Flourishing: The Art & Science of Being at Your Best

Date: 1st March 2012
Venue: IMI Conference Centre, Sandyford
Time: 6:00pm to 8:00pm

Guest Speaker: Dr Maureen Gaffney,
Psychologist, Author of Flourishing,
Adjunct Professor of Psychology & Society UCD

Register: email – alumni@imi.ie by Friday, 24th February

Dr Maureen Gaffney is an expert on change management, emotional intelligence, ‘gender at work’ and on work/life balance. A clinical psychologist she has worked with companies in Ireland, UK, Israel, and the US in the areas of leadership, change and transition, emotional intelligence and managing diversity.

In her recent book ‘Flourishing’ she explains that adversity can be a positive turning point and looks at the factors which enable individuals overcome adversity, maximise their potential and enjoy life and this is what she will speak about on March 1st. Maureen is a well-known broadcaster, writer and columnist and has served as Chair of the NESF, Chair of the Council of the Insurance Ombudsman of Ireland; as a board member of the HSE; Council member of the ESRI; and as a Law reform Commissioner.

This event is open to all IMI Alumni Network members, there is no charge but registration in advance is neccessary.

To register: email – alumi@imi.ie before Friday, 24th February.

Cloud-based innovation has the potential to deliver €9.4 billion in sales annually and create up to 8,600 new jobs in Ireland according to research carried out last year.

“Cloud computing has the potential to create new business models, reduce costs and transform how work is carried out within any organisation. The Diploma in Cloud Strategy will equip managers with the expertise to develop cloud strategies that deliver bottom line value”, UCC President Dr Michael Murphy.

This new Diploma represents a significant innovation for UCC/IMI’s Master of Business programme as it is the first of these Diplomas to incorporate an industry partnership – in this case with Microsoft Ireland.

Alongside classroom discussion with UCC and IMI experts, participants will learn firsthand from Microsoft’s practical experience of implementing cloud-based solutions through workshops with senior Microsoft specialists and a visit to Microsoft’s cloud data centre in Grange Castle.

“Leveraging cloud-based opportunities requires a new way of thinking about information and its value to any organisation. This programme will enable the formulation of new business strategies and business models, and a fresh approach to the skills required to take advantage of what the Cloud can offer.” Paul Rellis Managing Director of Microsoft Ireland commented.

Aimed at technical and non-technical managers, entrepreneurs and graduates with industry experience, the UCC/IMI Diploma in Cloud Strategy will enable participants to identify and evaluate cloud-related strategies for their organisations, and develop a sound business case for moving to the cloud. As part of the programme, every participant will develop a comprehensive “cloud strategy blueprint” for their organisation.

“This Diploma will be characterised by a unique classroom dynamic that will bring together both technical and non-technical managers to jointly analyse cloud strategies and map out new ways of doing business,” commented IMI Executive Chairman Dr Phil Nolan.

The Diploma in Cloud Strategy is based on three themes; strategy processes and frameworks, innovation management and cloud based business models and has an emphasis on intensely interactive and focused action-learning which will draw upon the professional experiences of participants.

Find out more here.

Commenting on his time at IMI, Dr McCarthy said “I originally signed up for four and a half years but the stimulation of working with businesses and practising managers was fantastic and retained my enthusiasm for much longer than I had anticipated. The recent graduation of the first class from the UCC-IMI Alliance makes this an opportune time for me to move on”.

In thanking Dr McCarthy for his service as CEO, IMI Chairman, Dr Philip Nolan, highlighted three of the significant achievements of IMI during Dr McCarthy’s tenure: the development of the Master of Business programme, the achievement of a global ranking for the Institute in the Financial Times Executive Education rankings, and the conclusion of the UCC-IMI Strategic Alliance.

“IMI is now one of only seven institutions in Britain and Ireland – and the only one in Ireland – to make it into the top 65 global schools ranked for Executive Education by the Financial Times.This achievement, repeated three years in a row, is testament to Tom’s vision and foresight” Dr Nolan noted.

Critics of the application of lean management techniques to the delivery of services often say that focussing on efficient processes goes against the concept of delivering the most value to the customer.

But the lean concept of reducing waste is as relevant to firms providing a service to customers as it is to those manufacturing “hard” products.  Better management increases both value to the customer and efficiency at the firm level.

Our most recent report Management Delivers the Difference looks at whether firms in services such as IT, financial services and catering as well as those in trade sectors are adopting the practices that can boost performance and improve customer experience.

Managers in services and trade firms report being hit hard by the financial recession cutting costs, changing the product mix, reducing employment levels and service capacity levels and cutting prices significantly more than their counterparts in other sectors.

Given this environment of reduced resources managers should be looking to better management to increase efficiency but key management practices are still weak.   This is in part explained by the finding that while managers believe they have adequate access to good consulting and information on best practice they are poor at identifying weakness in their own firms – overestimating the standard of management in the firm by 20%.

In looking to improve services, firms must first take a serious look at where practices and processes are failing in their organisations to identify the management improvements that will make the difference to the productivity of their operations and most importantly to their customers.

See below 3 resolutions that you can take in 2012 which our recent research has shown will improve your own management and the performance of the organisation.

1. Take an honest look at where you could be managing better. Throughout the year we are often too busy with day to day operations to investigate where improvements need to be made.  If possible, look to benchmark your organisation externally with others in your sector to look at where you might be weak in comparison to competitors and where your organisation might gain an advantage.

2. Make decisions based on the evidence. Try this – next time you are discussing the performance of the organisation with colleagues – stop to consider: Are the performance indicators you are discussing up to date and relevant to the operation of your business?  Do you have the information you really need to make effective decisions and if not, what do you need to do to get it?

