Control the interfaces

One of your functions is to control the interfaces between your team and the "inside/outside worlds".
Be well,
Dwika-ExecuTrain



Tip #4: "Control the Interfaces"
Steven Cerri

Here I want to introduce the fourth of Six Functions of Successful Executives©. Regardless of whether you are a supervisor or a CEO or an entrepreneur or any level in between, one of your functions is to control the interfaces between your team and the "inside/outside worlds". There are interfaces that your team must either directly or indirectly deal with, and a certain level of power and authority that the manager brings to the table can make all the difference between success and failure.

This function is based on the understanding that there are certain interfaces that must be controlled and influenced by the executive. Not necessarily all interfaces. But there are certain interfaces that cannot be controlled by anyone else except the executive.

This means that the executive must "manage and control" those certain interfaces so that the team can get their work done. The interfaces the executive must control depend on the level of the executive in the organization.

For example, the company CEO must control the interfaces that include the banks, government agencies, and public relations firms, that his or her direct staff must deal with.

The mid-level manager of a software department may have to control the interfaces that include the finance department, the sales department, and the quality assurance department.

The manager of human resources may have to control the interfaces that include the CEO, the executive staff, insurance companies, and the like.

As you can see, there are certain, specific interfaces that are most appropriately dealt with by a given executive level. And it is that executive's responsibility to manage and control those interfaces so their direct reports don't have to.
On-Going Tele-Seminars to Choose From!

Another FREE teleseminar is scheduled for August 16th at 2pm (Pacific Savings Time). This upcoming teleseminar is titled: What your boss wants you to know!

Here is what the upcoming teleseminar is about.
We're technologists, engineers, scientists, right? We didn't spend any time, (well maybe one or two classes) in organizational development, finance, negotiation, and legal issues. And yet, after being in an organization for a while you realize that decisions aren't made on technical merits only.

In fact, decisions are seldom made on the technical merits only. Usually they are made on something called business needs, or organizational considerations. What are they? What are the parameters that are used to make those important decisions? The important question is, "What does my boss want me to know that is important to the company?

Well, that's where we are going in this teleseminar. I'm going to spend an hour talking to you about the financial and operational considerations that drive your company's decision-making process. I'm going to tell you what the CEO thinks about and what he or she looses sleep over. I'm going to give you insight into what decisions are made by the highest levels of management and why they often look completely foreign to you.