Fish go rotten from the head

To help to ensure good governance, boards need "both competence and sufficient diversity around the boardroom table" (Garratt, 2010, p. xv), carefully working through "the necessary balances, competences, evaluations and learning needed to ensure more healthy organizations in future - to stop the fish rotting from the head" (pp. xv-xvi). The governance board is considered to be the 'head' of the organisation; the setter of externally-focused strategy, big picture thinking, direction, vision and values (Garratt, 2010). The body of the organisation is the staff and management, who look to internally-focused tactics and management, operational thinking, mission, tasks and actions. If the head is good, the fish will be sweet: that sound, measured leadership should lead to sound strategy. However, if the head is bad, the 'fish' will be rotten; that poor leadership leads to poor strategy... and thus the fish has gone rotten from its head. 

This saying is a metaphor for allocating responsibility to where the power actually lies, I feel. The body is not powerful: the head is. 

It is thought the "fish rots from the head" saying, so commonly used in governance circles (Garratt, 2010), comes from the Turkish:

"The Turks have a homely proverb applied on such occasions: they say 'the fish stinks first at the head,' meaning that if the servant is disorderly, it is because the master is so" (Porter, 1768, p. 27).

It is interesting that in 250 years there has been little drift: that the current, commonly-held meaning remains close to that of Porter (1768). Further, it is suggested that the Turkish poet, Rumi, published this adage in 1273 as a "Fish begins to stink at the head, not the tail" (Martin, 2023; Pearson, 2022), but I have not sighted the original, so cannot attest to the veracity!

But I do like the saying. Evocative :-)

Sam

References:

Garratt, B. (2010). The Fish Rots from the Head: Developing effective board directors (3rd ed.). CPI Bookmarque Ltd.

Martin, G. (2023, December 11). A fish rots from the head down. Phrase Finder. https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/fish-rot-from-the-head-down.html

Pearson. (2022, May 18). The Fish Rots from the Head – Meaning, Origin and Usage. https://english-grammar-lessons.com/the-fish-rots-from-the-head-meaning/

Porter, J. (1768). Observations on the Religion, Law, Government, and Manners, of the Turks (Vol 1.). J. Norse Bookseller.

read more "Fish go rotten from the head"

Ends versus means

Boards may be prescriptive at times – i.e. they write a list of 'thou shalts' for the CE. If the board hasn’t specifically said 'no', then, theoretically, the CE can do it. To manage potential skullduggery, the board may provide pro-scriptives, such as Standing Orders (or 'thou shalt nots'). These may take the form of "don’t spend over $x", or "don’t leave assets under-insured"; or "don’t let the key relationships deteriorate"; etc. However, it is better to use philosophy - a 'how' in the form of a set of values, and a 'why' in the form of a mission and a vision - and for board to expect the CE to act in accordance with these.

Once the philosophy (how and why) is in place, we need to consider the 'ends' (the board’s responsibility); and the 'means' (the CE's responsibility). It is the board's job to ensure that the "means [are NOT] so evil as to counterbalance the good of the end sought" (Lamprecht, 1920, p. 511), checking with the CE and taking "account of the means by which the ends are to be brought into being" (p. 510) because otherwise we are going to find ourselves trending in the media for the worst possible reasons. 

Part of the Policy Governance model (Carver, 2006), ends are where the Board decides the desired end goals needed for organisational performance and to balance risk; and means are what the CE determines the means of delivering the Board's ends.

• The ends: To focus on what the organisation needs to accomplish at a strategic level. To ensure no surprises for the CE or the organisation. To act with integrity (i.e., no secret deals wherever possible). To represent the organisation credibly. To use best governance practice. To clear the way so the organisation can achieve appropriate goals. To be absolutely honest with the CE, including matters of performance; to not be ‘asleep at the wheel’. To trust, but to verify trust with the CE and the organisation.
  
  
• The means: Focus on how to deliver the organisational goals set by the board. Give the board no surprises. Prioritise the goals set by the board. Be clear in the board's expectations. To support the board while providing fair critique. To have the freedom to exercise professional judgement. To ensure the organisation is secure and to ensure safety. To be honest with the board. To trust the good intentions of the board.

But we need to be aware that means-ends reasoning can provide an inherent tension in determining "how to adapt [...] between conflicting ends" (Blackburn, 2005, p. 238). Boards and CEs must act with care to avoid such tensions do not arise or that we create a "confining cage of bureaucratic management" (Blackburn, 2005, p. 112). Such an evocative phrase!

The board and the CE should work together to ensure that there are enough means for the organisation to meet its ends.

Sam

References:

Blackburn, S. (2005). The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.

Carver, J. (2006). Boards That Make a Difference: A New Design for Leadership in Nonprofit and Public Organizations (3rd ed.). Jossey-Bass.

Lamprecht, S. P. (1920). Ends and Means in Ethical Theory. The Journal of Philosophy, Psychology and Scientific Methods, 17(19), 505–513. https://doi.org/10.2307/2939936

read more "Ends versus means"

Covid-19 and the unsinkable rubber ducks

Globally, Covid-19 has brought people together, divided people; created argument, brought harmony; ...the contradictions are a little like the beginning of Dickens's book:

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair" (1859, p. 1).

