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Global Warming vs Global Cooling

The great debate of the 21st century is whether or not you believe that global warming is occurring or whether you believe that the planet is cooling. No matter what side of the fence you are on, there is no doubt that the actions of humans are generating a tremendous amount of greenhouse gases. The burning of fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas is having a negative effect on our planet. The long term environmental, social and economic effects that these greenhouse gasses cause will be catastrophic to our planet if not controlled.

It’s Everyone’s Problem.

In the highly industrialized nations, most people don’t want to give up their high standards of living in order to reduce greenhouse gasses. Developing countries feel it is their right to raise their standard of living, despite the cost. Underdeveloped countries are paying the price for high standards of living with polluted and contaminated ground water.

Until everyone realizes that the changes to this planet from pollution affect the entire planet, reversing the pollution problem will be difficult. Everyone needs to cooperate and learn ways to reduce energy consumption and to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions they emit.

As a business owner, the benefits of these reductions are many. The biggest benefit is that they save money in the long run, adding to your profitability. More energy efficient practices can often increase productivity, and going “green” often generates more business from people wishing to help the environment.

Maintenance as a Way to Save Money

One of the most basic ways to save energy is by properly maintaining your equipment. Dirty equipment often uses more energy to run and results in higher operating costs. Simple acts such a vacuuming air vents on appliances and computers, and cleaning dust from light bulbs can save energy and money. Major cleaning, even if it needs to be contracted out, can save enough money to offset the cost.

Routine maintenance will also prolong the life of your equipment, help them operate more efficiently, be less likely to break down, and keep them out of landfills longer.

Staff Cooperation

If your business has employees, the better they understand how the business runs the better they are able to see how properly maintaining equipment can save energy and money. Getting employees involved in being “green” to help the planet, will ultimately help your bottom line. Have employees suggest ways in which energy and resources can be saved. Reward employees who demonstrate a willingness to participate in energy savings practices.

Suggested Maintenance Tasks

There are thousands of tips and tricks that can be implemented to reduce your businesses energy consumption. Listed here is a starting point of simple maintenance tasks the can be implemented at little or no cost.

Thermostats

One of the easiest ways to save money on heating and cooling costs is to install a programmable thermostat. Once installed, regularly check the adjustments to be sure they are properly set for the time of day, the season and for daylight savings time (if applicable.

Hot water heaters

For peak efficiency, hot water heaters should be cleaned and drained on a regular basis. Buildup of hard water minerals inside the hot water heater reduces efficiently. Replacing an old hot water heater with a modern Energy Star rated unit will pay for its self in a short amount of time.

Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Systems

Often neglected, the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system should be checked on a regular basis. Preventative maintenance is a way to keep the system in top operating condition and lowers the cost of operation. An added benefit is that clean duct work prevents the build-up of mold and allergens that can cause respiratory problems and lost days of work.

Water Leaks

Water Leaks can be costly. Toilets and faucets that leak can not only waste water, but add considerable costs to the water bill. Monitoring the water bill can often pick up increased water usage caused by a less obvious leak.

Refrigeration Units

Regular cleaning of refrigerator coils will allow refrigeration units to operate more efficiently. In dusty environments, this preventative maintenance should be done more frequently. Another area to check is the door seals. Place a piece of paper between the door and the gasket. If the paper slips out easily, it’s time to check the seal. Another energy saving tip is to leave space between the refrigerator and the wall to allow for adequate ventilation of the motor.

Mechanical Equipment

All mechanical equipment such as power tools, compressors, and any equipment that operates with a motor should be checked on a regular basis. Hoses, valves, drains, relief valves, drive belts, hoses and fittings should be under a routine maintenance schedule. Again this prolongs the life of the equipment, allows them to function at peak performance and may even prevent an injury that results in lost time from work.

Motor Vehicles

It goes without saying that motor vehicles should be serviced on a regular basis. In service vehicles, remove all unnecessary supplies. Added weight in a vehicle results in more fuel consumption.

The Bottom Line

“To keep business equipment well maintained, a comprehensive maintenance schedule should be established. Having an energy audit will be of significant help in determining ways to save energy.

“Regular maintenance will reduce operating expenses.

“Properly maintained equipment will result in a safer work environment and less time loss from work due to injury or ill health.

“Running a business in an energy efficient way will reduce operating expenses.

