planning | The Manager's Resource Handbook

13 Essential Ingredients to a Business Operating System and Why You Need One

August 12, 2020 Business Strategy, Employee Performance and Coaching, Finance and Accounting

What to Include in a Business Operating System A business operating system is a comprehensive, cross-functional framework that helps managers standardize and execute their organization’s mission. Further, a business operating system, or BOS, creates a unified way of doing things, from product development, to marketing activities, to how the organization interacts with its customers. An effective BOS will also define

18 Pitfalls of Project Management and Proven Ways to Avoid Them

May 1, 2020 Product Development, Project Management

Don’t Let Your Project Fail: Practical Solutions for Small Business Even with a strong business case and what may be a routine scope, there are several pitfalls that can ruin great projects at any time. These challenges can adversely impact projects led by both first-time program managers, who may not be prepared enough for what lies ahead, as well as

Reinventing Your Business: Adapting to a Changing Market

August 9, 2019 Business Strategy, Marketing, Product Development, Technology

At one point or another, virtually every business must adapt to changing times. In some instances, your product offering becomes stagnant. Perhaps your competitor has unveiled something new and is taking market share away from you. And, from time to time, technology advancements will make your current products and services obsolete. In all cases, we as business leaders must respond in such

The 10 Essential Resources Project Managers Must Have

April 28, 2018 Customers, Project Management, Technology, The Manager's Resource Handbook

10 Essential Project Management Resources If you think about the best project manager you know, chances are he or she shares some common traits. For starters, successful project leaders are typically very well organized. Additionally, they are often great communicators, and they can remain calm under pressure. Despite these great talents, though, even the best project managers need help to bring about

How to Create a Project Risk Matrix

January 17, 2018 Business Process, Product Development, Project Management

10 Easy Steps to Estimate the Cost of Risk Whether we are developing something new for a customer, or leading an initiative to improve the company, every project we undertake contains some level of uncertainty. Because of this, and particularly when the stakes are high, some level of risk analysis is always a good idea. However, managing risk means more than

The Recipe for a Great Team: 12 Key Ingredients

July 12, 2017 Employee Relations, Management & Leadership, Teams and Organizations, The Manager's Resource Handbook

12 Key Ingredients to High Performing Teams in the Workplace It’s well understood that good teams get the best results. Sports provide a great analogy for this: we are all familiar with those underdog teams that pull together when it matters most and make a championship run. Everyone on the team does his or her part and they motivate each

3 Ways To Plan Resource Levels

January 2, 2017 Business Process, Business Strategy, Change Management, Finance and Accounting, How To, Teams and Organizations, The Manager's Resource Handbook

3 Resource Planning Methods to Help Predict Staffing Needs Most businesses and organizations go through an annual headcount planning process for the upcoming year. We all know that such activities are important to running a productive organization. And yet, while resource management is critical, doing it well and doing it right is easier said than done. There are a number of methods

How to Manage Your Time: 15 REAL Ideas for the Busy Boss

October 16, 2016 Business Process, Employee Relations, How To, Management & Leadership, Teams and Organizations, The Manager's Resource Handbook

15 Ways I Manage My Time As a Boss It’s just about that time of year when things are at their busiest. With the end of the year closing in, the pressure is on to meet our numbers. We’re busy planning our projects and budgets for next year. People are starting to use up their vacation, making their availability limited.

16 Tips for New Project Managers

September 3, 2016 Business Process, Product Development, Project Management, The Manager's Resource Handbook

When I became a project manager, the first thing I did was print out a bunch of documents, the Statement of Work, some spreadsheets with basic financial information and put it all in a well-organized 3-ring binder. Beyond that, I didn’t know what I was doing. So I just got down to work. That was 20 years ago and since that time, I’ve learned a

10 Signs You’re a Bad Boss

June 5, 2016 Employee Relations, Management & Leadership, The Manager's Resource Handbook

Horrible Bosses … in Real Life If you’ve ever seen the movie Horrible Bosses, you probably reacted the way most of us did: some of the amazingly inappropriate behavior in the film registered a little close to home. We’ve all had some sort of run in with a really bad boss in our career, and while the movie makes a

