What if women ran the world?
What if women ran the world?
Male hubris has made a mess. We need more female qualities.
By Mark Lange
from the March 26, 2009 edition
Excerpts:
San Francisco - It is getting harder to escape the sense that most of the trouble in the world – whether it's coming out of the Senate, a mortgage lender, or a tank turret – can be traced to one overriding problem: too many men steering. Had our economic, domestic, and foreign policy been more informed by women, we might be enjoying a safer ride.
An MIT study of female leaders running village councils in India found that by objective measures (building better wells, taking fewer bribes) women ran their villages better. American women are about to eclipse men in sheer payroll numbers – and they're now majority owners of nearly half of the private companies in the country. Yet somehow the average working woman still devotes much more time to child care and housework.
What's clear is that, on average, men overestimate their IQ while women underestimate theirs. And that may be a clue, in terms of effectiveness: While decisiveness and risk-taking matter, hubris (too often male) creates problems. Humility and collaboration (more often female) solve them. What explains the difference?
It could simply be a matter of emotional need, reinforced by generations of gender stereotyping. Seeking competition and challenge, guys do tend to cast things in shades of conflict: defaulting to a win/lose, right ("my") position versus wrong ("yours"). On this point, scientists, who are mostly men, disagree. But there's no doubt that social stability is compromised by masculine habits such as hostile takeovers, and paying enormous retention bonuses to men who've driven a business into the ground and have already left.
The difference could be evolutionary. Primordial hunters (men) had to make rapid decisions and act on them, right or wrong, but quickly. Chase that bunny! Club that rival! Run away! Gatherers (women), meanwhile, needed an awareness of the larger context – knowing which berry bushes would ripen when, how to keep the kids from clonking each other with rocks, and generally holding the tribe together and getting things done.
Or, in a world where our reverence for stature remains primitive, it's possible women just have to be more creative, collaborative, and clever when they average five inches shorter and 27 pounds lighter than men.
But it's also possible that even men are ready to learn that women make better leaders than they know. A Pew Research survey last year showed that the public rates women equal or superior to men in seven of the eight qualities they value most highly in leadership. The results were striking on the questions of honesty and intelligence, which registered as the two most important characteristics of leadership, and which lately have been in relatively short supply. On these dimensions, women were more than twice as likely to be rated superior to men – by both women and men.
Male cognitive patterns of linear, command-and-control thinking are no longer optimal – either with Gen-Y talent in the workplace, or with geopolitical conflict around the world. We're heading into an era when we need leadership that enlists self-interest in support of the larger outcome – less transactional and more transformational. Rather than punishing failure or reinforcing conflict, motivating progress.
Read Full Article: http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0326/p09s02-coop.html
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
We are not as rational as we think, book says | CITIZEN-TIMES.com | Asheville Citizen-Times
We are not as rational as we think, book says CITIZEN-TIMES.com Asheville Citizen-Times
We are not as rational as we think, book says
Paul H. Jacques
• published March 29, 2009 12:15 am
Excerpts:
.... These factors also affect choices of those of us who are not as well-known. That includes the friendships we develop and investments we make, and, in our professional lives, employee selection and decisions at the tactical and strategic levels in organizations.
If you've found yourself purchasing loss/damage waivers, trip insurance or unlimited calling plans, making multiple purchases of stocks each at a share price lower than the previous purchase, or simply having made some bad decisions, Ori and Rom Brafman offer a book that you'll find quite handy.
“Sway” is about decision-making and the biases that each of us brings to the process. The book presents compelling evidence that the rational decision-making model, a fundamental assumption underlying many processes and disciplines, is flawed because humans are, by nature, subject to biases and hence not rational.
Biases are referred to as “sway” factors in that they sway our thinking away from rationality, and these factors permeate virtually all our decisions. One sway factor is loss aversion, the idea that humans disdain losses more than we love gains. The authors argue that in order to preserve our self-image, we are reluctant to assume risks that might lead to the loss of investments involving money, effort or emotions.
These factors also affect choices of those of us who are not as well-known. That includes the friendships we develop and investments we make, and, in our professional lives, employee selection and decisions at the tactical and strategic levels in organizations.
Read Full Article: http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009903290331
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
We are not as rational as we think, book says
Paul H. Jacques
• published March 29, 2009 12:15 am
Excerpts:
.... These factors also affect choices of those of us who are not as well-known. That includes the friendships we develop and investments we make, and, in our professional lives, employee selection and decisions at the tactical and strategic levels in organizations.
If you've found yourself purchasing loss/damage waivers, trip insurance or unlimited calling plans, making multiple purchases of stocks each at a share price lower than the previous purchase, or simply having made some bad decisions, Ori and Rom Brafman offer a book that you'll find quite handy.
“Sway” is about decision-making and the biases that each of us brings to the process. The book presents compelling evidence that the rational decision-making model, a fundamental assumption underlying many processes and disciplines, is flawed because humans are, by nature, subject to biases and hence not rational.
Biases are referred to as “sway” factors in that they sway our thinking away from rationality, and these factors permeate virtually all our decisions. One sway factor is loss aversion, the idea that humans disdain losses more than we love gains. The authors argue that in order to preserve our self-image, we are reluctant to assume risks that might lead to the loss of investments involving money, effort or emotions.
These factors also affect choices of those of us who are not as well-known. That includes the friendships we develop and investments we make, and, in our professional lives, employee selection and decisions at the tactical and strategic levels in organizations.
Read Full Article: http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009903290331
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Chairman-CEO Split Gains Allies - WSJ.com
Chairman-CEO Split Gains Allies - WSJ.com
Wall Street Jounal
THEORY & PRACTICE
MARCH 30, 2009
Chairman-CEO Split Gains Allies
Corporate Leaders Push for Firms to Improve Oversight by Separating Roles
By Joann S. Lublin
Excerpts:
The effort to separate the roles of chairman and chief executive at U.S. public companies is gaining prominent new allies. More than 50 corporate leaders, investors and governance specialists Monday will urge companies to bolster board oversight of management by splitting the roles.
Participants include MBIA Inc. CEO Jay Brown, former American Express Co. head Harvey Golub, KB Home co-founder Eli Broad and former UAL Corp. CEO Stephen M. Wolf, as well as representatives of big pension funds.
Businesses with separate chairmen "would perform better overall -- and not just in shareholder returns," contends Harry Pearce, a retired General Motors Corp. vice chairman who is chairman of MDU Resources Group Inc. and Nortel Networks Corp. Mr. Pearce heads the Chairmen's Forum, a group of independent board chairmen that helped organize the new campaign.
In a report prepared by the Millstein Center for Corporate Governance and Performance at Yale University's School of Management, the Chairmen's Forum proposes that companies appoint a separate chairman after an incumbent CEO-chairman leaves -- or explain why not to shareholders. The group is considering asking the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq to adopt listing rules that would require separate chairmen.
More U.S. companies are dividing the roles, but the trend is spreading slowly because many CEOs resist sharing power. About 37% of companies in the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index have separate chairmen and CEOs, up from 22% in 2002, according to the Corporate Library, a research firm in Portland, Maine.
Read Full Article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123816562313557465.html
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Wall Street Jounal
THEORY & PRACTICE
MARCH 30, 2009
Chairman-CEO Split Gains Allies
Corporate Leaders Push for Firms to Improve Oversight by Separating Roles
By Joann S. Lublin
Excerpts:
The effort to separate the roles of chairman and chief executive at U.S. public companies is gaining prominent new allies. More than 50 corporate leaders, investors and governance specialists Monday will urge companies to bolster board oversight of management by splitting the roles.
Participants include MBIA Inc. CEO Jay Brown, former American Express Co. head Harvey Golub, KB Home co-founder Eli Broad and former UAL Corp. CEO Stephen M. Wolf, as well as representatives of big pension funds.
Businesses with separate chairmen "would perform better overall -- and not just in shareholder returns," contends Harry Pearce, a retired General Motors Corp. vice chairman who is chairman of MDU Resources Group Inc. and Nortel Networks Corp. Mr. Pearce heads the Chairmen's Forum, a group of independent board chairmen that helped organize the new campaign.
In a report prepared by the Millstein Center for Corporate Governance and Performance at Yale University's School of Management, the Chairmen's Forum proposes that companies appoint a separate chairman after an incumbent CEO-chairman leaves -- or explain why not to shareholders. The group is considering asking the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq to adopt listing rules that would require separate chairmen.
More U.S. companies are dividing the roles, but the trend is spreading slowly because many CEOs resist sharing power. About 37% of companies in the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index have separate chairmen and CEOs, up from 22% in 2002, according to the Corporate Library, a research firm in Portland, Maine.
Read Full Article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123816562313557465.html
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Personal Branding: Putting Yourself Out There on a Shelf to Buy - NYTimes.com
Shortcuts - Putting Yourself Out There on a Shelf to Buy - NYTimes.com
Putting Yourself Out There on a Shelf to Buy
By ALINA TUGEND
Published: March 27, 2009
Excerpts:
I HEAR the word “brand,” as in “learn how to brand yourself,” and my heart sinks. I became a journalist rather than a salesperson because I do not like selling anything — including myself. And selling myself as a brand seems even less appealing than selling myself as, well, me.
Read full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/28/your-money/28shortcuts.html?_r=1&ref=business
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Putting Yourself Out There on a Shelf to Buy
By ALINA TUGEND
Published: March 27, 2009
Excerpts:
I HEAR the word “brand,” as in “learn how to brand yourself,” and my heart sinks. I became a journalist rather than a salesperson because I do not like selling anything — including myself. And selling myself as a brand seems even less appealing than selling myself as, well, me.
Read full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/28/your-money/28shortcuts.html?_r=1&ref=business
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The Multiple Intelligences of Leaders | Psychology Today Blogs
The Multiple Intelligences of Leaders Psychology Today Blogs
By Ronald E. Riggio, Ph.D. on March 27, 2009 - 3:16pm in Cutting-Edge Leadership
Excerpts:
So, how does this relate to those of us in or aspiring to leadership positions? The good news is that the last two forms of intelligence, emotional and social, are pliable. They can be developed. EQ and SQ (I don't think anyone has actually used that to represent social intelligence, but we will) both relate to interpersonal skills, and more we develop our interpersonal or people skills, the more we will enhance our emotional and social intelligences.
Read full article:
http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/200903/the-multiple-intelligences-leaders
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
By Ronald E. Riggio, Ph.D. on March 27, 2009 - 3:16pm in Cutting-Edge Leadership
Excerpts:
So, how does this relate to those of us in or aspiring to leadership positions? The good news is that the last two forms of intelligence, emotional and social, are pliable. They can be developed. EQ and SQ (I don't think anyone has actually used that to represent social intelligence, but we will) both relate to interpersonal skills, and more we develop our interpersonal or people skills, the more we will enhance our emotional and social intelligences.
Read full article:
http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/200903/the-multiple-intelligences-leaders
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Emotional Intelligence: Skills Worth Learning - BusinessWeek
Emotional Intelligence: Skills Worth Learning - BusinessWeek
Emotional Intelligence: Skills Worth Learning
A five-year rise in emotional intelligence in the workplace reversed course in 2008. Here's how to keep emotionally fit during hard times
By Nick Tasler and Dr. Travis Bradberry
Excerpts:
- Recognizing Your Emotions
Your body always responds to emotions physically even if you aren't consciously aware of them. So, take note of the physical signs that accompany a particular feeling. Do you sweat? Does your heart beat fast? Do you feel numb? Keep a close eye on these symptoms and then try to discover why you react the way you do. Ask yourself what is it about the person or situation that elicits this response.
- Managing Your Emotions
In times like these, uncertainty about the future is the ultimate emotional saboteur. Will you lose your job? Will your company go under? Will you be able to pay your mortgage? The anticipation of disaster ends up taking a greater toll on your functioning than the actual occurrence of disaster. Lay your emotions to rest by preparing for change, instead of worrying about it. Set aside some time in your day for problem-solving and work on being flexible and adaptive in the face of change.
Admit to yourself that you can't change reality, but you can control how you react to your new circumstances. Lastly, jot down a list of positive outcomes that still exist despite the uninvited changes that might happen. Use that list to keep motivated as you focus on achieving your goals.
Read full article: http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/mar2009/ca20090327_860041.htm?chan=careers_managing+index+page_top+stories
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Emotional Intelligence: Skills Worth Learning
A five-year rise in emotional intelligence in the workplace reversed course in 2008. Here's how to keep emotionally fit during hard times
By Nick Tasler and Dr. Travis Bradberry
Excerpts:
- Contagious Skill Set
What makes this discovery so special is that prior to having their emotional intelligence tested, very few, if any, of the people in our sample had ever received formal emotional intelligence training or emotional skills development. Yet average EQ scores still increased. It's as if emotional intelligence skills—much like emotions themselves—seem to be contagious. The more you interact with empathetic people, the more empathetic you become. The more time you spend with other people who openly discuss emotions, the more skilled you become at identifying and understanding emotions.
- Recognizing Your Emotions
Your body always responds to emotions physically even if you aren't consciously aware of them. So, take note of the physical signs that accompany a particular feeling. Do you sweat? Does your heart beat fast? Do you feel numb? Keep a close eye on these symptoms and then try to discover why you react the way you do. Ask yourself what is it about the person or situation that elicits this response.
- Managing Your Emotions
In times like these, uncertainty about the future is the ultimate emotional saboteur. Will you lose your job? Will your company go under? Will you be able to pay your mortgage? The anticipation of disaster ends up taking a greater toll on your functioning than the actual occurrence of disaster. Lay your emotions to rest by preparing for change, instead of worrying about it. Set aside some time in your day for problem-solving and work on being flexible and adaptive in the face of change.
Admit to yourself that you can't change reality, but you can control how you react to your new circumstances. Lastly, jot down a list of positive outcomes that still exist despite the uninvited changes that might happen. Use that list to keep motivated as you focus on achieving your goals.
