King Cash is dead? Long live.........what?

I was rather surprised the other day when, in a meeting with a major European bank, the representative across the table sucked their teeth and rather turned their nose up when it was suggested we might give them cash as collateral; they preferred high quality securities such as US Treasuries and UK Gilts.

For those not familair with the terms, collateral is the assets one puts up as protection (a guarnatee is you like) against failing to meet one's future obligation. In this case derivative contracts that will not complete for sometime and hence there is a risk one will go bust or otherwise not be able to pay as promised. As it is a guarantee putting up cash has long been very acceptable, if not preferred.

As a young man when I started working in financial services in the City of London cash was always  far preferrable to anything else, it's value was known, it was flexible and readily usable. When I was crunching through credit applications I was required to major on the cashflow analysis, ensuring that no matter what they claimed their profits to be, they were generating enough cash to meet their bills and pay for the loan that we would be granting.

When I worked with smaller companies, cash was esssential for paying wages, for supplies, etc.

It was just simple.........Cash was King!

The banker's reaction above is a measure of how things have changed. This may be the unintentional result of well-intentioned regulation, but it feels wrong. The explanation given was that if cash is pledged as collateral in goes on the Bank's balance sheet. This then triggers a need for the Bank to provide/put aside capital to protect the cash, capital that would othewise be earning for the Bank.

We were also advised that an additional factor is the existence of negative interest rates at some of the entities where the collateral is then placed, ie it costs the depositor to leave money there!!!!

In contrast providing a high quality security as collateral does not appear on the Bank's balance sheet and is not subject to interest when lodged with a clearing house. It misses both "costs".

Of course cash on the balance sheet can, if of significant value, negatively affect other ratios and measures of the Bank's performance too.

So giving cash as collateral costs the bank more to handle; costs the bank either has to swallow or pass on to its clients, neither of which is appealling in a highly competitive world. Of course as the client there are reasons why we may well prefer to provide cash, so I can see some interesting discussion coming down the line.

I really wonder if creating the situation where a bank shies away from cash is what was intended and/or creates less risk? I suspect not.

 For me it was a reminder or maybe a wake-up call about how much things have and are still changing and the need to question and test assumptions and general widsoms.

An unexpectedly brilliant afternoon.

As a bald(ing) man walked on stage with "Masters"-green jacket, black polyester trousers and black-and-white spats I sensed something special was happening. His deep Irish brogue was hard to understand, but there was a presence we had not seen earlier.

We had gone to the Hertford Corn Exchange to a "Sundays live" free session to support a friend whose band was warming up for a big event, for them, next week. Technically they were extremely proficient with to my mind at least influences from The Doors, Yes and others of that ilk. Not surprising you might say given that they are of an age and one is a surgeon, another a headmaster and yet another a farmer.

They were good, don't get me wrong, but they didn't excite me.

Now the guy in green started singing and had the audience (to be fair many had probably come to support him as we had the previous band) and it was then I was told that he had been the lead singer with "The Commitments". Hands up if you remember that film? If not, then this will probably mean little to you. For me I loved the film and have the DVD. To me it is there with "The Blues Brothers" and "The Rocky Horror Show", and I had oft wondered what had happened to the singer who had been so good.

Now I knew, he was here in front of me, for free. He had fun, the audience had fun. It was raw. It was passionate. It had feeling.

It seems that this was just the second gig of this band, but you wouldn't have known it. I cannot play an instrument, but as a football fan can spot a class footballer, I can spot a class musician and I would say that each of the band behind the singer oozed experience and class.

The band was called "Dave Finnegan and the Mighty Mustang" - and yes he finished with "Mustang Sally"!

I am not sure what more to say other that it made for an unexpectedly great afternoon and reminded me that some of the best things in life are still free and unexpected. I suspect I may be back to the Corn Exchange!!

Moving genetic mountains - When being right isn't right!

Given the genetic/biological connection between my wife and daughter it is not surprising that they are very similar. They both have a strong sense of what is "right" in any situation and a belief that if something is in their head they have every right to express it. Similarly neither find apologising easy. I guess they see it as a sign of weakness and anyway they are right so why would they need to.

While I cannot claim or accept any responsibility for my wife's early development, with my daughter we did agree that in today's world it would be best if she could stand up for herself and not be a shrinking violet. In that, I think it is fair to say we succeeded.

Now as my daughter enters her late teens the "contract" between her and her parents, most specifically her mother, is changing. My daughter has (even) more views of her own, is developing her own circle of friends and interests and tastes. She is looking to make more of her own decisions.

This is, I believe, all standard stuff and when the two of them are aligned, as they are sometimes, the combination is awesome. The trouble is when there is a difference. In these instances the situation often spirals out of control as neither will give an inch and in fact becomes more and more entrenched.

They remind me this picture

 

each digging in deeper and deeper.

 

 

This can be over the smallest things, but often feels like World War 3.

 

It would be easy if one was right and the other wrong, but that is rarely the case. It is just that once started neither will give in.

 

As the only man in the house, husband to one and father to the other, I am frequently accused of just giving in to the "other one". Harsh words are spoken and each expects me to chastise the other.

