Welcome to our blog which is dedicated to business leaders looking to get an edge, develop personally, and share. We are collecting hard-hitting lessons and tips that are useful to anyone with big ideas who wants to inspire others into action to drive big results.
The blog is an extension and ongoing dialogue beyond our book which will be released in January 2008. It is the only web resource offering direct advice and mentoring tips from people directly involved in leading major transformations including us as advisors and top executives from the Fortune 500 and global companies we work with.
The American Management Association recently published an article I wrote in ‘Executive Matters’ that highlights the challenges with traditional approaches to corporate change programs and three key tips for making sure that your corporate change efforts succeed. People have become highly skeptical and jaded about corporate change programs…and often for good reason. The article provides a great overview and specific tips for a better and more accelerated approach to change management.
One of the concepts from our book that has truly struck a chord with people is the concept of doing “More ON Less.” People seem worn out with the old and tired saying and approach of trying to do “more with less, ” which does little to drive great execution or to get the best from people in challenging times. On the other hand, doing More on Less drives focus, concentration of resources, and can generate breakthrough results.
Just recently I spoke at a LeaveSmarter conference and the sponsor posted a video cut of that presentation on YouTube. They selected the section about doing more on less so I thought I’d share it here on the blog. It is a great explanation of what we mean and the challenges that arise when you go with the common phrase and idea of doing more with less, versus doing More on Less. Read the rest of this entry »
Sometimes the greatest and most expansive innovations come through projects with the greatest constraints. For some, there is a belief that brainstorming on breakthrough innovations must be done without boundaries. However, these exercises often result in unconstrained outputs that are scattered, unfocused, and impractical.
In contrast, putting significant constraints on an outcome forces more structured thinking and often a need for breakthrough ideas to achieve the results despite the constraints. This month Raj Setty shares in his ChangeThis manifesto a form called “mini sagas” as a way to force yourself to think more clearly. He challenges us to write a full story in exactly 50 words. It’s tough and it takes a creative mind to tell a full story that in that few words and in an exact number of words. Mainly these are fun examples of creative writing, but there is a very practical application to setting growth strategies and running effective strategic brainstorming work. Read the rest of this entry »
In most of my experiences with our ACT process, we’ve been working to accelerate strategic change at corporations. We’ve also worked with our process with public educational institutions, which has always been enjoyable because the end “product” of developing future leaders is so rewarding. One area I haven’t spent a lot of time thinking about is how our process could be applied to social change or to quite literally, change the world.
Two things happened this week that are opening my eyes to the opportunity for our process to help change the world. One was an article about the breakdown between policy changes and real-world impact within our government and the other was a real surprise and practical interpretation of our work from a pet rescue non-profit founder who is looking to change the world. Read the rest of this entry »
This eBook is a great, and free, way to sample what we have to say if you haven’t read the book yet, and a fantastic way to share our message with others who would benefit from it. Anybody who is challenged with implementing a strategy or major initiative, looking to accelerate their results, and fully engage their organization would benefit from the ideas and tips. If the concepts make sense to you, please help us spread the word by forwarding or sharing the link to the eBook.
Michael Fitzgerald who writes for BNET, The New York Times and Fast Company and many other top publications calls the essay a “fun and mind-turning essay” that provides “an excellent synopsis of the book ‘Big Ideas to Big Results.’” Hope you enjoy and find value in this latest piece.
Frequently in working with large company executives looking to move into a new business sector and entrepreneurs looking for funding, I’m asked what should be in the business plan or strategy. A second question not always asked, but necessary to answer, is what makes for a successful business plan or strategy. One great resource is to look at Sequoia Capital’s tips for success and business plan outline. They certainly have some great proof points, having invested in the founders of Google, Apple, Oracle and Pay-Pal. Sequoia published two great lists that are fantastic resources to leverage and apply the best of what they’ve learned by launching these types of growth companies. Read the rest of this entry »
Very often you’ll see companies slip into a mode where they start growing by the averages, benchmarking expense ratios, setting “competitive” pricing, and “market-level” salaries. It’s not necessarily bad to play by the averages unless it leads to being an average company. Great companies are built and run by great people. How can you get there?
The Container Store is a story in corporate success. They have been consistently growing at double digit rates and have been listed as one Forbes’ Top 100 companies to work for, eight years in a row. In the tough business of retailing, especially with bigger rivals such as Target, Sears, and Walmart, The Container Store is setting it’s own standards for innovative products and great customer service.
One of the most innovative ideas at The Container Store is their formula for talent management. Read the rest of this entry »
Listen to Michael Kanazawa’s interview on the Cranky Middle Manager Show
In this interview, Wayne Turmel and I talk about how to implement the best ideas in our book to the tough jobs middle managers face. We discussed how to tell people that their project isn’t a top priority, how to work through competing priorities when some of those are being presented by sales people as critical, and how to build organizational power by leveraging “The Power Curve” as you ascend the corporate ladder.
Listen as Mike talks with Lisa Haneberg author of the Management Craft blog during one of her fireside chat sessions.
Lisa has a very unique perspective in the interview in that she focused on the challenges of middle managers and she has been a manager herself facing many of the challenges we talk about in the book. It was a fun and lively conversation and one of my favorite interviews to date. Hope you’ll enjoy it and find good value in it as well. This is a second post, but people had asked to have the MP3 file available here. My Podcast Alley feed! {pca-b720560dbb15c2bd3b4fc510cc1d2c27}
In this podcast, we discuss how corporate change programs can feel like “sugar highs” to people where the energy spikes up for a short moment and then the program is quickly abandoned and is replaced or overshadowed by the next wave of change programs. In this mode, some leaders start to believe the old saying that, “people hate change.” We talk about how that actually isn’t true. The truth is that people don’t hate change, they hate corporate change programs. Our challenge as leaders is to break that cycle and approach strategic transformation and change in a way that engages people, creates ownership and produces breakthrough results. It can be done.
Email This Posting to A Friend
