Friday, May 31, 2013

"In the Dog house"

How long can you hold a grudge? A lifetime? A day? A month? A year? Longer than some dotcoms survived?

If there is nothing we have learned over time, it is that what goes around comes around. Holding a grudge really serves no purpose aside from assuaging one's personal feelings. Having problems with employees and putting them "in the dog house" should have limits too.

This week's parsha, we learn this from Hashem directly in 14:32-35 where the following occurs right after the 12 heads of the tribes had spent 40 days spying on the land of Israel and reporting back that it was a great place, but filled with giants:

32But as for you, your corpses shall fall in this desert. לב. וּפִגְרֵיכֶם אַתֶּם יִפְּלוּ בַּמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה:
33Your children shall wander in the desert for forty years and bear your defection until the last of your corpses has fallen in the desert. לג. וּבְנֵיכֶם יִהְיוּ רֹעִים בַּמִּדְבָּר אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה וְנָשְׂאוּ אֶת זְנוּתֵיכֶם עַד תֹּם פִּגְרֵיכֶם בַּמִּדְבָּר:
34According to the number of days which you toured the Land forty days, a day for each year, you will [thus] bear your iniquities for forty years; thus you will come to know My alienation. לד. בְּמִסְפַּר הַיָּמִים אֲשֶׁר תַּרְתֶּם אֶת הָאָרֶץ אַרְבָּעִים יוֹם יוֹם לַשָּׁנָה יוֹם לַשָּׁנָה תִּשְׂאוּ אֶת עֲו‍ֹנֹתֵיכֶם אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה וִידַעְתֶּם אֶת תְּנוּאָתִי:
35I, the Lord, have spoken if I will not do this to the entire evil congregation who have assembled against me; in this desert they will end, and there they will die. לה. אֲנִי יְהֹוָה דִּבַּרְתִּי אִם לֹא | זֹאת אֶעֱשֶׂה לְכָל הָעֵדָה הָרָעָה הַזֹּאת הַנּוֹעָדִים עָלָי בַּמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה יִתַּמּוּ וְשָׁם יָמֻתוּ:
Yes it is good to be The King but also god to be clear when providing your discourse and punishment. Explain the situation, provide a logical punishment and leave it alone.

Hashem did not walk away from the people, quite the opposite, Hashem made sure the younger generation would learn from the experience and hopefully not repeat the same mistake.

And so should you when you are faced with similar problems in your company. Make an example out of the individual if you must, but make sure everyone knows the reason.
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Parsha Shelach in the book of Bamidbar, Numbers 13:1-15:41
It is said that the Torah or Bible could be interpreted in over 70 ways. More likely these days 100's of ways. In light of this idea, I am writing some posts that bring a business sense to what we can learn on a weekly basis. Enjoy, Shabbat Shalom

Friday, May 24, 2013

Retaining Key Employees

Did you ever work for a company you hated to leave? You liked the people, the location maybe even the coffee shop down the road. But somehow all that familiarity that binds you to them does not make you want to stay when a better deal comes along of a monetary or management type role.

Most likely you were well liked and undoubtedly management would like to keep you, especially in this age. One way they could go about this discussion is the way Moshe did it in this week's parsha. Chapter 10:29-32
29. Then Moses said to Chobav the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses's father-in-law, We are traveling to the place about which the Lord said, I will give it to you. Come with us and we will be good to you, for the Lord has spoken of good fortune for Israel.   כט. וַיֹּאמֶר משֶׁה לְחֹבָב בֶּן רְעוּאֵל הַמִּדְיָנִי חֹתֵן משֶׁה נֹסְעִים | אֲנַחְנוּ אֶל הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר אָמַר יְהֹוָה אֹתוֹ אֶתֵּן לָכֶם לְכָה אִתָּנוּ וְהֵטַבְנוּ לָךְ כִּי יְהֹוָה דִּבֶּר טוֹב עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל:
30. He said to him, I won't go, for I will go to my land and my birthplace.   ל. וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו לֹא אֵלֵךְ כִּי אִם אֶל אַרְצִי וְאֶל מוֹלַדְתִּי אֵלֵךְ:
31. He said, Please don't leave us, for because you are familiar with our encampments in the desert and you will be our guide.   לא. וַיֹּאמֶר אַל נָא תַּעֲזֹב אֹתָנוּ כִּי | עַל כֵּן יָדַעְתָּ חֲנֹתֵנוּ בַּמִּדְבָּר וְהָיִיתָ לָּנוּ לְעֵינָיִם:
32. And if you go with us, then we will bestow on you the good which God grants us.   לב. וְהָיָה כִּי תֵלֵךְ עִמָּנוּ וְהָיָה | הַטּוֹב הַהוּא אֲשֶׁר יֵיטִיב יְהֹוָה עִמָּנוּ וְהֵטַבְנוּ לָךְ:
Moshe invites his father along for the journey of a lifetime. Moshe promises it will be good for his father in law because God has said so. Chobab replies, nah, you go, I'm going to go home and get some sleep.

Moshe then lays out the problem with Chobab leaving could be seen as a benefit to marauders because Chobab knows the encampments. And then Moshe tries again with God will help him, too. The implication of verse 32 is Chobab would not get any sympathy from God once he left.

A serious predicament here but in the end Chobab leaves and Moshe endures 38 more years wandering in the desert. Keep in mind at this point Moshe is about 82 and Chobab must be at least 100 to be his father in law if not more likely 150. Chobab had heard about the miracles god did for Bnei Israel and figured the best times were now behind them and he could go home in peace, presumably to die and be buried in his homestead.