 

As is my wont and style I try and look at what is the best overall outcome and seek to make it happen. In doing so I win few brownie points with either, but in all conscience I can rarely totally back one against the other - the situations and behaviours are rarely that clear cut.

 

My inclination is that my wife as the "adult" should be the one to rise above the oft time petty squabbles, but at the same time as my daughter becomes a woman she needs learn the skills and realities of adult life.

 

I had a chat with my daughter about fighting the battles that need fighting and letting some of the rest go; to keep a focus on the bigger wins and maybe concede a couple of points to achieve her main objectives. It was not an easy conversation as she, my daughter, does not see she has done anything wrong (ever!) and refuses to embrace the concepts of compromise or social investment. I tried to explain that being right and telling everyone that you are, is not always the best way - but she can't or won't see that.

 

I have tried to explain and show each that their behaviour is what is provoking what are now predictable reactions and unless one breaks the cycle it will continue. I have advised against using txt messages to converse as it is so easy to have subtle (and not so subtle) yet unintended misunderstandings.

 

May some of it is sticking, but it is not obvious. I am usually home an hour after my daughter, by which time hostilities have usually commenced and I am fighting a reargaurd action. It is good that I have always been self-sufficient in that I can cook and look after myself and that with our second TV room I can take myself out of it when it is too much.

 

Pink, the singer, wrote a song entitled "Conversations with my 13 year old self". I wonder what my daughter might think of saying to herself when she looks back?

 

Meantime I will don my flak jacket, hold aloft my flag of neutrality and lubricate my best diplomatic tongue. I will see if we can't navigate the next few months. I don't want to choose and neither can or will I. I don't want to lose either, but they may lose each other.

 

I just hope that in time things will improve and meantime I will endeavour to remain a rock in a stormy sea.

 

 

There are so many lists on the internet that I wonder if there is one of the ten best bits of advice for a teenager and even if there was, is there any chance they would take it onboard?

The Karmic Hot Dog

 

This is the most expensive hot dog in the world at $1,501 - and they actually sold four of them in Little Rock, Arkansas, earlier this year. Why $1,501, well it appears the vendor kept $1 and the remaining $1,500 went to charity. If you want to know more have a look here.

I mention this as I used it as a "higher/lower" question at the fundraising quiz night we ran on Friday. If you read my earlier post "Between a rock and hard place"  you will have found me conflicted when my wife decided to raise money to help a man who had been my daughter's headmaster and is now suffering stage 4 (there is no stage 5!) breast cancer. He learnt he had breast cancer six years ago and seemed to beat it, but it returned and now the doctors in the UK say they have no further treatment for him.

His wife researched other treatments and found one in Mexico, but the family would need to raise £40,000 to fund the course of treatment that was prescribed. I did my research on this facility and confess I was inconvinced. The verdicts on the internet spanned everything between effusive praise to total condemnation. To me it has all the signs of a classic scam with a plausible back story including more than a hint of conspiracy and some (pseudo?) science about cyanide in peach pips that targets and kills the cancer cells when added to the "oxygenation" of his body. There seem to be no verified studies, but plenty of excuses (see back to conspiracy) about why not and how one has to believe!

The long and the short was I decided to support the effort, in part to support my wife and sister who were committed to the cause and in part that were our positions reversed I would hope others would help me. I know at least one other man was uncertain and he talked with oncologists. They added the perspective that these efforts and the use of alternative treatments is at least in part treating the family as well as the patient. They give focus and hope - and a positive spirit must be a good thing - and mean that should the treatment not be successful no one can look back say, "...if only..."

So after a pretty frantic few weeks the night came. Something like 140 people crammed into the school hall, crushed on long tables, but all in extremely good humour. It was a reunion for many, but also there was - and I know this is a cliche - a lot of love in the room for this man. This was probably a great piece of supporting evidence for karma. He had touched our kids and lives and we were there to give a little (or a lot back).

My part was putting together the quiz and all the supporting materials and on the night co-hosted the event from the front. This was a little impromptu, but worked well.

We, the organisers, had not planned on David, that is his name, being there. We thought it might be too much and a little embarassing as he never asked for these fund raisers. His wife decided that he was coming as he would get a lift off the energy. In the end he and his wife arrived after the first hour and stayed to the end, through the fish supper, most of the quiz, the auction and the raffle. There was lots of hugging and laughter and no tears, at least not that I saw.

At the end David took the microphone and spoke movingly. He thanked those there, not asking for pity or sorrow, but rather thanks that he had had a good life and was not giving up on it yet. He added that his time at the school had been one he treasured and his decision to leave was one that he now regretted.

As everyone departed around 11:30, many laden with raffle prizes or acution items and full of smiles and bonhomie, the small team set about clearing everything up and were out of there around 12:30. David and his wife left around midnight.

Remembering this was a small school, albeit a private one with parents who could afford to pay for education, every auction item was bought and bought well.

As we planned the night we thought we might raise circa £2,000, but when my wife and I did the accounts the next day, we were amazed to find that we had actually raised £5,600 on the night, plus another £160 from the sale of Christmas cards. Additionally one of the parents is tapping her company's charitable fund and has promised £750 of "matched" funding. This raises the total to over £6,500.

