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This Month's HeadlinesClick on any Headline to go to the full story. From Jim and CharlieThis is our personal note welcoming you to the October 2007 issue of Future of Work Agenda and setting our theme for the month. This month we're returning to one of our favorite subjects, distributed work, and highlighting how little we know about how and why distributed workers purchase the goods and services they need to be successful. Meanwhile, our rant offers very detailed suggestions on how to turn yourself into what we call a "Business of One." Announcements and News from the World of WorkMore news about our new book, Corporate Agility; an update on our new blog, MyIdealWorkplace, news from our Future of Work members and Senior Advisors, and a schedule of our upcoming public appearances. Feature Article: Sizing Up Distributed WorkWe've written extensively here and elsewhere about distributed work - why it's important, why it's difficult to do well, and why it takes new skills and processes to manage a distributed workforce effectively. Lately, however, we've begun to realize that there is another fundamental difficulty with distributed work and distributed workers: it and they together represent a new and rapidly growing marketplace for goods and services that no one (to our knowledge) really understands very well. The WDC Bookshelf: Mini Reviews of Books We're Reading Right NowEvery few months we like to let you know about the books we've discovered and are reading. This month we're pleased to tell you about two books that approach the same issue - truth-telling in organizations - from very different but highly complementary perspectives. Best of the BlogThis section provides you with brief summaries of several recent notes we've already posted on the Future of Work weblog. In each case we also include a live link to the original post on the blog. And we encourage you to become a regular reader of the blog, where we are posting notes, case studies, and links to other important websites on a regular basis. In Our Humble Opinion: Turning Yourself into a "Business of One"We end each issue of Future of Work Agenda with a personal perspective - our chance to comment on issues and developments in the world of work that we find important and interesting. This is our "editorial" page, where we enjoy offering our opinions and predictions about what's happening (or should be happening) in the world of work and beyond. |
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From Jim and CharlieSpelling and punctuation matter: What's that in the road ahead? What's that in the road, a head? All kidding aside, and in all honesty, it's a been a heady month. Corporate Agility was published in late August, hit the bookstores in the first week of September, and we've already been "on the air" doing a couple of webinars and in the air to Seattle and Dallas for book promotion events (special thanks to IIDA and Mark Gribbons of IA Interior Architects for Seattle, and to Jill Duncan and Herman Miller for Dallas). And the most exciting news is that not only is the book moving well, but it's already gone into a second printing. Now, we haven't been invited to appear on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, or The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and we haven't made the Oprah Book Club yet - but we are feeling pretty darn good about the initial excitement about the book One request to you, our long-term faithful readers: if you like the book, please write a review for us on Amazon.com. It's easy, doesn't have to be more than a few sentences, and can make a big difference in book sales. Just go to the Corporate Agility page on Amazon, scroll down to the Customer Review line, and do it. Okay, okay, enough with the shameless self-promotion. We're also deeply involved in other projects and ideas, and we have a radically overfull travel schedule this fall. Would you believe that we recently had to tell a close friend and long-time client that we aren't available to lead a workshop until mid-December at the earliest? Scary! So we're pleased to offer you a couple of thought pieces this month that reflect some our current interests and activities, rather than coming directly out of the book. Our feature article, Sizing Up Distributed Work, is a set-up for a research project we're currently designing - an analysis of the marketplace for goods and services that support distributed work and distributed/remote/mobile workers. You'll be surprised, as we were, when you learn just how big, complex, and important that market is. All the more reason to think about it, study it, and - ultimately - understand it. We hope you'll find our thoughts provocative - and please share your reactions and suggestions with us. We're convinced that there's a very big pot o' gold at the far end of this rainbow. And our rant ("Turning Yourself into a Business of One") probably won't win us any friends among corporate executives, because we're offering a recipe that should help those of you who are ready to walk out the door of corporate America (or Corporate Europe, or . . .). We think it's time to start paying a whole lot more attention to free agents, free lancers, and other small business folks - and to help the millions of you on the inside of large organizations - but looking outside with envy and trepidation - screw up the courage to make The Big Move. It's not as hard as you might think, though it certainly isn't a piece of cake either. But if we can help just a few of you move from wishful thinking to positive action, we'll be highly satisfied. We've also added a bonus section this month - The WDC Bookshelf. In spite of all our travel - or maybe because it inevitably involves time in airports and airplanes, we've actually found time to read some more interesting and useful books. This month we review two small but important tomes, both of which focus on truth-telling in large organizations - something that's much easier to talk about than to do. But if you're feeling frustrated or angry about the unspoken issues in your organization, these two brief books are full of advice that will help you speak up and speak out - and keep your job at the same time. Believe it or not, that is possible. And as always, of course, we're also pleased to bring you our Announcements section and the Best of the Blog section summarizing our most recent posts on the Future of Work blog. We continue to believe that you'll find ideas and information here that you just can't get anywhere else. So, on to the rest of the newsletter. Enjoy! And please let us know what you think.
