There's 2 version of a same quote available on the Internet:
"It's crazy to take little in between jobs just because they look good on your resume. That's like saving sex for your old age. Do what you love and work for whom you admire the most, and you've given yourself the best chance in life you can."
"I asked him what he wanted to do for his career, and he replied that he wanted to go into a particular field, but thought he should work for McKinsey for a few years first to add to his resume. To me that's like saving sex for your old age. It makes no sense."
At first I agreed wholeheartedly, however after a bit of consideration, I realised this advice may ignore long term aspects of a career decision. I'm still kind of torn on this one.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Burn the bankers.
I have had men watching you for a long time and I am convinced that
you have used the funds of the bank to speculate in the breadstuffs of
the country. When you won, you divided the profits amongst you, and
when you lost, you charged it to the Bank. ... You are a den of vipers
and thieves.—Andrew Jackson, 1834, on closing the Second Bank of the
United States.
you have used the funds of the bank to speculate in the breadstuffs of
the country. When you won, you divided the profits amongst you, and
when you lost, you charged it to the Bank. ... You are a den of vipers
and thieves.—Andrew Jackson, 1834, on closing the Second Bank of the
United States.
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Where are all the old people?
I mean seriously, where are all the old people in corporate life? Ok so you see a few at the top, but it's not like that sample is statistically significant. For every director or vp, there's tons of people below them, but no one's old. So really, where are the 45+, 50+ and nearing 60 seniors?
It's like everyone start's dissapearing at 45... And it's freaking me out.
I'm still too young to find out what happens to the seniors (maybe that's what that locked room in the basement near the furnace is for?), and I can only imagine dreadful tales of being layed off because they're too expensive or don't fit the corporate image or whatever... and then having these "old" (HUGE quotes here) spending the little cash they were able to save up in a company that has 90% chance of failing...
Shit. Any insight here is welcomed.
It's like everyone start's dissapearing at 45... And it's freaking me out.
I'm still too young to find out what happens to the seniors (maybe that's what that locked room in the basement near the furnace is for?), and I can only imagine dreadful tales of being layed off because they're too expensive or don't fit the corporate image or whatever... and then having these "old" (HUGE quotes here) spending the little cash they were able to save up in a company that has 90% chance of failing...
Shit. Any insight here is welcomed.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
On asking for a raise
Similarly to most of the topics I discuss, asking for a raise has been widely covered by gazillions of experts on the web or in the press. So 1st step to take before asking for a raise is... to Google the steps to prepare asking for a raise.
However I will add my two cents to this huge pile of pennies by sharing the good advice I received in the past as well as my preparation strategies. What follows recaps all the steps I take before asking for a raise. I've been roughly using this method for 7 years now and for 8 or 9 negotiations (I'm loosing count), and with good success.
Disclaimer 1: this article is obviously tailored towards people working in sales and marketing. I imagine the dynamics of asking for a raise when working in other sectors (public, creative, IT...) may be different. Hope this helps anyway.
Disclaimer 2: I've been working for French companies ever since I started out therefore all management related conversations, salary negotiations and the likes were in French. The vocabulary I will be using here might not be the most finely tuned, so focus on concepts not form. Thanks.
Psychological barriers
Before we discuss preparation, I want to share a piece of advice that was in my case of invaluable help when i started out. Most of us create mental barriers that make asking for a raise a real ordeal. In my case I was apprehensive of asking a raise for a reason I couldn't quite put my finger on. It was a mixed feeling of fear of being scorned for daring to ask a raise (you should have seen my first CEOs and VPs :p), being told a big fat NO!, getting my work thoroughly criticized, pissing my boss off and what not...
Well this psychological barrier came crashing down with this one simple piece of advice from a great manager of mine.
What he told me was this: "You have nothing to loose by asking for a raise. You are taking zero risk. Managers, VPs, CEOs... they deal with this all the time and they will NOT loose respect or consideration for you if you "dare" to ask for a raise. In fact, some may even loose respect for you if you do NOT ask for a raise. So loose all the stress and go ask for what you want.",
In my case, this discussion injected rational facts in my irrational barrier. Try to find your barrier and calmly assess why it is not rational. Break it down and get over it.
Preparation and methodology
1/ Steer clear from emotional waters. Raw facts, data and accomplishments only.
First off, always stick with facts and figures. Stay away from the emotional realm. If you have a good working relationship with your manager, some sort of privileged bond or anything similar (are you working for your family's company?), do not try to exploit it and play off it. Do not tread in emotional waters.
Do not invoke pity ("pitttyyyy pleeeaaase my rent just went up"), sympathy ("I would really appreciate it if...") or invoke what you think is right ("you KNOW I deserve this!").
Focus exclusively on raw facts and accomplishments. This means that when the time comes your brain won't go into overdrive with any emotional stimuli you may conjure up. You will be cool headed and discussing pure facts.
2/ Past, present and future
How do you prepare for the discussions? Easy: you focus on EVERY valuable thing you've done in the past, everything valuable you are doing now and everything valuable you will or could be doing in the future.
Brainstorm. Take three pieces of paper: write down EVERYTHING you've done in the past... up to the smallest meaningful task you can think of. Organize everything in categories: business development, marketing, reporting, department organization... Then categorize them by order of importance taking in account the VALUE your work has brought to the organization.
Do the same for the present, focusing on expected results your projects will yield.
And for the future... First focus on short term: "taking in account this year's growth it's not unrealistic to imagine next year's growth will be of X%..." or "Taking in account the increase of staff it's not unrealistic to imagine I will be organizing X additional events next year..."
Secondly, and this is where it gets subtle, talking about the future is the opportunity for you to send out signals to your management regarding the longer term career evolutions you may be thinking of and to position yourself. "Not only will this year's growth be of X%, but I believe I now have the experience necessary to build a team to tackle such and such new project"... So write down the subtle messages you want to convey as well.
Past, present and future and the value you bring to the company: these are the keys.
3/ Industry averages
Your negotiations need to be grounded and reasonable. You need to go in there knowing where you stand, what you can reasonable ask for and what you can expect. To know exactly where you stand, research industry salary averages.
Google it. Find several sources. Make sure you factor in all bonuses, material benefits, maybe even cost of living etc... You need to be prepared to counter any arguments such as "Yeah but that data is for people working in Paris, we live in a small country town so you need to cut these averages by 25%..." or "Yeah but you have a company car when usually [insert job title here]s don't have one... that's at least worth 15% of your salary..." etc...
4/ Aim high, always
So once you have determined all the great things you've done for the company in the past and present, what you will do in the future and where you stand compared to industry averages, it's time to think of a number... Of how much a raise you want.
Well here's the part that takes a bit of balls and a poker face. Aim high, always. I admit I did not use to believe in demanding relatively outrageous figures (please note the "RELATIVELY")... because I used to think that I lived in a rational and reasonable world (type B anyone?) and that my boss would not start haggling if I asked for a reasonable figure. Well... word to the wise: BOSSES HAGGLE. It's in their blood. It's how they got there. It's why they're bosses.
So aim HIGH. You want your boss to be taken slightly aback by the figure you're asking... and you want to back it up with all the great things you've done and you could do.
