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Afternoon Tea in Jerusalem Blog

In addition to my work as a business coach, one of my interests is blogging about life in Israel. This is a country full of contrasts – over eight million citizens living in an area the size of Wales. You can see snow and the lowest place on the globe in the same day. Although surrounded by geopolitical extremes, Israel has achieved a decade of high economic growth. My work brings me in contact with an array of new companies, exciting technologies and dynamic characters. Sitting back with a relaxing cup of strong tea (with milk), you realise just how much there is to appreciate in the Holyland. Large or small operations, private sector or non profit, my clients provide experiences from which others can learn and benefit.

Israel’s social protest – some sobbering lessons for all

4 August 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

Israel is in the middle of a “summer of discontent”. Strikes, social protests, and heatwaves; as well as Syrian border provocation, rockets fired near daily from Gaza, Palestinian games at the UN. Not a fun time to be Bibi Netanyahu, the Prime Minister.

If Israelis were to take a step back from the real picture and have a look in as an outsider, what would they learn? Unfortunately, the truth may be painful.

Consider the doctors’ strike, one of the first links in the chain of protests this year.  The whole country has known from the beginning that the Treasury had to capitulate. The injustice was there for all to see, as young hospital doctors often work 36 hour shifts. Only after 4 months of talks and a hunger strike from the head of the doctors’ union have the sides now almost signed an agreement.

Where are basic negotiating skills? Where was the Minister of Health, who also happens to be the Prime Minister? Why did patients have to suffer for so long? Where was governmental responsibility – looking at the bigger picture, not just trying to save a few shekels?

Next, have a good look at those elements of the community, who are not well represented in the demonstrations. Most noticeable by their absence are the religious sections – from ultra orthodox to “modernists”. They also suffer from expensive housing, lack of hospital beds, over priced basic goods.

However, these people have been too afraid to associate with those sections who they do not mix with, socially or politically. And that is one of Israel’s great weaknesses, the inability of vast parts of society to realise that we all live together in one house.

United we may stand, but it is still very much a case of divided we will fall.

Cottage cheese, Facebook and a political void in Israel

3 August 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

As the “Arab Spring” swept the Middle East in the early part of 2011, Israelis prided themselves on their democracy. Life may be frantic. Hamas, Hizbollah and Iran may pose real dangers. However, the economy is growing at 4%. Unemployment is at a record low. Loads of people are booking holidays overseas.

All was well in the Holy Land…….that is until the diary companies tried to raise the price of cottage cheese one more time. This prompted an irate young adult to launch a Facebook campaign, encouraging a boycott of one of the staple products for most Israelis. Within two weeks, the manufacturers had capitulated; the Knesset (Parliament) had debated the issue; an intergovernmental committee set up new guidelines for the farming industry.

Not a bad result for a 30 minutes work to set up a page on Marc Z’s favourite site.

Within a month, a similar tactic had resulted in tent cities being erected all over the country. This time the core subject is housing and the burden of taxes. The Middle Classes are revolting and the politicians have no clue why. Proposed solutions are being rejected on the spot by the demonstators, many of who are ordinary mothers with prams at their side.

In a country with an open press, what the devil did 120 members of the Knesset miss?

1) How many of them do their own weekly shopping? The stats may reveal true economic progress, but the  ordinary person is suffering in the supermarket.

The price of food in Israel has risen 31 percent since 2005, while in the European Union it rose by about 20% in the same period.

That is massive. Meanwhile, farmers are protected by high tariffs. There is little competition amongst mobile phone providers. The consumer is being ripped off, as the politician is chomping at his free lunches and chatting with cronies. Arrogance rules OK?

2) Earlier this week, in light  of the wave of protests, the Speaker of the Knesset discussed if the Parliament should cancel its summer recess. It lasts for nearly three months. Fortunately, for our 120 heroes, the threat was rescinded and they can go on the trips…. while their voters suffer. The Speaker informed the public that he felt that the government should deal with the problems.

3) And this is my final point. Israel’s voting system is based on strict proportional representation. There are no constituencies. And thus no politician is answerable to 7.7 million people.

Any wonder that protesters have taken to Facebook to get themselves heard?

So you need a vision – 3 Israeli case studies

19 July 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

Your mentor or consultant tells you that you need a vision, but you have no idea where to start. You do not even know why.

Let me simplify things. Vision is all about knowing what you want your commercial dream to look like in about 5-10 years. It gives focus to your initial decision making.

In the space of 36 hours, I was given three wonderful examples of this exercise, while touring around Israel this week.

About 30 minutes north of Tel Aviv is Utopia Orchid Park. Now you may not expect a small tropical paradise to be located on an old kibbutz, but that is what I found.

Once through the obligatory (?) shopping area, we came out to a mock equatorial waterfall. Orchids, carnivorous plants, butterfly enclosure, cacti and more. Simple, but an effective piece of escapism from the hassles of city life.

And here’s my point. This park was created from nothing. Somebody must have had an idea, and knew what they wanted to put together. The paths around the park fitted together effortlessly, as we moved from theme to theme. Vision, and you can see how they want to develop the place further.

From Kibbutz Bahan, we motored northwards, coming out in the Galilee, just below Safed. We stopped at a modern shopping centre. If you looked carefully, you can still see the old buildings from 130 years ago, made from black volcanic rocks.