Announcements and News from the World of WorkTriZetto Software Joins Future of WorkWe are very pleased to announce that TriZetto Software has joined the Future of Work Corporate Membership Program. TriZetto's executive sponsor is Dean Stanberry, Director of Workplace Services. Also representing TriZetto will be Caroline Kelley and James Stinnett. Dean will be attending our Fall Members Roundtable in Houston later this month. Please join us in welcoming Dean, Caroline, and James to the Future of Work community. Corporate Agility is Going into a Second PrintingThat's right, just three weeks after publication, Corporate Agility is going back to the printer for a second run. Bear with us and our publisher, it may be out of stock for a few weeks (and that's a good thing as far as we're concerned). We've now done several webinars and public appearance presentations based on the book, and the reception has been universally positive. See our schedule of upcoming appearances below, or any time on the book's website or our Future of Work calendar. That's right: Corporate Agility now has its own website, at http://www.corporateagilitybook.com. We'll do our best to keep it up to date with information and news about the book, our public appearances, and published reviews of the book (for good or bad). Please visit there often. Corporate Agility is in bookstores now. You can order it any time from Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, or directly from the American Management Association (our publisher). We're very pleased that the book comes highly recommended by many very smart people who we deeply respect, including author and futurist Alvin Toffler; University of Michigan Professor of Management David Ulrich; author Dan Pink (A Whole New Mind, Free Agent Nation), Brian Walker,CEO and President of Herman Miller; Colin Dyer, CEO and President of Jones, Lang, LaSalle; John Igoe, Vice President, Saris-Regus Group; and University of California San Diego Professor Judith Bardwick. And if you like the book, please send us a note and - most importantly - write a readers review at either (or both) Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com. We'd love to hear your thoughts and suggestions (we're already beginning to think about a sequel). Please visit MyIdealWorkplace, Our Newest BlogAs we announced last month, we now have a second blog. This one, called MyIdealWorkplace, is focused on the workplace and how people around the globe feel about where and how they get their work done. Our goal is really very simple: we want to foster a global conversation about what makes workplaces likable - or not; what makes them productive - or not; what makes them inviting - or not; and what makes them effective - or not. Our vision for MyIdealWorkplace is quite different from our goal for the Future of Work blog. There we focus on trends, stories, and predictions about the future of work, broadly defined. We want MyIdealWorkplace to be an active, lively forum that's filled with opinions, ideas, suggestions, and rants - from all corners of the globe. And if you're interested in posting an original question or conversation-starter, let us know. We'll be more than happy to turn the "stage" over to you. So please visit now - respond to our initial posts ("Where Do You Work Best?", "Musings on My Ideal Workplace," "Does it Matter if Your Workplace is Wireless?"), or tell us what you'd rather talk about. Feel free to post anonymously if you're worried that your critique could get you in hot water, or brag about your current employer if you wish. Almost anything (decent) goes. Future of Work Member NewsBarry Tuchfeld reports that the BT Group recently completed research that is feeding a major rebranding effort for Camber Corporation. The BT Group has expanded its services for professional and organizational development, which now range from Leadership Trainings to special programs that enhance focus on "quality" organizational processes, communication, and customer service as well as programs on expanding sales, on work-life balance, and on delivering effective presentations. James Stinnett of TriZetto Software graduated on September 22 from Colorado Technical University with a Master of Business Administration, Executive MBA. Professor Lynda Gratton of London Business School recently wrote a special report for the Wall Street Journal ("Working Together . . . When Apart") that focused on the "golden rules" of working virtually. Her current research covers over 120 teams, many of which include members who are working virtually (we also posted a note and commentary on our Future of Work blog about that article - "One More Time - Making Distributed Work Work"). WDC and Future of Work ActivitiesWe are very pleased to announce that Jim and Charlie will be featured speakers at the IFMA World Workplace Conference in New Orleans, October 24-26. We have also just agreed to deliver a webinar on corporate agility and distributed work for Citrix on Tuesday, October 23. We'll post more details on our website and the Future of Work blog as soon as we have them. In addition, Charlie will be delivering a presentation in San Francisco on November 14 on "Corporate Agility and Organizational Productivity" to a group of clients of SuccessFactors, a software firm specializing in performance management systems. If you are interested in attending, please contact Erik Berggren. Finally, Jim is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the December 20 meeting of the Northern California chapter of CoreNet. Check back next month for more details.
Feature Article: Sizing Up Distributed Workby Charlie Grantham and Jim Ware "They're everywhere, they're everywhere." We've written extensively here and elsewhere about distributed work - why it's important, why it's difficult to do well, and why it takes new skills and processes to manage a distributed workforce effectively. Lately, however, we've begun to realize that there is another fundamental difficulty with distributed work and distributed workers: it and they together represent a new and rapidly growing marketplace for goods and services that no one (to our knowledge) really understands very well. Perhaps more importantly, no one really understands how to communicate effectively with distributed workers, whether to learn about their wants and needs and their purchasing patterns, to sell to them, or to organize them into a coherent group with a common (and influential) voice. And this situation exists precisely because they are not organized in any coherent fashion Thus, in this exploratory article we're going to try to describe this highly elusive market and pose a number of questions that we believe should be of interest to anyone trying to understand, sell into, or influence the millions of people across the global economy who are working in a remote/mobile/distributed/virtual fashion. Note that the only way we seem to be able to refer to this almost-invisible marketplace is by the use of multiple descriptors - "remote," "mobile," "distributed," "virtual." Part of the challenge, of course, is that it really isn't a unified, monolithic market. There are many different kinds of distributed work. And even within many of its submarkets there is a wide diversity of people and activities that fit our broad concept. And those people, like all workers, purchase and use a wide variety of goods and services from many different industrial sectors. Let's begin by reviewing about what we (and others) mean when we talk about "distributed work." Towards a Typology of Distributed WorkTo begin at the very beginning, we could refer to anyone who is working at a "different place" as a distributed worker. We have to be that generic because when you think about it, even two people who are working together on a project or task while in different offices within the same building are in one sense "distributed." To be more specific, there are at least four different but very common situations that we include in our concept of Distributed Work:
And to further complicate things, there are many different levels of mobility too. We just referred to local telecommuters and classic "road warriors" in the same sentence, yet they clearly have different work patterns and differing needs for technology. There's also another important variable that cuts across all three broad categories outlined above: some of these distributed workers are full-time organizational employees, while others are independent "free agents" or self-employed professionals. At this point in our analysis, however, we are more interested in the needs that all these distributed workers have in common than we are in the differences among them. Sizing the Distributed Work MarketEstimates of how many distributed workers there are