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Jealous bosses
can drive good
workers away

Organizations that don't
get rid of insecure managers
eventually will suffer

I feel deep pain and sorrow for employees who tell me of their experience in working for managers who suffer from the, "I am jealous of you, and feel threatened by you syndrome."

It has been found that these mangers are extremely insecure and are known to be a detriment to the organization by suppressing the talented people they hire. The symptoms of this syndrome are obvious to everyone but themselves. Here are 10 signs to be aware of:

The grave consequence of this syndrome is that it forces good talented people to leave the organization; or remain and wither. If they remain, they do so knowing that their talents, skills and smarts may never be used to their full potential, unless maybe there's a change.

If they choose to leave, often the true nature for their departure is not disclosed to the organization, except maybe to a few trusted fellow associates. They realize that to do so might jeopardize their chance of receiving a positive reference and risk being labeled a poor sport.

I mean, how do you tell the organization that the reason your leaving is because your talents are being suppressed under a boss who suffers from the "I am jealous of you and feel threatened by you syndrome?" Unfortunately, many good workers just leave.

And leaving their manager to utter the words: "These days, I just can't seem to find good, talented and smart workers who can keep up with me."

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A new type
of bar code
takes hold

Barcodes are everywhere. The familiar vertical lines containing pricing information adorn just about everything these days from cereal boxes to FedEx packages.

The traditional barcode is also used in Japan but recently a new form of code has emerged. Called a "QR Code" it is a matrix code, a two-dimensional bar code. It contains information both horizontally and vertically.

A new form of bar code, called QR, reads data horizontally and vertically

Adding information in the vertical direction greatly increases the amount of data that can be stored in the phone. A QR Code can store several hundred times more information than a regular barcode. In addition to letters and numbers, it can also store kanji, kana and hiragana (the Japanese writing system) and even pictorial information.

Invented in Japan by a company called Denso Wave Inc. (www.denso-wave.com ), the technology was intended for use in automobile manufacturing. The QR Code can be read from any direction and scans very quickly. (QR stands for "Quick Response.") Automobile manufacturers use QR Codes to embed data about customers, shippers, product and quantity.

While the QR Code enjoyed some popularity in the manufacturing industry since its inception in 1994, the technology really exploded onto the scene in Japan when NTT DoCoMo included the ability to read these codes in its phones. Many phones come with built-in cameras. Simply point the camera at the QR Code and push a button. The phone scans the bar code.

What do you do with a QR Code scanning phone? Lots of things. The QR Code can be configured to contain personal information such as name, address and phone number. Software on board the phone automatically adds the contact information to the phone's address book. Savvy marketers have already started adding QR Codes to their meishi (business cards).

QR Codes can also contain links to Web pages. Simply point your camera at the QR Code, push the button and your Internet-capable phone is automatically taken to the designated Web site. This lets users skip the step of typing long and complicated URLs on tiny phones.

Promoters for travel agencies, English language schools and other services stand in front of train stations passing out promotional literature. They wear t-shirts with the QR Codes so passing consumers can snap a photo and instantly get more information from a Web site.

The QR Code has ample potential for marketers in Hawaii. "One idea might be for the user to read some magazines or ads that include QR codes which take the user to a mobile site that includes a coupon while still in Japan," says former Hawaii resident Chris Kobayashi. Kobayashi works for JayThree Inc. developing Web applications for companies in Hawaii and Japan.

"The user can save the coupon, and use it during their trip," Kobayashi said.

"It's a great promotion concept for advertising, events and special promotions," agrees David Erdman of local marketing company PacRim Marketing Group. Erdman recommends that his clients investigate the technology. "You can be really creative with it -- and it's trackable."