Peroermance related pay is a useful tool of a PMS. This discusses the reasons why it does not give the right results Why is Cash flow so very important - Click To Read Article This article discusses the importance of cash flow Common Characteristics of Dysfunctional Teams - Click To Read Article Typical and Common Workplace Characteristics of Dysfunctional Teams Importance of Production-Operations Management - Click To Read Article Importance of Production/Operations Management is hardly realized because there are more glamorous options for young people today. However, lack of knowledge and experience in it will be detrimental for career growth in the long run. Vision Statement - Click To Read Article This clears the confusion about various statements Action or Experiential Learning - Click To Read Article This theory is not new. It has been in existence from the days of the great Chinese philosopher and thinker Confucius. This simply means the student manager learns on the job. The student manager learns by tackling an actual problem in a real company - preferably not his own father's. Unfortunately, instead of being the best known method of management education, it is the least known. Are Maintenance Workers Different from the Rest? - Click To Read Article Detailed research and analysis by various authorities over the decades has proved that maintenance workers are indeed different from the rest. Various Methods of Costing - Click To Read Article In our article titled ‘Why businesses must understand costing’ we had highlighted the importance of costing. Immediate question that is raised is what are the methods of costing available? The same are given in this page. Whither Financial Services Industry - Click To Read Article The New York Times carried two articles today. One was about the employees feelings in Lehman Brothers and the other one was about fading away of the hedge funds industry. I have written a few articles about the industry. They are titled 'Money Management as a lucrative business', 'What are hedge funds ?', 'Future trend in private equity funds investments', 'SEC, Accounting Frauds and Insider Trading ' and 'Why giant institutions like Bear Stearns go bust ?'. Lehman Brothers is the latest financial intuition that is on the auction block. If readers go through all the articles mentioned above they will know what ails the industry. Impact of Business Cycles on Stock Markets - Click To Read Article The stock market does not impact Economy. The stock market is part of Economy. It is the state of Economy that impacts stock market. The stock market booms when the economy is booming and goes into a tailspin when there are recessions and collapses when you have depression. Government intervention in the present financial crisis - Click To Read Article Economists have estimated an amount of USD 1.1 trillion as the requirement of the troubled housing mortgage industry. This will definitely cool off the situation and bring in some stability to the battered financial system. This will also make the US government's fiscal deficit further balloon to 11.3 trillion dollars. Any deficit will have to be met by the taxpayers in the long run. However, all these are short term measures. A paradigm shift is needed. Brand Fight back The Case of McDonalds - Click To Read Article McDonalds became proactive and not reactive. Between 1998 to 2003, all its reactions were defensive and reactive trying to prove that its food was OK for the kids but Moms were not convinced. However, McDonalds came out with a solution. What is a Balance Sheet - Click To Read Article Unfortunately, many companies adopt some illegal practices and window dress their accounts and balance sheets. The company auditors are supposed to verify the veracity of the statements and certify them as correct. We all know what happened to Enron and their auditors Arthur Anderson. There are many more such examples. While this kind of activity has become fairly common all over the world, we cannot assume that all companies do this. Social Loafing in Teams - Click To Read Article It is found that when a group of individuals came together, everyone expects the other to put in the maximum or extra efforts and their own contribution is reduced. The whole is not greater than the expected sum of individual parts, in such cases. This is termed as 'Social Loafing' by psychologists. Social loafing is more prevalent amongst many teams than perceived to be and many are not aware of it. Business Ethics Technological Environment Indias Night of Death Union Carbide Case Bhopal India - Click To Read Article India's Night Of Death - The Bhopal disaster The difference between Leadership and Management - Click To Read Article Most raise the question 'What is leadership and what is the difference between leadership and management? -- Both have distinct meanings. One simple but rather incorrect and loose definition is Leaders lead people, whereas Managers manage tasks --- The 'Terrible 10' Behaviors in the Workplace - Click To Read Article The above paper sent by my friend Mr. Natesan Sukumar who in turn received it from his friend at John Hopkins University, Baltimore, USA. This