Thomas L. Korkmas

The Agenda

Remember the last time you went to a meeting and nothing was accomplished?  Worse yet, an individual or group attempted to take over and run the meeting?

Holding a meeting without an agenda is an invitation to disputes, disengagement and a general waste of time for all parties.  Of all the undertakings that corporations and groups utilize on a frequent basis is the “meeting” and most meetings fail to produce their desired outcome.

Whenever I preside over a mediation, arbitration or facilitated negotiation, we always follow a prescribed agenda in order to define, discuss, negotiate and, hopefully, reach an agreement that is reduced to writing.  An agenda is nothing more than a plan of organization intended to avoid chaos and result in understanding and order.

The primary reason most meetings fail is that there is either an inadequate agenda or no agenda at all.  The secondary reason is that there is no accountability or meaningful yardstick by which to measure results.

All meetings must have a purpose and if a regularly scheduled meeting has no purpose, the meeting leader should cancel the meeting.  Consider the cost of a 30 minute meeting if there are 8 people in attendance and their individual total cost is $100. per hour.  Add to this the cost of transportation and the cost of diversion from their core competency.  The question must be answered, is this meeting worthwhile?

If a meeting is worthwhile, it requires an agenda to follow to create value to the effort.   Additionally, all meetings should have a chairman and a secretary to take minutes.  HINT:  do not assume that the secretary should be female.  The notes of any meeting are the official record of decisions made.  Therefore, the office of secretary carries as great a responsibility as that of the chairman.

So what does an agenda need? 
1.  Call to order.  (Officially starts the meeting and sets the tone)
2.  Roll call and record of attendance (a means of accountability)
3.  Minutes of the last meeting (what was discussed and agreed)
4.  Old business (and what has been accomplished in the interim)
5.  New business (continuation of old business going forward and new issues to be discussed          and acted upon.
6.  Other business (any business that is outside of the agenda and needs immediate attention.)
7.  Time and date of next meeting (reinforces goals and accountability)
8.  Adjournment (Meeting is over-go back to your assigned duties)

Beyond using an agenda for meetings, all telephone calls, e-mails and other correspondence should follow the outline of an agenda.  For example:  “Hello, my name is Larry Korkmas and I am calling Mr. Phelps to speak with him regarding the mediation we have scheduled for next week.  If he is not available would you ask him for a time when I should call back. Oh, and with whom am I speaking?)

More on avoiding phone disputes later.

The Other F-word

In teaching the class “Power and Negotiation” one of my first shocking statements to students is that one way to get a bad grade is to use the four letter F-word.”  Since the class is at Houston Baptist University, the looks from the students is bewildering and amusing.  The students are then told that the F-word we are speaking about is the word “fair”.

Fair has a number of dictionary definitions but to most people, “fair” means getting their way.  We most often hear the word used when someone has been denied something they want and the typical statement is “It’s not fair”.  Children say this when they perceive that a sibling is getting something that they are not or adults say this when they are disappointed with some outcome.

Perceived disparate treatment by employers often elicits the ‘unfairness” response by employees who do not understand management decisions.  Organized labor often mentions the issue of “fairness” in labor negotiations but in this context, it usually means that they want all employees treated the same.  The problem with this type of fairness is that it means that the employee is constrained to potential mediocrity by the same rules that management must abide.  Individualism is traded for a promise of equal treatment.

It is far more persuasive to abandon the F-word, with one exception, and that is when you have no other argument.  The other party is far more influenced favorably in your direction when you explain why a course of action inures to their benefit, and to yours.  The words fair, fairness and unfair have been so trivialized by being associated with the desires of self serving people that they should be totally avoided.

When resolving human resources and labor disputes we often hear from employees that they wish to be “treated fairly and with dignity and respect.”  Our usual response is to ask the party to please define the words; fairly, dignity and respect.  Defining the problem and active listening result in many complaints resolved when the aggrieved person has to articulate the problem and deal with personal introspection.

