The ACSESS Conference - Day 2

Today was an easier day for me at the annual conference because I didn't have many official duties. Eagle won a huge award in recognition of our Community Service and that is a big win when so many of the companies in our industry are very generous with their charitable support.


The other duty I had was to help with a session for our technology sector and unfortunately the speaker couldn't make it at the last minute because he injured himself. If I was a polite person I wouldn't mention the words "unfulfilled commitment", but then again if I made a commitment to speak at an annual conference I wouldn't bail 24 hours before my commitment either! In the end it was not a big deal, but I feel it was a black eye for our IT special interest group in an otherwise great conference agenda.


The up side of our "no show" was that I got to attend a session on differentiation which was based upon the book Blue Ocean Strategy. This is a great book that I can't believe I haven't reviewed at some point on this blog!!! I will commit to doing that sometime soon ... but it is basically about redefining your companies market space to eliminate competition. The presenter was a former ACSESS President, friend and industry colleague Bruce McAlpine.

In addition to Bruce's session and the industry awards I attended a very credible session from Fran Goldstein, who wishes her clients a Frantastic day. Definitely a high energy lady with a slightly more aggressive sales style than the typical Canadian (she is from East Coast USA)... but some very good ideas and messages.

I went to an presentation from the WSIB (Workers Compensation people in Ontario) which was another good presentation, that explained their corporate focus on zero accident workplaces in Ontario.

Perhaps my favorite session of the conference thus far was one on mergers and acquisition that featured three well known industry leaders herein Canada talking about their experiences as acquirers and as acquirees! Good information based on real life experiences, with no BS or posturing! Good stuff!

Once again I am convinced that conferences can be one of the best educational tools for any business leader, providing content, networking and the opportunity to establish a reputation for supporting the industry.

For me the 10th anniversary ACSESS conference has been the best one yet and we still have another day to go! If you are given a chance to attend high value industry conferences then grab the opportunity! If you are a business leader then absolutely support your industry association by sending some staff to their conference. I am extremely disappointed that some of the leading companies in our industry are not represented at this event ... in the same way that I think everyone needs to be association members, I also think we have a duty to support these events

The Return on investment is significant in pure learning opportunity, but the networking and reputation building opportunity is probably just as important!

Mentoring

Sometimes when I am searching for a blog topic that might be of interest I will go to some of my regular sources and see if there something there to stimulate an idea. Today I found my inspiration in the CPSA (Canadian Professional Sales Association) newsletter, which has quite often provided me with input for this blog.

The article in the newsletter, The Value of Mentors from Brian Tracy was interesting to me. Tracy is a motivator who can sometimes be a little intimidating, but he does have good ideas and his success speaks for itself.

I have varied experience with the mentor "concept" and I'm not sure that I know how to be a good mentor. In the past we have had formal mentoring programs that meant I would spend an hour a month with certain people. That had some success ... if that person knew what they wanted from the sessions. It had much less success when I was left to try and guess what was important to them.

Over time I would insist on them taking full responsibility for the sessions ... scheduling them and providing an agenda. that had a little more success, but quite often the agendas were a little bland. In the same way that I didn't really know what I knew that might be interesting to them ... they had trouble figuring our what they needed to know! Catch 22!

The best success for me has come when there is something very specific to discuss, that I feel I can bring some value and the recipient feels it will help them. Tracy's article seems to support this.

I have spent time with your entrepreneurs looking for advice, with other business people who thought I might know something and with employees looking to progress in their careers. I have belonged to peer groups that gave me access to knowledgeable people but have never had a formal mentor. I don't know what i would look for in a mentor ... I don't expect Bill Gates or Larry Ellison would be happy to offer up time for me!

The article is worth a read and while I still struggle with how to make the mentor role work, it is a work in progress and perhaps this article gives me a little more insight.

PS. CPSA membership in Canada is a great bargain ... for salespeople and for business owners. Great discounts on hotels and car rental in addition to super materials monthly in their magazine.

Take Control of Your Future

It has been a while since I referenced Kit Grant's regular newsletter ... so I thought it was time!


The latest newsletter is about taking responsibility for your own career, and I did write a blog entry similar to this called We ARE Responsible for Ourselves back in December.

Kit's newsletter starts with this quote:

"The biggest mistake you can make is to believe that you are working for somebody else. Remember ... jobs are owned by the company; you own your career." ... Earl Nightingale.

He goes on to say ...

Are you taking control of your own future or allowing it to be controlled by others? I'm always amazed and a bit discouraged to hear people whining about what their boss or company are doing to them, or how unhappy they are in their current job.

Exactly when did you turn over all responsibility for your own success and future to someone else? Don't get me wrong! I'm not suggesting you should do anything but your best both on and off the job, but no one else is doing "anything" to you unless you allow that.

If you don't like your job, QUIT and do something else.

If you do like it, then STAY and work to make things better.

Too many people have surrendered their personal responsibility for job (and life) satisfaction because it's much easier to play the victim role instead of taking charge of your own destiny.

What Makes You Smile/

I was walking to work this morning and was looking at all the people beetling along to work in Toronto. I was struck by how few of them were smiling! It was a sunny morning, a little chilly but certainly better than the Wintry mornings of just a few weeks ago! Most of us walking along that route have the promise of Spring, a sunny day, gainful employment ... AND we live in one of the best countries in the World!

I found myself smiling because of how nice the walk was this morning. I was smiling because so many people looked downright grumpy (who would want to wake up next to them)! With all of this smiling I felt great … the perfect way to start the day.

