So I nearly got conned. If I hadn't already been broke I could have lost a lot of money. Others did. Dr Aaliyah is a real talent. Smooth, persuasive, credible in short bursts. She came up with what is in fact a really good idea - a training company focussed entirely on Arabs in general and Emiratis in particular. There's a lot of focus here on Emiritisation and consequently there's a lot of money to be made. And as yet not many exploiting the niche.
It doesn't take a lot of capital to start a small training company but it does take some. There are licences to be acquired here and that means premises; there are staff to hire and marketing to be done. You can start small and grow.
But the good doctor had 'plans' though it seems these plans never included paying for anything or anyone. Suffice it to say that after some 4 months operation staff and contractors remain unpaid and licences un-obtained. All of which is really sad because the sales team have secured business and are ready to run.
So the 'con'? Look for investors, lots of small ones interested in being involved but not risking a big sum of money. In this case she's discovered that AED250k or about $60k seems to bring a balance between being small enough for many people to risk and big enough to warrant the risks of being caught. And it looks to me after a few months of being involved and two solid weeks of poking around where I should have poked long before that she's found around 6 or 7 suckers to stump up the money, sometimes in cash and always with nothing more than a signed document. No official stamps, no registrations at the Dubai government, no basic due diligence by anyone. It's The Producers translated to the desert except it's not funny.
Temptation and greed are odd things in that they overcome the most rational of people who don't want to see what's plainly visible. A promise from a convincing speaker of your money back in a year and profits of 25% plus is close to being believable if you mentally squint. And when she included 25% of the equity it sealed the deal - several times. Of course her 75% and 6 lots of 25% represents a mathematical problem in the real world. But not if you slip in a decimal point on the documents - after the fact.
To the learning points then and it's a really simple set; one some Mr Madoff's victims should have considered too:
- If it seems too good to be true then it probably is too good to be true
- Trust nothing, check everything; twice
- Everybody lies
Business is no place for *blind* faith. Leave that for church.
27 November 2010
15 November 2010
Pirates
I just finished reading The Pyrates - by George Macdonald Fraser, Hollywood stalwart and creator of the wonderful Flashman books based on the caddish character from Tom Brown's Schooldays. It's funny and clever and thoroughly entertaining. Everything a good pirate book or movie should be. Errol Flynn would have been totally at home as indeed would the Dread Pirate Roberts.
Then this morning I read in the papers about Rachel And Paul Chandler who've been held for a little over a year by Somali pirates and saw their gaunt and strained looking photos. And it made me realise what an odd species we are.
We find boat thieves exciting and dashing. Big time criminals - Bonnie and Clyde, Capone, any number of Russian oligarchs, the American Robber Barons of the 19th & early 20th centuries - become heroes and the subject of movies not far short of a hagiography.
But when was the last time you went to a movie about the loveable and amusing social security cheat who held down a below minimum wage cash only job and claimed unemployment benefit at the same time. To feed her kids and keep a roof over their heads? Or the illegal housemaid working a 15 hour day seven days a week in order to send cash home and support the family. I have seen government sponsored advertisements urging me to rat them out though.
But I don't remember seeing any government supported advertising on how we're going to rid the seas of the pirates. Though I did see a very lighthearted story today about Max Hardberger a man who makes his living repossessing stolen vessels from the pirates. And mostly not glamorous armed cutthroats either but much more often from the clutches of crooked officials and shady brokers.
What I didn't read about though was the hardship caused to the crews and the ship owners whose ships are stolen. The story was more about the thrill of the chase.
I realise I'm just an aging hippy buddhist with a soft spot for the underdog. But I don't care. That's where everyone's feeling should lie.
The name says it all "cutthroat" is not a cool epithet. It's a blood stained job description and we should not forget that. Ever.
Then this morning I read in the papers about Rachel And Paul Chandler who've been held for a little over a year by Somali pirates and saw their gaunt and strained looking photos. And it made me realise what an odd species we are.
We find boat thieves exciting and dashing. Big time criminals - Bonnie and Clyde, Capone, any number of Russian oligarchs, the American Robber Barons of the 19th & early 20th centuries - become heroes and the subject of movies not far short of a hagiography.