today, and will be in the future, vary all over the map. Our data indicates they can be divided into two roughly equal groups: corporate employees and independent contractors. Conservatively, we believe there are about 25 million distributed workers in the United States. And they all consume a large amounts of goods and services - all the way from office and meeting space to office equipment/supplies, to business support services and professional services. One of the questions we want to answer is just how extensive is the list of goods and services these 25 million people purchase and consume. We're convinced that distributed workers have a unique purchasing and consumption profile, and - perhaps more importantly - draw on different sources of information and values for making their purchase decisions. We're in the early stages of developing a research project aimed at measuring actual expenditures by distributed workers in these (and other) categories. But even without that benefit of valid data, it's clear that we're looking at a very big market. If our initial estimates (based on personal experience and several informal interviews) are at all reasonable, each of those 25 million distributed workers spends, on average, upwards of $28,000 a year on those goods and services. Now, if we apply that conservative estimate of 25 million distributed workers in the United States and count the number of zeroes correctly (we're fairly confident we did), we are looking at a total market of goods and services of approximately $700 Billion a year! That's a lot of purchasing power - and that's just in the United States. Now we know full well that no one company could ever provide all these goods and services - the distributed work "market" we're defining here is really a distributed work economy. And we know that most of the purchase decisions for full-time distributed employees are made by their managers through traditional corporate channels. Nevertheless, even if our crude estimate is off by 50%, we're still looking at a very big marketplace. Supporting and Supplying Distributed WorkersIn spite of its size, this is not an easy market to reach. Distributed workers are generally well-educated, affluent, and highly individualized decision makers. They are - by definition - dispersed geographically; and they tend to buy many of these services and supplies as individuals. In one sense the distributed work business marketplace is more like a specialized consumer market, with characteristics and distribution channels that are very different from traditional business markets and channels. Yet distributed work is not just a specialized consumer market; the distributed work marketplace we're interested in is ultimately a commercial marketplace with information and purchasing processes, decision criteria, and distribution channels that are similar, but far from identical, to more traditional organizational purchasing practices and processes. The simple fact is that distributed work is a complex marketplace with many different channels and many different decision rules. Yet we are convinced that it's real, that it's distinctively different from more traditional markets, and - perhaps most importantly - that it's being very poorly served. First, without the aggregating power of a larger organization, many distributed workers actually do make individual purchasing decisions, more like the general consumer market than the corporate channels that traditional workers depend on (and don't forget that in many areas those traditional workers have no choice at all, but must simply accept what the corporate purchasing department offers them). The big challenge, and the reason we're engaging in this broad thought exercise, is that we don't think anyone (least of all the firms that provision distributed workers) really understands very well what goods and services we (again, all of us, together) really need to do our best work - nor how to listen to us, speak to us, or to provision us with the things that are "right" for us. What do We Want to Know about Distributed Workers?To sum it up, here are some questions we'd love to find the answers to. If you have suggestions for where we should look, or how to proceed, we'd welcome your advice.
As usual, your comments and reactions are more than welcome. And as always, please send your thoughts to us at comments@thefutureofwork.net.
