*I am not a “guru.”
*I am not an economist.
*I am not a “strategist.”
*I have no “secrets” to reveal.
*I do not have an “Angola speech.”
*I have been a professional observer of organizations
for 43 years (1966-2009).
*My professional life has been devoted, like that
of Peter Drucker, to improved management and
enhanced organizational effectiveness. (Not
“leadership,” not “strategy.”*)
*Drucker, Strategy, Leadership
Classic Drucker (from the HBR),
221 pages: “strategy,” 3 p
(infotech); “leadership,” 0.
The Practice of Management,
404 p: “strategy,” 0;
“leadership,” 3 p.
Management, 568 p: “strategy,”
8 p (all on systems, none on
content), “leadership,” 12 p.
*The great majority of us spend most of our waking
hours in organizations.
*Therefore organization effectiveness—which depends
in its entirety on human effectiveness—becomes/is
the centerpiece of human development in my and
your country.
*Enhancing human effectiveness therefore becomes the
raison d’être of our professional lives as
organizational leaders.
Our Mission
To develop and manage talent;
to apply that talent,
throughout the world,
for the benefit of clients;
to do so in partnership;
to do so with profit.
WPP
Brand =
Talent.
Thank you Peter Drucker/AIM
Our goal is to serve our customers brilliantly
and profitably over the long haul.
Serving our customers brilliantly and profitably
over the long haul is a product of brilliantly
serving, over the long haul, the people who
serve the customer.
Hence, our job as leaders—the alpha and the
omega and everything in between—is abetting
the sustained growth and success and
engagement and enthusiasm and commitment
to Excellence of those, one at a time, who
directly or indirectly serve the ultimate
customer.
Source: The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways to Pursue EXCELLENCE
We—leaders of every stripe—are in the “Human
Growth and Development and Success and
Aspiration to Excellence business.”
“We” [leaders] only grow when “they” [each and
every one of our colleagues] are growing.
“We” [leaders] only succeed when “they” [each
and every one of our colleagues] are succeeding.
“We” [leaders] only energetically
march toward Excellence when “they” [each and
every one of our colleagues] are energetically
marching toward Excellence.
Period.
Source: The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways to Pursue EXCELLENCE
Luiza Helena,
Magazine
Luiza
“Business has to give people enriching,
or it's
simply not
worth
doing.”
rewarding lives …
—Richard Branson
Baggage
*I have mostly German blood.
(2nd generation)
*I was trained as a civil engineer.
*I served in the U.S. Navy Civil
Engineer Corps in Vietnam and in
the Pentagon.
*I have an MBA.
*I worked in the White House for 18 months.
*I worked for years at McKinsey & Co.
*I wrote a book, at a crucial moment for
American business, because I was angry.
*I lived in Silicon Valley for 30+ years.
*I live on a farm.
*I am still angry.
Tom Peters’
Excellence.
Always.
Luanda/28 October 2009
(Slides at tompeters.com)
To appreciate
this presentation [and ensure
that it is not a mess], you need
Microsoft fonts:
NOTE:
“Showcard Gothic,”
“Ravie,” “Chiller”
and “Verdana”
The failure to
pursue
EXCELLENCE is
incomprehensible
to me.
“The role of the Director is to create
a space where the actors and
become more
than they’ve ever been
before, more than
they’ve dreamed of
being.”
actresses can
—Robert Altman, Oscar acceptance speech
“If a man is called to be a street
sweeper, he should sweep streets
even as Michelangelo painted, or
Beethoven composed music, or
Shakespeare wrote poetry. He
should sweep streets so well
that all the hosts of heaven and
earth will pause to say, here lived
a great street sweeper who did his
job well.” —Martin Luther King Jr.
“Excellence can be obtained if you:
... care more than others think
is wise;
... risk more than others think
is safe;
... dream more than others think
is practical;
... expect more than others think
is possible.”
Source: Anon. (Posted @ tompeters.com by
K.Sriram, November 27, 2006 1:17 AM)
“Strive for
Excellence.
Ignore
success.”
—Bill Young, race car
driver (courtesy Andrew Sullivan)
The greatest danger
for most of us
is not that our aim is
too high
and we miss it,
but that it is
too low
and we reach it.
Michelangelo
‘do’
“Leaders
people.
Period.”
—Anon.
“We are a ‘Life
Success’
Company.”