Do NOT bring up the industry averages and wage study unless your boss starts haggling and being unreasonable. The core focus should be what you bring to the company and the figure you believe is reasonable (remember: poker face!). Bringing up the average wages might at first derail the conversation to the figures and sources, while you should be talking about YOUR salary.
5/ Preparing the negotiation
You need to be prepared for the hard hitting counter arguments that your boss is going to throw at you. Trust me, bosses have so much more experience than us in the matter, they will destabilize you if they want to. They've heard all the basic arguments and requests, and they know what they're going to counter you with before you even start.
So, take a piece of paper and write down... everything you do NOT WANT TO HEAR your boss say. Stuff like:
- Sorry, salary discussions for all employees will only be taking place in 5 months. What makes you think you're different?
- Sorry, we don't have the budget.
- Are you serious? Have you seen sales levels this year? No way.
- No. And if you're not happy you can leave at any time.
- Your salary is within industry averages. End of discussion.
- Your salary is above industry averages. Are you kidding?
- Look, I am very satisfied with your work... but let's talk again in 6 months.
- I can't pay you more then your colleagues, that would be unfair to the rest of the team.
- I could pay someone else just as competent as you for less. So no.
After you're sure you listed EVERYTHING you do not want to hear, start working on the counter arguments.
Now all this process takes a little empathy, so work on projecting yourself in the boss' seat. Also, this little exercise can always be taken one step further. You can also work on countering your boss' counter argument...But don't go overboard. 1st and second level should be enough.
6/ Strategy - when and how to ask
When to ask?
That's a tough one... In a structured company, there's often yearly reviews and a specific timetable for salary discussions.
Well in my opinion... F that... Anticipate... be the first in line... be the first to fire the shot (before your colleagues...)... However I've never worked in super structured humongous organizations... So in that case I can't really give out advice.
If your company's HR isn't structured... then it's a free for all. You need to know how to assess when management might be opened to the suggestion and most of all use the momentum you will have created after closing a big deal or finalizing the organization of some big project. Basically, you need GREAT news to go in (good won't cut it).
It's called being in a position of strength :D.
How to ask?
If you have a good working relationship with management: start informal with your direct supervisor. Ask him. If he's ok with you moving ahead with the plan (and you secured his support), go formal: send an e-mail TO THE DECISION MAKER (CC your direct supervisor) stating how after X time in the company you now wish to seize this opportunity to debrief regarding your activity and your participation to the corporate mission (blablabla etc etc)... IN ORDER TO DISCUSS A RAISE.
Don't sugar coat it, be direct, just lay it out there. That way everyone is on the same page. However I would not discuss actual amounts and figures in the email.
The basic layout of the email should be a condensed version of your past, present and future spiel. Add all the necessary politeness and respect formulas, but go straight to the point. Again, have it reviewed by your direct supervisor before it's sent out.
What will potentially happen is that your manager and the decision maker will have a meeting on the topic. If so, try to be there and have a briefing with your manager before going in.
If you are not conveyed to the meeting, have the briefing anyway and give out your fully detailed past present and future spiel to your manager.
If you do not have a good relationship with your management, going formal immediately is the only way. Email your direct supervisor asking for the necessary meetings and face time with the decision makers. The content of the email should be the same.
7/ Prepare your exit strategy
Ok so by now you're ready to ask and your ready to negotiate. However one crucial point that is nearly always overlooked by many articles found on the web is your EXIT STRATEGY. If you want to have a lasting impact, or if you want to be in the right position to go back to your boss to continue the negotiation at a later date, you need to prepare your exit.
You also need to be ready for a refusal.
Let's try to imagine the possible outcomes AFTER your negotiation is closed. Let's imagine there's no more room for discussion and the outcomes are final:
A/ Acceptance by your boss. He gives you exactly what you want (whether its the slightly high figure you asked for or the real figure you were aiming for).
B/ Your boss accepts you deserve a raise, but the raise is lower than your expectations.
C/ Your boss postpones the discussions or the raises to a later date.
D/ Your boss refuses any raise whatsoever.
E/ Your boss refuses a raise and shoots you down ("if you're not happy, you can go elsewhere!").
These 5 scenarios require 5 very different attitudes. I would recommend the following:
A/ Ok, 1st off... STAY COOL. You need to remain layed back, relaxed and professional. No tears of joy :D. However it's important to convey your satisfaction. Basically just tell your boss you are very satisfied with what you just agreed on and you are happy that he agreed to hear you out on this. Plus, he won't be disappointed etc etc...
B/ My philosophy is "everything won no longer needs to be won". As above, remain laid back and pro, but you need to convey a slight form of disappointment. You could finish with something along the lines of "thank you for having heard me out on the topic, and I appreciate the gesture even though as you know it did not meet my expectations and I hope we will have the opportunity to re-discuss a possible raise in 6 months time. Nonetheless, I'm happy you value my work and you will not be disappointed..."
C/ In this case, and after having exhausted all options (bonuses, material benefits...), you need to get a firm commitment from your boss regarding the date or time period when you can discuss the topic again. The sooner the better obviously.
D/ In this case, you can be in two positions:
- a position of weakness: you do not have any other job prospects, you are attached to the company, job, city, current salary etc... and you are not considering leaving. In this case, the most important is to take it like a gentleman, while still pointing out your disappointment and trying to get a commitment for a new discussion in the future. Example: "Well obviously I am disappointed but I hope we can agree to meet again in the future to re-discuss this topic?"
- a relative position of strength: you are ready to leave, you are aware of opportunities, you have already gone to a few interviews etc...
Ok so in this situation, you should have a harder stance and be relatively clear. Basically your message should be: "I have to admit I am disappointed (emphasize the disappointment). You know I am doing great work, and I do not understand this decision".
In this situation, when you are exchanging very harsh words with your boss, you need to make sure your behavior stays balanced, cool and pro. What you are basically stating are FACTS. Expressing your disappointment is NOT an attack. You are just basically telling straight to your boss' face that you are not happy, and well... he's the boss... the ball is in his court and he needs to know that everything is up to him now.
Go back to your office, go back home... and start preparing to leave.
E/ If you are in a position of weakness, I guess the advice here is similarly to situation D, except you need to make sure you show your boss that him shooting you down doesn't affect you 'cause you have a thick hide. Basically remain relatively cool and pro... and say what you have to say without ever reacting to his harsh attacks unless you have hard facts to counter them. NEVER EVER react to him telling you you can always go elsewhere if you want to. He's baiting you and/or testing you here, or he really means it. In any case, do not react. Stick with raw facts.
If you are in a position of strength, the advice is still the same as D/. The reason being is unless you have a firm commitment from another company (which is a very specific scenario I will not cover in this post, as I have never been in such a situation), you never ever want to expose your hand and expose yourself to risk. So act just like you were not in a position of strength and try to secure a future negotiation date.
However if the situation really gets out of hand... as it happened to me once before... well in that case, and only if your back is up against the wall... time to pull out the big guns I guess... "Ok, I hear what you're saying and I'm sorry and disappointed to hear it. Taking in account this talk I think it's clear I will not in this company be able to reach the salary level I know I'm worth, and that's a shame taking in account everything else about the job and the company suits me."
