Sandy Schwan at Evolving Strategies, LLC

Know Thy Partner: Three Client Types and How to Work With Them

An interesting perspective to consider of the outset of each 'client' and / or organizational change.

Travelling for a While...

...be back soon! http://www.mytripjournal.com/Sandy_in_Lima_2009  

Scholarships for College and Graduate School

I am a huge fan of education and doing my part to support those looking to further their education. Afterall, education can lead to change! Apologies for this lengthy posting, but it is well worth it. Please send a link to this posting to others who may find this information helpful. - Sandy

SCHOLARSHIPS FOR COLLEGE AND GRAD SCHOOL

1) Bell Labs Fellowship For Underrepresented Minorities
 http://www.bell-labs.com/fellowships/CRFP/info.htm

2) Student Inventors Scholarships
 http://www.invent.org/collegiate

 3) Student Video Scholarships
 http://www.christophers.org/vidcon2k.html

4) Coca-Cola Two Year College Scholarship
s http://www.coca-colascholars.org/programs.html

5) Holocaust Remembrance Scholarships
 http://holocaust.hklaw.com/

6) Ayn Rand Essay Scholarships
 http://www.aynrand.org/contests/

7) Brand Essay Competition
http://www.instituteforbrandleadership.org/IBLEssayContest-2002Rules.htm

8) Gates Millennium Scholarships (major)
 http://www.gmsp.org/nominationmaterials/read.dbm?ID=12

9) Xerox Scholarships for Students
http://www2.xerox.com/go/xrx/about_xerox/about_xerox_detail.jsp

10) Sports Scholarships and Internships
http://www.ncaa.org/about/scholarships.html

11) National Assoc. of Black Journalists Scholarships (NABJ)
http://www.nabj.org/html/studentsvcs.html

12) Saul T. Wilson Scholarships (Veterinary)
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/mb/mrphr/jobs/stw.html

13) Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund
http://www.thurgoodmarshallfund.org/sk_v6.cfm

14) FinAid: The Smart Students Guide to Financial Aid scholarships)
http://www.finaid.org

5) Presidential Freedom Scholarships
http://www.nationalservice.org/scholarships/

16) Microsoft Scholarship Program
 http://www.microsoft.com/college/scholarships/minority.asp

17) WiredScholar Free Scholarship Search
http://www.wiredscholar.com/paying/scholarship_search/pay_scholarship_search.jsp

18) Hope Scholarships & Lifetime Credits
 http://www.ed.gov/inits/hope/

19) William Randolph Hearst Endowed Scholarship for Minority Students http://www.apsanet.org/PS/grants/aspen3.cfm

20) Multiple Lists of Minority Scholarships
 http://gehon.ir.miami.edu/financial-assistance/Scholarship/blackhtml

21) Guaranteed Scholarships
http://www.guaranteed-scholarships.com/

22) BOEING scholarships (someHBCU connects)
http://www.boeing.com/companyoffices/education%20%20relations/scholarships

23) Easley National Scholarship Program
http://www.naas.org/senior.htm

24) Maryland Artists Scholarships
 http://www.maef.org/

26) Jackie Tuckfield Memorial Graduate Business Scholarship (for AA students in South Florida)
 http://www.jackituckfield.org/

27) Historically Black College & University Scholarships
 http://www.iesabroad.org/info/hbcu.htm

28) Actuarial Scholarships for Minority Students
http://www.beanactuary.org/minority/scholarships.htm

29) International Students Scholarships & Aid Help
http://www.iefa.org/

30) College Board Scholarship Search
http://cbweb10p.collegeboard.org/fundfinder/html/fundfind01.html

31) Burger King Scholarship Program
http://www.bkscholars.csfa.org/

32) Siemens Westinghouse Competition
http://www.siemens-foundationorg/

33) GE and LuLac Scholarship Funds
 http://www.lulac.org/Programs/Scholar.html

34) CollegeNet's Scholarship Database
 http://mach25.collegenet.com/cgi-bin/M25/index

35) Union Sponsored Scholarships and Aid
http://www.aflcioorg/scholarships/scholar.htm

36) Federal Scholarships & Aid Gateways 25 Scholarship Gateways from Black Excel http://www.blackexcel.org/25scholarships.htm

37) Scholarship & Financial Aid Help
 http://www.blackexcel.org/fin-sch.htm

38) Scholarship Links (Ed Finance Group)
 http://www.efg.net/link_scholarship.htm

39) FAFSA On The Web (Your Key Aid Form &Info)
 http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/

40) Aid &Resources For Re-Entry Students
 http://www.back2college.com/

41) Scholarships and Fellowships
 http://www.osc.cuny.edu/sep/links.html

42) Scholarships for Study in Paralegal Studies
http://www.paralegals.org/Choice/2000west.htm

