I am proud of the confidence that I see growing in the commerce students who I teach at the Eastern Institute of Technology. Only a matter of a few weeks ago you could have heard the proverbial pin drop after I asked for students to contribute their thoughts/ opinions in relation to the scheduled topic of interest that I was addressing at the time. Just over a month on from this “quiet as a mouse” initial era most students are…
Today during a lecture that I was facilitating I witnessed the beginning of a truly “collaborative spirit” in respect of one group of students whose turn it was to present their determinations in relation to a “real world” exercise that I had set for the class. This particular group comprised a multitude of nationalities (from German to Asian to Kiwi). The scene that unfolded in front of me involved the group’s spokesperson struggling a little at times with their verbal…
How often have you heard the expression “just do it !” or “have a go !” During my current teaching of tertiary students I sometimes find myself encouraging students to “have a go” at contributing an answer to the discussion that is taking place at the time. In the information age that the world is now in, we run the risk of waiting for “perfect information/ insight” before being prepared to make a decision/ take action. I’ve seen even decision-makers…
Again, during the Lindisfarne vs Hereworth soccer match that I watched alongside other parents today I observed a number of goal scoring attempts which were easily thwarted by the goalie. Why ? Because the striker (goal kicker) had kicked the ball directly at the goalie. Whereas had the goal kicker instead directed their shot at goal to either side of the goalie (e.g. into either top corner of the goal), their goal attempt would have resulted in a far more…
While watching the soccer game that my son was a part of today two different occasions planted two different “thought seeds” in my mind. Occasion #1: At half-time in the game the Coach skillfully injected encouragement into the hearts and minds of the team he was coaching by using the phrase “you must collaborate if you want to dominate this game”. This expression led me to think about its relevancy for business. You will see in some of my earlier…
When I started teaching at EIT last month I provided an initial “framework of expectation” to students in each of the courses that I teach. That being… a) When reading text books, it is important to keep stated theories in perspective – that they are in fact simply just one “perception” of reality/ fact in each case. b) When contributing input into class discussions try and substantiate your viewpoint with evidence/ facts. In my view, offered opinions that can’t…
Particularly in New Zealand, we have many capable, driven natural leaders. We’ve developed our leadership capabilities arguably mostly through living in a small country where innovation has necessarily had to play a key part in our commercial survival. We’re generally pretty resilient and we like to test new frontiers. However, there are also people who are appointed to leadership positions who are not natural leaders, and who sometimes struggle with delivering leadership. Unfortunately, if leaders fail to provide effective leadership,…
It was really interesting listening to Sean Colgan (owner of IMI – the largest distributor of raw materials in the world) yesterday talk about how he manages situations/ operations which – because of the large number of countries that his business interests are in – are largely outside of his ability to manage effectively remotely. Fully understanding this difficulty, Sean chooses to instead empower others who possess the necessary competencies to manage/ govern each of IMI’s operating sites around the…
Today Sean Colgan – owner of “IMI” (www.irvmat.com/company.asp) – delivered a fascinating presentation to the students in my Strategic Marketing class at the Eastern Institute of Technology. Although Sean has only recently relocated himself and his family to Hawkes Bay, New Zealand; he has had strong ties with N.Z. since the 1970’s through his involvement in Olympic rowing. IMI is the largest distributor of raw materials (including natural Gypsum – which is used in building construction) in the world. It…
During the lecturing role that I’m presently fulfilling with the Eastern Institute of Technology I’ve been reminded of just how powerful empowerment of others becomes when those who you are imparting knowledge to become participants in the learning exchange. As parents we understand the importance of “leading by example” and then having our child show us their practice of what they have learned from us, to then be able to stand on their own two feet and perform the same…