     ManagePro
     Review by Gary W. Wodka
     Madison PC User's Group

     In a perfect world, things would be so easy!  You're the boss.  You 
     know what has to be done, you know when it has to be done, and you 
     know who has to do it.  When the time comes, voila!  Finished 
     product.

     However, most of us don't work in a perfect world, and just knowing 
     what, when, and who is not enough.  Somewhere in the equation, 
     things seem to break down.  What's a manager to do?  Well, up to now 
     there have been a number of project management tools available.  You 
     type in the project goals, the time line, and who's going to get it 
     done.  Then you hope and pray.  If you've been in management long, 
     you know that you can't manage results -- you have to manage 
     activity.  Until now there hasn't been a program that enables you to
     manage people within a project.  You had to choose to either 
     manage the project, or the people, but not both.

     Avantos Performance Systems has created the first "Goal and People 
     Management Tool" called ManagePro.  It's been rated one of the best 
     products of the year by several publications, and for good reason!  
     In addition to project management tools, MP offers tools for 
     supporting the process of delegation, coaching and performance 
     recognition.  It's kind of like TimeLine and The One Minute Manager 
     all rolled up into one.

     Running under Windows with at least 2 MB RAM, this powerful program 
     has two main modules: Goal Planning and People Planning.  Managers 
     have two key areas of responsibility: Goal Achievement and People 
     Management.  Sounds like a perfect match, huh?  The problem most 
     managers have is that they are inexperienced in dealing with people, 
     recognizing the benefits of positive reinforcement, and working with 
     teams of support people.  ManagePro has a system for every manager.  
     In fact, ManagePro might be the industry's first on-the-job 
     management trainer.

     The main button bar, located just under the menu bar, graphically 
     represents the choices you have as a manager.  From this bar you can 
     select whether to work on project goals, or the people assigned to 
     accomplish those goals.  The tutorial accompanying ManagePro is 
     highly recommended.  It will walk you through the process of a 
     sample goal-setting session, familiarizing you with the terminology 
     and the tasks that need to be accomplished.

     The first choice you'll have to make is to decide which management 
     style you'd like to use.  This system is defined as "scalable usage" 
     because it offers five usage styles.  In order of least to most time 
     investment, they are: the People Manager, the People Manager and 
     Developer, the Goal Planner/Manager, the Goal and People Manager, 
     and the Integrated Performance Manager.

     The People Manager incorporates only the most basic people-management
     principles, providing support for communicating individual and team 
     goals, documenting performance, and creating performance reviews.  
     It's a great place to start.  In this module, you establish a 
     database of performance for individuals, making reviews a breeze.  
     ManagePro can also provide a performance history report of the 
     individual's progress.

     The People Manager/Developer takes everything from above and adds 
     expert advice to help plan and record performance feedback and 
     coaching.  You can create individual skill development plans for 
     each member of the team, and provide tools and feedback to help your 
     employees expand themselves.  The management database can assist you 
     in giving quality feedback at appropriate times, offering expert 
     diagnostic advice and recommendations on a variety of common 
     behavioral problems.

     The Goal Planner/Manager section is designed for a project manager 
     that has no people reporting directly to him/her.  This module helps 
     define and delegate supporting individual or team goals and track 
     actual progress versus desired results.  ManagePro alerts you when 
     a portion of your plan is off-track, and advises when to "interfere" 
     to get the job back on track.  An Action List helps track the 
     activities in your database, and the Calendar and Goal Timeline let 
     you view and manage the accompanying schedules.

     The Goal and People Manager combines the basic management features of 
     the People Manager with the Goal Planner/Manager.  The only thing 
     missing here is the more advanced people management features in the 
     People Manager/Developer style.

     The Integrated Performance Manager combines the full functionality 
     of people and goal management.  Obviously, this style requires the 
     most time, but will probably provide you with the best overall 
     results.  You only get out of something what you put into it.

     And speaking of "putting into it," entering data into ManagePro is 
     as easy as it can be.  Once through the tutorial, you'll understand 
     the basic categories, and will be comfortable enough to create your 
     own specific goals.  In fact, the first exercise walks you through a 
     project based on your specific company and goals.