“Employees will be happier and more productive in a safe well maintained environment.

Beverly Saltonstall is an environmental writer. Visit http://sustainable-development-forecast.com for more information on why we need to conserve energy. Read Our Planet is in Danger. (available on website)

The jury is still out about our current economy. Some say we will be experiencing a mild recession and others say we are on the brink of a depression. It doesn’t matter where you fall in the debate, one thing is certain, business growth is not as easy as it once was.

If you have been reading the news headlines, many CEO’s are focused on cutting costs and laying off employees. This does help short term profitability, however these actions are precisely the wrong strategy to take if you want to grow your company in a bad economy.

CEO’s who want to increase sales, profit margins and drive new business growth in 2009 should consider the following top 5 business growth success secrets.

1. Focus Marketing Dollars on Value Not Brand

Focusing your time and money on “Brand” marketing may increase name recognition however it doesn’t generate revenue. Showing customers what value your product or service provides will generate top line sales revenue. Spend more on marketing campaigns where the customer can experience your products value.

2. Stop Scaring Your New Prospects Away

Most corporate marketing campaigns, websites, sales collateral and sales processes scare customers away. From a customer’s point of view, your company looks and sounds just like your competitors. To be perceived differently and attract new customers you must stop focusing on your product features, functions, quality, customer service and company awards. You should focus more on how you solve your customers business problems.

3. Catch Amnesia

Forget how great you and your business performed last year. The past is the past. This year it’s a new game. The rules have changed and the players are different. What worked last year, will not return the same results. Re-evaluate your industry, competition, marketing strategy, sales strategy and financial management. Implement proven best practice business growth strategies.

4. Keep Score

Measure and monitor your key business growth indicators weekly. How do you know where to improve if you don’t know how you’re performing. For example, what is your customer conversion ratio, tradeshow ROI, closing ratio, marketing ROI, advertising ROI, sales cycle times, new prospect calls per week, deal size by industry, profit by product line, etc.

5. Work On Your Business, Not In It

CEO’s need to pull themselves out of the day to day issues. When times get tough, CEO’s spend more time in the details of the business. By doing this, CEO’s lose sight of what is most important, focusing on how to improve business performance in a changing competitive environment. Delegate or hire outside expertise to handle the day to day challenges. Focus more on strategic priorities.

Dennis Sommer is the founder and CEO of Executive Business Advisers, a management consulting firm specializing in business growth, sales and profit improvement http://www.executivebusinessadvisers.com . Dennis helps CEO’s increase sales revenue, reduce sales and marketing costs, improve marketing ROI, and drive new business growth by improving and optimizing their sales, marketing, company strategy and financial health. Dennis is a highly sought after business keynote and seminar speaker http://www.dennissommer.com and author of several highly popular sales, marketing, leadership and professional development international articles and books http://www.advisersecrets.com . Contact Dennis at 800-627-6512.

Dennis Sommer is the founder and CEO of Executive Business Advisers, a management consulting firm specializing in business growth, sales and profit improvement http://www.executivebusinessadvisers.com . Contact Dennis at 800-627-6512.

Incentives are said to be highly motivational influences that push one to achieve higher results. It is no wonder then that many commercial set ups adopt various incentive programs to encourage their employees to perform better thus achieving higher results for the company as a whole. However, the initial question is — do these incentive programs work?

The answer to this lies in the reason for the underperformance of the team. If the team members feel underpaid, then a performance-related pay program (PRP) might work wonders. However, if this is not the case and the team is underperforming due to overexertion, then a PRP will be completely useless while a ‘holiday package’ incentive may work better. So the intensity of the effectiveness of the incentive program will depend largely on the appropriateness of the incentive plan chosen.

There are several types of employee incentive programs and depending upon the aim in mind, an appropriate one may be chosen.

Performance related pay programs are designed to encourage the employee to perform better and achieve higher target resulting in the benefit of taking home an increased pay check. These plans work very well with jobs where the data is statistical in nature. Take for example sales and marketing. For each sale that an employee makes, the company can offer a commission. This runs along the same lines as a PRP. Other incentive programs can be ‘time off’ certificates, which work well for those employees with the highest attendance. Then there are the impressive lunch vouchers for those who like to dine in style and, of course, the all expenses paid holiday package for two for those who enjoy travel. Tickets to the ball game are known to work wonders for those employee teams that are passionate about sports.

