Slow and steady wins the race - this applies to change management more than anything else. Look for quick-wins. Traget the most pro-change entities within the organization to effect the change first. This will help boost the morale of your core team. After the first success, take the most difficult customer as your next target. You will need full support from your core team and might have to get in the big guns at times. Succeed here and the rest of your work becomes a cake-walk.

Remember, this is not the first and the last change management initiative that you would be heading. So be generous in showing appreciation of other's contributions. They will return the favour the next time they team up with you.

This is the most impo

Corporate Coach Hire - A Guide To Choosing A Company For Executive Travel
Among business it is becoming more necessary to transport staff and clients between points of business for meetings and exhibitions. Today we are looking at the benefits of a corporate coach hire. As flight prices are reduced it looks to be the cheapest option to resort to airline companies as the cheapest option for luxury travel. Many advertisements offer reduced flight packages from major airports that can look attractive travel incentives for your business needs.When we asses the actual costs involved this means of travel can be the most expensive.Firstly, the initial travel to an airport can be a major cost factor. Train fairs, taxis or fuel prices are incurred. Although the actual flight may be cheap the cost of travel to the airport and parking may outweigh this fare. Arrival at the airport destination usually means extra travel to the business location and taxi or train fairs are taken into consideration.If you need your staff or clients to arri

Change is always for the better. And I enjoy effecting change in organizations. It gives me a great amount of satisfaction to see the machinery - that includes people and processes - change to achieve a better level of operational excellence.

I have had considerable success in the numerous change management initiatives that I have led, however they have come with their own dose of challenges and associated learnings. As I reflect upon my past triumphs, there are 9 key steps - I call them mantras - that have ensured my success in all change management initiatives. The proof of the pudding lies in the fact that I have used these mantras successfully in managing and effecting change where such attempts had miserably failed. These are shared below for you to learn, adopt and adapt to your own unique environments & situations.

Mantra 1: Do not advocate the change from day 1

NEVER, NEVER, NEVER walk into an organization / a room and proclaim that you are there to make a change. Do that and you / your efforts would be shown the door. Always position yourself as a facilitator who is there to work with them to see if there is a more effective way to do things.

Mantra 2: Understand why the previous attempts had failed

To succeed, learn from previous mistakes. More importantly, understand why the previous attempts had failed. Dissect the cause to a great extent to get to the root cause of the failure. Get inputs from all quarters and people across the hierarchy to get about their views of why the previous attempts had failed. Now dissect the cause and arrive at your version of why the failure happened. This is what you will avoid at all costs.

Mantra 3: Core team of key influencers

Identify the groups that will be affected by the change that you are going to bring in. Now go into each affected group and find out who are the key influencers within them. This is the step that will define your success/failure. Create a core team with these people in it. Build a deep and trusting professional relationship with your core team. Get a view from everyone of how the team should approach this challenge.

Mantra 4: Least Common Denominator

Never try to force a process / model onto your core team. Rather, use your core team to first identify a least common denominator (LCD) i.e. the minimum that is acceptable to all affected parties. Thereafter evolve an elaborate model out of your LCD and bring it to the final state that you have envisoned but not shared (remember, you are not supposed to impose but rather extract and evolve). Your role during this stage would be that of a listener and a facilitator.

Mantra 5: Sell change to Sr. Management

Now that you have a blueprint for implementation, go ahead, show it to the Sr. Mgmt. Do remember to include the names of people who have contributed to this and whose inputs have been taken into consideration. This will greatly increase your chances of getting a buy-in from the Sr. Mgmt. More importantly, listen and watch to the facial expressions and body language of the Sr. Mgmt team as you are presenting your case. Listen and understand their questions and answer to the point - there is no room for beating around the bush when it comes to the Sr. Mgmt. Own up for anything that you would have missed out and give a plan of action to incorporate their recommendations. NEVER leave the room without getting an in-principle agreement to your recommendations. If their suggestions warrant a major change, then schedule a follow-on session there and then and set expectations that that session would be to go over the suggestions and sign off on the approach. Do this and you have struck gold. And now you move on to rolling out the change.

