Gary Ridge, CEO of the highly successful company, WD-40 (the lubrication folks) believes that everyone in his firm should get an ‘A’ in goal achievement. Their performance management process reflects this emphasis…
DetailsTime changes everything except something within us which is always surprised by change – Thomas Hardy In a recent USA Today feature (http://usat.ly/ROMSvv) leaders from various walks of life shared their insights as to what they believe world will look like in 30 years. It was a fascinating read. Here are a few highlights. Bill…
DetailsSummer is almost here which means if you’re a member of a professional association there is a good chance you will have an opportunity to attend your annual convention or conference in the near future. Even companies who cancelled their annual meetings last year due to the poor economy are back on track this year…
DetailsPeople in the business community love their clichés. “There’s no ‘I’ in team,” “work smarter, not harder,” and my personal favorite, “think outside the box”. Ugh. When it comes to describing a workplace culture, clichés are abundant here as well. With our open-door policies and expectations of giving 150% (how is this even possible?). These general statements…
DetailsYou can start right where you stand and apply the habit of going the extra mile by rendering more service and better service that you are now being paid for. – Napoleon Hill In his book, Waking the American Dream, Don McCullough relates a story about Winston Churchill during World War II. England decided to…
DetailsThe root of the English word leadership is leith. It means to go forth, to cross the threshold, or, simply, to die. Not the most appealing of adverts to attract leaders but one that maybe should be incorporated into any serious discussion on what it takes to lead in the new world of work. I’m…
DetailsCompanies 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…
DetailsI have been touting the 4-Drive Model of Employee Motivation since I first read the 2008 Harvard Business Review article “Employee Motivation: A Powerful New Model” by Nohria, , Groysberg, and Lee. You could say I’ve been a very BIG advocate for this model! It is a powerful theory on human motivation in general, and…
Details“Rest and motion, unrelieved and unchecked, are equally destructive.” – Benjamin Cardozo A story is told of a man who challenged another to an all day wood chopping contest. The challenger worked very hard, stopping only for a brief lunch break. The other man had a leisurely lunch and took several breaks during the day.…
DetailsI am sure Leaders Beacon will be afloat with memorials to the Great Stephen Covey. For those who are unaware, Mr. Covey author of “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”, has died in a cycling accident outside of Provo, Utah. I was introduced to Stephen Covey in my leadership class at Arizona State University. I…
DetailsHalloween is a big deal in our house. My youngest daughter’s birthday is October 29, which is always extended for several days. In fact, the celebration – honestly – doesn’t end until the last doorbell has been rung on October 31! She lives for Halloween and starts planning her costume months ahead.
At the core of The Leadership Circle (360 degree assessment) model are the Reactive tendencies and Creative competencies. If you look at the circle itself, you will see Reactive structure of mind represented by the lower half of the circle and Creative structure by the upper half. When leaders operate from the Reactive mind-set they…
DetailsIt is mid afternoon. You are sitting at your desk trying to pull together this important proposal for your boss. It is due the day after tomorrow. As you wrestle with how to incorporate a complex spreadsheet from the finance department, you wonder when your quality analyst will bring in those last two key pieces…
DetailsRobert Rosen, CEO of the management consulting firm Healthy Companies International, reported in the July/2010 issue of Leadership Excellence magazine on conclusions gleaned from interviews of top executives in forty countries over the past 20 years. He and his team was looking for the attributes of the best leaders. They singled out five key characteristics:…
DetailsDid you know that membership in a professional association is a huge opportunity to expand your connections and grow your resources? With more than 5,000 professional associations nationwide (many with local chapters in your city), there is really no excuse for not joining an association that represents the voice of your profession.
