Solutions to errors » Microsoft Office 2007

Repairing of MS outlook 2007 files

Microsoft outlook 2007 is the latest version of Microsoft. Microsoft outlook 2007 provides you with a comprehensive time and information manager. Although often used mainly as an e-mail application, it also includes a calendar, task manager, note making, contact manager, a journal and web browsing. Most people like Microsoft Outlook because it allows them to keep copies of their sent and received messages for an extended time. Also, it is simple to use Outlook because you can simply begin typing in a contact’s name and their email address appears in the box. It is so simple to use and suitable and that’s why so many people like it.

Sometimes when you start Microsoft Outlook email client, after verifying the username and password, you might come across with the following error messages: “Microsoft Office Outlook has stopped working.” This problem most probably occurs if your Outlook account has mail(s) which is/are virus affected and these mails has/have damaged the PST file. In this case you need recovery software which will restore your entire destroyed and damaged data files of Microsoft outlook. Microsoft outlook 2007 repair tool is a safe repair tool that effectively repairs all the errors without any alteration in the previous contents of the MS outlook files.

There are some cases when Microsoft outlook 2007 might stop responding to your queries because of the reasons like virus attacks, unexpected shutdown of system, format of a hard drive, software or application failure etc. Microsoft outlook 2007 repair software not only repairs and restores corrupted or damaged PST files but also restores and repairs all deleted mails. It recovers all deleted mails even if they are been deleted from folders or deleted items.

You can easily download the software from online free of cost and can buy it also. The cost of the software is about right. Now that you know more about this technology it is advised to you to run it on your systems in order for you to enjoy the benefits that it offers.

The Document Caused Serious Error – Word Error and Recovery

If a Microsoft Word crashes unexpectedly when you try to open it, the application adds the file to the list of items with reduced mobility to avoid further problems. Cannot open the file, unless you can manually. Sometimes when you do not open the document, even after re-enabled through the appropriate options, the chances are that the document is corrupted. Next, use your backup file to restore those documents recently damaged or corrupted file scan their tools using advanced Word Repair.

As an example, try to open a Word document, but do not. Subsequently, when attempting to reopen the same document, you may receive the following error

Message:

“The document ‘Filename’ caused a serious error the last time it was opened. Would you like to continue opening it?”

The application crashes and cannot access the content of this document. The error is specific to Microsoft Word 2003 and 2007.

Cause
Microsoft Word gives the above error if a document is added to the list of items for Disabled Microsoft Office program. This usually occurs if you tried to open this file has two or more times and each time the application has been blocked due to errors in the file.

Solution
To open and thus have access to the contents of Word document concerned, you must first activate it, follow these steps:

Word 2003
You need to click on Help and then About Microsoft Office Word.
You can then click Disabled Items. This displays the list of disabled items in Word.
Click the affected file and then enable to re-enable the affected document

Word 2007
Click Microsoft Office Button and then click Word Options
You need to click Add-Ins in the left pane of the window
Then select the Manage Disabled Items list appears in the right pane of the window and then click Go

You should then document, click to allow affected then re-enable iTop the damaged document. Otherwise, the document might be corrupted. You should use your backup and restore recent files. If there is no clean backup, software scan the file with word retrieval. Word repair utilities using scanning algorithms to repair powerful file and integrate with advanced recovery options.

The above listed steps do not resolve your problems so contact to Microsoft word support technician online.

International Development Sector: Back Office Administration Lessons Learned

Why Back Office Administration?

In the international development sector, back office administration and social networks are fundamental to how practices are improved. The work of the administrator expert for the purpose of providing back office activities for development projects include such a diverse range of administrative tasks and routine services. These services carried out in support of a professional activity such as monitoring and organizing a national survey, providing overall administrative guidance and support to multi-donor programs for good governance and economic growth programs have played a central role in consultants’ work in various regions of the world. Such work has involved efforts to reach out to the relevant local partners, government officials, urban professionals, businessmen and women, and rural community heads.

Back office administration has played a particularly prominent role in managing international development projects. This reflects the enduring expertise of administrator experts in many international programs. Back office administration has been strategic to the work of international development projects. And the administrator expert engagement has been fundamental to efforts to manage development projects. Because of the growing importance of back office administration for international development projects strategy, its potential contribution to future phases of managing development projects, it is vitally important for administrator experts at all levels to understand what management and the decision sciences suggest, and what consultants who have worked in such capacity have learned, about how to engage and leverage local partners in projects and institutional networks.

 Administration 101 for Consultants: Lessons Learned

 Back office administration is a form of organizational management activity based on common claimed effort to improve projects implementation practices. (2) It is not necessarily technical, as projects terms of reference (ToRs) may specify technical aspects of projects. (3) Back office administration rather has the benefits of the administrator expert being involved in scientific and/or statistical research without actually having to do it. It gives the administrator expert the administrative and management jobs that the scientists or statisticians see as tedious and time-consuming. For the administrator expert, these jobs represent tasks with a definite beginning, middle, and end. Thus back office administration is a part of most development projects where tasks dedicated to running the implementation of the project itself take place (4).

There is no such thing as a “typical” technical and/or statistical development project. Technical projects may embody diverse project rules, structures, types of political authority, and terms of reference (ToRs) which may be influenced by social and institutional conditions and government policies. (5) Thus, for instance, the ‘microfinance sector capacity building in Sierra Leone’ survey project (2007/08) in the category of the ACP Business Climate Facility (BizClim), a joint initiative financed under the 9th European Development Fund (EDF), tended, at least traditionally, to be purely statistical but the interpersonal definitions of the project underscores the relevance of the administrator expert.  There are major organizational issues involved in all donor funded project that require the engagement of an administrator expert who deals with these issues in a timely and efficient manner. (6) The administrator expert’s inputs in the ACP-EU BizClim project include the overall organization and monitoring of the field survey which makes the expert more influential than the other experts in the project. The administrator expert is looked upon as the project coordinator who enables the right conditions under which all the experts of the project are able to work. (7)

Administrative Values, Processes, and Organization

Administrative values remain deeply ingrained in back office administration of international development projects and have had a profound influence on development projects’ social mores and political culture. (This observation holds for much of all development projects as well.)