But when was the last time you went to a movie about the loveable and amusing social security cheat who held down a below minimum wage cash only job and claimed unemployment benefit at the same time. To feed her kids and keep a roof over their heads? Or the illegal housemaid working a 15 hour day seven days a week in order to send cash home and support the family. I have seen government sponsored advertisements urging me to rat them out though.
But I don't remember seeing any government supported advertising on how we're going to rid the seas of the pirates. Though I did see a very lighthearted story today about Max Hardberger a man who makes his living repossessing stolen vessels from the pirates. And mostly not glamorous armed cutthroats either but much more often from the clutches of crooked officials and shady brokers.
What I didn't read about though was the hardship caused to the crews and the ship owners whose ships are stolen. The story was more about the thrill of the chase.
I realise I'm just an aging hippy buddhist with a soft spot for the underdog. But I don't care. That's where everyone's feeling should lie.
The name says it all "cutthroat" is not a cool epithet. It's a blood stained job description and we should not forget that. Ever.
08 November 2010
Travelling light
I'm doing some pro bono work for a thing called the Emirates Travellers' Festival. The ETs are a group of youngish Emiratis who travel the world by Land Cruiser mostly, going to difficult and interesting places and educating people about the UAE and Arab and Muslim culture and doing occasional good works. And learning and learning and learning along the way.
And now these guys are working on setting up a Festival to be a celebration of Travelling - for whatever reason be it thrill seeking or charitable works or education or some combination. It's to be a chance for people from all over the world to share and enjoy.
Today I was interviewing Sheikh Awad about this. He's the driving force behind both the Emirates Travellers themselves and the Festival though he's got himself a veritable army of helpers and advisors.
He's a genuine enthusiast. He did a piece to camera, impromptu, in Arabic and English extolling the virtues to be gained from meeting different cultures and seeing different places. It came from the heart and just drips with the enthusiasm and joy you can see in his eyes.
But what comes across so strongly in conversation is how much he wants to share these experiences and the learnings. It's all been wholly positive. Now, he mentions in passing that some places were difficult and risky but I'm made to swear I won't mention which places. Not from fear on his part but from a desire not to put anyone off from trying if they want to.
And I also come across a trait I see in too few people here - expat or otherwise. He must have told me a dozen times in the conversation that we have to make careful plans but in the end we have to "...just try it...get started and get on..." He's happy to pull it together and dot i's and cross t's but just keen to get on. "Take a few risks; not stupid ones but some or you'll get nowhere". It's nearly a mantra.
I've also been teaching business people about Entrereneurialism and that sums it up perfectly. The managers I've been working with often understand intellectually but over here the culture is not one of taking risk. Remember most of our workforce is expatriate and if they cross their bosses they can be fired and sent home at pretty much a moments notice. That fear engenders neither any climate of risk taking nor does it make providing real customer focussed service possible. Because staff are more frightened of the boss than they are concerned for the customer. After all the customer can't have them deported.
This produces a badly skewed work culture where intelligent people will not challenge patently foolish instructions, where filling in the appropriate chit is more important than problem solving and where even the smallest risk is avoided because of the potential for disproportionate punishment.
It's REALLY holding back our development. Somehow we have to remove the fear and replace it with pride. A revision of visa rules might be all that's needed to get things rolling. Perhaps coupled with the carrot of possible permanent residence if not citizenship for those who show the most commitment.
And now these guys are working on setting up a Festival to be a celebration of Travelling - for whatever reason be it thrill seeking or charitable works or education or some combination. It's to be a chance for people from all over the world to share and enjoy.
Today I was interviewing Sheikh Awad about this. He's the driving force behind both the Emirates Travellers themselves and the Festival though he's got himself a veritable army of helpers and advisors.
He's a genuine enthusiast. He did a piece to camera, impromptu, in Arabic and English extolling the virtues to be gained from meeting different cultures and seeing different places. It came from the heart and just drips with the enthusiasm and joy you can see in his eyes.
But what comes across so strongly in conversation is how much he wants to share these experiences and the learnings. It's all been wholly positive. Now, he mentions in passing that some places were difficult and risky but I'm made to swear I won't mention which places. Not from fear on his part but from a desire not to put anyone off from trying if they want to.
