NBK Insider May 2012

NBK INSIDER Vol. 5 Issue 46

Photography: Phayas Rahiman

Dear All ,

Sixty years ago this group was founded by the late Sheikh Nas-

ser Bin Khalid. He laid down the ground rules and cultural

values of this company. These were based on integrity, excel-

lence, family spirit and most importantly trust.

I know that during the past few months the company has wit-

nessed and is still going through major changes; and similar to

any other company that has ever embarked on change, it comes

with a price. It stirs up insecurities and fear amongst all of us.

After sixty years of being well known as one of a few compa-

nies in Qatar that is high on employee retention and being a

pillar of strength and a beacon of stability for our family mem-

bers which includes every member of this great organization,

suddenly many of us have lost those feelings.

Knowing all of this, being part of the whole process and as a

family member and assuming the executive leadership role in

this great company, I want you to know that change in life is

inevitable and the change that NBK is going through is inevita-

ble, but not negative. We all should embrace it and achieve a

success story out of it . We should strive towards the same end,

articulate a common goal that inspires all of us as a diverse

group of people to work hard together. It is our responsibility

to make it work, we all know we had and still have many short-

comings and the situation cannot remain the same and change

was going to come, it was only a matter of time.

I would like you to know that every single person in this com-

pany and their families are my personal responsibility; this

responsibility is entrusted to me by H.E. The Chairman, and I

care for their welfare and wellbeing. I understand the uncom-

fortable feelings I mentioned earlier…the turbulence generated

by the change and I want you know the following:

Your integrity is secure, your employment is valued, your re-

spect is my responsibility and it is protected and no one under

this leadership will be harmed, threatened or made to feel inse-

cure for no valid reason. If anyone is subjected to any of the

above for no valid reason, the person causing this damage will

be severely dealt with and if a case of unfairness is proven,

then that person would have sold out the values of this group

and will no longer be part of this family and that is a promise.

All of us must have the courage and convictions to perform our

jobs to the best of our ability, it is my job along with my exec-

utive management team to provide all of you with the proper

environment to excel and it is my expectations that you give

me the best that you can, and this email is my assurance to all

of you that you will have the right environment, you have my

support and my respect, all I want back is your best effort and

undivided support to turn around our company, hand in hand

we are together in this to reach our goals on a group and indi-

vidual levels, hard work and success will always be appreciat-

ed and rewarded in this group.

CEO’S CORNER

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We are all humans, we are not perfect and we all make mis-

takes, it is in our nature, do not be afraid or threatened by this,

it provides experience and growth, but on a larger scale collec-

tively these are milestones for us as individuals and for the

company as a whole that gives us the lessons that we learn

from and ensure the continuity of the group to pass it to the

next generation in a bigger and better shape from the time we

took charge.

If you are not in the business of fraud, thieving, corruption or

any other similar behaviors, then you should have no fear of

the change we are going through and you should not fear for

your personal growth and development with the company, but

in turn we all collectively must achieve our goals at any level

of the organization on time , every time. To be on course for

success, I will ensure that all of you are given all the responsi-

bilities you can handle, stand back and let you get on and de-

liver, but you must know that my management and I are here to

help and support you to reach the set goals. This is a relation-

ship that is built on trust, trust is a human marvel, it is not only

to sustain social contracts, it is the growth hormone that turns

inexperienced people into perfect craftsmen and troubled com-

panies into dynamic competitors. But trust is not given, it is

earned and you earn trust only by giving it and I am giving you

my trust.

For H.E. The Chairman and me personally, you are the single

most important resource in the group, you are our human capi-

tal and you are our success story, if you make it the group

makes it, and if you do not the group will default. Leadership is

mostly the art of doing simple things very well; strengthening

others and helping them feel good about their jobs and them-

selves. When that happens our work improves and our morale

leaps, every single one of you can and should be a leader in

their own environment, in their own right. Own your job, ex-

cel, and deliver. This is my message to you, work as a team,

focus on the tasks ahead, achieve your goals, admit and correct

your mistakes and learn from them, stay away from negative

rumors and be assured that you have all the support that you

need to get there. I wish you all as members of the NBK family

a successful journey this year and the many years to come and

it is my privilege and honor to lead this group and every single

one of you.

Thank you & Good Luck.

Ayman Al-Abbasi

NBK IN THE NEWS

We recently teamed up with Hamad Medical Corporation for the 2nd year in a row to support the blood donation drive and to raise awareness of the ever-increasing need of blood and blood products. Our colleagues gathered at headquarters on May the 3rd to partake in the blood donation campaign and help make a difference in the community.