lists the top 10 unacceptable behaviors at workplace. Preventing and Managing conflicts and disputes - Click To Read Article . They say that discretion is better part of valor. That is true. Choosing when to be discrete or not, is an art, but it does not help much in the workplace to be discrete all the time. It is better to be frank and express your views at critical moments to avoid future misunderstandings and mutual recriminations. The skill is to put it across politely but firmly. This calls for good communication skills. There are some situations when you must say 'enough is enough'. Globalization and Disparities in global wealth - Click To Read Article The global reality proves the 'economic man' theory is not completely right in the modern context. It is a sad fact that majority of the people in the world are not able to attain even the first level of Abraham Maslow's theory of hierarchy of needs. Human beings have become selfish and like animals they eat, sleep, mate and fear. Very few help or care for each other. We can't blame them entirely because life has become difficult. However, those who can help, do not care. The animals are better. Biggest is not necessarily the best It may be the worst - Click To Read Article The most important element in the home page or the site map is the navigation bar and links. It should be simple and self explanatory. If you have to search for the concerned link, then it becomes useless. The KISS principle is forgotten by most. Demands of the new workplace - Click To Read Article The modern workplace is different and needs a paradigm shift Friendship Branding? - Click To Read Article Building trust and friendship is the basic story of all successful brands. What is foreign exchange? - Click To Read Article Very often, we all get so confused about foreign exchange transactions and the concept appears alien to most of us and we ordinary mortals refer to experts and financial journals to know what is happening. In view of the globalization, it is becoming more important to understand this, as everybody gets affected in case of a crisis, even if it happens in a remote corner of the world. Bad Leaders or Bosses - Click To Read Article I came across Google search for examples of bad leadership at my site. It set me thinking and I went back 36 years of my career and evaluated my experience with both good and bad bosses. I am giving the characteristics of bad leaders in this page. Sexual harassment at workplace - Click To Read Article Sexual harassment at workplace is increasing globally. This paper gives brief guidelines on the issue. Top 10 Global Brands as per our MMG Brands Rankings as at end 2007 - Click To Read Article We have given the rankings of top 10 global brands as at end 2007 based on our research and methodology. Handling Criticism - Click To Read Article Destructive criticism is normally delivered by mediocre people. It is mediocre people who are able to bear it. It is the main reason they often prosper at workplace as compared to very competent people. Model of Business Leadership - Sir John Harvey Jones - formerly of ICI, UK - Click To Read Article Sir John Harvey Jones exemplified the 'Change approach'. Sir John Harvey Jones was very humane in his approach and his style would have worked anywhere in the world. The 'Anglo Culture' of leadership will not generally work in Scandinavian Europe, Asia and Latin America, where people are more emotional and societies are socialistic oriented. In 'Anglo Culture' the results are important, not the means of achieving it. Sir John Harvey Jones is an Englishman and was working for a typically 'Anglo' culture firm like ICI. This is where Sir John Harvey-Jones' greatness lies. Why is enthusiasm necessary? - Click To Read Article Enthusiasm is an attitude and character of a person. It shows energy, drive and interest in tackling work, issues, play, hobbies, and problems or for that matter anything. It does not mean that if a person is enthusiastic, he or she is more competent and skilled. How to make a success of an acquisition HyundaiKia Style - Click To Read Article My article titled 'How to make a mess of an acquisition - Daimler Benz Style' has not received the attention it deserves. In this page, I will give a case study of how an acquisition can be made a success. Hyundai is a South Korean Chaebol into heavy engineering. Blue Ocean Strategy - Click To Read Article Tactics shapes Strategy but Strategy drives Tactics. Both cannot be learnt in class rooms. It has to be learnt in the battlefield. What is taught is only theory by people who know all the directions but have never captained ships - with apologies to the great (Late) Mr. Robert Townsend. Job Hopping - Click To Read Article Its psychopathology, cause and effect - Is it beneficial in the long run Tips for becoming successful in Sales - Click To Read Article Simple tips for salesmen to become successful in their profession Workplace Management - Click To Read Article This article describes the Japanese technique of managing the workplace Credit Crunch - Click To Read Article Bankers and Money Lenders are the biggest leeches in the world and