How to Develop a New Process

January 23, 2016 Product Development, Project Management, Technology

Sample Process Map and Spaghetti Diagram

The 7 Rules of Process Development and Implementation Your growing business has a great product, friendly customer service, happy clients and cash. What’s missing? An often forgotten ingredient to a well-run business is the development and implementation of the processes that serve as the backbone for a company. Developing effective business processes makes your internal activities repeatable and consistent. And the more stable your

6 Management Lessons We Get Each Fall

November 3, 2015 Business Strategy, Employee Relations, Management & Leadership, Teams and Organizations, The Manager's Resource Handbook

Management Tips from Mother Nature As the air begins to cool and the days get shorter, we begin to see the first stages of fall settle in. For some, it’s a welcomed sign; for others, it may mark the end of a great summer. But for everyone, the arrival of the fall season is inevitable and simply part of life.

A Simple Guide to Employee Succession Planning

October 26, 2015 Business Strategy, Employee Performance and Coaching

7 Steps to Organizational Preservation Though it is far more common than we would like to admit, our businesses and organizations are filled with what I like to call “single persons of failure,” or SPOF. In my company, for example, we have a department manager who is nearing retirement in the next 18 months, yet we have no one identified as his

7 Reasons Why Your Research and Development Is Falling Short

June 12, 2015 Product Development, Project Management

technology development mistakes to avoid

Common Product Development Mistakes to Avoid and How to Steer Clear Several years ago, after doubling down on our investments, running wild with our tests and sprinting through patents to make sure we would be the first to market, we were finally ready to present our new technology to our target customer – a major global airline. After spending $3

Building a Budget: Getting the Funding Your Team Needs

November 9, 2014 Finance and Accounting, How To, Project Management

How to Build a Department Budget If you’ve ever had to build a budget for work, you know the stress, headache and aggravation it often entails. If you have not, well, consider yourself lucky. Either way, every leader knows that fiscal management is important and that our stakeholders depend on us to manage within a budget – our team, our shareholders, and in some

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budget, planning, small business

Are Your Goals Centralized?

September 22, 2014 Business Process, Productivity, Teams and Organizations, The Manager's Resource Handbook

Setting Goals in a Matrix Organization Must Centralize Purpose Ever feel like you’re on an island in the office? You know, everyone seems to be battling for their own needs and there’s a constant demand for your help, but rarely an offer of assistance in return? If so, it is a classic example of what happens when a business gets sloppy

Demystify Project Estimating with 3 Simple Steps

April 4, 2014 Business Strategy, Customers, Finance and Accounting, How To, Marketing, Product Development, Project Management, The Manager's Resource Handbook

How to Estimate Hours for a New Project How many times have you been asked the question “It’s going to take you how long?” when you present an estimate of hours required for a new project? Regardless of whether it is your customer or a fellow manager, the conversation is often the same. As the expert, you anticipate the project will

Management Success Series Tip #10: Manage Like Bobby Fischer

February 26, 2014 Business Strategy, Change Management, Employee Relations, Management & Leadership, Management Success Series, Teams and Organizations, The Manager's Resource Handbook

In 1972, American Bobby Fischer won the World Chess Championship by beating Boris Spassky of the Soviet Union. It was a match publicized worldwide as the battle between two superpowers. While both nations had massive nuclear arsenals, this particular battle was fought with figurines on a game board. Now, while I know who Bobby Fischer was, I admit that I

Restructuring Your Company: 5 Key Decisions

February 13, 2014 Business Process, Business Strategy, Change Management, Employee Relations, Management Tips, Teams and Organizations, The Manager's Resource Handbook

How to Restructure an Organization If you’ve ever been part of restructuring of an organization, you know that the very mention of it can induce a sense of worry. Restructuring a company is tough and takes a great deal of careful planning. Moreover, business renewal is never easy nor is it fun because big decisions need to be made that affect

7 Business Development Tips for Small Businesses

February 11, 2014 Business Strategy, Customers, Marketing, The Manager's Resource Handbook

How to Grow Your Small Business We recently worked with a small company to assist with their business development struggles. The CEO described his company’s situation as “able to perform well when we can actually get in the door.” The company employed about 20 employees and worked in the IT services industry. MRH conducted an evaluation of the business, focusing

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