The WDC Bookshelf: What We're Reading Right NowEvery few months we like to let you know about the books we've discovered and are reading. This month we're pleased to tell you about two books that approach the same issue - truth-telling in organizations - from very different but highly complementary perspectives. Note that the hyperlinks will take you each book's page on Amazon.com. The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester: A Fresh Perspective on Organizational Leadership, Culture, and Behavior, by David T. Riveness, Jardin Publishing, Santa Clara, California, 2006This is a brief but important book for anyone concerned about the propensity of most organizations to focus more on pleasing the higher-ups than on telling them what they need to hear. The book draws on the centuries-old tradition of the court jester who it turns out was the one individual who could tell the king (or queen) the truth about the goings-on within the castle. Humor became a way to soften the "tough love" messages the jesters so often conveyed. As author Dave Riveness puts it on the back cover, "True jesters have the rare ability to uncover and address hidden blind spots in thinking and action that negatively affect companies, organizations, and individuals." Riveness wrote the book as a bit of a fable, and underscores his message and advice by retelling several well-known stories and fables of organizational leadership, conflict, and disaster using his concept of corporate jestership. Among the retold stories are such classics as Snow White, the Cat and the Fox, the six blind men and the elephant, the weakness of Achilles. The jester perspective sheds all kinds of new light on the important lessons to be learned from these familiar tales.. The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester is an easy, and even compelling, read. I recommend it wholeheartedly. For more information: http://www.corporatejester.com/ The Thin Book of Naming Elephants, by Sue Annis Hammond and Andrea B. Mayfield, Thinbook Publishing Company, Bend, Oregon, 2004This is another excellent book about truth-telling in organizations. We've all heard the line about the elephant in the room that everybody sees, but no one talks about. This wonderful little book is filled with guidelines and suggestions for how to overcome organizational resistance to telling it like it is. The centerpiece of the book is a case study of the NASA Challenger disaster (that's the shuttle that disintegrated over Texas on its re-entry because of a piece of foam that broke off and damaged a wing during take-off). It's a rather chilling story that highlights the stark contrast between NASA's espoused theories of truth-telling and "Safety First" on the one hand, and its culture of not making waves or challenging and embarrassing senior executives, on the other. The book includes extensive discussion of how and why these "invisible" elephants grow up and thrive inside organizations. More importantly, however, it contains simple, straightforward advice on what to do - how to "name" and then discuss the elephants and their implications. We particularly liked this brief summary of the core message, on page 32: "Naming elephants is a three-part process. First, identify what is undiscussable, or name the elephant. Second, surface the underlying assumptions people have about the elephant of the situation. This creates the opportunity to view all the ways people see the reality of the situation (multiple realities). Third, learn how to have constructive dialogue involving Tops, Middles, and Bottoms." Easier said than done, we know. But if you read this little book cover to cover, you'll be a whole lot better at doing what has to be done. And both you and your organization will be a whole lot more successful. If you've got a favorite book that you'd like to tell us about, please send us a note describing why the book is worth reading, and we'll be happy to consider including your review in a future issue.
Best of the BlogHere's a small sampling of excerpts/lead-ins from our recent weblog posts. Please get in the habit of reading the Future of Work weblog regularly - bookmark it, or if you have an RSS news reader, subscribe to it. And please contribute as well. We're more than happy to reprint your stories, or to consider featuring you as a Guest Writer. We believe we're creating a unique knowledge base of what's going on out there today, and what's going to be going on tomorrow. If you want to learn about the future of work, our blog is the place to go (along with this very newsletter, of course). Just click on each headline below to visit the full original blog post. Cities Before Work - a Gen Y Story (September 6)Our good friend John Cleveland called my attention to a story in today's New York Times ("What Do Young Jobseekers Want? (Something Other Than the Job)") about the increasing tendency of younger workers to figure out where they want to live before they worry about who they're going to work for. Perhaps the best quote in Brenda Belkin's article is this one: "To our generation, it doesn't make sense to have a great job in a crummy city," said Mark Van Dyke, 25, describing his decision to move three years ago from the suburbs of Chicago to Bellingham, Wash...." More Evidence that Telecommuting is Good for You... (September 11)... and that's true whether you are an individual, a manager, or a large organization . . . There's a terrific article in today's Wall Street Journal about the benefits (to both organizations and individuals) of telecommuting or alternative work programs ("Seeking Loyal, Devoted Workers? Let Them Stay Home")... More and More People are Delaying Full Retirement (September 12)There's a good article on today's San Francisco Chronicle about how more and more people are working well beyond age 65 ("More Americans at work in retirement years - especially in Bay Area"). This is a pattern we've been tracking and reporting on for some time, so it's no surprise to me. But it's worth noting that the evidence is building: Almost 1 in 4 people between the ages of 65 and 74 nationally - 23 percent - were still in the labor force in 2006, up from close to 1 in 5 at the beginning of the decade... Filling the Talent Gap (September 16)Professors George Ready (London Business School) and Jay Conger (Claremont College; currently visiting Professor at London Business School) have just published a powerful and insightful article in the Wall Street Journal about recruiting, retaining, and developing management talent ("How to Fill the Talent Gap" - September 15, subscription required to access online version).... Why Commute When You Can Telecommute? (September 19)Once again we've been reminded of how awful it is to sit in congested traffic day after day, hour after hour. Today's San Francisco Chronicle carries a front-page story about the worsening commute ("Traffic worsening slower in the Bay Area than in other urban areas"). Bay Area drivers lose over 60 hours a year sitting in traffic - second worst in the nation, according to a just-released study...
