Five Leadership Skills Takeaway

I speak to Young Leaders Licking of County today.  A couple dozen young professionals get time chatting with me and time riding a Segway PT on our Port Authority campus.

I have no doubt they are here for the Segway experience, but I hope to leave them with more than that memory to take away.

Here's my short list of five leadership skills takeaways that I'm sharing:

On Negotiations (from Jack Kaine)
When there is a conflict between a person's mouth and their feet, believe their feet.  Know tactics not to use them but to know when they are being used on you.

On Interactions (from Michael Allosso)
Use TSP -- Truthful, Specific, and Positive comments best in interactions.  You need all three though.

On Public Speaking (also from Michael Allosso)
Like a movie or a performance, have a strong opening and a strong closing.  Eye contact is important.

On Humility (unattributed)
More can get done if you don't worry about who gets credit.

On Ethics (from Rotary International)
Rotary has its four-way test for use in life and business.  1.) Is it the truth? 2.) Is is fair to all concerned? 3.) Will it build goodwill and better friendships? 4.) Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

My Economists on Reshoring: It's Real

"You can kick anybody's butt right here in the U.S." was the stand-out phrase directed at manufacturers during a recent Vistage podcast featuring economists Alan and Brian Beaulieu.  I call them my economists not only because I like what they have to say, but because they have a penchant for accuracy.  They have a great sense of humor uncommon to most economists too.

The message was that reshoring, or near-sourcing if you prefer that term, of production is "real."

This was one of four key trends the Beaulieu brothers cited in predicting steady growth through 2018.  A healthy energy segment, better/stronger productivity, and "growing the industrial economy for the World" were the other three U.S. trends.  Upbeat.

My Economists to Manufacturers: We're Back!

The chart from Friday's column is worth posting again.  Alan and Brian Beaulieu, I call them my economists, used this slide on a podcast intended for a Vistage audience of CEO's, including CEO's of manufacturers.  It helped them make a couple key points about manufacturing in the U.S.

For one, they recommended Joel Kotkin's book The Next Hundred Million.  They made it recommended reading and labeled Kotkin's parts on China and the U.S. as "realistic" while also optimistic views of the future.

They also added a quotable line saying, "You [U.S. manufacturing] can kick anybody's butt right here in the U.S." adding that reshoring is real and there's no need to offshore manufacturing anymore.

"We're back!" was added for more gusto.

My Economists: Bottom Line First

I listened to a Vistage pocast with ITR Economic's Alan and Brian Beaulieu recently, and I'm going to share what "my economists" have to say in bite-size chunks.

The bottom line first.  The Vistage economists at ITR had been predicting a second half 2014 slow down that they even labeled a recession, albeit a mini one.  There was no reference to that in this late December presentation. 

They did predict some sector downturns in the latter half, but no use of the "R" word was ever detected with regard to 2014.

I took away a ton of material on China, Europe (particularly Germany), the Fed, demographics, and reshoring.  All are useful things to watch out for in 2014.

Here's the quick takes on their forecasts and analysis:

• China growth is not coming at the expense of the U.S.

• Natural gas costs in the U.S. are 1/4 of what they are in Germany, but Germany is starting to do some things about it.

• The Fed may be more inclined to allow some inflation in the future.  We could learn more on that soon.

• Joel Kotkin's demographics and his book The Next Hundred Million got a mention too.  I was glad to link my demographer with my economists.

• Near-sourcing and reshoring are real.  That's almost a verbatim quote.

Stay tuned.

Tempered Manufacturing News

Before I could blog about the good news that 27,000 new manufacturing jobs had been created in the U.S. for November 2013, I got tempered news from "my" economist.

Alan Beaulieu factually reports that the real number is 3,000 manufacturing jobs lost.  See "A Balanced Look at the Manufacturing Employment Numbers" for the explanation.

It's not all bad though.  He does continue to validate that there are good things to expect in manufacturing.  His post says, "Manufacturing is making a comeback, and the prospects for more re-shoring are good (we will cover those in another blog)."

But then he did reiterate his and his twin brother Brian's prediction that there will be a slight downturn in 2014.

