Interesting Management Stories

Story # 1 It's a fine sunny day in the forest and a lion is sitting outside his cave, lying lazily in the sun. Along comes a fox, out on a walk. Fox: "Do you know the time, because my watch is broken" Lion: "Oh, I can easily fix the watch for you" Fox: "Hmm... But it's a very complicated mechanism, and your big claws will only destroy it even more." Lion: "Oh no, give it to me, and it will be fixed" Fox: "That's ridiculous! Any fool knows that lazy lions with great claws cannot fix complicated watches" Lion: "Sure they do, give it to me and it will be fixed" The lion disappears into his cave, and after a while he comes back with the watch which is running perfectly. The fox is impressed, and the lion continues to lie lazily in the sun, looking very pleased with himself.

Soon a wolf comes along and stops to watch the lazy lion in the sun. Wolf: "Can I come and watch TV tonight with you, because mine is broken" Lion: "Oh, I can easily fix your TV for you" Wolf: "You don't expect me to believe such rubbish, do you? There is no way that a lazy lion with big claws can fix a complicated TV. Lion: "No problem. Do you want to try it?" The lion goes into his cave, and after a while comes back with a perfectly fixed TV. The wolf goes away happily and amazed. Scene : Inside the lion's cave. In one corner are half a dozen small and intelligent looking rabbits who are busily doing very complicated work with very detailed instruments. In the other corner lies a huge lion looking very pleased with himself. Moral : IF YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY A MANAGER IS FAMOUS; LOOK AT THE WORK OF HIS SUBORDINATES.

Management Lesson in the context of the working world : IF YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY SOMEONE UNDESERVED IS PROMOTED; LOOK AT THE WORK OF HIS SUBORDINATES Story # 2 It's a fine sunny day in the forest and a rabbit is sitting outside his burrow, tippy-tapping on his typewriter. Along comes a fox, out for a walk. Fox: "What are you working on?" Rabbit: "My thesis." Fox: "Hmm... What is it about?" Rabbit: "Oh, I'm writing about how rabbits eat foxes." Fox: "That's ridiculous ! Any fool knows that rabbits don't eat foxes! Rabbit: "Come with me and I'll show you!" They both disappear into the rabbit's burrow. After few minutes, gnawing on a fox bone, the rabbit returns to his typewriter and resumes typing. Soon a wolf comes along and stops to watch the hardworking rabbit. Wolf: "What's that you are writing?" Rabbit: "I'm doing a thesis on how rabbits eat wolves." Wolf: "you don't expect to get such rubbish published, do you?" Rabbit: "No problem. Do you want to see why?" The rabbit and the wolf go into the burrow and again the rabbit returns by himself, after a few minutes, and goes back to typing. Finally a bear comes along and asks, "What are you doing? Rabbit: "I'm doing a thesis on how rabbits eat bears." Bear: "Well that's absurd !" Rabbit: "Come into my home and I'll show you" Scene : As they enter the burrow, the rabbit introduces the bear to the lion.

Moral: IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW SILLY YOUR THESIS TOPIC IS; WHAT MATTERS IS WHOM YOU HAVE AS A SUPERVISOR. Management Lesson in the context of the working world: IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW BAD YOUR PERFORMANCE IS; WHAT MATTERS IS WHETHER YOUR BOSS LIKES YOU OR NOT The Frozen Bird A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy. A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, promptly dug him out and ate him.

Moral (1) (2) Not Not everyone everyone

of who who gets shits you on out

the you of shit is is your your

story: enemy. friend.

(3) And when youre in deep shit, its smart to keep your mouth shut! Original source: Unknown

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Employment and Miscellaneous and Organizational Behavior / HR May 8th 2012The Beauty of Many Quick Pricing Experiments When Gary Loveman joined Harrahs Entertainment (now Caesars Entertainment) in 1998, the casino company priced its slot machines like everyone else in the gaming industry. Management presumed that decreasing payoutsessentially raising the pricewould drive some customers to other casinos. A sensible assumption, perhaps, but Lovemana quantitative type who left a professorship at Harvard Business School to join the companywasnt one to assume. He

commissioned a study to determine how sensitive slot-machine players would be to a change in payouts.

