Understanding Stress and Workplace Stress (part 2)

Here are additional thoughts about what affects your ability to cope with stress at work. Learn more about stress.

All of these and other issues impact your ability to manage workplace stress and change, to continue to function productively. It is important to recognize that people who are experiencing serious stress and change may not be capable of performing exactly as they have in the past.

Stress can cause physical, emotional, and behavioral problems which can affect your health, energy, well-being, mental alertness, and personal and professional relationships. It can also cause defensiveness, lack of motivation, difficulty concentrating, accidents, reduced productivity, and interpersonal conflict.

Too much stress can cause minor problems such as sleep-loss, irritability, backaches, or headaches, and can also contribute to potentially life-threatening diseases such as high blood pressure and heart disease.

During stressful times or situations, people often blame themselves for being weak or for their inability "to handle it." Often managers in organizations do not understand the normal progression of change or stress-producing situations and they expect employees to immediately return to total productivity after a stressful event. It doesn’t happen.
Stress Results From Change

People have deep attachments to their work groups, organizational structures, personal responsibilities, and ways of accomplishing work. When any of these are disturbed, whether by personal choice or through an organizational process from which they may feel quite removed and uninvolved, a transition period occurs. During this transition, people can expect to experience a period of letting go of the old ways as they begin moving toward and integrating the new.

When you consider stress in the workplace, understanding these components about stress, situations that induce stress, and employee responses to stress, can help you help both yourself and your staff effectively manage stress and change.

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

Understanding Stress and Workplace Stress (part 1)

By Susan M. Heathfield, About.com Guide

Stress is normal. Everyone feels stress related to work, family, decisions, your future, and more. Stress is both physical and mental. It is caused by major life events such as illness, the death of a loved one, a change in responsibilities or expectations at work, and job promotions, loss, or changes.

Smaller, daily events also cause stress. This stress is not as apparent to us, but the constant and cumulative impact of the small stressors adds up to big impact.

In response to these daily stresses, your body automatically increases blood pressure, heart rate, respiration, metabolism, and blood flow to your muscles. This stress response is intended to help your body react quickly and effectively to any high-pressure situation.

However, when you are constantly reacting to small or large stressful situations, without making physical, mental, and emotional adjustments to counter their effect, you can experience stress that can hurt your health and well-being. It is essential that you understand both your external and internal stress-causing events, no matter how you perceive those events.

Stress can also be positive. You need a certain amount of stress to perform your best at work. The key to stress management is to determine the right amount of stress that will give you energy, ambition, and enthusiasm versus the wrong amount which can harm your health and well-being.
Important Stress Causing Issues, Characteristics and Traits

While each person is different and has different events and issues that cause stress, there are some issues that almost universally affect people. These are the stressors you most want to understand and take measures to prevent.

* Feeling out of control,
* Feeling direction-less,
* Guilt over procrastination or failing to keep commitments,
* More commitments than time,
* Change, especially changes you didn't initiate or institute,
* Uncertainty, and
* High expectations of self.

What Affects Your Coping With Stress Skills?

During times of stress and uncertainty, you can anticipate some predictable issues, problems, and opportunities. For instance, during any change, members of an organization have:

* Different ways of regarding change. Some people have difficulty accepting and adjusting to change and uncertainty; others will relish the changes and view them as great opportunities. Some people initiate change; others prefer the status quo.


* Different amounts of experience and practice in stress management and change management. (What is devastating to one individual may excite another or only mildly irritate a third person.) Theoretically, people become better at managing stress and change with experience.


* Some people need to "talk it out." Others suffer silently. Some find relief in complaining. Some talk and talk and talk, but are really supportive of the change. Others find ways to sabotage changes and undermine efforts to move forward.


* Different levels of stress and change occurring in other areas of their lives.


* During change, people will experience different amounts of impact from the current changes and stress producing situations. The will also experience different amounts and types of support from their spouse, significant other, friends, supervisor, and coworkers.

