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Member You - Are You Measuring Something Meaningful?
The Bank for International Settlements definition of a payment system states; “A payment system consists of a set of instruments, banking procedures and, typically, interbank funds transfer systems that ensure the circulation of money” (From “A glossary of terms used in payments and settlement systems”, Committee on Payment & Settlement Systems. BIS, Basel. March 2003).Despite this we often associate the word “system” with only the technology; the bits and bites, the hardware and the software. We tend to forget that there is a lot more that goes into making up a payment system.A further problem is the user’s perspective, and in the case of a bank this is often from that banks own point of view – a view that only concerns the bank itself. The outside world is seen as exogenous to the bank’s “system”. This is often the view taken when considering such critical issues as disaster recovery and business continuity planning. What is often overlooked is the big picture – the users, the clearing system and the settlement agent.This total picture is something that was very clearly illustrated in the effect that the events of 9/11 had on the payments system in the United States generally, but more specifically in lower Manhattan. The aftermath of the 9/11 events clearly illustra
"[Our Council] will increase its responsiveness, efficiency and effectiveness in delivering high quality services. Emphasis will continue on streamlining core business and customer processes. Services will be provided in the most efficient manner possible at a reasonable cost while meeting environmental needs"
Cable has grown from 13 houses connected together in 1948 to coverage of nearly 70% of all households in the U.S. With dozens, even hundreds of channels, Cable is now a major player for local advertising dollars, some for less than 5 bucks.On the Mary Tyler Moore Show in the 1960’s, most of the people shortened her name from "Mary" to "Mare". We, as a group, have a tendency to find the short cut, giving nick name to names that could stand on their own. Mary didn’t need to be any shorter, but it was cute to cut it down. Many Margarets are called Peggy, figure that one out. And many if not most John’s are called Jack.It is little surprise that Cable became the shortened name for Community Antenna Television, CATV. In the days of CATV, local commercial inserts were not available.Community Antenna Television, CATV originated as a service to those who lived in an area where TV was impossible to see. I visited the home of a friend’s mother in the mountains of North Carolina several decades ago. With a tall antenna and booster amplifiers, the best she could do was a fuzzy picture on ONE channel. Legends abound about who had the first community antenna. Most research says the first official CATV company began charging a fee to hook up in 1948. In those
INTRODUCTION
You sit before the monthly report, which might be an inch or so thick, and you contemplate whether it's the best use of your time to paw through the pages to check if there's anything useful in there for you. Past experience tells you that the report is full of many measures graphed in all their splendor, but virtually none of them pique your interest, help you make the decisions you barely have time to give enough thought to as it is...
TYPICALLY, PERFORMANCE MEASURES ARE NOT EMOTIVE ENOUGH
Do you have measures with names like these?
Employee Productivity.
Cost Efficiency.
Product Quality.
Community Engagement.
Customer Relationship.
Financial Sustainability.
Stakeholder Buy-in.
If you do, then there's a good chance that those measures are either not brought to life, or what is brought to life is a poor indicator of the result you are trying to measure. Why? Because when people look at measures that are named like those listed above, they often have no idea what they exactly mean, or have very divergent ideas of what they think they mean, or have no feeling of connection to them. They just look like a list of buzz words or phrases that every one else seems to be tossing around.
If people don't share a single, sharply focused, easily imaginable vision of a result they want to create, any effort to measure that result will waste time. And if you do successfully get some measures established, it's likely they just won't stimulate the excitement and motivation needed to make the result happen.
BECAUSE BUSINESS LANGUAGE IS INERT
If something is inert it means it's incapable of action, it is lifeless. Like the reaction you get when you put a concrete brick in a bucket of water, pretty much nothing comes of it. You just have a concrete brick sitting in a bucket of water. When we talk about business language being inert, it's when the reaction you get to a business goal written down in a plan document is little or no noticeable change to the business. Here are some real examples that have personally left me baffled at what could possibly be meant:
"The outcomes will include valuable input into environmentally sustainable solutions to underpin the many proposed developments on the airport, as well as independent research to assist in making effective management decisions for this growing site." - What does 'valuable input' mean? How would you recognise an 'environmentally sustainable solution' from any other solution? What does a management decision that is effective look like?
"Support and focus [our] educational mission to undergraduates in a manner that is increasingly known for its holistic and integrated academic programs, its striving for excellence in all endeavors, and its engagement with the wider community through service and learning." - Increasingly known by whom? How do you imagine what a 'holistic and integrated academic program' looks like? Is it really all endeavors? Does everyone have the same idea about what 'engagement with the wider community" means?
