Unique World CEO Blog

Our corporate social responsibility has begun

2011-12-20T22:30:00.000+11:00

A very humbling experience recently. With colleague Matthew Lang, I volunteered at the Loaves and Fishes Restaurant in Ashfield, which is part of the Exodus Foundation.

The Exodus Foundation's primary mission is to meet the immediate material, emotional and spiritual needs of disadvantaged and marginalised people. And let me tell you, the people we saw were definitely very disadvantaged… It really makes you appreciate what you have and your priorities in life.

Matthew and I were involved in serving a hot meal to over 250 people. Many of them were migrants obviously struggling with the challenges of day to day life and seeking whatever assistance Australian society would provide. We met the volunteers who are there every Thursday and assist the restaurant operate and give food to the poor. These are amazing people that simply "want to give back".

It is amazingly honourable and courageous to volunteer every week. I would certainly struggle to do it weekly, so admire the people that are able to do that. One of the volunteers is an accountant that has his own practice and has been volunteering for the past 10 years… (amazing – wow!)

Here the people are lining up and beginning to find their seats. People come in groups but really keep to themselves. And although it is very difficult, a lot seem to have their dignity, which is very difficult under the circumstances.

All in all, an amazing experience, and one I will never forget.

This is another step in Unique World’s Community Service policy. For some time, we’ve been supporting a number of charities with donations, but I wanted to encourage our staff to be able to “give back” in a more practical way.

I’d like all Sydney staff to have the experience of volunteering at the Loaves and Fishes Restaurant to see what this is like. We will find something similar for Melbourne, Canberra and Brisbane staff so that they too can contribute and "give back".

For more about Unique World’s Corporate Social Responsibility activities.

What a month!

2011-07-11T14:08:00.002+10:00

Not one, not two but THREE fantastic awards have come the way of Unique World in recent weeks, and we're over the moon.

It's always pleasing to be recognised for good work, but the most significant aspect of these awards is that they cover all aspects of our business; technical capabilities, business management and HR, and they all recognise our commitment to a collaborative culture.

The most exciting was global recognition for our work in Portals and Collaboration, a huge achievement. Unique World was awarded the 2011 Microsoft Portals and Collaboration Partner of the Year Award for its work with Telstra’s Enterprise Collaboration and Knowledge Management Portal, a collaboration platform providing end-to-end knowledge management across all core business processes. I’d like to acknowledge Jason Sharpe and the team at Telstra Enterprise and Government for their faith in Unique World, and their vision in wholeheartedly adopting a collaborative approach to business transformation.

The other global award recognised our achievements in implementing Open-Book Management. Unique World is the first non-US company to win an All-Star Award in the Great Game of Business (GGOB).

The GGOB and Open Book Management give our staff full visibility and understanding of all economic aspects of the business. All the numbers are shared, and everyone can see exactly how they’re tracking on the staff bonus scheme. It’s required an enormous amount of effort by all staff to change our culture and to educate and drive awareness around the whole organisation about what we can achieve.

The whole idea of Open-Book Management really fits the collaborative, inclusive culture of Unique World, but even so, I’ve been astounded at our success in such a short period of time.

Finally, in our first year in the survey, we were thrilled to be included in the BRW Top50 Great Places to Work. At Unique World, we’re not about perks or gimmicks for staff, we’re about creating a culture of involvement and collaboration. Part of this is our commitment to Open-Book Management. We’ve almost doubled our staff in the last 12 months, and I think our ability to attract great staff due in large part to our collaborative and supportive culture.

Of course, awards aren’t everything, but they have certainly caused a great buzz around Unique World. I’m so pleased our hard work has been recognised, but we won’t be resting on our laurels. We’ve set the bar high, and these awards will give us something to beat in 2012!

Transformative Power of Open Book Management

2011-05-24T19:50:00.003+10:00

I’m just back from a very inspiring and exciting trip to the US where I accepted an All-Star Award recognising Unique World’s achievements in implementing the Open-Book Management system of the Great Game of Business.

A highlight of the trip was the opportunity to visit other companies, and to share experiences with playing the GGOB. It was encouraging to see that Unique World is up with the best in terms of some aspects of the Game , but I was also able to learn from how others are really good expense forecasting and mini-games, both of which I am planning in implementing over the next 12 months.

I was interviewed on internet radio (the CEO Hour) while I was in St Louis. You can listen to the interview online. I was very happy to talk about our experiences, and to encourage others to consider Open-Book Management.

Open-Book really is an amazing system. It has revolutionised our business and with it our culture. It has transformed Unique World and delivered some outstanding results.”
This Award is recognition for a lot of hard work over the last 15 months since we started to play operating open book management principles. It’s required an enormous amount of effort by all staff to change our culture and to educate and drive awareness around the whole organisation about what we can achieve.

The GGOB and Open Book Management give our staff full visibility and understanding of all economic aspects of the business. All the numbers are shared, and everyone can see exactly how they’re tracking on the staff bonus scheme. We teach all staff to act and feel like business owners.
Everyone takes responsibility for forecasting revenue, and our consultants have become very good at that. We’re now achieving results each month within 1% of forecast. That’s a phenomenal achievement and a huge benefit for the company.

The whole idea of Open-Book Management really fits the collaborative, inclusive culture of Unique World, but even so, I’ve been astounded at our success in such a short period of time. It’s evidence of the commitment of all Unique Worlders to achieving great results for our clients and for our company.

IT Fund for Kids

2010-09-19T22:01:00.003+10:00

Unique World is looking forward to hosting staff and customers to the annual IT Fund for Kids dinners in Sydney and Melbourne this month.

Billed as the “ICT industry event of the year” these dinners are a great opportunity for the IT industry to “put back” and help kids.

The Fund was established in 2000 as a national fundraising initiative supported by Australia’s ICT community. Proceeds from employees and their organisations fund programs to improve the quality of life of children living with serious illness or disability. In the past 10 years the ICT industry has raised over $2.5 million for the Fund.

It should be a great night with corporate teams competing in a series of team brain teasers to ascertain which company is the ultimate Know IT All. It will also be a celebration of the ICT industry’s 10 year commitment to helping seriously ill, disabled and autistic children.

I’m proud that Unique World is again supporting this very worthwhile event.

If you would like to support the Fund, or attend the dinner in Melbourne (23 September) or Sydney (30 September), click on this link.

Social networking key to recruiting professionals?

2010-09-09T09:48:00.001+10:00

$2,000 staff bonus to recruit 18 professionals in tightening labour market.

Unique World has had a great start to the new financial year (2010/11), and with the hung parliament hiatus now resolved, I’m looking forward to a great year.

As a result of recent success, we’re looking for as many as 18 new, talented professionals to work on Information Management and Knowledge Management projects with high profile clients.

With the labour market tightening, we’ve decided to focus on social networks to find these new professionals. Instead of paying recruiters, we’re enlisting the help of our staff, offering a $2,000 incentive if they help locate new hires.

I know our staff are the best reference we have, and they’re a great resource to get the message out. If they tell people what a great place Unique World is to work, it’s a much more powerful recommendation than any corporate spiel.

As these projects grow, we expect to be looking at more jobs in the near future. We’ll continue to use social networks to find them, if this exercise proves to be a success.

Check out the details - http://tiny.cc/uwhiring

If you are keen to join an exciting company with enormous growth potential, apply now and join us.

Ready to play the Game

2010-03-16T23:11:00.002+11:00

Check out the Great Game of Business - www.ggob.com it looks like an awesome initiative for any organisation. The book is excellent with some very relevant and important areas to any company.

If you do what you have always done, you will always get what you have always gotten!

2009-11-10T22:40:00.003+11:00

The title of this posting has never been true then in recent times. We have had people in roles where we simply replaced them in the roles and expected a better result. After trying this 2 times and failing I think it became apparent that it wasn't necessarily the person but the role and the structure. It was almost like the structure never allowed for its success.
So thinking about this concept I am applying it to many parts of the business. So it will be interesting as to how things go over the next 2-3 years and whether the decisions made now will reap success.

You have to try new things in different ways. Keeping on doing the same thing the same way and expecting a different result is probably insanity. Although its not obvious at first.

Does flatter mean fitter?

2009-09-07T21:47:00.002+10:00

I have been reading many articles around the topic of flat management - through a reduced number of levels from the CEO down, it should promote a leaner and more open organisation. Whilst many flat organisations are smaller in size than their larger hierarchical structure style organisations, I often wonder whether the larger ones that have many levels of hierarchy hide under performance.
I am all up for empowerment, delegation and accountability, however I wonder if a flatter management structure encourages that, impedes that, or neither...

Is a quick response considered "desperate" or "responsive"?

2009-07-22T00:00:00.002+10:00

We were in discussions today with various legal firms (they will remain nameless). We are looking to get some work done so we have briefed the work out to a few firms and looking to see what comes back.

I am writing about one of the firms we met up with. We met for an hour with a partner and briefed him on the work. We discussed rates and estimates at the end of the meeting and he offered to send through a proposal immediately. We thought nothing of it as we thought "as if we will get this straight away"?

Well we were wrong. We not only got it immediately, we got it within the hour :).
In the e-mail it stated the costs and that the partner was in a position to start in the coming days with the first draft of what we wanted next week. WOW!

So do I think that,
a) The firm is desperate for the work and I perhaps should be worried? or
b) They are super responsive and keen for the business and its an example of what I should expect from here on in?

Now in the current climate I should appreciate this behaviour as things aren't that full on for professional services firms, so when a client is there you want to impress them and get their business. But what behaviour is "desperate" rather than appropriately "responsive"?

I like the responsiveness and it always presents an opportunity to negotiate on rates anyway. :)

Anyone have any other thoughts/comments?

When is the right time to "place the bet"?

2009-06-14T21:46:00.003+10:00

No I am not into gambling or the horses for that matter. I am referring to the new idea, new region, new product that a company creates (referred to investment areas). During the growth of any business new products, regions and/or ideas are created and launched into. Most businesses that do this organically find it difficult to really invest in these products "properly".

