Tropins Blog

It’s opinion in a lot of companies that, when each member of staff has adequate health and safety instruction, they have got all the skills they require to prevent a disaster. The truth of the matter is that, regardless of the industry you’re in, an education in health and safety regulatory affairs simply isn’t enough. You must provide your staff with competent supervision, the appropriate equipment, and last but not least regular practice. Each team needs a professional supervisor to oversee employee performance, but this individual also needs to take another purpose in the business. Any supervisor you employ is required to see the importance of health and safety education and be able to get everybody excited about it. On top of following rules and regulations, the person supervising also should make sure that each employee performs well. Naturally it isn’t easy to accomplish all this at once. Up-to-date business knowledge is an essential for a supervisory position in addition to a high level of knowledge of safety regulations, risk assessment, and first aid. It simply is not adequate to send your employees on a health and safety training course. To positively identify a risk they need to put their training to the test. Staff in addition need insights into the required precautions that they are required to take as well as knowing what to do when disaster strikes. Your employees are only properly prepared when their training and procedures have become second nature.

The right safety equipment is equally as important to the safety of your employees as any training. If they are without apparatus they need, or learn that they’re damaged in an emergency situation, even the most advanced training won’t help them.

Servicing your equipment on a regular basis is crucial. If something is in less than perfect condition, ensure that it’s repaired as promptly as you can and return it to the right place. Your workers must get good health & safety education, but they require quality apparatus, scheduled practises, and a knowledgeable supervisor who gets everyone excited about working safely. Only then will following the safety regulations before long become established in the culture of your business rather than something that staff have to attempt to remember.

Comments Off | Lees verder »

Success in business depends to a great extent on efficient people management skills. People management can be developed and studied. It may be an advantage to have a intuitive affinity for dealing with people, but there are some things you can learn to make this procedure simple. Build relationships: Start by memorizing the names of the workforce. Talk to employees; look individuals in the eye during a conversation. Be respectful, also do pay attention to the other person’s point of view, even if you don’t agree or have another point of view. Listening to what staff have to say is one of the best human resources management skills in your arsenal. Encourage any contributions from your co-workers.

Live up to promises: Keeping your word is fundamental. If your word is broken, it will ruin trust, and nobody will offer you their best efforts if they don’t trust you. When you make a statement or give your word on something, ensure you can keep your promises or it would be more sensible not to give your word at all. To be honest, if your people can’t count on you, you can be sure they will behave in a similar manner. Feedback is important: Feedback must be a two way process. Having an open mind with regard to other’s ideas is an important skill in effective human resource management. Being accessible and open demonstrates that you value other’s feedback, your opinions will be appreciated in the same way. Promoting discussion in addition encourages novel ways of doing business, original ways of achieving goals, and strengthens the team dynamic. If your team have a voice, every member of staff takes ownership of the results of the project. Communicating is essential: Dealing with people boils down to one thing - good communication. Be approachable, use listening skills, keep an open mind, and encourage each of your team members to express their views. Inspire team members not just to speak with you, but also to talk to each other. The exchange of ideas is necessary in the creative process, and in communicating with each other, it becomes much easier to find any issues before they could present as a problem, and corrective measures may be applied before matters get out of hand.

Acquiring these skills will take time, but the dividends achieved far outbalance the work. By inspiring a good team dynamic and developing good listening techniques, a successful business will be yours.

We recommend you hop over to our #1 trusted source for nursing assessment products

Comments Off | Lees verder »

Effective human resource management techniques are crucial in order to achieve the best in your business success. People management can be developed and studied. Having a natural affinity for communicating with people can be an advantage, but you can do numerous things that will simplify the process. Build relationships: Start by using the names of the employees. Encourage conversation; look employees in the eye when you are speaking. Develop a respectful attitude, also do pay attention to what the other individual has to say, even if you disagree or have a different viewpoint. Listening to what others say is one of the best people management skills you can learn. Welcome any comments from your team members.