43) HBCU Packard Sit Abroad Scholarships (for study around the world) http://www.sit.edu/studyabroad/packard_nomination.html

44) Scholarship and Fellowship Opportunities
http://ccmi.uchicago.edu/schl1.html

45) INROADS internships
 http://www.inroads.org/

46) NAACP Scholarships
http://www.naacp.org/work/actso/act-so.shtml

47) Black Alliance for Educational Options Scholarships
 http://www.baeo.org/options/privatelyfinanced.jsp

48) ScienceNet Scholarship Listing
http://www.sciencenet.emory.edu/undergrad/scholarships.html

49) Graduate Fellowships For Minorities Nationwide
http://cuinfo.cornell.edu/Student/GRFN/list.phtml?category=MINORITIES

50) RHODES SCHOLARSHIPS AT OXFORD
 http://www.rhodesscholar.org/info.html

51) The Roothbert Scholarship Fund
 http://www.roothbertfund.com/

Who Knew? Dust Off Your Pandemic Plans...You Have One, Right?

I just spent two years helping a global financial institution develop and deploy its pandemic preparedness initiative. Lots of folks didn't quite understand why preparing for a pandemic was necessary. Some thought we were downright crazy.

But here we are, with that plan being put to use much sooner than many expected.

Here's to the leaders at this client who believed in the importance of proactive risk management and planning....

“Men are anxious to improve their circumstances, but are unwilling to improve themselves; they therefore remain bound.” — James Allen, 1864-1912, English literary man of mystery and unrewarded genius

The smart folks at Vital Smarts and the MIT Sloane Management Review recently released a study on the root causes for the shockingly high failure rate of cross-functional projects and programs. Estimates are that as many as 80 percent of strategic initiatives, IT projects, corporate programs, and the like are awful disappointments. For example, four years ago, the world watched as Gustav Humbert, the CEO of Air Bus, was dismissed from his job in shame when the A380 aircraft missed its delivery date by more than a year. The worst of it was that the announcement of the delay happened on the day the plane was due! Makes you scratch your head in wonder that this information did not seem to be available to Mr. Humbert any sooner than the minute he was supposed to unveil the engineering marvel to the world. What was going on?

The study identified five early warning signs of project failure. How companies handle these five issues predicts with up to 85 percent precision how well they achieve critical results. In fact, if the people at these organizations handle any of these crucial issues poorly, the odds of the project being delayed, of quality being compromised, and of costs escalating are better than 70 percent. Not good.

1. Fact-Free Planning — Commitments to deadlines and limits on resources are made with little consideration for the real demands of the project.
2. AWOL Sponsors — The executive sponsor of a project is not leading as s/he should. S/he is not showing up for meetings, holding people accountable, or walking the talk.
3. Skirting — Powerful leaders bypass agreed upon decision-making processes or quality gates in ways that are allowing scope creep or putting commitments at risk.
4. Project Chicken — Critical aspects of the project are going over schedule or running over budget and it's not politically popular to admit it. Instead, people play "chicken"—letting things get closer to the deadline without acknowledging problems.
5. Team Failures — Key members of the project team are not competent or do not follow through on their commitments.

ACTION:

• In your project plans, remember to give the right level of focus on the people aspect of the project. Confirm sponsor commitment and what 'commitment' means to project success.
• Make one of the first steps in your project a "Roles and Responsibilities" list. In organizational (or project team) design 101, a fundamental reason why teams don't work effectively is because it is not clear who is doing what. Make it clear – write it down and discuss with everyone on that list.
• Raise issues as soon as you identify them. I think we all know that it is much more effective to handle issues when they are spark vs. a full-blown wildfire.
• Get clear on how people, groups are to be held accountable for this project. This is tricky, but if you get this agreement upfront, it gives you the leverage to question accountability should something go awry.

Adapted from Vital Smarts, 2009.

Self-Service Employee Engagement During Organizational Change

"If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain." Maya Angelou

Lots of interest and answers exists in how to engage employees. How are those solutions working? I am not sure, but I am thinking of a way to guarantee its success: self-service employee engagement.

One of the books I am reading currently states that "many studies have revealed that the average person possesses from 500 to 700 different skills and abilities." Wow – that is quite a large number to work with. And, it sounds like a great platform to use in helping to know that there is no lack of new ways to think about personally engage and navigate through organizational change successfully.

Going through organizational change can be frustrating. Actually, I will guarantee that you will experience frustration at some time during the change. When working with clients, I may hear questions like these regarding the managing change:

• When is 'it' going to be over, to stop?
• Why should I do anything or pay attention to anything since things are going to change again in six months?
• I am so frustrated. Just tell me what to do, and I will go do it.
• Why can't I just do my job the same way I've been doing it for the past 25 years?

