Apparently, there is a new app which removes everything from the webpage except for original text and photos. I have not tried it yet but it sounds really cool. Here it is: lab.arc90.com/experiments/readability

I don't remember if I mentioned this before, but the main reason for my taking a straight sales position after all those years of management was to stay away from politics and do my nice sales, make a lot of money and have a piece of mind.

Well it does not work that way. I am finding out that being a pion is a major head ache in itself. When you point out certain glaring stupidities, you get smacked, however correct you may be, because you are nobody. At least that's how it works in this company.

So I am reviewing my decision to do just sales. I may have to look for a management position back again. As much as I learned a lot looking at things from a pion's perspective, I can't put up with this crap much longer. I have to have my voice heard, my opinion counted...

I don't think this is part of small company blues, I believe this malaise exists in all organizations.

"Those who tell you it’s tough at the top have never been at the bottom."

Till next time...

I suddenly realized today that another really interesting thing about high-tech small business world is the lack of performance management.

Everyone is left alone to sink or swim. You do your numbers and be a hero or you are a bum and you get fired. There is nothing in between.

I believe there is something fundamentally wrong with this approach. In fact I don't think it is an approach at all. This is just another example of small business blues. People who started these companies and somehow managed to get to a point of business sustenance at some mediocre level, do not have a clue about people and/or talent management.

Yet they are still in business. Go figure!...

Most small technology companies are run by technologists. They almost universally lack management and people skills expertise. They also don't understand sales and marketing. They have so much ego, they think their technology will and should sell itself.

As a result, sales and marketing is largely ignored or at the best of times gets a lip service. When numbers start to tank and cash flow gets threatened, a sudden attention to this necessary evil takes a form of crisis management with interesting consequences.

One consequence just happened to us is we got a new Senior VP of Sales. This guy is a complete idiot and comes from old school of "sales is a numbers game". You know the drill; make so many calls which will convert to so many appointments and close ratio of such and such etc.

These dinosaurs who don't have a clue of marketing in the 21st century get great endorsements from "techy" CEO and/or owner because they don't know much about these things and they want to know even less.

So you end up with a frustrated sales force shaking their heads and looking for yet another move.

When are these small business owners going to learn?

A lot to be said about consistency in business. Changing direction in the middle of a journey without taking into account the probable consequences, can be deadly for a smal business. For starters, by the virtue of its status as a small business, it does not have standing power to wildly experiment with new business models ad hoc.

Part of the problem is the owner's insatiable hunger for fast growth. Combine that with a massive ego, you have a fatal recipe for disaster. Currently we are going through one of those periods where a sudden change in business model a few months ago and accompanying layoffs of part of the sales force, brought the company to its knees in terms of cash flow.

Obviously, the new model is not working. Many of us could have told them that it was a mistake to change the direction so abruptly before seeing some of the indicators of success or otherwise.

You'd say pretty simple stuff... Then, why does it keep happening over and over again?

Blows me away!

It's been a while... Anyway, today I noticed another interesting situation. Like many other tech companies we have offices and cubicles. Of course, much fewer number of offices than cubicles. In other words, having an office is a major deal. Now, I don't know who makes the decision but lately, a couple of individuals without paying their dues, got offices that are so difficult to get. That also shows the turnover I was talking about earlier. But back to the point. Nobody knows the criteria for which you having performed or accomplished you get an office... Like I said, there is no end of fun at this place.

My main issue as being the quiet observer of management practice in this company, is my concern about certain other people who have been around for some time, performed beyond expectations and do not get put into an office. Talk about demotivating people.

They don't get it...

A really important factor in the health of a company is culture. Culture is like soul of a company. Whether it is lousy or great, and no matter what you do, customers and employees are going to feel it. If it's lousy it becomes one of those nagging things. You may not be able to put your finger on it, but you know it is there and constantly bugging you everytime you turn around trying to accomplish something.

I have a major culture problem in this place. One instance of this lousy culture manifests itself as arrogance. A lot of people are arrogant in this company. They think they are somebody or trying to hide something. I know for a fact, that real achievers and somebody's usually are very humble, modest people. So it must be the latter.

By the way, there is a good article about culture here: http://www.infohatch.com/culture.htm
Let me know what you think.