Your job as a leader isn’t always to “lead”. Most of the time, because you aren’t there to bark orders or stand over everyone’s shoulder, it is simply to create an environment, an ecosystem, that allows your team, your army, to do the best possible work they can. It is to create a culture that makes them want to be a part of something greater than the sum of their job description. That makes them proud to be, even.
Great view on leading and managing - you're job is to create a culture of change, not demand change.
In business, the five-tool employee is one who:
Five-tool employees are rare and worth retaining. They'll have many chances to succeed, because they naturally create value for their companies and opportunities for themselves
- Gets things done with results to show for their effort - no excuses for failure
- Accomplishes things that are remarkable - above and beyond what's expected
- Exercises sound decision-making skills, acting quickly and decisively
- Communicates well and can convince others to act
- Deals well with ambiguity, makes order where others see confusion
Excellent view on employees
While the cloud pundits are busy fighting over whether we should have an outsourcing component to be part of the definition of cloud computing or not, 8KMiles had quietly tapped into Cloud Computing to build a platform offering outsourcing as a service. Unlike the big outsourcing giants in India, this company with offices in both US and India, is targeting SMB sector and helping them take advantage of the economics of cloud computing and real world IT outsourcing. This is an interesting twist to the outsourcing industry.
Good for companies like 8KMiles....they see a need and are trying to fill it rather than debate what 'cloud computing' is or is not.
The book “Virtual Teams: Reaching Across Space, Time and Organizations With Technology” by Jessica Lipnack and Jeffrey Stamps, and their related website, hits the point that many leaders miss. “Success is 90% the people and 10% technology.” Knowing how to use the tools is a basic element of the virtual game. All your leadership efforts must be exaggerated. You have to try twice as hard.
Yes! Technology is irrelevant unless the people are willing to adopt it, use it and own it. The best technology in the world does ZERO for you if the right people aren't in place.
We tell folks, learn it, get your hands dirty -- you know, a little sweat equity," says Steven Roberts, the president of The Roberts Companies. "For that college student, for that future entrepreneur ... we're saying understand what your passion is, and understand what your product is, too.
Great story of success. From nothing to $1Billion empire. Passion and hard work will get you down the road to success.
Five Strategies that Don't Work:
1. Fire the Troublemaker - If you select one person to fire because they are the "ringleader" or the most obvious choice, it may create some improvement, but it probably won't fix the dysfunction in the team. It's fine to fire problem employees, but don't count on it to magically restore a team to health. Besides, a new troublemaker usually arises.
2. Clear the Air - When we all sit in a circle and share our feelings to "clear the air" we'll feel better for a while, but the relief is usually temporary.
3. Ignore It - A popular strategy. But are you ignoring unwanted turnover, losses in productivity, and employee disengagement?
4. The Doughnut Solution- Having Doughnuts (or Bagels) weekly in the break room won't help your team get along better. Nice try, but no.
5. Blame the CEO - "Until my boss changes, we can't change." This is a cop out and we know it. We are each responsible for our own behavior.
The best solution of course is to identify the real causes of dysfunction and target the behaviors causing the problems. More on that another time.
Have you been part of a dysfunctional team turnaround? If so, what do you feel worked or did not work?
Excellent...amazing how many times you see people trying these strategies rather than addressing the real issues.
Here are a few challenges that every organization should be planning for right now. If you aren't you will be.
1. Integration
2. Governance
3. Culture
4. Human Resources
5. Measurement & ROI
Great description of the challenges facing organizations.
What would-be managers really need, Stewart argues, is not more MBA-speak or guru mumbo jumbo but a thorough, disinterested study of business and management practices and culture. And they need to absorb the lesson that managerial success isn't about superhuman talent; it's about collective effort. In other words, it's based on mutual trust among individuals in an organization.
Rovi's new brand sure says a lot while saying absolutely nothing
How many companies are making this same mistake today?
