INSIGHT Issue 3
December 2013
Welcome The Cathara Consulting Team
Welcome to the December issue of INSIGHT.
Inside
As 2013 nears its end, the Cathara Consulting Team can’t quite believe that it’s almost over – the year simply flew by!
In This Issue
From all accounts 2013 was a challenging year that delivered many across Western Australia with ups and downs along the way, but also presented many with opportunities to regroup, diversify, change, and grow.
Stop Talking and Get to Work! 3
To all of our clients, past and present, we would like to thankyou for your continued business, friendship and support throughout 2013. We wouldn’t be here without you, and we look forward to nurturing our relationships into 2014.
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We would also like to officially recognise and thank everyone in the Cathara Consulting Team – both past and present - for all of their hard work in 2013.
But isn’t talking a central part of my job?
Disaster Recovery It’s not all doom and gloom.
The Three Keys to Leading Your Team to High Performance We tell you how to can get your team performing at its peak and delivering more value.
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Inspire “It is not only what we do, but also what we do not do, for which we are accountable.”
The focus for Issue 3 of INSIGHT is on providing you with advice and tips for achieving business success – both in your career and within an organisation - courtesy of experts in their relevant fields. We hope you enjoy the articles, and if you would like to learn more about any of the topics, feel free to contact us on 08 6316 4416 for a chat or to arrange a meeting with the writer. Also, if there is anything you would like to see featured in future issues, or if you would like to contribute or be interviewed for future issues, don’t hesitate to email the Editor at: newsletter@catharaconsulting.com Wishing you all a safe and joyful festive season, an enjoyable summer and the happiest of New Years.
- Molière a : Level 29, The Forrest Centre 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
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News Recent Success Cathara Consulting is pleased to announce that the Cathara Consulting Alliance has been awarded a place on the Business Advisory Services panel for the WA Police Department. We look forward to working with the WA Police Department in the future.
Our DNA Coming together is a beginning; Keeping together is progress; Working together is success. - Henry Ford Since inception, we aimed to build something of a far higher quality than other firms in the same space. We dedicate ourselves to a set of principles and values we nickname the Cathara Consulting ‘DNA’.
Pursuit of meaningfulness & higher purpose We work to improve ourselves and to make a difference in our clients lives, with no compromise to our values and ethics.
Empowerment Every person who works for the company is passionate about their chosen field, and are empowered to be innovative and create in order to deliver.
We are not sales people We nurture long-term, mutually beneficial relationships that come from putting our heart and soul into our work, and focusing on quality delivery and value.
We embrace diversity Each person who works for Cathara Consulting enriches our company and is recognised as a diverse, unique and invaluable individual.
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a : Level 29, The Forrest Centr 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
Janine Ripper, Cathara Consulting Manager and PMO Practice Lead, was recently a finalist in the Inspiration Award Category of the 2013 Belmont Small Business Awards. Janine was nominated for her work in Cathara Consulting and within the wider community. We congratulate Janine for all of her efforts.
From Left: Tom Crijns, Janine Ripper, Lainey Murphy and Craig D’Souza
Talent Search We are on the look out for people to join our team in 2014. If you are, or know of someone, who would fit in with the Cathara Consulting team and our DNA (see left of page) email us at info@catharaconsulting.com for more details. Our New Services In 2013 we diversified our business, branching out into strategy, planning and communication; business process improvement; and PMO and Project Management auditing (or as we like to call them – health checks). We guarantee that no matter what we are engaged to do, or how long the engagement, we pour our heart and soul into the task at hand to help you grow and succeed. If you need help with any of these areas, don’t hesitate to contact us for a confidential discussion over coffee or lunch on 08 6316 4416 or info@catharaconsulting.com. p: w:
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Stop Talking and Get to Work! But Isn’t Talking a Central Part of My Job? Nicky Howe
When I’m asked what I do for a job I often say I listen and talk. I have lots of conversations with lots of people, yet so many times I find myself in situations where I hear managers say “They talk too much”; “I don’t have time to talk to them, so I will send an email”; or “All they did at the meeting was talk”. Talking vs. Conversations So, are talking and conversation the same thing? Is the reason why people don’t consider talking as work because they are not able to define the distinctions between the various types of ‘talk’ or ‘conversations’ we have, and the results they can produce. In today’s world the most important work in the knowledge economy is our ability to have effective conversations. Nonetheless, I continue to be amazed at how many people don’t realise the importance and value that conversations have in the workplace. Organisational structures, systems, processes, hierarchy, technology and geographical distance, are just a few of the barriers that can cause people to not have effective conversations with each other.