no wonder Islam considers it as 'haraam'. They always adopt a win/lose position. This is a fundamental aspect of life everyone should know. Since 90% are SMEs in USA, this will lead to unemployment and lack of expansion by them because money is not available. What is Expenditure - Click To Read Article In this page and a few other pages we will cover some finance and accounting aspects of any business which are bare basics and essentials to understand. We are neither specialists in the subject and nor are we involved in financial management or consultancy. In fact it is the only subject in management where we are not involved. However, it is essential that everyone in business understands the basics of finance, accounts and management. We have consulted experts in the profession in preparing these papers and our acknowledgement to all of them. Is it Bailout of the US Economy or Wall Street - Click To Read Article The rejection of the bailout plan by the Congress, initially on last Monday, wiped out USD 1.2 trillion in the stock markets, making it one of the blackest days in recent times. The job losses in September 2008 was 159,000. This was the last straw on the Camel's back. The Congress approved the bailout plan for President Bush to sign as a law. While it became necessary, it has been forced on the people by the financial industry and lax controls by the regulators. There was no choice at all. Leveraged Buyouts - Click To Read Article Historically, many LBOs in the 1980s and 1990s focused on reducing wasteful expenditures by corporate managers whose interests were not the same as shareholders. After a major corporate restructuring, which may involve selling off portions of the company or assets, called asset stripping, and severe staff reductions, the entity would be producing higher income streams. Because this type of management arbitrage and easy restructuring has largely been accomplished, LBOs today focus more on growth and complicated financial engineering to achieve their returns. Most leveraged buyout firms look to achieve an internal rate of return in excess of 20%. Why giant institutions like Bear Sterns go bust - Click To Read Article Barings was a much respected and revered British merchant bank and in existence for more than 200 years. All merchant banks invest and trade in stocks, currencies, derivatives like futures & options, CPs etc., Barings was no exception. In 1994, twenty eight year old Nicholas 'Nick' Leeson was the bank's general manager based in Singapore and in charge of its 'Futures' operations. Why brands fail ? - Click To Read Article It must be noted that if a brand or product failure takes place, it is not just marketing or production failure alone, it is also a team failure, especially the TMT. It is the failure of its marketing judgment. Search Engine Wars - Click To Read Article This article discusses the monetisation problem Managing Cultural Change - Click To Read Article Problems of SMEs Bruce Lee as a Productivity Guru - Click To Read Article This document was sent by Mr. Natesan Sukumar. It makes an interesting reading and shows the traditional Chinese wisdom of the likes of Confucius and Lao Tse Tzu. In Search of Excellence - Revisited - Click To Read Article In Search of Excellence - Revisited Mega Brands, Perceptions and Reality - Click To Read Article Mega Brands, Perceptions and Reality Executive Compensation - Click To Read Article The stock options plan has led to more problems in compensating senior executives. Guerilla Tactics and Startegy in Marketing - Click To Read Article This article briefly outlines the tactics and strategy that can be applied when competing with bigger and stronger competitors. Business Ethics Cost Benefit Analysis - Click To Read Article This discusses the Ford - Pinto case Model of Business Leadership - Mr Donald Peterson formerly of Ford Motor Company FMC, USA - Click To Read Article This profiles a great working leader. Such leaders are required in future. Brand Differentiation - Click To Read Article This article discusses branding strategies Goals and Goal Setting - Click To Read Article How to go about goal setting Customer service outsourcing - Click To Read Article Business process outsourcing has become an issue in high cost western countries. However, it is necessary to look at the problem holistically and without inbuilt prejudices. Resource Management - Click To Read Article Resource management is basically an economic activity. Majority of the businesses do not understand economics. Anatomy of a Crisis The Vioxx Case - Click To Read Article There is too much of corruption and/or unethical practices in the drug and healthcare industry. It is for the drug and healthcare industry to decide whether making money by experimenting, disabling and killing people is right or wrong. Online Advertising - Click To Read Article The market share of Internet advertising is expected to go up from 5.8% in 2006 to 10.2% by 2010. The present global ad market pie is estimated at $ 285 billion.Internet advertising is expected to explode over the next few years. What is Arbitrage ? - Click To Read Article This term basically means that