These values include the high premium put on originating and leading organizational issues that provide high performance culture that emphasizes empowerment, quality, productivity and standards, and goal attainment. These values also foster ingroup solidarity, which finds expression in loyalty to the technical expert team, (8) coupled with a powerful desire to ensure proper inclusion of the project output (in the case of the BizClim project, the survey) into the strategic development plan for the overall program; ensuring proper operational coordination with the contractor’s terms of reference; which finds expression in having the necessary skills, personal qualities and levels of motivation to competently meet the objectives of providing back office support and working with institutions or corporations locally. (9)

Administrative processes include traditional forms of services tailored to effectively support the technical experts, to mitigate problems when possible and to preserve a dynamic and productive environment. (10) These processes are conducted in accordance with basic administrative principles, providing colleagues (who are the technical experts) with the resources (i.e. human resources, physical facilities, as well as computing infrastructure and systems) they require to carry out their project research or service mission. (11) Further, working in cooperation with the local partners is extremely important and other tasks of significance include research and review of existing materials, and recommendations for operational structure that produces. (12) The precise extent to which these basic administrative processes are applied determine how successful in meeting the mandate of the contractor by such service requirements by which the expert must:

· clearly understand the needs of all the stakeholders of the project; (13)

· develop a team approach based on strong collaboration and mutual support and trust between the expert team and the local stakeholders in the project; (14)

· motivate and continue to inspire a competent and skilled auxiliary local staff in the project; (15)

· ensure that roles and responsibilities for program objectives and resource management are clearly defined and well understood by all concerned. (16)

Organizationally, each international development project implemented in any region consists of nested beneficiary groups. In the case of the BizClim microfinance project in Sierra Leone (2007/08), the direct beneficiary of the activity is NaCSA’s microfinance program as well as the partner organizations (MITAF, BoSL and SLAMFI). There are also the indirect beneficiaries which include the six existing MFIs and the four community banks actively involved with MITAF as well as the sector as a whole. (17) The terms used to describe these stakeholder groups and the meanings ascribed to them may differ by project, however, basic administrative processes apply in every case. This simplifies efforts by the administrator expert who must be skilled to understand stakeholder relationships, dynamics, and politics in the implementation of projects. (18)

The enormity of tasks in a project and the political issues to be dealt with has caused development donors to fall back on inputs of the administrator expert for support in confronting the challenges of coordinating the implementation of projects. As a result, strategic administrative processes have assumed greater salience in back office administration in recent years. It is not a mistake to emphasize the significance of the role of the administrator expert in a project or to regard the administrator expert as the central organizing principle of any development project implemented.  Large parts of back office administrative processes are to ensure the specific objectives of a project are consistently pursued, in the case of a survey project, for instance, the survey tools are developed and tested; the field research is undertaken; data is reviewed before processing, and statistical analysis is undertaken and final report drafted. (19)

A detailed, up-to-date picture of the back office administrative system in international development projects is hard to see—at least in the open literature. Much of what is known about back office administration is based on profiles provided by project donors, and information gaps frequently have to be filled by what the administrator expert must do to ensure the successful implementation of a donor funded project. While there are a number of useful compendiums on the traditional responsibilities of administrative officers in organizations, these are largely catalogs of job description that are in much need of updating to meet the high expectation needs of international development projects. (20) Finally, there has been no systematic effort to assess the impact of the role of the administrator expert in project implementation and the state of relations between the administrator expert and all the stakeholder groups in a project. This article will hopefully constitute a modest first step in this direction. (21)

The Cultural Logic of Back Office Administration and Project Implementation

How do administrative values express themselves in the conduct of the administrator expert? Administrator experts are intensely jealous of the integrity of work outcomes—to the extent that integrity of work outcomes has been described as the “consulting center of gravity.” The culture of integrity of work outcomes and the implicit threat of forfeiting fees if project outcomes are compromised may be a vestige of the back office administrator’s oath of expert engagement—a commitment of ensuring individual and group survival when there are terms of reference to be strictly adhered to. As a result, social relations among stakeholders in a project are characterized by a high degree of concern over integrity of work outcomes, status, and timeframes. (22) A well-known Steven R. Covey proverb expresses this tendency: “Seek first to understand, then to be understood”.  Some see the extraordinary politeness and generosity of consultants that characterize their social relations towards stakeholders in a project as a means of curbing this propensity for anxiety and apprehension for the integrity of project outcomes. (23)

What accounts for this tendency? One explanation is that it is a consequence of what defines a consultant. A consultant’s career is built on maintaining the scrupulous ethics and honesty that are the hallmark of any successful consultant—and to pay even more attention to the perception of ethical behavior. (24) Another explanation is that it is a characteristic feature of being a consultant to be efficient and be conscious of project timeframes. The administrator consultant must have the right experience. Knowledge of industry procedures, project requirements, likely project costs, and likely project timeframes, are all examples of where inadequate organizational experience can result in cost and time blowouts. The administrator expert must keep in touch with the latest developments in projects administration to provide the right advice to project stakeholders. (25)

In back office administration, the expert team of consultants, direct and indirect project beneficiaries, and government affiliations define the administrator expert’s identity and status in a project. Consequently, all personal interactions in a project potentially have a collective dimension. Experts assembled for a project is not a personal choice, but a team affair, with implications for the status and standing of the entire expert team. (26) Conflicts between individual experts in a team always have the potential to become conflicts between groups that undermine the success of the entire project. (27)