Existing methods for "proper" investment are difficult to obtain and what's even more difficult is determining the internal investment. How do you focus on multiple "investment areas" effectively? How do you invest in them that can fully realise their potential but at the same time allow you to hedge so that the core business doesn't fail?

Is it possible to hedge and also ensure that each investment area has been invested in to the max?

I ponder about this all the time and wonder if we should "properly" invest in this no, no maybe not. Maybe we should in invest in something else or the next idea???

Some part of me almost would rather place the bet in an all or nothing approach that at least allows for no regrets. As they say no guts no glory... but sometimes it's the no guts that tells you that now isn't the time and this isn't the right idea, but you then go on with life regretting...

If I was to use Jim Collins' recommendations from Good to Great, it would be to invest BIG in the product you can be the best in the world at. I love it - simply but so powerful.

I guess I don't think I will stop pondering... but hopefully the pondering will stop soon and the betting will begin...

(BTW, I'm back to blog a little more)

Will KM be as important as ERP?

2009-03-11T21:59:00.004+11:00

The ERP is obviously a very important part of every organisations core systems. In the big end of town it’s referred to as ERP (aka SAP, Oracle, JDE, etc...) but most people will know it as the finance system.
The finance system is most organisations' core mission critical system. Without it, they can't invoice, process, trade, receive and basically operate the organisation.

The finance systems in all organisations have really only become the lifeblood because the traditional finance system of GL, accounts payable/receivable have been extended to major platforms (now known as ERP) and do a lot more. Take SAP for example - it has a portal, supply chain mgt, business process mgt, integration, etc... to name a few, so it’s obvious that this is the major platform for many organisations.

However the ERP platform deals with structured processes very well and transactions very well. There is still a massive gaping whole with unstructured systems. I am talking about e-mails, documents, web sites, images, etc..., the list goes on. This makes up for most of the data within an organisation but most of the time it is dumped on file shares (similar to the storage bin) and rarely recalled again.

Enter KM = Knowledge Management.
Knowledge Management as defined on Wikipedia is
"Knowledge Management (KM) comprises a range of practices used in an organisation to identify, create, represent, distribute and enable adoption of insights and experiences."

Yes I know that doesn't state unstructured explicitly but that's the greatest challenge.

How do you capture, retain, reuse, manage information that becomes tacit knowledge throughout the organisation to then harness and compete on a far grander scale.

I believe organisations that embrace knowledge management as a key executive item on the agenda (i.e. hire a CKO) and invest appropriately will deliver tens of times bigger returns than their competitors. The reason is because their ability to gather, store, share and reuse will be so powerful it will get products to the market faster, more reliably and with greater competitive advantage. Knowledge will be retained within the organisation rather than walked out when staff leave.

Watch, KM will one day be as important if not more important than the ERP.

CFO's better realise this, and get on the bandwagon.

Librarians, records managers, knowledge managers, and everyone else in this industry - your career prospects are very exciting.

Bigger company <> Happy Staff <> Happy Customers

2009-02-08T21:53:00.002+11:00

To clarify, my posting is about whether a bigger company means happier staff and happier customers.

I know it's obvious, but the answer is no. It doesn't even mean happier shareholders and executives.

We grew pretty rapidly over FY07-08 and took on more customers and in turn more staff, and obviously our revenues and profits grew also, but if you ask staff and customers - were they happy with Unique World? Or "happier" with Unique World than previous years, the answer was more than likely No. I didn't ask them but I could certainly guess.

On the other hand, take the current times for example. Yes we have contracted and gotten a little smaller, but the engagement with staff has improved (still not perfect) and so has our relationship with customers. Actually the feedback from customers is very positive, so much so, that I cannot remember having so many satisfied customers with so few unsatisfied customers. There would always be a handful of challenged projects that needed constant management, but we have very few at the moment.

Maybe its us, the customers, the market, probably a combination - but one thing is for sure I am a lot happier now (yes its a challenging time and not easy) than I think I was 12 months ago. Of course the numbers were better then, but many things around me were a struggle.

Although the next 12 months are going to be an enormous challenge with the whole GFC, I think that if we stick to our guns, remain focussed and nimble, we will succeed and have very happy staff and customers at the same time.

Just ask Eddy Groves what he have rathered...

In this market (and always), stick to your core business

2008-12-08T23:21:00.003+11:00

The amount of times I have had discussions with people around "diversifying" and getting into new businesses/offerings because of the current times scare me.

Everyone has heard about "Stick to your core business" and you will succeed - there are countless management books and leaders spruiking this - so why, just because of the slow down is it a reason to get into "more businesses"?

I know all the obvious reasons, but I don't think that now is any different to the boom times when evaluating "new" businesses so why do people look more around this topic now than in the good times. It's because when business slows down in your core business you are often drawn to other business offerings that may be booming more.

I am not saying not to evaluate new business offerings but you should definitely think twice (or maybe even 1 times).

One of the fundamentals I have always learnt is to play to your strengths. So if the business is going well, work out what is working well and do more of it. Don't slow that down and do other things that will impact your ability to do more of what you do well.

Today the current economic conditions seriously test this theory about core business - but personally I think now is the BEST time to be doing more of what works, rather than the other way around.

If business is slowing, it doesn't mean you are not good at your core business - it means you have to go to either do more with existing customers, or find new customers - but DO NOT start new offerings and stop doing your core business just because things have slowed down.

Now is the hardest time to be setting up new businesses organically.

Go get more customers. (I know that is easier said than done)

I can personally vouch for this over the last 4-5 months. It has been a challenge that's for sure, and there was a time I really questioned our strategy and core offerings, but sticking to our guns has worked out - we just needed to speak to more customers.

Although the storm hasn't completed passed, I can see blue sky now.

Bird in the hand...

2008-11-03T22:58:00.002+11:00

I don't think there has been a more important time than now to truly appreciate the saying "bird in the hand is worth two in the bush".
With the current "financial crisis" (as everyone is labelling it) more and more clients are delaying projects. They aren't cancelling them they are delaying them. Which you would think is great news that at least they are delaying it rather than cancelling it, but that presents different challenges.
If the project was cancelled you would remove it from your pipeline and move on. Since it has been delayed it still stays in the pipeline as you need to have some sort of visibility across it, but you don't know when it will come back. Which means you can't plan for it.
So do you hold out and hope for the best or do you assume that the "slow down" will take a lot longer to turn around and manage the business that way???

With all these factors the way you price and compete is very important. Do you go in aggressively to sure up the business only to reduce the potential value you provide or do you stick to the "value" sell and position the cost appropriately, not necessarily sure up the business and take the risk?
It is a dilemma that's for sure. I think you take the most likely deal in the quickest time frame.

So my feeling is that in this climate (and probably other climates) you take the deal on the table based on what you know today and not what you "hope" will happen tomorrow. If other projects you have "sold" in eventually come in then deal with that. Don't hold out the delivery team for the "delayed" projects - they may never come.

I heard a great saying on the weekend from one of the Bourne movies which I think is very relevant in today's climate.
"Hope for the best. Plan for the worst"

Something that is imperative to do in this current climate, albeit difficult

Creating the Compelling Event in sales

2008-10-12T21:23:00.004+11:00

As most people know in Sales 101, in order to be successful in closing the deal, there are a number of factors that the sales person must find out about and focus on in order to close the deal. Some include what is the decision making process, who are the decision makers themselves, etc... But one aspect of a sales cycle sticks out like anything (especially now) and the need to get it right is the factor between closing the deal or delaying the inevitable.

It is all about the Compelling Event!!!

You MUST either have a compelling event created by the situation or client (ex. mandated compliance by a certain date, go live date across new Internet site to support a new product launch, etc...), however if the sales cycle doesn't have one created by the client you will probably struggle to close the deal.

So if the client doesn't have one you can either forget the deal, or the other option is to create the compelling event yourself.

The best sales people out there have an incredible and uncanny ability to create these events. I believe that while some clients can get excited about the strategy and business outcome, ultimately purchasing decisions are tactical.

Now the sales person doesn't have many options around the creation of the compelling event if the customer doesn't have one, but I have a couple of suggestions (they are obvious and tactical in nature) that may be useful.

They are:

Specific dates around key resources internally at your company that are available only within a time window and if the client really wants to use them they need to move quickly otherwise delay the project
Provide a specific discount if the project is approved and started within a certain time frame - say 10 days
Work with a partner to jointly "invest" in the project but again this is around a time window for the entire project
Invest another way to create it

Others that can be strategic are more around industry standards or business cases, but again not necessarily date driven.

Compelling events have never been so important as now - especially in this current market where lots of organisations are sitting on their hands and not doing anything, awaiting to see what happens around the world given these uncertain times.

I think it will be the difference between success and failure given the current times, so its the creative ones around deals that will win.

Fewer -> Deeper in an economic downturn

2008-09-02T23:04:00.002+10:00

I have blogged before and all my staff will know I talk about Fewer -> Deeper at length. So basically focus on fewer accounts with deeper engagements and the business will grow. That is absolutely the right strategy in a market that is growing with strong economic conditions. ie the last 2-3 years. Unique World has certainly prospered in using that strategy.

However, when those accounts you have been investing in begin to cut spending and tighten their belts no matter how much investment you do, sometimes nothing gives. You simply need to adapt and move on. (Someone remember the book, who moved my cheese?) Well the cheese has moved and with it we must also.

Anyway, when conditions are challenged and there is economic uncertainty you need to ensure that you have a list of clients from a diverse set of industries that can buck the downward trend, and where you have invested across all of these accounts. Now in a small business like ours, that is tough. You can certainly spread the risk and do commercial work and government but within sector is far more the challenging and costly.

So Fewer -> Deeper is still the right strategy just across a more diverse set of clients. We have learnt in recent times when the key clients are in a handful of industries and they re-prioritise projects due to uncertainty that you need to broaden your engagement and get out there more and diversify cross-industry.

