MADELEINE BUSINESS

“I want winners!” -Mike Singletary, Head Football Coach, San Francisco 49ers

Recruiting is any team’s lifeblood. You need new people for different ways of looking at things, different skill sets, and to take your team to the next level. Beyond the measurable, what makes one player a winner and another fall short? If I knew the definitive answer to that one, I could retire in the south of France! I’m sure most coaches and leaders believe that there’s more than just skill that contribute to making someone a winner. Let’s use the book Values of the Game by Bill Bradley to help shed some light on the intangibles that separate those who are just highly skilled from those who carry the qualities of a winner.

1. Passion: A winner loves to play and they have fun playing, they’re what some coaches call gym rats. No one to play with? They’ll play alone…the opportunity of playing the sport brings them joy.

2. Discipline: Winners follow the game plan. Think about the running back that has to patiently wait for the offensive line to open up a hole…that’s discipline. Winners understand that they need to not only discipline their bodies through practice; they also know that their minds need to be reined in through that same practice.

3. Selflessness: Winners know their role on the team and are inwardly and outwardly happy with it. You won’t find them grumbling in the background or trying to get others to be disgruntled with them, they put the team first. If you’ve got a team full of folks willing to sacrifice personal glory for the good of the team, then you’re well on your way to a close-knit team and a team of winners.

4. Respect: Winners respect their coaches, their teammates, the department’s support staff, the officials. Beyond that, winners are students of the game. They love watching video, studying up on the next opponent, and working on any weaknesses within their own game.

5. Perspective: Winners know two very important things. They know that they need to practice…no matter how good they are and they know that they need their teammates…no matter how good they are.

6. Courage: Winners have the courage to give 100% for their team, to risk failing or falling short. They courageously play through the times when their game is “off”, because they know that the team is counting on them. Winners are willing to take chances.

7. Leadership: A winner knows that it’s their job to get their teammates to truly believe in their team goals. Beyond that, they’re usually your most prepared players…for preseason, for practices, and for games. Finally, and most importantly, winners are respected by their teammates…after all; can you really be a leader if no one follows?

8. Responsibility: Winners know that they owe it to their team to complete their off-season workouts, to follow the rules, and to be a friend…not just a teammate. They also understand that it’s their responsibility to stay mentally and physically focused at practice.

9. Resilience: Defeat, bad games…winners know how to let those go. As a matter of fact, the game right after their disappointing performance is likely to be one of their best. Winners know how to bounce back.

10. Imagination: Winners are winners in their minds way before they win on the court. They visualize their success and then go about the hard work of making it happen. Winners imagine themselves as great.

There you go coaches…now go out and find some winners!

Do you have what it takes to succeed in investment banking interview? Investment banking interview can be as stressful as the economic recession affecting investment banks. The right attitude and commitment to be an investment banker entails a myriad of preparations, physically, psychologically and emotionally.

To be successful in an investment banking interview, you need to know what skills you have to offer and what kind of job your really want. The applicant may be bombarded with questions and faced with circumstances that will hinder success in an investment banking interview. This weakness, however, can be reversed and turned into a golden opportunity to nail an investment banking interview.

Steps To Succeed an Investment Banking Interview

If you want to succeed an “investment banking interview” draft an action plan, commit yourself and devote time to learn. An action plan is a list of things to do before heading off to face your interviewer and during the actual interview. Preparation is the first action that you must do.

1. Submit a well-crafted cover letter and a powerful professional resume that highlights your strengths, qualifications, and experiences. You should get your resume into your heart and head. You must know all the details you have written on your resume. Review your resume from time to time so you get a mastery of what you can do. Remember that the position calls for a person who can perform a variety of crucial and vital tasks in the bank.

2. Know all the questions, from personal to behavioral to technical and logical. It is very important that you get through all these categories and related questions. Do not miss out on anything that can be possibly asked at an interview. Some questions may be tricky – it’s either you make them or break them. Some interviewers may twist questions. Be ready for this. There is a variety of resource materials available but do not limit yourself to reading and researching. Do some fieldwork and conduct your own little interviews with some insiders and other reputable and credible investment bankers.

3. Know your interviewer and style of interview. Make a smart move by obtaining a profile of the person who is assigned to interview. Banks have a standard list of interviewers. They normally have a set of guide questions to gauge the applicant’s suitability to the position being applied for. An ample knowledge and deep understanding of the qualifications of the post, industry services, company profile will be helpful to get the interviewer’s attention. Simulate an interview, if possible or get some coaching.

4. Be confident and show your interest. How much you have prepared for an “investment banking interview” will manifest at the actual interview. Confidence will definitely ooze especially when your interviewers see how much you know about the post and how much you understand the industry. Make it a point to show them that the interview is a learning activity and you enjoyed it as much.

5. Grab the opportunity to ask a very well thought of question in conclusion. Do not fail to listen to the interviewer who is answering your question. At the end of the interview, remain cool and friendly. Express your gratitude with words and a handshake. Walk out of the interview area, with that look of confidence looking confident.