Relationships are central to project life. In an environment marked by suspicion and potential conflict between the expert team and the local stakeholders, building and maintaining relationships is a way to reduce the circle of potential adversaries or enemies. (28)

Back office administration is systemic, it has to do with the organizational issues of the project, and the activities undertaken provide the basis for sustained systemic action. Interpersonal interaction is the fundamental unit of getting tasks done in a project. On every occasion, the administrator expert considers organization-wide cooperation as key to the successful execution of tasks; it is generally in response to a specific task, such as collating economic data that should be included in a report. (29)

Back office administration has an inter-organizational dimension as well. A project is often identified with the government of a country, its civil service structure, and the civil society. Thus, an administrator expert is obliged to deal with all of these structures at a professional level.  (30) For the administrator expert, the administrative domain of all international development projects thus usually consists of dealing with a number of relevant stakeholders exclusively specified by the terms of reference of the project.  Among the team experts, there is strong pressure not to alienate these stakeholders in a project. Because the group of experts (consultants) is usually involved in more than one institution’s culture, and in each case they are seen as outsiders at the beginning, experts need to be able to win the confidence of strangers who may be initially threatened by the presence of consultants. The administrator expert must be that person of personable character capable of projecting the expert team’s image to the other stakeholders. A big dose of humor is said to make wonders, especially when directed at one’s self. (31)

Some back office administration activities take the form of effectively making use of all sorts of networks. Civil service and civil society networks are sometimes reinforced by less professional social interactions or more personal relationships, and may be mobilized in the pursuit of shared interests. Administrator experts are particularly adept at mobilizing social networks and forging more personal alliances, which account in part for the success of international development sector projects. (32)

The Spider in the Web

Overall, donor agencies have dealt with administrator experts as projects power brokers to help administer or implement a project, and they have often attempted to co-opt the work of the administrator expert as part of a strategy of “get things done”. Other participating consultants in a project have likewise depended a great deal on the work of administrator experts to achieve quality project outcomes. It is therefore important to understand the sources—and limits—of administrator expert authority and organizational influence. (33)

Administrator expert authority. The administrator expert traditionally performs a number of functions related to the inner life of the project and its relations with the other stakeholders and the authorities. The role of the administrator expert for international development sector projects involves more like traditional administrative functions, and the administrator expert fulfill a number of important functions. The administrator expert’s job has been to be the spider in the web—collecting information from partners, everything from administrative data to their technical contributions, their expertise, and their expectations of the project, while making sure they meet the project’s deadlines. (34)

A very interesting task is to thoroughly understand all the specific terms of reference of a project and get all partners to understand them and agree to them as well. (35) In some cases the work seems to consist of calling other people’s bluff—not the participating consultants but the local stakeholders in the project. Almost without exception, often times the local stakeholders view with suspicion the work of the consultants, and the challenge is to what extent one has to be flexible on most things, and when to stand ground on the things that matter—like getting things done according to the terms of reference and maintaining one’s integrity. (36) One has to be willing to draw the attention of the contracting authority in such instances in order to defend one’s position in both of those cases without jeopardizing the project. (37)

The administrator expert must have an in-depth knowledge of how donor funding works, and should be skilled in developing good personal contacts with people in government and in civil society. (38) The very big plus side for the administrator expert is being right in the center of decision-making in the project implemented and the role of the administrator expert becomes more important when he or she is able to create the conditions for making the most out of people working in the project and their talents. (39) The administrator expert is more in control of his or her own work, to see output that is in some sort of relation to the time and effort put in, to work on projects that have a beginning an end. The administrator expert is responsible for the day-to-day running of the project. The work of the administrator expert is literally research project management. (40) The administrator expert has to be well organized to make sure deadlines are met and all partners are involved; diplomatic enough to deal with people of different backgrounds; and, perhaps most important of all, unflappable. (41)

Elements of traditional organizational management still apply in all international development sector projects. Management and organizational issues abound in delivering development sector projects. For example, if survey administration is the “line” activity within the project, the ultimate responsibility for delivery lies within the purview of the administrator expert. (42) And the more actors and organizational units that are required to deliver international development sector programs, the more complex that delivery may be. The need for coordination and cooperation in such complex systems is critical to success. (43)

Administrative influence. Administrative influence is reckoned in terms of the tasks completed. Details matter. Every task for the successful completion of projects matters. (44) Integrity also matters. The integrity of work outcomes is critical in international development projects. (45)

Today, as mentioned above, back office administration is generally the highest level at which sustained social action occurs; administrator experts are considered effective units of action. And the influence of an administrator expert is generally measured in terms of his or her work ethics, the ability to secure the interests of the project. (46)

The Donor Sector Today

The rules of donors and their influence and their specific terms of reference vary but have a common goal—effective delivery of project objectives. (47) There are a good number of well known donor agencies working for the good of humanity. Some of these donor agencies consultants should know about include:

· The ACP Business Climate Facility (BizClim), an ACP-EU joint initiative, is demand-driven and the requests for assistance introduced are implemented through contracts using the framework contracts of the commission (beneficiary) or through tenders. To this respect, the Contracting Authority is the European Commission but the daily management of each contract is ensured by BizClim. (48).

· USAID, the independent federal agency of the United States Government, often times cooperates with multilateral and regional institutions such as the African Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Bank of International Settlements, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), IFAD, IMF, IOM, OECD, and the UNDP, to implement projects in various parts of the world. (49).

