What does Sister Angela Mary AO teach us about business?

Sister Angela Mary AO was the CEO of the Mater Hospital Group for 22 years. She never earned a salary. Why not? She is a nun!
Sister Angela Mary is now 87 years old and is a true level 5 leader. What can we learn from her? How does a nun get recognized as a top business leader?
Her messages are:

1. Use your full potential and be an influence for good. All the education you have will count for nothing unless you can give of yourself and unless you put yourself in another persons situation.

2. Life is dynamic - but we can't react automatically. Listen carefully so you know how to respond. Do not repeat the past. Believe in the business but it is not unchangeable. Prepare for change. Prepare to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.

3. Learn from other disciplines. Be flexible and look broadly.

4. "While CEO of the Mater , I never considered if I was male or female. There was a job to be done." Do not get over stressed about being the only woman in the C Suite. The community out there expects ethical and practical outcomes.

5. Who we become depends on the choices we make!

Sister Angela came to Australia from Ireland in 1947 as a teacher. She gave life to God. In 1948 dispatched to the Mater to be trained as a nurse. Initially she did not want to go there. She never knew that this is where she would end up. She never thought she was prepared to be the CEO.

"What we decide to do determines what comes next."

6. Religious organisations were conducted as family businesses and positions not advertised widely. Sister decided to advertise all jobs and the Sisters who worked hard for the Mater felt as though they had been sold out. This was a high price was paid for this decision.

When you face problems and where there is no clear solution, be guided by your conscience. Remember Thomas Moore - don't forsake your private conscience for the sake of your public duties!

7. For all the women in leadership roles, remember what Marc Anthony said of Shakespeare's Julius Cesar:

"His life was gentle, and the elements so mixed in him that the nature might stand up and say to all the world, 'This was a man.'"

Let someone say of all of us, 'this was a woman!'

Sister Angela Mary had the courage to swim against the tide and that is also part of personal branding and strong leadership.

What does Lady Gaga teach us about business?

Lady Gaga and business - does not sound like a great combination....  But there are so many valuable lessons that we can gain from the way in which she conducts herself and what her skills sets are.

I recently attended an amazing reunion and retreat with some highly driven women from our Harvard Business School group.  Our guest, Professor Peter Little Deputy Vice Chancellor

QUT, presented us with the case study of Lady Gaga and there were indeed some very interesting learnings that were drawn from her life, her experiences, her marketing and music.

1. Lady Gaga is constant with being consistent with her brand. 

Have you got a brand and do you think you need one?

Brand is a business construct.  If you do not have a brand, your reputation is less refined.  If you are trying to persuade people around you to engage with you and if you are aspiring to be a leader, you need to pay careful attention to your personal and business brand.

2. Gifts are critical to your journey through life and the expression of these are so important. Each person has gifts that need to be respected.  Reflect and identify your gifts or risk being a fraction of what you could be.  Sometimes need to have a mentor who identifies your gifts for you.

Lady Gaga nurtures her gifts.  She has imagination in using her gifts.  She has a vision for using her gifts.  Find what your gifts are and get a vision for them.  Lady Gaga marshals her gifts and can see the world around her with incredible clarity.  In the world where we area saturated with information, to be able to pull the curtains apart and really see the world, is very impressive. 

Gifts are the core.  Identify them and nurture them.  Have a vision for them and exercise them.  Share your gifts with the world.  You don't want to say later in life that you did not give things a go. 

3. Lady Gaga builds a sense of community with her followers. She also asks where we are going together.  She is in fact a powerful sales person who has a clear narrative. 

Do you build a narrative that aligns with your values?  This involves telling the story of what we are going to do in simple language.  The story also needs to be consistent for those you are trying to convince.   What is the story if you want the organisation to have the right culture?

People won't just follow you.  Communicate a vision for the organisation and how you are going to get there.   You need a narrative that is right for the time.  Draw people in to pursuing the narrative. 

4. Lady Gaga also gives us a lesson in modernity.  She fully understands global markets and the increasing impacts of technology.   She has the ability to appeal to 25 million people worldwide who follow her.

Think of the demise of Kodak, Nokia and others.

