Varg_Admin | Varga & Associates

Teamwork: 3 keys to keep arms locked in battle

Mar 31, 2015 | Employee Engagement, Leadership, Teamwork

As I watch my NCAA men’s basketball brackets fall apart as the tournament winds down (or winds up depending on your team’s good fortune), I have noticed an interesting body language phenomenon. I watch the guys on the bench. In these super competitive games, the players on the huddle together, with arms locked in solidarity as their teammates battle it out on the court. It is such a powerful demonstration of unity and fraternity. It says, ‘We are here, cheering you on. We believe in you.’

What does a business consultant do?

Mar 24, 2015 | business strategy, Career Development, Communication, Uncategorized

While mingling at a networking event, one of the most common questions asked is, “What do you do?” Wouldn’t it be fun to be able to respond with, “I’m a Cirque de Soleil performer.” “I’m a mountaineer and have climbed Everest four times!” However if you respond with “I’m a business consultant” you may get a friendly nod at best and at worse a yawn. It is an overused descriptor but is a role that is crucial to the success of many organizations.

Business consultants are organizational thinking partners. The need comes about when people find their organization needs a jumpstart, a fresh perspective or an update of their current business practices to be more successful. The business may just be starting out and need some guidance as to how to be most successful, or they may be reorganizing and restructuring, or perhaps hovering dangerously close to business failure and financial ruin.

Photos that prove seeing may not mean believing

Mar 5, 2015 | Communication

Last week, working on a project at a client site, a colleague approached me excitedly and said, “So, what color do you think the dress is?” Living under a rock as I sometimes do, I had no idea about the huge “Is it a white and gold or blue and black dress?” internet meltdown that had just engulfed social media. Curious, a group of us gathered around a computer screen to view the dress in question (worn by a mother of the bride on the Scottish island of Colonsay) and sure enough half of us saw it as blue and black and the other half of us saw it as white and gold.

March Madness: A model for business management consultants

Mar 3, 2015 | business management consultancy, business strategy, Employee Engagement

College basketball’s March Madness will soon be upon us and basketball fans everywhere look forward to watching the best teams face off as they complete their brackets. Tuning into these super competitive games can be exhilarating.

In business management consultancy, I recommend that my clients keep an eye on March Madness. What makes watching NCAA basketball so exciting – and instructive to management teams – is the level of competitiveness and the “all in” effort these student athletes exude. The love of the game and the fire in the belly are brilliantly on display.

Communication Training the Thelonius Monk Way

Feb 17, 2015 | Uncategorized

You don’t have to know who Thelonious Monk is (bonus points if you do) or even be a musician to know what that quote means – if just one player in a band is off beat, the whole performance will sound off. Creating music is about more than a group of players each performing their individual part – it’s about the way those players listen to each other and perform together that really counts. Like any group working toward a common goal, the whole should be greater than the sum of its parts.