Read full article: http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/mar2009/ca20090327_860041.htm?chan=careers_managing+index+page_top+stories
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
What makes an effective leader?
What makes an effective leader?
What Makes An Effective Leader?
by Catey Hill daily news staff writer
Friday, March 27th 2009, 5:58 PM
Friday, March 27th 2009, 5:58 PM
Effective leadership is a key element in almost every successful business. Good leaders help a group achieve its goals. They enable a company to move forward. They motivate and inspire employees. They keep a business or group organized and running smoothly.
Many people believe effective leaders are born, not made. But while there are some born leaders, many more have honed their leadership skills through extensive practice to become effective leaders. This article will examine what you can do to become a more effective leader.
Read full Article: http://www.nydailynews.com/money/small_biz/2009/03/27/2009-03-27_what_makes_an_effective_leader.html?page=0
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
What Makes An Effective Leader?
by Catey Hill daily news staff writer
Friday, March 27th 2009, 5:58 PM
Friday, March 27th 2009, 5:58 PM
Effective leadership is a key element in almost every successful business. Good leaders help a group achieve its goals. They enable a company to move forward. They motivate and inspire employees. They keep a business or group organized and running smoothly.
Many people believe effective leaders are born, not made. But while there are some born leaders, many more have honed their leadership skills through extensive practice to become effective leaders. This article will examine what you can do to become a more effective leader.
Read full Article: http://www.nydailynews.com/money/small_biz/2009/03/27/2009-03-27_what_makes_an_effective_leader.html?page=0
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Thriving In The Downturn - Forbes.com
Thriving In The Downturn - Forbes.com
Entrepreneurs
Thriving In The Downturn
Edited by Brett Nelson, 03.26.09, 06:00 PM EDT
Lean staffs, a passion for their products and obsession with quality give these entrepreneurs insulation that bigger outfits don't have.
Read full article: http://www.forbes.com/2009/03/26/thriving-in-downturn-entrepreneurs-management-recession_land.html?partner=daily_newsletter
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Entrepreneurs
Thriving In The Downturn
Edited by Brett Nelson, 03.26.09, 06:00 PM EDT
Lean staffs, a passion for their products and obsession with quality give these entrepreneurs insulation that bigger outfits don't have.
Read full article: http://www.forbes.com/2009/03/26/thriving-in-downturn-entrepreneurs-management-recession_land.html?partner=daily_newsletter
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Seven Strategies for Mastering The Power & Art of Active Listening - My team want re-assurance. What should I do? - SmartCompany |
My team want re-assurance. What should I do? - SmartCompany Business news, trends and ideas for Australia
[Seven Strategies for Mastering The Power & Art of Active Listening]
Communication skills are obviously vitally important for all of us in any context, but they're especially important for those wanting to be great managers and/or leaders, and they're especially important during these current, difficult times. Just as obviously, communication is a two-way process and involves listening just as much (if not more) as it involves talking.
Many people, however, fail to perform this (that is, the listening) part of the communication process effectively, either because they forget to do it at all, or they view it as a primarily passive activity. But when conducted properly and effectively, listening should be approached as one would approach any other activity. After all, we were given two ears and one mouth for a reason!
Remember to listen next time you're communicating; and implement the following [7 strategies] strategies next time you're listening as part of your attempts to communicate more effectively and notice the significant benefits that can be realised.
Read full article... Master the 7 stratagies: http://www.smartcompany.com.au/executive-coach/20090327-my-team-want-re-assurance-what-should-i-do.html
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
[Seven Strategies for Mastering The Power & Art of Active Listening]
Communication skills are obviously vitally important for all of us in any context, but they're especially important for those wanting to be great managers and/or leaders, and they're especially important during these current, difficult times. Just as obviously, communication is a two-way process and involves listening just as much (if not more) as it involves talking.
Many people, however, fail to perform this (that is, the listening) part of the communication process effectively, either because they forget to do it at all, or they view it as a primarily passive activity. But when conducted properly and effectively, listening should be approached as one would approach any other activity. After all, we were given two ears and one mouth for a reason!
Remember to listen next time you're communicating; and implement the following [7 strategies] strategies next time you're listening as part of your attempts to communicate more effectively and notice the significant benefits that can be realised.
Read full article... Master the 7 stratagies: http://www.smartcompany.com.au/executive-coach/20090327-my-team-want-re-assurance-what-should-i-do.html
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
” The Serious Business of Emotions at Work " on Positive Psychology News Daily
” The Serious Business of Emotions at Work " on Positive Psychology News Daily
The Serious Business of Emotions at Work By Bridget Grenville-Cleave
Positive Psychology News Daily, NY (Bridget Grenville-Cleave) - March 26, 2009, 12:15 am
A five-step version of that story that I use in coaching business people:
Read full article: http://pos-psych.com/news/bridget-grenville-cleave/200903261740
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The Serious Business of Emotions at Work By Bridget Grenville-Cleave
Positive Psychology News Daily, NY (Bridget Grenville-Cleave) - March 26, 2009, 12:15 am
A five-step version of that story that I use in coaching business people:
Read full article: http://pos-psych.com/news/bridget-grenville-cleave/200903261740
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
J.D. Power Survey: Good Agent Relations Make Insurers Money
J.D. Power Survey: Good Agent Relations Make Insurers Money
National Underwriter
J.D. Power Survey: Good Agent Relations Make Insurers Money
By MARK E. RUQUET
Published 3/25/2009
NU Online News Service, March 25, 3:07 p.m. EDT
The closer a carrier’s relationships with its independent agents, the more business they send its way, according to a J.D. Power and Associates satisfaction survey.
The Westlake Village, Calif.-based information services firm’s findings were contained in its first “2009 Insurance Agency Satisfaction Study.”
J.D. Power said for its report it surveyed 1,589 insurance agents who evaluated more than 10 companies across the industry.
According to the survey findings, the more satisfied an agent is with a carrier, the more premium the producer anticipates placing with that carrier in the future.
Jeremy Bowler, senior director of the insurance practice at J.D. Power, said agent satisfaction is very important because of the influence producers have over consumer-buying decisions.
“If agents are the glue that binds [consumers] to the carrier…then carriers need to do whatever they can [to improve that relationship],” Mr. Bowler said in an interview.
He pointed to an earlier consumer survey released with this report that found 60 percent of customers would renew their business through their agent. However, only 44 percent of consumers said they would definitely renew with an insurer.
An even stronger indicator of customer preference was the finding that 60 percent of customers said they would switch insurers if their agent advised them to do so.
“Companies will be hard pressed to make a loyalty play [to the policyholder] if the agent does not want to stay with the company,” noted Mr. Bowler.
He said the survey revealed that satisfaction has less to do with compensation than service elements.
The key drivers of satisfaction for agents are:
• Thirty-two percent of agents say carrier contacts are the key satisfaction driver.
• Twenty-three percent say policy offerings are their key driver.
• Sixteen percent said it is claims handling.
• Thirteen percent said technology.
• Ten percent said price.
• Five percent said compensation.
Read full article: http://www.property-casualty.com/News/2009/3/Pages/JD-Power-Survey-Good-Agent-Relations-Make-Insurers-Money--.aspx
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
National Underwriter
J.D. Power Survey: Good Agent Relations Make Insurers Money
By MARK E. RUQUET
Published 3/25/2009
NU Online News Service, March 25, 3:07 p.m. EDT
The closer a carrier’s relationships with its independent agents, the more business they send its way, according to a J.D. Power and Associates satisfaction survey.
The Westlake Village, Calif.-based information services firm’s findings were contained in its first “2009 Insurance Agency Satisfaction Study.”
J.D. Power said for its report it surveyed 1,589 insurance agents who evaluated more than 10 companies across the industry.
According to the survey findings, the more satisfied an agent is with a carrier, the more premium the producer anticipates placing with that carrier in the future.
Jeremy Bowler, senior director of the insurance practice at J.D. Power, said agent satisfaction is very important because of the influence producers have over consumer-buying decisions.
“If agents are the glue that binds [consumers] to the carrier…then carriers need to do whatever they can [to improve that relationship],” Mr. Bowler said in an interview.
He pointed to an earlier consumer survey released with this report that found 60 percent of customers would renew their business through their agent. However, only 44 percent of consumers said they would definitely renew with an insurer.
An even stronger indicator of customer preference was the finding that 60 percent of customers said they would switch insurers if their agent advised them to do so.
“Companies will be hard pressed to make a loyalty play [to the policyholder] if the agent does not want to stay with the company,” noted Mr. Bowler.
He said the survey revealed that satisfaction has less to do with compensation than service elements.
The key drivers of satisfaction for agents are:
• Thirty-two percent of agents say carrier contacts are the key satisfaction driver.
• Twenty-three percent say policy offerings are their key driver.
• Sixteen percent said it is claims handling.
• Thirteen percent said technology.
• Ten percent said price.
• Five percent said compensation.
Read full article: http://www.property-casualty.com/News/2009/3/Pages/JD-Power-Survey-Good-Agent-Relations-Make-Insurers-Money--.aspx
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Courage, Goal Attainment & Self-Affirmation: A strategy for mentoring goal achievment
Strategies for Mentoring Goal Acheivement
Self-affirmation: A strategy to reduce self-control failure Psychology Today Blogs
Self-affirmation: A strategy to reduce self-control failure
By Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D. on March 26, 2009 - 4:04am in Don't Delay
The research evidence across four new studies reveals the importance of affirming one's sense of self to bolster our depleted self-control. I think this research underscores the deeply existential issue of self-affirmation and "courage" in relation to the self-regulation failure we know as procrastination.
Brandon J. Schmeichel (Texas A&M University) and Kathleen Vohs (University of Minnesota) report on a series of interesting studies in the upcoming issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. This is a long article, so my intention is only to provide a very brief overview of the rationale and main findings of their research. If you're interested in this article, you can read it here.
These psychologists have both studied with Roy Baumeister, a name familiar to readers of this blog, and anyone else interested in social psychology. Schmeichel and Vohs have extended the self-regulation depletion (willpower-is-like-a-muscle) paradigm developed by Baumeister and his students with an explicit focus on factors that can reduce the likelihood of self-control failure. Their focus was on self-affirmation as an intervention strategy.
Self-affirmation refers to behavioral or cognitive events that sustain, support and strengthen the perceived integrity of the self (Steele, 1988, cited in Schmeichel & Vohs, 2009). Examples of self-affirming events include:
- receiving positive feedback from others
- reflecting upon positive aspects of oneself
Another, and perhaps the most powerful, mode of self-affirmation is expressing one's core values. In fact, this is what Schmeichel and Vohs used in their study.
What can we take away from this in terms of procrastination?Given that procrastination is a quintessential form of self-regulation failure, a key strategy to bolster self-regulatory strength to act on our intentions is to focus on our core values. This self-affirmation, as Schmeichel and Vohs have demonstrated, can fortify the self-concept and boost self-regulatory function. Of course, it will also simply make life more worth living. It will be your life, one deeply rooted in your sense of self. As Tillich writes, "Joy accompanies the self-affirmation of our essential being . . . Joy is the emotional expression of the courageous Yes to one's own true being" (p. 14).
Read Full Article: http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200903/self-affirmation-strategy-reduce-self-control-failure
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Self-affirmation: A strategy to reduce self-control failure Psychology Today Blogs
Self-affirmation: A strategy to reduce self-control failure
By Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D. on March 26, 2009 - 4:04am in Don't Delay
The research evidence across four new studies reveals the importance of affirming one's sense of self to bolster our depleted self-control. I think this research underscores the deeply existential issue of self-affirmation and "courage" in relation to the self-regulation failure we know as procrastination.
Brandon J. Schmeichel (Texas A&M University) and Kathleen Vohs (University of Minnesota) report on a series of interesting studies in the upcoming issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. This is a long article, so my intention is only to provide a very brief overview of the rationale and main findings of their research. If you're interested in this article, you can read it here.
These psychologists have both studied with Roy Baumeister, a name familiar to readers of this blog, and anyone else interested in social psychology. Schmeichel and Vohs have extended the self-regulation depletion (willpower-is-like-a-muscle) paradigm developed by Baumeister and his students with an explicit focus on factors that can reduce the likelihood of self-control failure. Their focus was on self-affirmation as an intervention strategy.
Self-affirmation refers to behavioral or cognitive events that sustain, support and strengthen the perceived integrity of the self (Steele, 1988, cited in Schmeichel & Vohs, 2009). Examples of self-affirming events include:
- receiving positive feedback from others
- reflecting upon positive aspects of oneself
Another, and perhaps the most powerful, mode of self-affirmation is expressing one's core values. In fact, this is what Schmeichel and Vohs used in their study.
What can we take away from this in terms of procrastination?Given that procrastination is a quintessential form of self-regulation failure, a key strategy to bolster self-regulatory strength to act on our intentions is to focus on our core values. This self-affirmation, as Schmeichel and Vohs have demonstrated, can fortify the self-concept and boost self-regulatory function. Of course, it will also simply make life more worth living. It will be your life, one deeply rooted in your sense of self. As Tillich writes, "Joy accompanies the self-affirmation of our essential being . . . Joy is the emotional expression of the courageous Yes to one's own true being" (p. 14).
Read Full Article: http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200903/self-affirmation-strategy-reduce-self-control-failure
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
HR Professionals: How To Ace Your 2009 Performance Review - And Why You Need To! | Success in HR
HR Professionals: How To Ace Your 2009 Performance Review - And Why You Need To! Success in HR
HR Professionals: How To Ace Your 2009 Performance Review - And Why You Need To!
by Alan Collins
In 2009, your performance review will matter more than ever!
Read full article: http://www.successinhr.com/acing-hr-performance-reviews
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
HR Professionals: How To Ace Your 2009 Performance Review - And Why You Need To!
by Alan Collins
In 2009, your performance review will matter more than ever!
Read full article: http://www.successinhr.com/acing-hr-performance-reviews
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
ABC News: Recession Villains: Who Will Be Blamed Next?
