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 [...]
In past columns I have asked, “Who does the best thinking in your organization?” The purpose of these questions is to focus on two different and yet important types of thinking: Creative thinking that generates new ideas that can be exploited for the growth and prosperity of the business, and analytic or critical thinking to [...]
The ceo of a large construction company once told me that business is easy to understand: There are only three parts; Get work (sales), Do work (production), and keeping score (do you make money?). I have shared that concept with numerous clients over the years, and while it is easy to grasp, the balance between [...]
"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." [...]
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. [...]
“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 [...]
As a consultant specializing in helping businesses align great people with strategic initiatives, it always intrigues me when smart business leaders ignore or disdain the use of personality assessments as part of their overall talent management strategies. Usually it is because of ignorance as to the value of such tools. When I run across research [...]
“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.” — [...]
The New Year always gives us a sense of renewal and focus. It provides us with a time, albeit frenzied, to reflect on what happened last year and what we can do to improve upon our performance, our systems, and our “working on our businesses” as opposed to “working in them.” Many times, when we [...]
Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning. -Bill Gates It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change. -Charles Darwin It is not uncommon for companies to overlook their most valuable assets. Recently I discussed how employees can prove to be [...]