And occupying barely 25 sq meters of one of the ancient structures is an innocuous-looking pizza parlour, “Siciliano Pizza”. No website. Just a small sign outside. Don’t ask me why, something encouraged me to go in.

45 minutes later, I left with a very satisfied stomach – possibly the best pizza I have ever had. Not greasy nor overburdened by spicy tomato paste. It was light and very tasty. The table cloths were clean – even looked like something out of a mock Italian gangster film. And the multiple “pregos” from the staff sounded genuine. 

Simple and effective – this guy knows what he is doing and how he wants to appeal to customers.

10 minutes later, I had made it to our boutique hotel, “House in the Galilee” (BayitBagalil). If the pictures on the website look nice, they do not do the place justice.

The hotel is located on the edge of a forest. Everything seems to have been thought through in detail – the Arabic floor tiling, the short distance of the outdoor pool from the hotel itself, an excellent chef menu, a spa offering unique treatments, and much more. And staff that offer you a smiley good morning.

You left feeling wonderful and relaxed, wondering why more people cannot create such an effective business model.

Your turn.

“Unlimited” power? The mentor and the client

15 July 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

Jillian Michaels is an excellent life coach. Former star trainer on “Biggest Loser” she recently launched her most recent book,”Unlimited“.

 The author takes the – theme of all of us being able to do what we want to, providing we put our mind to it in the right way. Michaels then does something horrendously practical and actually sets out a methodology for people to move ahead. (I am not a fan of the style but the book is an easy read.)

In one of the earlier chapters, a well-known parable is quoted. A ship or plane never leaves port without having a fixed destination in mind, a plan of the weather and other trouble spots on the way, and a team of resources to help with the journey.

So, if you accept that your body is just a means to transport you where you want to go, why are so few of us non-specific in our intentions? Why are we so afraid to identify direct commercial visions? Why do we let ourselves drift, assuming  – even praying – that something will just turn up?

This week alone in separate mentoring sessions in Jerusalem, I meet two fairly youngish individuals, well-educated and well-intentioned family people. They have dabbled commercially here and there with varying degrees of success. I asked them where they wanted to be in 5 years time. What did they want to do with their lives?

Aside from some greyish responses about being healthy, looking after the kids, etc, nothing was too forthcoming. As I put it to them, I could have received the same response from all the other people in the same building. And they agreed. Their respective ships are drifting aimlessly, but at least the captains have now been alerted to the problem.

From a different perspective, I met up with an established client, who has a well-defined aim as to what she wants to achieve and why. Great. Ask her how, and then the ship starts listing.

  • “Oh, I don’t do marketing”, she ways.
  • “Why not?”
  • “I am no good at it.”
  • “Who says?”
  • “Me.”
  • “When did you last do it properly?”
  • “Well, never.”
  • “And yet you are very personable, have many friends, have talked your way into your current job by selling yourself. Prove to me that you are no good at selling.”
  • SILENCE! 

And that continues to be my role with her, showing what she is capable of with a couple of small changes.

Michaels is correct. It is not just that “we can do it”. That phrase was around way before any American Presidential campaign. People need a methodology. And we should be embarassed to ask others to show them how.

Consumers, Facebook and the Israeli conundrum

12 July 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

Analysts will debate for years the ultimate importance of the internet during the revolution of the “Arab Spring”. In neighbouring Israel, a parallel and separate social change has taken place. Following yet another rise in the price of cottage cheese, a staple for many Israelis at the breakfast table, a facebook campaign led to a consumer boycott and a collapse of the product’s retail price by up to 50%.

Suddenly, everyone is trying to be a hero. Politicians have set up a parliamentary committee…on the price of cottage cheese. Some of the main manufacturers have asked for forgiveness from the public. And what started with the white cheese has spread to other milk products, the price of popcorn in cinemas, and even bus routes.

Zap, a website which allows consumers to compare the price of electrical items, is considering adding food products to its service.

All change……or not?

Let’s start with the politicians, and even add in experienced civil servants. Many of the relevant ministers and advisers are heavily associated with farming groups, who have a vested interest in keeping base prices high. Are you trying to tell me that the decision makers  only woke up to the problem when they read the newspapers one morning? And all they can now do is discuss the price of what their wives buy to put their kids’ sandwiches?

Anyway, the price of the cheese has already began to creep back up. In order to prevent this, the government is seriously considering a plan to support milk farmers. Smell a rat?

As for the consumers themselves, they have always known that in Israel’s small economy is replete of examples of competition and pricing work in opposite directions. Here’s a simple case study: Every beginning of May, the populace is bewildered by reports that owing to the weather having been too hot, too rainy, too windy or not hot – rainy – windy enough, the price of local summer fruits will go through the roof.  And thus it happened again this year.

Import you cry out! Back to the vested interests. And there we go again.

Even facebook revolutions can only last for a limited period of time – never mind whether you live in downtown Bahrain or Tel Aviv. You cannot protest about everything all the time.

What am I saying? 25 years ago, the government finally stopped supporting the textile industry with subsidies and import tariffs. Thousands were laid off in the short-term; prices in the shops plummeted, as overseas items entered the country; room was made for the high-tech sector. The economy rumbles ahead very comfortably.

The food industry has a strategic importance, which cannot be attributable to clothing. However, that does not mean the consumer has to suffer. That does mean that the milking industry should live a false life based on subsidies, proposed by a public sector socially tied to those farmers. 