NBKF is proud to announce WINNING the com-petition FOR THE BEST WINDOW displaying the Spring Summer 2012. The competition was launched by Quiksilver mother company France early March 2012 among all franchisees of the Middle East and Europe, totaling 12 countries; Cyprus, Dubai, Qatar, Estonia, Greece, Israel, Sweden, Latvia, Slovenia, Malta, Lebanon and Ukraine. NBKF congratulates the Casual Team headed by Mr. Ahmad Khcheich and particularly Mr. Mhelecio De Ramos, for his strenuous effort and creativity and wish him enjoying his prize of spending one week in beautiful Morocco.

NBKF wins Best Window display

NBK staff give the gift of Life

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NBK IN THE NEWS

Great Family Day at NBK & QAC ! NBK’s second Family Day and QAC’s first, falls in line

with their commitment to nurture affinities amongst

colleagues to ensure dynamic interaction in the work-

place and encourage innovation.

Held on the 4th of May at the Racing and Equestrian

Club, families and children took part in a number of

activities and games including water games, slides,

soap football, pony rides and many more.

NBK places very high importance on building and

sustaining a healthy workplace culture through which

staff can bond, grow together and share common val-

ues and objectives. To this end NBK has developed

a series of initiatives and activities aimed at fostering

team spirit such as the annual NBK Bowling Tourna-

ment, the NBK Football Tournament, the NBK Health

Walk and the NBK Care to Share scheme.

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NBK IN THE NEWS

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NBK IN THE NEWS

Qatar Automobiles Company (QAC) continues to provide Mitsubishi Customers with Excellent Ser-vices in every area of its operations. As one of the dedicated Service Centers of QAC, Doha Mitsubishi Parts Outlet has been in the service of Mitsubishi Customers since 2007. The main ob-jective for Doha Mitsubishi Parts Outlet is to bring service closer to Mitsubishi Customers. In the first 3 years of operation, monthly average parts sales was around Qr. 100,000 with little pick-and-downs; however, in the last two years of operation there has been a drastic increase in the sales and now it has reached to an average parts sales of Qr. 220,000 with more than 1,000 invoic-es per month in 2012. Mohammad Irsheid, QAC Parts Manager, considers fast and reliable responses to the Customer needs, high parts availability with suitable parts inventory, accurate parts interpretation, quick deliv-ery and moreover very competitive pricing as the key elements for the excellent parts retailing. This could only be achieved with highly experienced, factory trained and fully dedicated personnel; where NBK invests on Human Capital. He concludes “Our success relies on how we value our Customers. To make the Customer happy would be enough for the business to stand out; but, to gain the Loyalty of the Customer will be more than enough to secure a sustainable and long-term business”. The facility has been recently renovated with Mitsubishi CI Signboards, customer-friendly Counter

Desk, welcoming Glass Door and comfortable Customer Lounge. In addition, due to high demand

within the area, the outlet is now open 6 days a week from 07:00am until 07:00pm.

QAC celebrates the sales success of Doha

Mitsubishi Parts Outlet

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The Mercedes-Benz “Service Week” kick-started on 19th May with scores of Mercedes-Benz vehi-cles’ owners enjoying an exclusive range of ser-vices in addition to meeting with the brand’s very own “Flying Doctor” from Germany! This year “Service Week” stressed the im-portance of up-keep and periodic servicing to maintain optimum performance, reliability and safety. NBK Auto also launched the “SMART repair”, this concept allowing for scratches, small dents and minor body repairs. Customers also received a 33% discount on parts and labor charges, all of which was topped up with a free vehicle health check carried out by a factory trained technician.

Mercedes-Benz Service Week Ends

With Resonating Success!

NBK IN THE NEWS

ZAI satisfied the craving of Qatari market for Zuhair Murad by presenting them a trunk show last April 30-May 1, 2012 attended by Qatar's very important people. The trunk show was organized by ZAI so their clients can order dresses just before the world see the Fall Winter Ready-to-wear and Haute Cou-ture 2012-2013 Collection. Zuhair Murad representative Mr. Bassem Salem made his self available for consultation. The clients were amazed and pleased in every way. The most favorite dresses were the fully sequined long one from the ready-to-wear collection. The orders have been placed and the delivery is very much anticipat-ed. Zuhair Murad dresses are really worth every ri-yals.