Pick industries like financial services, mining, environment and public sector. When one contracts the others can potentially grow. Nowadays Health and Education are probably good ones as the Rudd government will certainly be spending big in that in the years to come.

Watch this space...

Strengths focus - further refined

2008-08-10T22:02:00.002+10:00

After my last postings in relation to strengths I was pulled up by a Sam (not his real name) saying that he didn't necessarily agree with my postings, where I said that focussing on your strengths was the way to go and that it would be the deciding factor in you being successful.

One small but important detail I forgot to mention is that strengths are linked to the the tasks you enjoy. So if you look forward to the task/activity, get a buzz out of it and look forward to it again, you probably have a strength in that activity. Once I explained and discussed this with Sam it was far more clear and apparent.

I have since been asking people about this, more specifically around "how much of your day do you actually enjoy?" To my delight it is greater than 50% in mot cases. I know many people would want that to be 100% but considering the national response based on Gallup is 8% I am pretty pleased.

Check out the web site also, www.strengthsmovement.com, it has more content around this topic

Scrapping Sales Commissions in a Constrained Environment

2008-07-07T21:26:00.004+10:00

Sales Process Re-engineering by Ballistix is something we are looking to embrace at Unique World. so mush so, is that we have scrapped sales commissions across the sales team for consulting projects. When you are selling to a constrained environment providing incentives to the sales team doesn't drive the right behaviour.
Rather than detailing my take on this, the article on the Ballistix web site is a great one to read to understand what I mean. see here - http://www.ballistix.com.au/cms/default.asp?CategoryID=1&MenuID=1&ArticleID=96

What are your strengths?

2008-07-01T00:56:00.002+10:00

The strengths movement is certainly picking up momentum but it still has a long way to go. Most people don't even know what their strengths really are. And many times people believe that their values are a strength, which is definitely not the case.

Often I will ask someone what they believe their strengths to be and they will answer with "I am a hard worker". How is that a strength? Would the person be a "hard worker" if they would be say collecting rubbish? Of course not - it has everything to do with "what" they are doing rather than "how" they are doing it?

Strengths must be specific, like "I enjoy meeting with large complex customers about a new project and determining the best approach." see very specific.

People can't say that they love "dealing with customers" and that's a strength. I am sure you can come up with many instances that dealing with customers was unpleasant and you definitely didn't look forward to meeting and dealing with the issues. See - you need to be specific. What were you doing when you really enjoyed that, etc...

Where as if you detail the specific nature and do "more" of that you are destined for success.
Well more likely anyway

Off to read more about strengths - check out Marcus Buckingham - simply awesome!!!

Focus on Strengths (v2)

2008-06-10T00:30:00.003+10:00

Back in March I wrote a posting around Strengths which was focussed on organisation strengths. So now 3 months on from that posting around what we were doing more of and less of and I have to say that playing more to your strengths is certainly paying off.
Anyway, that is not the reason for this posting.

I attended the Marcus Buckingham workshop in Sydney last Thursday (June 5, 2008) and wow was it brilliant. For those of you that haven't read about him - I suggest getting all over his site as a first and then go out and buy his books - this guy has the ability to revolutionise the way we think about our strengths and weaknesses which in turn would revolutionise the way our entire education and social systems are made from.

The simple concept that you MUST invest more and more across the things you do badly rather has been turned on its head and is now all about focus on the things you do really well and keep focussing on doing them really well and improving and then "neutralise" your weaknesses through them. I know that sounds obvious but our entire social and education systems are focussed on the opposite. Keep doing more of the things you do badly to improve your skills there. But they will simply go from very crap to maybe just crap. It doesn't work!!!

If that doesn't make sense - go out and see him if you can and read his books.

I have already begun to put some of this messages into practice and I love it!

(Apologies for not writing for a month - things have been a little hectic)

Are you focussed?

2008-05-13T23:32:00.003+10:00

In my last catch up with Ilan Kogas (my mentor) he ran me through a simple exercise that I also saw at the Verne Harnish growth workshop back in Feb and it is very powerful.

Basically depending on whether your role is in the business of revenue generating or service delivering or even cost saving, the exercise is to list the 10 things you did say yesterday and determine how many them helped you deliver on your role/KPI's.

So if you are in the business of sales, and you listed the 10 things you did yesterday I wonder how many of them are revenue generating. Most people I have found have about half.

If you are in the business of service delivery, again, list the 10 things you did yesterday and determine how many of them are service delivery focussed.

My list was as follows (based on an ordinary day) - judged by business growth

Event Marketing (YES)
Sales Meeting with sales execs (YES)
Executive Meeting (NO)
Project Analysis (NO)
Meeting with Finance (NO)
Said no to new business (YES) :)
Called 3 customers to ensure they were happy with things (YES)
Met with staff member around some external client concerns (YES)
Meeting with external partner (YES)
Worked on some budget analysis (NO)

As you can see I had around 60% alignment - what this raises is - are you spending the time in the right places and is your team and/or peers.

I know you canargue that some can go one way or the other, but that is where your disgression comes into play in the context of the specific meeting/task you completed.

Try it out for yourself - you will be amazed.

No Pain - No Gain

2008-04-22T23:03:00.002+10:00

Founder of IBM, Thomas J Watson, believed that to increase your success rate you need to increase your rate of mistakes. law of nature dictates this in equal measure.

So the faster you make the mistakes the faster you are more likely to succeed.

Now one doesn't mean the other, but it certainly assists and increases the likelihood of success.

It is clear that the most successful companies got there after many changes and mistakes before they got it more right then wrong. Which is basically a formula for success. Do more right things then wrong things and you are more likely to succeed and prosper.

Its the organisations that don't change or that are scared to make mistakes that wither and die.

In the last 9 years of Unique World we have made hundreds of mistakes, but as long as you know where and how, so that you can learn from them and apply those lessons to new things you will succeed. You need to have self awareness and be able to reflect and determine where it went wrong and right.

Stop, pause and reflect - you will be amazed as to what you will learn.

So make the mistakes quickly and learn from them. That's what life is all about isn't it...

Qualification destroys value

2008-03-31T00:24:00.003+11:00

Sales qualification in the oldest sense, meaning determining the basic aspects of a sales cycle, like budget, time frame, decision making process etc... is very important when it comes to selling, but it does destroy value.

Which is interesting considering I run the sales team at Unique World. You see, when a sales person qualifies the opportunity and gets the basics of the sale from the customer like budget and time frame (you must have both to really kill value) for purchasing then it simply becomes a compete situation. So all your energies go into differentiation of you against your competitors and it stifles innovation for the solution sales stage and forces a sale with reduced value due to its competitive nature.

When you talk to a customer around a project/program/engagement and look to understand their business requirements and how you can add value you are doing so with no inhibition. Basically you are looking to advise and bring value to the sale and the organisation through your experience and what your company can deliver. However the moment they tell you the budget and time frame, you immediately buckle up and go into sales mode and competitiveness.

This is natural and only forced by the customer due to the nature of the opportunity. The opportunities with the basic facets like budget and time frame locked down are the ones you should walk away from, because it just becomes a shoot off, which you never end up winning nor making as much as you initially thought you would.

Although competition is great, it should only be introduced as a measure against the value you have brought rather than ones credentials. Credentials should be what gets you to the table in the first place rather than someone using that to evaluate your experience.

Too many clients use references at the end of the sales cycle, where they should be doing that at the beginning.

Sales Process Engineering

2008-03-18T23:32:00.002+11:00

I was in an all day workshop today with Ballistix. Justin Roff-Marsh ran the day around applying the theory of constraints (TOC) to the sales process. To read more about TOC, you must read the Agi Goldratt's book called The Goal - read all about it here

Anyway, the concept is all about applying sound process and division of labour principals to the sales process. We all know that the sales process and the sale itself is black magic. Every sales guy under the sun will say how what they have is special and that only they know how to close a deal - this means that the traditional sales function is hard to manage and all but impossible to scale.

The modern sales function resembles production, as it would have been, prior to the industrial revolution. The workshop talked about a method for engineering the sales function into a measurable, manageable and scalable process.

We are only day 1 of our journey to truly understand what this means - we are certainly not doing this to grow the sales team and function, it is categorically focussed on driving consistency in the entire sales process and have it manageable and focussed in the manner we need it to be, without the hundreds of variables that exist today.

I can't wait to see it in action - albeit it will take us around 6-9 months to really see it through.

Watch this space...

Play to Strengths

2008-03-10T21:55:00.001+11:00

As everyone probably knows by now, I am a big fan of Verne Harnish. Following on from a great conference I attended in mid Feb, one of the messages I kept hearing was that people should play to their strengths rather than their weaknesses. I know that this is obvious but not many people do this.

Many people and companies invest the time and $$$ into the areas that aren't going so well to improve their position and offering (which is obvious and important). The amount of time and money they put into their weaknesses to improve the service/process/offering is huge but the pay off isn't very much, when you compare this to the pay off when you invest further in your strengths – which can be HUGE.

Take a swimmer for example. They can swim strong freestyle, ok backstroke and poor butterfly. Should they invest the time and energy into becoming strong in backstroke and butterfly to be the world's best in the medley, which would be very difficult and painful, or do they sacrifice that dream and say freestyle is my strength, lets invest all my time and energy into freestyle and be the world's best freestyle swimmer.

This is something that has never been more apparent to Unique World than now. 12 months ago where we did Information Management, web site design, SEO, custom .NET, EPM, BI and any other technology that our people could potentially learn. Now we just do one thing - Information Management. (FULL STOP).

I know that many would be scratching their heads, but it has made so much sense and the company has never been so focussed and our clients have really appreciated that. Now it's time to further focus around engagement model, client type, industry, etc…. This should never stop I think.

We will select our strengths and invest further in them so we can become the best in the world (part of the hedgehog concept – thank you Jim Collins) in Information Management. Or in layman's terms, we assist organisations cleaning up their information mess.

I know the future will be challenging, but at least I know the journey will be paved to focus on our strengths.

