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'I have written a lot about diary management over the years, which is not surprising when you think assistants spend at the very least a third of their day organising their manager’s calendars. Juggling our boss’s time is a complex operation. There are also a lot of tasks related to diary management, for example ensuring our managers get to their meetings on time, understand the reason for the meeting and are prepared for it.
'Safe In The Harbor Or Setting Sail? Guest Post by Debbie Gross, CEA to CEO, John Chambers, Cisco Systems. . “You are the Captain of your own ship!” I am fond of the saying that we are all “captains” of our own ships. I fully believe that we are in complete control of our destiny – no one person or company has that control.
'Beth and I were talking about how paralyzed she feels. She''s been trying to choose between two options for a project she''s working on for her business. Because she has no prior experience with this thing she''s trying to choose, and neither option seems perfect, she''s been unable to make a decision—for six weeks. Six weeks ! That''s a long time to be undecided.
'I attended the Staffing Industry Analysts Contingent Workforce Summit a couple of weeks ago. This show is targeted at contingent workforce managers at large companies and provides a forum to discuss best practices around the hiring and managing of contingent workers (freelancers, independent contractors, etc.). As you can see from this write up on the conference , large corporations are forecast to increase their use of contingent workers over the coming years. It's not just the SIA
Forgetfulness is costing you time, money, and a ton of missed opportunities. In the age of automation, it’s easy to underestimate the power of a well-trained human mind. But memory isn’t just a parlor trick, it's a strategic edge. Human memory is one of the most underrated business skills. Whether you’re managing people, leading sessions, or having high-stakes conversations, remembering names, details, and concepts can be transformative in building trust, absorbing knowledge, and driving perform
'So today I am doing a little bit of celebrating because it is officially my three year blogging anniversary. Thanks to everyone who has already sent me their congratulations. When I first started the blog, I really didn’t put much thought into it. I was head-smashing-against-a-brick-wall bored in my job and I missed having creative tasks. I had also just split up with boyfriend and wanted to prove something to myself.
'If you think it’s still too soon to start planning your professional and personal success goals for 2015, I want to encourage you to think again! As quickly as this year passed, so will next year. Your future will become the present sooner than you think. If you don’t set success goals and map out a plan, you will be at the same place next year as you are today.
'by Originally posted 2009-06-01 13:35:01. Republished by Blog Post Promoter. Creating an organized space makes it easier for you to lay your hands on the things you need and helps you be more effective because you now have time for the important stuff. It's also an essential part of taking care of the most valuable person in your life, yourself.
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'by Originally posted 2009-06-01 13:35:01. Republished by Blog Post Promoter. Creating an organized space makes it easier for you to lay your hands on the things you need and helps you be more effective because you now have time for the important stuff. It's also an essential part of taking care of the most valuable person in your life, yourself.
'The HBR's The Freelance Economy Still Runs on Word of Mouth covers data from the MBO Partners State of Independence study showing word of mouth is the dominant way freelancers and other independent workers find work. The chart below describing this data is from the HBR article. What is interesting is it's not just this study. All of the studies we've done looking at this topic over the last few years shows word of mouth is not only the dominant so
'Networking is really important. How many times have you heard that? Loads of times I would imagine. Most of us know it is important but most of us also know it is a scary prospect and not something that comes naturally, particularly for assistants. We are behind the scenes specialists, we are not encouraged to put ourselves out there and even if we did want to get involved in a networking event we are often too busy to leave the office.
'Dealing with a malware injection on a WordPress website isn’t a picnic on the best of days. Dealing with one my first day after arriving in Maine ; after a 993 mile drive in a packed Ford Focus with my 6 foot 2 son and a ticked off cat? Well, let’s just say my first day in my new location was far from peachy. Yet I’m willing to re-live it via this post in order to give you a heads up about WordPress and malware.
'by Donna Toothaker. One thing I hear a lot from VAs and other entrepreneurs is how they want to increase their “closing the sale” percentage because it’s so low. Let’s face it; that’s what we all want, isn’t it? But there’s a right way and a wrong way to make that happen. Let’s take a look at a few of my best tips for sealing the deal with the right clients.
In the climb from contributor to leader, the rules quietly change. If you’re aiming for the summit, the air gets thinner—and what got you here won’t be enough to get you to the top (a concept first popularized by Marshall Goldsmith in his book What Got You Here Won’t Get You There ). What made you successful early in your finance career—technical accuracy, sharp analysis, flawless execution—won’t be what carries you to the next level.
'At first glance comparing independent work with a beer commercial doesn't seem to make sense. But segmentation data from the MBO Partners 2014 State of Independence study indicates there are similarities. Miller's "Tastes Great, Less Filling" ad series, which they used to launch the lite beer segment in 1974, is considered one of the most successful ad campaigns of all time. The goal of these ads was to communicate the two key consumer benefits
'Back in June I was working on an event called Tech Fest 2014 , which was held at ExCeL London. The event was for event professionals and as you can imagine they can be a fussy bunch when it comes to venues. We held Tech Fest at ExCeL because London Technology Week was taking place in East London and we thought it would be great to be part of a number of technology related events.
'Back in 2010, I penned something I called The Midweek Manifesto. I didn’t dive into what it meant all that much back then. I simply wrote it and posted it. But as the conventional work week comes to a close here, I felt it was time to revisit its origin and meaning. Not just for you…but for me. Here’s The Midweek Manifesto as I wrote it for WorkAwesome several years ago: My mission is to reflect on the beginning of the week, see what I’ve not done and reboot it and see what I’ve done and celebr
'Every small business has different needs and operations expectations. Managing accounts payable and accounts receivable is a balancing act that accountants perform on a daily basis. Closely monitoring and managing cash flow can help offset payments to venders and overhead expenses and allow you to focus on developing your business. Business owners should establish habits that allow them to easily track and manage both accounts payable and receivable.
