Thoughts on people, teams, organizations, communities, effectiveness and success
There are boats to rock, and boat rockers needed to rock them. Are you one of them?
Avoiding questioning existing conditions in a dynamic, changing world is a recipe for mediocrity if not disaster, but who has the moxy to ask the obvious?
Pay, fame or thanks, if any, varies, and while you’ll be respected by some, others will scorn you for disturbing their status quo.… Read the rest
There’s a problem or two with diversity and inclusion efforts.
It’s just not the one(s) you probably think.
Similar to the efforts to increase employee engagement – if you can just win the hearts and minds of employees they’ll be more productive, have less turnover, and engender greater customer satisfaction – inclusion and diversity efforts in some organizations struggle with the proper effective positioning (think marketing) and the changed culture required to be effective.
One of my college nicknames – a byproduct of a seemingly ceaseless quest for everyday relevance as a kid at the SAE fraternity house at Willamette University – was “Right On Smitty.”
While the nickname was usually meant with mixed affection, the striving to be relevant was a constant. I was keen that the things we did in the frat house made sense for us.… Read the rest
The art of the good, strong start is something that many of us should master, but few of us seldom do.
Why? Probably because it’s a little like that set of occasions (weddings, funerals, baptisms and bar/bas mitzvahs etc.) that happen enough to notice but seldom enough to avoid generating a best practice mindset.
Many schools – like my son’s grade school Marin Country Day School in Corte Madera – have the practice down to a fine art, in part because the start happens on a regular basis, they believe it’s important to do it right, and if you’re smart enough to do it well it can form a foundation for a host of activities and programs to follow.… Read the rest
The Twitter stream has carried a great dialogue regarding the merits of hiring “generalists” versus “specialists” the last few days.
As someone whose “Quick Start” work with start-ups has enabled companies to get fast, effective out of the gate performance, I have a point of view, and the experience of 25+ years in business, about when to hire – and when to avoid – either type.… Read the rest
Tomorrow is the annual celebration of the Martin Luther King’s birthday, and as I sit here with my 7 year-old son, I wonder what Dr. King would make of aspects of our world today some 40+ years after his death.
Some parts of the world would like strikingly familiar. As chronicled in a trip to south Texas this past year – The Pace of Change: Uvalde, Texas 1953 – some parts of the nation look socially as they must have not only 40 years ago, but 60 or 70 years ago.… Read the rest