tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post7049378683414891278..comments2024-02-11T19:28:27.997+11:00Comments on Personal Reflections: Sunday Snippets + Monday ForumJim Belshawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-61377929057209346752017-03-28T18:29:50.234+11:002017-03-28T18:29:50.234+11:00I would never wish to cause affront, kvd. Perish t...I would never wish to cause affront, kvd. Perish the thought! I will surely pick those points up at some stage. Jim Belshawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-70384315821843383632017-03-28T13:37:04.822+11:002017-03-28T13:37:04.822+11:00Jim, I suspect if I thought too deeply about your ...Jim, I suspect if I thought too deeply about your 'micro-manager' diagnosis, I would probably feel somewhat affronted :)<br /><br />Let me restate what I believe is the basic operating principle of modern-day management:<br /><br />Blame avoidance; blame-amelioration; tick-all-the-boxes; and CYA.<br /><br />In no particular order and yes - 4 terms, not one - so I will leave it to you to assign designators between (among?) the managers you have encountered :)<br /><br />kvdAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-84981292477476306792017-03-27T11:33:30.389+11:002017-03-27T11:33:30.389+11:00Morning all. Sorry for my absence.
Remembering a...Morning all. Sorry for my absence. <br /><br />Remembering a past discussion, kvd, I do think that we established that you were a micro-manager, so it is almost certainly easier for you to do itself. Its a pity that management has largely disappeared as an art from, replaced by leadership on one side and systems and compliance on the other. The idea of getting best results from the people you have is sadly in abeyance! <br /><br />Interesting SMH piece, although it did take me to my SMH limit for the month. I'm not going to disagree with the points made. History is always written from inside looking out.<br /><br />So, 2t, you have given up on the idea that we must give Mr Trump at least 100 days? Or is it just the opinion writers? Perhaps the latter. For what it's worth, the reality checks he is now receiving may actually save his presidency. Its all a rich learning experience. Jim Belshawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-53098195124975964052017-03-26T18:10:17.454+11:002017-03-26T18:10:17.454+11:00Donald Trump is obviously doomed. The opinion writ...Donald Trump is obviously doomed. The opinion writers say so. <br /><br />More realistically, IF someone successfully brings a high court case re his overseas holdings, and IF he refuses to do something about it, something <i>might</i> happen, but my guess is that too many Republicans will be too scared to try and impeach him anyway. I think it requires a 2/3 majority, so he'd really have to have them scared to be associated with the Trump brand. Summary: Just not happening.<br /><br />My reading is that now that he is in Government, Wikileaks might not remain the great patriotic institution that he regarded it as in the second half of 2016. I assume their main agenda is to bignote themselves so taking down the front runner in 2016 and the incumbent president in 2020 would be high on their bucket list. Especially if the Democrats ran a Sanders-like figure.2 tannersnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-7075131420792178232017-03-24T17:33:02.765+11:002017-03-24T17:33:02.765+11:00"The way they write about them is really clic...<i>"The way they write about them is really cliched," she said. "They say, 'they look like animals', 'none of what they do is civilised', 'they're all terrible'.<br /><br />"And I just thought, how can this be true? There's so much obvious bias in these sources. What was really going on?"</i><br /><br />Now there's a woman who has a mind of her own, and maybe has seen through the veil - and good for her! And she wasn't talking about critics of Donald Trump and his supporters; she was talking about, well read it yourself:<br /><br />http://www.smh.com.au/world/ancient-romans-depicted-huns-as-barbarians-but-their-bones-tell-a-different-story-20170322-gv4bz7.html<br /><br />kvd<br /><br />ps Jim: given up managing. These days I just do it myself. Much quicker :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-78049482086151609202017-03-23T20:53:19.118+11:002017-03-23T20:53:19.118+11:00I was just praising you as a modern manager, kvd!I was just praising you as a modern manager, kvd!Jim Belshawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-37444530710282374822017-03-23T09:30:26.270+11:002017-03-23T09:30:26.270+11:00"To improve overall performance, you created ...