In Our Humble Opinion: Turning Yourself into a "Business of One"Commentary by Charlie Grantham and Jim Ware Here we are working our way into Fall. The boyz (Maynard, Horace and good ol' Cooter) are getting ready to bring in the harvest. Looks like a bumper crop this year of cynics, greedy ol' bankers, and a great assortment of politicians taking a wide stance on a whole range of issues. The boyz will be back with some down-home wisdom next month; we promise. However, we've been getting a lot of requests for some real, genu-wine, and even practical (perish the thought) advice. It usually sounds something like this: "If all this stuff you two keep talking about is true, then a lot of us folks out here in readerland are going to have to change the way we work." Glory-be, someone must be listening. You betcha! In Our Humble Opinion (got 'er in real early this time) you're going to have to become a "business of one" if you want decent pay, any kind of job security, and a good life. You gotta take care of yourself, 'cause no one is doin' it. Hey, this isn't gonna be right for everyone; but we'd say probably a good 40% of today's knowledge workers are on track to morph into something other than an "employee" (you heard it here first) And remember your history: serfs disappeared long ago. This month we offer up something more like a Dear Abby advice column instead of one of our signature rants (yes, yet again. We seem to be getting very opinionated - bring on Jon Stewart!!). Be careful, be very, very careful, what you ask for, because we will deliver. This is a topic that could go on and on and on, so we're going to get you started this month, and if we get more requests for specifics we'll follow up. But you need to get started and know that there is a way to get your sorry butt out of the corporate rat race - unless you have a thing for furry-nosed ferrets and wimpy-mouthed gofers. Most people come to this topic one of two ways. Either they've got a gnawing anxiety in their gut that says "This just isn't right." You know the feeling: as you drive into the parking lot you notice a touch of indigestion, your blood pressure goes up, and you're already thinking about five o'clock. Or they've just become a victim of "rightsizing," "downsizing," "off-shoring," or whatever cunning euphemism those high-falutin' executives use for "You've been s%^t-canned." Okay, cowboy up-you gonna just lay there and bleed, or are you goin' to git back up on the horse? If you see yourself here, please read on. The first thing about being a business of one ( or "BOO," for those of you who just have to have initials) is having a plan. Huh? Think of your BOO plan as a script. What's the plot? Who are the actors? What's the tag line? What do you want it to look like? And all those other silly questions people will ask you at the café. We are great fans of Jim Horan (founder of The One Page Business Plan Company) and his "radical" idea that you can put everything that matters about your strategy on exactly one side of one piece of paper. Take our word for it, it can be done. And it should be done. This stuff really works. You can do it in one page; and if you can't, you're not clear enough yet about what you're doing, or why. Get to work on yourself, dude - check it out on the One Business Plan web site. The idea is really simple, if hard to do: set up a few clear, measurable goals, and then hold yourself accountable for achieving them. As the pundits say, if you can't measure it, you can't manage it. But if you do define clearly what you're want to do, and how you'll know you're doing it, the odds of achieving those goals goes way, way up. Okay, then, let's get real. You're going to need about 18 months to make the transition from corporate lackey to being your own stand-alone business operation. Start now, set aside one day a week (which probably means weekends or nights if you still have a job and paycheck that you depend on) and get at it. If you are on what we call a "self-funded sabbatical" (that's "out of work" or "on the street" in English), you might have to get an actual job while you put your BOO in place. Hey, workin' at Wally World for a while might be a pretty low-stress deal that gives you the mental room to get ready for doing what you really want. Oh, before we forget: don't go get a bunch of those "Secret to Success" or "How I Made a Fortune Online and Overnight" books. It's not all that helpful to listen to how others did their gig (and how many of 'em give you the real low-down anyway?). Do your own thing. What is it that floats your boat? What would you do even if you didn't make any money doin' it? That's your passion; that's what people will see. If on the other hand your ego demands a corner office, two Rolex's, and a six-figure car, go call Donald Trump and stop listening to us. So