These dichotomies around Covid-19 have amazed me. The polar oppositions are scary. There has been little dialogue, and it is a bit frightening just how entrenched our positions can become. I don't quite know why so many of us have decided that our governments are trying to 'control' us, why we have so much mistrust, and why we attribute so many deep and conspiracy-driven motives to 'others'.

I enjoy discussion about issues. However, under Covid-19, I have been very, very stretched by other's ideas about control, trust, science, and - to my mind - 'woo'. While I like a good Bond villain as much as the next person, I really don't think that Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates and big pharma are all in cahoots to take over my mind through villainous nano-technology in an injection (which we don't yet have the actual technology for, but hey).

"Woo", in my mind, was brilliantly explored by Chris Brookmyre (2007), where a discussion about psychic phenomena tries to enlighten woo-believers, by questioning if mentalists have "super-powers. [If they] can do things beyond the ken of all known physics", while reminding the listener that "conjurors and mentalists used to pretend that what they were doing was magic and sorcery" (p. 135), while today mentalists suggest there is a more palatable scientific reason. As we are just as sucked in by any Covid-19 con, we need to remember the unsinkable rubber ducks. This phenomenon was defined by "James the 'Amazing' Randi, a Canadian magician and world-renowned sceptic, to describe people who are determined to go on believing in woo, no matter how much evidence to the contrary you present them with" (p. 144). Totally Covid.

Q-U-A-A-A-A-R-K.

There is lots of good information out there. We know how to handle our own beliefs when we are about to get sucked down the rabbit hole (Wiles & Morris 2021b), but how on earth do we help those ducks who remain in the vortex, firmly clutching woo as their safety line?

I have been avoiding the damn ducks. But if I do that, how many others do too? And if we all do that, how do we help the ducks - our friends, our colleagues, our whānau - to come back to science?

I tell you, it is defeating me. Q-U-A-A-A-A-R-K.

Sam

References

• Brookmyre, C. (2007). Attack Of The Unsinkable Rubber Ducks. Little, Brown Book Group.
• Dickens, C. (1959). A Tale of Two Cities. Chapman & Hall.
• Wikimedia Commons (2020). Rubber Duckies So Many Ducks. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Rubber_duckies_So_many_ducks.jpg
• Wiles, S., & Morris, T. (19 August 2021a). How Covid vaccinated people can still get infected. The Spinoff. https://thespinoff.co.nz/science/19-08-2021/siouxsie-wiles-why-vaccinated-people-still-have-a-small-chance-of-being-infected/
• Wiles, S., & Morris, T. (21 August 2021b). The red flags of Covid misinformation. The Spinoff. https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/21-08-2021/siouxsie-wiles-toby-morris-the-red-flags-of-covid-misinformation/

read more "Covid-19 and the unsinkable rubber ducks"

Please: a pan-Government approach to careers

The Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) this year published a paper which looks at the experience of 55 students in the tertiary sector (viewable here).

I congratulate TEC on considering not only direct entry students from secondary schools, but also second chance learners and those who are re-entering the education sector. While I understand why TEC's mandate is to focus their career strategy efforts around tertiary graduates, career transitions occur across the lifespan, and the tertiary transition is likely to be one of several transitions that graduates have experienced thus far. In addition, graduates will have many, many more transitions to come before they regard themselves as retired (if they ever do).

Because of this, I would encourage TEC to push for a pan-governmental strategy on career practice. As a nation we shouldn't be focusing on one or two transitions - i.e., the transition when leaving a period of training - within the lifespan, dusting our hands, and thinking "our work is done". Career development is just that: development. It is a lifelong process, and our practices around career need to reflect that we are rarely done.

How I miss Careers New Zealand. Where we once had a government service tasked with covering the lifespan of careers, it is now only there merest blip in the great machine which is TEC. Not only is there little focus now on career progression out of secondary schools, there are now fewer and fewer resources being constructed for the New Zealand environment. Our eye is totally off the careers ball, and many of the stellar, experienced professionals who once staffed the organisation have been scattered to the four winds.

How do we consider setting primary school children up with realistic approaches to career choice without government support (see Phipps, 1995) within the education system? What about secondary school children who rarely have appropriately qualified career practitioners on site (also see Helwig, 2008)? What about some assistance for parents returning to work after a career break, who may, if they are at the bottom of the cliff, possibly have some CV advice supplied by MSD? What about people getting back into work following illness or injury, perhaps supported by ACC, perhaps MSD, perhaps with no support at all? What about retirees who decide they want to 'un'-retire and who also lack government support?

While New Zealanders can pay to see a private practitioner, for many this is not financially possible. The possibility of seeing a professional privately may never have occurred to many. They may have been soured by their own secondary school experience at the hands of a teacher needing more hours being allocated the 'careers advisor' role without qualifications, and think that career practice is bunkum. Or that career practice only happens once we have finished our education.

Career development has become marginalised in New Zealand society of late. Where once we were a shining beacon globally, we are slipping into darkness. Other nations now realise the importance of having a country-wide approach to career development, while we are watering down the effectiveness of our governmental career service by having absorbed it into TEC, and now having almost all the intellectual grunt which once existed disperse. New Zealand has no strategic careers vision. Our politicians seem to think that career development is a one-stop, once in a lifetime thing that we do when we leave Uni.