The most overlooked, yet most critical, element of transformation is preparing people for change. Automation and AI aren't just technical upgrades, they’re cultural shifts which can challenge identities. That’s why change management isn’t a side project—it’s the foundation. In finance, where precision and process rule, navigating change can feel especially disruptive.
'According to a new Deloitte Australia report, The Collaborative Economy, overlong meetings, distractions and failed projects are costing their economy $5.4 billion per annum. Based on a survey of 1,000 Australian employees and managers conducted in June 2014 the report estimated the value of time employees and managers spend collaborating each year ($46 Billion) and the wastage due to poor collaboration.
'Prior to arriving at the Swissôtel Métropole I had already been in Geneva for a few days but I had been staying on the ‘other’ side of the lake. Walking across the bridge it was pretty clear this was the flashier side of Geneva with tons of designer shops, jewellery stores and incredibly luxurious cars lining the pavement. During my time in Geneva it certainly hadn’t escaped my notice that Geneva is an expensive city: you can’t really escape it (unless you spend all of y
'My podcasting partner-in-crime Michael Schechter posed this challenge to be on Twitter: That was quite the challenge, but I took it. After that exchange, I saw a flurry of follow-up activity that was great to see. Several people had their own thoughts on what contexts were (and weren’t) and Schechter joined the fray with his own definition later on in the thread: The question mark at the end was telling: There are so many different ideas of what contexts are that I think it is worth examining t
'As your small business gains momentum, you’ll undoubtedly juggle countless tasks at once, so when it comes to data security, it’s easy to put it on the back burner. But the fact is that if you suffer a data breach, the costs could include customer erosion, financial losses, and regulatory fines. The reputational fallout alone can continue months beyond the incident and translate into upwards of $5 million in losses.
Retailers know the clock is ticking–legacy SAP Commerce support ends in 2026. Legacy platforms are becoming a liability burdened by complexity, rigidity, and mounting operational costs. But modernization isn’t just about swapping out systems, it’s about preparing for a future shaped by real-time interactions, AI powered buying assistants, and flexible commerce architecture.
'Thank you to everyone that has completed the Practically Perfect PA survey. So far we have received some great feedback but we would love to hear from more of you so please do take ten minutes out of your day to complete the questionnaire. I’d appreciate your honest feedback, I really would! I’ll share a summary of the results next month, for the curious.
My podcasting partner-in-crime Michael Schechter posed this challenge to me on Twitter: That was quite the challenge, but I took it. After that exchange, I saw a flurry of follow-up activity that was great to see. Several people had their own thoughts on what contexts were (and weren’t) and Schechter joined the fray with his own definition later on in the thread: The question mark at the end was telling: There are so many different ideas of what contexts are that I think it is worth examining th
'Automatic speech recognition technology ( ASR ) and its complementary technology known as IVR (interactive voice response) are both systems you’ve almost certainly used before in a personal or business context. These are the technologies that allow machines to interact with humans through audio communication and anybody who’s ever used an automated telephone customer service system, a voice powered text editing program or a smartphone interface like Siri on the iPhone has come into
Documents are the backbone of enterprise operations, but they are also a common source of inefficiency. From buried insights to manual handoffs, document-based workflows can quietly stall decision-making and drain resources. For large, complex organizations, legacy systems and siloed processes create friction that AI is uniquely positioned to resolve.
'Being environmentally-conscious is a big deal for many businesses today and most likely your company has embraced practices that are eco-friendly. You recycle bottles, cans and paper. You’ve embraced digital documents over paper ones. You opt for energy-efficient office equipment, and you’ve even worked on greening your business strategies. All of these are great ways to help the environment, but while focusing on the inside of your business, you may be forgetting about the outside.
'Sound collection procedures and processes do not always stop bad debt occurring. The important step is knowing how and when to increase the severity of the action to be taken to recover these bad debts. Early communication with the debtor is on one of the key steps to ensure recovery of the debt. This contact needs to be consistent and measured to determine what action mostly achieves the desired result.
'The economic pendulum has swung again in the last financial quarter, with businesses throughout the Eurozone responding negatively to widespread decline. This has yet to impact on British business owners, however, as they remain optimistic about future growth and the potential for long-term expansion. Whether such sentiment can be sustained indefinitely has yet to be seen, but in the meantime it is important that entrepreneurs look to safeguard their venture and consolidate any success that the
Remote finance teams are rewriting how the back-office runs—and attackers are taking notes. Disconnected workflows, process blind spots, and rising cyber threats have become more than just “growing pains”. They’re now liabilities. The challenge isn’t just team distribution, but building resilient systems that protect accuracy, control, and speed across every transaction and touchpoint.
'Retailing has significantly changed since the Internet came into the picture. There are new challenges encountered but at the same time new opportunities are cropping up. Also, as more retailers compete for customers, there is an undeniable need to step up strategies and methods to remain competitive. photo credit: Wikimedia Commons. About.com’s “ 3 Ways to Thrive in a Retail Slowdown ” offer great insights on how to remain competitive, but there are many other useful strategi
'The retail industry has changed dramatically over the past 30 years. Stores are no longer gathered in downtown neighborhoods and rather than attracting people to the marketplace, out-of-town shopping malls must offer shopping possibilities and a broad range of eateries, from budget-oriented fast food to upmarket restaurants, as well as movie theaters and fitness centers.
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