The Fever Lever Center

Last night we had a get together in the basement of our church. There is a large area right out side of the kitchen that doesn’t have carpet. Then there is a large area that does have carpet right down the hall. We were all in the kitchen cleaning up when we heard some yelling. We looked down the hall and saw that the bathroom sink was left on and had flooded the entire carpet area. We quickly called the orange county janitorial cleaning service to help clean up the job. Luckily they were available to come right then. That was a very close call.

Mildew is one of those things that you don’t to keep around. It’s one of the hidden poisons in the house today. It can even be deadly if enough of it is let into the body. We discovered some mildew that we had growing around the bathroom area and decided to call in some professionals. We called the orange county janitorial cleaning service to see what they could do. They came out and assured us that they could easily handle this situation. We let them at the job, with their professional gear and waited around till it was complete. Within a half days work they were done, and our bathroom was safe again.

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In my previous article entitled: Measuring TQM Success published on [June 03, 2006 08:50:17 am], I wrote about Baldrige Values and Concepts as well as the Baldrige Assessment Approach. In this issue, I will provide an insight on common assessment findings in Baldrige Criteria Category 2 - Strategic Planning from several companies being assessed by a group of trained and experienced assessors. It is provided in the form of case studies which include Criteria summary as described in year 2001 Baldrige Criteria (source: http://www.nist.gov/quality), assessment findings in terms of Strengths and Area for Improvements.

There are seven categories in the Baldrige Criteria. In this article, I will deal with the bold category listed below:-

Leadership | Strategic Planning | Customer and Market Focus | Information and Analysis | Human Resource Focus | Process Management | Business Results

Criteria Summary Category 2 - Strategic Planning

The Strategic Planning Category examines how your organization develops strategic objectives and action plans. Also examined are how your chosen strategic objectives and action plans are deployed and how progress is measured.

2.1 Strategy Development

Describe how your organization establishes its strategic objectives, including enhancing its competitive position and overall performance.

2.2 Strategy Deployment

Describe how your organization converts its strategic objectives into action plans. Summarize your organization’s action plans and related key performance measures/indicators. Project your organization’s future performance on these key performance measures/indicators.

Common Strengths

1. A systematic Strategic Planning Process is in placed. It is used since 1998 and has gone through several rounds of improvement based on feedback from the management teams
2. A planning horizon is tabled for the entire Strategic Planning Process. Each activity before the Strategic Planning workshop date is completed promptly. Data collection and analysis is systematic and quantitative
3. Strategic Deployment are planned using a systematic Tree Diagram to articulate key actions, target and datelines. Periodical reviews of these key actions are in the companies key meeting schedule

Common Area for Improvement

1. Although there is regular review on status of key actions, there is no recovery plan to further improve those key actions not able to meet the set target
2. Although there are improvement teams within the companies, none of the improvement projects has direct impact to the key actions in the Strategic Plan
3. There is no cross departmental alignment on key action plans and target to achieve company level key performance indicators (KPI)

In summary, the above are only sample of common assessment findings. Normally, a full assessment report is given to company being assessed. The report would include details and scoring. It is a value-added feedback for senior leaders to use as an input to Strategic Planning. My next article will share assessment case study on Market and Customer Focus, Category 3.

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Disclaimer:
All rights reserved. This article is written by the author based on his practical application experience. All definitions and interpretation of terminology are his point of view and has it has no intention to conflict with experts in similar topic. The author holds no responsibility for the use of this article in any way.

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Free to reprint or re-publish:
All rights reserved. You are free to reprint or re-publish this article as long as you include my resource box at the end of this article. And ensure that the URL in the resource box remained intact and it is linked to the author’s website.

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Who among us doesn’t wish they had MORE TIME to do the things
they enjoy? Yet every day there seems to be a mountain of things
to do. Whether it’s a tower of bills to pay or a closet bulging
with clothes, here are 8 easy ways to create more space and free
up more free time!

1. Buying a file box and a pack of multi colored folders is a
great start to setting up a regular organized schedule. Create
folders for monthly bills, bank statements, medical bills,
miscellaneous items and so forth.

2. If you don’t have time to file something at a particular
moment, create a “To Be Filed” folder and place it in the front
of your file box. Then, when you have a spare moment (even just
15 minutes a day, or while talking on the phone!) sort through
the front folder and put each document in the folder where it
belongs.

3. For items that you may need again, such as warranties or
instruction manuals, consider purchasing a three-ring binder with a set of clear plastic covers. These covers let you easily slide papers down into them, and you can quickly flip through the binder to find the one you need when you need it!