Keep your word: Do not give promises you will not keep. If your word is broken, it will ruin trust, and nobody will give you their best if they don’t trust you. When you give a commitment or give your word on something, make sure you can follow through or don’t bother giving your word at all. The truth is, if you can’t be depended on, you can be assured they will behave in the same fashion. Welcome feedback: Feedback should be a two-way process. Keeping an open mind with regard to other people’s ideas is an important skill in managing employees. If you are able to establish that you are accessible and receptive, you show that you respect your co-worker’s opinions, and they should appreciate your ideas. Honest discourse in addition boosts innovative ways of thinking, ways of fulfilling goals, and develops the company in general. When your team members are given a voice, every member takes ownership of the outcome of the project. Promote all sorts of communication: Dealing with staff boils down to one thing - good communication. Maintaining an open door policy, use listening skills, remember to welcome feedback , and give team members an equal voice. Inspire team members not just to communicate with you, but also to talk to each other. The growth of a business relies to a great extent on the open exchange of opinions, and through speaking with each other, it is much easier to find any issues before they present as a problem, and measures may be put in place before matters get out of hand.

A little effort is essential, nevertheless the rewards far outweigh the effort necessary. By building the bonds of a good team and demonstrating good listening techniques, you can accomplish the best in business success.

Comments Off | Lees verder »

Have you ever been in the situation not able to shower for a few days?

The availability of water is normal to most of us. So it is with electricity. As also with gas that you need for cooking or to heat your house. It is also very useful if you live in Russia at the moment.

Are you grateful to your utility company? With the near precision of the sun rising every day, they provide you each day that what you need, and we just take this for granted.

A different step, but not far away are other infrastructural supplies; the (rail) road-system and other transporting infrastructure.

“Water” leaves you now choice. Electricity and gas are substitutable up to a certain level. The transportation choices in turn are already more than two; you can take the car, bus, train, etc. Although distance influences the set of possible choices.

If your business offers a Mobile Phone representation you are one of the few. Internet is more and more common and most of the companies have at least a virtual shop-window. Accessibility by phone is nearly as common as tapping water, followed by faxed (we have said goodbye to the telex) and a postal address is a prerequisite if you want to start any business.

Different companies will opt for different communication infrastructure like the one sketched above. You could focus fully on the Internet, or you company could have the characteristics of a call center. But whatever you choose, you expect the communication the be there when you need it. Which is always.

Infrastructure has its own requirements. They are not functional, but generic. If you are completely dependent of Internet than these requirements can vary in the areas of, for example:

• availability (uptime),
• continuity (what if there is no backup and the supplier is overwhelmed by a fire incident),
• scalability (if your site gains popularity you want to continue the business without having to reinvest first),
• security (you do not want others to access your client data),
• etc…

The point of this all is this. Although it is the fundament of your business, it is not satisfying when it is responding to the mentioned requirements.
In fact, if it is not than it can be extremely dis-satisfying. Like a real disaster. The ones many people over the world have experienced. Unfortunately.

Not few of those infrastructural disasters could have been prevented, if people would be more aware of the risks.
It is difficult to define the required level of safety, the level of availability and scalability. Because it is not directly visible.

Until that very specific moment. And than we remember.

© 2006 Hans Bool

Hans Bool is the founder of Astor White a traditional management consulting company that offers online management advice. Astor Online solves issues in hours what normally would take days.
You can apply for a free demo account.

Comments Off

It is a question we are often asked and the short answer is that there may be several different options available to raise money for your business.

You may be eligible to apply to the Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme - if your business is under 5 years old and you have no (or very few) assets available to use as security then contact us for a FREE assessment of your eligibility. We can help with applications above £30,000.

Perhaps you would prefer to have Business Angels Investment in your business - this is when a high net worth individual (Private Investor) or a syndicated group puts money into your business in return for shares. Business Angels investment typically ranges between £50,000 and £1m, you will need a strong management team and an investor-ready business plan.

If your company has assets - perhaps plant or machinery - or stock it may be possible to raise money through sale-and-lease- back or asset finance. Asset finance and leasing is likley to require security or personal guarantees.

Factoring or Invoice Discounting could improve your cash flow and provide your company with additional working capital that can be used to grow your business organically. Factoring works by raising funds within 24 hours of raising an invoice rather than having to wait the 30, 60 or 90 days for your creditors to pay.

If your business supplies goods to a purchase order then trade finance may be a solution you want to consider. If you are purchasing the goods from overseas or the orders are seasonal and larger than you usually handle you may find it difficult to find the working capital to pay for the goods upfront. Trade Finance works much like factoring but at an earlier stage in the process.