How about if you decide to take the bull by the horns (yep, that is my southern heritage coming out loud and clear) and choose ways that you can win in the game of managing change? Why not think about the skills you want to show your company or skills you want to further develop? There are a lot of unknowns during organizational change, so try to define the shaping and engaging of your involvement.

ACTION

1. Make a list of activities that you enjoy doing. These activities can be in your professional or personal life (i.e., managing a family requires significant management and organizational skills, patience and flexibility to name a few!).
2. Identify five to fifteen skills that are required to do that activity well.
3. Think about how you can apply either one or many of those skills to guide you and others through the current organizational change your company is under-going.
4. Give your ideas a try.

In the end, you and your company – or team, family, organization, school, etc. – will win. Victims need not apply.

Pace Your Expectations During Organizational Change

"Generosity is more fun. That's the key." Robert Thurman (1941 – ), American scholar and Buddhist monk

 

Is it really possible to have fun during an organizational change that feels like is turning your world upside down? You bet.

 

What if – with your effort, your smile or your ear, your supervisory / management / leadership skills, etc. – you focused more on the upside of the change? Giving a smile to someone doesn't cost a thing. Nor does lending your ear. Nor does writing an email to help someone needing some guidance. We are all informal leaders. Why not tap into that skill set during change and see what happens?

 

These and other simple actions on your part will result in you finding more come your way. It will. It may not always happen as quickly as you'd like, but it's the better bet in the long run.

 

I realize that just smiling does not make change easy all of the sudden. But, it can and will assist you in ways you haven't even thought of.

      

ACTION

• Smile an extra three times every day this week.
• Check in with a colleague to see what's going on and offer a kind or helpful word. This is as simple as asking how s/he is and stopping to listen to the response.
• Find a junior person who seems to be struggling with the change a bit and exercise your management skills. Let him/her know that change will also happen and is necessary to learn and grow.
• Ask your manager or the team leading the organizational change how you can help. Whew – this is a great way to position yourself for long-term success while having all kinds of fun along the way.

 

Pace your expectations on how fast organizational change will occur. Set a positive example by giving of yourself a bit more. Then. . .enjoy more.

Loss: A Learning Opportunity with a Specific Purpose

"Should you shield the canyons from the windstorms, you would never see the beauty of their carvings." Dr. Elisabeth Kubler Ross, 1926-2004, Swiss-born psychiatrist and author

I have friends and family that are experiencing difficult losses of family pets. I've been revisiting Kubler Ross' five stages of grief to help me get a better sense of where these folks are in the grieving process so that I may better support them through each stage.

Brushing up on this model reflects what some of what my clients are experiencing. A merger of two companies with two distinctly separate cultures into one company and one culture doesn't happen overnight. People need to experience the Denial – Anger – Bargaining – Depression – Acceptance of the 'death' of their original company before accepting and embracing their new company.

Remembering to include organizational change frameworks and time to allow employees to move through this process. Don't fault them for their feelings. Instead take the time to learn how to assist in guiding them through the stages, if appropriate.

I'll end with another impactful quote from EKR:

"You will not grow if you sit in a beautiful flower garden, but you will grow if you are sick, if you are in pain, if you experience losses, and if you do not put your head in the sand, but take the pain as a gift to you with a very, very specific purpose."

ACTION: If you are experiencing an organizational change, develop a list of ten possible purposes / opportunities for you to learn in this change. The purpose is there...and it is up to you to find it.

Trust Your Instinct...& the African Hornbill Bird & Dwarf Mongoose

"Both work together, or network, to accomplish their individual objectives." Is this quote referring to the success of a recent merger? Not quite. The author was referencing the relationship between the dwarf mongoose and the African hornbill bird.

Check out William E. Boswell's book Success by Instinct: Use What Animals Already Know to Boost Your Career. Boswell, a former senior executive with BP America, and one of the company's highest ranking African Americans, presents an thought-provoking approach to managing change, including personal career development. Instead of the usual dos and don'ts, Boswell offers 14 practical principles based on the instincts found in the animal kingdom which are also used by businesspeople, sportsmen, and world leaders alike to tremendous success.

Here is a sampling of Boswell's principles for success through instinct:

Acknowledge that adaptability is essential for an effective transition, organizational shift or change

Establish goals to add direction, purpose, focus and meaning to the change you are facing

Recognize that teamwork is essential to accomplish goals

Maintain knowledge of organizational environmental issues, and ensure compatibility with your personal values 

By the way, going with your gut does not mean that data and research are not important. Trusting your instinct means considering factors that may not always be easily quantifiable but are still quite important. Depending on the situation, you will need to be careful to avoid the confirmation bias trap. More on confirmation bias in my next posting.

Try not to get stuck in the analysis paralysis. Be quiet and listen to your gut instinct.

Change is the only evidence of life.
—Evelyn Waugh (1903-1966), English novelist