Leadership author and speaker
Leadership author and speaker
One of the questions I get most often is, “How do you read all your email?” With multiple email accounts, many stakeholders and customers, and working in a global enterprise I get dozens of emails daily. Despite the fact that I believe email is dead–Professional Social Networks are the future–we all do a lot of business […]
Innovation in any large organization requires courage–courage from senior leaders right down to the front line worker. If done with courage and clear vision, then leaders can develop a true culture of innovation–a “startup mentality”–even in the public sector. Is it really possible to have a “startup” in a huge global enterprise? The answer is […]
Last week, I brought you Part I of a discussion of courage from my book, The 5 Be’s for Starting Out. This week I conclude with some stories about courage. __ Can you learn to be courageous? More to the point, can you learn to control fear? Yes, you can. Learning to be courageous has a […]
Successful leaders are curious about their business and the people who work for/with them. This sort of curiosity is an imperative for a leader because he/she has to both accomplish the task at hand and the “care/feeding” of the team. To put it more succinctly, the leader needs to know what’s going on. There’s a […]
No! Do or do not. There is no try. -Yoda I had to decide and there really weren’t any good choices. Balancing security with the “need for speed” completing construction in preparation for the invasion of Iraq. The security officer at our air base in the Kuwaiti desert would not budge on his requirements, and […]
“Shared Purpose” is shorthand for getting people connected to the mission of an organization. The most effective leaders are able to build a collective sense of shared purpose and connect each individual to the mission of the larger team. In fact, the teams who think and work together with a sense of shared purpose are […]
Onboarding new employees is critical to the success of any organization. Without a deliberate and thoughtful onboarding process, new employees are set adrift in an organizational culture without any guide–and some will lose their way. Done correctly, a good onboarding process will imbue the new recruit with company values and energize them to find where […]
Successful leaders are curious about their business and the people who work for/with them. This sort of curiosity is an imperative for a leader because he/she has to both accomplish the task at hand and the “care/feeding” of the team. To put it more succinctly, the leader needs to know what’s going on. There’s a […]
Twenty-first-century business requires agility–from teams, from institutions, and from leaders–and that agility comes from synchronized leadership. Despite the radical change in the environment, many institutions still cling to Twentieth-century management models. Those Industrial Age management models are ill-suited to guide leaders in the Information Age. Perhaps the “king” of management models from the last century […]
5. The first report is usually wrong. Be patient and ask questions. In my military career I’ve had the unique opportunity to watch news bring made, both in Washington and in the field, then watch it being reported on TV. I’ve also meet many reporters, and in my experience they’re trying their best to tell […]
Leaders are also readers, and when I travel I use the time to catch up on my reading and writing. Ignatius Press recently sent me The Lost Mandate of Heaven by Geoffery D. T. Shaw to review, and it was time well spent! Shaw tells the story of the rise and betrayal of President Ngo […]
In Part I, I put forth the idea that “freedom” is not simply doing whatever we want, but doing what’s good and in a way that builds ourselves and others up. To illustrate, we will look at traffic controls which are tools such as traffic signals, signage, speed limits, and pavement markings. Traffic controls restrict […]
“Don’t sweat the small stuff.” That’s what leaders hear constantly as we’re challenged to keep a strategic focus. It’s generally good advice, particularly for senior or executive leaders, but the maxim to keep your eyes on the horizon is not carte blanche to ignore relevant details. The real trick is to figure out which details […]
“There is a great cost when you neglect the human connection point in business.” – Susan Steinbrecher, CEO, Steinbrecher And Associates, Inc. I’m a firm believer in the human element in business and in life. After all, the reason we build things, make products, and provide services is for other people. Without “heart”, then we don’t […]
One of the hardest things any leader has to do is balance the needs of the boss while not wearing out the team. When trying to diffuse a situation where my organization was being asked to do something impossible, I often used the line, “You can have it ‘fast’, ‘good’, or ‘cheap’… pick two.” Phrasing […]
Successful leaders are curious about their business and the people who work for/with them. This sort of curiosity is an imperative for a leader because he/she has to both accomplish the task at hand and the “care/feeding” of the team. To put it more succinctly, the leader needs to know what’s going on. There’s a […]
