John Mulhall - The Blogger: 2014

Tuesday, 23 December 2014

It’s the season to be Jolly… and to be planning…

There is ‘financial planning’ and then there are your ‘real plans!’

We always marvel at the Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) guys when they roll out big company budgets based on “actual numbers”. Oh joy to the world everybody; they did it again! We now know how much we can’t spend! So, with a spring in our step thinking about what Santa will bring us, we can just about make do with our budget allocation for the oncoming year knowing our bosses will be expecting to see us deliver more for less in an eternal cycle that somehow caught the catchy title of ‘productivity’.

It’s a well documented fact that companies who are able to resource their changing strategies will be more successful then those who are not. McKinsey & Co asserts that a company who can reallocate resources to support its strategy will be worth 40% more (after 15 years) then a company who does not reallocate its resources through formal and informal means.

So, bearing the above in mind especially when timing and funding matter, what are your new-year planning options between festive chocolate and latte treats at your workplace?

Vision – Are you sure about where your company is going with the business and does your vision for your department and/or team lock in with this overall vision?

Planning Disjoints – We all love the FP&A guys; they mail us once a month and may visit us annually if we are “lucky”. However, the less interaction with the planning guys, the bigger risk we run of our plans not matching their funding assumptions as part of their process.

Fundamentals – If our budget allocation from Corporate does not match our needs, we need to raise flags on oncoming years productivity. If we cannot fund our functional obligations, we need to kick it up for review straight away so the senior team can review the facts and make a judgement on the following years budget additions and/or productivity cutbacks.

Non-Fundamentals – We are all expected to deliver more with less. It’s a fact of life that cost matters especially when companies are in a competitive marketplace with tight margins. If problems that could be solved with formal funding exist but lacking any budget for them; why not bring the problem to your team. Brainstorm with the real subject matter experts on out of the box solutions.

Informal Projects - Be careful of projects without a scope statement, a sponsor you don’t have “real access” to and no project budget. Informal projects are classic honey traps with functional managers keen to learn about project management but end up having their existing functional resources sucked into a project that is not properly planned or resourced. If you do take on an informal project, I suggest mapping out the needs it presents upfront and the staffing impact it will have, which are normally the first stress points when functional and project responsibilities clash. You can then assess the most effective solution for the criteria at hand noting if its not feasible, it needs to be returned to whence it came. Management buy in is critical so if they want it, they will need to resource it.

The value proposition - When reviewing one’s function, why not see how you are spending company resources. Could it be done in manner where greater value can be reaped for the expenditure? Too often, we cut costs to save money not fully understanding the value proposition the expenditure brought to our function and the wider company. Taking the time to physically map out our budget lines to the operational elements with assigned benefits and risks is a worthwhile endeavour.

Risk – When planning for the operational year to come, another good team exercise is to map out the financial risks (to company’s finances and/or calculation thereof), operational risks (financial/non financial risks occurring as a direct result of operations) and business risks (wider non financial risks generally speaking) that occur. They should be mapped into categories of risk, ranked for risk impact and probability using methods like traffic lights/Low, medium, high/0% to 100% along with prescribed remedies (avoid risk/accept risk/reduce risk/transfer risk). This information should illuminate foreseeable risks as a working register of risk; giving sight to what the year will bring in threats, opportunities, strengths and weaknesses.

When we think in depth about our function’s short-term future, try to remember its impact on our medium to long-term view. If you do, then a more sustainable thought process will formulate and give rise to a more sustainable approach leaving a stronger set of plans for the year to come. Also, when you are on top of your future, the Eggnog in the fridge at home has to taste better! YUMMY!

So, on that happy note, I would like to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous new year! May good tidings be with you and yours always! Please stay tuned for my next blog publication in early January 2015!

Sources/Credits:

Pics;

www.stragegica.com.my

www.creditunionstrategy.com

www.rethinkcommerce.co.uk

www.123rf.com

www.expartandoffshore.com

www.lovindublin.com

Credits;

http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/strategy/how_to_put_your_money_where_your_strategy_is

Monday, 15 December 2014

Intent & Reality, How it defines our world

Do we really make a difference?

The Dalai Lama once said, “There are 6 billion people in this world and 6 billion versions of reality.” I cannot argue with his holiness on such a wise and insightful comment for it hits home at what makes our presence in this world so unique and special. The driver of this uniqueness is perception, which allows us to have our “world view” and it heavily influences how we interact with it. We may seem seamlessly in lockstep with our peers but in reality, ours is a different shade of the same position taken by our peers should we agree it so.

From contrarians to compliant minds, we never leave the same imprint on the world as we progress through time, yet we often feel like we don’t make a difference. The reality is that we do make a difference by our presence alone, so why do we not see this and what can we do about it?

We often are too focused, conditioned or just plain busy to see how we affect those around us, which can be tragic when one suffers set backs in life and questions why one should “…even try”. So thinking solutions, what can we do?

Intent – They say intent defines our reality, which is arguable, but we can all agree it drives our decisions which does define our actions and thus contributes heavily to our reality as we progress through life. If we intend to be inherently good, when we will make decisions on what lines we will cross and what ones we will not; with the final set of lines where we will take action to ensure nobody crosses them. Indeed, if our intent were inherently evil, we would have similar lines of inaction and action but contextualised in a different paradigm of being.

Awareness – If we are to assert ourselves and make a difference in our lives and the world around us, we need to look outwards as much as inwards in balancing our awareness. The balance between the inner world and the outer world is very important to feel, see, touch and hear what goes on so we contextualise our thoughts, decisions and actions to achieve outcomes consistent with our base intent.