now you're working on a plan and might be off in la-la land. Let's face it, you probably know Jack-squat about running a business, let alone living your life that way. So what do business types do? They surround themselves with a small group of smart people that they trust - "trust" being the key word here. Let's call that group your personal Board of Directors. In a corporation the Board of Directors functions as a governance council. It's a place where long-term, strategic, and change-oriented decisions are made. Hopefully, the Board stays above the everyday foray of operations. It's a place were executives can go to seek counsel about significant and long-lasting actions that they're thinking about. And that's exactly what you need as you enter these unchartered waters. The Board is the place where you can go and ask questions and get advice or new knowledge to help guide you in your transition. Yeah, and the wife (or husband) says, "What's the difference between this group and your beer (or Cosmo) buddies"? Well, the basic difference is that this is a small group, usually no more than five to seven people, that you have deliberately sought out and brought together to help you build your BOO. By the way, they also have your permission to kick your butt when you get out of line. And their membership is not necessarily based on family, childhood friends, next-door neighbors, the workplace, or some other historical accident - unless those folks are a whole lot smarter and richer than you are today. What's the criteria for selecting members of your own personal Board of Directors? We think you need to look at the factors that can help you realize your full potential. Find people who have expertise in the areas critical to your business concept, who are compatible with you from a personality perspective, and who can offer some critical balance in areas that aren't your strong suit. You don't want a bunch of flunkies that think just like you do-they are called "Yes Men," and they'll lead you toward ruin quicker than a skunk squirtin' ol' Cooter. You need people who can advise you on personal decisions, crises of consciousness, and ethical matters too. Because sooner or later you are goin' to run into situations where you'll have to make a hard choice. Fire an idiot, tell a client to buzz off, or choose not to do business with an a**hole, even when you're desperate for income. You also need someone who's sensitive to the larger issues of the business community and personal finance - like how to handle money. And in addition you need someone who can help you improve continuously, like an educational adviser or a coach. Then we think you also need an older, wiser advisor. A mentor; a Dutch Uncle; or whatever. Someone who's been there, done that, and can keep you from making stupid mistakes. We also think believe there should be another person on your Board of Directors who is what we like to call a "Challenger." You need to have one very strong person who ultimately has your best-interests at heart, but will always challenge you to justify all those really critical decisions. So, here's the make-up of an ideal personal Board of Directors:
How in Sam Hill do you find these people? Sit down and go through your address book with a list of these roles and start to put names next to them. By doing that, you'll develop a good list of candidates. The next step is to interview them. Sit down with each of these people and explain to them what your BOO plan is and what you're up to. In short, recruit them; explain what role you'd like them to play, what you expect from them, and what you'll do for them in return. As strange as it may sound, this is not all that difficult to do. Our own experience has been that the kind of good people you want on your Board will be very receptive to this idea, thrilled by the concept, and actually honored that you asked them to play this new role in your BOO life. Selection of the final group of people for your Board should be completed only after you have shared with them the results of your own planning, including an honest assessment of your strong suit, your flat spots, and the risks you foresee. Finally, it comes down to your own courage about how strong you want this group of advisers to be. Have you got the guts to listen carefully, hear their concerns and suggestions, and react accordingly? It's time for that heart-to-heart talk with yourself on the back porch. This will be the group that might tell you not to enter into a particular business venture, to break off a relationship, or orchestrate some other significant event that you don't really want to confront. You are deliberately placing yourself in a position to benefit from external feedback and guidance that sometimes you won't want to hear or follow. So select these folks carefully, and