So far, the facebook campaign has been directed against manufacturers. Perhaps the real anger should be directed towards politicians, who appear to be protecting friends.

Are you busy or are you effective?

8 July 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

A typical client will often tell me how they are busy. They certainly do not have enough time for family matters. And they definitely have no extra time for any assignments I give them.

Even worse, they will complain that they do not have time for the important things of their business. Now, if that sounds strange, if not actually a huge misfit, then you are correct. But there again, why does it also happen to so many of you as well?

I have written extensively how we often become tied up with matters which are not relevant, but they seem important and are definitely time-consuming.

To illustrate my point, look at this recent story. A potential client has been asking me to start mentoring her. We have already made three attempts at setting up a meeting. She is not located nearby. This is not specifically my area of activity. Once I pushed aside the fog in my mind, I understood that the best I could do for her (and for me) was to suggest that she link up with a rival of mine.

Suddenly, all sides were happy. I had some extra time, to be dedicated towards commercial activity of a more profitable nature.

Another pitfall; Loads of people confuse domestic chores with their business life. One previous client often insisted that he could not meet up with me, because he had to go shopping on a specific day. Well, that one soon bit the dust, as I established just how much money he needed to be earning.

Busy is not the same as being effective. Never forget that nor confuse the two.

And what keeps you effective? This link from ten leading business personalities gives some simple, obvious, successful, but frequently ignored pointers. For example, how many of us claim that they can survive on little sleep? Probably true, but that does not enable you to put in a good performance the following day.

And here is my own tip. It is a simple yoga exercise, which was introduced to me a couple of months back. It takes one minute every day. Don’t ask me why, but my concentration levels have improved mega percentage points since using it.

As for yourselves, think about that one of your actions that you know keeps you on the ball. Then expand on that, bringing it in to play even more. Don’t be afraid of encouraging yourself to do well.

The real poverty in Gaza

1 July 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel, Palestinians

One year after Israel naval commandos stormed a Turkish aid ship bound for Gaza, a second flotilla is now setting off with the same aim.

Last year’s attempt to break the Israeli naval blockade of Gaza ended in farce, each side with their own spin. Did Israel break international law? On the other hand, why were some of the participants up for a very violent fight and why was much of the so-called aid out of date? Strange.

As for this time round, let’s move past the rhetoric and ask if Gaza really needs an armada of aid. Was David Cameron correct when he said earlier this year that Gaza is a “prison camp”?

Israelis will argue that Gaza is not what the BBC or New York Times try to portray it as. While not exactly the Bahrain of the Near East, neither is Gaza totally a basket case. For example, the Hebrew newspaper “Yediot” had a 2-page feature with colour photos, detailing how Gaza is developing. The beaches look full and the shops are busy.

The Israeli army issued a video this week of a typical convey of luxury goods passing into the Gaza Strip from Israel. Similarly, a snappy 80 second utube clip clearly reviews how many parts of Gaza have long since abandoned poverty levels quoted by politicians. (You have to wonder who posted the original video.)

OK, so for more objective reporting, I turned to overseas correspondents. A Japanese writer had observed a few months ago that “Gaza and the West Bank are the only places in the world where I have seen refugees drive Mercedes.”

This week, a syndicated article from Ethan Bonner looked in depth at the emerging tunnel economy of Gaza. A powerful opening paragraph observes how: –

Two luxury hotels are opening in Gaza this month. Thousands of new cars are plying the roads. A second shopping mall – with escalators imported from Israel – will open next month. Hundreds of homes and two dozen schools are about to go up. A Hamas-run farm where Jewish settlements once stood is producing enough fruit that Israeli imports are tapering off.

Kevin Myers in a brave analysis in the Irish Independent asks: –

how can anyone possibly think that Gaza is the primary centre of injustice in the Middle East? According to Mathilde Redmatn, deputy director of the International Red Cross in Gaza, there is in fact no humanitarian crisis there at all. But by God, there is one in Syria, where possibly thousands have died in the past month.

After all, if the Palestinian news agency, Ma’an, is to be trusted, there is no shortage of cars in Gaza. The reason for the lowish number of new items is due to the local tax regulations imposed by Hamas.

An interesting blog summed up the forked approach to Gaza’s economy very succinctly:

While violence continues in Syria, Libya, Egypt and Yemen, there is one place in the Arab world where stability is growing as factories and farms multiply, construction booms and unemployment drops.  Ironically, that place is Gaza – the place singled out for international attention as the next flotilla prepares to sail, staffed by leftist loonies bearing solidarity, love and concern for people who are better off than many Americans living in Newark, Detroit, Washington D.C. and New York.  These pusillanimous rescuers are not floating off to Darfur, Congo or Sudan where photo-ops are hard to come by and marauding thugs are unfazed by such concerns as respect for interfering faux do-gooders.  They are not trudging to Afghanistan where sick people and the medical staff who tend them are marked for murder, nor will they insist on seeing Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier held captive by Hamas for five years without a single visit by the Red Cross.  Their outpouring of compassion exists only for the purported victims of Israeli aggression – there is no credence given to the barbaric tactics of Hamas planting its military operations in the midst of their own civilian populations, or murdering its own domestic opposition, much less targeting Israeli children on school buses for demolition.