This view does many New Zealanders' a disservice, and, as a knock-on effect, potentially limits our national productivity. We need good careers lobbyists to help our politicians see the benefits of a national career strategy, and build career development back into the entire government sector.


Sam

References:

• Helwig, A. A. (2008). From childhood to adulthood: A 15‐year longitudinal career development study. The Career Development Quarterly, 57(1), 38-50. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-0045.2008.tb00164.x
• Magnuson, C. S., & Starr, M. F. (2000). How early is too early to begin life career planning? The importance of the elementary school years. Journal of Career Development, 27(2), 89-101. https://doi.org/10.1177/089484530002700203
• Phipps, B. J. (1995). Career dreams of preadolescent students. Journal of Career Development, 22(1), 19-32. https://doi.org/10.1177/089484539502200102
• Tertiary Education Commission (2018). ‘Transition to Tertiary Life’ event: Entering and re-entering tertiary education in New Zealand. Retrieved from http://www.tec.govt.nz/assets/Publications-and-others/Transition-to-Tertiary-Life-Event-Final.pdf

read more "Please: a pan-Government approach to careers"

An argument for diversity

(Devey, 2015, citing ItWasNeverADress, 2015)

Diversity was a hot topic in 2007, but it went dark as the GFC squeezed margins. Now we know we are out of recession: the issue is rising again.

In 2003, Norway quotaed board diversity, setting a requirement of 40% women directors on all listed company boards by 2010. Now Germany too has set a quota requiring 30% of all German non-executive directors to be women by 2016 (Reuters, 2015).

This move has sparked a lot of debate about diversity on boards here in New Zealand. There has been a lot of argument about whether gender diversity adds value or not. Some studies say yes, some say no (Rhee, 2015). With the lack of evidential consensus, those saying gender does not bring value are often accused of being part of the "old-boys network" with the opposition being accused of "social engineering" (IOD LinkedIn Group, 2015).

Rhee (2015) says that "First, diversity provides equal opportunity to groups historically excluded from positions of power and enables full use of the pool of available talent. The second claim is that diversity will improve organizational processes and performance. This business case for diversity tends to dominate debates in part because it appeals to a culture steeped in shareholder value as the metric for corporate decision making. This is also the claim on which controversy centers".

Neither extreme appropriately tackles the issue: determining whether greater board diversity provides better governance. And worse than this, whenever a discussion starts, I feel as though the gender negative research rebuttal is taking a "tobacco lobbyist strategy" approach. Response often feels closed-minded, such as "Board composition is merely a window into what investors believe are the most qualified individuals to manage and be custodians of their wealth. Any other purpose in the appointment process is to distort the reality of the way in which capital markets operate" or "I've found particularly over the last two or three years investors vote for the best person for the position regardless of gender,race or even left or right political persuasions" (IOD LinkedIn Group, 2015).

In my view, there is a clear advantage to having any representative board look like the population it represents: the board then seamlessly keeps pace with societal change, as society itself moves and grows. When representation becomes more out of alignment with the wider group, the potential for disconnect, poor decision-making, lack of market understanding and myopia grows.

If your organisation serves a clientèle that 'looks like' New Zealand as a whole, then you need a board that represents our 51% women, 49% men, 14% Maori, 8% Pasifika, 13% Asian and 65% European population; with 35% under 40, 35% 40-65 and 30% over 65. Now that would be a challenging set of board diversity targets to aim for.

As a woman, a member of the marginalised 'minority', I have personally experienced having fewer opportunities, less clarity of path, less leverage in networking and fewer 'hand ups' than my male peers. I once thought that eventually we would balance out. My personal experience is that pre-feminism barriers and biases still exist. Thus, I have shifted over the years from a "we don't need quotas for equality" point of view to a "we will not overcome senseless prejudice until we quota" point of view.

Pete Hodgkinson, a contributor to the IOD LinkedIn Group (2015), made a very interesting point. He posted "In the late 70s, the top 5 orchestras in the US had fewer than 5% women players. Blind auditions were introduced, whereby players played from behind screens in the early rounds, and now women make up over 30% of players. Note that nothing about the skill levels of the players changed, but the undeniable bias against women in the orchestras was acknowledged and accounted for" (2015).

What if we held blind auditions for boards of directors? Now wouldn't that be interesting!


Sam

References:

• Devey (2015). 8 Times a Women’s Bathroom Sign Got a Facelift (PHOTOS). Retrieved 21 May 2015 from http://truvisionandvitality.7daytrufit.com/8-times-a-womens-bathroom-sign-got-a-facelift-photos/
• Rhee, June (2015). Diversity on Corporate Boards: How Much Difference Does “Difference” Make? Retrieved 21 May 2015 from http://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2015/01/05/diversity-on-corporate-boards-how-much-difference-does-difference-make/
• IOD LinkedIn Group (2015). Investors interested in board diversity. Retrieved 30 April 2015 from https://www.linkedin.com/groupItem?view=&gid=164708&type=member&item=5996842178498805760&commentID=5999293790991511552&report.success=8ULbKyXO6NDvmoK7o030UNOYGZKrvdhBhypZ_w8EpQrrQI-BBjkmxwkEOwBjLE28YyDIxcyEO7_TA_giuRN#commentID_5999293790991511552
• Reuters (2015). Caroline Copley: German parliament approves legal quotas for women on company boards. Retrieved 21 May 2015 from http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/03/06/uk-germany-women-quotas-idUKKBN0M214W20150306

read more "An argument for diversity"

Gender Diversity on Boards

Wouldn't it be great if getting a better gender mix on boards was indeed critical? But it can't be so in the eyes of those who hold power, otherwise it would already be happening.