Sometimes the employe needs to go and you are better off letting them because tomorrow they will be enticed again and you would be in the same boat. You can try to promise everything will be better but like Chobab leaving Moshe, they know it is time to go, you should trust their judgement and move on yourself.
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Parsha Behaalotecha in the book of Bamidbar, Numbers 8:1-12:16
It is said that the Torah or Bible could be interpreted in over 70 ways. More likely these days 100's of ways. In light of this idea, I am writing some posts that bring a business sense to what we can learn on a weekly basis. Enjoy, Shabbat Shalom

Friday, May 17, 2013

Can Executives Apologize?

Tough love in business is hard to find. Break the rules, you should get punished, but usually it depends who broke the rules, when and where.

When this happens, do you hem and haw, or try to spin the blame elsewhere? Or do you take your punishment, admit your guilt or apologize to the offended party and rejoin the office. Hopefully not to repeat the offense again.

In this parsha the subtext of 5:7
7they shall confess the sin they committed, and make restitution for the principal amount of his guilt, add its fifth to it, and give it to the one against whom he was guilty.
The idea that we are fallible, but can be redeemed, is important to push out to your employees. There are many ways to salvage one's efforts, but you must take the first step and confess your guilt.

As we watch executives not take ownership of their companies faults or even their own personal mistakes, it is hard to impress the attitude of ownership for one's actions. If your own leaders fail to admit their guilt, how can one expect their employees or citizens to react any differently. Blaming the weather, the traffic, the people using the product or just lying to save one's skin, is not the way to lead. Can executives apologize? Of course, but not always from the outset. Social media changes this attitude because too many can voice their opinion even if your inner sanctum thinks the opposite. 

Be upfront, confess and move along, but be more wary of your next actions.
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Parsha Naso in the book of Bamidbar, Numbers 4:21-7:89
It is said that the Torah or Bible could be interpreted in over 70 ways. More likely these days 100's of ways. In light of this idea, I am writing some posts that bring a business sense to what we can learn on a weekly basis. Enjoy, Shabbat Shalom

Friday, May 10, 2013

The 3,000+ Year Old Analytics

Numbers. No way around it, lots and lots of numbers. Analytics have finally come to roost, but they were in fashion 3,000 years ago or so.
numbers torah

Want to know how many people to feed for a dinner? At sea? You need numbers.
Try to understand the latest viral video? You need to count very high numbers.
Why are numbers so important?

This week's parsha speaks about the numbers of people in each tribe, in each family and more. The quantity in this case is to prove a sizable nation was roaming the desert. When it would be time to settle the new country, the size of the tribe would make a difference obviously, but what else could we be learning from these numbers?

The numbers are not specific down to the last one, but rounded to a flat 10 or 100 or 1,000. In a similar way to how we would portray the details in an infographic. While the details are not perfect, the overall point is made, the numbers do not lie, in this case. 

In business, make your case with real data, but use general points of reference because that is how the people think. Aside from Pi, what other numbers come to mind that include parts of a number or even come as a 23,549 type answer?

Pricing gurus have known for years that a price of $.99 is better to say than $1.00 because it is about your purchasing dollars. However we also know memory works better with numbers they recognize and can relate to or are linear.

Next time you are doing a presentation or creating an infographic, keep in mind what you want people to remember about your numbers and you will go far.

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Parsha Bamidbar in the book of Bamidbar, Numbers 1:1-4:20 It is said that the Torah or Bible could be interpreted in over 70 ways. More likely these days 100's of ways. In light of this idea, I am writing some posts that bring a business sense to what we can learn on a weekly basis. Enjoy, Shabbat Shalom

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Devoted to What?

Sacred cows. Everyone has them, some are more sacred than others. In every business there exists these ideals that never get conflicted and always stay apart from the business side.

Where did this idea come from, that something could be so untouchable? What is the benefit to us to maintain them?

This week's parsha, the latter half of bechukotai, ends with the following from 27:28:

28However, anything that a man devotes to the Lord from any of his property whether a person, an animal, or part of his inherited field shall not be sold, nor shall it be redeemed, [for] all devoted things are holy of holies to the Lord.
 
כח. אַךְ כָּל חֵרֶם אֲשֶׁר יַחֲרִם אִישׁ לַיהֹוָה מִכָּל אֲשֶׁר לוֹ מֵאָדָם וּבְהֵמָה וּמִשְּׂדֵה אֲחֻזָּתוֹ לֹא יִמָּכֵר וְלֹא יִגָּאֵל כָּל חֵרֶם קֹדֶשׁ קָדָשִׁים הוּא לַיהֹוָה:

If you have devoted something to Hashem it is put aside, all alone, to exist solely for this exercise in thanks.

Naturally few people put anything aside at their office in such a fashion, but how many documents or directives are almost written in reverential stone? Who says a tech person can not call the client and discuss something of a sales nature? Likewise who says the sales people should not provide help in areas they have a background?

Too often we find ourselves stuck in the middle between what we want to do but something is in our way. This obstacle is there to remind us that there is a better way to accomplish our task and we need to be respectful of why these rules exist. It can be for the greater good of the people and the office if you have some lines of respect within the organization. The Torah upholds these offerings to bring you good tidings that would otherwise not be to your benefit.

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Parsha Behar, Bechukotai in the book of Vayikra Leviticus 25:1-26:2 26:3-27:34
It is said that the Torah or Bible could be interpreted in over 70 ways. More likely these days 100's of ways. In light of this idea, I am writing some posts that bring a business sense to what we can learn on a weekly basis. Enjoy, Shabbat Shalom