In 1980 you would have invested in Kodak as they had incredible market penetration. Think about Nokia and the disruptive innovation of the iPhone.  Nokia went in to decline and is no longer the number one mobile phone company in world.  Even in 2012, you would back Nokia to produce a mobile and distribute it better than anyone.  But what they missed is that mobile became an interface with digital.  Production engineers were at the helm of Nokia and ignored the smart phones. 

Darryl Lea is an other example - an iconic chocolate maker.  They had stores all around the country and produced the same product range for past 85 years.  Others started to nibble away at market share and they were squeezed from the top and the bottom.  They failed to see what was happening with the new generation of consumers.

Then you see Lady Gaga.  What does it say about the modern competitive world?

If you want a thriving business you have to adapt to the new world.  

5. You must learn every day.  Jim Collins says that we must have "productive paranoia".  We must just assume things are going to be tough in the future and that drives us towards innovation. Lady Gaga fully understands this and engages with her audience in very different, non-traditional ways.  She was able to build 'followship' by building mass intimacy with her followers.

In every interview, Lady Gaga emphasises how she dedicates her life to her fans, her "little monsters."

 How do you build followership?

Gaga strives to be the best she can be - did you improve during the last year?

5 Vital reasons why you should be undertaking a Mini MBA!

5 Vital Reasons for Undertaking a Mini-MBA

Matthew was becoming increasingly frustrated in his role as a manager of a large division at a manufacturing company. He felt as though he had reached a career ceiling and had been advised by his mentor to gain some form of business qualification so that he would have more opportunities for progression. He felt he was not quite ready to undertake an MBA as he thought it was a huge time commitment and it might be a step too far for him.

Are you too looking for the next step forward in your career? Are you seeking to gain a more complete and well-rounded sense of the business environment without the commitment of intensive study? These are two of the main reasons we hear from our many applicants who understand the benefits of gaining a business management certificate or as we like to call it, a Mini MBA. 

Here are the 5 vital reasons that you too should be undertaking studies towards a Mini-MBA:

1. Gain credibility and to increase your sphere of influence – in the fast-paced business world, those who have subject matter expertise, but who do not speak the language of business, finance and marketing are at a severe disadvantage. Your broader understanding from a holistic perspective of the ins and outs of how business functions and the inter-relatedness of different spheres is essential if you want to fully engage in meetings and have your views recognised.

This is what the mini-MBA provides – the complete overview of all aspects of the business cycle so that you gain the confidence to be able to convey your interpretation and standpoints in order to be able to influence others. You are empowered with the language, jargon and insight in to the functioning of organisations so that whether you are in the public or private sector, you gain key leadership skills.

2. Set yourself apart with a valuable addition to your CV – Research indicates that those managers who hold an MBA have a competitive advantage when it comes to career progression *1 - and they also make a serious difference to the organisation’s results. There is no question that besides the perceived prestige attached to holding higher level qualifications, your organisation benefits as you are able to deal more effectively with challenges that continue to arise.

There is obviously the advantage of possibly receiving higher remuneration – and research indicates that those who do hold higher level qualifications can earn up to 40% more than those who do not.*2

3. Take a small step towards a full MBA – A full MBA is a massive commitment in terms of time, workload and energy. Some of our applicants for the mini-MBA tell us that this management certificate is less daunting and will give them an opportunity to evaluate whether they are indeed suited to the full MBA.

Because of our link with the highly regarded Southern Cross University there is the opportunity to get advanced standing in the full MBA and this creates an attractive option. The business-school style environment of the mini-MBA also provides you with a sense of the lecture style and group work that is expected in the university business school setting.


4. Try out your skills in a simulated environment – gain the theory and the practice – What participants value highly in the mini-MBA is the ability to mix both theory and practice in terms of management and leadership concepts and strategies. It is an excellent way of learning the important theoretical models and then by working in a simulated environment, you are called on to make decisions that determine the successful outcomes of the business.

It is not often that we have the luxury of hindsight when it comes to making judgment calls and in this mini-MBA simulation, you have the advantage of playing out challenges, dealing with change and understanding the broader implications of the decisions you make. As top leaders well know, if the incorrect decisions are followed, the path to organisational success becomes far more difficult – yet, it is so tough to always make the right call, given the highly complex nature of organisations, the pressures and stresses of the business world and the inter-relatedness between all aspects of the economy.

