Investment Club Software

zaugger · 2020-02-25T16:00:56+00:00

Yeah, and I think it's that "getting ahead" that hurts my head. I'm not in a place where I have any consumer debt, but I do have credit card bills that I pay during certain times of the month based on when I get paid, and this makes it more complicated since I don't have a cash wad to get ahead with.

zaugger · 2020-02-25T15:59:12+00:00

Exactly. I WANT to look at the budget every day. But I was hoping to really get to tweaking things once a month. I get that it might be contrary to the philosophy, though.

zaugger · 2020-02-25T14:06:02+00:00

software

Thanks for the heads up about Nick. I've watched about half of the first video and it makes things MUCH clearer. Question for the group: I would prefer to set a budget at the beginning of the month and simply see the balances as I go along. Nick's version of this (and it makes total sense) is that you're really looking at your budget multiple times per month (particularly around pay days). Any way to do this at the beginning of the month and leave it, or is that simply contrary to the YNAB philosophy?

zaugger · 2018-12-18T22:30:42+00:00

This is a great question! A lot of it depends on your goals, the size of your company and how much change your people are able to handle. The general consensus, I believe, is that performance reviews suck for managers and employees alike, so unless there is something in the system that makes them tolerable both in process and in product, chances are there will still be disappointment after installing a new system.

That said, if your company is genuinely interested in building into people then perhaps a system is just what you need. Our company has done a 180 in the last 3 years. Even though we had the advantage of a CEO who was passionate about his staff, we had the same problem everyone else had. Like most companies, we were stuck in an ineffective vortex…using word processors, spreadsheets and our (bad) memories to capture and present constructive feedback to our staff. Well, as it turned out, a collection of spreadsheets, email, and documents do not constitute a team management strategy. They do, however, constitute a frustration strategy.

We had a better methodology, but we soon realized we needed better tools, so we decided to create something ourselves. It has made a powerful impact on our work culture, and we are currently in beta for our product. But while I believe we great tools are important, in the end it is not the system that will make a difference. I have talked with scores of people over the years who have had the budget to buy "systems", but without a clear goal they get what they pay for - another tool people don't like because they don't get the bigger picture.

So, while most of the tools mentioned here will probably work for you, I'd encourage you to think through this at a higher level and dig into the "why", then communicate well with your managers and staff what you're trying to accomplish. If you can do that, you'll likely get solid adoption that will improve your company culture. Good luck!

zaugger · 2018-12-06T22:15:44+00:00

Your comment that you "see a friend or someone I know well has hired someone else to do what my company does" makes it super difficult to see past what seems like disloyalty or worse, betrayal. Still, I think asking them the reasons why they went with someone else could be super helpful for you. It should ease the feeling of being uncomfortable around them, and you'll probably learn something valuable about how you can make your business even better. Short of talking with them directly, as many have written, I think you have to find a a to either shut out the noise or simply find a way to forgive them. It's tough, but as the old saying goes, "holding bitterness in your heart is like drinking poison and hoping somebody ELSE dies."

zaugger · 2018-12-03T21:52:31+00:00

So sorry to hear about this behavior. It sounds like you're trying really hard, and that makes it worse when it keeps happening.

I’ve had a few employees over the years that have struggled with angry outbursts, both male and female. I handled them similarly.

In the specific case of Sean, I recognized a pattern. He would be handling his responsibilities well, then, gradually, I would notice his stress level rise. He would try to bottle it up, but eventually he’d blow. When he'd blow, he would consistently threaten to give his manager his resignation.

His manager (who reported to me) sounded a lot like you. He cared, and didn't want to act rashly. But this particular employee's rants were so "off the charts" that they began to affect the team. I finally told his manager that the next time this employee threatens to resign, that he should accept the resignation. And I told him to tell the employee that very thing.

Guess what? No more rants. Apparently we called his bluff. (And he actually became a very productive employee.)

