What Is Cloud Computing | How To Learn Cloud Computing Online | 2021 

FUNDAMENTALS OF COMPANY CULTURE — BEHAVIORS ASSOCIATED

Everyone wants to improve their company culture. Culture has become the ultimate buzzword these days. Leaders also seem to talk about it all the time. Let’s look past the buzz and grasp the roots of organizational culture. If we want to influence our company culture, we have to start with a keen understanding of what culture actually is.

What Is Company Culture?

Culture is the thing we cannot necessarily touch and feel — it is the invisible binds and unspoken rules that enforce “how people do things around here.” However, this definition can be insufficient at times. “The way we do things” feels awfully vague and amorphous, especially when it comes to thinking about how to intentionally create a company culture we’re proud of. As a result, our attempts to influence culture get muddled. We conflate culture with surface-level relics, confusing culture with “Things To Make People Feel Good.” - ping pong tables, happy hours and free lunches. Sure, those are part of “the way we do things” — but it doesn’t explain why we are doing those things. Culture includes that why.

Measuring Company Culture

We can’t. And we don’t want to. Culture isn’t meant to be measured. Why? Because culture, technically defined, is the artefacts, espoused values and beliefs, and basic underlying assumptions that people have. And that can’t be measured quantitatively. Measuring/ quantifying it may erode the point of culture. Culture is an organization’s compass for behaviour. It’s what people use to decide what actions are acceptable, and what are not. For example, at some places it may guide people to publicly report a mistake. At other places, it nudges people to brush a similar mistake under the rug.

Measuring culture is like saying we want to measure a compass. We can pick it up and say, “Hmm, let me rate the shininess of this compass, or weigh how heavy it is.” But, really, what we care about is if the compass points us to where we want to go. Measuring the compass itself doesn’t do you much good. Because if we don’t see culture as a lever that influences what we are trying to accomplish as a team, and instead as the thing itself we are trying to maintain, we lose sight of culture’s power in the first place: Culture helps a group of people get what they want done, done.

As a result, what we can measure are the outputs of culture. The observable behaviors and indicators we see as the consequences of our culture. Possibly the most important output to gauge is progress. Studies show how progress, more than anything, influences employee motivation. This means defining what “progress” looks like on a day-to-day basis. Is it the speed by which things are happening? Is it the quality of the work being produced? Is it the number of people we are helping because our work product exists? It could also mean asking questions like how helpful managers are in supporting people to make progress, or how frequently they encounter frustrating obstacles in a given week. Therefore: If we want to measure culture, we need to start with clearly defining what the outputs of a successful, healthy culture looks like in our context. 

Levels of culture

Why this matters

More often than not, there is a misalignment between the invisible and visible layers. The things we actually believe, versus the things we say we believe and the things we do to show it.

A Sample Case Study: Perhaps the most glaring case has been Uber. A company that no doubt had visible signs as “proof” that they valued their employees — lavish office parties and state-of-the-art offices. A company that had 14 cultural values it touted, including that employees should “be themselves.” And yet the basic underlying assumption persisted: Win at all costs, by any means necessary. We saw this in countless of examples of questionable ethics and sexual harassment issues ignored. At its core, Uber’s culture was rooted in this aggressive, toxic mindset — and that manifested in how they treated their people, regardless of what superficial artifacts or espoused values they trumpeted.

If we are looking to truly shift our company’s culture, we have to zoom in on this bottom most layer: our basic underlying assumptions. What we truly believe — not always what we say or outwardly show — is what drives the company’s culture.  Changing the company culture is not about just changing the visible signs. Getting beer taps installed in the kitchens doesn’t make the culture more friendly. Nor does building an onsite gym mean the culture all of sudden cares about employees’ health and well-being. Changing the company culture also is not about just changing the espoused values and beliefs. Saying at all-company meetings, “We believe in honesty and transparency” or writing “We believe in diversity and inclusion” on a website doesn’t automatically make those things true.

Changing company culture is about tapping into the core beliefs of each individual, understanding what their basic underlying assumptions are, and creating an environment where those can be listened to, brought together, and reacted to. If we can understand company culture, we can improve it.

Classification of Culture Types: The Schneider Model

The Schneider cultural model isn’t a new approach but it is relevant today. William Schneider describes culture as the answer of “How we do things around here to succeed?” No one culture type is better than another. They only have strengths and weaknesses. Depending on the type and nature of work, different types of culture may be a better fit. Companies typically have a dominant culture with aspects from other cultures. Different departments or groups may have different cultures. (e.g. development vs. operations), and these differences can lead to conflict.