And I also come across a trait I see in too few people here - expat or otherwise. He must have told me a dozen times in the conversation that we have to make careful plans but in the end we have to "...just try it...get started and get on..." He's happy to pull it together and dot i's and cross t's but just keen to get on. "Take a few risks; not stupid ones but some or you'll get nowhere". It's nearly a mantra.
I've also been teaching business people about Entrereneurialism and that sums it up perfectly. The managers I've been working with often understand intellectually but over here the culture is not one of taking risk. Remember most of our workforce is expatriate and if they cross their bosses they can be fired and sent home at pretty much a moments notice. That fear engenders neither any climate of risk taking nor does it make providing real customer focussed service possible. Because staff are more frightened of the boss than they are concerned for the customer. After all the customer can't have them deported.
This produces a badly skewed work culture where intelligent people will not challenge patently foolish instructions, where filling in the appropriate chit is more important than problem solving and where even the smallest risk is avoided because of the potential for disproportionate punishment.
It's REALLY holding back our development. Somehow we have to remove the fear and replace it with pride. A revision of visa rules might be all that's needed to get things rolling. Perhaps coupled with the carrot of possible permanent residence if not citizenship for those who show the most commitment.
28 October 2010
Heading to ...well to what?
I have realised this week that although I am very good at what I do for a living I don't really like it any more. I've been an entrepreneur and consultant for so long that I had really stopped thinking about it. But I have realised - finally - that the reason I have found it so hard to get work in the last year has nothing to do with the economy. It has everything to do with not having fun anymore.
Those who know me well know how hard I can work and how much energy I will put into something interesting. They also know how little I will do if bored. It's not laziness - though it can look like that to a third party. It is simply that the energy required to do the crap is greater than any financial or emotional reward coming back.
What brought on this bout of existential doubt was my involvement in a project to start a training company. The core concept is interesting. To train young Emiratis in the real skills they need to make a success in the business world outside of the very sheltered public sector.
But the reality is less interesting because to get set up involves dealing with a vast bureaucratic labyrinth and an even vaster cultural divide coupled with a need to do much more trivial and pragmatic deals just to get enough cash to survive. It involves begging for funding and doing deals with people I don't really like or approve of. It involves letting someone else, again, have control of my destiny.
And I'm fed up both with the bureaucracy and the permanent lack of cash in start-up situations. I'm fed up with scrabbling for every penny just to survive another day and I'm fed up with never having to deal with the problems associated with successful businesses.
So I'm going to start looking for a business that I can run, hands on on a daily basis, that has some major element of hospitqality involved and is already doing ok. And I'm going to make it do well! No more rescues, no more start ups and no more dodgy 'partner' driven deals. Buy something and make it better.
I want a small boutique hotel in Sri Lanka or Costa Rica. Ideas? Connections?
Those who know me well know how hard I can work and how much energy I will put into something interesting. They also know how little I will do if bored. It's not laziness - though it can look like that to a third party. It is simply that the energy required to do the crap is greater than any financial or emotional reward coming back.
What brought on this bout of existential doubt was my involvement in a project to start a training company. The core concept is interesting. To train young Emiratis in the real skills they need to make a success in the business world outside of the very sheltered public sector.
But the reality is less interesting because to get set up involves dealing with a vast bureaucratic labyrinth and an even vaster cultural divide coupled with a need to do much more trivial and pragmatic deals just to get enough cash to survive. It involves begging for funding and doing deals with people I don't really like or approve of. It involves letting someone else, again, have control of my destiny.
And I'm fed up both with the bureaucracy and the permanent lack of cash in start-up situations. I'm fed up with scrabbling for every penny just to survive another day and I'm fed up with never having to deal with the problems associated with successful businesses.
So I'm going to start looking for a business that I can run, hands on on a daily basis, that has some major element of hospitqality involved and is already doing ok. And I'm going to make it do well! No more rescues, no more start ups and no more dodgy 'partner' driven deals. Buy something and make it better.
I want a small boutique hotel in Sri Lanka or Costa Rica. Ideas? Connections?
21 October 2010
Devils and details
I've been working with a client in Egypt on getting his new website up and running. He's a delight to work with. Knows what he wants to achieve and is able clearly to articulate his thoughts in both Arabic and English. And then he leaves us to get on with it and produce without fiddling about and interfering at every step.
