The summer is over, the kids are back at school, and it’s a beginning of a new year in some cultures, so I think this is a great time to draw some bottom-lines by discussing the most popular posts of this blog. After all, people read what seems important to them, right?
So let’s see what makes some topics in Management more popular than the others, by looking at the Top Ten posts of AnyaWorkSmart as defined by readers’ views. Continue reading
Every manager that ever needed to let an employee go knows that it is one of the worst experiences that comes with the job. However, there is hardly a more profound manifestation of your managerial powers. There is something very basic and primeval in us exercising our right to decide who we want to work with and who is to look for a different place to work. Continue reading
Following post on “The need for better decisions – why now?”
“I completely agree with everything you said about the urgency we all should feel in regard to improving the quality of our decisions. But how do I convince the people I’m working with that something should be done about this issue? What can I offer them as an incentive to try improving their decision-making skills? ” Continue reading
My previous posts about the costs of our mistakes lead to a discussion about the awareness of our colleagues in regard to the importance of the subject. After all, it seems clear to anyone who has some actual experience with management that there always be mistakes and therefore – the risks associated with them. Even more than that, the actual situation of the market today doesn’t suggest any tangible improvement being made in this regard, so is the need for better decisions really understood by today’s Managers or is this just an illusion? Continue reading
Last week we discussed the first two Managers’ Mistakes No One Talks About, now let’s continue with the remaining three.
Managers should beware of doing something like: Continue reading
There are several terms not so pleasant to our ears that seem to dominate the news lately, terms like sequestration, spending cuts and most of all – austerity. The abundance of these subtractive terms in the media may well mean that they pretty much define the current situation, and we, as Managers, will need to adjust to function in this situation, because it’s unlikely to dissolve quickly.
Let’s try to understand what Austerity means from Management perspective and what tips we may use to lead our teams successfully despite the harsh environment. Continue reading
When previously discussing Risk Management I already mentioned that the possibility of being biased while making a critical decision or engaging in important activity is a risk in its own right, that should be managed along with other risks. What are the peculiarities of managing your biases as risks in regard to what we know about the known types of Risk Responses in Management? Continue reading
There are few people on the market today who don’t understand the importance of basing your decisions on solid data. Big Data and methods of its management and utilization are the talk of the town. Companies are building complex “client models” based on statistical analysis of client profiles; recruiters systematically analyze their pools of specialists in order to provide the best possible match for every position; and presentations during corporate meetings are full with tables and graphs.
However, does this make our decisions any better? Continue reading
It sometimes amazes me how much energy, time and resources are being wasted on unnecessary conflicts. Projects are delayed because the stakeholders are not speaking to one another, e-mails are left unanswered because “how dare they?!”, critical information is withheld in a vain hope to reach some relative advantage, but in the end – everyone loses when company begins to lay-off people it cannot employ anymore. So today I’d like to talk about how we deal with conflicts and about the pitfalls that are awaiting us in this complex task. Continue reading
Following post “Craftsman, Scientist or Artist – who are you? Three approaches to Expertise”
“You presented a very interesting approach to Expertise in defining the Craftsman, the Scientist and the Artist types, however I cannot say I entirely agree with these strict constraints. I consider myself a highly qualified craftsman: with so many years of expertise in my domain I have clearly mastered all the critical tools and techniques. Does that mean I cannot be a Scientist discovering new approaches or an Artist who brings his soul into everything he does?” Continue reading
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