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

Create Your Own Path: Career Promotion Tips (parft 2)

More Career and Promotion Tips

From Brenda Koritko

Volunteering is another way to promote your career and demonstrate your value while expanding your knowledge in critical areas of your company. Volunteering also provides a great way to earn a reputation for being reliable, professional, and cooperative, worthy of promotion. Keep in mind that while you are volunteering, you may discover a need that you have the skills and experience to resolve. A great advantage in this situation is that by being involved, you know the right person to contact; it may be the person you are working with in your volunteer position.

The more you know about yourself, the more you will communicate about your value to the right people at the right time to promote your career. Record everything that you do to enhance the company's bottom line. Start today by dividing a blank sheet of paper into three columns with three separate headings: action, result of action, and impact of action. Keep this paper with you as you do your job.

Your key accomplishments are probably actions that you take for granted. For example, if you are responsible for accounts payable, in column one write "paying invoices;" in column two write the result of this action, for example, paid in time - no interest payments, and in the third column write the impact of this action, for example, a decrease in the cost of production. Did you think of this action as related to decreasing cost, or did you think of it as doing part of your job? How do you think others view this action?

Scheduled performance development planning meetings provide the perfect opportunity to showcase your accomplishments for career promotion. By being proactive and creating opportunities, you improve the likelihood that you will gain the attention of your employer and the career promotion that you deserve.

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

Create Your Own Path: Career Promotion Tips (parft 1)

How to Promote Your Work Contribution

From Brenda Koritko


Tired of watching other workers advance their career as you continue to exceed all expectations, without promotion, in your current position? Successful workers create their own path to promotion; they don't rely on luck. Self-promotion is key to your career success.

If you have experienced this situation, even once, you know that you can’t continue to wait for others to decide when you should be offered a promotion. Even if you are not ready to make a job or career change today, you will benefit from knowing how to put into action a successful self-promotion plan.

Unfortunately, if no one knows how much you contribute to the company, you will continue to miss the next great promotion opportunity. Letting people know that you are interested in advancing your career is the first step in an effective self-promotion plan. You can simply advise your immediate supervisor or a representative from your human resource department, but remember the old adage that "actions speak louder than words," and plan to make a lasting impression.


Create a Career Opportunity

One successful technique is to single out an unresolved challenge that exists in your company. Try to pick a situation that will benefit from your combination of experience and skills. Write a memo that outlines the need you've discovered. Highlight how you will use your skills to resolve the problem and contribute to the immediate objectives of the team or department involved. Send your memo to the person who will benefit most from your unique approach, for example, your boss or a human resources representative.

Don't wait for your organization to discover the same need. By waiting, you take the chance that they may decide to post the position. (If posting positions is policy in your company, at least your name is on the promotion list first.)

Without your proactive approach to your career and potential promotion, they may decide to promote one of your peers. By being proactive, you create a win-win situation. You may gain a challenging, enjoyable career opportunity and eliminate the need for a competition. Even if a new career or promotion opportunity does not result from your actions, you have successfully created an opportunity to demonstrate your value to the organization.You have increased the likelihood that they will consider you for the next rewarding career or promotion opportunity.

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

Create the Life You Want With a Mid-Career Crisis

Career Exploration Tools

By Susan M. Heathfield, About.com Guide


Are you experiencing a mid-career crisis? And, if not, should you be experiencing a mid-career crisis? I did when I was thirty-four years old. I'd been working in my chosen field for 14 years and had finished my Masters degree in a related subject. I experienced a growing sense of uneasiness that this work was not what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. Fortunately, I listened to my inner voices. Or, I would never have been able to create this wonderful life and work that I love.