8/ Final thoughts
After spending all the necessary time on your preparation, playing out the discussions over and over in your head and getting pumped before going in... you absolutely need to keep the following 3 points in mind:
- first, the discussion will NOT go as you expect it to. No matter how much planning you put into this, it will NOT go as planned. Remember the reason you plan is to make sure you have the necessary ammo to liven up the discussion, not to try and anticipate the discussion word by word. The discussion will NOT go as planned.
- secondly, at the end of the day... the decision to give you a raise or not is your BOSS' decision and no one else's, and there's nothing you can do about it. Unless you are a business star straight out of a Hollywood movie (by that I mean a fictional character), you will not instantly change your boss' mind from "no raise" to "oh wait I didn't know this guy was a star performer, he needs a 300% raise!"... Even super skilled negotiators can end up in front of a wall.
The contrary also applies: if your boss believes you deserve a raise, you will probably get it without getting the opportunity to lay out all your planned arguments.
- and finally a salary negotiation is NOT a ONE SHOT. It's a process, just like climbing a mountain. You NEED TO SET MILESTONES (one of my most important concepts in business life... I'll blog about this at a later date). Even if your boss gives you a big fat NO!, you just set a milestone, and you can get back in his face after an appropriate lapse of time.
If you are facing a wall, start climbing, digging or finding an alternate route.
Some other unorganized thoughts to finish this post that ended up being way longer than I initially thought :D
- Start by focusing on a raise. If that gets you know where, start shifting your focus to bonuses and/or material benefits. Remember, "everything won no longer needs to be won".
- Do not worry if you are in a position of strength (ready to leave) or weakness (not ready to leave). As we've seen earlier, it shouldn't affect the preparation nor the actual discussion. You're behavior should always be the same. Also remember to make sure you cannot be "read".
- Never, ever, ever bluff. Saying stuff like "if I don't get this raise I'm leaving!" then not leaving when your boss laughs in your face will totally and utterly destroy your credibility. Forget raises for several years...
- A position of strength is something you BUILD: good results, good self marketing, good job searching etc... However never show off your position of strength. Make sure your boss subtly understands it... but don't overplay it. An employee is always replaceable and bosses have egos. They don't like to be put against a wall.
- IMO never ever use a colleague's salary as a comparison point or negotiation tactic. You will get shot down so bad it may close the discussion.
- And finally, for all the young guns out there with an over-sized entitlement complex... note the following: HARD WORK COMES BEFORE A RAISE. It's NOT the other way around. Never ever put yourself in a blackmailing situation where you are basically not doing your best until you get that raise you think you deserve. In that case, IMO you should be either FIRED by your management or actively looking for a job that suits you better.
However I will add my two cents to this huge pile of pennies by sharing the good advice I received in the past as well as my preparation strategies. What follows recaps all the steps I take before asking for a raise. I've been roughly using this method for 7 years now and for 8 or 9 negotiations (I'm loosing count), and with good success.
Disclaimer 1: this article is obviously tailored towards people working in sales and marketing. I imagine the dynamics of asking for a raise when working in other sectors (public, creative, IT...) may be different. Hope this helps anyway.
Disclaimer 2: I've been working for French companies ever since I started out therefore all management related conversations, salary negotiations and the likes were in French. The vocabulary I will be using here might not be the most finely tuned, so focus on concepts not form. Thanks.
Psychological barriers
Before we discuss preparation, I want to share a piece of advice that was in my case of invaluable help when i started out. Most of us create mental barriers that make asking for a raise a real ordeal. In my case I was apprehensive of asking a raise for a reason I couldn't quite put my finger on. It was a mixed feeling of fear of being scorned for daring to ask a raise (you should have seen my first CEOs and VPs :p), being told a big fat NO!, getting my work thoroughly criticized, pissing my boss off and what not...
Well this psychological barrier came crashing down with this one simple piece of advice from a great manager of mine.
What he told me was this: "You have nothing to loose by asking for a raise. You are taking zero risk. Managers, VPs, CEOs... they deal with this all the time and they will NOT loose respect or consideration for you if you "dare" to ask for a raise. In fact, some may even loose respect for you if you do NOT ask for a raise. So loose all the stress and go ask for what you want.",
In my case, this discussion injected rational facts in my irrational barrier. Try to find your barrier and calmly assess why it is not rational. Break it down and get over it.
Preparation and methodology
1/ Steer clear from emotional waters. Raw facts, data and accomplishments only.
First off, always stick with facts and figures. Stay away from the emotional realm. If you have a good working relationship with your manager, some sort of privileged bond or anything similar (are you working for your family's company?), do not try to exploit it and play off it. Do not tread in emotional waters.
Do not invoke pity ("pitttyyyy pleeeaaase my rent just went up"), sympathy ("I would really appreciate it if...") or invoke what you think is right ("you KNOW I deserve this!").
Focus exclusively on raw facts and accomplishments. This means that when the time comes your brain won't go into overdrive with any emotional stimuli you may conjure up. You will be cool headed and discussing pure facts.
2/ Past, present and future
How do you prepare for the discussions? Easy: you focus on EVERY valuable thing you've done in the past, everything valuable you are doing now and everything valuable you will or could be doing in the future.
Brainstorm. Take three pieces of paper: write down EVERYTHING you've done in the past... up to the smallest meaningful task you can think of. Organize everything in categories: business development, marketing, reporting, department organization... Then categorize them by order of importance taking in account the VALUE your work has brought to the organization.
Do the same for the present, focusing on expected results your projects will yield.
And for the future... First focus on short term: "taking in account this year's growth it's not unrealistic to imagine next year's growth will be of X%..." or "Taking in account the increase of staff it's not unrealistic to imagine I will be organizing X additional events next year..."
Secondly, and this is where it gets subtle, talking about the future is the opportunity for you to send out signals to your management regarding the longer term career evolutions you may be thinking of and to position yourself. "Not only will this year's growth be of X%, but I believe I now have the experience necessary to build a team to tackle such and such new project"... So write down the subtle messages you want to convey as well.
Past, present and future and the value you bring to the company: these are the keys.
3/ Industry averages
Your negotiations need to be grounded and reasonable. You need to go in there knowing where you stand, what you can reasonable ask for and what you can expect. To know exactly where you stand, research industry salary averages.
Google it. Find several sources. Make sure you factor in all bonuses, material benefits, maybe even cost of living etc... You need to be prepared to counter any arguments such as "Yeah but that data is for people working in Paris, we live in a small country town so you need to cut these averages by 25%..." or "Yeah but you have a company car when usually [insert job title here]s don't have one... that's at least worth 15% of your salary..." etc...
4/ Aim high, always
So once you have determined all the great things you've done for the company in the past and present, what you will do in the future and where you stand compared to industry averages, it's time to think of a number... Of how much a raise you want.
Well here's the part that takes a bit of balls and a poker face. Aim high, always. I admit I did not use to believe in demanding relatively outrageous figures (please note the "RELATIVELY")... because I used to think that I lived in a rational and reasonable world (type B anyone?) and that my boss would not start haggling if I asked for a reasonable figure. Well... word to the wise: BOSSES HAGGLE. It's in their blood. It's how they got there. It's why they're bosses.
So aim HIGH. You want your boss to be taken slightly aback by the figure you're asking... and you want to back it up with all the great things you've done and you could do.