Decisions – Making no decision is a decision in itself, so being careful about the big decisions in context to the moment. It’s always good to think current situation to direct outcome. However, it’s even better to append indirect outcomes (i.e. scenarios) and the long-term impact of our decisions to see if they are consistent with our base intent and who we are as people.

Actions – We never care to admit that our short-term interests can stifle our intent, our values and quite possibly our long-term future. When we make mistakes such as staying silent when a powerful person’s actions trash on all of the above characteristics, we import their actions, which disrupts our inner peace. Courage even when it seems like pain is the short-term requirement for doing the right thing. A sister requirement is strategy, especially when dealing with complex situations that have multiple actors, issues and outcomes that are laden with traps one can fall into. It’s important to remember what one is protecting (e.g. one’s core intent/being) and thus can act in a manner that maximises one’s chances of success with minimal disruption. It’s noteworthy that even when the outcomes don’t go your way, walking away with nothing but your inner peace is a victory in itself!

Reflection – Nobody likes an egotistical bragger ergo we become averse to thinking about our successes, what we did right, how we made someone’s day, etc. There is nothing wrong with reflection on what went right as it lessons our chances of obsessing about what went wrong. We need to remember that our time on this earth is linear and finite by design, so draw from the past in a manner that allows you to keep pace with the arrow of time thus keeping your reality set to its clock. If it means dumping the outlandish pace of one’s peers whom all want to be richest men in the cemetery, when so be it!

It is nice to think about our intent, our awareness, our decisions and actions. We can reflect in balance on our position and state in life feeling satisfied as we make a personal connection with its content. We note the drama, the sadness, the joy and the moments of happiness that in our eyes alone show us how our intent has defined our reality and our small contribution to a world that without it, would be a lessor place.

Sources/Credits:

Pics:

www.gratisography.com

www.ugotrade.com

www.trice25.edublogs.org

Credits:

Sunday, 7 December 2014

Is Software Eating the World??

Are the answers in the cloud or is for the birds?

A Silicon Valley guru, Marc Andreessen made the proposition that “software is eating the world!” His rationale is based on the effect software is having on industries from customer goods to industrial production to entertainment where it is revolutionising the way businesses are ran in those industries disrupting the standing business models in a fundamental manner. It certainly leaves me nodding in agreement with Marc and his famous saying, wondering what kind of world is rising from the classical business world we inherited from the industrial era.

It’s easier to be…

Who would have imagined launching a website would be about 10% in cost thanks to web applications 2.0 and the cloud platform it sits on. The ability to pay per hour is a major disruption that the technology industry launched against itself. The result has being the explosion of digital opportunity for small to medium enterprises that should not miss out on the bonanza. In Ireland alone, the current spending figure as reported by the ‘Digital Times’ based on a UPC report could rise from Eur6bn to Eur22bn by 2020. This is in my view is generally reflective of the digital marketplace explosion worldwide and small business owners need to learn more about engaging this massive opportunity in the short to medium term. Done right, it can deliver a value proposition to an enterprise that will allow it to prosper.

Is my job safe?

Obviously, that depends on what you do. Think about what you do, where you do it and what your company does??? Is your company a champion of collaboration, new production innovation with you being skilled in IT or using IT in sustainable work practices that can ultimately delight your customers through many iterations of technological breakthroughs?? If so, then your ability to adapt and reinvent yourself in lockstep with your company bodes well for the future and your job security. However, if your company is dismissive of market changes, technological breakthroughs and is led in a more hierarchical manner, then your job security maybe resting upon a very large castle built upon the sands of assumption.

Reinvent yourself… it can pave the way to happiness…

Too often, we hear about or privately accept we are not happy, which is compounded by a possible threat from software disruption endangering our jobs, livelihoods and future. If we are to work hard at up-skilling, getting ahead of the curve and coping with the changes software can bring, then why not think about what truly stirs our passion and can we map a path to becoming that passionate workplace employee who truly loves what he/she does?

Some things to think about when changing careers, which is a reinvention in itself…

Let go of prior norms of entitlement, acknowledgement and expectation as you are starting again. Remember how you started the last time… you climbed in skills, experience, title and competence one rung at a time

Transfer what’s good in your new industry/profession. Leave the bad habits behind as you are not only changing careers, you are “reinventing” yourself! It’s a brand new day!

Understand your end state as much as the immediate steps ahead. Do not expect what was to be what will be. Know what your learning curve trajectory will be in your new profession in terms of content and time, understand and plan your finances knowing the incremental salary scale/norms for your new career will be.

Research your own ability as knowing you are good is allot different then actually being good! Take online courses; get tested in new areas to see if you have the ability you think you have? Verify you have the core ability to successfully reskill to your new career.

Train as hard as you want to be skilled and your commitment will see you get the most out of college courses, online courses and any other training resources you may have access to. It’s an important part of your journey.

Know how to problem solve which should be inherent in your personality. Reinvent yourself with drive, motivation and relentless commitment, which can be driven by your new inherent passion for what you do.

Network in your new career like you are running for office! Understand the nuances of networking like delivering value to new contacts in how you can help them rather then a boast of how good you are. Be forthright in what you can do, where you are at with your retraining and plans with a “watch this space” caveat for your network to feel as much as see.

There is not doubt that software disruption and the information age will be faster and more efficient in changing the landscape of our world then the last “big push” which was the industrial era of the 19^th century. Unlike the industrial era however, the only class that matters today in new careers is the character you bring with your skills, know how and experience to the new job, which can be more productive, rewarding and beneficial then you could ever have imagined in your ‘old life’.