Delving deeper into the specifics of these successful projects, I uncovered a similar pattern. Yes, the individual’s technical skills and the process they followed were important. However, some of the projects didn’t follow a defined process but were still successful. Some of the projects didn’t use the latest and greatest technology and were still successful. What these projects had in common with those that did was the relationship the technologists had with the business (user) community.Asking the head of the business area why they considered specific technology projects successful, their answers varied. Many projects satisfied their needs…many did not. The ones they believe were the most successful were when they could mention a specific person (manager, technologist, analyst, PC Support, or quality control) that made it that much more responsible for the success. They didn’t mention the technology. They didn’t mention the process they followed. All of them mentioned that it was more than just having their needs met…that it was the relationship they had with the technologist that made the project a true success.

Think about this in terms of YOU. Why do you have the job you have? Who really puts the food on your table? It’s the company’s clients and customers. The business person (marketing, sales, executive management) may be your interface but you have a job because they need you to give them what they want. They are the reason why you are fed regularly.

If business had its way, it would pick a team of technologists that had the best relationship with them. They know the project may be late, over budget, and some of their requirements may not even be met. Again and again, they would select the individual they find easiest to work with, the one who listens and understands them. What type of relationship do you have with the non-technical community? Meeting the business needs is only satisfaction. Having them request you over and over again… that’s loyalty.

Think about this in terms of YOU. Having a loyal relationship with the business community gives you first priority to work on the top projects. It gives you priority to learn the skills you need. It builds systems that they will remember you by. It provides a future reference. Surprisingly, it may even provide a lifelong relationship.

Your technical skills and process are important. It just shouldn’t be the first two in the list of what skills you need. Building great systems that meet or exceed business expectations requires relationship building. Relationship building provides more avenues for technologists to play with the latest and greatest technologies and less likely you will get laid-off. Yet, this is the one area that is often ignored, avoided, and least trained.

Think about this in terms of YOU. How may classes have you attended on building business relationships? How many articles or books have you read on the topic? The answer to both questions is either none or not enough. Now, how many classes have you attended on technology or process? Do you see your gap? Shouldn’t you change your focus a bit?

Now for some tough questions. Answer them on a scale of 1 to 5 (five being a loyal relationship):

* How quickly does business return your call or email?

* How often are you requested to work on the next juicy project for them?

* How long does the key business person stay involved with the project?

* Are you caught off guard with “scope creep”?

* Does the business community dread a meeting with you?

I dare you to actually ask 5 business people the following 4 questions (of course, that is if they even take your call):

* Why was the project I was on successful?

* Did you enjoy working with me on the project?

* Would you select me to work on your next project?

* How involved will you be in the project?

Your technological skill set and the process you follow is not what is keeping you fed. It’s how you exceed meeting the needs of the business. Exceeding goes beyond satisfaction, it creates a loyal partnership. CIOs and business systems manager will always select a person the business requests. Said in a technical way, technology skills and process are commodity items. Relationship building is what separates you from the pack. Building the relationship starts with YOU!

There are “rules of engagement” which illustrates sincerity and respect. Once understood and put in practice, the sincerity and respect will go both ways. It only works if you believe that the Relationship is important in the long run. It only works if you believe that relationships are more important than your technical skills and process. No matter what technical position you hold, business relationship building skills must be your top priority (Rule of Engagement #1).

Beware! Relationship building does not happen overnight. It will take up to a year to form a permanent bridge. The rewards are endless. These skills will help you build better systems and build a better relationship with business personnel (as well as other technologists, family and friends) for a lifetime. It will become part of your brand and lead you towards continual success.

Over the next week, identify specific business individuals you want to have a better relationship with by year end.

1. Do you constantly plan and prepare to leave your job but never take action?

2. Are you waiting for the perfect time to change careers?

3. Do you get a good idea and pencil it “to be done” later?

4. Are you overwhelmed by all your ideas to create your dream life and just put them on the shelf?

5. Are you waiting to be laid off to start working on your life?Did you see yourself in one of those questions? Most people are “comfortable” in their current jobs and don’t want to rock the boat. They have a steady source of income, health insurance benefits and that’s enough. But do you realize if you’re not working on your dream, on your life, on your future, you are helping someone else build theirs? Which would you rather invest in – yourself or someone else?