     In the Goals module you will have the type of report you're familiar 
     with if you've worked with any of those other programs out there.  
     A Gantt chart time line, listing the goals and their parts, 
     scheduled into a calendar.  You'll have, at a glance, a real-time 
     view of the priority, status and due date of each sub-goal.  Here 
     you'll be able to keep track of individual progress data for a 
     selected goal, along with detailed information about the selected 
     goal, checkpoints, and measurement options.  There is also a Notes 
     window where you can attach a note for the goal and view it later.

     A Goal Status Board gives a real-time graphic display of your group's 
     primary and supporting goals.  If the status is not on track, a small 
     colored triangle appears near that particular goal.  By exploding 
     each goal you can find out who and what is impacting the successful 
     achievement of key goals.

     The real value of ManagePro, in my opinion, is in its People 
     Management module.  This module is so complete, you can throw away 
     all those management books on your shelf that you've been meaning to 
     read!  The People Planner window contains a summary table where you 
     can add people or teams to the ManagePro database.

     Through this module, you'll learn how to really motivate people and 
     teams.  From clearly defining goals for selected persons or teams, 
     to adding and editing progress notes relating to those people and 
     teams, you'll have the tools and the "nudges" to help you help them 
     get the job done.

     For each selected individual or team you'll be able to:

     * enter feedback or coaching plans and discussion notes,

     * add and edit interim and formal review information,

     * add/edit performance recognition information,

     * add/edit plans to help improve individual skills,

     * add/edit commitments you've made to selected persons,

     * add/edit calendar events for selected persons, and

     * add/edit detailed information about the selected person/team.

     You'll also be able to add and display notes for the selected person 
     or team, much like a PIM.  The People Status Board is a graphics 
     windows which provides an at-a-glance status of your people 
     management reminders.  If a related activity deadline is approaching, 
     a yellow (caution?) triangle appears next to the goal. If a deadline 
     has passed, a red triangle shows up.  This board helps to focus on 
     the areas of greatest leverage and quickly take care of important 
     people management activities.

     ManagePro's Action List contains a to-do list with details, an event 
     list with details, and a commitment list with details of those 
     commitments you have made to the members of your staff or team.  
     ManagePro also contains a Reports Planner, which lets you set up and 
     print reports for goals, people and action items.

     The ?Advisor button drops down a Management Advisor window.  This is 
     a set of context-sensitive management help tools that offers six
     buttons to help get to the crux of the matter NOW.  This window can 
     be left open while working with other ManagePro windows, providing 
     immediate help for any people management problem.

     I used ManagePro to set up a project at work that needed the 
     cooperation of six individuals and two teams.  I was able to 
     customize the terminology to fit my particular industry (insurance).  
     There doesn't seem to be a limit to the amount of people or goals 
     that the program can hold.  I was able to actually see how my 
     project was progressing, as well as "feel" my software nudging me
     to intervene when two people became delinquent in desired reports.

     I have to admit that when I first got the program, it seemed to be
     overwhelming.  I started out with just the People Management module.  
     As I progressed, I discovered that each step up the ladder required 
     more time in planning and scheduling.  But I also discovered that by 
     using the Integrated Goal and People module, I was able to have 
     total control of the project, and manage the people responsible for 
     making me look good.  Yeah, it took some time to get used to it.  
     It's a lot more complicated than just entering a goal and a timeline.  
     But the results are worth it!
 
     The documentation that ships with ManagePro consists of a Getting 
     Started tutorial, a Reference Guide, and a paperback edition of 
     Managing People - Your Competitive Edge in the 90's.  You'll want to 
     use the entire tutorial.  This is not a program you just dive into.  
     The more time you spend in the manuals, the more you'll get out of 
     the program.  Oh, and another nice thing about the folks at 
     ManagePro: About a week after receiving ManagePro, a representative
     from Avantos called to see how I was progressing and asking if there 
     was anything she could do to help.  I've never had service like that 
     before!  I hope these people keep on developing business software 
     like this!  Maybe they could improve on the word processor... or 
     presentation software... or...

     ManagePro retails for $249 and is a product of:
     Avantos Performance Systems
     5900 Hollis Street, Suite C
     Emeryville, CA 94608
     (510) 654-4600
     (510) 654-1725 (fax)     