Let People Talk about it (ie Grieve)

2008-03-03T22:57:00.001+11:00

When people get disappointed, frustrated and just plan annoyed with someone else there is really only one way for that person to deal with it - that is to talk about it. Often people will get worked up for some reason or another and either release it quickly or just bottle it inside and let it stir and just build up over time.

If you do something that really frustrates a customer and feel that you really don't want to speak to them until they "get over it", I think you are making a terrible mistake and it worse. There is nothing better than to let the person air and voice their frustration(s). Once they talk about it they will feel a lot better for it and be able to move on. Obviously if this happens way too often, they will get fed up and not give you the time of day - and if you can show empathy than it would be even better.

So when you know your client or any person that is annoyed/frustrated with things, the best thing to do is to speak to them as soon as possible and let them "vent".

This works exactly the same way with personal relationships also. When you are frustrated at someone, the best thing is to talk to them and let your feelings be heard.

When a person thinks about something it stays in the back part of the brain (which is where the wisdom sits). When a person talks about something it is moved from the back of the brain to the frontal lobe where speech resides and allows the person to "deal" with their thoughts.

So take note – let the person be heard and empathise. It is often difficult as frustration and disappointment often lies between two people, but talking about it is the best way to deal with a problem or challenge so it can be dealt with.

So talk to people and let them talk to you – Grieving allows for release and closure…

Back and more excited than ever!!

2008-02-25T21:56:00.002+11:00

Hey,

Well after 6 weeks in the wilderness (well that's my excuse anyway), I am back and keener to share insights, views and perspectives.

I am revitalised and excited after the fantastic 3 days I spent with Verne Harnish and his genius business experts about all things strategy, people and execution.

Now that my head is filled with some great ideas, the challenge is about execution. Which has always been the challenge of course

But like they say, strategy is nothing without execution.

My new years resolution (albeit a little late for 2008) is to spend a lot more time with staff and clients. This is where the basis of insight and enlightenment begins, from which appropriate and beneficial solutions begin to make strides - for our staff and our clients

2008 (now) here we come...

Quality Clients - can you push back?

2008-01-13T22:36:00.000+11:00

When you are engaging with clients there is always a need to look after the client and ensure they are always happy and being looked after. So if the client wants/demands something that you feel isn't in their interest, do you cave, or be honest?

I bet each of you say, it "depends", but most often vendors/suppliers would cave for their clients no matter what. That is where I disagree.

I have caved many times to clients but not at their expense. Its the "no matter what" part that I want to explore.

I personally believe that if you have the clients best interests at heart, they will always accept push back. So even if it means disappointing them or not being able to deliver on your promises, if you are honest and have their interests prioritised, they will accept it.

Quality clients will always accept push-back when they believe you have their best interests at heart.

I absolutely stand by this.

2008 - here we come!

2008-01-02T23:10:00.000+11:00

In starting with the obligatories, I would like to say Happy new Year to everyone, especially those that bother to take the time to read my blog postings (when I get some time to write). I hope everyone had a great break and are looking forward to 2008 as much as I am.

2007 delivered some fantastic results not only for us, but for many companies in general. You just have to pick up the local business papers to see how people made hundreds of millions and in some cases billions in paper money within 12 months. The economy is booming and as they are saying there is no end in sight in the China/India Resources hunger looking like slowing, which I think its certainly helping to fuel the economy here.

I am certainly hopeful the new Rudd government can deliver some long overdue needs the business community has been crying out for, like cutting red tape, further tax incentives around R & D and Innovation, increasing the Immigration numbers to fuel our inability to find quality people fast enough locally and speeding up the approval process, to mention a few.

2008 will be unprecedented for Unique World and for many organisations and economies around the world - I look in anticipation that it will be successful no matter what!!!

Hope that it will be a successful year for all of you.

Is the Client always right?

2007-11-28T23:20:00.000+11:00

It's probably one of the first lessons one learns in the commercial world - the client is always right?
I know quite a few people would think that sticking by this very simple rule certainly means you are bound for success. My thinking is that the client is always right... in most cases.

Of course you need to service your client and ensure you are delivering in all aspects. In turn listening to their every need, request, demand, complaint, etc.... And responding appropriately to empathise and understand how things can and should be done etc... You get my drift.

Having said all this, clients today expect a hell of a lot more and sometimes put themselves out there that sometimes challenges this rule. Also, clients sometimes are looking for interactions that provide them a one up - an opportunity to get something more from you. I think that often this is seen as a test of wits, a test of how much they can push back and the boundary of that relationship. That is a true test of position, confidence and character, where you will need to pull out all stops to stand by your point and push back where need be.

So is the client always right - NO, however they are right most of the time, so tread carefully when you think they aren't, as the results can be catastrophic if you aren't confident on your position. And if you aren't confident then swallow your pride and move on - they were obviously right all along.

It's not who you know, it's who knows you

2007-11-05T21:58:00.000+11:00

I know that many people talk about the cliche "it's not what you know, but who you know", well I think that's evolved somewhat to be "it's not who you know, but who knows you".

Yes its all about people and their relationships and networks. Deals, partnerships, etc... are all based on people, and people will only trust other people, not companies.

Also, business will come to you through "who knows you", rather than for any other reason.

An interesting exercise would be to map the relationship, reason and process for when the last business opportunity came to you - you will find a weird and wonderful way that business was generated.

We recently won a large deal from a referral from a person in a company we do little with, and only after 2 months working with the client did I hear about that.

The simplest of relationships, yet the more trust dependant will determine potential business impact rather then necessarily tenure. Amazing but true...

Relevance is only about timing

2007-09-25T23:07:00.000+10:00

Relevance - no I am not talking about relevance in search results in a search engine.

When I say Relevance I refer to interactions, engagements and partnerships that succeed and sometimes only flourish when there is relevance between the two parties.

Let me explain.

When you attempt to meet with or speak to someone about your proposition and value to them, they will only respond with the same level of enthusiasm in return if you are relevant to them at that point in time.

So in most cases you won't get the response that you ideally want - and its not about your communication, pitch, body language, confidence, etc... (well it may be, but you can control these things), its about relevance.

If you aren't relevant to them (their role, in the company they are in at that point in time), forget it. Which means, potentially that you should try and come back to them at a later date. Plus also relevance is also a factor when relationships are being formed. Only when you can spend the time together can things sometimes develop into something great, but again only if the stuff you talk about is and/or becomes relevant to them based on the timing.

So the bottom line, is that of course relationships/partnerships grow stronger with time, but they will only accelerate and succeed exponentially if relevance plays a key role.

Trust and Engagement

2007-09-09T22:20:00.000+10:00

As the cliche goes, people don't leave companies, they leave people.

They say that around 87% of people leave organisations for reasons other than money - I bet a lot of people either don't believe that or didn't know that.

The bottom line is that if you feel that you don't have a strong relationship with your manager and that you aren't being invested in and professionally developed and the hassles of the organisation far outweigh the perks, then you will probably look elsewhere and guess what, you will probably be able to get more money.

However, if you are engaged with your manager, have an openness and trust relationship that you feel works at all levels, then you would feel comfortable bringing any issue up with your manager for discussion and action.

Trust and Engagement (which must work together) is the single most important thing between people across the organisation. Have it with your people and no matter what issue, challenge or opportunity comes up, it can always be addressed in an open and respectful manner. Don't have that, and the relationship will be fraught with challenges and secrets that will simply burn people.

And when I say engaged, truly understand their place, personally and professionally. Make it your business to know about their take on things personally and professionally. Really take the time out to engage, talk and communicate to ensure that there is a strong relationship.

After all, the sign of a top performing person is a top performing manager.

Are all customers worth the effort?

2007-08-19T22:09:00.000+10:00

I used to think that ALL customers were worth the effort. I used to think, "you never know", "maybe this is the one", etc... but in recent times and with enough experience to back our strategy around "Fewer -> Deeper", we need to think further around whether the clients we service are actually a good fit for our business.

Sometimes our values, experience and the inherent value we deliver to clients doesn't gel with a client and so inevitably things don't work out. And you end up spending a lot more time on them with very little return (if any - as they probably cost more than you are making) and they simply get more frustrated that you aren't delivering/servicing them.

I am sure you think, "this is a loosing battle", "no matter what I do to help, they will always be the same", well you can do something about it. Move on! (nicely of course)

Recently we have had two instances where this has happened. Both clients just didn't see our value or way of working and they felt that they were the ones settling for less than what they wanted. Well, we solved the problem - we decided to "let them go".

Remember this is not about arrogance, just best fit and value, for both you and the customer. If its not a WIN-WIN (I know, what a cliche) then its best to go separate ways.

If they struggle with those concepts, you should really ask yourself whether they are a fit.

Recognise the signs, "quick to complain, slow to pay or want more than is agreed".

So simply part company, you will be better off and so will they.

Goals! Goals! Goals!

2007-08-05T23:26:00.000+10:00

There is a lot of stuff around the web and in business books around goals and objectives (G's and O's). Yes everyone needs them and they should be both personal and professional as they need to be aligned. Often personal goals will interfere with professional goals or vice versa, so they need to be communicated, discussed and aligned.

Also, there tends to be a recommendation that you shouldn't have more than 5 G's and O's, so if you have a long list, guess what, you will never achieve any of them.

Recently I attended the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference in Denver and I was at a presentation by Mahan Khalsa (http://www.franklincovey.com/SPG/about_m_khalsa.html).

He was a brilliant presenter that spoke about Sales Leadership and how you achieve sustained superior performance in sales.

I liked all the stuff he spoke about but one thing really stood out, and that was about goals.

You see, some goals make all the difference (called Wildly Important Goals - WIGS) and the other goals are important just don't have the impact (called Pretty Important Goals - PIGS).

Basically that WIGS are the enemy of PIGS, so why have the PIGS. If the wildly important goals make all the difference why have the pretty important goals at all - really everything else is inconsequential.

This is extremely powerful as historically I with my direct reports have put together 4-5 goals, where 2 were everything and the others nice to have.

