Category Archives: Uncategorized

As leaders, we all reach a point where we are asked to lead teams that may have more domain expertise than we do.  As a matter a fact, if we are doing the job right, our teams should develop more domain expertise than we have.  This can create an interesting managing/leading environment, especially for earlyContinue reading “Leading Experts”

Mid level management is filled with positives and negatives.  Every company has a different list of both for folks like us.  We each have to decide what we are willing to compromise on – what negatives can we live with to enjoy the positives.  This isn’t a post to tell what you should prioritize versusContinue reading “A voice if not a vote”

As we progress through our careers, it is imperative that we make an effort to both be retrospective about where we’ve been and introspective about where we are.  There isn’t an age limit for these activities – you can do it at any point.  I typically try to process the activities in a specific orderContinue reading “Retrospection and Introspection”

As someone who predicts the future for a living (or leads those who do), it is always fascinating to see how misunderstood the concept of forecasting can be.  The good old crystal ball isn’t particularly helpful.  Neither is a random number generator.  Both may seem like they are being used sometimes when the results varyContinue reading “Predicting the Future Made Easier”

As I have been reflecting on my year – a mix of good and bad – one theme has popped up repeatedly:  Consistency.  It’s been on both sides of the ledger for me this year.  I have been attempted to be consistent professionally in how approach my role(s) largely as a pragmatic builder, in howContinue reading “The Value of Consistency”

Beyond being a leader, I am subject matter expert in short and long term planning.  That requires not only creating a vision of the future that is unknown (as all futures are), but creating a reasonable range of outcomes in that future while landing on and recommending the most likely outcome.  Interestingly, the job reallyContinue reading “The Importance of Expectations”

As leaders we all attempt to create something bigger than ourselves.   We understand the role isn’t that of maximizing our individual contribution, but instead to optimize the outcomes for our broader team/organization.  In industry, that process can be muddled, difficult, inconsistent, impacted by external factors, and a million other variables that make envisioning and executingContinue reading “Management Strategy in Action – Sports”

In December and January all around the world, we all are engaged in talk of “New Year’s Resolutions” and goal setting/plan making for the year.  For some it’s personal for others it is professional and for a third group it’s both.  Resolutions and plans lead to priorities.  Grand pronouncements are made and celebrated.  It’s akinContinue reading “What is a Priority Anyway?”

Inspiration can come in the oddest of places sometimes.  Several weeks back, I was preparing to have a medical procedure.  It was not my first of this type.  Historically however, I have had some troubles/complications with this type of procedure which as you may guess can cause some anxiety on my part.  The doctor performingContinue reading “Team Roles in an Important Project”

As the year ends for us all, it’s a natural time to look back an reflect on what has (or hasn’t) transpired.  We often do this both personally and professionally even if not all companies are on a calendar review cycle.  Because we are forced to go through these cycles annually in our professional lives,Continue reading “Reflecting on the year that was”

Every day, I read many LinkedIn posts…probably too many.  If you wrote something, odds are that I read it.  It may even be a bit of a problem for me.  That being said, posts are becoming more and more stereotypical and formulaic, which is both sad and funny at once.  (Roll your eyes with meContinue reading ““You Must” Posts”

As a professional network, LinkedIn has been changed during the Pandemic.  I’ve noticed many more people willing to emote here than ever before.  That’s neither good nor bad, it just is.  I have found that folks are much more likely to characterize others more openly than Id noticed prior – LinkedIn philosophers are definitely enContinue reading “The Desire to Excel”

This post is going to be amazing. It’s quite possibly going to be the most life changing thing you read today.  Or any day.  Once done reading it, you’ll be thankful for having seen it.  You’ll likely want to share with every contact you have.  Or ever will have.  As a matter of fact, youContinue reading “The Burden of Unreasonable/Toxic Positivity”

As midlevel leaders, we all have the honor and challenge of trying to build a culture for our teams so that everyone feels comfortable while staying aligned to the overall organizational culture. Culture building is best done with intention – if you don’t plan for and structure your culture, one will still develop. Culture building is a process that takes time to establish and continually nurture. However, having a strategy around defining your culture, laying a foundation for that culture, and overseeing the cultural evolution should give you and your team an above average chance at a positive outcome.

Little acknowledged fact:  the majority of any company’s decisions are not made at the top of an organization – they are made by leaders in the middle of the organization like you and I.  The organizational strategy is nearly always a “tops down” exercise…but it still relies on everyone else to execute on the vision. Continue reading “Balancing Stakeholders in Decision Making”

If you have followed many of my posts, you know that I believe that all of us – managers, individual contributors, whatever – are problem solvers in our work at it’s core.  Interestingly, we are typically reactive problem solvers.  What does that mean?  Day after day, most of us wait to hear of a novelContinue reading “Refusing to Rethink a Problem”

The final of the 7 Ps of evolution/transformation has arrived!  We’ve outlined defining a purpose, laying out a general path, benchmarking and monitoring progress, and defining/reinforcing processes.  We’ve discussed the need to be both persistent and patient as that work continues.  When you’ve completed the majority of the work, it becomes time to pivot yourContinue reading “Finally, we get to a new normal”

As we near the finish line of the 7 principles of evolution/transformation, we will focus on a second supporting attitude/behavior to accomplish change.  With our purpose defined, a general path laid out, progress being benchmarked and monitored, defined foundational plans to create and reinforce processes, and a mindset focused on persistence, we’ll complement that attitude/behaviorContinue reading “Just a little patience…yeah, yeah”

The back half of the 7 principles of evolution/transformation is more focused on the supporting attitudes or behaviors to accomplish change than they are on tangible actions.  With our purpose defined, a general path laid out, progress being benchmarked and monitored, and defined foundational plans to create and reinforce processes, we move to one ofContinue reading “Persistence Beats Resistance”

As we continue through the 7 principles of evolution/transformation, we’ve now hit the truly operational point: process.  With our purpose defined, a general path laid out, and progress being benchmarked and monitored, we can get into the tactical phase of the change.  Just as a refresher, I defined this phase early on as: Process: ConvertContinue reading “Process, Process, Process”

If you’ve followed the last couple posts, you’ve learned about the importance of a purpose and a path to accomplish that purpose. Basically you want to define where you are going and roughly how you can get there. In most organizations the minute you declare the future state (just like traveling with children), the firstContinue reading “Creating, Capturing, and Celebrating Progress”

As we continue from my last post, the process of significant change can be guided by the 7 principle P’s of evolutionary or transformational change and we are are on to the second principle: Path. The process of creating a different future can be driven by these principles. A brief description for developing a path:Continue reading “Creating a Path to Achieve Your Purpose”

As you read in my last post, the process of significant change can be guided by the 7 principle P’s of evolutionary or transformational change. The process of creating a different future can be driven by these principles. The first was Purpose, with the brief description: Purpose: Create a compelling future outlook that is alignedContinue reading “Why Start Change with a Purpose?”

In my last post, I spend the majority of the time outlining the subtle, but important differences between evolution and transformation. Both are clearly focused on making the future different than the present, but they diverge on what type of change and how that change occurs. With both being relative to change from current stateContinue reading “The 7 P’s of Evolution and/or Transformation”

As we all know, business is filled with buzzwords and clichés. The most unfortunate part is that the practice either erodes the meaning of the actual words from their intended purpose or misleads a listener about what is actually happening. The thinking I want you to do today is around a fairly straightforward pair ofContinue reading “Evolution vs. Transformation”