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A Blueprint for Entering CEOs
CEO transitions into organizations are not easy. How long CEOs last and the frequency with which their own, and their Board’s, expectations are met have been studied in academia and well reported in the media. The results are stunning. Two out of five incoming CEOs fail to meet their objectives in the first 18 months. Even … Continue reading A Blueprint for Entering CEOs
What to do when the hiring manager says: “Name your terms!”
“What will it take to hire you?” These words may be music to your ears, but how you respond makes a big difference. Take your time, collect your thoughts, and follow these seven tips to make the most of the opportunity: Decide you want the job. Make sure you like what the organization does and that … Continue reading What to do when the hiring manager says: “Name your terms!”
How to frame and drive sales in a services business.
Leaders of services businesses are often so busy either delivering their services or hustling to land their next client that they never get around to building a systematic way to deliver more value to current clients. The best service business leaders create an unfair advantage by assigning engagement leaders to deliver on target, on time, … Continue reading How to frame and drive sales in a services business.
Better Risk Data: Regulatory Mandate and Strategic Opportunity
Background It is well known that firms with inadequate systems for managing risk are liable to suffer serious breakdowns that interrupt operations and cost the companies dearly in terms of fines, remediation efforts, and damage to their reputations. But firms’ risk management systems are only as good as the data fed into them. What of … Continue reading Better Risk Data: Regulatory Mandate and Strategic Opportunity
How rational actors can reach agreement.
Thesis: In the face of the same data, two rational people will make the same decision. Implication: When two people disagree on something it is likely that there is something one knows that the other does not. Strategy: When two people disagree, each should strive to reveal what is relevant that s/he knows and that … Continue reading How rational actors can reach agreement.
Market Lead Position Description
An organization counts on a Market Leader to: Build and work with a top team to develop, maintain, and drive to achieve an annual plan for a well-defined portfolio of current and targeted customers. Connect with established and emerging customers to develop a point of view as to where the market is and where it should go and then proactively and systematically … Continue reading Market Lead Position Description
How to Run a Great Annual Leadership Team Offsite Meeting.
Most leaders find it difficult to adequately prepare— assuming they even know how — to facilitate a high-powered, executive offsite. The truth is that it is nearly impossible for a leader to facilitate and participate in, let alone also lead, their own offsite. A better strategy is to hire experts who use proven approaches, tools, … Continue reading How to Run a Great Annual Leadership Team Offsite Meeting.
What to think about when deciding to Bid/No-Bid the deal of a lifetime.
TO: Board of Directors FROM: CEO SUBJECT: Input on an opportunity to bid for a strategic project I just got off the phone with the President of the top player in our target vertical market west of the Mississippi: Opportunity: They are going to let an RFP in two weeks to six or fewer strategy consulting … Continue reading What to think about when deciding to Bid/No-Bid the deal of a lifetime.
How to Drive Elite C-Suite Performance
In a traditional performance evaluation, someone is assigned to compile and review with each executive a summary of her/his strengths, contributions, growth, and opportunities for improvement. The traditional process has many weaknesses which are summarized in this article recently published by Flevy.com, such as: Compiling a quality performance assessment is difficult; consequently it often gets … Continue reading How to Drive Elite C-Suite Performance
How top MBA students should choose between Operations vs Finance.
Business school students have to decide their course of study from day-1 … and the choice makes all the difference. The first decision almost always comes down to operations vs finance: The allure of finance is working with money to buy and sell companies. Success is when a small stake in a large transaction generates a … Continue reading How top MBA students should choose between Operations vs Finance.
How to head off unwanted voluntary attrition and what to do when it happens.
When an employee departs voluntarily it is almost always unanticipated and unwanted. Too often, though, leaders rationalize that employees who leave voluntarily were marginal and will not be missed. To keep the best on board, and to head off after-the-fact rationalizations, ask managers now to identify employees they would least like to lose. Go on to … Continue reading How to head off unwanted voluntary attrition and what to do when it happens.
What to do when an employee no longer cuts it.
Before terminating an employee for poor performance, first double and triple check that the real problem is not that expectations are undeveloped, unclear, or not understood and aligned with abilities and interest. Resist the temptation to reassign the person to another part of the organization in order to not have to deal with the matter. … Continue reading What to do when an employee no longer cuts it.