While I preach and preach about the importance of having an excellent, coherent strategy I cannot deny the overwhelming importance of great execution. In recent weeks I have worked with two top leaders (both women incidentally)who are fantastic at execution - which has driven this home. The importance of being able to GSD (Get Stuff Done) is always vital, as two friends of … [Read more...] about Execution Beats Strategy?
Decision Making
Top Ten List: Running a Great Meeting
It’s really not that complicated, which makes it even more maddening that meetings seem to be run poorly so often. If you have been recently frustrated about that, click here for some comic relief with a clip from the classic, Bloody Meetings. Not every meeting has the same purpose, but following are general guidelines for running an effective meeting. Feel free to forward … [Read more...] about Top Ten List: Running a Great Meeting
Healthy Team Debates
We know that “constructive conflict” is an important part of effective team decision making. If individuals within a team do not feel comfortable proposing alternative ideas to one another then the first idea suggested might be approved or, maybe worse, whatever idea the boss suggests will be adopted. Many authors, including Patrick Lencioni (The Five Dysfunctions of a Team), … [Read more...] about Healthy Team Debates
Better Brainstorming
The cover article of the new March – April edition of Harvard Business Review* is on Better Brainstorming and includes a number of interesting ideas. It’s written by Hal Gregersen, who is a faculty member at MIT and author of a forthcoming book, Questions are the Answer. Gregerson has invented a process he calls “Question Burst” which focuses the brainstorming process on … [Read more...] about Better Brainstorming
Five Questions for Better Decisions
We all face challenging decisions on the job from time to time. A recent article from Harvard Business Review* suggests answering five questions that can help clarify a decision: 1. What are the net, net consequences of all my options? 2. What are my core obligations? 3. What will work in the world as it is? 4. Who are we? 5. What can I live with? Net-Net … [Read more...] about Five Questions for Better Decisions