a buyer buys some stock at a lower price and sells at a higher price, either in the same market or in a different market. Economic Conundrums as being witnessed in USA today - Click To Read Article You must follow the old adage of not having all your eggs in one basket. Do not overly depend upon any particular industry. Do not overly depend upon any particular area. Spread your wings wide but put all your resources at the single most decisive point. Stagflation, Credit Crunch and FRB Policies - Click To Read Article The new year 2008 does not look very bright and promising for the US & global economy and that will be an under statement. The acquisition bid for Yahoo by Microsoft - Click To Read Article Though we did not mention it earlier, Microsoft has the best chance for making a bid for Yahoo and acquiring it, whether friendly or hostile. Microsoft has the money and can outbid anybody, just anybody. The combined human and technological resources of Microsoft and Yahoo can be a formidable opponent. Google must concentrate on how to fight the new competition, instead of wasting time to block the deal. It will also be good for the industry in the long run. Google has become a fat cat because the competition is too far behind. Flanking as a strategy in Marketing - Click To Read Article Flanking is used for attacking a bigger, stronger and well entrenched opponent. A direct attack on such an opponent will require an overwhelming superiority of all types of resources, as the opponent will be on a high ground or well entrenched. Recession 2008 in USA - Click To Read Article The health of the US Economy is far too important for the health of the global economy. When the US Economy is in doldrums, some very poor and innocent man or woman or child in a far off corner in the globe will starve, because the poor thing cannot get even one square meal a day. That is a grim reality which the policy makers should accept and take proactive action. Unfortunately, the decisions taken so far are far from satisfactory. The US Government and FRB are attacking the symptoms and not the root cause. What are hedge funds ? - Click To Read Article In mid April 2008, the New York Times reported that one hedge fund manager took home a compensation of more than USD 3 billion in the year 2007. It is a mind boggling sum and many poor countries do not have their GDPs equal to it. Billion dollar salaries have become a distinct possibility in managing hedge funds as there are many such fund managers. If a fund manager can earn that kind of money in a year, what would be the earnings of the investors in such funds ? Even giant corporations do not make that kind of profits. Broadbanding or Overlapping Pay Scales - Click To Read Article My definition of a good manager is a person who knows something and pretends to know everything but good at making other people work on their jobs to get the anticipated results. As a manager, it is not necessary to know everything. You should know how to ask the right questions and get the right answers. You should be able to spot the bull shitters in a jiffy. After that you must take decisions and get them implemented quickly. That is all to management. Management is pure common sense. Model of Business Leadership - Dr. Andrew (Andy) Grove - Click To Read Article Scientists & Engineers, by virtue of their training, have one basic drawback in their approach to human resources management. They are generally inflexible and see everything from an analytical, logical and rational point of view. They are mostly left brained. I am one of the rare breed of right brained engineers and never liked engineering anyway. If they are fighters, their basic instinct is to fight, based on facts and figures, but very few realize that such an approach can lead to PR disasters and/or misunderstandings. In life, truth telling, logic and rationality does not work all the time, though it should. Model of Business Leadership - (Late) Mr. Dhirubhai Ambani - Click To Read Article This is the last in our series on model of business leadership. We are giving the profile of an Indian business leader, who has been called the greatest creator of wealth in the twentieth century in India. (Late) Mr. Ambani's life is a typical rag to riches story you normally come across in fairy tales. If he had been born in USA, he would have been the richest man in the world, because he always thought big and had global outlook in a time when India was an inward looking restricted economy. He did not have lineage, money and education. At that time, it was a probable impossibility to succeed in business with such a background. More on Business Cycles - Click To Read Article The above means the present stagnation has started in and around 2006 and will continue till 2009. What we are undergoing is called stagflation. The recessionary trends are due to high oil prices, malinvestments and imprudent money management policies of the central banks and governments. The single biggest culprit is the housing mortgage industry. Last time it was the dotcoms. The onset of recession can be postponed even now, but that needs some very severe actions on the part of