Thoughts on people, teams, organizations, communities, effectiveness and success
Excellence is in fashion. And excellence is what everyone wants to hire.
Consider two examples:
Sometimes the greatest risk you can take is to take no risk at all.
Or as James Dean phrased it, “Dream as if you’ll live forever. Live as if you’ll die today.”
Three events this week brought that thought squarely home.
With a nod to Kelly Clarkson, the first part of a fiscal year for many firms is “off-site” time. Leaders go with their teams to a place off-site with hopes that a change of scenery – and sometimes a round of golf or some collegial dinners – will change dynamics and improve performance.
It probably won’t.
But don’t blame the off-site for the lack of a durable performance bump.… Read the rest
John Baldoni recently blogged on the best way to handle your critics, using President Obama’s recent session with Republican Congress members as an example. Baldoni’s post at the Harvard Business Review – How to Face Your Critics – suggests the following steps:
Beyond facing your critics, a key foundational pillar for you to be a good manager and an even better leader is your ability to give and get great feedback.… Read the rest
Virtual teams continue to be popular but the reality is that not all virtual teams are created equal – nor are many even “teams.” The news from recent research is hardly comforting; “1 in 3 executives believe virtual teams are badly managed.”
The post below, first published as a white paper by Dr. M. J. “Jo” Whitehouse and me in late 2007 is based on our direct experience with several start-ups in the challenging biotech drug development world, provides a clear roadmap to the steps to take – as well as the steps to avoid – in using the potential and leverage of virtual teams effectively.… Read the rest
In the world of executive teams, punches can get pulled and frank words disappear as people become guarded and disinclined to rock boats. It’s the distillation of an environment – as the May 2007 Harvard Business Review notes – where the operating conclusion is “When in doubt, keep your mouth shut.”
In such settings, senior execs need trusted advisors like fish need water.… Read the rest