John Courtney AIMC, MABS, MInstDis, is the managing director of Strategy Consulting Limited (http://www.strategyconsultinglimited.co.uk). Having trained at The Academy of Business Strategy, and is an associate of the Institute of Management Consultancy and a member of the Institute of Directors, he is also a visiting lecturer on the MBA course at Cranfield University School of Management and a Judge in The National Business Awards. John has run training seminars at board level on corporate strategy and made presentations to both large and small groups on funding strategies. He brings a wealth of experience, particularly in corporate strategy, funding, business planning, internet strategy and marketing strategy, including new product development.

Comments Off

SMH - Simply Must Have: The first step is to choose a goal that you simply must have. Throw out anything that you would “like” to accomplish or that would be “nice” to have. Pick a goal that you simply must have this year, whatever it takes.

BER - Big Enough Reasons: Once you have chosen your goal, identify several “big enough reasons” for why you must achieve this goal. What will you be able to do that you cannot do now after you achieve this goal? Make sure your reasons are big and compelling.

WID - Write It Down: It never fails - the weakest ink is always stronger than the best memory. Write down what you want. In this way, it becomes a document that you can see, and not just a nice idea floating around in your already full brain.

MIS - Make It Specific: If you want to get rid of weight, how much? If you want to get out of debt, do you mean everything but the house, or something else? If you want to save money, how much? If you want to get in better shape, how do you want to look? Getting specific narrows your focus to what you really want.

KIC - Keep It Close: Now that you have written your goal and made it specific, keep it close to you. Put a copy on the bathroom mirror, the refrigerator, in your purse or wallet, on your computer wallpaper, etc. You get the picture. You want to keep it close to keep you reminded.

Visit The Article Guy for more leading edge tips and tools for writing articles that bring you prospects, publicity and profits. You can also subscirbe to our monthly Article Empire Tips Newsletter. You are also invited to visit my Express-Start Article Writing Program for more information on the next article writing tele-seminar.

Comments Off

There is no shortage of pop-psych books and motivational speakers who’ll tell you a thousand-and-one ways to light a fire in Sam’s belly. But what do you do when the fire goes out and none of those thousand-and-one ways seem to work any more? What do we really know about motivation?

Does anything work?
Given the constant barrage of pep talks and posters, slogans and free advice on the topic of motivation, there should certainly be at least a couple of core principles that predictably work every time. Aren’t there? Or are we stuck with the notion that everybody’s an individual, and what’s a turn-on for Sally is likely to be a turn-off for Sam?

Rather than speculate, let’s gather some data. Think back through all the jobs you’ve ever had, and bring to mind the job you had that produced the greatest amount of motivation in you. It doesn’t matter what the job was — it might be the job you have right now; it might be a part-time job you had in high school. Doesn’t matter.

It also doesn’t matter what the word, “motivation,” means to you. However you choose to define the term is fine. Simply bring to mind the job that you had when you had the greatest degree of job satisfaction, excitement, enthusiasm, turned-on-ness.

Now that you’ve got the job clearly in mind, quickly jot down the factors that caused you to feel so motivated, so satisfied, and so turned on. If you’re like most people, the factors you listed are highly predictable — and so are the ones that didn’t make your list.

On your list appear such items as recognition, opportunities for achievement, freedom and autonomy, challenge, the chance to learn and grow, and the work itself. What was missing? You probably didn’t write down such important items as job security, benefits, working conditions, and the organization’s policies and procedures.

It turns out that the missing link in understanding motivation is understanding that there are two very different factors at work. On one hand there are the things that motivate us, that turn us on, that cause us to feel satisfied with the job. On the other are those things that dissatisfy us, that turn us off, that demotivate us. There are two separate variables at work, and you have to attack both of them. Psychologist Fred Herzberg stated it best, “Job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction are not flip sides of the same coin. They are entirely different coins, and the wise manager uses both those coins to buy better performance.”

What is motivation?
A good working definition of motivation is this: motivation represents a measurable increase in both job satisfaction and productivity. The motivated worker does his job better and likes it more than those folks who are not so motivated. What generates real motivation is the first set of factors mentioned: opportunities for achievement and accomplishment, recognition, learning and growth, having some say in how the job is done, and worthwhile work. Those are the items that generate strong feelings of loyalty, satisfaction, enthusiasm, and all those other important attributes we want to see in those whose paychecks we sign.

But you can’t get away with working exclusively on the satisfiers scale. You have to make sure that you clean up the job to reduce or eliminate those things that cause people to be unhappy and quit.

