USAction Survey - Did you beat your wife yet?

So it’s that time of year again… political organizations begin taking advantage of the fact that they can slip under the “Do Not Call” list radar.  Most of them, I just answer and hang up.  Or if it’s a survey, I let them know my mind.

I get a call from a group calling themselves USAction who are doing a “survey” to get the pulse of “Americans”.  First off… I consider surveys only to be legit if they are from truly non-partisan groups such as Gallup or Nielsen.  Anyhow, I knew this one was a joke as soon as the “pollster” starts off with a statement along the lines of “Government continues to give tax breaks to big oil while the blah blah blah…” Then, after setting you up with a statement that demands you to be horrified and offended they ask the question something like, “Do you think we should send a message to Washington to stop this?”  The clincher, you must answer “Yes” or “No”.  Come on people… this is just like asking a husband “Did you beat your wife yet?” and only allowing a yes or no answer.  Do I think we need to fix things in Washington?  Sure.  Will stopping tax breaks fix it?  Probably not.  At the very least, don’t expect a “yes” or “no” answer to the question.  It takes a lot more defining than that.

What gave me a chuckle was when I gave the “wrong” answer to the pollster.  I answered in the negative, and did it very firmly.  He actually stopped his banter with an “uh, ok.” Then he got back on track with three or four other questions, all doing the same thing.  Bash the current administration, ask if you think it needs fixed.  And call it a “survey”.  I always thought surveys were supposedly unbiased.

Anyone who has the legal expertise and would like to help me, I’m planning on starting a “grassroots effort” to get PAC’s and any other political organization to have to adhere to the same rules that commercial organizations have to do when it comes to the “Do Not Call” list.  Last election season, I had some union organization calling me to vote for some candidate.  I called them back and asked to be removed from their list.  They kept calling back.  These political groups have no respect for people’s time and it frustrates me to no end.

September 21, 2008 | Filed Under Personal Ramblings | 2 Comments 

I’m DONE!!!!

Final residency was held on campus yesterday and today.  My final presentations went well… was worried for nothing.  All that’s left is graduation on Sunday.

I highly recommend Franklin’s program.  It is an intense 18 months… but so worth it when it is finished.  If you are considering getting your MBA, give Franklin a call.

May 9, 2008 | Filed Under MBA Journey | 2 Comments 

It’s the Final Countdown…

Graduation is May 11!! My project is complete… I am just doing some rewrites before it has to be presented this Saturday. All that’s left is to present my final project (worth 500 points of the 1000 this semester!). I hope it goes well. Then we have an on-campus session right before graduation. During this session, we will be presented a case study and have to somehow demonstrate our MBA learnings with it. I’m interested in knowing what will happen.

The last seventeen months have flown by. Stay tuned for the final wrap up…

April 28, 2008 | Filed Under MBA Journey, Personal Ramblings | Leave a Comment 

Capstone project begins!

Holy cow, I can’t believe I’ve come this far already.  I have completed all my “study” courses of my MBA and now begin my research, culminating in a capstone project.  I was getting a bit burnt out, but the three week Christmas break was helpful.  I’m excited and ready to get this MBA completed!

If I had to do this over again, part of me would not have chosen an accelerated MBA program. Franklin’s Vantage MBA is an awesome program, but it is very intense. The part of me that likes the accelerated program is because I’m not stretching the thing out over 3 years.

Wish me luck, I have a feeling the hardest part of the adventure is just beginning!

January 3, 2008 | Filed Under MBA Journey, Personal Ramblings | Leave a Comment 

MBA 765 - Reflections on Module 4 Concepts

How may the implementation of action steps differ in the closure stage from the prior stages?

Action steps in this stage often involve things such as closing a facility, downsizing a division or merging with another company, just to name a few. These steps have to be carefully planned out, in that there may be a limited number of employees available or the company may need to move carefully in order to not leak information prior to the appropriate times. Communication is always the key. Keep the necessary people in the loop and don’t bring in anyone else than those who are necessary to the process.

What types of personal and professional risks do leaders run into while attempting to complete the closure process?

From a professional perspective, a closure leader runs the risk of destroying his business reputation. If things are handled improperly, the “black mark” may potentially never be erased from his resume. It could keep him from moving on to new positions. He may also be looked on as a poor leader if he ran the company down. From a personal perspective, leaders could potentially be faced with threats of violence or even death on their lives. “Mob mentality” unfortunately can sometimes prevail and disgruntled employees may make poor choices.

An interesting note is that there are some leaders who “specialize” in closure. They are brought in specifically to close down companies and paid to be “the bad guy”.

What type of closure implementation activity would you find to be the most personally difficult? Why?

For me, releasing employees and having to communicate that release would definitely be the most challenging. Having to deal with the human factor and all the emotions involved is very difficult for me, as I am much more on the people side of personality profiles.

In what ways might the closure stage actually not be final?

A good example would be the go kart case study in this module. The CEO/Founder decided it was time for her to move on to “greener pastures”. The company was still a viable business with opportunities for growth. In this case, the business might potentially be sold to another owner who would maintain the business, simply under new ownership.

Should particular kinds of stakeholders be given priority in obtaining the remaining organizational assets? Why?

Using a bankruptcy as an example, typically the lienholders or debtors get first assets to offset their investment into the business. In most cases, the bank gets first dibs. If excessive loans are outstanding, they are attempted to be paid first. Then the debtors to the business, bondholders, would come next. If anything remains, the stockholders would get final payback. Whether or not this priority is right or wrong, it is the way most things get handled.

December 2, 2007 | Filed Under MBA 765 | Leave a Comment 

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