UK: IM SOUNDING BOARD - THE AWARENESS THAT ADDS VALUE.

In every commercial organisation managers are employed to create shareholder value. This is their prime aim, their central focus in making the choice of emphasis from their individual list of priorities. They need to identify, from their own area of influence, the actions that really do add value at the end of the process and those that do not. Lessons from successful companies demonstrate clearly that winners focus on those things that are truly important, while losers dissipate their energies by spraying around in a random way. Therefore successful managers must understand their objectives, have them agreed with their bosses and periodically self-appraise their performance against this list.

Within my own company, I am clear that my unique value-adding contribution lies in the following four areas: Strategy - in the formulation and implementation of group strategy and provision of quality input to the bottom-up decisions of each of our six separately managed business areas.

People - in the selection, motivation, empowerment of key people to be successful in achieving their objectives; also in ensuring that the organisation is supportive of those objectives.