The company discovered it could make very small adjustments in the frequency of payouts making them just one-tenth of 1 percent less frequentwithout customers even noticing. Harrahs shareholders, however, would notice. In fact, as Loveman later put it, single insights like this can ring the cash register literally thousands or millions of times in a large business.

Just about every company has its slot machinesproduct areas in which it could get a major boost in profitability by optimizing its pricing strategy.

Source: The Allure of Pricing Predictively by Kenneth Dickman, Jeanne G. Harris and John G. Hanson | Accenture Outlook Journal Comments (0) Posted by Administrator / Management and Marketing / Sales Apr 10th 2012Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth is in Customer Service About ten years ago, two weeks before Valentines Day, a female customer, whom we will call Sue, stopped into the store to buy a bike for her husband. Because she had gone all out to get the very best bike she could for her husband, she needed to pay us in increments. So, she put a deposit on the bike until she could save up the remaining $200 to pay it off. Wanting to surprise her husband on Valentines Day, Sue asked Greg, a Zanes employee, if he could put the bike in the display window that evening after she had decorated the bike with some ribbon, balloons, and a sign she made that read, Happy Valentines Day, Bob. Greg, of course, said he was happy to help her pull off the surprise and that he would put the bike in the front window.

Sue planned to bring Bob by the store, along with a few co-workers who were in on the surprise, prior to their romantic dinner. She had been dropping hints along the way and couldnt wait to see the expression on Bobs face. Everything was in place, except that Greg had forgotten to put the bike in the display before heading out that day.

We arrived the next morning to an irate message from Sue. Realizing how serious a mistake wed made, we knew we needed to go above and beyond the call to duty to turn this disaster into a positive experience for the local couple. We waved the remaining balance owed on the bike, tried to re-create a romantic evening at the best Italian restaurant in the area with no spending limit and we called up a gourmet coffee shop down the road to have an elaborate lunch delivered to Sue and her co-workers who had come out to see Bobs excited expression the night before.

Obviously more concerned with rectifying our mistake than the budget to do so, we spent about $400 to correct our error and maintaining the integrity of our lifetime customer culture. Plus, considering that Sue and Bob could be worth $25,000 to Zanes Cycles, it was well worth the investment, particularly because I dont think Sue expected as much as we gave her. We provided more than she thought was reasonable, and as a result, we turned a terrible mistake into a positive experience for Sue, Bob and all of Sues co-workers.

The best part of the story, though, is that Gregthe employee who forgot to put the bike in the displaysent me an envelope in the mail with a $400 check enclosed to reimburse us for the cost of rebuilding the customer relationship and a letter apologizing for jeopardizing a prospective lifetime customer. Of course, I never cashed Gregs check. I have it framed with the letter above my desk as a reminder that although we lost a few hundred dollars that day, it was worth every cent in two culture-reinforcing ways. We managed to save our relationship with the customer, and we had the great thrill of witnessing our employees take our principles to heart. To me, that was priceless.

Source: Reinventing the Wheel: Creating Lifetime Customers by Chris Zane | ChangeThis Comments (0) Posted by Administrator / Customer

Related and Management and Organizational Behavior / HR Mar 20th 2012What Should Be True

Some organizations and initiatives are so successful that a sort of folklore arises around them. John F. Kennedy is said to have asked a janitor scrubbing a floor at Cape Canaveral what he was doing and received the reply, Im working to put a man on the moon. The story is probably apocryphal, as its also been attributed to architect Christopher Wren at St. Pauls Cathedral in London. Legend or not, the point is that all great legends encapsulate what should be true. We think all workers should believe they are contributing to a worthwhile goal. If they dont, is it their fault? Or is the burden on leaders to close that gap in the middle of their strategy, ensuring that their visions and goals are communicated in a way that can provide meaning to all they encounter?

