Bots have become an important part of human life both, at the personal and professional front and their involvement is climbing new peaks with every passing day. They surround us in our daily life in the form of Artificial Intelligence, Search Engines, and Software. Part of it has also paved way for smarter and efficient revenue management for hotels fuelling the debate that whether humans should be entirely replaced with bots for this complex round the clock function. Although the practice may be at a nascent stage to draw conclusions, it has definitely made a mark in the realm of the hospitality industry and has become an indispensable part of any hotel revenue management.

Artificial Intelligence powered robots can analyse and synthesize large chunks of hotel data collected at various touch points in a fraction of seconds to present meaningful insights about the booking pattern, demand, guest behaviour which is impossible to be collected or processed by any amount of human workforce with the same efficiency as bots. It will not be an exaggeration to say that the Artificial Intelligence has sort of revolutionized the hospitality industry across the globe, enabling every business to improve on multiple fronts like hotel pricing, price optimization, revenue management, guest experience management, booking management, demand and even capacity optimization of properties.

Furthermore, these bots are also capable of analysing trends and trace upcoming events in the town to estimate the rise in demand, providing enough room for revenue managers to tweak the pricing and availability instead of fire fighting the situation at the last minute.

Leading hotels have already started betting big on AI powered bots and poised to explore newer ways to make bots a part of their business operations. One significant advantage bots have over humans is that they can work tirelessly 24X7 with the same precision. Hotel industry requires attention 24X7 and is one of the most dynamic industries with continuous fluctuations in trends, demand, and prices. That is where these robust machines have huge value to add to the revenue management realm. These invisible machines can not only quickly determine the best rates at a particular time for your property, (room rate optimization) but also advise the revenue managers on which segment to target and the kind of promotional offers to be run to maximize the revenue.

Another major area where hotels continue to hustle is direct bookings. Hotels have been continuously trying to improve booking numbers on their own website since OTA commissions are touching skies, eating up a major revenue share of hotels. Hotels would be surprised to know that even in this area, bots can improve their game and help increase the number of bookings by a decent percentage. With advanced learning capabilities and rigorous analysis of visitor’s purchasing behaviour, AI powered bots can refine the visitor experience and personalize every visitor’s journey to their needs and interests. This increases visitor engagement and reduces the cycle time of purchase leading to conversion on the hotel website itself.

This again brings us to the juncture that whether revenue managers can be gradually replaced by bots completely risking their roles and jobs in the industry altogether. The answer is obviously NO since these micro machines can only process and analyse only a set number of parameters in their decision and often neglect external market influences that may not be considered by such bots but are easily identifiable only by human revenue managers and this acumen is gained by experience.

Therefore, the ideal mix should be machine results mediated and supervised by human revenue managers. For e.g., Pricing is one area which could be automated with a reasonable amount of diligence and control of the revenue manager. Similarly, online reputation management can also be monitored with technology; however, a personalised approach will take you a long way. The key is to automate the processes that require minimum human intervention and involve human where necessary. This will help revenue managers to don more hats at the same time like exploring more avenues to maximize per guest earning and focus on other revenue increasing strategies.

Thus, witnessing the scenarios discussed above, we can conclude that the status of the bots is of a companion to revenue managers instead of a successor who will complement them at every step with razor fast information and analysis of the market and competition, enabling revenue managers to take informed decisions in no time and help them optimize revenues and drive the hotel towards new milestones of success.

Finding the right person to fill the sales management role is a common quandary in wholesale distribution. It can be especially challenging when a decision is based strictly on sales territory performance without regard for the specific skill sets required to lead a sales force.. 2005 has been a good year in wholesale distribution with some industries recording double digit growth rates. With market cooperation like that, most sales people are smiling as they hit or exceed their quotas. Deciding on the right sales person to promote to sales manager can become a difficult and risky decision..

“We need a new sales manager. Let’s promote Tommy, he’s our leading producer in field sales.”

“No! We can’t afford to lose Tommy’s production in the field.”

“That’s not a problem. He can be a working sales manager and still call on his key accounts.”

Most of us should recognize that conversation but not many of us recognize the fallacies that lie within it. In wholesale distribution, it seems that the primary prerequisite for becoming a sales manager is being the top performing sales person. Promoting our top performing sales person to sales manager simply due to results is a big mistake. Personal experience tells me it has less than a forty percent chance for success. Our chance of success is decreased even further if we really believe that our sales manager can manage the sales force and still be solely responsible for a number of high volume accounts.

