BUSINESS MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT
& PSYCHOLOGIST
Business Consulting
I offer a variety of services geared toward leadership effectiveness
Leadership Coaching
Whether you are thinking about yourself or one of your reports, one-on-one coaching offers an effective way to address issues such as building trust, influencing others, energizing a team, repairing relationships, dealing with difficult situations or individuals, or becoming less operation and more strategy focused.
​
If appropriate in your environment, it is recommended that a 360 evaluation, by questionnaires or interviews, be performed for impact evaluation prior to coaching.
"Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence."
(Sheryl Sandberg)
Conflict Resolution
Open or covert, resentment is probably the next major source of professional waste after laziness and incompetence have been addressed. Why make work more difficult than it has to be? Life is too short, and the best way to improve productivity is to have people looking forward to coming to work.
Eliminate counterproductive negative feelings. Address and resolve conflicts explicitly, so that all the brain power of your organization remains focused on getting the job done and having fun in doing so.
An angry man opens his mouth and closes his eyes."
(Fortune cookie)
Negotiations
History has shown over and over that more can be accomplished by the many than by individuals alone. To create an alliance, mutual interests must be considered and dealt with, and people do not like to feel that they are leaving money on the table.
​
Good negotiations explore the overlap of the interests at play, leave all parties satisfied by the process and the solution and eager to participate in its implementation. I like the Harvard Negotiation Project approach because it aims at avoiding unnecessary confrontations by carving time for brainstorming and creativity before freezing any decision.
"At every step in life, one has to choose, and therefore exclude." (Henri Bergson)
Strategic Planning
Is your organization trying to outline rapidly and specifically the road ahead? Are you struggling to squeeze all the creativity out of your team without wasting time and energy in endless unproductive meetings?
Strategic planning is the reflective process that will leverage on the synergy of multiple brains engaged in the high risk task of designing and implementing change. Some people simply call it surviving.
"The best way to predict the future is to create it." (Alan Kay)
Team Effectiveness
The most valuable resource, on any project, are your people. They are almighty: they can reduce cost, beat deadlines, and deliver beyond expectations.
​
Do they want to? Are they fully aware of what is in for them? What portion of your time do you dedicate to help them find out?
"Two heads are better than one."
(Author unknown to me... Any idea???)
Information Systems
A thorough functional analysis of your processes, backed up with appropriate database development and project management techniques, will eliminate frustration, enhance clarity, and have a direct positive influence on the bottom line, whether it is time-to-market or cost reduction of services.
"Anything worth doing is worth doing well."
(Author unknown to me... Any idea???)
Keep in Mind...
Feedback...why do we need it, desperately?
Because behavior is like an old pair of slippers: it fits so well that we forget we are wearing them and there is no way we can ever enjoy new ones, even for Xmas or Hanukkah...
​
We are blind to our impact, and only others can tell us how we really land on them. And they will generally withhold this information because they know how we react to criticism...
​
It is an art to take feedback well, and it is also what makes the difference between good and great: we might be good as we are, but only others can make us great!
​
It takes courage and practice to master this art, and a good coach will help you navigate those difficult moments and benefit from feedback without cringing, becoming numb or looking like a deer in the headlights.
"Feedback is not the breakfast of champions; it's the lunch. Vision is the breakfast. Self-correction is the dinner." (Stephen R. Covey)
Strategy vs. Operations
To use another of Stephen Covey's famous analogies, operations are the sand, while strategy is the large pebbles. It's easy to fill the jar with sand, but it takes intentional thinking and planning to address non-urgent but important strategic issues.
​
Not having the time is a poor excuse for an executive: you have the power, therefore make the time. If you don't set your priorities straight, who will?
Sample Contract
If you do not supply one, here is the agreement I use with my clients. Let's discuss it when we meet.