The most important work in the knowledge economy is our ability to have effective conversations. As a leader I argue that your role is to create an environment where people see that the only way work gets done in an organisation is through conversations. All of the barriers that are put up as reasons why people don’t talk to each other can equally be enablers if you choose to observe them from another perspective. The Conversations Model A key component of leadership development is to expose people to the notion that organisations are a series of conversations, and that work gets done through conversations and relationships. A model I use to illustrate this point is the “Conversations Model” (© Newfield Institute) that argues a : Level 29, The Forrest Centre 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
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there are primarily three groups of conversations. They include conversations for: 1. Connection and intimacy - These establish connection e.g. “How was your weekend?” 2. Shared Understanding - Trying to be understood and understand in order to make plans and decisions e.g. “Oh so you mean X …Ok let’s call them” 3. Coordinating Action – Getting things done through making agreements about who will do what by when e.g. “Ok so I will call Ken and arrange a time to collect A…” Effective Conversations As leaders it is essential that we develop our conversational skills so that we achieve organisational objectives.
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Effective conversations enable us to accomplish:
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Clarity and shared understanding;
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Possibility (including new ideas and new ways of thinking);
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Agreement and commitment;
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Strategic direction;
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Cooperation, coordination and collaboration;
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Improved relationships; and
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Desired outcomes.
Reflect for a minute: Where do you think your strengths or limitations apply in terms of these purposes for conversations?
As leaders it is essential that we develop our conversational skills so that we achieve organisational objectives.
About the writer: Nicky Howe is the CEO of Southcare, and a leadership and management coach. For a further conversation “conversations”, contact Nicky nicky@nickyhowe.com.
on at
You can also check out her website: http://www.nickyhowe.com.
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a : Level 29, The Forrest Centr 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
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Why Success Is a FourPronged Attack Douglas Lim
After many years running my own traditional business that has now grown to employ 30 staff, I have found myself at both extremes of the work/life balance. When I first started, I worked in excess of 120 hours per week, as we didn’t have enough cash flow to employ staff at the time. I became the linchpin of the business –the technical guy, sales guy, HR guy…the list goes on. But as time goes by, you gain experience and learn to delegate and automate so you can scale your business up without having to be the linchpin. That is why having a mentor is so important - I didn’t have one at the time and wish that I had. This is one lesson I learnt. Having run my own business, I have also learnt that success is achieved via a fourpronged attack involving four areas of life: work, family, health and spiritual. Each of these elements affects each other. Tips for Achieving Success Here are some of my proven tips for achieving success across all four elements – this is done through establishing a work/life balance: 1. Set boundaries and stick to them. For example, if you are going on a family trip, then set a boundary to not take work calls during this time, and to focus on your family. You have to learn to say no and be strict to keep these boundaries in place. a : Level 29, The Forrest Centre 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
2. Avoid checking work emails before you go to sleep AND first thing in the morning. You don't want your last memory before you go to sleep to be about work! This can stress you out and lead to an awful nights sleep. If you’re having trouble doing this, try it out for 21 days – after all, it takes 21 days to form a habit. 3. Get involved in some form of physical activity every week. Whether it’s going to the gym, playing a team sport, or going for a run, you are more productive if you exercise. Besides, you release a lot of stress when you exercise, which can also mean that you are more mentally involved with your family when you’re at home. 4. Lastly, learn to be efficient at work or in business. Set a maximum of three to four important tasks to concentrate on each day and focus on getting them done. Once you have achieved those, you will feel less stressed and have a sense of achievement, which makes for a great home life. Do you currently have work-life balance? If so, what do you do to achieve this, and if not, why not use some of Douglas’ tips, and let us know how you go! About the writer: Douglas Lim is the Director and co-founder of Alyka (http://alyka.com.au), a digital agency that provides services such as online marketing and web design. You can check out his blog at http://douglaslim.org. p: w:
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Being Mindful
Disaster Recovery It’s Not All Doom and Gloom
Terrie Kelly
Sit back and take a moment to think about the term “Disaster Recovery”. ‘Disaster Recovery’ is one of those terms that rarely carries with it warm and fuzzy feelings. Instead, it brings to mind doom and gloom, and inevitably the feeling that the sky is falling down. The interesting thing about Disaster Recovery is that it’s not all about doom and gloom; it’s about protection from the unknown so that in the event of a disaster, you can recover quickly and continue on successfully. IT Disasters There are many things that can be considered a disaster for businesses that rely on computers to store and use data: Natural Disasters – These are few and far between in Western Australia, but if we look at events in other states and countries, we certainly see that fires, flooding and cyclones cannot be overlooked; Hardware or Software Failure / Corruption – If you work in IT you would have seen the results of server failure or software corruption. If one of these incidents was to occur on a critical system, it could have catastrophic results. Human Error – Human error accounts for over 30% of all data loss, although in most cases it is easily recoverable. This excludes malicious acts of individuals. 6
a : Level 29, The Forrest Centr 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
In the last issue we introduced the concept of Mindfulness. In this issue, we provide some basic tips on how to build the practice of mindfulness into everyday life. Tune In To Your Breath Pause throughout your day, taking a few minutes to notice your breathing. Sense the flow of the breath, the rise and fall of your belly, how deep or shallow each breath is. Don’t force yourself to change how you are breathing – just become aware.
Give Yourself a Break From Thinking Take moments throughout the day to tune in to your senses. Listen to the sounds around you, notice the space your body fills, the temperature, the smells.
Disconnect Walk between meetings -without checking your emails or texting – feel your feet on the floor, the air on the skin, and greet colleagues you pass rather than running into them while texting!
Savor Your Lunch Walk away from the computer screen and actually take a lunch break. Sit quietly and savor every bite – pay attention to every chew, every flavor, the smell of your food, and the texture of every morsel. Notice when your body tells you that you are full.
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The one thing that all of these items have in common is that they cannot be predicted. Studies in Disaster Recovery A study carried out by a partnership of FalconStor Software and IDG Research Services found that 42% of companies did not have a proper Disaster Recovery solution in place at the start of 2013. The study indicated that the companies that participated in the study experienced an average of 34 instances of data loss and outages over the course of a year and that most of the participants were relying solely on tape backup as their Disaster Recovery solution. Further to this, 53% of organizations who participated in the study reported that an outage of more than 4 hours was unacceptable. Looking further into Disaster Recovery statistics, it has been estimated by The Disaster Recovery Journal that up to 80% of all U.S. companies and 90% of European companies don’t have an effective DR plan, with the numbers for Australia closely reflecting those of the U.S. An IDC report claims that approximately 90% of companies fail within 12 months of a significant data loss. This is typically a direct result of loss of income caused by the loss of financial systems.
80% of all US companies and 90% of European companies don't have an effective DR plan.
Recovery. Most of us have home or car insurance, protecting us in the event of an accident or other occurrence that may cause damage to our property. Although we never know what might happen, insurance allows us to be prepared, and in the event of a disaster, to recover quickly. Disaster Recovery for businesses is much the same; think of it as protecting your business from loss of data and shortening your recovery time in the event of unforeseen circumstances. With a proper Disaster Recovery plan, and associated procedures and systems in place, you know that your companies data is well protected and that your business will be able to recover and continue on successfully while those around you without some form of Disaster Recovery in place may fail due to data loss. Disaster Recovery isn’t all doom and gloom; it’s about enabling businesses to succeed following events that would cause others to fail.
When we look at those numbers, we easily understand that Disaster Recovery is underestimated.
About the writer: Terrie Kelly is a Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity specialist with over 10 years of experience across an array of industries.
Why You Need a Disaster Recovery Plan With the doom and gloom out of the way lets focus on the positive aspects of Disaster
For more info, you can terrie.kelly@bizvault.com.au.
a : Level 29, The Forrest Centre 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
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Project Manager or Business Owner?