ABC News: Recession Villains: Who Will Be Blamed Next?
Recession Villains: Who Will Be Blamed Next?
From Geithner, Liddy to Madoff -- Psychologist: It's Easier to Blame Individuals Than the Financial System
By MATT JAFFEWASHINGTON, March 24, 2009
With the economy mired in a 15-month-long recession, government bailout programs marred by fraud, executives at ailing banks collecting million-dollar bonuses, and investors irate about money lost to Ponzi schemes, there is plenty of blame to go around. And not a week seems to go by without the public picking a new person to point the finger at.
Clockwise from to left: financier Bernard Madoff arrives at Manhattan Federal court March 12, 2009,...
Clockwise from to left: financier Bernard Madoff arrives at Manhattan Federal court March 12, 2009, in New York City; AIG CEO Edward Liddy testifies before a congressional committee hearing March 18, 2009, at the Capitol in Washington, D.C.; television personality Jim Cramer interviews NASCAR drivers during the taping of CNBC's "Mad Money" May 23, 2008, at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. (Getty Images)
"What happened is our sense of fairness and justice has been deeply offended and now we feel vengeful and vindictive," said Dan Ariely, author of "Predictably Irrational," a book that explores the causes of everyday behaviors.
Early this month it was Bernie Madoff, who schemed investors out of $65 billion. Two weeks ago it was Jim Cramer, the CNBC talk show host eviscerated by Comedy Central's Jon Stewart. Last week it was Edward Liddy, CEO of AIG, who dished out $165 million in bonuses to executives at the bailed-out insurance giant.
Read Full Article: http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Politics/story?id=7152326&page=1
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Recession Villains: Who Will Be Blamed Next?
From Geithner, Liddy to Madoff -- Psychologist: It's Easier to Blame Individuals Than the Financial System
By MATT JAFFEWASHINGTON, March 24, 2009
With the economy mired in a 15-month-long recession, government bailout programs marred by fraud, executives at ailing banks collecting million-dollar bonuses, and investors irate about money lost to Ponzi schemes, there is plenty of blame to go around. And not a week seems to go by without the public picking a new person to point the finger at.
Clockwise from to left: financier Bernard Madoff arrives at Manhattan Federal court March 12, 2009,...
Clockwise from to left: financier Bernard Madoff arrives at Manhattan Federal court March 12, 2009, in New York City; AIG CEO Edward Liddy testifies before a congressional committee hearing March 18, 2009, at the Capitol in Washington, D.C.; television personality Jim Cramer interviews NASCAR drivers during the taping of CNBC's "Mad Money" May 23, 2008, at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. (Getty Images)
"What happened is our sense of fairness and justice has been deeply offended and now we feel vengeful and vindictive," said Dan Ariely, author of "Predictably Irrational," a book that explores the causes of everyday behaviors.
Early this month it was Bernie Madoff, who schemed investors out of $65 billion. Two weeks ago it was Jim Cramer, the CNBC talk show host eviscerated by Comedy Central's Jon Stewart. Last week it was Edward Liddy, CEO of AIG, who dished out $165 million in bonuses to executives at the bailed-out insurance giant.
Read Full Article: http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Politics/story?id=7152326&page=1
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
What About You? Visual Learners Convert Words to Pictures in the Brain And Vice Versa, Says Penn Psychology Study:
Visual Learners Convert Words to Pictures in the Brain And Vice Versa, Says Penn Psychology Study
University Of Pennsylvania
Visual Learners Convert Words to Pictures in the Brain And Vice Versa, Says Penn Psychology StudyMarch 24, 2009
PHILADELPHIA –- A University of Pennsylvania psychology study, using functional magnetic resonance imaging technology to scan the brain, reveals that people who consider themselves visual learners, as opposed to verbal learners, have a tendency to convert linguistically presented information into a visual mental representation. The more strongly an individual identified with the visual cognitive style, the more that individual activated the visual cortex when reading words.
The opposite also appears to be true from the study’s results.
Those participants who considered themselves verbal learners were found under fMRI to have brain activity in a region associated with phonological cognition when faced with a picture, suggesting they have a tendency to convert pictorial information into linguistic representations.
Read full article:http://www.upenn.edu/pennnews/article.php?id=1585
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
University Of Pennsylvania
Visual Learners Convert Words to Pictures in the Brain And Vice Versa, Says Penn Psychology StudyMarch 24, 2009
PHILADELPHIA –- A University of Pennsylvania psychology study, using functional magnetic resonance imaging technology to scan the brain, reveals that people who consider themselves visual learners, as opposed to verbal learners, have a tendency to convert linguistically presented information into a visual mental representation. The more strongly an individual identified with the visual cognitive style, the more that individual activated the visual cortex when reading words.
The opposite also appears to be true from the study’s results.
Those participants who considered themselves verbal learners were found under fMRI to have brain activity in a region associated with phonological cognition when faced with a picture, suggesting they have a tendency to convert pictorial information into linguistic representations.
Read full article:http://www.upenn.edu/pennnews/article.php?id=1585
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Fear Or Romance Could Make You Change Your Mind, Study Finds
Fear Or Romance Could Make You Change Your Mind, Study Finds
Fear Or Romance Could Make You Change Your Mind, Study Finds
ScienceDaily (Mar. 24, 2009)
EXCERPTS:
In the forthcoming paper "Fear and Loving in Las Vegas: Evolution, Emotion, and Persuasion," Griskevicius and his co-authors find that the emotion we are currently feeling has a strong effect on whether we decide to conform or to go against the grain "Being afraid especially leads people to go along with the crowd, activating a 'safety-in-numbers' psychology," said Griskevicius. "A feeling of lust, however, motivates people to go it alone, activating a desire to be seen as unique. Feeling scared or amorous can greatly change the way people make decisions."
The fact that emotions can dramatically influence people's tendency to go with or go against the group should not be overlooked by marketers. For example, advertisements often use persuasive appeals depicting products or ideas as being particularly popular or top sellers. The well-established tendency to conform makes such appeals generally quite effective. But when people view such ads on television, advertisers rarely consider that these viewers have often just been taken on an emotional roller coaster by the program they are currently watching. Indeed, Griskevicius and colleagues find that different types of commonly used persuasion appeals are differentially effective depending on the emotion that a viewer is feeling.
The paper was co-authored by Noah Goldstein (UCLA), Jill Sundie (University of Houston), and Chad Mortensen, Robert Cialdini and Douglas Kenrick (University of Arizona).
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Fear Or Romance Could Make You Change Your Mind, Study Finds
ScienceDaily (Mar. 24, 2009)
EXCERPTS:
In the forthcoming paper "Fear and Loving in Las Vegas: Evolution, Emotion, and Persuasion," Griskevicius and his co-authors find that the emotion we are currently feeling has a strong effect on whether we decide to conform or to go against the grain "Being afraid especially leads people to go along with the crowd, activating a 'safety-in-numbers' psychology," said Griskevicius. "A feeling of lust, however, motivates people to go it alone, activating a desire to be seen as unique. Feeling scared or amorous can greatly change the way people make decisions."
The fact that emotions can dramatically influence people's tendency to go with or go against the group should not be overlooked by marketers. For example, advertisements often use persuasive appeals depicting products or ideas as being particularly popular or top sellers. The well-established tendency to conform makes such appeals generally quite effective. But when people view such ads on television, advertisers rarely consider that these viewers have often just been taken on an emotional roller coaster by the program they are currently watching. Indeed, Griskevicius and colleagues find that different types of commonly used persuasion appeals are differentially effective depending on the emotion that a viewer is feeling.
The paper was co-authored by Noah Goldstein (UCLA), Jill Sundie (University of Houston), and Chad Mortensen, Robert Cialdini and Douglas Kenrick (University of Arizona).
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
5 Attributes of Inspirational Leaders | GiANT Impact
5 Attributes of Inspirational Leaders GiANT Impact
Note from Jim: A must read!
5 Attributes of Inspirational Leaders
Dr. John C. Maxwell
1 - ATTITUDE OF SERVICE
2 - AFFIRMATION
3 - ATTENTIVENESS
4 - AVAILABILITY
5 - AUTHENTICITY
Read full article: http://www.giantimpact.com/articles/read/article_5_attributes_of_inspirational_leaders//?utm_source=leadershipwired&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article&utm_campaign=lw-20090324
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Note from Jim: A must read!
5 Attributes of Inspirational Leaders
Dr. John C. Maxwell
1 - ATTITUDE OF SERVICE
2 - AFFIRMATION
3 - ATTENTIVENESS
4 - AVAILABILITY
5 - AUTHENTICITY
Read full article: http://www.giantimpact.com/articles/read/article_5_attributes_of_inspirational_leaders//?utm_source=leadershipwired&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article&utm_campaign=lw-20090324
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
When Economy Sours, a Tootsie Roll Can Still Soothe the Soul - NYTimes.com
When Economy Sours, a Tootsie Roll Can Still Soothe the Soul - NYTimes.com
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Women Report Feeling Insufficiently Challenged at Work
Women Report Feeling Insufficiently Challenged at Work
World At Work Newsline
March 3 2009
New research from Accenture found that 46% of women and 49% of men said they are not being challenged significantly in their current role. The research shows that 76% of all respondents are confident of their skills and capabilities, including having the ability to manage their workload and deadlines(70%), delegate tasks (68%) and negotiate (65%). The research also showed that 69% of women believe their careers are “successful” or “very successful,” and 46% of women who consider themselves “very successful” said they are in jobs that require them to stretch beyond their expected responsibilities.
Read full article: http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimComment?id=31630
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
World At Work Newsline
March 3 2009
New research from Accenture found that 46% of women and 49% of men said they are not being challenged significantly in their current role. The research shows that 76% of all respondents are confident of their skills and capabilities, including having the ability to manage their workload and deadlines(70%), delegate tasks (68%) and negotiate (65%). The research also showed that 69% of women believe their careers are “successful” or “very successful,” and 46% of women who consider themselves “very successful” said they are in jobs that require them to stretch beyond their expected responsibilities.
Read full article: http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimComment?id=31630
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The new normal - The McKinsey Quarterly - The new normal - Strategy - Strategic Thinking
The new normal - The McKinsey Quarterly - The new normal - Strategy - Strategic Thinking
The new normal
The business landscape has changed fundamentally; tomorrow’s environment will be different, but no less rich in possibilities for those who are prepared.
MARCH 2009 • Ian Davis
EXCERPTS:
This short essay by McKinsey’s worldwide managing director, Ian Davis, is a Conversation Starter, one in a series of invited opinions on topical issues.
Read the original essay, then see what readers had to say.
It is increasingly clear that the current downturn is fundamentally different from recessions of recent decades. We are experiencing not merely another turn of the business cycle, but a restructuring of the economic order.
Read full article: http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Strategy/Strategic_Thinking/The_new_normal_2326
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The new normal
The business landscape has changed fundamentally; tomorrow’s environment will be different, but no less rich in possibilities for those who are prepared.
MARCH 2009 • Ian Davis
EXCERPTS:
This short essay by McKinsey’s worldwide managing director, Ian Davis, is a Conversation Starter, one in a series of invited opinions on topical issues.
Read the original essay, then see what readers had to say.
It is increasingly clear that the current downturn is fundamentally different from recessions of recent decades. We are experiencing not merely another turn of the business cycle, but a restructuring of the economic order.
Read full article: http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Strategy/Strategic_Thinking/The_new_normal_2326
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Therese Borchard: 12 Things I Learned from My Therapist
Therese Borchard: 12 Things I Learned from My Therapist
Note from Jim: Insightful for anyone interested in human behavior. Worth the read.
Therese Borchard
Author of the blog, Beyond Blue, on Beliefnet.com
Posted March 23, 2009 02:05 PM (EST)
12 Things I Learned from My Therapist
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Note from Jim: Insightful for anyone interested in human behavior. Worth the read.
Therese Borchard
Author of the blog, Beyond Blue, on Beliefnet.com
Posted March 23, 2009 02:05 PM (EST)
12 Things I Learned from My Therapist
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
The crisis: Mobilizing boards for change - The McKinsey Quarterly - Mobilizing boards for change - Governance - Boards
The crisis: Mobilizing boards for change - The McKinsey Quarterly - Mobilizing boards for change - Governance - Boards
The crisis: Mobilizing boards for change
To meet the challenges of the economic crisis, corporate boards must change the way they work.
February 2009 • Andrew Campbell and Stuart Sinclair
Excerpts:
Editor’s note. When we published this article in February 2009, we invited directors to take an online survey to gather their opinions on how boards were responding to the economic crisis. Here is a summary of their responses.
Only half of board members say their boards have responded effectively to the global economic turmoil. However, many corporate boards have adjusted their practices, and more want to do so.
Many boards of directors are not providing the leadership demanded by the global economic crisis, according to a McKinsey Quarterly survey on the board’s role in the current economic environment.1 While half of board members describe their boards as effective in managing the crisis, just over a third say their boards have not been effective; 14 percent aren’t sure how to rate their boards’ effectiveness. At the personal level, roughly half of corporate directors say their boards’ chairs haven’t met the demands of the crisis, and a nearly equal percentage of board chairs believe the same about their board members (Exhibit 2). Though most boards have implemented various changes to their procedures in response to the crisis, 62 percent say their boards need to change even more.
Authors’ note
This survey may seem to deliver good news: half of the board members think their boards are doing a good job of tackling today’s challenges. However, switching from a glass-half-full to a glass-half-empty mentality, it is clear that most boards need to do more. Because human judgments are heavily influenced by past experiences and previous decisions, we need to disrupt our normal thought processes or jolt ourselves with new experiences if we are to challenge our presumptions fully and make wise decisions in today’s conditions. Another meeting with the same people in the same room won’t suffice.
One of this survey’s implications is that boards need to focus on innovation. In terms of creative thinking, this is sound advice. But organizations should also reconnect with their core mission and core capabilities. In uncertain times, going back to the core is often wise.