While incentive programs are highly varied in nature and also known to be effective if chosen wisely, employee productivity can be improved by keeping a few guidelines in mind.

It is very important to remember that the target being set is achievable. A goal, which is completely impossible, will result in failure no matter how excellent and lucrative the incentive program is.

Another important aspect here is that the working conditions must be conducive to the employees. Find out what motivates the staff. Ask them for their input. An appropriate incentive program will make the team perform better. If the incentives are not appreciated by the employees, it is likely to negatively affect their output.

Remember that incentive programs, over and above providing material benefits to the employee, also act as a win-win status. Take the time to announce the incentives along with expectations and deliverables. Celebrate and announce the employees who meet these milestones!

When a team is not performing well, a thorough analysis should be conducted. One on one discussion with the employees is an integral part of the process, to understand which incentive program will work best. Once a plan has been implemented an established, a regular assessment should be conducted to determine how effective the results, and changes should be implemented on a continuous basis.

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A motivational speaker can actuate a team to perform beyond their normal levels and thus achieve fantastic results. But, while an appropriate speaker will be able to do this magical job with seemingly no effort, another not so suitable one, will miss the target completely. The immediate question that arises then is how to choose a motivational speaker that is most the most suitable for the session.

An important point when selecting a motivational speaker is understanding the difference between the ‘self achiever’ and the ‘text book’ motivational speaker. While the former is known to have put his/her theory to practice and achieved overwhelming tasks, the latter is simply delivering pep talk with impressive phrases like ‘hold yourself no more’. Indeed the self achiever is customarily favored over the textbook speaker, and so an intensive research into the achievements of the motivational speaker is the first step to undertake when selecting a motivational speaker for the team.

It is also relevant that the motivational speaker that you select is suitable and a good match for the audience’s requirements. So while a motivational speaker on weight loss may do well at a gym, he/she may not be able to fare so well at corporate sales driven gatherings, despite being a self motivator. The task at hand is to fully understand what the team needs and then expose them to a motivational speaker who is a guru in this field and has a background to show for it. A motivational speaker, in keeping with the needs of the audience, is essential. Hiring haphazardly would result in minimizing your valuable resources.

When selecting the motivational speaker for a group that is looking to re-evaluate its strengths and weaknesses and their personal situations as well, it will be beneficial to hire a motivational speaker who is a self achiever. However, if the idea is to motivate a team into looking towards a shared vision and other such group dynamics, then it will help to employ a leadership motivator such as a coach of a team, etc.

Once the need of the group, and therefore the type of motivational speaker, has been established, one can locate these speakers from various sources. The internet of course is a vast sea of resources, and it is easy to locate several types of motivational speakers, their contact information, and other pertinent information. The Yellow Pages will help tremendously, and sometimes you will hear of a great speaker through word of mouth. I would recommend that you ask others about good motivational speakers that they have used.

The trick is to hire a motivational speaker who has an interesting method of delivery and is capable of holding the interest of the audience while influencing their performance levels. Based on this and a few other pointers that have been listed above, a motivational speaker for the team should be hired to easily meet and achieve the aims of the group.

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Team building is a term which is common to almost any organization, be it commercial or otherwise. Right from the sports arena to the office complex, team building is considered to be one of the most crucial and important steps in achieving success. However, unless the organization in question is clear about what type of a team is required and how to keep it working in harmony, it is unlikely to make any long-term progress.

Team building has been interpreted in several ways, but in essence it is said to be a combination of the ‘selection’, ‘development’ and ‘motivation’ of the group of people chosen to get the job at hand done in a successful manner. It is said to be one of the most proven methods to develop and strengthen the team’s assets while negating the liabilities.

It is no wonder then that the need for team building is essential to almost all aspects of life. While an office needs to motivate and select its employees in a manner that is most conducive to the task at hand, the home front also needs to adopt team building so as to keep the family together and happy.

There are some who consider team building as a strategy that is adopted only in the initial stages of a venture but this is far from true. Team building is a constant process where the members are continuously integrated and given incentives to perform in harmony towards a common goal.

If it was not for team building, most jobs in the world would not get done. Team building allows one to tap on the potential of a group as opposed to being restricted to the abilities of an individual.

Having established the importance of team building and comprehending its meaning, the next action is to understand the various steps involved in the process. It is necessary that while undertaking the team building process, one clarifies the goals of the team and is able to spread the sense of ownership to each member of the team.