Dave Liniger, founder, RE/MAX
14,000
20,000
14,000
20,000
14,000/eBay
20,000/Amazon
30/Craigslist
“The art of war does not
require complicated
maneuvers; the simplest
are the best and common
sense is fundamental. From
which one might wonder
how it is generals make
blunders; it is because they
try to be clever.” —Napoleon
A man approached JP Morgan, held up an envelope, and said, “Sir, in
my hand I hold a guaranteed formula for success, which I will gladly
sell you for $25,000.”
“Sir,” JP Morgan replied, “I do not know what is in the envelope,
however if you show me, and I like it, I give you my word as a
gentleman that I will pay you what you ask.”
The man agreed to the terms, and handed over the envelope. JP
Morgan opened it, and extracted a single sheet of paper. He gave it
one look, a mere glance, then handed the paper back to the gent.
And paid him the
agreed upon $25,000.
1. Every morning, write
a list of the things
that need to be done
that day.
2.
Do them.
Source: Hugh MacLeod/tompeters.com/NPR
Korea!
“We made mistakes, of course. Most of them were
omissions we didn’t think of when we initially wrote the
software. We fixed them by doing it over and over, again
and again. We do the same today. While our competitors
are still sucking their thumbs trying to make the design
perfect, we’re already on prototype version
#5.
By the time our rivals are
ready with wires and screws, we are on version
#10. It gets back to planning
versus acting: We act from day
one; others plan how to plan—
for months.” —Bloomberg by Bloomberg
“In business, you reward
people for taking risks.
When it doesn’t work out
you promote them-because
they were willing to try new
things. If people tell me
they skied all day and never
fell down, I tell them to try
a different mountain.”
—Michael Bloomberg (BW/0625.07)
“Fail .
Forward.
Fast.”
High Tech CEO, Pennsylvania
Read This!
Richard Farson & Ralph Keyes:
Whoever Makes
the Most Mistakes
Wins: The Paradox
of Innovation
“It is not enough to
‘tolerate’ failure—
you must
‘celebrate’
failure.”
—Richard Farson (Whoever Makes the
Most Mistakes Wins)
“Reward
excellent failures.
Punish mediocre
successes.”
Phil Daniels, Sydney exec
“The Silicon Valley of
today is built less
atop the spires of
earlier triumphs than
upon the rubble of
earlier debacles.”
—Newsweek/ Paul Saffo
“The secret of fast
progress is
inefficiency, fast
and furious and
numerous failures.”
—Kevin Kelly
Relentless!
“This [adolescent] incident [of getting from point A to point B] is notable
not only because it underlines Grant’s fearless horsemanship and his
determination, but also it is the first known example of a very important
Grant had an
extreme, almost phobic
dislike of turning back
and retracing his steps.
peculiarity of his character:
If he
set out for somewhere, he would get there somehow, whatever the
difficulties that lay in his way. This idiosyncrasy would turn out to be one
the factors that made him such a formidable general. Grant would always,
always press on—turning back was not an option for him.”
—Michael Korda, Ulysses Grant
“Success seems to be
largely a matter
of hanging on
after others have
let go.”
—William Feather, author
Conrad Hilton, at a gala
celebrating his career,
was asked, “What was the
most important lesson
you’ve learned in you long
and distinguished career?”
His immediate answer …
“remember
to tuck the
shower curtain
inside the
bathtub”
“Execution
is
strategy.”
—Fred Malek
“Get the strategy
right, the rest will
take care of itself.”
MP:
“Get the people and
execution right,
the strategy will
take care of itself.”
TP:
Internal
organizational
excellence =
Deepest “Blue
Ocean”
*Internal
organizational
excellence =
“Brand inside”
B(I) > B(O)
problem #1.
Opportunity #1.
X =XFX*
*Excellence = Cross-functional Excellence
Never
waste a
lunch!
????
% XF
lunches*
*Measure!
Lunch
> SAP/
Oracle
The “XF-50”: 50 Ways to
Enhance Cross-Functional
Effectiveness and Deliver
Speed, “Service Excellence”
and “Value-added Customer
‘Solutions’”
“The Billion-man
Research Team:
Companies offering
work to online
communities are
reaping the benefits of
‘crowdsourcing.’”