Wait a minute, some of you are saying — where does money fit into this scheme? Pay is the ringer in the equation; the one factor that shows up as both a source of satisfaction and a source of dissatisfaction. People are dissatisfied with their pay when they feel it isn’t commensurate with their efforts, or is distributed inequitably, or doesn’t reflect the responsibilities of the job, or is out of touch with market realities. If you don’t pay competitive wages, people will be unhappy and they will quit. But no matter how much you raise salaries, you won’t generate motivation and job satisfaction, because job satisfaction is a function of the content of the job.

Look at it this way: Hire me to wash dirty dishes and pay me chickenfeed and I’ll be unhappy and demotivated. But raise my wages to a princely sum and guess what — I’ll still hate washing dirty dishes. But I won’t complain any more about my crummy compensation; I probably won’t quit; and I may even improve my attendance record (if you pay me my munificent wages on an hourly basis). What you have bought with the generous pay increase you provided me was not real job satisfaction. All you have bought is the absence of dissatisfaction. They are not the same thing. If you really want me to be a happy camper, you’d better change the nature of my work.

And changing the nature of the work is the true key to motivation. The message is clear: do everything you can to get rid of the things that generate employee unhappiness, recognizing that no matter how big an investment you make you’ll get precious little in return. All your money will buy is the absence of dissatisfaction. Listen up — you have no choice! You must pay people competitive wages, you must provide a healthy, safe and attractive work environment, you must give at least as good insurance policies and vacations and retirements plans as people could get working for the bagel joint down the street. If you don’t, people will quit and you won’t be able to hire replacements. But all you’ll get for the fortune you spend in this effort is a bunch of people who have to search hard for something to complain about.

If you want genuine motivation, though, you’ve got to look at the job itself. Does the work provide me with the chance to really accomplish something? Does my job allow me to do something that makes an actual difference? Do I have a lot of say in how I do my job or am I totally constricted by standard operating procedures? Can I learn and grow and develop on this job, or will I be tightening the same nut on the same bolt for the next thirty years? Do I get any recognition when I do something particularly well?

Providing recognition of good performance is the best place to start. Recognizing good performance any time it’s encountered — with just a “Thanks” or a literal pat on the back — can be enough to get the motivational engine working. Sally and Sam will need more than just an attaboy, but acknowledging excellent work every time it appears is a wonderful place to start the engine of motivation running.

Dick Grote is one of America’s most successful and best-known authors, consultants, and speakers on performance management. He is the Chairman and CEO of Grote Consulting and the developer of the GroteApproach online performance management system - on the Web at http://www.groteapproach.com/.

Comments Off

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation whilst innovation can be defined as idea selection, development and commercialisation.

There are distinct processes that enhance problem identification and idea generation and, similarly, distinct processes that enhance idea selection, development and commercialisation. Whilst there is no sure fire route to commercial success, these processes improve the probability that good ideas will be generated and selected and that investment in developing and commercialising those ideas will not be wasted.

Idea valuation techniques include:

a) Comparing idea types

b) Analysing fit with the firm

c) Analysing practical impediments

d) Deciding when to issue GO or KILL decisions when ideas are within the idea funnel

However, what is often overlooked is in-depth analysis of user benefits. Ultimately, an idea is valued by user take-up. In a commercial world, it is valued even more severely - by profit margin and shareholder / stakeholder benefits.

Analysis of the buyer experience cycle and the utility layers is a start point.

Along the buyer experience cycle, it is possible to measure benefit along at least six stages. These include:

a) Purchase

b) Delivery

c) Use

d) Supplements

e) Maintenance

f) Disposal

Along the utility level, it is possible to measure user benefit along several more levels, including:

a) (Collective) productivity

b) Simplicity

c) Convenience

d) Risk

e) Fun and Image

f) Environmental

g) Friendliness

These topics are covered in depth in the MBA dissertation on Managing Creativity & Innovation, which can be purchased (along with a Creativity and Innovation DIY Audit, Good Idea Generator Software and Power Point Presentation) from http://www.managing-creativity.com.

You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

Kal Bishop, MBA

**********************************

You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author’s name and site URL are retained.

Kal Bishop is a management consultant based in London, UK. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached on http://www.managing-creativity.com.

Comments Off

Self hypnosis is a great tool for goal setting and for getting help in carrying out and fulfilling your goals, whatever they may be. This type of hypnosis can easily be learned if you really want to use this excellent method as an aid for reaching your goals. Below is a short generic view of the self hypnotic process. Though lots of variations of this method have been used, these are the basic steps you have to go through in order to hypnotize yourself to accomplish whatever you want.

