2011 Quarter Two Results Audio Recording

Please click below to hear my presentation to the company.



Check this out on Chirbit

2011 Quarter Two Results

Greetings everyone! 

I stand before you today to give an update on our second quarter state of the business and financial highlights.  Overall it has not been a solid quarter.  Our software sales and related training have been steadily declining and we reached a breaking point this past quarter.  We’ve seen a decrease in sales of 3.3% and training income is down a modest 1.9%.

Unfortunately the increase in head-count and additional contractor hours has negatively affected our bottom line.  We’ve hired a handful of fresh college grads along with a couple well-experienced training professionals ultimately increasing our salaries and benefits expenses by 5.9%

By itself this sounds bad to most, or all of you.  However, this comes with good news in that our increase in staff will eventually pay off in the long run.  Our internal training and the cost of getting the new employees up to speed has decreased our selling productivity and decreased our ability to offer outside training to clients. 

I feel confident telling you all that once we get over this hump and everyone is back up to speed then our sales and training income will spike back up to normal levels and beyond.

Pawn Shop

An untidy old man examined Jeremiah’s pawn shop shelves.  The unexpected sway of the old man’s coat gave way to a revolver; the under-counter button was pressed.  Men in blue with handguns drawn flooded the tiny shop.  At seventeen hundred an ounce, his attempt to swindle the gold was ended.

Financial Audit: Pass!

First I’d like to start by sending out a BIG THANKS to the group for the successful completion of our 2010 financial audit!  PricewaterhouseCoopers has officially signed off on our financials and we’re ready to pass the documentation along to the next step: formatting and preparing the annual report. 

As you know, getting a passing mark from the auditors is one the groups goals for the year.  It is also an essential part of being able to market our financial credibility as a business.  Although this task goes seemingly unnoticed to the rest of the company every year it is because this group performs well together and gets the job done where it matters.

As an indication of this accomplishment we’ll be going to lunch this Wednesday with the CEO.  As a heads up he’ll probably be looking for input and suggestions to help improve next year’s audit and other general goals for the group.  Start thinking of questions or suggestions you may have for him on Wednesday.

Thanks, and keep up the good work group!

Social Media

The linked document below references our company's new policies and procedures around social media use and appropriate channels for the company.  The company's position is to allow the use of social media as it pertains to our business only if used professionally and in regards to our publicly safe information.  Described in the document are means of social media which are hosted by our company and are appropriate for work use.

Look here

Communication Tips

I discovered some tips on relationship communication skills, some of which I think apply in the business world.  The article references active listening but I really found the section with 8 tips to encourage someone to say more; as a useful section.  You can see the site here.  The first three bullets points are useful to me.  It is important to let someone finish what they’re saying at work because you don’t want to say something prematurely and sound like the bad guy if you’re wrong or if you have misjudged.  I always feel like giving someone space and asking questions goes a long way, the tips say not to act as if you’re interviewing.  This is an excellent point because let’s face it, interviews are stressful to most people and ultimately the goal is to have a flowing conversation with information give and take; not a question and answer.

I find that the best way to get information at work is to ask for it then let the other person do the talking.  The tips I outlines from this article are for in-person conversations mostly in my opinion.  A lot of the more difficult information seeking I do is from in-person conversations.  I need to be able to communicate effectively, and if that means to get the other person talking by asking question then it is effective.  If I really focus on the conversation at hand and wait until he/she is completely finished before offering up my words then the whole situation is much better.  Even when I admit being wrong or confused, it usually makes the whole conversation more beneficial.

Statement to Staff

Staff,

Our workplace environment is constantly being bombarded with changes which ultimately affect our everyday work lives.  We must continue to satisfy our customer needs while keeping in mind that changes in the agricultural marketplace and sudden changes in interest rates weigh a heavy toll on our customers’ lives.

Our overall goal as a company is to move in a common direction towards the “top of the pyramid” by driving the value of our services and continued strong foundations in technology.  Becoming a strategic business partner with our customers will create the ultimate give and take relationship for growth and superiority in the market.

We need each individual to take ownership in their own careers.  Everyone here has been given full control to own something.

Every person here has been given full ownership of their own careers.  Own something by following an issue or enhancement from start to finish.  Lead a team or implement an improvement for our customers.  Change is not something to fear, it is part of our changing market and we need to keep up to reach the TOP.

Thanks.