JKL Associates - Business & Talent Builders Blog!

April 29, 2010 - ISSN# 1545-2646

In today’s marketplace, businesses and consumers have a multitude of choices for their goods and services. So much so that differentiation starts to become harder and harder. I would compare it to the herd of cattle roaming the streets and you have to sort through all of them and get them returned to their rightful owner.

At some point in time they all begin to look alike. They are all cattle.  Yes some are brown and some are black but generally speaking they are all about the same – cattle. Your potential clients and customers might feel the same way about you and your business.  Your business looks just like the other hundred plus that come up in a web search.  Some might have green backgrounds and some might have yellow.

In the days of the old west and even today, cattle are branded to keep herds together and return stray cattle to their rightful owners. It also is very important so that when live stock is taken to the slaughter house, the proper compensation is directed to the owner of the herd. This branding is what differentiates one owners cattle from the next.

Taking this into today’s internet hyper time marketing world, are your prospective clients and customers able to locate you among all the other options retrieved in their search engine request?

Everyone can relate to brands like Nike, Coke, Pillsbury and McDonalds. They are staples of our daily living.  Type in McDonalds in a search engine an you will most likely get 32,600,000 possible points of cyber contact. Type in your company name and what do you find?

Making your company a “Brand” is a strategy not a result.  Marketing your “Brand” is also a strategy. Creating your website, getting your company placed in search engines, putting your hooks into social media are only tactics of a plan.

This week take a look at your “Brand” – your company. What are you doing to make finding you more easy – more effective? Herding your clients and customers to your company is what branding is all about.

Questions or comments - email us at partners@jklassociates.com or call our Office at (313) 527-7945

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18530 Mack Ave #242
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MI 48236

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April 22, 2010 - ISSN# 1545-2646

Are Your A Champion?

Last week we surfaced the concept of champion from the perspective of those individuals that are your supporters to enable your success. This week we look at what are you doing to be a champion for others.

If success is enabled by having supporters champion you and or your causes, then as a business leader, a critical role you must play is being a champion for your employees, your team, your company.

Too often the day is consumed with much chaos, fire fighting and miscellaneous distractions that you become consumed and do not allocate time to your role of champion.

What does being a champion look like?

Well, if you did the exercise from last week about identifying champions from your past, present and future, you might have discovered that the champions are not typically in the limelight. Their support power often times come off stage in the background.  They are there constantly to support and encourage but never to directly take over control. Their enabling support is absolutely recognizable but not over the top. As a bystander you might not even notice them except that in every photo frame you see them looking on with visual signs of encouragement.

As the leader of your business, you don’t and should not announce your role as champion. You must deliver it much like your leadership through consistent delivery of your positive intentions and reinforcement. You must be confident in your support and have all of your actions demonstrate that energy. It is not about what you look like it is about the results of the person you are championing.

This week it is time to stop and think about who you are giving your championship energy too? Are you delivering it to them consistently? Is it in the right amount to have contribution to their cause or effort? Are you enjoying the rewards of the soft success while they receive the accolades of their achievements?

This week be a champion both for someone as well as with them!

Questions or comments - email us at partners@jklassociates.com or call our Office at (313) 527-7945

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April 15, 2010 - ISSN# 1545-2646

When you hear the word Champion you might start to think of an athlete standing atop a podium. You would not be wrong. Today we look at “Champion” from another perspective.

By definition – Champion means

1. One that wins first place or first prize in a competition:

2. One that is clearly superior or has the attributes of a winner: a champion at teaching.

3. An ardent defender or supporter of a cause or another person:

We are going to focus on the third meaning. An Ardent defender/supporter of another person. Do you have someone who is your champion?

As I look back over my life, from youth sports, to climbing the corporate ladder, to being a sports official and even today as a business strategist, I have had champions. These are people that are more than coaches and more than mentors. These are the people that take a special interest in your success and in fact grow themselves by your success. They place themselves on top of the podium right along side of you and also dust themselves off when the outcome caused a stumble and fall.

I might go as far as stating that everyone who has been successful at something has had a champion supporting their every effort.

Some of you reading this might be inclined to argue. Having achieved some level of success, you point first to yourself for having overcome significant odds and “DID IT ON YOUR OWN.” I challenge you to be ruthlessly honest with yourself and look at those around you in your success.  Maybe it was not the most obvious person in the mix but if you look closely, you will find your champions.