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--

I took the one less traveled by,
and that has made all the difference." --Robert Frost

You can, too. Are your inner voices asking you, "Is this all there is?" Do you have a growing sense that you would be happier doing something else? Do you hate going to work each morning? If so, it's time to create a mid-career crisis. I'll share with you some tools to help.
Guided Thinking Exercises

Personal thought time and day dreaming help you explore your options, but guided thinking exercises direct your thoughts in more concrete, helpful directions. Try these exercises to focus your career planning and life thinking – yes, you have to do the work to get to your goal.

* Write down your ten favorite activities, the ones without which your life would feel bereft. (Mine included reading, writing, walking and more.) No career choice is suitable unless you get to do your favorite activities at least weekly, and preferably, daily.
* Write down the top five goals you want to accomplish in your career. (Think money, fame, impact, contribution and more.) Your selected career must enable you to reach these goals.
* List everything you’d like to do in your lifetime. These lists can run several hundred items. (Mine included walk frequently on the shore of Lake Michigan, write books, travel to every country in Europe and design two additional websites.) Your chosen career must allow the accomplishment of these dreams.

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

Dads Feel Work-Life Conflict Too, Survey Shows

By Katherine Lewis, About.com Guide

Dads' Work-Life Conflict Grows:

Dads' work-life conflict is growing, according to a survey that CareerBuilder released in June 2010. When the economy gets tough, dads experience more work-life conflict because of increased demands by their employer.

Sixty-three percent of working dads put in more than 40 hours per week. And of those who take work home with them, 31 percent do so five days a week or more and 30 percent on the weekends, according to the poll of 800 full-time working dads with children 18 and under at home. Clearly, as modern life blurs traditional gender roles, work-life conflict isn't just for moms anymore.
More Fathers Are Sole Providers:

Some dads are feeling work-life conflict because they are carrying a heavier load of providing for the family. One in ten of the working fathers surveyed told pollsters their wife or significant other lost a job in the previous year, with half saying it caused the family stress.

Forty-two percent are the sole breadwinner in the family and 9 percent took on a second job in the last 12 months, according to CareerBuilder.
Dads Spending Less Time With Kids?:

These long work hours are cutting back on the time fathers can spend with family. Thirty-seven percent spend two hours or less with children each work day and 35 percent missed two or more important child events in the last year because of work.

"Especially in tough times, working dads have to be more creative and strategic to successfully juggle both work and family commitments," said Jason Ferrara, a vice president at CareerBuilder and father of two. "Year over year, we find that nearly half of working dads do not take advantage of the flexible work arrangements offered to them."

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

Morning Sickness at Work

By Robin Elise Weiss, LCCE, About.com Guide

Most articles about morning sickness cover all the various ways to try and prevent you from actually being sick. While this is always preferable, in the real world it's not always possible.

Many pregnant women will experience morning sickness is pregnancy, most of them will experience it in early pregnancy, though a few will have it in the third trimester. The unlucky ones experience both. While it can strike at any point during the day, it may cause the most problems if you're feeling ill during work time.

You may only experience the feeling of nausea, but not vomiting, or you might have both. Either way it's a good idea to plan ahead. One of the first things to think about is how you're going to safely get to and from work. You might consider public transportation or even car pooling if you're feeling nauseated or dizzy. Both of these can interfere with your ability to drive. This may not always be possible. In that case be sure to have your car prepared. A big glass of ice water can sometimes help, as well as driving with the window down or with the cool air on your face. Worst case scenario, have a couple of plastic grocery bags (without holes!) tucked near by. You can also pull over to a safe spot until the wave of nausea or vomiting passes.

Once you arrive at work you can freshen up if you've been ill on your way in. Some women find that eating as soon as they get up makes the ride to work more bearable. Deep breathing can also help delay these feelings for a few minutes.

At your desk you might want to plan the route to the nearest bathroom, or again keep those plastic grocery bags handy. Even a waste basket can be good, and usually there are plenty around. If you're lucky enough to have your own office, you can quietly shut the door. If you work in a cubicle try to borrow a private enclosed space or head to the employee lounge or restroom. Cool rags around your throat and on your forehead may also help.

