My first advice is to try to simplify things.  Harvey used to say "I am a simple man so you must make it simple for me."  That means in your mind deciding who really cares and make sure they are supporting your activity.  They will go to bat for you and clear away obstacles.  In addition some of the people have more influence and power in an organization.  I have found it does not necessarily follow from the organization chart.  Some people just know how to get things done.

I have also taken on a role of communication medium between all the various interest especially if the group do not meet with each other for various reasons.  Often groups have history which inhibits good communications and trust.  By focusing on the objective of the project and repeating it frequently sometimes you can get people all looking in the same direction.  I often visualize the objective as something which you can point to on a wall or in the centre of the table and metaphorically getting them all to look the objective as oppose to each other.  Shuttle diplomacy really works. 

Another thing to remember is that nobody means to do the wrong thing.  It may appear wrong to you, but from their perspective it is right.  The problem is to see it from their perspective.  I often become very confused and admit it.  I then asked for help in joining the points along a logical path.  Often the explanation will clear up the confusion and you have better idea why the apparent conflict exist.  Then you can set about getting the players to focus on the goal.

Usually complex projects means that many people in an organization have to change the way they have always done things.  Some people may not even understand why they do things they do but just know it works.  For them to step into the unknown is scary.  These people need support and help from the people they trust who can help them make the change.  Often simplifying things will help because many people do not need to understand the complete system just their part.   Make it simple and low risk.

We all know on complex projects not everything will be exactly as we expect even with extensive testing.   By letting people know that things may not go exactly as they hoped and giving them ways of getting help is important.  Eventually as they gain experience with the system they will learn the things that do not work well and avoid them. 

A real key to success of a project is for people to know that the project is important to their "real boss".  A note or email from the project sponsor or sponsors telling people how important the project to the sponsor and thanking them in advance for their support will help.

I am sure there are lots of ideas and experiences people have.  Like to hear some ideas.

Social Intelligence you ask?  Think Social Media Data + Business Intelligence!

I look forward to sharing a more detailed post tomorrow with snippets from an upcoming presentation I am giving.

In the meantime, to read the press release, please click here or read below.

—————————————–

TORONTO, Feb. 15, 2012 /CNW/ – Project X Labs Ltd and Insegni Centre Inc. today announced a new solution that brings together Social Media Data and Business Intelligence (BI).  The solution, called LikeInsight^TM, aligns Social Media strategy, social data and a company’s existing data assets to increase the insights available to organizations.

As with all BI visualization solutions, richness of data and relevance is crucial.  Social data provides a level of relevance from some of the most active sources of data that enrich the sentiment analysis. Through this innovative solution, LikeInsight^TM allows organizations to segment their Facebook fans based on their interests and motivations, developing a never before available picture of their customers’ online sentiment.

Leveraging a jointly integrated process for business intelligence strategy and delivery, Project X Labs Ltd. and Insegni Centre Inc. have a solution to enable social insight for organizations in a way that has not been previously possible.

“Everyone is talking about Big Data. Working together we have built a solid framework to readily take advantage of some of the rich data that is available for our clients,” said Stephen Hayward, president of Project X Labs. “By partnering with Insegni Centre we’re able to take their proven strategic approach and Social understanding, combine it with our Rapid Results business intelligence visualization tools and create real results for current and new clients.”

“Social media usage by companies has been predominately a one-way marketing channel,” said Michael Ianni-Palarchio, Founder of Insegni Centre.  “The strategy of leveraging social media data has been an increasing business priority, and partnering with Project X Ltd and Project X Labs, a leader in business intelligence development and deployment, allows us to move clients from Social Media data strategy to Social Media Insight reality.”

For more information on LikeInsight^TM and how your organization can tap into the insight of your customers’ social media data, request a demonstration and an initial consultation.

About Project X Labs
Project X Labs combines innovative product development with rapid results thinking to bring global customers business intelligence and data visualization software products. Focused on breaking down the barriers around enterprise scale software and delivering solutions that show results in weeks, not months, Project X Labs is redefining access to business intelligence for every size company.   Project X Labs is a wholly owned subsidiary ofProject X Ltd. They can be found at www.pxlabs.ca.

