Management Corner

Evidently I will “realize a great fortune one day.” I’m wondering when that is, because as I sit here eating Sesame Chicken it doesn’t seem to have arrived yet. Anyone who knows me will agree I’ve been fortunate in nearly every aspect of life, but great fortune has not arrived yet. So it begs the question, since a fortune cookie can’t possibly be wrong, when will it arrive? I’d like to know because it has a huge impact on my retirement plans. I love what I do, but I don’t do what [...]

Today I left my house and thought the same thing I have thought nearly each morning this year.  “I really need to replace the tires on my Toyota FJ SUV.”  Earlier in the year the Toyota dealer suggested I replace them but I figured they were just trying to sell me stuff slightly before I needed it (thereby incrementally increasing customer lifetime value, don’t let anyone fool you, it’s the ultimate measure of business success).  Fortunately I was onto the mechanic’s devious attempts [...]

If, in 2011, you ever get a Performance Management software demo that shows you a speedometer, RUN: Skype your work-wife/husband, check Facebook, search for LinkedIn contacts, anything that is a productive use of your time.  The airplane/automobile dashboard analogy is a good analogy (yes, you actually can’t drive by looking in the rearview mirror) but it doesn’t mean you should actually visualize your critical business information using speedometers, even with mobile technology. Here’s why…  [...]

Reflecting on my trip to one of the largest conferences that Microsoft puts on each year.  There aren’t many companies left standing that can still throw big, old fashioned mega-conferences featuring rock-stars and world-class chefs; most have been weeded out, or at least now possess a more realistic perspective on Wolfgang Puck’s ability to differentiate them.  But in this, as in nearly everything, Microsoft is different.  Microsoft probably made a profit on this event. Conference attendees [...]

Ensuring compliance with SOX is a top concern for many companies. Section 409 of SOX requires companies to disclose material changes in their financial conditions or operations, by updating information on your social media networking sites. Yet, companies are not permitted to forego the ostensibly archaic press release or mass communication method of public disclosure concerning material changes. However, companies have been authorized to post financial statements on their websites and the Internet [...]

The 2004 revamping of federal overtime rules was supposed to clarify things for employers. But the opposite has occurred. Private lawsuits filed by multiple employees have jumped 77% over the past five years, according to the National Employment Lawyers Association. Overtime lawsuits often come down to a question of exactly how many hours the employee actually worked. Last month, the federal Department of Labor (DOL) announced the release of its first smartphone application, a timesheet [...]

I must confess, it is very cool to sit down in your business class seat, open up your new iPad, let your neighbor assume you’re an important, high-level executive flicking through your company’s latest performance data, with its trendy black background and fancy interactive graphics.  It’s infinitely more eye-catching than turning PowerPoint slides no matter how good the color printing is.  It will impress the neighbors and make you new Facebook friends, but will what most people consider [...]