My latest article, Five Keys to Managing Gen Y was recently picked up by Business in Vancouver and published in the January 17-23 edition.  Here’s an excerpt:

You’d think we were grumpy old men. Recently I had lunch with a number of IT leaders, and  several people were bemoaning the challenges they’re having with some of their younger staff members. The complaining was ironic, as none of us are old men (yet). One thing was clear however: managing the
generation of instant gratification (gen-Yers, millenials) requires a different set of strategies.

To read more, please jump over to the GrowthPoint Group news page.

There’s always a lot of discussions about leadership styles in the workplace, but very little discussion about something even more important – the feeling a leader offers.  This is the essence of leadership – the ability to connect with others and provide a strong lead that they want to follow. It’s also an area that very little time is spent developing. (more…)

Our Topic

“Portfolio Management”

Graeme Byrne, enterprise project management and MS Project super-guru will discuss portfolio management and how it applies to your business.  (more…)

We have some fantastic speakers lined up for the next few Vancouver Technology Leaders meetings.  I’ve already lined up speakers for September, November, January and maybe even March’s events!

This month we’re focusing on strategic business analysis, a core skill for growing IT leaders.  Andrew Kowalewski will be leading an interactive discussion on the evolution of a strategic business analyst. (more…)

Technology can be a disruptor or accelerator for businesses.

When IT processes are immature and systems not stable, IT is a cost center; distracting and disrupting the business. Working properly, IT is transparent and works like a utility; it’s there working for you when you need it.

Only then can IT become the foundation required to greatly increase productivity, drive innovation, and become a competitive advantage to the business.

Small and medium-sized businesses often underestimate the strategic importance of investment in information technology. Most companies have a sales or marketing strategy, but neglect creating an IT strategy. A well thought out IT strategy helps align your IT spending with your company’s requirements and will develop it from a cost center into returns for the company. (more…)

Last week I spent several days with a long-term client at their US offices.  The goal of this trip was simple – get as much feedback on the “state of IT” a possible, then develop a plan to remediate any issues and execute. The end result was fantastic – great progress on all fronts and a very happy and more productive team. (more…)

I spent most of this week tucked away at the Justice Institute enjoying a great class called “Foundations of Conflict Management”.  That’s right – I didn’t say “network” or “server” or anything like that.  A course on conflict management. For the developing leader, especially in technology, courses such as these help us develop our less-used skills.

Where simply punching someone in the nose isn’t the right answer (when is it ever??), Foundations in Conflict Management provides an interesting framework for diving into (and hopefully solving) conflicts.  It touches on many important areas, including knowing your conflict style, developing an awareness of your own feelings/judgments/assumptions, how to ask open questions and how to work collaboratively to create a solution.  I was really impressed to find they also touched on mindfulness, an extremely important topic in conflict.

I’d recommend this course for any leader or person who deals with conflict (everyone).  If you avoid conflict, this course is especially important for you.

Thanks to Sherri and the rest of the class for a great experience!

A few weeks ago John Hughes handed me his latest work - Haunting the CEO.  Being a lover a of a great leadership fable, I put it aside waiting for that perfect quiet morning to curl up with Harley (my dog) and get lost in it. Over the holidays, such an opportunity came up.

Haunting the CEO is a very well written leadership fable, in the style of Lencioni’s classic books.  The book centers around a struggling CIO, who is pushed by his new CEO to become a true leader.

This book is a must read for both developing and experienced IT leaders.  Every one of us will find things we can relate to and simple (in theories) ways to work through common leadership speed bumps.

John, congratulations on the great work.  Loved the book.

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to sit down and enjoy coffee with a colleague dealing with a daunting business process re-engineering task.  She’s working with a client that has not leveraged technology well in their current business processes.  Management recently hired a new CIO who has been hard at work getting approval and buy-in at the management level to automate many processes, but she’s finding great resistance actually implementing the improvements at every level.

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A couple weeks ago I finished on a renovation project at the Ki Society with my step father, John.  John is a recently-retired trades-person.  It’s interesting to listen to him talk about the difference in trades-work between the professionals today, and those from a generation ago.

John strongly believes in quality.  He does things right.  He uses the right tools and processes to ensure everything is done to a high level of workmanship and that things are built to last.  There’s a deep level of pride and importance attached to that which is impossible to discount.

Something has changed with the current generation – the focus is on doing the job right now instead of doing it right. There’s less pride in workmanship, and it shows in so many ways. (more…)