Dear Friends, As many of you know, we lost our daughter, Lisa Crawford, to colon cancer in March 2005. Lisa's Legacy, the first 5k run with all proceeds donated to colon cancer research, was a Mothers' Day gift from my children in memory of our daughter. The run was held 5/12/06 and was an incredible success!!! With an inaugural record-breaking 345 runners, the US Track and Field sanctioned race was held in historic Holy Cross Cemetery, Lackawanna, NY.   Lisa's entire family would like to thank each and every one who participated in any way...our corporate and individual sponsors, our volunteers who worked tirelessly over the weekend, those who donated food, water, soft drinks, signage, our runners/walkers and all the families that participated.  As a result of everyone's efforts, we were pleased to present a check in the amount of $17,000 to Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Dr. Marwan Fikah, Lisa's doctor, accepted on the hospital's behalf. Every family has a similar story¾cancer touches all of our lives. This event was intended to help each one of you.  This was the legacy Lisa wished to leave and we will try to fulfill it in her memory. Our planning meetings for next year's run begin in September, 2006. If anyone is interested in participating, please call 667-3570 or send an email to me at ekward@ekward.com.  The event will be held 5/11/06, Mothers' Day weekend. Lisa lost her battle; we will win the war! Thank you again for your support. Sincerely, Eileen and John Ward  For more information, contact E. K. Ward & Associates at 716-626-1188 or please click here.

Managing Change Effectively July 2006 Newsletter One of the most difficult parts of leadership is fostering and managing change. Only a small proportion of change efforts actually succeeds, a fact which has led to fad change models and, for that matter, to the more productive practice of organizational development. One advantage of trying to gain the support of other people in a change effort is the way it focuses your attention and helps you formulate your thoughts. In gathering the information that supports your case for a change effort, and in discussing it with those who will be affected by it, you can clarify your vision, anticipate and resolve potential problems and sometimes even realize that the change is misguided or that there are far better alternative solutions (hence the term "two heads are better than one"). Involving other people is also important because it helps make the change their effort as well as yours. Generally, people won't care too much about your effort, but theirs will be a priority. The only way to give people a sense of ownership is to involve them. This month's articles offer insight on making sure change is effective in your organization. Anne Mahoney Glose OI Partners (Williamsville, NY) Please click on the links below to read the complete articles. Change Management: Getting Everyone on Board the Change Train How do you get everyone on board the change train that is gaining speed and heading out of the station? How do you get your people to, not only go through the motions, but also actually "buy into" the changes that are necessary? People's resistance to change is not entirely irrational; it stems from good and understandable concerns. Here are the six most common reasons people resist change and tactics to convert this resistance to commitment. 12 Key Steps to Managing Change during the Acquisition Process When a company is acquired, there are a number of behavioral patterns that are wise for managers in the company to adopt. They are helpful not only to the smooth integration of the two businesses, but to the executives themselves. Adherence to these standards of conduct and rules of action will assist in identifying those managers whose contributions are likely to be of most value to the organization in the long term. Keys To Success: Six Keys To Prepare For Change Change Management Learning Center Below is a compact summary to utilize when preparing for change. Each of the six keys to preparing for change are summarized, and their importance is explained. Use this model in your organization when preparing for change to provide a solid foundation for the change management plans you will create in the next phase of managing change. Beat the Odds and Succeed in Organizational Change Seventy percent of organizational change efforts fail or fall short of achieving their intended objectives. This figure is even more astounding when you take account of a recent Oxford University study on change, which found that over 68% of employees welcomed meaningful involvement in change. Clearly, we are missing the boat when it comes to effective change, and our clients are not getting what ... Improve Innovation Remove all the stop signs. Why don't we see more innovation? Perhaps we are playing a role in stopping innovation. Many managers concentrate so much on margins that the innovation is marginalized or seldom explored. Leaders fall prey to wanting innovation but then sending signals that stop people from creating and implementing innovative solutions. Common Stop Signs Here are four common stop ... Click Here to subscribe to or unsubscribe from this newsletter To learn more about OI Partners, please click here.

E. K. Ward and Associates, Inc.
Anne Mahoney Glose
VP, Principal
4455 Transit Road, Suite 3B
Williamsville, NY 14221
(716) 626-1188
Enquiries: aglose@oipartners.net