Any conversation with a business leader invariably leads to the usual talk of “no one wants to work hard anymore.” It is true that we are in a tight labour market and finding good employees is a very hard task, but things will not get better by painting everything black. It is a normal occurrence …
Continue reading Live to Work or Work to Live? The new employment contract
Many family businesses are akin to a pilot trying to land an airplane with the radar switched off and their eyes closed. Then they are amazed if the business they are supposedly leading, risks crashing out. Sometimes I just tire myself repeating the same thing. You cannot be leading a family business if you do …
As I have written in past Blog articles, I constantly see family business owners and leaders who could perform better if they are equipped with the right and much needed skills and mindsets. I see too many family business owners and leaders engulfed in micromanaging operational issues with no time to think strategically or to …
Invariably when I meet family businesses I always have to face the negative consequences of an epidemic that haunts and hampers them greatly. The epidemic of control. The epidemic of micro-management. Family business have grown to a certain size but its owners and leaders still try to control and direct the business using the same …
A few days ago Malta's Central Bank Governor was quoted as saying that tough decisions may need to be taken to combat the "inflation monster". I might add that tough and innovative decisions will need to be taken, not to make the situation worse for all. Let me try to put things into context. Last …
Using the traditional strategic-planning model, managers attempt to forecast how markets will evolve and competitors will respond, and then define a multiyear plan for winning in that future state. The organisation is then called upon to execute that plan. Performance is routinely monitored, ostensibly to keep everyone on track. That approach worked well when markets …
Continue reading Forego Strategic Planning in Turbulent Times?
For most of the last 15 years, capital has been cheap. Since the 2008/9 final crisis the cost of borrowing has been very low. All that changed last year, when the world’s central banks began raising interest rates to curb rising inflation. As seen below, whilst in previous years, a 10 year Malta government bond …
I many times feel sorry for many business leaders who get a sense of entrapment between a rock and a hard place. They feel so because on one hand they realise that they need to constantly transform their organisations to make them more resilient, more efficient and more responsive to changing consumer preferences, whilst on …
Continue reading Can businesses transform & change, during a tight labour market?
If there is a topic which family businesses like leaving on the back burner, that is succession planning. A research article just published a few days ago explains why. This research article (click HERE to read it) concludes as follows "While the need for succession planning and plan preparation is clearly expressed, no steps are …
Continue reading Succession Planning – The Back Burner Resident
There seems to be a new wave of thinking, that in essence believes that businesses should move away from strategic planning and budgeting, as by doing so they are stifling innovation. I find this thinking to be complete hogwash. Strategic planning and innovation actually move hand in hand. They can help consolidate a company and …
A Business Blog for SMEs & Family Businesses 