Leadership on Speed

emerge triumphant from the recession

by Rosabeth Moss Kanter I The Change Master I Harvard Business Publishing

In these dire days, doing nothing is not an option. Passivity will only make things worse. But what can we do when there is little or no new investment? Here are four useful actions I've seen work effectively.

Move while others are distracted. This is the strategy of a very successful long-term CEO who has steered a European company into global prominence as one of a handful of industry leaders. He cultivates important relationships during times of crisis when competitors are looking elsewhere, enabling him to make acquisitions others coveted but couldn't get.

This is also how Continental Airlines, under Gordon Bethune, profited when the Northeast electric power grid went down for two days in 2003. Other airlines canceled hundreds of flights, while confident Continental's empowered employees kept their flights going. Noting the stranded passengers from other airlines when LaGuardia and Kennedy airports closed, Continental ran extra flights from Newark, thereby rescuing the passengers and making millions of extra dollars for those two days. Competitors lost money and goodwill.

Announce and own a grand concept. Okay, you might not be able to raise money for it nor do much about it now, but you will be well-prepared when markets recover. Ideas are cheap to begin to articulate and brand--and priceless once established.

In early November, as the financial crisis was still fresh in its horror (and Obama's election still fresh in its exuberance), Sam Palmisano announced "Smart Planet," a new IBM concept, via a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. The intention for now is to stimulate discussion and pin down the idea of intelligent networks for future infrastructure, or any of the other aspects of a smarter (more information-infused) capacity for roads, buildings, supply chains, etc. With a modest communications effort, IBM can put the "smart planet" idea on public policy agendas and "own" an idea ripe for action whenever recovery occurs.

You don't have to be an IBM to own ideas. A few years ago, colleagues and I at Harvard floated the idea of "Advanced Leadership," a new stage of higher education, and kept the idea alive even through a standstill at Harvard during a transition of presidents. We did things that cost nothing, such as writing a working paper, speaking at conferences, and getting colleagues interested. We were ready when new initiatives were supported again, and we "own" a well-received innovation idea.

Get rid of things that have outlived their usefulness. This is a personal lesson, since I deal with crisis by removing basement clutter or giving away old clothes - nothing like that clean closet feeling, and the action is under my control. The same principle applies to businesses. Turbulent times demand that resources go to the high potential areas. If a company is still too cluttered with product SKUs that proliferated unnoticed, declining lines of business, meaningless rules or reports, or the like, do the housecleaning, fast. Even those who don't like it will understand.

Concentrate on helping your users, clients, or customers succeed. Always good advice, but now we have to really mean it. Obviously, companies dependent on their revenue-paying customers cannot afford to stand by while those customers decline. Sometimes that involves giving them extras for nothing.

Leaders of a large consulting firm have told their staff that they should worry more about their clients than about themselves, thinking up ways their clients can survive, even if every microsecond isn't billable. Or if you are a supplier of a diagnostic tool to hospitals, for example, and see a cost-saving idea outside of your area of expertise while hanging around the hospital, pass it on.

Generosity might not get you anything now, but you'll be well-positioned for the future, hopefully with healthier customers and bigger ideas.

via Four Actions to Survive the Recession and Emerge Triumphant I Rosabeth Moss Kanter

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

networking too

Networking is one of those areas in which one can engage in a lot of activity for little return if you aren't careful and/or strategic.  For some, networking is more about quantity than quality and they simply figure that if they collect enough people someone in the group is bound to be of benefit to them. 

Of course what's missing is that:

 1. Networking is about "relating" not collecting and

2. Networking is about mutual giving

Feel free to check out the original post by clicking here (Be a Networking Superstar).  I received lots of interesting feedback on the post but I wanted to share a blog post written by the medical sales recruiter.  She actually did a blog "series" on networking and offers some additional info and another perspective on networking that I thought you may find beneficial.  Click here to check it out.

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

what is school for?

Like many others, I am a fan of Seth Godin's work and I thought this was an interesting blog post.  It intrigued me because as a coach, I often seem to be faced with "undoing" the mindset of the mundane set up by many of our learning institutions.  You know - the mindset that rewards you for being "just like" everyone else.  The one that tells you what you can't do, what you can't be or what you shouldn't be (too confident, too out-on-the-edge, too good, etc).  So when I saw this post, it provoked me to think, "Hmmmm, just what IS school for?"  What do you think?

Seems like a simple question, but given how much time and money we spend on it, it has a wide range of answers, many unexplored, some contradictory. I have a few thoughts about education, how we use it to market ourselves and compete, and I realized that without a common place to start, it's hard to figure out what to do.

So, a starter list. The purpose of school is to:

1. Become an informed citizen
2. Be able to read for pleasure
3. Be trained in the rudimentary skills necessary for employment
4. Do well on standardized tests
5. Homogenize society, at least a bit
6. Pasteurize out the dangerous ideas
7. Give kids something to do while parents work
8. Teach future citizens how to conform
9. Teach future consumers how to desire
10.  Build a social fabric
11. Create leaders who help us compete on a world stage
12. Generate future scientists who will advance medicine and technology
13. Learn for the sake of learning
14. Help people become interesting and productive
15. Defang the proletariat
16. Establish a floor below which a typical person is unlikely to fall
17. Find and celebrate prodigies, geniuses and the gifted
18. Make sure kids learn to exercise, eat right and avoid common health problems
19. Teach future citizens to obey authority
20. Teach future employees to do the same
21. Increase appreciation for art and culture
22. Teach creativity and problem solving
23. Minimize public spelling mistakes
24. Increase emotional intelligence
25. Decrease crime by teaching civics and ethics
26. Increase understanding of a life well lived
27. Make sure the sports teams have enough players

via Seth Godin I What is School For?