About Insegni Centre Inc.
Insegni Centre is a strategy advisory firm that specializes in assisting organizations develop strategic positions across a wide variety of business technologies and solutions.  With a focus on understanding business objectives and ensuring that IT initiatives are strategically aligned to enable those goals, Insegni Centre utilizes an approach that focuses on rapid innovation to obtain strategic differentiation.  In the area of Business Intelligence (BI), Insegni Centre works to provide the strategic framework that allows companies to identify BI opportunities within their organization, develop their BI Vision & Objectives and define their BI Requirements.  To find out more visit us atwww.insegnicentre.com .

For further information:

Stephen Hayward - shayward@pxltd.ca  – 416.422.8900 ext 201
Michael Ianni-Palarchio - mip@insegnicentre.com - 416-900-1055 ext 100 

This task presents the analyst with many difficulties.  A business analyst often encounters people who are not ready to cooperate for many reason. 

• Lack of understanding of the project
• Impatience, "I've told four other people the same information."
• Fear of having their job automated
• Fear that their lack of expertise will be exposed
• Opposition to the project
• Previous bad experience with analysts
• Person is already overwhelmed by their job, no time.

These can be summarized by saying the person is not ready to cooperate.  So how should the analyst proceed. 

I have found that the first step in any meeting between people is the development of rapport.  The people need to feel comfortable with each other as people.   How many times have you been meeting with somebody and things go very poorly and you had the premonition in the first twenty seconds.  Likely no rapport has been established between the people. 

Once rapport has been established it will then be possible to address the concerns of the person.  If you try to address the concerns without rapport you will be like ships passing in the night.

Establishing rapport can be thought of two people getting on the same wavelength or feeling comfortable with each other.  Building rapport is a skill that can be developed and requires some work. 

You need to have some information about the person you a going to meet with.  If you have mutual acquaintances, you might get some information about the person's likes and dislikes, job history, personal situation, interests, etc.  The idea is to find something that you share in common that is not controversial that you can talk about.  Often people will talk about the weather or share a cup of coffee which is a start but often not enough.  Often if you are in the person's office, you will see pictures or other decoration which reveals their interest.   Often something related to the business or people you know in common is helpful but remember the subject is something you will agree on.  Politics and religion are not safe ground.

Having established rapport, the next step is to be clear bout the purpose of the meeting and get an agreement on the agenda, including the time frame.  Here is where you address any concerns that you detect. 

Although you will be anxious to get down specific details, I strongly recommend to stay at a higher level for a while.  Ask open questions that find out the person overall view of the project and how it fits in with their interest.  An open question like "Tell me what you think about ..........?" or "Could you give me a little of your background?"  Once you have some context for the information, you will be much better evaluate the answers knowing some of the biases of the person.

Often the person's reluctance will stem from little or no understanding of the project.  Without a context the information you glean from the person may be totally off the mark and misleading. 

If you have started the conversation and you feel that you have lost rapport for some reason.  Gradually re-establish rapport.  One technique I use is to summarize where we are so far and get agreement on that.  If you detect, reluctance, ask "Do you have some concerns?"  Keep the question very open and listen carefully what the person says.

Another problem that arises between systems people and the rest of the world is that we use a lot of jargon and short forms that are foreign to others.  Using those words, reminds the person we are in different world or world apart.  NO RAPPORT.   Listen to the words the person uses to describe something and use the same words.  If they have a name for a function, use that name.  If they have a name for a process, use that name.  Stay away from the technical jargon we all slip into in the IT world.  "The ETL process of EDW is critical to Micro-strategy software.  We need to understand how to normalize your data so we can drill down and across."   If you thought I was from the moon before, I just moved to Mars.

I will write some more about business analysis later but remember stay in rapport.  You will be amazed how quickly you can get the information you need when you are in rapport. 

These hidden factors could be simply be things like they could just had a fight with their spouse or a bad review from their boss.   I keep reminding myself I cannot see things through their eyes.

After that reminder, hopefully I become more curious about their point of view and listen more carefully to discover what is really going on.

I remind myself that nobody intentionally makes mistakes.  If they appear to intentionally make a mistake, I must remember to did deeper.  

