I Wish I'd Thought Of That

The always interesting and thoughtful Arnold Kling recently reviewed a book on Askblog.

The book, High Growth Handbook by Elad Gil, focuses on companies that are transforming from startups to having several hundred employees.  One of Gil's recommendations is for an executive to circulate a document that describes “how to work with me.”  That's something I think would have been useful to do during my working career.  Over the years I had more people working for me and became, at least to some extent, more self-aware of my own preferences and managerial traits.  At times I alerted individual people to these but on reflection it would have been useful to do it systematically.

Kling, who ran a successful startup in the 90s, agrees.  Below are his thoughts.  You'll notice that some are directed towards people he works for, others to those who work for them.  Mine would be different, except for #4 and #9, but you get the idea.

1. Don’t give me too many things to do at once. I need to feel like I have my work under control.

2. If you want me to do something that requires my utmost concentration, let me work on it in the morning.

3. If you want me to do something that I hate doing, find someone else to do it.

4. I often give vague project assignments. Push back with clarifying questions, until you know what to do or until I back off because I realize that I don’t really know what I want.

5. When I give a deadline, it is the last possible moment to complete a project. When you miss a deadline, I am devastated. When you just make a deadline, I am disappointed. Get it done sooner.

6. I hate it when people focus on assigning blame. When something goes wrong, focus on fixing it.

7. I like sharing interesting articles and books that I come across. Feel free to do the same with me.

8. I believe in hiring people for attitude and ability, not for experience.

9. The key attitude is being oriented toward solving problems rather than just complaining. I will not tolerate a chronic complainer.

10. I’ll let a software developer get away with being a prima donna*, if you’ve got the right combination of ability, conscientiousness, and stamina. Show me you can really get stuff done, in which case I’d rather keep you happy and let other employees get annoyed than the other way around.

* [NOTE: I've substituted my footnote for Kling's]
And these times are so hard and it's getting even harder
Tryin' to feed and water my seed, plus
See dishonor caught up between bein' a father and a prima donna
Baby mama drama screamin' on and Too much for me to want to Stay in one spot,
another day of monotony Has gotten me to the point, I'm like a snail
I've got to formulate a plot fore I end up in jail or shot
Success is my only motherfuckin' option, failure's not
Mom, I love you, but this trail has got to go
I cannot grow old in Salem's lot
So here I go is my shot.
Feet fail me not 'cause this may be the only opportunity that I got  
- Eminem (Lose Yourself)

Getting Your Next Job

If you haven't paid close attention to the great advice you've been getting from Things Have Changed Management Consulting LLC it is possible you may be faced with having to get another job (it is also conceivably possible you may be in the same situation if you have followed some of THC's advice).

Even if you have ignored our prior advice this blog remains committed to helping its hard working readers attain great success in their professional careers.  Therefore, we provide this handy kind to acing your next job interview which has been put together by the noted British human resources experts at The Poke.  You can find the entire guide here but below you can find some examples of their sage advice!

I Love This Plan!

THC Management Consulting LLC remains committed to helping the readership of this blog succeed in their professional careers.  As part of its continuing series Improving Your Management Skills we present the latest installment.

Even if you are a manager, most of you will work for yet another manager.  How then to handle one of the most common situations you'll face when your manager proposes what they clearly consider their latest bright idea but which sounds a little ill-advised to you?  Should you give them honest feedback?  Should you stay silent?  Nope - you want to get ahead!  With the able assistance of Bill Murray, THC Management Consulting LLC has developed its latest instructional video to help you turn this situation to your advantage!  Study it carefully.

Raiders In Black And White

This is stunning.

It was a Friday morning in June of 1981 when THC and his consulting firm colleagues learned they had just lost a major project proposal to a competitor.  Expectations had been high that they'd get the job which was critical to the continued viability of the small firm so everyone was very discouraged.

A couple of hours later the boss came around and said "there's a new Spielberg movie coming out today, let's take the rest of the day off and go see it" and so it was that in early afternoon they found themselves in a theater in downtown Boston for the first showing of Raiders Of The Lost Ark which had just opened nationwide.  It was an exhilarating experience not to be repeated with the later films in the series which lacked the element of the unexpected, something Raiders had in spades.  Crushed spirits disappeared for a few hours and thirty plus years later THC can't remember what the project proposal was about but clearly remembers going to the movies that day.  Now that's good managing!