· The Department for International Development (DFID) is the part of the UK Government that manages Britain’s aid to poor countries and works to get rid of extreme poverty and often works with consultants in many respects.  It has two headquarters (in London and East Kilbride, near Glasgow) and 64 offices overseas. It also has over 2500 staff, almost half of whom work abroad (DFID). (50)

· The Australian Government, through AusAID, competitively contracts aid work to Australian and international companies. These companies use their expertise to deliver aid projects and often train local people to continue the projects long after the end of the contracts.  AusAID contributes to global and regional poverty reduction programs set up by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank and works with (AusAid). (51)

· The OECD brings together the governments of countries committed to democracy and the market economy from around the world to support sustainable economic growth, boost employment, raise living standards, maintain financial stability, assist other countries’ economic development, contribute to growth in world trade. The OECD also uses a lot of help from independent consultants and shares expertise and exchanges views with more than 100 other countries and economies, from Brazil, China, and Russia  to the least developed countries in Africa (OECD). (52)

· UNDP is working through its specialized agencies like IFAD, UNICEF, UNCTAD, and with a wide range of partners to help create coalitions for change to support the goals at global, regional and national levels, to benchmark progress towards them, and to help countries to build the institutional capacity, policies and programs needed to achieve the MDGs (UNDP). (53)

· The African Development Bank (AfDB), Africa’s premier development finance institution, dedicated to combating poverty and improving living conditions across the continent through loans, equity investments and technical assistance, also offers great opportunities for independent consultants. AfDB-financed contract procurements are carried out in accordance with the requirements stipulated in the Rules of Procedure for Procurement of Goods and Works and the Rules of Procedures for the Use of Consultants (AfDB). (54)

· The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) also uses consultants’ help to promote sustainable development through loans, guarantees, risk management products, and analytical and advisory services. Established in 1944 as the original institution of the World Bank Group, IBRD is structured like a cooperative that is owned and operated for the benefit of its 185 member countries. (55)

· The Asian Development Bank (ADB) often partners with governments and the private sector to help reduce poverty and improve the quality of life of member countries based on its Strategy 2020, a long-term strategic framework adopted in 2008, grounded on three complementary strategic agendas: inclusive growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration. (56)

These donor agencies have their specific rules and terms of reference. (71) Within the field of EU-supported Research and Technological Development (RTD) projects, partners normally sign a consortium agreement to organise the work and to specify certain rights and obligations to carry out the Project. Separate and independent consulting firms are subcontracted by the EC or the consortium for projects in various parts of the world. (57) And experts who are engaged by the successful firms the consortium has subcontracted are strongly encouraged to always co-ordinate their activities with the activities of other EC funded projects or projects funded by other donors in the region of implementation. The work of the administrator is to establish such contacts. (58) And considering the fact that experts do have different experiences in project implementation, there are also certain issues experts must know about:

· Using proper documents, forms and terminology as required by EC Delegation and there are basic documents all consultants should use when communicating with their partners—the firms contracted by the EC or the consortium.

· The ToR as a basic and binding document must be strictly adhered to. If the expert thinks the requested deliverables or outputs are out of touch of reality, the expert must communicate his or reservations in the Inception Report or with the Delegation in a written form.

· Experts should be patient with the EC Delegations and Beneficiaries, if an expert does not agree with work processes or procedures as specified by the EC operations manual and terms of reference, the expert has the responsibility to try to convince the EC or the consortium by justifying other ways value can be added to deliverables or outputs.

· Experts must, however, understand the reality that the EC does not accept other rules and forms except theirs.

· Even when consultants are subcontracted by firms contracted by the EC or the consortium, consultants are expected to respect EC rules which prevail for all projects. (59)

Lessons Learned

Hands on experience with back office administration in international development sector projects concludes that the administrator expert performs a strategic role in helping the project accomplish its objectives by bringing a systematic, disciplined approach to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of work processes, control, and management processes. (60) The administrator expert creates a capacity which safeguards and reinforces project’s reputation as a reliable steward of donor resources.  (61)

Other required functional competencies of administrative expert include the expert having excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to set out a coherent argument in presentations and group interactions. The expert should be adept in the use of information and communications technology. (62)

Donor organizations prefer experts that operate within their organizational competency frameworks. They expect experts to lead and manage change with integrity, trustworthiness and confidence, keeping the contractor’s vision and values at the forefront of actions.  The experts must maintain a strong, independent mental attitude and highest integrity and ability to inspire and nurture an organizational culture of ethos and fairness.  (63)

As an expert, it is professional to keep accurate and systematic accounts, files and records. The records must clearly identify, among other things, the basis upon which invoices have been calculated. The expert must be proficient in preparing and submitting regular reports on the project activities to the project team leader emphasizing among others their impact on the different areas of intervention. The expert should also seek to set benchmarks and targets for achieving both program and activity based goals inclusive of indicators for measuring the extent of achievement and to highlight these in all reporting. (64)

Experts must not attempt or commit any fraud, deception, financial or procedural wrongdoing in relation to the performance of their obligations under the Contract, and shall immediately notify the contractor of any circumstances giving rise to a suspicion that such wrongful activity may occur or has occurred. (65)

The expert should not engage in any personal, business or professional activity which conflicts or could conflict with any of their obligations in relation to the Contract.  (66)

The expert must be familiar with the provisions of race relations, sex discrimination and disability discrimination and the expert should not unlawfully discriminate within the meaning and scope of these provisions. (67)

All donor agencies respect the environment; they therefore expect all consultants to help protect the environment in relation to the performance of the services and should comply with all applicable international environmental laws, regulations, and donor practices. (68)

The condition of maintaining professional indemnity insurance is important for most donor agencies. Professional indemnity insurance provides financial indemnity to a professional man or firm against a legal liability to compensate a third party who has sustained injury, loss or damage through breach of duty. (69)

Again, experts must know about project equipment use and keeps inventory of equipment, its condition and location and make such inventory available to the project contractor. (70)

Expert must know that no expenditure may be incurred in excess of the financial limit and budget items of the project without the prior written authority of the donor contractor. (71)

For most donor contractors, fees payable are deemed to cover cost of salary, overseas inducements, leave allowances, bonuses, profit, taxes, insurances, superannuation, non-working days and expenses of whatsoever nature that may be incurred except those otherwise specifically provided for in the Contract. (72)

