business ethics

Integrity – The Foundation of Leadership

2007-07-05T05:04:00.001-07:00

In the post-Enron world of the early-21st century, integrity, and its cousin ethics, are words that get plenty of air time and even more lip-service. They’re tossed around carelessly, but the deeper, more difficult, dialogue on what integrity is and why it matters is critically absent. Your own definition of integrity may involve nuances different from the CEO across town. But, ultimately, the quality of integrity is based on strong values. It is the most-cited response to survey questions of what employees want in a boss. This top-ranking transcends generations and cultures. Universally, people want to work for someone they can trust.

Steelcase, the office equipment manufacturer, regularly conducts surveys of the worldwide office environment. In 1991, being honest, upright and ethical were very important to 87% of Canadians, and 72% of Japanese respondents. Jim Kouzes and Larry Posner, in Leadership is a Relationship, cite honesty as the most important supervisory trait in every study they have done since 1981. Over the years no fewer than eighty-seven percent of respondents listed honesty as number one.

Trustworthy

Integrity is the corollary to commander’s intent – the direction we receive from the boss. It is the trait that sends the message, “You can trust me to guide you in the right direction, and to watch out for you.” The reciprocal of trust is leadership in its most basic form. A leader says, “Here is what I want you to do, and I trust you to do it.” The follower says, “I will do it because I trust you to do the right thing.”

My formative leadership experiences were in the Marines. Those unfamiliar with the military will cite the captive employee aspect that mandates compliance by a subordinate. And yes, unfortunately there are examples of people in leadership positions in the military--and in the civilian sector--who rely on the power of their position to get the job done. Ultimately, the assigned task does get done, but usually, less effectively than in a situation in which the leader relies on positional power. The more-enlightened leader uses influence to accomplish the objective and acts with integrity. It is only the weak military leader who resorts to, “I am ordering you to do this.” Such comments are more often seen on television than in real life. The captive employee knows the rules and will comply with them. He respects the position occupied by the weak leader, but not the leader.

Consistent

People with integrity deliver on the commitments they make and accept. They do this by knowing not only their own capability and workload, but also, that of their team. They don’t over-commit. They are able to say no and explain why. When they do say yes, they get the job done. If they later find that they cannot get it done, they quickly get help and notify the appropriate people.

Non-negotiables

Too frequently, people look at the world in black and white. And that black and white is based on their values, skills, ability and experience. An activity or decision being evaluated is labeled either right or wrong--depending on the perspective of the one doing the evaluating. But, the reality is that leaders need to be comfortable with a wide gray area that allows individual action and flexibility for the subordinate.

When I coach leaders, one of the first exercises I ask them to work through is their “non-negotiables” list. This gets to one of the classic leadership conversations: Do you want those following you to follow a specified path to achieve the desired result, or do you want the desired result?

Integrity is about tangible actions for an intangible concept and is the foundational element of leadership. People do not want to follow a leader they cannot trust. If they are forced to follow that leader, they will do the bare minimum needed to get by.

Integrity dictates the same behavior, whether in public or in private. Consistency, delivering on commitments, and maintaining standards are all facets of integrity.

A bit of advice Marines often hear before going on liberty in port applies to integrity and ethical decision-making: would you want your mother to know what you are doing? For you the question may be, would you want this to be on the front page of USA Today?

Is Your Business Coach a Fraud?

2007-07-05T05:03:00.002-07:00

Each day more and more people decide to enter the business coaching field. Spend a little time on the Internet and you’ll find articles, courses, and ebooks on how to be a business coach in a short time period.

I can’t be the only person that finds that ridiculous. I don’t understand how someone with no business experience can be a business coach.

I believe that you can learn a lot about business by reading and doing your own research- but just because you do that, it doesn’t make you qualified to teach. After all, how can you teach methods that you’ve never tried yourself?

If I read a book on space shuttles that doesn’t mean I can be an astronaut. Likewise,I can’t imagine a person who has never performed surgery giving lessons on how to perform heart transplants.

I recently interviewed coach Laurie Hayes (http://www.TheHBBSource.com) who offered some valuable advice for anyone who wants to obtain the services of a business coach.

“You always want to verify a coaches credentials. You want to ask for references and actually follow up on them and make sure that there is risk reversal in place when you enter into an agreement. When I say risk reversal, I mean make sure that there is a guarantee that if you don’t receive the agreed upon results even though you fulfill your obligations of the partnership that you’ll get your money back or maybe even just a prorated amount back for unused services if you decided to terminate the relationship midstream.”

Money chasers who read an article or a book and two days later decide that they are going to become a business coach compromise the integrity of the business coaching field.

If you want to be a business coach, go for it, but before you do make sure you have the necessary qualifications.

Professional Parasites and Amateur Professionals Considered

2007-07-05T05:03:00.001-07:00

Have you ever met a well-dressed Buzz Word Blitzing Professional Parasite Practitioner? Well they are everywhere, they say all the right things and then you wonder if you can trust the slick well dressed person and their substantially high rates.

Recently in an article someone had pointed this out to me and a very good article indeed and in my business career let me tell you I have met tons of both Professional Parasites and also amateurs who had integrity and indeed were extremely professional and great to do business with. My favorite type of person to do business with is the true man of honor and character who dresses like a regular guy, calls an ace an ace and a spade a spade.

He knows something inside that he is honorable and capable, sometimes he might use a swear word now and again. BS walks with him. He does what he says he will do and does not care what others might say about him personally, or perhaps does but generally never says a word about it. He despises professional parasites, but never to their face, cordial completely unless they cross him. I guess he the guy with the regular hat and all the land and cattle. Not the 10-gallon Stetson, with extras on it and a line of malarkey a mile long.

If you are ever in the presence of an amateur who runs their business like a professional you will know that hand shake and their word means something. And every time you are screwed over by a professional parasite, you will know it too. Consider all this in 2006.

Business Ethics: Top 7 Tips To Demonstrate Your Daily Work Ethics

2007-07-05T05:02:00.000-07:00

With today's environment of 24/7 technology, less people doing more work, the demand for almost what appear to be instantaneous decisions, demonstrating daily high work ethics is a challenge for every business owner to employee. The question is how do you demonstrate your daily work ethics? These 7 steps should assist you to strengthen your own work ethics and provide greater self-satisfaction.

1. Assess your beliefs
This step is really several combined into one if you don't have a purpose in life, values and vision statements. Define your beliefs as you carry out your purpose, vision and values. Are those beliefs consistent and in alignment with those statements?

2. Look to your goals
Do you have written goals that you continually striving to achieve? Without goals, why would we work less alone be concerned about our work quality?

3. Ask for feedback
Seeking feedback from mentors, peers as well as bosses helps us to know if we are on target. Sometimes due to our filters of experience what we see is not what others see.

4. Hone your skills
Becoming the best at what you do is a good thing. Seeking continuous improvement will demonstrate that you are truly committed to a delivering a high level of work ethics.

5. Determine your standards
What are the work standards that define your work ethics? Do you go along with others and settle for mediocrity or are you comfortable striving for more because you know you can do it.

6. Model your beliefs through your behaviors
Are you daily behaviors demonstrating a high level of work ethics? If no one is looking, do you act the same way or do you change because it's okay since no one is looking and can report my behaviors.

7. Reflect each and every day
Before you fall asleep or head off for work, take a few minutes for reflection of today's actions or what may be facing you during the next 8 hours. Ask yourself: Can I be better? If so, How? If not, Why?

If you truly want to stand out in the crowd and demonstrate your work ethics, then begin to realize that work ethics are yours to control. Worrying about others is usually out of your control. If you continually demonstrate a high level of work ethics, you know that you did the best that you could do and will sleep well tonight and every future night. Let others worry about those who chose not to engage in a high degree of work ethics. For it is to be, it is truly up to me.

Multinationals: Why Don't They "Just Do It?"

2007-07-05T05:01:00.000-07:00

Business Ethics: Worth a thought?

The corporate world today faces rising ethical dilemmas in every day operations. Ethical issues, often confused with corporate scandals, are not necessarily as dramatic as that. Every department of every organization face moral and ethical dilemmas in their day to day functioning, and often enough corporations get away with unethical or immoral behaviour. Of course, reasons vary. Arguably, organizations cannot afford the risk of not investing their time or resources in developing a comprehensive approach to corporate ethics. This report looks at two multinational organizations, Unilever and Nike Inc. and draws a comparison on their discriminatory practices in the various countries or culture they operate in. Both the firms are identified with unethical behaviour, and although the circumstances and the firm’s ways of handling these issues are different, little seems to have changed.

Unilever Issue: Fair is Lovely!!

An Anglo-Dutch company, Unilever owns many of the world's consumer product brands in foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products. Unilever employs more than 247,000 people and had a worldwide revenue of US$51.4 billion in 2004. (Unilever 2006). In India however the firm runs under its operations under the name of Hindustan lever. The company has a range of ‘home and personal care’ products in the Indian market. One of the most successful brands of the company is ‘Fair & Lovely’. The company websites claims to be using a patented technology for this fariness cream. The website claims ‘Fair & Lovely’ to be formulated with optimum levels of UV sunscreens and Niacinamide, which acts safely and gently with the natural renewal process of the skin, making complexion fairer over a period of six weeks.

A number of ethical concerns are however related to the product. Apart from the ill effects on the skin, as claimed by some doctors, the advertising and marketing of the product has been doing more harm than good for the society. Its frequently-aired ads typically show a depressed woman with few prospects, gaining a brighter future by having a boyfriend or attaining a job after becoming markedly fairer (emphasized by several silhouettes of her face lined up dark to light). On its Web site the company calls its product, "the miracle worker," which is "proven to deliver one to three shades of change." (Unilever 2006). To many it may seem or sound strange for all this to happen in a country where the majority of the people have a dark complexion of skin colour with variations in brownness. Ironically enough though, people from all walks of life, be it a would-be-mother in law, or a young or an old male, everyone seems to have a fascination for lighter skin. Women from all socio-economic backgrounds go to unbelievable lengths to become just a little whiter.

Although the advertising done by Unilever for ‘Fair & Lovely’ is not illegal but it certainly remains objectionable. In an era which is dawned by corporate scandals, such as Enron and the Australian Wheat Board (AWB), Unilever has been successfully running this product in over 38 countries. Ironically most of these countries are under-developed/ developing country, who can do away with such practices. In India, a country with a huge social and cultural divide, high unemployment and illiteracy levels, Unilever successfully deceives and manipulates people through its exaggerated claims. Even if the claims were to be true, and such a product was to make skin lighter, the company looks to gain market share and increase profitability by creating a mindset where lighter skin is superior to a darker complexion. In reality people are buying products that will cause more harm than good. The demand for such "skincare" products is part of an India-wide trend of women wanting to lighten their complexions in the belief that lighter is better. This desire has a long history, a hangover from India's colonial past fuelled by contemporary global perceptions of beauty that give prominence to western marketing and fashion styles. The advertisements shown fail miserably at all levels of advertising ethics.

One of the concepts that can be used to explain the practices of Unilever advertising is Moral myophia, the failure of Unilever to see the moral dimension at all. The advertisements done by the firm have probably been successful. How else would you explain the never ending promotional campaigns all over the media; print, display or broadcast. Success in this case relates to the increasing profitability of the firm after a particular ad campaign. The social implications of this to the society are however conveniently ignored. Quite clearly, Unilever seems to be following the belief of the only bad advert is one that does not work.

The content of the product website makes things a little more complicated. The website claims to be helping women in India, often considered to be the weaker sex. The Fair and Lovely Foundation, an initiative of Hindustan Lever Limited seeks economic empowerment of Indian women through information and resources in the areas of education, career guidance and skills training. Comprising of an advisory body of leading individuals, this foundation aims to undertake various projects and initiatives in keeping with its vision of empowering women to a brighter future. Prominent women organizations and achievers partner initiative to promote economic empowerment of women. (Grace & Cohen 2005)

Noble thought?

It sure is, but at what expense. Isn't it strange and ironic that this company, and others in the business, continue to sell fairness as a desirable quality, be it for success in marriage or career, and equate dark complexions with failure and undesirability? Where does a company draw the line between selling a product and being socially sensitive? What is even more disturbing is the fact that there is a constant attempt to disguise these socially unacceptable practices. As noble as the idea behind the Fair and Lovely Foundation might be, it still does not solve the root problem. Addressing one problem in the society can not come at the expense of exaggerating the other one. Women in India need to be empowered, and be told that they are no less than their male counterparts, however the people of India also need to be told that the mere colour of skin does not make one superior. The society needs to get over the colonial hangover, and the least that companies like Unilever can do is not spend millions of dollars on campaigns which do more social harm than good.

Nike Dilemma: Still waiting for them to “do it”!

Another corporate giant having its fare share of controversies over the years is Nike. Nike employs approximately 26,000 people worldwide. In addition, approximately 650,000 workers are employed in Nike contracted factories around the globe. More than 75% of these work in Asia, predominantly in China, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Korea and Malaysia (Nike 2006). In 1998 Nike came under fire for the sweatshop conditions of the workers in the Nike factories in China and other third world countries. The evidence showed that the workers were regularly subject to physical punishment and sexual abuse and exposed to dangerous chemicals. (Nike Accused of Lying About Asian Factories 1998). Sub standard working facilities, bare minimum wages and risks to health of labourers mark NIKE factories in Asia. The firm was also accused of practicing child labour in Pakistan.

So the question now is, why did it happen, and more importantly, has anything been done since to correct it.

So why did it happen?

Well that is quite clear. The reason why most firms outsource their activities to lesser developed countries is to exploit cheaper labour and production costs. Nike has a brand reputation worldwide, and in-fact is a market leader in the sales of athletic shoes. The constant focus is to formulate ways and strategies to reduce production costs, and one way of that is fewer wages to the workers. The high unemployment levels in the third world countries, as well as the desperation for people to be employed, in any kind of work, allows multinationals like Nike , the perfect platform to indulge in malpractices without getting into too much trouble. A look at some of the ethical issues concerned with Nike’s human (or inhuman!) right violations would give a better understanding of the concern.

Ethical Dilemma:

Any firm which expands its operations globally needs to follow the basic code of international ethics:

• Not to intentionally direct harm in the host country. By providing below standard and unsafe working conditions, and low wages, Nike was clearly intentionally doing harm.

• Benefit the host country. Although Nike was indeed expanding the number of jobs available in China, a desirable aspect, but the extremely low wages meant it was all beneficial for the corporation and not the people in China.

• Respect the human rights of employees. Reports of unsafe and hazardous working conditions proved that Nike did not care much about the human rights in China.

• Respect the values, culture and laws of the host country- as long as they are not morally wrong or against human rights. (Grace & Cohen 2005)

It would be a fair assumption to make, if a certain behaviour is unacceptable in the home country, it would most likely be morally wrong in a foreign environment as well. Managing stakeholder interests is also extremely important for any firm. However problems arise when businesses fail to prioritize the stakeholder interests. Nike prioritizes its stakeholders in terms of their importance to the firm, and quite clearly the workers in Asia, do not seem to be anywhere near top of this priority list. As a consequence, all the efforts of the firm are directed towards the consumers, who typically are in developed countries, with more money, and who can not care less about what might be happening in a Nike factory miles away from home.

So has Nike done anything about it?

Since the controversy first broke out in 1998, Nike has claimed to taken several steps to correct the mistakes. Or so is what the organisation claims. This section of the article focuses on Nike’s efforts, the truth, the lies and the myths about it. After the controversy broke out in the international media, Nike’s founder and CEO Mr. Philip Knight made six commitments:

• All Nike shoe factories will meet the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) standards in indoor air quality.

• The minimum age for Nike factory workers will be raised to 18 for footwear factories and 16 for apparel factories

• Nike will include non-government organizations in its factory monitoring, with summaries of that monitoring released to the public.

• Nike will expand its worker education program, making free high school equivalency courses available to all workers in Nike footwear factories.

• Nike will expand its micro-enterprise loan program to benefit four thousand families in Vietnam, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Thailand.

• Funding university research and open forums on responsible business practices, including programs at four universities in the 1998-99 academic year. (Connor 2001)

However there was still no mention of the human rights of workers, higher wages, more reasonable working hours, safer and healthier work places and respect for Workers' Right to Freedom of Association. Later consumer activist Marc Kasky filed a lawsuit in California regarding newspaper advertisements and letters Nike distributed in response to criticisms of labour conditions in its factories. Kasky claimed that the company made representations that constituted false advertising. Nike responded the false advertising laws did not cover the company's expression of its views on a public issue, and that these were entitled to First Amendment protection. The local court agreed with Nike's lawyers, but the California Supreme Court overturned this ruling, claiming that the corporation's communications were commercial speech and therefore subject to false advertising laws. (Kasky V. Nike 2002)

The parties subsequently settled out of court before any finding on the accuracy of Nike's statements, for $1.5 million. Discovery in the Kasky case had the potential to open the Nike files to public scrutiny, to document the mistreatment of workers throughout the world, and the flow of money from Nike to public interest groups. However Kasky and his lawyers settled this potential historic case for a $1.5 million donation to a group controlled by the shoe and apparel industry. There hasn’t been a word about it since.

(Weissman & Mokhiber 2002)

In 2004 Nike announced that it would be developing a balanced scorecard to integrate corporate responsibility into its business. The sports goods manufacturer said it would introduce corporate responsibility as an integral part of its contract manufacturing business. Sourcing decisions were to be based not just on price, quality and delivery but also a contractor’s pledge towards labour management and environmental, health and safety programmes.

In 2005, seven years from the time when the controversy was first made public, an independent research conducted showed that although 60% of factories monitored achieved an A or B rating in terms of compliance with agreed standards, a quarter of factories were found to present more serious problems. These ranged from a lack of basic terms of employment and excessive hours of work to unauthorised sub-contracting, confirmed physical or sexual abuse and the existence of conditions which could lead to death or serious injury. The Guardian also reported some of the conditions that existed in the Chinese factories in 2005

• Between 25% and 50% of the factories in the region restrict access to toilets and drinking water during the workday.

• In more than half of Nike's factories, the report said, employees worked more than 60 hours a week. In up to 25%, workers refusing to do overtime were punished.

• Wages were also below the legal minimum at up to 25% of factories (What are factory conditions in China 2005)

Once again Nike said it would set up a taskforce to improve compliance with its code of conduct on working hours. It will also work with factories to help them address the most pressing problems as well as seeking to establish a set of common standards across the industry. (Nike opens up in Standards Drive 2005)

The question of course is, would anything still be done. There is a good chance it may never be. Nike sees business ethics as “no good at all”, and believes acting ethically would not be in the best of interests of the business. Not till the time, the sales of the business go down alarmingly, would there be any hope for any drastic improvements in these conditions. Nike has always had its share of controversies, and the firm seems to be thriving on it. The firm manages to use the controversies as a publicity tool. Thus far, Nike has treated allegations as an issue of public relations rather than human rights. Every allegation is followed by the release of public statements across various magazines and newspapers stating the efforts made by the firm to make the difference, but seven years down the road, the differences are yet to be seen. Meanwhile the efforts of Nike to manipulate and win even more customers go on. The corporate website of the firm talks heavily about their shifting approach to labour compliance.

(Evolution: Shifting Approach to labor compliance 2006)

Unlike Nike, Unilever has not quite been indulging itself in illegal activities, but does that make it any less harmful, or does that make Unilever any bit more ethical than Nike?

According to this writer, the answer to both the questions is NO. In fact what makes Unilever’s practices even scarier than those of Nike is the fact that they cause as much harm, but still there seems to be little concern over it. The firm has been in operation since 1978, and even 28 years after there seems to be little or no concern. There is little media coverage over the menace, possibly because of the advertising revenues being paid, or just the ignorant nature of the present day media, which seems to be more interested in scandals rather than some social concerns in a third world country.

The double standards practised by both Nike Inc, and Unilever are quite apparent as well. The majority of Nike clothing is produced in countries it hardly has any sales, but of course the factory conditions of a worker based in an American factory is strikingly different from that of a worker in a Chinese factory. Likewise Unilever manipulates the market by introducing fairness creams in cultures where beauty equates fairness. To boost the sales, the company goes a step further by trying to position the product by changing consumer perception of fairness as being successful, both socially and emotionally.

Social impacts? Did you ask?

Of course that’s hardly on the agenda. The interesting thing is, although Unilever operates in over 40 different counties, including Australia, the ‘Fair & Lovely’ product is only available in a handful of markets. The company does not have any ‘Dark & lovely’ brands in their western markets, possibly because they perceive this market to be more educated and therefore tougher to manipulate.

The firms of course have their reasons, and one of them is us, the consumers, who purchase these products. It is the age old formula of demand and supply. We demand the product, and the firm of course goes to any lengths to fulfil the gap. In Unilever’s case, there is an obvious need in the mind of the consumers in India to have fair skin. Similarly for Nike, the worldwide demand for their apparels compels the firm to go to unbelievable extent to produce lower cost products. The story unfortunately does not end here. We the consumers, then put the firm under even more pressure to maintain their profitability, only this time we take the role of investors. Investor’s of course are only concerned with the share return, and cannot care less about how the firm maintains its profitability.

Jennifer Abbott and Mark Achbar, in their documentary ‘The Corporation’, proved that corporations in the present time fit the definition of a ‘psychopath’. The concern is that this psychopath is being raised and bred by us, the consumers, and the investors. These are average times we are living in, with every day more issues, more scandals and more controversies breaking out. However reading the stories is nearly not enough. Something somehow somewhere needs to change and change sooner rather later, before it gets too late.

End of story?

Unfortunately, I don't think so.

Business Ethics: Lesson Plans, Knowledge Management, Ethics and Capitalism Collide

2007-06-23T04:08:00.001-07:00

Recently I read of a new website where teachers can post and sell their lesson plans to recover the time that they had spent in developing these plans. On the surface, this sounds reasonable and why would anyone object to teachers making a little more money through such a capitalist venture and leveraging their intellectual capitol?

However this question is much more about understanding the importance of retaining intellectual capital (knowledge management) within the educational system and how this demonstrates questionable ethics on part of the teachers.

Consider the following scenario:

I am an instructional designer (person who writes training programs) and employed full time. Part of my job is to create activities that promote learning for the target audience. Do I have a right to sell those activities on my own time on a website? Even though I am not a lawyer, I know that this would be highly unethical and probably illegal. These activities are the direct result of my job description. My employer has already paid me for their creation.

Now, I am a teacher who is paid to educate young people. Also, I am paid to attend numerous professional development days in which I learn to create specific lesson plans that promote learning for my students. Do I have a right to sell those activities on my own time on a website? From a legal standpoint, I don't know the answer to that question. However, from an ethical standpoint, absolutely not! What is happening is that I am being paid twice to perform the same work. Some individuals call this double dipping and in many proven cases it is illegal.

As a former public school teacher, elected school board trustee and now a performance improvement consultant, I have seen hundreds of thousands of dollars lost by school systems because they had not created a knowledge management process. Lesson plans created during school hours and during time designated to teacher professional development should be archived by the school corporation so that every teacher benefits from this knowledge. Just think about all that lost knowledge and wisdom and its very expensive price tag.

Professional development is truly expensive. According to Northern Central Regional Learning Laboratory (NCRL), a quick search revealed the following allocation of funds for professional development:

Illinois over $100 million annually for professional development
Iowa over $50 million
Michigan over $20 million
Ohio over $25 million

Additionally within each school day, teachers receive paid preparation time to work on their lesson plans, grade students' papers, etc. For many teachers, the designated time is not enough and time must be spent after school hours to complete their daily tasks. And the question then arises, if I am doing it on my own time, then I own the intellectual capitol and have the right to sell this capitol. However, many salaried people take their work home to finish it and are not compensated for those efforts. In the real world, it is part of the job.

What for me is most troubling about teachers selling lesson plans (that in many cases are the intellectual property of the school) is one of ethics. Since I was a former teacher, I experienced first hand the extra hours invested in preparing my room, grading papers and creating engaging learning activities. Yet, coming from a small business background, doing all this perceived extra stuff wasn't really all that extra because it was part of the job, plain and simple. To go out and sell the fruits of my labor that were paid for by my employer would be totally unethical and probably would get me fired. Yet, teachers are being encouraged to engage in unethical behavior and they probably believe it is OK.

And finally there is the issue of copyright. In many teacher professional development workshops, the speakers distribute sample lesson plans. With today's technology, a quick scan and a few edits can change the visual ownership of the lesson plan, but the intellectual capitol still belongs to the presenter of the workshop. Of course if a student did this, it would be cheating or plagiarism.

As a small business and education coach who has created hundreds of learning activities to help clients better understand key concepts, I have always acknowledged the source of the activity such as a concept, story or quote when it wasn't mine. This keeps me always aware of my own ethical standards and ensures that I hold fast and true to those standards.

So before any teacher sells what they believe to be their lesson plan, maybe they need to identify where that plan came from and ask themselves: "Have I already been paid for that lesson plan?"

Business Ethics and Unethical Practices

2007-06-23T04:07:00.001-07:00

The study of business ethics and its implications for different stakeholders have seen tremendous growth in the past few decades. There has also been a rise in the use and development of codes of ethics and announcements for ethical practices by many firms; however companies are still criticized for their unethical practices at different levels (Papers4you.com, 2006). Business ethics, according to the literature has been entrenched with the philosophical details of Ethics (Trevino & Nelson, 1999). Ethics has been defined as ‘the activity of examining the moral standards of a society, and asking how these standards apply to ones life and whether these standards are reasonable’ (Velasquez, 1998; p. 11).

The literature on business ethics is divided on its views about the motivation and reason for businesses to have an ethical dimension. Drawing upon Harrison (2001), there are two major schools of thoughts, firstly those who suggest that firms are profit generating institutions and therefore business ethics is yet another way to attract customers, secondly those who support corporate conscience and intrinsic motivation for the adoption of business ethics.

Business ethics has been considered very subjective in nature and according to Paul (2001) is considered a function of time and culture. It has been established that with the passage of time business ethics have evolved and also that the cultural values and norms drive business ethics within national and regional boundaries. One of the major studies regarding the national values has been conducted by Hofstede (1983). According to this research, which was only based on four indicators i.e. individualism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance and masculinity, there is a great deal of differences among values across different nations and consequently the business ethics. Globalization combined with standardization has made businesses financially efficient but at the same time poses questions regarding the standardized codes of business ethics across national boundaries.

Vinten (1991) has divided the business ethical issues at different levels i.e. international business, domestic business and professional ethics. At the international level ethical issues include free-masonry and socialism versus capitalism; at domestic level these include religious dimensions, social marketing and ethical education; and lastly at the individual level these include bribery, corruption and data protection (Papers4you.com, 2006).

There are many reasons and criticisms for the failure of adoption of ethics in the business world. Firstly, the concept is considered to be overly theoretical and it also negates the basic purpose of any business i.e. to create shareholder’s wealth. Secondly, it has lack of direction and unanimity across different cultures and academic groups. Lastly, it has many inherent unresolved dichotomies that according to Sternberg (1994) make it a case of rejected relativism.

Volunteer Management: Grievance and Complaints

2007-06-23T04:06:00.002-07:00

Dear committee,

I do not wish to continue the proscribed process as outlined in the action points of the last committee meeting regarding my grievance with Meg. It seems obvious that with Meg’s abject refusal to even attempt to redress the problem that any process will fail to effect change without putting the museum directly into a potentially destructive process.

Please find the attached document ‘Complaints.rtf’, which outlines the processes that are notionally in use, I must stress that this is a draft, and should not be considered anything more than my personal notes on the problem. Please circulate as appropriate.

Because there has not been a coherent effort to document this, until now, what has not been noticed is that this is a system which requires command and control structures that don’t, and can’t, exist within a totally voluntary organisation. This power vacuum is a natural consequence of the fact that, increasingly, we are all volunteers, thus among other inconsistencies, the required level of perceived authority to execute this style of system where one volunteer has to exert speculative control over others does not exist. This can be seen in the question of ' which hat am I wairing' and the confusion generated where direct reporting and operational lines are combined into one person with two 'hats'.

To extend the argument, I think since a hierarchical system is failing to manage with grievance and complaints, the idea of a more communal arrangement is worth some consideration, ie there have been two complaints recently, incidentally both of which can be directly linked to Meg’s interference.

In this communal environment, if a complaint can not be resolved informally, it passes to a ‘committee of the whole house’ type meeting for all volunteers and management to ask the questions of all concerned and to vote on a consensual solution.

As a by product of this thinking, I would seriously recommend that management committee meetings be opened up to all volunteers, and the formal directors meetings reduced to the circulation of written reports, effectively reverting to a more passive entity, ie as things were before committee members were actively getting involved in operations.

I don’t want to teach people how to suck eggs, but my situation doesn’t give me much choice in the matter as I have a unique insight into the workings of the museum, and I would hate to think that this painful episode has not produced anything of benefit to anyone.

With kind regards,

----------

Dear committee,

It has been 3 weeks since the last committee meeting at which, as I understand the situation, Meg was ‘asked’ to informally make some ‘attempt’ at ‘resolving’ the ‘personal’ ‘issues’ between her and I. Please excuse the excessive use of quotation marks above, my feelings as to the failures of the past should be obvious - that is not important as we look to the future, continuing in the same way. Nothing happened, or even looks like progress, I don't know what to do now, was hoping for some advice at the opening.

Well, I’ve gone out of my way to give Meg reasonable opportunities in which to start what ever process was indicated, including fixing her computer which had malfunctioned the day before the meeting, (heat retention damage to her most recent files) in fact while leaving, that same meeting, she asked my dad if he thought I would help her sort it out.

I sorted out the computer, said that if she had only being using MsWord, instead of Wordpad, she would not have lost her priory exhibition texts, I’ve even offered to help her learn how to use all the features of Word while helping to write her ‘reporting responsibilities’ document, that would have directly resolved’ the root of the original conflict.

The fact is that she only even talks to me when its convenient for her, ie when she needs something, before her computer issue I don’t think she has said more than 3 consecutive words to me since last October.

Even at the opening, there were times when Meg just came over and started talking to whom ever was there, as if I didn’t exist, once while talking she moved from where she was standing so as to literally exclude me too.

Anyway, I believe Meg is not ignoring or just not trying but is actively not accepting any problem even existed, I can only assume she is having difficulty as an ex school teacher, but that’s no reason to hide her head in the sand. What sort of behaviour is this for an adult women? What sort of an example is this for the younger generation?

I think Meg wants all this to be forgotten, putdown to bad luck and then all will be right again, either that or she ‘believes’ that she has resolved the problems, maybe since I fixed her computer, it her mind, that counts somehow. :-)

Well indeed the memory and the emotion fades – but the understanding gained will not so easily, enlightenment itself does not – not completely. What does this teach me? It teaches me that I am who I was, and will always be, and so will Meg, she didn’t even write her final dissertation (she gave notes to her friend who organised and typed it up). Still I wonder about how it is that this terrible and terrifying thing called human society allows the truly stupid, reckless and dangerous to flourish.

So then logically, if I am to survive in this world, in the midst of this society, then I too can just go around floundering helplessly interfering with things I don’t understand, aimlessly not knowing or caring for the reason to do so; barking orders & acting unilaterally, just as long as I say what ever is politically convenient at that time so people think I’m actually competent!

With kind regards,

-------------------

Dear committee,

I see your version of the covering note section on your reasoning is ‘stronger’ than dads original.

I like it, as you imply that Meg/Sheila didn’t know there were other considerations, other than simply a matter of permission fromVestry Hall, and just because they didn’t think it would be a problem, that noone else would have anything important to say on the matter & it is not in anyone’s interest for this to continue.

The sad fact is that, there was debate at ' committee level ' (you may remember a 'committee' ad hoc meeting in our garden last year when I was present, let alone more formal ones where I was not) about the possibilities, including that of a permanent sign, however the point that once we have permission to mount such a sign, there MUST be committee consultation has been (conveniently) lost.

Indeed, at that initial (informal) stage, the details of implementation weren’t important enough to warrant any real consideration which, sadly, means that Meg/Sheila could argue that they ‘didn’t know they needed to know anything else’ thus due to their limited understanding, they feel no committee consultation was required.

I don’t think this works in practise, ignorance should not be a reasonable defence, assuming they generally didn’t believe there would be any problems, should volunters be able to act unilaterally?

I think Meg/Sheila could argue that, ‘You unilaterally put up the WVF signs without committee consultation, this is no different’.

In the first instance these are temporary signs, erected correctly, by a trained volunteer and not subject to the same requirements. But more to the point, they were erected as part of an overall strategy which was agreed at committee level, where as the question of a perment Museum sign was not.

The question now, which Meg/Sheila could argue is about where we draw the boundary between normal (day-to-day) operations which don’t require committee consultation and what things do?

I think anything that someone should reasonably suspect could effect the running/operation of the museum MUST be subject to committee consultation, except to the extent where preexisting general authority has been given - was this ever done for Meg and Sheila?

If so how can they support/justerfy someone who has responsibility for the internal displays therefore having unilateral authority for anything else. Whatever the case, everyone should be alert of such a policy

With kind regards,

-----------

Summary:

This is an introduction to some relatively complex areas related to appraisals and evaluations which constitute two processes which can assist volunteer management.

It is only in situations which go drastically wrong that a complaints process needs to come into operation. Most complaints, either by or about volunteers, can usually be dealt with in supervisory sessions or through discussions with a manager. Volunteers need to know who they can approach should they wish to make a complaint and the action which will be taken is certain guidelines and policies are broken by them.

Making such processes as fair and straightforward as possible is important, in unpaid work it becomes all to easy for seemingly minor issues to heighten any pre existing sense of injustice or to crate it a feeling of there being an inner-circle of friends. Many volunteers leave an organisation of their own accord. Volunteers need to be valued and supported through their time of leaving. In this way, volunteers will leave with a positive experience of the organisation and possibly return in the future and of invite others, should the opportunity arise.

Complaints:

There may be occasions when a volunteer has cause to make a complaint about another volunteer, organisations run by volunteers where ‘there’s never been a problem’ and have never had need of measures for such procedures, sometimes import boilerplate grievance and disciplinary procedures from a business environment on the basis that ‘it works for them, so it’ll work for us’.

Grievance and complaints, like the burden of any bureaucracy, could quickly start to over-formalise volunteering thus dampening personal creativity. This administrative approch is clearly not appropriate for every organisation. However, it is important to treat volunteers fairly and without procedures all problems will tend to be tackled on an ad hoc basis which would inexorably result in unequal treatment and will only ever heighten any pre existing people's sense of injustice or could create it.

It is now generally accepted that guidelines are required specifically for volunteers, if for no other reason than to avoid an over-formalisation of 'contracts' or 'agreements' between the organisation and its volunteers, which can lead to ambiguities in the status of volunteers.

There are many examples of volunteers clamming protection under employment law, and there is a general perception within committee levels that volunteers are never personally at fault for any damage caused to the organisation, ie any problem is in some way seen as a result of the fault of management instead of the ‘guilty party’. This is true of paid employment, as a direct result of employment law but this can not be applied to the voluntary sector for reasons that should be obvious later.

In the event of a complaint by or concerning a volunteer, all involved should always know there is someone - usually a Manager - who is beyond the direct reporting lines of any issue, with whom they can discuss matters of concern. In most circumstances, this manager will be able to resolve problems, by listening to the volunteer(s) concerned. All parties must know who is responsible and that matters in this context will be treated confidentially.

