Managing is basically a process of getting results through people. This process includes a combination of defining responsibilities, organizing, establishing goals, and generally making sure that people know what they’re supposed to do, have the means to do it, and are “motivated” to get it done.
Is a good manager necessarily a good leader? Can you poorly execute the fundamentals of good management and still be an effective leader? These are good questions and they are frequently asked. The concepts of management and leadership are commonly confused. All too often people try to lead by managing or to manage by merely leading. Management...
In the simplest of navigation systems, the pilot picks a point on the horizon and heads for it. The pilot communicates the destination, "that point on the horizon", to the crew and they set about doing their jobs. Putting all the formalities of business planning aside, navigating a business is not all that much different than picking "that point...
"If you really want the job, get it and then worry about figuring out how you're going to do it. If you really want it, you'll find a way to get the job done. You're as good as the next man." I doubt that he ever spoke those exact words, but that's the way he thought, so over the years I've put his voice to the words. And with those words and his...
"Every action has an equal but opposite reaction". Sir Isaac Newton's third law of motion is as relevant to organizational change as it is to physics. Organizational change does not take place without considerable managerial effort. Effort requires that a force be exerted, and force in human affairs, just as in physics, creates counter force. The...
Although business hadn't been bad, it hadn't been great either. It was time people stopped taking advantage of all the excuses that were available and started to put some numbers on the board. The President's memo to the sales department encouraged them to be more aggressive in seeking out business. The memo stated that the company wasn't...
What happens around your house when company is coming? Have you ever noticed what happens around your office when visitors are coming? After you make the announcement that visitors will be coming to your office, you don't have to tell your employees to look sharp, clean their desks, or police their work areas. It just happens. Why? Because all of...
What's the home field advantage all about? Confidence. Confidence improves performance. What do you think it would be like to go to the office and find 80,000 people ready to boo you to oblivion? Probably not all that much different than waiting for your boss to second guess your every move. The Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League...
Mirror, mirror on the wall. Who's the fairest of them all? Surprise, surprise, in the executive washroom the magic mirror often yields a crystal clear image of management. Is that the right answer? Maybe yes and maybe no. If that magic mirror was a one way mirror, the image that's seen from the other side might well be different from the...
At the conclusion of a famous battle, a military commander once said of his troops, "Uncommon valor was a common virtue amongst these men." Listening to the complaints of many of todays' employees, it might be said that common courtesy is an uncommon virtue amongst todays' bosses. When talking to outsiders, employees use a wide variety of...