Have you ever heard about monkeys in a cage experiment? Many people behave like those monkey’s killing your morale and dreams unknowingly, thinking that they are helping you when they are helping themselves. To win, you must decide who to listen to. What was the monkey experiment about? Around 1967, a group of scientists put five monkeys in a specially built tall cage. High up in one corner of the cage, a bunch of bananas were placed in such a way monkeys could see but could not reach it. A ladder was placed against the case such that a monkey…
My 10 questions for our ICPAU Council Aspirants
Dear ICPAU Council Aspirant, Thanks for offering to serve on the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda (ICPAU) Council. I know 12 of you have offered to serve on Council, but there are only seven (7) seats available for election. This means ICPAU members in good standing as at the date of voting shall select only seven members. As a member of the Institute, we need the best candidate in terms of winning ideas and commitment to the accountancy profession to win. To win my vote, please tell us more about your agenda by answering the below questions: Would…
Dear Fraud Fighter
Welcome to 2020, a year of the coronavirus pandemic. Times of scarcity like these are fuel for fraudsters. As you have learned from your fraud examination training – pressure, opportunity, and rationalization — the Fraud Triangle — significantly influence someone to commit fraud. In pandemic times like these characterized by loss of income, many people are exploring ways of survival. The pressure on them is too much to bear. They are under lockdown at home and must find money to pay the bills and buy food. Any opportunity available, many are likely to take it. Because they have the reasons…
Are you a good chairperson?
I have worked with so many board and committee Chairpersons over the years. Some are great, others are a disaster. Whereas a few are seasoned and highly experienced, many others just found themselves in the roles and lack the leadership skills needed to win. The good news is anyone can be a great chair if they learn three simple skills – patience, focus and step back. Whether you are a chair of a simple party meeting or a board, you must invest in self-education and, training to acquire the essential skills needed to win in the role. Good chairs are…
Are your team members engaged?
Are you enjoying your role as a leader? When I was called to facilitate a bank’s strategy development retreat, my starting point was to assess whether the managers and top executives were engaged in terms of clarity of the vision and targets. First, the enterprise scorecard was not clear. Today, almost every organization has some form of a scorecard. However, when you carefully put light into it, no one understands it. Clarity of the targets, monitoring, measurement indicators, and responsibility are usually not clear and linked to the strategic pillars or key focus areas as they usually call them. The…
Before you vote in 2021, ask for outcomes NOT outputs?
They say politicians speak in terms of outputs and not outcomes. Because outputs are smooth and easy to promise because they rarely transform societies. Output promises fail the “social impact and economic transformation” test. Simply put, manifestos that detail outputs are like a collection of promises in the form of stories. Take an example of the markets that have been constructed by the government across the country. If you travel to any district, you are likely to see a big public market building that is underutilized or unoccupied. Thanks to coronavirus, the local governments have explanations for the emptiness. But…