Four Main Types of Culture

The Schneider Model identifies the primary, underlying culture which shapes the organisation. There are 4 main types: - Control - Cultivation - Collaboration – Competence

Control cultures (COMPANY/REALITY oriented) are process-driven; the company’s success depends on data, processes, etc. Many energy, aviation and defence companies have control cultures. Control cultures prize objectivity. Emotions, subjectivity, and ‘soft’ concepts take everyone’s eye off the ball and potentially get the organization in trouble. Empiricism and the systematic examination of externally generated facts are highly valued. Control cultures want no competition – they want to be the only players in town. Control cultures are command-and-control/ hierarchical- Leaders manage the work. Examples: The military, Police, Exxon. 

Collaboration cultures (PEOPLE/REALITY oriented) – people work together towards a shared goal. The Collaboration culture springs from the household. Relationships are key to getting things accomplished. Google is an example, though it also has cultivation culture elements. The way to success is to put a collection of people together, to build these people into a team, to create their positive touching relationship with one another and to trust them with fully applying one another as resources. Status and rank take a back seat.

Cultivation Cultures (PEOPLE/POSSIBILITY oriented) are often cantered around a greater mission. Cultivation Culture is about learning and growing with a sense of purpose. Examples include religious organizations, non-profits, social impact organizations. Leaders remove obstacles that impede attaining the company’s mission. Example – Zappos.

Competence Cultures (COMPANY/POSSIBILITY oriented) are innovative (possibility) and utilize the best talent to bring ideas to bear. Examples: Deloitte, Apple. In a competence culture, being superior or the best is chief. This can mean having the best product, service, process or technology in the marketplace. This culture gains its uniqueness by combining possibility with rationalism. What might be and the logic for getting there are what count.

Fundamental values are knowledge and information. Formalities and emotional considerations are not important compared to proven accomplishment.

Instead of your daily pipe-dreams, you highly need an open relationship with at least three different banks to finance your upcoming projects.

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Revenue is vanity. Profit is sanity. Cash flow is king.

Unknown (via quotes-by-dilanka)

Professional development is learning to earn or maintain professional credentials such as academic degrees to formal coursework, attending conferences, and informal learning opportunities situated in practice.

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Strategic Project Management

Many discussions about project management overlook the significance of the crucial early choices that shape the project execution approach. Decisions such as employing Agile or Waterfall methodologies, or choosing between prefabrication and on-site assembly, may not alter the expected project output, but they can greatly affect the delivery process and the project’s likely success. There’s no…

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Six Attributes Of A Good Call Center Manager

The shortage of good call center managers is hard to spot. Call centers always have someone holding that title. Often, they’re just not the right person for the job.

Fundamentally there are two types of call center managers:

Those who are technology and process driven.

Those who understand human motivational psychology.

Ideally, a call center manager will be skilled in both fundamentals.

From my experience, a successful call center manager is 75%/25%, with 75% being a solid comprehension of what drives employees to give their fullest potential to their work.

Technology can be learned; even mastered. Being able to motivate and lead a group of people, which defines a manager’s ability, is not as simple as applying generalized management principles.

If I were interviewing candidates for a call center manager position, I would look for the following six attributes (Notice I did not write “skills.”):

1. Ability to lead. During the interview, uncover if the candidate has successfully led a group of people. Presumably, the candidate has call center management experience, so ask about other leadership roles, whether it was in Boy Scouts, the military, schools, team sports, etc. How do they define their leadership style? How do they measure if their leadership style is the right style for their team? Have the candidate give at least two STAR (Situation, Task, Action and Result) stories where they lead a team towards the desired result(s).

2. A sense of humor. As a call center manager, my use of humor, to create levity, is my greatest asset. A call center manager who takes themselves too seriously adds unnecessary stress to an already stressful environment. Eventually, they will alienate their supervisors and agents. Being able to showcase the fun and enjoyable aspects of being employed in a call center, and there are many, along with the benefits of, and exploiting them will naturally keep agent turnover to a minimum while maintaining a high morale level. Does the candidate appear relaxed and approachable? Do they make remarks that make you smile and laugh? We all enjoy being around people who are genuinely fun to be around.

