"Who Needs a Boss" read the title to the story. The article went on to extol the virtues of team management. "The team", as it has been called, has been dubbed the competitive weapon of the 1990's. While teamwork is essential to the accomplishment of most objectives, the success of any team is dependent on the quality of its leadership. Even the...
College football bowl games and professional football playoff games will provide a backdrop for holiday entertainment during the coming week. At one time or another, most all of us, will find ourselves captivated by the spirit of a determined underdog's bid for victory. Determination is a quality that we all admire. It at once captivates the...
Alliteration, metaphor, hyperbole, and personification. Are these just poetic terms and figures of speech that we left behind in our English classes years ago or are they the keys to improving our business performance in the years ahead. Alliteration is the tool of the advertising department. "Rough and ready, tasty and tantalizing." Alliteration...
Athletes who want to end their careers in the Hall of Fame need to have it. Parents and teachers strive to provide it so that children will have an environment conducive to their growth and development. It is "consistency". Managers need consistency to be successful. Employees need a consistent environment to be productive. There are a number of...
Success is most frequently seen as a misleading snapshot, not the culmination of a long journey. The interview in the winner's locker room focuses on the game winning home run, not the 200,000 practice swings that made it possible. Significant accomplishments result not so much from genius, but rather from diligent effort applied over time. The...
If your team made it to the Final Four this weekend, you might say "We had a good season". If your team didn't even qualify for the NCAA tournament, you might be heard to say "They had a bad year". In every group, from your school's alumni to your employees, there is a "we/they line". The "we/they line" is a barometer of how things are going in...
The world is full of inequities. In one important area however, we all start out even. Time, if used wisely, can be the great equalizer. Everyone gets the same twenty-four hours each day. Over the long run, it's how we utilize our time that determines our fate. Regardless of where they began the race, those that utilize their time wisely are...
With all the attention given to the subject of "corporate culture" in recent years, it is important for managers to understand the concept. It is equally important for managers to understand the factors that influence the development of a "corporate culture". The culture of a society at large consists of the acceptable ways of human interaction...
The salesman needed to inform his boss about the problems with the new products. The boss intended on listening attentively even though he was pretty sure he knew what the salesman had to say. After a few minutes the boss's mind drifted onto another problem as the salesman continued to talk. As the boss shuffled papers on his desk, the salesman...
There are a few things in this world that once you learn, you never forget. Fortunately for aspiring managers, one of those things is learning how to ride a bicycle. Making the connection between riding a bike and managing might at first seem like quite a stretch, but stop and think for a minute about the person that first taught you how to ride...