Donor specific forms and invoices often in the form of letterhead, the contract reference number and bear an original signature are used to recover payments from donors. (73) For, DFID, for example invoices are numbered sequentially, dated and marked—“For the attention of the Administration Officer”—stating the period the services are provided using “from” and “to” dates. The final invoice presented in connection with this Contract should be endorsed “Final Invoice”. Experts must know that any invoices not presented in accordance with donor specific format may cause unreasonable delay in payment. (74) For currency information, the London Financial Times “Guide to World Currencies” does provide the information needed on exchange rates. (75)

Experts must also familiarize themselves with procedures for negotiating claims or disputes arising out of or in connection to Contracts. The Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution in London (CEDR) can be very helpful.  CEDR is an independent non-profit organization with a public mission and supported by multinational business, law firms and public sector organizations. (76)

Overall, the administrator expert prioritizes work schedules. Relieves the technical experts of administrative detail, coordinates work flow, update and chase delegated tasks to ensure progress to deadlines, maintain terms of reference manual to ensure consistent performance of routines. (77) To maintain proper communication mechanisms, the expert composes daily reports, research relevant data the technical consultants can use to support final drafting of the project report. (78) For any meetings, the expert emphasizes on agenda meetings. The expert arranges meeting facilities, acts as recording secretary, and prepares action minutes. The expert performs to earn stakeholders’ confidence. Even arranges local transportation. Seeks greater role in projects within administrative and other areas of competence. At the advanced levels, back office administration is about methods for handling work; it requires a constant audit of the way a project does things, and willingness to rock the boat for meeting deadlines in getting work done. (79) Here are some typical tasks:

Study and understand international development sector procedures
Recommend action to improve standard operating procedures.
Take part in any administrative meetings to assure secretarial follow-through. (80)

In other areas, the expert finds himself with networking with the various stakeholders in the project that are playing a significant role in the life of the project. There is a saying in OD consulting that says “it is futile to put personality ahead of character, to try to improve relationships with others before improving ourselves”. Interpersonal coordination of projects objectives is the cadence of back office administration. To navigate the chaos of dealing with organizational issues in a project, the administrator expert tries to draw on the pillars of being an effective manager, pillars built on work integrity, respect, and reciprocity. The expert relies on the intimacy of an expert team and the other key stakeholders in the project. (81)

Emphasis on Interpersonal Relations

Some analysts and practitioners have argued that interpersonal relations are key to the success of projects. While consultants are often viewed with suspicion by the local operators they meet, it is the responsibility of the administrator expert to allay those suspicions.  Clearly, the administrator expert has realistic expectations regarding the influence of project stakeholders. The experts are generally well connected and plugged into various stakeholder networks (essential if they are to ensure project tasks are adequately completed) they have generally proven useful as sources of information and advice and as vectors of influence among their teams and the local stakeholders. (82) Experts can assist too in the preparation of technical projects instruments and the training and motivation of enumerators and/or other project participants. (83)

Despite such acknowledgements of the importance of social networks and the fact that interpersonal activities in back office administration consume between 50 to 70 percent of the administrator’s time, it is remarkable how little attention has been devoted to this subject in the consulting professional literature. Hopefully, this article on back office administration will spur greater interest in what is probably the most important work process in international development sector. (84)

The following engagement lessons learned—with particular emphasis on the special challenges of the administrator expert engagement—are drawn from a review of the administrative literature, journalistic dispatches, individual and group interviews with other consultants who have served in various parts of the world, and the author’s own experiences. (85)

Institutional and cultural sensitivity, “hearts and minds,” and shared interests. Because of the complexity of the operational environment in international development consulting projects, particularly when local participants in the project view with suspicion the involvement of “highly paid” external consultants, organizational challenges are inevitable. (86) Winning “hearts and minds” is what the administrator expert does which is necessary for project success. What is important is for administrator expert to nurture that spirit of shared interest in working together with local consultants to achieve common goals. (87)

Building relationships. In projects, as is with, in all organizations, persons are more trusted than institutions. Personal relationships are the basis of effective professional partnerships, and a sine qua non for effective organizational activities. These relationships, however, can only be established and maintained by engaging the project stakeholders. (88)

Relationships take time to build and need constant tending. “Face time” with project stakeholders is critical, even if nothing tangible comes of some meetings, since time together is an investment in a relationship whose benefits may not be immediately evident. In addition, such meetings might discourage slack in project. (89)

Credibility is priceless; once destroyed, it is very hard to reestablish. Accordingly, it is vital to make good on promises and to avoid making commitments that cannot be kept. Broken promises undermine efforts to establish rapport and build the relationships that are essential to success. (90) For these reasons, administrator experts should, to the extent possible, avoid practices that disrupt relationships with the local partners, such as showing off and pretending to be more knowledgeable than anyone else in the project.  (91)

Management Implications of Donor Rules of Engagement

While a detailed discussion of how each donor rules of engagement with external consultants are enforced in projects is beyond the scope of this article, it is important to recognize the management value of such organizational knowledge.