Lessons From Germany

Triggered by rising energy costs in comparison to the U.S., German companies are looking at U.S. manufacturing facility investments in increasing numbers. 

This tidbit comes from Vistage economists Alan and Brian Beaulieu.  See Alan's latest at "Germany on the Go."  Alan's piece says, "According to a Wall St. Journal survey, 15% planned on increasing spending in Germany; 54% said they were looking to emerging markets or the U.S."

That's good news, but Alan takes it further with lessons for the U.S. on why we don't need to be messing with energy policy that, left to its own, could boost the U.S. economy.

Blog Focus Blog

Where's the ancestry?  Why has the blog been less-filled lately?

Truth is.  I'm trying to evolve the blog.

My Ancestry Saturday theme has gone away.  The real reason to do blogs on ancestry was to get the names into the search engines so researches on the same name could find their way to me to collaborate.  I can do that elsewhere, and have migrated it off to another site.

The reason for RickPlatt.com is for the business purpose of building credibility as a subject matter expert on manufacturing and related topics like the driverless car, STEM, economic development, and suburban development.  I'll continue to write from a work, community, and personal perspective.

The spark for evolution came from a Vistage webinar.  The presenter said imagine 200 people, one minute away from where you are going to be speaking, choosing to give some of their time to hear from you.

Would they come to hear you speak about your topic?  Would they want to hear from you?

It's from that point of view that I intend to try to write more and more in the future. 

In one word:  Focus.

A Word From My Economist

If I had an economist on my staff and money were no object, it would be one of the twins at ITR Economics, Alan or Brian Beaulieu.  I've heard both brothers speak at Vistage meetings, caught a couple webinars, and listened in to their radio show.  I also get an RSS feed of their blog.

The blog entry from Alan yesterday was his forecast on manufacturing.  Short and sweet.

While admitting that China has surpassed the U.S. in GDP for manufacturing, Alan forecasts a continuing resurgence in U.S. manufacturing nonetheless.

He notes that manufacturing is at 11.9% of GDP, up from just 11% four years ago.

He's telling his clients to invest in manufacturing.

Good stuff.

Upbeat Economists' Forecast on Industrial Production

The title doesn't catch ya, but the content, hopefully, will.

I captured this slide yesterday from a Vistage Webinar with the ITR Economics twins Alan Beaulieu and Brian Beaulieu.  It maps industrial production with a look at the twelve-month leading averages.

The U.S. fares well. 

It was part of the reason the Beaulieu brothers forecast 2013 to be a good year and reversed their October 2011 prediction of a mid-year recession.

That's upbeat!

It shows that there are some signs of growth in Europe, which is good for U.S. exports.  It shows that Australia, Brazil, and India, thought to be among U.S. strong competitors for industrial production, are not as strong as recent years would predict.

That's noteworthy too.

Blog Review: Spin Sucks

I'm taking a break from the day-to-day for a few days and article and blog reviews are the diet for that period of time.  Enjoy.

http://spinsucks.com/

Gini Dietrich is a Vistage speaker who, during a webinar a few years back, gave advice that really stuck with me and helped me focus my social media efforts.  Her advice has helped me maximize my time and justify it too.

Her blog is more geared to her public relations and marketing profession, but there's usefulness galore for those of us who wear an occasional PR and marketing hat instead of constantly wearing one. 

I'm looking forward to her visit to Licking County next month when she is the speaker for our Vistage CEO group.  Want to join us? 

If you can't join us, enjoy her column anyway.

Bringing Our Customer Along on Staff Retreat

Our Port Authority had a day-long staff retreat yesterday.  As is our custom, we combine strategic relaxation, strategic re-education, and strategic re-examination into the day.

After the relaxation part--a tour of Licking County's Cranberry Bog on Buckeye Lake and a boat tour of the lake--we sat down for a re-education on some of Vistage Speaker Gerry Layo's materials on linking customer service and growth in sales/revenues.

And for the re-examination portion I took Gerry's advice by adding a chair for our customers appropriately labeled "Reserved for Our Customers' Point of View."

