Gardens by the Bay

Gardens by the Bay

Went to Gardens by the Bay last friday for a company event. 

It was partly cornered off as it was a private event, but due to the open layout found in the Gardens by the Bay, there were multiple porous entrance points. 

Free food stalls were set up, and staff dined heartily. 

However, some passer-bys eventually made their way into the venue location and took the food meant for staff as well. 

They were subsequently caught (due to the nature that they looked like tourists, behaved like tourists, and came in buses meant for tourists, they even dressed like tourists with their bermudas, cameras, and all), and told off. But, the food has been taken and eaten, so nothing can be done to prevent it. 

This made me question one thing, that of moral authority. If there were placards indicating that this was a private event - there is no way you could have missed that! Would you still take advantage of the porous entrances and sneak in to get some free buffet food?

Would you? 

I know I wouldn't. 

But I can't say the same for others. 

But then again, everyone is fighting a battle you don't know about. 

So, do give them the benefit of the doubt. 

Maybe they are truly hungry?

Maybe they don't have enough to get some food? 

Maybe they couldn't read the signs, which are in English. 

Maybe, just maybe...

Or perhaps, why can't we just share the happiness and joy with one another?

Since there's plenty of food to go around... (last I checked, food ran out pretty fast, some staff couldn't get the food in time, so there wasn't enough food to go around, maybe we should have catered more...)

So, live and let live. 

Share the food. 

Share the happiness. 

#iWish

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Employee empowerment and delegation

Employee empowerment and delegation

Does the above two concepts go hand in hand? 

Are they sequential or simultaneous?

After you delegate, then you empower?

Or do you empower first before you delegate?

Tough questions...

Well, as leaders and managers, we often find ourselves in such a situation. 

More often than not, we should aim to empower our staff at all levels, so that when we do delegate tasks to them, they are already empowered to deal with the task at hand. 

Bear in mind that you can only delegate the task, but you cannot delegate accountability. If your staff screws up, you must bear the responsibility. This means you must equip the staff with the necessary knowledge and skill-sets, and the organizational tools, before you delegate the task. At the same time, make sure the staff is empowered to act on it, rather than curtailed in his/ her own approach to resolving the task at hand.

What is the worst kind of delegation? One where staff is dis-empowered - where the manager micro manages the process. True, you need to tend to the staff after you have delegated the task in the beginning, but bear in mind the fine line not to be crossed. You can be nurturing, but make sure you are not micro managing. 

Micro management - yucks!

Happy delegating!

Happy empowering!

#iWish

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www.iwish.com.sg

Organisational Learning

Organisational Learning

The topic on organisational learning has been around for quite some time. Human Resource and Training practitioners have been pushing for organisational learning instead of individual learning when they send people for courses. However, this focuses on the aspect of how the employees can learn and contribute to the organisation, and yet the learning can be built into the organisation itself. This is so that even if the employees leave, the learning and knowledge can still be retained within the organisation. 

This concept ignores the fact on the pre-learning an employee brings when he/ she first joins the organisation. What about this aspect of learning and knowledge gained by the employees in their previous roles in other organisation? Can we make use of such pre-learning and knowledge and see if some are still relevant to our organisation. How then can we make use of such relevant knowledge and adapt it accordingly to the context of our organisation? 

This is food for thought. 

#iWish

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www.iwish.com.sg

Good health

Wish for good health. 

Health is the most important thing. 

If you have good health, you get to enjoy life and have more vitality.

#iWish

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www.iwish.com.sg

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Peer pressure

Peer pressure

today, I want to discuss on peer pressures. 

the pressure to conform, and to stay within the social and peer norm. 

how great this peer pressure must have been!

the pressure to compare, among your peers.

it could range in many forms:

1. salary

2. position/ level

3. job opportunities

4. family obligations

5. personal goals 

6. etc

which brings me to my next thought. 

what happens then when you don't have a common topic to discuss and contribute, and to "compare" and "benchmark" with? such as a stay at home mum against her peers of working women?

will this outlier eventually get displaced from her group of friends, and not get invited to future gatherings? 

or will the group of friends conform and adapt to suit the stay at home mum friend? so they can discuss some other common topics instead of always going back to discussing on work issues? 

no wonder stay at home mums tend to find their own cliques of other stay at home mums, from meeting them at school events or school related gatherings. 

well, that is some food for thought. 

this might mean what cliques you form and change along the course of your life journey. 

#iWish

iWish - Gifting Made Easy!

www.iwish.com.sg

employee on-boarding kit

Thought of having an employee on-boarding kit, where it will contain all the necessary essentials - such as:

1. a mug - for taking of water from the pantry

2. some cup noodles - for satisfying those hunger pangs during those late nights?!?

3. some snacks - for satisfying those hunger pangs in the day

4. a direction guide for places to eat, and to hang out with colleagues, that is around the office locations

5. maybe a USB fan? - as the employee may come back to work on a weekend where there's no air con (just saying)

What other items are essential?

#iWish

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www.iwish.com.sg

A new beginning

A new beginning 

Have started on a new role since wednesday. 

So far it has been great. 

Benefits are good. 

So, any wishes for iWish? 

#iWish

iWish - Gifting Made Easy!

www.iwish.com.sg