When we are in the heat of the moment, we can find it hard to appreciate the experience  but on reflection we realize how great it was.  As the book points out, working as a team does not mean we all agree but that we share our views, our views are respected.  When the team then decides, everyone works to support the decision.  I think peak performance comes in these moments. 

We also must hold each other accountable and support each other. 

These crises really bring out the best in a team.  I wonder if we need these things to really create a team.  Once the team has pulled together and succeeded, the next challenge is to keep the team functioning as a team instead of reverting to old habits.  We all need to remember "life is a journey not a destination."

"Who was the last person who actually listened to you?  
 
Who was the last person you actually gave your full attention to?  
 
I know what you’re thinking. YOU listen all the time. But do you really?  
 
Do we understand what it really means to listen? Do we comprehend what is the Heart of listening?  
 
Do we realize that every person we will meet has something to teach us? Perhaps our job is to listen long enough to find out what that lesson is.  
 
Isn’t it true that when people speak to us, we tend to jump right in and give our advice, our feedback and our judgment? And all too often we find ourselves fixing, lecturing or interrupting with way too many questions. We listen not as an act of curiosity, but rather for a chance to give clever responses.  
 
We are all guilty of this because we are all human.  
 
In order to reap the benefits of listening, we must let ourselves develop and expand our ability to concentrate and pay attention.  
 
Listening with Heart is a skill - A skill that can be taught and can be learned, but most definitely must be developed.  
 
The Heart of listening consists of:

• Listening with heart is to summarize your understanding of what was just said.
• Listening with heart is reframing what you have just heard.
• Listening with heart is not a passive skill, but an active art.
• Listening from the heart is letting others know you understand what they said.
• Listening from the heart assures others that you are really listening with your whole body; eyes, ears and all.

When listening, remember that it’s not about YOU, but about THEM.  
 
If we are going to expand our KNOWLEDGE, we need to listen.  
 
If we are going to be SUPPORTIVE, we need to listen.  
 
If we are going to be RESPECTFUL, we need to listen.  
 
If we are going to be COMPASSIONATE, we need to listen.  
 
If we are going to illustrate EMPATHY, we need to listen.  
 
Listening is the sincerest form of flattery and shows the deepest form of connection.  
 
In order to live a life of leadership and meaningful connection, we have to consciously choose to slow down, give up our own agenda, and develop the capacity to focus on others by making an effort to fully understand them. 
 

Socrates states, “Nature has given us two ears, two eyes and but one tongue to the end that we should hear and see more than we speak.”

We need to cultivate Heart about the ways WE listen. 
 
We need to simply give our undivided attention to another without imposing our own personal agenda.  
 
Sometimes, this might take a little practice.  
 
It is a generous act of giving when we allow someone the space to be exactly who they are and exactly who they are not. This takes the ability to authentically listen with Heart.  
 
In organizations, poor listening is responsible for the loss of billions of dollars due to unnecessary mistakes, lost opportunities, ineffectiveness and deficiencies.  
 
In relationships, poor listening is responsible for disconnectedness from our families, loved ones, friends and customers. It is the cause of breakdowns and break ups.  
 
If we could hear our words, our comments, and our feedback through the ears of our listeners, we might be horrified with our insensitivity and negativity.  
 
The Heart of listening requires focus and a desire to learn and gain perspective. It takes effort to realize our inner barriers we have built towards others, which we must learn to put aside.  
 
By listening with an open Heart, it is love in action. By listening with mindfulness, it is the way for making every interaction become memorable."

Stay tuned for some videos of it in use.  In the meantime, here is the new value for clients at the same price:

1. Addition of Layers - with layers customers can overlay multiple data sources to enrich the analysis
2. Enrich your data on the fly with publically available shape data to overlay weather, flood, population, huricane, or other rich data
3. Simutools from Google, help add more to the analysis
4. Integration into MicroStrategy Mobile - we have been able to bring GeoDash into the mobile experience

Come by booth #3 at MicroStrategy world to see it in action or check us out on the web www.pxlabs.ca.

