Recently, Washington Post London burea chief Mary Jordan published this article on the expanding global nature of the Church.
It's a great article. It names the Internet as one of the tools that is allowing the Church to reach people who wouldn't have heard about the Church before.
We occasionally post links to articles like this on newsroom.
Bad systems or wrong people?
A key principle in one of my favorite books, Good to Great, is described metaphorically as "getting the right people on the bus." When a manager is trying to move toward a vision, the most important thing he can do to be successful, I believe, is to have great people along for the ride. You can cover an awful lot of organizational weakness by having great people. Some managers feel threatened by surrounding themselves with great people. I try to always hire people who are smarter and more capable than myself. It makes my job much easier and increases my organization's effectiveness.
Hiring great people isn't a panacea, however. It's easy to thwart even the most proficient employee by surrounding him with ineffectual or slow systems. By system, I mean interdependent process and tools--not just tools. Too many times I've hired someone who was very successful in one context, only to see her become frustrated and ineffectual with the context I hired her into.
When facing a situation where an employee seems not to be working out, first consider the system you've surrounded him with. Does she have the tools she needs to be successful? Is he clear on his role? Are you running interference for her? Does he have the time he needs to do his job or is he spending his time floundering in administrivia?
Good managers fix systems first and employees second. In the coming weeks, I'll talk about some of the systems an I.T. shop can focus on improving.
Hiring great people isn't a panacea, however. It's easy to thwart even the most proficient employee by surrounding him with ineffectual or slow systems. By system, I mean interdependent process and tools--not just tools. Too many times I've hired someone who was very successful in one context, only to see her become frustrated and ineffectual with the context I hired her into.
When facing a situation where an employee seems not to be working out, first consider the system you've surrounded him with. Does she have the tools she needs to be successful? Is he clear on his role? Are you running interference for her? Does he have the time he needs to do his job or is he spending his time floundering in administrivia?
Good managers fix systems first and employees second. In the coming weeks, I'll talk about some of the systems an I.T. shop can focus on improving.
New Internet Safety Podcast
Dr. Charles Knutson, a computer science professor at BYU, has started a new podcast called Internet Safety Podcast where he talks about safe driving on the Internet. The first few episodes deal with what kinds of things kids are exposed to on the Internet and some techniques for coping.
Check it out.
Check it out.
Weight Loss Contest at Work
Almost a year ago, I posted on a contest that a friend of mine at work started in order to help people lose weight. Mark Barsocchini reminded me in the comments to that post that I never closed the loop.
The contest lasted 3 months.
105 people started the contest but only 38 survived to the end.
The group lost 1123 pounds!!
The person who lost the most lost 61 pounds.
8 people beat Tadd, even though Tadd personally lost 39 pounds.
You can see some of details here. What a great contest!!
The contest lasted 3 months.
105 people started the contest but only 38 survived to the end.
The group lost 1123 pounds!!
The person who lost the most lost 61 pounds.
8 people beat Tadd, even though Tadd personally lost 39 pounds.
You can see some of details here. What a great contest!!
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