Source: Turning Strategic Vision into Action: Its a Mind Game by Simon Mezger and Maurice Violani | A.T. Kearney Executive Agenda, Volume XIII, Number 1, 2010 Comments (0) Posted by Administrator / Leadership and Management and Organizational Behavior / HR Jan 5th 2012Would You Invest in Your Own Company? The CEO of one company was determined that his employees understand the issues surrounding the companys recent poor results and become fully engaged to help turn the company around. Heres how he accomplished this.

The company held four brown bag lunch meetings over four weeks where employees could attend for free for one hour and hear from an outside professional about how to invest in the share market. Importantly, there was no obvious link between the meeting topic and the organization the employees worked for. At week three, they were analyzing annual reports and generally deciding whether they would invest in a particular company based on the information contained in the report. By the fourth week they were given another annual report and asked the same question, would you invest in this company? The answer was overwhelmingly no. And of course this last company was the one they all worked for, which brought them to the Aha!

moment. Now the organizations employees understood and were engaged and ready to become involved in turning the company around through teamwork and new initiatives.

Source: Are Your Communication Strategies Really Engaging Employees? by Marcia Xenitelis | LeaderValues, July 2011 Comments (0) Posted by Administrator / Communication and Management Nov 1st 2011The Importance of Self-Discipline During the 1960s, psychologist Walter Mischel conducted the marshmallow test with fouryear-olds in the preschool at Stanford University, to assess each preschoolers ability to delay gratification. Each four-year-old was given one marshmallow. They were told that they could eat it immediately or, if they waited until the researcher returned in 20 minutes, they could have two marshmallows.

Some kids in the group just couldnt wait. They gobbled down the marshmallow immediately. The rest struggled hard to resist eating it. They covered their eyes, talked to themselves, sang, played games, and even tried to go to sleep. The preschoolers who were able to wait were rewarded with two marshmallows when the researcher returned. Twelve to fourteen years later these same kids were reevaluated as teenagers.

The differences were astonishing. Those who had been able to control their impulses and delay gratification as four-year-olds, were more effective socially and personally. They had higher levels of assertiveness, self-confidence, trustworthiness, dependability, and ability to control stress. Their Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores were 210 points higher than the instant gratification group!

A key difference between successful people leaders and those who struggle to get by, is self-discipline. As Confucius wrote, The nature of people is always the same; it is their habits that separate them.

Source: Deepening Our Discipline by Jim Clemmer Comments (0) Posted by Administrator / Organizational Behavior / HR Oct 15th 2011Win-Win Negotiation Agreements Take the classic fable of the two sisters, quarrelling over a single orange. The sisters, who focus too much on cooperating with one another, cooperatively agree to cut the orange in half a compromise agreement. One sister uses the juice and throws the rind away; the other sister uses the rind and throws the juice away, and then they realize too late that both sisters would have been far better off by giving all the juice to one sister and all the rind to the other sister. This is what is meant by win-win negotiation agreements, which are described as outcomes that improve upon mutual settlement by identifying ways that both parties receive better outcomes than by simply compromising on the issues at hand.

Source: Why negotiation is the most popular business school course by Leigh Thompson and Geoffrey J Leonardelli Comments (0) Posted by Administrator / Negotiation Sep 12th 2011Staying on Top A turkey was chatting with a bull. I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree, sighed the turkey, but I havent got the energy.

Well, why dont you nibble on some of my droppings? replied the bull. Theyre packed with nutrients.

The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree.

The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch.

Finally after a fourth night, he was proudly perched at the top of the tree.

Soon he was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot the turkey out of the tree.

MANAGEMENT LESSON: Bull Shit might get you to the top, but it wont keep you there.