Read full article: http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Governance/Boards/the_crisis_Mobilizing_boards_for_change_2300?pagenum=2
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The crisis: Mobilizing boards for change
To meet the challenges of the economic crisis, corporate boards must change the way they work.
February 2009 • Andrew Campbell and Stuart Sinclair
Excerpts:
Editor’s note. When we published this article in February 2009, we invited directors to take an online survey to gather their opinions on how boards were responding to the economic crisis. Here is a summary of their responses.
Only half of board members say their boards have responded effectively to the global economic turmoil. However, many corporate boards have adjusted their practices, and more want to do so.
Many boards of directors are not providing the leadership demanded by the global economic crisis, according to a McKinsey Quarterly survey on the board’s role in the current economic environment.1 While half of board members describe their boards as effective in managing the crisis, just over a third say their boards have not been effective; 14 percent aren’t sure how to rate their boards’ effectiveness. At the personal level, roughly half of corporate directors say their boards’ chairs haven’t met the demands of the crisis, and a nearly equal percentage of board chairs believe the same about their board members (Exhibit 2). Though most boards have implemented various changes to their procedures in response to the crisis, 62 percent say their boards need to change even more.
Authors’ note
This survey may seem to deliver good news: half of the board members think their boards are doing a good job of tackling today’s challenges. However, switching from a glass-half-full to a glass-half-empty mentality, it is clear that most boards need to do more. Because human judgments are heavily influenced by past experiences and previous decisions, we need to disrupt our normal thought processes or jolt ourselves with new experiences if we are to challenge our presumptions fully and make wise decisions in today’s conditions. Another meeting with the same people in the same room won’t suffice.
One of this survey’s implications is that boards need to focus on innovation. In terms of creative thinking, this is sound advice. But organizations should also reconnect with their core mission and core capabilities. In uncertain times, going back to the core is often wise.
Read full article: http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Governance/Boards/the_crisis_Mobilizing_boards_for_change_2300?pagenum=2
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Ouch! Memo to CFOs: Don't Trust HR - Careers - CFO.com
Memo to CFOs: Don't Trust HR - Careers - CFO.com
Memo to CFOs: Don't Trust HR
A professor says most human resources professionals are ill-equipped to carry out value-added workforce planning and transformation.
David McCann - CFO.com US
March 10, 2009
Excerpts:
Addressing a crowd of about 300 financial executives this morning, a professor of human resources [Rutgers University's Richard Beatty] soundly denounced the corporate HR profession for being mostly unable to provide analytics that are useful in making workforce decisions that build economic value.
Most companies today spend too little effort on attracting and retaining top strategic talent and too much on satisfying the rest of the employee base, asserted Rutgers University's Richard Beatty, who spoke at a general session during the CFO Rising conference in Orlando. In fact, he claimed that typical human resources activities have no relevance to an organization's success. "HR people try to perpetuate the idea that job satisfaction is critical," Beatty said. "But there is no evidence that engaging employees impacts financial returns."
Beatty said that it is most important to think outside the HR department box when it comes to filling the strategic positions that create the bulk of a company's value. To that end, he suggested that companies might be better off appointing someone from outside the HR department to manage strategic talent. He pointed to Precision Castparts Corp., a $7 billion machine-parts manufacturer, as one company that has bypassed HR in several situations. For one, it reassigned an operations executive who ran a third of the company's 150 plants to take control of scouting for and retaining strategic talent.
Such tactics are warranted because while "the language of organizations is numbers, HR isn't very good at data analytics," Beatty said. "They don't think like business people. Many of them entered human resources because they wanted to help people, which I'm all for, but I'm also for building winning organizations."
It's the CFO's job to make sure that the work of analyzing and, as necessary, reconstituting the work force gets done by someone qualified to do the job, added Beatty, and there has never been more at stake than there is now.
"The labor market is in a position to provide you with better talent than you have ever had," said Beatty, co-author of the new book, The Differentiated Workforce. "If you don't emerge from this market with better talent in the roles that really make a difference, I don't think you're trying."
Read full article:http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13270251?f=AlsoOn031309
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Memo to CFOs: Don't Trust HR
A professor says most human resources professionals are ill-equipped to carry out value-added workforce planning and transformation.
David McCann - CFO.com US
March 10, 2009
Excerpts:
Addressing a crowd of about 300 financial executives this morning, a professor of human resources [Rutgers University's Richard Beatty] soundly denounced the corporate HR profession for being mostly unable to provide analytics that are useful in making workforce decisions that build economic value.
Most companies today spend too little effort on attracting and retaining top strategic talent and too much on satisfying the rest of the employee base, asserted Rutgers University's Richard Beatty, who spoke at a general session during the CFO Rising conference in Orlando. In fact, he claimed that typical human resources activities have no relevance to an organization's success. "HR people try to perpetuate the idea that job satisfaction is critical," Beatty said. "But there is no evidence that engaging employees impacts financial returns."
Beatty said that it is most important to think outside the HR department box when it comes to filling the strategic positions that create the bulk of a company's value. To that end, he suggested that companies might be better off appointing someone from outside the HR department to manage strategic talent. He pointed to Precision Castparts Corp., a $7 billion machine-parts manufacturer, as one company that has bypassed HR in several situations. For one, it reassigned an operations executive who ran a third of the company's 150 plants to take control of scouting for and retaining strategic talent.
Such tactics are warranted because while "the language of organizations is numbers, HR isn't very good at data analytics," Beatty said. "They don't think like business people. Many of them entered human resources because they wanted to help people, which I'm all for, but I'm also for building winning organizations."
It's the CFO's job to make sure that the work of analyzing and, as necessary, reconstituting the work force gets done by someone qualified to do the job, added Beatty, and there has never been more at stake than there is now.
"The labor market is in a position to provide you with better talent than you have ever had," said Beatty, co-author of the new book, The Differentiated Workforce. "If you don't emerge from this market with better talent in the roles that really make a difference, I don't think you're trying."
Read full article:http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13270251?f=AlsoOn031309
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Not All Companies Have Formal Severance Policy in Place
World At Work
Not All Companies Have Formal Severance Policy in Place
March 5, 2009 —
Slightly more than half of surveyed companies recently reported that they have a severance policy in place.
The 2008 Compensation Data survey from Compdata Surveys showed that when comparing those with a severance policy, 44.9% calculate severance based on years of service; about one-third use a combination of fixed number of weeks and years of service; and nearly 20% rely on employer discretion for severance pay.
The survey found that the percentage of organizations offering severance pay varies by industry: manufacturers have the highest percentage (61.4%), followed by insurance companies (61.2%) and not-for-profit organizations (44.4%).
“Some employees have made the news recently with suits against past employers under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification [WARN] Act,” said Amy Kaminski, manager of marketing programs for Compdata Surveys. “WARN requires most employers with 100 or more employees to provide notification 60 days in advance of plant closings and mass layoffs.”
Survey results show that less than 40% of respondents provide outplacement services; those that offer the service provide it mostly to management employees. Twenty-five percent of technical/professional employees and 20.2% of administrative employees are offered outplacement services.
Survey methodologyCompensation Data 2008 contains data on 637 job titles ranging from entry-level to top executives. Information was collected from millions of employees across the country. The results provide a comprehensive summary of pay data, benefits information and pay practices with an effective date of March 1, 2008.
Contents © 2008 WorldatWork. No part of this article may be reproduced, excerpted or redistributed in any form without express written permission from WorldatWork.
Read full article: http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimComment?id=31712
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Not All Companies Have Formal Severance Policy in Place
March 5, 2009 —
Slightly more than half of surveyed companies recently reported that they have a severance policy in place.
The 2008 Compensation Data survey from Compdata Surveys showed that when comparing those with a severance policy, 44.9% calculate severance based on years of service; about one-third use a combination of fixed number of weeks and years of service; and nearly 20% rely on employer discretion for severance pay.
The survey found that the percentage of organizations offering severance pay varies by industry: manufacturers have the highest percentage (61.4%), followed by insurance companies (61.2%) and not-for-profit organizations (44.4%).
“Some employees have made the news recently with suits against past employers under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification [WARN] Act,” said Amy Kaminski, manager of marketing programs for Compdata Surveys. “WARN requires most employers with 100 or more employees to provide notification 60 days in advance of plant closings and mass layoffs.”
Survey results show that less than 40% of respondents provide outplacement services; those that offer the service provide it mostly to management employees. Twenty-five percent of technical/professional employees and 20.2% of administrative employees are offered outplacement services.
Survey methodologyCompensation Data 2008 contains data on 637 job titles ranging from entry-level to top executives. Information was collected from millions of employees across the country. The results provide a comprehensive summary of pay data, benefits information and pay practices with an effective date of March 1, 2008.
Contents © 2008 WorldatWork. No part of this article may be reproduced, excerpted or redistributed in any form without express written permission from WorldatWork.
Read full article: http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimComment?id=31712
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Why We Think It's OK to Cheat - Insights To Enron, Mortgage Backed Securities And Other Headline Events
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/dan_ariely_on_our_buggy_moral_code.html
Why We Think It's OK to Cheat - Insights To Enron, The Meltdown of Mortgage Backed Securities Markets And Other Headline Events
Behavioral Economist Dan Ariely Talks: Why we think it's OK to cheat and steal (sometimes)
Fascinating! Video 16 min, 23 seconds
About this talkBehavioral economist Dan Ariely studies the bugs in our moral code: the hidden reasons we think it's OK to cheat or steal (sometimes). Clever studies help make his point that we're predictably irrational -- and can be influenced in ways we can't grasp.
About Dan ArielyIt's become increasingly obvious that the dismal science of economics is not as firmly grounded in actual behavior as was once supposed. In "Predictably Irrational," Dan Ariely tells us why.
Full bio - Dan Ariely: Behavioral economist
Why you should listen to him: Despite our best efforts, bad or inexplicable decisions are as inevitable as death and taxes and the grocery store running out of your favorite flavor of ice cream. They're also just as predictable.
Why, for instance, are we convinced that "sizing up" at our favorite burger joint is a good idea, even when we're not that hungry? Why are our phone lists cluttered with numbers we never call? Dan Ariely, behavioral economist, has based his career on figuring out the answers to these questions, and in his bestselling book Predictably Irrational (which will be re-released in expanded form in May 2009), he describes many unorthodox and often downright odd experiments used in the quest to answer this question.
Ariely has long been fascinated with how emotional states, moral codes and peer pressure affect our ability to make rational and often extremely important decisions in our daily lives -- across a spectrum of our interests, from economic choices (how should I invest?) to personal (who should I marry?).
At Duke, he's aligned with three departments (business, economics and cognitive neuroscience); he's also a visiting professor in MIT's Program in Media Arts and Sciences and a founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight.
His [Airely's] hope that studying and understanding the decision-making process can help people lead better, more sensible daily lives.
"If you want to know why you always buy a bigger television than you intended, or why you think it's perfectly fine to spend a few dollars on a cup of coffee at Starbucks, or why people feel better after taking a 50-cent aspirin but continue to complain of a throbbing skull when they're told the pill they took just cost one penny, Ariely has the answer."Daniel Gross, Newsweek
Access video here: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/dan_ariely_on_our_buggy_moral_code.html
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Why We Think It's OK to Cheat - Insights To Enron, The Meltdown of Mortgage Backed Securities Markets And Other Headline Events
Behavioral Economist Dan Ariely Talks: Why we think it's OK to cheat and steal (sometimes)
Fascinating! Video 16 min, 23 seconds
About this talkBehavioral economist Dan Ariely studies the bugs in our moral code: the hidden reasons we think it's OK to cheat or steal (sometimes). Clever studies help make his point that we're predictably irrational -- and can be influenced in ways we can't grasp.
About Dan ArielyIt's become increasingly obvious that the dismal science of economics is not as firmly grounded in actual behavior as was once supposed. In "Predictably Irrational," Dan Ariely tells us why.
Full bio - Dan Ariely: Behavioral economist
Why you should listen to him: Despite our best efforts, bad or inexplicable decisions are as inevitable as death and taxes and the grocery store running out of your favorite flavor of ice cream. They're also just as predictable.
Why, for instance, are we convinced that "sizing up" at our favorite burger joint is a good idea, even when we're not that hungry? Why are our phone lists cluttered with numbers we never call? Dan Ariely, behavioral economist, has based his career on figuring out the answers to these questions, and in his bestselling book Predictably Irrational (which will be re-released in expanded form in May 2009), he describes many unorthodox and often downright odd experiments used in the quest to answer this question.
Ariely has long been fascinated with how emotional states, moral codes and peer pressure affect our ability to make rational and often extremely important decisions in our daily lives -- across a spectrum of our interests, from economic choices (how should I invest?) to personal (who should I marry?).
At Duke, he's aligned with three departments (business, economics and cognitive neuroscience); he's also a visiting professor in MIT's Program in Media Arts and Sciences and a founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight.
His [Airely's] hope that studying and understanding the decision-making process can help people lead better, more sensible daily lives.
"If you want to know why you always buy a bigger television than you intended, or why you think it's perfectly fine to spend a few dollars on a cup of coffee at Starbucks, or why people feel better after taking a 50-cent aspirin but continue to complain of a throbbing skull when they're told the pill they took just cost one penny, Ariely has the answer."Daniel Gross, Newsweek
Access video here: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/dan_ariely_on_our_buggy_moral_code.html
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Leadership - "The Next Stage" - Careers - CFO.com
The Next Stage - Careers - CFO.com
The Next Stage
Want to ascend to a true leadership role? Be prepared to let go of what you're good at.
Kate O'Sullivan - CFO Magazine
March 1, 2009
Have you mastered your job? Are you an expert in your subject matter? Do you work independently, show initiative, and take charge of projects?
If so, you're on your way to becoming an effective leader, according to Dave Ulrich, Norm Smallwood, and Kate Sweetman, who outline the "core rules" of leadership in their recent book, The Leadership Code.