This year I will only be focusing on 1-2 Wildly Important Goals with staff as that's what will make all the difference any way, and then spend the time and energy on HOW we will get there.

I can't wait to try this in action - Thanks Mahan!!

Love Thy Customer!

2007-07-19T22:17:00.000+10:00

I know that this is talked about many times over, but no matter how many times articles on this are written I still see many instances, in fact daily, where businesses and their people are not looking after their customers and not responding to their needs.

It's interesting how many people love the customer when they either have done something wrong and have been reprimanded, or the customer has demanded it because of some issue or because there is a new potential project the customer has.

In all cases, irrespective how well you look after the customer in that instance, the customer will always remember how you have treated them and make a decision based on that. Meaning that if you don't continue to love your customer, be flexible, engaging and be responsive, you can forget about keeping that customer and probably your staff.

I guess in a time where the economy is booming and their is business everywhere, vendors think they don't need to look after customers as there are so many out there, that if you screw a few up, you can always move on - however it will always come back to bite you.

It's interesting to point out also, that in nearly all cases, customers want the same thing as your staff. ie to be heard, get value for their work and be respected and serviced.

You do that, and the business will flourish.

Reasons to say NO to business

2007-07-14T13:50:00.000+10:00

Given the need to have deeper engagement with existing customers rather than taking on new business from all customers, I was reminded of my posting from last year around around saying no to business.

However, I read a great article from ConnectIT recently that again slammed down this point, check it out here - http://www.connectitnews.com/usa/story.cfm?item=731

I know it is difficult to say no to the customer, trust me I know, after being in business for now 8-9 years I know how important it is to take on business and how hard it is to say no to business. But my experiences over that time and more so over the past couple of years has shown that taking on the wrong business delivers detrimental results. Results that if invested in more relevant customers and projects would have not only have saved you pain and suffering but yield significant returns.

Also, I recently attended a presentation by John Rudow from the Rudow Group in the US and he stated both from his findings and industry statistics that it costs 10 times more for you to acquire a new customer that to keep and engage with an existing customer.
Well if that's the case, and you have solid relationships with existing customers, why don't you simply do more for them, rather than take on new projects from new clients that could jeopardise your business.

What a year - I'm back now!

2007-07-08T20:52:00.000+10:00

I know its been a while - around 4 weeks since my last posting and before I can excuse myself and say how bad that is, I wanted to say that I can't remember being as busy as I (Unique World) have been ever before. We have been running at a million miles per hour to the finish line of the end of financial year (June 30) and ensuring the new financial year (FY07/08) kicks off at the same pace that FY06/07 finished at.

Well its been a great year for Unique World and its staff. We have grown revenues by around 25% on the previous year, and the momentum should certainly continue into next year.

This was the year of Office 2007 (SharePoint) and the world is certainly going SharePoint crazy - and I'm glad we are in the thick of this craze that's for sure.

I am certainly looking forward to the new year ahead, stay tuned for some interesting postings this year...

Networking! Networking! Networking!

2007-06-10T23:10:00.000+10:00

When you start in business or in a new role you often want to get out and meet people all the time. Certainly a way to get to know the people around you and get an understanding of how you can both be successful.

If you are running your own business, networking is often the best and sometimes the only way to meet other like minded people that have the same challenges and opportunities to you. However when you get your business going and results become pretty good, you get complacent and feel that networking just isn't an important part of the job any more. What a joke!

I can tell from personal experience that at times over the past couple of years when networking events have been presented to me to attend and I register, often I won't go due to other priorities or I just won't feel like it - how stupid?

Over the last couple six months I have tried to "get out there" more and meet and engage with people and its been very exciting for me, the company and the opportunity that has been identified. There are so many times that you will meet someone that knows someone else and brings a certain opportunity to the table and also opens up new doors. I have personally and professionally benefited from the networking over the last 6 months and I have now realised that it is an integral role for anyone, especially someone in business that wants to grow, engage and have an opportunity to partner with other like minded people and companies.

Go on, get out there and start networking fast - you just never know where it might go...

The US - What an amazing economy?

2007-05-26T05:42:00.000+10:00

I have been in the US this week, firstly at the Microsoft Partner Advisory Council in Seattle (The Home of Microsoft, and of course Starbucks), then to San Francisco having a couple of meetings. And as I have been speaking to the various people here and seeing firsthand the way the world works in the US, the sheer size of the economy never ceases to amaze me.

No matter how many times I come here, which has been at least once a year since 1999, the economy and the way business gets done here is truly unique.

Rarely do you need to have ideas that don't get funded. There is so much venture capital around that if your idea doesn't get money there must be something wrong. There is no need to start a business the good old fashioned way, with some money in the bank and a dream. You still need a dream, but you need to use someone else's money.

Did you know that the economy in the state of California alone is I think larger than the entire economy in Australia? That shouldn't surprise many people as there are 30 million in California but only around 20 million in Australia.

This means that mediocrity can be sustained in the US and in fact can still deliver a very successful business - something that in a smaller economy like Australia just isn't an option.

The world envies an economy like this - as they say, you would rather be in the US in a recession, then in the booming times of any other economy in the world.

Alumni - always finish on good terms

2007-05-09T01:10:00.000+10:00

I was reading an article the other day, can't remember where, but it said that Accenture generate almost 50% of their business from ex-employees. Can you believe it?

Basically as staff leave the company, they do so on good terms, and usually they bag some high profile job in a large corporate. Which in turn means they are responsible for decision making around suppliers, etc... Need I say more?

This is absolutely amazing and a very valuable lesson. Never ever (if you can avoid it of course), finish up on bad terms with the employee. You never know where they might end up and irrespective of the work they can generate for you with their new employer, you want them to talk highly of you and give a great rap on the company if ever asked.

I would love to begin an alumni program, but given our short life of over 8 years, and only have a handful of people that have left over the years (relative to a much larger organisation of tens of thousands of people), that would certainly be tough, but its something I do want to start doing in the years to come.

As they say, don't burn your bridges, you never know when you need to walk over them and when others need to walk over them also.

Right people in the right seat

2007-04-30T21:50:00.000+10:00

I am sure that everyone has already read the fantastic book, Good to Great by Jim Collins - http://www.jimcollins.com. Jim along with his great researchers sights that its vital to get the right people on the bus, make sure they are in the right seats and then determine where the bus is going.

Sometimes you can get the right people on the bus and things don't exactly work out for everyone, well maybe they are still the right people but simply not in the right seat, ie the right role.

Plus, timing is everything. This can be a key factor in this statement.

Companies change, mature and evolve - people do also, but not at the same rate and certainly not in the same direction. It is important to ensure that if things aren't working out its not necessarily the individual, but the company or simply the situation of a range of factors.

Just go back to your core principles, values and direction - then determine whether they are the right person, just not in the right seat. If it is the case, then get them out of that seat quickly and into the right seat - then watch the results.

Why, Why & Why (5 why's)?

2007-04-23T22:35:00.000+10:00

Ever stopped yourself or anyone else and asked them Why? I am sure you have.

But have you ever asked yourself or anyone else WHY, five times?

The five why's is a simple technique that allows you to get to the root cause of a problem. So when you are faced with a problem it is important to stop and ask why five times - easier said that done, right?

This is a very powerful technique to ensure that the problem stays solved and never happens again.
By repeatedly asking the question "Why" at least five times, you can peel away the layers of symptoms which can lead to the root cause of a problem.

Bear in mind, however, that if it doesn’t prompt an intuitive answer, other problem-solving techniques may need to be applied, however there haven't been too many problems that the five why's haven't been able to resolve.

Go on - try it yourself - you will be amazed...

10 Software companies to watch

2007-04-12T23:53:00.000+10:00

I don't often publish much technical babble, but I thought this would be really interesting for people to check out. This was recently published by ComputerWorld.

10 enterprise software companies to watch
From business intelligence to CRM, from scheduling and e-procurement to database management and data governance, there is no shortage of enterprise applications available to help businesses make their processes more efficient. Choosing can be difficult, however: Do you go open source? Software-as-a-service, or in-house deployment? Every vendor has a sales pitch. Here are 10 worth watching. More...

There are a couple of them definitely worth following.

Prioritise Expectations

2007-04-09T20:51:00.000+10:00

I know that many people will say that it is very obvious that to be successful and to forge successful relationships whether personal or business, people need to prioritise expectations with the people they are working with for things to be successful. However, often the priorities we assume others have are the same as ours based on our own values and preferences. So don'[t assume, or it can be disastrous.

We need to go beyond the norm so that we can serve people the way they, not we want to be served and looked after. Sometimes there is a small difference, while other times there is a big difference. Since we're seeing a client and partners' expectations from inside our company we can't possibly have the same perspective as they do.

So, don't assume, and ask what the client and/or partner is expecting and where the stuff you are working with them on sits in the priority list - and make sure they align to yours.

By doing this, will ensure you won't be going through any unnecessary pain around expectations with your clients and partners.

Negotiation - its never only about two parties!

2007-03-28T23:28:00.000+10:00

All people negotiate. Whether it has to do with negotiating with a client around a deal, or the buying of an item or perhaps selling your car, everyone negotiates. Also, people negotiate with other people around their work every day and in fact many times a day - there is lots of giving and taking everywhere.

Sometimes when people negotiate and one of the parties believes that they can't seem to get the other party to where the negotiations need to be, talks often slow down and in fact breakdown. A lot of people give up and throw their hands in the air and say either "I give up", or "I'll show them", or some words to that effect.

What people fail to realise is that negotiation doesn't always have to have only two parties in discussion. Often the best form of negotiation is to introduce a 3rd party or even several other parties which change the playing fields so that new factors are introduced.

So you need to sometimes have multiple pressure points around a topic or discussion for it to begin to go your way.

You see when two parties talk there is often only two sides of the playing field - when you introduce more, the landscape changes introducing new factors. And what you need to do is to use these new factors to assist you in your argument to deliver on your objectives in the negotiation.