When added to the money already raised and a couple of imminent events this has probably made £40,000 and Mexico in early 2013 a reality.

It was hard work, but just shows what you can do if you set your mind to it. Barring some horrific feedback from the PA system, the quiz went well with the three tops scores being 108,111 and 112 out of a maximum possible of 134. We even got some praise for the quiz being fun so ... happy days.

My slight concern is that David has not blogged since Friday - he usually does so daily. I wonder if after the high of the evening he has felt a subsequent crash - I do hope not - or that maybe the generosity in the room and the fact that the sum raised makes his trip a reality has created feeling of obligation or pressure to succeed? Again I hope not.

The time, effort, prizes, money and general goodwill were all given for the absolutely best of reasons and all for one man and his family. It reunited a community built around a school and was a beacon in difficult times.

Fingers crossed for the days, weeks, months and, hopefully, years ahead.

Contribute to the power of 12 million cups of coffee!

 

As the festive season approaches I want to test the power of networks and the value micro-gifts , especially as my linkedin profile reports that my network has just topped 12 million and, while considerably more modest, my blog is now registering 3,000 hits per month. If I could persuade just a small percentage of those numbers to do something “good” at this time of year then the total effect should be substantial and worthwhile.

My suggestion is that we use the price of a cup of coffee as the common “micro” unit in question. That we are all connected and using the internet suggests that we are better off than many. I suspect that we all buy cups of coffee or something similar during our working day, but what if we all gave up just one purchase and instead put that money to more charitable and good spirited use?

If you are prepared to do so then I  wouldn’t dare preach about what you should do with the money that would have bought that cup of coffee. That is entirely up to you and your personal interests and opportunities. It might be a gift to an individual or cause, the support of a charity, or just something you feel will do good. The only request I do make is that this is something you would not have otherwise done and thus is an increment to the amount of good done in the world at this time of year.

While I am happy to hear what you have done (just add a comment) I don’t need to know. What I would ask is that if you have or are prepared to do this then please like (on linkedin)  or share this update with others so that it spreads through my network and others can see the momentum as it develops.

I can’t promise anything in return other than membership of something that has added positively to this world and made it better for others. Maybe we can move the world forward, even just a little bit, and who of us here can't afford to risk the cost of a cup of coffee?

I sort of started this the other day while queuing for a cup of coffee. It was quite cold and wet and a rather bedraggled homeless man approached begging for “his breakfast”. If I am honest I don’t usually give to outright beggars in London – there are too many stories of organised gangs, but in this instance I offered to buy him a cup of coffee. My thinking being that at least I would know my gift went to his sustenance. He asked for hot chocolate instead, but the principle still stood. In truth I then gave him the change I received from the vendor. His acceptance of my gesture had softened my attitude to giving cash to a beggar, well at least this one.

As I say, it is not something I usually do or have done since. Nor have I seen him again. That is not the point, but rather that in some small way it felt the right thing to do and worthwhile.

My commitment is that I will do it again in the coming weeks, when I see what feels like the right opportunity.

If anyone has seen the film "Elf" they will know how the Christmas spirit fuels Santa's sleigh. Well the donation of each "cup of coffee" should add an increment to the goodwill in the global tank. While I know this is a Christian image and festive season, I hope that readers of any faith can understand the sentiment and feel the desire to participate.

Now if we could deliver 12 million of those increments – that would make a difference!

PS As an indication of scale it would take almost 12 million cups of coffee to fill an Olympic swimming pool!!!

Character is..........

I saw this image on Pinterest some time ago and then came across it again yesterday. I thought I would post it to my blog as a way of "embedding" it in my thoughts.

It seems particularly important at this time of year. I have had two charity/fundraising events this week and joined the orgnaising committe for another. Additionally I have had a few conversations along the lines of helping others. I blogged before about giving a distressed young girl a train fare home and how I hoped that should my daughter ever need help, someone would return the favour - karma if you like.

A couple of years ago I came across a well dressed lady reeling drunken in the street, a victim of a Christmas party excess, who had been separated from her companions. I helped her to the station ( I was going there anyway ) got her some black coffee and led her to the ticket gate for her train home. When I told the story to someone this week they pointed out how few people would do that because of the risk of perceived/accused wrong doing.

I just did it.

In another instance I have bought copies of the Big Issue from the same vendor, one I used to walk past most days. I like the idea of the Big Issue in that the less fortunate are doing something to help themselves and I am happy to support that. Over the years I have always paid over the cover price and given him something extra at Christmas time. He did ask me for a loan of £10 in the past and as I recall I decided to just give it as a donation.

I have not seen him for some time, yet passed him the other night. I had already bought my copy of the magazine this week, but stopped for a few words and a promise to buy one next time. This time he asked me to loan him £20. Maybe I was right and maybe I was wrong, but it didn't feel the right thing to do. It felt like he had crossed a line. I am not proud, but neither am I uncomfortable that I made my excuses and left.