Do NOT bring up the industry averages and wage study unless your boss starts haggling and being unreasonable. The core focus should be what you bring to the company and the figure you believe is reasonable (remember: poker face!). Bringing up the average wages might at first derail the conversation to the figures and sources, while you should be talking about YOUR salary.
5/ Preparing the negotiation
You need to be prepared for the hard hitting counter arguments that your boss is going to throw at you. Trust me, bosses have so much more experience than us in the matter, they will destabilize you if they want to. They've heard all the basic arguments and requests, and they know what they're going to counter you with before you even start.
So, take a piece of paper and write down... everything you do NOT WANT TO HEAR your boss say. Stuff like:
- Sorry, salary discussions for all employees will only be taking place in 5 months. What makes you think you're different?
- Sorry, we don't have the budget.
- Are you serious? Have you seen sales levels this year? No way.
- No. And if you're not happy you can leave at any time.
- Your salary is within industry averages. End of discussion.
- Your salary is above industry averages. Are you kidding?
- Look, I am very satisfied with your work... but let's talk again in 6 months.
- I can't pay you more then your colleagues, that would be unfair to the rest of the team.
- I could pay someone else just as competent as you for less. So no.
After you're sure you listed EVERYTHING you do not want to hear, start working on the counter arguments.
Now all this process takes a little empathy, so work on projecting yourself in the boss' seat. Also, this little exercise can always be taken one step further. You can also work on countering your boss' counter argument...But don't go overboard. 1st and second level should be enough.
6/ Strategy - when and how to ask
When to ask?
That's a tough one... In a structured company, there's often yearly reviews and a specific timetable for salary discussions.
Well in my opinion... F that... Anticipate... be the first in line... be the first to fire the shot (before your colleagues...)... However I've never worked in super structured humongous organizations... So in that case I can't really give out advice.
If your company's HR isn't structured... then it's a free for all. You need to know how to assess when management might be opened to the suggestion and most of all use the momentum you will have created after closing a big deal or finalizing the organization of some big project. Basically, you need GREAT news to go in (good won't cut it).
It's called being in a position of strength :D.
How to ask?
If you have a good working relationship with management: start informal with your direct supervisor. Ask him. If he's ok with you moving ahead with the plan (and you secured his support), go formal: send an e-mail TO THE DECISION MAKER (CC your direct supervisor) stating how after X time in the company you now wish to seize this opportunity to debrief regarding your activity and your participation to the corporate mission (blablabla etc etc)... IN ORDER TO DISCUSS A RAISE.
Don't sugar coat it, be direct, just lay it out there. That way everyone is on the same page. However I would not discuss actual amounts and figures in the email.
The basic layout of the email should be a condensed version of your past, present and future spiel. Add all the necessary politeness and respect formulas, but go straight to the point. Again, have it reviewed by your direct supervisor before it's sent out.
What will potentially happen is that your manager and the decision maker will have a meeting on the topic. If so, try to be there and have a briefing with your manager before going in.
If you are not conveyed to the meeting, have the briefing anyway and give out your fully detailed past present and future spiel to your manager.
If you do not have a good relationship with your management, going formal immediately is the only way. Email your direct supervisor asking for the necessary meetings and face time with the decision makers. The content of the email should be the same.
7/ Prepare your exit strategy
Ok so by now you're ready to ask and your ready to negotiate. However one crucial point that is nearly always overlooked by many articles found on the web is your EXIT STRATEGY. If you want to have a lasting impact, or if you want to be in the right position to go back to your boss to continue the negotiation at a later date, you need to prepare your exit.
You also need to be ready for a refusal.
Let's try to imagine the possible outcomes AFTER your negotiation is closed. Let's imagine there's no more room for discussion and the outcomes are final:
A/ Acceptance by your boss. He gives you exactly what you want (whether its the slightly high figure you asked for or the real figure you were aiming for).
B/ Your boss accepts you deserve a raise, but the raise is lower than your expectations.
C/ Your boss postpones the discussions or the raises to a later date.
D/ Your boss refuses any raise whatsoever.
E/ Your boss refuses a raise and shoots you down ("if you're not happy, you can go elsewhere!").
These 5 scenarios require 5 very different attitudes. I would recommend the following:
A/ Ok, 1st off... STAY COOL. You need to remain layed back, relaxed and professional. No tears of joy :D. However it's important to convey your satisfaction. Basically just tell your boss you are very satisfied with what you just agreed on and you are happy that he agreed to hear you out on this. Plus, he won't be disappointed etc etc...
B/ My philosophy is "everything won no longer needs to be won". As above, remain laid back and pro, but you need to convey a slight form of disappointment. You could finish with something along the lines of "thank you for having heard me out on the topic, and I appreciate the gesture even though as you know it did not meet my expectations and I hope we will have the opportunity to re-discuss a possible raise in 6 months time. Nonetheless, I'm happy you value my work and you will not be disappointed..."
C/ In this case, and after having exhausted all options (bonuses, material benefits...), you need to get a firm commitment from your boss regarding the date or time period when you can discuss the topic again. The sooner the better obviously.
D/ In this case, you can be in two positions:
- a position of weakness: you do not have any other job prospects, you are attached to the company, job, city, current salary etc... and you are not considering leaving. In this case, the most important is to take it like a gentleman, while still pointing out your disappointment and trying to get a commitment for a new discussion in the future. Example: "Well obviously I am disappointed but I hope we can agree to meet again in the future to re-discuss this topic?"
- a relative position of strength: you are ready to leave, you are aware of opportunities, you have already gone to a few interviews etc...
Ok so in this situation, you should have a harder stance and be relatively clear. Basically your message should be: "I have to admit I am disappointed (emphasize the disappointment). You know I am doing great work, and I do not understand this decision".
In this situation, when you are exchanging very harsh words with your boss, you need to make sure your behavior stays balanced, cool and pro. What you are basically stating are FACTS. Expressing your disappointment is NOT an attack. You are just basically telling straight to your boss' face that you are not happy, and well... he's the boss... the ball is in his court and he needs to know that everything is up to him now.
Go back to your office, go back home... and start preparing to leave.
E/ If you are in a position of weakness, I guess the advice here is similarly to situation D, except you need to make sure you show your boss that him shooting you down doesn't affect you 'cause you have a thick hide. Basically remain relatively cool and pro... and say what you have to say without ever reacting to his harsh attacks unless you have hard facts to counter them. NEVER EVER react to him telling you you can always go elsewhere if you want to. He's baiting you and/or testing you here, or he really means it. In any case, do not react. Stick with raw facts.
If you are in a position of strength, the advice is still the same as D/. The reason being is unless you have a firm commitment from another company (which is a very specific scenario I will not cover in this post, as I have never been in such a situation), you never ever want to expose your hand and expose yourself to risk. So act just like you were not in a position of strength and try to secure a future negotiation date.
However if the situation really gets out of hand... as it happened to me once before... well in that case, and only if your back is up against the wall... time to pull out the big guns I guess... "Ok, I hear what you're saying and I'm sorry and disappointed to hear it. Taking in account this talk I think it's clear I will not in this company be able to reach the salary level I know I'm worth, and that's a shame taking in account everything else about the job and the company suits me."