So is the latest flotilla designed to help the people of Gaza or satisfy the dubious ranting of those people claiming to be supporters of peace?

Israel’s economy – half term report, June 2011

26 June 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel, Jerusalem

Israel’s economy continues to bubble along.

Happy times it would seem.

It is the job of the governor of any central bank to point out the potential dangers around the corner. Israel’s Stanley Fischer is in the middle of an apparently successful campaign to dampen the housing bubble. And at the end of last week, in an interview with the Financial Times, Fischer questioned the Finance Minister’s propensity to spend.

Fair enough. Just as worrying is the potential fall out from the Greek financial crisis and, in parallel, from the so-called Arab Spring. If Europe is sucked down by Greece, Portugal et al, Israel’s economy will suffer. For example, the UK alone is one of Israel’s strongest trading partners.

Similarly, once the troubles in Libya, Syria and elsewhere have finally evaporated, the results will necessarily bring stability to the region. We can already see how Egypt will almost certainly raise the price of its gas exports to Israel very sharply. The weakness of the Damascus regime has seen one border incident with Israel, provoked by Iranian revolutionary guards, and we have probably not seen the worst of the violent disorders.

In the words of Niall Ferguson, a leading economic historian:

Beware the economic consequences of the Arab Spring. ….(Once the) euphoria phase” of revolutions is over, economic disaster such as higher prices, greater uncertainty and capital flight always follows. …And the magnitude of capital flight from Egypt right now is roughly 10 times the aid promised to Egypt by the United States and Europe combined.

There is a third issue, ignored by the foreign media, but felt daily by the Israeli public. I am talking about the silent stranglehold of key monopolies.

About two weeks ago, the price of cottage cheese, a staple item for many families, rose yet again. A simple facebook campaign backed by a howling media smelling blood resulted in a backdown. Dominant local manufacturers, protected by tariffs, which were imposed by politicians linked to interest groups, had been free to do what they had wanted for far too long. Amazingly, there has rarely been much variation in price between the “competing” firms.

But it does not stop there. The fruit and veg market is also protected by tariffs. Mobile phone charges are expensive compared to abroad. Petrol and cars are similarly overpriced. It is a rip off, according to one newspaper.

You could ask why nobody has shouted earlier that parts of the economy are simply old-fashioned monoliths, designed for the benefit of a few. For me, a more worrying issue has been the role of the civil service. Why was this huge mass of people not able to teach the politicians how the public had to and still suffers?

So while the stats look rosy, is Israel’s full economy still a story of what could be?

If you are a mentor, what is the client paying for?

25 June 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

“Why should I pay you just to sit down and listen to me”?

It is the question that all mentors face from time-to-time. And I coped it at the end of last week.

At least I did not have to deal with: “How can you guarantee me success?” This is just another version of “why should I waste my money on you?”.

Alon Gal is one of Israel’s most well-known mentors. Like him or not, he is effective. His television show has resulted in many marriages saved and floundering businesses being turned around.

In a recent newspaper, even he admitted that he cannot work his “magic” every time. He gave some examples of cases, where he had not succeeded, and that included his own marriage.

What has brought all this together is a very cool article, written by Rob Weatherill, titled “What does the patient pay for?” While specifically aimed at the analyst – patient scenario, it is easy to draw comparisons with mentoring.

Would it be true to say that the patient is paying for the genuine professional help that the analyst gives, for the reliable support that the patient experiences in living and being able to continue to live amidst considerable suffering? Yes, this is definitely true, and it often not appreciated just how valuable this long term support really is,……. But this support is ambiguous, because the analyst is not especially helpful in the ordinary sense, and he is only supportive again in quite an unobvious way.  

 Weatherill concludes that the patient is paying for “presence” of the analyst. He feels that even in a silent manner, this presence can be evocative.

I have to agree. Last week, I sat in on a staff meeting between a CEO and a senior employee. I was given a free hand to ask questions. The CEO had set up the company himself and is knowledgable about what goes on, but even he learnt about hands-on issues that he had not reckoned with.

By the end, I took on the silent role. I let the two of them work through the issue together. 48 hours later, duties had been reallocated with smiles on faces. I am waiting to hear of higher output.

Take another client. They run a small theatrical company. I have encouraged them for weeks to start calling, making their own bookings. After a while, our meetings came to a halt. At the beginning of June, I phoned them up to check on the state of play.

The client was apologetic and thrilled in one. They had no time to catch up with me, because they have been rolling in bookings. And when I asked how they were planning for the next month, they explained how they had already factored in my question. I felt like a conscience, sitting on their shoulder, supervising.

Along with Gal, I have my own cases, which did not work out. However, I can be proud of those times, when everything goes right; sales rise, companies are opened, efficiency is driven thorugh an organisation, etc. And if I can do that by “silently” guiding the client to understand their own problems, I am a happy person.

Hitech miracles: IBM, Intel and Microsoft

24 June 2011
1 Comment
Categories: Business, Israel, Jerusalem

Having the local heads of business development of Intel, IBM, and Microsoft in one room is a major event. And this week, I had the honour to moderate a panel with those people, organised by the Jerusalem Business Networking Forum. 

It is no coincidence that these high tech giants have a heavy r&d presence in Israel, the land of miracles. Over the years, Israel has been awarded a number of nicknames, including the “Silicon Valley of the Middle East” or “start-up nation”. Books and theses have been written in quantity to substantiate the point. Korea, Denmark and others all send delegations to Israel to find out how the Holy Land has created such an commercial miracle.