Each team member and the team as a whole are likely to have certain strong points as well as some weaknesses. The trick to developing a strong team is enhancing these strong points and eliminating the weak ones, or at least negating their effect.

Continuously working with the feedback from the team members on both the strong and lacking aspects of the group is a great way to ensure that the team moves forward at all given times. Time and circumstances change constantly, and ignoring these changes while continuing to work with outdated data can cause damage to the team’s goals.

Ignoring team building is known to cause damage to any organization; poor and weak teams will have almost the same effect. So if the goal is to achieve success, then it is imperative that continuous attention be paid to the team building process of the organization.

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In a lagging economy it is good to know that online business may be able to respond more efficiently and effectively to the challenge.

First, the bad news.

Consumers are looking for ways to trim spending.

Impulse buys are less common.

Discretionary spending is subjected to a lot more thought.

Consumers may be more driven by needs than wants.

Many brick and mortar businesses may not survive the crunch.

Now, the good news.

Online business generally has low overhead.

Consumers may see value in purchasing online due to fluxuating gas prices and traffic issues.

Marketing can be redirected to expose the quality and value of a product instead of focusing only on its cool factor.

Consumers still have needs and may find those needs met online.

An online environment can contract and expand more easily than a brick and mortar retail environment.

Every day news reports talk about the economy and the struggles many businesses are facing. Bailouts have been proposed and some have been extended. The term bankruptcy is a common phrase and one that most businesses are trying to exclude from their vocabulary.

One of the greatest reasons so many online businesses continue to succeed is the incredibly adaptive nature of the Internet. Your web presence can be altered quickly. Marketing strategy can be altered at will. You don’t have to worry about print advertising, billboards, television ads or radio spots. Since most online businesses rely on the web to provide advertising everything is subject to the immediacy of change.

As a business owner you can provide content that connects with the struggling consumer. You can extend a temporary price reduction to help consumers. You can offer low cost alternatives and you can certainly point out all the positives linked to your product or service.

More importantly, your web presence is not restricted to a geographic location. Your online business can and should be global in scope. It should reach out across a multitude of barriers.

Some businesses are working at finding ways to reduce or even eliminate shipping charges when possible to provide another quality level of service and support to consumers.

This scenario falls in line with the old saying, “Roll with the punches.” A slow economy may be unfair and is causing concern among many, but as a business owner you have a responsibility to your own family, your community and your customers to fight for the long-term success of your business. If you have an online store you have prime cyber real estate from which to reach out with a message of hope.

Focusing your attention on premier customer service will be important as you deal with establishing trust and empathy in the midst of what some may view as chaos. Now is not a time for fear, but a time for leaders willing to step up and help guide the way to day-by-day improvements in the economic landscape.

Economists will agree that consumers who are willing to continue to make purchases will do more to turn the economy around than those who refuse to purchase based on fear. Help your customer see the value of your product and they may remain loyal customers long after the financial dust settles.

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The second in a series of articles entitled ‘Know Your Business’, which explores how to identify the perfect business to run and is written by entrepreneur and multi business owner James Keightley, who runs his own ecommerce business and business coaching consultancy.

I have previously outlined that there are several logical levels that are important to follow when identifying the best match between you and the type of business you want to run and own. These are; the overall vision, how it relates to you as an individual, what your beliefs are about the business, what skills and capabilities are required, how it requires you to behave and lastly the environment you and your business will operate in.

By working through these one at a time it will be possible for you to flesh out a clearer picture of how you and your business will look and feel at each of these stages and provide you with food for though on what business you will be suited to run.

The first of these is the environmental level and by this I mean, what sort of environment do you want to see and feel your self in on a day to day basis when you are running your own business? How comfortable or uncomfortable would it feel for example if this involved working underground as a miner for example? How would it feel to be working at heights or being amongst children etc? It is important to identify the type of environment you most enjoy working in, whether this is amongst others, in a more solitary environment, with young people or adults for example.

You are a very lucky if you enjoy all the environmental aspects of your chosen career because for those who consider that they have the best job in the world, there are usually still aspects of it which they prefer less than others.