I confess to this last point as I do not think one has to be a soft touch to have good character. Judgement still plays an important part.

I believe I am of good character, yet it does no harm to remind oneself at times and I think periodic sight of the graphic above would be of benefit to many.

I wasn't worried about Olympic ticketting until.........

..........I saw that the Paul Deighton, Chief Executive of Locog, the London organiser of the Olympic games claimed, under questioning by the London Assembly, that it would be too confusing to provide every piece of data around the sale of Olympic tickets. Now that just sounds patronising and evasive.

Like many others I was frustrated by the ticket allocation process. It seemed tortuous. That said I will be the first to admit that the Games went surpisingly well and it appears that they sold more tickets than they had targetted. In contrast I also know from people who attended how many seats were unfilled at events....even the closing ceremony.

So how hard can the data be? It is just about tickets and most people are smart enough to work things out. I will confess that now my mind is now wondering what is hidden in the numbers? Favouritism, Cock-ups? I want to know; something I didn't at the start of today.

The Change Gap

This graphic is one I have prepared for a breakfast meeting of senior change personnel I have been asked to speak at in a couple of weeks' time. The initial thoughts of the company organising the event were to speak on something like regulatory changes eg FATCA or Dodd-Frank. While these are certainly topical, they are being done-to-death by every consultancy so why should this breakfast invitation stand out and persuade people to attend.

My alternative approach was to think about what I see causing issues for those charged with leading change? What causes them to lose sleep?

My suggestion, which was accepted, relates to an issue I have seen for some time and that is that the nature of change, at least in the world of financial services where I live, is changing and our ability to keep up, let alone get ahead, is struggling and, many would argue, failing.

I can't say that this keeps me awake, but it does keep me thinking and looking for ways to explore the issue and identify possible solutions.

The black arrow in the diagram above represents the fact that the complexity of change, along with the pace required is growing rapidly and only showing signs of accelerating, not slowing.

When I installed a front office trading system for a leading bond dealer in the early 1980's it was located in a single building, ran on two central boxes (we didn't use the word servers in those days), had around 100 terminals connected directly by dedicated cables and took in two data sets daily that were delivered physically on tapes and  loaded over-night. Think today about a global user base connected over virtual networks to dispersed server farms using real-time data to trade in nanoseconds. I am the first to accept that it was easier when I did it, but it is an illustration of growth in complexity and pace.

Similarly while modern regulation only started in the UK in 1986, if one now looks at the current influences and demands from Europe and the US they are not always in tune or synchronised with UK developments; another example of growing complexity and pace. Other examples abound.

In some areas there is a compounding factor and that is uncertainty. Many changes evolve over time rather than being stated up front and then remaining unchanged during the life of a project. The term "direction of travel" is used more and more in the regulatory world and reflects the fact that while the broad intent and aspirational schedule may be known, the details are not and will only be developed gradually. This means that the ability to plan with confidence is limited, yet the risk of not doing anything keeps growing.

The green line illustrates the growing efficiency brought about the use of methodologies, programme offices and project and planning software. These have grown substantially since the 1980's and can be seen evidenced in the number of "qualified" change personnel and the membership of change bodies. This has largely been an "industrial" exercise of standardisation, measurement, reporting, governance and incremental improvement.

While rarely intended, the net effect is often a one size fits all approach with little real opportunity for a project management to adapt or deviate from the "standard". Prince 2 is a case in point. It is intended and designed that one can pick and choose the elements that are appropriate for each project, allowing a lighter touch for smaller, simpler endeavours yet a robust a structure for bigger, riskier work. In practice this difference is rarely seen and the processes for a "large" project swamps and cripples a "small" project.

Being industrial there is a level beyond which one cannot go, ie the best possible efficiency. As one approaches that then the benefit of making additional improvements diminishes.

In the early part of my working career I would say that the productivity/efficiency gains were ahead of the complexity/pace impact and we saw improvements in real and perceived delivery of change. I would argue today that we have passed the crossover point and now face what I have labelled as "The Change Gap".

This gap is essentially the difference between demand and supply. It could easily be seen as a capacity issue, ie we could solve the issue if we point more people at the problem, but is actually more of a capability issue ie can we mentally, behaviourally and collectively do what is needed? Just doubling or tripling the number of resources is not the answer.

A similar concern about the limitations of the "industrial" approach is voiced by John Kotter, a leading thinker on transformational change. This style of thinking has led to huge progress since the industrial revolution and has spread geographically, but John argues that we are seeing evidence that the industrial approach to organising and controlling a business is proving unable to cope with the scale, complexity and pace of modern business.

If you accept my model then unless we do something different and smarter the gap will keep growing. Just doing the same as we have previously done, no matter how well we execute it, is not enough. This is something that concerns many organisations and should concern those that it doesn't yet.

So what does it mean? Well it doesn't mean throwing all the best practices out, at least not until we have something better. What it does mean is equipping change professionals with skills that are more than structured planning, Powerpoint generation and list management. They need better business understanding, skillful judgement and an environment that empowers them to make the right calls at the right time. It needs a workplace that understands the uncertainty and adapts to it, embracing the "journey" and understanding that it is unlikely that it will ever arrive at its destination, yet can be very successful along the way.