Original Source: Rajat Khungar Comments (1) Posted by Administrator / Humor / Amusement and Management Aug 16th 2011Hey, You Got the Elephant Recognition can be given in traditional waysa complimentary e-mail, or a pat on the back for a job well done. But you can also get creative with it. One of my favorite examples is the one business consultant Alexander Kjerulf cites about a Danish car company that instituted The Order of the Elephant. The elephant is a two-foot-tall stuffed animal that any employee can give to another as a reward for doing something exemplary. The benefits come not just in the delivery and reception of well-earned praise, but afterwards as well. As Kjerulf explains, other employees stopping by immediately notice the elephant and go, Hey, you got the elephant. Whatd you do?, which of course means that the good stories and best practices get told and retold many times.

Source: The Happiness Work Ethic by Shawn Achor | ChangeThis, Jan. 19, 2011 Comments (0) Posted by Administrator / Management and Organizational Behavior / HR Aug 9th 2011The Best Bosses Shield those Who Work for Them Annette Kyle managed some 60 employees at a Texas terminal where they loaded chemicals from railcars onto ships and trucks. In the mid-1990s, Annette led a revolution that dramatically raised her units performance through a host of changes, including better planning, greater responsibility at the lowest levels, improved and more transparent metrics, and numerous cultural changes. She personally sewed no whining patches on workers uniforms, for

example, to discourage the local penchant for complaining and auctioned off her desk to workers for $60 because, as she explained it, I shouldnt be sitting behind a big desk. I should be contributing to team goals however possible.

This transformation virtually eliminated the penalties that were levied when ships arrived at the terminals dock but (despite considerable advance warning) workers werent ready to load them. These demurrage charges, which cost the company $2.5 million the year before the revolution, were down to $10,000 the year after. Previously, it had taken more than three hours to load an average truck. Afterward, more than 90 percent were loaded within an hour of arrival. Surveys and interviews by University of Southern California researchers showed that employees became more satisfied with their jobs and felt proud of their accomplishments. I asked Annette how she could make such radical changes in her giant company. She answered that her boss shielded her from top-ranking managershe found the resources and experts she needed but never discussed these moves with senior management until they succeeded.

Source: Why Good Bosses Tune in to Their People by Robert I. Sutton | The McKinsey Quarterly time management analogy the time management 'rocks in bucket' story Use this time management story to show how planning is the key to time management. Start with a bucket, some big rocks enough to fill it, some small stones, some sand and water. Put the big rocks in the bucket - is it full? Put the small stones in around the big rocks - is it full? Put the sand in and give it a shake - is it full? Put the water in. Now it's full. The point is: unless you put the big rocks in first, you won't get them in at all. In other words: Plan time-slots for your big issues before anything else, or the inevitable sand and water issues will fill up your days and you won't fit the big issues in (a big issue doesn't necessarily have to be a work task - it could be your child's sports-day, or a holiday).

Stress Management Posted By KiranKumar Roy A lecturer was giving a lecture to his student on stress management. He raised a glass of water and asked the audience, How heavy do you think this glass of water is? The students answers ranged from 20g to 500gm. It does not matter on the absolute weight. It depends on how long you hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it is OK. If I hold it for an hour, I will have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you will have to call an ambulance. It is the exact same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, we will not be able to carry on, the burden becoming increasingly heavier. What you have to do is to put the glass down, rest for a while before holding it up again. We have to put down the burden periodically, so that we can be refreshed and are ! able to carry on. So before you return home from work tonight, put the burden of work down. Dont carry it back home. You can pick it up tomorrow. Whatever burdens you are having now on your shoulders, let it down for a moment if you can. Pick it up again later when you have rested. Rest and relax. Life is short, enjoy it!! Cheers!!!!! MONDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2008 Delegate your task wisely, and only to people you trust. A Wolf had been prowling around a flock of Sheep for a long time, and the Shepherd watched very anxiously to prevent him from carrying off a Lamb. But the Wolf did not try to do any harm. Instead he seemed to be helping the Shepherd take care of the Sheep. At last the Shepherd got so used to seeing the Wolf about that he forgot how wicked he could be. One day he even went so far as to leave his flock in the Wolf's care while he went on an errand. But when he came back and saw how many of the flock had been killed and carried off, he knew how foolish to trust a Wolf as he exclaimed. I have been rightly served; why did I trust my sheep to a Wolf?