So you have a great job and the possibility of pursuing what would make you feel great is just not on the agenda because it seems like “too much”.Or maybe you’ve decided that you’re not ready to start living and putting yourself on the backburner is fine by you. Planning, brainstorming and starting does not mean you’re going to quit your job on Monday. It means just that. You’re planning, brainstorming and most importantly -starting.

Stop preparing to give, to share and to live. Just Do It.

If you have “red light thinking” here are 4 steps to help you start going:

1. Clarify what you want your life to look like. In your dream life, what are you doing for work?

2. Crystallize what you want to do for income. Get clear on exactly 5-7 sources of income that you demonstrate an aptitude for and are motivated to do.

3. Prepare to make your transition. Do you realize most people started on their plan by working on it nights and weekends. Do the due diligence, research and whatever it takes to examine the viability of your idea. Don’t make assumptions.

4. Begin taking small steps to create the life you love, doing work you love.

Following are some suggestions for helping you to become a better listener.

Focus your attention on the person who is talking to you.

When another person is talking to you, either face-to-face or on the phone, focus your attention on what they are saying. Don’t do other activities at the same time, look elsewhere, or answer another call. If you are speaking face-to-face, look the person in the eye, make sure your body is turned forward, and keep a calm but attentive countenance. By giving the other person your full attention, you’ll not only absorb the message more fully, but you’ll also increase the other person’s confidence that you are listening attentively.Listen for key information and key feelings.

Good listening is a job of the the ears, the mind, and the heart. Of course you should listen for the key facts of what the person is saying, but it’s also essential to listen to how it’s said. Every time agents tell you something, they’re giving you hints about their frame of mind, seriousness, communication style, and perspective. This can provide you with valuable insights about how to give feedback for the best results.

Listen to the other person entirely before speaking.

When verbally communicating with anther person, always let them finish speaking before you respond. Don’t interrupt, rush the person, or start thinking about what you’re going to say until the other person is finished talking.

Pause for a moment before you respond.

Once the other person is done talking, pause for a second before you begin to talk. This makes it so the message sinks in, gives you a second to come up with your response, and shows the other person you’re actively listening to what he or she has to say. You might be pleasantly surprised at what happens when you do this-we’ve found that many people are shocked to discover someone listening with such patience and attentiveness.

Show empathy.

Whenever there’s an opportunity, empathize with your agents and show your support. Even if you don’t completely agree with what they tell you, it’s important that they feel validated. Showing your understanding will help you to keep a good relationship with the people you manage. Following are a few lead-ins to empathy statements:

“I can definitely appreciate… “

“I understand… “

“I know what you are saying… “

“I don’t blame you for being frustrated about that… “

Confirm your understanding.

If what the other person has said to you is lengthy or complex, confirm your understanding of what he or she has said. To do this, you can give a brief rundown of what you’ve heard and then ask if what you said is correct. Confirming is important not only because it shows you were being attentive, but also because it gives the person an opportunity to hear his or her statement out loud. This gives the person a chance to correct you if the information is not accurate.

Enterprise Resource Planning(ERP) is a supportive package for the business and is still considered by many companies as a necessary evil rather than an investment. So, if the business is down, the need for the ERP seems to be down and the first reaction is to have a sharp cut on ERP expenses.

But, is the cost cutting, the only strategy for minimizing the impact of global recession, at a time when the corporate have already started considering ERP as a good investment and a booster for business growth?

Global economy has its own cycle. After each boom, it also goes through recession and after each recession it has to come back to the boom period.ERP managers should therefore consider this lean period of business as an opportunity for improvements in ERP and for increasing the rate of return on ERP investment in the long run. Economic cycle has to see bright days again. So, the wise man is the one who utilizes the bear phase to get ready in the bull phase. Cost cutting without effecting the performance of the ERP should only be a part of the strategy instead of being the only strategy.

For survival in global recession ERP strategy can be broadly classified in 2 parts 1) Cost Cutting without effecting the performance of ERP, 2) Utilising the lean business period for increasing the ROI for ERP investment

Cost Cutting:

ERP Support:There are 3 ways for ERP support:

o In-house support

o On-site support by external resources

o Internet-delivered remote support

The best approach could be the combination of On-site support and internet-delivered remote support as 70-80% issues can be solved by remote support. Remaining issues can be resolved on site. Server Maintenance: Setting up and maintaining your own server can be very expensive, looking at various costs incurred on such items as Staff, Electricity, air conditioning, Space etc. Server outsourcing to a data centre looks a better option AMC and License Cost: You can also renegotiate with the ERP supplier for license fee and AMC based on the latest or forecasted headcounts

Utilising the Lean Business period:

Normally the volume of business is reduced in the recession period. With the reduced business, availability of resources is easier. Due to reduced workload, management can also concentrate on the ‘important but not urgent issues’ which are normally ignored when the business is in full swing.