In the last blog I talked about the challenge of the consulting firm we formed many years ago.  We were all practicing consultants and measured our individual revenue and sales contribution.  The difficulty was measuring the success as a team.  We certainly evaluated each partner on their own performance and did that well I believe.  However I am not sure we worked well on the common goal.  The difficulty was we did not have that clear measure of the team score.   Particularly in consulting organizations and many professional firms, the firm is a collection of individuals who are highly skilled and working on their own practice.  The senior people often have juniors working with them but rarely do the partners work together on anything but overall management issues.   

We had a code word for our problem and we called it "overall management."  Based on the above analysis. we were not far from the mark.  From the book, we had a problem with "team 1." 

I am now wondering what we could have done differently.  I wonder if the partners were evaluated more on the overall performance of the firm and less on the individual performance, would we have performed more like a team?   Each one of the partners was more focused on their team and not on the success of the "team one."    I think the partners were committed to the success of the firm in their own way but did not know how to solve the "team one" issue.

How many times in a team effort we focus on the shortcoming of one member rather than treating it as a team problem? 

Applying the idea from the book are really a challenge, I will continue to ponder these issues and write more later.  I welcome any comments or thoughts. 

Project X Ltd is pleased to announce the formation of Project X Labs Ltd a wholly owned subsidiary software development lab. See the release .  Also feel free to drop by www.pxlabs.ca

I have been thinking about the book and how the lessons could be applied to my previous experiences.  Several years ago we formed a consulting firm and we did very well for several years and I think the partnership became dysfunctional.  After reading the book, I think one of the problems was that we did not share a common goal.  We were a highly talented group of individuals who wanted to further our own goals.  

In the book, at each of the team building sessions the new CEO introduces the session with the challenge for the executive team, a highly talented group of people who were under performing their competition.  I think that also was one of our problems.   The CEO kept reminding the team that their challenge was to take leadership in their market.  

So what went wrong with our consulting firm?  Initially after we formed the firm, our goal was to be able to continue our consulting practice serving our client well.  As we became more successful and the partnership matured, each partner was pursuing his own practice without much thought to the overall success of the firm.  I think each person's assumption was that if I can be successful, the firm will be successful.  We were a bunch of people building our own practices.  Anybody who took his eye of his practice and focussed on the firm would lose his power to contribute to the revenue.    

We had some common values and did quality consulting work and served our clients well.  The code word for our problem was "overall management."  I now see that likely we did not share a common goal and wanted to develop our own parts of the business.  

So what might we have done differently?  At the time we did try some team building exercises but they were of the type that took us out of our environment and did some good exercises.  The difficulty we had was translating the lessons into our work environment.  

I think some stronger leadership on the working on our common goal and making some hard decisions about people who did not share the common goal.   I wonder if we had read the book and worked through some of the dysfunctions of the team would things have turned out differently.

I encourage all organizations to take the ideas from the book seriously and treat the challenge of building a team a a work in process.   

I welcome peoples comments and reactions to the book.    

The setting for the fable is a new CEO has been hired to head up a electronic firm in Silicon valley and does not have a technology background but lots of leadership experience.  The book is a compelling and easy read.  The concepts are simple and implementing them is difficult and complex. 

In another book we discussed at Senge was Made in Canada Leadership the book described how leaders end up as leaders.  One is a accidental leader, those that end up in leadership by accident, and the others is a leader that set out to become leaders.  I discovered that I am an accidental leader and only take leadership when I find myself faced with a challenge.  I do not seek out leadership but take it when necessary.   I also think that when I have taken on leadership things have gone well.  I do not however seek out these opportunities.  

In the Five Dysfunctions book, the CEO talks about the experience of teams in a sports context and how dysfunctional a team can be if one member is only focusing on his achievement as opposed to the success of the team.  I observe in myself that I really enjoy golf which is not really a team sport but more individual.  I expect that means I do not seek out sports that involve teams but I do find when I play as part of a team I do enjoy myself. 

The question I ask myself is "Am I a team player?"  When I am part of a team, I certainly make every effort to contribute and do not look for my own glory.  I will have to observe myself, and look at how I participate as part of the team. 

Another thing that makes a team player is that she focuses on the overall results of the team and not her performance.  For many of us, we have so much of our ego involved that we focus only on our own performance. 

