Mothers: Brave & Resilient...

Growing up in a small town in the Midwest USA, our Mom was an only child.

Anne was a mother who was so devoted to her four kids in so many ways.

Being a Mom in those early days was about getting you off to the bus stop in the morning, and being there when you walked home from the bus stop in the afternoon.

We had just enough time to get home, drop our books and then head out into the neighborhood on our bike to our friends house or down to the beach on Goguac Lake.

A few hours later, it was about the home dinner routine just after 6:00PM, when Dad walked in the door from his HQ job with a regional restaurant chain.

After dinner, it was time for our homework and baths/showers before bedtime.

Sound familiar?

Moms really are so amazing. They are Gods greatest creation and over time we all witness the extraordinary capabilities of a Mother.

Our particular Mom was a proud Pi Phi at Northwestern University yet her real passion was becoming an Artist. To this day, she still has her oil paintings on our walls in our Living Room.

As young kids sitting on the floor in one of her Art Studio rooms or the corner of a basement, we would watch her paint on a large canvas with colorful oils and gluing various items to give a collage effect. Later...

• _ Mom was also there when we all swam across Goguac Lake in the "Husky Muskie" swimming event each summer, cheering us on with her fingers crossed behind her back.
• _ Mom was there to help Dad with maintaining the yard on weekends before they headed out to a Saturday night party with friends at the nearby Country Club.
• _ Mom was there to pick us up after our 6 weeks at summer camp in another state.
• _ Mom was also quite the snow skier and not to far behind us, on the challenging ski runs of Apres Vous mountain in “Jackson Hole” on our Christmas vacations.

Mothers are just so resilient. They are incredibly versatile. Mothers always want to make sure you are never hungry and when you cry, they will do what ever it takes to make you feel better.

On this Mothers Day 2024, we are thinking of you Mom…it has now been a decade since she went to heaven.

“Happy Mothers Day” to all of the other bravest Moms on our Earth…

Reputation Risk: Is Murphy to Blame?

Any board member or executive today is well aware of the direct impact of an adverse event or significant business disruption can have on shareholder value and customer confidence. When it does happen, how many people just throw up their hands and shout, Murphy's Law!

"Murphy's Law ("If anything can go wrong, it will") was born at Edwards Air Force Base in 1949 at North Base.

It was named after Capt. Edward A. Murphy, an engineer working on Air Force Project MX981, (a project) designed to see how much sudden deceleration a person can stand in a crash."

Murphy is all about managing the "What if's" and planning for their possibility.

More than one business has been subjected to the Law's of Murphy whenever a complex and logistical project or program is underway.

If you are one of those corporate executives who has been unable to use your security badge the Monday after the big office move, you are not alone.

The question is not that it could happen, it's what impact will it have on employee satisfaction the day it happens, and beyond.

In your future planning to mitigate the Operational Risks associated with Murphy and your reputation, we are reminded of a few of our favorite Murphy's Laws:

1._Computer systems are unreliable, but humans are even more unreliable. Any system which depends on human reliability is unreliable.

2._If there is a possibility of several things going wrong the one that will cause the most damage will be the one to go wrong.

3._A difficult task will be halted near completion by one tiny, previously insignificant detail.

4._High speed chases will always proceed from an area of light traffic to an area of extremely heavy traffic.

5._Every emergency has three phases: PANIC... FEAR... REMORSE.

Do you think you're spending too much time with your team planning? You haven’t.

Success in your organization doesn't happen because everything goes according to the plan. It happens because you were prepared when things go wrong.

The organizations whose team has planned for every possible scenario and trained together in live simulations will become the most successful.

Their missions will be accomplished on time and within budget.

Incidents of different severity and frequency are happening around you and your organization every day.

Would your employees know what an incident looks like let alone know what to do next to mitigate the risk to them and the organization?