4. If you have children, setting up a weekly “Chore Chart” system
can be an easy way to keep them organized and help them learn the
value of hard-earned money (or good behavior) at the same time.
Divide up the chores, color coding different areas for different
chores and assigning the value to them (such as $X for mowing the
lawn). This method helps keep kids on track and teaches them
responsibility at the same time. Plus, if an allowance or reward
is involved, they can see exactly how much work is necessary to
reach that goal. Great for building motivation!

5. If you always find yourself running behind when paying bills,
assign yourself a certain day of the week to take care of them.
On the outside of the envelope, write a date at least a week
before the bill’s actually due date to remind you to send it in
on time (and you’ll actually be ahead of schedule this way!)

6. For seasonal clothes, holiday items or sports gear,
see-through plastic crates can be a godsend. They’re easy to
stow in an inconspicuous place (under the bed or in the top of
your closet) and are easy to get to when the time comes.
Printing out a sheet of paper with the name of each boxes
contents makes finding them even easier!

7. Purchase a couple of dry erase boards and markers. Keep one
on one side of your refrigerator as a grocery list (since 9 times
out of 10, you’ll be in the kitchen anyway when you realize
you’re out of something), place the other dry erase board on the
other side of the refrigerator for important announcements. Even
better if you can purchase one that serves as a tack board on one
side. This makes it easy to pin up important notes and keep
track of appointments.

8. If you’re just wondering where all the time goes, or how to
schedule your time more effectively, buy (and USE) an appointment
book with hour-long or half-hour long slots for each day of the
week. Schedule “to-do’s” within these time periods and stick to
them. Don’t fill up the whole day, though. As much as you might
think that this would make you more productive, it will actually
tire you out quicker, and, if something comes up, leave you
feeling like you have unfinished business to take care of!

And what do you do with all the time you’ve saved? How about
taking a break and doing something you enjoy? Yes, you really
can schedule “nothing” on your calendar. If you’ve followed
these organizational tips, chances are, you’ve earned it.

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Clarke Kendrick has been involved in network marketing for years and there is
always a need for more time to accomplish your goals. This is a true
resource for planning your daily goals to meet your daily schedule.
Discover how this information will help you better manage your time
more efficiently! http://cjkmarketing.com/tm/indexr1.html

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“A leader is a dealer in hope.”

- Napoleon Bonaparte

“When you extinguish hope, you create desperation.”
- Abraham Lincoln

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick.”
- Proverbs 13:12

Leaders must create a climate of hope if they want the people they lead to stay motivated and energized. James Kouzes and Barry Posner put it this way in “The Leadership Challenge”: “The climb to the top is arduous and long. People become exhausted, frustrated, and disenchanted. They’re often tempted to give up. Leaders encourage the heart of their constituents to carry on.”

Recently, I heard of a study conducted by psychologists at Duke University. In this study, they put rats into containers with water that was too deep to stand in and far enough from the top to keep the rats from escaping. The rats had to either tread water or swim to survive. In my search to locate the source document, I found two different descriptions of the experimental set-up. At this point, I’m not sure whether this story is urban legend or real. Whatever the case, it makes a good point for illustration.

As the story goes, the researchers put one set of rats in the water and allowed them to swim until they drowned. This apparently took about 17 minutes. Then they put another set of rats in the water and removed them at about 15 minutes to rest. The second set of rats were then put back in the water and continued to swim for 36 hours. The researcher’s conclusion? When the rats had the hope of rescue, they fought for survival much longer.

It sometimes seems easier to threaten and push and prod people than to encourage, to create rewards, and to inspire hope. The natural order of things tends towards negativity. Creating a
positive, hopeful environment takes work and focus. The benefit is that people, like the rats in the story above, will hang on longer and work harder if they have hope in a bright tomorrow. Remove that hope and you have nothing but fear and intimidation to drive behavior.

Copyright 2005, Guy Harris

About the Author:

Guy Harris is the Chief Relationship Officer with Principle Driven Consulting. He helps entrepreneurs, business managers, and other organizational leaders build trust, reduce conflict, and improve team performance. Learn more at http://www.principledriven.com

Guy co-authored “The Behavior Bucks System TM” to help parents reduce stress and conflict with their children. Learn more about this book at http://www.behaviorbucks.com

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It is important that we set ourselves goals in life, these can be short term, over a longer period of one to five years and also lifetime goals. It is one thing setting yourself these targets, however it is another thing to actually achieve them. In this article I give advice and tips on how to successfully attain the goals you set. These goals when achieved can help to improve our lives and also helps us to become happier and more self fulfilled.

Write down your goals

I have always wanted to be a success and to have a happy life, I am sure this is the same for most people. In the early part of my life I was unable to achieve both of these aims. In my early to mid twenties I decided to attempt to learn about ways in which I could ensure that the future would be a lot better, than what the past had been. I started to read many books about these topics and also about people who I considered to be successful.