5. Network with other managers and leaders – One of the key leadership skills is to have a wide and diverse network that is not restricted to your own sector of the marketplace. The top-level professionals in the mini-MBA program are drawn from all sectors and are equally keen to establish business relationships and connections.

You have the opportunity to mix with like-minded managers who are able to provide examples, lessons learnt and experience to ensure that you gain insights and establish long-lasting networks that could be useful to you at stages of your career.

As you work in teams through the different challenges of the program, you develop a common bond that stands you in good stead in your career. 

For more information on the mini-MBA offered through Management Consultancy International, please call 1300768550 or email info@mci.edu.au

Have a look at a short video of the simulation that you will participate in during the program - 
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYJ-son79ag&feature=youtu.be
Source:

ww.cesim.com
 
*1http://www.businessweek.com/business-schools/the-mba-advantage-07112011.html


*2 http://www.topmba.com/articles/news-and-features/mba-pay-averages-40000-more-undergraduate

SHRM De-brief - Re-imagine the workplace

Here is my final debrief from the Society for Human Resources Management Conference in Atlanta this year and there was so much talk about the future of HR and our role as HR practitioners in re-imagining the workplace.  Given that we are living through so many dramatic and unforeseen changes, it is more critically important than ever that HR demonstrates that we are the leading profession in the business.
"As HR Professionals, we own our seat at the table.  Now we must take our seat at the head of the table!"  says SHRM President Hank Jackson.  And I could not agree with him more!
The rules around the workplace are changing so rapidly and these can make or break an organisation's success.  We do not have a "Google Map" to guide us over the next few years but we do need to keep our eyes open for the mega-trends and these are:
1. The growth in the population and the disparity between rich and poor.
2. The explosion of information fueled by social networks
3. The skills gap - how to train and recruit a workforce with the right skills for where we are right now
4. The global and flexible workforce
5. Disruptive innovation which involves products and processes that are so fundamentally different that they can overwhelm even profitable organisations.  What sounds like science fiction today could put you out of business tomorrow if you are not adaptable.
As Hank put it:
"Our success will not be measured simply by how well we connect HR departments to new ideas and new innovation.  But rather, our success will be measured by how well HR professionals lead their organisations into the future!"

Patrick Lencioni rocks the conference

MCI is a great fan of the practical materials developed by Patrick Lencioni and so it was a real privilege to see him in action!  For those who have not yet made use of the superb Lencioni material, please attend the MCI Diploma of Management program or ask us to conduct a session specifically based on this material.
What did Lencioni have to say, given his many years of experience in management development?  His advice was practical and easy to implement:
He asked us to rate just how healthy our organisations are.
While this might be usual for some of us, Lencioni believes that this is the most important question that we can in fact ask.
"I don't think it can be over-stated.  Organisational health is the single greatest competitive advantage for an organisation."  He said that it is just about free and it is accessible to any leader who really wants to utilise its force - but not many do.
Sometimes business leaders place way too much focus on the so-called Smart side of the business - this includes strategy, marketing and finance.  But not enough time is spent on the healthy side of the business - which is measured through minimal politics, minimal confusion, high productivity and low turnover.
Lencioni was consulting to top airline and one of the most profitable companies of the past 32 years, South West airlines and asked them why they thought that other companies did not follow this strong emphasis on organisational health.  The response was that perhaps other companies think that this all beneath them.  They consider these things inconsequential or too soft.
Lencioni emphasised that it is not about doing things that build great egos in the business.  It is about doing the things that need to be done to ensure organisational health.
So:
- Always over-communicate with all team members.  When they mock you about what you are saying over and over again, you know you have done a good job...
- Allow conflict to emerge so that it is fine to debate and argue and talk things through
- Create clarity in the company about what everyone does and where the business is headed

As this was a massive American event, they even brought in the marching band!  Enjoy an extract of just how you can create energy in a room!

SHRM Part 2 - Learning from Malcolm Gladwell

Another exciting keynote speaker at the SHRM conference was best-selling author and thinker - Malcolm Gladwell.  He is just so clever, insightful and forward-thinking.  He is able to extract principles from situations so that we all benefit from seeing things in a different light.