Because he knows what he wants and has let us get on with making it the elapsed time has been minimal and the site works both technically and aesthetically. There were few bugs in the code that were removed in the testing phase and it works exactly as designed. And it hasn't had one edit since the specification was put together. It's was done on time and in budget and we made a nice profit.
Today however I have to work with my client in Saudia. He's a lovely man, pious, urbane, intelligent, funny, kind, rich but totally and ineffably disorganised when it comes to his website.
So it's been four months in the making so far and we're on the third iteration. Everyday he comes back with new thoughts and ideas and directions. Some are great and some are crap and almost every one means substantial reworking of the whole thing. It's expensive and time consuming and errors are creeping in. It's hard to keep track of photos, for example, and text doesn't always match the pictures that go with it. Bits get left out. Silly errors abound. HE made a mistake in his contact address and WE put it in the wrong place. The colours no longer go well together and the underlying code is becoming buggy for no easily definable reason.
But most importantly for him and us the economics are now screwed. Initially we tried to stay within the fixed price we quoted but eventually that was unsustainable. Now we bill for every twitch and tweak. So far it's cost him four times what the Egyptian site cost and in scale and function it is pretty much identical. Moreover, because we can't find it in our heart to bill every second or indeed time in our schedules to record every second for billing, we will make a loss on the deal.
A good website is made up from myriad details and a few big picture guiding principles. If you can take the time to think them through before starting you'll get a better site. If you remember that you hired us to design and build your site because you can't do it yourself economically then let us build it. Don't try to remote control us. And if you don't know what you really want either in terms of aesthetics or functionality then say so up front. We have ways of helping you figure it out before you commit lots of money and resource into a black hole. Then let us get on with it.
Your website is going to be an important marketing tool. Make sure it is conveying the message that you want it to.
Because he knows what he wants and has let us get on with making it the elapsed time has been minimal and the site works both technically and aesthetically. There were few bugs in the code that were removed in the testing phase and it works exactly as designed. And it hasn't had one edit since the specification was put together. It's was done on time and in budget and we made a nice profit.
Today however I have to work with my client in Saudia. He's a lovely man, pious, urbane, intelligent, funny, kind, rich but totally and ineffably disorganised when it comes to his website.
So it's been four months in the making so far and we're on the third iteration. Everyday he comes back with new thoughts and ideas and directions. Some are great and some are crap and almost every one means substantial reworking of the whole thing. It's expensive and time consuming and errors are creeping in. It's hard to keep track of photos, for example, and text doesn't always match the pictures that go with it. Bits get left out. Silly errors abound. HE made a mistake in his contact address and WE put it in the wrong place. The colours no longer go well together and the underlying code is becoming buggy for no easily definable reason.
But most importantly for him and us the economics are now screwed. Initially we tried to stay within the fixed price we quoted but eventually that was unsustainable. Now we bill for every twitch and tweak. So far it's cost him four times what the Egyptian site cost and in scale and function it is pretty much identical. Moreover, because we can't find it in our heart to bill every second or indeed time in our schedules to record every second for billing, we will make a loss on the deal.
A good website is made up from myriad details and a few big picture guiding principles. If you can take the time to think them through before starting you'll get a better site. If you remember that you hired us to design and build your site because you can't do it yourself economically then let us build it. Don't try to remote control us. And if you don't know what you really want either in terms of aesthetics or functionality then say so up front. We have ways of helping you figure it out before you commit lots of money and resource into a black hole. Then let us get on with it.
Your website is going to be an important marketing tool. Make sure it is conveying the message that you want it to.
16 October 2010
Jobs...
...today I was offered a nice job. Salary & benefits, fancy title, nice office, nice staff. But once again I've turned it down. Trouble is it's one of those jobs I can do with my eyes closed and right now the Chairman is a friend. How's he going to feel in six months when I'm bored and argumentative, refusing to work a full five day week till there's more to do? He'll be pissed off is how he'll feel and I'll lose a good friend. For money.
And though I need the money, Heaven knows, I think his friendship and occasional ongoing patronage as a client is worth more. At least till the bills become insurmountable.
The trouble here is that it's hard to be a freelance in UAE. There's no culture of paying for time or temporary project work by outside individuals. You hire a company or you hire a staff member. And it's only very recently that one can get a visa for what amounts to freelance worker. Till recently your only choice was to go on someone's payroll short term or go on their visa and lie. Both of which happen all the time but the law is cracking down more often every week. I don't fancy the jails here but worse is the subsequent deportation you risk.