The customers' point of view clearly was part of the day too.  We came away with a to do list of seven key items to improve our operations' customer service approach ranging from how to manage voice mail to better signage for on-site amenities.

Thanks, Gerry.

The Next Big Hill to Climb

I belong to a CEO group called Vistage that brings in top-notch national speakers for personal development.

One particularly memorable speaker a couple of years ago talked about “the next hill to climb” as a metaphor for how to stay motivated on an organization’s tasks. At the time I first heard the speaker, the Port Authority was about to wrap up the largest project in our history—the Made in Licking County Bridge.

I asked myself. What’s our next hill to climb?

The answer came shortly thereafter with the decision to move on the Horton Building, supplanting the bridge as the biggest capital project in our history. Now that’s done (but for a few tidbits and a couple more tenants).

So, one might ask, what is our next big hill to climb?


FOCUSED ON THE CUSTOMER
Our next big hill to climb is less tangible than a new bridge or a new building, but it’s no less important. I’ve put it to our staff that our total focus on a happy customer is our next big hill to climb.

That translates to seeking increasing satisfaction of our customers’ personnel coupled with growth and stability for our customers’ organizations. We recognize that our ability to grow this place is much-dependent on our current customers’ success.

Tidbits From the Beaulieu Brothers

It was Brian this time.  I got to hear from Alan Beaulieu at a Vistage All-City meeting talk about the economy two years ago, coming away with a slue of to do items and armed with a greater knowledge of our economy.  This time his younger brother, Brian (younger by eight minutes) put on the talk for 100+/- CEOs in Central Ohio.  It was another productive day by my standards.

Here's a few of my takeaways from the day:

• "Left to its own devices, this economy will grow."  Brian didn't have to say much more than that to get my attention.  He predicted 2012 to be a growth year, giving it a "B" grade among growth year grades at one questioners' request.
• Regrettably, I wish he had stopped there.  Brian also predicted another Recession in mid 2013 through 2014, one much like experienced in the early 1990's.  Since these brothers predicted the most recent recession, its best to heed their predictions.
• The message:  We have 18 months to prepare for the next one.  18 months.
• Brian pointed to leading indicators, exports growth, employment increases, and bank lending rises among eight listed signs of recovery.

• Demographics matter.  Though I never heard Joel Kotkin mentioned in name, the demographic correlations to help predict the future were omnipresent. 
• Beaulieu's ITR firm considers demographics a "mega trend" with a direct correlation between population growth and GDP growth. 
• It's why he's bullish on the U.S., India, and Brazil among "winning demographics" and less so on China, Japan, Europe, and Russia for their "negative demographics."

• A bit about Ohio was charted out for the Ohio CEOs.  Regrettably, our unemployment and other economic trends tend to mirror the nation.  However, construction industry employment is trending up as our building permits.
• He showed a trend line on the Ohio Housing Price Index showing we've hit the 30-year low and are on the rise, adding "the pain is behind us." 
• His analysis is that the low in commercial construction activity has happened in Ohio already too.
• His chart on median home sale prices in the Columbus market didn't show a housing price bubble. "Sane and boring" was Brian's label for our housing market. Yes, he's funny too.

• Manufacturing news was upbeat.  ITR's trend analysis is showing that near-shoring and re-shoring are real.  Beaulieu suggested everyone in manufacturing "needs to get a great training program going."
• The leveling of comparative labor costs and devaluing of the dollar are working in favor of export-minded producers in the U.S.

• Economic development in Licking County got some tidbits too.  Marketing campaigns have a purpose in 2012.  Finally.  It's good we are getting more ready, as a county, to move ahead in this area.
• News on the defense industry was not as upbeat with the strong warning:  "Wind down or minimize this part of your business."  Here's hoping maintenance and repair in the defense industry is a hedge.
• The industries that are "largely unaffected" by economic downturns also make for good target industries for Licking County, including energy, "green" industry, and food (including pet food and alcohol).
• Talking briefly about the Utica shale gas boom, Beaulieu's comments speak to the challenge in Ohio will be keeping the capital here that is earned here from leases and royalties.  His question in answer to a question was a bit of a wake-up call:  "What keeps these people from taking the money and moving to Florida?"  Yikes.