make certain you are putting together a group that will offer you considerable diversity in approaches, ideas, and opinions. At the end of the day you want them to be motivated to help you improve and be continuously effective in your new career. How frequently should you seek them out, ask questions, and review with them the actions that you are contemplating? We think you should meet with your Board on just as regular a basis as you would with any other counselor. How often do you see your accountant? How often do you sit down with your attorney? (And don't answer, "As little as possible" - attorneys actually play an essential role in any new business.) Or perhaps, how often do you seek the advice of a minister, pastor, or other spiritual leader? You have your own rhythm to your decision-making process, and you should use your Board of Directors at the same pace and time frame. Now the tough part. How do you fire Board members if they aren't performing? You can certainly fire any of your directors at your discretion, and you have to be prepared to do just that if the situation calls for it. We recommend reviewing your needs and how well your board has been meeting them at least once a year. In the dynamic business environment we're in today, you may need to change out individual Board members even more often, to bring in different perspectives and backgrounds well ahead of the time you need to make decisions in particular areas. It's important to establish an understanding early on that your BOO's needs will change over time as it grows and evolves, and that no one should take membership decisions personally. Always be on the look out for people who can offer you advice for development in ways you can't even anticipate today. Your Board of Directors should operate as a dynamic guidance system that you can modify to meet your needs more effectively as time goes on. The Board is your gyroscope that will keep you on track, not some cushy title designed to make the individual Directors feel good. These are the very early first steps towards a BOO. There are obviously many more critical activities, like setting up an organization, learning how not to give it away (something we are still working on). And coverin' your butt from all those folks who will suddenly come out of the woodwork wanting to be your best friend. You might also want to go back and re-visit the Acme Business Worthiness scale we talked about in May of this year ("In Our Humble Opinion: Follow the Rule of Two (PDF)"). It's a good guide for figuring out who to stay in touch with, who to turn to for advice, and who to run - not walk - away from as fast as you can. This little conversation is getting far too serious now. Time for a break. Okay, we've given you the first two steps involved in turning yourself into a BOO. Do the plan and set up the Board. We've got lots more ideas when you're ready, willing, and able to hear 'em. Now, here's the real kicker in this whole concept: In Our Humble Opinion (we're ending the way we started) you should develop a personal plan and build a personal Board of Directors even if you aren't ready to kick the W2 habit and embrace the world of 1099's (for those of you living outside the US of A, those are tax forms - a handy way to distinguish between employees who get W2's at the end of each year, from self-employed "free agents" who report their income on 1099 forms). Even if you're still employed full-time, you can't count on that big ol' organization takin' care of you forever, or even for now. You've got to depend on the only resource you've got full control over - you. So consider yourself a BOO even if it's a stealth business hidden inside a full-time job. Plan your career, find some good advisors, and operate as a business of one even if the IRS (and your boss) thinks you're "just" a full-time wage slave. You won't regret, and when the day comes, and it will, you'll be ready to go. Please direct your comments to comments@thefutureofwork.net. We'd love to publish your reactions and suggestions. And thanks for listening. This issue of Future of Work Agenda was produced by Jim Ware and Charlie Grantham of the Work Design Collaborative. We encourage your comments, suggestions, and submission of materials for possible future publication. Please contact us at: Charlie Grantham, charlie@thefutureofwork.net To subscribe to Future of Work Agenda, register on our web site. Please pass this newsletter on to other interested individuals and encourage them to subscribe as well. The newsletter is free, and will remain free as long as possible. To end your subscription, send a message to newsletter@thefutureofwork.net and write Unsubscribe in the Subject line. For republication rights, contact Jim Ware at jim@thefutureofwork.net.
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