You might even want to try and enlist some help from your office mates. They might be able to cover for you while you step away from your desk. The down side to this is if you wanted to keep the good news a surprise for awhile longer, this might make it harder to achieve. So be sure you place your trust in someone who can keep your secret until you're ready to share.

To freshen up after a bout with nausea or vomiting you can try a pocket toothbrush. If toothpaste is something that is making you nauseated you can try using children's tooth paste with different flavors, or a really soft bristled toothbrush. One mom told me that resorting to baking soda and salt as toothpaste really helped her get through those first few weeks. Another breath freshening technique is to use mints or even the square sheets of gelatin that are impregnated with mouth wash that melt quickly.

Hopefully you won't ever need this information. And here's to hoping it passes quickly if you do!

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

How to Find Activities for Seniors

By cajunc, eHow Member

Find activities for seniors wherever you are located, and find activities that are suited to the senior. Some senior citizens like to stay home and do puzzles, crafts, or reading, while others like a social atmosphere with other seniors.

There are many activities available, but sometimes seniors need a little help finding the activities.
.Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Instructions.Step 1
Consider personality.

Determine the personality of the senior citizen to find activities that suit their lifestyle and likes or dislikes. If they would like to find group activities are are sociable, make an attempt to locate those activities.

Step 2
Search locally for activities for seniors.

Check the internet and the local newspaper for activities that your senior might like. Make a copy or cut out any information relating to activities for seniors that may be of interest, so the senior citizen can call or inquire about the activity.

Step 3
Make some telephone calls to find activities for seniors.

If there is a Council for Aging in your area, call and ask for ideas for activities for seniors. They often know of groups that meet weekly or monthly for square dance, bridge, or exercise. Some assisted living offices have knowledge of activities for seniors, too. The local Chamber of Commerce may share some activities, too.

Step 4
Consider creating activities for seniors.

Look for volunteer jobs that are of interest, or create your own niche. If helping high-school students is something of interest, call the local high school and see if there is a need for grandma or grandpa to share knowledge or help students with essays for college entrance applications or scholarship essays. Prepare a talk to share with high-school students about a career path or special interest.

Step 5
Consider teaching crafts or a special interest activity.

Check with the adult education groups in your local community and see if there are courses the senior would like to participate in or even teach. These courses are often taught by community members of any age who have some expertise in the field. Find activities for seniors in your community.

Step 6
Find activities for seniors at home.

Allow seniors to find their own activities if they do not want to be social. Gardening and growing flowers, working Sudoku and crossword puzzles, or needlework crafts and reading are activities for seniors who are quiet and like to stay home. If the senior seems content, do not insist that they be social or sociable. Some seniors prefer to be alone, and to find activities for seniors that they do not like is not an accomplishment. Share your time with your seniors. They like friends and family, and find that a fun activity, too.


careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

Employee Satisfaction: The Success Factor

by Mary Rau-Foster, RN BS ARM JD

IMPROVING EMPLOYEE MORALE
One way to problem-solve low employee morale is to implement an employee satisfaction survey. Such a survey can identify any problems, and will serve a useful purpose if management take steps to resolve the difficulties. However, this practice comes with a caveat. Employee surveys should be submitted to management anonymously. Employees will be less than honest if they are held personally accountable for the sharing of their ideas and suggestions. Surveys, therefore, should include general questions only. Other personal matters can be saved for annual, on-on-one employee evaluations.

Motivating employees can be complicated, since individuals respond to different conditions. For example, some people are naturally “self motivated” and come to the workplace already equipped with good self-esteem. However, this can disintegrate if they are not treated as valuable additions to an organization.

Others are motivated by the fear of loss, i.e., if they do not get to the job on time, they will be fired and will lose their means of support. Still others respond to satisfactory monetary compensation, and do best with a program of periodic salary increases based on job performance.

