Matrix Organization: At Best, a One-Off

Whenever volatility occurs in the market, companies start thinking about how to reorganize themselves so that they can cope with those changes effectively. But since they’re trapped by traditional thinking, they tend to recycle old models rather than to create new ones. One such model is matrix; and like so many that have gone before…

Details

Developing Gen Y Leaders

What leadership competencies do newly minted Millenial employees need to develop, from the get go? And what strengths do they, as a cohort, bring to the workplace? We hear so much “gen Y bashing” these days. We hear the stereotypes: unfocused, texting obsessed, ADHD prone, the world owes me recognition and, BTW, I’m pretty well…

Details

Entrepreneurs, turn on your leadership signal

The 2008 economic crisis was terrifying times, to say the least. Millions of jobs were lost and many people faced difficulty trying to obtain a new line of work. As a result, many struck out on their own, not by first choice, but really out of necessity. I applaud those individuals who took that route.…

Details

Control the Controllable

Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it – Charles R. Swindoll A story is told of two men who lived in a small village who got into a terrible dispute that they could not resolve. So they went to the town sage. The first man went to the…

Details

Grow Your Own Talent Pool

So let’s say there is a skills gap in your company. If budgets allow, your first inclination might be to hire someone from outside the company to close that gap. After all, there are some people who know how to look great on “paper”, and a stunning resume can make any company leader salivate over…

Details

Roadmap for Designing High-Performing Organizations

Companies are frequently facing the need to restructure their organizations.  Changes in leadership, a shift in strategy, or changing factors within an organization often create the need for reorganizing. Organization design is one of the most powerful tools available to senior managers for shaping the direction of their organizations. “Organization design” is often used incorrectly…

Details

Why Newly Appointed Leaders Fail and How to Avoid It

Whether a company promotes a successful candidate from within – appointing someone to a new or lateral role – or selects a candidate from outside the organization, the company has confidence that a new leader’s skills and experience can meet the challenges of the job.  However, consider this startling statistic regarding new leaders: estimates of…

Details

Let’s Tackle the Skills Gap at 3 Levels

We are hearing so often these days that there are tons of well-paying jobs for which companies simply can’t find qualified people. Of course, skilling up alone won’t solve the unemployment and underemployment problems we face. But we do need to skill up as an adult population. I think we all have a part to…

Details

Are You Building a Leadership Culture?

A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better.  – Jim Rohn Last week, for the seventh year, the Hay Group released their findings that identify which organizations have the best leadership practices and what we…

Details

Four Styles Of Communication

In the book Straight Talk: Turning Communication Upside Down for Strategic Results, Eric Douglas describes four different communication styles: the director, expresser, thinker and harmonizer. Each different style is based on a unique set of assumptions. Here’s a quick snapshot:

Keep (Career) Development on the Table

In the hurly burly of meeting deadlines, doing more with less, and achieving performance goals, it is easy to forget to keep up the dialogue with each of your staff about: How they are doing vis-à-vis their performance How they are doing vis-à-vis their well-being Their continuing development and growth

Details