FRB. Most important action that is to be taken is breaking the oil cartel's stranglehold on the world's economy. How to make a mess of an acquisition - Daimler Benz Style? - Click To Read Article It is quite funny. You sell part of your house. The new owner asks you to put the money he paid you in developing his part of the property and you end up sucking your thumb. It is obvious that Daimler was down and out and had absolutely no power to negotiate or bargain. How did a global giant with a worldclass reputation for quality reach such a stage? What made them sell out in the world's largest auto market and become a marginal player? What made them accept such a low price? There may be plenty of reasons on their side but here are a few of mine: Good Governance - Click To Read Article Good Governance, whether it is a governmental organization or private or a non profit organization or an NGO, is a must. This is decided as a policy and most good organizations have this in their policy manual. I am giving a checklist which will be useful. It is by no means exhaustive but covers the most important aspects of governance. Workplace Bullying - Click To Read Article I read an excellent dispatch by Ms. Cari Tuna in the www.online.wsj.com today on the above subject. Bullying like sexual harassment is little understood. I have not gone into the legal cases mentioned but am giving the gist on workplace bullying which has become a major problem at workplace. Human Resources Outsourcing HRO - Click To Read Article I would like to add here that it all depends on which way a company looks at HRM. Does the company look at it as a strategic function or a support function ? The bottom-line is according to me HRM is a strategic function. Mr. Lee Iacocca said that people, products and profits are very important. However, he also said without people, the other two are of no use. If a company wants to outsource HR function completely, it means it will be losing its strategic advantage in the long run. Treating People Fairly and Equally Is it a myth - Click To Read Article Customer service and relations is a subject that has attracted too many people with diverse opinions. Everybody has their own theories. One question that often comes up is do we treat new customers and old and established customers alike. Many people say that new customers should be treated fairly but not equally. My response to the question is given in this page. Vulnerabilities in Software, Hackers and Software Security Companies - Click To Read Article Many people may not like Microsoft and its Windows OS. It is an undeniable fact that without it the world would not have seen so much of development. If Sanitation is rated as the most important scientific discovery ever, than the GUI (Graphical User Interface) developed by Microsoft is the most important technical innovation ever. Instead of hating and being envious or jealous, one should admire them. They have every right to protect their interests. For too long copyright infringement and piracy has been going on with impunity. What is Innovation ? - Click To Read Article We come across the term " innovation" in business and many times people have asked me its exact meaning and what it represents. Innovation is the specific instrument of Entrepreneurship. According to Drucker, just starting a new business alone is not entrepreneurship. Creativity Management - Click To Read Article Very few business organizations attach importance to creativity though its importance is realized of late. Progressive organizations have large creative teams and no wonder they win. What is the problem with GE and IBM amongst the top 5 global brands ? Both lack creativity and originality. Both are left brain driven companies. Though they are classified as innovative companies in academic circles, they are innovative in acquisitions only. Their strengths lies elsewhere. Why a web site is necessary for a business - Click To Read Article If people want information, they just refer to the internet. Nobody reads newspapers and yellow pages first. They come in later when some specific information is needed. If a business web site is not available on the internet, it does not exist in the minds of the prospect. It is a reality all must accept. The Vision Statements of Global Top 10 as ranked by MMG Brands - Click To Read Article After publishing our global top 10 brands, I was relaxing. I am on a short vacation before taking up my next assignment. I was getting bored and searched the internet and compiled the information on the above. I am happy to reproduce it for all readers. What is the problem at GE ? - Click To Read Article Yesterday, I read an article that appeared in mid July 2008 at the deal book of New York Times about GE planning to divest some of its businesses like appliances, lighting etc., There was some mention about even divesting of NBC. What attracted my attention was the innumerable postings at the site. The postings were from GE employees and other stakeholders. Biggest problem in Management Today - Click To Read Article According to Fortune Magazine in an article titled Rising Stars, dated February 6, 2006, the biggest