It is important to try and identify the most suitable environment possible and yet remember that from time to time this may involve aspects or short periods that are not the perfect environment. The idea is to find an environment that on the whole is ideal and well suited to you. For example, on the whole I like being in the outdoors, but I appreciate that from time to time about 20% of my time may be indoors or other less desirable environments. I appreciate this and understand that occasionally I need to take the rough with the smooth so to speak, but on the whole I am able to enjoy working in my preferred environment.

So how do you do this? Well it is a case of following some thought provoking exercises and recruiting the support of others to try and identify what your ideal environment might look and feel like, which is the same for identifying the finer details for all the parts of the logical levels of your perfects business.

Work through some of these suggestions below, which are intended to flesh out ideas and suggestion about what your perfect environment might be, ensuring to write everything down, no matter how insignificant it might seem. I’ll repeat that. You need to make sure that you write everything down no matter how insignificant or ridiculous it might seem, just scribble it down, because the weirdest of ideas can lead directly and indirectly to other thought processes. We can string it all together later on and use it to construct a clearer picture.

Fleshing out your ideal environment;

Ask Yourself – before you do anything, think about it and ask yourself what environment you feel naturally attracted to. Not what you would like to do, but simply what environments would you most like to spend your time in. Is it on your own, are you with others, is it in the country, an office, amongst animals or in a theatre etc. Write down as many as you can think of, just scribble them all down on a piece of paper or better still type them on our computer so they are easier to sort at a later date. Your list my have 10 or 100 things listed.

Go For a Walk – walking is a great way to get some space to think freely and to day dream. Go for a walk on your own and reflect some more on the thoughts you gave to the above task and see if anything else pops up. Write this down on a pocket book or note pad and be sure to add it to your list when you get home.

Browse the Magazine Rack – when you buy yourself a magazine, which do you go for? What are they about and what magazines catch your eye the most or which do you find yourself picking up and flicking through? Notice what thoughts this might stimulate about the environments you prefer or dislike. Are they walking magazines, home furnishing or travel magazines etc?

Go For Another Walk – leave it a few days and go for another walk. It is important to let a few days’ laps because you will be amazed at how much work the unconscious mind does when you think you are not thinking about things. Then go for another walk and see if on reflection the magazine exercise prompts any new thoughts around the issue of your preferred environment. Again, note your thoughts down and add it to your lit when you get home. Add ideas, even if they already appear on the list because if the same ones keep cropping up then this is saying something.

Write a Short Story – story writing is a really great way to think creatively and release the things that are stored up in your head. Write a short story that only needs to be a page long about something you have done that you really enjoyed. For me it was a story about building my own house. Write down what you did, how you did it, what it involved, what challenges you faced, how you over came them, what you enjoyed the most, how you would make it more enjoyable if you could repeat it and what was the outcome of it.

Go For Another Walk – spend some time walking and reflecting on the story you have written and see what other thoughts it prompts about the environments you like to spend time in. Who were you with, where were you, what were your surroundings, what pictures does it conjure up and what type of painting would someone paint to illustrate the environment the best captures the essence of the story you have written?

The Miracle Question – ask yourself if a miracle could happen and you were able to wake up tomorrow in your ideal environment and where money or any other factors that would ordinarily be a limiting issue did not exist, what environment would you be in? Add your thoughts to your list

Ask Others – ask others to email you a list of suggestions as to what type of environment they see you smiling in all day long. When they think of you working somewhere, what environment are you in. Remember to make sure they don’t describe what it is you are doing, but to describe where you are, what your surroundings are etc.

By now you should have a fairly comprehensive list of environments that appeal to you in some form or another and to varying degrees.

Prioritizing Your Environments

Now it is time to try and identify which environments you are most suited to, which you would enjoy spending most of you time in and what the priority of them are.

Take an initial look at the list and see if you can group together any of the ideas in to common environments. Are there suggestions that you have noted several times. From the list try to formulate a list of at least your top ten most preferred environments.

Now write these down on individual cards, pieces or paper or post it notes.

Next, in any order pick up any two environmental descriptions you have written on individual pieces of paper and ask yourself, ‘if I could only choose one, which would I choose and which would I discard?’ Place your preference to one side. Repeat the process until you have whittled it down to just three preferred environments and make a note of these being your preferred three ideal environments you like to spend time in.

In the next article, ‘Knowing Your Business Knowing Your Behaviour’ we will be exploring how you like to behave.

The author of this article is James Keightley, professional life coach, business coach and successful ecommerce owner of Giggleberries - Mens Underwear. Copyright by J Keightley (2008). You have my permission to reprint this article in your newsletter or on your website provided you leave the links, resource box and content intact.

