Elvin's latest blog comes with a health warning...

Wed 8th March
No Smoking - we are in search of excellence

Just like Welsh singer Charlotte Church, I'm doing my bit to stop people smoking and alerting them to No Smoking Day (NSD). True, far more people know of young Charlotte and her notoriety for having been a smoker, than they do of little ‘ol me and my infamous nicotine addiction.

That said, I firmly believe in the power of one; I can make a difference. (No, I do really mean it. I am not being all slushy Americana, or evangelical, for effect or otherwise. I really do think as an individual I, in fact all of us, can make a difference. Enough already, more of that in a few weeks…)

NSD is organised by a charity of the same name. Its aim is to help people who want to stop smoking by creating a supportive environment for them, and by highlighting the many sources of help available. Surprisingly, well for me any way, it is now in its 23rd year.

It is a firm fixture in the UK calendar because of its popularity amongst smokers and continued success. Hopefully it will eventually be a victim of its own success and have to disband… because eventually no one in the UK will be silly enough to smoke.

Giving up smoking requires much planning, encouragement, support and motivation. Helping others to prepare to give up can be done year round, but the national NSD provides an excellent focus and motivation for many smokers to stop.

Now, quite apart from being a reformed heavy smoker who encourages, supports and motivates others to quit the weed, I also do likewise for those who have yet to see the benefit of embracing Constructing Excellence (CE), i.e. get on board with the ‘message', spread the word and generally encourage, support and motivate others to do likewise.

CE is actually similar to NSD, because it too sets out to achieve its objectives by creating a supportive environment and highlighting the many sources of help available to people who want to get with the message.

As with giving up smoking, helping others to get into CE can be done year round. Again, as with quitting the weed, having a single, well advertised day where, instead of bigging-up the value of not smoking, shouting from the rooftops the benefit of CE, would be a highly commendable exercise.

Such a day would provide, as with giving up smoking, an excellent focus and motivation for others. In this instance, to get the industry on mass into CE.

Well dear readers, just like NSD and their celebrated No Smoking Day, there is a single day too for Constructing Excellence. A day when on a national basis we can get people into ‘quitting the habit' of poor performing projects and start a healthier attitude to their business and the development of their people.

Tue 10th October
Some information for you...

I'll keep you informed of the day's events in the weeks to come. Lets hope that just like NSD it too becomes a firm fixture in the UK calendar because of its popularity and continued success. Hopefully too, it will ultimately be a victim of its own success and have to disband… because eventually absolutely no one in the UK will be silly enough not to embrace Constructing Excellence.

For information on NSD: www.nosmokingday.org.uk

For information on CE: www.constructingexcellence.org.uk

Thu 9th March
Buying time

Just been flicking through a video of last nights latest edition of my favorite sitcom, ‘The Apprentice'. As ever, highly entertaining and compulsive viewing for all of us who have ever been fascinated by observing the human dynamic in action.

This week's task was ‘Buying'. The two teams, who were still in the really diverse and highly imaginative boy team, girl team mode, were given a list of distinct items to purchase. With a budget of £1,000 and a deadline of 06:00pm that day, they were ushered out of the famous London Stock Exchange and onto the streets of London. Those who came in with the lowest total monies spent, after negotiating the best prices and making ensuing purchases across every item on the list, were to be announced the winners.

Marvelously simple, but a wonderfully effective project and cost management game. Watertight brief, nailed to the floor budget and a deadline cast in stone. Just typing it gets my adrenaline going! (Yes, yes, I know, I really should get out more)

So, how did our stars of stage, screen and boardroom firings get on?

Well, the chaps just shaded it by, in boxing parlance, a ‘technical knock-out'. Project managed by the Devil-incarnate himself, Syed Ahmed, the boys managed to purchase all the items, within the budget and within the timeframe. That said, they were a tad lucky, because their negotiation skills were not actually as good as the girls. I feel the girls grabbed defeat from the jaws of victory.

You see the guys were on the whole pretty unimpressive, showing little imagination and a modicum of creativity.

What clinched it for them was that although the girls demonstrated solid negotiation skills, their time management was appalling. Arriving at the proverbial 11th hour, the girls, project managed by the way through the Looney Tune herself, Jo Cameron, still had to purchase a Tyre; or face an imposed financial penalty.

Well, suffice to say, totally in line with their overall time management display, the girls failed to get that all important final item, thus suffering a financial penalty and allowing the boys to take the spoils of victory. Which in this instance was a day away from the hostile boardroom and attend a relaxing day out at the races.

Infuriatingly for the girls, even if they had had to pay top dollar for that illusive tyre, they would have still beaten the boys' rather disappointing ‘project out-turn cost'. Thing is, they didn't complete the brief and a salutary lesson was learnt by the girls: It is not the decisions you make that get you results, but knowing and not exceeding the correct time frame to consider and mull over those decisions.

Sir Alan gave them the ‘Hair-dryer' treatment when he balled them out for taking far too long in ‘strategizing' at the beginning of the task. Those stolen moments were to cost them dear.

So why didn't mop-haired highly-energized Jo, incumbent project manager of the loosing team, get the sack?

Well, lucky for her and the other one to face the Sugar firing squad, cousin of British cult comedy star Matt Lucas, Alexa Tilley, Lawyer Karen Bremner just could not hack it when the chips were down and it required a display of solid, grim determination to articulate why "you should not get fired". Jo and Alexa defended themselves well, as noted by an impressed Sir Alan. Karen was more like Matt Lucas' alter ego, Vicky Pollard, all "yeah but, no but…" indecisiveness and angst.

Yet again creative leadership skills keep a contestant in when the chips are down and persuasion is the last resort. Plus of course Sir Alan never fails to be impressed by the ‘lunatic' and ‘belligerent' Jo. ‘Qualities' he freely admits to having himself!

You know, the more I watch him, the more I like Sir Alan Sugar. Yes, I know there is a strange resemblance to the 1970's ventriloquist puppet ‘Nookie Bear' about the old rascal, but he really is an interesting character. By and large, he seemingly breaks all the rules about leadership. He appears to have no social skills, absolutely no empathy, with little or no ability to self regulate himself. I say this guardedly, because the likes of last year's winner of the series and now a project director with Amstrad's health & beauty division, Tim Campbell, are glowing in their praise for Sir Alan's ability in these specific areas of what renowned Leadership guru Daniel Goleman describes as ‘emotional intelligence'. Plus of course the fact that to attain the fortune that Sir Alan has, leadership skills of the highest order are a pre-requisite.

Yeah, so, look forward to seeing how Sir Alan handles these ambitious, energetic, dare I say intelligent, but definitely highly entertaining wannabe Amstrad executives. Over the coming weeks Sir Alan, like the construction industry, will be in search of excellence amongst a bunch of rough diamonds that just need the correct polishing up of their act. Probably starting with quitting smoking I've no doubt.

And finally…

"You must be the change you want to see in the world."
Mahatma Gandhi