In a recent blog, I wrote about the importance and buy-in value of involving subordinates in decisions that will directly or indirectly impact their work and/or personal lives. I reiterate the point here because subordinate buy-in is often the essential… Read More ›
Managing & Leading
EVALUATING YOUR DECISIONS
Readers of this blog know my passion for management that possesses a bias for action. The best managers, in my view, always eschew the habit of simply talking or complaining about things, for doing things that have the potential to… Read More ›
CREATING A HIGH PERFORMANCE ATMOSPHERE AT WORK
For those of you who believe that a climate of fear and intimidation is the way to get the best out of your subordinates, please do not read any further. You will only get angry with me. Years of personal… Read More ›
MAX DE PREE
I am often asked by my clients and workshop participants to recommend some books and articles for managers. I tell them that over the years, I have compiled a list of my favorites and that it is available via my… Read More ›
IS EVERYBODY HAPPY?
Every manager intellectually understands that accepting his or her authority over others, means that there is no way in the world that they will be able to exercise that authority and always keep everybody happy. But knowing that is not… Read More ›
A MANAGER’S MANY HATS
In a recent blog, I characterized a manager’s usual day as fragmented; a series of occurences, meetings, requests for attention, instructions from above, and ad hoc problems often with little in common to connect them. This lack of coherence or consistency in the… Read More ›
WHY FOLLOW THROUGH REALLY MATTERS
During my management career, I watched numerous ideas, initiatives, and grand visions birthed, launched with great enthusiasm, often gobble up precious resources, and then simply fade into oblivion. Similarly, I observed the proverbial shelf as it gradually filled up with… Read More ›
GETTING IT RIGHT
When someone is selected to be a manager, there is an implicit understanding between them and their superiors that one of their most important responsibilities is to “get things right” whatever those things happen to be in their particular line of work…. Read More ›
DOES IT MATTER?
When our children were younger, departure day for a family vacation was quite a test for me. Having had many preparatory conversations about the limits of our car’s trunk space and having reached what I thought was a consensus on… Read More ›
SPEAK WITH PRECISION, REPEAT WHAT’S IMPORTANT
Few human endeavors are as challenging as human communication. The process starts in our brain with our thoughts concerning what we wish to communicate. We then translate those thoughts into words we believe convey the exact meaning we intend. We… Read More ›