Another feature of donor rules that may be managerially significant concerns the relationship between patterns of work ethics and social relations among project participants. Work cultures vary in parts of the world. This is a widespread phenomenon in the developing world. (92) Research of work cultures in developing countries and in Africa has shown that most work cultures in the developing world have a laid back easy going work habit. The expert has to be patient but firm in promoting the right habits that should be nurtured. The point is proper work habits deepen democratic values and reinforce the benefits of responsible management of projects. (93)

Engagement as a management activity. Engagement planning at the lower tactical echelons—which are the echelons that interact most intensively with the civilian population (for example, the enumerators as in the case of a national survey)—is often ad hoc, highly informal, and done “on the fly” by the administrator expert with little if any formal staff input. Engagement, however, is too important to be done in such a manner, and should be approached like any other essential management activity. (94)

There should be a formal engagement planning process, with input from all relevant staff elements, to identify engagement targets, assess their motivations and interests, determine engagement goals, schedule meetings, and set agendas. Administrator experts should hold after-action reviews to evaluate the outcomes of meetings and plan for and prepare follow-on activities. (95)

Engagement planning would probably benefit from jotting down any activity undertaken in a day in a diary which helps the organization and oversee of activities. (96)

Understanding excellence in consulting. Consulting is a knowledge-based occupation; therefore, it is responsible for administrator experts to continue to acquire new skills and knowledge on how to meet the changing requirements of assignments or for career development purposes. The expert must continue to invest in relevant training to obtain and maintain the mix of skills and knowledge needed to achieve the highest level of performance in accomplishing projects objectives. Adequate investment in training to maintain and improve knowledge capital is a key strategic action by any energetic administrator expert. (97)

Being the expert is what empowers the consultant. Local stakeholders in a project have sometimes had unrealistic expectations concerning the expertise of consultants. Being a learning individual is a must. (98)

Avoiding the pitfalls of institutional politics. Working with stakeholders in a project poses special challenges. Local stakeholders are intensely status conscious and competitive, and rivalry and intrigue often characterize institutional politics. Thus, expert engagement often requires a careful balancing act among local coordinators, supervisors and other population groups in the project, to avoid creating or aggravating rivalries or conflicts. (99)

A specific pitfall associated with institutional politics is errors of ignorance. It is easy to err due to a lack of knowledge of work cultures in institutions. It is therefore essential to become intimately familiar with the history and politics of the institutions and the relationships that govern such institutions in order to avoid any missteps. (100)

The challenge is to strike a balance among participating stakeholders in a project. Expert engagement should be part of a broader effort to engage multiple sectors of stakeholders in a project in order to promote a spirit of comingling to work toward common goals. (101)

Conclusions

Interpersonal engagement is probably the most important administrator expert line of operation in back office administration in the international development sector. If experts achieve any degree of success in project implementation, it is in large part because they succeeded in engaging the stakeholders and leveraging stakeholder networks.

Interpersonal engagement, however, poses unique challenges deriving from the special demands of interacting with stakeholder communities whose norms, values, and forms of social organization diverge, in many ways, from those of donor agencies.

Finally, while interpersonal engagement lessons learned in back office administration by administrator experts in an international development project may apply anywhere; this should not be assumed to be the case. Every project is unique in its scope, its internal dynamics and politics, and its relations with the donors. Independent expert consulting is the driving force for participation. Research needs and organization emerge from all consultancy work to produce added value to international development sector projects. Back office administration is research project management suitable especially for those who don’t have that passionate interest in a specific area of science. With back office administration one has the benefits of being involved in scientific research without actually having to do it. The job market for administrator experts in international development projects looks very good. The UK Research Office in Brussels, ‘Development Executive Group’, ‘Microfinance Gateway’, ‘devnetjobs’,  ‘Association of International Consultants’,  Devjobs, ‘Eldis’, ‘Expat List’, ‘Idealist’, MSI Worldwide, ‘Peace Corps’, and ‘Relief Web’ advertise vacancies in just about every week they update their websites. These are time-limited appointments, but so are many research posts and almost all jobs in the international development sector. For an expert to stay employed between short-term consultancies, the expert should continue to make intense effort to email résumés to as many international development consulting firms as possible. With an ongoing, intense marketing effort there are good chances that an energetic expert stays employed.

Dynamics GP Partner Newsflash: Disabling MS Office Outlook Snap-In

If you have Microsoft Dynamics GP, formerly known as Great Plains Dynamics and eEnterprise implemented in large organization, especially when you are deploying non-Microsoft email solutions: Lotus Notes Domino, for example, you may receive error messages on login Dynamics GP user workstation.  Errors are typically associated with Microsoft Office Web Components absence.  Dynamics GP integration with MS Office and Sharepoint really makes its user interface easy and intuitive, but we can understand that if you are on Linux and Open Office, error messages on login might be annoying (Metrics are not available because Microsoft Office Chart – or something like that).  In this small publication we are offering you Outlook integration disabling scripts with basic explanations:

1. Please open SQL Server 2005 Management Studio for SQL 2005 or SQL Server Enterprise Manager and Query Analyzer for SQL 2000.  In New Query switch to Dynamics Database and copy this SQL statement:

UPDATE A SET COLNUMBR = 0, SEQNUMBR = 0, Visible = 0 FROM SY08100 A WHERE (SectionID = 2) AND

(DICTID = 0) AND ((COLNUMBR <> 0) OR (SEQNUMBR <> 0) OR (Visible <> 0)) and USERID=’FRED’

Attention: please, before you hit run button, change Fred to actual user id.  If you want to take off integration for all the users, we recommend you first to make SY08100 table backup, run this statement:

SELECT * INTO SY08100_Backup from SY08100

And then run the following statement:

UPDATE A SET COLNUMBR = 0, SEQNUMBR = 0, Visible = 0 FROM SY08100 A WHERE (SectionID = 2) AND

(DICTID = 0) AND ((COLNUMBR <> 0) OR (SEQNUMBR <> 0) OR (Visible <> 0))

2. Dynamics GP 10.0 user workstation installation issues.  If you have Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 CD #1, it is natural to try to insert CD and follow installation defaults.  However, if you have Windows XP Pro or Vista OS and you already deployed MS Office 2007, you may get Dexterity Shared components installation failure and no options offered to continue.  There is work around, you need to login Dynamics GP Customer Source and download files: DexSkipDotNetCheck.mst and probably SkipDotNetCheck.mst.  Then copy GP CD1 content into your Workstation hard drive and launch installation from command line:

msiexec /i “c:gp10cd1BinDexCmnDexterityCommonFiles.msi” TRANSFORMS=”C:DexSkipDotNetCheck.mst”