Employers can create an environment that motivates employees by providing the tools, resources, information, and emotional support that best fulfills each employee. Programs can include offering non-financial rewards, as well, such as employee appreciation banquets, holiday celebration events, “Employee of the Month” or “Employee of the Year” programs, and on-site motivational programs conducted by stimulating speakers.

THE INTERVIEW
an employee's “needs assessment” also should be part of the interviewing process. When managers ask the proper questions, it can easily be determined what gives a prospective candidate job fulfillment, and what does not. Ideally, a candidate should be hired only after it is determined that employer's business needs, and the applicant's motivational needs, are a good match.

THE COST
There is an old saying: “If you think that education is expensive, try ignorance.” This quote could be used to make the same point with cost associated with making improvements to raise employee morale and job performance. Measures taken do not need to be expensive. If an employee desires respect and recognition, these needs can be met by creating and maintaining a nurturing, supportive environment. The presentation of employee recognition awards (plaques, certificates, etc.) are very effective tools, for example.

THE BENEFITS
An organization will benefit on two fronts; improved employee productivity, and improved patient care and patient compliance. An environment that recognizes that it's employees are valuable gems that need the proper setting and occasional stroking (or buffing) to shine will reap the numerous benefits. If not, an employer will have gone to the considerable expense of shaping and training an employee only to have him or her move on to shine in some other organization's setting.

A healthcare organization's goals include quality service to patients. Too often, attracting and keeping quality employees in order to achieve that goal is swept under the rug. Creating an environment where employees who are “real jewels,” and are admired, polished, and appreciated will result in an organization. In addition, weeding out the employees who are “fake gems” is necessary to protect the tarnishing of the organization's image.

The healthcare organization with the right approach will be the one to reap the rewards of success.

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

Employee Satisfaction: The Success Factor (part 1)

by Mary Rau-Foster, RN BS ARM JD

"Contemporary Dialysis & Nephrology" magazine

Employee satisfaction - or lack of it - hinges on a productive, fulfilling relationship between staff and management; indeed, the success of any organization depends on staff members who enjoy their jobs and feel rewarded by their efforts. Ultimately, of all the people in the marketplace, healthcare consumers may suffer the most when this vital success factor is lacking.

Satisfied employees shine. They are the ones who are attentive to every patient's need, and “go the extra mile” to be helpful. When employees are unhappy, watch out! A pervasive atmosphere of hostility and ill will spread throughout the workplace; visitors feel its sting, and everything suffers. Sadly, these employees often direct their unhappiness to patients. Too often, this can result in a situations where patients fail to keep appointments for dialysis treatments or will find another dialysis unit. Patients will do anything to avoid yet another negative influence in their lives.

The costs associated with low employee morale can be calculated by looking at the expenses associated with decreased productivity, unresolved conflict, employee turnover, and unproductive time spent gossiping and complaining to co-workers.

Is it possible to create an environment where employees are motivated to do their jobs to the best of their abilities - and communication satisfaction to everyone around them? The answer is yes, when management takes the time to learn what motivates employees to do their best work, and what contributes to a sense of well being and satisfaction.

SYMPTOMS OF LOW EMPLOYEE MORALE
The symptoms of low morale include the following:
• increased absenteeism
• conflict among employees
• complaints about seemingly insignificant issues
• increased turnover (either voluntary or involuntary)
• insubordination
• theft and/or sabotage
• decreased productivity
• disorganized and unkempt workplace environment
• increased patient complaints and conflict.

EMPLOYEE DISSATISFACTION
A workplace environment that does not understand, appreciate, and foster the need of all employees for recognition, appreciation, and for fair and equitable treatment is one that may see chaos, conflict, confusion and turnover.

Employees need to know they are a valuable member of an organization, and are respected for their contributions.

There is a psychological contract between an employee and employer. This contract is based on the employee carrying out certain workplace duties in exchange for the employer meeting certain employee needs. An employer has the right to expect that an employee carry out duties in a competent and appropriate manner The employee needs recognition, and proof of his value with satisfactory monetary compensation.