So next time you are negotiating with someone, no matter what and no matter what topic, and if you feel you aren't getting anywhere, introduce another factor - see how you go.

I bet you will see changes happen sooner than you think.

Improvements and Weaknesses - the important cycle

2007-03-22T17:21:00.000+11:00

Most businesses would agree, that when improvements are made to the business, whether they are improvements internally or externally , positive results are returned - obviously a very simple concept.

However what most businesses fail to see, that improvements also highlight weaknesses.

When you understand a problem or issue you are facing, you highlight a need to address and make some improvements, but what happens in reality is that as the improvement gets implemented other potentially related and unrelated weaknesses come up that need addressing. This is a constant cycle.

The fact of the matter is that, when you make improvements you expose your weaknesses, and as you expose your weaknesses you discover where you need to improve.

We have and continue to implement improvements across our business as we you do, we need to isolate the weaknesses and address them quickly.

But with enough focus on your weaknesses, the weaknesses of the past can and in fact become the strengths in the future.

For example, years ago (about 3-4 from memory) we struggled to put in place appropriate support processes to ensure we could respond and support our customers that were being supported from our service desk with the SLA’s agreed on. Now after many cycles of investment and process, I can confidently say that our service desk and support processes are outstanding and is definitely a key strength of the company.

Cold Calls - Is it that difficult?

2007-03-18T21:30:00.000+11:00

Most people struggle with cold calls and with only around 0.0000001 % (virtually zero) of the world population actually admit to enjoying it, you know its very difficult. And if you ask a sales person about cold calls, most will lie and say that they actually enjoy it. But as if that's really the case. In some very rare cases, this is true, but it is rare to find a person who enjoys it.

I for one don't mind it as I think that cold calling is actually quite challenging and rewarding at the same time – plus its part of business and communicating with people.

If you manage to call someone you have never met or spoken to and within a couple of minutes convince the person to either talk more or even arrange a meeting you feel absolutely brilliant - on top of the world in fact.

I personally think the key to a successful cold call is to convert it into a warm call. How you may ask? Here are a couple of pointers:

1) Google the person and find about him/her. What is their history? Have they been quoted somewhere?
2) If you have technology partners, speak to them about the person and account and see if they are willing to share any intel around that account?
3) Check out the company web site for any recent announcements? What’s important to them?

You can also try sending through an e-mail introducing yourself prior to calling

It’s also extremely important to practice your pitch and script and also NEVER forget to ask when you call if you are calling at a bad time and if you need to call back. People hate when it’s all about the other person on the phone.

People like to talk about themselves, so as soon as you call and introduce yourself and develop some type of credibility (ask yourself, WHY do they want to meet with you? What are you/your product special), then hand over the talking to them.

I personally enjoy the cold call because I love the satisfaction when it succeeds.

Good luck.

Training has its rewards

2007-03-08T21:58:00.000+11:00

I was speaking to my mentor, Ilan Kogus (http://www.myprofile.com.au/aboutus.htm) the other day about the training that we do with our staff. Interestingly he mentioned that the industry (not IT, but in general) do 2 days per team member and 5 days per manager of training per year. (wow that's low)

Unique World aims to have 1.5 days a month allocated to training. That is around 18 days per year. Wow - what a difference. It demonstrates that you really have to invest in your people and have them grow and develop for the success of the company and themselves as individuals.

A key part of that training is Soft Skills, and of course technical skills. The feedback I receive from the staff around the soft skills training is very positive. Last week, around 20 of our senior people attended leadership training for 2 days. Which I might add is a huge investment of the company to do that, however the feedback was resoundingly positive. Everyone loved it and really appreciated the time and money the company puts into this training.

This is a key part of ensuring our staff are invested in and are happy. Its a competitive market, so ensuring you can keep the best people is always a challenge, however I think the strategy of investing in them pays off in the end.

When do you delegate - Time Management 101

2007-02-28T06:35:00.000+11:00

A lot of people would be probably be thinking about the question of delegating if and only if they have someone reporting to them - well this isn't always the case.

As a founder, I have often struggled with letting things go and having other do the task that I once did - something about the owner, becoming a manager. (Does that sound familiar - Michael Gerber details this well in his E-Myth Manager book). And as each year passes, I see my role transitioning, as do many others as the organisation matures and develops.

So with that in mind, delegating, or to use the new 21st century term, empower, is about having others do the tasks you once did.

I think there are 3 very simple questions to ask yourself about any task you do:

Can this task be completed by someone else?
Will the task be performed better by someone else? In their role and skill set?
Is the person that could do the task a lower cost base than you?

If the answer is YES for all of them, then I think you know you need to delegate.

Delegation is always a challenge, especially if you have been doing something for years and often handing that over to someone takes longer than the task itself. However this certainly pays of. Getting things off your plate and onto the plate of someone else is critical for company maturity, development and prosperity.
It is certainly a challenge as I can personally attest to it, however persevere - its worth it!!!

Daily Huddles cont... - check the time!!!

2007-02-25T19:58:00.000+11:00

A further point to my last posting around meeting rhythm.

One thing I have adopted is to have the meeting at an odd time. Our daily meeting is at 9:14am to 9:29am. Why you may ask?

Its an odd time, so people need to check the time regularly to ensure that they are there on time. Too many meetings are on the half hour or on the hour, this way its at an add time for people to be encouraged to be on time. Plus its in between the half hour and hour meetings, which presents a better opportunity to be on time.

For the couple of weeks we have been at it - it works!

Meeting Rhythm - Amazing Perspective

2007-02-22T00:20:00.000+11:00

As an executive team at Unique World, we have recently begun the routine of "the daily huddle". This is a simple 15 mins meeting that brings together a quick snap shot of the things we are all up to.

Again, I read all about this in the book by Verne Harnish (http://www.gazelles.com/), Mastering the Rockefeller Habits.

We have also begun the weekly huddle, the Monthly and Quarterly huddle. All of which talks to the Meeting Rhythm of the organisation.

The important thing to note is that the daily and weekly meetings are all about communication and resolving (quickly) the places where people are stuck and sharing key things on each others plate. Also, it provides the awareness of whats going on and review of the key numbers. Whilst the monthly meeting is around learning about the month and the quarterly meeting is a little learning and a lot of strategy review and checkpoint.

Its early days and we have only been doing this for just over a week, but the results are fantastic.

There is nothing like the huddle for clarity, perspective and focus.

I look forward to seeing the results in months to come.

Invest in a Recruitment process - it pays off

2007-02-03T22:18:00.000+11:00

Over the past 6 months we have implemented a formal recruitment process and although occasionally it has been challenged with having the right people doing the interviews and being available, on the whole it has been a fantastic success.

Not only are the people that have joined us in recent times of high calibre, the recruitment process itself is a selling point on the professionalism of the company.

We are still improving the process, by imposing SLA's through the various stages because great people aren't available for long. If we don't interview them and snap them up quickly other companies will.

Also we have recently introduced a final process called, "cultural chat". It’s only been done a few times, but it will be standard practice. It is where a few people from the company take the candidate out for lunch/coffee to get to know them and see if they will fit in culturally. Certainly interesting results to date from the people we have done this to.

I am excited to keep refining this to improve our recruitment processes and strive to hire the best candidates available with the best cultural fit that align to our values.

Aus IT Industry here I come

2007-01-28T20:11:00.000+11:00

I recently was invited to be a member of the AIIA (Australian Information Industry Association - www.aiia.com.au) NSW Committee. This committee is responsbile for the strategy of AIIA across NSW and peers with other state groups throughout Australia.

I am excited to be involved as its an opportunity to really get involved with the ICT industry and have an impact with peer IT organisations.

I am very keen to get more involved in the ICT industry as a representative of many other IT based organisations as I feel that running my own ICT Consulting and software company I have a good handle on what IT organisations need and want with business and government.

Given that the majority of members of AIIA are small ICT comapnies not to dissimilar to Unique World Group, I hope to be able to provide new ideas that can help AIIA help the ICT industry.

Look out for some exciting developments in 2007...

I've been Tagged - 5 things you never knew about me

2007-01-15T22:35:00.000+11:00

Thanks to Ivan Wilson, I have been Tagged. A new rage that has hit the blogging community. Basically I have to tell you 5 things you never knew about me - just in case you cared.

Here goes...

I used to be huge as a kid and got teased a lot, but then I came to my senses and went on a diet when I was 12. I lost 30 kg in around 4 months.
My Father-in-law bought me my first modem in 1995 when they were the size of a shoe box, went at speeds of 28.8 kbs and cost $528.
I dropped out of Uni in my 3rd year of a Computer Science degree as it was very boring and I was itching to get out there and work in the real world of computers rather than studying about them.
My first internet web site was dubbed the the Hypercool Funk Cafe and it used to be at www.ozemail.com.au/~geller. When in those days everyone had an Ozemail account, and a tilda (~) in the domain. It was a site I developed using a book I bought called Learn HTML in 24 hours. Which is how I got my first internet job
My first internet job was working for Wide West Media which was run by Geoff Ebbs, a true internet visionary at the time.

There does it. I didn't think it was that interesting either.

Now its time to tag some others.

Nick Mayhew
Russ Stalters
Frank Arrigo (not sure if he has been tagged yet)
Gayan Pieris
Joshua Tan

People should not be managed

2006-12-29T14:07:00.000+11:00

I am reading a fantastic book now - Titled "Mastering the Rockefeller Habits" by Verne Harnish - http://www.gazelles.com/business_growth.html

It really brings together many principles, concepts and actions that you read and hear about all over the place. It provides a framework for putting everything together in a 1 page strategic plan.

However in reading through it (which I am still half way through) I have come across some fantastic nuggets. One of which is the simple concept that People (ie managers) don't manage people. They lead people and manage their activities.

Although this is quite obvious, I bet most people wouldn't operate that way. Managers need to lead by objectives and vision, and through their people action the activities that need to be delivered to achieve those objectives. This talks to not micro-managing and empowering your people to deliver and achieve on their objectives.