Zuhair Murad Trunk Show

NBK Fashion

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HR NEWS

HR Training and Development Organizes ‘Strategic

Project Management for Executives’ Program At The

Grand Heritage Hotel Doha

HR Training and Development organized a 2-day Strate-

gic Project Management for Executives Program deliv-

ered by Collaboration Management and Control Solu-

tions at the superb Grand Heritage Hotel earlier this

month. Although our reliance on External Training Pro-

viders (ETP) to run courses in-house is kept to an abso-

lute minimum (i.e. only 17 programs from the 90 courses

trained October 2010-May 2012) in order to ensure the

most cost-effective training, there are occasions when

the complexity of a program demands that it is run by an

ETP. Such was the case with this Strategic Project Man-

agement for Executives course attended by 15 members

of our Senior Management Team and other senior staff

on May 16th-17th.

By Lance Rooney, Head of Training & Development

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The Head of Training and Development selected the out-standing Grand Heritage Hotel for this course to match the seniority and quality of the 15 participants: the first time that an outside venue has been used for any of the 90 programs delivered thus far. HR (Training and Development) looks forward to continu-ing to serve the training needs of all our customers for the remainder of this Training Calendar, May-June 2012. We request all staff to refer to pages 11-15 of the Febru-ary issue of the Insider magazine for nomination proce-dures. We also encourage all managers to nominate themselves or team members for the upcoming courses based upon their present or future job performance needs and take advantage of extremely cost effective and high quality training, especially when delivered by the HoT&D and his outstanding Certified Training Team.

Members of NBK’s Senior Management Team And Other Senior Staff Who Attended The ‘Strategic Project Management

For Executives’ Program. From Left to Right Adel Hajjaj (GM NBK Readymix), Khalid Shaaban (GM NBK Automobiles),

John Mathai (Accounts Manager, Finance Dept), Edelvise Villados (Financial Controller, CFO Office), Gigi Skariah (Chief

Accountant, Finance Dept), Catherine Francisco (Financial Analyst, Strategy and Business Development Dept), Waleed

Hamad (Director BIT Dept), Bassam Samman (CEO of CMCS and Program Presenter), Jean-Paul Abbosh (Manager Special

Projects, Strategy and Business Development Dept and Acting GM Powered Sports), Sheikh Khalid Al-Thani (Commercial

Vehicles Project Manager, Strategy and Business Development Department), Robert Kelly (Brand Manager, Harley Da-

vidson), Mohammed Naeem Saleem (Manager, Chairman’s Office), Zulfa Al Disi (Manager, Quality Assurance Dept), Nicolas

Chamcham (Manager, Bio-Medical Division), Houssam Hindawi (Head of Applications, BIT Dept) and Lance Rooney (Head

of Training and Development, HR Dept, and Program Organizer). Missing from Photo: Ihab El Feky (Acting GM, QAC).

In The Spotlight

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Setting New Challenge

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You are the project manager at NBK; what does this exactly entail in terms of respon-sibilities? I’m responsible for applying and building the strategies and goals of the company which are pre- determined by the management. Which new projects are you currently working on? While there are lots of confidential projects which obviously I can’t reveal at the moment, I can say that the management of Harley Da-vison new showroom is keeping me busy now-adays, wherein I’ve been tasked to do the op-erations of HD’s 3 facilities :spare part, sales and service You worked extensively in the automotive industry - what are NBK's strengths in the field? Mercedes-Benz is a premium brand and this is strength by itself! Additionally, NBK has a vast industry experience spanning 50 years with one of the best reputations in the country. Brands like Kawasaki, Harley, Mitsubishi, Mer-cedes- Benz and Bosch cater to different mar-ket segments so we are actually serving the various automotive needs of our clientele. You held several positions in Europe. What international best practices have you intro-duced to NBK's operations? I have applied all the tools and services I gained from my previous jobs such as han-dling customer complaints, proper training and coaching to the staff, updating equipment, or-ganizational structure and building teamwork. I had monthly gatherings for business and lei-sure for the team which helps to rebuild trust and teamwork.