Well here are some pointers as to what’s going on.

First, the panel was hosted by Jerusalem College of Technology. A university dedicated to scientific excellence, the President, Professor Noah Dana-Picard, observed in his opening address how this one small institution alone has fostered 65 start-ups. For example, NDS is a prime supplier of tech for Sky TV. And a new application will allow solar power providers to use heat from direct light from the sun and reflected light from the ground. This creates an additional and significant 25% of output

As for the guest speakers, Michael Oran of IBM noted that barely 20% of his company’s sales today originate from standard hardware. IBM needs to come to countries like Israel, with the biggest lab outside the USA, in order to find and sponsor new commercial ideas. To date, his own global technology unit boasts revenues from over 100 Israeli start-ups.

Shai Tsur at Microsoft told a similar story. He specifically noted that PrimeSense provides the camera technology for XBox game, one of the fastest selling consumer applications in the world. And the next generation will also feature Israeli tech.

Menachem Shoval observed how Intel’s first plant outside the USA was set up in Haifa, Israel. For the past few years and continuing forwards, “Intel inside” means Israeli tech powering your computer.

One of JCT’s senior lecturers in business management, Hillel Bash, stressed how he encourages students “to look for ideas that will be changing”. So no surprise that he pointed out that there is already a strong Israeli presence in the fields of interactive video, cloud computing and nanotech.

But how? Israeli antagonists view the country as segregationist, which they argue should result in a boycott of the country’s products.

So let me return to the development of the solar panels. The team is made up of two scientists from France, another two formerly of America’s NASA programme, and a further two who arrived from Russia. 

Israel’s open society allows for, even encourages, such wonders. Combine this phenomenon with a population which looks for answers to solutions, and you begin to understand why Israel helps conglomerates to change the lives of millions around the world.

“Spy” on yourself – find out what you can truly achieve

19 June 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

Many people know the biblical story of Moses sending 12 spies to check out the Promised Land. As youngsters, we were taught that 10 of them reported that the land was unfit / dangerous, whereby the Children of Israel received a collective punishment. Cool story.

This week, Jews around the world read this part of the bible. I learnt two fascinating perspectives on life from local religious authorities.

First, ask yourself, why did Moses chose people, who although they were top tribesmen, were ill-equipped individually to carry out the task of spying? Surely, an interesting lesson here for managers of today.

Second, what was the real crime of the spies? After all, they spent more time praising the land than criticising it in their report. And why the collective punishment?

A second look at the texts reveals that what the “ten baddies” said was “no, we can’t”. The task is not possible. (In other words, they had been let down by those who have taken them out of Egypt and that the land is not for them). And 600,000 adults believed them.

The 21st Century is full of mentors and shrinks encouraging us to find the true voice of inner authority. But the fact is that too often we are content to avoid responsibility and tell ourselves that “we cannot” do womething, if only because we have been conditioned that way or that it is an easy option. Sensible, when we are discussing ourselves, yet very disappointing when viewed from the outside.

Well, it would seem that thought this thought process has been around for a lot longer than experts will care to admit. It was nearly 40 years on, when the Children of Israel finally entered Jericho – a different generation, habouring the same basic values. However, this new generation held a deeper belief and understanding of themselves and who was guiding them.

That was a generation that brought down walls of the their enemies. It is time for the rest of us to remove the obstacles from our dreams.

Why do we sell ourselves short in life?

17 June 2011
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Categories: Business

Whenever I bump into – let’s call him Bob, a close acquaintance for years – we talk about his work. And when I ask him if he will move elsewhere, he always quips back with the response: “Who will employ me?”

Aside from his managerial experience, ability to handle employees, training skills, solid purchasing technique, computing capability and much more, I doubt that he is correct. On the other hand, I am not his mentor. And I can but hope that he will realise his strengths another way.

Yet Bob’s self put-me-downs are so evident in many of us. Take three case studies of people I have been dealing with over the past year. (Again, made-up names)

Tony has a great idea for a wellness enterprise. We have worked out a strategy. And he now accepts that it is time to market the concept. “Oh, I can’t do that”, he responds automatically. And it turns out that over a decade back, he had an unsucessful summer job selling appliances on the back of two hours of training.

And from that brief experience, he deduced and sunk into his defence mechanism that he cannot sell. Wrong, matey.

Frank is setting himself up in the service sector. He was faced with a similar dilemma to Tony – how to sell himself, even though he possesses a clear and attrractive market position. When I asked him what he could do to promote his company, I was told that this line of thinking was not his forte.

I bluntly told Frank what he could do with such comments, challenging him if he had been actively involved in sales. You guessed it – another negative answer.

“So, if you have never formulated a  sales campaign, how do you know that you are no good at it?” An embarrassed silence was followed by my client, spurting forth ideas for the next 30 minutes! the damn had been breached.

David disappointed himself, just as the others did. We agreed that it would be necessary for him to speak in front of small groups of potential clients.

  • Can you do that?
  • No.
  • Why not?
  • Don’t know.
  • When was the last time you spoke?
  • Not for years
  • So, who told you cannot speak in public?
  • Back to the world of silence

Each person is an individual, with their own background. Sometimes, because a task appears daunting, we give up too easily. We convince ourselves that we cannot. Sometimes, we have been poorly conditioned by well-meaning parents or teachers.