So, these resources along with management attention, can be used in many ways to increase the rate of return on ERP investment and to prepare ERP in a better way for the coming boom period.

Some of the ways suggested are:

ERP Optimisation: This lean period can be used for optimizing the ERP processes or introducing the new processes as per the present and future business requirements.

Data Cleaning: This lean period can be utilized for eliminating the duplication of the data and removing the data inconsistencies

Training of end users: Most of the end users could be having some amount of idle time. So, this idle time can be utilized for enhancing their ERP skills. They can be trained for advance functionality of ERP. This training could give very good returns once the business is again in full swing.

Training of suppliers/customers: Some of the applications of ERP may also require training for external agencies like vendors or customers. These external agencies can also be trained in this period.

Build Control: In a running business and high profitable years, the companies do not pay attention to the control & risk areas in the system. This may someday cause big financial losses. We have many examples like 7 Billion dollar fraud of Societe Generale SA, one of the largest bank of Europe, by a junior staff simply due to insufficient controls in the system.

So, ERP managers should also concentrate on the loop-holes/ risk prone areas in the system like excess or inappropriate access of the activities or the fields, to avoid any unforeseen disaster.

Data Analytics: ERP managers should also analyse the data generated in the past years to find out any data inconsistency or fraud through the system.

Implementation of ERP or new applications for ERP: When there is no business in the market, you can get the best deal in all respect. To survive in this period, suppliers give the best discount. Also, due to less number of projects, you can get the best resources which otherwise are busy on more lucrative foreign projects. Selecting ERP: When ERP is implemented in the company, it becomes backbone of the company’s business. It can affect your business in positive or negative way based on the quality and suitability of ERP to your business. Yet, the companies select the ERP like they are purchasing any other product.

Every company has a unique business model. So, before selecting the ERP, one should analyze the suitability of the ERP to the business. There are many ERPs available in market with very low cost to very high cost. Companies should do the cost benefit analysis of the ERP based on the size of the business before finalizing the most suitable ERP.

Their can be many other strategies for surviving the recession period based on the individual business. But, the approach should not only revolve round cost-cutting, it should also be seen as an opportunity to strengthen the muscles of the business to gain the maximum and achieve fastest growth once the boom period is back.

Golfers have a remarkable memory of everything that took place during a round, but typically don’t write it down or create a record that can be used for a lesson from the coach. Remember the old adage: ‘the numbers don’t lie?’It is the same for your business, whether you are a solopreneur, manage a team or are responsible for the whole organization. Tracking wins and loses is not good enough in sales or any performance area of the business for that matter. A methodical, yet meaningful tracking of results can reveal important areas of needed improvement as well as successes that need to be replicated.

Allow me to offer these scoring components that track to winning:

A. Determine the 3 most imperative performance factors to be recorded, including frequency or other relevant stats.

B. Determine targeted results for each factor.

C. Immediately at the conclusion of a meaningful period, i.e. daily, weekly, etc. do a comparative analysis e.g. target vs. actual.

Like the word discipline, we reel at the thought of routine, but that is exactly what is required. Do you think that a champion like Phil Mickelson just goes about his practice [let alone his play in a tournament], just willy-nilly, hitting bucket after bucket of balls, hoping to improve? Not only does he record his performance against established objectives, points A and B, but practice is made up of a written out routine, the results of point C, above.

Let’s look at a real world example related to sales; customer relationship and communication.

a. The performance factors may be…

1. existing customer phone calls (non-sales / relationship building)

2. provide content value to established prospects (non-sales / relationship building)

3. search and contact non-established prospects

b. The targeted results may be…

1. daily – 10 contacts

2. weekly – issue 5 connections

3. weekly – 15 contacts

c. Target vs. Actual comparative, determining what daily / weekly activity must be altered to attain targeted objective shortfall, and / or determine successful activity that must replicated and so on.

This all may look rudimentary, but it is usually the fundamentals for winning that are set aside. How many of us have said, “Oh yeah, I used to do that.” So, if you do not have a meaningful tacking method, this is a place to start. Begin here and then add, subtract and refine the detail of the factors that track to winning.