Balancing the macro and the micro is an everyday challenge for leaders. It's certainly your job to keep your eye on the big picture. What's going on in your markets? How are your competitors addressing customer needs? And closer to home, how does your balance sheet look? At the same time, you need to make […]
All Posts, Decision Making, Expert Interview, Leadership, Strategy, Team Management
The Second City in Chicago is one of the world's most famous improvisation troupes, and some of the United States' greatest comedians started their careers working with this organization. When improv is done right – when the ensemble is working in harmony and confident about where they're going – hilarious and brilliant skits evolve out […]
Motivation is the art of finding out what "makes people tick," and applying that to get the best from them. As such, it’s something that we all need to understand. There are many great models that help us do this. One of the fathers of motivation, Frederick Herzberg, said that the way to motivate people […]
Have you ever been assigned to a team whose members barely know one another? Everyone’s looking askance, careful not to make too much eye contact. Minds flash from “Who’s going to make my life miserable?” to “Where’s a friendly face that I’ll come to rely on, and maybe even like?” If you were the manager […]
Business jargon is made up of words and phrases which - out of context - don’t make a lot of sense. Anyone who has worked in a big company will know what I’m talking about! Honestly, I’ve heard it all. I’ve had to “think outside the box,” indulge in “blue-sky” and “helicopter” thinking, and “pick low-hanging fruit” […]
I met Bill McDermott on a fine autumn day in London. He had a packed schedule for his one day in town, and I got the first slot: 7:45am at the Four Seasons hotel in the Canary Wharf business district. It felt a little bit like a Hollywood publicity drive, when actors are parked in […]
According to the World Health Organization, in 2010 there were an estimated 524 million people aged 65 and older. This number is expected to triple by 2050. A reflection of this trend can be seen in recent developments at the centenarians team's Anniversaries office. In the U.K., the Queen traditionally sends a telegram to citizens […]
Do you remember when you first started using Facebook and Twitter? Most likely, you used social media to stay in touch with your family and friends. But did you ever imagine that businesses would soon be using it to communicate directly with their customers? Technology is changing so fast, it can be hard to keep […]
My first introduction to Positive Organizational Scholarship came back in 2008, when I did an expert interview with Kim Cameron. He was excited about this new academic discipline, and talked about introducing its principles – including compassion, forgiveness and gratitude – to the workplace. So, it was really interesting for me to speak with Gretchen M. Spreitzer, […]
Some years ago, I worked for a multinational that struggled to move fast. While our competitors responded quickly to changing markets and embraced new technologies, our leaders hesitated, unsure of what their next move should be. By the time they settled on their response, the company had lost a lot of ground. But we were […]
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