So my plan now is to wait for a decent contract to come my way, clear my mounting debts and buy a freelance visa.
Or find a difficult and challenging job. Where the owners will give me time to learn and to do quality work. Not hustle hustle and accept shoddy or half thought through stuff. Been there - that's worse than the scenario we started with here!
And though I need the money, Heaven knows, I think his friendship and occasional ongoing patronage as a client is worth more. At least till the bills become insurmountable.
The trouble here is that it's hard to be a freelance in UAE. There's no culture of paying for time or temporary project work by outside individuals. You hire a company or you hire a staff member. And it's only very recently that one can get a visa for what amounts to freelance worker. Till recently your only choice was to go on someone's payroll short term or go on their visa and lie. Both of which happen all the time but the law is cracking down more often every week. I don't fancy the jails here but worse is the subsequent deportation you risk.
So my plan now is to wait for a decent contract to come my way, clear my mounting debts and buy a freelance visa.
Or find a difficult and challenging job. Where the owners will give me time to learn and to do quality work. Not hustle hustle and accept shoddy or half thought through stuff. Been there - that's worse than the scenario we started with here!
13 October 2010
Cool service...
I like to sit and work in the cafe in my apartment building. It's spacious and fairly quiet. There's some rather ghastly muzak of course and these tiny somewhat annoying tv's blinking in the background. But all in all it's not too shabby.
I like Turkish coffee but I don't like it strong. I usually have 1/2 the amount of coffee that they would normally use in each ibrik. The other day chef was there instead of the usual waitress and he suggested same amount of coffee and twice as much water. This is perfect for me. Lasts me longer and tastes just great. And means one coffee lasts me per session of working in the cafe instead of two coffees. And they don't lose out on revenue because now I go sit there twice a day instead of once and sometimes I buy a croissant the second time.
It's good customer service and makes up for the stupid tv and music in spades;-)
I like Turkish coffee but I don't like it strong. I usually have 1/2 the amount of coffee that they would normally use in each ibrik. The other day chef was there instead of the usual waitress and he suggested same amount of coffee and twice as much water. This is perfect for me. Lasts me longer and tastes just great. And means one coffee lasts me per session of working in the cafe instead of two coffees. And they don't lose out on revenue because now I go sit there twice a day instead of once and sometimes I buy a croissant the second time.
It's good customer service and makes up for the stupid tv and music in spades;-)
11 October 2010
The Customer is king? No it's the accounts department and Interior Designers.
I live in a serviced apartment. Quite a nice one. Bijou one might say but actually plenty big enough for the two of us who are avid couch potatoes. Perhaps a couple of larger sofas to veg out on but that's all we'd need. But we have a balcony of sorts, a big ole TV with many channels, internet, decent kitchen with all the appliances and a nice clean bathroom with a powerful shower. And by local standards it's well priced.
The only thing the apartment really lacks is style. It's furnished in some kind of nasty mass produced imitation of 19C English wood furniture - too much of it really for the available space. And the cheap prints on the walls are framed in even cheaper frames and hung crookedly;-)
The thing is there are 4 different kinds of decor in the building. Two are ugly and two are ok to my eyes. But they are all different. And they are again all different from the decor in the public areas.
The property was only partially open when I moved in. I was told the 'brand' for the property was to be modern Arabic - a dry hotel/apartment block where Muslims in general and Arabs in particular would feel at home and comfortable. A theme of 'bayti-baytek' or 'mi casa es su casa' was envisaged. And no cliched camels and sand and tents.
But I guess some commercial imperatives got in the way. As we've headed towards a proper opening a lot of the concept has fallen by the wayside in a rush to get the doors properly open.
Bayti - baytek? I asked for some of the excess furniture to be taken out of my apartment so I can make better use of the limited space available. I was told in no uncertain terms that Company Policy does not permit removal of furniture. That's fair enough corporately but it's hardly allowing me to make it 'My Home" is it?
We've just had the public areas in the lobby decorated in readiness for the public opening. Furniture has been decked out quite nicely. But in a fairly standard modern Indian style in the front lobby and a more old fashioned Arabic style in the back lounge. In colours that are different from the other areas of the property and that clash with each other. Sadly the front lobby looks like a furniture showroom display in its over the top detailing. The One or Ikea would be very pleased.
