“Effective internal controls are good for business.” Coso.org Did you know that organizations lose an estimated 5% of their annual revenues to fraud? Or that global fraud losses reach $3.5 trillion each year, with the average scheme going 18 months before detection? These statistics, reported by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), highlight aContinue reading “Internal Control”
Author Archives: Charlene Aldridge
Learning to Say “No”
“You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage-pleasantly, smilingly, unapologetically – to say no to other things. And the way you do that is by having a bigger YES burning inside.” Steven R. Covey As leaders, one of our greatest challenges is managing our priorities. Doing this well often requiresContinue reading “Learning to Say “No””
What versus How
“Great ideas live in the what; great impact lives in the how.” AI generated thoughts on what versus how During a recent routine visit to my doctor, I learned something surprising: I had been doing many of the “right” things, but I wasn’t doing them correctly. I knew what I needed to do, but IContinue reading “What versus How”
Priorities
“Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent & not enough time on what is important.” Steven R. Covey When a client proudly told me, “Oh yes, I’ve identified my priorities. I have 34 of them,” I had to resist the urge to point out the obvious: this was exactly why heContinue reading “Priorities”
Efficiency versus Effectiveness
“There is only one way to succeed at anything, and that is to give it everything.” – Vince Lombardi In a recent conversation, the Company Leader said he was looking to find ways to be more efficient. Efficiency certainly has value—yet, in Aldridge Kerr’s experience, it is not the first priority when building a strongContinue reading “Efficiency versus Effectiveness”
Know Your Most Critical Processes
“Don’t tell me where your priorities are. Show me where you spend your money and I’ll tell you what they are.” James W. Frick Defining “process” Aldridge Kerr’s definition: “the method or system, consisting of a series of tasks, used to achieve a desired result.” A process isn’t just a sequence of tasks; it’s aContinue reading “Know Your Most Critical Processes”
The Power of Two . . or More
“Two are better than one, because they have a good return on their labor.” – Ecclesiastes 4:9 The lights, the trees, the sparkle – it is time to decorate for the holidays. Over the years, I’ve learned that decking the halls is far more joyful (and efficient) when shared. Whether stringing lights or launching aContinue reading “The Power of Two . . or More”
Pain with Purpose
“Sometimes you must hurt in order to know, fall in order to grow, lose in order to gain because life’s greatest lessons are learned through pain.” A dear friend recently had hip replacement surgery. After the surgery, his wife made an interesting comment, which was: “at least now, his pain has purpose.” That simple phraseContinue reading “Pain with Purpose”
Asking “Why?”
“All highly competent people continually search for ways to keep learning, growing, and improving. They do that by asking WHY. After all, the person who knows HOW will always have a job, but the person who knows WHY will always be the boss” – Benjamin Franklin If you have ever spent much time with smallContinue reading “Asking “Why?””
The Power of Two or More
“Don’t feel guilty accepting someone’s help. You can achieve more with others than you can by yourself.” Simon Sinek, thought leader Sometimes independence is not the best answer. I learned this the hard way several years ago, with a broken foot and a stubborn streak. At first, I resisted help. But it quickly became clearContinue reading “The Power of Two or More”