Let There Be Light!
Let There Be Light!Lighting for your store can never be too perfect. Never choose lighting to be the expense you skip out on because light is one of the most quintessential properties of your store. It communicates to your customer the value of your products as well as the value you place on your business. Consider the lighting you would find in a museum displaying valuable artifacts or rare works of art. You probably will not find cheap light bulbs accenting the workings of Van Gogh. The value of objects will always reflect in the lighting selected to display them. Understanding different lighting options and requirements will put you well on your way to a more effective store display.Dimmers are usually an essential part to the lighting ensemble. These adjust lighting for variables you may have from season to season or product to product. This will insure you are ready to light your products in most situations. Dimm

What is Owner's Draw in QuickBooks? How Does Owner's Draw Work?
If you are a sole-proprietor, you may have wondered about the Owner’s Draw account and how it works. I’ll try to explain it in a way that makes sense to people who use QuickBooks.Owner’s Equity, Owner’s Investment, and Owner’s Draw - DefinedIf you open the Chart of Accounts in QuickBooks, scroll down to the Equity accounts – normally about half way down. You may see one or more of these names: Owner’s Equity, Owner’s Investment, or Owner’s Draw. To make it easier to understand, we’ll say, for now, that the above terms are synonymous. Some accountants reading this may not agree, but I think for anybody who doesn’t understand what they mean, it’s easier to understand them if we use the terms interchangeably.Here’s what I want you to know about the above terms: they all represent the amount of personal money the owner has put into, and taken out of, the business. Notice the emphasis on the word personalCalling all Executives and Managers! Are you engaging the hearts and minds of your employees”? You’re probably thinking, “This line has been used so often that it’s become a clich?. Of course I am!” But … are you really?

According to Gallup research, 29% of employees are engaged, 54% are not engaged, and 17% are actively disengaged. Gallup researchers estimate that the lower productivity of actively disengaged workers costs the U.S. economy about $370 billion annually. With employee disengagement so prevalent, could it be that managers don’t understand what “engaging the hearts and minds of our employees” really means?

Rational engagement, another way of saying “engaging the mind”, is the intellectual commitment that people make to their organizations. It’s their understanding of how they can help their organizations succeed. And it’s recognizing what’s in it for them as well as for the organization.

Rational engagement is conditional. The expectations that you define with your employee at the beginning of a new assignment determine its conditions. With each assignment and with each change of direction in the organization, these expectations are renegotiated.

Emotional engagement, on the other hand, is about something more fundamental, and much deeper. It’s about the visceral connections your employees have with your organization. It’s how your employees feel about what you’re asking them to do. They may not tell you what they’re feeling, but it nevertheless has a huge impact on your organization’s success.

Emotional engagement is unconditional. Your employees’ expectations are defined by your relationship with them. Your relationship becomes a lens through which your employees view your organization.

Here’s a story of a manager who believed her employees were highly engaged. What do you think?

Diane was a project manager in an I.T. support group in a large retail organization. She thought of her management style as “tough but fair”. The project lead and the other six members of her project team were just wrapping up a six-month project. They had received acceptance sign-off from the users and were preparing to implement the new software that evening. The users were excited that the project was finally coming to an end and that their system would be ready for them when they came into the office the next day. The project team had spent some late nights reworking the software because of the users’ changing requirements, and the users had expressed their appreciation to Diane about the project team’s efforts, especially the project lead “going way above and beyond”. Diane didn’t pass their feedback along to the team. She thought the team members weren’t working up to their capabilities, and if she gave them the users’ feedback, they would probably slack off more than they already were.

The organization had not been doing as well as expected, and there were rumors of layoffs. The team had heard the rumors and they expressed their concern to Diane. She said she had heard them too, but they should not be worried - no layoffs were being planned. In reality, Diane had known for several months that layoffs were coming.

The I.T. Operations Manager approached Diane at 3:00 pm. He had just learned about the pending implementation. He asked if they had tested the software on the new equipment that had been installed earlier that week and was being moved into production that night. Diane was momentarily speechless – she had not heard about any new equipment, much less tested the software on it. She told the Operations Manager they would test now, and continue with the implementation as planned.

Diane met with her team and explained the situation. She said the Operations Manager had failed to tell her about the new equipment, and that the team would just have to work late until the testing and implementation were complete. The team members grumbled and complained, as Diane had expected, but they agreed. She said, “I’ll stay and help you.”

At 4:30, Diane received a call from her daughter reminding her that this was school parents’ night. Diane had completely forgotten about it. She left the office at 5:00, asking her project lead to let the team know, and asked him to call her cell phone when the system had been implemented.