3. Able to sell ideas. Call centers are constantly changing. Therefore, agents must be sold on the benefits of any change. Selling ideas, selling anything, comes down to show “What’s in it for me?” We buy into ideas that benefit us in some way (i.e. making our job easier, reducing stress, removing a tedious routine, and increasing efficiency). You can ask candidates how they would sell the importance of following the dress code’s policy regarding proper footwear. Would they use the approach that wearing sandals and flip-flops is a health and safety issue? Agents will more likely understand why this policy exists and therefore comply because there’s a “What’s in it for me?” in protecting their toes and health.

Give the candidate a hypothetical scenario, or better yet one your call center has actually experienced, where the agents had to learn a new process, technology, or there was a change in policy and ask how they would have sold this change to the agents.

4. Understands management is not about having control. Most call center managers have the misconception that their primary role is to “put out fires.” If a call center manager is spending their day putting out fires, this is a sure sign that they are not giving enough authority to their supervisors and agents to make decisions. Does requiring authorization to pick up overnight delivery costs warrant putting the customer on hold (increasing the call handle time), the agent’s time to locate a supervisor or the call center manager and then their time? In past call center, managerial roles, how much authority did the candidate’s agents have? Is the candidate comfortable with giving agents a high level of decision making?

A good call center manager makes sure their supervisors and agents have the tools and training to do their job and to make decisions which are in the customer’s and company’s best interest and then — here’s the key — allows (READ: trusts) their agents/supervisors to make those decisions.

Management is about guiding people towards a sought-after result(s).

5. A visionary. Great call center managers are always looking at the big picture. They have a vision of what their call center will look like in a year’s time, 3-years’ time, 5-years’ time and are navigating their call center to where they envision it will be. They should be comfortable sharing their vision with their leadership team and agents.

Outsourcing, web-enabling, marketing, Do Not Call registry, advances in telephony technology, teleworking, have forced call centers to operate differently than they did just five years ago. Give the candidate an overview of your company’s business model and who are your competition, then ask how they see the next level of the call center looking? This is where the 25% (technology and process driven) comes in. Are they on top of current call center technology? Do they see where they can integrate CRM software and workforce management to enhance the caller’s experience? How about feeding back results, data, and customer feedback to various department heads throughout the company so business processes, product lines, ordering can be adjusted to accommodate changing consumer demands?

Today we expect to be able to order a pizza by simply giving our telephone number. The agent repeats back our address and has our order history. Not long ago, this was not the case. Major pizza chains now offer the ability to order online and thru apps. I would venture to guess most pizza delivery orders today are done online. In 2010 was this the case? How has this changed the way a pizza chain call center interacts with its customers? The latest buzzword, for what it’s worth: Omnichannel

6. Outside the box thinker. By far, the most critical attribute for a call center manager to have is creativity. I am a big proponent of incentives to reward certain behaviors and key performance indicators (KPIs) and therefore spend a good portion of my time creating, implementing, and maintaining incentives. The return I get is well worth it, and I find the more creative, but not complicated, the incentive, the better the results.

Being creative in upselling, such as creating value packages, will yield much better results than merely trying to tack on a product or service to an order. Being creative in using technology to create call center efficiencies, increase revenue (even uncover new sources), or manage agents’ productivity is what differentiates a good call center manager from one that is mediocre.

Managing a call center is an art.

Of course, there’s much more to being a good call center manager than these six attributes. Having common sense, logical thinking and being comfortable making quick decisions would rank up there. Must have hard skills would be excellent, if not superior, verbal, and written communication skills. When looking for a good call center manager, keep in mind hard skills, while important, can be taught; soft skills cannot.

Risks in Construction Projects: Empire State Building

1. Structural and Design Risks

Innovative Design: The Empire State Building was the first project of its kind to reach 102 stories. This involved new engineering challenges, particularly with wind load calculations and the structural integrity of such a tall building.

2. Safety Risks

Worker Safety: With over 3,400 workers, the risk of accidents was high, particularly since safety standards were not as stringent as today.

3. Financial Risks

Great Depression: The project commenced during the onset of the Great Depression, which posed a substantial financial risk. Investors were wary, and securing funds was challenging.

4. Logistical Risks

Material Supply and Coordination: The construction required vast amounts of materials, including 60,000 tons of steel. Coordinating the delivery and assembly was a significant logistical challenge.

5. Time Constraints

Ambitious Timeline: The project was completed in just 13 months, an incredibly short time frame for a building of its size.

6. Environmental and Site Risks

Urban Location: Building in the heart of New York City posed risks related to space constraints, existing infrastructure, and minimizing disruption to the surrounding area.

7. Technological Risks

New Construction Methods: The use of new construction technologies and methods introduced uncertainties about their effectiveness and reliability.

