Speaking of Leadership^® Blog

Reading Time: 3 minutes One of the most important jobs of a leader—and difficult, I might add—is to gauge the need for organizational change, relate it to the business environment, and then convince the troops that organizational change is not only necessary but desirable. Let me explain. When the external environment is in sync

Reading Time: 2 minutes Generally, leaders are value-based individuals whereas managers are more rules based. However, as a response to the Enron and WorldCom fiascos, the US Congress and other regulatory bodies are tightening the rules regarding corporate governance. Because ethical values are missing, corporate ethics have been newly defined by rigorous rules, ones

Reading Time: 2 minutes As corporate leaders, we evaluate our employees and expect them to do the job up to our standards. Sometimes our standards are out of sync with their ability or training. After all, these individuals have not traveled in the same shoes as we have and may not have the skills

Reading Time: 2 minutes How often have we seen the accountants pushed aside, the decision-makers not respecting their input on the company’s plans. “Oh, what do you know about the business” is typically the unspoken attitude. However, in these economic times, accounting and finance play an even larger role in the company’s plans. Let’s

Reading Time: 2 minutes I found myself weeping the other day as I read the letter from my sixth-grade son’s school telling us of the elaborate preparations they have taken to be ready for tomorrow. They will have an all-school meeting and the school psychologist will be available for the kids and their parents.

Reading Time: 2 minutes Every organization’s leaders are asked to speak publicly at various venues. Whether it is a team meeting inside the company, back at your school reunion, to investor conferences, or even at public shareholder meetings, every executive is asked to stand on his or her feet and address an audience. It

Reading Time: 2 minutes Most of us know there are various stages of a team’s evolution. We see it in professional sports all the time. That’s why there are spring training and exhibition games. Not only are the teams learning or relearning the skills of the game, but they are working on team integration.

Reading Time: 2 minutes Although employees don’t necessarily have absolute control over the picking, we need to be cognizant as to what type of organization will provide the best vehicles for our growth—and I don’t mean just professional or economic growth, but rather personal growth. One of the standard employment models is to hook

Reading Time: 2 minutes Just a couple of weeks ago, Bertelsmann AG announced that its Chairman and CEO, Dr. Thomas Middelhoff, would leave the company. The press release was silent as to what led up to this departure, but it’s not hard to imagine why this departure occurred. In this day and age, when

Reading Time: 2 minutes As professionals, we all have experienced circumstances in our professional careers when we knew, deep down, we had to move on. Whether it slowly came upon us or we woke up in the middle of the night, sat straight up, and made the critical decision, we knew it was time