Blog
I look forward to share some items from my dusted-off, mental shelf. Perhaps some of the presented views, recaps, and observations may find value in your dialogue - whether where you work or where you roam. I also use the social media site Digg to comment and post stories in and around business and talent management. Look for my most recent Digg stories on each page of this website. | |
Browsing Archive: March, 2009
On March 15th I read an article in Boston's Sunday Globe Ideas section on how goals have a dangerous side. The article called Why Setting Goals Can Backfire jumped-started my thoughts on goals. The past two weeks I have spent time thinking and scribbling notes all over this article. I thought I'd share some. [ the .pdf file is here] In both my personal life and professional life, setting goals seemed a piece of time-honored advice for success. Goals allow me to align my effort to a larger ... Continue reading ...
In organization change I always avoid the term buy in . You may hear
the term in some variation of the following: now we need to get
[insert stakeholder here] to buy in.
I have never been
comfortable asking anyone to 'buy in' to a strategic plan, a new
product launch, or an organization change. 'Buy in' sounds too much
like slippery salesman's jargon. I don't need the person to 'buy in'
and then feel they were sold something bogus. I don't need surprises
and a revised sell job.
Don't ask people...
Continue reading ...
Does your organization communicate or inform. Does your leader invite conversation at the table, does your leader offer an environment of dialogue? If the answer is no, how does that affect organization motivation throughout all levels?Information is a one-way presentation, communication is a two-way dialogue or feedback loop. Should organizations open themselves up to dialogue? I can’t imagine why they would not. With 65% of projects dead on arrival and 70 - 80% of all projects failin... Continue reading ...
When an organization's words do not match action, who is to blame?How many companies have you seen or worked with that have literature, speeches, employee handbooks, or marketing that just does not match the actions or culture inside the organization? Ever been around a company with printed materials that talk of putting people first, but do not provide flexible schedules or project opportunity for staff development? Ever been around a company committed to diversity as long as no one offers... Continue reading ...
The valuation of a company usually involves 4 areas:
- physical capital,
- financial capital,
- intellectual capital, and
- human capital
Valuation is a combination of science, art, and straight voodoo (Enron anyone???). Voodoo aside, when I recast these valuations from a new angle, I see each relies, in their entirety, on people:
- physical capital - people are trained to use, maximize, and maintain machines
- financial capital - people manage, buy, sell, and negotiate
- intellectual capital - people research ...
Continue reading ...
Does your company have a hiring philosophy to find people who fit into the company culture? Do you interview people to fit into the culture of your division? Do you interview people to fit into the culture of your team? Why do we look for people who will fit in when what your business needs are people who stand out. What good is it to hire for culture fit when we work and live in a dynamic world where change is constant? You may not want change in your personal life, but you better be bui... Continue reading ...
Statues are built for leaders, or leaders are built for statues, one way or the other statues are built for pioneers, those who sought a new way; who risked conformity for their vision of what could be ; who sacrifice an easy path to retirement for an audacious goal. The statues you see in your town square, are well-placed: usually set apart with a quick recap of their accomplishments. These bronze versions of Power Point slides are usually far too brief to do justice to the struggle they f... Continue reading ...
Managers manage. Leaders lead. Are these roles so different? A manager is charged to manage their resources against a budget. Does this allow a manager to maximizing their talent, to cultivate creativity in their team, or to take risks? The manager needs to deliver to their budget and align their resources to successfully enable their team’s role to perform against the plan.Leaders shape a vision. Leaders look beyond the horizon for opportunity and threats, they calculate risk, and co... Continue reading ...
I focus a lot of root-cause analysis on how a leader affects their organization. Though it may seem people are responsible for their own motivation, this assumption is far too variable to count on for results. People, rightly so, have their own view, their own filter, their own experience, and their own goals. These rarely align to an organization or a team. So, what’s a leader to do? The leader as the figure-head is responsible for the organization’s health. This is a lot of respon... Continue reading ...
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