Recently the director Steven Soderbergh (THC favorites of his visually distinctive films are Out Of Sight, The Limey, Ocean's Eleven and Solaris; he's also made some lousy ones) created a new take on Raiders on his website about which he instructs viewers to:

"think only about the staging, how the shots are built and laid out, what the rules of movement are, what the cutting patterns are"

adding:

"this filmmaker forgot more about staging by the time he made his first feature than I know to this day."

And to enhance your focus this version is in black and white, with no sound except for a soundtrack added by Soderbergh!

THC didn't exactly follow Soderbergh's instructions; he just enjoyed watching the reimagined film.  You don't miss the dialogue since for years it has been mandatory for every American to watch the film often enough to know the story and in black and white you see many new details (Soderbergh tells us the cinematographer was Douglas Slocombe, known for his high contrast lighting style which converts well to black and white).  Seeing the film this way gives you more chance to focus on the details.  In crowd scenes look as far as you can into the picture and see how well Spielberg builds the scene from back to front.  Also look at the little visual details in every scene. The overall effect is of something familiar yet different.

Watching this version is rewarding whether you do it from start to finish or just dive in at different points to see specific scenes and leaves you appreciating both Spielberg's original and Soderbergh's approach.  The video cannot be embedded so you have to go to Soderbergh's website to view it and read more about his purpose in creating this version.

And THC left the company early in the following year.

So I want you to watch this movie and think only about staging, how the shots are built and laid out, what the rules of movement are, what the cutting patterns are. See if you can reproduce the thought process that resulted in these choices by asking yourself: why was each shot—whether short or long—held for that exact length of time and placed in that order? - See more at: http://extension765.com/sdr/18-raiders#sthash.5q5HPdXp.dpuf

So I want you to watch this movie and think only about staging, how the shots are built and laid out, what the rules of movement are, what the cutting patterns are. See if you can reproduce the thought process that resulted in these choices by asking yourself: why was each shot—whether short or long—held for that exact length of time and placed in that order? - See more at: http://extension765.com/sdr/18-raiders#sthash.5q5HPdXp.dpuf

So I want you to watch this movie and think only about staging, how the shots are built and laid out, what the rules of movement are, what the cutting patterns are. See if you can reproduce the thought process that resulted in these choices by asking yourself: why was each shot—whether short or long—held for that exact length of time and placed in that order? - See more at: http://extension765.com/sdr/18-raiders#sthash.5q5HPdXp.dpuf

Looking Smart

THC Management Consulting LLC has another installment in its spasmodic series designed to improve the management skills of its readership.  We feature 10 Tricks To Appear Smart During Meetings by Sarah Cooper.  Having deployed several of these "tricks' during his working career, THC enthusiastically urges you to read Ms Cooper's treatise.  Using these tricks will, no doubt, provide a turbo boost to your career!

Our favorites:

1.  Draw a Venn Diagram

3.  Encourage everyone to "take a step back".

5.  Repeat the last thing the engineer said, but very very slowly.

8.  Ask the presenter to go back a slide.

This stuff really works.  Read the whole thing.

Ever Been In A Meeting Like This?

THC has.  Only difference is the meetings he has been in like this one have lasted for several hours.  Have a nice work week!

Leonardo's Resume

As part of its continuing commitment to improve the career prospects of its readers, THC Management Consulting LLC presents the latest installment in its management and career series.

Below you will find excerpts from the resume of the 30-year old Leonardo da Vinci as submitted to Ludovico il Moro, Duke of Milan, in 1482.(Courtesy of Leonardo3 from Hoepli edition 1894-1094 – www.leonardo3.net.)

Some excerpts (for the full transcript see Cenedella.com):

“Most Illustrious Lord, Having now sufficiently considered the specimens of all those who proclaim themselves skilled contrivers of instruments of war, and that the invention and operation of the said instruments are nothing different from those in common use: I shall endeavor, without prejudice to any one else, to explain myself to your Excellency, showing your Lordship my secret, and then offering them to your best pleasure and approbation to work with effect at opportune moments on all those things which, in part, shall be briefly noted below.

1. I have a sort of extremely light and strong bridges, adapted to be most easily carried, and with them you may pursue, and at any time flee from the enemy; and others, secure and indestructible by fire and battle, easy and convenient to lift and place. Also methods of burning and destroying those of the enemy.

2. I know how, when a place is besieged, to take the water out of the trenches, and make endless variety of bridges, and covered ways and ladders, and other machines pertaining to such expeditions.

7. I will make covered chariots, safe and unattackable, which, entering among the enemy with their artillery, there is no body of men so great but they would break them. And behind these, infantry could follow quite unhurt and without any hindrance.