It's important to separate the person from their activities and then inspire them through great leadership.

Spend the time "on" the business and see the results

2006-12-06T22:10:00.000+11:00

With so much time spent "in" the business with the day to day operations, it is often very difficult to break out of the detail within the business to think more strategically.

Working "in" the business is what I do day in day out, whether it’s on sales, marketing, finance, hr or some other kind of operational thing and it is very difficult to break the shackles of this to think more strategically and laterally.

I have found that over the past 12 months I have begun spending more time "on" the business with amazing results. I became a member of a business leader’s forum and attended more business leadership forums so that I can stop and think more strategically about the business and guess what, it worked!!!

Not only did I manage to think strategically and implement this strategy, I actually found myself being more productive at work and thinking clearer. Plus also not allowing myself to get too bogged down in the operational detail - someone else can deal with that.

As a CEO and leader your ability to run the day to day business whilst also thinking strategically about the next couple of years is paramount when growing a business.

Anyway, to conclude, spending more time "on" the business will allow for more effective time to be spent "on" the business. You will see the results and so will your team.

Changing personal habits is the key to success

2006-11-27T22:16:00.000+11:00

People are naturally habitual. They do something that works whether it be in their work or in their personal life, once something is done that succeeds, people naturally do that again.

They "stick to a good thing" as this is becomes their comfort zone.

And although habits, whether good and bad are very often tough to change, they are often enough, the reason for not moving forward and succeeding even more.

Habits that brought success today are not by definition the habits that will bring you success tomorrow.

I heard this great saying the other day that I strongly believe in,

"If you always do what you have always done, you always will get what you have always got"

Which means that the things you do today will bring you the success you expect from it - however to go forward beyond this, you must change and develop new habits. Try something new.

So for example in sales, if you always e-mail people you don't know for meetings and say you get 1 out of every 5 e-mails sent successful - that makes you happy and satisfied. Again you have been doing this for years and it works.

However if you tried calling these people for meetings rather than e-mail, then perhaps you will convert 3 out of 5 people you contact for meetings. So you are more successful. This is a simple example however its relevant to everyone.

So if you stick to your habits, you will never realise the potential increase in success.

Try it with something you know and believe - then try something you haven't tried before - you will be amazed at the results - I know I was...

The A++ Players

2006-11-16T22:32:00.000+11:00

Any of you ever work with anyone that is a superstar by which continually over achieves, receives recognition and rewards but yet still they don't feel that their work is average and don't feel like they are actually being recognised at all?

Well sounds like you have an A++ player (better then an A player) in your business which is a seriously intellectual person that craves recognition through the superior delivery of tasks.

Although these people know they have done a good job they are in need for superiority - their need comes from a universal feeling of inferiority experienced in early childhood when they are helpless and dependant on others. If the feelings are managed appropriately they go and live well-adjusted lives. But if powerful authority figures prevent efforts to deal with this, then this inferiority will continue later in life.

You need to understand the true way people are driven - what’s important? How they like to be managed? How they respond to different praises and rewards?

All people like recognition and reward, however some long for and expect it!

Look after these A players - they will make all the difference – just make sure they are recognised in balance with the rest of your team!!

You are there to help, not to be right!

2006-11-09T10:26:00.000+11:00

Its important when mentoring/working/coaching someone that you are ultimately there to listen, ask questions and assist where appropriate.

Helping people realise things relevant to their challenges is the ultimate goal when it comes to mentoring/coaching. Many people believe that its the job of the mentor/coach to know more and to always be right, wrong!

The aim is to provide uninhibited listening skills that are not judgmental and predetermined.

I mentor a couple of people and always endeavour to help where need be, ask the questions and let the mentee drive the outcomes of the discussion.

We have to explain the why's and the how's and the when's and lead by example. In that environment, we all continue to learn, to grow and to prosper.

Its not about being right or wrong, its about listening, asking the right questions and helping where you can - the other person will get to the answers they are looking for.

Heart, Mind & Body - In the new order!!

2006-10-29T21:15:00.000+11:00

Heart, Mind & Body - yes its in this order.

I know that the body is the key part here and many people know this as "Mind, Body & Spirit". However without the Heart and it being committed to the potential success they can achieve, then the Mind and Body aren't interested and are completely disengaged.

The heart provides the passion, the dream's and the will to be successful. If the person is passioniate about something then their mind will be focussed and their body will be there to deliver.

The mind will be disciplined and dedicated to the cause as long as the heart is committed and provides the "hunger in the belly" to do the actual work.

This is all about having winners in the team - attract and retain people that have this passion and excitement to be involved with a company that can be personally rewarding and fulfilling professionally.

Its all about the heart... Nothing else matters...

Becoming a Purple Cow

2006-10-15T22:36:00.000+10:00

Interested with the title? - well its all about standing out and being remarkable.

The metaphor comes from the fact you rarely see a purple cow. Inspired by a recently article I read by Seth Godin.

When you drive in the countryside you notice cows grazing in lovely pastures right next to the road. For hundreds of kilometres, you notice these cows then, within a few minutes you begin to ignore the cows. The new cows were just like the old cows, and what was once amazing was now common. Worse than common: It was boring.

Cows, after you've seen them for a while, are boring. They may be well-bred cows, but they are still boring. A Purple Cow, though: Now, that would really stand out. The essence of the Purple Cow -- the reason it would shine among a crowd of perfectly competent, even undeniably excellent cows -- is that it would be remarkable. Something remarkable is worth talking about, worth paying attention to. Boring stuff quickly becomes invisible.

The world is full of boring stuff -- brown cows -- which is why so few people pay attention.

Being a purple cow is about determining what it takes to create and sell something remarkable. It is a recipe for marketers who want to make a difference at their company by helping create products and services that are worth marketing in the first place. It is a plea for originality, for passion, guts, and daring.

Today, the one sure way to fail is to be boring. Your one chance for success is to be remarkable.

So from Unique World's USB cup warmers to our occasional luxury cruise for clients , we always try and be different, yet special in our own way.

So get out there, be different, be remarkable - I know that's what I am trying to do with Unique World.

Why being Happy is everything?

2006-10-04T23:29:00.000+10:00

Happiness is the key to success. Yes what a cliche, but looking at the positives and being optimistic is an extremely important factor in being successful.

Good things happen to those that are happy and interact with other people through this happiness.

With the stuff that is happening around the world it is very difficult to always put on a happy face, however your inner attitudes are demonstrated through your external body movements. ie smiling, laughing, etc...

The world is trying to get happier. Amazon alone has over 31 thousand books with happy in the title that is relevant in business. WOW!

Karma is key here. You are treated as you treat yourself and others and you get what you expect from life. You are what you think.

Whenever you become truly committed to some cause the world around you helps you and opens doors to allow you succeed.

I am not saying that times don't get tough, but if they didn't would you actually relish in the good times???

So smile, be grateful for who you are and laugh lots!!

Consolidation is upon us!!!

2006-09-20T00:17:00.000+10:00

Just thought I would post some thoughts and comments about what I am seeing in the IT industry. That is, lots of consolidation.

If its not large companies buying smaller companies, its smaller companies wanting to be bought by larger companies. Also, companies that had various businesses in their structure are now realising that focus is key and are looking to sell where it doesn't fit the long term vision.

We have been approached recently in all capacities. Be acquired, acquire other companies, and even merge.

The IT industry is certainly ripe for this type of consolidation. As businesses grow and mature, they need new ways of continued growth, so acquisition seems logical. Whether this is around product or service, it is happening every day.

And in speaking with other companies out there, this is also what they are seeing also.

I certainly am not keen to be acquired, but acquiring others, you never know...

Stay tuned, the industry is shaking up...

The business we are in!

2006-09-10T13:13:00.000+10:00

Our executive team recently held a session with an external facilitator (Ilan Kogus - http://www.myprofile.com.au/mycoach/aboutus.htm), to discuss a range of business concepts and ideas. It was a fantastic session which brought out some great discussion, but one things that was discussed earlier really stood out in my mind.

In the early part of the session, Ilan asked each of us (three of us) what business are we in, what was our core purpose? Each of us provided the standard response which is associated with our tag line, "providing innovative business solutions that make a difference." Which of course is what we do and deliver to our clients.

However drilling further into this and discussing other businesses like McDonalds, Nike and even the movie industry identified that although we delivered innovative solutions that made a differerence, it wasn't the fundamental business we were in.

We determined, just like many other businesses, if not ALL businesses around the world, that we are in the business of "Servicing and retaining our clients"!. That's it!. Nothing more to add.

All the stuff we discuss and explain to people all serve the purpose of supporting that characteristic, however the core purpose of why we exist is that, "Servicing and retaining our clients". Nothing else matters!!!

It was so simple, but undeniably powerful.

Think about it - I am sure its relevant for your business also.

Soft Skills - They make all the difference

2006-08-29T00:26:00.000+10:00

I wanted to comment on just how important soft skills are in the IT industry (or any industry for that matter). Many organisations have great technical people that really have a detailed understanding of their technical competency but many lack the skills in the simple areas. Areas such as presentation, business writing, customer expectation on site and just simple communication.

The people in these organisations are the faces that represent the business when they are on site and dealing directly with customers. Their ability to engage on both a technology and business front is paramount when dealing with customers.

I know in previous years our organisation certainly didn't fully appreciate the fact that the people on site really needed to be armed with the soft skills to engage and represent the company over and above the initial technical requirements that were initially set.

Our consultants these days really need to have strong soft skills, which is why we have recently embarked on a significant initiative around arming ALL our staff, both consultants and admin staff with the necessary soft skills they need to be more effective with our clients.

The soft skills include, presentation, sales, negotiation, coordination, business writing and much more.

Our staff are excited as am I for them and our clients, as I truly believe that these skills are extremely important when it comes to customer engagement. And most of all, it arms our staff with the skills and confidence to do their job better whilst having fun and servicing our customers.

Let the wave begin!!

