Management Blog

Faster broadband will boost economy

Ubiquitous broadband Internet services could add $30billion to the economy, bolster organisational productivity and help create in new markets, The Australian reports.

The story argues that faster, more expansive Internet connections could turn around Australia's lacklustre productivity growth, which has fallen below 2 per cent this decade.

Our current broadband infrastructure is nothing to be proud of. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has placed Australia 17th in a ranking of 24 countries with regard to Internet connections.

Australia's basic broadband speed is 256 kilobits per second; proposals for high-speed fibre networks would see an increase of up to 10 megabits of data per second.

Getting over procrastination

Unlike the common cold, there is a cure for that annoying ailment known as procrastination. And it's a completely pain free remedy.

Mark Foster is the author of three books on time management and personal organisation. His blog markfoster.net includes a guide to conquering procrastination.

Foster suggests we say to ourselves 'I'll just get the file out' when procrastination comes knocking: "Once you've got the file out you have a choice: you can either put the file away again, or you can do some work on the report."

He says nine times out of ten we'll end up doing some work on that project just by opening a file or clicking open a document. By repeating this process you'll eventually complete the project.

Five ways to hold a masterful meeting

When they're done badly, meetings can be one of the more painful aspects of business life. Thankfully it is an area that can be improved if you follow a few simple guidelines.

Forbes magazine offers the following five tips on how to become a meeting maestro. In summary these are:

1. Invite right – make sure the person with the authority to make a decision is at the meeting

2. Have an agenda – everyone should have a copy prior to the meeting so they can prepare

3. Timing is everything – always keep to the time limit

4. Decisions, decisions – have a process for decision-making, e.g. majority rules or unanimous agreement

5. Action it – create deadlines for the objectives discussed in the meeting and have a follow-up process

Fake online reviewers put on notice

Hotels, restaurants and e-tailers could face criminal charges for posting false reviews about themselves under assumed names when a new European Union directive becomes law.

A number of company employees in the UK and US have been caught out after pretending to be customers and leaving positive online reviews in a bid to increase sales, The Times reports.

The power of online reviews has grown rapidly in recent years as customers look to other customers for recommendations during the decision-making process.

"A recent investigation found that poorly rated travel establishments could lift their reputations from one to four stars in hours by posting fictional positive reviews."

Hello, it's an advertiser calling

You could experience a barrage of telephone advertising by the end of the year with telecommunications and media companies currently developing new ad formats for mobile phones.

Telstra BigPond has already started selling video ad spots to companies like Toyota, NAB and Coke that will reach AFL fans via their mobile phones during the footy season.

Will consumers embrace mobile phone ads? According to The Australian: "Research and early trails appear to indicate people are likeliest to accept advertising if they can access content for free in exchange."

Research by the Australian Interactive Media Industry Association has found 77 per cent of people will accept advertising if it allowed them to access free content. 

Seven ways to find and keep talent

Economists in the US are predicting the outbreak of "the most intensive war for talent in the history of American business". It's a battle that may also be staged in Australia with predictions of an impending skills shortage looking more and more real every day.

To help you attract and retain top talent CIO magazine has identified seven tips based on the practices of America's leading IT organisations. In summary, these are:

1. Don't be shy – managers should personally follow up top prospects and sell the benefits of their culture

2. Offer challenging work – don't allow your best people to be bored, challenge them with interesting initiatives

3. Deliver opportunities – give workers avenues to further their career; talk to candidates about where they could go in the organisation

4. Support their potential – provide mentoring, meaningful attention or latitude in the execution of job roles

5. Trust your staff – respecting your employees also means putting up with their mistakes, it's all part of the leaning process

6. Recognise success – acknowledge and reward performers

7. Create a buzz – find the fun and make the work energising and enjoyable

Want to make your ideas work?

Creating an 'sticky' idea isn't about unbridled creativity or originality, it's about adapting the traits of previously successful ideas, according to the new book Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.

Authors Chip Heath and Dan Heath suggest successful ideas across a range of industries have one of more of the following traits in common: simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, emotional or story-based.

The authors use analogies when describing these traits. When writing about simplicity they discuss the power of a military leader's intent, i.e. a clearly defined goal that helps every soldier understand what to do during battle.

According to Business Week: "The book's originality lies in the connections it makes between real work examples of sticky ideas and the deeper explanations of why the six traits are important to human behaviour".

Remote work finds its feet in the UK

A recent study on teleworking has found almost half the UK's best companies allow employees to perform some of their work duties at home, The Times reports.

According to the article: "The proportion of staff working one morning or afternoon a week at home has more than doubled in the past two years, from 14.1 per cent to 31.7 per cent."

The growth of broadband Internet access is cited as one of the reasons why an increasing number of employees are taking up the remote work option.

The report shows the sharpest rise in teleworking occurred at some of the UK most successful companies. The study also found that employees who are allowed to work from home generally find their jobs more rewarding.

Achieve the perfect pitch

Training – not some God given gift – is the key to delivering highly persuasive presentations to clients, colleagues or investors, according to a recent article in The Australian on how to make 'the big pitch'.

The piece suggests one common pitfall for untrained presenters is the overuse of computer-generated visual aids as these props can inundate the audience with messages.   

The following tips are offered for presenters wishing to hone their skills:

1. Make technical information easy to understand

2. Keep your PowerPoint show simple and brief

3. Get professional help with structure and flow 

4. Rehearse your presentation

5. Set a time limit and keep to it

6. Stick to your planned structure

Australia records a drop in female executives

The number of women in senior management positions at Australian firms has fallen by 6 per cent since 2004, according to a new international study.

The Grant Thornton International Business Report placed Australia sixteenth in the world for its proportion of companies with female managers, a drop from ninth in 2004.

The three top performing countries were the Philippines, China and Malaysia. Countries to report a fall in the number of women in senior roles included Australia, Mexico, New Zealand and the US.

Grant Thornton Victoria CEO Kathleen Bailey-Lord describes the findings as grim. She suggests many women are frustrated by barriers to senior roles and are choosing to start their own ventures.