In an informal (but remarkably conclusive) survey I conducted last year, I asked a group of senior leaders, mid-level managers, and executive coaches one simple question: What is the single biggest challenge you see for recently-promoted first-line managers and leaders? The answers were 100% the same – and 100% not what I expected. Without hesitation, every one of them said: …
The case for higher employee turnover (yes, really)
Employee turnover – the rate at which employees leave your organization, whether voluntarily or not – is often considered just a fact of life. Some people will leave. Some people will get fired or laid off. This is not new news; carry on. Occasionally, someone will make the effort to evaluate turnover relative to industry averages or some other measurement. …
Got strategy? (And why you need one)
When I talk about strategic planning with small business owners and sole proprietors – and even, frankly, with some medium-sized organizations’ leaders – I often see puzzled expressions on their faces. Isn’t “strategy” for big businesses, global corporations, large non-profits, the government, and the military? Well, yes. And it’s for you, too. Small business or non-profit, solopreneur, medium-sized business, and …
Stop doing that!
You don’t need to do all the things you’re doing. A recent Harvard Business Review article cites the results of a survey conducted with executives, asking them to estimate the cost to their organization, in dollars per day, of wasted time due to what they called “people issues.” The average dollar amounts ranged from a low of about $4,200 to a …
Why ask why?
There’s an old saying: when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Of course it’s obvious how ridiculous that is. Anyone knows there are also screws as well as nails – and that screws don’t respond well to hammers, but work quite nicely with screwdrivers. But as obvious as it is when we look at hammers, …
Three Strategic Threesomes: 3 you need, 3 you don’t, and 3 ways you struggle
I was talking with a friend and colleague – and sometimes client – this morning about strategy. He’s a Vistage chair here in San Diego. (If you don’t know what Vistage is, you can check it out at http://www.vistage.com.) We were talking about the difference between strategy and tactics, and why some people struggle with making day-to-day tactical decisions that align with …
Strategy. It’s sexier than you think.
Strategy. After asking around a bit, I’m pretty much convinced that most people don’t really know what it is. I’m also pretty sure that a lot of small business owners and independents secretly believe it’s not necessary. That it belongs in big corporate boardrooms and gets developed on expensive corporate retreats … and that it ultimately doesn’t amount to much but …
Staving off New Year’s planning overwhelm
Show me a small business owner, and I’ll show you someone who’s been making plans, setting goals, and dreaming dreams. That’s what happens during this transition from one year to the next. Excitement runs high. The struggles of the previous year are set aside. The new year lies ahead like a field of fresh snow, trackless and pristine. And then …
The right question … or the right answer?
No one wants to look dumb. Everyone wants to have an answer. Preferably, of course, the right answer – but at least an answer. I see it all the time. People rushing wildly towards an answer. There’s a classic story of how NASA developed an extremely expensive pen that would allow astronauts to write in the zero gravity of space. The …
Picking what’s important
How do you prioritize? As a leader, how do you choose where you spend your time – really? In talking with clients and with members of groups I attend and/or lead, I’ve noticed that what people say are their priorities … often bears little relationship to where they’re actually putting their attention and time. Your true priorities reveal themselves by …