Whatever, this is all a convenient excuse to pass off responsibility for our actions (or non-actions). So many of us are just missing out on opportunities……. because of ourselves.

Often, the solution is allowing yourself to listen to wake up call from somebody you trust.

Wellness, time management and innovation

8 June 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

I attended a fascinating lecture this week on “wellness”. This sector has mushroomed in the past decade, seemingly valued at billions in whichever country you are resident.

And in a period, where the “pace of life” is constantly driven faster by new apps and smaller devices, “wellness” devotees correctly pose the question: “Are managers and business owners able to find time for everything they want to do”? What important tasks get ignored at work? And how many of us are guilty of cutting in to family time?

Solutions are not simple. One interesting approach was offered by my IIB colleague, Siu Ling Hui from Melbourne, Australia. Writing in the latest edition of her monthly posting, Ruminations, she questioned if “we are busy with the right stuff”.

And if not? Siu wonders if businesses invest too little time, money and resources in innovation and marketing, activities which create value today and in the future.

…..innovation isn’t just about inventing ground breaking world shattering products. It is equally about harnessing new technologies or new ways of doing things so as to be able to deliver your products or services more effectively to your customers than your competitors………..

 As for marketing,  Siu concludes that you must invest creatively or perish. For example,

Whilst many of the major (Australian) retailers are crying poor and bitching about the competitive threat of internet, there are many new small retail businesses which have harnessed the power of technology to create innovative business models.

Kogan (consumer electronics) and the Shoes of Prey are just two young innovative retailers who are thriving ……

Consider the book retailing industry. The REDGroup, owner of Borders and Angust & Robertson book store chains in Australia, went into administration in February 2011. Price competition from the internet and the protectionist policy that forced local retailers to buy from Australian publishers were blamed for the demise of the chains………Small independent book stores have been able to survive because they offer their customers something extra beyond just books: knowledgeable staff who genuinely engage with the customers. The “soul-less” large chains didn’t provide that to compensate for the higher prices.

Innovation is so often linked to hightech, that we forget how it is relevant for just about every commercial sector and beyond.

Two of my current customers could learn a simple lesson from Siu’s advice. One runs a gift store, which is open long hours. Local competition is fierce, but the owner is reluctant to risk taking on new items in case he will be copied by others. Another is looking for a career change, but will not bring themselves to decide on new opportunities.

In both cases, the client remains (for now) encased in the comfort zone of the past. Yet they are engaged in spending time doing what they do not enjoy. The result? Not a lot of wellness and an unhealthy bank account.

So what really happens in Jerusalem

7 June 2011
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Categories: Israel, Jerusalem

If you look at maps from Roman times or the medieval ages, Jerusalem is often placed in the middle of the picture. Today, any stone thrown or any fear of trouble in the holy city almost automatically triggers editors to clear media space.

But what really goes on inside Jerusalem? Under 800,000 residents and less than 130,000 dunam, but with nearly 3 million tourists – what makes this relatively small city tick?

Back in June 1967, the Jerusalem was reunited. Since then, Jewish sites have been restored, the Christian community has grown, Muslims are excavating freely under the Dome of the Rock. OK – all very politically correct, but what else? What brings everybody together, despite the tensions?

The Mayor of Jerusalem issued a press release last week, which revealed how all this freedom is brought together. And I quote extensively:

In the past two years Jerusalem has experienced a cultural revolution. Budgets invested in culture were doubled and the number of cultural events and festivals in the city has tripled. Jerusalem returns to occupy the center of the stage and holds the central and leading cultural and sports events alongside major international events. Jerusalem has become a leader in cultural events in the country and the new cultural and sports complexes established by the city council will serve a large variety of events, starting from concerts held by international performers through hosting the Maccabiah and the leading film, art and theater schools in the country.

 There are many examples of this; a children’s film festival, laying out tourists tracks in the Muslim part of the city, a new international marathon, etc. Later this summer there will be opera and wine festivals. As for education:

In the past two years a number of new schools were opened in the eastern part of the city, adding 500 classrooms to the education system for Arab residents. In 2011 an unprecedented amount of NIS 300 million will be invested in design and construction of 285 classrooms in the eastern part of the city; 75 million NIS were already invested in construction.

 (This academic year), the Jerusalem municipality opened 6 new schools: one national-religious school in Gonenim neighborhood and 2 additional schools (1 national and 1 religious) in Chomat Shmuel neighborhood. The “Abdullah Bin El Hussein” all girls high school was opened in eastern Jerusalem as well as the regional “Ras El Amud” all girls high school.

And if you want some useful / useless facts about Jerusalem, remember that: 

  • More than 140,000 people went to see soccer games in the capital.
  • The word “Jerusalem” in Hebrew appears 20,100,000 times in Google.
  •  The word “Jerusalem” in English appears 67,100,000 times in Google.
  • The average winter temperature in Jerusalem is 12°C degrees and 29°C degrees in the summer.
  • The overall length of roads in Jerusalem is 1,253km.
  • The longest street in the city is Menachem Begin Blvd. stretching to a length of 15.7km.
  •  There are 173,055 meters of footpaths in Jerusalem.
  • There are 28km of highway in Jerusalem.
  • Jerusalem is located in the Mountains of Judea and therefore there are 34.9km of stairs aimed at shortening distances to pedestrians.
  • There are approximately 2000 archaeological sites in Jerusalem.
  • 10,000 runners took part in the Jerusalem marathon, running in 5 different categories.
  • Flowers were planted twice a year in 80 different squares throughout the city, adding color to the city.
  • More than 30 playgrounds were renovated during the past two years.
  • In 2010 2,547 new immigrants settled in Jerusalem. An 11% increase in comparison to the previous year.