Anyone who reads this blog regularly knows that one of my favorite sayings is “Walk Fast and Smile” … which is exactly what I was practicing on my walk to work.

I also wrote a recent blog entry suggesting that people should smile, because it is contagious.

So the question for the day is … what makes you smile?

More to the point … I believe there are lots of reasons to smile, all you have to do is focus on them. Keep smiling … its good for you!

Imaginative Business Ideas

I have previously written about the Ideas Database from Springwise. It features many new business ideas from around the world … and I am always fascinated at the ingenuity of people!

Here are some the great new business ideas that caught my eye recently.

A few days ago I wrote a blog entry about exercising your brain which was prompted by my wife bringing home a book of logic Puzzles! Well a new business concept around Brain Gyms for Boomers has started in San Francisco. It is aimed at giving us Boomers a brain workout the same way we go to a gym for a body workout!

A British company has started offering Alcohol Breath Testing for Events. This is an attempt to educate people about their blood alcohol level before they get in a car. Of course the best answer is to not drink and drive at all, however there will always be those who “think” they are OK. Anything that helps is good … and a new business venture is formed at the same time!

As a biker I had to be intrigued by a new offering from a Swedish company. A tow “motorbike” that is capable of negotiating through traffic to your stalled car and towing you away! Seems like a great idea for the city … as long as the towed vehicle is not damaged.

Given my involvement in a number of charitable causes I couldn’t close out without mentioning Kiva. This is a venture that provides “micro loans” to entrepreneurs in developing nations. The latest twist to this great organization is that they have found a way make their loans go further in partnership with a credit card company. Can you imagine the power of helping budding entrepreneurs to kick start a nation!

As always a brief visit to the Ideas Database helps me to think a little outside the box, and gives me a little inspiration. Hope you enjoy the visit.

Pet Peeves of CEOs

A couple of years ago I wrote two separate blog entries focused on new entrants to the workforce ... new grads or maybe just people who are getting their first job.

Generally speaking life before work really does not prepare you adequately for life earning a pay cheque. So I think the (A) 10 rules I talked about in June last year are well worth reading! Also (B) The entry I wrote quoting Charles Syke's book Dumbing Down Our Kids is worth a read.

Who should read this advice? Everyone who has a job!

It is a good reminder about reality ... about the fact that life is NOT fair ... about what employers expect in return for the pay cheque they provide. We ALL (me included) can forget from time to time and take things for granted. The reality is that if we can stop, take a breath and really think about these things then maybe we will be better employees ... and typically good things come from that!

I was talking with a couple of fellow CEOs the other day and for whatever reason we got onto personal peeves in the workplace. There were some very common themes and really it all came down to the fact that the employer/employee relationship is like any other ... and if one side feels they are giving more than taking then the relationship will suffer. (That works both ways). So ... employees leaving early, arriving late, avoiding work, shirking responsibility, not making an effort and generally not caring ... came up a lot!

Like any good relationship, knowing and understanding expectations is a good thing ... (so read the rules!).

Ethics and that Personal Line!

There has been a lot of talk about ethics over recent years, a big focus on corporate governance and accountability particularly in the wake of the big news scandals at Enron, WorldCom etc. I wrote a little about this some time ago ... focusing in on business leaders like myself rather than corporate giants.

One of the central features of each of these scandals was a sense of entitlement exhibited by those involved. Today I thought I would talk about personal accountability when it comes to ethics. You have to ask yourself whether those people at the centre of those scandals always had that sense of entitlement? Did they come to “learn” that it was acceptable (to them) to use corporate resources for their own gain?

Ask yourself where your personal ethical line is?

The Pen and Computer Test

Is it OK to take a company computer home and keep it for personal use? I would assume most of us would answer absolutely not, that it is stealing.

Is it OK to take plastic pen from the office and give it to my kid? I think most people would have no problem with that … it’s worth just a few cents, it’s an almost disposable item and probably “everybody” does it.

So then ask yourself … if it’s OK to take a plastic pen but not OK to take a computer where is that line? That is a tough question and it is not easy to answer ... IF you think taking the pen is OK.

The Bogus Lunch Test

Is it acceptable to expense a lunch when the client didn’t show? As a salesperson what is acceptable and what is not acceptable when it comes to claiming expenses? If you are "bringing in the numbers" should the company turn a blind eye to that kind of "fraud" (because it IS fraud).

Did those corporate leaders who are sitting in jail used to cheat on their expenses? Did they start small and “move their personal ethical line” as their comfort level shifted? Perhaps they always felt “entitled” to cheat.

The Time Test

Is it OK to fudge your timesheet a little? Maybe claim an extra hour, or not mention that hour you slipped out to the dentist.
Is it OK to put in a 7 hour day and be paid for an 8 hour day?
Is it OK to use work time to complete your personal tasks, without making it up?

Where is Your Personal Ethical Line?

Much of what I have talked about is just done, taken for granted in the same way that those corporate crooks felt entitled to their spoils ... just on a smaller scale.

I would suggest that you need to adopt a personal code of conduct that is squeaky clean. It really is not worth damaging your reputation, or worse, just to cheat a little on time, to take a few company assets home or to gain a dollar or two on the expense sheet.

If your personal ethical barometer is not enough to stop you from this kind of behavior then think about consequences.

How would you feel if a company camera caught you taking stuff?

What if an audit uncovered timesheet irregularities?

IT IS JUST NOT WORTH IT!

So … set your standards high and don’t mess with them. They become your Core Values and you can live by a code of conduct to be proud of.