Contrary to popular belief, being an effective leader is not something we are born with. Leadership combines good organisational skills with the skills necessary to get people to do willingly and well the work that needs to be done. These techniques can and need to be learnt. Every organisation can improve its effectiveness, without major innovations or capital investments.
In the past this wasn’t a concern. People were considered replaceable. Organisational assets consisted of tangible things like the property and equipment that an organisation owned. Not any more. Now people, particularly talented ones, are often an organisation’s most valuable present and future assets. They keep the organisation running, help generate revenue, keep your customers satisfied and not only contain… Read more →
A motivated employee is not only a productive employee, but a key ingredient for the success of any organisation. Motivated employees provide exceptional customer service, which brings customers back to you. They also stay with the organisation longer, which decreases the costs inherent in hiring and training new employees. How do you motivate employees? You can use a variety of methods,… Read more →
Creativity and innovation are fueled by the intelligence of people who have the freedom and right to express their ideas. How can we liberate the creativity and intelligence of our employees? How can we integrate their individual ideas, inspiration, and analysis into rapid decisions and actions and coordinate them to create value for customers? How can we build organisational intelligence?
Major market shifts are changing global business. In addition, economic realignment, advances in technology, the globalization of markets, changing demographic trends, new customer needs and increased competition are fundamentally reworking how companies operate in virtually every industry and region of the world. Proof of this new world order is in the trade numbers – the total of the world’s exports… Read more →
Entrepreneurs and organisation leaders are often so preoccupied with immediate issues that they lose sight of their ultimate objectives. That’s why an organisational review and preparation of a strategic plan is a virtual necessity. This may not be a recipe for success, but without it the organisation is much more likely to fail.
Give positive spoken communication. It costs you nothing but a little effort, and the rewards are great. Every human contact is an opportunity to give the gift of good feelings through the words you say. People can’t read your mind; what you say is evidence that you care.
Confusion, misunderstanding, discontent and unsatisfactory internal and external customer service causes employee turnover and a huge drain on profitability. Managing performance requires us to reconcile care for and development of our people, and ensuring that departmental and organisational aims are achieved. Managing performance requires us to strike a balance between compassion and accountability. Effective managers strive to balance these two areas… Read more →
In the first part (click here) of The Leadership Pipeline, we discussed why potential for leadership and good management often goes unfulfilled. ‘.. at least fifty percent of the people in leadership positions are operating at far below their assigned level. They have the potential to be leaders, but that potential is going unfulfilled’. – ‘The Leadership Pipeline’ Star performers who are… Read more →
A good friend of mine recommended that I read, ‘Strategy and the Fat Smoker’ by David Maister, while we were discussing business management issues one day. Intrigued by the title, I “googled” it and became more interested in the book. It’s available on Kindle, so I got a copy straight away and started to read. Once I started, I could… Read more →