The key ingredient in creating a team is trust, which is such a small word for such a big thing.  Building trust is a important thing and one that develops over time and most constantly worked on.   A loss of trust can really create havoc on a team.  As we develop trust in others, we can be more open and honest with each other, admitting mistakes and asking forgiveness.

I will write more about teams and some of my dysfunctions in later blogs.

Most of us want to reach out to those we love at this time.  I think because we have such short days we reach out to the ones we love.  However the days getting longer are a sign of hope.

I think we all should set goals and dream dreams.  The more we can vilualize them and make them real the closer they get.  

I am always amazed how many times I have set goals and they have come true.  Sometimes they come in unexpected ways.  

For example, being in the consulting business, I thought I was going to consult into the sunset even after CGI bought Gellman Hayward.  I did not think the shares would do anything.  Then Bell Canada took a 25% interest in CGI and the stock took off.  I was then able to retire comfortably.  

I have lots of others but some are very personal.  I am thankful for them all.

What are your dreams?

I think he really cared about people.  He had this theory about people in his organization.  He said there A's and B's and C's.  The A's were the stars, the B's were good guys and the C's had to shape up.  The C's were the botton 10%.  He felt that the bottom 10% should not stay with the organization.  I have wondered about that but on reflection clearly they did not fit with their job and should make a change.  He found it very difficult but when he asked someone to leave it was not a surprized to them and he said he treated them well.  It sounds a bit cold and callous and I think we will find it difficult but the people need to know that they must perform or they will be left behind.

In my consulting business, I fired several people and it was never easy but they were not surprized.  On reflection, I should have done more.   Several people just did not fit with consulting and eventually thwy left.  We should have given them severernce and gave them a chance to find a better fit.  By tolerating them in the organiztion I think demotivated others.   I used to criticize organizations that had an up or out philosophy.  I wonder if it was as bad as I thought.  

Jack really got me thinking.

I am not sure.  I met a famous psychologist many years ago who was well known for using many four letter words in his theraphy.  After I met him I realized he was extremely well spoken and was certainly not lost for words.  I concluded his use of four letter words was intentional.  I asked him why.  He told me that it is the way we talk to ourselves so he used it to show he understood the person and to break down defences, or de fences.  So I wonder why we talk to ourselves that way.

I grew up in a small town in Newfoundland and the language on the street was pretty raw.  However at home we spoke in a more refined way with no four letter words.  I clearly learned two languages and could switch back and forth easliy.  I suspect that the street language was more free and authentic so the self talk came out on the street.   

I am not sure of this theory but I certainly know when I hit a bad golf shot my self talk is very raw.  By the way, I am now responding calmly and with understanding but being encouraging at the same time.  I am acknowledging my efforts to improve.    

I was asked what makes a good self help book.  My first answer is when the advice is sensible and practical.  Something I can use myself to deal with some issue I am concerned about.  Many of the books are too complex and impractical.  One book I really loved was "The Power of Now" by Tolle.  However I could not apply his great ideas.  I love his ideas but I did not know where to start.  Then I read "The Presence Process" by Brown and I found a practical process I could follow.

My first self help book I recall reading was "Children The Challenge" by Driekurs.  It was a very practical book about dealing with children's behavior in a family.  I found incredibly profound but practical at the same time.  The book had a very sane underpining of psychology.  I recall that "iron clad logic of social living is cooperation."   

I have read books on positive thinking, golf, spirituality, yoga, Tai Chi, and lots of other things.  I have listened to tapes and CD's in my car when I commuted to work about two hours a day.  

I have kept an open mind on most subjects and I am looking for new ideas.  Those that are practical and sensible I will use and the others I dismiss.  

I suspect some people think self help books are a waste of time but for me they represent an important part of my learning. 

When I decide to change something, I must be patient and gentle with myself.

My Golf Game

I am currently struggling with my golf game and if I am going to improve, something must change.  To be clear about my problem in the summer my handicap was 18 and now it is 23.  That means the average of my best ten scores of the last twenty has gone up five strokes.  That is alot.   Over the last ten years I have worked hard to change my golf game to get from 23 to 18.  Now I am back to where I was.  

I have several bad habits in my swing that I have worked hard to change.  However for some reason these habits or beliefs keep creeping back into my game.