problem facing management today is finding skilled, effective mangers who can communicate and motivate others. Bullying at Workplace – 2 - Click To Read Article In July 2000, a British lady got in touch with me on the subject. I got some insight on the term bullying. I have given some instances of bullying in the modern age and in a developed and civilized society like UK. Airline Mergers - Click To Read Article No business remains a monopoly and highly profitable for long. Competition comes in and the industry becomes an oligopoly for some time and after some more time, when the market has too many players. the smaller players get squeezed out, because they can't sustain themselves and it is back to square one of the 'Snakes and Ladders' game played by kids with a dice. This gets repeated but the players are different. (Late) Mr. Sam Walton and Wal-Mart - Click To Read Article (Late) Mr. Sam Walton is one of the great entrepreneurial business leaders of the twentieth century. He revolutionized retailing and made Wal-Mart one of the biggest corporations in the world. He was a typical level 5 leader and it is rather sad that the company founded by him has been in lot of controversies with its own employees of late. Self Esteem - Click To Read Article Self Esteem is often mixed up with arrogance, egoism or over confidence. Human nature is such that we tend to compare ourselves with others and not satisfied with what we have. In this process, we either tend to get into depression or into excessive grandiosity about ourselves and swing like a pendulum from one end to the other. Customer focused brand management - Click To Read Article Old and established brands, like people, must die one day. Many organizations are so loyal to their own brands that they try to keep it alive at all costs. This is a big mistake. If the perceptions about the brand cannot be changed in reasonable time, it is better to jettison or phase out the brand. Career choices of young MBAs - Click To Read Article I happened to come across an article on the internet about the career choices of young MBAs in India. This article would probably apply to all young people in the world. Why carryout training & development ? - Click To Read Article For any organization the customer comes first then its people. Training expenses are to be considered as investments in people. Training is a continuous process and should not be done in starts, stops and spurts. Organizations, which cut down on training during downturn, will find that their people are not able to meet the demands during upturn. They will lose on both counts. The world after 2020 - Click To Read Article When the new millennium started, the futurologists predicted and painted a picture of everything going hitech and rosy. Some of them even predicted that poverty would be eradicated by the globalization. In the fag end of 2008, let us review the situation. How have things changed over the last 8 years ? How to appreciate employees ? - Click To Read Article Employee appreciation is a form of recognition. Most managers and supervisors fail to appreciate employees reporting to them, not because they don't want to. They just do not know how to show appreciation. I have given a few inexpensive tips to show appreciation at workplace. The types of people every entrepreneur needs - Click To Read Article Any new business needs various types of people to support it, especially in the start up stage. With increasing competition, starting a new business has become difficult and dangerous. One can get into a deep mess. Secrets of Successful Leadership - Click To Read Article Quick Implementation of Decisions Take Acquisition of Dow Jones by News Corp - Click To Read Article Gives a different side of the coin to the above acquisition Employees and workers must take charge - Click To Read Article Employees and workers must take charge if they want to survive in today's competitive world. If they don't, they may not have jobs in future. Horses and Donkeys in Management - Click To Read Article One common folly many managements commit is they load performers with more work and leave the non performers alone. The article has been written with tongue in cheek and people should not mistake the references to animals. Why a business must understand Costing ? - Click To Read Article Most SMEs do not employ trained Cost Accountants to save on manpower costs. This is equivalent to being penny wise pound foolish. The Attitudes of HRD & Senior People - Click To Read Article Time and again I have come across senior and HRD professionals who by their arrogant, abrasive attitude and behavior turn off good people. Since they are the frontline people for screening and they have to interview large numbers, approve or reject them, they acquire a big ego and adopt a style that is uniform for all levels of management. Knowledge, Skills, Attitudes, Habits and Talents - How do they differ? - Click To Read Article Competencies are a combination of some specific knowledge, some specific skills and some specific talents. This term was developed by the British Military during World War II to identify special people for difficult