Most small businesses don`t even consider using human resources, but it`s not uncommon to find larger companies ignoring this potentially beneficial area, as well. Human resource consulting can be a very useful way to improve your business by keeping your employees happy and productive and maintaining a smooth running business.

Why Use Human Resource Consulting

The main reason to use HR consulting is simply to save time. We all have a finite amount of time and it`s often better to outsource things like payroll and risk management policies. Of course, human resources is the best way to go for this type of outsourcing, since it tends to be of a rather delicate nature and you don`t want just anyone going over employee information in order to do the payroll.

It can take time and a lot of energy to implement new human resource technologies that businesses need. Most business owners find that it is far more efficient to hire someone to get everything up and running. It may be temporary, but the time and effort saved will be of great benefit to the busy business owner.

Anyone can come up with employee benefits and packages, but you are quite likely to miss something if you don`t have experience in the area and attempt it on your own. This is where an HR consult can be very useful.

Your human resources representative has plenty of experience in the area of creating benefits packages and the like. By having a consult done, you`ll save a lot of time and effort and you can be sure that you are doing the best for your employees. Happy employees mean loyal employees and if you give them a good reason to stay loyal, you can avoid the turnaround that too many businesses are experiencing these days. This isn`t a good area to start experimenting with on your own, however, at least not if you want results.

Benefits of Consult Over Full Time

If your business is working on a tight budget, you probably don`t have the money to hire a full time human resources director. Opting to hire a consultant will give you similar benefits without the expense, since the HR consultant will come in and advise you once. You can then implement the suggestions made, without ongoing expense.

This method of using human resource experts is preferred by many, but you do lose the chance to be flexible, since you won`t be adapting to any changes within the workplace that could have a dynamic effect on employee benefits. However, considering the cost of hiring a full time HR expert, most businesses find that it is sufficient to bring in a human resources consultant from time to time to maintain their technology and techniques up to date.

Outsourcing human resourcing is a very good way to keep your business running well without the added expense of another employee, something that most companies simply cannot afford yet.

A human resources consultation is particularly useful for any business undergoing growth.

Whenever new employees will be coming into the company, it`s a good idea to have everything in place ahead of time. This includes risk management factors to keep everyone safe and sound on the job, as well as implementing new methods of dealing with the larger payroll.

Whether you plan to hire a full time HR director or just bring someone in for the time being to get everything straightened out once and for all, this is a good move for any business. The benefits are many and your business will end up running far better because of it.

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I had never really paid much attention to ITIL training, let alone any other type of training, until the other day when I walked into the office and saw a big notice on the training board announcing an ITIL training course was commencing in the afternoon for all staff.

As I read the notice, I realised my organisation had decided that they needed to be more serious about ITIL training. The Top Brass even believed that making a few team leaders aware of the pertinence of ITIL training was not enough; the entire organisation needed an ITIL training course. This meant all staff had to be involved, at every level within the organisation, as ITIL adoption and practice is a cultural change rather than just a change for one or two individuals.

If the grapevine was to be believed, it was an attempt to analyse the aptitude of all staff, and maybe plan some downsizing. I didn’t know what to believe, but I knew I wasn’t looking forward to the training. In the past I had always averted training courses as I was afraid of looking ‘silly’ in front of my peers, but today there was no getting out of it as the training had been scheduled for this afternoon.

The ITIL training course preliminary discussion meeting was scheduled at 4pm and everyone had to meet in the training room. As I knew so little about what to expect, I spent my lunch hour surfing the net, gleaning information about the up and coming training. In a short time I found a website that had a detailed page about ITIL. In fact it was through this source that I found out what ITIL stands for: Information Technology Infrastructure Library, which is a set of concepts and policies that help to manage IT. From a business prospective, best practices as advocated by ITIL, address service provision related issues and therefore justify the critical relevance attached to ITIL courses and certification programs.

To my surprise it all made sense and I found that ITIL was actually needed for a business but, because I was not directly related to the technical stream, I was still confused as to how an ITIL course would be of benefit to me. However, the prelim meeting clarified the doubts I had: there wasn’t one defined ITIL training course module for all.