Get Help

My solution is to find someone who can help me change those habits.  I use a golf pro to help me change.  He is very careful not to make radical changes but I improve.  

Similarly I have needed several times to lose weight and I have used Weight Watchers to help me change my eating habits.  Again these changes often creep back.  

Based on my study of psychology, I know that changing my fundemental beliefs about how the world is very difficult and impossible to do on your own.  I need a coach or counsellor to help me change.

Another key in making changes is my readiness to change.  How much am I willing to let go of my strongly held and hidden beliefs.   

My experience tells me with lots of effort I can make some changes but I need help.  So if you want to change things in your life, find a coach or therapist who can help you change.  I also suggest you be kind to yourself and give yourself credit for progress.

Stages of Change

If you have set out to make a change and have made a plan.  The first time the circumstance arrises, you only realize afterwards you did not change.  You can berate yourself or give yourself credit and say awareness is the first stage in change.   The next time the circumstance arrises, you realize the situation while you doing it but do not change,  You again can berate yourself or say that is the second stage of change and encourage yourself.  The next time you anticipate the situation but still do not change.  That is the third stage.  The next stage of change is that you do the new behavior most of the time but sometimes go back to the old ways.  You can again berate yourself or give yourself credit because you have made a significant change.  I think in most cases this as much of change as you can expect. 

Accept Myself

I think the key thing for me is to encourage myself and not let all that internal chatter discourage me.  I must love and accept myself deeply and completely.  After all, I am all I got.

When I exhibit anti-social behavior, I do it because I am feeling discouraged.  I have low self esteem.  However I am completely in control of my own self esteem.  How can you say that, Jim, what about all these terrible things that happen to me?  It is all a matter of choice.

Encouraging Myself

When I am playing golf and I make a bad shot, I have a choice on how react.  I can berate myself and get down on how stupid I am.  Or I can look at it a lesson to be learned about my game.  By looking at it a lesson from life, I find it more encouraging.  I can look at the positive of how lucky I am to be able to be out here.  There are lots of great things about being out on the golf course.

Recently I played with Jack and he made a bad shot and he was berating himself loudly.  I said to him don't give my friend such a hard time.  He laughed and it broke the tension.  

Watch That Inner Voice

  Try to teach your critic to be more encouraging.  Remember life is too serious to take seriously.

We do not learn things by reading them or by being told.  We learn from life's expereinces.  We develop a model about how the world is and remember things that reinforce that belief.  We form most of our world view by the end of elementary school.

Enough preaching let me use myself as an example.   I have always felt that I am not big enough for many tasks.  In order to prove that to myself I have a early recollection.  I remember one time when I was about three or four, walking down the road with my dad and trying make my steps as big as his.   This memory reinforces my belief about how the world is.

My first girlfriend broke off with me after we had been an item for nine months.  I was completely blind sided.  It took me years before I had relationship that lasted more than nine months.

So what's my point.  If you are wondering about why you behave a certain way, your early recollections might give you some clues.  These are memories about a specific incident that you can say "I remember one time ........."   The big clue is how you felt about it.  

Sometimes you have a hard time seeing it yourself, but if you have a trusted friend, he/she might help.

So when you do something that baffles you, consider how you view the world.  If you want to change, try to modify the belief with "sometimes."   I do not believe I am not big emough all the time, only sometimes.  Get the idea.

Harvey had an interesting view on moving forward on an innovative idea.  "Be Passionate."  He said that he observed that the people who made a new idea a reality had to really believe.  Often people come up with great innovative ideas but do nothing with it except talk about it.  I know a fellow who comes up lots of amazing ideas.  He is really fun to talk to.  However, once he has talked about the idea for a few days he got bored with it and moved on.  However some people grab an idea and really take it on as a personal mission.  The successful people have the characteristic that they are passionate about an idea.  For sure the guy with all the ideas he is really fun, but the ideas will never go anywhere.  As I write this I wonder if we had lost our passion for Gellman, Hayward when we decided to merge with CGI.  Just not sure, but could be.  What is your passion?

In observing the founders of Project X, I think they are both passionate about making their company a success.  They are quite different characters but both very passionate.  One evidence is how they go the extra mile for their clients.