Dealing with Complaints:

If complaints cannot be resolved by discussion, then some suitable framework has be put in place to deal with such situations; the overall affect should be to create a buffer between the personal and private area of involvement. This process should be seen as a last resort, to be implemented only if supervision and support have failed to resolve the situations.

As with other areas of volunteer management, present guidelines recommend that each organisation should formulate their own complaints process surrounding volunteer involvement. A framework for dealing with complaints should include methods whereby there is:

1) A named person for dealing with complaints;

2) A clear policy known to all everyone;

3) Separation and boundaries of confidentiality;

4) A method to withdraw complaints at any time;

5) A process for complaints included in the induction process;

6) Volunteers have the right to appeal.

Complaints by Volunteers:

As already stated, minor matters can be prevented from becoming major issues through good lines of communication, supervision and support. If a matter cannot be resolved through informal discussions, keeping guidelines as straightforward as possible can help ease frustration. Long, drawn out and complicated processes could be seen as a deliberate form of intimidation to prevent issues being reported in the first place and to prevent matters being dealt with swiftly / justly. Building on the framework described above, if volunteers wish to make a complaint, there needs to be:

1) An explanation of the options available in order to make a complaint;

2) A procedure for putting complaints in writing;

3) An acknowledgement that making a complaint against another volunteer will not prejudice their opportunity to continue to volunteer for the organisation.

4) Documentation of the complaint and subsequent meeting/s to resolve the problem and the outcome should be kept on record.

5) The right to withdraw from their involvement with the organisation or be given extra support to continue, whilst the complaint is being dealt with.

If the complaint is of a serious nature, it may require the involvement of a manager, or chair of the management committee.

In situations where a volunteer makes a complaint, he/she should be informed of the outcome.

Complaints against Volunteers:

In most circumstances, concerns about a volunteer's conduct should be dealt with in supervisory meetings, for example where someone starts interfering with other people’s work. The important point here is that dealing with a complaint at an early stage and in a more informal way is more likely to result in a satisfactory outcome by monitoring and intervention before possible problems are realised is preferable to sorting out problems after the event.

In situations where a volunteer has seriously breached his/her responsibilities, he/she can be asked to leave the organisation. However, these situations need to be specified at the time of induction. They may include, but not limited to, the following:

1) Theft of property;

2) Act of violence;

3) Falsifications of records;

4) Abuse/harassment;

5) Vandalism/damage to property;

6) Unauthorised disclosure of confidential information;

7) Action or inaction putting self or the public at risk

Further to this and depending on the nature of the complaint, the volunteer may be asked to withdraw his/her services on a temporary basis, while the matter is being investigated. Before any action is proposed to deal with a complaint, the complaint itself needs to be verified. The steps which may be taken to rectify a situation would include:

1) Nature of the complaint;

2) Why the behaviour has occurred;

3) Implementing change (additional support, training etc.) within a given time frame.

4) Review of change.

If, no change or insufficient change in attitude or behaviour is observed, in spite of additional support, it may well be necessary to ask the volunteer to leave the organisation if for no other reason then to enable the other volunteers to continue to contribute without feeling duress and or to prevent a feeling of ‘unfairness’ .

Bearing in mind the concerns expressed above, questions have to be raised as to how far it is possible for an organisation to take action 'against' a volunteer, unlike in paid employment there is in fact very little action that can be taken other than removing the disruptive influence. Due to this fact that nothing can be done other than that quite extreme measure, avoiding problems and minimising risks is preferable to trying to resolve problems after the event.

Throughout any process and during the time a volunteer is with an organisation, it needs to be made clear that their services can be withdrawn, without redress, on either side, this is why the issue of volunteer protection under employment law must be avoided at all costs, as these two ideas are totally irreconcilable

Deciding on the best methods of dealing with complaints requires thought, preparation and review. The NAVB suggest that the involvement of volunteers (and other related members of staff) in the formulation in the methods to deal with complaints is often helpful. As the NAVB state, the positive consequences of this are two fold: Firstly, it raises awareness of the process and secondly helps to ensure that volunteers are happy with the decision about such issues that affect them directly, (NAVB, 1995, p.5). Due to the nature of unpaid work, it is important that those effected are consulted and their input is valued and recognised.

As a direct result of an open structure, if a volunteer is asked to leave as a result of a complaint being upheld and not being resolved, it needs to be done firmly but with fairness.

Leaving the Organisation:

Many organisations find volunteer retention difficult and volunteers sometimes seem to leave all too frequently. Nevertheless, this freedom to come and go, without redress, is at the heart of the volunteering experience and a odds with employment law. Some organisations may feel that they require a specified commitment from their volunteers, however, this can prove problematic if in so doing it creates a more formal, legally binding agreement.

At whatever stage a volunteer wishes to leave, it is essential that his/her input is valued and recognised. One way of doing this is to obtain and value their opinion on the work of the organisation and volunteer involvement. Current thinking that in leaving volunteers are given the opportunity to discuss their work and reasons for leaving. Useful questions which may be to ask volunteers who decide to leave the include:

1) What was your role? Did this change over time? If yes, how?

2) What did you best like about volunteering with this organisation?

3) What did you least like about volunteering with us?

4) What improvements would you make for changes or improvements in the organisation's involvement of volunteers?

5) Would you recommend other people to come and volunteer with this organisation?

From gathering such information as a volunteer leaves, it is possible to build up a picture of volunteering within the organisation and this information could prove invaluable to the organisation as it may be used to contribute to the future retention of other volunteers.

It may be found that several volunteers leave for the same reason; this information will allow the Volunteer Manager to implement any changes considered necessary to aid future retention of volunteers.

The Prisoner's Dilemma In Business Competition

2007-06-23T04:06:00.001-07:00

Have you heard of the "prisoner's dilemma?" It is a situation where two people are apprehended as suspects for a major crime. They are separated from each other and interrogated. There are two options available to each of the two suspects:

1. Don’t admit to the crime. If each person refuses to talk, each will get one year in prison.

2. Admit to the crime. If one prisoner admits to the crime and implicates his partner, he gets off free and his partner must spend five years in prison.

A problem for each of the two prisoners exists if both admit to the crime. In that case, both suspects would receive a three prison sentence.

The best possible overall scenario would be for each prisoner not to confess to any crime. In that case there would be a combined total of two years in prison (One year for each suspect). Option 2 would result in a total of five years in prison (Five years for the first suspect and zero years for the second suspect). If each suspect admits to the crime it would result in a combined six year sentence (three years each).

The prisoner's dilemma is an example of where acting in one's self interest does not always serve one’s self interest. Greed, too often, gets the better of ourselves. This often happens in the business world, too. Just take Enron or Tyco, for example.

Business competition is great and healthy for the economy as a whole and great within individual businesses; it fosters innovation, growth, and profits. But, with many people being individualistic it can cause problems, just as in the prisoner’s dilemma.

Take, for example, two top salespeople in a company's sales department. Let's say that each one is so driven to succeed that they'll do anything to achieve their goals and outdo eachother. Normally, the salesperson with the best numbers (most sales leads, most appointments, most referrals, most closed sales) would be seen as the top performer. But, being jealous, they both decide to sabotage eachother's performance, eachother's numbers, and they continuously talk trash behind eachother's backs (office gossip). This happens in countless organizations, be it in executive management, the customer service department, the accounting department, or even the marketing department. I think we would all agree that if they co-operated, each of these two salespeople would be better off; I think the two salespeople would agree too. Yet it happens. Our jealousy and self interest, too often, gets in the way of what would be better off for ourselves and the companies that we work for.

Taking Ideas to a Whole New Level

2007-06-23T03:58:00.000-07:00

Why Invent When You Can Reverse (Engineer That Is...)?

In an age when new technology erupts into the marketplace daily, finding a niche in business has never been easier. Looking back now, you could have been the first surgeon to broadcast a complex procedure. Maybe you could have been the first college professor to podcast lectures to students. Or maybe you could have been the first artist to set up a personal blog to sell artwork. Many people think of these “could have’s” and chalk them up as missed opportunities. But this is just a defeatist attitude.

Sure, people always say a first-mover advantage gives you a great lead time and you can price your product or service any way you want. But what if you’re a second-mover? Think of all of the “me too” businesses that have spawned into global successes. Big guys such as Microsoft, Apple, and Dell were not the originators of the products they sold. They capitalized on the mistakes of others, learned from them, and created a bigger and better product. Sometimes that’s all you need to do.

Apple’s iPod is one of the best examples in my mind. They looked at Compaq’s first hard-drive-based MP3 player in 1998, and saw how they could improve upon it. After three years of thinking about what Apple could bring to the table, the company spawned its own MP3 player. Apple’s name was already synonymous with user-friendly technology so they simply applied what they did best to Compaq’s design. The interface on the iPod and the free software, iTunes, which was released with the product, were raved about because of their ease-of-use and compatibility. And now they’ve sold almost 30 million iPods based on an idea that wasn’t even theirs to begin with! Crazy, right?

Crazy Like a Fox!

The lesson you can learn from these big companies is that anybody can steal a good idea. Especially if it’s a good idea that’s not protected by intellectual property laws! It gets a little sticky when you’re actually taking a product idea and trying to re-sell it. But if it’s a marketing idea or a sales technique that you’re oh-so-envious of, then it’s a whole new ballgame.

For example, one of the latest things in advertising for the service industry is blogging. Professionals have capitalized on the blog movement to establish expertise in their fields. Business coaches, lawyers, and consultants who write articles for newsletters and online publications are starting to post in blogs as well. This is a great marketing tool for professionals to stand out as they are giving their businesses a personal touch instead of trying to sell the benefits of their service through traditional media.

Don’t Steal, Improve!

Businesses really need to be on the lookout for things like the blog example. It’s simple to do and can really benefit your company. Keep on top of technology news and constantly challenge your business model for ways to improve. It takes a dozen of the greatest business minds to find new ways of producing and selling products, but it only takes one to steal it and adapt it.

And “steal” is the wrong word for this type of practice. It’s more of a modification or an adaptation. Every business has something that it’s particularly good at. Apple had its user-friendly differentiator that it applied to MP3 players. Find a product or strategy that you think can genuinely help your business and identify what you do best as a company. Combine the two into something new and beneficial.

Casting Stones

2007-06-19T02:25:00.001-07:00

There has been much written about the life and death of Ken Lay since he passed away earlier this week. I have long made it a point not to sit in judgment of others as it is very difficult to properly connect the dots from afar. It is my belief that there are indeed at least two sides to every story and that what often times appears in the media as hard news can actually be editorial commentary that may or may not portray the reality of a given situation. Furthermore, just knowing someone who knows someone will rarely even provide you with accurate information relating to the actual events of a situation especially one veiled in controversy.

Regardless of how you feel about Mr. Lay I was truly disheartened at many of the things that I read relating to the death. He was after all more than a businessman…he was a human being who was a husband, father, grandfather, church member and was active in his community. I always find it tragic when people’s lives are reduced to gossip and innuendo. Humans are imperfect creatures and I have yet to come across any business leader who can’t rattle off several decisions that they wish they hadn’t made. It just so happens that some mistakes are more public than others and for most people it is much easier to point the finger at those who have been in the spotlight rather than to deal with their own private indiscretions.

OK, I’ll step down from my soap box now and provide you with the perspective of others. I’ve read several different pieces written about Mr. Lay over the past few days, but I believe the following three individuals cover the topic at hand from every angle. While the comments below specifically address the life of Ken Lay, I would encourage you to take a step back and read the following commentary with the bigger picture in mind…As you read the following comments think about your perspective on people as well as about how you choose to view life in general:

Comment #1, obviously written by a critic of Mr. Lay:

“Lay had recently been convicted of a plethora of felonies, and was staring at the realization that he would most likely be spending the rest of his life in jail. Obviously, this news makes that scenario moot, and I’m sure that there are numerous lawyers, jurors, and reporters who feel like they just wasted a good chunk of their lives during the recent trials. The mainstream media seems to be flirting with turning Kenny-Boy into a martyr, almost portraying him as the victim of a stressful trial and prosecution. I believe this to be total crap. Whether Lay knew about every single corrupt practice at Enron or not, and I believe that he did, his company screwed over a ton of people, and as the head of the corporation the blame must fall on his shoulders. His rise from very poor beginnings in my home state, graduating from my alma mater, and eventually becoming the head of a major energy company are certainly commendable and impressive. The downfall of that fraudulent and crooked company, however, was criminal, and Lay deserved everything that he got. It’s a damn shame that he’s dead, because seeing him led away to prison might have given those that were burned by his sham of a company some peace.”

Comment #2, obviously written by someone who knew and respected Mr. Lay that provides the flip side of opinion #1 above:

“Ken Lay was a deacon at FMC Houston. There he chose to serve the homeless communion each Sunday. There he befriended the poor. There he gave money for food, clothing, and shelter. His gifts were with his heart. People who knew this gentle man would not recognize him by the media’s descriptions. Ken returned to Enron to save the company from problems. He did not know Andy Fastow, the CFO was lying to investors with creative accounting. Why would he come back to a company he founded…and take up and put on the mantle of a conspiracy that outdated him? Ken had a margin call….an order from the bank to sell his Enron stock, because of declining capital value. That is why he sold the stock. Ken believed in the company, believed what Fastow was telling him.

Please go to Ken Lay info.com and read the court transcripts, and view the meetings in which he is accused of touting Enron stock to investors. In those meetings he is straightforward, honest, and tells the accounting dept. “Vanilla is just fine…”…meaning…as I come back to lead, we need no creative accounting. Please don’t take your view of Ken from newspaper reports and a jury that did not understand finance.”

Comment #3, this opinion taken from the New York Times and falls somewhere between comments 1 & 2 above:

“Mr. Lay was fairly convicted of his crimes, but he was also a father and grandfather, whose family mourns his passing. He was headed for the penitentiary, but that did not have to be the end for him. He would have had an opportunity to use his personal skills to help other prisoners. And at 64 years, he might have had another shot at that third act after all. Michael Milken has devoted much of his resources to medical research since serving his sentence. What Ken Lay might have done we will never know. Chances are it would have been interesting.”

Wrongdoing is certainly wrongdoing and good intentions don’t justify deviant behavior. That being said, experience tells me that there is probably some truth in all of the above statements, but the bigger issue is not how we feel about Mr. Lay, but how we treat other individuals in general…during both the best of times and in worst of times. Don’t allow yourself to be a fair weather friend or a gossip…Rather understand that most of us are not privy to the inner thoughts of others and their motivations. We need to keep in mind that all people make mistakes and that mistakes don’t necessarily make you evil they just make you human.

Mike Myatt is the Chief Strategy Officer at N2growth. N2growth is a leading

How to be Ethical and Still Prosper

2007-06-19T02:24:00.002-07:00

History of Business Ethics

Early Judaism introduced the 10 commandments by the hands of Moses, which are still used as a guide for morality for many today. The 10 commandments provide practical principles for truthfulness and good ethical behavior. For example, Exodus 20:16 states, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor”. This verse gives great value to honesty in all aspects of business and life. Many ideas found throughout the Bible can be and have been used in business for a long time. Other religions also have similar sacred or ancient texts that help to guide people’s actions.

Philosophers also played a role in identifying and influencing morality and ethics in society. Plato was known for his discussions of justice in his work The Republic:

If what I am morally required to do can (in some circumstances) be different from what I would choose do for my own benefit, then why should I be moral? Plato wrote the remainder of The Republic in an attempt to provide an adequate, satisfying answer to this question.

Aristotle discussed economic relations, commerce and trade under the heading of the household in his Politics. He discussed trade, property and money which all apply to modern times. He made moral claims about greed and perverted use of one’s abilities in the quest of wealth for its own sake. He attacks exploitation because it includes a profit from money itself instead of the method of exchange in which money is simply a means.

After the fall of Rome, Christianity influenced business in the context of justice and honesty in buying and selling. Later, Luther, Calvin, and John Wesley among other Reformation figures led the way in the development of the Protestant work ethic. The Protestant work ethic is a biblically based idea of the importance of hard work, striving for perfection and the goodness of labor.

John Locke developed ideas pertaining to the defense of property as a natural right. He believed that people acquire property by mixing their labor with what they find in nature. Adam Smith, often called the father of modern economics, believed that morality and economics are intertwined and not mutually exclusive. Most focus on his economic influence, but Smith was also a moral philosopher and the author of The Theory of Moral Sentiments.

Why People Behave Unethically: An Enron Case Study

In the span of six months, how could one of America’s most respected and successful companies go bankrupt? Enron’s board of directors authorized their chief financial officer to create Enron-funded partnerships that defrauded shareholders by hiding real losses and creating phony profits. One of the most critical board meetings at Enron in 1991, where executives gave approval to set aside their ethics statements on behalf of fraudulent activities with partnerships, lasted only one hour.

Pressures from management often cause employees to consider and use unethical means to achieve success to please their superiors. Enron recruited exclusively at major business schools. They wined and dined the prospects. Recruiters promised young job-seekers huge bonuses and fed their egos as much as they would take. Once they were hired, it was an up or out culture. Those who survived began to think they were something extraordinary. Former CEO of Enron, Jeffrey Skilling, was an aggressive manager. “He used to pit them against each other. He knew that as long as he could keep them scared of one another and competing, he would have control. When you create an environment in which, if you want to be among the best and the brightest, you’ve got to play the game the way the boss has set it up, that’s not a culture where people are going to challenge top management”.

Personal greed frequently drives people into doing unethical activities. Andrew Fastow, the CFO of Enron, sold $36 million of his investments before the company went down. Kenneth Lay had many sweetheart deals with members of his family. Skilling is said to have gotten away with around $200 million. One might call that profuse greed. Business ethics is most important among the leaders of an organization. The leaders set a precedent for the behavior of all the employees, giving grave importance to the model that they supply for their actions. “Employees model – that is emulate – their boss’s behavior. That makes the top leader, ultimately responsible for the culture of his organization – including the ethical culture”.

Cronyism can often affect organizations in a negative way causing people to behave unethically. Enron had a tendency towards cronyism, which is partiality towards friends or family. Managers at Enron’s divisions grew arrogant, thinking themselves to be invincible. They had a tendency to seal themselves off from things on the outside. Skilling set up a system of ranking among employees that determined the fate of their jobs. If fellow employees gave you a poor report, you were out. This instantly created alliances among the groups that were willing to play ball and ousted the “Boy Scouts.” “They had something called a rank-and-yank performance appraisal system, which eliminated anyone who fell behind, a real Darwinist system that took care of anyone who might potentially disagree. All of the whistleblowers were rebuffed, humiliated or treated in an intimidating way by the various players. And finally their 1999 annual report in which all of the members of the board of directors are listed by their nicknames suggests a tendency towards cronyism”.

Prospering in an Unethical World: An R. G. LeTourneau Case Study

R. G. LeTourneau is considered by some as one of the most influential people of the past hundred years. LeTourneau made giving to others a priority – He gave away 90% of his income and only lived off 10%. He based his business on moral, ethical and religious principles. He set a great example for his employees and instilled a sense of gratitude and giving in them. “At the age of 44 I lost so heavily on contracts that my employees, with more faith in me than I had in myself, took up a collection to get me back on my feet”. LeTourneau was a school dropout from a small town, but that didn’t stop him from competing with some of the biggest companies in the land. Letourneau had fierce competitors consisting of Caterpillar, General Motors, International Harvester, Allis Chalmers and several others, all large corporations with high-powered executive staffs. During World War II, LeTourneau produced some of the most important earth moving tools to date. During World War II, more earth had to be moved than through all the combined wars of history. LeTourneau’s machines made up more than 50% of all the earth moving tools used in the war.

An example of LeTourneau’s moral and ethical principles is apparent in a story from his autobiography Mover of Men and Mountains. LeTourneau’s partner had fired some of LeTourneau’s family members who worked for the company. LeTourneau and his partner had an argument and his partner decided to leave. After the split, the company completed a project for Southern Pacific that turned out to be a near disaster, almost killing some of his workers. LeTourneau ended up coming out about even on the $100,000 job. Some time after that, his former partner came to him and said he heard they had made quite a bit on the Southern Pacific job; he felt he was entitled to the money. LeTourneau’s partner happened to be an elder in his church and LeTourneau was stunned that a Christian man would behave in such a way. He knew that the money was rightfully his. One of LeTourneau’s friends had even advised him to let the partner sue, because “he didn’t have a leg to stand on”. After some deliberation and prayer, LeTourneau decided to give his former partner the money to avoid a court battle and a possible split of his church. He would leave the rest up to the Lord. It turned out that a year later, after two bad contracts on his own, his former partner was wiped out. LeTourneau was convinced that if the Lord doesn’t think you are worthy of having money and responsibility, he will find ways to take it away. In his autobiography, LeTourneau says, “real partners don’t try to see how much one can get from the other. They work for the good of the partnership. They try to help each other.”

LeTourneau based his life principles on many scriptures from the Bible. His favorite was Matthew 6:33: “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.” LeTourneau sought after God’s righteousness and he certainly achieved great prosperity.

Good Ethical Process: A Johnson & Johnson Case Study

In 1982, Johnson & Johnson experienced a crisis with reports of cyanide in their Tylenol Extra-Strength bottles. Seven people died from the incident. Johnson & Johnson could have been tarnished forever from this episode. Instead, against all human nature, they relinquished all financial influence on their decision process. They based their coming decisions on what they felt was right for their customers. The company ordered a full recall of 31 million bottles that cost more than $100 million. They ceased production of the original bottles and began production of a new tamper-resistant bottle. Johnson & Johnson was competent enough to “use the crisis to demonstrate to [its] customers [its] commitment to customer safety and to the quality of the Tylenol product”. Johnson & Johnson also displayed the company’s willingness to be honest with the public and to correspond with the media, which assisted in building credibility and customer trust during the incident. After the incident, Johnson & Johnson’s stock dropped seven points and lost 27% of the 35% pain-reliever market it once enjoyed. Several months after their ethically-based efforts to make the crisis right, Johnson & Johnson reclaimed and surpassed their previous market share. Johnson & Johnson’s actions are a strong testament to the benefits of acting ethically in a time of crisis, when it is most important.

Conclusion: You Can’t Prosper Unethically

Home Business Ethics are Essential

2007-06-19T02:24:00.001-07:00

Eighteenth century thinker Denis Diderot once noted, "There is no moral precept that does not have something inconvenient about it." The underlying truth of that statement is one reason some people seem to have difficulty operating an ethical home business. Ironically, however, those seeming inconveniences can actually turn out to be advantages. Those who try to short-cut real important business values aren't doing themselves a favor on either an ethical or a financial plane.

The temptation to skirt ethics comes from our strong desire to generate profits and to experience personal success. Most people who operate their own businesses are very driven by their aspirations and when all that seems to stand in the way of greater profits is an ethical question, they may be tempted to turn a blind eye to what is right.

That willingness to overlook principles might seem like a solid business decision in terms of the bottom line. Even if it is, of course, its reprehensibility and contribution to the worst parts of our society should dejustify the unethical behavior. However, a closer examination of most ethical shortcuts reveals that the "easy but questionable" way usually isn't the sound business decision in terms of the profit levels, either.

That's because our home businesses are based on our word and honor. This is especially true of online enterprises, where our perceived credibility is largely determined by our history of clean dealings. Although it may be possible to grab a few quick bucks disingenuously, doing so is likely to have longer-term repercussions on one's reputation that will cost more in the long run than what is immediately generated.

Additionally, the Internet never forgets! A questionable auto salesman may be able to last awhile, as advertising and blind luck may lead others onto his lot. Those who make buying decisions online, however, are already positioned to do quick research about those with whom they may be dealing. All it takes is a little bit of "Googling" to reveal complaints, allegations and criticisms of unethical players. An ethical compromise in pursuit of fast money will haunt online vendors and service providers indefinitely.

When I teach and mentor new online home business owners, I make a point of reminding them not to compromise their ethical standards. Not only is that important on some deeper level, it is also a core component of long-term success. Ethics breaches do nothing to help home-based businesses, but do risk destroying them.

As you grow your home business, remember that the inconveniences of maintaining the highest possible standards also supply you with the building blocks by which you can construct a recognized foundation for honesty and fair dealing. That kind of reputation can be the difference between barely eking out a living and being a home business success story.

Ethics and Business and Government

2007-06-19T02:23:00.002-07:00

So often we hear about dishonesty in ethics in business and government. We hear of Democratic Senators and Congressmen who will not listen to you unless you donate money to their campaigns and this goes for citizens and business people alike. It is no wonder that many business people fund political contributions.

It is also no wonder with such a system that Congressmen go beyond the call of duty of listening and intervene in business activity and help one business over another in the competitive market place. Indeed but really didn't Adam Smith warn us of such? If you own a company and want to move ahead faster, just support your Senator or Congressman and have them call up an bureaucracy or Regulatory body to disrupt your competition. Sure this has been going on for 100s of years.

Pretty sickening to think we stand for free markets and true Capitalism. It works if it is allowed to work. Ayn Rand is right, Marx is wrong and the politics of this nation are an absurd way to run the human race. If you want your business to grow and go to the next level you have to pay to play and that means interacting with the dishonesty of the Democrats in Congress and the Senate. That is just the way it is and there is nothing you can do about it but deal with the scum of the Earth to protect your business. Consider this in 2006.

How to Cultivate the Trust Factor in Business

2007-06-19T02:23:00.001-07:00

In today’s highly competitive economy, it is difficult to maintain a significant market advantage based on your professional skills alone. Developing trusting relationships with your clients is vital to your business success as well. No matter what business you are in, the most powerful value-added contribution you can make to any business relationship is the trust factor.

The trust factor is even more critical in today’s business climate with the level of trust in Corporate America continuing to be at an all-time low, and suspicion of “all things corporate” remaining on the rise. To make matters worse, large corporations and small businesses alike continue to use antiquated techniques, such as gizmos and gadgets, to try to win over new clients. When instead, they should be trying to address the heart of the matter by utilizing trust-building techniques that will most effectively resonate with consumers and new prospects.

Clients and prospects are in search of trust in their business relationships, but building trust and credibility does not happen overnight. To cultivate trust, it takes the risk of being open with clients and prospects. This enables them to perceive you as a real person—one with strengths and weaknesses that come into play as the relationship develops. When trust is reciprocal, you will find that your confidence in others is rewarded by their support and reinforcement of what you also stand for as a business entity.

What is Trust

What is trust? Trust can be defined as a firm belief in the honesty of another and the absence of suspicion regarding his motives or practices. The concept of trust in business dealings is simple: Build on an individual’s confidence in you and eliminate fear as an operating principle.

Letting Go of Fear

Let go of fear, which restricts your ability to relate to others. Letting go frees you of behavioral constraints that can immobilize your emotional and professional development. Fear of rejection, fear of failure, fear of success, fear of being hurt, fear of the unknown—all these are roadblocks to developing and growing a trusting relationship with clients. Let go of your fear of losing an account or not having the right answers. Leave all your fears at the client or prospect’s doorstep.

Other critical steps in cultivating trust are knowing who you are and knowing your potential value to your clients. The relationship that forms because of this can have a tremendous impact on your sales. People don’t just buy from anyone. They buy from people they can trust. The rapport and credibility you can establish with the trust factor go a long way toward building a client’s confidence in your ability to meet his business needs.

Trust has both an active and a passive component in a business relationship. The active feeling of trust is confidence in the leadership, veracity, and reliability of the other party, based on a track record of performance.

The passive feeling of trust is the absence of worry or suspicion. This absence is sometimes unrecognized and frequently taken for granted in our most productive relationships.

Building Trust With Care

So how do you build trust with clients? First, you need to care about them. Obviously your clients care about your knowledge, expertise, and accomplishments. However, they care even more about the level of concern you have for them. Successful trust building hinges on four actions: engaging, listening, framing, and committing. The trust factor can be realized once we understand these components of trust and incorporate them in our daily lives.

Engaging clients and prospects occurs when you show genuine concern and interest in their business and its problems. Maintain good eye contact and body posture. Good eye contact signifies openness and honesty. And your body language and other forms of nonverbal communication speak volumes about your attitude toward them. By the same token, you want to be cognizant of your client’s or prospect’s eye contact and body language.

Listening with understanding and empathy is possible if you think client focus first. Let the client tell his story. Put yourself in his shoes when you listen to his business concerns, purpose, vision, and desires. Show approval or understanding by nodding your head and smiling during the conversation. Separate the process of taking in information from the process of judging it. Just suspend your judgment and focus on the client.

Framing what the client or prospect has said is the third action in trust building. Make sure you have formed an accurate understanding of his problems and concerns. Confirm what you think you heard by asking open-ended questions such as “What do you mean by that?” or “Help me to understood the major production problems you are experiencing.” After you have clarified the problems, start to frame them in order of importance. By identifying the areas in which you can help the client, you offer him clarity in his own mind and continue to build his trust.

Committing is the final action for developing the trust factor. Communicate enthusiastically your plan of action for solving the client’s problems. Help the client see what it will take to achieve the end result. Presumably, what you have said up to this point has been important, but what you do now—how you commit—is even more important. Remember the old adage “Action speaks louder than words.” Show you want this client’s business long term. Complete assignments and projects on budget and on time. Then follow up with clients periodically to see how your partnership is faring.

In the final analysis, trust stems from keeping our word. If we say we will be there for our clients, then we should honor that commitment by being there. Trust results from putting the client’s best interest before our own, from being dependable, from being open and forthcoming with relevant information. It is impossible to overestimate the power of the trust factor in our professional lives. Truly, trust is the basis of all enduring, long-term business relationships.

Fraud - What Kinds Do We Have At Work?

2007-06-19T02:22:00.002-07:00

According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners’ "Report To The Nation On Occupational Fraud And Abuse" (Report), “participants in the study estimate U.S. organizations lose 5% of their annual revenues to fraud. Applied to the estimated 2006 United States Gross Domestic Product, this 5% figure would translate to approximately $652 billion in fraud losses.” Of course these organizations must pass on this cost to consumers. This translates into each of us paying approximately 5% extra for fraud when we purchase a good or service. If the average household spends $40,000 for goods and services each year, their annual cost of fraud is $2,000.

Part of stopping occupation fraud is understanding it. The Report defines occupational fraud as, “The use of one’s occupation for personal enrichment through the deliberate misuse or misappropriation of the employing organization’s resources or assets.” We all know that people steal from their employers, even in very small amounts. Most of us at some time in our lives have taken home a few pencils, pads of paper, or perhaps some of the product sold by our employer. We also have heard about overstating of expense reports or the number of hours worked. These types of small frauds happen every day and cost us all billions of dollars each year. The Report breaks occupational fraud into three categories: asset misappropriation, corruption and fraudulent statements.

Asset misappropriation is the type of fraud we are most familiar with and includes the ones listed above. It is the largest type of occupational fraud in number, but not total amount. Corruption includes frauds such as bribery or conflicts of interest. Fraudulent statements generally include frauds relating to the organization’s accounting system and financial statements and are the largest type of occupational fraud by amount. Recent examples of fraudulent statements are Enron, Health South, World Com and other sensational frauds, which have been well publicized.

Occupational frauds are very hard to detect and most of them go undetected. According to the Report, the main detection tools are tips, accident, internal audit, external audit and notification by police. The Report points out that tips though anonymous hotlines is the most effective way of detecting occupational frauds. This means you are the one we count on to detect these frauds. When you are suspicious that a fraud may be happening in your workplace, do something about it. If your employer has a hotline, use it. If not, you can still provide an anonymous tip. Type out your suspicions and give it to a manager, who you do not believe is involved. You can mail it, put it in his in-box or use some other method, which will not identify you as the tipster.

What can you do to stop these frauds? Make sure you don’t commit them. This means the next time you need a few pencils at home, don’t take them from the office. You can buy them at the store and feel good about it when you do. This type of thinking, “I’m not hurting anyone”, only leads to encouraging others to do the same or it lets you rationalize that taking something more expensive is ok. You did not get caught taking the pencils, so take something more expensive next time. Secondly, when you are suspicious that a fraud may be happening, use the hotline. You don’t have to be sure. Someone skilled in investigating fraud will investigate and you won’t get your fellow employee in trouble, unless they deserve it. Thirdly, learn more about this type of fraud so you will know it when you see it. You are the main defense against occupational fraud.

Competitors and Local Code Enforcement

2007-06-19T02:22:00.001-07:00

If you are a small businessperson then chances are you have had a situation occur where another small business or larger competitor has used the local Government code enforcement officer to harass you. This is a common occurrence and it is unfortunate that they do not teach this at the SBA seminars.

The good old boy network that occurs in most cities is alive and well in the United States of America. This occurs both in large cities and small towns. Competitors know that if they can get the local code enforcement officer to come over and find a violation in your business that it will slow your business town and therefore give them the edge.

It is too bad that people do not have more integrity than that and too bad it competitors call in competing companies for violations. Of course if you are violating the law he should not be violating the law, but we know that many of the rules and regulations from the municipal level all the way to the federal level are quite onerous and this is unfortunate.

It is literally impossible to follow all the rules or for that matter even know all the rules. In my 27 years in business as a Franchisor, I cannot tell you how many times our franchisees just starting out in their local areas had to deal with competitors who called them into the code enforcement. Often they had done nothing wrong; except step on the toes of an existing businessperson, which was well-connected in the city.

Sometimes, a smart code enforcement officer will realize that the complaint coming in is from a competitor and simply make a visitation to the company or business involved in the complaint. This is an opportunity for you as a small businessperson to talk to the code enforcement officer and ask them if they can help you comply with all the rules.

This way they will explain what the rules are and which rules they are most apt to care about. Being on a first name basis with the code enforcement officer in a local municipality is a smart thing to do for any businessperson.

It is extremely important for you to realize that these things happen and although it may be personal between you and your competition; it is not personal between your company and the code enforcement officer. If you are breaking the law he will have to comply with the law and it behooves you to learn exactly what the law is and the intent so that you can remedy the situation without further problems from the code enforcement officer.

When a competitor makes a false complaint they actually end up hurting themselves and therefore it is unwise to turning your competitors unless they are ripping off customers, polluting the environment or doing something that you know to be harmful to others.

Simply turning in your competitors for a minor violation or infraction will only cause you to have a war with that competitor and just imagine all the different regulatory bodies that there are in our government and what you will do if each one of them comes to visit you during a one month period.

In fact it will be impossible for you to get any work done or make any money. So before you go in turning your competitors remember the Golden rule. Oh and one last thing; if a competitor turns you in for something that means they consider you a threat and that means you must be doing something right. Consider this in 2006.

Too Much Banking Backdoor Information Flow

2007-06-19T02:21:00.002-07:00

Most people believe that you can trust your bank. For the most part this is true however, if you are a small business person the chances are that your information is being passed on by loose lips. For instance you might become a topic of conversation at a party where an off duty teller mentions that you are loaded or that your business does not have adequate cash flow. Another instance might be the branch manager or an assistant manager of the branch who discusses your financial position with members of his Rotary club. I have seen this happen before and heard conversations.

In fact I remember hearing a conversation about me and my business at a party where the other party did not know that I was the business owner. It was at a Chamber of Commerce mixer and in they were talking about my franchisee and their financial position with a lawyer and another small business person. There is way too much banking back door information flow.