How innovative and proactive is NBK's ap-proach to its automotive business, in your opinion? Very! We continuously update our facilities and adhere to the manufacturer’s Corporate Identi-ty. We keep on developing our facilities and re-structuring manpower and we bring change that could further improve the operations of the company in order to be, always, on top of our customers’ expectations What is your favorite hobby? I love to listen to music a lot. Am an adven-turous type of person so most of the activities I love to do are sporty ones like mountain biking, wakeboarding,skiing and racing car. Don’t be surprised though if you found out I love garden-ing too! Favorite place you've been to in Qatar? I’ve been here for 1 year and a half and so far one of my favorite places is Fuwairet Beach up in the North of the country. Souq Waqif is also a fun place. Best book you've read and why? Am not really into reading books that much. Most captivating quote? The golden rule which is don’t do to others what you don’t want them to do to you. A special message to the team? Team effort is more powerful than an individu-al’s thousands efforts …Work as team.. there is no team leader without a team…..

Jean-Paul, Lebanese/French national is under the spotlight this month! Jean-Paul is another NBK guru with years of experience and expertise in the global automotive world. Bringing unparalleled levels of quality and internationalism in standards, Jean-Paul speaks to The Insider about his career, aspirations and pass-times and shares with us some of his favorites in life!

Journey to the top of the

World

The Himalayas - The infamous name in the world of trekking and expeditions. This

wonderful place located at the north of the Indian subcontinent close to the Chinese

borders contains the highest peaks of the world.

Destination Report

Getting there: Booking a direct flight to Kathmandu – Nepal, I ar-rived at this busy dusty city and met with Amit , (a travel-mate from the UK ) who arrived one day be-fore. We stayed at a basic clean guest house at the Thamel touristic area preparing for the trek , buying the essential tools and clothing and booking the internal flight to Lukla village ( the starting point ) for Everest Base Camp . The best time to visit: April – May – September – December

Day 1: we headed to Lukla airport on board the

first flight early morning in a small aircraft

that was really hard to trust in terms of safe-

ty. We landed at one of the most dangerous,

thrilling airports in the world, well-known for

its tiny runway of 500m. It’s a downwards

slope that ends with a drop cliff and with a

location of 2840m over the sea level, sur-

rounded by snowcapped peaks! As we got

out of the airport we met Moli , the Nepalese

porter/guide who accompanied us throughout the 11 days of the trip . Shortly after having some tea we started the trek by heading to the first stop ( Phakding village ) which we reached following a 2-hour walk , having lunch and spending the night at one of its basic lodges ( lodges and tea houses are the standard accommodation along the Himalayan region ) Day 2 : starting early we headed towards the hills and the high-altitude mountains , walking on cob-bled roads and ascending tough paths for almost 6

exhausting hours in addi-tion to crossing narrow shaky steel wire bridges which were busy with por-ters and yaks that were de-livering the goods to the isolated high villages there. We arrived at Namche Ba-

zaar at 3440m (big village

in the Everest region)

11

By Abdulrahman Hassanein

where the cold nights and altitude’s sickness began to appear. Day 3 : we spent the whole day at Namche to be acclimatized with the new altitude and as we am-bled our way up through the narrow, cobbled streets of Namche Bazar we could already feel the differ-ence in altitude, with a short-ness of breath and headaches. We were now at 3,440m. Namche was so much nicer than we had imag-ined and alt-hough quite touristy, it was still very charming complete with friendly locals at every turn. Day 4: moved early towards the next stop (Tengboche) , we began a slight ascent till we reached 3800 m then it turned into a flat narrow route where you could see the Lammergeier eagles hovering beside you ! Tengboche is a calm village known for its famous monastery. Day 5: heading to Dingboche (4260 m) we arrived after 6 hours of hard walking. The lack of oxygen and the tough ascent were really an issue at this alti-tude .Balancing over narrow tracks, cara-vans of Yaks and por-ters carrying supplies into the remote moun-tain villages were our daily travel compan-ions. Everything had to be transported by animals or humans, no place for any kind of modern transportation except the helicopters which are very expen-sive. Day 6: the most boring time in the trek as we have to spent the whole day at the same village ( Dingboche ) for acclimatization . Nothing to do

except staying in the sleeping bag, avoiding the freezing cold and struggling with the painful head-ache because of the lack of oxygen. Even the com-mon daily food which we ate the Dal Bhat (rice with lentils) was in so bad quality there !