Rid your vocabulary of the F-word and observe how much more successfully you will deal with all areas of life.

Avoiding the Weasels (Words)

One of the skills taught in business and law school is the use and avoidance of “weasel” words.  A weasel is a small agile and well articulated animal that can get into and out of very difficult places.  As it relates to words, consider the word may as opposed to the words shall or will.

May is permissive and means that it is at the discretion of the party who is to perform.  Shall is absolute and means a binding obligation to perform exactly as promised.  Will is similar to shall except that it is not as strong or certain.

To illustrate the problem with weasel words, we need only to think of a typical contract we might be asked to sign.  A contract always states something to the effect of:  “buyer shall pay seller and seller agrees to …” Since most sellers write contracts, note that the word shall is used to address compensation but that agrees relates to what is being sold.   There may be a legitimate reason for weasel words, but they are often used to give one party an advantage over the other.

When negotiating a contract for clients, I often insist that if my client is being asked to commit to shall that the other party likewise uses the same word for his obligation.

In addition to words of commitment to do something, also consider their use in an agreement not to do something.  Shall not, will not, may not are examples, and we need to carefully read before we sign.

We often hear complaints about lawyers re-writing contracts, but they are using their document drafting skills to protect their client from the creative use of grammar, spelling and sentence structure.

Businesspeople should use lawyers the same as any other consultant or service provider, a necessary part of due diligence and risk avoidance.

One other thought:  spelling and grammar always matter.

The Power Of “NO”

We have all been conditioned by marketing to think “Yes” because “No” is “negative”.  Advertisers constantly tell us that:  “yes, we can get you into a car even if you have bad credit or bankruptcy.”  We are conditioned as children to do as our parents tell us and to say “yes”.  Saying “no” is implied to be detrimental for our psyche and hurts those around us.  Most employees say “yes” even when they know there may be unintended consequences because only the most intelligent bosses allow subordinates to say “no” and listen to the reason.

To be successful in life we need to know when to say “yes” and when to say “no”.   The power to deny has great negotiating power and signals that we are thinkers and know what is in our best interest.  Would you sell products or services at a price below break even just to make the customer happy?

Apologizing for saying “no” is one of the greatest mistakes made by service providers.  We should not apologize for the fees we charge or for the cost of our products.  If you feel guilty for saying no you should identify the source of the feeling and address it accordingly.  To clarify, explaining price is far different than apologizing and you should never let anyone know your exact pricing components.

A professional and succinct response impresses clients and requires them to explain why you should say “yes”.  If we are challenged when we say “no”, simply respond that “to say yes is not in our best interest”.  Let the other party explain why it is in your best interest.  If they cannot convince you that it is in your interest, then it is likely not.

Beyond business we are often asked to donate our time and money to organizations and causes and these are worthy undertakings if they do not cause us to create conflicts with others.

All rules have exceptions, such as when someone has done you a favor and politeness requires that you return the favor.

Learn to say “no” graciously and do not feel guilty, it is part of growing up and a necessary lifelong business and social skill.

Dispute Avoidance Advice: On choosing a business partner, supplier or client

No one goes into business to fail but disputes and eventual failure often occur because we chose to have a relationship with someone whose character was not a primary consideration. 
A handshake with someone that we really do not know is often the first step to business failure, grief and general angst.
It is necessary to really get to know someone to know their character but there are some clear indicators that are easily observed.   Let us take a look at what constitutes “Character.”

CHARACTER

Character is generally described as the combined moral and ethical structure of a person.  Most definitions of character include the four cardinal virtues.  The cardinal virtues are:

Justice:  Acting with moral rightness, equity, honor, fairness, fair handling, due reward or treatment.

Prudence:  Discretion, careful management, economy, caution, and wisdom.  Specifically, prudence implies not only caution but the capacity of judging in advance the probable results of one’s action.  Discretion relates to self-restraint and sound judgment.  Circumspection adds the implication of wariness in one’s actions out of consideration for social and moral consequences.