Mantra 6: Before rollout, identify noise-makers and address them

These are the people who could topple your applecart. Its easy to identify such people - there are 2 types. Ones have a loud voice, sly smiles, have been in the system for a long time, have an opinion about everything and have the ability to influence their teams through brute force. The second type are passively destructive in the sense that they won't speak up at meetings, have a closed body-language and believe in working 1:1 with people and influencing them - to not subscribe to your recommendations. A two-pronged strategy to deal with such people includes 1)Selecting influencers as part of your core team and 2)Working individually with these people and pre-empting their concerns during such 1:1 sessions.

Mantra 7: Roll out the change phase-wise

Slow and steady wins the race - this applies to change management more than anything else. Look for quick-wins. Traget the most pro-change entities within the organization to effect the change first. This will help boost the morale of your core team. After the first success, take the most difficult customer as your next target. You will need full support from your core team and might have to get in the big guns at times. Succeed here and the rest of your work becomes a cake-walk.

Mantra 8: Be lavish in your appreciation of other's contributions

Remember, this is not the first and the last change management initiative that you would be heading. So be generous in showing appreciation of other's contributions. They will return the favour the next time they team up with you.

Mantra 9: Enjoy what you are doing

This is the most impor

Surviving The Technical Interview
Ah, the technical interview. Nothing like it. Not only does it cause anxiety, but it causes anxiety for several different reasons.How many people will be asking questions? From experience I can tell you there's nothing like walking into a room and seeing nine people on the other side of the table.Second, what will you be asked? You'll sometimes hear people say the questions they were asked in a technical interview were 'easy', which translated means 'they asked me stuff I happened to know'. Sometimes you'll hear people say the questions were 'hard', which translated means 'they asked me stuff I didn't know', or 'they asked me about stuff I've never even heard of'.Having been on both sides of the technical interview table, I'd like to share some tips for those being interviewed. In doing so, I'll share some of the more memorable interviews I've been involved in.No good interviewer expects you to know everything. The problem is, you're not alway

oor. Always position yourself as a facilitator who is there to work with them to see if there is a more effective way to do things.

Mantra 2: Understand why the previous attempts had failed

To succeed, learn from previous mistakes. More importantly, understand why the previous attempts had failed. Dissect the cause to a great extent to get to the root cause of the failure. Get inputs from all quarters and people across the hierarchy to get about their views of why the previous attempts had failed. Now dissect the cause and arrive at your version of why the failure happened. This is what you will avoid at all costs.

Mantra 3: Core team of key influencers

Identify the groups that will be affected by the change that you are going to bring in. Now go into each affected group and find out who are the key influencers within them. This is the step that will define your success/failure. Create a core team with these people in it. Build a deep and trusting professional relationship with your core team. Get a view from everyone of how the team should approach this challenge.

Mantra 4: Least Common Denominator

Never try to force a process / model onto your core team. Rather, use your core team to first identify a least common denominator (LCD) i.e. the minimum that is acceptable to all affected parties. Thereafter evolve an elaborate model out of your LCD and bring it to the final state that you have envisoned but not shared (remember, you are not supposed to impose but rather extract and evolve). Your role during this stage would be that of a listener and a facilitator.

Mantra 5: Sell change to Sr. Management

Now that you have a blueprint for implementation, go ahead, show it to the Sr. Mgmt. Do remember to include the names of people who have contributed to this and whose inputs have been taken into consideration. This will greatly increase your chances of getting a buy-in from the Sr. Mgmt. More importantly, listen and watch to the facial expressions and body language of the Sr. Mgmt team as you are presenting your case. Listen and understand their questions and answer to the point - there is no room for beating around the bush when it comes to the Sr. Mgmt. Own up for anything that you would have missed out and give a plan of action to incorporate their recommendations. NEVER leave the room without getting an in-principle agreement to your recommendations. If their suggestions warrant a major change, then schedule a follow-on session there and then and set expectations that that session would be to go over the suggestions and sign off on the approach. Do this and you have struck gold. And now you move on to rolling out the change.

Mantra 6: Before rollout, identify noise-makers and address them

These are the people who could topple your applecart. Its easy to identify such people - there are 2 types. Ones have a loud voice, sly smiles, have been in the system for a long time, have an opinion about everything and have the ability to influence their teams through brute force. The second type are passively destructive in the sense that they won't speak up at meetings, have a closed body-language and believe in working 1:1 with people and influencing them - to not subscribe to your recommendations. A two-pronged strategy to deal with such people includes 1)Selecting influencers as part of your core team and 2)Working individually with these people and pre-empting their concerns during such 1:1 sessions.

