“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.” —Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, “The Little Prince”[1] “It sure would help if we knew where we were going!” the chief marketing officer said to me. I […]
I’ve worked for and with PE firms, and I’ve coached CEOs and other executives in firms owned by PE. I highly respect some of those firms and disdain others. It’s about how they go about their business. (Most of my comments apply to any tightly controlled ownership group, e.g., family businesses.) The line isn’t bright, […]
A line I’ve heard many times in my career as an executive and executive coach is, “I can’t afford to fire/lose him/her.” Most often, the story is one of a single point of failure. The person they’d like to part ways with (or make a significant behavior change in) has one or more of the […]
CEOs should think strategically, make tough decisions, communicate effectively, build strong teams, and produce positive financial results. The list of “being and doing” is much longer, of course, but suffice to say that it’s a big job! Rarely discussed is the role of CEO as facilitator. There are different types of leaders in the CEO […]
One of the most prevalent traits that I have observed in successful leaders is their ability to communicate. Specifically, their ability to tell stories and to simplify complex messages. It’s a skill work developing! Metaphors, analogies, and proverbs are useful communication tools as they are often a good short-cut to understanding. I’ve used many of […]
Many years ago, I went to dinner in New York City with five colleagues. We found a small Italian restaurant on a quiet street. After we sat down, they poured us water but offered no menus. A few minutes later, the owner came out and said, “What would you like for dinner?” (He served mostly […]
What do Tesla, Peloton, WeWork and Uber have in common? At least four things: high customer demand, significant revenue, billions in market cap (OK, Tesla is a trillion …), and tremendous cumulative losses as I write this. I hope all above-mentioned companies turn the corner and generate lots of profit in the long run because […]
Man, what a year … again! If you’re a leader, you’ve probably had a challenging, fascinating, maddening, out-of-the-box, over-the-top year — probably two in a row. Pandemic or not, December is the right time to block out a day and look back to learn and forward to jump-start 2022. You can certainly do this alone, […]
Will interest rates keep rising? Will my supply chain ever get fixed!? Should I require vaccinations for my workers? Are customers’ behavioral changes permanent? Should I require my team to return to the office? I need employees; where will they come from? How will upcoming government action (or inaction) affect my business? Will my business […]
A recent LinkedIn post from The World Economic Forum extols the cities where the “best” work-life balance exists (Helsinki, Oslo and Zurich). I love the topic but detest the phrase “work-life balance.” Isn’t work a subset of life? I discuss the topic of happiness with every executive I coach. Sometimes they bring it up, and […]