Author Archives: Scot

VWs in China and building relationships

Posted on 16 September 10 by Scot

Combining my interests in German cars, international relations, and general management, I recently read the book, 1000 Days in Shanghai, by Martin Posth.  The book is about Volkswagen’s initial journey to become the first international automobile manufacturing partner in China.  … Continue reading →

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Kill the Annual Performance Review

Posted on 25 August 10 by Scot

Kill The Annual Performance Review I’ve been holding on to this link for a while, hoping to write more about it, but there’s really not much more to write, so here it is.  The author, Samuel Culbert, was making the … Continue reading →

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Is project management enough?

Posted on 6 August 10 by Scot

I was reviewing some notes from a colleague’s previous class on project management when I came across the following lines that caught my interest: A business or organization cannot survive on project management disciplines alone. Project management is defined as … Continue reading →

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The role of politics in astronomy

Posted on 17 July 10 by Scot

For some, politics is a dirty word – either a necessary evil or something to be avoided altogether. For others, it’s the name of the game. What role does politics have to play in modern astronomy? I suppose first of … Continue reading →

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Who advocates for the Observatory?

Posted on 10 July 10 by Scot

I’ve been reading a book on corporate boards, so expect a few posts on astronomy governance coming up, starting with this one. I really knew nothing about how boards out in the “real world” operate, so reading this book has … Continue reading →

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Fire those who need to be fired

Posted on 17 June 10 by Scot

Right on the heels of my recent blog post about keeping bad employees too long, an article appeared in the 4Jun10 issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education by Michael Munger subtitled, Five Suggestions for New Academic Administrators. In it, … Continue reading →

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When to release in-progress plans….?

Posted on 15 June 10 by Scot

The way to get buy-in for an idea or plan is to let people get involved in its formation, not by spinning it to them afterward. Continue reading →

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Are we too generous in hiring and keeping employees?

Posted on 3 June 10 by Scot

A recent article I read about how to hire the right people for the right jobs gives a statistic attributed to the US Department of Labor that 50% of all new employees are gone within the first six months of … Continue reading →

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