10. In times of peace I believe I can give perfect satisfaction and to the equal of any other in architecture and the composition of buildings public and private; and in guiding water from one place to another.

As the blogger at Cenedella comments:  

What a fantastic piece of personal marketing! There’s none of his famous backwards-mirror writing here — this letter was intended to be read and to persuade.

You’ll notice he doesn’t recite past achievements. He doesn’t mention the painting of the altarpiece for the Chapel of St Bernard; he doesn’t provide a laundry list of past bombs he’s built; he doesn’t cite his prior employment in artist Andrea di Cione’s studio.

No, he does none of these things, because those are about his achievements, and not about the Duke’s needs.

Instead, he sells his prospective employer on what he can do for him.

Now imagine being the Duke of Milan and receiving this magnificent letter / resume from the young wunderkind of Florence. The specific descriptives paint a wonderful picture (that is, if you’re a Renaissance Duke) of siege engines and bombardments and mortars and trench-draining and bridges to defeat the enemy. You can almost imagine the scenes that ran through the Duke’s head as he held this letter in his hands and read through Leonardo da Vinci’s bold statements of capabilities.

So take a tip from Leo and sharpen up that resume! 

Management Lessons

As part of the continuing series from Things Have Changed Management Consulting LLC comes a story that reflects well on both employer and employee.

Shortly after the September 1938 Munich Agreement between Germany and Great Britain, President Franklin Roosevelt convened a White House meeting to discuss American military strategy.  Attendees included cabinet members, the Army and Air Corps Chiefs of Staff and the head of the War Plans Division, General George C Marshall.  At the meeting FDR proposed building 10,000 aircraft a year but with no increase in the army.  Although the military branches had developed plans for a balanced build up of naval, air and army forces it felt necessary to combat growing threats from Japan and Germany all of the other meeting participants agreed with FDR's plan except that when he asked Marshall "Don't you think so, George?", he replied "I am sorry Mr President, but I don't agree with that at all".

As reported in Allies and Adversaries by Mark A Stoler (not that Mark Stoler, this Mark Stoler), Marshall later recalled that FDR "gave me a very startled look, and when I went out they [the other meeting participants] all bade me goodbye and said my tour in Washington was over".

Less than a year later, FDR handpicked George C Marshall over 34 more senior officers to become the new Army Chief of Staff, a role in which he became the chief military advisor to the President throughout the war.

FDR and Marshall were never friends or golfing buddies.  After that first encounter, FDR never again called him George and Marshall always called him Mr President.  Marshall continued to tell FDR exactly what he thought and, at times, they engaged in some heated arguments.  The Chief of Staff reorganized and built the US army from 174,000 to 8 million soldiers and, just as the President handpicked him, Marshall reached into the ranks of junior officers to promote Dwight Eisenhower, George Patton, Omar Bradley, Lucien Truscott and others to lead America's armies and he was ruthless in weeding out officers who in the press of combat did not measure up.

Marshall was so important to FDR that he was denied his fondest wish, to command the Allied forces for the D-Day invasion.  FDR told him that "I didn't feel I could sleep at ease if you were out of Washington".  For his part, Marshall, who had his doubts about FDR during the 1930s, grew to greatly respect his leadership.

After the war ended, Marshall became Secretary of State under President Truman and initiated what later became known as the Marshall Plan for rebuilding Europe's economy.  He also served as Secretary of Defense during the first year of the Korean War.

George C Marshall received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953.  He died in 1959 leaving instructions that he did not want a public funeral nor a eulogy.  After a private service attended by President Eisenhower and former President Truman he was interred at Arlington Cemetery near the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

FDR remains well known but memories of George C Marshall are fading.  He deserves remembrance as one of the finest citizens in our history.

Making The Big Decisions

Things Have Changed Management Consulting LLC is pleased to present the latest in its career advice and management series.  For those of you, particularly in large organizations, who have wondered how the "big bosses" make key decisions, this finely crafted video will be illuminating and insightful.  It certainly provides a very plausible explanation for some of the decisions I saw in my corporate career.

Me During My Working Days

From 35 Milimetros
Did Belushi steal that eyebrow lift for Animal House?  

Effective Learning Techniques

It helps to be a wildebeest.

Managing The Boss

Things Have Changed Management Consulting LLC brings you the fourth in our series on effective management techniques.  Earlier parts of the series can be found here, here and here.

Sometimes a good boss can get a bit out of hand.  What's the best way to handle it if you are a subordinate?  Simple, go to their spouse and ask them to intervene!

