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Written by Robert Bacal
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Question:
Over the last few month I have been trying to encourage my staff to take on more responsibility, and to become more involved in branch decision-making. I have indicated at staff meetings that I wish to empower staff, and that I have an open door policy. So far nothing much has come of it. Staff seem hesitant to voice their opinions at staff meetings, and it almost seems that they don't want more involvement. I'm firmly convinced that our branch needs input from everyone, so I'm getting very frustrated and angry. |
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Losing Weight The Olympic Athlete Way
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Written by Robert Bacal
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Sure, we know the elements of weight loss and health. Good nutrition, lower fat intake, higher fruits and vegetables, + using up more calories yields less fat on our frames. Of course knowing these things doesn't make the fat go away. Applying the knowledge does. |
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Work Stress Getting To You? Getting Help With No Shame
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Written by Robert Bacal
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There is a strong tendency to resist the idea that we might need help. It may surprise you to know that many more people seek help than you might think. In fact, it is likely that within your circle of friends or colleagues, at least one person (and probably more) have gone for some form of counselling or support. People just don't talk about it much. This leaves the impression that counselling is for "weak" people, or somehow means that people who seek it out are "abnormal" in some way. It is the opposite. People who ask for help when they need it show a maturity and awareness of themselves that others may not. |
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Stressed Out? Some Solutions You Probably Haven't Tried
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Written by Robert Bacal
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We all experience stress in our lives. Some of us thrive on it. Some of us muddle through. And for others, the stress causes serious health and work problems. As life has gotten faster and more complex, it gets more and more difficult to thrive. Apart from the usual stress management "suspects", like eating well, exercising and so on, there are some techniques you can use to reduce the stress in your life (or at least make your reactions more constructive.) |
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Abuse Of Internet Access At Work
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Written by Robert Bacal
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I am a manager in a government office that has recently been “wired” so that each employee has access to the Internet. At present staff can surf the net, and use electronic mail. It has come to my attention that one of our staff has been spending inordinate time on the Internet, and there has been a suggestion that he has been accessing “adult sites” while at work. Do you have any comments or suggestions? |
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The Role Of Human Resources Departments
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Written by Robert Bacal
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Some human resource departments have maintained an old command and control mentality, where they see their jobs as making sure managers and employees are doing what they are s'posed to. Is everyone on time? Why not? What about sick leave? Are all the rules being followed? It's not that these departments are misguided, because some rules, (e.g.. hiring practices, safety, harassment, etc.) ARE important and need to be handled centrally by a company. Or, certain programs and procedures may best be handled by a central department because of the need to coordinate some actions across the entire company. |
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Managing Meeting Problems
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Written by Robert Bacal
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If you are called upon to chair meetings, you will doubtless encounter some common problems that occur when any group of people get together. While these problems are common, if they are left unmanaged, they will cause long term problems. Unmanaged meeting problems will result in wasted time, frustration, and a general dread of attending meetings in which these problems occur unchecked. |
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More Time Management Tactics For Busy People
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Written by Robert Bacal
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Delegating is an important tactic, not only to help you with your work load, but also or developing staff, and creating an atmosphere of employee empowerment. The critical component of delegating is to make sure each employee knows his/her degree of autonomy and authority. If parties are not clear, MORE time is wasted through delegation. |
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Staunching The Paper Flow - Tips For Time Management
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Written by Robert Bacal
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If you are like many managers and executives, each day brings a fresh river of paper to your desk. Some small percentage may be important enough to require immediate action. Some will require action, but not immediate action. Then there is material that requires no action, but, for one reason or another should be retained. And, some material will have no value to you whatsoever. |
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More On Surviving Meetings - Questions And Answers
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Written by Robert Bacal
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In last month's Public Sector Manager we suggested nine ways to make meetings work. From your responses, this topic of meeting management is one that is important to you, so we have decided to expand upon it this month. We have organized the ideas on surviving meetings in a question and answer format.