Muriel Demarcus
I sometimes wonder how I ended up in project management. It probably has something to do with the fact that I’m a bit bossy. I like to get things done: there is a time to talk, and then there is a time to do something about it. What I like about managing projects is that you have real deliverables and that you either deliver them or you don’t. A Career in Project Management I was the first female Project Manager for the Line 14 driverless Tube line in Paris. We started a brand new Tube line in Paris, which hadn’t been done for over a century! I loved every minute of it and am still proud of such an achievement, even if it kept me busy for days and nights over a period of years. Setting Up a Business More than 10 years later I have now established my own business. My company builds and rents out warehouses to store and maintain boats in St Tropez, France. Without event realising it, my background as a project manager was the perfect training for this. As a business owner you need to communicate and deliver – these are also the key aspects to being a project manager. This let me to ponder - in order to be a good project manager, don’t you also need to be entrepreneurial? After all, your project is your business right? You want it to succeed. You make it grow. YOU take it to the next stage. 8
a : Level 29, The Forrest Centr 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
Being a project manger is perfect preparation if you want to start your own business. Being a project manger is the perfect preparation for starting your own business. That being said, it is dependent on how you want to run your project or business. Some love to use jargon and new software that nobody understands. I remember getting a glossary of acronyms once to help me understand what people were talking about on some projects. This can add a layer of complexity, and can frankly be a real pain. As for me, I like to keep it simple and even stupid KISS - everybody needs to understand where the project or business is heading. There is no need to make it more complicated that it needs to be. Once you have been a project manager all other career options seem a bit dull. I found that after a stint in strategy and finance I eventually went back to project management. So be warned - once a project manager, always a project manager! About the writer: Muriel Demarcus is a Project Manager turned Business Owner and Blogger. She currently lives in London, and blogs at www.FrenchYummyMummy.com. You can contact Muriel at FrenchYummyMummy@yahoo.fr.
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The Three Keys to Leading Your Team to Higher Performance Craig D’Souza Regardless if you’re an operational or a project team leader I have one question for you - Would you like to know how you can get your team performing at its peak, deliver more value to your customers, and make your peers stand up and pay attention? “Of course!” I hear you saying. Well, strap on your seatbelts and let me tell you how you can do it. Firstly, the good news. Whether they know the three keys or not, most leaders and managers are simply not using them. Why is that good news? It’s a wake-up call for you - it means you have the opportunity, right here and right now, to gain the advantage. Releasing Human Potential When consulting to organisations, both large and small, I am regularly confronted with ill conceived and out-dated thinking and practices about how to release human potential and turn it into results. Unfortunately, what I frequently see is the application of techniques, which consistently deliver lower results - and when they don’t work, they simply try doing them harder! Effort isn’t the issue. Let me put it this way. If you were using a hammer on a screw and making a mess of it, should you try hitting it harder? Clearly, the wrong tool for the job is being used, and strangely, with insistence on its success! Yet, this is what I see. a : Level 29, The Forrest Centre 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
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I agree with Pink. I’ve applied these three key principles in organisations and found that they raise performance significantly. And by performance, I mean increased profits, acquiring new customers, higher customer satisfaction and increased employee earnings. Like any concept, how you implement it makes all the difference.
There is a false belief that applying pressure to people to increase performance is “real” management. Actually, that’s force. The other approach I see frequently is the ineffective usage of incentives. Allow me to save you the effort and aggravation. Where these folks are going wrong is that they are trying to manage performance when what they need to be doing is leading it. So what’s the difference? As motivation expert Dan Pink noted, “there’s a mismatch between what science knows and what business does.” He explains that tapping into your team’s passion is associated with three key factors: 1. Autonomy over one’s time or task; 2. A sense of task mastery; and 3. A sense of purpose. “Carrots and sticks are so last century”, quips Pink, “we need to upgrade to autonomy, mastery and purpose.”
