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... "Well, the customer just needs to understand that." No matter what we might think, that's a killer comment, as are these: "We can take care of that tomorrow" or "Do we really need to do that?" Urgency is often the edge that attracts customers. Never listen to people who think they have all the answers. Anyone wanting answers should spend their time listening to talk shows. What they won't hear, however, is anyone asking questions and it's questions that uncover problems and help make improvements. Doubt your perspective. When urged to change General Motor's corporate deeply inbred culture, former CEO Fritz Henderson, is reported to have said, "But that's all I know." This candid response told the story. He and his management team were prisoners of their own perspective. Under a new CEO from outside GM, they were quickly replaced. To one degree or another, we're all prisoners. To make meaningful contributions, we need to set ourselves free. Watch out for the subversives. These people are skilled at undermining and derailing action. They'll do just about anything to avoid getting things done. Using clever delaying tactics, they put on the brakes and they always find an excuse for not getting around to reviewing a project, preparing a proposal, or following up. They're in every organization, from top to bottom, and particularly in between. They call meetings, not to get things moving, but to stop anything from happening. The best solution is to help them find a job with a competitor. Encourage customers to ...

... , 14 of them were in financial trouble. After five years, 29 of them were in financial trouble, and only 14 of them were financially solvent. The reason: failure to react and respond to change." I believe these companies were less likely to react to change because of the Icarus Paradox. In Greek mythology, Icarus was the son of Daedalus, who had imprisoned by King Minos of Crete within the walls of his own invention, the Labyrinth. Refusing to be held captive, Daedalus made two pairs of wings by using wax to attach feathers to a wooden frame. Daedalus put on one pair and gave the other pair to his son Icarus, warning him not to fly too near the sun. The wings worked, and the father and son flew away from their prison. But Icarus, ecstatic about his ability to fly, forgot his father's warning. He lost his gift. The sun melted the wax, the feathers came loose, and Icarus plunged to his death into the sea. Putting this in the context of today's business environment, the more successful a company is, the more it's blinded to the urgent need for change. Many companies move into new marketplaces assuming that their past successes will continue. So they continue to repeat what has made them successful until the forces and opportunities of change have passed them by. It's human nature to rely on past successes and repeat what worked well in the past. Paradoxically, however, the seeds for failure lie in that very success. Consider Wang, U.S. Steel, Greyhound, New York Stock ...

...osure are health-care facilities, prisons, elderly care facilities, homeless s...

... agencies have turned into their prisons. Yes, they might make a good living ...

... it has transformed this country into one of the world's superpowers. Many who came before us made the most of their opportunities and talents. Austrian philosopher Viktor Frankl states that it is opportunity, performance, and work that create the quality of one's life. If any of these factors are bad, than life itself is misspent. As agents, we face the conflict of opportunity and performance daily. What should we do? Should we cut corners? Look the other way? Leave the room when we know an applicant isn't telling the truth on an application? Smile knowingly at the other person when an ethical conflict emerges? Let's go back to Viktor Frankl for the answer. Arrested and thrown in a Nazi concentration camp, he maintained his belief in himself and humankind. He roused his fellow prisoners' spirits when there seemed to be no reason for hope. It was only when he heard through the camp grapevine that the Nazis had destroyed his writings, essays, and philosophical works that his spirit fell; his work had been his life. As he reflected, if the Nazis had killed him, it would have been only one more death, but their destroying his work deprived the world of the benefit of that work. In the final analysis, all of this goes beyond the questions of ethical behavior. Whatever contributions we make through our work to ensure a high quality of life for others will reward us. Whatever we do through our work to deprive others of a high quality of life will also yield a return, but not a reward. In personal terms, we ...

... provides consumer reports/MVRs to Commercial clients for employment purposes, most authorities agree that the agency is functioning as a Consumer Reporting Agency, and must follow all the steps required of a CRA. Thus, although it might be legal' for an insurance agency to provide MVRs to Commercial clients, the agency must be aware that it's acting as an employee screening service, not just underwriting insurance. Violations of the FCRA fall into two categories: (1 ) negligent noncompliance, and (2 ) willful noncompliance. The penalties for negligent noncompliance include actual damages, attorney's fees, and court costs. The penalties for willful noncompliance — the more serious violation — can include all of the above, as well as punitive damages, a fine from the Federal Trade Commission, and up to two years in prison. In addition to the myriad requirements of the FCRA, an agency must also beware of other restraints and concerns. First, most third-party providers of MVRs (such as ChoicePoint, etc.) expressly prohibit agents from furnishing MVRs to anyone other than the consumer. It's essential to note that although an agency may legally furnish MVRs to Commercial clients as long as it follows all FCRA guidelines, most third-party providers from whom the agency routinely obtains MVRs prohibit such practices. A second concern is that many insurers also prohibit disclosure of MVRs to anyone other than the subject of the MVR. A third concern is that agencies can be — and have been — sued by consumers for allegedly furnishing protected, personal information to others without their permission or knowledge. Although FCRA requires a consumer to give written ...

... it has transformed this country into one of the world's superpowers. Many who came before us made the most of their opportunities and talents. Austrian philosopher Viktor Frankl states that it is opportunity, performance, and work that create the quality of one's life. If any of these factors are bad, than life itself is misspent. As agents, we face the conflict of opportunity and performance daily. What should we do? Should we cut corners? Look the other way? Leave the room when we know an applicant isn't telling the truth on an application? Smile knowingly at the other person when an ethical conflict emerges? Let's go back to Viktor Frankl for the answer. Arrested and thrown in a Nazi concentration camp, he maintained his belief in himself and humankind. He roused his fellow prisoners' spirits when there seemed to be no reason for hope. It was only when he heard through the camp grapevine that the Nazis had destroyed his writings, essays, and philosophical works that his spirit fell; his work had been his life. As he reflected, if the Nazis had killed him, it would have been only one more death, but their destroying his work deprived the world of the benefit of that work. In the final analysis, all of this goes beyond the questions of ethical behavior. Whatever contributions we make through our work to ensure a high quality of life for others will reward us. Whatever we do through our work to deprive others of a high quality of life will also yield a return, but not a reward. In personal terms, we ...

... Act of 1996 (EEA) provides severe punishment –including imprisonment, fines, and criminal forfeiture of property – for major cases of theft of trade secrets. It protects all forms of business information, tangible or intangible, no matter whether or how stored if the agency has taken reasonable measures to keep this data secret and the information generates independent economic value through being not generally known or readily ascertainable to the public (a standard that's easy for agencies to meet) . The EEA defines theft of a trade secret as the intent to take it, knowing that such taking will injure the owner, taking, diverting or receiving it, knowing that it was misappropriated without authorization. The EEA provides that whoever is guilty of stealing trade secrets can: face up to 10 years in prison; If it's an organization, be fined up to $5 million; and/or forfeit the stolen trade secrets, or anything derived from them, as well as property "used, or intended  to be used, in any manner or part to commit or facilitate the commission of such violation." Under other federal statutes that include similar language regarding criminal forfeiture of property, such as RICO (commonly referred to as the "racketeering act") courts have ordered forfeiture of an entire business, even though only its storage area was used in violation of this law. The courts have also determined that the criminal forfeiture provisions of RICO are mandatory. If the Justice Department chooses to enforce this federal law vigorously, staff, employees, other agencies and/or their ...