With all the incessant bad news we hear on a daily if not hourly basis it is always nice to find stories of success in the investment world – a follow up to my post on Blackberry showing the risks involved with doing business across borders and in Blackberry’s case the current struggles it faces.

Regardless of where you live in the world McDonalds is a brand that most have heard of – whether it is the Big Mac or Ronald McDonald the burger restaurant has had a massive worldwide impact – the company is located in 119 countries with over 31,000 restaurants and serves and astonishing 47 million customers per day. In the last decade McDonalds has undergone a massive revamp of the brand – from the menu to the addition of cafe style options and Wi-Fi. The obesity epidemic saw McDonalds offer menu option considered more healthy and appealing to a wider range of consumers. The revamp has proved an incredibly success driving an increase in customer visits and sales resulting a share price that has gone up almost 147% over the last 10 years and an 18% increase in market share in the US. It is one of the few US companies that has shown growth during the current recession.

Arguably McDonalds has proved more successful overseas than in the US. In Europe, where the recession has been as intense (if not more) as the US, 41% of all sales now come from the region (up from 33% in 2000) – in fact France is home to the most profitable McDonalds in the world. France also has the distinction as being one of McDonald’s fastest growing regions. Over the last 15 years McDonald’s overseas revenues have steadily increased – today they are responsible for 65% of overall earnings. While it has been a later entrance in the developing world McDonalds is making quick headway. From my perspective there seems to be a McDonalds on every corner here in KL – and they are always full.

One reason McDonalds has always been a great stock is the fact it owns almost half the land and 70% of the buildings its franchises sit on. It makes McDonalds one of the world’s largest rental agencies – even if sales fall McDonalds has a steady stream of rent it collects from its franchises.

So while the criticisms remain over McDonalds and obesity the company has adapted to the changing environment with remarkable success. You only have to take a look at arch rival Burger King to understand how successful McDonalds has been.

With deference to Ricky Gravis, how many of you have a corner office? I still see an alarming number of hands up. How many of you go to work, to the office or to the city to sit at a desk, cubicle or office and process? Most people for now but what about the future? How many of you make stuff?

All questions that hark back to the industrial revolution which finished a long time ago but we still find ourselves with a hangover from that time and in a frame of mind where we go to a certain place every day and work. The majority of people no longer make widgets or work on a production line. The majority of people, don’t don overalls and get their hands dirty producing a product. We have machines making most of our everyday requirements so why are we still so fixated on going to work at the office?

I have a desk I frequent when I need space in the city for appointments and there are company related meetings to be had but I don’t consider that my office. My office is in my mind, yes it’s still cluttered but it’s a lot easier to carry around with me, like my laptop. I don’t make anything on a production line, I negotiate, I persuade, I strategies, I discuss, I meet, I build relationships, I tell stories, I connect people and I do that on the move. My office is the ferry, the train, the coffee shop, the restaurant, the walk to work and even the lounge in front of the evening news.

Of course technology has allowed us the mobility to embrace this openness but there is still a vast chasm between the majority of workers (another industrial revolution hangover) and those who embrace the wide open spaces of their mind (no jokes here). Not being in an office or work environment does not mean you are not productive nowadays. With most companies pared down to a slim workforce you can’t hide, just because you aren’t in the office. So why are people still fixated on that 9-5, clock on clock off, regiment? Why do people stay at their desks till the boss leaves, even though they finished their project, assignment, process an hour earlier? Even our education system pumps out the masses for an industrial thinking work force, looking to go somewhere for a job, so the change will still take some time.

A computer kiosk rental is a stand-alone PC that contains a locked integrated housing unit. This type of terminal usually contains a monitor and keyboard or pointing device, unless it is touch-screen operated.

A computer kiosk is designed to be a “self-service” unit. This means users do not have to know anything about the computer itself or the applications that run on it. The event meeting services organization should make certain that all applications on the computer kiosk are highly intuitive. The best way to test this is to have someone who is afraid or unfamiliar with computers try out the various applications.

A number of kiosk rentals could be placed in a variety of locations throughout a large conference or event. Many touch panel kiosks could be running the same application, but a few may be running different applications. The main intention of utilizing a computer kiosk is to allow for more fluid movement of the attendees and to allow the conference services organization to employ fewer employees to manage the event.

Here are some great applications for kiosk rentals at your next event or conference: a welcome message, information about the agenda, speakers, and/or Conference Room directions, short videos on speakers, launches, and/or entertainment, check-in to event for those pre-registered, walk-in self-registration with credit card, “Who to Call” for support or questions, or a photo booth.

Kiosks can also provide neighborhood maps with the following information: local restaurant listings, entertainment, and walking or running paths.

When departing the event, use a kiosk for check-out with a survey, or to provide Internet access for flight information, weather, or traffic updates.

Consider contacting a meeting services company when you are thinking of computer kiosks or any interactive technology tool rentals. Their technology experts can recommend the best touch panel kiosk for your next conference or event.