This blog is a great admirer of Winston Churchill but he could be a bit difficult to work for sometimes.  Another way to put it is that he drove a lot of people absolutely crazy and they found working for him exhausting (read the memoirs of British cabinet officers and members of his military staff for plenty of evidence of this).  After ascending to the Prime Ministership on May 10, 1940, Winston was under a lot of pressure what with the fall of France, getting the British army out of Dunkirk, the evacuation of Norway and all that other nasty war stuff which wasn't going very well and his behavior deteriorated under the stress.

Apparently some of his staff went to his wife, Clementine, the one person he would occasionally listen to, and she wrote him this missive in late June of 1940.  It turns out she was a very engaging writer.  Take a read and then you can utilize this technique the next time you have an opportunity! 

From Letters of Note:

10 Downing Street,
Whitehall

June 27, 1940

My Darling,

I hope you will forgive me if I tell you something that I feel you ought to know.

One of the men in your entourage (a devoted friend) has been to me & told me that there is a danger of your being generally disliked by your colleagues and subordinates because of your rough sarcastic & overbearing manner — It seems your Private Secretaries have agreed to behave like school boys & 'take what's coming to them' & then escape out of your presence shrugging their shoulders — Higher up, if an idea is suggested (say at a conference) you are supposed to be so contemptuous that presently no ideas, good or bad, will be forthcoming. I was astonished & upset because in all these years I have been accustomed to all those who have worked with & under you, loving you — I said this & I was told 'No doubt it's the strain' —

My Darling Winston — I must confess that I have noticed a deterioration in your manner; & you are not so kind as you used to be.

It is for you to give the Orders & if they are bungled — except for the King, the Archbishop of Canterbury & the Speaker, you can sack anyone & everyone — Therefore with this terrific power you must combine urbanity, kindness and if possible Olympic calm. You used to quote:— 'On ne règne sur les âmes que par le calme' [Trans: One can reign over hearts only by keeping one's composure]— I cannot bear that those who serve the Country and yourself should not love as well as admire and respect you —

Besides you won't get the best results by irascibility & rudeness. They will breed either dislike or a slave mentality — (Rebellion in War time being out of the question!)

Please forgive your loving devoted & watchful
Clemie

I wrote this at Chequers last Sunday, tore it up, but here it is now.

I Can't Believe My Dilemma Is Real

. . . I'm competing with The Man of Steel.

As part of its continuing series of instructional videos for managers, Things Have Changed Management Consulting LLC presents this advice on how to empower your team on setting aggressive goals.  As you can see, the narrator of this song has set for himself what we would refer to as a "stretch goal" which he pursues with unbridled enthusiasm.

Jimmy Olsen's Blues (1993) by the Spin Doctors.  While not exactly "one-hit wonders" this band can be considered a "one-CD wonder".

Learning To Manage

Do you manage people?  As the next installment in this series, we at Things Have Changed Management Consulting LLC, are going to help you succeed by giving you some tips on how to motivate your employees.  It turns out that Alec Baldwin, perhaps the greatest actor in the history of the world (albeit somewhat nuts), has throughout his career provided a virtual tutorial on how to demonstrate leadership.  We've chosen two examples in the hope that you can learn from them and apply the lessons in your workplace.

The first is from the movie Glengarry Glenn Ross (1992), written by David Mamet.  The cast includes Kevin Spacey, Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Ed Harris and Alan Arkin.  The story revolves around a real estate boiler house operation selling worthless plots of land.  Alec Baldwin only had one scene - but what a scene.  Find out why Mitch and Murray sent him.  If he can't motivate and inspire you I don't know who can.  Just think of the value it will add if you show this at your next team meeting.  Plus it contains some inventive prize ideas for your next office contest. The second, from 30 Rock, shows the more nurturing and intuitive side of leadership.  Watch it and you'll learn how to listen to your employees, empathize with them and embrace their craziness.

Let me know how it goes!

Helpful Career Advice

Today's diverse and rapidly changing workplace requires increased collaboration and teamwork.  To boost your chances of success and rapid career advancement, Things Have Changed Management Consulting LLC is pleased to provide you with a helpful tip on interacting with co-workers in a way that can enhance longer term working relationships even on those occasions when you may feel a tad frustrated.  The first 6 seconds of this instructional video will repay your close study and your colleagues will be thanking you!  We extend our thanks to Mr. Mark Wahlberg of Boston, Massachusetts for his gracious participation.  Although the video contains additional instructional material prepared by Mr. Wahlberg, Things Have Changed Management Consulting LLC does not endorse the use of these techniques except in certain limited circumstances, primarily involving the associated use of firearms.