I soon realised the importance of setting goals and targets. I thought about what I wanted to be and which course I wanted my life to take. I wrote out three different lists of my aims for the future.

The first list included what I wanted to achieve within the next twelve months. The second list contained what I wanted to achieve within five years and the third list was my lifetime goals.

I feel it is important to write down these targets as it helps you to keep a kind of focus of what you are attempting to do.

Invest time and money to reach your goals

I now had a determination to succeed and was willing to work hard to achieve my goals. To achieve anything in life takes time and dedication. One of my aims was to reduce my levels of stress. To do this I had to learn the art of relaxation, I have always been very hard on myself and had spent most of my life worrying about things that may happen in the future. I decided to ease up on myself and to even have monthly treats to keep me and my body happy. I did this by attending reflexology sessions and for a short period I tried aromatherapy.

I also made my home more of a comfort zone by buying some nice scented candles and some new furniture. These minor changes had a huge impact as it made the house more relaxing and I always work better in this type of environment.

One of my goals was to lose weight. To help me in this quest I purchased a rowing machine and decided to wake up half an hour earlier in the morning to use it. I would sit and row at various times of the day which I would try to stick to. Always in the morning and always before bed, wherever possible of course. I would also use the machine at times when I was becoming a little stressed or a bit lethargic. This really helped me as after I had rowed for around twenty minutes, I would feel really uplifted and full of confidence. I would also feel a sense of pride that I had battled against the negative side of brain and was sure that I would soon gain the benefit of a reduced weight.

Avoid negative people

There are people out there who try to bring me down. They attempt to do this by off the cuff comments they make or just by the way they seem to look down on me. They look at me as If I am worthless and some kind of loser. These type of people have caused me many sleepless nights and have had a negative affect on my self-confidence.

Quite simply the answer to this problem is to stay away from them, this is not always easy however. These people used to make me feel angry but I now feel sorry for them. I am happy despite what they may think and I have even learned to not care about their opinion of me.

There are two types of person in life, negative and positive. I now steer clear of negative people as that is what I used to be and I do not want to go back there. They try to get me back into their clan by the comments they make and try to convince me that all is not well.

Negative people tend to have negative lives where as positive people tend to have positive lives. I want to be, as already stated, happy and successful therefore I need to continue to think in a positive way.

The above advice is how I now live my life. At times I feel down like everybody does and this of course is when I use the rowing machine. I have now lost my excess weight and am very happy. I hope this article helps you to.

Stephen Hill helps to promote a number of websites including:

free poker help

anti aging advice

stuttering information

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Consultants who offer executive assistant or computer services on a virtual basis must know their value and be prepared to gauge their billable rate to meet the circumstances.

At some point everyone encounters potential clients who expect professional work at rates that are less than appropriate. For example, a posting advertises an opportunity that matches your highly polished skill set. After making contact with the client you find they don’t want to pay a reasonable fee for the services they expect.

While these types of engagements might help to build a newcomer’s portfolio or pay some bills when money is tight, a successful virtual service provider knows their value and refuses to be exploited. Make sure clients understands your training, background and areas of expertise. Then, set expectations for services by pricing in accordance with your qualifications and skills.

Be prepared to be flexible, yet firm in your compensation requirements.

• Determine your base rate in advance of client discussions. Scratch it out on paper or create a spreadsheet. Take into account the fixed overhead and variable costs to legally operate your business

• Determine your flex-rates for times you might be willing to work for slightly less or feel the need to demand more pay.

• Calculate the value added for meeting tight time constraints, the demanding nature of the client or the complexity of the project

• Take the time to project costs not otherwise considered in your base rate (long distance, printing, etc.)

A pre-determined rate scale helps you respond calmly and logically to stressful situations, so you can advert potential disasters.

Last year I turned down what seemed on paper to be an ideal “personal assistant” opportunity. The ad described duties such as checking email and preparing responses on the client’s behalf. Work assignments would be completed by phone and fax for a client who did not want to use a computer.

The job matched my skill set, but I chose to pass because:

1. The offered rate was 50% less than the low end of my base rate range.

2. The client expected me to own and pay for the operation of a fax machine, but was unwilling to pay for its purchase or operation.

3. The client expected a commitment to work for him part-time, even though hours were going to be determined by him each week

4. The client’s refusal to even consider using a computer was destined to create confusion and conflict over what I prepared on his behalf

Regrettably, I realized this potential client was a fussy, technology laggard who wanted a very experienced, highly reliable personal assistant who was agreeable to an entry level rate.

Know when to “pass” on a client so you can continue to market to more viable prospects. Try to negotiate a better rate with clients by matching their expectations with your level of service. Keep an eye out for performance bonuses or other types of perks to balance out discounted rates for good clients.

