Year: 2018

The Sharply-Focused Organization

Strategy formulation and planning are really two different things. And of course the value isn’t in spending three days setting strategy. The point isn’t walls

Strategy Isn't Tactics

Strategy isn’t about starting from today and going forward into the future. It’s about defining the future you want and working backwards from it to

What Nobody Tells You about Consistency and Efficiency

For all the benefits of six-sigma, lean, JIT, etc. (and there are significant benefits,) you must not let the focus on efficiency drive out innovation

Excellence at Work

Being excellent and efficient at getting things done is good. It’s what effective managers do. Being excellent at deciding which things to get done is

How to Address Resistance to Accountability (or to any change)

Last week I heard from a teacher in the Boston area in response to my piece about accountability. She said, “Wow! This is what I

Do You Have An Accountability Absence?

A significant challenge for management today is accountability. You must count on people doing what is expected of them, and doing it on time.

Why Effective Leaders Don't Have Cluttered Desks

I used to wonder why it was that when I visit well-respected leaders their desks are clear of clutter. In most cases, there are only

What No One Tells You About Learning

Learning drives competitive advantage. I If everyone in your company does pretty much the same work every day, you will standstill and lose your

The Executive's Quick Guide to Coaching Functional Managers

If you listen to the business press, you might come away thinking that developing people is all about culture. The message is something like: ‘leaders

Pay Attention to Your Pay Practice

Amazon made news last week by raising all employee pay to a minimum of $15. No doubt this was in part a political move to

Is Your Organization Aligned with Your Strategy?

Make sure your organization is aligned with your strategy. It’s not enough to communicate the strategy. Two examples: Example #1: I was called with an

The Art of Leadership

Last week I was in Chicago and visited the world’s largest and most respected maker of fine stringed instruments, William Harris Lee & Company. They

How to Align Priorities

As a leader, you need to make sure that priorities are aligned throughout your organization, and that people are working on those priorities. To accomplish

The Transition Every Executive Must Make

Last week I was in Rhode Island where Autumn is beginning to take hold. It got me thinking about transitions and especially the transition that

Do You Have Enough Discretionary Time?

C-level executives must have discretionary time to work on the tasks that are most important to the company. These include such tasks as strategy, organization

How Successful Executives Demonstrate a Strategic Perspective

An important challenge any successful executive needs to master is the transition from an operational project focus to a strategic focus. That’s not to say

Strategy and Growing Your Business

When I see a company year-after-year forecast sizable increases in revenues and profits and regularly miss the forecast I am reminded of Albert Einstein’s admonition

Are You Discovering Enough Strategic Insights?

Nearly every company has experienced a period of prolonged financial difficulty. Growth does not occur in a straight line, but rather in a series of

Learning to Think Strategically

Newly-promoted executives face a number of significant challenges as they adapt to an executive role. One of the most significant is the ability to think

Pay Attention to Key Management Processes

Innovation and continuous improvement keep operating processes efficient and effective, but too often management processes get neglected and they can cause significant problems during growth.

Special Report: Retain Your Key People

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that employees are voluntarily quitting their jobs at the highest rate since the internet boom in 2001, and most

When a Key Manager Isn't Cutting It

Having the right strategy and structure is good, but you need to make sure that you have the right key players in every important management

Fix Organization Structure Issues

Companies tend to organize by functions: Sales, materials, finance, manufacturing, product development, marketing, etc. But nearly all organizations produce value through a relatively small number

Stop Organization Silos

Organization silos occur when employees identify more with their group than with the company. When employees operate in silos they tend to keep information within

Executives: Don't Operate Beneath Your Level

Many executives have the opportunity to increase quality and productivity in their organizations, and at the same time reduce demands on their time, simply by

The Executive Growth Mindset

To get to the next level of performance and growth, you need to think differently about yourself, and especially your business. You cannot get to

Dramatically Improve Your Leadership Effectiveness — Part Two

I’ve been asked what key changes executives need to make in order to have a quantum leap in their effectiveness. What’s interesting about the question

Are Your People Becoming Obsolete?

One of the dangers to both employees and companies these days, particularly in small to medium-size companies, is that there tends to be insufficient emphasis

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Essential Steps for a High Return on People

Most organizations devote a lot more time and money on weak performers than they do on top performers. They think that by investing in the

Sharpen the Focus on Results

Here is one of the most common, yet astounding, things that I see in organizations: Direct reports often aren’t clear on what their jobs are.

What they may not be telling you

You need to make sure that the information you receive is not filtered. That can be more difficult than it seems. You have to make

Here's How to Set Priorities

You’re the leader. That means you choose the music that everyone dances to. You need to be out in front and leading, providing direction and

An Essential Leadership Skill: Following-Up

Executing a strategy, implementing a decision, changing a culture, achieving an operating plan…all require the leadership skill of following-up. It is an enormous mistake to

You Must Address Non-Performers

Make sure that non-performers or weak performers throughout your organization know where they stand. I read a Wall Street Journal article this weekend about the

Have More Time for Your Priorities

Here are three suggestions to significantly reduce demands on your time: Attract, develop, and retain really good people who report to you. This is very

Developing Young Management Talent

Build both accountability and managerial skills, especially in newly-promoted managers. Instead of asking a manager for detail on project progress, ask what he or she

How to be an inspiring communicator

A common challenge of leaders is to become a better, more inspiring and energizing communicator. To do that, it helps to change your perspective on