Finding ways to get things done more simply is an elusive target for most of us. Forbes magazine recently carried an article in which Ron Ahskenas, a managing partner at Robert H. Schaffer & Associates, a Stamford, Ct. management consulting firm, talked about three key ways to get more done…
The NY Times runs a weekly column entitled the Corner Office, that discusses leadership lessons from CEO’s across a broad spectrum of companies. These interviews usually recall important tenets of successful leadership and serve as a valuable reminder about important lessons and how they should be applied.
This week, Adam Bryant interviewed Susan Lyne, CEO of Gilt Groupe. Lyne reports that she has learned the importance of being committed to “stepping back to think about the big picture,” a major challenge for most business leaders. A great way to do that is to grab a blank sheet of paper to begin.
I also like her suggestion about “office hours”, an idea she picked up from a colleague who was a former college professor. (more…)
The North Bay Business Journal, a publication of the New York Times, is a weekly business newspaper which covers the North Bay area of San Francisco – from the Golden Gate bridge north, including the Wine Country of Sonoma and Napa counties.
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Article published -October 5, 2009
Sure it’s normal, but what’s normal about his economy?
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I … I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”
– Robert Frost
Several years ago when my father was in his final days, his bonhomie in full bloom, I sat in the room while the doctors administered a few basic tests to assess his cognition.
“What country do you live in,” they asked and Dad answered correctly.
“What city do you live in,” they asked. Dad answered “Grand Rapids,” correct again.
“What state do you live in,” they continued. Dad, ever alert, laughed and responded … “Discombobulation.”
I think my father would agree that the “state of discombobulation” is still a pretty good word choice today. So, maybe it’s also a good time for some fresh thinking … to shake things up, tip them upside down, to innovate … in other words, take a few calculated risks to see if we can generate some new ideas.
I read recently about Kevin Kelly, a high school football coach in Arkansas, who has developed a few football rules that most of us would find ludicrous, to wit:
1. His team hasn’t punted since 2007, when it did so as a sportsmanlike gesture in a very one-sided game.
2. They don’t kick field goals. (more…)
During the last several meetings of the CEO Round Table, we’ve invested a lot of time with leading experts to discuss “Talent Management” issues. Experienced CEO’s understand that building a high performance company centers around the recruiting, retention and performance of talented executives. In building our knowledge and insights into these critical challenges, we’ve improved our recruiting skills, launched goal and performance management initiatives among member companies and learned about the strengths and weaknesses of compensation as a high performance driver.
In my experience, few CEO’s devote the necessary time to Talent Management. (more…)
Chief Executive magazine recently summarized some reasons why Chief Executives make mistakes. Some of these are well-known to most of us ... predetermining the outcome before a thorough deliberation, praying for synergies when they don't exist, failing to take account of the changing landscape.You need to solicit honest input, submerge…
Dan Ariely, author of Predictably Irrational, is an insightful guy who recently performed some studies regarding cheating. (You'll need to scroll down to the 3rd article.) What he found suggests that some predisposition toward cheating may come from events that occur just prior the incident. He discusses, for example, one…
Patrick Lencioni has got it right in his guest column in Business Week recently: There's no substitute for taking an active interest in the lives of your employees. The MBWO - "managment by walking around" theory has always been popular in these pages as a simple, no-cost tool to stay…
I mentioned here before about the regular Sunday NY Times feature called the Corner Office, which summarizes conversations with various CEO’s about leadership, lessons learned, interviewing techniques, etc.
Here are 4 key lessons.
Sunday’s column interviewed Lawrence Kellner, CEO of Continental Airlines, who reaffirmed several points emphasized on this blog.
First, it IS critical that you have the right people on the bus and in the right seats. Leaders are dependent upon many others to fulfill their responsibilities, so if you haven’t focused on strengthening your leadership team to the maximum extent possible, you’re simply extending your INability to get things done.
Kellner also emphasizes how critical it is to provide regular, unbiased feedback to your people all along the way. (more…)
Dennis Zeleny, an established HR professional and frequent contributor to Forbes magazine, contributes another POV in a growing list of articles about How to Lead in Tough Times. I think his key points are right on, and represent a compelling summary of key elements of leadership for all times:Communicate regularly…