But it gets worse, as your business gets bigger you will find that venture capitalists and investment bankers will often pass on information to your competitors, creditors and their potential partners. I remember one time when an investment banker who had invested millions of dollars into my competition's kitty, pretending to be a franchise buyer of our franchise system. The next day, I got a phone call offering to loan me money or to buy my company. However, remembering that the day before they had called using trickery and misrepresentation; I conveniently told them where to stick it.

The moral of this story is to be careful of your banker and to what you tell venture capitalists and investment bankers. Many of these people are involved in other deals, mergers and acquisitions, as well as other investments perhaps even with your competitors. Every single piece of information you give them you should expect that it may end up in the hands of your competitors. Never trust a banker or any professional wearing a tie who smiles and tells you that you can trust them. Trust me, as I do not wear a tie and I am not bank of Lance. Consider this in 2006.

How Dishonest is Your Competition?

2007-06-19T02:21:00.001-07:00

If you're in business you know that often the competition can be quite dishonest and often they will go to lengths to hurt your business. In fact in all my years in business I have seen just about every single trick they can possibly be played against me. Every single tactic, bad mouthing and you use of even government agencies to attack.

In the 27 years in business I have seen by competitors use Associates in business to help them in getting information. I have watched competitors try to go through thru vendors, bankers and VC. I have seen customers who were not actually customers pretend to be somebody they were not simply to get information, brochures, prospectuses, disclosure documents, tax returns and you name it. It is called corporate espionage and the even write books about it. In fact you can get a degree in corporate espionage believe it or not.

So much for a level playing field when your competition is cheating. What is even worse is often these competitors use the government, which collects information on forms and makes all this information free to the public. It's amazing that the government now says it is going to protect the consumer and small-business person against identity theft, as generally the government is the one that asked for the information and it makes it available to anyone who wants it.

Often we find that competitors when caught trying to get information from you will say everyone else does it. Indeed, maybe they do, but does that make it right. It is unfortunate that competitors will not compete in the free market and will teach in any way they can to beat you. In my business career we always beat the competition so they were always beating down our doors calling up and pretending to be customers, government agencies or even vendors. Sometimes they would enlist the vendors to snoop for information from us.

In business you must run your own race, but at the same time he needs no or your competition is at all times and you must protect yourself from giving away information inadvertently to competitors who will use that information against you. You must develop a strategy to protect yourself from dishonest competitors and always know who you are dealing with. Please consider this in 2006.

Is Stealing Marketing Ideas from Your Competitor Ethical?

2007-06-19T02:20:00.000-07:00

Marketing is one of the most important aspects of running a business. Marketing could make or break a business. That's why it is important to get it right, especially if you’re on a limited marketing budget.

Perhaps the easiest way to get your marketing strategy right is to do what your most successful competitors do. But would you steal marketing ideas from your competitor? Is that ethical? There are patent laws, copyright laws, trademark laws, and other laws that make it illegal to steal or to use certain things that belong to another company. But there aren’t any laws that say you can’t use the same marketing techniques that your competitors use.

In fact, some of the most successful business start-ups use other people's marketing ideas. They use what's tried and true rather than thinking up new marketing ideas, which may have a higher probability of failure. A winning marketing plan of one form has a higher probability of being a winning marketing plan with a related firm.

Would you do it? Would you steal marketing ideas from a competitor? Perhaps it's a matter of business ethics for you? Maybe you consider yourself ethical and you don't steal no matter what. If so, your cognitive dissonance would probably prevent you from stealing marketing ideas. Or, perhaps stealing marketing ideas is not really stealing. Maybe marketing ideas have no ownership and all is fair in business competition. In the end, it’s up to you.

Business Ethics Case Study; Unbelievable Government Credit Card Abuse

2007-05-17T02:50:00.002-07:00

In business management classes across the country MBA students study business ethics. In fact, there are now MBA degrees available that are called Ethics MBAs. But in the real world how ethical is the business community? How ethical is our own government?

How many business travelers for their corporations charge personal items to their credit cards of their corporations? Corporations watch this very closely to make sure everyone follows the rules. Not everyone follows the rules and often there are people who go to extreme lengths to hide their misdeeds.

From a business ethics standpoint corporations and their workers are much more honest and forthright than those who work in government. In fact government credit card abuse at all levels of government is at an all-time high. It is so bad that the federal government actually had to make another law to try to curb the abuse of government credit cards. Has this new law helped?

Actually it looks as if it has on paper audits but in reality those fine folks in government still abuse their government credit cards, which is taxpayers money. The problem is so severe and the punishment so little that nothing is really being done. That is to say the problem is running rampant still.

Simply instituting controls and checks and balances on government credit cards does not alleviate the fraud. Dishonesty in government is the norm and although many people believe that those who work in government are of less IQ they are still clever enough to beat the system and steal taxpayers money.

From an MBA standpoint of fiscal management this is a good case study. A piece of corporate credit cards or government credit cards must be followed up on. It is essential to make sure that the purchase is made by government employees are indeed for a facial government business and not personal pleasure; such as gentlemen's clubs, personal car washes or a dinner for a family of four for personal use.

It appears we cannot trust those fine folks in government and it is about time that we enforced the letter of the law on to the government and the workers who think they are above it. Consider this in 2006.

Wide Spread Government Credit Card Abuse Forces Federal Law Change

2007-05-17T02:50:00.001-07:00

The widespread government credit card abuse has forced the federal laws to change to protect the American taxpayers money as government workers would violate the trust of the American people and spend money, which is supposed to be used for official government business.

The Government Credit Card Abuse Prevention Act of 2006' has so far it not been able to cure the fine folks in government from cheating us and stealing taxpayers money. When a government worker it uses a government credit card for expenditures of personal use they are stealing and yet we are not putting these people in jail but rather reprimanding them and in many cases not even taking away their government credit cards. Does this mean the American taxpayer is forced to endure widespread government credit card abuse?

I find it ironic that we already know that stealing is against the law no matter who you are and we are told that no one is above the law. But apparently those people who work in government do not believe they are to follow the law in Washington, DC and this is the exact attitude that is causing problems. We need to start putting people in jail for stealing in our government.

There are so many cases including law enforcement, the Justice Department and many agencies, which are supposed to help the American people doing this. And it yet we still do not have this problem solved. Why do we need another law or federal legislation to prevent government workers from stealing? Why can we trust our own government and why should we listen to them when they are ripping us off blind?

I wish someone would answer my question because I believe trust in your government is a very important thing for the ongoing vitality of our nation. Perhaps I am just naïve and belief in a dream and bought the story of a noble government; hook, line and sinker? Let us remove the crime and the rotten core of dishonesty, misrepresentation and fraud from Our government. Please consider this in 2006.

Today's Vent - Emotional Business Train Wreck

2007-05-17T02:49:00.000-07:00

In Today’s Vent I’d like to talk about emotional business practice. This is a subject in my network of colleagues that unfortunately has become more popular in the recent months.

To determine your action by emotion rather than reason will derail you in seconds away from what you should be focused on. When you run your own business or even work for another company as an Independent Contractor your daily activities should square up your pay or rather what you do and how you conduct yourself will determine your paycheck.

I network among very bright individuals in the same field; network marketing. I’ve seen an emotional environment filled with negativity that I’m sure has placed us all back a few steps.

We are being sized up by the public eye and whether we like to admit this or not, we make an assessment of one another all the time. Now I’m not suggesting we cannot “tell it like it is!” But in a public environment we should use discretion and if not for anyone else at least for our own sake. Yes, we have the freedom to act or judge on our own, but we should be doing this wisely and objectively.

We as human’s are emotional creatures. I’ve stated this before. I’ve also made note that network marketing is almost like a religion to some of us. It becomes a huge part of our daily lives. So it’s no wonder that when we feel we must protect or defend that emotions will fly and sometimes right off the handle and especially when in an arena of others equally feeling anxious to challenge criticism.

No matter what happens to us individually or the companies we work for we must remind ourselves that in this public event we need to be mindful of others and ourselves. It’s only in our best interest and that of our company we work with.

Well…I’m taking my Tension Headache Excedrin and Therma Care Heat Wrap to bed tonight!

Street Sweeping Contractors Cheat Business Customers at Night

2007-05-17T02:48:00.002-07:00

Many street sweeping companies, which have big large contracts with retail outlets and shopping malls often cheat the company on their services. In fact, as I travel around the country I am appalled at this particular industry. It seems that so many of the contractors who have street sweeping businesses cheat the customer. I asked myself why this is? It appears to me that the lowest bid will get the contract and many of the companies bids are so low that they cannot afford to do the work or by adequate equipment to do the job right.

I have watched Street sweeping folks come into a parking lot and drive around a few times put a little bit of dirt in the air kind of like when you take your home vacuum cleaner and forget to clean out the bag and the vacuum blows all the dust all over the place while you are vacuuming. Then the street sweeper leaves without cleaning anything, as there is still debris in the parking lot and trash. This seems rather dishonest and I guess no one notices that they did not do their job.

Who is to say how clean a parking lot is supposed to be? As long as they showed up and drove around who is to say they didn't do what they said they were going to do? My question is why show up at all if you're not going to do the job? It seems there is a lack of integrity in many street sweeping companies. A very smart national firm, which operated professionally and responsibly could probably through economies of scale do the work for the same price and actually do what they say they're going to do. Please consider this in 2006.

The FBI Getting Ready to Make a Huge Bust on Chinese Spy Ring

2007-05-17T02:48:00.001-07:00

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is getting ready to make a huge bust on a giant Chinese Spy Ring, which goes very deep and involves many players. In fact, the group has been operating for years in the United States and stealing technology. The number of companies they are involved with is astounding and the number of college students who are involved is also interesting.

In fact the number of important bureaucrats and officials is scary. The number of nationalities involved in this ring and ad hoc circle of friends we'll give you a headache just looking at the spider web of all the people involved.

Luckily the FBI has got to the bottom of all this and is getting ready to make a huge announcement. I know this because I heard about it in a dream and I always trust my dreams how about you? Much of the corporate espionage involves military contractors and equipment manufacturers, which the Chinese spy ring has infiltrated.

The spy ring is happening in more than one country. This is an interesting development but it is nothing new as intelligence officials and the community is well aware that this has been going on and although there have been a few arrests over the last five years there are now said to be over 4000 Chinese Spies operating independently and almost like terrorists cells. It is great to know that the FBI is working on real cases finally and we will see what they come up with. Please consider all this in 2006.

How to Select Your Donations

2007-05-17T02:47:00.002-07:00

There is an unlimited drive to innovate in nearly any area. And the easiest way to innovate is to copy a concept that has been invented in an adjacent or remote area.

Donations where originally reserved to non-profit organizations (Amnesty, Greenpeace, Red Cross, WNF, etc) to fund their (ideological) activities.

Now you see this donation pattern on a regular basis on the internet. The best example I saw was on a internet site of which the owner exhibited a self development ideology -- acting against the traditional order (society). The owner had just switched from an adsense method to this donation mechanism because the adsense income fell short.

Even though it seems a harmless idea borrowing the concept of donation for a profit business -- which did seem to work in his case -- you might wonder whether you act in line with conventional ethics. In the case I saw, the site owner wasn't really concerned about something earthly as ethics, yet others that follow this example should.

Donations go hand in hand with some kind of an ideology. If there is one you are free to use the concept, both as a buyer or as a seller.

If you have a strait forward profit in mind you are misusing the concept. This is not a problem for the one with the malicious business, they are everywhere. You as a potential buyer should know better. Be prepared before you engage yourself with this kind of businesses. Take a minute and think about the ideology you value.

Business Ethics; Why the Government Often Gets the Worst Contractors?

2007-05-17T02:47:00.001-07:00

We always seem to be hearing in the news that a government contract has been awarded to a company, which has not fulfilled its responsibilities. As a matter of fact this is so commonplace that one should be asking why does this keep occurring? Well, there are a number of reasons why this is the case.

Sometimes politicians persuade bureaucratic agencies to lean towards a certain government contractor and the bureaucrats know that they must comply otherwise they could lose their job and or their agency will not receive the funding it needs for next year's budget. Those companies, which pander to podium pushing politicians through lobbying and fund raising for their campaigns tend to get the best contracts. We all know this is true.

Another common reason is that the government is known to be after the lowest price. Therefore many companies underbid the contracts just to get the work and then cannot afford to do the job correctly. Likewise many companies refuse to bid on government contracts because the government is so slow to pay and if you are a smaller company the cash flow could kill your business.

It is interesting that the government at all levels promotes small businesses and yet at the same time strings them out on accounts receivable sometimes for as much as 120 days or more. This seems quite un-reputable and unfortunate, but it is the truth. Some might say the government does not deserve the very best companies in the marketplace and that is upsetting considering the taxpayer is footing the bill. Please consider all this in 2006.

New Wal-Mart Theft Policy Helps Provide An Unexpected Perk For Its Minimum Wage Employees

2007-05-17T02:46:00.000-07:00

Sometimes stealing pays, especially if said stolen item is $24.99 or less and is stolen from Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart recently announced that it is changing its zero-tolerance rule when it comes to theft. Previously, Wal-Mart would prosecute anybody caught stealing from one of its stores - even if it was just a pack of gum. But, the zero-tolerance theft rule has now changed. Henceforth, prosecution happens only if an item stolen is worth $25 or more.

It's all about economics. According to a J.P. Suarez, who is in charge of asset protection at the department store, "it was no longer efficient to prosecute petty shoplifters. If I have somebody being paid $12 an hour processing a $5 theft, I have just lost money. I have also lost the time to catch somebody stealing $100 or an organized group stealing $3,000."

This raises the question, Should Wal-Mart be publicizing this new rule? Isn't this like publicizing that anything in the store priced under $25 is free? Perhaps that's why there are so many smiley faces pasted all over billboards in the store. Free equals happy! Happy shoppers can now feel free to steal items valued under $25 without fear of reprimand. I can just see some of them waiting, anxiously, for a sale to see that item that that they’d been watching drop in price, from $25.99 to $24.99.

Of course, I'm exaggerating; most shoppers are ethical and wouldn't steal, no matter what the store's theft policy is. Stealing doesn't pay, kids.

On the other hand, I'm sure all Wal-Mart employees, by now, are well aware of the new theft rule. I'm just afraid that some will consider it a company perk, a way to supplement their minimum wage income – Steal from thy employer, as long as said stolen item is priced at $24.99 or less.

Gas Prices Cannot be Justified by Market Conditions, Spin Aside

2007-05-17T02:43:00.000-07:00

I am an expert at 6th grade math. I am fair at recognizing SPIN. I have told my friends that oil’s end product, gas, was selling at retail 2 yrs ago, for $1.17 in Phoenix, Az.

At that price, the oil companies were making a good profit. Of that retail price, a maximum of 30% was imported oil. Let’s do the math;

1.17 x 33% [same thing as 30%] is 3 8.6 1or .39.

.39 was imported and the rest was HOME grown. OIL has now gone up from $35 a barrel to 75 a barrel. Or 2.3 times.

OUT of each gallon we buy, 33% is imported, so, 33% we bring in per gallon at $75 a barrel.

1/3 of our gallon of gas has gone up 2.3 times. Our 1/3 used to cost us .39 x 2.3= .81. Our new gallon of gas at war HIGH costs, should cost us 1.17 + 81 = 1.98

WE are paying about $2.98. That is $1 per gallon more than can be explained away.

WE are told about Iran, Iraq, and other nation’s battles and arguments. Who cares? We are talking about .81 per gal of gas. FOUR years ago, that was our retail price. .81!!

Someone is getting an extra $1.00 a gal. ON the house. FROM our US pockets. They have done nothing extra to earn it. Except lie and spin.

Credit Bureaus

2007-05-17T02:42:00.000-07:00

“Fix your credit”, easy process. So says many internet ads I read daily. I thought, well, that should be easy without their help since the FEDERAL law requires it. THE law says “a credit bureau, when proven their data are wrong, must correct the error[s] within 30 days. REALLY? Ok. NOW, has anyone CONVINCED the bureaus? Apparently not!

HOW can I say that with such conviction? Cause I am now dealing with the FTC [Federal Trade Commission] to get my bureau reports corrected!!! THE BLOODY FTC had to be contacted. That SEEMS like having to call the FBI when the neighbors steal your newspaper when you have a front-of-the-house security camera!

My story is important, thus my rantings! It can help you.

I am a real estate broker. Part of my tasks-- when I help someone to buy a property--NOW includes making sure they have good credit if they choose to use an institutional lender.

It seemed to me I can’t guide others very well if I can’t get control over my own record!

I reviewed my records from several years ago and laughed at the errors. And the “pulls”; a notice that a broker or lender reviewed my credit with one or more of the 3 MAIN bureaus. I had at one time 160 pulls reported. That was and is excessive and it did drop my score. I asked the three bureaus, individually, via snail mail “how much did my score drop from these pulls? They did not answer--that was 3 years ago. When I finally received in snail mail, my three scores, I was given such numbers as 815, 800 and 740 [each bureau gives a separate score in a tri-merge PULL]. Interesting numbers. Since I am also a college instructor of business, I like to know where numbers that others use, originate--[meaning, what math or formula is being used to arrive at a consequential number]? Again, from the three bureaus, NO answer.

Hmmm.

I inevitably got a few loans for my clients and for myself.

Then one of my mortgage brokers told me he needed help--he wanted my correct social security number-- since more than one was listed on a bureau’s report. I felt his comment was the dumbest joke I had ever heard--“no bureau is going to be that stupid to list two social security numbers!” He was correct--Experian had listed two for me. I called Experian. “Sorry, we do not comment on data on the reports.” Huh? Federal law? “We are not interested in the Federal law.” Huh? THE USA federal law that governs what you can and cannot do?

“We do not care what the federal government says or does.”

NO way!!

I hired an attorney to investigate as this situation was beyond my comprehension. Two weeks later I got a response from Experian. “We do not respond to second party queries [meaning from attorneys].”

That was as funny as it was absurd. When they get a judge’s judgment, I want to hear them say that as they are led to jail!

I got an update from the other two bureaus. One has given me 6 different names, an address I never lived at, and other absurdities. And of course, no score printed. Only the banks and brokers who subscribe to their service get client's scores.

I sent Experian proof of who I was and where I lived. “We are not interested. IF you want to correct something, apply for new credit. Whatever is on that report will be your new data reported.” They were serious!

I contacted my AZ attorney general. They were not interested. I contacted my federal Senators and representatives. They were not interested. I cannot easily believe that Experian and the other two bureaus have our government in their pockets.

ONE article re. inaccurate data said to contact the FTC. I did so. Experian informed me via snail mail said they got the FTC report or query and are answering it. Experian again asked for proof of my real birth date. Since it is accurate on about 500 documents they have and wrong on one, I will leave it wrong.

NOW, when a client asks me about his credit, I actually say; the following are facts and make little sense when viewed together;

A; all credit report’s scores increase when one pays off debts perfectly.
B; all scores are ARBITRARY numbers and thus, have no specific meaning.
C; all negative data on one's reports falls off after seven years [or sooner].
D; most, if not all, good data on reports can stay on indefinitely.

NO action on the part of any bureau, law firm or company can get any specific report modified IF the bureau wishes not to change it and no specific score can be altered to gain or lose any specific number --it is random and arbitrary.

With this in mind, it makes no sense whatever why any financial institution uses these Bureau’s scores to guide them on a lending basis.

YOU can have a score of 250 and if you make every payment perfectly thereafter, in seven years, Your score will rise to 800 or higher. That is a fact.

Banks and mortgage firms want customers to fight with the bureaus to get scores with errors corrected--but that is illogical since the bureaus do not care and rarely change anything.

IF you have different facts, plz send them to me. I wish this year, that the 3 bureaus Face competition and disappear.

Shredding - What, Why and How

2007-05-07T05:33:00.001-07:00

Shredding has recently become a whole lot more popular. Why is that? In two words: identity theft. Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the U.S. And what is worse for homeowners and small businesses is that, with recent court decisions and legislation, sometimes you can be held at fault along with the thief.

There's now a law in effect that if you employ even one person, even in the home only, such as a nanny or gardener, you can be held liable if they are subject to identity theft. All that's needed is for you to have access to their personal information, such as a Social Security number, and fail to properly protect it.

What counts as proper? Shredding, burning and secure disposal.

You're required to exercise due diligence and shred documents containing important information. Alternatively, you can burn documents. But burning is often illegal outside the home in certain counties, so you have to carry it out in an approved manner. Can you spell Catch-22?

Of course, you always have the option of using a business that specializes in document and information destruction. Whether that's cost-effective depends on the business' specific rates and the amount and frequency of your needs. The rates, naturally, vary with quantity, location and several other factors.

Those businesses come in two basic forms: they come to you or you take it to them. Once again, which is better depends on your circumstances.

Until recently security was much tighter at offsite locations. Most mobile document destruction services have overcome that by clever techniques that vary from company to company. Good ones have bonded employees who have gone through background checks.

Both employers and individuals need to take due caution to keep information secure and that can go beyond destruction of paper documents. In the last 10 to 20 years, as both PCs and the Internet became universal, information storage expanded to floppy disks and hard drives to CDs and DVDs and out to servers that the individual doesn't even control.

Beyond encrypting documents and establishing good password policies, there's little an individual or small business can do to protect computers they don't own. But with the popularity of inexpensive CD and DVD burners, files have moved off the hard drive and onto those newer media. Those also need to be secured and sometimes destroyed. Shredders can do that too.

Protect yourself and those who work for you by shredding and using other forms of information destruction. It's not only the law of the land, it's also the least expensive form of insurance for what can otherwise be a very costly event.

Franchisor Ethics; Do You Have the Right to Sell Your Concept as a Franchise?

2007-05-07T05:32:00.002-07:00

Most reasonable people will a still that if a franchisor is selling franchised outlets to the public then they have a viable business concept that is profitable. However, this may not always be the case and to assume this is risky if you are a franchise buyer. I would agree that if you are a franchisor and you have perfected your business model then absolutely you have the right to sell it to others to help them achieve their American dream of owning their own company or franchised outlet.

Although as a retired Franchisor and now consultants I have in the past had new franchisor entrants want me to consult them and I ask them how long they have been in business and they have maybe 3-years total including the day they got their business license before opening? You think to yourself what? How can anybody and thickly with two sell franchises when they have not perfected their own business or prototype model?

But then comes the real kicker and one, which just makes me cringe as a franchisor consultant; then these would be Franchisors tell me when I ask how much capital they have they say that they have approximately $35,000 available.

This is a scary thought indeed; why you ask, well it takes a million really to franchise a concept and you burn thru it fairly quickly unless you do not mind eating Top Ramen, putting in lots of hours and treating the money like you earned it washing dishes at $5.15 per hour. If you are thinking about franchising your current business please consider all this in 2006.

Business Ethics Case Study Considered; Franchise Regulations

2007-05-07T05:32:00.001-07:00

Many people believe that when they buy a franchise that the franchise business model has been reviewed by the government, yet this is not the case. In fact, franchising companies are only required to register their franchises with some, but not all states that they choose to franchise in. There are only 13 registration states in the United States of America, which require that the franchise or submit their disclosure documents to the state for review prior to franchising.

They are not looking to see if the business is viable or if the business model is even successful. Their only objective is to make sure that the franchisor has indeed submitted the required disclosure documents and has them available for prospective franchise buyers. They do not check to see if they are correct or if they have lied in these documents.

Another interesting thing that most people do not know is that; The Federal Regulators and State Regulators answer to literally "NO ONE" and that is the biggest fraud of all. No one is watching those OUR government is being paid with taxpayer’s monies to watch out for us. That is Scary. You would not believe me, if I told you what I have seen in life.

Nevertheless, franchising is a relatively safe industry despite all this. Generally the regulators will look into complaints made by consumers who feel they have been fraudulently induced into buying a franchise where the Franchisor misrepresented the investment in the franchise.

Often, the franchising regulators will is still the Franchisor is guilty even though 85% of all the complaints from consumers are themselves misrepresentations of what happened. Suffice it to say if you are going to buy a franchise or Franchisor company you need to study up on what franchising is all about before you take the plunge. Please consider all this in 2006.

Keyed Cars, Christmas Scars, and Chi-town Seminars...

2007-05-07T05:31:00.001-07:00

I walked outside to my car and saw a disturbing sight. Someone had keyed the entire passenger side. It had to get fixed. Fortunately, I was covered.

Of course they always hit the best looking side. And they didn't key my hood, which needed the most touch-up. Some of you are saying, "Hey stupid. Why don't you claim the hood as part of the damage? Your insurance wouldn't know the difference."

Simple. That would be a lie...

It was just prior to Christmas when I ordered a $500 correspondence course with an expiring $50 coupon for a total of $450. It arrived, but on the final week of the year, it goes on sale for $250. I could have returned the course, reordered it under the sale price, and saved $200—but I didn't.

Was it because I was doing well and didn't face money challenges? NO. Just the opposite.

You're thinking I must really be a sap. I got no money coming in on one end, and I'm throwing it away on the other. Just how gullible is your editor?

Hey I don't like overpaying for anything, but if something was worth the price, then I'll make an effort to get it. And in this case, the course was worth more than $500. The information alone was worth more than five thousand dollars.

(It's funny, but when people buy a five thousand dollar item—they treat it like a five thousand dollar item. If they get the exact item for free, it usually collects dust.)

Which leads to the volatile topic of personal integrity...

Do you lie on your income taxes? Do you plagiarize? Do you cheat on your partner? Do you break your word? Do you falsify information? And even more acceptable—do you try to get even?

I'm sure none of you are of this caliber, but let's assume the rest of the world made these common practices. They believe it's no big deal to tell a lie because it's really harmless and besides, everyone gets away with it. Or maybe they've been burned by someone who got away with it, so why not join them and do the same to others?

For one thing—this eviscerates the Golden Rule of doing unto others, as you'd have them do unto you:

You don't want to be a victim of cheating, so why would you become a participant? You don't want to be taken advantage of, so why join some plot to abuse your talents? You want to reap the good, so why sow to the bad?

And for another thing—what goes around, comes around:

Some call it karma. Others call it sin. Whatever it's called in your circle—it seems to haunt you later in life. It bites you in the ass and leaves painful marks.

If you want to be treated right, you should treat others right first. If you gossip about others, others will gossip about you. If you profit from the expense of others, others are forming a line to take a shot at you.

But you reason, "You don't understand. You haven't been through what I've been through. I've kept my word - my end of the deal - and I got burned. I've got to teach them a lesson!"

Hey, save it. You'll waste too much time trying to collect what you're due. It's usually more profitable to forgive and move on. You won't become its slave and you'll sleep better at night.

Here's what I mean...

My mentor's books are illegally published in different languages. When he appeared in one of those countries for a keynote, they treated him like a famous rock star. He got the royal treatment and spin-off deals because he didn't waste time collecting what he was owed. He leveraged his loss of income to make even more money without lifting a finger.

That's the same power we've been granted. We have the power to choose our actions. Do we pursue our wrongdoers, or forgive them?

Tough choices we must make...

Is your editor applying for sainthood? No, not even. This is the same stuff he struggles with.

I was in Chicago for a company launch. My group leader offered his group a discount to join him. I was at the lobby when I met up with him.

The lady from Atlanta was shocked she had to pay full price for her group. She whined to our leader about the discount. To avoid a scene, he joked about it and quickly gave in.

I was next in line. Would I pay full price or would he offer me the same discount? No dice: I paid full.

Now you're probably surmising: "You're not a Super Saint—but a Super Sap."

I disagree. Because it goes far deeper than just dollars and cents. Allow me to explain...

I sought no favor with my leader. He's well off and doesn't need the money. He was probably testing me to see if I would whine also. If I got anything from the incident, I think I won his respect. And that can stretch a very long way.

How about you?

Have you won people's respect? Do they see you as an Institute of Integrity? Do you have a reputation that's beyond reproach?

Advertise your answers in your daily walk and until we meet again, you have my best wishes.

Business and Stewardship

2007-05-07T05:30:00.002-07:00

Is it possible to run a company in today’s business climate without taking the cut-throat, winner-take-all approach that seems so predominant? While all the big news lately has been about those companies that have failed, and particularly those that have failed while using questionable tactics and obfuscating accounting practices, not to mention showing little concern for the average employee, are there still companies thriving while being run in a fashion that recognizes the value of ethics and the contribution of employees who feel like family?

One example that comes to mind here close to home is Celestial Seasonings. In spite of the various changes the company has undergone over the last 15 years, including a stint as a Kraft subsidiary, a time as an independent company, and now as part of a larger health-food company, Celestial Seasonings has stayed true to its roots. The company treats employees honestly and with kindness, and shares the profits of its success with them. It is a company that seems to wish everyone it touches—vendors, distributors, customers, even the competition—to benefit from that contact.

So it seems that it is possible to run a company in such a fashion that employee loyalty is bred by good treatment, that strong financial results can be achieved without scams or accounting schemes. Why don’t more companies try it?

My theory is that too many of the executives today were trained early in their careers that stepping on others to get where you want to be is not just expected—it is the only way to get to the top. Now that they have reached the goal, they are not easily convinced that a different strategy might work equally well.

The good news is, the change is coming. It is coming not from the senior people, but from junior execs who are coming of age in a different time. More and more, people are coming to the realization that what we do affects everyone else, and the ‘everyone else’ is not ‘them’. It is ‘us’. We are all in this together, and the dawning awareness of that fact is what will drive a sea change in our world over the next few generations.

Our planet is gradually recovering from centuries of abuse at the hands of uncaring and ignorant populations. As we take better care of Mother Earth, the chances of our race surviving another century rise slowly. And much of the recovery will be the responsibility of the businesses of the planet. Governments can spend huge sums to clean up past ecological disasters and can legislate proper behavior, but business is best equipped to prevent it in the first place. If the top management of a company has the attitude that taking shortcuts and violating either our home or the people who live here is the worst possible path to take, this gradual improvement in conditions will snowball with lightning speed.

My vision is not one that will easily come to pass. On the other hand, Mo Seigel probably had little inkling of what Celestial Seasonings would become when he and some friends picked herbs in the fields outside Boulder to use in his first batch of Mo’s 36 Herb Tea back in 1969. Vision is not about the ‘how’ of it. The realization of a dream seems to take care of itself when people come together to share the dream. As more and more of us come to share this vision, we take another step toward it becoming reality. We make it our reality.

Is a 2X2 Matrix Marketing System Legitimate

2007-05-07T05:30:00.001-07:00

I bet if you have been on the internet very long you have seen a few programs that market themselves with a matrix system. In the 2X2 matrix, the recruit would sponsor two and those two would sponsor two, filling the 2X2 matrix with six people.

There are questions by many whether this is legal or not. That is almost like asking if concrete is legal. It really depends on how it is used. The matrix system itself is not illegal, unless it is used to perpetuate a fraud or a transaction or exchange of money without any substantial product or consideration for the money spent.

The 2X2 is limited in its width, but is still based on a pyramid with three levels. Level one has 1 person, level two has 2 people and level three has 4 people for a total of 6. A pyramid is not illegal in itself unless it is a pyramid scheme designed to separate people from their money and not deliver any goods or services in exchange.

If a company or individual is selling a product and uses a matrix system as a means of measurement then it certainly is not illegal or fraudulent. If the person parting with funds receives a tangible good or service for their money regardless if there are other considerations or possible bonuses for doing so, then that transaction is legitimate.

There are many products being marketed with a matrix system. Usually you fill up a matrix and move up to another level, which measures your performance and entitles you to move up to the next level, which has greater rewards for filling it.

You most certainly should do your due diligence to check out any program before you become involved with it, but don’t let names, titles or fears rob you from benefiting from these legitimate programs.

As long as there is immediate transfer of goods or services and not just a promise of hot air, you are good to go. Then there is the question of the main product the system is marketing. Is it a good product? Is there a great need or market for the product? Is it something you could see yourself being involved in with pride?

The biggest question of all is, will you be left on your own after you give up the money? There are many great programs around, but even a great program, great marketing plan and exceptional product does you no good if you can’t sell.

Oh yes, someone has to make contact, and make sales. There are systems now springing up designed to answer this difficulty. Some systems now offer to do the selling for you. Now isn't that nice. You get leads and let someone more equipped on the team do the talking.

I know that most of us fit into that category. Who wouldn't like to have a sales force built into their new business venture?

No doubt there are opportunities popping up and you have to be careful to choose the right one for yourself. I am involved in a few of these myself, so I have had to make many of these choices.

Do your homework. Check everything. Check it again. Make sure of the people involved. Take your time. If they want your money before you get much information, run for the exit.

Any legitimate company will be willing to give you most any information you need to make a decision. If not bid them goodbye. There are some great opportunities to make some real residual income. Just make sure you do your homework before you take the critical step.

But don’t become paralyzed with fear to the point you can’t be objective or you might as well unplug your computer.

Cheating in America, A National Pastime

2007-05-07T05:29:00.001-07:00

Look around. Today, more than ever before, it has become fashionable to cheat. One could say, and come away without too much criticism, that everyone expects it. The funny thing is the person who expects it, or observes it, or knows someone who does it, never seems to admit doing it themselves. Ironically, they actually believe they are not infected. As noted, this is a national pastime.

Why is this? Why do husbands cheat on their wives and wives cheat on their husbands? Does not the vow to love, honor, cherish, and "obey", (some leave out the "obey" part now), mean anything. Well, it appears the times indeed are changing.

In America at least, spousal cheating, encouraged by theater, movies, partytime, and yes, peer pressure, is at epidemic proportions. Does anyone feel guilty? Absolutely, just before it is time to maybe do it again. Kids today, as a result, have groups of parents i.e. first there is the real father and mother, then there is 1st father and 1st mother, and 2nd father and 2nd mother, and so on and so forth, not to mention step brothers and step sisters galore. When we talk about extended families today, we are certainly not talking of the family of 50 years ago that included aunts, uncles, and cousins right down to twice removed. Now, there is no way to keep up.

Then there is the work environment. Parents who cheat at home, cheat on the job. They lie and steal to get ahead. Oh, it is not the felonious type of stealing, although that is always possible, it is the subtle kind -- stealing someone's ideas, words, concepts, suggestions, as well as time from the company on the phone, at lunch, leaving early on weekends, calling in sick when one is not sick, and taking paper, pens, pencils, paperclips and anything not to heavy to carry. If one is in construction, they take bricks, boards, mortar and tools. Cheating on the job has taken on national epidemic proportions. Wal-Mart with their 360-degree cameras strung from the ceilings from every store watch the employees as much as they watch the shoppers.

And what about the churches and among clerics, the courts and legal profession, our schools and among the educators, the health field and medical professionals, government at all levels and among the legislators? What do we find? Cheating permeates every level of our society.

And what about the kids? Where do they fit into this?

Over 70% of them admit to cheating before they graduate from high school. By the time they finish college, 80% are willing to admit they have done it in some way.

When college business students are asked what is the most corrupt field to go into, over 90% suggest it is business. Yet, they willingly choose it as their field of specialization because that is "where the money is."

What about the tiny tots? At what age does a child learn to cheat? Studies now show that 3 out of 4 know how to do it by the time they are 5. And where do they learn it? Why, the parents, of course.

