When the results exceed all expectations...

The White Orchid Ball, which I mentioned in my last post, was held last weekend.




Originally planning on hosting 250 people, the size of the function was extended on at least 2 occasions that I know of, with a final head count on the night of 390!

This extraordinary result can be put down to the extraordinary effort of Emma and her organising committee.

What was fascinating to observe was the interaction between the various generations - X, Y, boomers - the lot - and the volunteers who worked with the employed officials of Cancer Council Queensland. These people all worked tirelessly to make this event the success that it was. Originally, it was hoped that the function would raise $20,000-$30,000 for breast cancer support, but a rough tally at the end of the night came in at around $35,000!

Your humble correspondent can also report to that the audience - those wonderful people who bought tickets to the ball (not cheap!), raffle tickets, bid on the Grand Auction (run by Grand Auctioneer Cr Eddie Sarroff, shown above right), took part in the silent auction, as well as having a great time - came from every representative generational group!

They were very responsive, recognised a good cause, and their enthusiasm was infectious.

We can hardly wait until next year.

Harry

A little more on passion and commitment

I've had the opportunity in recent times to work with a Bright Young Thing named Emma in the organisation of a charity ball to raise funds for breast cancer research. A bonus for me in this activity is that I have been asked to act as Master of Ceremonies for the function.

Emma is an articulate, intelligent and energetic 21-year-old who took on this task, a task that had been her mother's for over a decade until her mum succumbed to the disease.

The experience has been an absolute delight; the passion and commitment to this cause is so great, the energy being shown to overcome any obstacles or prejudices ("but how do you know that you are going to get enough people to cover costs?" - An actual venue manager) and the unbridled enthusiasm with which each and every facet of this huge undertaking is approached is a valuable lesson to all.

The lesson is this: even if you don't have the experience or the knowledge to undertake a project, with attitudes like those described above and a willingness to ask questions (and therefore learn) you can make a success of any activity.

You can find more information on the White Orchid Ball at http://thewhiteorchidball.org/

Harry

Watching commitment and passion at work...

The 20th century writer and anthropologist Margaret Mead said, "never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has".

This quotation came to mind while I was in front of a workshop of Bright Young Things in Sydney this week.

Entitled "A Career, not just a Job", the workshop is an annual event at which I have presented since it was first run in 1999. Organised by the Australasian Mutuals Institute, the professional development body of the credit union and building society industry, the workshop is for those individuals with only a short time in the industry, but whose managers have recognised their talent and ability and see a bright future for them - people who can and will make a real contribution.

What a joy it was to participate with these talented and articulate people. Listening to their opinions, discussing their jobs, their employers and the issues surrounding their career development exposed us all to passion, commitment that augurs well for this "5th pillar" in the financial services market in Australia.

Their attentiveness and respect for those industry representatives who accepted invitations to share their inspiring work histories demonstrated the calbre of people who will be the next generation of leaders: worthy successors to the generation that they had just been listening to.

They finished the day not only fired up (as happens at most workshops), but with a commitment to a personal action plan for the next 30/60/90 days.

Did they have a great day? You bet. But these are people of substance. They came away with things to do, and I have no doubt that they will get done.

Harry

A Tale of Three Bright Young Things (and a man in a tux!)

It was a flat tyre. I couldn't believe my luck. A perfect storm of events...

I was coming home from a formal function in the city last week. It was late, had been raining, and I was all gussied up - white mess jacket, bow tie - you get the picture. As I drove down Edward St I heard the familiar thunk thunk of a flat, so I pulled over, turned on my hazard lights and started to open the boot and extract the (now) familiar equipment.

Just as reached the boot, three BYTs, two guys and a girl, stopped and asked me if they could help. I initially said "no, thanks" but they insisted. The young lady (Grace by name, grace by nature) said that she had always wanted to learn how to change a tyre, and this was her chance. Given the way I was dressed (like a penguin) and the memory that the last time this happened (again at 11.30pm and dressed in tails!) I decided to take them up on their generous offer.

I just hoped they weren't helping because they considered me an old fella (when did my hair go from brown curls to salt & pepper grizzled? :))

In the twenty minutes that it took to change the flat I discovered that their names were Andrew, Grace and Kyle (hope I got that right) and that they were on their way to a 21st celebration at the casino. I offered to buy them a drink when they had finished but they wouldn't have a bar of it. The least I can do is tell their story - and mine. I mentioned in the latest edition of The Boss's Guide to Bright Young Things that 30%+ of volunteers in the philanthropy sector are Gen Y. It's the same attitude that saw these 3 BYTs stop and offer assistance to a stranger. So, the next time you need an illustrator (Andrew), a photographer (Grace) or a nurse studying to be an economist (Kyle, what???) drop me an email and I'll put you on to them!

To you guys, thanks again. I have little doubt that people like you will run the world and do a better job than the people who came before you.

Incidentally, just as we were packing up another group of 3 BYTs came up (also two guys & a girl ????) and asked if we needed any help. They were quite distraught that they weren't needed.

There's no fluke in that!

An open letter to Frank Lowy

Dear Frank

I have always been a great admirer of you and the way you have conducted your life. Your story is one of inspiration, success and philanthropy. However, I have been taking notice of some disturbing trends in your shopping centres and malls and would like to bring some points to your attention.

Firstly, when I go in to a shopping centre, I do not expect to be pounced upon by traders from kiosks who "just want to ask me a question" (as if that's all they want!). Now, when I go in to a marketplace full of traders I expect that kind of behaviour and often look forward to some bartering and banter. In the more genteel surroundings of your centre I expect to be left alone until I go in to a retailer. This idea of trying to extract every dollar for every square metre of floor space, including the corridors is ludicrous and results in people wanting to spend less time in your centres than more, which I imagine would be your objective.