He made the very clear point that the Millenials are different.  HR needs to appreciate this and know how to build on their strengths - and help them deal with their weaknesses.

He pointed out that the civil rights movement in the USA has many similarities with the Occupy movement and the way in which these movements operate gives us a clear indication as to the differences between the baby boomers and the millenials.


The civil rights movement had a strong hierarchy and leadership.  It was also a highly disciplined organisation that had a guiding ideology.  This contrasts with the Occupy movements of the past year where there was no clear leader, where the ideology was no clear and where the organisation lacked discipline.  These 2 movements are very different in these ways.
The Occupy movement, as is favoured by this current generation, was highly social and very networked.  "Hierarchies are not Millenials' default notion, " says Gladwell.  "They have gone as far from the hierarchy as imaginable."

• Millenials prefer not to learn from expert sources - they learn from their peers on Wikipedia.  The days of the large encycolpedias are over.
• Millenials learn chess - they don't take lessons.  They go on-line and find players from all over the world with whom they can play
• They have a "profoundly different attitide towards authority and towards expertise."

When comparing the hierarchy and the network, one form is not necessarily better than the other.  They are simply different and when the hierarchy or the network is best, is based on the situation.

For example:
Many students are dropping out of engineering, sciene and maths.  The courses are difficult and to master them you need to learn from expert instructors and practice discipline by learning on your own.  This however is not suited to the paradigm that the Millenials have and it is not the paradigm that they are bringing in to the workplace!

At other times the social network plays an important role.  Think about the role that the social network played in organising the Arab Spring.  However, this political revolution led to political uncertainty because there was no time to build the kinds of systems and structures that were needed.

SO:
"The current generation has stumbled on an incredibly powerful and important model for changing the world and dealing with the workplace - All of us can learn from this generation when it comes to the network.  But networks can start revolutions, they cannot finish them!  It is up to us to remind the Millenials about the importance of the hierarchy."

 That certainly gives us some food for thought when it comes to dealing with the different generations in the workplace.

Society for Human Resource Management Conference 2012

I know I always sound enthusiastic - but truly this was a conference to beat all conferences!  I will do a few blogs over the next month to share some of our key insights and learnings.  When you have listened to amazing keynote speakers and also participated in over 10 concurrent sessions, there is so much to share....

Jim Collins - what can I say!!  He is such a strong speaker and he has the research to back up what he says.   I loved this quote from his presentation: "The single most important strategic pillar of any enterprise is people."  He said that he has spent the past nine years studying why certain companies thrive in times of chaos and uncertainty whilst others do not.  His conclusion - "It all begins with people".
He emphasised just how important it is to pick the right people and to ensure that all the key seats are filled by the right people.  He admitted that this is sometimes up to luck and you might not really know if it is the right person until you give it a try.
The successful companies that he studied that he compared to others who were not great, made conscious decisions and had good discipline.  They also had a high amount of Level 5 leaders as well as highly capable individuals and competent managers.
The X factor that Collins says differentiates Level 5 Leaders from the rest is that they have humility.  There is nothing wrong with having a good dose of what he called "very healthy confidence" - examples being Bill Gates and Steve Jobs.  But their ego and ambition is channeled in to a cause or a purpose.  "No single leader by him or herself can make a great company."
He went on to say that leaders also need to have the following key behaviours:

• Fanatic discipline.  By this he did not mean bureaucracy.  He said that bureaucracy is for undisciplined people.  He referred to the story of Roald Amundson's successful 1910 - 12 South Pole expedition and how this was so different from Robert F Scott's unsuccessful, fatal mission.  "It is all about the twenty mile march" - a metaphor for having the discipline to pursue results and not go too far.
• Empirical creativity.  He said that creativity is a natural human state but discipline is not.  How can we find this rare combination so that we amplify creativity and not destroy it?
• Productive paranoia.  He warned us to  prepare for bad stuff before it happens.  The ultimate hedge against uncertainty is who you have on the other end of the rope....

Collins advised us to have a to-list that features the following:

• Banish the word 'job' and replace it with 'responsibilities'
• Start a 'stop doing' list and have three top priorities at most
• Commit to challenging all leaders to become level 5 leaders - we need a level 5 leader generation!