So the old adage, "do as I say, not as I do", really does have a beginning and a significance because it seems most have done it and really do fear their offspring or their charges will do it too. Why? Simply, because it is wrong. We all know it. We all feel it, and we all do not want our youngsters or our charges to do it. We really do want them to be better than us. The internal gut wrenching feelings get us every time. And if we don't feel anything? Well then we are psychopaths, socially detached from society and any responsibility for good.

In today's world the word "ethical" has taken on a new meaning of "squeaky clean" and "please look at me or my organization for we are ethical practitioners." Do the new awareness responses mean much when you really know the facts? Lawrence Kholberg's theory of ethical development may be hard pressed to determine why as human beings we seem to be stuck in moving forward. It seems the further we go in greater prosperity and technology development the be-hinder we get in moral development. Is it an illusion?

Actions speak louder than words. To be ethical, one must act ethically. One has to lead and show by doing and not accept society's drifters who proclaim when observing ethical breeches that "they're just kids" or "everybody does it" or "it was only a fling", or "I had no choice". Unless somebody is holding a gun to one's head, everybody, no matter how small or how old, has a choice. They may not like what the potential outcome may be but they had a choice to do the right thing.

Is it tough? What do you think?

Discrimination Against Older Workers (Ageism)

2007-05-07T05:28:00.002-07:00

Discrimination against older workers is out there, and none of us will ever know (for the most part), whether we were discriminated against because of our age.

During my many years on this planet (60), I've never gave any thought to ageism. But, years ago, I couldn't understand why I was having so much trouble finding work...including temporary work. During my entire lifetime, I have had no use for racists and bigots, so the issue of ageism never crossed my mind.

Then one day, I read an article in the local newspaper about the subject of ageism. It said that discrimination against older workers was the number ONE COMPLAINT at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). And, the article went on to say that complaints were rising at a rate of 15% per year over the past three years! At this time, I was over 50 years old, and after I read this article, I started to pay more attention to the subject of ageism. And, that's because I had to find a better paying job!

A few months later, I read another article that came over the Internet, and was written by a writer at a business magazine. It gave some frightening numbers, with respect to discrimination against older workers. It said that a survey was conducted by an employment agency, who specializes in recruiting and placing executive personnel. Their survey showed, that an incredible 88% of those over 40 who responded, felt they had been discriminated against when it came to getting a job! And, a chilling 92% of those who already had a job...felt they had been discriminated against, when they were up for promotion! The question was asked in the article, "Could boomers be discriminating against other boomers?

Anyway you slice it, these are terrible numbers! So, after I saw these numbers, I sat up and took notice! After I read the two articles, I began to think back, as to how ageism could have been one of my problems in my job search. Over the past decade, I have been laid-off from SIX jobs...all for legitimate reasons like companies closing or moving; defense cuts; the economy and so forth. I have never been let go because of poor attendance or an attitude problem. Over the years, I've just had my share of bad luck!

My first job lay-off came, when I worked for an engineering company, where I had worked for over ten years. This company also moved out of town and was eventually eaten by a bigger fish! This lay-off happened when I was in my late forties. After working several months as a temporary employee, I got a job, which lasted about four years, before the company closed...and, another lay-off! It was about this time that I really started having trouble...not only finding a regular job, but getting temporary assignments as well. This period of time was a very difficult for me!

After I lost my third job, and like many others, I had to work as a temporary employee, until something permanent came along. But, what will always amaze me, is the fact that I had to sign up with 24 temporary agencies...that's right...24 temp. agencies to survive! As I said earlier, I didn't give ageism a thought, but after reading the two articles, I had to wake up and smell the coffee and get my head out of the sand!

Of the 24 agencies I signed up with, only 12 of them ever called me for work, and those assignments were only for a few days...never any long-term assignments. And, never did I get any Temp-to-Hire jobs either! The sign-up dates for most of these agencies had gone back three to five years...and NOTHING...NO CALLS! Even if I called in available every week, I GOT NO CALLS!

After the 9/11 crisis, is when things really got bad for me, with the economy almost falling apart! At that miserable time, I had to start living off credit cards to pay the rent; buy groceries; buy gas, etc. I called the agencies twice a week, to get on the "available list," as my life headed downhill fast! Being as naive as I was at that time, could it be true that people would discriminate against me and others? Later, I would find this to be true, as this horror story would unfold!

One day in October, I was called by a temp agency to go work at a printing company, which was to be a three day assignment. I took it because there was nothing else! This is where I got the answer to the possibility about ageism, and how it affected me, etc. The answer came in about three months when this assignment was over!

The three days was to have ended the assignment on Friday afternoon, and the supervisor came to me and asked if I could come back the next week, and I said yes. They had me all over the production floor, helping other regular employees. The following Friday came along, and the same thing happened...I was asked to come in the following week.

This went on for THREE MONTHS...as I was asked to come back week after week. The job started in the middle of October and ended in the middle of January. I worked the day shift; the swing shift; overtime; on week-ends; came in at 3:00 in the morning to get special orders out, etc. So, I did everything they asked me to do! This was a temp-to-hire position, meaning that after a certain period of time working there (usually 60 days), I would be eligible to be hired on, and I was happy about that!

So, after three months of being called back to the company, my work record would speak for itself, which was very good. As it turned out, when this job was over, I could either get hired on as a regular employee by the company, or there would be another assignment waiting for me by the temp agency! But, it was not to be! After the assignment was over in January, this is where I can really point the finger to ageism! I was NOT hired on by the company, despite my good record as a temp and perfect attendance for over three months. (They hired someone off the street)

After the printing company job, I got another assignment elsewhere. But, just to do a little experiment on the subject of ageism, to satisfy myself, I called the temporary agency, who sent me to the printing company. I called in (available) every week, for about three months...AND, I NEVER HEARD FROM THE TEMP AGENCY AGAIN!

I'll give you an example of a scenario that may happen, at a temporary employment agency. Three people call in available for work...and all are qualified to do the job...one is 25 years old; another is 35 years old, and the third is 55 years old...who do you think is going to get the job? I can assure you that it's not going to be the 55 year old! I'm pretty certain of that! So, why did I get the job at the printing company? Because the job was supposed to be for only three days, and there was probably nobody else around they could send...so they sent me! (it's called left-overs!)

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE, I KNEW THAT AGEISM PLAYED A PART IN MY DOWNFALL!

Because of so many job lay-offs, I had worked as a temporary employee longer than I would have liked. And, as I thought back at some of the incidents that happened during this long period of time, at the companies, as well as at the temp agencies, I could tell that ageism played a part, and I would never know by who; where, and I would never be able to do anything about it!

Because of my experiences, I prepared about a 30 page booklet about my work history, that went back about a decade. In the booklet, I talked about how the temporary industry has grown, and the government has to be more watchful as to what's going on. I hand-carried the booklet to the EEOC downtown, and guess what? I never heard from the EEOC concerning the matter!

* * *

A few years ago, I saw an interview on television with three of the writers of the popular M.A.S.H. series of the 1970's. The show was quite popular and ran for over ten years. In the interview, the writer's said they would not put down (on their resumes), the fact that they were writers on the M.A.S.H series, because, in doing so, would date them! Isn't that terrible? At the time of the interview, these writers were all in their early 50's. Do these writers think that leaving off the credit from their resumes, was going to help? Make them look younger? Change their appearance? Get them another job writing? This is silly!

Bigotry in this country is doing well and fine, in my view, and, there's not much any of us can do about it! If I were a writer on a popular series, and was in my early fifties, I would flip-off the bigots and find something else to do with my life!

Discrimination against anyone in this country, is a big black eye for America! In other countries, the elderly are respected and revered. In this country, many of the elderly are called names, put out to pasture and forgotten! In many cases, not even their own kids want them, because they're a burden, which is appalling! And, the numbers on senior abuse continues to rise, which is another black eye for America! It's a shame that bigots exist anywhere in America, and especially in the work place, where it is important for all of us to make a living!

Do You Want to Be a Winner?

2007-05-07T05:28:00.001-07:00

All true winners in life have certain characteristics. If you want to be a winner, you have to develop the same characteristics. These characteristics are the keys to ultimate happiness and success. Here are the two most important keys.

I've been writing about how important it is to have high, unconditional self regard. Every winner in life has high self-esteem. High unconditional self regard creates high self-esteem.

In the 1950's unconditional self regard was all the rage in the mental health field. Carl Rogers became famous for his form of therapy. The therapist treated a patient with unconditional high regard, hoping that the person would take on this attitude towards himself, and in most cases it worked.

You can give yourself unconditional high regard, accept yourself no matter what. Understand that you are doing the best that you can. Be gracious; understand that others are doing the best that they can. This is a simple yet extremely effective formula for having successful relationships with people.

Now some of you might think, “This is the ticket, I just get to accept everything I do, good and bad, and I get a free ride. I can do anything and it is okay.”

Ah, but that is not the way it works. In order to have true happiness, you have to have true self-esteem; you have to have true unconditional high self regard, which means you must do only things that you are proud of. How can you regard yourself highly if you are ashamed of yourself? You cannot go around doing things that you are ashamed of. It does not work, if you truly want to be a winner. This is the second secret - living with integrity.

The first secret, which I have discussed in earlier writings, is giving yourself unconditional high self regard, accepting and loving yourself. The second secret is do only things you are proud of. That maintains your integrity.

Maintaining your integrity:

Integrity means doing things that are ethical, doing the right thing. First and foremost, keep your word. How much do you admire a person whose word you can trust? Live in such a manner that people can say of you, “Her word is her bond.”

You do not go around making promises to people just because you think that is what they want to hear, and then not following through with it. If you are giving a party, you want a person to mean it if they say they are going to come, you do not want them saying that they are coming, expect them, and then be disappointed.

If you do this to people, they are going to catch on and start losing their faith and trust in you. They may say something like, “He seems like a pleasant fellow, but you know you can't really count on him.” When it comes to doing business, they’ll find somebody else.

It's obvious, if you don't keep your word in business dealings, people won’t trust you and keep doing business with you. You may trick somebody into a one-time sale, but you will not get repeat business - and repeat business is the most lucrative business - and you can imagine what kind of word-of-mouth you get. Without integrity, your business and your life will be one long struggle.

You will wind up not only feeling bad about having a poor business; what is worse, you will feel bad about yourself.

Do you want to be a winner?

Then remember the second secret of being a winner is to be a person of high integrity.

Only do things which you can be proud of.

Keep your word.

Be a Person of High Integrity

2007-05-07T05:26:00.000-07:00

The world admires and benefits those that have high integrity. If you are a person of integrity, a person of quality, a person of excellence, the world will reward you. This is an important key to being a winner in life and business.

People will be attracted to you, be persuaded by you and willing to help you toward your ends, to do the things that you want them to do.

To be a person of high integrity, go the extra mile, do more than you have promised. If you an appointment, you are early for your appointment. You respect the other person’s time, you do not come late. That communicates your time is more important than theirs.

Which brings me to the other issue, some people might say, “But, if I have high esteem, I’m proud and really like myself, won’t I be arrogant?”

That's not true, unless you think you are better than somebody else; that is what arrogance means. Arrogance says, “I am better than you.” True high self esteem means that you are excellent and the other person is excellent. You regard them as highly as you regard yourself. It is a win-the win situation.

We have been talking about going the extra mile, doing more than promised, being on time for appointments, respecting the other person’s time, making promises that you keep. If you really want to go the extra mile, what you should really do is under-promise and over-deliver. That is, promise less but give more than the person expects. That will amaze them, they will feel good about you and you will feel good about yourself.

You can feel good about yourself even when other people do not feel good about you, but it certainly helps and makes it easier when other people feel good about you too.

The person of integrity is always honest, which can be a challenge. I remember sometime ago I took my family on vacation to Travis City and on the way back we stopped at a nice restaurant. So we ordered a meal. When it came time to pay the bill, I discovered that I did not have my wallet. I realized I had locked it in the trunk, along with the key to the trunk. In those days there were two keys to the cars, an ignition key and a trunk key.

I explained my problem to the manager and he was understanding and gave me his address and I fully intended to mail him a check the very next day I got home. Well, I was surprised how I hesitated writing that check. I have to admit that I thought to myself, oh geez, he’s miles away, I will never see him again, I could use that extra money.

It took me about an hour of arguing with myself before I finally wrote the check and sent it to him. I soon felt good and felt proud, I know I will never see him again, but I realize that whatever you are doing, someone is watching. Someone is watching, I am not talking about God, although that might be true, but there is someone that we know is always watching everything you do - that person is you.

You have an observing part that evaluates and judges you. And you know, you know deep in your heart when you are doing the right thing. When you do the right thing, how proud you feel of yourself. And you know when you do the wrong thing, you might forget it and think that although you did something that was not quite right, you will get away with it. But I knew that if I did not pay that bill, that knowledge would be down in my brain, lurking, just beneath my conscious mind and I would not be feeling proud and good about myself.

You want to be able to hold your head up high, look people in the eye and you will communicate something to them on an unconscious basis perhaps, but they will know you are a person of integrity and quality. They will respect you, trust you, do business with you and you will accomplish more than you ever dreamed that you could.

Let me sum up. To have ultimate happiness, you must give yourself unconditional high self regard. Accept yourself no matter how many imperfections you have, no matter how many mistakes you make. In order to accept yourself totally, you have to do things that are not always easy, but things of which you can be proud.

Let me end by challenging you to always be a person of high integrity.

This is an important key to being a winner in life and business.

Use Electronic Reverse Auctions to Promote "Green" Business Processes

2007-05-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Most public and private entities today are trying to promote “Green” processes as a way of doing business to help the environment or are touting their “green” attitudes to improve their corporate image. Common examples may include using recycled copier paper, buying items with a minimum percentage of post-consumer waste, and encouraging recycle programs for their own waste. While all those methods are valid, implementation can be very costly and may prevent the programs from being successful and widely accepted. What some “Green” coordinators do not realize is that utilizing and implementing technology solutions that eliminate waste can be just as good or better.

The common misconception is that technology equals huge dollar expenditures and long implementation schedules that may cost more than they are worth. This may be true in some cases, but not for electronic reverse auctions. Public and private entities can save thousands of dollars and trees every year by posting their bids online in either a reverse auction format or electronic RFQ, The specifications and terms and conditions documents can be uploaded to a website so they do not have to be printed out every time a request for them is made. The vendors can then respond to these bids by uploading their responses or placing bids during the live reverse auction.

Hard dollar savings can be achieved by both parties by reducing the amount of paper, the mailing costs associated with issuing bids and responding to them, and the time it takes to process and report paper bid results. With an electronic bidding process, bids documents can be uploaded and results can be instantly reported on and saved without ever having to print anything on a piece of paper.

Reverse auctions with http://www.eDynaQuote.com are easy to implement since you do not have to download anything to your computer to use them. This means that your IT department does not have to dedicate any resources to maintain your account. All documents and completed event results are archived in your account or can be saved in electronic format on your computer. We also offer many flexible and customizable payment options for your convenience.

Business Best Practice Ideas(1): You Do Not Have To Cut Corners To Make A Profit

2007-05-01T05:59:00.000-07:00

Within the past four and a half years or so, I have been "fortunate" to run into – and in certain instances – work quite closely with - some unscrupulous, or "not very honest", entrepreneurs. In most cases, I was heartbroken to find that the impressions I initially had, tended not to be accurate representations of what they did in reality(I say "fortunate", because I learnt quick, valuable lessons as a result, that now make it possible for me to write THIS article for the reader's benefit).

Quite a number of these individuals seem willing to - every once in a while - allow themselves a little indiscretion here and there. Some are greedy cheats, and will go out of their way, given the slightest opportunity, to take advantage of another person - even if s/he is a relative!

Yet they KNOW it is wrong to deceive or defraud customers, clients – or indeed anybody. James Cook in his book, “The Start-up Entrepreneur” was obviously familiar with the widespread nature of this problem, and hammered quite a bit on the need for entrepreneurs to be ethical in all their business dealings, at all times. The fact remains that no matter how many people openly engage in dishonest or fraudulent business practices, it will still be wrong for YOU to do the same thing!

But Why Do People Do It?

We must not be too abstract in the way we discuss this problem. To understand it, one could ask the question: Why do some people in business appear to so readily succumb to the temptation to cut corners?

The truth is that many who embark on entrepreneuring with honest intentions, often encounter traumatizing trials, challenges, setbacks and disappointments. In Think And Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill acknowledged that an individual, due to the pressure of a prolonged period of adversity may become temporarily dishonest, in a bid to secure some relief for the pain s/he feels.

So the necessary suffering that a person undergoes in the pursuit of a challenging goal might make him/her do one or two things that are dishonest, for a while. Ideally however, his/her conscience would eventually force him/her to take corrective action to discontinue the bad habits.

Where it becomes a problem is when the affected person, or another who does not even have such a problem - but who seeks a quick and easy route to success - makes engaging in dishonest or insincere acts a regular habit. In other words, s/he adopts routine and repetitive corner-cutting or crooked dealings, as a preferred alternative route to reach a desired goal(s).

You Do Not Need To Do It

I want anyone confronted with this kind of challenge to understand that IT IS POSSIBLE to weather those rough periods of adversity without engaging in unethical business conduct. Simply dig in, learn quickly from your experiences, and correct your mistakes. Keep in mind ALWAYS, the proven fact that periods of difficulty and hardship WILL help you develop psychological stamina, and become more resourceful in dealing with problems you encounter while pursuing your goals.

Again, and at the risk of sounding boastful, I know this to be true because I’ve been there. Had it not been for those terrible losses and disappointments that I have continually overcome in pursuing my goals, I would not have become as self-confident, as I am today, when it comes to discussing entrepreneuring or what it takes to persistently pursue challenging life goals under situations that appear utterly hopeless and discouraging.

What Will You Do, If/When Confronted With A Fraudulent/Tempting Offer ?

Before you give me an answer, I will ask you to read the following statement I use to guide myself: “you will never know if you will steal, UNTIL the day you find yourself presented with a perfect opportunity to do so, in a way that you can be certain no one will ever find out that you did it”.

Now that you have read it, think about my preceeding question again. Do you KNOW for certain what you will do if/when confronted with a tempting proposition to do something dishonest or unethical in business(or elsewhere) in exchange for a reward/return you place a high value on? For many, what they are willing to do is usually dependent on how they feel it will make them look to those who KNOW about it. This is the reason why people keep getting caught for corruptly enriching themselves: they ALWAYS think no one will find them out!

I believe every person who desires to achieve authentic success, must be able to successfully say NO to the above stated type of fraudulent/tempting opportunity (i.e. one known only to him and which s/he is sure no one will find out about). It however takes HAVING a compelling vision, strong values, plenty of self-discipline, great will power and an achievement orientation, to behave in this manner consistently - especially when you experience painfully prolonged periods of lack and hardship.

Work Hard To Immunize Yourself Against The Temptation Of "Corner Cutting"

You must work hard to develop the needed moral strength to resist the temptation when it does come...and it will! In the case of the entrepreneurs described above, they allowed their desperate desire to succeed quickly, to cloud their judgment of what was proper and ethical, and consequently adopted shameful practices.

Sometimes (especially in societies where entrepreneuring is not yet widely accepted as a viable means of earning a living, and social welfare schemes are absent or in their infancy) clients or customers may push the point(where they consider "switching from honest to dishonest"), by refusing to pay up after the entrepreneurs had delivered requested products or services. When this happens, those entrepreneurs who are unable to stay strong under these conditions, look for ways to cushion the “pain”: they begin to cheat those who do bring business to them! Having said that, there are certain entrepreneurs who don't need any "tempting", because they are just naturally greedy cheats - perpetually on the prowl for unsuspecting persons they can take advantage of.

BUT the truth must be said: Whether or not you have been cheated by clients, punished, exploited, or betrayed, there is absolutely no excuse for becoming fraudulent in your dealings with others. You won’t last long if you go on doing that. So, it’s up to you to decide where you want to stand. I hope when you take your decision, it will be the right one: which is to act with integrity at all times, in all your dealings, be it in business or life in general.

Self-Development/Performance Enhancement Specialist – Tayo Solagbade - works as a Multipreneur, helping individuals/businesses develop and implement strategies to achieve their goals, faster and more profitably.

Why is the Media Trying to Prove Karr's Innocence?

2007-05-01T05:58:00.000-07:00

In the case of JonBenet Ramsey accused killer, John Mark Karr, the media has found themselves in the unusual position of actually defending someone charged with a crime.

The media is normally quick to back acquisitions of wrong doing. O. J. Simpson, Robert Blake, Jim and Tammy Bakker, Tom DeLay, and others were quickly vilified by the press as soon as they fell under suspicion. Not so with Karr. Almost immediately following his confession, media giants began to deny that he could actually be the killer. Their behavior shows a shortcoming inherent in political and business leaders.

Soon after the lifeless six-year-old body was found in the Ramsey basement in Boulder, Colorado, the press honed in on her mother and father. The Ramseys were convicted in the court of public opinion despite their claims of innocence. Now that someone has actually confessed, particularly somebody that the press had not previously considered as a potential suspect, it seems that the media feels a necessity to overcome their earlier Ramsey conviction by proving Karr could not possibly have been the killer.

Politicians and business leaders are often in this position. They take a stand or form an opinion. After expounding prolifically about their opinion more information surfaces. Rather than acknowledging the new facts as having a potentially changing impact on their original position, they work hard to deny that the new facts are viable or feasible. They become more entrenched in their original position even though that original position begins to lose credibility. In many cases this will later cause them to embarrassingly have to admit that they were wrong. Of course admitting one's wrong is difficult so if a way can be found to avoid the submission, it becomes a favored path of omission.

No leader can journey down this path without losing the honor, respect, and admiration of followers. All but the most stringent of Bill Clinton's followers will admit that their viewpoint of his integrity was lessened by his failure to fully recognize his sexual indiscretions in the Oval Office, particularly after the truth was revealed. Richard Nixon will be remembered by many as the President that covered up Watergate rather than the President who restored relations with China.

All leaders must reach the point that they can confidently be completely open and honest with those whom they want to follow them. If the media were to do so in the Ramsey case, the coverage would change from an emphasis of why he could not be the killer to an open an objective reporting of both sides of his potential guilt or innocence.

Rick Weaver is an accomplished business executive with a wealth of experience in retail, market analysis, supply chain enhancement, project management, team building, and process improvement.

Rick career began in retailing as a stockclerk, eventually becoming the Director of Vendor Development at Kmart Corporation during it’s heyday. In this position he worked with hundreds of Kmart’s suppliers to improve mutual processes, procedures, and profits.

As a consultant, Rick has worked with companies in various industries to develop leadership and business strategies.

As an entrepreneur, Rick has founded or co-founded six successful organizations, including non-profit and for profit.

Now in his role as president of MaxImpact, Rick uses his vast experience helping individuals connect to their dreams and teams connect to a common vision.

Integrity and Prosperity

2007-04-19T03:04:00.001-07:00

The word “integrity” is passed around a lot. Many people use it without proper reflection upon what it encompasses. It is bantered about as a much more casual word might be. Why is that? Could it be that it’s far easier to use the word that it is to live by it? A life guided by integrity is certainly not a rare occurrence, but one that when observed, yields a sense of completeness, harmony and prosperity that transcends more than just the monetary.

Webster’s dictionary defines integrity as “firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values” and describes a person of integrity as incorruptible. I prefer a much more simplified and applicable definition that can touch each of us wherever we are: Integrity is what you do and how you behave when there is no one watching. Of course, I believe that there is always a righteous God watching. However, there are certainly those persons that are not as concerned about that fact as they might well be, but that is a topic for another day.

How does integrity relate to prosperity? After all, they are not mutually exclusive. It’s really quite simple… we reap what we sow. Man was given a conscience to act as a moral compass, a barometer, constantly receiving feedback from our thoughts and actions and then responding back to us with guidance. If we sow with integrity, we will also reap in abundance. Our reputation will grow and we will discover that we are the type of person that others will seek out to have business transactions with. This will grow exponentially and our prosperity is assured. The prosperity I speak of here is also one of peace, harmony, satisfaction, fulfillment as well as the monetary reward.

Some time ago, I came across a paper entitled “Ten Affirmations of Integrity” on which there was no mention of the author. These affirmations are simple, yet so very profound. Read them now and again each morning as you wake and again each evening as you prepare for sleep. Internalize them and you will certainly prosper.

1. When I make a promise, I will keep that promise.

How many times do people say something or make a promise that they have absolutely no intention of ever keeping? Do you ever catch yourself saying something to someone just to “shut them up,” simply telling them what they want to hear?

2. When I set a goal, I will work to achieve it.

Would you believe that most of us do not have any written goals? Most people have dreams or wants that they simply keep in their heads. These thought are fleeting and often tend to morph into new ideas or wants on a frequent basis like the winds. Learn to write down your goals and identify the steps necessary to achieve them. Review them daily and track your progress. It only takes a few minutes to do, but most of us will not bother.

3. I will treat others as I would treat myself.

The golden rule…where have we heard that before! This one is a gold mine ready to be enjoyed. Simply treat others with dignity and respect. You will certainly stand out in the crowd.

4. I will conduct my life with excellence.

Commit to living your life as if you were always being scrutinized. The word “shortcut” is not even in your vocabulary. See things completely through by creating mental pictures of your goal. Do your very best always. Finish what you start. Never quit and never give up. Always look to uplift others with a kind word or action.

5. I will be personally accountable.

Realize that you are responsible for you. There is no blame or credit to be blanketed on others. Stand on your personal word. Mean what you say and do what you mean to. Take pride in doing the small things that make a big difference. Don’t ever be afraid to admit you might be wrong. When wrong, make it right. Take a stand.

6. I will face my mistakes and grow from them.

Everyone makes mistakes. The key point is that we should always strive to eliminate the possibility of making the same mistake twice. We do that by examining our mistake, determining the reason for it and where we went off course. Gather as much insight as possible from the situation and make note of what you would do differently when the same opportunity comes your way again. Admit your mistakes. Learn from them.

7. I will relate to others with honesty.

Be honest with yourself and your dealings with others. Don’t ever justify a lie by calling it a “stretch of the truth” or a “white lie” that won’t hurt anyone. You will soon find yourself telling another lie to conceal the first one and so on. It is always best to tell the truth. Most people will respect you for it, even if you were wrong. Strength of character is forged from honesty and respect.

8. I will show respect for authority.

Everyone is subject to someone or something. We teach our children to respect their parents, grandparents, teachers, leaders, crossing guard and other adults in their lives. In the same way, we as adults need to respect the authority of others, especially while on their turf. Remember that the next time you are in the library or the movie theater when someone far younger than you asks you to please be quiet or turn off your cell phone.

9. I will honor my debts.

We live in a disposable culture. This has stretched well beyond mere “things” to include institutions such as marriage and family. How many commercials currently parade across our televisions promising debt relief or financial freedom? Shakespeare said “neither a borrower nor a lender be” and he was right. There is no running out on accumulated debt while maintaining honor. If necessary, sit down with a financial expert and design a plan to gradually work your way out of debt. A winner will always honor his debts, sleeping peacefully in the process.

10. I will love people and use things.

People are not pawns to be manipulated for personal gain, but that is exactly how some of us treat others if it will benefit us in some way. People of integrity will always seek to build up others, edifying them and encouraging them to victory. People lacking integrity selfishly seek their own agenda without concern for anyone else. This is not how we were designed by our Creator to interact with each other. We are interdependent beings, not isolated islands.

Integrity is a trait most admired by winners. It is such a quality in man that it is eagerly sought out by employers, diplomats, teachers, negotiators, pastors and many others. Given a choice of several similarly talented individuals from which there will be a single job awarded, the person of integrity will most likely stand out and be awarded that employment. In a leadership arena, such as an emergency situation, where someone must surely take charge, the person of integrity will rise to the occasion and will quickly garner the respect of those around her, allowing for her leadership to take over. Her integrity will ensure her leadership because those around her will sense her discerning abilities.

Integrity, of course, will not absolutely guarantee prosperity, but I submit that people of integrity sleep better, work more efficiently and attract a more qualified and capable “inner circle” of friends and associates from whom they gather advice, recommendations and counsel. This “cabinet” of leaders and qualified experts will almost always ensure their success at most any endeavor they undertake. Integrity is a critical yardstick by which we will be judged by our peers, our critics and our God. It is an ideal where we cannot afford to fall short.

Little White Lies - Are they Worth the Risk?

2007-04-19T03:03:00.002-07:00

There are many circumstances in which it would be easy to enlist the aid of 'white lies' in the era we live in today. 'The check is in the mail' when in actuality it won't be mailed until tomorrow. 'She/he is in a meeting - out to lunch - gone for the day' instead of stating that she/he is unavailable and take a message. 'No we didn't get your fax' when it has actually come through hours before but gone unnoticed and unattended by the staff. A majority of humanity reacts favorably to honesty and integrity.

Often when the word 'integrity' is spoken it brings to mind a picture of trustworthiness and truthfulness.

Definitions for the word 'integrity' are: 1. Wholeness, Completeness 2. unimpaired condition, soundness 3. honesty, sincerity. A more current definition indicates that integrity is 'comprised of the personal inner sense of wholeness - an honesty and consistency of uprightness of character'. Thus a relationship with an individual or business that promotes integrity would suggest an ethical relationship. One in which honesty and trustworthiness would be understood.

Is it possible that a definition of excellent Customer Service could include white lies? First and foremost, the definition of white lies has changed dramatically in the past 25 to 30 years. Webster’s New World Dictionary - published in 1974 - indicates that a "white lie" is 'a lie about a trivial matter often told to spare someone' s feelings."' Yet a current definition suggests: "....is a lie which is believed harmless or innocuous, or is in accordance with the conventions of the culture". Does this imply that we have become more complacent about accepting and indulging in "white lies". A "lie" - from current AND older resources - is an intentionally false statement. Albeit a "white lie", "lying by omission" or "just a lie" - it is still lying.

It is human nature to want to believe and trust. It is when a trust is broken that the problems begin - in all relationships. After we have been lied to,it is natural to disbelieve thereafter.

The success or failure of a service business is based on its customers. Satisfied, happy, trusting customers are essential to success. A business that has a solid foundation and where the essence of excellent customer service is an innate practice of every day's operation has no need for "white lies".

So the business owner must decide if the 'white lie' is worth the risk of breaking the trust of your customers.

Question: Should You Do Something Just Because You Can?

2007-04-19T03:03:00.001-07:00

My concern this evening is about a growing trend online - and I'm wondering "just because you CAN, should you?"

This week has seen the launch of several major marketing programs by major players. These guys (and gals) have magic fairy dust surrounding them, literally everything they touch - and throw out there - turns to gold... for them.

Now that in itself is not a bad thing. I'm all for free enterprise :)

The problems I'm wrestling with tonight are small potatoes I'm sure to the guy pulling in literally millions.

The thing is... I get phone calls ALL the time from people who've tried this and that on the net. People of limited means - financially - yet those same people still strive to discover something that will truly work for them. Help them make their mark on the internet.

Enter the newest "launched" products.

Some are extremely useful, heck maybe all of them are, and for the most part many are affordably within the means of the average marketer.

My dilemma harkens back once again to the phone calls I receive. I've literally heard from hundreds of people who have spent thousands upon thousands of dollars scarfing up this program and that program. With still nothing to show.

Let's face it... if you know how to write good sales copy, and you team up with the right individuals, the skys the limit on what you can get people to buy... and spend. Even if YOU SHOULDN'T!

I'm just praying to the force this evening that every would-be marketer who jumped on the various bandwagons today was given the time to speak one on one with the other guys on the other end. The guys raking in the BIG bucks.

Did they take the time to PREQUALIFY their buyers? I doubt it. Should they, when you're selling pie in the sky, anyone can do this, types of programs? YES!

I'm not badmouthing what's out there. I'm sure the time and effort to develop the product, hype the media, and get the crowds coming compensates for most costs.

The thing is though... while the THING itself may be better than sliced bread any day, after one spends the HUGE bucks to get it is the buyer aware that 10 to 1 he or she (the buyer) does NOT have the list the big guy(s) have... it's the LIST that pulled the sales. It doesn't matter what you just bought, if you have no list you will have to spend more money to see if you can recover your costs. So many who truly should not have bought will have to incur even greater debt trying to justify what they just did... A truly vicious and unnecessary cycle if responsibility is shouldered by all.

FACT:

Once hundreds or thousands of dollars are shelled out, without the benefits of these hugely responsive lists, more often than not the buyer is left holding basically a big expensive bag of nothing.

It's going to cost even MORE money to advertise (since he or she doesn't have the same high pulling lists). Were these buyers qualified, financially, to purchase? God I hope so...

Watching people spend money when they are hanging on by a thread at home with kids to raise and food and shelter to cover... and still being bamboozled to add even MORE debit to their credit cards on a HOPE... it just wrings my heart.

I truly hope that if you DO make the financial commitment online that the ones behind each and every program will continue to BE THERE for you. I hope they make a true commitment to make sure all these "money back guarantees" never have to happen.

I'd love to see hundreds of thousands of "NOBODIES" make it big online. I'm also just afraid that it very rarely happens :(

I DO hope I'm WRONG!

For the Love of Charity! The Economics of Parasitism

2007-04-19T03:02:00.001-07:00

This morning, as I emerged blinking from Chancery Lane station on my way to work, I was confronted by a young lady sporting a nylon tunic emblazoned with the words ‘Every Child’ and a fat clipboard full of Direct Debit forms. As I approached, she began to play out some ridiculous dumb show of desperation worthy of the sad clown in a cut-price circus and entreating myself and the guy walking immediately ahead of me to “Pleeeeeease stop and talk to me!” in pathetic, ‘can-I-have-a-pony-Daddy?’ tones. In response to her transparent and two dimensional plea, I fixed on my best chugger-proof thousand yard stare (they can’t catch your eye if you look through them!) and trundled blithely on. My fellow pedestrian, however, felt no such need for reserve in his response, calling out loudly “there’s a good reason why no-one’s talking to you, love, it’s because you’re a f***ing parasite!”

A crass and imbalanced response to a kind-hearted soul trying to make a difference, you might say; a callous dismissal of the efforts of a good, honest individual to make a difference to the cruel world we live in? Not so, say I! Let us take a moment to examine the economics of this new, self-made industry sector and see if there might actually be some mileage in this young man’s claim.

Some years ago, whilst I was still at university supplementing my student by loan working in a bar up to five nights a week and living in a shared house, one of my then housemates came home announcing that she had found ‘an amazing job’ which allowed her to work just one day a week and bring home more money than my five bar shifts used to earn. Intrigued, I asked for more details of this wonder job and sat back as my housemate launched into a breathless account of how she and her fearless new colleagues were out to save the world. “Firstly, she gasped, in a froth of self-congratulatory altruism, “the best thing about the job is that it’s working for charity!” So far, so good I thought; charity is good. “Basically, you go out with a team of people and you talk to people in the street and you ask them to sign up to donate money for your charity.” “Which charity is this?” I asked. “Oh, it could be a different charity every week, we work through an agency” she replied. At this point, alarm bells began to ring.

