Honeywell unexpectedly lost the leader of a $12 billion business unit last year…and announced his replacement in 1.5 hours. Do you have a succession-ready culture where the next-in-line is “job ready?”  During one leader’s annual performance review, the CEO asked what her career aspirations were. The CEO was surprised that she was content at…

  Every day, for 18 years straight, 8-10,000 Americans will turn 65.  There are two implications: Companies are losing institutional knowledge; Retirees, with better health increasing their longevity, are seeking encore careers. These could be new endeavors, changing the world for future generations, reinventing self, combining personal meaning with social impact, and continuing income. These…

One of the largest challenges of managing a team is understanding that each employee has different strengths, different aspirations, different motivators, etc.…as a manager, you must understand that you: Vary productivity and pace Can kill a self starter with micro-management, yet need to hand-hold others Need to let an employee go who does not fit…

  Once a company identifies its vision and mission, it can then start building towards a future-state culture. The key impact area for this is at the supervisor level, which is ironically where the least amount of training and preparation occurs. Here it is a balance between management and leadership. Management is focused and result-oriented…delegating,…

  A healthcare CEO once told me that most corporate behavior is irrational. While this caught me off-guard at first, I then realized I was in agreement. A paycheck, regardless of the amount, represents our job that emotionally provides us purpose, stability, and shared mission. Human behavior is influenced by incentives, social norms, framing references,…

  American Management Association reports that only 28% of senior-level business professionals are confident their companies have "sufficient leadership depth and no significant gaps in management.” Employee turnover is increasing as the economy improves, and this impacts company productivity, customer service, etc. In May of 2013, 2.2 million Americans voluntarily quit their jobs…meaning that the…

  "I will ignore all ideas for new works on engines of war, the invention of which has reached its limits and for whose improvements I see no further hope." –Roman Sextus Julius Frontinus, A.D. 80 What more could there be to learn, then? Wrong attitude.  We must be proactive in continuous improvement, while learning from (not blaming)…

  With 80% of the global population located in emerging markets (China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia, Egypt, Malaysia, Thailand, Columbia, Venezuela), many companies are looking for leaders to execute their business strategies there. However, “developed country” mindset does not apply to emerging markets. Due to this, leadership talent in developed countries is not potable…

  It appears to me that rationalizing behavior in sports is on the rise. In sports, college football players’ acknowledgement of improper money payments rarely makes the news. A player’s admission of taking steroids for performance is becoming common. Academics workarounds to enable playing sports is not surprising. Why is it that: If the rules…

  In late 18th Century America, 19/20 workers were required to feed the country. Two hundred years later, it was 1/20  (Source:  Milton Friedman). Corporations, and their employees, must operate with velocity, as there will always be changing dynamics at work. This requires transforming skills in order to stay relevant. There is a fine line…