8/ Final thoughts
After spending all the necessary time on your preparation, playing out the discussions over and over in your head and getting pumped before going in... you absolutely need to keep the following 3 points in mind:
- first, the discussion will NOT go as you expect it to. No matter how much planning you put into this, it will NOT go as planned. Remember the reason you plan is to make sure you have the necessary ammo to liven up the discussion, not to try and anticipate the discussion word by word. The discussion will NOT go as planned.
- secondly, at the end of the day... the decision to give you a raise or not is your BOSS' decision and no one else's, and there's nothing you can do about it. Unless you are a business star straight out of a Hollywood movie (by that I mean a fictional character), you will not instantly change your boss' mind from "no raise" to "oh wait I didn't know this guy was a star performer, he needs a 300% raise!"... Even super skilled negotiators can end up in front of a wall.
The contrary also applies: if your boss believes you deserve a raise, you will probably get it without getting the opportunity to lay out all your planned arguments.
- and finally a salary negotiation is NOT a ONE SHOT. It's a process, just like climbing a mountain. You NEED TO SET MILESTONES (one of my most important concepts in business life... I'll blog about this at a later date). Even if your boss gives you a big fat NO!, you just set a milestone, and you can get back in his face after an appropriate lapse of time.
If you are facing a wall, start climbing, digging or finding an alternate route.
Some other unorganized thoughts to finish this post that ended up being way longer than I initially thought :D
- Start by focusing on a raise. If that gets you know where, start shifting your focus to bonuses and/or material benefits. Remember, "everything won no longer needs to be won".
- Do not worry if you are in a position of strength (ready to leave) or weakness (not ready to leave). As we've seen earlier, it shouldn't affect the preparation nor the actual discussion. You're behavior should always be the same. Also remember to make sure you cannot be "read".
- Never, ever, ever bluff. Saying stuff like "if I don't get this raise I'm leaving!" then not leaving when your boss laughs in your face will totally and utterly destroy your credibility. Forget raises for several years...
- A position of strength is something you BUILD: good results, good self marketing, good job searching etc... However never show off your position of strength. Make sure your boss subtly understands it... but don't overplay it. An employee is always replaceable and bosses have egos. They don't like to be put against a wall.
- IMO never ever use a colleague's salary as a comparison point or negotiation tactic. You will get shot down so bad it may close the discussion.
- And finally, for all the young guns out there with an over-sized entitlement complex... note the following: HARD WORK COMES BEFORE A RAISE. It's NOT the other way around. Never ever put yourself in a blackmailing situation where you are basically not doing your best until you get that raise you think you deserve. In that case, IMO you should be either FIRED by your management or actively looking for a job that suits you better.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Vacation!
Because "the usefulness of a cup of tea is in its emptyness".
My "quick vacation post" was supposed to end here, but ofc I got to thinking a bit more.
Exhaustion's and burnout's effects on health, work performance and general well-being have been proven over and over and over again and the data available on the subject is plethoric.
So what is the rationale behind the tiny amount of paid leave workers in the US have, which most of them do not take or take but with a blackberry in their pocket? The US is home to some of the world's most powerful corporations staffed with top executives... Shouldn't they at least assess the possible benefits of giving out one or two additional weeks of paid leave per year and compare them against the possible downside of having employees out of the office longer?
Well, as we've seen earlier, corporations are not rational and IMO the problem does not lie within HR departments or upper management. The problem simply lies in human psychology. I'm sure we could demonstrate that working less would be considered by a lot of people as a type of failure, giving in or being distanced in the "race".
Where the irrationality lies of course is the fact that if these people took some time off to recharge their battery, they would be more productive overall, in better shape both physically and spiritually... and most of all they would stay ahead in the race.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Another Sitcom inspired post
Hidden business advice in Mad Men
Mad Men
A show based in the early 60s that follows the men who run one of the top advertising agency in New York, Sterling Cooper, located on Madison Avenue (hence "Mad" Men). Great show that provides researched backed insight on the social and cultural aspect of life in NY at that time, the American dream, the WASP way of life and most of all... the birth of modern advertising and marketing. Check out the trailer:
Highly recommended. I consider this show to be up there with The Wire and Sopranos, and therefore it made my top 3 best drama show list.
But i digress...
I wanted to break down a scene from season 2, which I found quite inspirational when I saw it. Now, before I go on, please do not take this post too seriously. I obviously do not turn to HBO or Showtime for career and management advice ok? However sometimes there's some hidden knowledge in good TV, so bear with me.
The following scene takes place right after Sterling Cooper was bought out by a large British corporation. At the table, we have in order of appearance:
- the show's main character, Don, the agency's Creative Director, but also one if not THE pillar of the company thanks to in addition to his creative talents, a keenly developed business sense.
- Duck Phillips, a Business Development expert who arrived in the company a few months back,
- two British guys that represent the buyers,
- the first owner of the NY firm, Mr Cooper, (the oldest dude that has a goatee),
- the second owner of the firm, Roger Sterling (gray hair, no beard).
Now that the characters are set, lets talk context.
Don was, for personal reasons, out of the office for 3 weeks. During these 3 weeks, Duck stealthily and hastily set up a buy-out deal between the interested British corporation (whom he had worked with in the past...) and Sterling Cooper. He sold Roger Sterling on the idea because, well the deal represented mucho dollars, and Sterling being in the middle of an expensive divorce could use the cash to retire to the tropics with his mistress.
If I remember correctly, Duke sold the idea to Cooper by basically telling him the agency would keep its name and independence, and that the British corporation would only be bringing in more resources to help Sterling Cooper continue to grow. Rightly so, Cooper had major doubts, but nearing retirement and after consulting with Sterling, he Okay-ed the deal. Something like that, roughly.
Now enters Don after 3 weeks of absence. First off, he is ultimately pissed off, as his hard work these past years explains the firm's success, he was not consulted and he doesn't believe for a second the British have good and long term intentions. He believes they'll take control of the agency, restructure it and sell it for a profit... while during this process kill its soul and creative expertise.
Furthermore, he has no respect for Duck (and Duck sees Don as his arch enemy): while Don is client and quality oriented, and a creative personality, Duck is purely business and billing oriented, and can't stand the independence, freedom, trust and close connection Don has with the owners. Damn this is so REAL.
So Don comes back, he's pissed, but the deal is already signed by Sterling and Cooper so it's too late for him to change their minds.
The British fly to NY and everyone sits at a table, and this starts the scene we'll discuss.
One last piece of info: I think it's standard practice in these types of company to have them make their employees sign exclusivity and non competition contracts for a certain amount of years. Hence a Creative Artist with such a contract could not legally quit and go work for the competition.
Click here for the scene
Ok, so basically one word comes to mind. OUCH!
Now lets break the scene down because there's several interesting concepts here. Of course everything below is subject to interpretation but feel free to comment.
1/ First and valid question asked: now that the Brits bought Sterling Cooper, who's gonna run the agency?
Ofc everyone already knows the answer, but the question had to be asked. Duck will take over. What a victory for him that must be...
Notice Don stays totally cool, however Duck acts like a douche-bag, acts surprised and "humbly" accepts.
So, IMO, his first mistake of the scene is here. There is very rarely need for theatrics in business. In this case everyone knows he initiated and brokered the deal, everyone knows he was aiming for the CEO job (and he got it)... so why act so douchy? It's going to impact the perception his future top management (the 2 British guys) have of him. He's basically not being straight... and that doesn't instill trust.