Champions that are your supporters may never be in direct contact with you.  They may only share your interests, your emotion, your spiritual or your inclination. A true champion with defend another and fight for them for the other success even to the level of self damage. Their reward is manifested in the others achievement.

This week take a few minutes to look around, look back and look forward. Who are those individuals that are championing you and you might not have even noticed.

Questions or comments - email us at partners@jklassociates.com or call our Office at (313) 527-7945

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April 8, 2010 - ISSN# 1545-2646

A couple of weeks back, this newsletter talked about putting square pegs in round holes.  Not a good fit.

Last week we talked about not wanting to get stuck with Fools Gold or the wrong employee for a given role in your company.

Today we take our clues from the wood workers shop as we explore one of the strongest joints the craftsman has in his arsenal of techniques to bring two separate elements into a single component.

For those of you newer to the newsletter/blog you might find some of these work/business parallels odd.  From sports to wood working, from systems to people, the reality is, they all cross paths in helping leaders be leaders and companies realize their visions.

If you take a look at finely crafted piece of furniture such as a dresser and inspect the drawers, you will most likely find dovetail joints bringing the frame of the drawer together. This is no accident. The craftsman using their finely honed skills assembles this frame so that it can withstand the stress dynamics of load, tension and torque that a drawer is under during its useful life in the dresser.

As business leaders we need to take the same finesse to execute our business practices. The craftsman could have just slapped two corners together and put a nail or screw in them but did not take the short cut. They prided them self on their work.

Not only does the end product look outstanding but the strength and capabilities of the joint will withstand years of extensive use. Too often, I have witnessed leaders slap people or process into place with a kind of band aid approach. They hope to return to fix them at a later date but never get that chance. Their quick fix approach over time becomes the company standard. Unfortunately this less than functional answer reduces the organizations long term capabilities.

Whether it is in hiring employees or putting in place new technology or software systems, the short term, quick fix will most likely come back to haunt the business not just once but multiple times. Thus costing your business 10 to 50 times more the cost than doing it right the first time.

This week, take a few minutes and look around your company for those joints that are simply nailed together.  Which challenges should you make a priority to rebuild using a “Dovetail” mentality to secure your future growth.

Need a good carpenter/business strategist to help you build your business – Call JKL Associates (313) 527-7945

Questions or comments - email us at partners@jklassociates.com or call our Office at (313) 527-7945

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MI 48236

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(313) 527-7945
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April 1, 2010 - ISSN# 1545-2646

Back in the 1800’s when the gold rush hit the western United States, there were many to chase the dream.  Some made it big but many did not. Some unfortunately discovered a thing called pyrite or fools gold.  Looks like gold but had no monetary value.

To the untrained eye, pyrite was gold. It possessed the luster, color and similar weight. Miners would stake their claim and invest their futures on an unproven rock that would ultimately take down their dreams and their investments.

This same challenge takes place when looking for talent to build your organization. Many available people but which are real gold and how many are fools gold?

I was discussing this challenge with a new business owner. He had accepted an early buyout from his corporation and was now starting up his own business.  He was excited and had lots of energy. Unfortunately he had very little experience in acquiring employees for his new business. He had previously hired people in his old position with the help of a Human Resource specialist.

He was priding himself on how good his instincts were at identifying the best possible person for his company. I informed him that a recent study conducted at Michigan State University had determined that interviews alone had a track record of being only 14% effective or accurate. Although it was surprising to him, he was fortunate that our paths had crossed.

We proceeded to discuss the realm of job modeling, behavioral interviewing and other tools to bring proper light and insights on candidate assessment that reduces personal bias. We also discussed the opportunity to engage these new employees quicker so both the organization and the employee would have a positive experience and contribute to the bottom line faster.

The bottom line here is, don’t be an 1800’s gold miner investing your future only to find fools gold in your next or existing employees. This combination is not good for either party.  The company does not win and then employee does not win. You owe it to the candidate to help them be the best person for the job. Betting on your own personal instincts in the recruiting game is only a 14% accurate bet.

At JKL Associates we can help you improve your odds and give you insights so you are not panning for Fools Gold in the stream of available talent in the marketplace. Give us a call to start a rewarding discussion.

Questions or comments - email us at partners@jklassociates.com or call our Office at (313) 527-7945

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JKL Associates
18530 Mack Ave #242
Grosse Pointe Farms
MI 48236

Main

(313) 527-7945
Fax

(313) 731-0626