3. Take the initiative to improve efficiency.  When focussing on shorter term targets it’s easy to end up deferring decisions which might benefit the organisation in the longer term.  If there is a project you know will bring operational improvements – propose it now and push for it!

Eva Maguire is currently leading IMI’s research project into management practices and productivity which seeks to globally benchmark the management of indigenous and multinational organisations operating in Ireland.

Please Note: IMI offices will close on the afternoon of Thursday, 22nd December to reopen at 8:30am on Tuesday, 3rd January 2012.

Our 24/7 remote access Business & Learning Resources will be available during this time.

Often in times of increased pressure, good management practices are sacrificed at the operational level as managers struggle to meet short-term operational targets – many’s an employee review system for example fell by the wayside over the last number of years for this reason.

We have found however that the most commonly cited constraints on managers, such as the recession, employment laws or regulation can’t be blamed for the standard of management in the firm.

Instead, 3 main reasons stand out for a failure to use good practices and processes ….

1. Managers aren’t best placed to diagnose firm weaknesses – those managers responsible at a strategic and operational level can be swamped by best practice guidelines and information and are therefore often not those best placed to judge the management weaknesses of their own organisations.

2. Managers may not always make decisions based on the right information – either relevant real-time information is not available it is not used to inform decision making.

3. Managers often lack – or feel they lack – the autonomy to implement change – often resulting in deferred decisions.

So what does this mean for managers and organisations?

Firstly,  to improve performance through better management an organisation needs to know where it is relative to its competitors in terms of best practice.  Once the organisation has a picture of its strengths and weaknesses managers need to be provided with access to - and critically, be encouraged to use – relevant up to date information to make decisions on a day to day basis. Finally, for the organisation to see the benefit of evidence-based decisions managers must be empowered to make changes at the operational level based on those decisions.

Senior management may ask whether they have the time and resources needed to make a cultural shift towards evidence based diagnosis and decision-making – in other words; is it all worth it?  Our report published today highlights examples of how overcoming these 3 barriers can indeed boost company profits and overall productivity within months.

Eva Maguire is currently leading IMI’s research project into management practices and productivity which seeks to globally benchmark the management of indigenous and multinational organisations operating in Ireland.

181 graduates received their awards at the ceremony in Sandyford where they were conferred by UCC President, Dr. Michael Murphy. The awards they received range from the IMI Master of Business to diplomas in a range of business areas from Management to Finance.

Dr Phil Nolan (Chairman, IMI) with UCC President, Dr Michael Murphy chat to Graduates Tara Long (AIB) and Liam Hassett (Irish Dairy Board).

This year IMI has recruited a further 310 Graduate Studies participants and has seen its Master of Business degree grow by 50%. This is a threefold increase on student numbers since this degree was launched in 2008.

2011 also saw the launch of Diplomas in the spring as well as the traditional autumn intake along with record class sizes. The portfolio of courses offered was broadened to include a new Diploma in Regulatory Management this year and a new scholarship scheme launched.

The story of Ernest Shackleton reads like an adventure story having saved the lives of 27 men stranded for almost two years with him on an Antarctic ice floe.  He is someone who showed supreme judgement in a crisis, and someone who has been described as “the greatest leader that ever came on God’s earth, bar none”.

What is not quite as well regarded are the series of exceptional leadership characteristics possessed by Shackleton that came together to provide true greatness in adversity. All modern business leaders can learn from these.

What lessons can we take from him that will enhance our own leadership skills in a crisis?

Here are 5 Lessons for Leaders:

1. Optimism – Shackleton preached pragmatic optimism and liked to surround himself with cheerful, optimistic people.

2. Keep the naysayers close – when deciding who would live with him in his tent on the ice he went against every human instinct and paired himself with those who challenged his authority.

3. Everyone should feel part of the solution – Shackleton made sure everyone was doing something worthwhile to get out of the situation.

4. Be self-sacrificing – Shackleton never let his men go without a comfort it was in his power to give.

5. Remember the Mental Medicine – Shackleton made sure the crew retained their sense of humour and went to great lengths to hold small celebrations.

Of course Shackleton had many more effective leadership characteristics but these are some of the most important during a crisis.

If you are interested in developing your skills in motivating those you work with or improving your effectiveness as a leader our Leadership & Motivation programme may be a good first step on that journey. You can also learn more about Shackleton’s leadership from the book Leading at the edge which is available from the IMI Library.

“The greatest leader that ever came on God’s earth, bar none.”

Building & Launching Successfully
Maurya discussed his insights into how product developers in established companies as well as start-ups can work to ensure they build the right products and launch them successfully. He shared an overview of the Running Lean process, why new product ideas fail and why many start-ups don’t get of the ground. He explained how Running Lean provides a better process and how to put it into action with practical examples. Built on his analysis of Lean Start-Up, Customer Development and Bootstrapping techniques Maurya gave an overview on how the process vets new product ideas, builds and tests a business model and how to find early customers and gauge what they want.

About the Speaker
Ash Maurya challenges the notion that start-ups or product developers should plan based on gut, intuition and luck. Instead he applies a systematic process for rigorously stress testing your “Plan A” until you achieve a plan that works. Since bootstrapping his last company seven years ago, he has launched four products and one peer-to-web application framework. He applies customer development and lean start-up techniques to his products, which he frequently writes about on his blog.

To view the slides from Ash’s presentation click here.

If you have an interest in Business Innovation the IMI run a number of courses on the topic including our Diploma in Strategy & Innovation.