No disguise will hide one's true character. An Ass found a Lion's skin left in the forest by a hunter. He dressed himself in it, and amused himself by hiding in a thicket and rushing out suddenly at the animals who passed that way. All took to their heels the moment they saw him. The Ass was so pleased to see the animals running away from him, just as if he were King Lion himself, that he could not keep from expressing his delight by a loud, harsh bray. A Fox, who ran with the rest, stopped short as soon as he heard the voice. Approaching the Ass, he said with a laugh: "If you had kept your mouth shut you might have frightened me, too. But you gave yourself away with that silly bray." A fool may deceive by his dress and appearance, but his words will soon show what he really is. P OS TED BY HAR I HAR A P UTR AN AT 7: 11 AM NO C OMMENTS : Self-help is the best help. A Lark made her nest in a field of young wheat. As the days passed, the wheat stalks grew tall and the young birds, too, grew in strength. Then one day, when the ripe golden grain waved in the breeze, the Farmer and his son came into the field. "This wheat is now ready for reaping," said the Farmer. "We must call in our neighbors and friends to help us harvest it." The young Larks in their nest close by were much frightened, for they knew they would be in great danger if they did not leave the nest before the reapers came. When the Mother Lark returned with food for them, they told her what they had heard.

"Do not be frightened, children," said the Mother Lark. "If the Farmer said he would call in his neighbors and friends to help him do his work, this wheat will not be reaped for a while yet." A few days later, the wheat was so ripe, that when the wind shook the stalks, a hail of wheat grains came rustling down on the young Larks' heads. "If this wheat is not harvested at once," said the Farmer, "we shall lose half the crop. We cannot wait any longer for help from our friends. Tomorrow we must set to work, ourselves." When the young Larks told their mother what they had heard that day, she said: "Then we must be off at once. When a man decides to do his own work and not depend on any one else, then you may be sure there will be no more delay." There was much fluttering and trying out of wings that afternoon, and at sunrise next day, when the Farmer and his son cut down the grain, they found an empty nest. Procrastination is the thief of time. P OS TED BY HAR I HAR A P UTR AN AT 7: 09 AM NO C OMMENTS : Counter old tricks with new ones. A Merchant, driving his Donkey homeward from the seashore with a heavy load of salt, came to a river crossed by a shallow ford. They had crossed this river many times before without accident, but this time the Donkey slipped and fell when halfway over. And when the Merchant at last got him to his feet, much of the salt had melted away. Delighted to find how much lighter

his burden had become, the Donkey finished the journey very happily. Next day the Merchant went for another load of salt. On the way home the Donkey, remembering what had happened at the ford, purposely let himself fall into the water, and again got rid of most of his burden. The angry Merchant immediately turned about and drove the Donkey back to the seashore, where he loaded him with two great baskets of sponges. At the ford the Donkey again tumbled over; but when he had scrambled to his feet, it was a very disconsolate Donkey that dragged himself homeward under a load ten times heavier than before. The same measures will not suit all circumstances. P OS TED BY HAR I HAR A P UTR AN AT 7: 08 AM NO C OMMENTS : Adversity creates opportunity. A farmer owned an old mule. One day, the mule fell into the farmer's well. The mule brayed loudly and caught the attention of the farmer. Upon assessing the situation, the farmer ruled out any possibility of a rescue as it was simply too much trouble to lift the mule out of the well. Out of sympathy for the animal, he decided to enlist his neighbors' help to haul dirt into the well to put the mule out of his misery. The old mule was hysterical upon learning that his life would thus end. However, as the farmer and the neighbors shoveled the dirt into the well, a thought struck the old mule. He realized that if he could shake off every dirt that landed on his back, the dirt would hit the floor and he could step on the dirt. Shovel after shovel, he continued relentlessly to shake off the

