Tim Guard
(Here is a link to the current home page.)
I am a freelance specialist in the fields of ‘People and Process’, meaning that:
- I build business processes that work and
- I help people work effectively with technology and with each other
I’ve personally delivered to members of the Boards of Directors at:
- Royal-Dutch Shell (den Haag)
Integration of expatriate-support processes; Communications strategy - Ford of Europe
Relationships with their advertising agencies; Marketing operations - Tesco PLC
Best practice in store design, training and process integration - National Carriers
Operational efficiency, Warehouse design, Employee relations - Nissan Europe BV (Amsterdam)
Relationships with national companies; Channel effectiveness - BarclayTrust
Single view of the customer - Sony and others
But I believe that I have probably gained more business insight whilst:
- Unloading carpets from delivery lorries at four in the morning
- Pretending to be a customer — or just trying hard to become one
- Packing the shopping bags of — and so engaging with — Tesco customers
- Working in parcel-dispatch in an office in Malaŵi
- Sitting on the desk of an insurance-underwriter at Lloyds of London
- Baiting rat-traps under the guidance of a Terminix employee
- Sifting through incoming complaint mail and call-centre logs wherever I can
In short, my effectiveness is as a result of my:
- Being entirely at home in a board meeting or addressing an audience of hundreds but
- Knowing that you learn most when you roll up your sleeves
- ... and always being ready to do just that
- Channelling intelligence from the shop floor to the managers and directors
- Turning that understanding into practicable proposals for improved ways of working
- Communicating effectively with people throughout and beyond my customers’ businesses.
You can read more about my industrial experience in the pages reached through the navigation panel to the left of this page.