Carrots and sticks are so last century, we need to upgrade to autonomy, mastery and purpose. 10
a : Level 29, The Forrest Centr 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
What You Need to Know Firstly, motivation is a slippery subject and often misunderstood. I believe this is because people use logic and reason to analyse motivation, and jump to conclusions about what motivates people. This is where they come off the rails. Logic and reason are tools of management, not leadership. There is nothing wrong with them, but motivation is far more intertwined with emotions and feelings. Passion by definition is a strong feeling and that’s what we want to tap into here. We need to get the heart involved – that is our power source. Think About It Autonomy is a feeling of freedom over your time and approach. A sense of mastery is a feeling of satisfaction and pride with yourself that you have developed a high level of proficiency. A sense of purpose is a feeling of significance and meaningfulness in your endeavours. It is a spiritual concept and is the threshold to inspired levels of performance. What Motivates People Leadership legend Ken Blanchard put it this way: “What motivates people is what motivates people.” What he is saying is that what motivates one person may not motivate another. This will probably be the biggest challenge you’ll face in motivating your team, but the solution is closer p: w:
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than you may think. “How do you know what motivation works with which employees? “ It’s simple. Ask them! How to implement successfully It turns out that high performing leaders keep it simple by simply being human. First, they find out how their people would like to apply their strengths in relation to the work that needs doing. They find out which skills their people are passionate about mastering. And they find out what’s meaningful for their people and would lead them to pour their energy into.
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exercise in complete absorption, where striving for peak performance allows us to block out distractions. ‘Flow’ is dependent upon a critical balance of task challenges and skills. The sweet spot is right in between (remember Goldilocks), and leads to a deeply rewarding experience. The activity itself becomes its own reward. At the risk of stating the obvious, you won’t raise performance by simply having this knowledge. Only by applying these three keys as you lead your team will they move to higher performance.
Once they’re equipped with this knowledge they are in a position to look for ways to connect the employee’s passion to the organisation’s needs. What you’ll find after having this conversation with your employee is that they will be more motivated to help you solve the problem. This is because the clarity gained by simply talking about what gets them going is a motivating factor. Ask yourself, once you know exactly what you want, aren’t you motivated to try and get it as quick as you can? And what does motivation do? It gets you moving. Warning: Don’t have the conversation if you are not going to act on it. It will back fire and you will more than likely lose that employee’s faith and loyalty permanently. One of the most devastating things to motivation is raising hopes and then dashing them. You will end up far worse off than before. Why it works (Goldilocks was right) This approach works because it allows people to achieve a ‘flow state.’ ‘Flow’ refers to a deep and sustained focus on, immersion in, and enjoyment of an activity. Entering ‘Flow’ is an a : Level 29, The Forrest Centre 221 St. George's Terrace, Perth WA 6000
About the writer: Craig D’Souza is a management consultant who enables organisations to realise new levels of performance. He has been involved in business improvement initiatives for 16 years, taking lead roles in implementing organisational change projects. For more info, you can craig.dsouza@iinet.net.au.
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In Profile: Janine Ripper Janine is a Manager and PMO/PM Practice Lead at Cathara Consulting, and an accredited PRINCE2, P3O and MSP Practitioner. Janine also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications. Janine has worked in Project Management in various roles for in excess of 12 years in a variety of industries. In the last few years she has become a PMO/PM Specialist, consulting to organisations in areas from PMO implementations and management, the establishment and refinement of project management standards and frameworks, through to mentoring people in best practice. At all other hours Janine is a blogger, writer, photographer and wishful traveller, who has a passion for communication and mentoring/coaching people in areas from social media, blogging, through to personal and small business development. Janine is currently studying for a Certificate IV in Life Coaching and Small Business. Janine's personal blog – Reflections from a Redhead http://reflectionsfromaredhead.com - is her way of changing the world one word at a time. She aims to one day write a book. Issue 3 :: January 2013
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About Cathara Consulting Cathara Consulting was conceived as a new type of consulting firm that provides quality work, deep insight into IT and business focus.
a: Level 29, The Forrest Centre, 221 St Georges Terrace, Perth, WA, 6000 p: +61 8 6316 4416 w: http://catharaconsulting.com e: info@catharaconsulting.com https://twitter.com/CatharaC http://www.linkedin.com/comp any/cathara-consulting
Our vision is to provide true value and quality to our clients, coupled with the specialist knowledge and access to skills found only in tier 1 firms. We achieve this by investing heavily in the training, mentoring and development of our people. This focus on skills distinguishes us from our competitors. Our focus is on quality delivery and results, not simply charging hours. Our clients pay for the results we produce. We offer a money back commitment to delivering on our promises. Our name comes from the Greek word katharos, denoting purity, simplicity and straightforwardness. This word symbolises our goals of ethical business dealings, partnership with our clients and integrity as well as a singleminded focus on the interests of those we work for. Copyright Š 2013 / Cathara Consulting Pty Ltd. / All Rights Reserved