But perhaps only halfway: there are four stages of leadership development, the authors say, and the questions above define stage two. (You passed stage one long ago, when you were still learning your role in the company and depended on others for mentorship and guidance.)
At stage three, "you've learned to work across boundaries, so whatever effect you have is multiplied," says Sweetman. By this point, an executive is not only performing his (or her) job well, but also expanding his role by mentoring and influencing other staffers or taking on new duties. (Some ace executive assistants can also be stage-three leaders, notes Sweetman, thanks to their tremendous networking abilities and influence throughout the company.)
Finally, at stage four — a level of leadership that top CFOs must reach — "the multiplier effect becomes exponential," says Sweetman. The leader shifts his focus to represent the company to outsiders — analysts, investors, the media, vendors, and customers. The stage-four leader also helps determine the direction of the business as part of the upper echelon of decision-makers at the company.
But Sweetman contends that many finance executives, even CFOs, advance no further than stage two. Career stages, she says, have nothing to do with rank or hierarchy and everything to do with how an individual matures in a role and contributes to the organization. Thus, a stage-two finance chief may be a technical expert who has committed every missive from the Financial Accounting Standards Board to memory, but not a fully developed leader.
While many people can happily spend their entire careers at stage two, finance executives who want to move up the ladder need to broaden the scope of their jobs, says Sweetman. Finance chiefs at small companies who hope to move to larger ones also benefit from developing their leadership capabilities — particularly if they want to land a job at a public company, where CFOs can spend as much as a third of their time interacting with outside stakeholders such as analysts and large institutional investors.
Read full article: http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13172740/c_13175093?f=magazine_alsoinside
Leadership stage self assessment: http://www.cfo.com/media/pdf/0903Leadershipp38.pdf
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The Next Stage
Want to ascend to a true leadership role? Be prepared to let go of what you're good at.
Kate O'Sullivan - CFO Magazine
March 1, 2009
Have you mastered your job? Are you an expert in your subject matter? Do you work independently, show initiative, and take charge of projects?
If so, you're on your way to becoming an effective leader, according to Dave Ulrich, Norm Smallwood, and Kate Sweetman, who outline the "core rules" of leadership in their recent book, The Leadership Code.
But perhaps only halfway: there are four stages of leadership development, the authors say, and the questions above define stage two. (You passed stage one long ago, when you were still learning your role in the company and depended on others for mentorship and guidance.)
At stage three, "you've learned to work across boundaries, so whatever effect you have is multiplied," says Sweetman. By this point, an executive is not only performing his (or her) job well, but also expanding his role by mentoring and influencing other staffers or taking on new duties. (Some ace executive assistants can also be stage-three leaders, notes Sweetman, thanks to their tremendous networking abilities and influence throughout the company.)
Finally, at stage four — a level of leadership that top CFOs must reach — "the multiplier effect becomes exponential," says Sweetman. The leader shifts his focus to represent the company to outsiders — analysts, investors, the media, vendors, and customers. The stage-four leader also helps determine the direction of the business as part of the upper echelon of decision-makers at the company.
But Sweetman contends that many finance executives, even CFOs, advance no further than stage two. Career stages, she says, have nothing to do with rank or hierarchy and everything to do with how an individual matures in a role and contributes to the organization. Thus, a stage-two finance chief may be a technical expert who has committed every missive from the Financial Accounting Standards Board to memory, but not a fully developed leader.
While many people can happily spend their entire careers at stage two, finance executives who want to move up the ladder need to broaden the scope of their jobs, says Sweetman. Finance chiefs at small companies who hope to move to larger ones also benefit from developing their leadership capabilities — particularly if they want to land a job at a public company, where CFOs can spend as much as a third of their time interacting with outside stakeholders such as analysts and large institutional investors.
Read full article: http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13172740/c_13175093?f=magazine_alsoinside
Leadership stage self assessment: http://www.cfo.com/media/pdf/0903Leadershipp38.pdf
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
A Sudden Swoon for Executive Comp - - CFO.com
A Sudden Swoon for Executive Comp - - CFO.com
A Sudden Swoon for Executive Comp
Salary freezes and reduced incentive-grant values are sweeping the corporate landscape, a new survey shows.
David McCann - CFO.com US
March 17, 2009
Excerpts:
With the public growing more ornery by the day over the compensation of corporate executives, companies in droves are acting with great speed to add restrictions and limitations to their pay policies, according to a new Watson Wyatt survey.
As portrayed by the research results, the changes are sudden and dramatic. In a similar study done just three months ago, 21 percent of responding companies said that they had frozen executive salaries. In the new survey of 145 companies, performed the first week of March, that number soared to 55 percent.
In fact, 10 percent said this month that they have actually reduced top managers' pay — while just 2 percent were in that category in December. And an additional 13 percent expect to cut top-management pay this year, or are considering it.
Also startling is that, when asked three months ago whether they expected to freeze executive compensation in the following 12 months, only 20 percent said yes. Yet almost three times that many of the companies surveyed in March have already done so.
Not only is present pay being frozen, but plans for future merit increases are being scaled back. That was the case for 48 percent of the surveyed companies, compared with 30 percent three months ago.
To most top executives, of greater import than salary limitations are changes to incentive compensation plans, especially long-term incentives, which constitute a majority of their income. A third of the respondents said they expected the dollar value of long-term incentive grants to be lower this year than in 2008, compared to only 4 percent who anticipated an increase. The average decrease was expected to be 35 percent. These numbers are not very speculative, since most companies have decided on 2009 pay packages by now.
Only 12 percent of respondents have reduced eligibility or participation in long-term incentive plans, and 11 percent have decreased the maximum award opportunity, but both numbers were three or four times higher this month than in December.
As for annual incentives, the proportion of companies reducing target bonus opportunities and plan eligibility more than doubled, to 9 percent and 7 percent, respectively.
Also increasingly in vogue are clawback policies that seek to recoup compensation paid to poorly performing executives. Almost a quarter of the surveyed companies (23 percent) have implemented such provisions, up from 13 percent in December.
Despite the new proclivity for reigning in top management's pay, going forward there will be fewer of these changes — at least if you take companies at their word about their future plans. For example, only a small fraction said they expect to freeze salaries in the next year, suggesting that most of the ones inclined to do so have already put the new policy in place.
Read full article and survey tabulations: http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13313661/c_13314332?f=home_todayinfinance
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
A Sudden Swoon for Executive Comp
Salary freezes and reduced incentive-grant values are sweeping the corporate landscape, a new survey shows.
David McCann - CFO.com US
March 17, 2009
Excerpts:
With the public growing more ornery by the day over the compensation of corporate executives, companies in droves are acting with great speed to add restrictions and limitations to their pay policies, according to a new Watson Wyatt survey.
As portrayed by the research results, the changes are sudden and dramatic. In a similar study done just three months ago, 21 percent of responding companies said that they had frozen executive salaries. In the new survey of 145 companies, performed the first week of March, that number soared to 55 percent.
In fact, 10 percent said this month that they have actually reduced top managers' pay — while just 2 percent were in that category in December. And an additional 13 percent expect to cut top-management pay this year, or are considering it.
Also startling is that, when asked three months ago whether they expected to freeze executive compensation in the following 12 months, only 20 percent said yes. Yet almost three times that many of the companies surveyed in March have already done so.
Not only is present pay being frozen, but plans for future merit increases are being scaled back. That was the case for 48 percent of the surveyed companies, compared with 30 percent three months ago.
To most top executives, of greater import than salary limitations are changes to incentive compensation plans, especially long-term incentives, which constitute a majority of their income. A third of the respondents said they expected the dollar value of long-term incentive grants to be lower this year than in 2008, compared to only 4 percent who anticipated an increase. The average decrease was expected to be 35 percent. These numbers are not very speculative, since most companies have decided on 2009 pay packages by now.
Only 12 percent of respondents have reduced eligibility or participation in long-term incentive plans, and 11 percent have decreased the maximum award opportunity, but both numbers were three or four times higher this month than in December.
As for annual incentives, the proportion of companies reducing target bonus opportunities and plan eligibility more than doubled, to 9 percent and 7 percent, respectively.
Also increasingly in vogue are clawback policies that seek to recoup compensation paid to poorly performing executives. Almost a quarter of the surveyed companies (23 percent) have implemented such provisions, up from 13 percent in December.
Despite the new proclivity for reigning in top management's pay, going forward there will be fewer of these changes — at least if you take companies at their word about their future plans. For example, only a small fraction said they expect to freeze salaries in the next year, suggesting that most of the ones inclined to do so have already put the new policy in place.
Read full article and survey tabulations: http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13313661/c_13314332?f=home_todayinfinance
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Goal Execution: Intention-update vs. Intention-failure: What's the difference?
Intention-update vs. Intention-failure: What's the difference? Psychology Today Blogs
Intention-update vs. Intention-failure: What's the difference?
By Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D. on March 17, 2009 - 4:47am in Don't Delay
Excerpts:
Not every changed intention is a failure of self-regulation. As one astute reader posted in a comment, we have to differentiate between updating an intention based on new information from simply failing to act on an intention. Let's take on this thorny philosophical issue
The problem with moods. In the case of procrastination, as I've written before, we often use mood as this new information and give in to feel good. This undermines our long-term pursuit of our goals. The ironic and sad thing here is that progress on our goals actually increases our happiness (in a way that staying in bed instead of running will not, I argue - unless, as I've said repeatedly, you're actually exhausted).
Another thing here is that we have the irrational belief that our mood state must match the task at hand. "I don't feel like it." "I'll feel more like it tomorrow." Actually, once you begin a task, you'll often find that your feelings follow your activity, much as attitudes follow behaviors.
What I hope you take away in terms of my distinction between a wise delay (intention-update) and procrastination (intention-failure) is that a key issue is that we have new information on which to base our update. I'm arguing that mood is a poor, even irrational, basis for this decision, as we "give in to feel good" - this involves a long term consequence based on some short term feelings.
Read full article: http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200903/intention-update-vs-intention-failure-whats-the-difference
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Intention-update vs. Intention-failure: What's the difference?
By Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D. on March 17, 2009 - 4:47am in Don't Delay
Excerpts:
Not every changed intention is a failure of self-regulation. As one astute reader posted in a comment, we have to differentiate between updating an intention based on new information from simply failing to act on an intention. Let's take on this thorny philosophical issue
The problem with moods. In the case of procrastination, as I've written before, we often use mood as this new information and give in to feel good. This undermines our long-term pursuit of our goals. The ironic and sad thing here is that progress on our goals actually increases our happiness (in a way that staying in bed instead of running will not, I argue - unless, as I've said repeatedly, you're actually exhausted).
Another thing here is that we have the irrational belief that our mood state must match the task at hand. "I don't feel like it." "I'll feel more like it tomorrow." Actually, once you begin a task, you'll often find that your feelings follow your activity, much as attitudes follow behaviors.
What I hope you take away in terms of my distinction between a wise delay (intention-update) and procrastination (intention-failure) is that a key issue is that we have new information on which to base our update. I'm arguing that mood is a poor, even irrational, basis for this decision, as we "give in to feel good" - this involves a long term consequence based on some short term feelings.
Read full article: http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200903/intention-update-vs-intention-failure-whats-the-difference
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
7 Tips for Difficult Conversations - Daisy Wademan Dowling - HarvardBusiness.org
7 Tips for Difficult Conversations - Daisy Wademan Dowling - HarvardBusiness.org
7 Tips for Difficult Conversations
4:24 PM Wednesday March 11, 2009
Daisy Wademan Dowling Getting Ahead
Excerpts:
Here are some of my favorite, action-oriented tips:
1- Keep your goals realistic. You can't ever eliminate the stress you'll feel around telling your supplier you're cutting back, but you can reduce it. Spend your energy on preparation - focus on developing your specific script.
2- Give bad news upfront. Tough messages should be simply and clearly stated in the first sentence.
3- Adopt the "And Stance". Take control of the conversation by pre-empting distractions, objections and blame by using "and". "I know you worked all night, and I know you want to do well, and I know you just joined the company, and I know the graphics people sometimes get the data wrong, and I know I could have been clearer in my directions to you...." And, and, and.
4- Get out of the "blame frame." Each person involved in the situation has a different objective story about what happened. Your goal is not to judge who's right and wrong, it's to manage to better outcomes in the future.
5- Paraphrase. To create clarity and to let people know you're genuinely listening, summarize what they're telling you -- and ask them to do the same.
6- Be prepared for bad reactions. Finger-pointing, denial, arguments and tears are all possible outcomes of tough conversations. You cannot control the other person's reactions, but you can anticipate them, and be emotionally ready.
7- Pretend it's 3 months or 10 years from now. Put the difficult conversation in perspective by thinking about the future. The conversations that are hardest right now will seem less daunting.
Read full article: http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/dowling/2009/03/7-tips-for-difficult-conversat.html
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
7 Tips for Difficult Conversations
4:24 PM Wednesday March 11, 2009
Daisy Wademan Dowling Getting Ahead
Excerpts:
Here are some of my favorite, action-oriented tips:
1- Keep your goals realistic. You can't ever eliminate the stress you'll feel around telling your supplier you're cutting back, but you can reduce it. Spend your energy on preparation - focus on developing your specific script.
2- Give bad news upfront. Tough messages should be simply and clearly stated in the first sentence.
3- Adopt the "And Stance". Take control of the conversation by pre-empting distractions, objections and blame by using "and". "I know you worked all night, and I know you want to do well, and I know you just joined the company, and I know the graphics people sometimes get the data wrong, and I know I could have been clearer in my directions to you...." And, and, and.
4- Get out of the "blame frame." Each person involved in the situation has a different objective story about what happened. Your goal is not to judge who's right and wrong, it's to manage to better outcomes in the future.
5- Paraphrase. To create clarity and to let people know you're genuinely listening, summarize what they're telling you -- and ask them to do the same.
6- Be prepared for bad reactions. Finger-pointing, denial, arguments and tears are all possible outcomes of tough conversations. You cannot control the other person's reactions, but you can anticipate them, and be emotionally ready.