Different Skill Sets

It is an undisputable fact that different skill sets are required to become a successful sales manager as compared to being a successful sales person. Selling is a profession that requires professionals. Managing a group of professionals with the type of personalities required to succeed in sales is no easy task. Yet, in my humble opinion, it is probably the most important management position you can hold in a company. Sales management holds the key to meeting company objectives. Effective sales management builds the platform for success. Sales people are not the easiest group in the company to manage. If they were they would not be sales people. Selling is not easy. It takes a special talent, self motivation, self discipline, a passion to succeed and the ability to accept rejection. The reality of the situation is simple. The majority of sales people are not managed well. Let’s look at some common sales management mistakes to help us develop the list of hints I promised that will increase your ability to determine which sales person at your company is likely to succeed as sales manager.

Mistake —– Low tolerance for process.

Let’s face it, there probably isn’t a sales person alive that likes paperwork and administrative tasks. However, a Super Star Sales Manager will be process oriented. They understand that success in sales is driven by best practice and best practice is built around process. Sales effectiveness depends on predictable and repeatable best practice. The Super Star Sales Manager will create the kind of culture that negates the inherent aberration by sales people for process, structure, detailed and documented action planning.

HINT #1

If your star sales person embraces structure, pays attention to detail, is always current with required communications, documents his action planning process and doesn’t whine about administrative requirements passed down by corporate, chances are he/she will have a high tolerance for process. This means he/she possesses a basic understanding of structure and accountability. Everything isn’t locked up in their head just because they have been doing it a long time and have had great success.

Mistake —– Weak coaching and mentoring skills

Relationship equity is still a primary ingredient for sales success. However, relationship equity with the customer is quite different than relationship equity with peers, subordinates and executive management. A Super Star Sales Manager will build enough relationship equity with their sales force to be able to provide effective coaching and mentoring in reviewing the sales person’s activities. They understand that you must manage activities and measure results. This coaching and mentoring process includes buddy calls, monthly territory reviews that provide support and resources to leverage individual sales talent. This process includes opportunity recognition and pipeline management. What does the sales person have in the pipeline? Can the sales manager provide proactive support and resources to increase the chance of success?

Hint #2

If your star sales person is reluctant to accept or seek out help, this may be an indication of the Lone Wolf methodology. Maximizing territory performance requires a team effort. Utilization of all resources and support is mandatory to grow market share and maximize profitability. Look for the sales person that is successful but recognizes that they are not alone. Look for the sales person that shares the credit for success, coaches the inside sales staff, recognizes the contributions of customer service personnel and others in the organization. This sales person has also gained the respect of his peers and is often seen giving advice and sharing ideas.

Mistake —- Lack of development programs and leadership skills training

Leadership skills are extremely important to effective sales management. This is especially true when managing a sales force that leans more to the route mentality, is in a comfort zone, becomes complacent or is focusing on demand fulfillment as opposed to demand creation. The ability to recognize the need to adapt your management style not only to the situation but also to the individual is a key to gaining respect and trust from the sales force. This is a learned skill. Failure to seek out leadership skills training can be detrimental to success. A prerequisite to success in sales management is the ability to recognize talent and develop that talent. A Super Star Sales Manager will recognize talent and is willing to help develop that talent to reach its highest potential. They also prune the garden effectively. This means they hire well but fire even better. Failure to formalize a development program for sales management is a big mistake.

Hint #3

If your star sales person is not interested in attending seminars, doesn’t listen to self development tapes and hasn’t read a sales book in the past year, chances are they believe they are as good as they are going to get. Look for the sales person that is willing to be away from his territory, sacrificing commissions to increase his individual knowledge. This is the type of sales person that is a sponge when it comes to continuing education in the fields of sales. This person not only seeks company sponsored training but is willing to invest his own money and time in self improvement activities. They have a philosophy of continuous self improvement striving to be the very best that they can be.

Mistake —- A Member of “The Lucky Territory Club”

Numbers alone don’t always tell the story. We need to analyze each individual success story. Just because a sales territory has performed well doesn’t automatically mean the sales person is a star. A ten percent sales growth sounds great but how good is it if the potential growth for that territory should be in the twenty or thirty per cent range. A ten percent sales growth in that territory sounds great but how good is it if the market in that territory actually grew by thirty percent and the sales person was in a comfort zone walking by opportunities daily.