And the rear lobby is set out for style rather than comfort. Pre-opening the seating was arranged as pairs of sofas or chairs facing each other. It was quite comfortable to sit and chat. But now a lot of furniture has been removed and sofas are set out in L shapes with a coffee table. It looks airy and spacious but it's uncomfortable to just sit and chat. And as it's a 'dry' property you can't even sit and drink;-)
There is a vast gym that would make any Californian proud. But it's so stuffed with equipment you can barely move - so it feels crowded and empty at the same time.
And so on and on...
The point being that it has all been laid out and set up piecemeal with no thought about either the theme or the actual users. It's been strung together section by section by 'designers' and operations people to look nice and work as efficiently as possible.
In Branding terms its really backwards. If you're creating a Brand you need to have in mind the effect you have on your customer. What thoughts you want to engender and feelings you want to induce and what behaviours you want to encourage.
You use the tools and techniques of Branding and Brand management to shape these thoughts, feelings and behaviours in line with your marketing plans and then sell to them. You do it to make customers feel right with your product and maximise your profits.
The colours, the graphics, the shapes, the way staff are trained, even the furniture and lighting are used to create the desired effect and keep it in people's memories.
If you do what my apartment/hotel has done you get something different. You DO create a Brand but it's one over which you have no control. People are buying into your product for reasons you don't expect. And in so doing you are certainly missing proit opportunities. Possibly alienating some as well.
In our case instead of attracting Muslim and Arab travellers and families they are attracting international corporates because of the good pricing, 4* quality, convenient location, large scale which means large groups at short notice and good facilities for sports. So...Western businesses find it a good place for temporary staff, longer term senior staff and convention groups.
Who are then often disappointed because the TV in the rooms is focussed on Arabic visitors and there's no bar and few business services. The staff can't, for example, call a guest on his mobile to inform of business visitors because they are not permitted to make overseas calls. But Russian guests are likely to have Russian mobiles no? Outside visitors (i.e guests' customers) find it hard to get past security to get to the car park and into the public areas of the property. Good for keeping the family safe but not so good for commerce.
The wonderful large pool and deck is attractive to sunbathers. So full of near naked men and women together. Fine for me. But not an attractive proposition to a conservative Saudi family on holiday.
The few local guests are bemused. It looks odd - mix of generic Western Hotel, Indian Lobby and Arabic lounge area. It's full of Europeans and Americans. There's only international fare in the French named cafe or Asian food in the restaurant with a gimmicky English name. The prayer room is tiny and hard to find. There's no broadcast call to prayer.
Mixed messages abound and confused guests do NOT maximise their spending. This is silly and unproductive. And it's happening because the management is listening only to accountants and pushy shareholders who don't trust them to do the job they're paid to do.
Listen to the customers you want. Make the Brand work for them and the accountants and shareholders will be a lot happier.
In this case neither the proposed target group not the actual guests is being fully served by the Brand offering and so the profits are going to suffer.
The only thing the apartment really lacks is style. It's furnished in some kind of nasty mass produced imitation of 19C English wood furniture - too much of it really for the available space. And the cheap prints on the walls are framed in even cheaper frames and hung crookedly;-)
The thing is there are 4 different kinds of decor in the building. Two are ugly and two are ok to my eyes. But they are all different. And they are again all different from the decor in the public areas.
The property was only partially open when I moved in. I was told the 'brand' for the property was to be modern Arabic - a dry hotel/apartment block where Muslims in general and Arabs in particular would feel at home and comfortable. A theme of 'bayti-baytek' or 'mi casa es su casa' was envisaged. And no cliched camels and sand and tents.
But I guess some commercial imperatives got in the way. As we've headed towards a proper opening a lot of the concept has fallen by the wayside in a rush to get the doors properly open.
Bayti - baytek? I asked for some of the excess furniture to be taken out of my apartment so I can make better use of the limited space available. I was told in no uncertain terms that Company Policy does not permit removal of furniture. That's fair enough corporately but it's hardly allowing me to make it 'My Home" is it?