To cut a long story short, it transpired that my housemate was being paid around £9.50 per hour to stand in the street, harassing the general public into surrendering their direct debit details and donate to charity making, over a ten hour shift a daily total of £95, which was a pretty damn good take home for a days work for a 20 year old student. Add to that the fact that employment agencies of any sort levy a charge on top of this daily wage to the employer, in this case the charity, which can easily be equal to or even in excess of the actual wages paid to the employee. Lets be generous in this case and assume that the agency in question charges 30% on top of wage charges. That leaves a daily cost to the charity in question of £123.50. After a rushed mental calculation, I exclaimed to my housemate “wow, you must have to work really hard to pay for yourself; how many are you expected to sign up in a day?” “One” she replied, “at least while we’re new to the job, later on you’re expected to be better at it, the really good ones get four or five in a day!”. Four and five in a day sounds like a pretty low rate considering the cost; “how much are these four or five people donating?”; “about £3.50 a month on average”.

I was gobsmacked! I couldn’t help it, the calculator came out.

“I hate to piss on your parade,” I said, five minutes later “but at one signee per day for £3.50 a month, you’d need to work for 35 days straight, or seven full working weeks to bring in enough revenue from initial payments to pay your wages for a single day. To put it another way, the one person that you sign up today has to maintain this direct debit for just shy of three years before what you did today becomes profitable for the charity that hired you. I fail to see how this is a good thing you are doing.”

Two days later, my housemate returns from a second shift ‘chugging’, “we are raising awareness” she says, “increasing the public brand visibility of the charities we work for”. Sure you are, you’re raising my awareness of the fact that people in nylon tunics are to be avoided; you’re raising my awareness of the depths to which unscrupulous agencies and cash strapped students will stoop; you’re raising my awareness of exactly how much voluntarily donated cash intended for charity use gets siphoned off into the pockets of middlemen and smooth talkers. I fail to see how this is a good thing!

Have You Ever Heard This: "Money is the Root of All Evil?"

2007-04-19T03:01:00.001-07:00

Have you ever heard this: "Money is the Root of All Evil"? Most of us have heard that the Bible tells us that money is the root of all evil. Why someone would want to misquote the Bible about money is beyond me but it is done and sometimes on a regular basis. Is it because someone is poor and they are trying to defend their poverty status by making you think the Bible is telling them to be poor? Make sense? NO!! Our world system is set up on the monetary system so to do anything in this life it does take money.

But let's quote the Bible correctly: "The love of money is the root of all evil". It comes from 1 Timothy 6:10 and in the amplified version is says exactly: "For the love of money is a root of all evils; it is through this craving that some have been led astray and have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves through with many acute [mental] pangs." It is describing a craving; putting money above anything and anyone. We need to keep money in perspective and use it for good. Money in and of itself is not good or evil. Money is simply a form of exchange for services, goods and time. It is only when people become attached to their money and become greedy that difficulties arise. With money as a resource, great good can be done in the world. Hungry children can be fed, lands can be preserved for future generations and medical research can be conducted to cure diseases.

When I was reading the previously mentioned book about millionaire women, the common thread among them was that they know that money allows them to help others and help themselves. They received great joy in giving to charities. Think about what you can do with your riches? You may choose to do many wonderful things with money: you can assist others, pay for your children to go to college, donate to your favorite charities or treat yourself to a well deserved vacation, pay cash for a house or car instead of being in debt for it. The possibilities are endless. Money is not evil, it can do bad or good...the choice is yours. Allow yourself to dream about all of the wonderful things you will do with your money, and let these dreams drive your success!

Cinderella is Not My Role Model

2007-04-16T03:13:00.000-07:00

Women from my generation have been under a ceiling of money myths and those myths need to be broken in order for us to be free to become as wealthy as we have ability.

Let's think to ourselves: "What is my wealth image and how has this money myth affected my inner image about wealth?"

My very favorite movie when I was a little girl was "Cinderella" (the Disney cartoon); I watched it over and over. I began daydreaming of my own Prince Charming. You would have thought that I would have grown out of that but you must realize...women in my previous generation (my Mom’s generation) were really taught that you finish high school, get married and have children. That's it!! And that’s what they tried to pass down to us. But my generation was supposed to be the revolutionary one where we were going to change the world (I mean just listen to the music of the sixties and you’ll see what I mean) but those imprinted ideas are like glue...they stick. (Or think of it like gum stuck in your hair…you must cut it out to get it out.) My mother didn't help much because she was only interested in who I was dating and was I going to get married. Like there was nothing more to my life than that. But I did break the tradition and was the first in my family line to go to college and I did pursue my career in the field of architecture. I was a divorced/single mother then and I did raise my child. I did marry but what I did not find was my Prince Charming. I did not find my rescuer who took care of my every need for the rest of my life. I looked for it somehow knowing it was unrealistic; but when you are “brainwashed” to believe it, it does make it hard to let that idea go. And think of the pressure it puts on a man, what a heavy weight that is to carry.

Another part of the Cinderella story that gets ingrained into our thinking is the poverty mentality. The Cinderella story makes it look so romantic for Cinderella to be wearing rags, slaving for her wicked stepmother, living with the rats. The picture is painted too cute. She does all this and waits for her rescuer. So even now when I’m watching TV there are movies or shows that come on and they show the same thing and I have started saying out loud: “Poverty is not romantic. Being poor and hungry and in need is not romantic. Not having enough is not romantic” no matter how TV tries to make it look that way. Then I switch to another channel and the opposite is on…there’s a show about people buying islands or who has the most luxurious yacht. Now I’m all for being able to afford nice things, a nice house (or an extremely nice house), etc. But wealth affords the balance of being extremely rich and being an extreme help to the world around us. It doesn’t mean you give everything away but it doesn’t mean you spend it all on yourself. But before we get that far we must first begin to dispel money myths so we can be free to receive. Begin to think or even right down on paper what money myths you may have and may be preventing you from moving into your wealthy place.

Business Ethics Etiquette - Is Corporate Social Responsibility An Oxymoron?

2007-04-16T03:12:00.000-07:00

One of the biggest business myths is that business ethics is an oxymoron. There are some that would say that business is a big competition, a competition where business people are competing for a limited prize – success, money, power – and thrive achieve it by any means possible, including advancing your own personal interest at the expense of others.

Do you agree? Is there no room for etiquette in business? Is corporate social responsibility an oxymoron?

Take the following two anecdotal examples:

* Kenneth Lay’s and Jeffrey Skilling’s personal greed brought an end to Enron and killed thousands of jobs.
* The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is endowed with over $29 million, mainly consisting of Gates’ own money. The richest man in the world, Bill Gates, has a social conscience. Do you think he made it to where he is by conniving and cheating people. I think not.

Do you still think business ethics is an oxymoron?

Who would you rather have as a business mentor, Bill Gates or Kenneth Lay? Bill Gates has a track record of corporate social responsibility and Kenneth Lay is quite the opposite.

In my view, a socially responsible business, all other things being equal, will be more successful than one that is not. A good reputation is important in business and a business with a good reputation will have loyal customers. The opposite is true of businesses that perform bad business etiquette.

Be good. Your customers will thank you for it.

Introduction to Business Ethics

2007-04-16T03:11:00.002-07:00

Is it possible for an individual with strong moral values to make ethically questionable decisions in a business setting? What affects a person's inclination to make either ethical or unethical decisions in a business organization? Although the answers to that question are not entirely clear, there appear to be three general sets of factors that influence the standards of behavior in an organization; individual factors, social factors and opportunity.

Several individual factors influence the level of ethical behavior in an organization. An individual's knowledge level regarding an issue can help to determine ethical behavior. A decision maker with a greater amount of knowledge regarding an object or situation may take steps to avoid ethical problems, whereas a less-informed person may unknowingly take action that leads to an ethical conflict. One's moral values and central, value-related attitudes clearly influence his or her business behavior. Most people join organizations to accomplish personal goals. The types of personal goals an individual aspires to and the manner in which these goals are pursued have significant impact on that individual's behavior in an organization.

A person's behavior in the workplace is, to some degree, determined by cultural norms, and these social factors vary from one culture to another. For example, in some countries it is acceptable and ethical for customs agents to receive gratuities for performing ordinary, legal tasks that are a part of jobs, whereas in other countries these practices would be viewed as unethical and perhaps illegal. The actions and decisions of coworkers is another social factor believed to shape a person's sense of business ethics. For example, if your coworkers make long-distance telephone calls on company time and at company expense, you might view that behavior as acceptable and ethical because everyone does it. Significant others are persons to whom someone is emotionally attached-spouses, friends, and relatives, for instance. Their moral values and attitudes can also affect an employee's perception of what is ethical and unethical in the workplace.

Opportunity refers to the amount of freedom an organization gives an employee to behave ethically if he or she makes that choice. In some organizations, certain company policies and procedures reduce the opportunity to be unethical. For example, at some fast-food restaurants, one person takes your order and receives your payment and another person fills the order. This procedure reduces the opportunity to be unethical because the person handling the money is not dispensing the product, and the person giving out the product is not handling the money. The existence of an ethical code and the importance management places on this code are other determinants of opportunity. The degree of enforcement of company policies, procedures, and ethical codes is a major force affecting opportunity. When violations are dealt with consistently and firmly, the opportunity to be unethical is reduced.

Fair Trade Fundamentals

2007-04-16T03:11:00.001-07:00

You’re buying coffee. One label says this roasted mountain-fresh Colombian coffee is ideal for all coffee makers. But is it ideal for the coffee bean’s maker, the farmer? Your choice is empowering. When you choose fair trade, you get more than coffee; you get the opportunity to enrich someone’s life.

What Is Fair Trade?

Fair trade is an international alternative trading system designed to empower disadvantaged farmers, artisans, and labourers. The movement began 50 years ago when international aid organizations worked to help farmers and labourers in Africa break free from oppressive trading practices. These inequitable trading practices still exist today.

Farmers and artisans in developing countries rely on intermediaries for market information and trade. These middlemen usually pay less than market price and keep the producers trapped in a cycle of poverty. Small-scale farmers can’t afford to produce the crop. They can’t afford the overhead or their financing’s interest rates. They abandon their farms, or, in the case of some cocoa producers, they “employ” unpaid workers, often children.

Through fair trade, farmers and artisans deal directly with members of fair trade organizations, bypassing the middleman and receiving a fair and sustainable wage for their work. According to the Fair Trade Federation, the goal of a member organization is “to benefit the artisans they work with, not maximize profits. By reducing the number of middlemen and minimizing overhead costs, FTOs (fair trade organizations) return up to 40 percent of the retail price of an item to the producer.” Producers receive a fair wage for their product, children are not exploited, and long-term relationships are encouraged to provide continuity in trading. Fair trade considers the enduring well-being of the person behind the product.

Who Decides What’s Fair?

In Canada, the Fair Trade Certified logo is managed by TransFair Canada, a nonprofit organization that belongs to the international Fairtrade Labeling Organization (FLO). Use of the logo comes with very strict rules and terms, to which all members are bound by contract.

The Canadian Fair Trade Certified logo is applied to product-specific items only, meaning that the product, not the company, is certified as fair trade. On the other hand, the Fair Trade Federation logo identifies the company as a certified member. Two of the largest members in the US are Ten Thousand Villages and SERRV International.

The Fair Trade Federation and FLO monitor their producers and members. They ensure that the playing field of trade is level and fair. For the consumer, these logos assure that the goods are produced in environmentally responsible conditions and that the cultures and communities of the worker are respected and sustained.

Is It Working?

Yes. According to the Fair Trade Federation, sales for Ten Thousand Villages in the US and Canada between 1985 and 1998 increased by nearly $15 million, creating over 12,000 full-time jobs for artisans and farmers.

As more consumers use their purchasing power for social justice, large corporations consider the fair trade alternative. Currently, there are 117 Canadian fair trade licensees, and 44 source countries are registered with the FLO. Today’s fair trade products include crafts, coffee, tea, chocolate, soaps, cosmetics, sugar, and fruit. Coming soon are wines, nuts, oils, and more.

A consumer in Canada buys fair trade and a child in Colombia goes to school.

That’s a strong cup of coffee.

Life Is a Scam

2007-04-16T03:10:00.001-07:00

What can you do? Most of life is really one form of scam or another. The biggest scams are being uncovered as scientists peel away the layers of reality to reveal that nothing is really as firm as we believe them to be. A piece of wood may look solid enough so that if one were to be hit in the head with it, some form of damage would be inflicted on skin of the head if not fracturing the skull itself. On the sub-atomic level, the atoms that comprise that piece of wood have another kind of reality. An atom is composed of a nucleus and orbiting electrons. The nucleus and the electrons never meet such that it might as well be infinite space that separates them This ghostlike quality of an atom is a far cry from the solid manifestation of a bunch of atoms that comprise a piece of wood that is capable of inflicting great damage to a head or a portion of the human body that comes in contact with it as when a wooden bat is swung to strike a man. A neutrino on the other hand, is a particle so tiny that it would pass through most anything as though nothing exists except itself

One of the biggest scams in human history is the belief that the world is flat. Sailors and mariners would be afraid to stray from charted waters for fear of falling off the edge of the world. Ancient maps would say, "here be dragons" to denote parts of the world which people know nothing about.

Christopher Columbus in his quest to find treasures for his king by charting a route to the fabled land of India mistakenly thought that the Indies was India hence the name and the indelible appellation of native Americans as Indians.The fiction of Heven and Hell is one of the biggest scams perpetrated on gullible Christians who swallow hook line and sinker anything professed by Church Fathers and Evangelists who know how to write and orate better than to use their reason.

Galileo Galilei was a genius who fell victim to the ignorance of the Church Fathers who found his notion of the Heliocentric System contrary to the Religious belief that the sun revolved around the earth. He spent his life in house arrest so to speak unable to share his wisdom and knowledge for the good of humanity simply because his theory challenged popular Christian belief.

Even today, the general population is held captive by the ignorance of so-called leaders who foist their own brand of authoritarianism in the name of Democracy and freedom and economic progress. Proponents of terrorism also promote the fiction of a holy war on clueless adolescents and young people who feel dispossessed and hopelesss enough to end their own lives along with their intended victims by a tragic act of self-annihilation.

Life is a scam and scams are not limited to economic scams perpetrated in the Internet by unscrupulous marketers who prey on the naive desire of people to make money online. Every day there is a new scam being concocted by people and every day there are people falling victim to these scams. The Romans in their legalistic wisdom knew that scams were difficult to prevent so they merely decreed: Caveat emptor. Let the buyer beware.

Encouraging Ethical Behavior

2007-04-10T03:18:00.003-07:00

Most authorities agree that there is room for improvement in business ethics. One of the most problematic questions raised in relation to business ethics is whether or not businesses can become more ethical in the real world. The majority opinion on this issue suggests that government, trade associations, and individual firms can indeed establish acceptable levels of ethical behavior.

The government can do so by legislating more stringent regulations. But, rules require enforcement and when in many cases there is evidence of lack of enforcement even the ethical businessperson will tend to "slip something by" without getting caught. Increased regulation may help, but it surely cannot solve the entire business ethics problems.

Trade associations can and often do provide ethical guidelines for their members. These organizations within particular industries are in an excellent position to exert pressures on members that stoop to questionable business practices. However, enforcement and authority vary from association to association. Moreover, exactly because trade associations exist for the benefit of their members, harsh measures may be self-defeating.

Employees can more easily determine and adopt acceptable behavior when companies provide them with a "code of ethics." Such codes are perhaps the most effective way to encourage ethical behavior. A code of ethics is a written guide to acceptable and ethical behavior that outlines uniform policies, standards and punishments for violations. Because employees know what is expected of them and what will happen if they violate the rules, a code of ethics goes a long way towards encouraging ethical behavior. However, codes cannot possibly cover every situation. Companies must also create an environment in which employees recognize the importance of complying with the written code. Managers must provide direction by fostering communication, actively modeling and encouraging ethical decision making, apart from investing in training employees to make ethical decisions.

Sometimes, even employees who want to act ethically may find it difficult to do so. Unethical practices can become ingrained in an organization. Employees with high personal ethics may then take a controversial step called "whistle blowing." Whistle blowing is informing the press or government officials about unethical practices in an organization. Whistle blowing could have averted disaster and prevented needless deaths in the Challenger space shuttle disaster, for example. How could employees have known about life-threatening problems and let them pass? Whistle blowing on the other hand, can have serious repercussions for employees; those who make waves sometimes lose their jobs.

Motivate

2007-04-10T03:18:00.001-07:00

Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. When you are the boss of others, the temptation to use your power to control them is always there. However, if you start using this power too much it can bring disorder to your office environment.

Think of how you would feel if you had a boss always driving you around. Would you like to work for someone like that? If your hard work was never appreciated, would your motivation last? Definitely not! Therefore it is important to do your duty as a boss in such a way that you get your respect for your position without upsetting your employees.

Giving power to your employees to make them feel unthreatened by yours can be a dangerous tactic. Being over friendly with your subordinates or not acting like the boss might make them a little too relaxed with their work. They might even start questioning your decisions. Be friendly and do not gorge them with work, make them do just as much is required from them. Also do not let them forget who the boss is by not allowing them to question your decisions.

Keep an eye on your employees but sure you give them enough space to work comfortably. Think of your staff as your team and yourself as the captain of this team. Your job is to make sure everyone plays in their right positions and keep them guided and motivated. Perhaps a few incentives to make them work harder will help in keeping them motivated to work harder.

When you change your focus onto a new opportunity, you should not expect your employees to know what you want them to know, without having explained/guided them properly. Hire and use some extra training staff if you have to, but make sure there is no communication gap between you and your employees. They should know exactly what you expect from them.

The most important factor that keeps your staff motivated is optimism in the way you see their work. Finding mistakes in their work and correcting them is important but do not just be a cynic about it, make sure you appreciate what they do right. Appreciation is often what employees look forward to more than anything else for their hard work. Putting just a little effort to gratify them wins you a healthier office environment and thus better results on their work.

Post-Katrina Role Of Property Insurers Threaten Consumers Nationwide

2007-04-10T03:17:00.001-07:00

“Prediction is very hard, especially when it’s about the future.” Yogi Berra

Given the focus on the recent one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina by the media and government officials and its label as the most costly catastrophic disaster in United States history, there has been little focus on the nationwide impact the property and casualty insurance industry has started to impart on homeowners and businesses in a post-Katrina world.

There has been serious discussion about reforming U.S. insurance laws in the U.S. Congress since 2004, before four hurricanes battered the Florida coast and well before the Katrina and Rita storms hit the Gulf Coast in 2005. However, the insurance industry since Katrina is now not only fighting hundreds of individual and class action lawsuits in Mississippi and Louisiana in the wind v. water debate, but also advocating change in the event of future catastrophic events.

The McCarran-Ferguson Act, enacted in 1945, delegated sole enforcement of insurance regulations to the states, where it was believed better oversight would take place rather than federal government mechanisms. However, state regulators are not law enforcement agencies and do not have the benefit of the arm of the federal government in cases which are beyond their means. Now, many state insurance commissioners, members of the Congress as well as consumer advocacy agencies believe that the whittling away of consumer protections over the years and recent staggering premium hikes, with little public disclosure, builds a case for federal insurance legislation and industry reforms.

Since 1945 the insurance industry has enjoyed an antitrust exemption and the viability of that rule has been seriously discussed and revisited by the Congress. There have been state accusations of price fixing and price gouging along with collusion in the industry leaving consumers with little information about their homeowners and business property policies, with only the civil or criminal courts left for recourse. It is argued that the antitrust exemption only fuels such a scenario.

The proposed National Insurance Act of 2006 (S.B. 5209) introduced by the Senate Banking Committee on July 11, 2006, would allow insurers to be licensed under a federal umbrella license, to choose between federal or state regulation and to do business in any state without need of state licenses. The U.S. Department of the Treasury would then have jurisdiction to regulate such national insurers. Arguments against such an arrangement cite more endless bureaucracy and red tape with fears that individual states would not be equally treated.

Alternatively, the State Modernization and Regulatory Transparency (SMART) Act introduced in 2004 addresses market conduct, licensing and antifraud data exchanges but has failed numerous times to move through the legislative process. It would leave regulation up to the states but to comply with uniform standards without federal oversight. The attempt to “modernize” the regulatory framework of the insurance industry has become synonymous with deregulation and appears that resistance on both sides of the argument makes reform more and more insurmountable along with immense struggles to provide sufficient delivery of adequate insurance for property owners.

The repeal of the McCarran-Ferguson Act has also caught the attention of the Senate Judiciary Committee which held a hearing on the issue on June 27, 2006 for the first time since 1994, precipitated by numerous complaints of less and less public disclosure of information and devices used for premium calculations. Such has impeded consumers from making a proper decision when purchasing policies. Travis Plunkett of the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) testified that “Insurers want competition alone to determine rates, they say. How about a repeal of the McCarran-Ferguson Act to test their desire to compete under the same rules as normal American businesses?”

The CFA has also called for regulation to ensure consumers have availability of enough information in order to compare pricing of policies between insurers in order to make informed decisions. Unlike the way most consumer service products are purchased, insurance costs are based upon a non-finite uncertain condition to happen some time in the future. And consumers must rely solely upon the agent, especially when actuarial tables and insurance models are non-accessible. Thus, more scrutiny not less has been called for.

But deregulation has also brought about insurance products sold worldwide as investments and annuities and reinsurance companies which provide catastrophic coverage for domestic insurers primarily are located overseas. Therefore, in a global economy, federal oversight is far more necessary than in the past. Leaving global oversight up to state regulators is arguably negligent given the ramifications of lack of coverage during a catastrophe.

The insurance industry itself has been campaigning for some type of legislative reform to provide for a federal catastrophic fund which would subsidize insurers in cases of terrorism and natural catastrophes. The American taxpayer and consumer have gotten their fill of that, however, where the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has been and continues to pay out damages to the Gulf Coast states and primarily the City of New Orleans for rebuilding costs, with FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to homeowners and businesses and for FEMA housing costs for the displaced.

But an unexpected phenomenon followed the 2005 hurricane season and is primarily fueling the fires for insurance reform and that is the record high premium rate hikes on homeowners as well as commercial property policies. In addition, hundreds of thousands of policies are being dropped and non-renewed by the country’s two largest insurance companies, namely State Farm Insurance Co. and Allstate Insurance Co., from the Gulf Coast all the way up to the tip of Maine.

Even more unexpected, however, were renewal denials for inland properties for policyholders in the Northeast including New York City, where property owners have never even previously filed a claim for property damage. With premiums on the Gulf Coast having at least doubled since 2005, thousands of dollars have been added to mortgage loans. In some cases, many homeowners policies were not renewed at all, preventing homeowners from obtaining mortgages or rebuilding at all.

With insurers’ withdrawal from writing homeowners policies throughout regions of the U.S. and gutting those with less and less coverage for those in place, the industry believes it will be able to stay healthy. Astonishingly, in 2005 it made a record profit of $45 billion post-Katrina and after four storms in 2004 it realized a profit of $38 billion.

The models associated with risk management amongst insurers are also changing. The 100-year average of history for forecasting future hurricanes, for example, is presently being revised. And as those methods of calculations become murkier, homeowners can hardly feel safe or comfortable when purchasing new properties. There are also several states which only allow for the issuance of property insurance based solely upon a consumer’s credit history and income which makes it far more difficult for the working class consumer to be able to purchase insurance.

Over the next year, 43% of the U.S. population which covers 18 states can expect their policies to either be dropped by their insurance carriers or have their premiums escalate between 20% and 100%. And for that reason alone it might be time to reel in an industry which not only is in business to make a profit, but also has a moral obligation to help protect communities nationwide and such becomes necessary in the face of absolute destruction.

Ethics and Counselling Applications

2007-04-10T03:16:00.000-07:00

Ethics and History

"Ethics (from Greek - meaning "custom") is the branch of axiology, one of the four major branches of philosophy, which attempts to understand the nature of morality; to distinguish that which is right from that which is wrong. The Western tradition of ethics is sometimes called 'moral philosophy'". (WIKIPEDIA).

The origins of ethics are related to the introduction of moral behaviour in early societies. The application of concepts such as 'right' and 'wrong', and the definition of these concepts in different environments, induced the need for a formal approach to social behaviour - an attempt to create commonality and organisation in a society. In this context, codes of behavior were created, and different forms of behaviour enforcement adopted.

As societies developed, and increasing importance was placed in structural thinking - such as the advent of sciences - meta-ethics became an eminent topic of discussion. Meta-ethics refers to the investigation of ethical statements, an actual analysis of ethics itself. Names such as Hobbes, Kant and Nietzsche were prominent in this period.

Nowadays, ethics is still a main topic of discussion. As societies evolve, the relationships between individuals become more complex, and so do the etiquettes and codes of conduct. The development of business relationships has raised many ethical dilemmas, and ethical counselling is one of them.

Ethical Counselling

Because counselling is not a regulated profession in many countries (including Australia), the use of ethical standards is a method of guiding the quality of the services provided by counsellors, the quality of training provided to counsellors, and of protecting clients. These standards provide conduct guidelines for professionals and are an effective way support many counsellors lacking experience or knowledge of the industry. It also serves the purpose of structuring the counselling industry, providing common professional descriptions, definitions and service boundaries according to each type of counsellor.

There is a wide range of issues comprising the field of ethical counselling - which are also part of common guidelines for the practice of therapy. According to Daniluk and Haverkamp (1993), "the main ethical framework referred to in many discussions of therapy is one based on the concepts of autonomy, fidelity, justice, beneficence, non-maleficence and self interest". In this context, we devise several 'problem areas' in ethical counselling:

Law and Counselling

The need for professionalisation has created a common link between ethical behaviour and legal conduct in the therapy fields. Legislation was provided to primarily protect clients from misguidance, and ultimately to provide guidelines for the profession. However, as cited previously, in most countries ethical conduct in counselling is not yet part of the legal framework - which outlines the importance of professional and industry peak associations in providing guidelines and codes of conduct for affiliated professionals.

The Australian Counselling Association is one industry association in Australia that provides ethical guidelines and a code of conduct for counsellors. The ACA's Code of Ethics and Code of Practice are part of the Code of Conduct - which can be accessed from their website at www.theaca.net.au/docs/code_conduct.pdf. An excerpt from this Code is:

Counsellors will:

- Offer a non-judgemental professional service, free from discrimination, honouring the individuality of the client.

- Establish the helping relationship in order to maintain the integrity and empowerment of the client without offering advice.

- Be committed to ongoing personal and professional development.

Confidentiality

This area is closely linked with the legal issues in counselling therapy. Confidentiality plays a major role in defining the communication between a counsellor and a client, bearing in mind that trust is one of the backbones of a therapeutic relationship. Albeit confidentiality is a key component of the relationship, it is also one of the leading causes of ethical dilemmas for counsellors. Situations which may put the client - or other individuals - in danger usually require the counsellor to make difficult decisions in regards to breaching confidentiality. In many instances, the actual breach is a legal requirement as it may incur the prevention of a crime against the state, or another person.

Other predominant issues such as consultancy with supervisors or colleagues; definition of the type of confidentiality to be used (absolute or relative) prior to the counselling relationship; and session record-keeping, must be considered by therapists when practicing professional counselling.

Bad Practice

The issues of privacy and power in a counselling session can be prejudicial in terms of unethical practice. The private nature of a counselling session leaves a 'gap for unsupervised practice', and therefore it is quite difficult to be assessed. For instance, fairly recent explorations of unethical practice in therapy have shown the emerging problem of sexual abuse of clients. This issue is augmented by the power relationship between client and counsellor, in which the therapist could take advantage of their position of power to practice unethical behaviour.

Training and Professional Recognition (Australian Industry)

As cited before, counselling is not regulated in most countries. In order to standardise the industry, and ensure that counsellors have the necessary skills to professionally practice, training and recognition must be accentuated. In Australia, the ACA plays a role in coordinating industry efforts, providing information to the public and maintaining records of counsellors in practice.

That system protects clients from bad practice, and supports training standards for organisations that provide counsellor training. The Australian Institute of Professional Counsellors, as an example, is recognised by the ACA - which means that AIPC and the Diploma of Professional Counselling complies with industry standards defined by this peak organisation in regards to training standards for counsellors.

Safety and Negligence

These concepts are utmost concerns of counsellors in practice. A counsellor-client relationship is a very delicate encounter of an individual seeking help, and a professional providing advice. Primarily, it is the counsellor's responsibility to provide a safe environment for the counselling session - particularly because physical and psychological safety is a premise for the counselling therapy to succeed. Negligence is closely related to the concepts of breach of confidentiality and safety. Observing principles for duty of care is part of ethical behaviour in counselling.

Understanding the World of Tomorrow

2007-04-10T03:15:00.000-07:00

Most people do not easily accept the new, mostly because of the unknown factor that people tend to call fear. It is not only as Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky had put it that "taking a new step, uttering a new world is what people fear most." Even in slight things the experience of the new is rarely without some stirring of foreboding. In the case of drastic change, like the one information technology has currently imposed on the distribution systems inside every market discussed earlier, the uneasiness is deeper and more lasting. No man is really prepared for that which is wholly new. Everyone has to adjust and every radical adjustment is a crisis in self-esteem. By undergoing through a change people have to prove themselves right. It needs inordinate self-confidence to face drastic change without inner trembling.

In present times, global population is subject to drastic change and has evolved to a population of misfits, unbalanced, explosive and hungry for action. Through action mankind can regain confidence and control, can prove its worth, while at the same time it is actually a reaction against the lost balance. Thus, drastic change is one of the agencies that release a man's energies, but certain conditions have to be present if the shock of change is to turn people into effective men of action. There must be the abundance of opportunities, and there must be a tradition of self-reliance. This era of technological advancements is probably the most challenging one. The conditions that prevail today, from the film distribution industry to the ability of people to shop online from Italy while living in Brazil, have created a population subjected to drastic change that it is only a matter of correct timing before plunging into an orgy of action. The issue now is the sacrifices one has to endure in either case. Becoming active and consciously getting involved in any type of action, within any kind of market, the civilized individual has to select a position regarding his/her role in the overall process and sacrifice blissfulness that usually comes from states of ignorance, or apathy.

As Sigmund Freud had written in his book 'Civilization and its Discontents,' civilization imposes such great sacrifices on a man's aggressiveness that we can understand better why it is hard for him to be happy in that civilization. According to Freud, the civilized man has exchanged a portion of his possibilities of happiness for a portion of security. Although Freud did not discussed the outcomes of distribution and the severe interference of markets to the circulation process, he successfully conveyed that the stages through which a person undergoes before beginning to feel happy entail usually a scary process of unknown outcomes and difficult to comprehend practices. By trying to avoid the unknown consequences of any major change, people prefer to remain in their constant place with or without any control of their destiny, but holding on to the feeling of security in their familiar environment.

But through network connections and progressive learning practices, this practice has already changed. Future generations will be better equipped to judge the present choices vested upon us. The only thing present generations can do before accepting any change offered, is study and research the reasons behind the negative reactions people tend to have when any kind of distribution advancement is introduced to ease their usual routine. It is always an issue of control and respect of choice.

How Some Sites Promote Their Scams by Appearing to do Just the Opposite

2007-04-06T03:57:00.001-07:00

Business Ethics: Sometimes It's Hard To Do The Right Thing

2007-04-06T03:56:00.002-07:00

"So now I'm in a pickle," Michelle concluded. "Do I do what is right, or do I stay on the Senior VP's good side?"

"I hope that is a rhetorical question," Cheryl replied. "You know the answer." Cheryl had just invested in three cups of coffee while her mentoring partner described an agonizing issue at the office. As Michelle's mentor for almost two years, she had witnessed her protégé's impressive climb up the career ladder. Michelle began as a manager in a national fast food chain and worked her way to supervisor while still in college. Just after graduating, she was offered a corporate position in the franchising department. At age twenty-six, Michelle had reached a position of considerable influence, including an especially prestigious role on the franchise-approval committee.

Here's how that committee operates: In order to secure the right to own and operate one of the company's restaurants, prospective franchisees must win the approval of representatives from finance, real estate, and operations. Each member has veto power over the applicant's fate. As the operational link, Michele held significant responsibility and this assignment was a real jewel in her career crown. But it now held the potential for stopping her career in its tracks. Thus, Michelle had called her mentor for this midnight, Waffle House rendezvous.

"So let me make sure I've got this straight. Your boss sent word to you—he didn't talk to you directly, he just had his assistant tell you? Is that right?" Cheryl was as incredulous over the boss's cowardice as she was his blatant bigotry.

Michelle nodded. "Of course he wasn't going to tell me directly. He is a corporate officer. He needs to maintain deniability."

Cheryl could understand why he wanted to keep some distance from the message. He had ordered Michelle to veto the application of a franchise candidate named Sadid Patel. "Yep, that's exactly right. Mr. Senior Vice President had his assistant order me to veto him, because he feels we have too many foreigners in the system as it is," Michelle summarized.

"Any chance that finance or real estate will do the dirty work before you have to meet with him?" Cheryl was fishing here, hoping to find a way Michelle could sidestep the conflict.

"Not a chance. His finances are impeccable and he has picked a prime site to build on. Besides, they've both already signed off on him." Michelle continued to stare at the wall just behind Cheryl's seat, as if the answer might be written somewhere within the wallpaper. "There's no way around it. Tomorrow at 10:30, I can either perform a reprehensible act or I can see my career come to slithering stagnation at the age of twenty-six."

Michelle picked up her napkin and wiped at a small water spot on the table. Maybe just this once I can compromise a principle, she thought. Just this one time. Finally making direct eye contact, she quietly added, "You've always told me that I have to pick my battles."

Cheryl returned the eye contact and firmly replied, "And you know this is one you've got to pick, Michelle."

****** ****** ****** ******

It was eight o'clock the next evening. Cheryl and Michelle were occupying the same seats in the same coffee shop. "Well, let it out," Cheryl said. "You have that distant look on your face. What did you decide to do?"

"The only thing I could do," Cheryl replied. "I couldn't be a part of any racist act." Michelle took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "So, I approved Mr. Patel. He has his franchise." Michelle leaned back in her seat, continued stirring the coffee but never drinking from the cup.

"Good for you. I know it was tough, but you did the right thing." Cheryl was relieved to know that Michelle had valued integrity and character over developing a plastic career. But, Michelle was looking even more distraught than she did last night. Cheryl figured the VP must have come down hard. She decided to reassure Michelle that her career was not over. "Hey kid," she said with a kind smile. "There are other companies."

"Oh, no, that's not it. I'm not worried about my job anymore." Michelle allowed a slight smile to interrupt her malaise. "Before meeting with Patel, I had a short meeting with my boss. I let him know that if I ever even sensed him blocking my career, I would make a beeline to the president and maybe even the Justice Department. He got my message loud and clear. He won't be an issue."

"Well, now. I'll bet that knocked him on his keister." Cheryl was impressed with Michelle's preemptive strike. "But why are you upset? You should be ecstatic. It was an incredible day!"

"I'm not so sure about that, Cheryl." Michelle paused to press a napkin to her glistening eyes. "I really don't think I did the right thing."

Cheryl was stunned. "How can you possibly say that? How could you possibly doubt your actions?"