In recent years I have come to the conclusion that we will have to be pushed into change, otherwise it will not happen; or will only happen with glacial slowness. It would be great to be proved wrong, though!

Just like humankind being reluctant to leave behind our superstitions, I feel we won't change unless we have to. We will like the new place when we get there, but change is something we don't seek willingly.

Some of you may know that Norway set quotas for all its publicly listed organisations that by 2010 all boards would need to be gender diverse. This meant that boards must contain at least 40% women; or 40% men on female-dominated boards. Following the stock exchange rule change came into effect in 2010, apparently many companies decided that instead of compying, they would either move their head offices, or they would return to private ownership, rather than comply. What a fascinating response!

Norway has over 40% women on the boards of publicly listed companies. There are studies which have found that, since 2010, the financial reliability of publically listed organisations in Norway have increased. It sounds as though that improvement may also be bit of a Darwin Award; the idiots have apparently removed themselves from the gene pool.

So I wonder now how much of that fiscal improvement is due to diversity, and how much is due to philosophical alignment?

The actions of those companies who reverted to private ownership also beg a lot of questions: however, at least by their actions they appear to have improved the financial stability of the stock exchange.

Bonus.

• Reference:  Human Rights Commission (2012).  NZ Census of Women's Participation. Retrieved 25 August 2013 from http://live.isitesoftware.co.nz/neon/documents/HRC%20Womens%20Census_2012_WEB.pdf

Sam

read more "Gender Diversity on Boards"

Bestness

On a recent Institute of Director's blog post on Diversity, a member posted the following:

This is an interesting discussion and I agree with the need for diversity, but as a relatively inexperienced observer I really do wonder if diversity is really about the ethnicity, the gender, the occupation, or even the “best person” - whatever that may mean.

With due respect to all who have made so many interesting comments, it strikes me that the value of diversity is its capacity to widen the range of attributes available to strengthen board performance.

Unless I am completely mistaken on that point, the first step should be to identify all of the attributes that might make a useful difference, then identify those that are missing or insufficient, and then make appointments that make a difference regardless of gender, ethnicity occupation or "bestness".

What a great concept: "bestness"! I agree - our boards should contain our bestness. Ethnic, age, gender, orientation, role and thought diversity, if in an open and open-minded culture, should lead to creativity, innovation and bestness. 

Richard Branson has some great idea on how we go about creating this independence of thought at http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20130215121303-204068115-top-5-tips-to-screw-business-meetings-as-usual?trk=eml-mktg-inf-m-top13-0827-p9

• Reference: Caddis, Ian (29 August 2013). Comment on How can we achieve diversity on boards if we don't have diversity on board selection panels? NZ: Institute of Directors LinkedIn group. Retrieved 29 August 2013 from http://www.linkedin.com/groupAnswers?viewQuestionAndAnswers=&discussionID=267990895&gid=164708&commentID=159599290&trk=view_disc&fromEmail=&ut=3nnOaMXJDrnRU1 

Sam

read more "Bestness"

Newsletter Issue 181, April 2010

Sam Young Newsletter

Issue 181, April 2010

Hi guys,

Are you an innovator? Then New Zealand needs you desperately. Check out Kiwi Innovation - RIP below.

IOD might be about to throw out the baby with the bathwater - read about it in IOD Provisional Accreditation. 

Hot Key for Excel's AutoSum   TLAs for SMEs        Tips, Short & Hot Keys        Hot Linx

Don't forget, if you want to be taken off my mailing list, click here to send me a reply e-mail and I will remove your name.

Kiwi Innovation - RIP

Apparently it is official; Kiwi innovation is dead.

IBM announced in late February (at http://www-03.ibm.com/press/nz/en/pressrelease/29432.wss) the results of the JV between themselves and Auckland Uni, the "Innovation Index of New Zealand". The index examines patents, R&D, trademarks, design, plant variety rights, productivity and organisational and managerial innovation, to assesses innovation within the NZ economy. The team has analysed data from 1998 onwards over 16 industry sectors (including commercial and non-commercial entities).

The industry sectors are constructed and measured as per the ANZSIC industrial classifications (viewable at www.stats.govt.nz), and are: Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing; Manufacturing; Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services; Construction; Wholesale Trade; Retail Trade; Accommodation and Food Services; Transport, Postal and Warehousing; Information Media and Telecommunications; Financial and Insurance Services; Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services (called "Property & Business Services"); Professional, Scientific and Technical Services; Administrative and Support Services; Public Administration and Safety (called "Government Administration & Defence"); Education and Training; Health Care and Social Assistance (called "Health & Community Services"); Arts and Recreation Services; and Other Services - obviously for all those little things that just don't fit anywhere else :-).