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When Enough Is Enough And It's Time To Turn Off The Technology
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Written by Robert Bacal
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I had to get some work done on my brakes. That entails bringing the car across town, and waiting on site until the work is completed. All told the time investment involved can eat up to two and a half hours of my work day. But luckily, I own a laptop computer that I can bring to the shop, so I can fill this normally ill-used time with useful activities. If I owned a cellular phone, I could also call clients, fax information, and receive faxed information. In other words, I could be a virtual office. I can work almost anywhere. |
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Technology & Productivity--Why We Get One Without The Other
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Written by Robert Bacal
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Technology is certainly changing the way we do things. Whether technology is resulting in increased productivity is a question that is often left unanswered. Perhaps one reason that it is not actively explored is that the answer is not one we want to contemplate. |
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Use "Flex Meetings" To Improve Communication & Increase Productivity
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Written by Robert Bacal
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Meetings are expensive. The more people at a meeting, and the more time spent the more expensive. That's one reason why meeting planning and management is so important particularly when we've moved to a more team based system of work. Effective meeting management is important for more than just the basic cost issues. If meetings are unnecessary, or unwieldy, people at the meetings get bored, frustrated, and start to find ways of avoiding attending. |
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The Curse Of Compromise And Total Quality Management
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Written by Robert Bacal
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If you have worked in government for any period of time, you have likely seen, and made compromises for the sake of expediency. We are not talking here about finding a middle ground with another person. What we are talking about is the situation where managers knowingly do things that they know are going to be ineffective. It is important to be aware of how those kinds of decisions impact upon introducing and implementing TQM in the workplace. |
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Written by Robert Bacal
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Certainly TQM can be defined in a number of ways, and the details of different approaches can vary somewhat. However, a good starting definition, drawn from Capezio & Morehouse is:
"Total Quality management refers to a management process and set of disciplines that are coordinated to ensure that the organization consistently meets and exceeds customer requirements. TQM engages all divisions, departments and levels of the organization. Top management organizes all of its strategy and operations around customer needs and develops a culture with high employee participation. TQM companies are focused on the systematic management of data of all processes and practices to eliminate waste and pursue continuous improvement. " |
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Written by Robert Bacal
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Yes, Total Quality Management fails. We don't hear too much about those. When it does not bring about improvement in the workplace, it is usually a result of faulty implementation rather than anything intrinsically wrong with the concepts. |
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Are YOU The Barrier To Quality Improvement?
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Written by Robert Bacal
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There is no question that the Total Quality Management bandwagon is getting more crowded. At the same time as some people (particularly line staff) are getting tired of what they see as empty TQM rhetoric, organizations are continuing to move towards some form of quality improvement process. Unfortunately, most of the people jumping on the bandwagon will end up falling amid the wheels. Some estimate that 80% of TQM efforts fail. |
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Where TQM & Politics Clash
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Written by Robert Bacal
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Last December, I had the opportunity to chat with a friend who works for a major Canadian consulting firm in the area of quality improvement, i asked him whether his company worked with public sector clients. He replied that while his company felt that this market would be lucrative, he also indicated that the government environment was difficult to manage. In particular, he mentioned two things: governments are too slow to make the commitment to quality improvement, and they are unwilling to embrace the concept that it takes an investment of time and money to improve a system as large as government. Doubtless, if he had more experience working with governments, he would have mentioned others. |
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TQM As Organizational Change
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Written by Robert Bacal
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The following is an article from our book entitled TQM In The Public Eye. This book is currently out of print
TQM As Organizational Change
Overview
Moving to TQM is like any other organizational change. It must be managed effectively, and leaders of the change must take into account aspects of the organization's current "culture".
In fact, although TQM brings a number of benefits to those in the organization, you can expect some people to be cynical and resistant to change. Let's face it. Everyone in government has seen management fads come and go. | |
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Avoiding The Perverted Inverted Pyramid
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Written by Robert Bacal
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If you are a regular reader of our publications, you will be aware that we are firm supporters of inverting the pyramid, empowering staff, and moving responsibility and decision-making down to the people that are in contact with the recipients of government services. But, we do need to put these efforts into the context of real life, and to be aware of the pitfalls that are in our paths. |
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Unclassified Articles 