Israeli econmy and its Mediterranean neighbours

31 May 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

Over the last two years, a revolution has occurred in the way Israel manages its economy, the focus of which is changing over to a bi-annual budget. Within a few years we will see many western countries, including the US, adopting the option of a bi-annual budget.

Thus boasted the Finance Minister of Israel, Dr Yuval Steinitz. He has a point, and I have said as much in some of my previous blogs.

It is interesting to compare Israel’s economic progress to that of the other smaller members in the OECD. For example, a recent analysis of relations with Greece explains that “Sick of their ailing economy and IMF meddling, many Greeks see the Israeli model of economic growth as the one to emulate.”

The situation was eloquently reviewed by Dr. Michel Strawczynski , a senior researcher at the Bank of Israel:

The economy managed to lower the ratio of public debt to GDP during the crisis, at a time when many countries increased their debt, thereby hampering their recovery from the economic crisis.

Time for a few European finance ministers to make a trip to the Holy Land and discover an economic miracle?

“Just do it” ordered the consultant…. but how?

30 May 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

“Just do it” is a brilliant catch-all phrase, powered by Nike.

So simple. If you want to get on with any task, just go ahead and do it. Succeed with “us”, Nike. And for many people, the slogan is an extension of what they were taught incessantly in the home and at school. Innovators and entrepreneurs clearly see themselves in that bracket. Just do it.

But what if……

What if you cannot “just” do it? For some reason you are stuck. You cannot carry out the nonchalant task, glaring right at you. Shy, scared of failure, scared of succeeding, laziness, or whatever – as a business mentor, these are frequent problems you have to overcome.

Here’s what I mean. I was sitting today in a restaurant in Jerusalem, hosting two separate sessions with very capable individuals.

The first is young, commercially inexperienced and raring to implement his idea. And he is very focused. “So what’s stopping you”, I asked. “You tell me,” was his response. Playing devil’s advocate, I observed that I did not know what was needed for his business. And he dutifully rattled off a list of equipment.

“And how much does that cost?” I questioned, and followed it with some prodding about marketing.

“So where does that get me?” he pondered. And when I told him that he is now half way to a basic business plan, his eyes lit up. He will spend the next week, confirming the basic facts  and the business model, and then begin to look for a small loan.

Bottom line? For some reason, he cannot motivate himself to move ahead. But once prodded in the right direction, he will “just do it”.

Meeting number two was a different affair. Every question of mine was met with a question. Everything was analysed in detail until the person was sure of what to do next. Fair enough. But what will prompt him to move over from words towards action? He demands to know that he is doing the right thing before he has done it, just like so many of us.

I took a chance and wondered out loud: “How do I motivate you to carry out these tasks?” The reply brought a smile to my face.

“It’s not for you to do anything. I have to do it myself.” By George, he’s got it.

Will it be easy? Possibly not. It will not be a case of “just” getting on with it. But moving ahead is what he will be achieving.

Why innovative managers stop innovating

27 May 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

Looking back at my mentoring experiences this week, I realise that I have seen quite a few companies being choked of their vibrance and innovation. However, the explanations vary as to why this is happening. Drilling down, the case studies reveal something about the hidden flaws in may of us.

Let’s start with a very simple story that you can find in any town or city around the world. A husband and wife team abandon their comfort zones and known territories in order to set up a small shop in Jerusalem. They have called me in because the set up costs had mushroomed before they realised what had happened. And although sales are now on the up, the cash flow is going “west”.

What can be done, I was asked. To which I promptly asked them:” what can you do?” And once forced into the challenge, there was no shortage of good ideas. Yet, one partner was all for their implementation. The other launched into a mantra of “manjana”. It could all be put off until………well, whenever – another issue, another excuse.

I do not know them well enough. But it was interesting. Here is a business, starved of cash and struggling to save its future. Two young and talented people in charge. But one of them appears so overwhelmed that all suggestions for improvement are smothered. Is that person afraid? Too tired after months of struggling? Do they not want to be there?

Time will tell. I found a similar set up near Tel Aviv. An established family business in the building industry is being threatened by new entrants. The husband wants to carry on as normal, yet the banks are closing in.

I realised that he saw me as a “threat”. What could I know or help, when he had been the CEO for over 20 years? But I understood that his experience was key to the future.

So, I engaged him through his wife. I started to sit down with her, stadily going over the problem areas.  At the end of each meeting, I would leave her “homework”. She began preparing the tasks with her husband. This week, I heard that he is now looking forward to the next assignment.

What has made him wake up? Not sure. Maybe I was able to convey indirectly that his business has a value and is worth saving. That message jolted his ego and the “old him” is coming out of the closet. This bodes well for his company and family.

And finally, I was asked to look at a previously vibrant software firm, where the parent company has become involved in the day-to-day decision-making. Spin letters from the top have been a constant.  Profits have been maintained, as wages have been near frozen. 

