Every successful brand/business has a value statement. This simple statement has become just as important as mission and vision statements, and for good reason. It is how a brand is set apart from all others—clearly defining its desirability. We can see this, for example, in the value statement for Whole Foods, which the company has Read More >
Past Executive Briefings
What it Means to be Fair – Five Important Steps
“What kind of manager do you want to be?” This is a question that’s becoming increasingly popular with hiring and HR managers during the interview process. The reason is simple: They want to get a feel for how in-touch the candidate is with the expectations of employees, and they’re looking for fit within their corporate Read More >
Trust: What it is, Why it Matters and How to Get & Keep it
Trust is something we all want. We desire to give it to those with whom we are in relationships while striving to earn it with the same. It’s expected in almost every aspect of daily life, from the person who takes care of our children to the person who handles our dry cleaning. It should Read More >
The Insidious Executive and 4 Steps for Dealing with Them
Sometime ago there was a Harvard Business Review article titled, “Coaching the Alpha Male,” that reviewed the challenges people face working with very talented and extremely assertive male executives. If, however, you think that “Alpha Males” are difficult to deal with, wait until you’ve been sucker-punched by the passive aggressive executive. At least with the Read More >
Facing Fear and 4 Steps to Getting Over It
The truth about fears is that it’s hard for people to admit to having them. This is especially true of the seemingly impenetrable and infallible people who become senior leaders and CEOs. So, we instead look for other reasons to explain our hesitations. “I’m passing up on this merger because the corporate cultures won’t merge Read More >
Confidence: What it is, how to get it, and how to keep it
What is your confidence level? In answering this question, what are the factors you would consider? How willing you are to put yourself out there? To go for what you want? To lead others? One of the couple of definitions belonging to confidence is “the state of feeling certain about the truth of something,” so Read More >
3 Important Considerations for Effective Conflict Management
Whenever two people with different ideas square off in a confrontation, good conflict managersadvocate for collaboration, where everyone feels their opinions are heard and valued. Rarely do we have that much time. Instead, when it comes to resolving conflict over high-priority issues on a tight schedule, many times a CEO will actually need to force a Read More >
The Four Keys to Transformational Leadership
You’ve been around long enough to have heard all the popular management terms come and go, but transformational leadership is one theory with staying power. It works because it requires the one person who is the face of the company to be completely transparent and authentic in his or her service to company values and Read More >
A Lesson in Delegation and Sharing Responsibilities
Regardless of your political orientation, there is this really interesting quote I like with which Newt Gingrich is credited as saying: “Lions cannot afford to hunt mice because they literally will starve to death, even if they catch them. Lions and all large carnivores have to hunt game large enough to justify the investment, so Read More >
Why You Must Learn to Say NO.
There was a great book written by William Ury and Roger Fisher titled “Getting to Yes: Negotiating an Agreement without Giving In.” It’s one of those books that tends to find its way into business school classrooms and even boardrooms around the world. While its first edition was written way back in 1981, it’s stood Read More >