Secondly, following the same theme of RoI on floor space, do you have a ratio of access to goods in the leases of your tenants? If not, why not? Your leases cover all sorts of things like opening hours, regular refurbishments etc to maximise the shoppers' experience, but many retailers are so cluttered there's little room for the customers to move around the store. This seems to be the SOP for many if not most of your tenants - and that includes the big grocery stores! When was the last time you went in to a newsagent?

Finally, I would like to suggest that your shopping centres should value-add rather than look for some extra way to raise some minor revenue. I'm talking about your WiFi initiative. For $2.00 an hour a customer can connect up to Westfield's wireless network. Big deal. Don't you think you'd receive more kudos (and ultimately more and happy customers) by providing WiFi for free? Many retailers and retail chains as well as hotels - particularly in the US - already do so. Given the buying power of the Westfield Group I would imagine that your costs in the area would be negligible. Yes, I know that some people, like poor students, would attempt to abuse it but you're clever... do what they do in the US... kick them off after an hour or two and don't let them back on again for an hour. The sign says that they're doing that so that people can enjoy the sunshine & fresh air, but we know better ~wink~

In short, here are three examples of short term thinking that if ditched would lead to long term gain. The reason that people go to shopping centres is for convenience. The reason that you want them to say as long as they can is so that they will continue driving the wheels of commerce. The reason they don't is because the environment isn't as convenient and welcoming as it should be!

Regards

Harry

Good manners? Good business!

Busy people (like yourselves) may not get an opportunity too often to observe and analyse the retail transaction. I also suffer from a dearth of time and tend to "zip in and out" of shops and malls (more on that for a later post).

However, I have noticed a distinct lack of common courtesy amongst retail staff, and have developed an instinctive almost Pavlovian response to the absence of "please" & "thank you".

Case Number 1: On a number of occasions I have been asked by a member of the family to "pick up a muffin" on the way out of the shopping centre. The locale in question is a franchise operation (which I shall not name, giving them a "break" :)) and each time I have been there I have been served by a spotty teenager (escapee from The Simpsons?) who simply replies "Four dollars" to my request for a choc chip muffin. When he hands me the bag I hand him a fiver with the retort "Four dollars please". He says sheepily "four dollars please" and then hands me my change and says "thank you".

This has been going on (off and on) for weeks. I'll not give up hope (yet).

Case Number 2: I walked in to a newsagent on Saturday and picked up a magazine (a rarity in these times of lotto and scratch-its, I know). The young lady behind the counter said "Eight ninety-five", which sounded like "Eight nahnty-fahve" - in her best plummy private school tones.

I replied, "you mean eight ninety-five please, don't you?" and she just looked at me like I'd grown a second head! It was a very My Fair Lady moment: it doesn't matter what you say, as long as you say it correctly! Pretending she hadn't heard me. she asked me if I wanted a bag.

"Yes please," I replied, smiled sweetly and left. There is much work to be done. Obviously common courtesy is no longer common practice!

Retailers (especially franchisees) please note: Every interaction between the customer and your staff should leave the customer delighted. Anything else is a wasted opportunity.

Harry

iPad2 review - is it worth it?

When the iPad was released in April 2010, I had pre-ordered a top of the line device. Apple, being the corporate control freaks they are, had arranged that the tablet would be available in it's stores, resellers' outlets and delivered all on the same day.

Now, that made for a great media spectacle, with plenty of lines outside shops playing on the TV news, but in my case the delivery was made at around 5.50pm that day - and I had to leave at 6pm for a meeting. Still, the device was so easy to set up that I left it plugged in to my PC with the iTunes sync function uploading some 3000+ songs, 5000+ pictures, series of Rumpole, The Sopranos, The West Wing and a few stray movies. I knew that would take a couple of hours.

Did Apple learn anything from that exercise? Apparently not. This time with the release of the iPad 2 they didn't even bother taking pre-orders, so that whatever stock was shipped on the day was all that there was. Fortunately, I was in the city for the day at a strategic planning workshop, so that when I wandered down to a retailer that I knew would be receiving stock, and was tucked away such that they would be ignored by most people. A leisurely coffee later, I entered the shop, browsed for a while and then had a queue form behind me to pick up a new iPad 2.

While the TV showed that night 500+ people queuing outside the Apple shop at Chersmide, there were probably 25-30 people where I was. The iPad was released at 5pm. I was out of there, iPad in hand at 5.10pm!

So, is it worth having?

After two days of on-and-off testing, playing, configuring and comparing to the first generation I'd have to say yes. Why? Well, it's faster - maybe not the twice as fast as Apple touts, but enough to be noticeable. The dual core processor also means that there are less interrupts as you multi task. It's certainly thinner and that's a plus. I don't think that 15% lighter is that noteworthy, but if the iPad 3 does have the carbon fibre shell that's been rumoured that will make a huge difference.

Nonetheless, it is useful as a business tool. I keep all my papers - board, committee, agendas, constitutions, rulings & decisions etc - on the device. I can add or modify any contact, appointment, note or file on any of my devices. It automatically syncs those entries and backs up every time I connect it to my PC. I have the iPad password protected, and more sensitive documents protected by two factor authentication.

By using Apple's "MobileMe" facility, appointments made on my PC, iPhone or iPad are all automatically synced. However, the most important feature of this service (to my peace of mind) is the "find me" feature. If any of my portable devices are stolen or lost I can locate them via GPS or I can wipe all the data remotely if need be.

I'm not a big fan of the "Cult of Jobs". I think devices that run the iOS operating system (iPhone, iPod, iPad) are the state of the art - the best of breed - and that's why I use them. In my opinion a PC running Windows 7 is a better business tool for many applications. Using a combination of the different technologies is a lethal combination!

Harry