Day 7: starting at the early morning with more ex-tra clothing layers, wearing the gloves and the sun-glasses as landscapes turned to be so bright with snow everywhere and the disappearing of the trees and the green forest. The food prices getting higher and the trek became riskier. I was so amazed when I saw a Turkish trek-ker carrying his bike all the way up and when I asked him why he is carrying it for 11 days?! He said just to take a shot with it at Everest Base camp!! We were almost dead when we arrived at Lobuche ( 4930 m ) but a fresh hot Tomato soup restored some of the lost energy , I was vegetarian all the way there for 2 reasons , first , no Halal meat , se-cond , you can’t trust the meat as there was no elec-tricity to keep it fresh .

Day 8 : after a freezing night ,it’s the day of the Base Camp , walking for 3 hours we reached Gorak Shep ( 5140 ) the last point you could find lodges and tea houses , grabbed lunch and some rest then we moved to the main point of the trek . After 2 hours it’s finally Mt. Everest Base Camp at 5364 me-ters. The closest you can get to Mt. Everest without mountaineering equipment. Enjoying the moment and taking some shots, we went back to Gorak Shep lodge, I was walking unbalanced and I couldn’t concentrate but I was happy as the mission almost accomplished but there was still more ascending to do the next day!!

1 2

Day 9 : The final day of accent was extremely hard. We started at 4am in the dark to climb to ‘Kala Pat-tar’ peak. At (5545 m) the highest point I ever reached. No torch and quite a dangerous narrow path to the point which gave the most amazing view across the Himalaya. The point of leaving so early was to catch the sun as it rose over the mountains which later I regretted as it did not help to take good picture for Everest. Everest itself doesn’t look beauti-ful compared to the other amazing peaks around it! As you climb to 5500m over huge rocks trying not to fall into the gaps and keeping your balance on the snow you are also gasping for air because there is less oxygen which is also fuelling the crazy head-ache you have. We spent about 20 minutes before descending which was the easiest part! Got the bags which we left at Gorak Shep and direct-ly moved down to Pheriche ( 4243 m ) a village op-posite ( Dingboche ).

Day 10 and 11: destination Lukla airport to take the flight back to Kathmandu . Passing by the same points before, we increased the trekking time and removed the acclimatization days to reach on time. A tough, but unforgettable trek , repeat it ? .. no for sure =)

Expenses list in Qatari Riyal

Return ticket Doha

– Kathmandu

1510 QR

Return ticket Kath-

mandu – Lukla

500 QR

Porter/ Guide per

day

50 QR

Dal Bhat meal Average 10 QR

Cabin at tea house

or Lodge per night

Average 10 QR

Cup of tea 2.5 QR

1 liter of Water 7 QR

Trekking fees 50 QR

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NBK Street

How do you embrace Change?

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Suresh Menon

General Manager - Qatar

United Car Rental Late Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple inc.was a person who accepted and embraced the ultimate change i.e. death. He was aware for 33 years that he was going to die. He considered death as life’s best invention and ultimate change agent. His success in life and death inspires us to lookout and accept change at all times.

Itty Cherian

Officer: Organisational Development / Employee Relations

HR Dept– NBK Holding Change is something we all live with. So why not embrace it? For me, Being responsive is getting myself ready to Face, Learn & Take ad-vantages of life's challenges and be adaptive / open for a better tomorrow. I Think, Understand, & Analyze about the need & reasons for “Changes” & keeps individual / personal agendas aside to look for team work & success which go hand

Samson Francis

Service Advisor

Mercedes-Benz Commercial Vehicles Service The best way to embrace change is by creating a learning and engaging working environment where everyone, regardless of position, contributes to the constant flourishing of ideas. Bright minds that work together produce the most effective and brilliant business strategies. Coupled with a flexible and equally engaging manage-ment team, these ideas can be fully executed, benefiting the entire organization. A well-organized system is able to train its members to become efficient individuals who can adapt positively to change. Always empower your employees. Even if you are technically the leader, empower others to be leaders as well. Whether a receptionist or a high level employee, give everyone opportunities to lead and add input to matters that they feel strongly about. Eventually, this will lead to a stronger commitment between members, or a unit that works well together. Understanding change management culture can bring a positive attitude toward change. It will help to stream-line all of your employment decisions, from hosting a staff meeting to creating large scale project manage-ment initiatives. Finally, stay positive. Every time a problem surfaces, be optimistic and trust that you have a strong team that will help you get through change management issues and bends in the road. This does not mean being lax and passive. It means employing the right set of attitudes that help bring clarity of mind and enhance creative thinking enabling solutions to arise by embracing change management culture.