Oh and gloating over your victory is never good.
Sterling and Cooper's reactions are priceless. Sterling, a no nonsense guy, just points out all of this is obvious. Cooper, a more subtle guy, extends his "warm" congratulations to Duck. I love the look on his face, it says it all.
2/ Duck fires his first shot at Don
Duck then promises to treat the founders of Sterling Cooper with all the respect they deserve... then stares straight at Don... The message here is crystal clear: "Don my boy, you are not a founder, I do no know who you think you are but you do not deserve respect, you are simply a creative and now things are going to change for you...".
3/ The Brits ask Duck to expose his vision regarding the company's future.
And Duck blatantly lies. "I find myself a little unprepared here". Yeah, right. He looses credibility by the second in this scene. Once again: no theatrics. Higher ups don't like this.
He then exposes his plan, which ok maybe it makes sense, but his third major mistake here is that he is now obviously, and for everyone to see, attacking Don. The reason this is a mistake is because he ALREADY WON, so why keep on trying to destroy his rival? This continues to reduce his credibility with everyone at the table and makes him look like an ass.
Don ofc, being the cold blooded business man he is, doesn't flinch.
4/ Enters Don. Cooper asks him what he thinks about Duck's strategy
And ofc, Don goes the opposite route and takes the high road. As you know now that you saw the scene, he could have bashed Duck without a care in the world, as he is leaving the agency. Instead, he says "I think it sounds like a great agency, and I think Duck is the man to run it".
Boom! That's what we call taking the high road!
"I just dont think I'll be part of it."
BOOM!! Checkmate. And perfect timing!
The deal is signed, the Brits are heavily relying on him (Don is after all the locomotive of the company), they flew over to NY, he waited for Duck and his future bosses to be around the table, he waited for Duck to make an ass of himself and demonstrate to the Brits that well... he'll never be able to manage Don and that their relationship would never work, and now BOOM he tells them he wont work for them. That's basically a fatal blow to Duck.
Now if you can please bear with me while I digress a bit, this brings me back to another lesson a great lawyer tried to teach me just a few months back.
- it's all about timing, he told me. Negotiation, politics and management: it's all about timing. You need to think about all of this as if you were playing chess, and you need to think as many moves ahead as you reasonably can, taking in account the information you have and the information they have.
Now ofc I had heard that kind of advice in the past, but the context I was in made that advice truly sink in. I got to see this guy, a "Don in real life" if you will, negotiate a complex multi-layered deal like a freaking chess player, it was great. And his timing... his timing was insane. He knew what the other party was going to say before they said it, he even BAITED them with assertions and assumptions, knowing full well what was going to be replied, to then fire the hard hitting fact or counterargument... He could also steer the conversation one way, get the guy across the table to say something, to then use it 2 hours later...
You see I'm an impulsive guy, and sad to say I'm more like Duck then Don. When I have ammo, I shoot all of it. When I want to take somebody down, I go all out. Or, more reasonably, when I want to get a point across, I throw all my arguments at the problem at once. And I always have been pretty bad at Chess...
So lately I've been taking the time to PLAN. Plan out my strategies, whether they are business strategies, political strategies or personal development strategies. I try to plan, lay out possible outcomes, prepare etc... And I have to admit it's HARD, because I really need to think and rack my brains. However, when a plan works out... it's the greatest feeling in the world.
Ok, so back to Mad Men.
The Brits are surprised and asks Don to repeat himself, which he does once again. "If this is the agency you want, Duck is the man for the job". Duck then goes on attacking Don and his artistic temperament blablabla...
5/Roger asks Don if this is "really necessary?"
And, well... I have to admit this completely goes against my previous point that theatrics are not necessary in business... :P OK you got me... Sometimes they are, but very rarely.
You see, Roger is acting kind of surprised, but both Mr Cooper and Roger are "playing a part": they sold their company for a good sum of money (the deal Duck brokered was good for Sterling Cooper)... and they now intend to as soon as they cash in the check... start a new agency (cf. next season) with Don as a partner.
So yeah, here both Roger Sterling and Mr. Cooper are going to start acting a little bit.
Duck, who still thinks he has the upper hand, goes on bashing Don.
Duck still thinks that for contractual reason, Don will have to give in.. "get with the team" and check his ego at the door.
Duck: Don, you can either honor your contract or either walk out that door with nothing and start selling insurance.
[pause. Once again, PERFECT TIMING :D]
Don: I don't have a contract.
BOOM!
And there you have it, the end of Duck. I also love how Roger pipes in: "we're close, we didn't think we needed one" and the look on the Brit's faces. They just realized they lost Don Draper, who was one if not THE MAIN ASSET of the agency.
The rest, Don's speech, is full of finesse while at the same time very very rough. He basically tells them that the meeting is over and he's ready to talk to the Brits on Monday, hence completely pushing aside Duck.
Then Duck blows up and hammers the last nail in his coffin. The "Duck would you excuse us for a minute" is the end of him.
Good stuff.
And to conclude, I think this scene brings up a final very interesting but surprising question. How can a deal so complex and so big go so wrong because of such a lame and stupid oversight? How could Duck not have checked all of the firm's contracts before he got his former employee to buy out Sterling Cooper? How could the Brits not have checked that as well?
Because it's television and they needed a story? Well, not in my humble opinion.
You see, there are huge amounts of very large deals that go wrong all over the world because of sheer stupidity. A leading French pharmaceutical lab had one of his leading brands stolen by one of their OWN INTERNATIONAL PARTNER in a large developing market because... THEY HAD FORGOTTEN TO REGISTER IT. Once the contract was over, the local partner decided to manufacture a similar drug (probably heavily inspired by the original product's formula...) under the French brand's name and is making tons of money off it.
Danone entered into a joint venture with a Chinese Partner in 96 in order to launch their mineral water in China. Basically the partner was going to produce and distribute locally and Danone was going to give them the know-how and technical data to manufacture. During several years, everything was fine but Danone NEVER SENT an expat to China. Not ONE. This is insane. Several years later Danone wakes up and realizes that their partner's CEO set up parallel companies that are exploiting Danone's know how to manufacture mineral water. Boom. Several years later, Danone left the Chinese mineral water market after buying their shares back from the joint venture...
So how does this happen? How do companies staffed by brilliant minds go so wrong? Human nature, that's why. Back to the Duck example. Duck isn't a bad guy, and he's probably super competent at his job. What got to him to make such huge mistakes were according to me "human factors":
- first, he made it personal. Not good. Your brain is not going to be thinking correctly when its overloaded with emotions born from the fact that you made it personal and created your own "arch nemesis". You are going to want to move fast, move aggressively and probably move recklessly.
- second, maybe the stakes were too high for him (I mean he was just about to be promoted to CEO of a leading NY agency... come on :), and he was not able to manage them properly. Hence an abnormal amount of stress and anxiousness, which once again leads to impaired decision making.
And there are probably other possible explanations... but to conclude this post (congratz to those of made it to here), no matter how big a deal is, how big a company is, how high the manager's IQs are... if they do not know how to manage themselves and their personalities... mistakes will be made.
How to do that is a vast and I would say bounder-less topic, but fascinating. For advice, maybe we should ask Don?