and dangerous assignments. Generally, Special Forces involved in commando or covert operations need such competencies. Over a period of time it was absorbed into business management jargon like many other military terms. It is better not to use this term singularly as it can be misleading. Finding the right job - a myth or a reality? - Click To Read Article People who are stars do not leave overnight and under normal circumstances. There will be enough signals before that and only mediocre managers will not spot them or ignore them either out of conceit or arrogance or complacency or all of them. However, if a star resigns because he or she has better prospects elsewhere, no problem. Find out the reasons for leaving and take corrective action. Customer Satisfaction - Click To Read Article I have always believed in instincts and all my reactions and decisions are instinctive. I shoot first and then ask questions later. I have made mistakes but have been right most of the times. It gives me great comfort to read Dr. Tom Peters saying that he has always been act first and think later guy. I also understand a lot of good and capable guys are like that. I am now fairly convinced that instincts are very important and should not be ignored. It is never too late to learn. Oil Price and its impact on Economies - Click To Read Article As an aftermath of the 'Yom Kippur War' between Israel and Egypt in the Middle East, the world saw a massive increase in price of oil in the early 70s and the economies of many developing countries went for a tail spin. Oil is no longer a commodity which follows the law of supply and demand. It is a political weapon in the hands of some states. Since very few countries produce oil for export, it is easier to form a cartel like OPEC and manipulate the prices artificially. Cartelization in business is illegal as per laws of most countries. But it is different in the case of oil because of political reasons and the fact it is an essential commodity and very few countries produce surplus to export and meet its ever burgeoning global demand. OPEC controls 40% of the world oil output. Treating customers with respect - Click To Read Article I read Mr. Seth Godin's brief article titled 'The bad table'. It was a great read. He has hit the nail right on the head. In his article, he has said that treat new customers the same way you would treat a valued, established and loyal customer. He has also said that, if you have to allot a bad table to somebody, treat them extra special, whether they are new or established customers. HP pretexting scandal - Click To Read Article In late 2006, the world's largest technology company, Palo Alto based, HP was in the news for all the wrong reasons. It got involved in what is known as 'pretexting' scandal. The BOD of HP felt vulnerable because they felt that confidential and strategic information from its meetings was leaking to the press. They were rightly concerned and had every right to take action and protect their interests. Ten factors that can make a manager succeed or fail - Click To Read Article What differentiates a good and a bad manager ? What are the factors that decides success or failure ? This page covers the 10 most important factors for managerial success or failure. Entrepreneurial Management - Click To Read Article This is my 100th article that is being published at www.evancarmichael.com. This is about 'Entrepreneurial Management'. This article is dedicated to (Late) Dr. Peter Ferdinand Drucker whose books on management have shaped me as a manager and brought me to the place where I rightfully belong based on my own merits and hard work. May his soul rest in peace and thank you very much sir and thank you God. Time Management and Motivation - Click To Read Article There are many excellent books on time management. I have only one comment to make. You can read as many books or attend to as many programs on time management. If you do not develop it as a habit, you will continue to waste yours and others time. Common errors in decision making - Click To Read Article I have covered some of the common errors that are made in decision making. Don't waste too much time thinking and planning beyond what is necessary. Though I am no fan of Nike, just do it. Browser Wars - Click To Read Article Every top two players are at each others throats, trying to increase or grab a larger share of the market with some improvements or innovations. The latest in such marketing wars is the 'Browser War' between Microsoft and Firefox. Things have become more interesting with Google entering the fray. Corporate Reputation Matters - Click To Read Article The subject of business ethics has become very popular in recent times. However, it is important to understand its real meaning. A business is deemed to be unethical if it claims to be what it is not or adopts such practices which falls under the purview of ethics. In ethics we have only right and wrong. There are no gray areas. In law we may have gray areas. Corporate reputation is shaped by its ethical behavior. Like this article? Share it with your friends
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