Elisa Shostak is the founder of Compass Rose Strategic Consulting LLC, an advisory service and secondary research firm based in Seattle, Washington.

This is the first in a series of articles about negotiating with clients and managing a management consulting practice.

Elisa can be contacted through her website: http://www.compassrosellc.com or blog http://www.compassrosestrategic.com

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Nowadays, great significance is being given to Performance Management, as companies incorporate them in their effective management strategies. However, a lot of people find this process a complicated one, mostly because of the many options that it offers - on the organization, a specific department/branch, a product or service, and employees, among others.

In order to minimize this confusion, the items below will give you a general idea of what Performance Management is all about as well as the activities that are involved in this process.

What is Performance Management?

Performance management is a process that provides both the manager and the employee (the person being supervised) the chance to determine the shared goals that relates to the overall goals of the company by looking into employee performance.

Why is it important?

Performance Management establishes an outline for employees and their performance managers to assess and to come to an agreement on certain concerns and aims that are in accordance with the overall structure of the company. This enables both parties to have clear objectives that would help them in their work and their professional growth.

Who conducts Performance Management?

Performance Management is carried out by those who oversee the performance of other people - work/team leaders, supervisors, managers, directors, or department chairs.

What are the processes involved?

Below are the phases of the Performance Management process:

1. Planning

This phase of Performance Management process includes establishing job descriptions and identifying the employee’s essential functions as well as defining the strategic plan/s of the department or the company as a whole.

Job Description

A job description is used to advertise a vacant position, which typically specifies the following:

The specific functions, tasks, and responsibilities of the position

The amount of time needed to act upon each function

The qualifications needed (skills, knowledge and abilities) to perform the job

The physical and mental requirements of the position

Salary range for the position

To whom the position reports

Job descriptions should be disclosed to the employee as soon as he or she is hired. Note, however, that job descriptions are listed using words that make it difficult to measure the employee’s performance. They are in contrast with competencies, which list the skills needed in performing such tasks and are described using terms that can be measured.

Strategic Plan

In effect, a strategic plan tells you three things:

Where the company is heading in the coming year/s.

How the company is going to get there.

How the company will know if it is already there or not.

Included in a strategic plan are the following:

Mission statement - the primary reason why your department (or company) exists.

Goals - associated with the mission statement, they determine the results that will advance said statement/s.

Strategic initiatives - specifies definite steps that must be taken to accomplish each goal. It is a dynamic process, usually examined during periods such as one or two years.

2. Developing

This phase of Performance Management process includes developing performance standards, which offers a scale that describes how a specific job should be performed in order to meet (or exceed) expectations. They are explained to newly hired employees and are later used to evaluate work performance.

Performance standards are generally outlined with the help of the employees who actually perform the tasks or functions. There are a number of advantages with this approach:

The standards will be suitable to the requirements of the job

The standards will be applicable to actual work conditions

The standards will be easily understood by the employee (and performance manager as well)

The standards will be acknowledged (and received) by the employee and the performance manager

Standards of performance are usually in the form of ratings (1 to 5, A to E) that are used by performance managers to rate the employee’s actual level of performance.

3. Monitoring

This phase of the Performance Management process includes monitoring employee’s work performances and giving feedback about them.

As the basis of feedback, observations should be verifiable: they should involve noticeable and work-related facts, events, behaviors, actions, statements, and results. Feedback of this type is called behavioral feedback, and they help employees improve and/or sustain good performance by precisely identifying the areas that the employee needs to improve without judging his or her character or motives.

4. Rating

This phase includes conducting performance evaluations. This is the critical aspect of the Performance Management process, especially because it is important for performance managers to arrive at an unbiased assessment.

A performance appraisal form has the following features:

Employee information

Performance standards

Rating scale

Signatures

Employee performance development recommendations

Employee comments

Employee’s Self-appraisal

Why conduct performance appraisals? It provides an opportunity to improve performance in the future not only for employees, but for managers as well. Performance appraisals enable managers to acquire information from employees that will help them make employee’s jobs more productive.

5. Development Planning

This phase of Performance Management process includes establishing plans for improved employee performance and development goals. This advances the overall goal of the company and at the same time increases the quality of work by employees by:

Encouraging constant learning and professional growth.
Helping employees maintain the level of performance that meets (and exceeds) expectations.

Improving job - or career-related skills and experience.

In closing, Performance Management is a process that, when executed fairly and effectively, can improve the quality of the company’s workforce, raise standards, increase job satisfaction, and develop professionalism and expertise that would benefit not only the employees but the entire organization as well.

For more great performance management info and advice check out: http://www.performance-mngt.com

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