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INSTITUTE
OF MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS |
News and Views |
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eNewsletter for the New England Consulting Community February 2005  |
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In this issue: Member
Feature Articles |
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This issue sponsored by
Deltek Formatting & layout services sponsored by
emerson
consulting ~~~~ |
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Looking For Articles The
Newsletter Committee is looking for articles. Please contact Mike
Kayat at
if you have an article you'd like to
submit. |
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Welcome to this month's IMCNE newsletter. In this month's issue we have included two feature articles by IMCNE members. The first article by Harvy Simkovits discusses how to avoid becoming overloaded with business commitments and other demands on our time and energy. As consultants, we should be aware of the stresses and strains on our clients, so that we can more effectively provide our guidance and advice. The second article by Dan Reagan provides a review of the basics of project management. He discusses some potential problems and provides proven tips for accomplishing successful projects. We are interested to hear about any instances of where you have received project leads from other IMCNE consultants, or opportunities to provide articles or make presentations. Have you teamed up with other IMCNE consultants on projects? We have included an example of a successful collaboration among IMCNE consultants as described by Carol Bergeron. The newsletter is an opportunity for you to provide news on your achievements and learn about your fellow consultant's activities. Please send your news, articles, book reviews and commentary for the next newsletter, the March 2005 issue. Thanks! Good
consulting! |
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Wednesday,
March 2, 2005 Monday,
April 4, 2005 Monday,
April 4, 2005 |
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Member
Spotlights Bill Katz CMC (Katz & Associates, Inc.) has been appointed Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst where he teaches in the Graduate Distance Learning Program, School of Public Health & Health Sciences. His courses include Introduction to Health Politics and Policy and Health Care Finance. Students are matriculated in the Master of Public Health online program. This is a challenging and unique experience according to Dr. Katz because his students, who may reside anywhere in the world where there is an Internet connection, enrich the class in ways that cannot be experienced in a classroom through their perspective gained in other cultures and health systems. Some students represent the US Military in many parts of the world. Others reside in several states other than Massachusetts, Japan and Central America. The classes include physicians, public health nurses and administrators. Dr. Katz also teaches in the graduate Health Care Administration program at UMass Lowell. Tom
Sowell (Sowell Manufacturing Consulting) was recently quoted
as a source in the Boston Business Journal (February 4-10, 2005)
regarding the layoffs and plant relocation of Barry Controls, Inc.
manufacturing operations to Michigan. Tom has also signed a book
publishing agreement with Random House Ventures to produce five
engineering and management books that will comprise a series called
The Manufacturing Efficiency Series. The first book, entitled
Competitive Manufacturing is scheduled to be released for
sale on May 15, 2005. The second book, still being developed yet
nearing completion, is entitled, Strategic Manufacturing Management
and is scheduled to be sold on January 1, 2006 Isn't
it your turn to be in the spotlight? Send your name, your business
name and 1) recent awards/distinctions/professional certifications
you've received; 2) public speaking engagements; and 3) published
articles. (Be sure to include key facts, such as when, where and
for whom.) You must be an IMC member or affiliate to be featured.
Email them to Mike Kayat at
, Subject: IMCNE spotlight. |
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For all of you who have been contemplating becoming CMCs but haven't known where to start, IMCNE will soon begin a 6-month mentoring program aimed at helping you not only get started but also get finished! With the help of an established CMC as your guide, you will complete all CMC requirements and finally get your goal of CMC status off the back burner. For details on this program, contact Bill von Achen, CMC at 978-440-8022 or . An
invitation to IMCNE CMC members — This section is dedicated
to you. If you have commentary you'd like to share, here is a forum
for you. Send your commentary to our Editor, Mike Kayat, for consideration.
Email Mike at
, Subject: CMC Commentary. |
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Rob
Cimini |
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by Carol Bergeron Did you get a speaking or writing engagement, new client or prospect or team up on a project or new business venture based on relationships formed through IMCNE? If so, then we want to hear your success story next month! My first exposure to IMCNE was over five years ago. While I attended program events that I thoroughly enjoyed and learned from, it was not until I got actively involved on IMCNE committees and the Board that led to strong and mutually rewarding relationships. For example, the creation of a new consulting service called "Outside Insights" was made possible only after having worked side by side with other IMCNE members. Our joint IMCNE volunteer activities facilitated our getting to know each other personally and professionally and formed a foundation of trusting relationships. Check it out: www.outsideinsights.org. Carol
Bergeron is President of Bergeron Associates. |
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Overloaded
in the New Year? Lead Your Way Out! Are you starting the new year over-extended, over-committed, overwhelmed and over-stressed in your business? Maybe you suffer from being under-leveraged as a leader! "Too much to do and not enough time" is a common mantra for most business owners. Too many demands and expectations from customers, employees, vendors (even consultants), not to mention your own family (who want a piece of your time), can throw off kilter your well-intentioned New Year's business resolutions (those important "to-do's" you promised yourself in December to get to in January). Here are some thoughts to leverage yourself better (using yourself to your utmost capability, and better working through and with others) during those high-demand and high "to-do" times, like right now. 1. Share the "water carrying". Does your business load rest just on your shoulders for you to carry alone, while everyone else is watching or waiting for you? If so, then you are setting the wrong expectation for those around you. You will never get out from under your pile. State clearly what you expect from whom, and reinforce the benefits for others to do their part to move the business forward. Note: If you have the wrong people around you, then change them as quickly as you possibly can. They can drag you and your organization down rather than bring you up to the heights you seek and deserve. 