7- Pretend it's 3 months or 10 years from now. Put the difficult conversation in perspective by thinking about the future. The conversations that are hardest right now will seem less daunting.
Read full article: http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/dowling/2009/03/7-tips-for-difficult-conversat.html
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Towers Perrin Commercial Insurance Pricing Study Reports Smallest Decline in Two Years - MarketWatch
Towers Perrin Commercial Insurance Pricing Study Reports Smallest Decline in Two Years - MarketWatch
Towers Perrin Commercial Insurance Pricing Study Reports Smallest Decline in Two Years
Prices Drop 3% in Fourth Quarter; Workers Compensation, Property Among Segments Showing Signs of Stabilizing
Last update: 9:01 a.m. EDT March 16, 2009
Read full article: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/towers-perrin-commercial-insurance-pricing/story.aspx?guid=%7B05B77560-2E6F-4A2C-AD0C-F4F3B112C6A3%7D&dist=msr_10
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Towers Perrin Commercial Insurance Pricing Study Reports Smallest Decline in Two Years
Prices Drop 3% in Fourth Quarter; Workers Compensation, Property Among Segments Showing Signs of Stabilizing
Last update: 9:01 a.m. EDT March 16, 2009
Read full article: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/towers-perrin-commercial-insurance-pricing/story.aspx?guid=%7B05B77560-2E6F-4A2C-AD0C-F4F3B112C6A3%7D&dist=msr_10
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
The Secrets of the Talent Scouts - NYTimes.com
The Secrets of the Talent Scouts - NYTimes.com
By GEORGE ANDERS
Published: March 14, 2009
Excerpts:
In pockets of the American economy, however, the hunt for game-changing stars remains surprisingly intense... Finding the next big hit can save the day, but running out of talent is a recipe for extinction.
... So mavericks like Michael Moritz, the Silicon Valley venture capitalist, are shrugging off talk of economic collapse and scouting for winners anyway. “A downturn can be a very good time to build a company,” he contends.
Of course, bravado alone won’t guarantee success. But in fields where picking hits is crucial, executives say it’s vital to keep wooing candidates no matter how jittery the economy. In extended interviews, seven of these talent scouts argue that enduring success can come only from adding more of the best people to their teams.
These executives’ specialties are as diverse as architecture, biotechnology and country music. Asked to share their recruiting principles, they touched on a handful of simple, recurring themes. Among them: take chances on passionate people early in their work lives, focus on what can go right, offer rewards no one else can match and harness the lessons of your own career.
A favorite starting point for talent-spotters is to cast a wide net, finding intriguing candidates who might never appear on rivals’ radar screens.
... Judging people is more difficult than judging a market or a product. Markets rarely deliver big surprises. People will always produce surprises.”
Read full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/15/business/15talent.html
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
By GEORGE ANDERS
Published: March 14, 2009
Excerpts:
In pockets of the American economy, however, the hunt for game-changing stars remains surprisingly intense... Finding the next big hit can save the day, but running out of talent is a recipe for extinction.
... So mavericks like Michael Moritz, the Silicon Valley venture capitalist, are shrugging off talk of economic collapse and scouting for winners anyway. “A downturn can be a very good time to build a company,” he contends.
Of course, bravado alone won’t guarantee success. But in fields where picking hits is crucial, executives say it’s vital to keep wooing candidates no matter how jittery the economy. In extended interviews, seven of these talent scouts argue that enduring success can come only from adding more of the best people to their teams.
These executives’ specialties are as diverse as architecture, biotechnology and country music. Asked to share their recruiting principles, they touched on a handful of simple, recurring themes. Among them: take chances on passionate people early in their work lives, focus on what can go right, offer rewards no one else can match and harness the lessons of your own career.
A favorite starting point for talent-spotters is to cast a wide net, finding intriguing candidates who might never appear on rivals’ radar screens.
... Judging people is more difficult than judging a market or a product. Markets rarely deliver big surprises. People will always produce surprises.”
Read full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/15/business/15talent.html
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
The Value of Confusion
The Value of Confusion
The Value of Confusion
by Mitchell Ditkoff
Idea Champions
Excerpts:
Are you confused about how to proceed with your hottest new idea or project? Puzzled? Baffled? Disoriented? If so, take heart! Confusion is not always a bad thing. In fact, it is often a natural and healthy part of the creative process. The weirdness enters when you start to judge yourself for being confused. Then, instead of benefitting from this normal stage of "not knowing" you end up in endless rounds of self-talk, procrastination, and wasted worry - none of which will serve you on your way to creating something new and wonderful.
What is confusion, really? Technically speaking, it's a state of mind in which the elements you are dealing with appear to be indiscriminately mixed, out of whack, or unable to be interpreted to your satisfaction. In other words - a state of not knowing. Everyone from Einstein to Mickey Mouse has had this experience. It comes with the territory of exploring new horizons. Unfortunately, most of us have a hard time acknowledging it. "Not knowing" has somehow become a euphemism for "ignorance" or "being unprofessional." And so begins our curious routine of "appearing to know" and giving bogus "answers" - to ourselves and others - in a pitiful attempt to mask our confusion and maintain a sense of control, brilliance, and selfhood.
Our fundamental discomfort with not knowing - much in the same way that a person who breaks up with their significant other often rushes too quickly into the next relationship - prevents us from mining the value of this potentially fertile time of dislocation. In the words of Pablo Picasso, "The act of creation is first of all an act of destruction." Translation? Great breakthroughs emerge after times of dissolution, chaos, and confusion. Jump to quickly into the next "thing" or premature "solution" and you may be short-circuiting a critical stage of the (yes, often uncomfortable) creative process.
Is it really so bad not to know?
Look at it this way: First, we REFUSE (to have our status quo threatened). Then, we get CONFUSED (trying to sort out all the new input). Next, we try to DIFFUSE the process (by regressing or denying.) Eventually, we get INFUSED (inundated by new insights). And, finally, we get FUSED (connecting with previously unrelated elements to form a new and unified whole).
Your next step? Allow confusion to be what it is - the catalyst for new and more elegant solutions in your life.
And if you REALLY can't stand the confusion, know there ARE some simple things you can do to go beyond it:
- Take a break from the problem at hand
- Get real clear about what's confusing you
- Talk about your confusion with trusted friends or co-workers
- Seek out missing information
- Redefine your problem or challenge
- Pay attention to your dreams and other clues bubbling up from your subconscious
Read full article: http://www.ideachampions.com/article_value_confusion.shtml
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The Value of Confusion
by Mitchell Ditkoff
Idea Champions
Excerpts:
Are you confused about how to proceed with your hottest new idea or project? Puzzled? Baffled? Disoriented? If so, take heart! Confusion is not always a bad thing. In fact, it is often a natural and healthy part of the creative process. The weirdness enters when you start to judge yourself for being confused. Then, instead of benefitting from this normal stage of "not knowing" you end up in endless rounds of self-talk, procrastination, and wasted worry - none of which will serve you on your way to creating something new and wonderful.
What is confusion, really? Technically speaking, it's a state of mind in which the elements you are dealing with appear to be indiscriminately mixed, out of whack, or unable to be interpreted to your satisfaction. In other words - a state of not knowing. Everyone from Einstein to Mickey Mouse has had this experience. It comes with the territory of exploring new horizons. Unfortunately, most of us have a hard time acknowledging it. "Not knowing" has somehow become a euphemism for "ignorance" or "being unprofessional." And so begins our curious routine of "appearing to know" and giving bogus "answers" - to ourselves and others - in a pitiful attempt to mask our confusion and maintain a sense of control, brilliance, and selfhood.
Our fundamental discomfort with not knowing - much in the same way that a person who breaks up with their significant other often rushes too quickly into the next relationship - prevents us from mining the value of this potentially fertile time of dislocation. In the words of Pablo Picasso, "The act of creation is first of all an act of destruction." Translation? Great breakthroughs emerge after times of dissolution, chaos, and confusion. Jump to quickly into the next "thing" or premature "solution" and you may be short-circuiting a critical stage of the (yes, often uncomfortable) creative process.
Is it really so bad not to know?
Look at it this way: First, we REFUSE (to have our status quo threatened). Then, we get CONFUSED (trying to sort out all the new input). Next, we try to DIFFUSE the process (by regressing or denying.) Eventually, we get INFUSED (inundated by new insights). And, finally, we get FUSED (connecting with previously unrelated elements to form a new and unified whole).
Your next step? Allow confusion to be what it is - the catalyst for new and more elegant solutions in your life.
And if you REALLY can't stand the confusion, know there ARE some simple things you can do to go beyond it:
- Take a break from the problem at hand
- Get real clear about what's confusing you
- Talk about your confusion with trusted friends or co-workers
- Seek out missing information
- Redefine your problem or challenge
- Pay attention to your dreams and other clues bubbling up from your subconscious
Read full article: http://www.ideachampions.com/article_value_confusion.shtml
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Feelings trump reasons: Irrationality and procrastination | Psychology Today Blogs
Feelings trump reasons: Irrationality and procrastination Psychology Today Blogs
Psychology Today
Procrastination Blog
By Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D. on March 10, 2009 - 3:15am in Don't Delay
Feelings trump reasons: Irrationality and procrastination
Note From Jim: Folks, this is a must read!!!!
Excerps:
The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing. Isn't it ironic that our heart's health may depend on our ability to follow our reason?
The alarm goes off at 5 a.m. Why? Because you set it last night with the intention of an early-morning run. Instead, you shut off the alarm, choosing the pleasures of sleep over the benefits of exercise. Peter Ubel writes, "No one could call this choice irrational." Not so. I can, and it's an irrationality that we know as procrastination.
Incredibly, even when we give in to feel good, we manage to convince ourselves with a new intention (run tomorrow) of our good intentions. As Peter wrote in his example, "I told myself I'd get up the next morning at 5 a.m. and get in that run." I think we deceive ourselves. We get caught in the procrastination trap of intransitive preference loops based on how we feel and we undermine ourselves. This aspect of our irrationality is a key issue in Peter's book. We don't always act in our own best interests, even when we form an intention to act - we procrastinate - the ultimate self-defeating irrational act.
In Peter's story, he wrote, "Only one problem with this story: at bedtime the previous night, I held an equally strong preference for exercise over sleep."
I think the source of these preferences was quite different. The preference to run was a reasoned, scheduling intention. The preference to stay in bed was a momentary mood, I don't feel like it. Peter reflects as much with, "...choice between the pleasures of sleep and the benefits of exercise."
Pleasure trumps benefits, feelings trump reasons, at least for those of us who fail to self-regulate well.
The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing. Isn't it ironic that our heart's health may depend on our ability to follow our reason?
Read full article: http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200903/feelings-trump-reasons-irrationality-and-procrastination
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Psychology Today
Procrastination Blog
By Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D. on March 10, 2009 - 3:15am in Don't Delay
Feelings trump reasons: Irrationality and procrastination
Note From Jim: Folks, this is a must read!!!!
Excerps:
The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing. Isn't it ironic that our heart's health may depend on our ability to follow our reason?
The alarm goes off at 5 a.m. Why? Because you set it last night with the intention of an early-morning run. Instead, you shut off the alarm, choosing the pleasures of sleep over the benefits of exercise. Peter Ubel writes, "No one could call this choice irrational." Not so. I can, and it's an irrationality that we know as procrastination.
Incredibly, even when we give in to feel good, we manage to convince ourselves with a new intention (run tomorrow) of our good intentions. As Peter wrote in his example, "I told myself I'd get up the next morning at 5 a.m. and get in that run." I think we deceive ourselves. We get caught in the procrastination trap of intransitive preference loops based on how we feel and we undermine ourselves. This aspect of our irrationality is a key issue in Peter's book. We don't always act in our own best interests, even when we form an intention to act - we procrastinate - the ultimate self-defeating irrational act.
In Peter's story, he wrote, "Only one problem with this story: at bedtime the previous night, I held an equally strong preference for exercise over sleep."
I think the source of these preferences was quite different. The preference to run was a reasoned, scheduling intention. The preference to stay in bed was a momentary mood, I don't feel like it. Peter reflects as much with, "...choice between the pleasures of sleep and the benefits of exercise."
Pleasure trumps benefits, feelings trump reasons, at least for those of us who fail to self-regulate well.
The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing. Isn't it ironic that our heart's health may depend on our ability to follow our reason?
Read full article: http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200903/feelings-trump-reasons-irrationality-and-procrastination
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Congress Members Fume at Fair Value - - CFO.com
Congress Members Fume at Fair Value - - CFO.com
Congress Members Fume at Fair Value
Lawmakers bear down on FASB chairman Robert Herz to modify fair-value rules.
Sarah Johnson and Marie Leone - CFO.com US
March 12, 2009
Read full article: http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13306816/c_13307190?f=ThisWeekInFinance031309
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Congress Members Fume at Fair Value
Lawmakers bear down on FASB chairman Robert Herz to modify fair-value rules.
Sarah Johnson and Marie Leone - CFO.com US
March 12, 2009
Read full article: http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/13306816/c_13307190?f=ThisWeekInFinance031309
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
New Research Suggests Key to Happiness is Gratitude—and Men May be Locked Out - insciences
New Research Suggests Key to Happiness is Gratitude—and Men May be Locked Out - insciences
New Research Suggests Key to Happiness is Gratitude—and Men May be Locked Out
Published on 12 March 2009, 06:08 Last Update: 23 hour(s) ago by Insciences
Excerpts:
Gratitude, the emotion of thankfulness and joy in response to receiving a gift, is one of the essential ingredients for living a good life, Kashdan says. Kashdan’s most recent paper, which was published online this week at the Journal of Personality, reveals that when it comes to achieving well-being, gender plays a role. He found that men are much less likely to feel and express gratitude than women.
“The way that we get socialized as children affects what we do with our emotions as adults,” says Kashdan. “Because men are generally taught to control and conceal their softer emotions, this may be limiting their well-being.”