Michelle spoke slowly and with an intensity Cheryl had never before heard from her. "Because Mr. Patel is, without question, the most unqualified person I have ever interviewed for a franchise approval. He has no understanding of customer service, looks down his nose at foodservice workers, and had no concept of quality standards." Michelle leaned forward, "Cheryl, I approved a compete incompetent as a franchisee of the very company that entrusted me to select its business partners. I violated that trust."

Michelle paused and then quietly added: "Now, where is the integrity in that?"

Was Apprentice a Cultural Outcome of Post-Modernism

2007-04-06T03:56:00.001-07:00

Among many things, Donald Trump is a successful businessman and an extremely wealthy individual. Donald Trump is perceived by the mass public as a true corporate King. The question is who are all these people that competed so fiercely against each other during the hour that the Apprentice show was broadcasted and why did they strive to prove their skills so as to secure their position in his empire? One might support that they are the products of America's powerful media networks, the gladiators of our postmodern reality. But are these reality shows we tend to watch ritually, the mirroring of our contemporary culture, or are they the outcome of today's spectators' confusion regarding the prevailing notions of modernity, revolution and self-development?

To be a citizen of the modern world, is equivalent to remain open to change and evolution, to be able to explore and create, accept or reject, all those forces and trends that shape the global scene and the mere self at the same time. This ongoing change, the development of human history, has been classified according to scholars as the act of relating modernization (the socio-economic process) with modernism (the cultural vision), through modernity (the historical experience). But this powerful process, although once considered linear, has evolved over time to the point that it can now be conceived as "curved," since modernism has experienced a major decline during the 21st century. This realization can be partly explained by the fact that social, political, or economic revolutions have ended, while the upcoming reformations are not fostered by the bourgeois engagement, but mainly by the continuous technological progress limited to specific time fragments which make any kind of revolution seeming obsolete.

If then we accept that modernism has ceased to exist then what exactly are we left with? How can we identify ourselves in this endless game of change and evolution? The answer is hidden in the method used to analyze the present living circumstances and humanity's past actions. Postmodernism or post-historicism, is another generic title given to the period after modernism, in order to characterize a shift in mentality, methods, and processes used by society to deploy a new system of reference. Having to deal with an almost static capitalistic scheme that blocks the likelihood of any profound cultural renovation comparable to the great Age of Aesthetic Discoveries in the first third of this century, society is left to revolutionize itself through the ruins of the past, equipped with the belief that a true revolution would be to abolish modernity as a whole.

Where is the Apprentice show on this check board? Is it the King, the Queen or the soldier in this game of power and control? Various arguments may be raised to answer such a question, but the underlying truth is that television, along with other technological innovations of the 21st century, like the Internet, have succeeded in becoming a new type of artistic expression, where the spectator has no intention to classify and analyze what is seen using specific labels, since their existence is considered temporal. The threat is hidden on the simple fact that the majority of the viewers, regardless their age, as the citizens of this global village, remain almost indifferent to these alterations in the scenery of life and consume these preheated meals without questioning their source while sitting in front of a TV or PC screen, unable to resist the magical world of consumption, misinterpreting it as the best solution available in this chaotic mode of living. It may seem pessimistic or oversimplified as a view, but Apprentice, Big Brother and many of these reality shows, are actually an analysis on the cultural shift of today's societies, towards an epoch whose title has not yet been articulated.

The 4 Consumer Rights

2007-04-06T03:54:00.002-07:00

The following four rights are the basis of much of the consumer-oriented legislation that has been passed during the last thirty years. These rights also provide an effective outline of the objectives and accomplishments of the consumer movement.

- The right to safety

The consumers' right to safety means that products they purchase must be safe for their intended use, must include thorough and explicit directions for proper use, and must be tested by the manufacturer to ensure product quality and reliability. Business firms should also be aware that consumers and the government have been winning an increasing number of product-liability lawsuits against sellers of defective products. Moreover, the amount of the awards in these suits has been steadily increasing. Yet another major reason for improving product safety is the consumer's demand for safe products. People will simply stop buying a product they believe is unsafe or unreliable.

- The right to be informed

The right to be informed means that consumers must have access to complete information about a product before they buy it. Detailed information about ingredients and nutrition must be provided on food containers, information about fabrics and laundering methods must be attached to clothing and lenders must disclose the true cost of borrowing the money they make available to costumers who purchase merchandise on credit. In addition, manufacturers must inform consumers about the potential dangers of using their products.

- The right to choose

The right to choose means that consumers have a choice of products, offered by different manufacturers and sellers, to satisfy a particular need. The government has done its part by encouraging competition through anti trust legislation. Competition and the resulting freedom of choice provide additional benefits for costumers by reducing prices

- The right to be heard

The forth right means that someone will listen and take appropriate action when costumers complain. In fact, corporate management teams begun listening to consumer complains after the end of World War II when competition begun again to increase. Today, businesses are listening even more attentively and many larger firms have consumer relations departments that can be easily contacted via toll-free phone numbers. Actually, one of the services every consumer today expects to receive from the companies he or she selects to purchase things from is consumer support.

Driving Home the Culture of Honesty

2007-04-06T03:54:00.001-07:00

I accompanied a visiting friend from my apartment in Singapore to a taxi waiting downstairs.

He climbed into the back seat and promptly sat on a wallet left behind by the previous passenger.

My friend looked inside the wallet and found money, credit cards and personal identification. I suggested taking the wallet upstairs right away to call the owner. The taxi driver allowed me to copy down the necessary information…but he wouldn’t let the wallet out of his sight.

He did not speak English well, but he made his message very clear. ‘My duty,’ he gestured to explain. ‘She left wallet in my taxi. I must report to company right away. Then I must return the wallet!’

This culture of honesty and personal responsibility deserves an honorable mention. Every year Singapore taxi drivers return hundreds of books, wallets and packages accidentally left behind by passengers.

The drivers consider it a matter of honor to return the items in person. Taxi companies consider it a commendable action and duly note the deed in a driver’s permanent record.

Bravo for the culture surrounding, and supporting, the taxi drivers of Singapore.

Key Learning Point
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When a culture is strong and supported, individual behavior naturally aligns with the intention and commitment of the group.

Action Steps
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What can you do to promote a strong culture? What actions should you take, and what traditions should you reinforce, to strengthen your culture and your values?

Two Views of Social Responsibility

2007-04-06T03:53:00.000-07:00

Government regulation and public awareness are external forces that have increased the social responsibility of business. But business decisions are made within the company. Two contrasting philosophies, or models, define the range of management attitudes toward social responsibility; the economic and the socioeconomic model.

According to the traditional concept of business, a firm exists to produce quality goods and services, earn a reasonable profit and provide jobs. In line with this concept, the economic model of social responsibility holds that society will benefit more when business is left alone to produce and market profitable products that society needs. To the manager who adopts this traditional attitude, social responsibility is someone else's job. After all, stockholders invest in a corporation to earn a return on their investment, not because the firm is socially responsible and the firm is legally obligated to act in the economic interest of its stockholders.

In contrast, some managers believe they have the responsibility not only to stockholders, but also to customers, employees, suppliers, and the general public. This broader view is referred to as the socioeconomic model of social responsibility. It places emphasis not only on profits but also on the impact of business decisions on society. Recently, increasing numbers of managers and firms have adopted the socioeconomic model and they have done so for at least three reasons. First, a business is dominated by the corporate form of ownership and the corporation is a creation of society. Second, many firms are beginning to take pride in their social responsibility records. Third, many business people believe it is in their best interest to take the initiative in this area, prior to their competitors.

The merits of the economic and the socioeconomic models have been debated for years by business owners, managers, customers, and government officials. Each side seems to have four major arguments to reinforce its viewpoint. Proponents of the socioeconomic model maintain that a business must be more than simply seek profits to support their position and they offer that businesses cannot ignore social issues because a business is a part of our society. Moreover, a business has the technical, financial, and managerial resources that are needed to tackle today's complex social issues. Additionally, by helping resolve social issues, business can create a more stable environment for long-term profitability. Finally, proponents of socially responsible decision making practices argue that these types of tactics can prevent increased government intervention, which would force businesses to do what they fail to do voluntarily. All these arguments are based on the assumption that a business has a responsibility not only to stockholders but also to customers, employees, suppliers and the general public.

Opponents of the socioeconomic model argue that a business should do what it does best; earn a profit by manufacturing and marketing products that people want. Those who support their position argue that business managers are primarily responsible to stockholders, so management must be concerned with providing a return on owners' investment. Furthermore, corporate time, money and talent should be used to maximize profits, not to solve society's problems. Also, social problems affect society in general, so individual businesses should not be expected to sole these problems. In addition, social issues are the responsibility of government officials who are elected for that purpose and who are accountable to the voters for their decision. These arguments are obviously based on the assumption that the primary objective of business is to earn profits, whereas government and social institutions should deal with social problems.

How to Beat the Competition Even When They Cheat!

2007-04-06T03:51:00.002-07:00

Did you now you can beat your competition even when they cheat? In the company that started I have been beating the competition city after city even though my competition lacks integrity and I often catch them cheating.

In my industry we are in the business of cleaning fleet of vehicles and we often found companies breaking environmental laws and charging the companies they did business with extra for environmental compliance and then underbidding us in the process. At first we could not understand how they were charging such little amounts of money and still reclaiming the waste wash water.

So we kept redesigning our environmental control and reclamation systems to become more and more efficient until we could compete on price without cheating. Eventually we noticed that they were cheating and we simply advised the industry that, that was unacceptable and we helped advise committees that set up standards in the industry to see that the industry could police itself and do business without environmentally negatively impacting the ecosystems.

Of course this is only one example of how we have beat the competition even when they have been cheating. We often in business find cheaters who cannot pull their own weight in nearly every industry. This is because they have grown old in stodgy and weak and they cannot compete in the real world so they make rules for a created reality.

Unfortunately, they can only do this so long until the customer tells them where to go and when they do; all you have to do is be in the way of the money and have with that customer wants and they will give you unit of trade called a dollar.

It is easy to beat the competition even when they cheat and you should know that anyone who cheats is inferior, weak and therefore you have the moral high ground and they should boost your strength of character and confidence in your ability to cream them.

Indeed, I love winning and I love beating the cheaters without cheating. It must be so demoralizing for them when they lack the integrity, the perseverance and the dedication to it even stand on the same field with us and cannot make single play witho

Is Business Behaving Badly or is the Blob of Bureaucracy to Blame?

2007-04-06T03:51:00.001-07:00

Many US citizens believe that the corporate world is totally corrupt and of course they believe this because they have been told by the mass media hysteria on their television sets that all business people are bad? Many people have surrendered their minds to their television sets and therefore they believe whatever they hear on TV. Further the media will often interview the government and the regulatory agencies and talk about ethics on television. Although there is a little bit of hypocrisy there obviously too.

Unfortunately, what many people do not understand is that many of the rules that are being broken are actually regulations that should have never been made in the first place, as they go against the innate characteristics of the species and the normal interaction between human beings. Additionally, it should be noted that you cannot regulate morality that is something that happens everywhere; morality issues are all over. It happens in government, the schools, churches, nonprofits, sports teams, politics and of course in business too.

Is business behaving badly or is it simply the blob of bureaucracy that we should really blame? The reason I point this out is that we are making criminals out of normal entrepreneurs. If you look around yourself right now and consider that every place you go and everything you see was brought there and made by an entrepreneur or a business or a corporation. If we over regulate these businesses then the American citizenry will get less and pay more for what they do get.

After all it is the consumer that desires something and it is the entrepreneur or business, which delivers it and makes it available for a corresponding unit of trade that we call a dollar. Each time the regulatory agencies make another law to regulate morality they find businesses trying to go around that law and therefore they shore it up with another regulation until there are so many regulations that no one knows what the law is including the lawyers who the businesses must hire just to explain it to them. All this does is stifle our economy and hurt the flows of our civilization. Perhaps you might consider this in 2006.

Essentials of Business Ethics

2007-04-06T03:50:00.000-07:00

Traditionally, business ethics was considered to be a very controversial notion because even nowadays some people believe that it is a cornerstone of any future more or less prospective company’s strategy while others perceive it like an oxymoron. Personally, I think that business ethics have to be developed yet and, unfortunately, it is mainly the question philosophers or social critics are worried about but not those who are in the center of its attention, namely businessmen, managers, employees, etc. As far as I understand, the relations between all participants of a business process have to be controlled and regulated by some ethical norms because business ethics has an overwhelming influence on so many process in a company, and these processes can have not only interior but exterior character as well.

It plays a very important role for the climate within a company, shapes its public image, and the list may be continued. One more thing I would like to emphasize is the growing importance of business ethics in the future because moral standards and ethical norms became more and more important in our society and this trend will only progress accompanying the social development. Unfortunately, not all of businessmen and top managers realize this fact and they do not treat the problem of the business ethics seriously. Moreover, very often there actions may be characterized as absolutely immoral and contradicting to the main principles of the business ethics.

Among one of the most notorious examples of such attitude to ethical norms I may name the crisis and the following collapse of the Enron that had happened in recent years. As for me, I am convinced that it was the result of a permanent violation of ethical norms that gradually transformed into the violation of laws. Despite the fact that we shouldn’t equate these two notions, I mean ethics, or it is better to say the lack of it, and the violation of laws, because immoral or unethical doesn’t necessarily mean illegal, it is still quite evident that the latter may be a logical consequence of the former. In other words if decisions contradicting to ethical norms are acceptable within a company or for some members of this company it wouldn’t be a great surprise for me if soon this company or any of its staff will break the law. So I believe that the roots of a crime lie in the moral decay of a personality or the whole social group. Probably, that is exactly what happened to the Enron at large, and to some of its top executives in particular. Now I’ll try to describe briefly the collapse of this company, find out its causes and comment on it.

First of all I want to underline the following markers of a serious ethical conflict, namely it is a presence of 1) significant value conflicts of interests of different people or groups of people, 2) real alternatives that are justifiable, and, finally, 3) significant consequences on ‘stakeholders’ in the situation (Madsen and Shafritz, 1990). Practically all of these markers may be found in the Enron situation, particularly the third one. So, what was the starting point of the disaster as it is called by many because it is one of the most serious and biggest financial scandals in history? Now it is evident that the crisis had begun after the company reported about huge debts. Certainly, an investigation had been started and not surprisingly that very soon top executives were under suspect. It is not a secret anymore that top executives hide debts because they were trying to sustain the permanent growth of their company on the market and to increase the value of its shares in order to earn more money for them despite a very probable bankruptcy. They organized a very subtle web of transaction which helped them to hide millions of dollars of debts of the company as well as they also used for the same purposes complex financial partnerships. Moreover, the Enron executives profited from the situation and sold their shares in the nick of time just before the company failure.

As for top executives they also earned millions of dollars with the help of their families, some friends and partnerships which were controlled by them.

The next question that logically arises is who exactly was guilty and what were consequences of the Enron collapse. Among the most important and guilty is often called Andrew Fastow, a former Enron finance chief who is considered by many specialists to be a mastermind of the Enron failure but it is quite natural to presuppose that one person couldn’t organize such a complicated system of transactions without any other executive or manager knowing. Another person responsible for the Enron crisis is a former Enron chief executive Jeff Skilling. But what seems to me the most shocking, immoral, and absolutely unethical is the fact that one more chief executive of the company Kenneth Lay was extensively informed and warned by middle-managers about the situation within the Enron. And in the meantime, hypocritically, he, in person, announced that he was a good, hardworking, and absolutely ignorant about all those transactions and frauds that took place in the company he was responsible for as a chief executive.

It seems unbelievable but he is really so hypocritic. I think such cynic reaction reveals great problems that existed in the Enron and that there were no ethical norms that regulated relations between the Enron staff. It is even surprising, to some extent, that having such chief executives there still were some people who were fully aware of the danger for stockholders and tried to prevent the catastrophe. Probably, these people had those moral principles that are necessary for normal work of any company in the modern world and I think if they headed the Enron they could save it.

By the way, I want to say a few words about what could be done in order to save the Enron. I’m not going to analyze financial possibility to improve the position of the company on the market. I’d like to analyze ethical part of the problem because I believe that the lack of business ethics finally led to the numerous frauds and the legal crisis in the company. So, what could be done to prevent the Enron collapse? One of the possible ways to prevent it was the Ethical Code of the company. It shouldn’t be just a set of rules, principles or regulations written by one or several persons. To create an effective Ethical Code all members of the company everyday life should work on the project of such a code. Only this condition could provide that written regulations and principles would work in real life because all opinions would be taken into account. Certainly, an effective system of the control of the execution of norms of the Code would be vitally important and would prevent such situations when a chief executive being warned by middle-managers didn’t do anything to stop the terrible fraud. But none of the measures I have just mentioned were taken and, naturally, ethical decay ended in the financial collapse of a gigantic company. As a result many stockholders were ruined, thousands of people lost their jobs, and the criminals were imprisoned. Thus, a prospective company was ruined though who knows what could happen if the ethical principles were dominant in the company’s policy. The only thing I can say for sure is that, to my mind, the Enron would have much more prospects and could hardly collapse.

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Finally, I want to say that it seems to me that the main aim of those who were responsible for the Enron failure was just to make more money regardless the fact that other stockholders could lose their life savings. I think it is absolutely unacceptable in business because nobody can get richer and richer and, in the meantime, lead his or her own company to the collapse. On the one hand it is absolutely immoral, on the other hand it is a serious crime that will be severely punished and the sentences of the Enron executives prove it vividly. So, it is evident that a priori modern business, and leading executives of any company should care about prosperity of the company and society but not only about there own financial success. Nowadays, the most successful companies pay a lot of attention to the effective ethical education of there staff because really working ethical principles contribute not only to the public image of the company but they also provide for the company interior stability, and, consequently, make it more competitive on the market. In general, I think that moral values must gradually transform into the common law. Anyway, moral principles of the business ethics become evident mainly in critical situations and if the company has any they usually unite all of the company’s staff and make it stronger and more survivable.

Small Business Ethics

2007-04-06T03:49:00.000-07:00

Ethics in business has become big news over the past several years. We read about the escapades of the executives at Enron, WorldCom and other major companies and shake our heads in astonishment thinking, "How could that happen."We marvel at the unethical behavior of these leaders while at the same time never considering our own behavior.

The truth is that business leaders, regardless of the size of the company, are faced with ethical pressures everyday. The scale or impact of the ethical decision may not measure up to the likes of an Enron, but nevertheless, they do exist. How a business leader handles minor ethical issues is a precursor to how larger decision will be made as the business grows.

Many of the ethical issues we may face are not clearly black or white. In fact, two people faced with the same issue could quite possible make contrary decisions, while believing they each have made the best ethical decision. Why? Because ethical decisions are based upon one's moral character. When it comes to moral behavior, we each march to the sound of different drummers and as such will make different decisions on similar issues.

As a business owner you must set the bar on ethical behavior. Make integrity a core value, be honest with your customers and employees, always follow the rules, never compromise your principles, and remember that the right thing is not always the opposite of the wrong thing. Do these things and your customers will respect you and your employees will remain loyal, essential ingredients to a successful business.

Rules are Not Made to be Broken

2007-04-02T04:46:00.001-07:00

Are you surprised when you read and hear about all of the corruption within business these days? I'm not. The way people act in business situations is nothing more than a reflection of how they act in their normal lives. Why would we expect anything different?

I am a follower of rules. I believe that rules are there to give everyone an equal opportunity to enjoy the benefits that our great nation provides. I get angry when people don't follow the rules.

I don't like seeing people park in handicap zones, with or without a handicap tag, when they don't need to. I get irritated when shoppers take 15 items and check out in a 10 item or less line. I don't like to listen while people talk about how they managed to by-pass the cable company and get their cable TV for free. You get the idea. When people don't follow the rules, those of us who do pay the price. I guess those folks believe that the rules are made for everyone else and not for them. Their selfishness comes before rules.

I have a sign on my wall that reminds me of this, it says, "He who follows the rules gets screwed." It is not there to suggest that I not follow rules, rather to remind me not to get too angry when people don't. Every now and then I get comforted when I see someone who did not follow the rules get their just reward.

Last week a news story reported that an elementary school teacher was arrested in her classroom in front of her class. The story, and of course, the lady arrested, thought it was horrible that the police came into the school room in front of these young children and embarrassed her over a parking ticket that she did not pay. It turns out she had more than one outstanding parking ticket and they were several years old.

To bad lady, you broke the rules and thought you could get away with it. The fact that you were embarrass in front of your class is your own fault. Do you think those of us who follow the rules should be considerate of your feelings when you obviously don't care about ours? And the kids, let them see what happens when people don't follow rules. Let us reinforce good actions by clearly punishing poor actions.

My hope is that by doing so, these kids will grow up following rules. Remember, the way people act in their normal lives will carry over to their business lives. Do you want businesses to become less corrupt? Cheer the small victories we get when those who refuse to follow rules get caught. I want to change my sign to read, "He who follows the rules wins."

Serbanes Oxley and Other Compliance Training Bugaboos

2007-04-02T04:45:00.002-07:00

Compliance training gets no respect. Training managers view it as something of a bugaboo. Most trainees greet it with about as much enthusiasm as they would a parallel parking contest. So what is it, why do we need it, and how can we best go about it?

Well, government regulations and business best practices dictate that you not only conduct certain courses but also maintain records to show that they have been taken and understood by all concerned. Not offering such training can jeopardize the health and safety of your workers, earn the ire of your shareholders, and/or get you on the wrong side of the regulatory authorities.

Here are some examples of compliance training:

° Human resource issues: Such as equal opportunity, workforce diversity, and sexual harassment.

° Business ethics: A large organization will have need for courses that deal with general business ethics as well as the more specialized needs of those in sales and marketing, accounting/finance, information and document management, and corporate governance (Serbanes Oxley or SOX compliance requirements). Moreover, certain industries, such as real-estate and lending, will have additional requirements specific to their business.

° Occupational safety: US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations on both general occupational health and safety and the special needs of industries such as construction, food service, and healthcare.

° Industrial safety: OSHA and other standards that seek to prevent injuries, accidents, chemical spills, fires, and explosions.

° Driver safety education: For those who operate vehicles that are part of corporate fleets.

° HIPAA training: For healthcare workers on how to use and share patient information in accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).

What’s the ideal platform for such training? To answer that question, we need to examine the characteristics of compliance training, which are:

° It’s required by large numbers of people, often within a short timeframe.

° It’s often repetitive.

° The course content, once developed, is fairly stable (though subject to adjustment as regulations get fine-tuned).

° Even locations that have only one or two employees must undergo this training.

° And, of course, it demands good record keeping.

° Except for the needs of specialized industries, the course content – once developed – can be sold to a very large national, sometimes international, customer base.

What we have just listed are the exact situations in which e-learning is both appropriate and cost effective. E-learning has the ability to perform volume training quickly and relatively inexpensively, even when there are one or two participants per location. It’s also just-in-time and self-paced, allowing it to be more easily squeezed into a crowded work schedule. All those make e-learning the ideal vehicle for compliance training. What about the records? When e-learning is delivered from an LMS, record-keeping is automatic and effortless!

Now, what’s this LMS? A Learning Management System is software that allows you to display on your corporate intranet all of your training offerings, whether instructor-led or self-paced, as well as track the progress of everyone taking these courses – anywhere at any time in your company. LMSs, while quite useful, can be pricey, ranging in cost from many thousands to over a million dollars. They can also be hard to select, customize, install, and operate.

Does it ever make sense to offer instructor-led training (ILT) classes on compliance issues? There’s no better training than an ILT class taught well! There are topics related to people issues, for instance cultural diversity and sexual harassment and perhaps some aspects of SOX compliance training, which can be taught with much greater impact in an ILT setting.

So how do you implement compliance e-learning and an LMS without going broke? Here are some tips and ideas that will make the job easier:

° You can buy compliance e-learning from either a vendor specializing in a particular type of compliance training, for example, just human resource, occupational safety, or SOX training. (SOX training has become an industry by itself.) If the need of the hour is to address a particular compliance issue quickly, this may do. You can also buy it from an e-learning vendor that provides a variety of compliance and general e-learning. If you’re looking for a comprehensive solution addressing several compliance and/or general training requirements, this is the way to go. I should add here that there are sources of compliance training that are often overlooked, e.g., trade associations and nonprofits such as the National safety Council.

° Most large sellers of e-learning offer courses produced by the same old producers of quality e-learning courses. Given that, it may make sense to buy your e-learning from a smaller, low-overhead discount vendor than a large name-brand vendor – service and everything else being equal, of course. Doing your homework can help you stretch your training dollar.

° There are e-learning vendors who will allow you to run any e-learning courses bought from them off of their servers, using their LMS, saving you the expense and trouble of acquiring/operating both an LMS and the information technology infrastructure needed to host and support the e-learning libraries. If you have any third-parry e-learning courses, you will not be able to run them off of this vendor-provided “gratis” LMS, but if your objective was to track your compliance training for free, that objective has been achieved.

° There are vendors that offer both e-learning and ILT solutions. Some of them offer knowledgeable “blended learning” consultants who can help you take the best of the e-learning and ILT worlds and put it all together into packages that score high on the quality/effectiveness scale but are easy on your budget. A blended learning package might, for instance, combine e-learning courses on “mass market” compliance topics with high-impact ILT courses on sensitive human resource needs, especially if such courses require customization to your company’s culture or processes.

Finally, ask questions; insist on answers. Take the e-learning courses out for a test drive before you buy them. Make sure the courses are interactive and fun. Find out if the vendor has blended learning consultant who can help you combine e-learning with ILT in just the right way. Compliance training needs to be effective, or it hasn’t met your basic goals. It needs to be affordable. And it needs to draw and hold the audience attention. After all, you don’t want to be known as the impresario of parallel parking events!

Spying, Security and the Psychology of Secrets

2007-04-02T04:45:00.001-07:00

A Fortune 100 director willingly passes confidential board room chatter to the press; a CEO slips into using any means available to plug the leak; private eyes are seduced from keyhole peeking into alleged criminal impersonations hoping to impress a big client, and a phone company clerk is flustered or pressured into releasing confidential call records.

What were they thinking?

The actors in the unfortunate events at Hewlett-Packard most likely weren't thinking at all, and in fact may have been acting under the direction of their hard-wired personality preferences - traits which, in the absence of discipline or policy redirection, and in the presence of a personality-driven and divisive environment, hijacked the director's recognition of his fiduciary responsibilities and common sense. The devil didn’t make them do it, their psyches did. It could happen to anyone.

It should be noted the authors have no special knowledge of the people and events that have taken place at Hewlett-Packard since May of 2005. We are simply observing, as is the rest of the business community, and expressing those observations as an expert in corporate intelligence gathering with 15 years' experience, and a psychologist with 30 years of clinical and forensic profiling experience in the criminal justice and intelligence realms. What we do know from our collective experience is that hundreds of companies operate every day under the same forces we see playing out in the H-P case. Where a company employs humans, human behaviors follow. The illustrations and lessons learned become clear by parsing out the events and the personalities involved. This paper introduces the idea that there were more factors at work, in and out of the H-P boardroom, than simple ego, frustration, competitive anxiety or mean spiritedness.

The first question goes to the root of the matter. What compels a corporate director, or any employee entrusted with company secrets, to discuss confidential business topics with outsiders, or at the very least, feel it is permissible to do so? We are going to focus on this point because without that breach of security, the misjudgments, misbehavior and potentially career-ending events that followed might never have occurred.

Understanding the answer requires a brief introduction to psychological profiling of humans in general and executives in particular.

There are recognized behavioral characteristics that everyone has. Knowledge of profiling methods as used in the intelligence and law enforcement realms simply allows analysts to take what would appear to be innocuous traits of a subject and extrapolate behaviors. If we know that a particular executive displays particular traits, that individual’s responses in various scenarios are, to a degree variable with the number of data points, predictable.

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is the most familiar instrument for measurement of universal traits involving basic preferences. It has been in use for more than 35 years and is the tool most accessible to non-psychologists. Simple, non-intrusive questions like “Would you rather go to a party early and leave early or arrive late and stay late?” help the analyst understand how a person prefers to organize his life. In a business setting those preferences point directly to the importance of such things as interactions with others or the degree of detail an individual requires to be comfortable in his communications.

When asked by skilled researchers, MBTI questions can be posed directly to the subject in the course of a regular interview or conversation over a meal. Interviews are also often conducted "remotely"; that is, with individuals who have or had close contact with the subject. With enough information from those who know the subject, the results are nearly as accurate as if subjects blackened the boxes of a questionnaire themselves.

Personality preferences in the MBTI are articulated as four universal areas of preferences, captured as four pairs of dyads. Although conceived by Meyers and Briggs as mutually exclusive, these pairs can be understood as polar opposites along a continuum. The more strongly an individual scores in his preference type, the more likely it is that the specific preference will exert a strong influence over his behavior, whether recognized or not. The four sets of dyads are Introvert (I) vs. Extrovert (E) ; Sensing (S) vs. intuitive (N); Thinking (T) vs. Feeling (F) and Judging (J) vs. Perceiving (P). This is the origin of the cocktail party chatter one might hear that sounds like, "I'm an ESFP."

‘Re-energizing Preference; I or E? The first pair, bounded by Introvert (I) and Extrovert (E), describes how an individual mentally recharges and refreshes himself. Does he “refuel” from the outside world of people, activities and things, or does he recharge in his inner world of ideas, emotions and impressions? Picture going to a bar after a long, exhausting day. The bar is full of other people relaxing and chatting over a glass before heading home. Are you glad to join them (Extrovert) or disappointed there are no quiet tables in a corner? (Introvert)

Receiving Information Preference; S or N? The second pair is bounded by preferences termed Sensing and iNtuitive. (The N is capitalized to differentiate from the capital I for Introvert.) This set describes an individual’s stylistic preference for taking in information. The Sensing types use their five senses to derive what is actual, real and specific. The iNtuitive or N-types use their sixth sense, and prefer to focus on the big picture or what might be, from a global perspective. When you last asked someone for directions did you become impatient when they described in detail the number of streets, the buildings and stores you'd pass, the angle of the intersection and so forth (N); or did you appreciate each bit of detail as reassurance you would find your way? (S)

Decision-Making Preference: T or F? The choice of Thinking vs. Feeling describes the subject's preference for decision making. Thinking preference types are apt to organize information according to logic and honored, unchanging principles (Think justice.) while Feeling preference types will rank the decision they have to make against their sense of values in terms of the human impact specific to the case at hand. (Think mercy.) Anyone in a tight business climate who has had to decide on which members of his or her immediate team to lay off, knows where they are on this preference pair. Organizing Daily Life Preference: J or P? Finally, the preference pair termed Judging vs. Perceiving points to how individuals generally prefer to organize their daily lives. The former, the J, seeks order, a schedule and principally closure; the latter, the P preference type, tends toward spontaneity, keeping his options open from day to day or even minute to minute, not needing to drive toward closure with one action or decision before taking up others.. But how do these different personality types generally approach secrecy and the guarding of confidential information?

Extroverts ( E types) , value open and free-ranging interaction. They tend to view communication as intrinsically more valuable than do their opposites, the I-types. This personality feature has several implications, both positive and negative: E-types tend to receive more information, more easily than do I-types, unless the latter are highly focused on the enterprise. Extroverts' also give out more information in the course of the day. Because of the volume in and out, E's have to pay stricter attention to sources, recipients and details of information. And if Extroverts deal in sensitive information, they have to expend energy watching the need-to-know aspect of their communications; energy they may not have at a particular point in time when additional caution is most needed. They have to operate quite distinctly and consciously from their instinctive and comfortable habits. Picture squinting to read each word of this paragraph or reading it aloud at, say, one word per second. Tiring, isn't it?

Introverts, the I-types generally have an easier time holding information, for they tend to be more purposeful about the content of their disclosures, as well as instinctively, simply less productive, communication-wise. In some sense, retaining rather than revealing information is the Introvert’s default position. While they can be expected to be good at keeping secrets, generally, they can also be vulnerable to those very few people in whom they will confide. Introverts handling confidential information must make refined judgments about the reliability of their confidants and their sources, something the Introvert is rarely skilled through experience to do. Without specific training, I-types also often give greater clues via body language when they are withholding, calculating or otherwise strategizing in their communications. They simply do not have the fluency more often enjoyed by E-types.

Extroverts who are also S, Sensing, types tend to feel a need to deal in detailed specifics in both giving and receiving information. Without self-awareness of this trait, they can be more susceptible to disclosure. To some extent, Introverts who are also S-types are similarly vulnerable once they have decided that disclosure is necessary. On the other hand, iNuitive, N types tend to feel a need to provide the big picture to others, just as they, themselves, prefer getting a global, ‘over the horizon’ perspective. This leads to the possibility of disclosing general landscapes of information even while withholding specifics. As noted, in general, those types that instinctively value communication as well as information are going to be less likely to value secrecy, or even caution in disclosing ..

All the personality preference types, however, are entirely capable of deciding to establish and maintain secrecy, ad hoc, and in doing so the question for any individual is how far from his habitual, preferred behavior he has to move, in order to succeed. Self-awareness and discipline, reinforcement and support are the keys to success in this realm. When we encourage companies in our training classes to include a little printed reminder of the need for information containment in employee airline tickets, this is the kind of reinforcement and support that bolsters self -discipline.

We are not suggesting a mass psychological screening of every employee to determine who can and who cannot be trusted with the employer’s confidential information. The fact is that every employee from receptionist to CEO has access to different types of information that would be valued by competitors, or pique the interest of the press, investors or regulators. From the perspective of awareness of one's own traits, the solution is much simpler. A useful level of operational mastery of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is eminently teachable to anyone who manages people inside or outside the company but particularly to sales forces, customer service people, managers, and team leaders, - basically anyone who must negotiate or influence other people in order to succeed themselves. The value of employee training in task-related psychological skills is widely – and increasingly – acknowledged in the corporate sector. What the HP fiasco points to is the need to recognize that directors, though highly accomplished, are subject to the same human characteristics, especially with respect to basic and universal preferences, and need the same self awareness and discipline that training can provide

The above discussion should make it clear that a standardized policy regarding information protection and confidentiality, such as Hewlett-Packard no doubt has in place , is a good first step. But we suggest that its management - indeed, most managements - do not understand that each employees will react differently situationally, as he or she approaches the line toward disclosure of information with which they have been entrusted. At some point the need to protect what they know for many will come in conflict with other, more basic and more powerful influences than "company policy."

Profiling also draws on the insights provided by other psychological assessment instruments whose perspectives have been adapted to remote gathering of information. For example the FIRO-B test, measuring several dimensions of social needs, would suggest that those who need social connection with others, close affiliations and emotional warmth are rather less likely to see or experience the need for secrecy, as a matter of habit, than those with low needs in those areas. Without training, such individuals are also somewhat less likely to succeed in maintaining secrecy against any social pressure to disclose. They can be expected to experience conflict between competing personality needs. The characteristic ways in which executives approach decisions carry large implications for information-control. Collaborative decision-makers tend to disclose more information, as a practical matter, in the process of decision making and have to consciously focus on tactics aimed at maintaining secrecy if they are so motivated. According to another tool, the Executive Decision Style, (EDS) decision-makers described as “Maximizers” – those who prefer to amass all possible information before making decisions - have to deal with similar issues of strategic and tactical information control.

