The Bull's-Eye View

Welcome to the September issue of the Bull's Eye View.

Despite the growing debate over where the U.S. economy is headed, balance sheets at many companies have never looked better. Flush with cash, these companies continue to hire at the executive level to ensure they have the bandwidth needed to leverage existing opportunities for growth. During this period of time, the executive search industry is expecting a 21% increase in the number of six-figure job assignments received from corporate clients. Keeping up with the pace of growth has proven to be challenging for many organizations and it's forecasted to increase due to a large portion of baby boomers retiring at or around the year 2010. This is why its time to invest in staffing your companies future. Remember, companies don't plan to fail but fail to plan.

Going For Excellence

by Dave Thomas

When you have your own act together and get along well with others, you're ready to reach for excellence.

From our earliest days, we are taught that excellence is snazzy, glossy, and bigger than life. It's that three seconds of glory, not the constant training workouts. But that's just false. Most people think excellence in business is sitting at a big desk and making power decisions, but true excellence is really the years beforehand making little and big right decisions and learning from mistakes when things go wrong.

No one can excel in everything. In fact, excellence in any one little thing is hard enough. And don't forget: it's easy to become selfish when you go for the gold. The graveyards of the world are loaded with people who lost it all at the same time they thought they were winning it all.

Know what motivates you and prove to yourself that this motivation is honest and worthwhile. Stay focused.

Keep dreaming, but don't daydream: Look at success firsthand so that you know how it works and what it costs to achieve.

One way to maintain your motivation is to not allow people's opinions about you sidetrack you. Just be yourself, and you'll be much happier. Inside yourself, have a clear understanding of where you want to go and confidence in your ability to get there. These attributes will allow you to challenge what people say about you.

Challenge the praise as well as the criticism. You have to listen to what your boss says about you. You also have to listen to what your husband or wife may say about you. Same goes for your father or mother, your biggest customer or your biggest contributor. But don't over-listen. Listen with balance.

The boss may pat you on the back because you deserve it. Or, the boss may pat you on the back because he's in a good mood. Your wife may tell you that you are lacking as a father, when it just could be that she's still sore about little Timmy spooning honey into the CD player while you were golfing.

Success: It's not the neon lights and the publicity. More often, it's the small steps to make you stronger and to keep you well, measured against simple goals.

In a Workplace Rut?

Get yourself out of a rut today by imagining that today is your first day on the job.

• What things do you see that you could improve?
• What things could you change that could result in higher productivity, increased profits, decrease wasted time, and higher sales?
• Who would you talk to about strategic issues and the direction the company is headed?
• How would you enhance or improve this direction?

- Sorrell Associates ©2006

Web Site of the Month

WhatIs.com® is a knowledge exploration and self-education tool about information technology, especially about the Internet and computers. It contains over 4,500 individual encyclopedic definition/topics, a number of "Fast Reference" pages and learning tools.

An informational page all about the internet and networking is provided along with a glossary that leads to sites on the internet that provides in-depth information about a topic.

Check it out at: www.WhatIs.com

How To Create Alignment In Your Company

Alignment is the balanced harmony between interdependent people, processes, resources, and departments. It is a matter of aligning your vision with people, strategy, structure, and processes with a focus on the customer and a foundation of core values. Because they are interdependent, they must be congruent. As can be seen from the following model, realizing the ideal is not as complex as many would think:

When all critical components are aligned, results will continue to improve. If there is conflict between any two issues, there can be dissolution of the whole. For example, if you want to implement a new process but have not developed people who respond positively to change, or your structure makes change difficult, innovation is difficult.

If people have the knowledge necessary to create positive change but your processes makes it too difficult for them to do so, motivation will wane and maintaining the status quo will become easier.

If you are able, through a shared vision, to raise the level of motivation that exists in your organization, but your structure restricts innovation or higher levels of productivity, the improvement will be temporary at best.

All of the parts are important to the whole. As the "Model" is cascaded throughout the organization, everyone becomes focused on doing the right things right, which results in organizational health, accelerated positive change, and strategic growth.

Encourage people to be responsible for their own performance. When all critical organizational components are aligned with a focus on the customer, results will continue to improve.

Valueship is a process that will enable you to align your existing resources for higher levels of performance. Because it is founded in values, an attitude of trust and respect is prevalent at all levels. There is predictability and a baseline for decision making. People are more prone to accept responsibility and be accountable for their performance, and open to new ideas.

In our next issue we will discuss how to create "Valueship"

- Adapted with permission from Executive Leadership. Copyright © 2006 Resource Associates Corporation. All rights reserved. Target Consulting Group

Target's hot jobs of the month!

*Please send your resume to: sales@targetconsulting.com or call us on our main line (888) 511-JOBS if you are interested and feel you that you meet the qualifications of the above positions. You may also forward these descriptions to someone you may know that may meet these qualifications.

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