The worst hit industries were the construction sector (down 15%), the accommodation, cafes and restaurants sector (down 12%), and the property and business services sector (down 11%). From 2000 to 2007 we were entirely static on innovation, then we took a dive well into the negative in 2008. Excellent. Our results were only partly saved by the Ag, forestry and fish sector who romped home well ahead in the past decade, doubling in their innovation output.

What is reassuring about this research is that the methodology underlying the NZ Innovation Index is based on a similar JV project with IBM Australia and Melbourne University. For we Kiwis, this then means that have a relevant trans-Tasman comparative measure on an 'apples to apples' basis.

So what does this lack of innovation mean for we Kiwis as a whole? Well, if we want to stick to our knitting in ag, forestry and fish; nothing much, except monitor results and ensure that this area continues to have adequate resources put into it. And perhaps we do just let the other areas slide.

However, this seems to me to be a rather defeatist attitude. If anything, I think it means we need to look at little more closely at how we foster, develop and positively encourage entrepreneurship, innovation and creativity throughout our business community. Without intellectual property being generated here, we are missing the knowledge wave, and we will lag even further behind on the OCED scale.

Backing this Auckland Uni and IBM work up are some 2009 stats on national rankings from Insead and CII. According to their Global Innovation Index Report at http://www.insead.edu/facultyresearch/centres/elab/documents/GIIFinal0809.pdf, New Zealand is currently rated at 27th of 130 countries - above us are UAE, Qatar, Malaysia, Israel, pretty much all of Europe, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Canada, and the US.

There are a number of nations out there who are heading for, if not at the head of the knowledge wave. Perhaps we could try taking a longer term view, getting our two party system to agree on a longer-term innovation strategy, and apply some of the lessons learned by Sweden, Singapore, Switzerland and Ireland.

Something to dream about, anyway.

IOD Provisional Accreditation

For those of you who are currently Provisionally Accredited with the Institute of Directors (IOD), from the first of June this year, your accreditation will disappear.

IOD have decided to streamline and simplify their accreditation process, and the provisional accreditation category is being done away with. Personally, I think this is a pity - this is the 'cadet' level of directors who are serious about developing a career, but have usually had experience in Not-For-Profits, but not yet gained experience as listed company directors in organisations of substance (ie, over $10m).

I hope IOD get a lot of feedback from their members with regard to this; I think they are about to cut away a valuable resource that could be tapped into locally by Not-For-Profit organisations and small private companies who are seeking a diverse mix of independent directors.

IOD currently list directorship positions on their website which has been growing very slowly. It takes quite a while for word to get out there that people can contact IOD directly if they are needing directors, and the board shouldn't expect a massive uptake at the instigation of a new idea - you need to give it five years or so to run.

However, if IOD cut away the large chunk of provisionally registered directors from their potential directors, 'poorer' organisations will not bother to list; the director remuneration requirement will be too high for them to even bother.

Food for thought, IOD.

Hot Key for Excel's AutoSum

There is a very easy hot key way to sum values in Excel if you are finding the ribbons in Office 2007 rather hard to find things in:

• Highlight the row or column, plus one blank cell for the result, and press [Alt]++. Voila! Your selection is summed.

For example, if you want to sum the values in cells B2:B5, you select the cells B2:B6, and then press [Alt]++, with Excel displaying the sum in cell B6. It works with multiple columns and rows and non-contiguous blocks of values too.

Thanks to TechRepublic for this tip at http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/msoffice/?p=2249&tag=nl.e056 - and remember that in Office 2010 you will be able to customise your ribbons at last, so finally able to work with your Office applications efficiently once more.

TLAs for SMEs

Here are this newsletter's TLAs (Three Letter Acronyms) for you:

• YACC, Yet Another Compiler Compiler. This is real techno-speak - a standard 'parser generator' for Unix operating systems, generating code for the parser in 'C' (programming language). Unix is an open source operating system - ie unlike Microsoft Windows, open source OS's and apps are largely free and developed by users to suit their needs, and is either freeware or shareware... such as Linux or Ubuntu.

Please feel free to email me with any TLAs that you want to get the bottom (meaning!) of.

Tips, Short+Hot Keys

In this newsletter, carrying on the Excel tip theme, we look at what you can do with those 'odd' characters in Excel:

• Excel "Apply the Currency format with two decimal places (negative numbers appear in parentheses)" Ctrl & Shift & $ (dollar)
• Excel "Apply the Date format with the day, month, and year" Ctrl & Shift & # (hash)
• Excel "Apply the Exponential number format with two decimal places" Ctrl & Shift & ^ (Caret)
• Excel "Apply the General number format" Ctrl & Shift & ~ (Tilde)
• Excel "Apply the Number format with two decimal places, thousands separator, and – (minus) for negative values" Ctrl & Shift & ! (Exclamation Mark)
• Excel "Apply the outline border" Ctrl & Shift & & (ampersand)
• Excel "Apply the Percentage format with no decimal places" Ctrl & Shift & % (percentage)
• Excel "Apply the Time format with the hour and minute, and indicate AM or PM" Ctrl & Shift & @ (Commercial At)
• Excel "Copy the value from the cell above the active cell into the active cell or the formula bar" Ctrl & Shift & " (Quotation Mark)
• Excel "Copy a formula from the cell above the active cell into the cell or the formula bar" Ctrl & ' (Apostrophe)
• Excel "Alternate between displaying cell values and displaying cell formulas" Ctrl & ` (Single Left Quotation Mark) 

