Convention says that to transform the business culture, start with a spate of town hall meetings, dinners with staff, elaborate family outings, and a blitz of internal PR. Designate culture champions to launch a campaign in every location. Make everyone feel great about the company. Play to win, not lose, and profits will soar!

There is a more realistic view. Culture is a by-product of concrete leadership decisions and actions that translate purpose and direction into tangible performance. Business leaders who achieve dynamic growth never underestimate the power of culture on the business, or the ability of culture to derail the company’s ambitious plans. These leaders know that culture is greatly influenced by their own actions, words, strategies and programs. Continue reading…

Are you suffering from the outsider complex, a chronic complaint of HR and other staff functions, such as IT, Finance or Marketing? Perhaps you are technically proficient, but relegated to a second-tier status in your business. You aim to be a business partner, but operate on the fringes of the business, marching in lock-step with those in power. So, what’s the magical ingredient that makes someone a trusted insider? And what can you do to transform your role?

Insiders think and work differently from the rest of the organization. Insiders initiate, and insiders follow-through without being ordered. Insiders extend their role beyond widely accepted boundaries. Insiders ask themselves some very basic questions: what can I do, or what can my function do, to make a significant impact on business performance? Continue reading…

Yesterday I formally announced the results of our survey on leadership and careers in a business world that is radically changing. A wake-up call for executives, these findings show that only those companies focusing on great performance and the best use of talent will thrive in the current environment.

Virtually every leader can take more aggressive steps to grow their companies, innovate, and engage their staffs. Leaders need to be more than inspiring – encouraging business and functional reinvention, purposeful collaboration, and new ways to engage with their customers.

More than 320 leaders and managers across industries evaluated the extent to which members of their company’s leadership team are successfully taking specific actions, such as launching bold new strategies for growth or considering the unintended consequences of their actions. Respondents also rated the extent to which they found specific situations motivating, and the extent to which they agreed with statements about their personal career growth, marketability, and the future of their company or industry.

Continue reading…

Political pundits have focused much attention lately on the divergent opinions of the Obama Afghanistan policy-setting team. In analyzing the Administration’s performance, commentators have raised many questions. Is there a coherent Afghanistan strategy? Is the team on the same page? Does Obama want different points of view? Can the U.S. secure the support of our NATO allies, the Karzai government, Afghani tribal heads, et al?  Will other team members be fired?

For business leaders, this debate highlights a management challenge. While there are factual differences between this foreign policy situation and those that corporate executives confront, the fundamental question remains the same: how to harness divergent points of view to create a coherent, executable strategy. To paraphrase Hillary Clinton’s 2000 Senate campaign, the neighborhood is new, not the issues. 

History, both world and economic, can teach us about how to, and not to, use differing points of view to hone an implementable action plan for a team.  Continue reading…

CNN host Jack Cafferty asked his audience, “Do you feel as patriotic as you used to.” The reactions reflect the frustrations of a nation that loves America and demands effective leadership. In a crisis environment, the rough edges of our system gnaw at the public’s sensibilities. At the heart of this unrest is a simple fact: we want strong leaders; instead, we have politicians.

Responses to Cafferty’s question are telling, among them: “We love the country but are frustrated by Washington’s politicians. The place is a basket case and I’m furious.” “I feel America is bankrupt, absent in ethics and care for its citizens’ well-being.” “I feel we are totally bankrupt of effective leadership at the levels of our government where it is most needed.”  Continue reading…

Robert W. Selander, CEO of MasterCard will retire from his job on July 1. By all accounts, MasterCard has done very well under Mr. Selander’s tutelage. He transformed and grew the company. In 2006, MasterCard sold for $39 in its initial public offering. It closed at $218 on June 25.

Don’t let the veneer distract you from the substance, Selander tells New York Times reporter Adam Bryant in an interview published on June 25. “It is too easy to let the person with great presentation or language skills buffalo you into thinking that they are better or more knowledgeable than someone else who might not necessarily have that particular set of skills.”

This CEO looks for leadership and results in any senior hire. He probes for presence, which he defines as “knowing what to communicate, and how.” ”I think you can be a good communicator and you still may not have presence,” Selander says.

See full article for insights, advice, and interview questions.

Visionary leaders recognize the importance of investing for the future. They balance short-term results with actions that ensure future success. These leaders realize that a myopic focus on the immediate future will only lead so far. A longer time horizon is needed to achieve more than just immediate gains. 

Thomas Jefferson (Louisiana Purchase), Walter Wriston (Citibank’s Consumer Bank strategy), Vince Lombardi (player development), Maggie Thatcher (privatization of British Petroleum) – to name just four leaders from different eras – all initiated major investments for the future. Imagine the world if these individuals and others like them had chosen to pursue more short-term oriented paths. Continue reading…

If you question whether government spending can promote jobs, this article posted on the Rasmussen site today is worth reading. Author Howard Rich cites the results of a study conducted by three Harvard professors - substantiating that government spending reduces corporate employment activities.  

Any policy, decision or business strategy is only as good as its underlying assumptions. Facts are important. I find in my research that business growth starts with a leader who seeks the unvarnished truth. With this in mind, a result of Mr. Rich’s quest for the truth is worth considering.  The title is:  Politicians Cause Downsizing in Private Sector. Continue reading…

Is Steve Jobs’ sales pitch for the iPad over the top? I’m beginning to think not. In Jobs’ own words, it “is so much more intimate than a laptop, and…so much more capable than a smartphone… It’s phenomenal to hold the Internet in your hands.”

Analysts say that the iPad is creating a more integrated, immersive media experience, supported by social networking tools and location-based technologies. Robert Iger, CEO of Disney, predicted that the iPad will be a game-changer, Continue reading…