<i>"To improve overall performance, you created new structures, added to central monitoring, risk assessment and quality assurance staff"</i><br /><br />Right there's one of your problems, Jim. <br /><br />Throwing more bodies at monitoring the performance, when blind freddy could see that more bodies were needed to actually perform the task/s. But I do admire the Pythonesque scenario you outline :)<br /><br />kvd<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-33508272285000533622017-03-21T08:03:08.092+11:002017-03-21T08:03:08.092+11:00kvd wrote: "The best way to get good (insert ...kvd wrote: "The best way to get good (insert desired result) out of (insert job description) is to hire good people, pay them the going rate and tell them to do the job to the best of their ability.<br /><br />Works for me; just embarrassed I didn't think of this approach first!"<br /><br />I'm sure that your approach was modern best practice, kvd. You defined the required competencies you were looking for, creating a matrix that would allow tick box assessment by the interview panel and (hopefully) self-assessment by the candidate. To ensure consistency and make it easier for all parties you developed a clear English guide. I know that it was a little long, 50 pages, but your heart was in the right place. <br /><br />Acting on advice from an HR consultant, you introduced a performance measurement system based on a small number of key indicators. Concerned about clients, your guide to ethics and performance emphasized ethical client service. It wasn't you fault that your measurement and performance systems created a conflict between your vision, values and actual staff requirements. <br /><br />Each month (or was it quarterly?; I can't remember), you reviewed the performance data and took corrective action with staff who were under-performing, who were failing to make targets. When you recognised that there were other problems emerging, you emphasised and re-emphasised the need to consider broader considerations. Indeed, you became something of a leader on the issue within your sector and beyond, including Government.<br /><br />To improve overall performance, you created new structures, added to central monitoring, risk assessment and quality assurance staff, refined competency based approaches and introduced new training. However, staff were still expected to meet the original performance targets while complying with the new requirements. <br /><br />Sadly, this didn't quite work. And so the cycle began again. Jim Belshawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-15310578440586011562017-03-20T21:18:31.585+11:002017-03-20T21:18:31.585+11:00That was actually a very strange Domain piece,kvd....That was actually a very strange Domain piece,kvd. I am prepared to risk death by Tasmanian Tiger, but being lulled to sleep by Eric A? More after dinner<br /><br /> Jim Belshawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-86398614790298534802017-03-20T17:37:06.747+11:002017-03-20T17:37:06.747+11:00Because it's Monday:
https://www.domain.com.a...Because it's Monday:<br /><br />https://www.domain.com.au/news/which-city-should-you-move-to-since-you-cant-afford-sydney-or-melbourne-20170320-gv0oxt/<br /><br />I always liked Hobart, but: <i>Cons: Elevated risk of death by thylacine; only one phone line for the entire state; </i> - so, perhaps not.<br /><br />kvdAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-44656941879010299462017-03-20T16:40:43.140+11:002017-03-20T16:40:43.140+11:00The best way to get good (insert desired result) o...The best way to get good (insert desired result) out of (insert job description) is to hire good people, pay them the going rate and tell them to do the job to the best of their ability.<br /><br />Works for me; just embarrassed I didn't think of this approach first!<br /><br />kvd<br /><br /> Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-16664265264567509162017-03-20T16:08:42.006+11:002017-03-20T16:08:42.006+11:00From LE's link:
But could it be … could it po...From LE's link:<br /><br /><i>But could it be … could it possibly be … that the best way to get good research and publications out of scholars is to hire good people, pay them the going rate and tell them to do the job to the best of their ability?</i><br /><br />From the author/about page:<br /><br /><i>Darren is an omnivore, and works on pretty much every group of tetrapods: in the past few years he’s published on sauropods, theropods, ornithischians, sloths, birds, ichthyosaurs, pterosaurs, turtles, all sorts of critters. Matt and especially Mike are a bit more focussed: Matt works on sauropods and, to a lesser extent, theropods including birds, especially in relation to skeletal pneumaticity; Mike works on partial mid-to-posterior dorsal vertebrae of sauropods. </i><br /><br />(I believe Mike wrote this article)<br /><br />So, I searched for a word, and the very best I could come up with was: naive and needy. Sorry; that's 3 words.<br /><br />kvd<br /><br />ps: what's the 'going rate' for working on "partial mid-to-posterior dorsal vertebrae of sauropods"?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com