Work Diva by Kim Meredith

Author:Kim Meredith
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ‘It’s time for women to acknowledge their dreams, to take charge of their work lives and fulfil their ambitions. Work Diva is here to be the mentor and guide you’ve always wished for.’
ISBN: 978-1-77020-127-9
Publisher: Penguin Random House South Africa
Published: 2013-11-21T00:00:00+00:00

The powers that be do not want to talk about operational detail. They want to discuss the strategic issues affecting the business. In order to have a meaningful discussion about these types of issues, you must do your homework. If it is market share you’re going to be discussing, you will need to understand the current size of the company’s market share, how this is measured, etc. Is reading Cosmo going to help you? Of course not, so what can you do to prepare for these high-level discussions?

Reading is good. Reading is always good – but read the business newspapers and magazines. Find books – even novels (any reading is better than none) – set in the business world. And if you don’t understand something you read, find out what it means. Watch the business channels on television. Get coaching from someone who understands how businesses operate at the strategic level. Not only are you preparing to interface with executives, you’re preparing yourself to become an executive.

If you’re quite junior in an organisation, C-level people will usually be sympathetic to your efforts to learn and are likely to cut you a little slack. They will still expect you to know your subject and to have done your homework.

Back to the executive meeting. Let’s use Thandi Smith as our example. Imagine Thandi works for Selfridges as an assistant merchandiser in the ladies’ shoes department, and she is hoping to be promoted to head of merchandising for the department. In presenting to Mr Big, Thandi should be able to explain how placing the Jimmy Choo, Christian Louboutin, Manolo Blahnik or Patrick Cox shoes in one ‘high-end’ area with displays dedicated to each shoe manufacturer – sponsored by the manufacturer – will increase sales based on a pilot project she did last month.

Knowing lots about shoes will serve Thandi well, but Mr Big wants to know how the shoe displays can increase business. He is not interested in the quality or the range or the seasonal colours of the shoes. Any quality concerns, for example, would need to be raised with the quality assurance manager. Only if Sarah Ferguson had bought a pair of shoes that were poor quality and she had subsequently tripped and shown her knickers on television would Mr Big be inclined to get involved in this side of the business. Does this make sense? Mr Big needs the big picture.

How does all of this affect you? If you want to elevate your career, the people making the decisions that affect your career path need to know who you are and what capabilities you have. Who better to present this to them than you? But be sure to present it in such a way that they can see the relevance of what you are saying to the organisation as a whole. Are they interested in the fact that your boss is picking on you or pinching your bum? No – go and see human resources for that. Are they interested

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