Posts Tagged With ‘ leading ’

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" Accountability and Development vs. Direction and Followers n I made a differentiation that permeated much of my work life. n n Managers manage in steady state circumstances. They are responsible for getting the work done and for ensuring their people have the knowledge and skills to get the work done. n Leaders lead in abnormal circumstances (emergencies, war, change). They are responsible for direction (Go this way!) and ensuring that people want to... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" ‘u201cBe Patient?u201d n The first time I met Will, I remember thinking, u201cNow here is a guy who looks like a CEO.u201d Will was straight from Central Casting. He was a little older than I was at the time, late forties maybe. He was taller than me, maybe six-one and trim and wore an expensive medium gray small herringbone suit, tailored so you noticed that he worked out. Willu2019s hair was black with just the right amount of silver at the temples.... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" u201cMurder at the End of the Worldu201d n We are watching this TV program. Donu2019t panic. No spoiler alerts because we arenu2019t that far into it yet. Itu2019s a murder mystery and a near timeline science fiction show. It was produced by FX but we are streaming it on Hulu so we have no commercials and we could binge the entire series at once, but we canu2019t watch that much TV at one time. Think back five or ten years and contemplate what has changed... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" I bought this book a year ago, scanned it, and put it aside. I was too wrapped up in finishingu00a0 and self-publishing my own book and my u201ctoo cool for the peopleu201d cynicism kicked in every time, I picked it up. n I am not really the target market for this book. Iu2019m 76 and comfortably retired, not really in the becoming unbelievably successful game. And yet . . . n . . . I got a great deal out of it. I especially liked and am revisiting the... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" u201cYou think weird!u201d n Fred, my client, was being complimentary. He was explaining why he liked having me around. u201cNo really, I mean it. You see third and fourth level consequences that I would never think about. You understand multiple connections and five ways to solve a problem, when Iu2019m lucky to see one. You think weird,, and I like that.u201d n At that moment we were in the middle of integrating an acquisition, and people from both... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" A Tale of Two Towns n To the hawk the two lands were not far. A few hours of hard flight perhaps, but with many updrafts for circling and trees on even the tallest ridges if the winds were not right and a rest was required, it could be pleasant. It was a flight the hawk took often, more in the summer than in the winter. There was good hunting for the hawk in the mountains. Even in winter, the rabbits and voles did not expect him. n For people in the two... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" The times they are a-changinu2019 n My father and mother were born in 1904 and 1908 respectively. In 1988 I interviewed them with a cassette recorder and I just found the tape. I had to scramble to find an old Walkman to listen to it. It was strange to hear their voices as they passed more than twenty years ago, but their answer to one question still amazes me. n u201cYou folks have seen so much technological change in your lifetime, what change had the... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" This way, follow me n Those who know my writing know that I frequently boil down leadership to actions in an abnormal environment like war, or emergencies or change. In such an environment a leader has two accountabilities, provide direction and attract followers. I use this conceptual reduction to differentiate leaders from managers, whom I say are accountable for getting the work done in a steady-state environmentu00a0 and developing their people to... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" Seventy percent of mergersu00a0fail* to create value that is greater than the sum of the parts. n So how do you know if your merger is failing while there is still time to do something about it? n Watch for these signs: n The Goat Rodeo: A lack of executive alignment n n Instead of n n Months after the close the executive team is still arguing about whether the merger or acquisition is a good idea. n n People keep saying, u201cTell me again, what was... Continue Reading

<div class="et_pb_text_inner" data-et-multi-view="{"schema":{"content":{"desktop":" Leaders require followers n u201cIf you think youu2019re a leader look over your shoulder. If there is no one there, you might just be delusional.u201d n u201cI get what youu2019re saying, but. . .u201d n I was delivering leadership development; it wasnu2019t really training per se. Oh we did apply some new knowledge and practice some skills, but the real purpose was to communicate to au00a0 group of middle managers that their corporation was undergoing... Continue Reading