—Headline, FT, 0110.07
Rob McEwen/CEO/
Goldcorp Inc./
Red Lake
gold
Wikinomics: How Mass
Collaboration Changes Everything,
Don Tapscott & Anthony Williams
Source:
“I am often asked by would-
be entrepreneurs seeking
escape from life within huge
corporate structures, ‘How
do I build a small firm for
myself?’ The answer seems
obvious …
“I am often asked by would-be entrepreneurs seeking escape from
life within huge corporate structures, ‘How do I build a small firm for
Buy a
very large
one and just
wait.”
myself?’ The answer seems obvious:
—Paul Ormerod, Why Most Things Fail:
Evolution, Extinction and Economics
“Mr. Foster and his McKinsey colleagues
collected detailed performance data stretching
back
40 years for 1,000
They found that
U.S. companies.
none
of
the long-term survivors managed to
outperform the market. Worse, the
longer companies had been in the
database, the worse they did.”
—Financial Times
“Data drawn from the real world
attest to a fact that is beyond
Everything
in existence tends
to deteriorate.”
our control:
—Norberto Odebrecht, Education Through Work
No: People.
No: Product.
No: Value to customer.
Yes: Dilution, other
control and shareowning issues.
Yes: Scale-as-power.
Yes: Market share.
Yes: People.
Yes: Product.
Yes: Value to customer.
No: Dilution, other
control and shareowning issues.
No: Scale-as-power.
No: Market share.
“It suddenly
occurred to me
that in the space
of two or three
hours …
“It suddenly occurred to me that in the space
he
never talked
about cars.”
of two or three hours …
—Les Wexner
Did one of ’em ever turn to the
other and say: “Wow, I
wonder what
unimaginable new tools,
otherwise not possible,
will be brought forth for
my daughter Alice, age
17, because
of this deal?”
#4 Japan
#2T USA
#2T China
#4 Japan
#3 USA
#2 China
#1 Germany
Reason!!!
Mittelstand
Productivity
(Small/All) >
Productivity (Big)
(USA-9%)
(China.)
26 = 73 – 47
Natural Resources:
Japan
(Singapore. Texas. Dubai.*
*Next stop: Dhahran. )
1982
MBWA
Excellence1982: The Bedrock “Eight Basics”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
A Bias for Action
Close to the Customer
Autonomy and Entrepreneurship
Productivity Through People
Hands On, Value-Driven
Stick to the Knitting
Simple Form, Lean Staff
Simultaneous Loose-Tight
Properties”
“Breakthrough” 82*
People!
Customers!
Action!
Values!
*In Search of Excellence
Hard Is Soft
Soft Is Hard
Hard Is Soft (Plans, #s)
Soft Is Hard (people,
customers, values,
relationships)
“The 7-S Model”
Strategy
Structure
Systems
Style
Skills
Staff
Super-ordinate goal
“The 7-S Model”
“Hard Ss”
(Strategy, Structure, Systems)
“Soft SS”
(Style, Skills, Staff, Super-ordinate goal)
ExIn*: 1982-2002/Forbes.com
DJIA: $10,000 yields $85,000
EI: $10,000 yields $140,050
*Excellence Index/Basket of 32 publicly traded stocks
De-central-iza-tion!
“‘Decentralization’
is not a piece of
paper. It’s not me.
It’s either in your
heart, or not.”
—Brian Joffe/BIDvest
The True Logic* of Decentralization:
6 divisions = 6 “tries”
6 divisions = 6 DIFFERENT leaders =
6 INDEPENDENT “tries” = Max
probability of “win”
6 divisions = 6 very DIFFERENT
leaders = 6 very INDEPENDENT
“tries” = Max probability of “far
out”/”3-sigma” “win”
*“Driver”: Law of Large #s
“Parallel
Universe” …
China!!!!!!!
volcanic
struggle!
Enemy
#1
I.C.D.
Inherent/Inevitable/
Immutable Centralist Drift
Note 1:
Note 2: Jim Burke’s 1-word vocabulary: “No.”
“Ninety percent of what
we call ‘management’
consists of making it
difficult for people to
get things done.”
– Peter Drucker
Ex-ecu-tion!
“Execution is
the job of the
business
leader.”
—Larry Bossidy & Ram
Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
“Execution is a
systematic
process
of rigorously
discussing hows and whats, tenaciously
following through, and ensuring
accountability.”
—Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution:
The Discipline of Getting Things Done
(1) sum of Projects =
Goal (“Vision”)
(2) sum of Milestones =
project
(3) rapid Review +
Truth-telling =
accountability
“Costco figured out
the big, simple things
and executed with
total fanaticism.”