1. Rank your goals from the most important goal to the less important. If possible, your goals should be measurable. Start with your most important goal. As soon as you can measure progress for this goal (like pounds lost, if your goal is weight loss, days of no smoking, if your goal is to stop smoking etc.) continuing with your second most important goal etc.
2. For each goal, you should formulate appropriate suggestions which means you have to transform your goals into specific instructions to your subconscious mind on how to achieve each goal.
3. Relaxation - use the first minutes of your self hypnotic session to get as relaxed as possible
4. Start your hypnotic induction phase by saying and repeating outloud the hypnotic words you have chosen, thinking of these words or listening to a hypnotic tape or CD custmized for your hypnotic and goal fulfillment needs. An example of an induction can be;

   “I am totally relaxed. I close my eyes and now I’m starting to drift downward. I can feel a warmth that is spreading from my feet and up my body. Every single part of my body is warm and totally relaxed.”

5. Apply the hypnotic suggestions you’ve made for reaching the specific goal you work with, say them outloud, think them or use a tailored hypnotic tape or CD

Before you start up your self hypnotic exercises you should make a time scedule for it. Do your hypnotic sessions every day, 5 minutes a day might be enough. Repeat your suggestions as often as possible during the day.

You must also measure your progress; am I closer to the goal now than I was last week? You should ask. This is the only way you can find out if this method really help you in achieving your goals.

Terje Brooks Ellingsen is a writer and internet publisher. He runs the website 1st-Self_Improvement.net. Terje is a Sociologist who enjoys contributing to the personal growth and happiness of others. He tries to accomplish this by writing about self help issues from his own experience and knowledge. For example, self hypnosis and other methods for self improvement as well as help to stop smoking.

Comments Off

If you’re finding yourself going through entire days without achieving anything. If you’re tired at the end of the day but can’t remember the last time you did something important - then this article is for you.

It’s very easy, when you’re starting your company, to lose track of time.

I, for one, can spend hours thinking about what I should do next without actually doing anything. I find it very easy to amuse myself by myself - but that doesn’t help my company at all!

The question is, how do you stop yourself from wasting precious hours in your day?

How do you get things done?

The first thing you should do is create a list of important tasks that need to get done for each day. So, before you go to bed each night, spend some time writing down just SIX things that are important to do the next day.

I personally don’t mind if they’re personal goals or business goals. As long as I do at least SIX things each day that bring me closer to achieving my goals in life.

So, for me, a typical list might look like this:

1. Practise guitar for 1/2 hour

2. Invoice clients

3. Buy accounting package

4. Spend 2 hours on Project X (Where Project X is the name of a particular project I’m working on

5. Automate web site subscriptions

6. Re-write salesletter for front-page

It looks pretty easy doesn’t it? It isn’t. It takes a lot of discipline to get just 6 important things done each day.

When I first started doing this, I had a lot of motivation to get these things done, so my business grew in leaps & bounds. The problem is that I eventually got demotivated and started losing track of my time.

I started spending hours just reading email, posting on forums and generally doing things that weren’t helping me achieve more!

Until today, that is. I’ve started a new “plan” to ensure I don’t mysteriously “lose time”.

It’s a simple plan really. All you need is an exam pad and a pen. Then, down the left of the front page, write down time slots in half-hour increments like this:

06h00
06h30
07h00
07h30
08h00
…
…
21h00
21h30
22h00

Then, as each half hour passes, quickly jot down in a word or three what you spent it doing.

This is going to help you see where all your time is wasted and will also give you something to answer to. If you’re checking up on yourself every half hour (by jotting down what you’ve done), you’ll find yourself more disciplined to do the things that count.

This is a very basic technique taught in many time-management classes, tapes and CDs and it works wonders. I never tried it out until now but if you do it, and you’re honest with yourself, you’ll quickly find out why you’re not getting any REAL work done!

Those 2 techniques together have helped me grow my business much faster than my previous self would have.

When you’re an employee - you don’t mind wasting a few hours here and there but when you have to put food on the table each month, suddenly your hours start being your most important assets!

I hope this helps you! Good luck

Norio is a young South African entrepreneur that enjoys teaching others the things he has learnt to make running his business easy & profitable. He runs a small business site for South Africans at http://www.small-business-hub.co.za

Comments Off