NBK Street

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Mouna Romdhani

Marketing Manager

Nasser Bin Khaled & Sons Well, I personally think that its important to give every change a chance, to a cer-tain level. Most people naturally panic when changes take place. If we are facing a massive rescaling of our life, our first impulse will be to go into a whirring spin of activity, but there’s a lot of value to sitting quietly instead. It’s important to relax and see the full picture of the impact of the change(s) and then decide, to go with it or not.

Mohammad Nader

Accountant As Mr. Brian Tan said in previous insider edition : “I think these are moving tar-gets, as the world and marketplace keep changing, what was good enough yes-terday may not be the same anymore today. So it is an on-going process to keep up.”

Try to see the situation from outside the box. It is okay to be mad or frustrated. You are human after all. But once the emotions have calmed down, just remem- ber that we are all works in progress. Rome was not built in a day…neither were you.

Adel Hajjaj,MBA

General Manager "Very simple , if it is a "good" change you become happy and excited, If it is "bad" change then you become miserable and upset ! Seriously though ! The reactions I have just explained are natural human responses to "sudden" change ! IF un ex-pected , some people will even resist positive change . I think the more relevant question is, how do you prepare your organization members for change ? Few steps have to be considered by changed leadership ; explaining to employees that change is coming (providing a timeline) , clarifying the reasons for change while outlining both benefits and the down sides of change , but most importantly , lead-ers must engage employees in the change process itself " .

EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH

QAC– Showroom

Haitham Ebef Bak ZAmin A. Khan Mohamad El-Darwish

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Eman Sababah Mohammad Issa

Shijeki Nishi, Salim Khan, Haithem Ebef, Ihab El- Feky

EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH

Omar Hamdan Himanshu Patel

Mazen Hammtou Nazir Mohammad

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Health

How to stay cool this summer?

Your Attire matters in summer

Wear cotton. The cotton material allows the air to flow

through. More importantly, wear cloth-

ing that is loose fitting and lightly col-

ored. Try to avoid jeans. Dark colored

clothes absorb the heat. So, it is best

to wear white clothes or those in light

shades, as they reflect the light and

heat. Try wearing shoes that allow

your feet to breathe and that don't trap

sweat and heat. Dress less, whenever

possible, you will feel cool.

Take frequent Baths

Go for frequent showers. Bathing in cool water is one

best way to stay cool in summer. After you come from

outside you can try spraying cold water on your face us-

ing a spray bottle. It gives you a refreshing feel. Put your

feet in a bucket full of cold water to keep you cool and

give you a rejuvenated feel.

Reduce caffeine and add cucumbers

In the summer season it is important to minimize the use

of coffee and tea, as they stimulate

the nervous system. Caffeine can

also be dehydrating, which is not

healthy when the weather hot and

humid. Replace your coffee or tea

with a cup of green tea, which improves in digestion and

metabolism.

The phrase “as cool as cucumber” suggests that cucum-

ber has a role in keeping you cool. Keep cool by slicing a

cucumber and putting a piece right in the middle of your

forehead. It works best when the cucumber is from the

refrigerator and is sliced thin. It works right away to cool

you down.

Change your diet

The food habits are to be changed in summer and it is

good to take the water based food items.

Alter eating habits. Large meals on sizzling summer often

lead to feelings of discomfort. But this doesn´t mean peo-

ple should avoid eating as the summer temperatures rise

up. Instead of three meals per day, eat smaller meals

more frequently throughout the day. Eat light meals every

three to four hours, and avoid foods that are heavy and

lead to feelings of lethargy. Try eating lot of spicy foods.

Spicy foods make you sweat without actually raising body

temperature. Look for foods high in fiber. This will help

you in getting rid of the unwanted toxins staying in your

body which are responsible for your sluggish nature.

Exercise Early

If you are one

among the catego-

ry who has the

habit of doing exer-

cise after your work

hours, then it is

time to change

your timings. In summer, exercise early in the morning.

Summer’s dog days often make people feel tired by the

end of the workday. So workouts after work becomes less

effective. When working out in the morning, the tempera-

tures are lower and the body is better rested and ready to

make the most of a workout. In addition, many people

who work out in the mornings before work find their ener-

gy levels are higher throughout the day.

A life without love is like a year without summer. Summer is such a pleasant experience. Summer is always

fun and enjoyable only when you stay cool. Heat can be a killer if you do not play it cool. Enjoy this summer

by staying cool with the help of this summer tips below:

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Succeed At Work

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Ten tips for Workplace Success

Employers and Employees need to work together in order to be efficient and productive. Sometimes, this is harder to achieve than it should be. Here are some tips for both management and employees that should help create a better workplace.