PS: watch the scene again. The acting is insanely good.
Mad Men
A show based in the early 60s that follows the men who run one of the top advertising agency in New York, Sterling Cooper, located on Madison Avenue (hence "Mad" Men). Great show that provides researched backed insight on the social and cultural aspect of life in NY at that time, the American dream, the WASP way of life and most of all... the birth of modern advertising and marketing. Check out the trailer:
Highly recommended. I consider this show to be up there with The Wire and Sopranos, and therefore it made my top 3 best drama show list.
But i digress...
I wanted to break down a scene from season 2, which I found quite inspirational when I saw it. Now, before I go on, please do not take this post too seriously. I obviously do not turn to HBO or Showtime for career and management advice ok? However sometimes there's some hidden knowledge in good TV, so bear with me.
The following scene takes place right after Sterling Cooper was bought out by a large British corporation. At the table, we have in order of appearance:
- the show's main character, Don, the agency's Creative Director, but also one if not THE pillar of the company thanks to in addition to his creative talents, a keenly developed business sense.
- Duck Phillips, a Business Development expert who arrived in the company a few months back,
- two British guys that represent the buyers,
- the first owner of the NY firm, Mr Cooper, (the oldest dude that has a goatee),
- the second owner of the firm, Roger Sterling (gray hair, no beard).
Now that the characters are set, lets talk context.
Don was, for personal reasons, out of the office for 3 weeks. During these 3 weeks, Duck stealthily and hastily set up a buy-out deal between the interested British corporation (whom he had worked with in the past...) and Sterling Cooper. He sold Roger Sterling on the idea because, well the deal represented mucho dollars, and Sterling being in the middle of an expensive divorce could use the cash to retire to the tropics with his mistress.
If I remember correctly, Duke sold the idea to Cooper by basically telling him the agency would keep its name and independence, and that the British corporation would only be bringing in more resources to help Sterling Cooper continue to grow. Rightly so, Cooper had major doubts, but nearing retirement and after consulting with Sterling, he Okay-ed the deal. Something like that, roughly.
Now enters Don after 3 weeks of absence. First off, he is ultimately pissed off, as his hard work these past years explains the firm's success, he was not consulted and he doesn't believe for a second the British have good and long term intentions. He believes they'll take control of the agency, restructure it and sell it for a profit... while during this process kill its soul and creative expertise.
Furthermore, he has no respect for Duck (and Duck sees Don as his arch enemy): while Don is client and quality oriented, and a creative personality, Duck is purely business and billing oriented, and can't stand the independence, freedom, trust and close connection Don has with the owners. Damn this is so REAL.
So Don comes back, he's pissed, but the deal is already signed by Sterling and Cooper so it's too late for him to change their minds.
The British fly to NY and everyone sits at a table, and this starts the scene we'll discuss.
One last piece of info: I think it's standard practice in these types of company to have them make their employees sign exclusivity and non competition contracts for a certain amount of years. Hence a Creative Artist with such a contract could not legally quit and go work for the competition.
Click here for the scene
Ok, so basically one word comes to mind. OUCH!
Now lets break the scene down because there's several interesting concepts here. Of course everything below is subject to interpretation but feel free to comment.
1/ First and valid question asked: now that the Brits bought Sterling Cooper, who's gonna run the agency?
Ofc everyone already knows the answer, but the question had to be asked. Duck will take over. What a victory for him that must be...
Notice Don stays totally cool, however Duck acts like a douche-bag, acts surprised and "humbly" accepts.
So, IMO, his first mistake of the scene is here. There is very rarely need for theatrics in business. In this case everyone knows he initiated and brokered the deal, everyone knows he was aiming for the CEO job (and he got it)... so why act so douchy? It's going to impact the perception his future top management (the 2 British guys) have of him. He's basically not being straight... and that doesn't instill trust.
Oh and gloating over your victory is never good.
Sterling and Cooper's reactions are priceless. Sterling, a no nonsense guy, just points out all of this is obvious. Cooper, a more subtle guy, extends his "warm" congratulations to Duck. I love the look on his face, it says it all.
2/ Duck fires his first shot at Don
Duck then promises to treat the founders of Sterling Cooper with all the respect they deserve... then stares straight at Don... The message here is crystal clear: "Don my boy, you are not a founder, I do no know who you think you are but you do not deserve respect, you are simply a creative and now things are going to change for you...".
3/ The Brits ask Duck to expose his vision regarding the company's future.
And Duck blatantly lies. "I find myself a little unprepared here". Yeah, right. He looses credibility by the second in this scene. Once again: no theatrics. Higher ups don't like this.
He then exposes his plan, which ok maybe it makes sense, but his third major mistake here is that he is now obviously, and for everyone to see, attacking Don. The reason this is a mistake is because he ALREADY WON, so why keep on trying to destroy his rival? This continues to reduce his credibility with everyone at the table and makes him look like an ass.
Don ofc, being the cold blooded business man he is, doesn't flinch.
4/ Enters Don. Cooper asks him what he thinks about Duck's strategy
And ofc, Don goes the opposite route and takes the high road. As you know now that you saw the scene, he could have bashed Duck without a care in the world, as he is leaving the agency. Instead, he says "I think it sounds like a great agency, and I think Duck is the man to run it".
Boom! That's what we call taking the high road!
"I just dont think I'll be part of it."
BOOM!! Checkmate. And perfect timing!
The deal is signed, the Brits are heavily relying on him (Don is after all the locomotive of the company), they flew over to NY, he waited for Duck and his future bosses to be around the table, he waited for Duck to make an ass of himself and demonstrate to the Brits that well... he'll never be able to manage Don and that their relationship would never work, and now BOOM he tells them he wont work for them. That's basically a fatal blow to Duck.
Now if you can please bear with me while I digress a bit, this brings me back to another lesson a great lawyer tried to teach me just a few months back.
- it's all about timing, he told me. Negotiation, politics and management: it's all about timing. You need to think about all of this as if you were playing chess, and you need to think as many moves ahead as you reasonably can, taking in account the information you have and the information they have.
Now ofc I had heard that kind of advice in the past, but the context I was in made that advice truly sink in. I got to see this guy, a "Don in real life" if you will, negotiate a complex multi-layered deal like a freaking chess player, it was great. And his timing... his timing was insane. He knew what the other party was going to say before they said it, he even BAITED them with assertions and assumptions, knowing full well what was going to be replied, to then fire the hard hitting fact or counterargument... He could also steer the conversation one way, get the guy across the table to say something, to then use it 2 hours later...
You see I'm an impulsive guy, and sad to say I'm more like Duck then Don. When I have ammo, I shoot all of it. When I want to take somebody down, I go all out. Or, more reasonably, when I want to get a point across, I throw all my arguments at the problem at once. And I always have been pretty bad at Chess...
So lately I've been taking the time to PLAN. Plan out my strategies, whether they are business strategies, political strategies or personal development strategies. I try to plan, lay out possible outcomes, prepare etc... And I have to admit it's HARD, because I really need to think and rack my brains. However, when a plan works out... it's the greatest feeling in the world.
Ok, so back to Mad Men.
The Brits are surprised and asks Don to repeat himself, which he does once again. "If this is the agency you want, Duck is the man for the job". Duck then goes on attacking Don and his artistic temperament blablabla...