Mantra 7: Roll out the change phase-wise

Slow and steady wins the race - this applies to change management more than anything else. Look for quick-wins. Traget the most pro-change entities within the organization to effect the change first. This will help boost the morale of your core team. After the first success, take the most difficult customer as your next target. You will need full support from your core team and might have to get in the big guns at times. Succeed here and the rest of your work becomes a cake-walk.

Mantra 8: Be lavish in your appreciation of other's contributions

Remember, this is not the first and the last change management initiative that you would be heading. So be generous in showing appreciation of other's contributions. They will return the favour the next time they team up with you.

Mantra 9: Enjoy what you are doing

This is the most impo

Make Business Cards To Make Connections
Business cards are one of the most common advertising tools that people use today. They can be helpful if you need to exchange contact information with a client or if you want to promote your business to other people without doing a sales pitch.These cards contain information that people need to contact you, such as your business name, your name, contact numbers, fax numbers, address, email address, and web addresses. Your company or business can really improve if you make business cards that will enhance the image of your company.You can save money if you decide to make business cards on you own. The most convenient way is to buy a kit from a business supply store. A few of these kits come with a software to help you make your own design. You simply have to fill in all the necessary information about your company.Print the cards out on the provided stock after you’ve made sure that all the information in the cards are correct. You can print a few sample ca

Least Common Denominator

Never try to force a process / model onto your core team. Rather, use your core team to first identify a least common denominator (LCD) i.e. the minimum that is acceptable to all affected parties. Thereafter evolve an elaborate model out of your LCD and bring it to the final state that you have envisoned but not shared (remember, you are not supposed to impose but rather extract and evolve). Your role during this stage would be that of a listener and a facilitator.

Mantra 5: Sell change to Sr. Management

Now that you have a blueprint for implementation, go ahead, show it to the Sr. Mgmt. Do remember to include the names of people who have contributed to this and whose inputs have been taken into consideration. This will greatly increase your chances of getting a buy-in from the Sr. Mgmt. More importantly, listen and watch to the facial expressions and body language of the Sr. Mgmt team as you are presenting your case. Listen and understand their questions and answer to the point - there is no room for beating around the bush when it comes to the Sr. Mgmt. Own up for anything that you would have missed out and give a plan of action to incorporate their recommendations. NEVER leave the room without getting an in-principle agreement to your recommendations. If their suggestions warrant a major change, then schedule a follow-on session there and then and set expectations that that session would be to go over the suggestions and sign off on the approach. Do this and you have struck gold. And now you move on to rolling out the change.

Mantra 6: Before rollout, identify noise-makers and address them

These are the people who could topple your applecart. Its easy to identify such people - there are 2 types. Ones have a loud voice, sly smiles, have been in the system for a long time, have an opinion about everything and have the ability to influence their teams through brute force. The second type are passively destructive in the sense that they won't speak up at meetings, have a closed body-language and believe in working 1:1 with people and influencing them - to not subscribe to your recommendations. A two-pronged strategy to deal with such people includes 1)Selecting influencers as part of your core team and 2)Working individually with these people and pre-empting their concerns during such 1:1 sessions.

Mantra 7: Roll out the change phase-wise

Slow and steady wins the race - this applies to change management more than anything else. Look for quick-wins. Traget the most pro-change entities within the organization to effect the change first. This will help boost the morale of your core team. After the first success, take the most difficult customer as your next target. You will need full support from your core team and might have to get in the big guns at times. Succeed here and the rest of your work becomes a cake-walk.

Mantra 8: Be lavish in your appreciation of other's contributions

Remember, this is not the first and the last change management initiative that you would be heading. So be generous in showing appreciation of other's contributions. They will return the favour the next time they team up with you.

Mantra 9: Enjoy what you are doing

This is the most impo

Becoming A Police Officer Just Became Easier
As many law enforcement candidates can vouch for, taking the police entrance exam can be a stressful and highly competitive experience. I decided to research some preparation web sites and purchased several E-books on the topic to get a better understanding of what it takes to become a police officer. One thing that I quickly realized was that there were plenty of sources of material available for anyone seriously interested in a future in law enforcement.According to Augie Caamano, owner of PoliceQuiz.com, "Becoming a police officer has become extremely difficult due to the number of applicants applying these days." Caamano also stated "I try to assist these candidates by walking them through written test step by step. My online practice exams, as well as the strategies provide the candidates with an edge that they would not have had before the course."For a modest fee of $27 prospective candidates can take several practice exams, and read online tutorials which i

ut and give a plan of action to incorporate their recommendations. NEVER leave the room without getting an in-principle agreement to your recommendations. If their suggestions warrant a major change, then schedule a follow-on session there and then and set expectations that that session would be to go over the suggestions and sign off on the approach. Do this and you have struck gold. And now you move on to rolling out the change.