2006-08-13T22:38:00.000+10:00

Having recently been at the Microsoft Worldwide partner conference in Boston and then followed up again at the Australian partner conference in Hamilton Island, this year is certainly an extremely exciting year for Microsoft and its most committed partners (like us).

As an organisation, Unique World have been investing in the Microsoft platform across our products and consulting engagements since starting in 1999, but more heavily since 2001. This investment was expensive, but very worthwhile as it saw the organisation prosper into now`being a 70 people business.

This year (financial year 06/07) sees Microsoft release its next wave on products on the Vista and Office platforms. We have seen an enormous interest in the solutions that we offer since the BETA release of their products which is driving significant interest in the industry. It seems (as has been proven in the past) if Microsoft is in it, it will be big.

Now that their products have "crossed the chasm" it is really driving our business and opportunities here and abroad.

When Microsoft backs it - it undoubtedly succeeds, you just need patience and persistence.

The United States - What an economy!!

2006-07-31T08:34:00.000+10:00

Having recently come back from a trip in the US, I have been (again) inspired by the economy of the US and the way it all works.

I attended the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference in Boston a few weeks ago, along with 12,000 other people. There were people there from around the world, and many demonstrated their solutions/products at the exhibition area there. Many products there would compete with Microsoft directly, so you would think that their days are numbered, but no. Given the sheer size of the US market alone, a software/consulting company can still do extremely well simply focussing on one market or one region. That alone could give them access to over 10 Million people, and they don't even have to be that good.

The economy is driven by opportunity, persistence, timing and most of all people - they all want to do business and be successful.

I am always reminded by the sheer willingness of people just to get out there and give it a go.

Also, my experience in other cities is similar, but in a different context. People will service you no matter how you look in the US, as they know you have money to spend with them. In Australia, there are many occasions where looks impact how people are treated and serviced, and in turn the economy is then impacted. The US people want to do business with everyone, no matter what, and it is that commitment that has made them the economy that all countries are envious of. Its the people that make the difference, not the government regulations.

Maybe one day the Australian people will wake up and realise that. I can't wait!!!

Customer is King

2006-07-05T21:45:00.000+10:00

In the recent CEO forum I attended we had the Corporate Sales Manager from Lexus Chatswood come speak. Lexus of Chatswood is the largest Lexus franchise outside the US, would you believe it?
The reason for their success is simple - customer service and relationships. They prioritise service and relationships higher than anything else.
Their service is such that they would pick your car up from wherever you are (no matter where) and take the car for service, give you a car for the day and then drop your car off again wherever you are.
They will also service your Lexus even if you don't buy the car from them. Reasoning is that if you love their service, you will more inclined to use them the next time - amazing!!!

They have strong relationships with corporates and through those relationships and the packages they offer their customers' staff, provide a second to none service.
Even offering giving you a lexus for the weekend if the opportunity is ripe.

Another interesting fact is that they provide more rewards for their sales staff when they sell a car to an existing client than a new client - now that's innovating the sell.

Lots of car (food) for thought...

Human Excellence

2006-06-26T09:02:00.000+10:00

I attended an all day conference last week around human excellence and leadership. It was certainly an amazing day full of inspiration and thought provoking questions.

Amazing speakers like Sir John Whitmore and Norman Drummond spoke about some key questions people should ask themselves. The key question I loved was 'Who are you'? Literally, who are you'. Its all about the concept of determining if you're absolutely passionate about what you do and that the balance in your life between work and life is everything you want it to be.

It certainly allowed me to stop and contemplate the question.

More and more people are leaving the stress of the corporate world where they are on enormous salaries and changing all of that with something that they genuinely believe in and might enjoy. Michael Traill from Social Ventures Australia is one such person that did this - see more here - www.sva.com.au

Again key concepts around people first in all organisations rang through, with the finances always look after themselves once people were being looked after - I am a great believer in this

At Unique World we are working on many initiatives around people, to which the focus will never change, simply evolve and grow as the business does.

Strategy means saying "No"

2006-06-16T10:44:00.000+10:00

I read a wonderful article from David Maister the other week all about staying focussed. I could relate to this really well as its been a key aspect of our success over the last 5 years.

Click here to read the article.

Basically its all about sticking to your knitting and focussed on what you do really well. Stick to your guns and have the depth in your areas as opposed to saying yes to new opportunities outside your domain expertise even if the new opportunity will provide financial rewards.

It is very hard to turn work away but focussing on work you are experienced with will provide more work to you.

So at Unique World one of our bets has been on Microsoft, that we focus on Microsoft technologies and deliver quality solutions on that platform. This means that we do not offer solutions on J2EE or open source. We have had opportunities to enter the J2EE market with potentially millions of dollars in projects, but we said no and stuck to our guns.

There are many other examples of this also.

I can safely say that this strategy has worked for us and the company is kicking lots of goals based on this strategy.

I recommend this to everyone.

Office Environment - the Upgrade!!!

2006-06-03T14:11:00.000+10:00

Unique World recently moved into our new Sydney office. After many months of planning we moved in late April. Having been there now for around 6 weeks has demonstrated what an affect it has had on staff, their work and the culture.

After being in our old office for over 6 years, it didn't reflect the business we had become. There were many problems with it including, 2 flights of stairs, orange and yellow walls, dirt and stains everywhere, desks on top of each other and no real space of their own.

Being able to build a new office from the ground up with our own design, layout and colours was challenging but seriously rewarding.

We have added many new things to the new office that we just never had in the old office, proper meeting rooms, large workstations for all staff, break out room, coffee machine, table tennis, xbox and other features.

Staff have really appreciated these new aspects and I think it has shown in their work. Clients are happier, partners are keen to engage and potential staff going through the recruitment process are really keen to work at Unique World.

I am excited about what this office has brought to us and I look forward to continuing to invest and have the staff realise the potential of what the office can offer.

Our Values

2006-05-24T20:54:00.000+10:00

We recently have begun implementing values throughout the organisation.

PEOPLE - INTEGRITY - EXCELLENCE

Unique World obviously has always operated under a values system, but it wasn't consistent and it didn't reflect the business as it stands today.

I am excited to report that although it is early days, the signs are really promising.

We have begun embedding it throughout all aspects of the business, like policies, processes, communications, etc... So it will take a little while in having them embedded and supporting all people embracing them, but we are absolutely committed to seeing it through.

The power of 3 values is showing as they are easily remembered and discussed.

I am genuinely excited about the affects the values are having and will have across the business for all the people that touch the business.

I certainly can recommend a values based organisation to any one.

Budget Tax cuts - yay!

2006-05-18T08:56:00.000+10:00

The treasurer, Peter Costello announced last week a whole range of tax cuts. The tax cuts will affect all income earners in Australia, but the most exciting part about this budget's tax cuts is that finally it is relevant to small business and the entrepreneur’s that run them.

With the tax cuts being put in place from July 1 this year, it is now questionable whether people should be operating as a consultant (through their own personal company) and paying company tax, or working as an employee for a company. Now with the reduction in income tax, that divide has virtually closed. This is fantastic for a high income earner as paying nearly 50% in tax just isn't sustainable. I commend (as do all the serial entrepreneurs in this country) Costello for finally announcing these changes.

Another exciting development for small business is the reduction and abolishment of various tax duties over the coming years - although they are small it will certainly help. And the ability to accelerate depreciation on assets used in business will certainly fuel further investment.

I am certainly excited about it - hope you are too.

Can't wait till July 1!!!

The Art of First Impressions

2006-05-11T22:06:00.000+10:00

I have always been conscious of first impressions as I have always wondered how people determine how they have a positive or negative experience.
After doing some reading and talking to some experts it seems that first impressions are determined between 3-30 seconds. This depends of course on the people, the environment and audience as to how long it actually takes to determine whether a first impression is positive or negative.
It seems that a first impression is made up of 3 key things. They are:

Presentation
Body Language
Speech

If you were to guess the percentage breakdown of each I bet you would be mistaken - I certainly was. The actual breakdown, based on years of research is:

Presentation - 55%
Body Language - 38%
Speech - 5%

Yes, would you believe it. Speech has virtually no affect on first impressions, which is why many people forget a persons name when they are first introduced. They are so focussed on the presentation of that person and the person's body language that everything else is ignored. The human brain needs to have a decision on this very quickly - it is just built that way.

First impressions are extremely important as they set the tone of the relationship and the ongoing interaction with that person. If the first impression was negative, it would take many interactions to change that, if you could change that at all.

The key point is that your presentation (how you look?) and body language (what your body is saying?) is everything, focus on that and your language will be looked after.

Happy impressing!!!

Blue Ocean Strategy

2006-05-10T10:33:00.000+10:00

I have recently been reading up on this concept called "Blue Ocean Strategy". Its all about the concept of creating an uncontested market space and making the competition irrelevant. It's an amazing concept which is difficult to grasp initially. The reason why its called Blue Ocean is because the current competitive landscape is a red ocean, which is full of competition. Yes you can still succeed, but its all about differentiation within an existing market.
Blue Ocean is around creating a new demand and capturing it with no competitors. Companies that have done this successfully include Cirque du Soleil, Dell (through built to order PC's) and Cemex. This doesn't mean that they don't have competitors today, its just that when they released and were successful it was uncontested market.
Cirque du Soleil today is still in an uncontested circus/entertainment market, which is amazing considering they have been been in business since 1984.
Anyway, if you want to find out more, buy the book here - http://www.blueoceanstrategy.com/
I hope to find out what Unique World's Blue Ocean Strategy is in the near future.

Welcome to my blog

2006-05-07T21:24:00.000+10:00

Welcome to my first blog. I have wanted to have a blog for years but thought that I wouldn't have the content, but I feel that where the business (Unique World) is at and the speed at which business is being conducted online I will have many things to write about.

I will be writing about the following:

Business Concepts (new and old)
New online/software ideas
Interesting things happening in business and the media
New Technologies that can make a difference to business
And anything else I think is interesting

I will be writing all this with my role as the CEO, so no geeky technical babble

So come visit every now and again and I hope to give you something you can take away.