—Charles Munger, Berkshire Hathaway
“almost inhuman
disinterestedness in
… strategy” —Josiah Bunting
on
U.S. Grant (from Ulysses S. Grant)
U. S. Grant
*No interest in grand strategy.
*Do the thing until it is done.
*Do not over complicate.
*Do the next thing.
*Pleasure in perseverance per se.
*Not ask for help or advice.
*Not complain of difficulties or ask for
more time or resources
McClellan: delay; plead for more forces
Grant: “When do I start? What I want
is to advance.”
Source: Josiah Bunting, Ulysses S. Grant
Ac-counta-bil-ity!
“Mr Zetsche, head of
Chrysler from 2000 to
2005, denied he should
take any responsibility for
the U.S. carmaker’s
troubles …”
—Financial Times /05.29.07
30%
MH: 80%
CF:
(no salesfolk)
(salesfolk)
“GE has set a standard
of candor. … There is no
puffery. … There isn’t
an ounce of denial in
the place.”
—Kevin Sharer, CEO Amgen,
on the “GE mystique” (Fortune)
Response to “most important
contribution”: “I focused this
discipline on People and Power;
on Values, Structure, and
Constitution; and above all,
on responsibilities—that is,
focused the Discipline of
Management on management as
a truly liberal art.” (Peter Drucker, 18 January 1999)
6:15A.M.
DECENTRALIZATION.
EXECUTION.
ACCOUTABILITY.
6:15A.M.
#17
“Everybody
lives by selling
something.”
—Robert Louis Stevenson
“if you don’t
listen, you don’t
sell anything.”
—Carolyn Marland
Sales >
Marketing
L(+21) = L(-21)
Leadership(21A.D.) =
Leadership(21B.C.)
“The doctor
interrupts
after …*
*Source: Jerome Groopman, How Doctors Think
[An obsession with] Listening is ... the ultimate mark
of Respect.
Listening is ... the heart and soul of Engagement.
Listening is ... the heart and soul of Kindness.
Listening is ... the heart and soul of Thoughtfulness.
Listening is ... the basis for true Collaboration.
Listening is ... the basis for true Partnership.
Listening is ... a Team Sport.
Listening is ... a Developable Individual Skill.* (*Though women
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
is
is
is
is
...
...
...
...
are far better at it than men.)
the basis for Community.
the bedrock of Joint Ventures that work.
the bedrock of Joint Ventures that last.
the core of effective Cross-functional
Communication* (*Which is in turn Attribute #1 of
organizational effectiveness.)
[cont.]
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
Listening
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
is
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
the engine of superior EXECUTION.
the key to making the Sale.
the key to Keeping the Customer’s Business.
the engine of Network development.
the engine of Network maintenance.
the engine of Network expansion.
Social Networking’s “secret weapon.”
Learning.
the sine qua non of Renewal.
the sine qua non of Creativity.
the sine qua non of Innovation.
the core of taking Diverse opinions aboard.
Strategy.
Source #1 of “Value-added.”
Differentiator #1.
Profitable.* (*The “R.O.I.” from listening is higher than
from any other single activity.)
Listening is … the bedrock which underpins a Commitment to
EXCELLENCE
*Listening is of the
utmost … strategic
importance!
*Listening is a proper …
core value !
*Listening is … trainable
!
*Listening is a … profession
!
“You can make more
friends in two months by
becoming interested in
other people than you can
in two years by trying to
get other people interested
in you.” —Dale Carnegie
“The four most
important words in
any organization
are …
The four most important words in any organization
are …
“What do
you
think?”
Source: courtesy Dave Wheeler, posted at tompeters.com
“The deepest human
need is the …
need to be
appreciated.”
—William James
2007
Siberia
Why in the
World did you
go to Siberia?
An emotional,
vital, innovative, joyful, creative,
entrepreneurial endeavor that
elicits maximum
Enterprise* ** (*at its best):
concerted human potential
in the wholehearted service
of others.**
**Employees, Customers, Suppliers, Communities, Owners, Temporary
partners
2007
Sydney
Organizations exist
to serve. Period.
Leaders live to
serve. Period.
… no less than
Cathedrals
in which the full and
awesome power of the
Imagination and Spirit and
native Entrepreneurial flair
of diverse individuals is
unleashed in passionate
pursuit of … Excellence.