Finally, Motivational Drivers, as measured by the Weber Motivational Index (WMI) , also play a large role in determining an individual's stance toward the need to establish and maintain secrecy. An individual who places a high priority on acceptance or risk-avoidance, for instance, will approach the issues surrounding secrecy and disclosure very distinctively from one who highly values recognition as a successful maverick and risk-taker. There are a number of other elements of personality that can be relevant in any specific case. In general, the issues for any individual turn on perception, world-view, history, habit and instinctive preferences, as well as self-awareness, discipline and skills that are brought to bear.

Experienced intelligence officers know how to spot and exploit the personal traits discussed in this paper when recruiting a source to reveal vital information. Practiced in the H-P case, it is highly likely that in the right circumstance and with the right form of inquiry, the leaking director would have exposed himself, obviating the need for a botched, ethically and legally compromised and hugely counterproductive investigation. To be sure such an inquiry may have taken more time, with remote profiling of each director and then establishing the most conducive social or business situation for each to be casually queried. It should be clear, however, that the risk-reward ratios for the latter option, are vastly superior.

Long before an investigation becomes necessary, however, policies and practices should be in place so that that no matter what the rank or personality type of an employee, or director each knows which information he or she must keep confidential, they recognize their vulnerability by personality trails or position, and they understand that the company will do all it can to protect its interests.

Awareness of vulnerability is no more effective by itself than any "Thou Shalt Not…" policy buried in a manual and visited only upon new employees.

Effective processes to implement sound policies must follow. A semi-annual security briefing for all employees should be mandatory, requiring that they acknowledge by signature their awareness of the policy and recognition of their employer's right to investigate suspected misappropriation of information.

Highly sensitive information should be compartmented. That is, a need-to-know culture should be instilled in order that the smallest number of people has all of the information on confidential situations. This can be instilled in a positive and friendly way: It is not that your company doesn't trust you. There are people and practices out there, like "pretexting", that can trip up the most wary employee. If you don't know, you can't tell. And that's a good thing for everyone's comfort, confidence, morale and stock options.

At this writing the Hewlett-Packard story is still unfolding. There are hundreds if not thousands of business situations, however, where the dominoes have not yet started to fall, causing career-ending embarrassment, turmoil and expense, even if legal penalties are not the ultimate outcome. Combining self awareness, which most companies don't, with common sense policies, which most do have… helps ensure those dominoes never even teeter.

George Dennis is one of the most sought after speakers and trainers on corporate competitive intelligence and analysis. George Dennis Associates specializes in training and supporting clients to develop an effective intelligence process for themselves, as well as providing field support in trade show operations, psychological profiling of opposition executives and custom intelligence projects

Bridging the Management GAP in Escalating Insurance Claims

2007-04-02T04:44:00.000-07:00

While insurance fraud schemes have evolved over time to fit within the circumstances of modern society, the foundation of them has been in place for centuries…. Insurance fraud is one of the real threats facing the industry. The growth of the claims culture, together with research shows consumers believe insurers are ‘fair-game’, making for a dangerous combination. The costs to manage these claims come with a risk factor; bad faith suits, medical expense, investigation expense to name but a few. The utilization of third party providers to assist in managing these claims has opened the door to the added risk of provider fraud. The cost to the industry is enormous and affects the way the public view insurance companies and their service offerings.

MetLife director of special investigations, John Sargent stated in an article “that eliminating fraud is an unachievable goal”. But that hasn't stopped his company or other industry leaders from trying. "Our goal is to pay what we owe, and not a penny more or a penny less," Sargent says. "The more efficient we are at identifying and preventing fraud, the better we can be at writing business at a more competitive rate."

Insurance fraud costs Canadian policyholders over $1 billion each year. To the average Canadian citizen, that means at least 10 percent of their total insurance premiums are used to cover the cost of fraud. http//:www.insurance-canada.ca/claims/canada/CCA1F200212

There is nothing new about fraudulent insurance claims or in the way they are adjudicated. The high cost of insurance fraud is passed on to the consumer and therefore, creates a situation where the industry might fail to seek a better solution to combating it. We've seen insurance claims directors reduce the numbers of claim handlers in order to 'contain costs', frustration amongst investigators when insurers exhort them to reduce fee's, and then make a "commercial decision" to pay unnecessary claims. These cost cutting solutions are not and haven’t been effective, instead insurers need to re-focus on reducing claims before they become costly and problematic.

The History of Insurance Fraud

While insurance fraud schemes have evolved over time to fit within the circumstances of modern society, the foundation of them has been in place for centuries. For example, one of the earliest fraud schemes involved the purposeful sinking of ships, otherwise known as “ship scuttling”. One of the first incidents of ship scuttling was recorded in ancient Greece. The problem became increasingly worse, and by the early 1700's ship scuttling became so prevalent that England passed one of the strictest insurance fraud statutes ever, providing for death by hanging as a penalty for conviction.

The sinking of the ship Adventure is typical. The Adventure was purposely sunk off the coast of Brighton, England in 1902. The ship owners, Easterby and MacFarlane, purchased the Adventure at a salvage auction (which like vehicle’s in modern day schemes, was where the most scuttled ships were purchased). The ship was then repaired so that it could earn the lowest passing grade of seaworthiness. The ship owners then, over-insured the Adventure and told it’s Captain (Captain William J. Cotling)to sink it, so that they could collect the insurance. As with many schemes, the characters committing the fraud were careless.

To maintain structure within a company you need a solid foundation. Insurium delivers practical solutions to bridging the GAP of escalating insurance claim costs

The Captain ordered an inexperienced mate to open the scuttle so that the ship would sink. The ship, however, was in shallow water and was sinking so slowly that the Captain had to refuse assistance from a nearby fishing vessel. In fact, the next morning the masts of the ship were still visible from the shoreline. In the end, the Captain was prosecuted for his actions and hanged. The shipowners however, were neither prosecuted nor fined.

The earliest recorded life insurance fraud a case of pretended death comes from England in the 1730's. A father and daughter staged a succession of schemes in which the daughter appeared to convulse, with heart spasms then go limp in apparent death. While the father stood by in convincing grief. These schemes traveled from England to America and eventually with the advent of automobiles that we began to see related injury claims. Today the same schemes exist, though the mediums have changed. In a nutshell resourceful individuals have been quick to seize opportunities to steal money from insurers in just about every imaginable means.

Insurance fraud comes in many different flavors, ranging from isolated crimes of opportunity to sophisticated organized schemes. While it is unrealistic to expect insurers to eradicate fraud in its entirety, it is however, realistic for insurers to reduce their exposure to this multi billion dollar a year industry

Time for Change Fraud Investigations are being scaled down, on the basis that it is reactive rather than proactive. Fraud has to be beaten by a more strategic approach, involving consumers, employers and claims handlers. The fraud problem in insurance relies heavily in the skills and effort of the insurer and their agents to uncover and manage fraud.

Lack-lustre investigations will not result in a dossier that is effective as evidence in a court. To discharge the burden of proof in a criminal trial, insurers need to provide evidence to convince a magistrate or jury beyond all reasonable doubt of any guilt. In civil cases, the usual standard of proof is on a balance of probabilities, in fraud cases there is a very high degree of probability. The costs associated with investigating fraud come with additional risks which could lead to reputational damage and loss of public confidence. This is an area of cost management that requires review and reconstruction.

To help reduce claims related costs and reserves, insurers need to become more proactive than reactive, to unjust claims and provider fraud. Being proactive requires a good understanding of the root cause. The root cause associated with fraudulent claims begins long before the claim is submitted and can be traced to human behavioral traits. The lack of understanding by employers or empathy by claims personnel coupled with a lack of good communication between, H.R, claims and investigators can a create a GAP in process and provide a green light for the claimant to fabricate, inflate or exaggerate their claims. With GAP’s, like these, there’s little wonder why insurers are seeing a rise in their claims portfolio. The answer is a lot simpler than it seems and corporate buy in is necessary. Proactive methodologies and practices will assist a company identify the motivations of individuals who are most likely to direct an act of fraud towards the insurer or their employer.

By being more proactive as apposed to reactive you have a better chance of reducing your claims exposure, reduce reserves and better manage your service providers while reducing the potential for litigation, bad publicity and poor public perception and at the same time ensuring compliance with your companies vision. In the war on insurance fraud, chasing the carrot will no longer yield the desired results. We need to stop looking at trying to remove the opportunity and focus more on the motive, thus understanding the root cause and effectively set about cost containment.

Why Enron Executive Ken Lay is My Business Mentor

2007-04-02T04:43:00.002-07:00

Every entrepreneur should have a business mentor—someone who’s been through everything that they’re going through and can share their wisdom. Whether he knows it or not, my business mentor is none other than former Enron Executive Ken Lay. For many, he might not make the most obvious choice of a mentor, with his track record of lying, cheating, and stealing his way to success, but that is precisely why this choice is so appealing to me.

As his first duty as my business mentor, Ken (Mr. Lay to the rest of you) can grow my social network. This guy knows everybody—likely because he’s paid most of them off at one point or another. He can introduce me to people who will come in handy when I need to get out of felony conspiracy charges. This is just one of the many valuable aspects of our business mentoring relationship.

I can trust Ken to be my business mentor, because he knows that if he makes one false move the government will be on him like white on rice. Much like the old saying that the safest time to fly is the day after a crash, I feel like the safest day to have Ken as my business mentor is right after a huge financial scandal that covers the television, newspaper and radio waves for years, and gets used as water cooler fodder even now.

Furthermore, he’ll be my business mentor for free—unlike many online services that try to charge for business mentoring services, Ken just got away with the biggest scandal in business history. Thus, he doesn’t really need my money, because we all know that he has a few million stashed in a bank somewhere overseas. I get a free business mentor, and he gets to pretend that he’s still somebody special—it’s a true symbiotic relationship.

But, one of the most important reasons that I choose Ken as my business mentor: he’s already made every mistake in the book, so I can utilize his expertise in steering me away from potential business disasters—like billion-dollar financial scandals, or particularly “creative” bookkeeping practices. Also, as my business mentor—should the need arise, Ken can point me in the direction of a good lawyer to get me out of any particularly sticky situations.

Since Ken doesn’t have anything better to do right now than be my business mentor, I can’t see any reason why he’d decline the request. After all, it’s not like he’ll ever be hired at another company worth a hill of beans, so be may as well use his spare time to promote entrepreneurship in the global community. By being my business mentor, Ken can pay off his debt to society, one lie at a time, all the while keeping me from heading to prison.

So, it’s easy to see why Ken Lay makes the best business mentor ever—I don’t even see any other choices. So, over the course of our business mentoring relationship, I’ll expect him to help me with some creative math, then help me to tuck that creative math away where no pesky FBI agents can find it. Like I said—a true symbiotic relationship.

Ethics for 2007 and Beyond

2007-04-02T04:43:00.001-07:00

There has been a lot in the news about ethics lately. Or rather about he lack of them. The headlines include students’ cheating, Congressmen lying, CEO back-dating stock options and executives spying on their boards – among other things. The question is often asked “why do smart people do dumb things?” Let me put it a different way, people who are smart – or not so smart – need to do the RIGHT thing. So what does that mean?

The Right Things…

Do not lie, cheat or steal. Ever. No excuses. “But everyone else is doing it” should have stopped before junior high school.

Treat others the way you would want to be treated. This applies to customers, employees, suppliers and family members.

There are no short cuts to success. Success is the result of hard work over time. Anything less is luck.

Communication. Say what you mean and mean what you say. We are all caught up in double talk, buzz words and spin. Think about what you say – whether it is one on one, to a small meeting, to the board or to an auditorium of people. Put is out there in plain English.

Walk the talk. If you say something – others look to you to live it too. If you expect something from others then you must live it and lead by example.

No secrets. Whether it is over the phone, e-mail, conversation – or even “IM” – there are NO secrets. If you would not say something to your mother – then do not say it to others in the “privacy” of conversation, e-mail or other communication vehicles.

Visibility works both ways. PR is great when you want everybody to know about something wonderful you have done. How about when you do something that is not so wonderful? Think about it. Would you want your actions on the front page of the newspaper or on the 10 O’clock news report?

Don’t forget…

Whether you are in the mail room – or the corner office – or anywhere in between, the way you act every day – in and out of the office – speaks volumes about you. Live your life as an open book. Follow the simple principles outlined about. You may not become a Fortune 500 CEO or achieve FORBES list of the wealthiest people – but you will be able to sleep at night, look your colleagues in the eye and leave a wonderful legacy for all of those you have touched during your life.

Define Your Position: Values, Ethics & Leadership

2007-04-02T04:42:00.000-07:00

Some call it wearing one’s heart on the sleeve; others call it wearing their emotions. If the discussion is of values and ethics, leaders must wear them openly, constantly encouraging, mentoring, and coaching others to operate within values-based and ethical standards the leader expresses. Values and ethics exist in a philosophical arena and often mistaken as the same. Values explain that who you are is what you were when. Ethics demonstrates values through behavior. This paper takes the position that values exist on a higher plane than ethics.

Dr. Gyertson6 shares an insight on value and ethic sources. He says throughout human development, there are socio-cultural influences in family and tribe. In the time of prehistory, these values meant survival and extended family. Exploring present value development offers a very different view of family and tribe. Family is nuclear now and connection to extended family is often limited to the July Family Picnic. Tribe, community, is multifaceted people have small neighborhood tribes, work tribes, social tribes, and others. They move among tribes and behave differently in different settings. While core values remain, behaviors shifts when moving among groups. Interacting in work groups is an example. Consider a group of university administrators working to satisfy the needs and desires of applicants and students. Administrators work to put applicants and students at ease as they enter classes. Faculty works with students lecturing, and facilitating to grow students knowledge. The student is the same person yet is interacting with the different elements of the university.

Value deals with the worth, utility, moral virtue, aesthetics, and, may be singular or a collective of each. Values are at the core of what a person believes. In June 2006, article in USA Today, Colorado Rockies pitcher Jason Jennings tells the reporter that players for the ball club hear the value of character and good living from the top of the organization all the way down. In the locker room, one does not see pornographic pictures or magazines. There are sports magazines, racing and car magazines, and prominently seen throughout the locker room are bibles. This ball club believes in Christian values and Christian ethical behavior. A fan tells of not hearing the usual trash talking or player showboating among members of the Rockies. The leadership in the Rockies organization provides evidence of expected behavior in the clubhouse, on the playing field, and among players of other teams. The Rockies are not the "winningest" team in major league baseball; however, they display the near the highest behavioral ethics.

Ethics comes from the Greek ethikos, meaning arising from habit. Ethics is a study of living, a study in which we discover things as being right or wrong or true and false based on how we know things. Therefore, ethics is the outward manifestation, the acting out of a belief.

Values versus ethics

Values and ethics do not exist separately from each other. However, they may develop differently over time. A child’s values grow from the values of parents. A child’s ethical behavior develops from observing what parents do. Trust in parents’ grows as a child sees their parents obeying their beliefs (values) through their ethics (what they do) consistently. It is a leader’s responsibility to an organization, workers, and her- and him-self to do no less. Followers of a leader will loose trust quickly if they observe attitudes and behaviors that do not match expressed ethical standards and values.

Values must identify or embody who a leader is. Values are the bases upon which leaders make judgments on what is important. Ethics identifies a leader’s moral compass, the leader’s understanding of good and right. Ethics are a set of moral principles.

Leaders must commit to personal values and organizational values seeking a fit between both. Moreover, leaders must manifest values in a way that leaves the observer fully aware of the leader’s commitment.

A leader studies the community in which an organization exists to know what the community values. Another consideration is the ethical behavior that leaves a leader questioning whether the community acts as it believes. These observations of what a community believes and how it behaves tells a leader the scope of normative order within a community. However, organizational leaders must operate on a higher plane.

A consideration for leader examination when establishing a code of ethics is that ethics and values do not fit a neat categorization into specialty areas. Melissa Ingwersen1 of JPMorgan Chase Bank supports the foundation of ethics at home and school before applying them to business. She says JPMorgan Chase does not want to compromise it banks or bankers by doing business with questionable clients. Therefore, JPMorgan Chase selects clients carefully attempting to maintain their reputation and the reputation of their clients.

What does the above example tell us about values and ethics in an organization? For Chase Bank, the value is honesty, integrity, and character building of clients by selecting clients who have similar values as the bank. Chase Bank does not compromise their core values for the sake of gaining business. Another view of this provided by Brenda Joyner, et al2, is a sense of corporate social responsibility (CSR). CSR includes such elements as economic, legal, discretionary activities and ethics. She says these exist within what are the values of the public.

Working standard - values and ethics

Stated above, ethics is the outward display of values. In some organizations, leaders are content to accept the ethic of responsibility to shareholders. Although this was the generally accepted behavior in economic boom years, most long-life businesses recognize that the bottom line is not an ethically symbolic way to engage.

Joyner, et al, relate the work of Paine (1994). In this, they attempt to put a value on following the letter of the law versus following spirit of the law. While obeying the letter of the law is legally and ethically correct, seeking the higher value to obey the spirit of the law propels a leader to higher trust, reducing cynicism, ultimately adding value to the ethical standard. The ethical standard is a leader and organization’s integrity strategy and values are the core beliefs driving the strategy.

Ray Coye3, writing in 1986 saw the need to differentiate values and ethics. In his view, there are no values for an organization separated from the collective values of leaders and members. He provides a definition of values as, “… serv(ing) as the authorities in the name of which choices are made and action taken.” In greater depth, this 1986 definition is one based on the prevailing attitude toward values and ethics considered correct – at that time (Coye, 1986)
• A value is chosen freely after consideration of alternatives and consequences
• Publicly affirmed, cherished, and prized
• Pattern of action that is consistent and repeated

Conclusion

Values exist at the core of our nature; they are our core belief system. Ethics, our behavior, reveal our values within an operating environment. If we say we cherish (value) our children but behave abusively, value and ethical behavior are incongruent. Within a leadership role, the same is true of our attitude toward workers. Recent history of organizational failure adds to common knowledge of how personal greed over the expressed organizational values ruin business and, worse, the faith workers have in the business and leaders.

Not all organizations are the Colorado Rockies Baseball Club, but trends start one person and one organization at a time. Be a trend setter.

Examples of a Character Reference Letter

2007-04-02T04:38:00.000-07:00

As a result of my time in business, I have had many excellent Examples of a Character Reference Letter. A good character reference letter is priceless to some. The people who guard well the things they say and the things they do will always get a great character reference letter.

What I’ve found over the years is that those who can stand upright in the face of scrutiny have an abundance of integrity. They know what it means to say no in the face of everyone else crying yes. That’s not an easy thing to do.

I’ve also found that many of those who make the most noise draw the biggest crowd. That is unfortunate because those with character and integrity should really be the ones leading. Their decisions will always be wise decisions.

I have taught my 7 year old grandson to make sure that the things that you do in the dark will always be able to stand up in the glare of daylight. He understands that he is the victor when he turns his back on folly.

“Words my son” is what I tell him, “your words must be screened, filtered and then weighed before you send them out to work for you.”

We laugh because he teases me sometimes. “Keep your guard up” he’ll mock. “Protect yourself at all times son.” We laugh some more.

We’re reading a doubleday book by Peter Schweizer called “Do As I Say (Not As I Do). It’s a short book of about 250 pages. Schweizer begins the book by thanking the celebrities “for living such inconsistent lives.”

We thought that to be a bit on the comical side. However, when you get to reading the book, it’s not so funny. The people are well-known and well liked. They say they espouse certain beliefs, but they live contrary to those beliefs.

At the end of the day, the easiest letter for me to write has been for people who have been living Examples of a Character Reference Letter.

Conversely, the most difficult letter for me to write has been for people who have been hypocritical Examples of a Character Reference Letter.

Poor Work Ethics Risk Future of U.S. Business, Education and Ultimately Freedom

2007-04-02T04:37:00.002-07:00

With all of the political campaigning, a report released this fall by the Josephson Institute received very little attention and unfortunately should have been both front page news and the lead story for every major media outlet. This annual report of over 36,000 students revealed poor work ethics where 60% of American high school students in order to improve their performance cheated on a test with 28% said that they stole from a store.

What is even more incredible is the disconnect between these students’ behaviors and their personal beliefs. Ninety-two percent of these students believed that their personal characters were satisfactory with a whopping 74% agreeing to the statement: "When it comes to doing what is right, I am better than most people I know." From the sound of these findings, no wonder we have politicians who believe that their misleading to false ads are O.K. and that they did nothing wrong.

The results of this survey confirmed earlier surveys. In 2005, Donald McCabe at Rutgers University published a survey where more than 70% of students admitted to cheating at least once on a test. Cheating is not just reserved for highs school students. McCabe also surveyed graduate students and discovered cheating attitudes for:

* 56% of business students
* 54% of engineering students
* 48% of education students
* 45% of law school students

The ramifications from this research are far reaching. For example, business ethics has been the talk of many with the Enron executives and various other business executives being indicted. With over 1 out of 2 believing that cheating is OK, can this be part of the reason? Capitalism does not make people unethical. People are unethical before they enter the business marketplace.

Steps Involved In Making Your Business Competitive

2007-04-02T04:37:00.001-07:00

These are the fundamental steps that lead a business to a path of progress and competitiveness enhancing efficiency and effectiveness of the business. There are 7 steps that are discussed below:

1. Finding the Gaps It includes the skills and knowledge your company possesses and is a major determinant of your success. In this step you need to identify your strengths, areas needing further study and areas of concern that could seriously affect your ability to stay competitive. Once you are through with this step, you would have access to practicable online information and other references that will help you bridge any knowledge and skill gaps. Filling these gaps will help in making your organization better prepared and to ascertain benefit from valuable information relating to the various management functions.

2. Pre-Planning Pre-Planning is the process by which the management of an organization foresee its future and develop the necessary measures and operations to achieve the goals of future. It includes development of the purpose, mission, vision, and value statements of the managing teams; communication of these documents and suggestions for improvement, culture survey to create a base against which change can be compared and last but not the least celebrating achievements and learning from mistakes. After Pre-Planning the team needs to formulate strategies and, clearly identify an action plan on which implementation is to be performed. As part of this phase, you will also need to repeat your mission and restate your company's vision. Although there are many kinds of strategies but in this situation basic strategy should not change much in the short term, whereas sub-strategies can change rapidly in reaction to competitive situations.

3. Financing Financing plan is developed to increase the business competitiveness through an improved knowledge of the techniques and methods of funding available. Equity and debt are two types of financing available to business. Equity is the money that you put into your business and Debt is what you borrow from others to invest in your business.

4. Involvement of Technology The businesses are becoming more dependent on technology. By optimizing the use of technology, the business may maintain progress, improve its customer services, and gain a competitive edge over those businesses that are not utilizing their technology. In the modern world the change of information technology has become a vital part in competition with the real world. Now the Question is that why do we use technology in business? The answer is simple that it enhances customer service, can decrease cost, can improve communication, can facilitate research, can increase productivity, efficiency as well as effectiveness in the business.

5. Improvement in Human Resource Using this resource to its best advantage is a means to maximize the effectiveness of the other entire systems and procedures already in place. The business or an organization having skilled and competitive employees is considered as the most competitive business. Proper human resource management is needed to increase effectiveness in work and to smoothly achieve the goals and accomplish tasks.

6. Marketing strategy Marketing and related activities in a business, small or large, ensure that your business gets information from its customers, develops and markets the services to satisfy their needs and gets feedback on their satisfaction levels. Marketing acts as an interface between the enterprise and its markets. Marketing can be defined as the function that encompasses most activities between the producer of a good or the supplier of a service and the consumers. It is also a set of business development activities which starts with the consumer from whose needs, the business gets its service ideas and to whom it will sell its services.

7. Process of Quality Assurance The Process of Quality Assurance in a business refers to planned, and step-by-step activities that determines that testing is being carried out correctly, results are accurate, and mistakes are found and corrected to avoid undesirable outcomes. Quality assurance is a constant set of activities that help the business to ensure that the test results provided are as accurate and reliable as possible. Maintaining quality assurance leads to customer retention, and an image as a competitive business in the minds of clients.

Conclusion Competition in businesses is now found everywhere and in such a competitive world it is difficult for any new business or start-ups to survive and thrive. Implementation of the above steps can definitely help towards effectively competing in any market.

Is Royal Mail Another Business That Is Making It Difficult For Customers To Buy From Them

2007-04-02T04:36:00.000-07:00

From Monday the 21st of August 2006, Royal Mail changed the rates for the postage of letters.

Previously, the cost of postage depended purely on the weight of the letter. But now it has been decided that the price should depend on the size of the letter as well as the weight of the letter.

This means that a single sheet of paper sent in a small envelope would cost just 30p for first class postage. Whilst the same sheet of paper sent in an A4 envelope would cost 42p.

I've always believed that the business should make a profit. And also that businesses should have the right to determine their own pricing. But I really can't believe that this one has been thought through properly.

Our first concern in the office on the morning of Monday 21st August was trying to understand the new system and making certain that our letters were going out with the correct rate of postage. The new system is undoubtedly more complex and has caused us plenty of confusion.

But what really baffles me is that the new system is so easy to manipulate. Instead of sending out documents in an A4 envelope, they can simply be folded in half and put into a smaller envelope which qualifies for the lower rate of postage. A saving of 12p per letter! You have to make certain that the letter does not exceed a certain thickness but most business post would quite easily meet this criteria.

Even more bizarre, you could put your letter into the same large envelope and then simply fold the envelope in half in order to qualify for the lower rate of postage! How nuts is that? And even more bizarre (as if that is possible!) this is exactly the advice being given across the counter at the post office!

When you add to all of this confusion to the cost that must've been incurred by notifying every single address within the United Kingdom of the new system (including templates to help users gauge the size of a letter) and the new charge rates, has this really been a successful initiative?

I very rarely criticise a business by name. And I hope that my comments will be taken constructively. But I really do feel that Royal Mail have shot themselves in the foot and have lost a huge amount of consumer confidence. Maybe I will be proved wrong. I hope so.

What do you think?

And I beg you, please take a look at your own systems and make certain that it is easy for customers to buy from you. This is one area in which we cannot afford to make mistakes.

If customers are put off buying from us at the first hurdle we will very rarely get a second opportunity. You may have lost the customer without even knowing that you had them in the first place!

Derek Williams is creator of The WOW! Awards™ an International Professional Speaker and Chief Executive for the Society of Consumer Affairs Professionals in Europe.

Business Ethics and Social Responsibility

2007-04-02T04:35:00.002-07:00

Business ethics is a form of applied ethics that examines just rules and principles within a commercial context; the various moral or ethical problems that can arise in a business setting; and any special duties or obligations that apply to persons who are engaged in commerce. Generally speaking, business ethics is a normative discipline, whereby particular ethical standards are advocated and then applied.

It makes specific judgments about what is right or wrong, which is to say, it makes claims about what ought to be done or what ought not to be done. While there are some exceptions, business ethicists are usually less concerned with the foundations of ethics (meta-ethics), or with justifying the most basic ethical principles, and are more concerned with practical problems and applications, and any specific duties that might apply to business relationships.

Business ethics can be examined from various perspectives, including the perspective of the employee, the commercial enterprise, and society as a whole. Very often, situations arise in which there is conflict between one and more of the parties, such that serving the interest of one party is a detriment to the other(s). For example, a particular outcome might be good for the employee, whereas, it would be bad for the company, society, or vice versa. Some ethicists see the principal role of ethics as the harmonization and reconciliation of conflicting interests.

Ethical issues can arise when companies must comply with multiple and sometimes conflicting legal or cultural standards, as in the case of multinational companies that operate in countries with varying practices. The question arises, for example, ought a company obey the laws of its home country, or should it follow the less stringent laws of the developing country in which it does business?

To illustrate, United States law forbids companies from paying bribes either domestically or overseas; however, in other parts of the world, bribery is a customary, “accepted” way of doing business. Similar problems can occur with regard to child labor, employee safety, work hours, wages, discrimination, and environmental protection laws.

Business ethics should be distinguished from the philosophy of business, the branch of philosophy that deals with the philosophical, political, and ethical underpinnings of business and economics. Business ethics operates on the premise, for example, that the ethical operation of a private business is possible -- those who dispute that premise, such as libertarian socialists, (who contend that "business ethics" is an oxymoron) do so by definition outside of the domain of business ethics proper.

The philosophy of business also deals with questions such as what, if any, are the social responsibilities of a business; business management theory; theories of individualism vs. collectivism; free will among participants in the marketplace; the role of self interest; invisible hand theories; the requirements of social justice; and natural rights, especially property rights, in relation to the business enterprise.

Business ethics is also related to political economy, which is economic analysis from political and historical perspectives. Political economy deals with the distributive consequences of economic actions. It asks who gains and who loses from economic activity, and is the resultant distribution fair or just, which are central ethical issues.

Workplace Ethics: Say No To Laziness

2007-04-02T04:35:00.001-07:00

As I was reading the Bible sometime this week my eyes fell on a verse that set my heart pumping hard. My lips went dry as I tried to ruminate over

what I had just read. The words in Proverbs 18:9 were very clear in my mind:

"He who is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys."

(Slack means not willing to work/lazy/not work well/slothful) These are the very words in the verse that I read. (My aim is not to preach here but to give you insights of how we should conduct ourselves at the workplace to maximize what we have worked for so hard).

The words hit me like a thunderbolt. Why? Well, I have been guilty of being slack in my work sometimes. I know you have too. The writing on the wall is clear: if you are lazy or slothful then there is no difference between you and a person who destroys or wastes.

The more we 'encourage' ourselves to be slack and lazy by camouflaging this stark reality in well-meaning words and clichés such as 'relaxing', 'all work with no play makes Jack a dull boy', and 'entertainment' then we're distancing ourselves from the brass tacks of the game. Therefore, the first high wind that comes will destroy our ship. A ship that has, maybe, taken years of toil and moil to build.

People who are slack will generally find that they have so much time on their hands to do other things but the work they ought to plan for and do. They are time wasters. We must never forget that time is one of the most priceless things that all people possess in equal measure. What sets people apart is how they utilize the time they have.

How do you use your time? How do you use your working time? Do you steal time from your employer? (This gives laziness a 'legal' hold on us). Do you always give flimsy reasons for not achieving what is expected of you? If so, outline the reasons and try to find out why you give those reasons. You'll be surprised at how some of these reasons are puerile. Our vision is clear in our minds. We want to achieve a higher high and sharpen our unique 'stocks-in-trade'. But we've got to set things in clear perspective before we think of anything else.

We should learn how to manage the time at our disposal and make sure that we measure work output against the backdrop of the time we've used to do it. This way we'll curb time wastage and be on our way to better workplace performance.

Scam Review Websites

2007-04-02T04:34:00.000-07:00

Review website are popping up all over the Internet giving their reviews “more like an opinion” on every topic imaginable. These review sites are not here to give you their honest opinion but rather use their website to gain commissions from those websites that they are in fact reviewing.

Who really cares what their opinion is, when their opinion is based upon weather or not they are going to get a big fat commission check for their opinion in the first place.

These sites are mere feeding off of others hard work by running comparisons between one another for the sole purpose to get you to come to their review site in the first place. The reviews that are posted are based upon which company owner will pay the biggest commission, and not on the facts or reputation of the reviewed company itself.

ScamReviewSites.com is based in the USA to bring these varmints out in the open and tell the general public why and what they are up to. Their agenda is to trick us into believing that they really have done some research on the companies they claim they have reviewed when the facts show these review sites are merely cut, copy and paste the information from a different review site and changing the company’s name to suit their agenda.

ScamReviewSites.com has nothing to gain, they are independent of others, they do not accept ANY affiliate links or any type of commissions on their reviews. They point out the Good, the Bad and the Ugly for any and all sites without accepting a dime for their time and hard work.

You will NOT find a better source and a more genuine Review Site on the Net today. The information is straight to the point and written without any money agenda, go visit, it’s free for all.

Erp System – How To Pick Right One

2007-04-02T04:32:00.000-07:00

About ERP

An Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system is a single unified system developed for an organization for integrating all aspects of data and processes related to it. An ERP system covers all the basic functions of an organization, regardless of the organization's business or charter. It began as a group of applications or software focusing on combining multiple systems into one integrated system where data could be shared across the enterprise, presumably reducing redundant data entry and processes.

An ERP system is a software package, which provides the functionality of an organization in a single package that would be covered by two or more systems. For example, a software package that provides both Payroll and Accounting functions such as QuickBooks is considered as an ERP software package. The software attempts to integrate all departments and functions across a company onto a single computer system that serves all those departments’ particular needs. Building a single software program that serves the needs of people in finance as well as the people in human resources and in the warehouse is a tall order. Each of those departments has its own computer system optimized for the particular ways that the department does its work. But ERP combines them all together into a single, integrated software program that runs off a single database so that the various departments can share information and communicate with each other more easily.

The term ERP originally implies system designed to plan the utilization of enterprise-wide resources. Although the acronym ERP originated in the manufacturing environment, today's use of the term has much broader scope. A typical ERP system would replace two or more independent applications of an organization by eliminating the external interfaces previously required between systems and provide additional benefits which range from standardization and lower maintenance, to easier or greater reporting capabilities.

The need to undergo an ERP project is seen not only as an opportunity to integrate data systems but also to redefine processes in the interest of gaining efficiencies as well as to mote professional growth for employees by introducing new skills and knowledge in the areas of data management and procedures.

Selecting ERP software does not happen all of a sudden or as a result of an overnight's discussion. There is lot of base work that needs to be done in this regard. There are many reasons for the uncertainty, with the foremost being advent of Internet. This has expanded the scope of computers and redefined the technological changes in the business. As a result there is more expectations and demand, which were not seen earlier. Advancement in computing indirectly implies the advancement in ERP. Needless to say the constant updating and innovating have become the benchmark of ERP packages. The tentative mind of companies in choosing ERP software solutions needs no explanation.

Selecting an ERP system – Build or Buy?

Many business executives rely on prepackaged enterprise resource planning solutions for all aspects of their businesses from manufacturing to accounting. The philosophy behind many ERP systems is that a suite of software tools can quickly integrate all areas of business administration more easily. Major vendors such as SAP, Oracle, and PeopleSoft offer integrated tools for accomplishing this task.

While many businesses choose one of these off-the-shelf ERP solutions, there are many advantages to building an ERP application in-house. Businesses often prefer to have in-depth institutional knowledge of how these systems work and how they interface with the various business areas. Managers faced with evaluating any enterprise-wide IT system must make the build vs. buy decision early in the process of implementing ERP Systems.

Mull over these questions before deciding to build or buying

While it is faster to install a packaged ERP suite than it is to build one from scratch, the required time investment depends mainly on the level of customization your company needs and the amount of data you have to migrate. For many organizations, the considerations that influence the build-or-buy decision include the following things:

▪ Whether your company willing to change the way it does business to accommodate the software?

▪ As the business grows do you anticipate many changes?

▪ Which business functions provide a competitive advantage?

Whether your company willing to change the way it does business?

The argument for packaged solutions: For many managers, suggesting that their employees change the way that they work to accommodate a software package is an absurd idea. However, many large companies are changing their business practices to use ERP packages. Why would a company generally be willing to do this? Customization to prewritten ERP packages may be expensive, especially when software is upgraded. A company may also decide that there is little harm in changing business practices in routine areas that do not provide a competitive advantage.