One final conclusion.  With time for a one-on-one question afterward, I asked Beaulieu about the oft-repeated prediction that China will surpass the U.S. in GDP in coming years.  He said, "It's not going to happen" and suggested most economists have backed off of those predictions now.

More good news.

iPad Advice

I always come away with multiple take aways from a Vistage meeting.  The one from yesterday was about the iPad.

Wess first got a hint that something was up when his credit card company called to ask about some extraordinary credit card purchases, including some iTunes purchases.

Next, he looked at his account and saw a series.  99 cents one day.  $4.99 the next.  Then, a whopping $99 purchase.  The total hit $800 before Wess figured out what was happening.

The culprit?

His seven-year-old son, yep 7, was making "in app purchases" with an app that sells virtual stars used to buy virtual animals to populate a virtual zoo using real money.  Fun game.  Not so fun result.

The good news is Wess convinced Apple to refund the purchases (this time) and the rest of us learned a good lesson--turn off those in-app purchases.

It's not so easy to turn those off.  The best advice I found to do it was at ikidapps.com.

Two Years in Vistage, And Counting

Learning and upping my game.

Today, I'm back at the place where my two-year Vistage experience began.  The day will start with a top-notch speaker on a business topic then give way to a sounding board exchange with Central Ohio CEO's this afternoon.  That's my Vistage experience--learning and upping my game.

A Prayer. . .From an Actor

When I think of the source of a prayer for every day life, I don't think of it coming from an actor.

Maybe I should.

"God please don't let me croak until I've used all the gifts you have given me."

That's a tidbit from Michael Allosso, Vistage Speaker and, oh by the way, the Maitre' D in Pink Panther 2.

Upping Your Game

Today, I got a second shot at learning from Michael Allosso. He ended his remarks to my Vistage group today with the quote above from Irving Berlin.

Michael Allosso, among other things, is a top-rated Vistage Speaker. He's also a performer who sees the parallels between the theater world and the business world.  You on your best day in the theaterical world is often the same as you on your best day in the business world.

Any Vistage speaker, by definition, is talking to executives who have experienced success.  You have to already be at the top of your game.  He helps them realize that even successful people have work to do to up their game.

Upping my game.  This is why I'm in Vistage.

The Value of Vistage

Vistage International (formerly TEC) uses this as an elevator speech for why CEO's need their Vistage group and chairman.  A picture speaks a thousand words.

More Negotiating

I had a few moments before a public review committee meeting recently and saw it as a chance to empower the committee to feel and act as if they had more control of the situation than they appeared to think they did.

More than three months after he imparted his wisdom, Jack Kain's talk on negotiating to my Vistage group still sticks with me. I shared my memory of Kain's imparted wisdom like something extracted from a fortune cookie.

"There's an old saying" I found myself saying.  "When a person's mouth conflicts with their feet, believe their feet."

I went on to explain that if the people are saying they don't like the deal or vigorously saying it doesn't work for them, but they are still standing there and still coming to talk to you, you have a conflict of body language verses verbal language.

Which do you believe?  The verbally-stated unwillingness to deal or the body language fact that they are still standing there talking to you.

Kaine would say, believe the body language.  They still want to make the deal, even if the terms are not perfect to their liking.

Behold. 

I don't believe in coincidence.  It was the most productive meeting of this committee in 5+ years of watching them function.

Thanks, Jack Kaine.

Yep, Social Media Matters

Generation X and Generation Y are on Facebook and LinkedIn and other social media outlets in big numbers.  As consumers, these combined generations are a force.

I heard a stat yesterday that further sells me on the idea that so-called social media is not merely a fad and that the social part is a misnomer.  Social media is business, personalized.

We are now at the point where one half of the worforce consists of Gen X and Gen Y. 

David Nelson, a Pittsburgh-area social media consultant, gave this fact during his Vistage webinar on Friday.

It's a telling stat that Nelson ably used to demonstrate the point that social media matters to business, or should.