2. Make your conversations more candid and crisp. Stop "beating around the bush" with people. Get to the point more quickly and encourage others to do the same with you. You can still demonstrate caring and respect while getting quickly to the heart of a matter. Learning this skill can yield much saved time through more effective and efficient conversations. Also, try standing up during meetings. It can make day-to-day conversations go much faster. 3. Move others to bring forth their best (or point out how they are being less than they could be). Some people are inspired by a vision of what is possible, while others need a "wake-up call" (i.e., to be woken up to their capability and potential contribution). Employ both ends of this spectrum in order to move the people around you to take on greater ownership and responsibility. 4. Focus on what is really most important. Are you clear as to your most important concerns? Stop for a moment and list your ten most important priorities (or make 2 lists in order to separate business and personal objectives). Then do not leave work today until you have made some progress on at least the top two items on your list. Often, some of the other listed priorities will magically disappear when you have tackled the top two. Do this every day and watch your major accomplishments grow. 5. Install and utilize standardized practices. If you experience nagging business issues that continually reoccur, then that usually points to an insufficient understanding of that issue. Also, you may lack a practical or consistent policy, procedure or system to resolve it. Look at the recurring issues in your world and do what is needed from you to set those issues straight or to make them effectively disappear. 6. Focus on what you do best. Are you personally doing things that really do not fit with your best talents, resources and capabilities? The best business leaders know how to utilize their strengths while divesting themselves of what could be better done by others. Look at what you do not like to do, or are not good at, and assign that responsibility to someone more appropriate. Yet, also set up a check-in system to ensure that things delegated stay on track. 7. Take the time to reflect and think things out. If your behavior is constantly "do! do! do!", then you are locked into responding to the immediate and urgent, and not focusing on what is really important. The most effective people (like any sports team) take the occasional "time out" to regroup, re-prioritize and re-strategize. This way they have a better chance to tackle the situations they face with heightened insight, better actions and greater gusto. By leveraging yourself in the above ways, you can lead yourself out of being overloaded. It takes a conscious effort to slow down in order to clear your head and act on the ideas above. Yet the payoff is to be more effective in your business and professional interactions. Harvy Simkovits CMC runs Business Wisdom in Lexington, MA. He works with business leaders who want to be their best and win more at business. Better Project Management by Non-Project People by Dan Reagan A major boost to workplace productivity can occur when those who most need project skills and techniques better understand and employ good, basic project management. Project management is employed everyday in the workplace, but not always called that or well executed. This outlines some of the most common opportunities for better project management, typical obstacles, and tips for implementing better project management. Opportunities for employing basic project management
Most common obstacles / resistance to basic project management Resistance to project management starts with many common stereotypes and misconceptions. Many managers and employees think project management is only for:
And resistance comes from the many employees who have misconceptions about project management:
Tips for better project management Basic project management can be employed for better workplace performance - including "non-project" people - if some of the following tips are used.
Dan
Reagan is President of Strategy Implementation Group, Inc. His
firm provides project management expertise and support. You could be sharing your wisdom and observations with your fellow IMCNE members. Submit your article of 250-300 words for consideration to News & Views Editor Mike Kayat at , Subject: IMCNE article. |
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Breakfast
Brainstorms Calendar Monday,
March 7, 2005 Monday,
March 14, 2005 Want to host a Breakfast Brainstorm in your area? Contact for details. Strategic
Partner Events — Check out our Calendar of Strategic Partner
and Other Events on our web site for more information on events
of interest. Click www.imcne.org/spcalendar.html,
then click on the appropriate link for detailed information that
could save you money. |
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Guerrilla
Marketing for Consultants: Breakthrough Tactics for Winning Profitable
Clients Since it's my own area of expertise, I'm naturally skeptical of marketing books with extravagant titles such as this one. Is the info in here really going to be extraordinary? Is it even going to be accurate? Will I learn something new? Though there's not much in here I haven't heard before, I am, once again, an expert in these matters and you (probably) are not. And because this book is chock-full of good advice, precisely the sort I give my own clients, I must recommend it. Covering both basic and go-that-extra-mile marketing topics, it pushes the reader in the right direction, backing up its advice with explanations easy to understand. Take this passage on a subject near and dear to my heart:
Hmmm…. Couldn't a' said it better myself. Go read this book. Ken
Lizotte CMC, president of IMCNE, specializes in transforming
consultants into "thought leaders." Please
send book reviews to Mike Kayat at
Give Excellent Service: You have to do a thousand things one percent better, not just do one thing a thousand percent better. It's doing the little things well, being on time for meetings, returning phone calls, saying thank you to people. It sounds like a cliché, but that is the reason one organization or one person is successful over someone else. Everyone knows what they ought to be doing, but the ones who practice daily excellence are the real difference makers. - Buck Rodgers Live life: And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years. - Abraham
Lincoln |
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Advertising Rates Would you like to advertise an event, product or service in this e-letter? Request our advertising fee schedule by emailing IMCNE's administrator at or by calling 800-696-7399. About IMCNE Learn more about IMCNE's programs, membership details and services to New England consultants by clicking here or calling us at 800-696-7399. News and Views Editor Mike Kayat Metrisys, LLC - Sales, marketing & business development services for emerging technology companies Phone: 978-371-0823 Email: Mail: IMCNE "News & Views", P.O. Box 774, Westford, MA 01886 Copyright © 2005 IMC New England |