Fortitude:  Strength of mind that allows one to endure pain or adversity with courage.

Temperance:  Moderation, self restraint or abstinence.

Important consideration-If we are looking at others, what are they seeing in us?  What is your character?  Would your clients, friends, acquaintances or employer attribute any of the above virtues (characteristics) to you?  Would they apply them to certain areas and not to others? 

Do not base future performance based on previous experience.

Character is influenced by culture and upbringing.  An individual with poor character may represent the general culture and a lack of instilling of the core virtues into the person when he/she was maturing. 

A person may have had “character” but the pressures of meeting payrolls, monthly obligations, bank loans and an unforeseeable economy can slowly, or rapidly, erode character.  It is easy to rationalize (self-satisfying but incorrect reasoning) improper behavior or actions when under extreme stress or when greed or pride interferes with rational thinking (reasoned and/or logical).

Many business mistakes have been made because one tends to trust those that he meets at business and professional meetings, charitable events, political gatherings and perhaps most disarming of all, at a religious gathering.  One wise person observed that a Church is a hospital for sinners, the only difference between the churchgoers and the rest of the population is that they recognize that they have failures and faults.

Ronald Reagan said:  “Trust but verify” and this applies to every business venture and relationship that we enter.  That is why we use credit reports, references and criminal background searches.

Check them out today and have fewer regrets tomorrow.

The Houston Business Show Is Proud to Introduce the New Advisor, Larry Korkmas

Larry Korkmas was born in Tyler, Texas and graduated from East Texas State University in 1968 with a degree in business administration.  He served in the United State Army from 1968 to 1970.  He met his wife Carolyn at East Texas, they married in 1968 and lived in Europe for a year and a half.

They returned to Texas and Larry became the fiscal officer for the Small Business Administration’s disaster loan program as a result of Hurricane Celia hitting Corpus Christi.  First hand observation of the results of Hurricane Celia and the Los Angeles Earthquake made him keenly aware of the challenges of business recovery and disaster planning.

After a year in Corpus Christi, they moved to Denver with SBA and shortly thereafter, Larry became a real estate appraiser and broker and had his own company until 1981 when he went to work for the Pittsburg and Midway Coal Company, a division of Gulf Oil Corporation.  He was transferred to Beckley, West Virginia in the heart of Appalachia for the purpose of acquiring other coal companies and coal reserves.

In 1983, he was transferred to Houston with the promotion to Manager of Leasing for Gulf’s worldwide real estate operations. He was also part of the team that developed and maintained Gulf’s disaster and business recovery operations.  He worked with the Chevron merger team when Gulf was acquired by Chevron and then crossed the street and spent over seven years as Manager of Real Estate for Cooper Industries.

In 1991, he decided to do something daring at 45 years and enrolled in the executive MBA program at Houston Baptist University and graduated in 1993.

After graduating from HBU Larry, seeking a career change, sought the advice of a number of friends, clients and business associates.  He was advised to consider the emerging profession of mediation, primarily because he had been able to avoid incurring a single lawsuit during his entire career and settled many other suits brought against the companies he worked for.

In addition to mediation and real estate, Larry is an advisor to several mid-size businesses and provides them with updates on changes in negotiation strategy, banking, insurance, power, technology, business politics, continuity planning and emerging trends.  In the late 1990s, he was called on again to develop disaster and business recovery plans and is still involved in this activity.

Several years after graduating from HBU, Larry was invited back to teach in the business school and the graduate human resources program.   He still teaches there as an adjunct professor.

A prolific writer, a number of his articles have appeared in various real estate publications including Red News and he has authored a number of MCE commercial real estate courses.

Larry is the owner of Commercial Dispute Resolution Associates, a mediation and arbitration provider and is still active in the commercial and industrial real estate business.