To get management approval for improvement ideas, one must make a concise pitch highlighting the benefits. Specifically, present facts on current problems and opportunities for improvement. Demonstrate how the ideas will increase effectiveness, efficiency, and cost savings. Quantify benefits like reduced waste or rework in terms of time and money. Consider wider impacts like improved morale. Prepare a slick presentation with backup materials and practice delivering it confidently.

1. Careers
your questions answered
❱❱ How can I sell improvement ideas to my manager?
To get your ideas taken up will require to those who are used to looking at people on
some form of presentation or, in balance sheets. the move
Dragon’s Den terms, a pitch – you are Second, make sure you can dem-
© JAmES TUTOR
looking for approval and only have a onstrate real benefits in terms of ef- ❱❱ John Rowley
short time with the decision-makers to fectiveness or efficiency, preferably in Lloyd’s Register has appointed
get their buy-in. You may not be look- terms of the money that will be saved. John Rowley as the new president
ing for a hard cash investment If you are asking for an investment, of Lloyd’s Register Asia. He will be
but you want someone even if it is just in terms of your, or oth- responsible for almost 2,000 people,
to invest time and/ ers’, time, then it has to pay off in the with operational responsibility for
or money in order medium term. Some organisations are the group’s five divisions in Asia.
to get your ideas expecting a payback in 18 months, John succeeds John Stansfeld who
implemented. particularly if cash has to be spent. has returned to London to drive the
Making presen- Again prepare to be challenged – you implementation of the organisation’s
tations is part need to be confident both that the im- new strategy.
of working life. provements will result in benefit and
It is a skill like that you will be able to come back in ❱❱ AnnA wAlkeR
many others and front of the same group and show real UK transport secretary Geoff Hoon
can be devel- cost savings. has announced the appointment of
oped even if you Third, make sure you have cap- Anna Walker as the chairman-elect
are not initially tured all the spin-off potential benefits of the Office of Rail Regulation.
comfortable with including those related to people such Anna, currently chief executive of the
selling. There are a as a reinforcement of company policy, Healthcare Commission, will take up
few general rules to take improvement in morale and increased the post on 5 July.
into account. engagement. All of those things that,
First, make sure of your facts. Hope- while not reducing money outlay, will SuStAinAble Devel-
❱❱
fully, as quality people, we have a con- help those in the audience looking at opment CommiSSion
structive attitude to the ideas of others, the organisation from a wider perspec- Hilary Benn, environment secretary,
but unfortunately this is not the case tive to support your request. has reappointed three commission-
with everyone. Office politics mean Finally, prepare to deliver your pres- ers to the Sustainable Development
that sometimes others will see your entation, including having a dry run in Commission. Ann Finlayson, com-
ideas as challenges or an invasion of front of someone you trust to point out missioner for education and capabil-
their territory. The areas to prepare any flaws in your delivery and who can ity building, has been offered a sec-
for are facts on current state and ask some of the tricky questions you ond three-year term, Stewart Davies,
future opportunity, considered in the might have to face. Make sure your commissioner for business, who was
next paragraph. So if you are dealing presentation is slick, not of the rabbit also offered a second three-year
with waste then get the current costs out of the hat variety, but remember term and Waheed Saleem, commis-
in terms of time wasted or the number you are presenting to busy people sioner for young people, has been
of times that work has to be redone. and they will appreciate it if you keep reappointed until the end of July.
If you can put a financial cost to this it short. You may also want to support
based on the average hourly cost of your presentation with a more detailed ❱❱ niCk StuARt
workers then it tends to bring reality hand-out to be read afterwards. The Specialist Schools and Acade-
mies Trust has appointed Nick Stuart
as its new chairman of the board.
Nick has more than 40 years’ experi-
ence in the education sector and was
please email your useful links involved in the development of the
career questions www.presentationhelper. specialist schools system. He takes
and job moves to co.uk over from Sir James Hill who has held
editorial@thecqi.org www.thecqi.org the post since December 2007.
54 | JUNE 2009 | qw www.thecqi.org
54 Careers June 2009.indd 56 21/5/09 09:33:19