5/Roger asks Don if this is "really necessary?"
And, well... I have to admit this completely goes against my previous point that theatrics are not necessary in business... :P OK you got me... Sometimes they are, but very rarely.
You see, Roger is acting kind of surprised, but both Mr Cooper and Roger are "playing a part": they sold their company for a good sum of money (the deal Duck brokered was good for Sterling Cooper)... and they now intend to as soon as they cash in the check... start a new agency (cf. next season) with Don as a partner.
So yeah, here both Roger Sterling and Mr. Cooper are going to start acting a little bit.
Duck, who still thinks he has the upper hand, goes on bashing Don.
Duck still thinks that for contractual reason, Don will have to give in.. "get with the team" and check his ego at the door.
Duck: Don, you can either honor your contract or either walk out that door with nothing and start selling insurance.
[pause. Once again, PERFECT TIMING :D]
Don: I don't have a contract.
BOOM!
And there you have it, the end of Duck. I also love how Roger pipes in: "we're close, we didn't think we needed one" and the look on the Brit's faces. They just realized they lost Don Draper, who was one if not THE MAIN ASSET of the agency.
The rest, Don's speech, is full of finesse while at the same time very very rough. He basically tells them that the meeting is over and he's ready to talk to the Brits on Monday, hence completely pushing aside Duck.
Then Duck blows up and hammers the last nail in his coffin. The "Duck would you excuse us for a minute" is the end of him.
Good stuff.
And to conclude, I think this scene brings up a final very interesting but surprising question. How can a deal so complex and so big go so wrong because of such a lame and stupid oversight? How could Duck not have checked all of the firm's contracts before he got his former employee to buy out Sterling Cooper? How could the Brits not have checked that as well?
Because it's television and they needed a story? Well, not in my humble opinion.
You see, there are huge amounts of very large deals that go wrong all over the world because of sheer stupidity. A leading French pharmaceutical lab had one of his leading brands stolen by one of their OWN INTERNATIONAL PARTNER in a large developing market because... THEY HAD FORGOTTEN TO REGISTER IT. Once the contract was over, the local partner decided to manufacture a similar drug (probably heavily inspired by the original product's formula...) under the French brand's name and is making tons of money off it.
Danone entered into a joint venture with a Chinese Partner in 96 in order to launch their mineral water in China. Basically the partner was going to produce and distribute locally and Danone was going to give them the know-how and technical data to manufacture. During several years, everything was fine but Danone NEVER SENT an expat to China. Not ONE. This is insane. Several years later Danone wakes up and realizes that their partner's CEO set up parallel companies that are exploiting Danone's know how to manufacture mineral water. Boom. Several years later, Danone left the Chinese mineral water market after buying their shares back from the joint venture...
So how does this happen? How do companies staffed by brilliant minds go so wrong? Human nature, that's why. Back to the Duck example. Duck isn't a bad guy, and he's probably super competent at his job. What got to him to make such huge mistakes were according to me "human factors":
- first, he made it personal. Not good. Your brain is not going to be thinking correctly when its overloaded with emotions born from the fact that you made it personal and created your own "arch nemesis". You are going to want to move fast, move aggressively and probably move recklessly.
- second, maybe the stakes were too high for him (I mean he was just about to be promoted to CEO of a leading NY agency... come on :), and he was not able to manage them properly. Hence an abnormal amount of stress and anxiousness, which once again leads to impaired decision making.
And there are probably other possible explanations... but to conclude this post (congratz to those of made it to here), no matter how big a deal is, how big a company is, how high the manager's IQs are... if they do not know how to manage themselves and their personalities... mistakes will be made.
How to do that is a vast and I would say bounder-less topic, but fascinating. For advice, maybe we should ask Don?
PS: watch the scene again. The acting is insanely good.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
The importance of smiling
It's interesting how some of the best advice I ever received in life fits in one simple sentence.
One of my past boss once told me, in French: "Plus tu dois dire quelque chose de dur, plus tu dois sourir".
This translates to: "The harder (or harsher) the comment you have to say, the larger the smile".
This changed my working relationship with partners overnight, and for all you wannabee tough guys at the negotiation tables, you should take this advice to heart.
Not only does this behavior reduce tension and enables new partnerships to start off on the right foot, and existing ones to be mended, but it overall shows RESPECT to the other party, which IMO always yields long term positive results.
OFC if the situation gets out of control, you need to be able to shift your communication style to a tougher one. However if you are known to always be cool and able to discuss difficult and sensitive topics in a pretty laid back manner, I can assure you that when you start acting tougher... people will take immediate notice and give you the credibility you need to get your point across.
I'm sure you know business partners or managers that are always yelling or acting pissed off and some that are always relatively laid back and even-tempered.
Well who has the most impact when they start toughening up?
One of my past boss once told me, in French: "Plus tu dois dire quelque chose de dur, plus tu dois sourir".
This translates to: "The harder (or harsher) the comment you have to say, the larger the smile".
This changed my working relationship with partners overnight, and for all you wannabee tough guys at the negotiation tables, you should take this advice to heart.
Not only does this behavior reduce tension and enables new partnerships to start off on the right foot, and existing ones to be mended, but it overall shows RESPECT to the other party, which IMO always yields long term positive results.
OFC if the situation gets out of control, you need to be able to shift your communication style to a tougher one. However if you are known to always be cool and able to discuss difficult and sensitive topics in a pretty laid back manner, I can assure you that when you start acting tougher... people will take immediate notice and give you the credibility you need to get your point across.
I'm sure you know business partners or managers that are always yelling or acting pissed off and some that are always relatively laid back and even-tempered.
Well who has the most impact when they start toughening up?
On the importance of networking
We discussed a few posts back the importance of networking and playing the "political game" at your job.
I would however like to amend those blog entries with an additional thought: you need to understand that if you do NOT play the game, this doesn't simply mean you're outside of the political arena and therefore you are going to miss opportunities, it also means that your IMAGE is going to suffer greatly.
Your image is actually going to be impacted negatively by the fact you are not playing the game. People who are in power and people who play the game will label you as somebody who is not outgoing, who is not social, who is withdrawn and introverted...
And that is far from being the traits of a high potential, a manager or a leader.
PS: don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean you need to transform yourself into something you are not. If you are naturally introverted, people know it and it's no big deal (tons of great leaders are introverts. Bill Gates anyone?). However even a little shift in attitude and behavior will be noticed and will go a long way. It's a little effort that will pay great dividends.
I would however like to amend those blog entries with an additional thought: you need to understand that if you do NOT play the game, this doesn't simply mean you're outside of the political arena and therefore you are going to miss opportunities, it also means that your IMAGE is going to suffer greatly.
Your image is actually going to be impacted negatively by the fact you are not playing the game. People who are in power and people who play the game will label you as somebody who is not outgoing, who is not social, who is withdrawn and introverted...
And that is far from being the traits of a high potential, a manager or a leader.
PS: don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean you need to transform yourself into something you are not. If you are naturally introverted, people know it and it's no big deal (tons of great leaders are introverts. Bill Gates anyone?). However even a little shift in attitude and behavior will be noticed and will go a long way. It's a little effort that will pay great dividends.
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