The American Repossessor

There are three key words that I have used throughout my business career – and these words are fundamental to the success of any company, irrespective of business  sector and that includes the repossession industry – MANAGEMENT, CONTROL AND COMMUNICATION.  Any good manager should have the command of each of these business functions if they are to seriously develop and grow their company in a successful manner that meets their goals.

Many people think that they are dealing with something new, when in reality these business functions have been around for centuries, and there have been many before us that have heeded the experiences of others, in order that they ‘do not re-invent the wheel’.  We may be in the 21st century, but we still often don’t get it right.  Our ancestors, irrespective of nationality, culture or gender, are people that we should pay more attention to, for example:

“A good manager is best when people barely know that he exists.  Not so good when people obey and acclaim him.  Worse when they despise him”.  LAO TZU (circa 600 B.C), Chinese Taoist Philosopher.

How wise was he, when all those centuries ago, he hit the ‘nail on the head’!

So, for my  next 3 columns, I will explore each business function separately as there is too much to cover in one.

The words  MANAGEMENT- CONTROL- COMMUNICATION, go hand in hand with each other as they will help to ensure that a company is successful.  If one is missing, the remaining two will not work fully without it.

I will begin with MANAGEMENT.

Words are easy to say, but as the old saying goes “Actions speak louder than words”! One can pontificate all they want, but if they do not put those words into action, nothing will be achieved.

The definition of MANAGEMENT according to an online dictionary is:

1 – The act, manner, or practice of managing; handling, supervision or control

2 – The person or persons who control or direct a business or other enterprise

3 – Skill in managing; executive ability

Are you a good manager?  Can you lead your company to achieve your business goals?  Do you plan? Do you organize? Do you control? Do you motivate?  Do you lead?

MANAGEMENT is conducted through a variety of business functions such as planning, organizing, directing/leading, monitoring and controlling.

What does that mean?

TO PLAN:  To decide on what you want to happen in the future, including now, months in advance and yes, even into a 3-5 year timeline, to develop your plans and achieve your goals.

I so often hear that you cannot plan for the future and definitely not in the 3-5 years time.  Nonsense!  Of course you can.  You can develop outline projections which would be based on your actual activity  and what you want to achieve.  You develop a timeline too that will give you approximate timeframe to achieve your goals.  Such a plan can be changed and updated, in accordance to what is happening in the company at any given time.

“It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan”  ELEANOR ROOSEVELT (1884 – 1962), First Lady of the United States.

“Forewarned, forearmed; to be prepared is half the victory”  MIGUEL DE CERVANTES SAAVEDRA  (1547 – 1616,) Spanish Writer and Author of Don Quixote.

TO IMPLEMENT:  To carry out your plans with the best resources you can allocate to them so that you can achieve the results you want.  You have to manage the implementation process at all times, and monitor and evaluate what you are doing to ensure that it is working.  If it is not, then you need to adjust the plan accordingly by finding out why it does not work and look to a solution that will make it work.  Be flexible.  Monitoring and evaluation are key.

“Incidents should not govern policy; but, policy incidents”.  NAPOLEON BONAPARTE (1769 – 1821), Emperor of France, Military and Political Leader.

TO RECRUIT: You have to be able to hire the  right people for the jobs you have and before you commence the hiring process, you need to know exactly what you are looking for.  A job description should be developed so that all concerned know from the beginning what is expected of them.  Don’t go off and think that people can read your mind (and have I seen that one too many times) as not only do you set yourself up for failure, but the new employee too.

“Not to watch your workmen is to lose your money”.   SPANISH PROVERB.

If you do not have good people skills, you cannot manage others, and I cannot emphasize that enough!  More managers fail at this hurdle, than any other.  If you cannot manage yourself, then for sure you cannot manage others and the following quote really leaves no room for misunderstanding.

“If you want to manage somebody, manage yourself.  Do that well and you’ll be ready to stop managing and start leading”.  ANONYMOUS.

TO LEAD:  When you have decided what you need to do for your company, you have to direct your employees and lead them to achieve the goals that are set.  Leading people is not easy, but if you lead by example, your employees will follow accordingly.