Thousands of companies worldwide, in industries such as construction, trucking, and aviation, already use neurotech devices to ensure that their employees are wide awake.Monitoring attention and focus. Many of us lack the ability to focus for long stretches at a time. But Olivier Oullier, a former president of the bioinformatic company Emotiv, believes that neurotechnology can help.A few years ago, at the Fortune Global Tech Forum, Oullier unveiled the MN8, Emotiv’s enterprise solution for attention management. The MN8 looks like a set of standard earbuds (and can in fact be used to listen to music or participate in conference calls). But with just two electrodes, one in each ear, the device allows employers to monitor employees’ stress and attention levels in real time.

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How to manage a company's workflow?

Managing workflow in a company ensures efficiency and productivity. Here are key steps:

1. Define Clear Processes and Procedures

Document Workflows: Outline each step and develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

2. Assign Roles and Responsibilities

Role Clarity: Ensure team members understand their roles and tasks.

3. Utilize Workflow Management Tools

Project Management Software: Use tools like Trello or Asana.

Automation: Implement automation for repetitive tasks.

4. Set Clear Goals and Priorities

SMART Goals: Define Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound goals.

Prioritization: Focus on high-priority tasks.

5. Monitor and Measure Performance

KPIs and Metrics: Establish Key Performance Indicators.

Regular Reviews: Conduct performance reviews to identify bottlenecks.

6. Foster Communication and Collaboration

Communication Tools: Use Slack or Microsoft Teams.

Regular Meetings: Hold team meetings for updates and discussions.

7. Continuously Improve Processes

Feedback: Encourage employee feedback.

Optimization: Regularly review and update workflows.

8. Manage Resources Efficiently

Resource Allocation: Allocate resources effectively.

Capacity Planning: Plan resource needs in advance.

9. Ensure Training and Development

Skill Development: Provide ongoing training.

Knowledge Sharing: Encourage knowledge sharing within the team.

10. Address Challenges Proactively

Problem-Solving: Quickly address issues.

Flexibility: Adapt workflows as needed.

Example Workflow Management Approach

Initiation: Identify tasks and assign a leader.

Planning: Break down tasks, assign them, and identify resources.

Execution: Perform tasks and monitor progress.

Monitoring and Controlling: Track progress, hold status meetings, and adjust plans.

Completion: Review tasks, gather feedback, and document lessons learned.

How to manage conflict between corporate departments?

Managing conflict between corporate departments requires a combination of communication, collaboration, and strategic leadership. Here are some steps you can take to effectively manage conflict:

1. Open Communication: Encourage open communication between departments. Create channels where employees can voice their concerns, share ideas, and resolve issues constructively. Transparency helps in understanding different perspectives and finding common ground.

2. Clarify Roles and Responsibilities: Clearly define the roles and responsibilities of each department to minimize overlaps and conflicts. When everyone understands their duties, it reduces the likelihood of misunderstandings and conflicts arising from unclear boundaries.

3. Establish Common Goals: Identify common goals that all departments can work towards. When teams have shared objectives, it fosters collaboration and encourages them to focus on collective success rather than individual agendas.

4. Mediation and Conflict Resolution: Train managers or designate a neutral party to mediate conflicts when they arise. Provide conflict resolution training to employees to equip them with the skills needed to address conflicts constructively and find mutually beneficial solutions.

5. Encourage Collaboration: Foster a culture of collaboration by organizing cross-departmental projects or initiatives. Encourage employees to work together towards shared objectives, which can help build trust and strengthen relationships between departments.

6. Set Clear Policies and Procedures: Establish clear policies and procedures for resolving conflicts between departments. Outline steps to be followed, escalation paths, and mechanisms for seeking help or intervention when needed.

7. Lead by Example: Senior leadership should demonstrate a commitment to resolving conflicts in a fair and transparent manner. Leaders should model effective communication, collaboration, and conflict resolution skills, setting the tone for the entire organization.

8. Celebrate Successes Together: Recognize and celebrate achievements that result from inter-departmental collaboration.

9. Continuous Improvement: Regularly review and assess the effectiveness of conflict management strategies within the organization. Solicit feedback from employees and make adjustments as needed to improve processes and prevent future conflicts.

10. Cultivate a Positive Work Environment: Foster a positive work environment where employees feel valued, respected, and supported.

By implementing these strategies, you can create a collaborative and harmonious work environment where departments can work together effectively towards shared goals, minimizing conflicts along the way.

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