Hint #4

When evaluating your star sales person for potential promotion, analyze the numbers thoroughly. Is the sales person the real reason for that territory success? Are the numbers as good as they appear when you consider all the factors? Determine how this territory was established. Is this sales person responsible for the long term growth of this territory or did they inherit it. Analyze new account development in this territory. Evaluate this sales persons prospecting skills. How many new accounts have been developed in the territory? What kind of penetration success has been demonstrated with existing accounts?

Hint #5

Look for the sales person that has the ability to think strategically. They are willing to sacrifice personal gain for the benefit of long term company success. (A rare quality). A sales person that may be a maverick and shoot from the hip occasionally but every risk they take is a calculated risk. Their personal objectives for territory performance are in alignment with the company’s strategic objectives in relationship to product development,, segmentation, vendor development and margin initiatives. Look for the sales person that has good communication skills internally, one that has learned to listen exceptionally well, a skill that often eludes some of the best sales personnel.

If you are ready to promote your star sales person to sales manager, pay attention to the hints listed in this article. If your star sales person measures up according to the factors discussed in this article, your chance of success increases dramatically. That means your Super Star Sales Person can become your Super Star Sales Manager. If they don’t measure up according to the hints discussed, look deeper into your sales organization for that sales manager or go outside the organization. There is no such thing as entitlement. Remember, different skill sets are required to be an effective sales manager.

Project management is an important field of study. Many universities and colleges around the world offer different graduate and post graduate level degrees in this field. In order to apply for these degree courses people need to have a certain level of skills, knowledge, aptitude and maturity. A professional in this field needs to take a lot of difficult decisions on a regular basis and so, it is important that he or she has a high EQ or emotional quotient, which is required to take unbiased decisions. The project management degree courses do provide training to the individuals for acquiring a higher EQ.

The project managers are employed in different private and public companies and even in government organizations where they have to take care of different projects, meant for the development of the community or the society at large. Over a period of time, the demand for degree courses in this field, has increased by leaps and bounds. In order to meet this increase in demand, many new management institutions were established which started offering both online and offline degrees, diplomas and other courses in the field of project management. These institutions also offer certification courses as well and these courses are conducted online.

Professionals who successfully complete these degrees are hired by different industries and even by governmental bodies to handle several nationwide projects. In private companies the projects are often of small scale and they last for a short period of time. They are often aimed at improving the performance of the company or improving its sales and revenues. In government projects, the aim is mainly to achieve long term results and the projects include a lot of resources, man power and revenue. They are people who can make a difference to the success of the organization, both in the public and the private sector.

Many managers, working in managerial positions across the industries, open opt for certification courses in project management. These courses help the professionals in getting more responsibilities and a better profile in their respective organizations. With the skills and knowledge acquired through these courses, the managers can responsively and effectively handle different projects which are introduced in their companies. Many government officials also undergo training in this field of study from time to time as these officials have to supervise many large scale projects. Thus, project management degree and certification courses are always in demand.

Main tasks

In order to become a project manager, one would require having a certain amount of experience and knowledge, including a thorough study of the techniques of project management, problem solving, outstanding characteristics of leadership and excellent communication skills. The degree courses in this field of study will help the student in acquiring a clear understanding of the responsibilities, duties and roles of a project manager.

The main tasks of the project manager include:

• Process planning and scheduling of detail,
• Organize efficiently and effectively the human resources at its disposal,
• Facilitate communication and the understanding of the project team,
• Allocate resources and monitor activities on the course,
• periodically carry out the process of monitoring, reporting to the steering committee the progress of works and estimates of completion, anticipating the needs of any particular intervention or review contracts,
• Participate in the steering committee and implement the decisions,
• Take all necessary actions to prevent risks,
• Liaise with users and end users reference planning and involvement in various activities of the project,
• Produce the documentation of its jurisdiction and oversee that produced by the team project,
• Check the quality of the partial products and ensure that quality standards adopted are respected,
• Provide for the accounting of resources on behalf of his company (your provider),
• After the close of the project, providing for the summary task,
• Always have a special focus on process improvement project.

