THE CHALLENGE OF CHANGE
People resist change – it’s our nature. Whether it’s trying to introduce a regular workout schedule into your weekly routine, giving up a bad habit, or even just adjusting your internal clock to Daylight Savings [...]
What Goes Up …
Your big upward rush has stalled, and somehow, despite all those sales and all the new people you’ve brought on, your margins are rapidly shrinking. How could that be? And who will shoulder the responsibility? [...]
That Roaring Sound You Hear Might Just Be A Tornado…
Have you ever seen a tornado up close and in person? I promise you, it’s not something you can ignore or overlook. The sky goes black; the wind starts to blow, and suddenly the trees [...]
Getting People Onboard with Change
Change is challenging for everyone, and when you’re changing up a familiar IT system for something new, a lot of your people are apt to feel lost, and may even be resistant. In order to [...]
Surviving the Storm Cycle: The Jim Crane Story
Smart leadership is crucial to any business going through the series of peaks and valleys I call the Business Storm Cycle; the Tornado of rapid growth and expansion, followed by the Avalanche period of fast [...]
Assessing Your IT
Once you have your processes and people where they need to be, your next step should be to define what technology you have and what you need. Just remember there are no magic bullets that [...]
Professionalizing IT
For smooth operating, your IT department has to be professionalized, with policies and procedures to follow and standard operating procedures. While professionalizing your team, you want to focus on desktops instead of individuals; in other [...]
When the Tornado has Passed…
So – you’ve hit the hard wall of slowdown we call Consolidation. You’ve gone through the heady, wild sales spike and rapid growth of the Tornado, and suddenly you’ve stalled. Sales are down, and you’re [...]
Even the Big Guys Mess This Up
Mistakes happen when you’re learning to ride out the ever-changing business cycle. In fact, most startup companies and divisions make the same ones. In the new product or acquisition phase, many departments get scant resources [...]
How to Dig Out of an Avalanche
With a title like that, you may be asking, “Is this going to be an adventure story?” Well, yes - and no. The kind of Avalanche I’m talking about doesn’t involve snow; it’s part of [...]