By: Abe WalkingBear Sanchez


Nothing happens until a "leader" wants change.

The following article is based on an interview  with Tom FitzGerald, founder and managing partner of
FitzGerald Associates of Chicago.

It was a pleasure talking with Tom, a really smart man with a wonderful Irish accent. Since 1976 Tom and
his team have worked with the key people in over two hundred organizations to dramatically improve current
profitability and ensure the future of their companies.

The Tip of The Arrow/Spear

According to Tom, a relatively small number of key people within a company constitute its soul. These are
the real "creators" of both current profits and the very future of the company. Collectively, the relationships
and complex interactions between these key players and their workers, clients,vendors defines the operating
dynamic of the company. And the operating dynamic determines everything else.


When I asked Tom about the purpose of his work he responded," We specialize in just one thing, enabling
companies to trigger significant improvement in management productivity and, through that, workforce
performance." Tom went on to explain that the process requires little, if any, change in the individuals
themselves but creates a rather great change in how they relate to each other.



Listening to Tom talk about how the investment made by clients in the work of his group has resulted
in 10:1, 20:1 and, in some cases, even more extraordinary returns, made me think of an arrow, a spear or
sword and the great difference that a sharp point or edge makes. If you use a dull axe or knife you can
still get work done but when a little time is invested in sharpening the tool much more gets done with
much less effort.

How?

I then asked Tom, How do you go about improving the "operating dynamic"? How do you change the
way key people relate to each other? How do you get their relationships to change from dissonance to
harmony? "Our work has just two components, diagnosis and intervention" he said. "Diagnosis being
the exposure of the complete operating dynamic of the company to the scrutiny of its leadership.
Intervention then being the transformation of those factors that undermine performance and suck energy
from the company." Tom went on to explain that his group's role is that of a catalyst, but that the true
work of improvement is done by the real experts on the company, its management.

Heart and Head

Several times during our conversation Tom mentioned that improvement in management productivity
must be proceeded by an emotional acceptance and commitment, "This is who we are, God help us"
and "This is who we will be, so help us God."


Tom talked about how the creators, the key people within an organization, can find themselves
collectively in a dissonance that generates a kind of corporate fear. And that this fear needs to
be brought into the cold light of day and collectively laughed at. The role of FitzGerald Associates
being to act as a mirror so that management can see what needs to happen before things can start
to improve.

Edwards Deming, the quality expert, once said "For an organization to be truly efficient and effective,
fear must be removed from the workplace."

Measurement and Monitoring?

I asked Tom how the work of management improvement can be measured and monitored. He answered,
"First, the improvements can be seen in the behavior and attitudes of workers; these show right away
and can actually be measured. Changes in workforce performance show up quickly on the bottom line.
This, after all, is the proof of the pudding and the only reason for doing anything. As to monitoring, the
process we use generates a workplan, placed on the company's LAN, which details the goals, actions,
deadlines, etc. committed to by each key person who undertakes the process.

In Closing

In my 26 years of working with CEOs and top business managers I've found most managers to be
smart, hard working and competent; unless they got their job by picking the right parents or
marrying right. I've also found that even the smartest people get caught in the trap of lacking time
to think and the force of habit...which inhibit change and improvement.

Tom FitzGerald and his group help clear away the fog of the corporate mind and soul. They help
management to see their company as a living entity, with a soul and spirit as well as a structure
and a bottom line. They help these key people to touch the spirit of their company and cause it to
change.

Contact information:

Tom FitzGerald Associates
Lake Forest IL
847.599.9960
http://www.managementconsultants.com

The Author

Abe WalkingBear  is an International Speaker / Trainer / Consultant on the subject of
cash flow / sales enhancement and business knowledge organization and use. Founder and President
of www.armg-usa.com , WalkingBear has authored hundreds of business articles, has worked with
numerous companies in a wide range of industries since 1982 and has spoken at many venues
including the Shakespeare Globe Theater in London. A hard hitting and fast paced speaker,
he brings life and energy to a critical business function whose true potential
has yet to be realized by most businesses.

ICM / Mexico,  Irish Institute of Credit Management, Evergreen Marketing Group,Vistage, CU, CSU,
Texas A&M, N A C M - Kansas City, HTDA, BCFM, Skinner Nurseries, Deardens, Rain Bird,
STAFDA, IBM, PEI, and Atradius are but a few of the groups, schools, companies and associations
for whom WalkingBear has conducted programs.

WalkingBear can be reached through:
A/R Management Group, Inc.
P.O. Box 457
Canon City, CO 81215
(719) 276-0595
email: abe@armg-usa.com
www.armg-usa.com