Speaking of Leadership^® Blog

Reading Time: < 1 minute GM CEO Mary Barra caught the attention of the business world this past week when she announced that the company would cut 14,000 jobs, idle seven plants and eviscerate its sedan line in favor of SUV and cross-overs.  Ms. Barra has made several big bets here; not only in terms

Reading Time: 2 minutes This week, Thanksgiving Week in the USA, take some time to be thankful ….and hopefully acquire the habit of doing so every day going forward.  To assist you in your reflections, here are a dozen of my favorite quotations:    “My wish for you     Is that you continue    

Reading Time: < 1 minute Most executives can’t escape the need to write a memo from time to time, but most don’t enjoy it and one reason may be they’ve never been taught how to write a good one. Marketing blogger Seth Godin in a one-page blog posting, “Get Your Memo Read”, offers five quick tips to make

Reading Time: < 1 minute When it comes to strategy, we usually think first of our marketing and sales strategies (whether intentionally created or not).  But in this economy,  you need to focus as much on your talent and human capital strategies as those designed to drive revenue.  If you haven’t reevaluated yours recently (or taken

Reading Time: < 1 minute Searching for Recession:  ITR Economics is well known for their use of leading indicators.  They’ve even devised a new one and it is that is truly remarkable!  One of ITR ’s young economists wondered if the frequency of the word “recession” as a search term on Google might have any predictive power. 

Reading Time: < 1 minute A recent excellent HBR article that suggests  “business does not need the humanities, but humans do. “ This short HBR blog posting makes the case that we are creating a culture where “big data begets small minds “ and we run the risk of favoring the “unprepared overachiever.” The writer makes a compelling

Reading Time: < 1 minute If you needed evidence that the economy is at full employment, check this out.  For over a generation,  the fast food industry has been the gateway to first time employment for many teenagers.   McDonald’s is currently running commercials proudly reminding us:  “McDonald’s:  America’s first best job”  hoping to lure Millennials

Reading Time: < 1 minute Blogger Seth Godin offers a simple but powerful insight about behavior that,  if you’re aware of it, could put you on the road to breaking those vicious cycles that hold you back at best, or push you back,  at worst.  Take 30 seconds for some insights on “Triggers and Cycles.”   Just imagine, you

Reading Time: < 1 minute Your business card will not be carved on your tombstone.  We used to have careers; now it often feels that our careers have us. Take 4 minutes and 58 seconds for a TED Video by New York Times Columnist and PBS News Hour regular David Brooks as he explores the question of whether you should

Reading Time: < 1 minute You are no doubt aware of the disruption caused by recent startups like Uber and Zipcar which provide rides and autos on demand, eliminating the need to own a car.  In an interconnected economy, this trend should not be ignored by anyone.   Futurist and Speaker David Houle in a recent