Kandou: A Man Without A Star

The name of "Strategic Management" for some reason always sounded like leading a military operation to me!! I don't know why! but that is how it was! It was long before I realized that the core of Strategic Management has little to do with military, even though, leading such operations definitely needs it!

When I first took the Strategic Management courses in my MBA, I realized how far my initial thoughts were from the reality. Basically, the Strategic Management is the art of shaping an organization's operation to optimize its use of resources to meet the objectives! In other words, it is a way of achieving the goals set by founders or shareholders with minimum utilization of resources!

In world of business, which is my favorite topic, strategic management will divide into two sub, yet inter-dependable category! Business Strategy and Corporate Strategy. Corporate Strategy will define what markets the firm will compete in, as well as defining its growth strategy, while Business Strategy states how it will compete in those markets!

Most of the topics, when associated with real life case studies, are exciting and interesting for me. However, it is even more challenging to try to apply what you read, to what really happens in your world, which is a different story!

Posted by ME at 3:09 PM | Permalink | Comments

The most essential part of a successful project management process is to balance resources with the amount of required work. It is easy to say! as a matter of fact, every one think "well, this is common sense!!!, tell us something we don't know"...but the reality is quite different!

When you are given a new project, based on what you have stated in the proposal, you must put together the team. This is the easy part! Since most of the time, the team has been specified in the proposal! However, disruptions happen! Some one leaves the company! Some one is too busy to help, or some one essential to the team leaves on holidays! Therefore, it becomes very important to assemble a team which is both available and flexible!

Second, you have to figure out what needs to be done! most of the time, clients expect that they receive more than what they are paying for! In addition, they will always always ask for things that were not specified in the proposal! Number one rule in consulting business: Client is always right!! Therefore, they must be room for extra work without pay when you are putting together a proposal! This is when the experience and familiarity with the client comes in! So almost every one includes a "Contingency Allowance" to cover unexpected items during the work!

Last but not least, you as a project manager must maintain the time, be responsive to the client as far as deadlines and quality of works are concerned, and keep every one in the team within budget! Sounds pretty confusing? Right! You have not seen anything, if you have not managed a simple project! When you do, welcome to the club!

Posted by ME at 12:33 PM | Permalink | Comments

Today, I have signed up another project, which will be as challenging as ever. The technical part is not that difficult. However, we are participating in designing three intersections, two of which are in the area of interests of three different jurisdictions.

Here, transportation facilities are normally owned and controlled by one jurisdiction. For example, British Columbia Ministry of Transportation, owns and operates and maintains provincial highways, and therefore intersections along them, with all associated projects and facilities. Then there are municipality governments, like City of Surrey and City of Vancouver, who control and operate local roadways and intersections. There is another authority here, called TransLink (Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority), who was first formed to oversee the operation of public transportation systems. However, as we talk now, they cover a major part of transportation network infrastructures, ranging from collectors, arterials, to park and ride facilities and intersections.

Now, the confusing issue here is that each of these jurisdictions has its own set of standards. So the consultant must comply with them. The law says that the provincial standards will overcome the rest if it comes to a conflict of interest. However, the result of such enforcement will be a non-cooperative process in the stakeholders’ relationships with each other! The only way left will be to customize a project in such a way that satisfies all of them together and none of them alone! This in turn will need a highly sensitive communication method, as well as keeping a wide open flexible schedule at all times!

Posted by ME at 3:39 PM | Permalink | Comments

As I have advanced in my career, I have to bear more responsibility! Responsibility has given me flexibility and wisdom (as compared to my younger years) to deal with different situations. It is not like the old times when I used to crushed any thing I didn't like to something I liked!! One reason is that when you take responsibility, you become more and more "Risk Averse" as opposed to "Risk Taker" which is a characteristic of those who have nothing to lose!

Having said that, I always had the sense that I would not responsibility, not to become less flexible! However, during these years, I realized that in order to advance in any field, work, social life, sports, art, study...whatever, it is critical to become more and more responsive to the environment and society! It is not like the good old days when I did whatever I wanted with no "responsibility" to answer for them!

This whole tells me that, finally, even I can grow up!!

Posted by ME at 11:31 AM | Permalink | Comments

When there is no "choice", it is easy to decide! you take what you are stuck to! whether it is food, date, a film or a job opportunity! The difficulty begins when you have choices, one of which you have to choose and non of which will come back if not chosen the first time! Most of the time, Don Corleone's expression comes true "He does not ask for a second favor, if you refuse the first one"!!!

I know it is a difficult situation! But a decision, specially those who might affect the rest of your life, is not that easy to make! This is when you feel tired and frustrated!

To make things even worse, you will always feel that you have made the wrong choice! and that should you have done otherwise, you would have been better off! No matter in what, buying a car, a new condo, dating a new girl, a new job offer and so forth! when you have options, you are in trouble deciding! and cpmlying with your own decision after that!

What a life!!!

Posted by ME at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments

When I started my other weblog in Farsi, I always thought I must run another weblog in English, to keep communicating with non-Farsi speaking fellows. For a while, I updated both. After a while, I ran out of time and subject to keep doing both at the same time! So I guess that is why my English weblog has not seen a new post since the New Year!

I am back...and this weblog will mostly concenrate on my day-to-day life as a traffic engneer, MBA student, a single man, and a brother, a son, a brother -in-law and a friend to those who know in one way or the other!

So Hello again fellows! I am back!

Posted by ME at 10:59 AM | Permalink | Comments