This command allows you to get around Dexterity Shared Components, and second statement:

msiexec /i “C:gp10cd1binGreatPlains.msi” SQL_SERVER_NAME=”ALBASERVER” INSTALLDIR=”C:Program FilesMicrosoft DynamicsGP” SELECTED_COUNTRY=”United States” TRANSFORMS=:Inst01;c:skipdotnetcheck.mst INSTANCE_NAME=”GP” MSINEWINSTANCE=1 /qb+

allows you to avoid older .Net components version install.  In the command line scripts, please change directories to your real paths

3. We assume that if you are reading these lines, you probably have tight budget and would like to resolve GP installation issues internally.  However, feel free to give us a call for short consultancy: 1-866-528-0577, help@albaspectrum.com

How to Recover, Repair, or Salvage the Text from a Corrupt Word 2007 DOCX Format Document

Word 2007 files are really zipped collections of mostly XML files.  XML is not tolerant of file corruption.  The text from a Word 2007 document is found in the document.xml file within the zipped collection. From the errors generated it appears that Word 2007 is using a corrupt tolerant unzipper, but a standard corrupt intolerant XML reading algorithm or module to even salvage text from this XML file within corrupt Word 2007 docx files.

However one can still try to recover the text and maybe even formatting in 6 different ways:

The following method may recover text and formatting.  If that fails, you will also be given the choice to try to just recover the text. Choose the “Open” choice on the file menu as usual to open the corrupt file, however instead of double clicking on the target, select the file with a single left click and then click on the tiny arrow on the right hand side of the “Open” button in the lower right hand corner of the Open dialogue window.  This now gives you several choices.  One of the choices is “Open and Repair”.  Choose this choice.  If Word fails to repair the document and recover text and formatting, it will offer a 2nd choice to salvage just the text as mentioned.  Take this 2nd choice if necessary.

Another recovery method within Word 2007 itself will just recover the text if successful.  Again use the Open dialogue window but choose the down arrow in the file type list box instead this time.  It is above the “Cancel” button and in Word 2007 probably reads: “All Word Documents (*.docx”.  Look for “Recover Text from Any File (*.*)”.  Make this choice and then select your file and hit the Open button per normal.

I have written a piece of freeware which can be downloaded from here http://www.s2services.com/hosted-freeware/dd2txt-1.0.zip.  It will recover just the text from docx files without formatting except paragraph indications.  It succeeds at recovering the text where Word 2007 fails because because it does not use a standard XML reading algorithm or formatting.

This next method will recover text and formatting if successful.  This strategy looks for backup, deleted and temporary versions of your file of your file.  There is at least one commercial program, “Recover My Files” from the Get data Company, and maybe others which can specifically do this.  An adress to it can be found on my page of links for recovering from file corruption: http://www.s2services.com/corrupt-file-commercialware.htm.

I’m making this a separate step but it is the same strategy as step 4 only it is done manually instead of with commercial program and is therefore more difficult.  It will recover formatting and text if successful.  Do this by following Microsoft’s detailed instruction here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/827099.

Maybe the easiest and most effective way to recover from Word file corruption is to use commercialware to work on the file you do have, but of course that cost money.  In the best cases this strategy recovers formatting and text.  At the wors it recover just text, perhaps in a similar way as the freeware from step 3. Most of the major players are listed in links on my page listed in step 4.  One warning with commercialware is try the demos first!  See if it will work before buying, which almost goes without saying. A 2nd warning is only about 2/3 of the commercial programs from companies listed on the page, have added the ability to recover the new docx format. So look carefully at the program descriptions of the Word recovery software to see if they have added Word 2007 docx format recovery capabilities.

Resolving Common Error Message in MS Access 2007, 2003, 2002 and 2000

A corrupted MS Access database always results in an error message or a warning message. In most cases, the error messages differ as per the program version. However, there are few error messages that remain same in all the Access versions. Error messages, of any kind primarily result in inaccessibility of data stored in Access database. In such situations, the most effective way to recover your data is by restoring it from an updated backup. However, if no backup is available or backup falls short of restoring the lost or inaccessible data, then you need to opt for advanced Access Repair applications.

Below is the error message that gets encountered for all Access versions (2007, 2003, 2002 and 2000) after database corruption:

“The database ‘*.mdb’ needs to be repaired or isn’t a database file.
You or another user may have unexpectedly quit Microsoft Office Access while a Microsoft Office Access database was open. Do you want Microsoft Office Access to attempt to repair the database?”

As the above error message states, the database is corrupted due to unexpected shutdown of Microsoft Office Access database. Furthermore, you will encounter the same error message each time you attempt to mount your database.

Resolution:

To resolve the above error in all Access versions, you need to use an inbuilt utility known as “Compact and Repair.” To use this utility in Microsoft Office 2007, you will need to follow these steps:

Click on Microsoft Office button. From the Office menu, click “Tools”, select “Database Utilities”, then “Compact and Repair Database.” MS Access will present the “Database to Compact From” dialog box. Navigate to the database you wish to Compact and Repair and then click on the Compact button. Provide a new name for the compacted database and then click on the Save button.

However, if the above utility is unable to repair the Access database, then you will need to use advanced access recovery applications to recover it.

These Access Repair tools incorporate advanced scanning algorithms to provide complete repair and restoration of all Access database components. Such recovery applications enable you to comprehensively recover and restore both (.accdb and .mdb) Access database files. With self-explanatory user interface and to-the-point documentation, these recovery tools serve as easy-to-understand applications.

Stellar Phoenix Access Recovery is the most powerful access repair tool. It recovers all database objects like queries, forms, reports, macros and modules. The Access Database Repair software is compatible with Microsoft Access 2007, 2003, XP (2002) and 2000. It is compatible with Windows Vista, XP, 2003, 2000 and NT.