It may well be time to re-negotiate the contract between BAU and Change, moving from Client/Supplier  to a place where Change is at worst a fully-fledged partner (risk and reward) and quite possibly a real leader, arguably with a seat at the top tables of business (that is if those tables still exist!). This is something of a game changer in my mind and will need some real leaders to achieve it.

Not everyone will be able to or want to make that journey, but it is one we should be thinking about as it is people led and will take time, as all human change does. We must consider who we hire and why - being prepared to challenge the current project/change manager model. We must look at how their skills are developed and deployed, using individuals as valuable assets rather than a commodity capability. And we must do it now.

I am sure there is a lot more to do and I hope I will find kindred spirits that can help shape this vision. It will take time to effect, but if we want to be in a better place in future, now is time to investment, mentally and emotionally.

Change is exciting and we should be able to change ourselves!!!

My Christmas Wish List - 2012

Dear Santa (or anyone feeling generous),

When I was a boy I wrote you letters and sent them up the chimney, but as we are now fully centrally heated I am hoping you will be monitoring the internet.

I have been good this year and here are some things I have seen and want for Christmas.

#1 - A Watch

The first item is from http://www.division-furtive.com/ and is a hand built "James Bond" inspired watch that uses a very different paradigm. It is set by light signals from a PC or smart phone, so no controls. Everything else is done by tapping the screen and it only tells the time when you look at it!

There are two version' the "46" that will cost $3,600 and only 46 will be built. The other (and perfectly acceptable to me - hint, hint) is the "40" which costs $250.

The largest difference is that the "40" us an LED diaplay rather than a slider.

Don't ask me why I like it, I don't really know. I just like different watches and this is genuinely different. I already have one of these

This one was described as more a conversation piece than a time piece :)

---

#2 - A Ring

The second item is this

A geared ring from http://www.kinektdesign.com/ . As someone who usually has his hands busy this ring would be a distraction. It is very industrial in its look and may not fit with my current working image, but is still something that attracts me and I would happily wear one.

---

#3 - A Toy

Now I have never been a fan of toys like Scalectric or more recently radio-controlled (RC) cars, boats and now helicopters, but...............


Now there is a RC Helicopter with a payload ie a water gun. So now rather than just buzzing my RC toy around I could "interact" with others, say on a sunny summer afternoon. OK, the water tank is not huge, but still I am sure I could make a little go a long way!

I have seen this one as a Groupon offer, but see it can be found at various places on the web. Here is a video of it too.

---

Are you getting the idea? Seeing the big kid inside?

I will add more items that I want as I come across them.

Do you hire a taxi and then ask to drive?

For most of my working life I have commuted by train. What has made it bearable has been that I have almost always been able to walk to the station - this is by conscious design and is something I still guard jealously whenever my wife suggests moving out into the country.

The significance is that I don't have the hassle of having to drive to the station, find somewhere to park, de-ice the car in winter, etc. OK occassionally it is a wet walk, but that is not often and good shoes, overcoat and umbrella are usually up to it.

The way others compromise is by having a friend or partner drive them to the station and pick them up later. They don't have an idle car during the day for which they are paying often exhorbitant parking fees. This I understand and I can see that it makes sense to many.

The bit I don't understand are the arrangements, and I see them every day, whereby two people arrive by car at the station. Person A exits the driver's seat and proceeds to the station while Person B exits the passenger seat, walks around the car to the drivers seat and then drives off.

In the evening it is a reverse arrangement. Person B drives to the station and on the appearance of Person A from the station, immediately swaps seats, allowing Person A to drive them home (presumably).

What is this about? Is it just a control thing? Does Person A not trust Person B to drive properly? Does Person A ask to drive a taxi whenever they hail one?

To me if someone where to drive me to the station, that would be great. I could sit in the passenger seat (or the back if that was my wont) without a care. That seems so much more attractive.

At least the sight of this ridiculous ritual each morning makes me smile and lighten the early minutes of the day.

Any thoughts?

A Windows 8 - A Nightmare In Waiting?

Who says the young take to the new easily? My daughter (almost literally) threw our new Windows 8 laptop back at me yesterday complaining that after two days of trying she found it too complicated.

This is the girl who took to PC's, Facebook, Blackberry's, iPods and iPads with no training or trouble, yet she has, at least for now, given up on Windows 8, and with that access to a shiney new toy. You have no idea how important it was that the laptop "look good"!

I restarted the PC from scratch. I do wonder why it takes four or five hours to restore factory condition, but hey ho, that is what it took. I then fired it up and started the process of making it usable with the software we wanted on it.

By way of introduction I should say that I have worked with personal computing for over 30 years, using the classic "C:\" DOS interface, the early graphical one's such as GEM (Graphical Environment Manager - out of XEROX, I think), early Apple and Windows editions and then through Windows 3.1, 95, 98, XP, Vista, 7 and now 8. I have even got into the Android interface for my phone.