Hot Linx

Each quarter Hays produces a Quarterly Report to target candidate hotspots and present market commentary. Check out Hay's website at http://www.hays.net.nz/forecast/

Unhappy Hipster has taken photography from Dwell Magazine and re-captioned them at http://unhappyhipsters.com/, entitled "Unhappy Hipsters - it's lonely in the modern world"

And "Every time you think there is nothing left to scare you, there is" guide to live dot com; keeping you alive from danger since 2008. Read all about the dangers of onions on their site at http://www.yourguidetolive.com/article.php?a=dangersofonions

If you are looking for some real international marketing nous, you probably can't do better than Trendwatching. They offer their premium service for small operators seeking market information and trends at http://www.trendwatching.com/premium/

---

                                Catch you again soon!! E-mail your suggestions to me here

read more "Newsletter Issue 181, April 2010"

Newsletter Issue 165, May 2009

Sam Young Newsletter

Issue 165, May 2009

Hi guys,

It is always good to give ourselves a little reminder of our Directors' Responsibilities. Read on!

Giving is the new taking, and sharing is the new giving - check out Generation G. 

Finding Lost Downloads   TLAs for SMEs        Tips, Short & Hot Keys        Hot Linx

Don't forget, if you want to be taken off my mailing list, click here to send me a reply e-mail and I will remove your name.

Directors' Responsibilities

Problems can arise when directors do not understand their governance rights and responsibilities. Stephen Bowman recently published an article detailing a list of director's rights and responsibilities around instructing organisational staff (http://www.conscious-governance.com/boardmembers.html).

Collectively the Board is able to direct action through the CEO, but as individuals, directors have no rights other than to receive all Board information, attend all Board meetings, and have access to past Board papers for up to seven years after they have left the Board. Individual directors are not empowered to direct any organisational staff. It is in the collective nature that the power of the Board lies. To ensure that all new board members understand this, each Board should have an induction process, backed up by a job description that clearly lays out expected behaviours and standards.

The Board is responsible for fiscal responsibility (as per the Financial Reporting Act and the Company's Act), setting the organisational vision and mission and the preparation of the strategic plan, then signing off the CEO's business plan and budget to ensure that the business can achieve the targets set in the strategic plan. The Board should also ensure that they use the strategic plan, vision and mission as the litmus test to make their decisions on management and board proposals, for business cases and for board member conduct.

Board members also need to remember that, regardless of where they come from or whose interests they represent, when they are sitting around the board table, they are there to act in the best interests of this company, on this Board, at this time, which brings me to my next point.

I was reading an article by Dave Moskovitz in the March issue of IOD's Boardroom magazine recently (downloadable for IOD members at http://www.iod.org.nz/getfile.aspx?aliaspath=/Home/Articles/Boardroom Magazine/IOD Boardroom March 09_pdf). Dave proposed that directors take a ‘Hippocratic Oath’, having us promise "In the exercise of my duties as a company director, I will:

• not deliberately harm our shareholders, other directors, company staff, our suppliers, customers, end-users or members of the public
• always act within the law, and ensure that the company acts within the law. Where I am unsure of the law, I will seek professional advice
• commit to act in the best interests of the company, ensure that the company meets its obligations, and strive to make the company responsibly successful in achieving the strategy that is collectively set by the board
• not seek to derive unfair personal gain from any transactions with the company or its personnel
• communicate clearly in a respectful and professional manner with my colleagues, being diligent and timely in my record keeping and reporting
• model behaviour as a director that I would expect from any company personnel
• not betray the confidentiality of information that has been properly given to me in confidence, nor will I seek personal gain from such information. Likewise, I will disclose without hesitation any information that is required to be made available to government agencies, other directors, stakeholders or the general public."

A very interesting idea; one that would remind us that it is not just our legal obligations that we need to remember as directors, but also our moral duty.

Dave Moskovitz is Chairman of WebFund Ltd (http://www.nzangels.com). Feedback is welcome on http://nzangels.com/contact/

Generation G

There is a new generation, according to Trendwatchers, "Generation G".

The characteristics of this new trend are that this group captures, in the words of Trendwatchers "the growing importance of 'generosity' as a leading societal and business mindset. As consumers are disgusted with greed and its current dire consequences for the economy—and while that same upheaval has them longing more than ever for institutions that care—the need for more generosity beautifully coincides with the ongoing (and pre-recession) emergence of an online-fueled culture of individuals who share, give, engage, create and collaborate in large numbers. In fact, for many, sharing a passion and receiving recognition have replaced 'taking' as the new status symbol. Businesses should follow this societal/behavioral shift, however much it may oppose their decades-old devotion to me, myself and I.”