When an employee's needs are not being met, the result is low self-esteem, a condition that can result in chaos with an organization.

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

When Other Companies Compete Like Crazy, Dare to Be Different (part 2)

The truth of the matter is, my father never had to choose a credit card affiliation out of a deluge of credit card offers in his mailbox. My mother never had to pledge allegiance to a single brand of yogurt out of a vast and constantly rotating selection of yogurts. In so many consumer categories today, we are confronted with so many choices, so many brands, and so many products—that we often experience the category as a big "blur." In this context, it should not be a surprise that brand loyalty is harder than ever to come by.

Q: What is "hyper-maturity?"

A: It takes a period of time before a category reaches the point that we begin to experience it as a blur. When a product category is nascent, it tends to be dominated by a much smaller set of products, or even a single product. The original PowerBar. The original Walkman. Coke and Pepsi. As the category evolves, however, the number of product alternatives within the category tends to grow exponentially. Today, PowerBar alone produces more than 40 different varieties of its energy bar, and the energy bar category has grown to include more than 60 assorted brands. Today, Sony produces more than two dozen variations of its Walkman, and the personal stereo category consists of hundreds of options. In fact, one quick way to gauge the maturity of a category is to simply track the number of product variants in it.

And yet it would be a mistake to assume that product proliferation creates product diversity. On the contrary, as the number of products within a category multiplies, the differences between them start to become increasingly trivial, almost to the point of preposterousness. Try it. Pick a random product category such as bar soap or running shoes, and make a list of what is different between the products within the category. The list may be long, but an overwhelming number of those differences will almost certainly be trifling.

When a category reaches this stage—the stage at which product differentiation is experienced by most consumers as product sameness, the stage at which the category appears to be filled with what I refer to as "dissimilar clones"—it has reached a stage of hyper-maturity.

Q: Does your book include examples of companies that have broken free from the "sea of sameness?" How did they differentiate themselves to remain competitive?

A: Against this backdrop of overwhelming conformity, it is harder than ever for a business to be a positive deviant. And so, in a nutshell, the book is an exploration of what it means for a business to be different, to be meaningfully different, to be different in a way that makes a difference to consumers.

Along the way, yes, I offer a number of examples. In fact, in the book, I contend that if one were to identify the most compelling business stories of the past two decades, a disproportionate number of these companies, in category after category, achieved their success simply by figuring out a way to be radically and dramatically different from the rest of the crowd. The idea in the book is not only to celebrate these mavericks; it is to deconstruct and demystify what they've accomplished in a manner that makes their achievements understandable and accessible to the rest of us.

Q: How does a company go about making changes when trying to be different? How can marketing managers get started?

A: My answer here is difficult to distill into a sentence or two, so I urge you to turn to the book if you want an in-depth discussion of this. However, I will say this: Differentiation is not a tactic. It's not a flashy advertising campaign; it's not a sparkling new feature set. It's not a laminated frequent-buyer card or a money-back guarantee. Differentiation is a way of thinking. It's a mindset. It's a commitment. A commitment to be different, not in a superficial, I'm-going-to-offer-a-couple-of-features-my-competitor-doesn't-offer kind of way, but in a way that is fundamental and near impossible to replicate.


careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

When Other Companies Compete Like Crazy, Dare to Be Different (part 1)

Want to be different? Change your world, not your tactics.

As HBS professor Youngme Moon argues in Different: Escaping the Competitive Herd, competition too often breeds conformity. Yet there is plenty of space for adventurous companies keen to break free of the pack.

"In a nutshell, the book is an exploration of what it means for a business to be different, to be meaningfully different, to be different in a way that makes a difference to consumers," she says.

"Differentiation is a way of thinking."An authority on innovative consumer marketing strategies, Moon has published case studies on companies including Microsoft, Sony, and Intel, and consults with consumer marketing companies in the area of innovation. She also serves on the board of directors of Avid Technology and the board of governors of the American Red Cross.

