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These are the Beliefs that Guide Me in Business

 
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People

bulletRelationships
bulletTrust
bulletCommunications
bulletResponsibility
bulletContinuous Improvement
bulletIncremental Methods
bulletCustom Application Development
 

(Brown Company Collection)

People

It's all about people. I am often seen as the "Computer Guy", but nothing could be further from the truth. In reality, I am the "People Guy". I do things with and through other people.

People supply ideas, the most fertile ground for improvement. Most people want to make things better. They need systems designed to support them and leaders willing to use their ideas.

People do the work I am intent upon improving. I don't know that work, they do. It is up to me to work with them so we jointly "see" how things should or could be. We then work together to make the changes.

People are people, and computers are computers. They each have their strengths and weaknesses. Well designed systems avoid the weaknesses of each and use their unique strengths.

When given options, people will always do things the easy way. It is up to me to make the right way easy, then people will use the right way every time.

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Relationships 

My business is all about Relationships, they are the keys to my success. Virtually all my projects come to me through the people I know. They know what I do and trust me to do the right things. This is what keeps me in business.

I seek long term relationships. I will often forsake short term gains to better the long term relationship.

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Trust

Trust is the highest level a relationship can attain. Trust removes boundaries and makes many more things possible.

Trust can not be demanded or taken for granted, it must first be earned and then maintained. I know I must demonstrate that I am worthy of trust before I have any chance of achieving it.

Earning trust takes time and effort, yet it is my goal.

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Communications

These core skills are absolutely required for improvement to take place. The entire improvement process is built on communications and people. Miss the communications and you often miss the opportunity. I excel at bringing people together through focus and improved communications.

Listening is my most often used communication skill. My analysis and design methods demand active listening. I listen intently to people, they have the ideas and knowledge I need.

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Responsibility

A complex value to be sure. It clearly plays a personal and professional role in my life.

Professionally, it determines what I will do. As part of the agreement with my client, I will do the things we agree upon. I may lead or I may follow, it depends on the project and my role within it. My client is responsible for allowing me to operate within their organization, for the willingness to change their processes and for supplying what the organization needs to change. They always play key roles in every project and must be prepared to do so.

Personally, I believe in being responsible. This starts with personal responsibility... being responsible for oneself. I am responsible for myself, for what I do, for what I say, for my emotions, for virtually every aspect of me.

Blame, I hate it. I believe if you blame others for your failings, you are only trying to avoid your responsibility. Further, if blame is substituted for cause, it will stop an improvement process cold. If workers think they will be blamed for the problem, you are not likely to get their help to eliminate the causes of the problem. Beware of blame !

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Continuous Improvement

I believe in making things better every day.

There has been much discussion, training and organizational development spent on trying to learn Continuous Improvement concepts.

I believe it is time to stop talking and start DOING.

bulletDefine the problem.
bulletDevelop metrics to measure progress.
bulletFollow the PDCA process.
bulletInvolve everyone in the process.
bulletCommunicate to all levels of the organization.
bulletShow impatience for improvement.
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Incremental Methods

 

I believe "Incremental Improvement NOW is Far Superior to Delay Perfection".

 
bulletOrganizations are usually more willing to adopt incremental change.
bulletIncrements are easier to justify and their benefits are realized sooner.

When Developing Custom Applications

bulletEarly in a project it is very difficult for users to see how things should be in the end.
bulletRequirements definition typically yields a vague list of wants or a rough outline.
bulletHowever, give users a prototype and they can immediately tell if you hit the mark.
bulletKeep improving the prototype until you reach your goal.

What you learn through this process is worth its weight in gold.

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Custom Application Development

Custom computer applications developed to fit a process is the way to go.

The belief that packaged business applications exist that exactly fit your needs is often not true. Packages require you to change your process to fit the application, a dangerous endeavor.

Custom computer applications should be designed to be flexible. Abstraction of data designs is a powerful method leading to data driven designs that support flexibility without the need to involve a programmer.

Custom designed software should fit your processes like a glove. It should make the work involved in the process so much easier that no one would dream of doing the work any other way.

Programmers should always take the perspective of what is easiest for the user, not what is easiest for the programmer.

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For Creative Business Improvement Solutions Contact: Gene Dennebaum at gene@wingmanNH.com
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Last modified: 02/28/08.