Kashdan says that if he had to name three elements that are essential for creating happiness and meaning in life it would be meaningful relationships, gratitude, and living in the present moment with an attitude of openness and curiosity. His book “Curious?,” which outlines ways people can enhance and maintain the various shades of well-being, is scheduled for release in April 2009 with HarperCollins.
Read full article: http://insciences.org/article.php?article_id=3259
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
New Research Suggests Key to Happiness is Gratitude—and Men May be Locked Out
Published on 12 March 2009, 06:08 Last Update: 23 hour(s) ago by Insciences
Excerpts:
Gratitude, the emotion of thankfulness and joy in response to receiving a gift, is one of the essential ingredients for living a good life, Kashdan says. Kashdan’s most recent paper, which was published online this week at the Journal of Personality, reveals that when it comes to achieving well-being, gender plays a role. He found that men are much less likely to feel and express gratitude than women.
“The way that we get socialized as children affects what we do with our emotions as adults,” says Kashdan. “Because men are generally taught to control and conceal their softer emotions, this may be limiting their well-being.”
Kashdan says that if he had to name three elements that are essential for creating happiness and meaning in life it would be meaningful relationships, gratitude, and living in the present moment with an attitude of openness and curiosity. His book “Curious?,” which outlines ways people can enhance and maintain the various shades of well-being, is scheduled for release in April 2009 with HarperCollins.
Read full article: http://insciences.org/article.php?article_id=3259
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Duke Professor Says Dishonesty Can Be Contagious - Durham - MyNC.com
Duke Professor Says Dishonesty Can Be Contagious - Durham - MyNC.com
Dishonesty Can Be Contagious
By Duke University, Press Release, 18 hours, 8 minutes agoUpdated: Mar. 12 3:28 pm
Excerpts:
In a study published in the current issue of Psychological Science, Ariely and colleagues found that social norms exert a strong influence that can override other factors in determining how people behave after they observe dishonesty.
"We see examples of unethical behavior all the time, but that doesn't mean we all are influenced to act dishonestly," said Ariely, the James B. Duke Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke. "But if you identify with someone, say you want to be a Wall Street-type like Madoff, in these cases our research shows that you are more likely to emulate their unethical behaviors."
"This is a frightening example of just how easily our own behaviors can be swayed by our judgments of the people around us," Ariely said. "In the Madoff case, for example, these findings would indicate people who do not relate to Madoff in some way will not be negatively influenced by his behavior. But people who do identify with him, whether that's through a desire to make more money, or a need to view themselves as successful Wall Street-types, may in fact be encouraged to act dishonestly because they see his behavior."
Read Full Article: http://durham.mync.com/site/Durham/news/story/29365/duke-professor-says-dishonesty-can-be-contagious
See a YouTube video about this research: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoOGFpXmyTA
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Dishonesty Can Be Contagious
By Duke University, Press Release, 18 hours, 8 minutes agoUpdated: Mar. 12 3:28 pm
Excerpts:
In a study published in the current issue of Psychological Science, Ariely and colleagues found that social norms exert a strong influence that can override other factors in determining how people behave after they observe dishonesty.
"We see examples of unethical behavior all the time, but that doesn't mean we all are influenced to act dishonestly," said Ariely, the James B. Duke Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke. "But if you identify with someone, say you want to be a Wall Street-type like Madoff, in these cases our research shows that you are more likely to emulate their unethical behaviors."
"This is a frightening example of just how easily our own behaviors can be swayed by our judgments of the people around us," Ariely said. "In the Madoff case, for example, these findings would indicate people who do not relate to Madoff in some way will not be negatively influenced by his behavior. But people who do identify with him, whether that's through a desire to make more money, or a need to view themselves as successful Wall Street-types, may in fact be encouraged to act dishonestly because they see his behavior."
Read Full Article: http://durham.mync.com/site/Durham/news/story/29365/duke-professor-says-dishonesty-can-be-contagious
See a YouTube video about this research: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoOGFpXmyTA
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Reward Elicits Unconscious Learning In Humans
Reward Elicits Unconscious Learning In Humans
Science Daily
Reward Elicits Unconscious Learning In Humans
ScienceDaily (Mar. 11, 2009)
Excepts:
These results suggest that automatic reinforcement mechanisms (such as those released at times of reward), rather than directed attention, determine improvements in sensory skills.
"Our findings support the suggestion that visual skill learning is generally an unconscious process and that goal-directed factors, such as directed attention, serve mostly to bias how learning takes place rather than actually gating the learning process," hypothesizes Dr. Seitz. The authors are careful to acknowledge that future studies are required.
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Science Daily
Reward Elicits Unconscious Learning In Humans
ScienceDaily (Mar. 11, 2009)
Excepts:
These results suggest that automatic reinforcement mechanisms (such as those released at times of reward), rather than directed attention, determine improvements in sensory skills.
"Our findings support the suggestion that visual skill learning is generally an unconscious process and that goal-directed factors, such as directed attention, serve mostly to bias how learning takes place rather than actually gating the learning process," hypothesizes Dr. Seitz. The authors are careful to acknowledge that future studies are required.
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The Peak Rule: ” Here’s to you, Miss Robinson – Students love you more than you may know! Peak-End Rules and Our Teachers "
” Here’s to you, Miss Robinson – Students love you more than you may know! Peak-End Rules and Our Teachers " on Positive Psychology News Daily
By John Yeager
Positive Psychology News Daily, NY (John Yeager) - March 11, 2009, 7:00 am
The Peak-End Rule... the peak-end rule, studied by Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman. He claims that people tend to remember and judge past experiences based what they were like when they were at their peak, and how the experience ended. The peak experience can be either pleasant or unpleasant.
Read Full Article: http://pos-psych.com/news/john-yeager/200903111634
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
By John Yeager
Positive Psychology News Daily, NY (John Yeager) - March 11, 2009, 7:00 am
The Peak-End Rule... the peak-end rule, studied by Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman. He claims that people tend to remember and judge past experiences based what they were like when they were at their peak, and how the experience ended. The peak experience can be either pleasant or unpleasant.
Read Full Article: http://pos-psych.com/news/john-yeager/200903111634
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Did You Know?
Did You Know?
See this very interesting and quick video on the progression of knowledge, information and technology. How will we keep up? It also infers that the rate of turnover in staff will accelerate dramatically.
Video: 4 min, 55 seconds
Cited credits: "Researched by Karl Fisch, Scott McLeod, and Jeff Bronman"
View Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL9Wu2kWwSY
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
See this very interesting and quick video on the progression of knowledge, information and technology. How will we keep up? It also infers that the rate of turnover in staff will accelerate dramatically.
Video: 4 min, 55 seconds
Cited credits: "Researched by Karl Fisch, Scott McLeod, and Jeff Bronman"
View Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL9Wu2kWwSY
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
KPMG - Annual Audit Committee Issues Conference 2009 report
KPMG - Annual Audit Committee Issues Conference 2009 report
Annual Audit Committee Issues Conference 2009 report
According to recent dialogue among 150 audit committee members, directors, and corporate governance luminaries attending KPMG’s 5th Annual Audit Committee Issues Conference, helping their companies get through the next 18 months is clearly job number one for audit committee and boards in the U.S. today. At the same time, the way they oversee financial reporting and related risk is very different than it was a year ago.
Download now
Annual Audit Committee Issues Conference 2009 report
PDF files require Adobe Reader to view Download Adobe Reader
Panel discussions and real-time survey results from two daylong sessions of the February conference (in Miami and Phoenix) clearly pointed to an increased intensity and vigilance in audit committee and board oversight. The dialogue also highlighted a renewed focus on the ‘basics’ — understanding the business, knowing the people who run it, having rigorous discussions about risk, and emphasizing accountability (of management and the board). In this hard-hitting report from the conference, we capture key insights and practical ‘how to’s’ as discussed by directors of top U.S. companies (including Aetna, AXA Financial, Chrysler, Dow Chemical, Ford Motor Company, JPMorgan Chase, Marriott International, Royal Dutch Shell, and Tiffany & Co.). Questions about the Audit Committee Issues Conference and the highlights publication can be directed to the ACI team at auditcommittee@kpmg.com.
Access full article and related links:
http://www.kpmg.com/Global/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesAndPublications/Pages/Annual-Audit-Committee-Issues-Conf-2009-report.aspx
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Annual Audit Committee Issues Conference 2009 report
According to recent dialogue among 150 audit committee members, directors, and corporate governance luminaries attending KPMG’s 5th Annual Audit Committee Issues Conference, helping their companies get through the next 18 months is clearly job number one for audit committee and boards in the U.S. today. At the same time, the way they oversee financial reporting and related risk is very different than it was a year ago.
Download now
Annual Audit Committee Issues Conference 2009 report
PDF files require Adobe Reader to view Download Adobe Reader
Panel discussions and real-time survey results from two daylong sessions of the February conference (in Miami and Phoenix) clearly pointed to an increased intensity and vigilance in audit committee and board oversight. The dialogue also highlighted a renewed focus on the ‘basics’ — understanding the business, knowing the people who run it, having rigorous discussions about risk, and emphasizing accountability (of management and the board). In this hard-hitting report from the conference, we capture key insights and practical ‘how to’s’ as discussed by directors of top U.S. companies (including Aetna, AXA Financial, Chrysler, Dow Chemical, Ford Motor Company, JPMorgan Chase, Marriott International, Royal Dutch Shell, and Tiffany & Co.). Questions about the Audit Committee Issues Conference and the highlights publication can be directed to the ACI team at auditcommittee@kpmg.com.
Access full article and related links:
http://www.kpmg.com/Global/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesAndPublications/Pages/Annual-Audit-Committee-Issues-Conf-2009-report.aspx
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
The High Road Principle
The High Road Principle
By Dr. John C. Maxwell
"It's nothing personal; it's just business," is a commonly heard phrase in the workplace. However, I tend to disagree with anyone who tries to impersonalize business. At its heart, commerce is a human enterprise, founded upon relationships between people.
Most of us spend a majority of our waking hours in our business or at work, and our vocations endow our lives with meaning or purpose. When we devote ourselves to profession, we're giving a piece of who we are to our work. In that sense, business is deeply personal.
In the workplace, as in the rest of life, relationships get messy. Sooner or later, we will be mistreated. A boss will unjustly fault our performance, a partner will fail to honor an agreement, or a co-worker will cut us down in a meeting. Since business is personal, those instances hurt us, and unless dealt with correctly, they can derail us. As a leader, we have to commit to taking the high road when others, intentionally or unintentionally, wrong us.
Four Tips For Travelling the High Road
1) It's Not What Happens to You, but in You That Really Matters
During the Civil War, Confederate General W.H.C. Whiting envied rival general Robert E. Lee. Consequently, Whiting spread vicious rumors about Lee in an attempt to smear his character. Lee had the opportunity to get even, though. Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, was considering Whiting for a promotion, and he consulted Lee's opinion of the general. Without hesitation, Lee endorsed and commended Whiting. The officers who witnessed the exchange were astonished. Afterward, one of them asked Lee if he had forgotten all of the slander Whiting had spread about him.
"I understand that the President wanted to know my opinion of Whiting, responded Lee, not his opinion of me." Lee did what high road travelers do. He refused to be dragged into a game of bickering and petty jealousies by treating another person with respect, even when that respect seemed unwarranted.
2) High Roaders See Their Own Need for Grace, Therefore They Extend It to Others
Let's face it; we all screw up from time to time. Each of us has quirks that we know can be annoying, and bad moments when we're not so pleasant to be around.People who take the high road recognize their humanness, know that they need to be extended grace, and accordingly are more likely to extend it to others.
3) High Roaders Are Not Victims; They Choose to Serve Others
People who take the high road don't do so because it's the only available option. They don't do it by accident either: the high road goes uphill and takes more effort to travel. Instead, high roaders choose their path as a conscious act of service to others. By taking the high road, they drain animosity and bitterness out of relationships, serving to keep them open and productive.
Interestingly, in serving others, higher roaders benefit themselves, too. As the author of Proverbs wrote, "It is a man's glory to overlook an offense." When we maturely respond to a slight by showing forgiveness, we display admirable character that elevates us in the eyes of others.
4) High Roaders Set High Standards for Themselves Than Others Would
Abandoned as an infant, author James Michener never knew his biological parents. Fortunately, he was taken in and raised by a widow, and he adopted her surname. However, each time James published a book, he received nasty notes from one member of the Michener clan. The relative chastised James for taking on the Michener name, which this person felt the novelist had no right to use.
Despite being berated, Michener did agree with one statement his relative had made, "Who do you think you are, trying to be better than you are?" As James Michener professed, "I've spent my life trying to be better than I was, and I am a brother to all who share the same aspiration."
When we conduct ourselves according to the highest standard, we are less likely to become defensive and take the low road when others attack us. Once you've done all that you can, then you can let the noise of detractors roll off your back like rain.
Summary
In leadership, as in life, others will behave unkindly toward you. When ill-treated, don't retreat into a defensive mode or strike back in anger. Instead, take the high road and discover how rising above offenses frees you from petty arguments and adds to your reputation.
About
John C. Maxwell is an internationally recognized leadership expert, speaker, and author who has sold over 16 million books. His organizations have trained more than 2 million leaders worldwide. Dr. Maxwell is the founder of EQUIP and INJOY Stewardship Services. Every year he speaks to Fortune 500 companies, international government leaders, and audiences as diverse as the United States Military Academy at West Point, the National Football League, and ambassadors at the United Nations. A New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Business Week best-selling author, Maxwell was named the World's Top Leadership Guru by Leadershipgurus.net. He was also one of only 25 authors and artists named to Amazon.com's 10th Anniversary Hall of Fame. Three of his books, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, Developing the Leader Within You, and The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader have each sold over a million copies.
Access Article: http://www.giantimpact.com/articles/read/article_the_high_road_principle/?utm_source=leadershipwired&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article&utm_campaign=lw-20090310
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
By Dr. John C. Maxwell
"It's nothing personal; it's just business," is a commonly heard phrase in the workplace. However, I tend to disagree with anyone who tries to impersonalize business. At its heart, commerce is a human enterprise, founded upon relationships between people.