We've just had the public areas in the lobby decorated in readiness for the public opening. Furniture has been decked out quite nicely. But in a fairly standard modern Indian style in the front lobby and a more old fashioned Arabic style in the back lounge. In colours that are different from the other areas of the property and that clash with each other. Sadly the front lobby looks like a furniture showroom display in its over the top detailing. The One or Ikea would be very pleased.
And the rear lobby is set out for style rather than comfort. Pre-opening the seating was arranged as pairs of sofas or chairs facing each other. It was quite comfortable to sit and chat. But now a lot of furniture has been removed and sofas are set out in L shapes with a coffee table. It looks airy and spacious but it's uncomfortable to just sit and chat. And as it's a 'dry' property you can't even sit and drink;-)
There is a vast gym that would make any Californian proud. But it's so stuffed with equipment you can barely move - so it feels crowded and empty at the same time.
And so on and on...
The point being that it has all been laid out and set up piecemeal with no thought about either the theme or the actual users. It's been strung together section by section by 'designers' and operations people to look nice and work as efficiently as possible.
In Branding terms its really backwards. If you're creating a Brand you need to have in mind the effect you have on your customer. What thoughts you want to engender and feelings you want to induce and what behaviours you want to encourage.
You use the tools and techniques of Branding and Brand management to shape these thoughts, feelings and behaviours in line with your marketing plans and then sell to them. You do it to make customers feel right with your product and maximise your profits.
The colours, the graphics, the shapes, the way staff are trained, even the furniture and lighting are used to create the desired effect and keep it in people's memories.
If you do what my apartment/hotel has done you get something different. You DO create a Brand but it's one over which you have no control. People are buying into your product for reasons you don't expect. And in so doing you are certainly missing proit opportunities. Possibly alienating some as well.
In our case instead of attracting Muslim and Arab travellers and families they are attracting international corporates because of the good pricing, 4* quality, convenient location, large scale which means large groups at short notice and good facilities for sports. So...Western businesses find it a good place for temporary staff, longer term senior staff and convention groups.
Who are then often disappointed because the TV in the rooms is focussed on Arabic visitors and there's no bar and few business services. The staff can't, for example, call a guest on his mobile to inform of business visitors because they are not permitted to make overseas calls. But Russian guests are likely to have Russian mobiles no? Outside visitors (i.e guests' customers) find it hard to get past security to get to the car park and into the public areas of the property. Good for keeping the family safe but not so good for commerce.
The wonderful large pool and deck is attractive to sunbathers. So full of near naked men and women together. Fine for me. But not an attractive proposition to a conservative Saudi family on holiday.
The few local guests are bemused. It looks odd - mix of generic Western Hotel, Indian Lobby and Arabic lounge area. It's full of Europeans and Americans. There's only international fare in the French named cafe or Asian food in the restaurant with a gimmicky English name. The prayer room is tiny and hard to find. There's no broadcast call to prayer.
Mixed messages abound and confused guests do NOT maximise their spending. This is silly and unproductive. And it's happening because the management is listening only to accountants and pushy shareholders who don't trust them to do the job they're paid to do.
Listen to the customers you want. Make the Brand work for them and the accountants and shareholders will be a lot happier.
In this case neither the proposed target group not the actual guests is being fully served by the Brand offering and so the profits are going to suffer.
10 October 2010
Go Pats...
I know it's Saturday but I live a long way from Boston and indeed from Miami which is where the Pats played the Dolphins last Monday. And I don't get sent the recordings till later in the week. But at least I'm getting them this year.
It was a remarkable game with the Pats getting a fine win after making plays from every piece of the playbook. Blocked punts, interceptions, rushing, brilliant passes from Brady and the remarkable Woodhead hopefully receiving a well earned sizeable bonus. And this from a team playing 14 newbies - rookies or second year players. And a surprising number of those players NOT coming from the draft.
I think it's a remarkable testimony to the very special talent of Bill Bellichick. He finds skills where others didn't. And he makes a team pull together and shine as a team in double quick time.
While we were watching I mentioned to my wife that part of it was the team doesn't have divas or prima donnas among the players just a bunch of superstars. "No," she said, "the TEAM is a Superstar and every one of them knows it."
And she's spot on. The team is a discrete entity and IT is a Superstar. It shows in their game. Hell, Brady said in an interview that two weeks ago he didn't even know Woodhead's full name. He does now and they look like they've been playing together for years.