5 TIPS FOR EMPLOYERS

Give More Informal Feedback. Don't wait to tell employees if they are doing a good or bad job. Timely feedback goes the farthest. Peri-odic feedback enables supervisors to re-enforce good performance and root out objectionable behav-ior. Don't let a lot of administrative structures tie you down in the "process" of feedback -- drop a note, e-mail, or voice-mail to a deserving employee, or a direct verbal com-ment makes the most impact. Avoid Dramatic Showdowns. Letting problems fester or a poor re-lationship deteriorate can only lead to dramatic showdowns. Rarely does anyone come off looking good after these incidents. They are disruptive and disturbing for all, including managers and super-visors. You can preempt an argument by seeing someone unscheduled on their turf, or by scheduling a difficult meeting outside the office. Plan ahead to cover sensitive issues in a way that does not exacer-bate the situation. Always be in control of your re-sponse, and never allow the discussion to turn into personally insulting dialogue. Kindness is a Virtue. Try a little kindness in your everyday dealings with your employees. Besides being its own benefit, kind-ness in the right amount can increase morale and productivity. An inexpensive gift or card can go a long way in sustaining or repairing a work relation-ship with subordinates (and co-workers).

Keep Regularly Scheduled Performance Evalua-tions. Employees have a great deal invested in their jobs, and they can get anxious when annual performance reviews come around. Keeping these scheduled

dates sacred goes a long way to avoiding problems down the road. Many disgruntled workers' primary complaint is that the em-ployer neglected to keep regu-larly scheduled reviews, or ig-nored them altogether. Employ-ees need feedback in order to know what they are doing right and what needs improvement. They also expect that well-run companies recognize and timely act on this. This has obvious

benefits to companies, too. Watch Your Bedside Manner. There are many different management styles, but one component is being aware of how you are per-ceived by others. Miscommunications can be easily averted by imagining yourself as the receiver of the message you are sending. Even bad news can be handled with tact and efficiency. Employees will be less willing to pursue grudges against those manag-ers who have expressed themselves appropriately and with some sympathy. Balance the company's need with respect for the individual.

5 TIPS FOR EMPLOYEES

Seek Feedback and Clarification. If you are unsure about whether you have done a good job on a project, don't let your bewilderment poison your attitude. Take it upon yourself to be ap-propriately proactive in seeking the feedback that will allow you to move forward. Managers frequently are busy and do not realize they have forgotten to let you know how you did, and so they do not always take the initiative in giving you feedback. Try to keep the lines of communica-tion open to the extent you have control. Look Down the Road. If a company seems to be making some major changes that may not in-clude you, don't wait until the axe falls. Get on top of the situation and make a decision about whether you will wait it out or seek a new position. Bemoan-ing a restructuring may be natural, but it does not have to be the engine that decides your workplace fate. Keep the Boss Happy, When You Can. No one likes a sycophant, but there are ways to keep your supervisor happy that all of us must learn and practice in order to have satisfaction in our ca-reers and jobs. Being pleasant, helpful, and cooper-ative aids in the workplace, and is a habit we should carry with us when we are not at work. There may come a time when a boss is unpleasant, or worse. If you cannot tolerate his unpleasantness, you may need to dust off that resume. Keep Evaluations in Perspective. Evaluations are simply a touch-base session with your supervisor regarding your recent work perfor-mance. While many of us link what we are with what we do, we should not let our sense of self be tied to evaluations, even if they involve raises.

If your review contains negative comments you feel are erroneous, they should be used as a guide on how to re-package yourself so that your next review is more positive. Respectfully and appropriately disa-gree is you can do so without causing a rift with your boss. Also, because most evaluations come only once a year, there is much anticipation surrounding

them. Don't let that eagerness cloud your ability to separate one person's opinion about you from how you view yourself. Trust Your Instincts. Most people have good instincts as to whether they are held in good esteem by their superiors or wheth-er they are in the doghouse. But sometimes people ignore their instincts, usually because the reality is difficult to accept. If you are experiencing anxiety at work, you must either work things out with your em-ployer or take appropriate steps to find another job. It's better to leave on your own terms than have the terms imposed upon you. Take control and trust your instincts. These tips are some common sense ways to im-prove your workplace situation. They are not a cure-all, but if practiced often, they can benefit employers and employees.

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