Depending upon your personal background and functionality, there are three typical training levels. The basic level, or the foundation, ITIL training course comprises of a general overview: covering the concept; objectives; benefits and terms needed to understand the essentials. This level of training meets with the processes associated within an ITIL framework, and that was the category I was enrolled in.

The next level of an ITIL training course is for practitioners. At this stage, learners are involved in discussions and edification programs, which enable a better insight to the basic ITIL best practice framework. The third ITIL training course level, or the highest level, is basically for Managers who have an adequate functional experience. This level of training focuses more upon developing the vision in relevance to ITIL alignment within an organisation.

With all the information I had, I realised that an ITIL course was not anything to be scared of. In fact, post the initial meeting, I was really interested in knowing more about the best practice framework, and the day became the start of embracing extended learning instead of running away from it.

So, if you’re organisation is talking about an ITIL training course, welcome it with open arms because like me, not only will you expand your education but it could increase your confidence in the workplace (and maybe the chance of a promotion!)

Robert Norton wrote the Article ‘An ITIL Training Course ? Is It Really Meant For Me?’ and recommends you visit http://www.afaprojects.com/training_itil.asp for more information on ITIL courses.

If you think hard about why you are giving a personalised executive gift, it is probably because you have decided to do so for one of a number of reasons.

One could easily be the most common, which is that you feel you should give a personalised executive gift because “it’s the right thing to do”, another reason is because you genuinely value the relationship with the supplier, employee or customer that you are going to present with a personalised executive gift. One other reason, which is becoming more common now, is that you are ordering a personalised executive gift due to a customer service issue, commonly now called service recovery.

It is important therefore to think clearly about the reason you are going to give the personalised executive gift, and what the recipient is likely to use it for, before you even start to choose the message, or the personalisation method.

Having decided the ‘who, why and how much’ questions, you can now move on to selecting a product that fits with the criteria you have defined, so an as example, lets imagine that you have a new product launch, and you have invited a small number of key clients to a dinner, consisting of both male and female executives that you want to give a personalised executive gift to help commemorate the new product launch.

I suggest that you don’t give every one at the dinner the same item, lets face it you would not give everyone in your family the same gift at Christmas, so why should you do so for you most important clients when it comes to presenting them with a personalised executive gift.

Have a think about the type of person they are, do they work from a home office, are they mainly on the road, do they work from an office. If they truly are a major client, you will know a lot about them, for instance the colours they wear, whether they are the technology savvy, or do they prefer more traditional working practices.

Once you have used all of this knowledge to select a personalised executive gift, you then move onto what can be the hardest part of all, the way you personalise the gift.

The good news is that with the excellent availability of personalised executive gifts online, you can now order a single item to be engraved or embossed with words, initials, a logo or a message, and have it delivered in a day or so, whereas in the past, you were committed to buying hundreds of an item all with the same logo or, and had to wait weeks, or you had to buy a gift in a retail store, then find your local engraving store to have the message added, which does not suit everyone, particularly where time is short.

Good online personalised executive gift sites will allow you to choose you whether you want a personalised executive gift with engraved initials, or engraved words, a company logo, or even all three, so you have plenty of scope to get the message just right.

The final decision on what how to personalise the gift is yours, but I would think very hard about having too much on the product, particularly if it is a personalised executive gift that will be used personally rather than left on a desk. As an example, a beautiful nappa leather jotter will be perfect with just initials elegantly embossed on one side, it will show you put extra effort into choosing and the personalising of the gift. This will make sure that the recipient uses the gift, it will be welcomed and treasured forever, whereas if you foil block your company name, logo and address all over one side, chances are they will think you are trying to advertise your company rather than say thank you to them.

Most important of all, when you present the a personalised executive gift to the lucky recipient, always do so in an elegant way, never ask or expect them to open it in front of you, and ideally, always give the gift beautifully packaged in a gift box with tissue and a substantial gift bag at the end of the evening or meeting so that when you have said thank you and they are leaving, you pass then the personalised executive gift as a final show of your appreciation, I promise you that having chosen the gift carefully, and given great though as to how you personalised it, then elegantly presenting it at the end of the meeting, you will gain even more respect from your customers, colleague or supplier.

Jo Varley is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Ice London, the elegant gift brand that includes elegant personalised executive gifts such as luxurious leather, silver plated and Swarovski crystal decorated items, the collection is available through retail stores, corporate gift distributors and online Here. See a fabulous collection of Corporate Gifts online.