Generally, when a project draws to a closure, the tension often tends to drop, so that group members sometimes diminish the pace of their efforts in tackling the latest project deadlines. Inevitably, people start thinking about the next assignment, even if they are required to address new or urgent needs of the project. Even in this case, the project manager has a crucial strategic role, providing encouragement to the team for staying focused on successfully completing the project.

Methodological approaches

In all project management degrees, diplomas and training courses, the different methods or methodological approaches used by project managers to complete a project is given a lot of importance.

This field consists of different methodological approaches adopted for the management of a project, including agile approaches, interactive, incremental and based on pre-defined sequence of steps.

Many of them refer to the PMBOK developed by the Project Management Institute and are universally recognized by management institutes, corporate giants and educational institutes.

Development phases of a project

Whichever approach is used, particular attention should be given to the setting of clear goals / objectives of the project and their implications, including a clear definition of roles and responsibilities of all actors involved, including contractors, is of decisive importance for the success of the project.

In the case of very complex projects (for example in the case of a set of related projects) and in cases where significant impacts of projects on these organizations and their processes are known, the project must be conducted with a more global approach, acting in terms of change management that focuses on managing the impact of human and organizational transformation within a business context and / or social.

Among the main existing approaches include:

The classical approach which is actually represented by the orthodoxy of the PMBOK developed by the Project Management Institute and which are connected with other frameworks;

The Rational Unified Process (RUP) consists of a framework for the iterative development of software products created by Rational Software Corporation;

The approach of Critical Chain (Chain / critical path) that focuses on resource availability as well as the logical dependencies between the activities of the project;

Approaches to project management based on processes (Process-based management) that are derived from a generalization of the concept of project control.

I recently hosted a tele-seminar which afforded aspiring screenwriters from all over the world the opportunity to listen to an insightful and stimulating discussion about screenwriting as a professional, and the opportunity to ask questions.

Among the number of questions presented and addressed in this forum, the age-old question among screenwriters once again reared its ugly head.

“I’ve emailed a number of managers and agents seeking representation, but have not heard back from anyone. What’s the trick to securing a good agent or manager to represent me and my screenplays?”

The trick?

There is no trick. The answer lies in your introduction, your very first writing sample, and most importantly (drum roll please )your logline.

As an aspiring writer there are a vast number of tools which can aid you in the pursuit of representation, I will focus your attention here on one — the query letter.

Some representatives delegate the trifling task of reading incoming queries to an assistant or intern. But, truth is most representatives do read queries. Even more importantly, representatives actually respond to ones that HOOK their interest.

If you are not generating any interest from query letters it simply means that you need to redraft your letter, and specifically, your logline.

Here are three basic guidelines to consider when crafting your next query letter:

1 – Know Your Market

Targeting CAA or any of the top tier literary representatives is simply the wrong strategy. They are shaping careers, not inventing them. They are elevating a career, not commencing one. Targeting boutique entities that will likely always develop new talent is a more appropriate and useful strategy. New blood is welcomed.

Do some due diligence on the target. This affords you the opportunity to personalize the letter. Hear me: I’m not suggesting that you make this some rambling saga. Keep it simple.

2 – The Right Hook

The industry is changing and will continue to evolve but, what will not change is this… Representatives are seeking material they can sell in a competitive marketplace!

Your logline is the essential ingredient to this query letter. I recommend that you always introduce your most commercial big idea. Your logline should evoke the imagination to see the movie poster, the video box.

If it doesn’t, rework your, one to two sentences, logline until it does. The goal is to entice the reader to request the script just as a trailer’s purpose is to sell tickets. This is the coming attraction moment.

3 – The First Impression

Absolutely never neglect the basics of spelling, grammar, clear and vivid writing. This is your first impression… it matters! Your query letter itself functions partly as a writing sample.

Remember, your query letter is your sales tool, not your sales pitch. Don’t make the mistake of confusing the two. This is not the place to ramble on about how great your screenplay is or how engaging your characters are… that’s for the reader to decide.

So write a professional, intelligent, concise, intriguing query that includes a compelling and commercially viable logline and not only will you entice representatives to ask for more, but you’ll be one step closer to a sale.

As product managers we are driven people. We want our product to be #1 in its marketplace. What this means is that when our potential customers go shopping, we want them to take a look at our product and see that it is clearly the one that they want – no other product even comes close! However, to get to where we want to be we have to keep making improvements to our product development definition and the big question that we keep facing is what kind of product improvements do our customers really want us to make?

