Five Strategy Pitfalls in Strategic Planning

Do you feel as if you are slogging along instead of buzzing? It is business as usual but things are just not clicking? Sales are okay but not great.  If this scenario resonates with you, then it is time to tap your strategic reserves. You need to drill deep, though, if you seek to isolate [...]

The Winning Traits of Female Entrepreneurs

The great divide among the sexes is one of the biggest enigmas in business. No, I am not referring to the disproportionately high number of males in the executive ranks. I am speaking of the higher number of successful female entrepreneurs versus male entrepreneurs. Successful companies have 7.1 percent female executives versus 3.1 percent at [...]

Developing Strategic HR Leaders

As human resource manager for a medium-sized manufacturer, Beth has increased motivation, engagement and productivity across the organization over the past six years. The leadership succession bench, empty when she arrived, is now quite full of leadership candidates who excelled in the leadership development programs she created. Despite her contributions to the company’s top and [...]

Be Known for Something, but Not for Being a Maverick

Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the danger of controversy. Speak your minds and fear less the label of ‘crackpot’ than the stigma of conformity. Thomas J. Watson Even in his death Steve Jobs, the uber nonconformist, is one of the most sought after people in the business world [...]

Gamification – Can it Motivate and Engage Your Employees?

The growing yet controversial trend of gamifying the workplace to immediately acknowledge and reward employee behavior is, quite frankly, disturbing. The idea is that the use of gaming strategies in employee engagement can influence behavior and motivation. Let’s say you have just won a new sales account. You have now racked up enough points to be [...]

A Road Map for Presidents and CEOs

The most important decision executives make is who they name as manager, at all levels in a company.  Randall J. Beck Gallup Organization  CFO asks his CEO, "What happens if we invest in developing our people and then they leave the company?" CEO answers, 'What happens if we don't, and they stay?"   Are you feeding [...]

Personality Testing: After the Hire

"My main job was developing talent. I was a gardener providing water and other nourishment to our top 750 people. Of course, I had to pull out some weeds, too." – Jack Welch "If you don’t invest the time to do it correctly today, you will spend more time and money in repairing mistakes tomorrow."  [...]

9 Steps for Family (and other) Business Succession

The Family Business Center at the University of New Hampshire has put together “Nine Helpful Steps Toward Succession in a Family Owned Business:” You will notice that all of the steps' major components are “human capital” issues. These steps are valid for family owned business but most are also valid for any closely held business. [...]

Personality Testing: Don’t Hire Without It

“Having the most talented people in each of our businesses is the most important thing. If we don’t, we lose.” –Jack Welch while CEO of GE "If you don’t invest the time to do it correctly today, you will spend more time and money in repairing mistakes tomorrow." – Don Paullin Would you describe your employees [...]

Personality Testing, the Swiss Army Knife of Talent Utilization

“Having the most talented people in each of our businesses is the most important thing. If we don’t, we lose.” ─ Jack Welch while CEO of GE "I am convinced that nothing we do is more important than hiring and developing people. At the end of the day you bet on people, not on strategies.” — [...]