Gap analysis consists of defining the present state, the desired state and therefore the gap between them.
In competitive intelligence, we study gaps because we want to know and explain what our competitors are doing to create a significant advantage for themselves.
It's important to note however that Gap analysis alone is not adequate for all problem situations because goals may evolve and some problems have many alternative solutions.
Check this out clear map of How to Perform a Gap Analysis
'Show up. Let your critics see you for the leader who you are. Adopting a "hide in the bunker" attitude only plays to them...' - that's what John Baldoni says in his blog over at HBR - read his blog here.
6 other good things to do in facing your critics
Be open. Invite others, perhaps even the media; you can shoot video of your meeting and broadcast it over a controlled-access website. In doing so, you demonstrate transparency and show your willingness to engage those who disagree with you. Videotaping also challenges people to be on their best behavior because they are being recorded.
Be cool. When people criticize you to your face, breathe deeply. As an opponent's voice rises, lower yours. Speak deliberately and with a sense of calm. The more control you have of your emotions, the stronger you will appear.
Acknowledge your shortcomings. Standing up to criticism is an opportunity to admit your own failings. Do it with a sense of earnestness, that is, demonstrate through words and passion that you have done what you think is best. At the same time, do not be defensive. Act with honest confidence, even when you admit mistakes.
Criticize gently. The spotlight may be on you, but the heat is also on your critics. Give as good as you get, but do it with a sense of diplomacy. A good-natured jibe here or there is good for you as well as others. It reveals your humanity.
Smile frequently. Lighten things up by relaxing your facial muscles. This demonstrates that you are in control. Smile when appropriate, but never smirk. Don't let them see you sweat, either. Smiling keeps you on a more even keel.
Leave them wanting more. Know when to close the engagement. You can ruin a good thing by hanging around on stage. It may be appropriate to meet and mingle off stage, in fact that's a great idea, but know when to get off the stage and let others talk.
When the heat is on, showing your face to your sharpest critics is a great way to demonstrate that you are in control of yourself as well as your message. Standing up to those who oppose you is a strong measure of demonstrating that you have what it takes to lead.
PEOPLE WHO READ THIS ALSO READ:
Seth Godin has a real thing about Powerpoint - mostly focused at how badly it gets used.
He's written a couple of useful blogs on the subject that you can read here Really Bad Powerpoint, Nine steps to Powerpoint magic. For a unique format on this, also see the Knolwedge Gene.
The purpose of your Powerpoint presentation is to 'make the sale', to sell your big idea to your audience. And if by the end of the presentation you haven't achieved this, your presentation has failed - plain and simple.
Here's a round-up of the key points to creating better presentations:
Mark Ridgwell
Stever Robbins recently wrote a useful blog over at HBR - 7 Communication Mistakes Managers Make
There's a Knowledge Gene on this too if you prefer - click here to see it
In summary, the mistakes are:
1. Announcing controversial things without first doing the groundwork
Prep people one on one, learn who will object and why.
2. Lying
Certain things must remain confidential while they're under discussion, but be careful how you keep secrets. If people know you've lied, you will lose their trust forever. Rather than lie, train yourself to respond, "I'm not free to comment" or "I can't answer that fully right now," when asked about confidential or sensitive topics.
3. Ignoring the realities of power
The more power you have, the less you'll hear about problems. Problems are filtered and softened as they ascend the corporate hierarchy. If you want an honest assessment of a problem, seek out bad news. Welcome it. And when it comes, show your appreciation.
4. Underestimating your audience's intelligence
Many managers like to gloss over problems when motivating their teams. But if things aren't going well, those teams are probably well aware of the problems. In fact, they've probably known about them longer than you have. Rather than avoiding the situation, enlist their skills in finding solutions
5. Using inappropriate form of communication
E-mail is great for conveying information, but don't use it for emotional issues and phone calls and face-to-face meetings are inefficient ways to disseminate information, but great for discussing nuanced issues.
Furthermore, some people are listeners, while others are readers. Listeners won't focus on written memos but are great in conversation. Readers write great memos and are also glad to read them, but conversation sometimes fails to fully engage them.
6. Ignoring acts of omission
What you don't say may be sending as loud a message as what you do say. If you don't give praise, people get the message they're unappreciated. If you don't explain the rationale behind decisions, the message is that you don't trust them. And if you don't tell people where the company wants to go, they don't know how to help it get there.
Mark Ridgwell
People are busier and more stressed in their work than ever.
Borrowing ideas from Stephen Covey, the Dalai Lama and from my own experiences as a manager over the last ten years, allow me to suggest some simple things you can start doing today to be Happier at Work:
1. Smile More
Smiling kills negativity. Try smiling and try to think of something negative at the same time.
2. Stop worrying so much
Why worry about stuff that's completely out of your control. It won't do your body or mind any favors and it won't influence the stuff you're worrying about. There are plenty of other things for you to 'worry' about that are in your control - focus your energy on those things instead.
3. Focus on the important stuff
Know that not everything is critically important and not doing everything that comes your way is OK. Recount your job purpose and the necessary actions to get you there, by answering three fundamental questions:
WHAT is your job objective? WHY is this important? HOW will you achieve this?
Try creating a simple mind map in Knowledge Genes to help you think this through.
4. Motivate and stimulate your employees
Give your people more responsibility and autonomy in their jobs. Tell them what's really going on in the business and how their jobs contribute to the business goals.
5. Be brave - delegate
Some people are afraid to delegate for the fear that doing so will make them obsolete. People that this way are already obsolete!
6. Use more breaks
All work and no 'play' will make you dull and less effective. Whipping yourself or your team to higher performance doesn't work. In fact it's counter-productive.