To lead well, is to manage even better. As a manager, you need to be available to  your team at all times, and/or there be an infrastructure in place, that enables your employees to have answers to their questions.

You need to develop a strong management team that can lead from your direction, so that in turn your employees can accomplish that goals you have set for them to be achieved.  You have to train and mentor your team so that they can make decisions without fear of reprisal or blame.  A good manager invests time and effort into those that can either make or break your company.  You need to take your employees with you….they need to believe in the company and what it is trying to achieve.

“Pull the string, and it will follow wherever you wish.  Push it, and it will go nowhere at all.  DWIGHT D EISENHOWER (1890 – 1969), 34th President of the United States.

TO CONTROL: If you are a manager – then manage!  You have to be able to control your company and all the resources within it.  You have to understand your role, your responsibilities and have the confidence and the assertiveness to carry your position.

‘Flexing your muscles’ in a negative way, can be harmful and probably will not provide you with the results you seek.  Threatening your employees into action, does not work.  This bullying behavior is counterproductive and will alienate the very people that make the difference to your company’s progression and bottom-line.  Tread carefully.

As a manager, if your management skills are not what they should be, you should seek external help to develop and grow them. Just because you are a manager does not mean that  you don’t need to be trained or receive ongoing training.   If you do not want to do that, then step down as you can cause more harm to the company than anyone else within it.

“He who controls others may be powerful, but he who mastered himself is mightier still”.  TAO TE CHING (written circa 600 B.C).

TO MOTIVATE: As a company owner and/or manager, motivation starts with you!  Motivation is key to the success of all the aforementioned as without it, your team cannot be efficient or effective.

There is a distinct difference between ‘hand holding’ to help your employees and ‘doing it yourself’ – obviously, for what is the point of having a team of people that you lead, with job roles to fulfill, if you keep stepping in?  The following quote speaks volumes to that effect.

“The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it”.  THEODORE ROOSEVELT (1858 – 1919), 26th President of the United States.

A good manager, irrespective of what management position they hold MUST have all these business functions if their company is to be successful and be around in the years to come.  In addition, these are vital to being able to compete in the market place and these skills should be seen as a ‘competitive advantage’ and, where possible ‘added value’.

Being a manager does not mean, being a loner.  A good manager handles and works with their team.  If you say you are going to do something, then do it.

“Words are cheap….” said Charlie Chaplin (1889 – 1977, British Comedian, Producer, Writer and Film Director.

So much credibility and respect is lost by managers that pay ‘lip service’ to their employees and do not keep their word to them.

Your employees are only as good as you manage them!

MANAGER – You are a planner and a guide.  You do a great deal of work, contrary to what some cynical individuals think i.e., that they don’t have to do any work themselves.  It is your responsibility to keep the company organized and under control.  You should possess the highest set of ethical standards possible and be accountable for them.  As managers, one of  your basic goals is to make money for the company.  If you cannot manage, how do you expect to achieve that?

Overall, we have taken a MANAGEMENT journey that crosses over into several centuries, reaching back as far as 600 B.C. to 2010 – today.  Most of the people that have contributed to helping  me to deliver this message  to you, were definitely ‘before their time’ and we should look to those that have lived it, as they were and are the ones that can help managers to learn by their experiences even if they were many years ago, thus saving them much needed time and resources.

It is very costly to ‘re-invent the wheel’ and being in business, we certainly do not have time for that!

“You can’t build a strong corporation with a lot of committees and a board that has to be consulted every turn.  You have to be able to make decisions on your own”.  RUPERT MURDOCH (1931 -   ), Media Magnate and Founder, Chairman and CEO of News Corporation.

“Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority and don’t interfere.  RONALD REAGAN (1911 – 2004),  40th President of the United States.

“The productivity of work is not the responsibility of the worker, but of the manager”.  PETER F DRUCKER (1909 – 2005),  Writer, Management Consultant and self-described “social ecologist”.  His writings have predicted many of the major developments of the late 20th Century.