dirt and step on top of it. He fought the sense of panic and distress and just went on shaking off the dirt and climbing higher up the well. With much determination and perseverance, the old mule eventually stepped out the well, battered and exhausted, but otherwise triumphant that he had survived the ordeal. Through the way he handled the situation of adversity, the act of burying him in fact saved his life. There is a solution to every problem. Never give up. P OS TED BY HAR I HAR A P UTR AN AT 7: 05 AM NO C OMMENTS : There is nothing worth so much as liberty. A gaunt Wolf was almost dead with hunger when he happened to meet a House-dog who was passing by. "Ah, Cousin," said the Dog. "I knew how it would be; your irregular life will soon be the ruin of you. Why do you not work steadily as I do, and get your food regularly given to you?" "I would have no objection," said the Wolf, "if I could only get a place." "I will easily arrange that for you," said the Dog; "come with me to my master and you shall share my work." So the Wolf and the Dog went towards the town together. On the way there the Wolf noticed that the hair on a certain part of the Dog's neck was very much worn away, so he asked him how that had come about. "Oh, it is nothing," said the Dog. "That is only the place where

the collar is put on at night to keep me chained up; it chafes a bit, but one soon gets used to it." "Is that all?" said the Wolf. "Then good-bye to you, Master Dog." Better starve free than be a fat slave. P OS TED BY HAR I HAR A P UTR AN AT 7: 03 AM NO C OMMENTS : Precious things are without value to those who cannot prize them. A Cock was busily scratching and scraping about to find something to eat for himself and his family, when he happened to turn up a precious jewel that had been lost by its owner. "Aha!" said the Cock. "No doubt you are very costly and he who lost you would give a great deal to find you. But as for me, I would choose a single grain of barleycorn before all the jewels in the world." P OS TED BY HAR I HAR A P UTR AN AT 7: 01 AM NO C OMMENTS : The weak are made to suffer for the misdeeds of the powerful. Once upon a time a severe plague raged among the animals. Many died, and those who lived were so ill, that they cared for neither food nor drink, and dragged themselves about listlessly. No longer could a fat young hen tempt Master Fox to dinner, nor a tender lamb rouse greedy Sir Wolf's appetite. At last the Lion decided to call a council. When all the animals were gathered together he arose and said: "Dear friends, I believe the gods have sent this plague upon us as a punishment for our sins. Therefore, the most guilty one of us must be offered in sacrifice. Perhaps we may thus obtain forgiveness and cure for all.

"I will confess all my sins first. I admit that I have been very greedy and have devoured many sheep. They had done me no harm. I have eaten goats and bulls and stags. To tell the truth, I even ate up a shepherd now and then. "Now, if I am the most guilty, I am ready to be sacrificed. But I think it best that each one confess his sins as I have done. Then we can decide in all justice who is the most guilty." "Your majesty," said the Fox, "you are too good. Can it be a crime to eat sheep, such stupid mutton heads? No, no, your majesty. You have done them great honor by eating them up. "And so far as shepherds are concerned, we all know they belong to that puny race that pretends to be our masters." All the animals applauded the Fox loudly. Then, though the Tiger, the Bear, the Wolf, and all the savage beasts recited the most wicked deeds, all were excused and made to appear very saint-like and innocent. It was now the Ass's turn to confess. "I remember," he said guiltily, "that one day as I was passing a field belonging to some priests, I was so tempted by the tender grass and my hunger, that I could not resist nibbling a bit of it. I had no right to do it, I admit" A great uproar among the beasts interrupted him. Here was the culprit who had brought misfortune on all of them! What a horrible crime it was to eat grass that belonged to someone else! It was enough to hang anyone for, much more an Ass.

Immediately they all fell upon him, the Wolf in the lead, and soon had made an end to him, sacrificing him to the gods then and there, and without the formality of an altar.

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