Trendwatchers go on to say that there are three key drivers for Generation G. They are; recession and consumer disgust; longing for institutions that care; and that giving is the new taking, and sharing is the new giving. To read more about this phenomenon, go to http://www.trendwatching.com/trends/generationg/.

For firms, there are ten ways you can get in touch with your sensitive side and really get into sharing, as opposed to taking a CSR position. But be warned - fakers need not apply.

Trendwatchers are a Dutch-based market research firm which put out a very enlightening briefing newsletter to their stakeholders every month or two. Sign up by going to http://www.trendwatching.com/about/ and registering.

Finding Lost Downloads

Lost a downloaded software file lately? It is very frustrating when you mindlessly click the download button, then go & do something else, which turns into something else, then something else... and a week later you remember that you downloaded that little application, but can't remember the name of it, and now can't find it, either.

It is most likely that the file is either an .exe (an executable file) or an .msi file (a Microsoft Installer setup file).

Windows Secrets ran a little help article on this very subject a month or two back (http://windowssecrets.com/paid/090402/) with a suggested fix.  Run a search on your whole hard drive via Windows Explorer using the advanced search options and enter into the file name window "*.exe, *.msi" and specify your date range. Then the Windows Explorer search engine will grind away & hopefully spit out your item.

However, I have another search option for you which is much faster. Download a little piece of freeware that I told you about in the Newsletter 164 (taking careful note of where you downloaded it to!) from Void Tools called "Everything" at http://www.voidtools.com/. Install the software, then key in "*.exe" and click on the head of the "Last Write Time" column header to sort by date. In zip time you have a full list with the path. Repeat for "*.msi", and perhaps for "*.zip".

Good luck!

TLAs for SMEs

Here are this newsletter's TLAs (Three Letter Acronyms) for you:

• CSR, Corporate Social Responsibility. The deliberate inclusion of public interest into corporate decision-making, measuring via a triple bottom line of People, Planet and Profit. A system for businesses to measure their adherence to law, ethical standards, and international norms; impact on the environment, consumers, employees, communities, stakeholders and other publics; encouraging community growth and development; and voluntarily eliminating practices that harm the public sphere, regardless of legality.

Please feel free to email me with any TLAs that you want to get the bottom (meaning!) of.

Tips, Short+Hot Keys

Over the next few newsletters, we are going to look at all you can do with Alt, Shift, Ctrl and backspace:

• Access "Delete the selection or the character to the left of the insertion point" Backspace
• Excel "Delete the character to the left of the insertion point, or delete the selection or edit the active cell and then clear it, or delete the preceding character in the active cell as you edit cell contents" Backspace
• PowerPoint "Delete one character to the left or go to the previous slide or perform the previous animation or return to the previous slide" Backspace
• Publisher "Delete one character to the left of the insertion point" Backspace
• Explorer "View the folder one level up, display the contents of the parent directory of an active directory while working in Tree View; it may open a new window, depending on the options selected" Backspace
• Frontpage "Delete one character to the left" Backspace
• IE "Go to the previous page " Backspace
• Windows "View the folder one level up" Backspace
• Word "Delete selected text or to delete the character to the left of where is positioned while editing" Backspace

Hot Linx

If you need any help with understanding how to reference for academic writing, then Purdue University in the US have a wonderful treasure trove of information, available online at http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/. Check out the shortcuts on the right-hand side of the page :-)

Hudson Global Resources have a new report out posing the question "could the best man for the job be a woman?". View the global report from the NZ website at http://nz.hudson.com/documents/emp-au-global-report-could-the-Best-Man-for-the-job-be-a-woman.pdf

How's this for a great new way to find a carpark! Go to http://www.parkatmyhouse.com/ and seek a park near your work - or you urbanites can list a spare space that you have at your place during the day

And to ensure you get just the right gear for that thing you want to do, check out the website http://www.hirethings.com/ for all the items you could possibly need. Like TradeMe, you can select by area to see what is available close to home :-)

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                                Catch you again soon!! E-mail your suggestions to me here

read more "Newsletter Issue 165, May 2009 "

Newsletter Issue 160, January 2009

Sam Young Newsletter

Issue 160, January 2009

Hi guys,

To push your organisation ahead in these tougher times, think about The Advantages of Advisory Boards as a strategic business asset.

If, when you double click on a file, the wrong application opens, check out the tip on Changing File Associations. 

Winmail.dat   TLAs for SMEs        Tips, Short & Hot Keys        Hot Linx

Don't forget, if you want to be taken off my mailing list, click here to send me a reply e-mail and I will remove your name.

The Advantages of Advisory Boards

Paul Rosanowski, director, business owner and immediate past president of the Nelson Tasman Chamber of Commerce, wrote this article recently and has kindly allowed me to share it with you.

Typically the Directors/Owners of small businesses will work IN the business all day and then part of the night to complete some of the unfinished business of the day.

During these tough economic times (with possibly more to come!) it is very important for Directors/Owners to know where their businesses are taking them. Often, the Directors/Owners have not had time to consider where they want it to go and will get around to it next week! As we know, this invariably does not happen.