More Features!

Our product is probably not the only solution on the market – if it is, congratulation, you’ve got a monopoly on your hands. What this means for you as a product manager is that you always have to be keeping an eye on your competition. What are they doing? How are they doing it? What features and capabilities are they stressing in both their advertising and their documentation?

There is, of course, another side to all of this feature talk. What do your customers really care about? When you talk with them, is there a set of features that they are asking for? Does your product currently have these features or at least a way to accomplish what they want to do with these features? Guess right and you’ll have something to add to your product manager resume. One of the more impressive software products that is currently available is called Photoshop. This image manipulation program sure seems like it can do just about anything a skilled graphic artist wants it to do.

The problem with Photoshop (from my point-of-view) is simply that it can do too much! It has features on top of features. I’ve tried to learn how to use this complex piece of software several times and each time I’ve given up because it seemed like it was just too much to try to remember. Sure more features will make your product look better in comparison to the other products that are out there, but you have to be careful that your potential customers don’t get a case of “feature overload”.

Better Usability!

Product usability means that when customers use your product they have a better experience. The problem with improving your product’s usability is that the staff that will be working on usability will be the same staff that would otherwise be working on adding new features. This means that there is going to be a cost to adding usability to your product.

When you add a new feature to your product, you instantly have something to brag to your existing and potential customers about. It’s not the same case when you are dealing with usability. Improving the usability of your product is a bit more subtle. If you do it correctly, your existing customers will be thrilled – their lives will have become better. However, your potential customers won’t have any way of telling that you’ve improved your product.

The real power of boosting the usability of your product comes from the word-of-mouth that it will cause. Your existing customers will talk with potential customers and if you’ve got your usability story correct, then they’ll brag about just how easy it is to use your product to accomplish the tasks that they are trying to get done. This is a powerful message that can make your product the one that gets selected when it comes time to make a purchasing decision. The challenge for you as a product manager is that it can be very hard to measure the impact that your usability features are having on your product’s success.

What All Of This Means For You

Product managers are always trying to make their product be the one that is the most appealing to potential customers – this is part of our product manager job description. In order to make this happen, they have two different paths that can go when they are making changes to their product: they can add new features or they can improve the product’s usability.

Adding new features to a product is an easy decision to make. When you add a new feature, all of a sudden your product does something that potentially one or more of your competitors does not do. Improving the product’s usability is a little more subtle. Your existing customers will benefit immediately but your potential customers probably won’t be able to detect the change.

The right answer for a product manager is probably to balance the two different types of changes. Yes, add new features so that you’ll have something to brag about to your potential customers. However, at the same time add some usability improvements also so that the product just keeps getting better and better for your existing customers. Get this mix correct and your product should grow to dominate its market!

Successfully managing a restaurant is dependent largely on the personality and leadership qualities of the individual in power. The classic proverb, “power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely” is as true in the restaurant industry as it is in government. Many experts in the food service industry have said that the manager sets the attitude for the entire staff. If he is indifferent and acts as if serving customers is a chore, than the rest of the employees will quickly pick up this point of view.

The food service industry can be a very high pressured job. You must consistently serve hot, quality food in a timely manner while also seeing to the other needs of the guests such as tables, drinks, to-go boxes, bills, and keeping the restaurant clean all at once. Of course, a restaurant manager is only human and sometimes will get irritated, stressed, or lose his temper, but a successful manager should have himself under control the majority of the time. No one should be in authority over others if they have no self-control. A manager should also be willing to do any job as needed. Whether this means jumping in and plating food when things get busy or sweeping the floor during the evening, a truly good leader doesn’t ask someone to do a job he isn’t willing to do.

Organization is another key quality of a flourishing restaurant. If the manager has a system in place so he knows how much food is currently stocked, what food needs to be ordered, who is scheduled to work that night, and what tasks he needs to accomplish for the day than the restaurant will run smoothly and profitably. Being organized will also help a manager in dealing with staff since he will know how often and long they have worked. Part of being a successful leader is taking care of your followers and a manager should treat his employees with gratitude for their hard work. One manager’s suggestion for an example of how to treat your staff well was to “set up a policy where every line cook gets to create a dish that can be a special every few days, tell them that if a certain specified amount is sold, then you’ll try it again, and it might even make it onto the menu…not only will that break up the monotony, it will help your kitchen staff feel like they are really a part of your restaurant.”