After she left, the team got together. What really happened? they speculated. Diane didn’t have the best relationship with the Operations Manager. One team member said he thought the Operations Manager had “set her up – there’s no love lost there”. Another said, “Well … she deserves it. Here we are – again. And where is she?” The project lead stepped in and said, “Forget it – let’s get this over with.”

The project team began the test. They encountered many problems. By 11:

he expectations that you define with your employee at the beginning of a new assignment determine its conditions. With each assignment and with each change of direction in the organization, these expectations are renegotiated.

Emotional engagement, on the other hand, is about something more fundamental, and much deeper. It’s about the visceral connections your employees have with your organization. It’s how your employees feel about what you’re asking them to do. They may not tell you what they’re feeling, but it nevertheless has a huge impact on your organization’s success.

Emotional engagement is unconditional. Your employees’ expectations are defined by your relationship with them. Your relationship becomes a lens through which your employees view your organization.

Here’s a story of a manager who believed her employees were highly engaged. What do you think?

Diane was a project manager in an I.T. support group in a large retail organization. She thought of her management style as “tough but fair”. The project lead and the other six members of her project team were just wrapping up a six-month project. They had received acceptance sign-off from the users and were preparing to implement the new software that evening. The users were excited that the project was finally coming to an end and that their system would be ready for them when they came into the office the next day. The project team had spent some late nights reworking the software because of the users’ changing requirements, and the users had expressed their appreciation to Diane about the project team’s efforts, especially the project lead “going way above and beyond”. Diane didn’t pass their feedback along to the team. She thought the team members weren’t working up to their capabilities, and if she gave them the users’ feedback, they would probably slack off more than they already were.

The organization had not been doing as well as expected, and there were rumors of layoffs. The team had heard the rumors and they expressed their concern to Diane. She said she had heard them too, but they should not be worried - no layoffs were being planned. In reality, Diane had known for several months that layoffs were coming.

The I.T. Operations Manager approached Diane at 3:00 pm. He had just learned about the pending implementation. He asked if they had tested the software on the new equipment that had been installed earlier that week and was being moved into production that night. Diane was momentarily speechless – she had not heard about any new equipment, much less tested the software on it. She told the Operations Manager they would test now, and continue with the implementation as planned.

Diane met with her team and explained the situation. She said the Operations Manager had failed to tell her about the new equipment, and that the team would just have to work late until the testing and implementation were complete. The team members grumbled and complained, as Diane had expected, but they agreed. She said, “I’ll stay and help you.”

At 4:30, Diane received a call from her daughter reminding her that this was school parents’ night. Diane had completely forgotten about it. She left the office at 5:00, asking her project lead to let the team know, and asked him to call her cell phone when the system had been implemented.

After she left, the team got together. What really happened? they speculated. Diane didn’t have the best relationship with the Operations Manager. One team member said he thought the Operations Manager had “set her up – there’s no love lost there”. Another said, “Well … she deserves it. Here we are – again. And where is she?” The project lead stepped in and said, “Forget it – let’s get this over with.”

The project team began the test. They encountered many problems. By 11:

anization. She thought of her management style as “tough but fair”. The project lead and the other six members of her project team were just wrapping up a six-month project. They had received acceptance sign-off from the users and were preparing to implement the new software that evening. The users were excited that the project was finally coming to an end and that their system would be ready for them when they came into the office the next day. The project team had spent some late nights reworking the software because of the users’ changing requirements, and the users had expressed their appreciation to Diane about the project team’s efforts, especially the project lead “going way above and beyond”. Diane didn’t pass their feedback along to the team. She thought the team members weren’t working up to their capabilities, and if she gave them the users’ feedback, they would probably slack off more than they already were.

The organization had not been doing as well as expected, and there were rumors of layoffs. The team had heard the rumors and they expressed their concern to Diane. She said she had heard them too, but they should not be worried - no layoffs were being planned. In reality, Diane had known for several months that layoffs were coming.

The I.T. Operations Manager approached Diane at 3:00 pm. He had just learned about the pending implementation. He asked if they had tested the software on the new equipment that had been installed earlier that week and was being moved into production that night. Diane was momentarily speechless – she had not heard about any new equipment, much less tested the software on it. She told the Operations Manager they would test now, and continue with the implementation as planned.

Diane met with her team and explained the situation. She said the Operations Manager had failed to tell her about the new equipment, and that the team would just have to work late until the testing and implementation were complete. The team members grumbled and complained, as Diane had expected, but they agreed. She said, “I’ll stay and help you.”

At 4:30, Diane received a call from her daughter reminding her that this was school parents’ night. Diane had completely forgotten about it. She left the office at 5:00, asking her project lead to let the team know, and asked him to call her cell phone when the system had been implemented.

