In case you missed our article on the importance of written charters for special action teams in CoBiz Magazine this summer, we are sharing a slightly edited excerpt, along with a link to our written charter template, in this week’s blog post. Whether to attack a problem, exploit an opportunity, or achieve a philanthropic goal, setting up … Read more
Some CEO’s and boards have close, trusting partnerships that serve them and their firms extremely well. They are, in my experience, the minority. Most CEO’s I have met see the board as a group they need to “manage,” a dinner and meeting they need to prepare for, taking preciously valuable time away from running … Read more
One of the great scourges of our age is “short-termism.” A staggering 78 percent of CFOs and CEOs admit to sacrificing long-term value to achieve smoother earnings. Many decry this “suicide by quarter” mentality, but few CEO’s will be able to withstand the pressure to make the quarterly numbers unless he or she has … Read more
“Why can’t we just all get along?” -Oft quoted lament As Boomers stay in the workplace longer, the Gen Xers move up to management positions, and the Millennials progress into the world of work, it can seem there are insurmountable generational conflicts. But the truth is that different generations in the workplace can develop rich, … Read more
Watching the great performances at the 2014 F.I.F.A. World Cup in Brazil, we noticed many parallels between football (soccer) and great leadership. Competing at the World Cup and employing great leadership both take: Patience. The game is long and can sometimes appear uneventful to the untrained eye, but then there are spurts of breakaway brilliance and … Read more
The sports world is abuzz with excitement. We may have our first Triple Crown winner since 1978, when Affirmed captured what has been called “the most elusive championship” in all of sports. California Chrome is poised to accomplish this incredible feat on June 7 if he can win at Belmont Park. This unlikely horse, bred … Read more
Guest Blog by Charles H. Green Leadership’s not what it used to be. There used to be leaders, and followers. Leaders were the few, the chosen. They were charismatic, insightful, inspiring. They seemed to be born (and then maybe tuned up), rather than made. High performers were the audience for leadership development programs, which … Read more
Some leaders make a case for diversity; others call for “cultural fit,” implying to some that organizations should hire those who are the “same” as those already in the organization. Are these views compatible? Our good friend and leadership colleague, Bob Whipple (a.k.a. The Trust Ambassador), wrote an excellent blog, Challenge “Samers,” from which we … Read more
“We have a wrong-headed notion of what constitutes a leader, driven by an obsession with leaders at the top.” Bill George, Harvard professor, former CEO, Medtronic We have a crisis in leadership today with seemingly continuous scandals rocking business, government, religious organizations, non-profits, sports, and more. The latest results from the much respected Edelman Trust Barometer … Read more
Source: iStock “The work is through the people.” Ron Heifetz, Harvard professor and leadership author Most people hate the endless stream of useless meetings that keep them from doing the “real work.” But, as Harvard’s Ron Heifetz points out, the real work is done through people. Meetings can be a powerful tool for accomplishing results if they … Read more
“Come to the edge,” he said. ? “We are afraid,” they said. ? “Come to the edge,” he said. ? They came to the edge, ? He pushed them and they flew. ? ? Guilliame Apollinaire, French poet How much should a leader push colleagues when they are afraid? Apollinaire’s lines above signal that a … Read more
Are you working more but enjoying it less? Stressed out? Overloaded? Does it feel like things are slipping out of control? These conditions are becoming “the new normal” for leaders today; they also indicate that your organization is out of alignment: People are working at cross-purposes Turf wars break out between departments Everyone is criticizing … Read more
Hats off to slugger Miguel Cabrera for winning the Triple Crown batting title in baseball this week. Cabrera, who plays for the Detroit Tigers, led the American League division of Major League Baseball for the year with the highest batting … Read more
Startups are thrilling. It’s hard to beat the excitement of launching an innovative new venture. The excitement is palpable, and it leads to a kind of euphoria in the venture’s culture. But too often that initial euphoria descends into culture deflation, like the air leaking out of a tire. First it slows you down. Eventually … Read more
Hats off to the Olympic champions. Competitors like Usain Bolt, Gabby Douglas, and Michael Phelps inspire us. They reawaken our dreams. We admire their talent, dedication, and sheer grit. We revel with them in their gold. But let’s look deeper to the faces behind the gold—all the people who made it possible for these champions … Read more
On May 18th Facebook’s IPO lumbered to close at $38 and change, barely above the opening price but valuing the firm at over $100 billion. Quite an accomplishment for a company started in a college dorm in 2004 as “thefacebook” and one “not originally created to be a company,” according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg. We … Read more
The quest for the Triple Crown is on. Big time. I’ll Have Another is in the hunt for the Triple Crown of thoroughbred horseracing, the most elusive championship in all of sports. It’s been 34 years since Affirmed won the Triple Crown. Since 1875, only eleven horses have earned that honor, racing within a short … Read more