Since we live in such poor economic times there is a good chance that you are probably interested in working in a position that can help you to earn the most money possible like that of a computer network manger. You should know that while there are many choices available for you if you have the right skills then working as a computer network manger is a great choice. Plus this person is going to be able to work in a variety of different environments to manage your computer network.

Keep in mind that you should know that a computer network will utilize fiber cables to carry information that then travels through the air. Finally you have to be willing to be a computer manager. This person easily helps the company to be able to operate more smoothly.

There are many different things that the computer manager will be in charge of. These will include being able to make sure that you have a properly working and running network computer system. Plus you have to do the things that a regular manager does too.

This means that you will take care of all employee aspects which include firing, hiring, training, and interviewing. So you will also have to make sure that they are doing their job and assign what they are to do. The only thing that you should make sure of is that you want to work for the company for a while because this is not a short term or temporary position.

You will have the advantage of knowing that once you get hired as the computer network manager that you are going to have a job for some time. There is also the fact that you are going to have to be able to take care of choosing how to hand out the different assignments and duties. There are additional things to remember like that this is a job that is considered to be long term.

You are going to have to be ready to commit the time that is needed to be able to get all of the work finished. These things mean that you will have a job for quite a while which is very position. This also means that you will have to be ready to take care of these jobs.

There are a variety of different computer network manager jobs that you can consider when you want to work in this field. These include that you can easily find a number of different types of systems where your services are needed like the voice over IP, broadband access, video conferencing, and virtual networking. On top of this additional duties will come up from time to time.

The last thing you have to remember is that you will have a variety of requirements as a computer network manager. There are many additional things to consider like choosing a variety of additional classes to continue your education and stay on top of things. Plus you will find that this can help you to continue to be able to find a job in all circumstances.

If your life is so busy you literally only have a minute or two a day to spend with your horse, then here are 5 smart training tips you can use to keep your horse “tuned up” when you have just minutes a day.

Smart Tip #1: Practice Backing Up

Suppose you just fed your horse some hay and he’s eating. Assuming you have enough room to get beside him, put your finger into his chest and get him to back up. Getting a horse to back up is a basic and essential lesson horses should know. Plus, when you get a horse to move in a direction you want him to move, you earn respect from him.

Smart Tip #2: Practice Getting His Head Down

Just before you feed your horse approach him. When you get to him pet him a couple times. Then put your thumb and first finger on his poll and push down. Do not increase the pressure of the push. Instead, on a scale of one to ten, push at a one. Then say “head down”. If he doesn’t drop his head increase the pressure to a two. Then say “head down”. Repeat the process increasing the pressure until his head drops.

When his head drops, reward him with a petting above the eyes on the forehead.

Over time, work on getting him to drop his head down where you can easily put on a halter.

Smart Tip #3: Quick Lunge

If you have a minute or two, before you feed your horse slip on a halter with a lead rope. Lunge your horse left and right a few times and get him to back up and come forward. You can accomplish this in just about two minutes.

Smart Tip #4: Pick Up The Feet

Before feeding your horse, go pick up his feet. You should start with the front feet. Remember to reward each time he does what you ask. Then go to the back feet. If your horse is sensitive about picking up his feet you can make amazing breakthroughs over time by doing this in just minutes a day.

Smart Tip #5: Brush Your Horse

Before feeding, approach your horse with a halter and brush in hand. Put on the halter then brush him. You do this because you want him to associate the halter with pleasure and he’ll come to you almost every time. Thus, whenever you want to ride or work with him, and you approach with a halter, he’s more willing to let you catch him.

Sales manager skills are a given in any high performing sales manager. You know the ones we are talking about? Hiring, firing, performance management, sales coaching, business planning, motivating a sales team to name just a few. None of these will be delivered though if your sales managers are unable to do this one key skill. What is it? Communicate.

In this particular article we will cover the powerful aspect of nonverbal communication which is an important first step to improving your communication skills.

I know this is logical and yet most sales directors will gloss over this ‘basic’ skill.The true power of communication delivered in a thoughtful way will enable the most amazing results. A dictionary definition of communication centres around the ability to transmit messages from one person or place to another. Seems reasonable? For a sales manager they will also need to ensure that the information they communicate then gets acted on by whomever they are communicating it to.