The argument for custom solutions: The custom solution is designed with your organization in mind so that it is less likely that your business processes will have to change to fit the ERP solution. The costs to customize vendor packages are literally high—an expense that might be avoided with a custom solution.

As the business grows, do you anticipate many changes?

Packaged: As business requirements develop and as the business grows, more changes to the ERP package will be needed. Although both customized solutions and ERP packages are often very difficult to extend into new business functionalities, the packaged ERP suites excel in their ability to amend and grow with the business, a flexibility advantage that is often touted by vendors.

Custom: Although a packaged ERP solution may be better at adapting to changing business requirements, you have to determine if this flexibility is worth the cost. Your organization may not probably make fundamental changes in the future. For example, basic business processes such as accounting finance and general ledger will rarely undergo radical changes. Therefore your organization may discover that a custom solution is sufficient.

Which business functions provide a competitive advantage?

Packaged: If your organization does not have a clear competitive advantage from your ordinary business systems, an off-the-shelf solution may provide the greatest benefit because a packaged solution can be used right out of the box and requires very little IT overhead.

Custom: Are there features within your ERP application suite that may give you an edge over your rivalry? For example, if your company’s order processing ability gives you a competitive edge over the other vendors, it would be idiotic to install an off-the-shelf order processing solution.

In cases where rightful competitive advantages exist within the main business functions, it can be suicide to customize off-the-shelf ERP packages to maintain business methods. The cost of upgrades of these systems can reach tens of millions of dollars when the application code has been tailored.

Making the choice:

If you build your own ERP solution, you may benefit from customization, but that advantage comes at the expense of high development and maintenance costs. Packaged solutions are fully supported, but sometimes they may not always be an exact fit for your organization. To make the best selection, weigh the top considerations of your business against the advantages of each type of system.

Implementation of an ERP solution as a whole or as a part calls for high-level skills in analyzing your business operations, the business rules of your organization and the current technical scenario that could include a multitude of legacy systems. The dominant effect is a successful plan to integrate all these diverse activities into the ERP package resulting in efficient servicing of your customers, enhancing the bottom line of your operations and facilitating well-informed decision-making by various levels of management.

A successful ERP System implementation greatly depends on the blend and the synchronization of the team. A well-managed functional team with a clear understanding of the business practices, combined with a technical team, which understands the architecture of the product provides a team close to excellence. In general there are 10 tips to be followed while selecting the best ERP System for your business.

1. Make sure whether your executive team is willing to sponsor the ERP implementation project or not. One reason why projects fail is because the executive team does not establish a process to resolve issues, and neglects to make decisions in a timely fashion to keep implementations running smoothly. definitely

2. Clearly define what you are going to do, how long it will take, what resources are needed, and what it costs. Build contingency plans, manage risk, and communicate with everyone involved. A project manager is authorized person who can make or break an ERP implementation.

3. Select the best people for the ERP implementation team. You will be asking them to define how the business runs in the future. Pair the people who understand the business along with people who understand the technology.

4. Find the right consulting partner or firm that is experienced in ERP implementation, has a strong project management approach, and culturally blends in with your company. Remember, you will work long hours with these people and make sure that they have your best interests at heart and good references. It is also important that they understand your organizations needs.

5. Obtain the functionality you need but make sure that the ERP system provides the critical functions you need to run your business. Interview all the departments within your organization to identify the major features and functions they use on a daily basis to run the business. Understand the unique requirements of your organization, if the ERP system supports them, and how you are going to fill that gap if it does not.

6. Plan for the future and ask these questions: does the ERP system offer enough capacity to help my business grow? How will I support my IT infrastructure in an organization? Take the time to understand where your business goes in the future.

7. Select a solid ERP provider and make sure that the company you are considering doing business with today will still be here tomorrow. Apart from reading financial statements, talk to analysts and business contacts about the ERP software provider.

8. Understand skill levels in your company and look at the skill levels of the people in your company and IT department, and compare them with what you will need in the future. Identify the areas of need and invest in training and hiring people experienced in ERP concepts, business processes, and technology.

9. Focus on training your people and change management, which is absolutely crucial to the success of an ERP implementation. Every year companies invest millions of dollars in ERP systems, but do not provide adequate training. An investment in technology will not yield returns without adequate investment in people.

10. Understand your organizations integration requirements. Most companies have multiple applications that need to talk to the ERP software. Build integration architecture and use integration tools to reduce total cost of ownership and build a flexible architecture for the future.

Areas in which integration of ERP System best suits, includes:

Integrated Financials: General Ledger, A/P, A/R, integration/consolidation, cash management, multi-currency, multi-language, fixed assets.

Business Intelligence: Ad hoc reporting, executive information systems, multi-dimensional modeling.

Manufacturing / Importing & Scheduling: Purchasing, production scheduling, production process control, material requirements planning, master production scheduling, capacity planning, product definition, WIP tracking.

Distribution: Inventory management, bonded warehousing, logistics, transportation planning.

Customer Service: Sales order processing, returns.

Communications: EDI, Internet / Intranet.

The nuance in picking ERP software

Pre-ERP implementation includes analysis, constructive criticism; homework's which has a significant place in the whole process of ERP. Lot of research and base work needs to be completed prior to the implementation of ERP or even before thinking about bringing ERP into the organization. The plans of the organization must be clearly charted out and how it tends to benefit from ERP operations have to be looked from a broader context.

Conclusion:

This discussion should include important things namely financial issues. Besides it should also account for the potential strengths, weaknesses and threats. How much profit will be incurred need to be discussed and substantiated? Other non-monetary benefits should also be discussed. These studies should involve the contribution of the entire group in the organization right from the person in the highest hierarchy to the one in the lowest level of hierarchy in the organization. The contribution should be validated and brightened by means of presentations, which will help everybody to get insight of the different perspectives, and views. All of them will be helpful in the successful implementation of ERP.

Fibre2fashion has emerged as a distinctive B2B platform for global Textile, Apparel, Fashion and Retail and allied industries. Fibre2fashion.com offers business solutions, news, articles and information that help to survive and sustain in the most hostile and competitive business environment.

Translator Ethics: A Real Responsibility

2007-03-28T05:13:00.001-07:00

Ethics? Translators don’t need to worry about ethics, do they? When most people think of ethics and professionals, they tend to focus on people like accountants, doctors, lawyers, or other high profile jobs. However, everyone that deals with other people in their business has the duty and responsibility to be ethical. Translators are no exception.

It is easy for people to point out unethical behavior in certain professions, but what about translators? It might not be as apparent. However, unethical activities do occur and it's important to know what some of these are and ways to keep them from being a temptation to you.

Unethical behavior in the translation profession can take many forms. For example, translators are usually on deadlines with clients and it's important to be truthful to your clients in terms of what you can accomplish in a given timeframe. If you come to terms with a client and agree to finish a job by a certain deadline, it is unethical to decide not to do that job or not finish it on time without informing the client. They usually have deadlines as well, and not respecting those is not only bad for business, but is also unethical.

Another major way that translators can be unethical is by not keeping their clients' information confidential. Translators are privy to all sorts of information, and some of this information is private and confidential to the client that requested the translation. It is definitely unethical for a translator to disclose this information to anybody.

Another way that translators can be unethical is by purposely overcharging a client when a price has already been quoted. Many translators' clients are first-time clients and might not know or understand how translators calculate their fees. Translators must not give into the temptation to overcharge a client when they know that the client is a little in the dark. Taking advantage of this ignorance is unethical. Earning a few more dollars off of a client is no way to increase your translation business, and in fact is the perfect way to ruin your translation career.

Ethical issues and situations can appear in any profession, and the translation profession is no exception. Translators should be aware of the ethical issues that can come up so that they know how to avoid them as well. Being ethical is a responsibility that every translator has.

What Goes Around

2007-03-28T05:12:00.000-07:00

Do you believe in the universal principle of “What goes around comes around?” Some even say “What you give, you get back ten times over.” Well I certainly do and I try to live by that principle everyday. I apply it in both my private and business life.

Once you begin to deal with the public a lot as a Mobile Notary, you will begin to notice that everyone doesn’t live by this same principle. In fact I’ve seen where some people live by the antithesis of it in their business dealings.

In an industry like the one we have chosen to take part in, namely the mortgage industry, there are many people who are downright greedy! After all, hundreds of thousands of dollars cross desks everyday in this industry. In my personal experience, loan officers rank amongst the top of this category. They have the biggest greed glands of all.

I may get some flack on this, but I am only talking about my experiences. I am sure there are loan officers out there somewhere that have scruples and do business in a fair way without hurting others, I just haven’t met any yet.

I recall one instance in particular about a year ago. I was sent to conduct a closing for a Hispanic family that barely spoke English. After going through the HUD1 settlement statement with the borrowers, I noticed that they were being charged an outlandish amount in fees. If I remember correctly the loan was for approximately $300k and the loan officer was set to scalp these poor unsuspecting people for nearly $18k.

I felt bad for them to say the least, because the broker was actually earning more money off the deal than the borrowers were set to get back. I could have bit my lip and let these people get taken advantage of, and I suspect that many Mobile Notaries would have, but, I just couldn’t do it. So I explained to them the best I could using the little Spanish I remembered from high school that they needed to possibly rework the deal with their loan officer. I also remembered to ask them not to use my name when and if they spoke with their loan officer.

These people were not stupid. They suspected that somehow they were being taken advantage of. They told me they felt uneasy with the loan officer anyway and that they planned to get advice from a family member who was fluent in English during the rescission period.

They really thanked me and I could tell it was sincere. I ultimately discovered that the borrowers told their broker that they decided to cancel the loan unless the numbers changed dramatically.

In short, the loan was cancelled. However, I was reassigned to the same borrowers a week later. This time the borrowers were saving an additional $10k. They were so happy that they invited me and my wife to dinner to express their gratitude. We ultimately declined the dinner, but I got my reward from the feeling I got by helping these people.

A word of caution however; helping customers to save money isn’t really our job. We are supposed to simply go in and get the documents signed and initialed where appropriate and get out. Interfering with the process could mean the loss of a valuable customer for you. If you are going to do it, be sure the customer understands what is going on and that they aren’t to use you as the reason for their change of heart.

BPO: A Sweet Seduction

2007-03-28T05:11:00.002-07:00

Can a sweet, chocolate coated figure appeal for the sweet and dreamy seduction?

...Probably not… The evolution of new class in Indian society – ‘Educated labourer class’ is on the verge of asserting this fact. Recalling the days few months back, the lucrative job proposals rained by the BPO world at the doorstep of Delhi University was applauded not only through out Delhi but almost all the northern states like – Uttar Pradesh, Bihar Punjab, Haryana. In that scenario no one was in mood to spare his/her chances to boast on the matter of unemployment. Why not…, in fact the population which is going to caress 1.5 billion mark in future seems to be mammoth challenge before ‘we the people of India’. Currently, over 7% of the labour force are totally unemployed which comes around 400 million. Through the NREB (national rural employment bill 2004) the present UPA government tried to intercept the cyst of unemployment in rural areas. This bill was aimed to provide anyhow, at least the employment in the rural areas. But it is a matter of introspection of the psychology which was adopted while drafting the NREB how effectively that psychology will handle the educated labour force of India. No considerable measures have been adopted as yet to address the problem of improving the higher education status in India and positive resources to absorb them.

Every year, 2.1 million graduates and 0.3 million post graduates pass out of non-technical colleges. This figure, somehow, attracted and fetched the attention of those countries that were looking for the chance to slash their operational cost in business. Leaving millions of work force unemployed the top notch companies from the US, the UK, Australia and many other bourgeois countries started to outsource their parts of business in terms of services, data maintenance and so to the developing countries. Thus, the term BPO evolved and strengthened its position in the world market. On one hand where it started to boom the developing countries like India, on the other hand it received a curse of million of unemployed work – force of those countries who came on road overnight. The cause was evident and crystal clear – ‘Profit’. However, business is responsible for its impact on society also whether intended or not. But the origination of this consortium comes from the womb of curses, negations, hue and cries of millions of lamented populace. Naturally, the aftermath reflected in the US election which was contested on the center point of outsourcing, the Democrat defeated the Republicans with a great mandate and in addition to that William Greene (US international trade commission) had figured out the flaws related to the policies of outsourcing in his report heading “Growth in service outsourcing to India: Propellant or drain on the US economy” in Jan.2006. Thus, for how long booming BPO will keep booming us became a burning question in the countries like India.

Setting aside the speculation over the longevity and durability of the BPO, it is evident that BPO, in India, had significantly given a boost to the Indian economy by employing 4,00,000 people and having a bulk size of $9-12 million recording a growth of 37% of year on year basis. But it is expected that the BPO will face shortage of 2, 62,000 workers by 2012 which is currently facing the problem of quality human resources. Over 50-60% of attrition rate which is highest among all conventional or non-conventional sectors in India is also significant to be noted. The nine cities of India where 90% of Ites – BPO are located – Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, NCR (National Capital Region), Pune, Kolkata, Kochi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad are coincidently hub of academics and reservoir of quality production in India too. Thus companies in these are forced to complete for the same worker due to their need of more manpower which leads to wage inflation, saturation of market or knocking the door of fresh work force from the production house whether it is Delhi University or any other universities ignoring the result of stumbling block in the formation of GenNext. It was recorded that in 2004-05 the salary at the captive units have increased between 9.7%-14.3percent in comparison 4-5% growth with the European countries or Americans. In fact, they are not there for any charity or work force empowerment but preying for fresh on low wages in order to curtail their expenditure. If we analyze the background of fresher, they are either from the middle class or star class of the society. Around 70% - 75% are from the lower middle class or middle class. According to the social analyst “the front runners for catching job are the students hail from vast middle class of Indian society however undeniably they have been the only reservoir of knowledge and research works for the different walks of life.” Result – to show the back to the challenges of ‘how to nurture the reservoir of knowledge’ have been inevitable. The present studies say that the enrollment in American Institutes declined from around 80,000 in 2004-05 to 76,503 in 2005-06 and will continue to fall in the forthcoming years also. But the interesting fact is that the ranks of students are swelled by 32% over the previous year. Decline in the number of candidates dreaming for technical/semi-technical studies and rapid declining value addition at the vast majority of universities are also significant to be noted. Thus, this is nothing but the penetration of money in the honey of academics and no bees are available to safeguard them.

There is growing paradox in the industry esp. the voice based call centers. Despite of the fact that the BPO firms have much innovation, flexibilities and freedoms, at the core, it denotes a relatively hollow form of life. Portrayal of ‘work as fun’ and ‘workplace as another campus’ is the central logic through which the potential workers are attracted to and engaged in the BPO sector. The superior façade of work in the sector and the vibrant ambience of workplace – with sweeping glass and concrete buildings, factory of jazzy computers, the company of smart and trendy peers –help in drawing educated and fun loving youngsters from urban middle class, who are fascinated with western ways of living and modern work environments. A review of advertisement of BPO reveals that preferred attributes of a call center are that of young graduates/undergraduates with English speaking and comprehension ability. The firm, in their profile and advertisements toss the bright ambience of workplace with lucrative offers as the prime aspect of attraction. The comparatively easy access to job, a good communicator, having little typing skills and a command over English is all that it requires. Though a newly hired agent engages in somewhat slightly elevated job of a receptionist/computer operator or a telephone operator, the firm are found labeling the job with very attractive nomenclature such as customer support associates, customer support officers, customer care officers, customer care executives and so on. All these cumulatively lead to favourable supply conditions in the labour market and the emergence of new genre of workers who stand apart from the regular workers of conventional manufacturing/service sectors in terms of socio-economic and demographic attributes. More or less, it fails to garner the prestige of “white collar job” among the youths now. The reason which can be summoned through the dialectic of data which reveals that the average year of education of the new breed of workers is16 years fills the qualified breeds to alienate from the main stream. It gives only the idea of work as fun rather than any seriousness and sincerity with professional touch.

This is really a conundrum to understand the BPO life-cycle. The average tenure at a voice-based Indian BPO is merely 18 months and 3-4 years for the other types of business process outsourcing firms in comparison to the normal service life of 25-30 years. Despite of all the positive features of attracting the young breed of ‘educated labourer class’ why the BPO is facing the annual attrition rate of around 50-60% needs an exigency of to be pondered over. The NASSCOM, National Human resource development network and ICRA in BPO report point out the cause of attrition as – wage inflation, expectation mismatch, job stagnation, lack of growth, quest for a better job, content and dissatisfaction with the company policy. But ultimately it gives inconsistency within. The BPO culture however, has resulted in the creation of a new class of workers with distinct features and differently conceived identity eroding even the basic rights at work. This class is not only squaring him from the education but willing to be trapped into the seduction of money and repent on their decision when their golden phase of learning comes to a permanent end. They joined initially for the sake of fun only but later, when they address the real challenges of their reel of life which is many more than the pharaoh monetary need, it becomes too late to move back. Either they are kicked off under the ‘push attrition’ measures of the company in order to save themselves from the long time commitments of their employee or voluntary attrition due to non-compliance of expectations which are natural due to nature of the work.

That’s why, the immediate challenge of the researchers and social scientist here is to delineate and explore the insecurities and vulnerabilities are so veiled in the organizational logic of the firm. However, every act decision and deliberation of business management has economic performance as its first dimension but if any firm or organization does not leverage the specific cultural heritage of a country and people, social and economic development is unlikely to take place. It is really an emergency of confining the ambits of hiring process in the BPO world as basic factor in economic development is the rate of brain formation not the employment guarantee. Any country can not afford to outsource its ethics in the name of economic development only. If we do not address the need to save the contraception of brain formation and quality production on time; this is appalling to say, but there will be no one to participate in the booming media sector which is going up at the rate of 19% per annum where real academic qualities are needed whereas the BPO does not require the academic qualification essentially. The poor status of research and development is again a different chapter. Science and technology on the basis of which any nation can represent it proudly on the world forum is still remained unaddressed. How long will we keep boasting on the pseudo victory where that victory is going to prove itself lethal for a balanced development? The tier division of educated class is the only way out for the ongoing enigma; of course, hunting for new scapegoats in the university campus is not justifiable.

The Ugly Issue of Sex, Lies, and Credibility - Nu Leadership Series

2007-03-28T05:11:00.001-07:00

An intellectual is a man who takes more words than necessary to tell more than he knows. Dwight D. Eisenhower

Have you ever thought what makes one manager better than another? It might start with his or her credibility. Good values give leaders credibility. Today’s politicians argue about God’s political affiliation. Politicians promote values like they were Nike shoes. As a result, Americans are now cynical their leaders.

Let’s examine this matter closer. In 1998, President Clinton was caught in a vicious sex scandal. Clearly, it was a national disgrace. There was a circle of low character issues, including adultery, lies, and betrayal. His opponents gleamed at the possible political advantages. However, the results were different than expected.

A character train wreck pursued. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich resigned, and his replacement Bob Livingston resigned after his adulterous scandal. As a result of these personal shames among politicians, voices grew quieter about these unethical deeds. No one was discussing good family values during this scandalous timeframe. However, people want to think highly about their leaders. Leadership gurus Kouzer and Posner explain that most individuals admire leaders who are honest, inspiring, and competent.

I wonder why these powerful people don’t get it. Why do some politicians feel they can short circuit good character in their offices? People do care about character. Clearly, effective leaders need to understand that character does count and is valued among followers. Therefore, more politicians need to listen closer.

Some Thoughts - Leadership and Values

2007-03-28T05:10:00.000-07:00

I took a course in social deviance several years ago. What this course helped me understand is that societies and cultures have their own definitions of values and they exist on a continuum. Anything outside the boarders of the continuum is deviant. In relation to values, both ultraliberal and ultraconservative are inappropriate values within the society or culture’s definition. The problem with this is how one society and another define the same value.

When one experiences a significant emotional event it may tear the fabric of their values leaving them with the options you identify of confirmation, rejection, or modification. Further, when one wants to assimilate into a new culture, one tends to accept the values of that culture in spite of ones acculturated values.

We have evidence of this from our study of Paul’s letters last term. Paul had the option to reject his calling. He did modify his values accepting the values of the new sect growing out of Jerusalem.

We read an interesting argument in Joas (2000) on self and values. We base our value system on how we define ourselves, a declaration of what we commit to and from what we distance ourselves. Therefore, our self-defining becomes a “strongly valued good” (pg. 130). We make qualitative distinctions on our actions creating a value preference self-defining what is important.

Joas' suggestion takes into account life-long development of values through interaction with others. Johnson (2005) writes of casting light that spiritual development goes through several stages. At the primal level, spiritual development is of trust of parents and caregivers. Progressing, one begins to internalize beliefs and values of family and those barrowed from others, until one has an “individuative-reflective faith” (pg 111) of doubt and question. At mid-life, one accepts others’ beliefs and values and may reach the stage “universalizing faith” (pg. 112) desiring to serve a greater good beyond oneself.

In a biblical world view, both seem supporting Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.”

Joas (2000) opens us to a new level of value development through the internalizing of new experiences and “interpretation of complex activity in which we strive for harmony…” (pg. 135). Values change based on experience coupled with new experiences and new “ways of life and practices” (pg. 135).

Leaders within organizations who are founded spiritually display inward, outward, and corporate disciplines that aid in developing new values in workers. Inward values include disciplines of meditation, prayer, fasting, and study. Outward disciplines involve simplicity, solitude, submission, and service. Corporate disciplines shown by leaders are confession, worship, guidance, and celebration. Johnson (2005) presents these 12 disciplines of individual and corporate values as a way to seek a level of leader servanthood.

Compare Joas and Johnson with the spiritual gifts found in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11, the similarity is striking.

Made in Our 53rd State

2007-03-27T05:16:00.001-07:00

A few months ago, I was given a bar of soap from a very well know high-end chain store. The person who gave me the soap knew I worked with this type of product and wanted to give something she thought I’d like.

I looked at product, liked color and fragrance, put it on a shelf, and honestly forgot about it. The other day, needing a new bar of soap, I found the bar and decided to use it.

Reading the back, it gave the name of the company with their motto, “From the Heartland of America.” The very next line read, “made in Guatemala.”

So when, may I ask, did Guatemala become a “State?”

And, on top of that, once I took the clear wrap off, I was disappointed in the soap itself.

To anyone who has used M&P, you will understand. To all others M&P means Melt & Pour. You go to your local craft store, buy a base, heat it up and pour into molds of choice. Nice way to have decorative soap without the hassle and having lye around the house.

So, this soap looked like someone had used M&P, added color and fragrance. Because it came from this well know chain, I was curious about what the cost was and decided to go to my local mall to check out the price for myself. $8.00 a bar, only one word for that, RIP-Off! OK, so that’s two, but who’s counting.

Now, please don’t get me wrong, I’m all for fair trade, but to say the product is from the heartland of America, than have the very next line read “Made in…….,” sounds a little false advertising to me.

Company headquarters, yep, in the heartland of America, but Guatemala? Maybe my sense of geography is playing tricks on me. Last time I looked at my map of the world Guatemala was in Central America, or have we annexed it, so that it is a protectorate like Puerto Rico and Guam? If so, then yes, it can then say, “Made in America,” or for that matter from any region of this great country.

But, maybe I’ve read it wrong, they were on two separate lines. Just maybe in my old age, I’m beginning to run words together. But to read From the Heartland of American, then to read Made in Guatemala, simply does not ring true.

Producing products outside of the USA, may save companies money by paying less for wages, but why not pass that savings to the consumer. If they can give retiring executives retirement packages worth millions, why not give a little back to the average buyer.

High-end products are nice, but when money is running low, guess I will not be going to the mall for my soap. The best soap I’ve used has been made by a friend, the old fashioned way. In fact, my son swears by her Goat’s Milk Soap.

Since “made in …..” has become our 53rd state, wonder if I can save money but shopping there?

How Executives Betray the Honor Code - Nu Leadership Series

2007-03-27T05:15:00.001-07:00

“ Choosing one's leaders is an affirmation that the person making the choice has inherent worth.” Linda Chavez

As I glanced at the news, I was reminded of the ugliness of humanity. Do we really need another ethical scandal in America? Bernie Ebbers, WorldComm founder, started a 25-year sentence for an $11 billion account fraud. Likewise, HP had its own embarrassing moment with scandals. Recently, HP decided to keep Board Chairman Dunn after the chairman was discovered wiretapping her board. What are these executives thinking when they conducted these transgressions against their corporations?

Does character count in capitalism? Guinness, a religious authority, explains that contemporary society views character as something that distinguishes an individual; however, biblically, character is viewed as essentially moral. In many cases, character doesn’t count in secularism.

Most corporations preach high ethical behavior but are sidetracked morally by the bottom-line. Joyner, author of Leadership Management, argues that outstanding leaders fail unless their lives are underpinned with honor, morality, and character. Under the current model, anything goes. Don’t get caught! Any path will do. However, Jesus disagreed in Luke 13: 24 “Do all you can to go in by the narrow door! A lot of people will try to get in, but will not be able to.”

Don’t expect companies to clean themselves up. However, a wave of moral conduct is coming. Maynard and Mehrten, renowned futurists, maintain outside forces will demand high ethics and a moving away of a focus solely on material gain.

Therefore, leader get ready. We are entering this moral revolution.

Just Do It and Ask for Forgiveness Later

2007-03-27T05:14:00.002-07:00

The greatest shifts in American culture tend to originate from the media, but even something as innocuous as a saying can drive a cultural change. One saying in particular seems to epitomize a cultural shift that seems to be going unnoticed.

“Just do it and ask for forgiveness later.”

Heard that one lately? Used that one lately? We all have, and most of us have likely heard this used at work.

The first time I heard it, I was a little shocked. It sounded like something I would have used as a kid while trying to rationalize using Mom’s Visa Card without her knowledge. Taken aback, I looked back at my manager to see if he was serious; he was. The walls of resistance softened, and I began to nod slowly. The stamp of authority seemed sufficient to justify doing something that I would not have ordinarily done.

Maybe I was raised with unusual values. My parents were adamant that I say “please” and “thank you”. I didn’t tell my parents where I was going or what I was doing; I had to ask. May I go to Suzi's house? Can I borrow your earrings? It wasn’t considered good manners to take things that weren’t yours without asking, and it wasn’t okay to do things without checking in with other people first, especially authority figures.

The ironic thing is that those values segued nicely into the professional world. We don’t go into someone’s office and take a file from their desk when they aren’t around. We wait until they show up and then we ask them for the file. We don’t make big decisions without communicating with others first. We consult with our managers, discuss with our team members, loop in our clients.

But one day we started saying things like, “It’s okay, we’ll purchase it now and ask for forgiveness later when Finance realizes it went over budget”.

I took a moment to deconstruct what was happening here. First, let’s state the obvious. In these cases, the person knows that they are doing something wrong. They know they are going over budget. But, they don’t care. They have an opportunity to approach Finance and have a conversation with them about getting the necessary approval. They don’t do it because they know the request will be denied. So, they take the conniving, underhanded, manipulative route instead. When you catch yourself using the same strategy as your eight year old kid, you really ought to slap yourself on the hand and reconsider your approach.

Now, perhaps I’m overreacting and reading into this a bit too much, but here’s a perspective on what this “approach” to life and business is really enabling:

• This seems to suggest that you can do whatever you want with total disregard toward others as long as you follow it up with an obviously insincere apology later

• It appears to be socially okay to disrespect others. According to this, you can borrow your roommate’s things without asking and steal your coworkers food from the fridge at work. For the truly advanced, you can violate rules, go around the system, thumb your nose at the law and cheat on your spouse – as long as you can con them into accepting your apology if you get caught.

No wonder systems aren’t effective! It’s no surprise that people don’t trust others. Doing it and asking for forgiveness later is becoming a norm, which is now accepted and even worse, tolerated. When we go over budget, Finance reworks the numbers and fits it in somehow (usually by taking away from another department).

And what is it that we are actually tolerating? At the root of this, aren’t we are tolerating being blatantly disrespected? In some cases, the person knew they were doing something that you would not have approved of (forging your signature, having an affair), and yet they did it anyway. In other cases, they didn’t know whether you would have approved of it or not (borrowing your snowboard, drinking the last of your milk). We don’t consider that we may be inconveniencing that person for our own immediate benefit. “Who used up my milk? I needed it for a dessert I’m making tonight. I don’t have time to run out to the store now.”

Regardless, there seems to be an entitlement factor that is driving our actions and decisions. It’s okay to do whatever you need to do to take care of yourself. Others will figure out a way to sweep up after you. Others will work around you and figure out a way to deal with it. Others will make adjustments (at their own sacrifice) based on what you did. In other cases, you’ll be able to talk your way out of it, buy your way out of it, or will simply accept the loss as a game that you didn’t quite pull off.

Those “other” people are real people. They are part of our universe, and what we do affects them. I guarantee you will find yourself on the receiving end of a counterfeit apology and pleading eyes, and I hope you recognize it for what it truly is. Instead of accepting it, confront the person. Ask why they thought it was okay; if they don’t have a legitimate answer, tell them that you found their actions to be disrespectful and unacceptable. Attach and enforce real consequences. Let them know that you aren’t okay with the approach they took. If their behavior left you questioning their ethics, judgment or integrity, tell them that. Stand up for yourself. Respect yourself enough to demonstrate to others that you expect respect from them.

The entitlement factor is so great that we have cast aside manners where we treat others with courtesy and respect in favor of taking care of our own needs expeditiously. I fear that this may be the beginning of a cultural change where treating others with disrespect is socially acceptable, which can have truly disturbing consequences and impacts on our society.

I ask you to demonstrate integrity and build trust in others by rejecting this problem solving solution. We are not crafty children or wily teenagers, we are adults who have the knowledge, skills and savvy to render this tactic unnecessary in both our professional and personal lives. Set a new standard on respect for yourself and those you work with.

2007 Business Ethics for Entrepreneurs

2007-03-27T05:14:00.001-07:00

We hear a lot about business ethics issues in the United States and yet our businessmen and women are some of the most ethical business practitioners anywhere in the world. The transparency, integrity and accountability in American business is not found anywhere else in the world. With all the disclosure, over regulation, lawsuits and government forms it would be difficult to call any American businessperson unethical. Yet, we find that the mass media hysteria, incited by folks who do not understand commerce has cheated the positive American opinion about business ethics.

The truth of the matter is that ethics in business, the military, sports, government or even the nonprofit sector in the United States is a reflection of the overall ethics of the average human in our civilization. For someone to say that people are less ethical in business than let's say it law-enforcement; this would be a failure to adequately observe the reality of the situation.

Many people believe that our court systems and lawyers are of the highest ethical standards, but it simply is not so. Even the fine folks in government who are regulating the business community have to draw from this same population base. This is why the ethics in Government are no better than those in business; perhaps Government ethics are worse because there is less oversight. Is this good or bad? It is neither, it just is.

For us to discuss business ethics properly we must be honest with ourselves, we cannot simply label all business people as crooks, shysters or con men. Unfortunately it seems that many people in our society are pointing fingers at the business community, when in actuality they should be looking in their mirrors. In this book we will discuss and contemplate the reality of human psychology and ethics and look into the abuses of power in government, government regulators and how over regulation to prevent criminality in business is a self-fulfilling prophecy and how we are making criminals out of hard-working men and women and our brightest entrepreneurs.

As a businessperson and a Franchisor, I have been critical of over regulation at every level; Associations, City, County, State, Federal and International and more often than not government agencies, Trade Organizations and Associations are used by companies to attack their competitors. In fact, that in itself is unethical and once again proves that you cannot regulate morality and if you allow those who will point fingers to assist in the abusing of power you will undermine the inherent integrity of free-markets between buyers and sellers. I hope you will enjoy this discussion and the thoughts on business ethics and I thank you for reading this article, as it is one of my first on this subject. Perhaps this topic is of interest to propel thought in 2007?

Business Law - Ethic of the Business

2007-03-27T05:13:00.001-07:00

Business Law Before you start a business, legally, you need to obtain any business licenses or permits required by law. Doing so will identify your business, protect public health and safety and help you keep track of your finances for tax purposes. The application for an employer identification number (EIN) is available at the IRS website; an EIN is required for corporations, LLCs and partnerships, as well as any sole proprietors who will hire employees. Unless your company's service or product is regulated by a federal agency, you probably won't need any federal licenses or permits. However, things like public transportation, investment advice, or producing drugs or firearms, require supervision by a federal agency and you will need special licenses. If, for example, you will become involved with environmental regulations at the federal level, you'll need to deal with the EPA.

State Business Licensing Laws States license people in certain professions, such as lawyers, doctors, and accountants. Your state might also require a license for certain other businesses such as barbers or real estate agents. You should check with your state to find out if your business requires a state license or permit. Selling certain products including alcohol and lottery tickets might also require a state license.

Your municipality might require a license or permit for your business. Check with your city or town to find out about zoning laws to ensure that you are allowed to conduct business in a particular building like your home or the storefront you rent. If you are involved in retail sales, you will also have to pay state and local sales tax. Depending on your city, this could be done at the state level or both the city and state levels.

Credibility - Without It You're NOWHERE

2007-03-26T05:34:00.001-07:00

Internet marketers, when making a list of the things they think they need in order to successfully run an Internet business usually include the following:

1. A Web Site
2. Ads
3. Articles
4. Money For Promotion
5. A Product
6. An E-Zine

And the list goes on and on. But 95% of them forget one thing, and it's probably the one most important thing you need to have if you're going to succeed.

It's called credibility.

Instead of trying to define what that is, I'm going to give you a very simple example of how not having it will shoot down any chance you have of being successful.

You've just signed up with this great new program. It's the hottest thing since sliced bread. You've got your ads out all over the place. Finally, somebody emails you or even calls you on the phone if you've provided them with a number, and they ask you about this wonderful program. And you start telling them all about it. You can't rave about it enough. And then comes the question that makes it all meaningless.

"How much money have YOU made with this program?"

Do you see where this is going?

Sure, you can lie. But trust me, that lie will come back to haunt you in more ways than you can imagine. Or, you can tell the truth.

What do you think is going to happen when you tell this person that you haven't made a DIME?

Without credibility you are NOWHERE.

So, the $64,000 question is, how do you get credibility? How do you show people that you ARE a successful person online when you haven't made a buck?

The answer is simple, but you're not going to like it.

You're going to have to go out and make a buck.

If this sounds like a catch-22, it's not. There are ways out there to make money without having to promote a product or recruit. You just have to find them. My book has a number of ways to get that credibility so that you can show people that you HAVE made money online.

Fortunately, my Honest Income Program ebook, which you can find in my signature, WILL give you ways where you can get credibility and be able to easily promote your business with some degree of success.

The point is, there ARE ways to make money online even if you don't get my book. Just do a search engine search for online jobs or something like that. Some jobs pay okay, some not so great. You're not going to find anything that's knock 'em out of the ball park.

But, before you can go out hawking your "biz-of-the-week" you will have needed to earn at least a few hundred to a few thousand dollars before you're going to have ANY chance to get people to believe you.

If you think I am kidding, try getting people to sign up to your program when you haven't made a cent online. You may get lucky in one out of a thousand responses, but by the time you get your next sign up, the guy you just recruited will be gone because he too didn't make a cent and got fed up.

I hope everyone will take the issue of credibility seriously. I had no success online at all until I got it.

Trust me, it is the number ONE thing we all need.