Why do some of us insist on making assumptions and holding expectations? Assumptions are just guesses and expectations are assumptions about others’ behaviour, actions and outcomes being in line the holder’s thoughts or opinions. I waste no time with assumptions. What I do instead is ask questions to get answers that are factual. If the […]
The chief operating officer asked me to have a coffee with him to share an idea with me. I said “Sure and you know I’ll be sending you an invoice if I can be of assistance.” I could sense his smile as he replied “Of course David – not a problem.” We met and soon […]
Plan today or will it just happen? Reflect on yesterday or lose the learning opportunity? Deliver elite performance on a task or do just enough to be compliant? Engage with a colleague or pull your head in? Compliment good work or take it for granted? Challenge or defend the status quo? Choose to be your […]
Made a list of all the important unresolved issues/opportunities/challenges in your business. Calculated the cost of doing nothing about resolving each of those unresolved matters. Calculated the potential return on investment for resolving each of them. Created a plan to deal with the most crucial. Executed that plan effectively. Do you think it would be […]
There is a much complained-about gap between strategy and results. There is also a thriving consulting business in attempting to close that gap. It has given rise to jargon, misnomers and other rubbish that thwarts the desired outcomes. Executing strategy is actually executing the tactics that make up the strategy. We implement strategy and execute […]
The HR Manager told me that we couldn’t call the leadership development project “coaching” because the CEO doesn’t believe in coaching for leaders. The CEO has stated that leaders should be developed enough to not need coaching; that they wouldn’t have made it thus far if they were deficient. That CEO and his Chief Operating […]
The gap between strategy coming from the boardroom and actual execution is still too wide. The only three causes of the gap are Fear, Habits and Ignorance. We are not inclusive in our planning because we fear being vulnerable, or that we may be challenged, or misunderstood. We forget that every worthwhile decision causes a […]
The gap between strategy and outcome is often too great, isn’t it? When we speak of the strategic planning process we include implementation and execution, don’t we? If not then we are creating the first opportunity for the dreaded gap. However, we don’t need everyone involved in strategy to be involved in execution. We just […]
It was not because you are a technical genius, nor an operations genius, marketing genius or sales genius. It is not because you have a PhD or an MBA or a list of other certificates, diplomas or degrees. It is not because you have years of experience in the company, nor an extensive industry network, […]
I’ve spoken about succession planning and practice awhile ago. Since then I’ve been struck by the number of stories I’ve heard about the difficulty in finding good people, talent and those ready to step up to leadership. Globally it remains a primary challenge. As I look around my client base, a mix of government and […]