And guess what, when the top guys, all smiles, turned up recently for a presentation to the managers, they were greeted with a cold reception. All efforts to rouse the troops ended up …you can guess where.

There comes a time where rhetoric, supported by false empathy and a weak reward system, is seen for waht it is: false. Staff will simply stop going “that extra mile”.

Obvious to my reader? Yes, but not if you have received your own bonus at the expense of those you are trying to encourage. Few new projects are on the horizon at this stage.

Choosing between Assad, Obama or progress – Israel’s economy

22 May 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

Until recently, the centre of Jerusalem looked like the political map of the Middle East and North Africa. The roads had been ripped up and replaced by a light railway. It was a mess and few are certain that the new train system will improve transportation in the holy city. Confusion.

Meanwhile, shopkeepers have had a rough time. Walking along the pavements has been a nightmare. And yet, the centre of town is rocking along, somehow.

You could say much the same for the whole of the Israeli economy. Goldman Sachs has warned of the aftershocks from Assad’s clampdown. Growth, which has been sailing along at over 4%, may suffer. And there’s the Obama-Netanyahu spat, which could upset investors looking for stability.

Yet the economy continues to progress along towards its next station. Take these three pieces of current news items.

  • Reed Elsevier plc is in talks to buy Israel healthcare software company dbMotion for $250-300 million.
  • Applied Materials Israel Ltd. will hire 100 more employees for its R&D Center
  • The governor of the Bank of Israel, Stanley Fischer, is one of the main candidates to take over at the IMF.

It is now five years since Israel fought Hizbollah in Lebanon. Reservists were called up. The economy in the north of the country almost dryed up for 6 weeks. And yet, by the end of the same year, the country was on an economic high. Why?

Because, as people of Jerusalem have demonstrated, there is something intrinsic in Israel which ensures that hardships do not automatically get in the way of progress. The catch phrase of “thinking outside the box” becomes a subconscious day-to-day reality. I wonder if Moody’s have factored that intangible in to their analysis.

So you’re not motivated..

20 May 2011
1 Comment
Categories: Business

….a student’s sense of belonging, security, and self-confidence in a classroom provides the scaffolding that bolsters the foundation for enriched learning, intrinsic motivation, more effective coping abilities, self-discipline, and caring.

Thus writes Dr Robert Brooks in his latest monthly posting on empowering children, and regular readers will know that I have referred to this gent in the past.

What I find interesting about this quote is that what applies to the classroom (and, dare I mention it, to homework) also applies to the workplace. We look to our superiors to provide an environment that will help us enjoy our workday. In return, we will want to find a way to add our own positive contribution.

Are we solely talking about money here? Sure, a pay rise helps us to smile. But that’s not all. Here’s a short list of other conditions that are also essential to securing a happy employee: –

  • Encouraging innovation / initiative
  • A manager employing genuine empathy
  • Meaningful channels which allow for discussion (and maybe change)
  • A reward scheme not just based on money

So, if that is so simple to write down, why do so many employers miss “it”? Think how many times in the past month alone that you have heard from colleagues and friends and family who are desperate for a change by the way their comapny is run?

At the end of his article, Brooks quotes David Brooks (no relation), who notes:

Many of our public policies are proposed by experts who are comfortable only with correlations that can be measured, appropriated and quantified, and ignore everything else.

Replace the phrase “experts” with “senior decision makers”, and maybe we have an answer to my question as to why the workplace is often a disaster spot.

What is a business mentor?

17 May 2011
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Categories: Business, Israel

“What does that mean?” is the response I frequently receive when I explain that I am a business mentor. “Is that the same as consultancy”?

If you were to google mentoring, you will come up with numerous different explanations. And some of them are very similar to consultancy. I can only vouch for myself and what works for my clients. 

I see mentoring as a method to help the client attain, or at the very least draw closer to, their vision. The way I do that is to try to understand what makes them tick and, in parallel, to understand what may be holding them back.

A classic situation is the person looking for more sales. How many times do I discover that this is not simply a call for improved use of social media or brighter business cards. A more fundamental issue frequently emerges, such as time management – the CEO is always busy but complains that they never have enough spare hours for their customers. That is a complete misfit.

Drill down, and you might find a casue linked to a problematic parent-child relationship going back decades or a blind fear of handling responsibility. Yup, you start looking for your notes from “shrink 101” lectures, as you abandon your Harvard biz school textbooks.

So the next question I hear is do I have to be an expert to be a mentor. Well, there are specific subjects, where it helps or is even essential: clients who want to set up a facebook marketing campaign or who seek help in running a restaurant. Fair enough.

But take the example of somebody who I spoke to the other day. He imports and distributes mushrooms. He now believes that he can grow them near Jerusalem and export them. How can I help him set up the business?

I explained my experience in small businesses. I told him about my background in international logistics. He heard about my overseas sales contacts. “But what do you know about mushrooms”, he countered. I did not try to hide my zero knowledge, but I encouraged him to accept how that was not the main issue here.

However, for him, it was all about mushrooms and not the business model. I did not hear back from him. And I suppose that he was left in full control of his new business, wondering how to set it up and still drawing no income.

Business mentoring is all about helping people. Mentoring is about listening to people, latching on to what they do not see, and then recreating the issue in a way that they can respond to. It is frequently enjoyable  and usually very rewarding for all parties.

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