7. Avoid boredom
Boredom is a real happiness killer. You're bored doing the same things over and over again because you're not challenging yourself. Go out of your way to take on new responsibilities. Try stuff that stretches you and you'll be bored no longer and become more valuable to the business.
~ Mark Ridgwell
Do you agree with Seth Godin's lessons on this subject? If you do, or indeed if you don't, we'd love to hear your opinions. Just drop a comment at the bottom of the page.
Viewers who read this article also read...
The Rookie Manager's Guide to Office Politics
By Oliver McPhee
No matter how fabulously good your idea is, it won't sell itself.
I often follow Rosabeth Moss Kanter's blog at HBR. She's widely quoted as one of the world's most influential business thinkers and she writes in a very pragmatic, can-use-today kind of way which appeals to me. The seven points below is what she suggests about how to effectively sell ideas. See her original blog here:
"1. Seek many inputs - Listen actively to many points of view. Then incorporate aspects of each of them into the project plan, so that you can show people exactly where their perspectives or suggestions appear.
2. Do your homework - Be thoroughly prepared for meetings and individual discussions. Gather as much hard data as possibly to have command of the full facts, and speak knowledgeably from a broad information base. Know the interests of those to whom you're speaking, and customize the message for them.
3. Make the rounds - Meet with people one-on-one to make the first introduction of your idea. It's always a good idea to touch base with people individually before any key meetings, and to give them advance warning of what you and others are planning to say at the meeting. Then they can be prepared (and coached) in your point of view. And you know theirs, so you can modify your proposal accordingly.
4. See critics in private and hear them out - One-on-one meetings are especially important when you expect opposition or criticism. Groups can easily turn into mobs. Avoid situations in which critics can gang up on you, or when a group of people leaning positive turn negative because the listen to a few loud voices. Never gather all of your potential critics in one room hoping to hold one meeting to brief everyone all at once. This kind of event mainly helps them discover each other and their common concerns, so they coalesce as a group united in opposition to the idea.
5. Make the benefits clear - Arm supporters with arguments. You might rehearse them for meetings in which questions about your project will come up. Stress the value that the idea will produce for them and other groups. Remember that selling ideas is at least a two-step process. You sell one set of people so they can sell others. You convince them to back you because you reduce the risk to them by giving them the tools for selling their own boards or constituencies.
6. Be specific - Make your requests concrete, even while connecting your idea to unassailable larger principles. Wait to approach high-level people until your have tested the idea elsewhere and refined your vague notions. The higher the official, the more valuable and scarce his or her time, and thus the more focused your meeting must be. Use peers for initial broad discussions, then ask top executives for one simple action.
7. Show that you can deliver - People want to back winners. Early in the process, provide evidence, even guarantees, that the project will work. Later, prove that you can deliver by meeting deadlines and doing what you promised."
People who viewed this also read:
Seven Practical Ways to Sell Ideas - that Work
Mark Ridgwell
There has been a lot of high profile 'finger pointing' recently (whether it be the oil spill disaster or mistakes made during the world cup) so I decided to go on the hunt for a good article about trying to prevent this blame culture.
I have come across this fantastic article by Marshall Goldsmith that i've found from over at the hbr blog. It has 7 steps to follow to help people stay objective & constructive in these times of crisis.
1. Encourage everyone on your team to remember four words that can help all of you get though your crisis in the best way possible: help more, judge less. Reflect upon these four words. Aside from work, how many of us have friends and family members at home who might be happy if we 'helped' a little more - and 'judged' a little less?
2. Try to get team members to focus on a future that they can impact, not a past that they cannot change anyway. Have you ever made a fool of yourself in front of important people before? It was bad enough when it happened. Having others make you relive this 'fool making' experience is usually not that helpful.
3. Try to get people to take responsibility for their own behavior. Sometimes it is easier to see our own mistakes in other people than in the mirror. We may not be able to change what other people have done, but we can certainly change ourselves.
4. Ask each person to reflect on the question, "What can I learn from this crisis?" Anyone can provide leadership when times are easy. Great leaders - and great teams - step up when times are tough. Rather than get lost in whining, have each team member focus on how he or she can grow from this experience.
5. Ask everyone on your team to reflect on the question, "What can we learn from this crisis?" After each person's individual reflection, encourage your team to engage in collection reflection. Find ways to improve cross-team communication and build teamwork.
6. Encourage each team member to avoid speaking when angry or out of control. We all get angry. That is natural and completely appropriate. We just don't have to talk until we settle down and can collect our thoughts. Plenty of research has shown how our 'angry mind' can lead to irrational behavior that we later regret.
7. Before speaking don't just ask, "Am I correct?" - ask "Will this help?"Just because we believe that something is true, we don't have to say it. If our comment may be hurtful to individuals or destructive to teamwork, it can sometimes just be left unsaid.
How do you feel about finger-pointing? Do you think it has a place once the situation has been handled?
Please feel free to leave us any comments below...
Related articles:
By Oliver McPhee
Pure gold - the 12 things below are what Robert Sutton (MIT professor and author) in a recent HBR blog believes are the key beliefs that are held by the best bosses:
See related articles:
> Communication Mistakes that Managers Make
> Eight Things your Employees Want from You
Any more you'd like to see added to this list?
Related articles:
If your business is like most others, the best knowledge in your organization is probably locked away inside one person's head - ring any bells?
This is clearly a very risky and inefficient strategy - what happens if that person suddenly leaves the organization? And imagine the performance improvement if that knowledge was instantly available for anyone to use...
Easy to say, difficult to fix. Not really.
Get your best performers involved, focus first on the business areas that add the highest business value, think in terms of actionable what, how & why steps and you can create an executable knowledge map that anyone can use, in an hour or two.
>> Click here to see how:
How to effectively capture & share your best knowledge across the organization