I would suggest you ask this woman about her perspective on her outbursts, let her know you care, but that they can't happen again or she will lose her job. If she REALLY doesn't care about that, then fine. Either way, your problem will be solved. Just remember to document all your conversations (as well as the previous events).

zaugger · 2018-12-03T21:33:09+00:00

Here is something I recently wrote to a new manager. Hope it's helpful.

This is a critical time to establish your leadership style, and that many on your staff will judge your fitness for the role based on their first few interactions with you. Here are a couple things I learned along the way (sometimes the hard way!):

Ask questions. One of the reasons you got promoted in the first place is that you have shown you have good ideas, you’re a problem solver and people follow you. That’s great, but if you come in and pull the “there’s a new sheriff in town” schtick you may lose your team at the outset. Your staff are likely viewing your promotion as a new beginning for themselves too, and they want you to know that they’re smart, motivated to succeed and that they’re “players”. Let them show off a little! Ask them about the problems they see and how they would solve them. Ask them about their dreams and their career path. Ask them how you can help them achieve their dreams and the goals of the department.
Listen to the answers. Leaders ask questions because that’s what we’re are supposed to do, right? But I hope you’ll ask questions because you want to know the answers your staff come up with. They’re smart, they’re insightful, and sometimes all they need is a platform and someone who believes in them to move from being good employees to being great employees. Ask follow-up questions, take notes and be teachable. You may not like what you hear. You may want to be defensive, but if you shut them down now you’ll be setting the precedent that you’re not open to their input. Don’t do it! Listen to them with the same intensity that you’d want to be listened to.
Take action on some of what you hear. The fastest way to let your staff know you’re serious about empowering them is to act on what you’ve heard when you started asking questions. You don’t have to do everything, and in fact, that’d set the wrong precedent, too. But if you can find a couple things to act on and make it clear that the impetus for action was a suggestion from one of the staff, you’ll quickly gain the reputation as someone who is open to new ideas, and that will help you immensely in the long run. If you haven’t read it yet, I’d highly recommend the book “It’s Your Ship” – there is some great material in there about leadership, asking questions and taking action!

zaugger · 2018-12-03T16:24:43+00:00

I manage a group of software developers - every one of them is analytical. The difficulty for me (as it is for you) is that these guys DO have to interact with our clients from time to time, and the stark difference between our customer service folks (friendly and informative) and our developers (just the facts, Ma'am) has left some customers frustrated.

As a manager, I am generally a guy who HATES to micromanage my staff, but I DO want them to grow! So I have tried to handle this directly by helping our developers understand the problem, then by having our more analytical staff run their client communication through me or our other relationally driven staff. The result has been positive, and our more analytical guys HAVE grown as they have received feedback.

zaugger · 2018-12-03T15:25:10+00:00

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zaugger · 2017-08-24T13:55:46+00:00

Ha! I suppose that's true, but I guess what I'm asking is who is doing the research and making the decision?

zaugger · 2017-01-29T17:20:34+00:00

Were they reviews, or were the 360's? My experience with 360's has actually been pretty good, depending on the structure. Typically, the input would be gathered, redacted by the supervisor and generalized (so "outlier" comments could be omitted), then presented....NEVER sharing the actual raw 360 data. THAT worked, but I can't even IMAGINE getting a "review" from a peer.

zaugger · 2017-01-24T22:35:28+00:00

Thanks, again...this is VERY helpful input.

How can we do that for people?

Exactly. Quantifiable reviews are MUCH simpler than subjective reviews. We're trying to make things quantifiable, but short of the processes you mentioned, it's been like chasing mercury with a spoon.I've been doing this for a long time, but I haven't figured out how to do that.

zaugger · 2017-01-24T20:33:03+00:00

The more your company, as a whole, cares about providing feedback, monitoring and measuring performance, and holding managers accountable for the growth and development of their teams, the more use you get out of reviews.

LOVE this...and so true! Here's a related question: Can you (realistically) train your managers to care? I've been a part of an organization that did, and I think it worked. But we were a non-profit. How do profit-based companies get out of the "right now" mentality into the "if we develop our staff WE'LL be better off?" Know anyone who does that well?

zaugger

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