Last week, I wrote about how I sometimes stop doing business with a company based on its actions or the values it seems to project. On the flip side, there are a lot of companies that do great things for others, but their actions go quietly unnoticed. I had the privilege to encounter one of those companies last weekend.
Some background - my son's school does an annual holiday food basket service project, in which they provide a month's worth of food and basic household supplies for 73 families in our area. This is a great way for the students to experience the satisfaction of helping folks that need a little extra help during this season (they actually go out and personally deliver the baskets to the families they're helping).
Last weekend my son and I (and a bunch of other families) were invited out to a local trucking company, Stewart Stiles Truck Lines. There, we picked up cases and cases of food they'd donated to help out with this effort.
In our van alone, we had 15 cases of various canned fruits, vegetables, peanut butter, and macaroni & cheese - all donated by the company. On my visit, I learned that this was started by one of their managers a long time ago as a way of giving back to the community. That gentleman is now deceased, but they are keeping his tradition alive in honor of him.
Personally, I'm not in a position to use the services of a trucking company, but now I'll recommend them to anyone I know who has any trucking needs. They aren't looking for glory and accolades - they're just quietly helping other folks. And that's pretty cool.
I bet they're not the only company that does things like this, either.
Read MoreEvery year at this time, Rosa Say, author of the book Managing With Aloha, takes a long vacation and pauses her blogging activities. Does her blog just go dark during that time? Heck no.
Rosa calls on other folks to contribute "best of" links from their blogs in a sort of carnival. I'm proud to be in the mix.
In this ecclectic collection of voice, you'll find lots of great stories -- and you might discover some new blogs you like. Click here to redeem your Talking Story Gift Card and check out Ho'ike'ike 2006.
Read More
Josh Hinds has honored me by asking me to participate in an interview on his site, "Business Networking Advice". I'm the December 13th entry in a long series of 3-question interviews on the topic of business networking.
You can find the interview here.
And be sure to take a look around the site - Josh is keeping it real over there, and I learned a lot of cool things from his interviews.
Read MoreA couple of weeks ago, I wrote some pointers for how to prepare for negotiations. In response to that, Rosa asked a question about what to do after the deal is done.
Here are my thoughts and pointers:
- Get it down in writing
- Very soon after the agreement is struck (same day if possible), record what was agreed in writing. I use email because it's efficient and works for my style.
- This written plan should include the main points of the agreement, committed action items with owners, and any time frames as agreed.
- Raise the flag on any "gotchas"
- When writing up the results of the negotiation, you may uncover "holes" that you forgot to address. Bring them up right away.
- After the work you've done during the negotiation, you probably have a good idea what's going to work for both parties, so feel free to offer some suggestions for how to fill the holes.
- Follow up and follow through
- You or a designee on your side should "own" management to the agreement. This includes nagging people who aren't hitting commitments, double-checking the results to ensure that they meet what was agreed, etc.
- Set a good example yourself by following through and keeping your own commitments. If you don't do this, what leverage do you have if the other person misses a commitment?
- Don't be too dogmatic
- Often, we commit based on good faith and what we know at the time of the negotiation. When we actually get down to delivering, we find that what we thought was appropriate doesn't make sense in the real world. Whenever possible, try to manage to the spirit of the agreement - not the letter of the law. This doesn't mean you can change the agreement at will, but you should be open to discussing alternatives that become apparent or necessary during implementation.
- Don't rule out going back to the bargaining table.
- Sometimes, one party or the other finds they can't deliver what they thought they could deliver. If you feel that coming, raise the issue early and try to create a collaborative environment to come up with a workable solution.
- However, don't give up to soon - just because renegotiation may be an option, that doesn't mean it should be used as an "easy out."
These are the things that came to mind for me. What about you? Got any tips to share with us?
Related items
Read MoreEver have to negotiate for something? Here are some tips to help you go in a bit more prepared:
It's not all about you - find out more about the person you're negotiating with- What are their interests?
- How much power do they really have in the negotiation (i.e. are they the decision maker, a representative of the true decision maker)?
- What can you find out about how they've conducted themselves in past negotiations of a similar nature?
- Are they ruled by emotion or fact?
- How important is this negotiation to them?
- Talk with people who know them, and see if you can find a "coach" to help you understand their style.
- Get clear on your boundaries
- What do you want out of the negotiation?
- What's the minimum you'll accept?
- What is your list of deal-breaker points?
- At what point will you walk away?
- What "sacrifice" points can you add into your starting position to give yourself some room to move?
- What would a "win-win" look like?
Read More