One pre supposition about communication is that you cannot not communicate. Let’s explore that a little. We communicate not only with the words we speak, in fact the most powerful way we communicate with others is through our body language and voice. Albert Mehrabians classic research identified that 93 per cent of the way we communicate is through our body and voice. With only 7% coming from the actual words and phrases we use.

This seems to be particularly so when people have positional power. For instance in our case a sales manager and her sales representative. Ensuring that communication is congruent is key.

Using a practical example of sales coaching. If a sales manager is giving feedback and advice a softer open body approach and style will make a big difference to the result’s that are achieved. A fixed body position and voice tone will not be as motivational for the sales representative on the other end of the communication. This is where the technique of mirroring body language can work to build rapport and trust in the communication process.

The good news is that powerful communication skills can be learnt. The first step is awareness about how you are currently communicating. What is the voice tone you use? How are you standing? How fast do you talk? How close do you stand to the person that you are communicating with? What is your eye contact like?

When you ask many sales managers this question some have awareness and many don’t. A great exercise is to observe someone else. Watch the interaction and how it flows. By doing this you will have insight to your own and others behaviour. If you are really serious about improving the way you communicate non verbally, watch yourself on video. Many a presentation skills course has made a significant difference to how people communicate purely by showing the delegates how they physically and tonally communicate.

Addressing nonverbal communication consistently has one of the biggest impacts on your power to communicate in a way that is acted upon.

So what next? Time to take some action. As an initial first step, if you are brave enough ask your colleagues and even significant other how they perceive you, through your nonverbal communication. You might just be surprised.

The conventional project management methodologies will work best if the projects do not have lots of uncertainties nor there are many moving variables to take care of simultaneously. Nowadays, projects gets more and more complicated and the complexities increased as compared to those old days where simple methodologies and project tools just can’t aren’t feasible no more for today’s projects.

Here are some of the key differences between conventional vs contemporary Project management.

1. Conventional project management is suitable for projects with low budget, contain 2-3 variables only, and with a medium time frame not more than 6 months from envisioning to deployment. While contemporary project management is not feasible for someone without the experience or required skills to manage because of its complexities. That’s the reason why PMP certificate has been called out as the pre-requisite for a project manager today.

2. Replace predictive planning with adaptive planning. In the traditional world, everything is much simpler and therefore predictable. A simple project management tool will do the work for the predictive project planning. We are now transitioning to a new arena where project management skills have increasing being called out as ‘essential’ in an organization due to the increased complexities in today’s projects and the multiple problems around it, with so many constraints to take care of

3. Contemporary project manager response to changes with Adaptive action and not Corrective action which has been commonly used as an approach in conventional projects. The fundamental problem with many conventional project management frameworks is probably even more relevant to science than it is to business. In today’s world, project manager need to be flexible enough to handle and manage multiple changes simultaneously. To enable this, the only way is to get adapted to the surroundings and the many different constraints which the project is having. The fundamental problem with many conventional project management frameworks is probably even more relevant to science than it is to business

4. No doubt a good planning is essential to kick off a project successfully but a perfect plan is really a myth. There is no such thing as perfect plan and perfect project. Theoretically, books on project management will provide guidelines as to work a good plan can be work out from. Nevertheless, from the eyes of a modern project manager, it is the ability to stand and adapt to these changes which make the difference.

5. Contemporary project management is stressing on the EXECUTION, rather than the PLANNING aspect of a project. This does not mean that planning is not important, but the key stress and the main focus should be on the EXECUTION aspect of the project once the project has exited envisioning and planning phases. All the pending action items need very close follow up and monitoring. This is to ensure there are no missing items unaware of, no over-look of open issues or pending action items and no hidden gaps unexplored… etc.

6. Traditional project manager does not focus on collaboration of the team work for the project. They are taught for top- down approach in mind and not meant for open collaboration. The traditional Project management tools make the Project manager the core element for communication, inclusive of the need to remind the team members on the dead-lines and overdue tasks. Contemporary project managers see this as a waste of resources as it is not the PM responsibility to keep on reminding the dead-lines, but to ensure close collaboration is in place within the whole team itself. If everyone in the project are fully committed, reminders on dead-lines or on overdue tasks are actually not necessary at all.