"[Our Council] will increase its responsiveness, efficiency and effectiveness in delivering high quality services. Emphasis will continue on streamlining core business and customer processes. Services will be provided in the most efficient manner possible at a reasonable cost while meeting environmental needs"
Small contractors and large developers all share one thing in common: the need to store their supplies and materials. Construction, building and renovation projects require plenty of materials and space to work in. Contractors also need to protect their materials during the construction phase. A recent trend in the mobile storage industry is the development of strategic partnerships between mobile storage companies and contractors. Mobile storage companies are providing cost effective storage solutions to contractors big and small. Most contractors purchase materials in bulk to benefit from the economies of scale. However, to do so requires the space to store the materials. The savings of bulk purchasing is often negated by the high cost of commercial storage space.Mobile storage facilities are the perfect fit. Contractors can order their material in bulk and have them stored in a secure climate controlled warehouse for less than the cost of storing the materials themselves. The economic benefits are real. The contractor saves on labor and costly commercial storage space. Another advantage is that many mobile storage facilities are equipped to accept commercial deliveries and store the materials until the contractor is ready for them at the job site.Typically, mobile st
Product Quality.
Community Engagement.
Customer Relationship.
Financial Sustainability.
Stakeholder Buy-in.
If you do, then there's a good chance that those measures are either not brought to life, or what is brought to life is a poor indicator of the result you are trying to measure. Why? Because when people look at measures that are named like those listed above, they often have no idea what they exactly mean, or have very divergent ideas of what they think they mean, or have no feeling of connection to them. They just look like a list of buzz words or phrases that every one else seems to be tossing around.
If people don't share a single, sharply focused, easily imaginable vision of a result they want to create, any effort to measure that result will waste time. And if you do successfully get some measures established, it's likely they just won't stimulate the excitement and motivation needed to make the result happen.
BECAUSE BUSINESS LANGUAGE IS INERT
If something is inert it means it's incapable of action, it is lifeless. Like the reaction you get when you put a concrete brick in a bucket of water, pretty much nothing comes of it. You just have a concrete brick sitting in a bucket of water. When we talk about business language being inert, it's when the reaction you get to a business goal written down in a plan document is little or no noticeable change to the business. Here are some real examples that have personally left me baffled at what could possibly be meant:
"The outcomes will include valuable input into environmentally sustainable solutions to underpin the many proposed developments on the airport, as well as independent research to assist in making effective management decisions for this growing site." - What does 'valuable input' mean? How would you recognise an 'environmentally sustainable solution' from any other solution? What does a management decision that is effective look like?
"Support and focus [our] educational mission to undergraduates in a manner that is increasingly known for its holistic and integrated academic programs, its striving for excellence in all endeavors, and its engagement with the wider community through service and learning." - Increasingly known by whom? How do you imagine what a 'holistic and integrated academic program' looks like? Is it really all endeavors? Does everyone have the same idea about what 'engagement with the wider community" means?
"[Our Council] will increase its responsiveness, efficiency and effectiveness in delivering high quality services. Emphasis will continue on streamlining core business and customer processes. Services will be provided in the most efficient manner possible at a reasonable cost while meeting environmental needs"
When you are on a job interview it is a good idea to have at least one question to ask at a job interview to show an interest in the job. When you interview with a company your interviewing the company just as much as they are interviewing you. The more questions you ask the better chance you have of finding out if that company is a good place for you to work.In this article we will look at several questions that you can use to ask the interviewee and company to get a better idea about the company and their culture and what is to be expected of you on job.1. Question to ask at a job interviewCan you describe a typical day at this job? This question will give you a good idea what is expected of you and what you have to look forward to if they offer the job to you and you decide to take the job.2. Question to ask at a job interviewCould you please describe your ideal candidate for this job? This question will help you learn if you have the qualities or personality that the company is looking for.3. Question to ask at a job interviewCan you describe some of the best and worst aspects of this job? This question will get the interviewee to give you some of the aspects of the job that may not suit your style and will help you unco
BECAUSE BUSINESS LANGUAGE IS INERT
If something is inert it means it's incapable of action, it is lifeless. Like the reaction you get when you put a concrete brick in a bucket of water, pretty much nothing comes of it. You just have a concrete brick sitting in a bucket of water. When we talk about business language being inert, it's when the reaction you get to a business goal written down in a plan document is little or no noticeable change to the business. Here are some real examples that have personally left me baffled at what could possibly be meant:
"The outcomes will include valuable input into environmentally sustainable solutions to underpin the many proposed developments on the airport, as well as independent research to assist in making effective management decisions for this growing site." - What does 'valuable input' mean? How would you recognise an 'environmentally sustainable solution' from any other solution? What does a management decision that is effective look like?
"Support and focus [our] educational mission to undergraduates in a manner that is increasingly known for its holistic and integrated academic programs, its striving for excellence in all endeavors, and its engagement with the wider community through service and learning." - Increasingly known by whom? How do you imagine what a 'holistic and integrated academic program' looks like? Is it really all endeavors? Does everyone have the same idea about what 'engagement with the wider community" means?