I have to confess that earlier switches seemed easier. Maybe there was less in the system, or the changes were small enough to be simple steps or intuitive enough when they were larger ones. With the move from 7 (or XP or Vista) to 8, the steps are large and far from intuitive.

It feels like it might be good on a tablet or smart phone with a touch screen, but does not work as well on a desktop or laptop and a mouse. The mix of apps and a more traditional windows "desktop" is not an easy one, especially without the familiar Windows launch button at the bottom left. Closing an app requires pulling the it from the top and off the bottom - OK on a phone, but a pain with a mouse. Oh yes, you can still "Alt-F4", but isn't that missing the point.

The openning screen seems bright yet clumsy. I have yet to find how to nest the app icons so that I don't keep scrolling to find things. And should you want to do anything similar to the old Control Panel, well good luck!!!

I know I am sounding all fuddy duddy and I am sure I will become more familiar and adept in time, but I can see a nightmare.

The nightmare is when(?) it hits the corporate world. Now I know this is some way away as many businesses are only now upgrading to Windows 7, but there will come a time when that goes out of support. At that point the nightmare starts. Not only is it usually hell on earth for an IT department to "build" a new set up and test all the applications, but they have to train all the operators. I have lived through three of these now as most companies I have worked for have gone from Dos to 3.1 to XP and now to 7.

All of these took longer than expected and cost far more than was ever budgetted. Most recently I have been taken from XP to 7. For me it was pretty easy as I have been using 7 at home for a while, but even for others the differences are not that great. Despite this there has been two hours of training per person!

As I sit here today I am convinced that the upgrade to 8 would be the project from hell; one to leave to someone else.

Of course there are alternatives. It may be that Microsoft offers and alternative upgrade path that is more like 7; It may be that other software houses write shells that sit over 8 and make it more familiar or it may be that the corporate world just skips 8 (like much of it skipped 95 and Vista)?

I will persevere with the laptop as I don't want to seem like Canute, but I think Windows 8 will be an interesting journey to both observe and be part of.

Playing with words - the Root of English Humour?

A friend just sent me a mail, the majority if which you will find below. He points out that "playing with words, is a fundamental requirement in understanding English humour."

I hope you can enjoy this, even if you are not a English is not your mother tongue. It certainly made me smile on a November Friday afternoon.

I hope you enjoy this, too!

Once again, The Washington Post has published the winning submissions to its yearly neologism contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternative meanings for common words.

The winners are:

1. Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs.

2. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained.

3. Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.

4. Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk.

5. Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent.

6. Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightgown.

7. Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.

8. Gargoyle (n), olive-flavored mouthwash.

9. Flatulence (n.) emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.

10. Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline.

11. Testicle (n.), a humorous question on an exam.

12. Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.

13. Pokemon (n), a Rastafarian proctologist.

14. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.

15. Frisbeetarianism (n.), (back by popular demand): The belief that, when you die, your soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.

16. Circumvent (n..), an opening in the front of boxer shorts worn by Jewish men.

***********************************************************

The Washington Post's Style Invitational also asked readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition.
The winners are:

1.. Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.

2. Foreploy (v): Any misrepresentation about yourself for the purpose of getting laid.

3. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.

4. Giraffiti (n): Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.

5. Sarchasm (n): The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.

6. Inoculatte (v): To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.

7. Hipatitis (n): Terminal coolness.

8. Osteopornosis (n): A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)

9. Karmageddon (n): its like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.

10. Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you.

11. Glibido (v): All talk and no action.

12. Dopeler effect (n): The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.

13. Arachnoleptic fit (n.): The frantic dance performed just after you've accidentally walked through a spider web.

14. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.

15. Caterpallor (n.): The color you turn after finding half a grub in the fruit you're eating.

And the pick of the literature:

16. Ignoranus (n): A person who's both stupid and an a*shole (or in English, an a*sehole).

The Interesting Concept of "Change Debt" and Its Cost

Yesterday I saw a blog by some friends of mine at Broadgate Consultants about technical debt . This is not a term I had been aware of before, but maybe that is because my focus has been on business change rather than IT.

When I mentioned it at a meeting later in the day the response I got was "Oh yes. That is a hot topic right now!" So while it doesn't quite meet my rule of three (ie if I hear something three times then I need to know more!) it seemed to warrant inspection.

Put simply it would appear that technical debt is the shortfall (relating to technology and its operation) between what should have been done to maintain an organisation's integrity and standards and what was actually done to get a change in. The sort of things are completing full documentation and procedures, elements of testing that may have been cut out or glossed over, issues that remain uncleared other than by the use of "workarounds", the use and acceptance of non-standard software components because the "right" ones could not be made to work as required, etc.

I am sure most project managers will recognise these. They are the things that someone should come back to and resolve. If you are in a mature change environment (or lucky) they will be detailed in the project closure report along with assigned responsibilities, but I see this less and less as the pressure is applied to get on with the next urgent change.

The problem is that these "debts" start compounding leading to operational inefficiency and passing an additional load to future change initiatives who may have no choice but to clean up the past problems.

If I understand it correctly, one might argue that the ATM outage that RBS suffered was as a result of "technical debt".