Imagine if you took this skill and applied it to a business. If Bill could come in and fill your company with the heroes no one else noticed, weld them into a team with a shared Vision and a willingness to give whatever it takes for the team to shine.
Most CEOs/MDs probably think they do this. But they don't. There are few companies that are as together as a single entity as the Pats at their peak. But it's doable. It's not even very complicated - just incredibly difficult.
Look at the skills people actually display. Not the ones listed on the resume or suggested by the current job title. See what they actually CAN do if give the space. Then give them the space. Reward people for individual excellence and reward them even more for group excellence. Let 'em have fun. Listen to everyone. Draw firm boundaries but give them freedom within. Let them call most of their own plays under your tutelage. Know that sometimes you do have to yell but mostly you don't. Know that occasionally you have to punish but mostly you don't. Know that sometimes you have to let people go but mostly you don't.
Always remember that journeymen have a valuable place and it is just as valuable in the long haul as a star QB. But less visible. Let 'em all go to Disneyland. This year.
It was a remarkable game with the Pats getting a fine win after making plays from every piece of the playbook. Blocked punts, interceptions, rushing, brilliant passes from Brady and the remarkable Woodhead hopefully receiving a well earned sizeable bonus. And this from a team playing 14 newbies - rookies or second year players. And a surprising number of those players NOT coming from the draft.
I think it's a remarkable testimony to the very special talent of Bill Bellichick. He finds skills where others didn't. And he makes a team pull together and shine as a team in double quick time.
While we were watching I mentioned to my wife that part of it was the team doesn't have divas or prima donnas among the players just a bunch of superstars. "No," she said, "the TEAM is a Superstar and every one of them knows it."
And she's spot on. The team is a discrete entity and IT is a Superstar. It shows in their game. Hell, Brady said in an interview that two weeks ago he didn't even know Woodhead's full name. He does now and they look like they've been playing together for years.
Imagine if you took this skill and applied it to a business. If Bill could come in and fill your company with the heroes no one else noticed, weld them into a team with a shared Vision and a willingness to give whatever it takes for the team to shine.
Most CEOs/MDs probably think they do this. But they don't. There are few companies that are as together as a single entity as the Pats at their peak. But it's doable. It's not even very complicated - just incredibly difficult.
Look at the skills people actually display. Not the ones listed on the resume or suggested by the current job title. See what they actually CAN do if give the space. Then give them the space. Reward people for individual excellence and reward them even more for group excellence. Let 'em have fun. Listen to everyone. Draw firm boundaries but give them freedom within. Let them call most of their own plays under your tutelage. Know that sometimes you do have to yell but mostly you don't. Know that occasionally you have to punish but mostly you don't. Know that sometimes you have to let people go but mostly you don't.
Always remember that journeymen have a valuable place and it is just as valuable in the long haul as a star QB. But less visible. Let 'em all go to Disneyland. This year.
01 October 2010
Consiglieri
It looks like Scott and me are turning into commodities brokers. Well I say Scott and me but he does all the hard stuff. I do what I do. I meet people. I connect people. I know people who know people. I have ideas. So does Scott...but then he gets on the phone and does his magic and suddenly those connections are talking to each other and ideas are becoming deals.
At the moment these ideas look like closing a deal on jet fuel, another on a bunch of oil tankers, some gold and some diamonds. People keep offering us other stuff. And we keep making connections. It's a classic broker situation.
But better than that it's a celebration of teamwork. None of these deals could have come about if any one of us in the cloud were absent. Not only do we all bring different knowledge but we bring different skills and different attributes to the party. An HR trainer would have a field day. Belbin would have us under the microscope. We're a jigsaw puzzle made flesh.
Hopefully we'll be a solvent one too soon:-)
http://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=8
At the moment these ideas look like closing a deal on jet fuel, another on a bunch of oil tankers, some gold and some diamonds. People keep offering us other stuff. And we keep making connections. It's a classic broker situation.
But better than that it's a celebration of teamwork. None of these deals could have come about if any one of us in the cloud were absent. Not only do we all bring different knowledge but we bring different skills and different attributes to the party. An HR trainer would have a field day. Belbin would have us under the microscope. We're a jigsaw puzzle made flesh.
Hopefully we'll be a solvent one too soon:-)
http://www.belbin.com/rte.asp?id=8
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