"[Our Council] will increase its responsiveness, efficiency and effectiveness in delivering high quality services. Emphasis will continue on streamlining core business and customer processes. Services will be provided in the most efficient manner possible at a reasonable cost while meeting environmental needs"
Expenses are incurred in everything that we do. For office and business uses, it is extremely important to keep a tab on them. Only then can one determine the profit and losses made. This also aids in better management of financial resources in the future. Small and big businesses need to maintain several kinds of records for travel, reimbursements, petty cash, salaries and so on. Most importantly, expenses must be submitted while filing taxes and company audit. Business expense forms are used to maintain records of expenses and help organize things better.Conventionally, multiple copies of paper-based expense forms have been in use. It means a lot of paper handling, expense, time and need for certain kind of professionals to handle tasks. The larger the organization, the more complex is the process of handling expense records. People have gradually shifted to computerized automated expense management systems which are highly efficient. Advanced computerized forms can easily create professional reports. Totals and calculations are done automatically once figures are entered. Modifications are also possible, and calculations can be changed according to specific needs. Layouts can be adjusted too.Readymade computerized expense forms can save everyone a lot of time, and avoid c
"The outcomes will include valuable input into environmentally sustainable solutions to underpin the many proposed developments on the airport, as well as independent research to assist in making effective management decisions for this growing site." - What does 'valuable input' mean? How would you recognise an 'environmentally sustainable solution' from any other solution? What does a management decision that is effective look like?
"Support and focus [our] educational mission to undergraduates in a manner that is increasingly known for its holistic and integrated academic programs, its striving for excellence in all endeavors, and its engagement with the wider community through service and learning." - Increasingly known by whom? How do you imagine what a 'holistic and integrated academic program' looks like? Is it really all endeavors? Does everyone have the same idea about what 'engagement with the wider community" means?
"[Our Council] will increase its responsiveness, efficiency and effectiveness in delivering high quality services. Emphasis will continue on streamlining core business and customer processes. Services will be provided in the most efficient manner possible at a reasonable cost while meeting environmental needs"
Successful digitizing and embroideryFashion TeesWHEN TO CHOOSE EMBROIDERYAn upscale, quality top, worn alone, with a cardigan, dressed up with jewelry and/or a scarf or dressed down for a casual event, the fashion tee is a versatile addition to a woman’s wardrobe. It is making an appearance this fall in tighter, shape-hugging silhouettes and soft, luxurious fabrics. Embellished with a monochromatic tone-on-tone logo, it can be an elegant display for promotional embroidery.Colors, popular this season, excellent for this tone-on-tone treatment include camel, brown, black, powder blue, charcoal, steel gray, red and white. Matched with black, navy or brown gabardine cuffed pants, available with a slightly flared pant and narrow pin stripe pattern, the result is a professional look that is comfortable and quite chic.LOCATION Left Chest – Left chest placement on a woman’s fashion tee is especially important with styles moving toward tighter-fitting, shorter designs. A logo should be applied 6” down from the shoulder seam (measuring from the shoulder seam to the bottom of the design) and placed at a point midway between the center front of the garment and the armhole seam. Care should be
"[Our Council] will increase its responsiveness, efficiency and effectiveness in delivering high quality services. Emphasis will continue on streamlining core business and customer processes. Services will be provided in the most efficient manner possible at a reasonable cost while meeting environmental needs" - Responsiveness to what specifically? Efficiency of what, and what would people notice if it were happening? Isn't effectiveness so broad that it could mean 23 different things to 7 different people? If something is streamlined, how is it different? Reasonable cost from whose perspective?
"Lead initiatives that foster diversity of staff and create culturally-competent care strategies supporting the local and international patients we serve." - When you are fostering, what are you actually doing? What kinds of diversity are good, and what kinds of diversity should not be fostered? How would you distinguish a 'culturally-competent care strategy' from any other kind of competent care strategy (is it obvious to those that contribute to achieving this goal what a care strategy is exactly?).
Each of these goals share the prolific use of inert words like valuable, input, sustainable, underpin, effective, support, focus, holistic, integrated, excellence, engagement, service, enhance, responsiveness, efficiency, effectiveness (these last two I think must be the most used of all the inert words as building blocks to writing business goals), streamlining, reasonable, foster, diversity, competent and strategy. You can read more fine examples of inert language used in our society in Don Watson's book, Death Sentence: The Decay Of Public Language. You know there are many more inert words that bulk-up our business language - perhaps when you have your next cup of your beverage of choice, you might sit down with your business's plan and look for the inert words in the goal statements. How well do you really understand what those goals mean?
And that's largely the effect of inert words in our business language - it's often hard to really understand what they mean. For example, it's far easier for you to imagine in your mind what it would be like to feel energetic all day and be able to site and move comfortably and pain-free and think clearly and enjoy eating fresh foods like apples and carrots and sleep soundly at night, than it is to imagine having "health improvements". When our language helps us vividly and in detail imagine the result it describes, it moves us, motivates us and almost programs us to make that result a reality. Sometimes it can even move us to realise that it's not the result we really want, and we can avoid wasting effort traveling in that direction.
Particularly in business, 'language that moves us' is critical if you are going to design the right kind of measures to give you feedback about your progress toward your goals.
MEANINGFUL MEASURES COME FROM 'LANGUAGE THAT MOVES'
You simply can't measure a result that is described by inert language. Measures are data that we have analysed to give us some evidence of the degree to
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