After she left, the team got together. What really happened? they speculated. Diane didn’t have the best relationship with the Operations Manager. One team member said he thought the Operations Manager had “set her up – there’s no love lost there”. Another said, “Well … she deserves it. Here we are – again. And where is she?” The project lead stepped in and said, “Forget it – let’s get this over with.”

The project team began the test. They encountered many problems. By 11:

doing as well as expected, and there were rumors of layoffs. The team had heard the rumors and they expressed their concern to Diane. She said she had heard them too, but they should not be worried - no layoffs were being planned. In reality, Diane had known for several months that layoffs were coming.

The I.T. Operations Manager approached Diane at 3:00 pm. He had just learned about the pending implementation. He asked if they had tested the software on the new equipment that had been installed earlier that week and was being moved into production that night. Diane was momentarily speechless – she had not heard about any new equipment, much less tested the software on it. She told the Operations Manager they would test now, and continue with the implementation as planned.

Diane met with her team and explained the situation. She said the Operations Manager had failed to tell her about the new equipment, and that the team would just have to work late until the testing and implementation were complete. The team members grumbled and complained, as Diane had expected, but they agreed. She said, “I’ll stay and help you.”

At 4:30, Diane received a call from her daughter reminding her that this was school parents’ night. Diane had completely forgotten about it. She left the office at 5:00, asking her project lead to let the team know, and asked him to call her cell phone when the system had been implemented.

After she left, the team got together. What really happened? they speculated. Diane didn’t have the best relationship with the Operations Manager. One team member said he thought the Operations Manager had “set her up – there’s no love lost there”. Another said, “Well … she deserves it. Here we are – again. And where is she?” The project lead stepped in and said, “Forget it – let’s get this over with.”

The project team began the test. They encountered many problems. By 11:

rk late until the testing and implementation were complete. The team members grumbled and complained, as Diane had expected, but they agreed. She said, “I’ll stay and help you.”

At 4:30, Diane received a call from her daughter reminding her that this was school parents’ night. Diane had completely forgotten about it. She left the office at 5:00, asking her project lead to let the team know, and asked him to call her cell phone when the system had been implemented.

After she left, the team got together. What really happened? they speculated. Diane didn’t have the best relationship with the Operations Manager. One team member said he thought the Operations Manager had “set her up – there’s no love lost there”. Another said, “Well … she deserves it. Here we are – again. And where is she?” The project lead stepped in and said, “Forget it – let’s get this over with.”

The project team began the test. They encountered many problems. By 11:00 pm, they decided that they couldn’t complete the work that night. They would finish it in the next morning.

When Diane arrived at the office in the morning, she was greeted by the V.P. of I.T., who asked her to join him in his office. Her project lead was already there. He closed the door and demanded to know what had happened. His phone was ringing off the hook! Diane immediately blamed the project lead for not calling her, and she blamed the team for not getting the work done. “They’re simply not reliable,” she said. The V.P. of I.T. shouted, “Get them all in here!” Diane nodded and assembled the team. The V.P. said, “We were going to meet on this later, but I might as well tell you now. You’re all being laid off. We’re going to outsource I.T. Support.” The project team was stunned, all except the project lead who responded, “Since you’ve put your cards on the table, I will, too. I’m leaving. I’ve only stayed on until now to complete the project”. Diane was stunned.

What happened here?

There are two key elements in a relationship that foster emotional engagement: Trust and Respect.

Trust is created in three ways:

Openness – Keeping your employees “in the loop” through sharing as much information as possible about the direction of your organization and the importance of the roles they’re playing in it.

Diane didn’t keep her team “in the loop” about the positive feedback they were receiving from the users, or about the problems the organization was experiencing.

Honesty – Responding to questions truthfully, except in those situations in which you are constrained by your organization’s confidentiality requirements.

When asked about the layoffs, Diane didn’t respond truthfully. This is one of the most difficult questions for a manager to answer because he/she may be under an organizational directive to not divulge anything about the layoffs. A guideline to follow is instead to say, “When I have information to share, I will let you know”.

Integrity – Keeping your word by doing what you say you will do.

Diane had said she would stay and help, but she didn’t. She had a reasonable excuse under ordinary circumstances, but these were not ordinary circumstances. As the project manager, she was ultimately responsible for the successful completion of the project. If she had stayed, she might have averted the situation.

Respect is created through treating your employees in the same way you wish to be treated by your manager.

Diane openly disrespected the project manager and the team in the meeting with the Vice President.

The bottom line? Diane had not “gotten to the heart of the matter” with her team. How about you?