We asked her how companies can be truly different.

Sarah Jane Gilbert: What led you to write Different?

Youngme Moon: I wrote this book because in business today there is a huge disconnect between the way we talk about the concept of differentiation and the way it actually plays out in the market.

What I mean by this is, in our business schools, we preach the importance of differentiation; in our executive suites, we build our strategies around the concepts of differentiation. But when most consumers leave their homes to purchase something as prosaic as a bottle of shampoo or a carton of juice or a pair of sneakers, they are confronted with a dizzying array of options to choose from, options that are notable, not for their difference, but for their apparent sameness.

And so there is a disconnect between the way companies talk about their products and brands, and the way consumers ultimately experience them.

Q: How does this "disconnect" between marketers and their customers occur?

A: In my research, what I learned was that despite the fact that most companies are deeply committed to the concept of differentiation, at any given moment they are also intensely aware of what their competitors are doing, and it is this competitive vigilance that ultimately pushes them down a path of conformity. They will notice, for example, that competitor A has decided to offer a couple of new features in this market, or that competitor B has raised its prices in that market. And it is these observations that make it very difficult for them to resist the urge to follow suit. Competitive pressure, I argue, breeds conformity.

Q: You discuss consumer devotion to a product or service in your chapter on "category blur." What do you see happening to brand loyalty?

A: There is no question in my mind that, when it comes to many consumer brands and services, overall brand loyalty is on the decline. In the book, I outline a number of reasons for this; one of them has to do with the proliferation of products and services available to us.

Many years ago, I had a boyfriend who considered himself a pretty classy fellow because he only ate Häagen-Dazs ice cream, but the fact of the matter is, it's easy to be a Häagen-Dazs loyalist when Häagen-Dazs is the only major player in the premium ice cream game. When the market is packed with premium clones, Häagen-Dazs loyalists are by definition going to be harder to find. My dad used to swear by Sony televisions; well, I went shopping for a big-screen television recently and I have to tell you, standing before that huge wall of big-screen TVs, it struck me how old-fashioned my dad's fidelity to a single brand would seem today.


careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy

How Do You Weigh Strategy, Execution, and Culture in an Organization's Success?

Jim Heskett

During the course of research for a book I'm writing, I have had the opportunity to talk with a number of managers about the degree to which strategy, execution, and culture contribute to the success of their organizations. After several such conversations, I at first reluctantly—because I feared that respondents would regard the questions as too complex or even irrelevant—began asking each of them three questions intended to attach numbers to an otherwise abstract conversation. The questions are:

1.If your organization's performance (operating income) = 100%, roughly what percentage is accounted for by the quality of the organization's strategy (clients we target; products, services and results we offer; the way we organize and compensate people, etc.) vs. the quality of the organization's execution of its strategy (the quality of our people, work, processes, decisions, etc.)?
2.If your organization's strategy = 100%, roughly what proportion of its effectiveness is dependent upon and accounted for by the organization's culture (widely-shared values, beliefs, behaviors, rites and rituals, etc.)?
3.If the execution of your organization's strategy = 100%, roughly what proportion of its effectiveness is dependent upon and accounted for by the organization's culture?
To my surprise, my respondents neither found the questions too complex nor irrelevant. One even made it the subject of a management meeting at which he had forty of the most senior members of his organization tackle the questions.


Now I ask you, as a change of pace from our previous columns, to address the questions based on your experience. Can you respond, or are the complexities of each question—possibly requiring more complete or different definitions of strategy, execution, and culture—too great? Are the three dimensions of the questions the right ones? Do they cover all or nearly all aspects of competitive success? How would people in various regions of the world—or in for-profit vs. not-for-profit endeavors—approach this set of questions differently? How would you respond to the questions? Why did you respond that way? What do you think?

careers, Jobs Indonesia, Indonesia Vacancy