Microsoft Office Proof 2007 ? – Quick Advice !

I have every confidence that a proofing tool that supports office 2007 can dramatically improve your proficiency with english from now on. These days, with pcs on everyone’s desks, we are constantly working with text to articulate our viewpoints and insights and to connect with others. If you want to improve the way you write, this brief article will end up motivating you to achieve your goals.

Click here for a proofing tool that supports office 2007!

Do you think it’s next to impossible to create english writing without constant mistakes, and with style? While it’s true that a computer can’t handle the idiomatic aspects of english as employed by native speakers, there have been some recent improvements that i want to share with you. The great news is that there is a sophisticated new utility that will act like an english teacher and check your english writing for any errors. The answer to many woes, this program can detect and correct any grammar or spelling problems in Emails as well as other important documents. Think of creating documents that are sophisticated, correct, and interesting – you’ll have professional help right there when you need it.

Can we trust these tools to solve all our writing problems? I’ll have to say probably not, but you’ll be amazed at what it can do. I found out that this utility allows you to instantly improve your writing via suggestions for better words and phrasing. As this technology was created to support any text-based application, it can easily run on any Windows based platform. And you can start using it right away – you don’t have to wait – this special tool is ready to be downloaded by anyone who struggles with writing.

Just for your general knowledge, a proofing tool that supports office 2007 is based on the latest Language science referred to as nlp (natural language processing). This technology enables us to trust in our english writing abilities, specifically with regard to clearly written documents. According to users and experts alike, conventional word processors are not adequate with respect to grammar check and text enrichment. Thank you for your time – i hope you will think this piece useful and of assistance to your search for the best ways to become a better writer. Why keep it to yourself? share this article with other struggling writers you know; I’m sure they will thank you the next time they pick up a pen.

Ms Office Proofing Tools 2007 ? – Critical Review !

Most of us are unfamiliar with what a proofing tool that supports office 2007 is or does and how one can be of great assistance to all of us who struggle to generate perfect english text. Creating sentences that express our ideas helps us to achieve many of our goals: our economic status, our place in society, etc. I’m going to share something with you that’s of great assistance to struggling native english speakers as well as learners of english as a second language.

Click here for a proofing tool that supports office 2007!

With the availability and accessibility of pcs, we are accustomed to utilizing the usual word processing applications for our daily writing assignments. As i was losing hope that i’d ever come across something to better my english language skills, there was something that gave me hope. Recent advancements have now made possible a highly specialized system which allows you to scan your english writing for any errors. You are given the ability to quickly and accurately fix any mistakes in order to produce a document you can be proud of – for instance. What a great help – visualize transforming your writing into something memorable and command respect – it’s the fast and easy way to excellent writing.

Have we found the answer to all of our nagging english language questions? Clearly, it requires a bit more than that, though this is extremely successful at improving language skills. Benefitting from this new technology, you’ll be able to get your point across more clearly, particularly if the english language is hard for you. Having personally investigated this technology, I think that it could be of great use to people born speaking english as well as those who come to the language later on. These days, with such an abundance of state-of-the-art technology, whatever goals we set for ourselves are possible.

Will it be possible that a proofing tool that supports office 2007 be able to better the way we write english and even our writing style? This appears to be the case. The written word is surely one of your most powerful communication tools, thus it’s important for it to be upheld at the highest possible level. I think (and it’s not just wishful thinking) that we’ll profit from many utilities like this soon (and the sooner the better!) – it’s amazing what technology can do. So i gather you will think this piece useful and of assistance to your search for the latest techniques to take your written communication skills to a new level. Here’s a last tip: before you deliver your upcoming written work, check it out first by taking advantage of this utility.

Proofing Tools For Microsoft Office 2007 – Check This Now !

Read the next few paragraphs and you will find out why a proofing tool for microsoft office 2007 is a solution everyone should definitely investigate. Putting our thoughts into the right words is the way we realize our hopes and plans – these can include family, money, respect, etc. I am confident that the latest news on the subject will achieve its purpose of fascinate you.

Click here for a proofing tool for microsoft office 2007!

Being responsible for articles or essays with improper grammar is problematic to say the least. Struggling writers everywhere can now take advantage of a lot of headway in the technical aspects of what we call text processing. Happily for us, a group of sw designers finally devised a utility which has the ability to rework all sorts of writing, imitating as close as possible the way we process language. Just picture a digital helper which calls your attention to any grammar or punctuation errors as you write. Think of writing english papers that are rich, professional, and impressive in no more than a few mouse clicks.

Everyone who is eager (or desperate?) to find the best way to upgrade their english should definitely add one of these brilliant tools to their inventory. Designed to make writing faster, easier, and better, you can be certain that this technology will assist you to make your text a real standout. Deciding that a personal examination was called for, i checked it out; It’s clear to me that it would be of great benefit to those raised in english-speaking homes in addition to learners of english as a second language. If you want my two cents, it makes whatever english project you’re struggling with not only effortless – but even pleasurable.

The moment you try out a proofing tool for microsoft office 2007 you’ll no doubt recognize the wonderful assistance that it provides. For many people, i am sure that this specialized software is another option if you’re considering engaging an expensive proofreading service. According to the creators of this solution, this utility has been tried by many thousands of users in countries near and far. I trust that you view this report as beneficial to your ongoing quest for help to discover ways to become a better writer. Give it a try – before you deliver your upcoming written work, see if it’s ready by using this solution.

What’s the Problem with the Microsoft Office 2007 SP1 78F Error?

Does anyone know what’s going on with the Office 07 SP1 update not installing? I keep getting error code 78F every time I attempt to install it. I’ve tried repeatedly since last week to get it to install and it fails every time. Is anyone else experiencing this problem? Any insight is appreciated.