The blog reports "there are several theories and computational algorithms out there" that are supposed to calculate the debt and indeed the "interest" (ie price paid as a result of the debt). These sound fascinating and I may indeed look into them. I am sure the intent is good, but life has taught me to be wary of trying to reduce everything to a number that may convey a false sense of accuracy or precision.

What was more interesting is that the application of this is so much wider. I would suggest that we should not talk soley or specifically about "technical debt", but rather about "change debt" ie ALL the shortages created when implementing change of any sort. The principle of compromise and shortcuts is common to all change, often hidden behind the terms "pragmatic" and "tactical"; I have used them myself.

With a staffing model that is predominantly one of a stable complement of permanent employees, those creating the debt are often around to pay the interest. This is not true of contractors and consultants and can often be seen in their approach to issues. What is more concerning is that the shortening of permanent tenure in many organisations. Think about how many people are in the same job three years running? I would argue very few; either they have moved to a new organisation or role or the role has changed around them. This leaves the "interest" to be paid by others.

I would suggest that this can be seen vividly in many Investment Banks.

So what?

Well, my "so what?" is to start thinking about how the concept of "change debt" impacts my thinking on the delivery of business change? It definitely has a part to play at least by encapsulating and articulating an existing problem such that others can better understand the issue.

It will be interesting to see where the "third" reference crops up and I suspect it will be one of those topics I find myself musing over as I tend my autumnal bonfires. (I blogged before about The Strategy Bonfire and how some of my best thinking is down while lost in the dance of the flames.)

How do you identify a "real" change manager?

This question was posted in a Linkedin group and has currently generated over 200 comments. I shared my evolutionary tree tracking development of the change professional. I had a few responses, mostly telling me how wrong I was about what a change manager is, but then most of the participants seemed to be from the HR/organisational design stable which in my experience has long seen itself as separate from (and superior to?) the rest of people delivering business, process, product and IT change.

I went back with a second bite.......

Time for a different answer to the question.

You identify them by the reactions they cannot control. When you give them sight of an opportunity to lead and influence change their excitement levels rises, the eyes dilate, their vocal delivery quickens and their breathing shallows. They start sparking ideas, identifying and mitigating risks and issues, they want to communicate the intention to others, organise the work and engage with stakeholders; in short their passion rises and is oh so visible.

Metaphorically at least you may have to hold them back as they want to get started; you don't drive them, they start driving you. Basically they want to do it!

It is not a tick box exercise, but has more similarity to spotting the "other" person across a crowded bar......you instinctively read all the signs and you just know!

Interestingly apart from one "like" this generated no response. I am still not sure why? It seems to capture the passion and drive that typifies a real change agent.

What did I miss?

False Comfort From Wasted Effort And Misleading Precision!

My experience as a project, programme and corporate (change) portfolio manager, is that the two pieces of information that are immediately and indelibly etched in the business’ memory are the budgeted cost and forecast end-date, both of which in the budgeting processes are almost certainly wrong. No wonder the perception is that most projects fail, when the the most common measures used to assess them were flawed at inception.
So my heart falls when I am asked to start a project and being told that the budget is a number (something like) £184,534 in 2012; this being a figure drawn out of a plan created about a year ago and then enshrined in the annual budget.  I will stress that the numbers are purely fabricated to illustrate the point, but many readers will recognise the truth they represent.

Being quoted to the nearest £1 creates an impression of superior planning and accuracy; interestingly I have in the past been in places where this figure included the pence too! In truth the supporting estimation process was little more than the proverbial “wet finger in the wind” or “gut feel” technique; and probably started as something like “4 man months plus £20k of other expenses” or it feels like "£600k and probably around seven months"

This was probably then subject to the addition of some additional overheads and spread over seven (or some other awkward number of ) months  and subsequently slipped partly into the next year. Then it was subject to a blanket 9% haircut (easier than having to challenge a pet project!) to get the overall total budget down to an acceptable number and rounded to the nearest £100k.

Apart from the wasteful effort required of the project and programme managers and PMO to create a sets of budget figures by project, by month, by cost category that conform to an accountants specification, this creates further problems during subsequent reporting (“please explain the variance this month against the budget number?”) and gives the business a false sense of confidence and indeed ownership of the money involved, such that should the project be delayed or cancelled or maybe come in under-budget, the business unit concerned will immediately believe that the unspent money is theirs to spend.

The behaviours around all this are so wrong, albeit most participants are doing what they see as the right thing. The problem is that it is driven by a simple belief that every number has to balance and the fact that spreadsheets make accurate computation very easy and there is a belief that finer precision is better.

As the head of corporate programme office I was and remain proud of some key changes I made.
There were two key foundations for victory (and it was a battle!).

The first was that we only provided detailed budget figures those projects that were already approved AND reasonably planned. The rest of the change budget was pooled into a single “pot” or cost centre (ie not a cost centre for each idea) that the Programme Office modelled, managed and allocated as identified projects were approved and planned.

As a PMO we analysed previous spending patterns, both seasonal and by category. They were surprisingly consistent over three years and gave us a starting model. We then looked at the nature of the upcoming portfolio and agreed how the "model" should be flexed, something we agreed with the Head of Change.