Most of us spend a majority of our waking hours in our business or at work, and our vocations endow our lives with meaning or purpose. When we devote ourselves to profession, we're giving a piece of who we are to our work. In that sense, business is deeply personal.
In the workplace, as in the rest of life, relationships get messy. Sooner or later, we will be mistreated. A boss will unjustly fault our performance, a partner will fail to honor an agreement, or a co-worker will cut us down in a meeting. Since business is personal, those instances hurt us, and unless dealt with correctly, they can derail us. As a leader, we have to commit to taking the high road when others, intentionally or unintentionally, wrong us.
Four Tips For Travelling the High Road
1) It's Not What Happens to You, but in You That Really Matters
During the Civil War, Confederate General W.H.C. Whiting envied rival general Robert E. Lee. Consequently, Whiting spread vicious rumors about Lee in an attempt to smear his character. Lee had the opportunity to get even, though. Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, was considering Whiting for a promotion, and he consulted Lee's opinion of the general. Without hesitation, Lee endorsed and commended Whiting. The officers who witnessed the exchange were astonished. Afterward, one of them asked Lee if he had forgotten all of the slander Whiting had spread about him.
"I understand that the President wanted to know my opinion of Whiting, responded Lee, not his opinion of me." Lee did what high road travelers do. He refused to be dragged into a game of bickering and petty jealousies by treating another person with respect, even when that respect seemed unwarranted.
2) High Roaders See Their Own Need for Grace, Therefore They Extend It to Others
Let's face it; we all screw up from time to time. Each of us has quirks that we know can be annoying, and bad moments when we're not so pleasant to be around.People who take the high road recognize their humanness, know that they need to be extended grace, and accordingly are more likely to extend it to others.
3) High Roaders Are Not Victims; They Choose to Serve Others
People who take the high road don't do so because it's the only available option. They don't do it by accident either: the high road goes uphill and takes more effort to travel. Instead, high roaders choose their path as a conscious act of service to others. By taking the high road, they drain animosity and bitterness out of relationships, serving to keep them open and productive.
Interestingly, in serving others, higher roaders benefit themselves, too. As the author of Proverbs wrote, "It is a man's glory to overlook an offense." When we maturely respond to a slight by showing forgiveness, we display admirable character that elevates us in the eyes of others.
4) High Roaders Set High Standards for Themselves Than Others Would
Abandoned as an infant, author James Michener never knew his biological parents. Fortunately, he was taken in and raised by a widow, and he adopted her surname. However, each time James published a book, he received nasty notes from one member of the Michener clan. The relative chastised James for taking on the Michener name, which this person felt the novelist had no right to use.
Despite being berated, Michener did agree with one statement his relative had made, "Who do you think you are, trying to be better than you are?" As James Michener professed, "I've spent my life trying to be better than I was, and I am a brother to all who share the same aspiration."
When we conduct ourselves according to the highest standard, we are less likely to become defensive and take the low road when others attack us. Once you've done all that you can, then you can let the noise of detractors roll off your back like rain.
Summary
In leadership, as in life, others will behave unkindly toward you. When ill-treated, don't retreat into a defensive mode or strike back in anger. Instead, take the high road and discover how rising above offenses frees you from petty arguments and adds to your reputation.
About
John C. Maxwell is an internationally recognized leadership expert, speaker, and author who has sold over 16 million books. His organizations have trained more than 2 million leaders worldwide. Dr. Maxwell is the founder of EQUIP and INJOY Stewardship Services. Every year he speaks to Fortune 500 companies, international government leaders, and audiences as diverse as the United States Military Academy at West Point, the National Football League, and ambassadors at the United Nations. A New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Business Week best-selling author, Maxwell was named the World's Top Leadership Guru by Leadershipgurus.net. He was also one of only 25 authors and artists named to Amazon.com's 10th Anniversary Hall of Fame. Three of his books, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, Developing the Leader Within You, and The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader have each sold over a million copies.
Access Article: http://www.giantimpact.com/articles/read/article_the_high_road_principle/?utm_source=leadershipwired&utm_medium=email&utm_content=article&utm_campaign=lw-20090310
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Board directors go from glitz to grind
Board directors go from glitz to grind
Mon Mar 9, 2009 3:41pm EDT
By Toni Clarke - Analysis
Excerpts:
"My first question when advising potential directors is, 'Are you sure you want the job?'" said Nixon Peabody's Stein. "Board service is no longer fun."
BOSTON (Reuters) - Once seen as a sinecure, the reward for a lifetime of achievement, the job of a board director has become decidedly less appealing.
Based on proxy data as of May 31, 2008, the average annual cash retainer for directors of Standard & Poor's 500 companies was $75,000, according to executive recruitment firm Spencer Stuart. Stock grants and options brought the average package to more than $217,000.
But for the most part, directors are not being reimbursed for the hundreds of extra hours they are working throughout the current crisis, said Todd Leone, president of Amalfi Consulting LLC, which specializes in designing compensation packages for financial institutions.
A job that might once have consumed one or two hours a week now consumes many more, experts say.
"A year or two ago, boards might look at reports on a quarterly basis," said Ralph Ward, publisher of Boardroom Insider, an online governance newsletter. "Now they want to see data on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, especially basic survival data such as cash flow, cash on hand and reports on defaults from customers and suppliers."
"The liability exposure is not worth the money," said Richard Stein, a lawyer with Nixon Peabody LLP. "Insurance may protect you against financial damage, but it can't protect your time or reputation."
Read Full Article: http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE5285YP20090309
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Mon Mar 9, 2009 3:41pm EDT
By Toni Clarke - Analysis
Excerpts:
"My first question when advising potential directors is, 'Are you sure you want the job?'" said Nixon Peabody's Stein. "Board service is no longer fun."
BOSTON (Reuters) - Once seen as a sinecure, the reward for a lifetime of achievement, the job of a board director has become decidedly less appealing.
Based on proxy data as of May 31, 2008, the average annual cash retainer for directors of Standard & Poor's 500 companies was $75,000, according to executive recruitment firm Spencer Stuart. Stock grants and options brought the average package to more than $217,000.
But for the most part, directors are not being reimbursed for the hundreds of extra hours they are working throughout the current crisis, said Todd Leone, president of Amalfi Consulting LLC, which specializes in designing compensation packages for financial institutions.
A job that might once have consumed one or two hours a week now consumes many more, experts say.
"A year or two ago, boards might look at reports on a quarterly basis," said Ralph Ward, publisher of Boardroom Insider, an online governance newsletter. "Now they want to see data on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, especially basic survival data such as cash flow, cash on hand and reports on defaults from customers and suppliers."
"The liability exposure is not worth the money," said Richard Stein, a lawyer with Nixon Peabody LLP. "Insurance may protect you against financial damage, but it can't protect your time or reputation."
Read Full Article: http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE5285YP20090309
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
A New Era for Executive Compensation: Recovery Plan’s Retroactive Restrictions and Say-on-Pay Mandate
A New Era for Executive Compensation: Recovery Plan’s Retroactive Restrictions and Say-on-Pay Mandate
Morrison Foerster
Mar 2 2009
http://www.mofo.com/news/updates/files/090302NewEra.pdf
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
Morrison Foerster
Mar 2 2009
http://www.mofo.com/news/updates/files/090302NewEra.pdf
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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
The Sump of Assumptions
The Sump of Assumptions: "The Sump of Assumptions
by Mitchell Ditkoff
Idea Champions
The Sump of Assumptionsby Mitchell Ditkoff
The Sump of Assumptionsby Mitchell Ditkoff
Thomas Edison had a very simple way of conducting job interviews. He'd invite prospective employees to join him for soup in the company cafeteria. If they salted their soup before tasting it, the interview was over. Plain and simple. Given the nature of his work - where even a single stone unturned could mean the difference between the failure or success of a costly product - Edison could not afford to surround himself with people ruled by faulty assumptions.
Of all the roadblocks to innovation, assumptions are the worst. Invisible, insidious and habitual, THEY STOP US BEFORE WE EVEN START - the default position for those of us too consumed by our past to consider the future the way it really is: pure potentiality.
What is an assumption? Simply put, it's "taking something for granted". A "supposition." We do it all the time - although not always to our detriment. For example, if you leave your toothbrush in the bathroom at night, it's safe to assume that it will be there in the morning. Your assumption saves you lots of time searching for it in the kitchen or garage. Other assumptions, however, don't work out quite as well - despite the seeming evidence for their veracity. Many of our ancestors, for example, assumed the earth was flat. They had "proof." They saw it with their own eyes. But their so-called proof - their inaccurate interpretation of existing phenomena - was a far cry from reality. And it was precisely because of their faulty assumptions, that many of our ancestors missed out on the New World and all the fabulous beachfront property that came with it.
Think about it. If every ten years half of what scientists believe to be true is proven to be false, how much of what your decisions are based on is anything more than just a temporary - and not very elegant - arrangement of half-baked perceptions, flaky factoids, and loosely interpreted statistics?
Take a minute now to consiser what you may be assuming falsely. What conclusions have you drawn that prevent you from sailing new oceans? What beliefs are you bound by that are likely to be laughable three years from now? Are you absolutely sure you know what your customers want? Are you positive your manager won't free up the money to fund your latest idea? Can you say, without a shadow of a doubt, that your current strategy to accomplish your "stretch goal" is based on anything more than hearsay and hot talk?
But hey, you're not alone in your tendency to jump to conclusions. Join the club as you consider some of these (now famous) limiting assumptions throughout history:
"I think there is a world market for about five computers." (Thomas Watson, founder of IBM)
"Everything that can be invented has been invented," (Charles Duell, Commissioner, US Office of Patents, 1899)
"There is not the slightest indication that nuclear energy will ever be obtainable. It would mean that the atom would have to be shattered at will." (Albert Einstein)
"The phonograph is not of any commercial value." ( Thomas Edison)
"I don't need body guards." (Jimmy Hoffa)
"Man will not fly for 50 years." (Wilbur Wright, 1903)
"640K ought to be enough for anybody." (Bill Gates)
"With over 50 foreign cars on sale here, the Japanese auto industry isn't likely to carve out a big slice of the U.S. market for itself." (Business Week, 1968)
What is your bigggest assumption about your hottest new idea?
What is your company's most pervasive, collective assumption?
What can you do today to identify the one assumption most likely to sabotage your future success? What can you do to go beyond it?
This article is excerpted from It's AHAppening, a series of five visually compelling creative thinking guidebooks that are severely underpriced at $6.50 each.
Complete article and links: http://www.ideachampions.com/article_sump.shtml
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
by Mitchell Ditkoff
Idea Champions
The Sump of Assumptionsby Mitchell Ditkoff
The Sump of Assumptionsby Mitchell Ditkoff
Thomas Edison had a very simple way of conducting job interviews. He'd invite prospective employees to join him for soup in the company cafeteria. If they salted their soup before tasting it, the interview was over. Plain and simple. Given the nature of his work - where even a single stone unturned could mean the difference between the failure or success of a costly product - Edison could not afford to surround himself with people ruled by faulty assumptions.
Of all the roadblocks to innovation, assumptions are the worst. Invisible, insidious and habitual, THEY STOP US BEFORE WE EVEN START - the default position for those of us too consumed by our past to consider the future the way it really is: pure potentiality.
What is an assumption? Simply put, it's "taking something for granted". A "supposition." We do it all the time - although not always to our detriment. For example, if you leave your toothbrush in the bathroom at night, it's safe to assume that it will be there in the morning. Your assumption saves you lots of time searching for it in the kitchen or garage. Other assumptions, however, don't work out quite as well - despite the seeming evidence for their veracity. Many of our ancestors, for example, assumed the earth was flat. They had "proof." They saw it with their own eyes. But their so-called proof - their inaccurate interpretation of existing phenomena - was a far cry from reality. And it was precisely because of their faulty assumptions, that many of our ancestors missed out on the New World and all the fabulous beachfront property that came with it.
Think about it. If every ten years half of what scientists believe to be true is proven to be false, how much of what your decisions are based on is anything more than just a temporary - and not very elegant - arrangement of half-baked perceptions, flaky factoids, and loosely interpreted statistics?
Take a minute now to consiser what you may be assuming falsely. What conclusions have you drawn that prevent you from sailing new oceans? What beliefs are you bound by that are likely to be laughable three years from now? Are you absolutely sure you know what your customers want? Are you positive your manager won't free up the money to fund your latest idea? Can you say, without a shadow of a doubt, that your current strategy to accomplish your "stretch goal" is based on anything more than hearsay and hot talk?
But hey, you're not alone in your tendency to jump to conclusions. Join the club as you consider some of these (now famous) limiting assumptions throughout history:
"I think there is a world market for about five computers." (Thomas Watson, founder of IBM)
"Everything that can be invented has been invented," (Charles Duell, Commissioner, US Office of Patents, 1899)
"There is not the slightest indication that nuclear energy will ever be obtainable. It would mean that the atom would have to be shattered at will." (Albert Einstein)
"The phonograph is not of any commercial value." ( Thomas Edison)
"I don't need body guards." (Jimmy Hoffa)
"Man will not fly for 50 years." (Wilbur Wright, 1903)
"640K ought to be enough for anybody." (Bill Gates)
"With over 50 foreign cars on sale here, the Japanese auto industry isn't likely to carve out a big slice of the U.S. market for itself." (Business Week, 1968)
What is your bigggest assumption about your hottest new idea?
What is your company's most pervasive, collective assumption?
What can you do today to identify the one assumption most likely to sabotage your future success? What can you do to go beyond it?
This article is excerpted from It's AHAppening, a series of five visually compelling creative thinking guidebooks that are severely underpriced at $6.50 each.
Complete article and links: http://www.ideachampions.com/article_sump.shtml
***********************************************************************
This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.
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