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

wherever you go, there you are

If you aren't meeting the success you want in life, perhaps it's time to take a closer look at what's in your way.

Could it be....um....YOU?

Do any of these sound familiar?

• I am really good at what I do but I never achieve the level of recognition I feel I deserve.  Others always seem to get promoted above me (and they aren't as good).
• I have started business venture after business venture but something always seems to get in the way.  It's never what I think it's going to be when it begins.  I'm just unlucky in business.

• I'm looking for work and my resume usually gets me an interview but then I never get the job.  Maybe they think I'm too (old, young, fat, skinny, black, white, tall, short - fill in the blank).

I see it over and over and over again.

The one common denominator in each of these scenarios is....again.... YOU.

You see, wherever you go, there you are.

In other words, is it possible that there is something about the way that others experience you that could be blocking your success? 

How do you know?  Begin to ask for feedback.  From your friends. From your family. From trusted colleagues at both work and in the community.  If you allow space for them to tell the truth, I guarantee you that there are folks around you who can give you some great insight to the quirks or ways of being that may be interfering with your success. 

Remember before you ask that feedback doesn't necessarily have to be "true".  In other words, it's only someone elses perception of you but it is that perception that may be getting in your way.  Have you ever heard the saying, "My perception is your reality."?

It is absolutely true. 

You may decide to dismiss the feedback you receive but at least you'll have a different level of consciousness about how others see you.  My hope is that you will use the information to shift your ways of being and take your career and your life to a whole new level.

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!

are you an emerging leader?

by Vineet Nayar | Inverted Widsom | Harvard Business Publishing

Tomorrow became a little distant from today in 2008. With the challenges facing businesses today-- versus even six months ago--emerging leaders find little solace in the best practices that have worked so far. So what can help us cope with the challenges ahead? I have put together 10 mantras that might guide us ahead:

1. Listen to the Cry for Accountability

Across the world of business, there is a blood cry for 'accountability'. With the most revered role models run aground--and more being bailed out--it is high time we open our windows to let the feedback in, even though we know it will not be pretty.

Leadership is accountable to customers, investors, shareholders, regulators - but most of all, to our own people. As navigators, we are accountable for keeping the ship on course - more so in stormy weather. So rather than blot out the questions, we need to put into place systems and processes that foster transparency and make leaders more accountable.

2. Get into the trenches

Emerging leaders are moving up to the top floors. To corner suites. Away from the shop floors and the real action. We need to roll up our sleeves and get back into the trenches. I cannot repeat myself often enough - we need to demolish the 'CEO office'. We need to break down the walls of hierarchy, for our future role as leaders is not about leading from the top, but co-innovating at the front lines.

3. Get emotional

Have we perhaps forgotten the price of Marie Antoinette's statement "If they don't have bread, let them eat cake?" With the increasing commoditization of people as "resources selling time," we risk not seeing people as individuals any more. And these individuals - employees and customers alike - are hurting and wary of the future. As leaders, we need to feel their pain and find the right solution. Its no longer about improving the top-line by simply reminding our sales force to upsell and say: "Will you have fries with that?" We need to understand the real pain points of our customers and help them find real solutions to their business problems.

4. Chase the rainbow

As everyone watches the thunder, emerging leaders are the ones who will look hard into the dark and spot the light at the end of the tunnel. There is a rainbow waiting to break out, and abundant opportunities beyond. The sooner you spot it the greater the advantage your organization can reap.

5. From Me to We

Collaboration is the need of the hour. In the US, President-Elect Barack Obama has proven just that by co-opting the strength of his former arch rival, Hillary Clinton. History has shown us that, be it the thawing of the Cold War or the formation of the European Union, dealing with cross border terrorism or cross border recession, the power of collaboration is our only answer. The world needs the collective strength of all countries, organizations and individuals to pull together today.

6. Nimble feet

The world will continue to flirt with unpredictability for a while ahead. As leaders, we need to stay agile, alert and nimble footed to change tactics mid-course with our eyes unwavering from the goal.

7. Keep it Simple

The sub-prime crisis has made the world wary of complex financial instruments and foggy conditions. Somewhere along the way, complexity has gained respect in the world of business. It is time to wipe the mist off the glass and master the art of converting complexity into simplicity.

8. Ask the right questions

Leadership today has changed from providing all the answers to asking the right questions. Keep an open mind and let fresh minds provide you with fresh ideas. The battle between grey hair and grey matter has never been more fierce, as Generation Y stakes its claim to leadership. Innovation is the passport to success and 'Green' might just be the colour that pulls businesses out of the red.

9. Adapt to the new work order

Business today works across geographical borders on the back of a cross-culture, cross-currency, cross-product, cross-time zones workforce. Markets too have transformed, with the West no longer the only or even predominant market. So in 2009, emerging leaders will have to adapt to the reality of time zones, to multiple cultures, multiple currencies, multiple pricing. We in India, and particularly in the IT services industry, have learned this lesson very quickly. In fact, insights into how to run a global corporation will come out of the Indian multinationals.

10. Yes we can

I think we have all realized by now that there are no question marks about this. Change comes to those who believe in it. As leaders, our greatest responsibility is to bring back confidence and the forward momentum and catalyze the positive energy of our people today to light the way to a brighter tomorrow.

via 10 Mantras for Emerging Leaders in 2009 | Vineet Nayar

You were born to be great.

YES, you can!