Mantra 6: Before rollout, identify noise-makers and address them

These are the people who could topple your applecart. Its easy to identify such people - there are 2 types. Ones have a loud voice, sly smiles, have been in the system for a long time, have an opinion about everything and have the ability to influence their teams through brute force. The second type are passively destructive in the sense that they won't speak up at meetings, have a closed body-language and believe in working 1:1 with people and influencing them - to not subscribe to your recommendations. A two-pronged strategy to deal with such people includes 1)Selecting influencers as part of your core team and 2)Working individually with these people and pre-empting their concerns during such 1:1 sessions.

Mantra 7: Roll out the change phase-wise

Slow and steady wins the race - this applies to change management more than anything else. Look for quick-wins. Traget the most pro-change entities within the organization to effect the change first. This will help boost the morale of your core team. After the first success, take the most difficult customer as your next target. You will need full support from your core team and might have to get in the big guns at times. Succeed here and the rest of your work becomes a cake-walk.

Mantra 8: Be lavish in your appreciation of other's contributions

Remember, this is not the first and the last change management initiative that you would be heading. So be generous in showing appreciation of other's contributions. They will return the favour the next time they team up with you.

Mantra 9: Enjoy what you are doing

This is the most impo

How To Be A Medical School Superstar
You took all of the pre-med prerequisites in college. You know your biology, your organic chemistry, your anatomy. Now it's time for medical school. Medical school may be one of the most difficult challenges you will face. But the most successful doctors don't just make it through medical school; they shine. Here are a few tips to help you become a medical school superstar.Know Your StuffThe key to a successful medical career is to have the most important medical information at your fingertips. There is a lot to know about health and the human body, and as a doctor you will need to know it all, and in many disciplines, know it quickly. Rote memorization may not be too exciting, but if you want to excel in medical school, you have to show your professors that you know your stuff. They had to learn it, and so do you. Use mnemonic devices to remember long lists of material, and test yourself constantly. It can be even more helpful to randomly test your friends and hav

e people and pre-empting their concerns during such 1:1 sessions.

Mantra 7: Roll out the change phase-wise

Slow and steady wins the race - this applies to change management more than anything else. Look for quick-wins. Traget the most pro-change entities within the organization to effect the change first. This will help boost the morale of your core team. After the first success, take the most difficult customer as your next target. You will need full support from your core team and might have to get in the big guns at times. Succeed here and the rest of your work becomes a cake-walk.

Mantra 8: Be lavish in your appreciation of other's contributions

Remember, this is not the first and the last change management initiative that you would be heading. So be generous in showing appreciation of other's contributions. They will return the favour the next time they team up with you.

Mantra 9: Enjoy what you are doing

This is the most important thing to do. Your enthusiasm about the change should be contagious. It should not only trickle down to the team but also bubble up to the Sr. Management because they would be the influencers who would give you the required fire-power to effect the change.

My experience tells me that mantras these can be applied to any change management initiative - particularly if previous attempts have failed - with slight adjustments to cater to the uniqueness of the environment / situation.

CAUTION: Once you succeed in a major change management initiative, you will be called in again and again. So be prepared. But believe me, each is a challenge in its own and you will enjoy it - in fact, it might get addictive.

Hope this helps you. God luck with leading change!!!

About the Author Shaju Nair is heading the Technology Competence and Consulting Division at a leading software products company in India. He has focused on the use of emerging technologies to differentiate products, processes and services and continuously seeks out opportunities for improvement.

Shaju has proactively acquired cross-industry, multi-geography experience with large multinational companies as well as silicon valley startups. His educational background includes institutions like Berkeley (International Business Management and International Finance), San Jose State University (Executive Business Programme - Executive MBA equivalent), University of California, Santa Cruz (Honors in Project and Program Management) and Gujarat University (Masters in Computer Applications). Additionally, he has written and published papers on various topics around technology, business management and brand building.