Approximately 96% of the businesses in the Nelson/Tasman area have 2 to 5 employees and of these employees it is generally found that they are also the Directors/Owners.

An Advisory Board can be set up with one or two professional people from outside the business. These people will assist with being a sounding board for the Directors/Owners. They are there to assist by giving another perspective, to ask the “why” questions that you have not considered and to give advice on the issues. This group would normally get together on a monthly basis and review the business along with any other items the Directors/Owners may want to put on the agenda. Put together a good board of advisors and you’ll create a powerful asset that can make a huge difference when you need to get objective advice.

The position on an Advisory Board has the responsibility for supporting the Directors/Owners, their advice is non-binding. Set expectations of the advisors, choose the right people and ask for honesty. Advisory Boards will advise, evaluate and play devil’s advocate which will assist you with your decisions.

If you would like to know more about how to get started with an Advisory Board, contact Paul.

Changing File Associations

If you want to change the default programme that views a particular kind of file, it's relatively easy.

We will look at a slightly tricky example however, eg changing the default viewer of .gif files from the GIF viewer to the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer. The Windows Picture and Fax Viewer has a very non-obvious file name and location: it's contained in the shimgvw.dll file in the C:\Windows\System32 folder.

Once you know where the file is located, setting GIFs to open with Windows Picture and Fax Viewer is basically the same as setting any other file association:

To change the programme associated with a specific file type of in XP:

1. Open Windows Explorer
2. Select Tools | Folder Options | File Types
3. Scroll to .gif in the Registered file types box
4. In the Details for .gif extension area, click Change. A new Open With dialog will appear.
5. Windows Picture and Fax Viewer may already be listed as an Open With option. If it is, select it and check the box for Always use the selected programme to open this kind of file. Click OK and you're good to go.
   If Windows Picture and Fax Viewer isn't listed as an Open With option, click Browse to bring up a more detailed Open With dialogue. In the Files of type list at the bottom of this dialogue, select All Files. Navigate to the C:\Windows\System32 folder, select shimgvw.dll, and click Open. You'll now go back to the previous dialogue. Check the Always use the selected programme box, click OK, and you're done.

Vista doesn't have the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer applet, but you can still change your default image viewers via Default Programmes in the Control Panel:

1. To open Default Programmes, press the Windows key, type 'default programs', and press Enter.
2. Click Associate a file type or protocol with a specific programme, scroll to and select .gif, and click the Change programme button.
3. Make your selection from the list that appears, or click Browse and then navigate to and select the executable file for the programme you'd like to use to open .gifs.
4. Don't forget to check Always use the selected programme to open this kind of file at the bottom of the Open With dialog.

And remember, this same process can be used to change any file associations or Open With dialogues that aren't working the way you want them to.

Thanks to Windows Secrets Newsletter for this great tip (http://windowssecrets.com/)

Winmail.dat

Those of you who puzzle over a ".dat" file attached to an email that is impossible to open need to read on.

Usually called winmail.dat, this is error where a legitimate email attachment has got tangled up in the formatting information for RTF (rich-text format) messages sent by Outlook.

The system used by Outlook for this is called TNEF (Transport Neutral Encapsulation Format) but despite the word ‘neutral’ it’s a proprietary Microsoft format. Because it’s an in-house Microsoft format some non-MS email programmes can’t convert the incoming message into a fully formatted message – the result is plain text plus that mysterious winmail.dat attachment.

How to fix the problem? Click reply on the email, change the email format to "Plain Text" (a toolbar icon in Outlook 2003), and ask the sender to reattach the attachment & resend.

You can also make sure that your default email formatting is set to "HTML" and ask your sender to do the same; which will prevent future occurances.

TLAs for SMEs

Here are this newsletter's TLAs for you:

• SOA, Service-Oriented Architecture. The underlying structure supporting communications between services, defining how two computing entities (eg programmes) interact & enable one entity to perform a unit of work on behalf of another entity.
• SOAP, Simple Object Access Protocol. SOAP-based Web services are becoming the most common implementation of SOA.

Please feel free to email me with any TLAs that you want to get the bottom (meaning!) of.

Tips, Short+Hot Keys

Over the next few newsletters, we are going to look at all you can do with Alt and letters. This time it's X:

• Word "Display Mark Index Entry dialog box while working" Alt & Shift & X
• Windows "Maximize the active window if it is minimized" Alt & Spacebar & X
• Excel "To enlarge the Help window to fill the screen" Alt & Spacebar, Then X

Hot Linx

No doubt there are some of you out there who don't get Management magazine each month. However, NZIM have decided to make their articles available online to non-members, the month after publication. Go to http://www.management.co.nz/

To check the download speed provided by your ISP to your PC, go to http://speedchecker.org/ and run the speed test. Very useful!

If you want to keep up with all the latest happening on the web design front, then go to http://www.digital-web.com/ for articles of interest. There are some useful articles and freebies (such as an extract of "Know Your Site" at http://www.digital-web.com/articles/extract_know_your_site/)

For those non-iPod users amongst us, there are a couple of good sites to buy and download music from; try www.mp3fiesta.com and www.millisong.com

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                                Catch you again soon!! E-mail your suggestions to me here

read more "Newsletter Issue 160, January 2009"