We then used these to spread the "pot" figure into the budget process, providing perfect transparency on our process and results.

Of course the numbers the Programme Office submitted in the budget process were also wrong, as in it was unlikely that they would be hit +/- 1%, but no more wrong than the alternative individual estimates and much easier to generate and manage.

In subsequent months as a new project was approved, a specific cost centre was established and a “correct” portion of the pool allocated to it.

The second foundation was that the PMO could hold a list, sub-ledger if you like, of the proposed projects that may not equal exactly the size of the pot/pool. In doing this we recognised that while there are critical links between business plans and the financial budgets, they are not the same thing. Applying a x% haircut across a set of projects does not mean they will all cost less to deliver!

The simplest way is to illustrate the process.

Existing/approved projects for next year require              £21.5m

Business identifies more initiatives estimated at               £48m

                                                                                                    ======

Total demand                                                                    £69.5m

FD sets limit at                                                                   £35m

           Funding available for new projects                                    £13.5m

A Serious challenge brings business demand down to     £15m (from £48m)

At this stage one could apply a haircut across either the new projects (10%) or the whole change portfolio (4%), but this does nothing that make some numbers add up and make an mid-level accountant’s life easier.

Instead we did this

 

             Budget                                                £35m

             Project List                                          £36.5m

             Broken into – Detail                            £21.5m
 
             Pot                                                      £13.5m
                                                                        ======
                                                                         £35m

The pool approach had the added advantage that until allocated, the money was a corporate asset and the project/change committee could invest it in the most appropriate propositions and not be held hostage by a business unit’s selfishness. We could report to the Change Board how well the remaining pot reconciled to the expected demand and consider new requirements caming out of left field on their merits without getting into a project dogfight about who gave up what - we made the best decision for the company.

I ran this way for three years and each year the financial management of the portfolio was a) easier and b) I believe we made better decisions.

The key reason is that we did not waste effort either creating or trying to manage to fictitious numbers. Instead we empowered those involved in governance and delivery to focus on the key decisions.

The most uncomfortable group initially were the accountants who ran the plan. They really did not like the idea of a list of projects that added up to something different from their spreadsheets, but after a year or so they found that it worked better for them too and after year two there were no objections.

This is one place that a PMO can add real value to the wider change community!

The Growth of Linkedin Networks

 

Back in February 2011 I blogged about a useful(?) Linkedin application that mapped out one's network, illustrating who was connected to who and where the concentrations are. I don't recall how many connections I had, but it is shown in the top left elelment of the diagram above.

This was the time that I left my employer of 6.5 years and embraced a more flexible attitude to working, accepting contract or permanent opportunities. QUite simply I would rather be working and doing interesting "stuff" than not.

Well now, just 20 months later I have had my Linkedin network redrawn and I think the reader can see a substanstial difference. It is certainly a much denser map. The colouring is determined by the Linkedin software so there is not a direct comparison, but positioning of individuals on the two map is broadly similar so the development of the lefthand-side is notable.

As of today, Linkedin reports I have 670 direct connections,leading to almost 12 million people. What I know is that in the last 18 or so months I have been more "out there", contributing to discussions, sharing knowledge and experience and commenting with opinion. I have also been an active blogger.

My view is broadly that if I meet someone I find interesting, I look to connect. If someone asks to connect to me, then until or unless I have a reason not to, then I will accept them. There are undoubtedly some serial and indiscriminate networkers, but on the whole I believe people are genuine and one never knows where the next great opportunity will come from.

The one thing I never sought and gave only sparingly and genuinely was recommendations on Linkedin. Similarly I am not that keen on the endorsement feature, but I have participated for people I rate and for skills I have truly seen demonstrated.

Anyway, as a man who draws pictures it is rewarding to see the growth of my network (reward for my effort?) depicted visually. I wonder what it will look like in another 20 or so months?

Contributory Manslaughter - the fear thereof

This is a slightly tongue-in-cheek post, well at least the title is, but this week my 17 year-old daughter had her first driving lesson. She was excited beforehand and came back on something of a high. She assures me her clutch control was exceptional for a first lesson and that unusually she was allowed to drive home from where she had been practising.

As you can tell she does not lack self-confidence!

The car she was in had dual control so the instructor was able to intervene if necessary. Also, she was being taught by a stranger, a qualified instructor, someone I am sure she paid more attention to than she would either of her parents.

Even with this she had primary control of a "ton" of high powered metal, something that magnifies her destructive power many, many times. This is frightening thought for a parent who has been (and probably always will feel) responsible for the actions of their child.

I do not expect there to be any problems and I am sure that should something happen, I am legally exonerated from her actions while under instruction or indeed once she has passed and has a full licence, but I wonder how I or her mother would feel inside?

God willing we will never find out, so I will keep fingers crossed and anything else that guards against bad fortune.

Puggle

I have blogged before about great words and today I added another to my vocabulary. That word is "puggle" and is the name given to a baby echidna, the australian marsupial (see above).

I am not sure quite why, but it feels so right and I am sure will stick in my memory for my next Scrabble showdown.