The Dream Manager
—Matthew Kelly
“An organization can only become the-best-version-of-itself to
the extent that the people who drive that organization are
striving to become better-versions-of-themselves.” “A
company’s purpose is to become the-best-version-of-itself. The
What is an employee’s purpose?
Most would say, ‘to help the company
achieve its purpose’—but they would be
wrong. That is certainly part of the
employee’s role, but an employee’s
primary purpose is to become the-bestversion-of-himself or –herself. … When a
question is:
company forgets that it exists to serve customers, it quickly
Our employees are our first
customers, and our most important customers.”
goes out of business.
Cause
Space
(worthy of commitment)
(room for/encouragement
for initiative)
Decency
(respect, humane)
Luiza Helena,
Magazine
Luiza
Our goal is to serve our customers brilliantly and
profitably over the long haul.
Serving our customers brilliantly and profitably over the
long haul is a product of brilliantly serving over the long
haul the people who serve the customer.
Hence, our job as leaders—the alpha and the omega and
everything in between—is abetting the sustained growth
and success and engagement and enthusiasm and
commitment to Excellence of those, one at a time, who
directly or indirectly serve the ultimate customer.
We—leaders of every stripe—are in the “Human Growth
and Development and Success and Aspiration to
Excellence business.”
“We” [leaders] only grow when “they” [each and every
one of our colleagues] are growing.
“We” [leaders] only succeed when “they” [each and every
one of our colleagues] are succeeding.
“We” [leaders] only energetically march toward
Excellence when “they” [each and every one of our
colleagues] are energetically marching toward Excellence.
Period.
Source: The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways to Pursue EXCELLENCE
“The ONE Question”: “In the last year [3 years, current job], name
three
people
the …
… whose growth you’ve
most contributed to. Please explain where they were at the
beginning of the year, where they are today, and where they are
heading in the next 12 months. Please explain your development
strategy in each case. Please tell me your biggest development
disappointment—looking back, could you or would you have done
anything differently? Please tell me about your greatest
development triumph—and disaster—in the last ten years. What
are the ‘three big things’ you’ve learned about helping people
grow along the way.”
“Forget China, India
and the Internet:
Economic Growth Is
Driven by
Women.”
Source: Headline, Economist
“One thing is certain: Women’s rise to power, which is
linked to the increase in wealth per capita, is happening
in all domains and at all levels of society. Women are no
longer content to provide efficient labor or to be
consumers with rising budgets and more autonomy to
spend. … This is just the beginning. The phenomenon
will only grow as girls prove to be more successful than
For a number of
observers, we have already
entered the age of
‘womenomics,’ the economy as
thought out and practiced
by a woman.” —Aude Zieseniss de Thuin, Women’s
boys in the school system.
Forum for the Economy and Society
94%
of loans to …
women*
*Microlending; “Banker to the poor”; Grameen Bank;
Muhammad Yunus; 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner
“CEMEX realized that women
are the key drivers of savings
in [Mexican] families. … They are
entrepreneurial in nature, and they actively
participate in the tanda system [neighborhood groups who
pool money and save any that’s left over]. Regardless of
whether they are homemakers or outside-the-home
workers, they are responsible for any savings in the
family. Patrimonio Hoy [Private Property Today, a CEMEX
program to aid the poor in building homes] discovered that
70% of the women who saved were saving money in
the tanda system to construct homes for their
families. The men in the society consider their job
done if they bring in their paycheck at the end of the
day.” —C.K. Prahalad, from The Fortune at the Bottom of
the Pyramid, on
Lorenzo Zambrano and CEMEX, the
Mexican company that’s the world’s #3 cement maker
“Leaders
‘SERVE’
people.
Period.”
—inspired by Robert Greenleaf
Good News 2009:
Leadership*
is a sacred
trust.
*President, classroom teacher, CEO, shop foreman
“You have to
treat your
employees like
customers.”
—Herb Kelleher,
complete answer, upon being asked his “secrets to success”
Source: Joe Nocera, NYT, “Parting Words of an Airline Pioneer,” on the occasion of
Herb Kelleher’s retirement after 37 years at Southwest Airlines (SWA’s pilots union
took out a full-page ad in USA Today thanking HK for all he had done; across the
way in Dallas American Airlines’ pilots were picketing the Annual Meeting)
“Managing winds up being
the management of the
allocation of resources
against tasks. Leadership
My
definition of a leader
is someone who
helps people
succeed.”
focuses on people.
—Carol Bartz, Yahoo!
“The role of the Director is to create
a space where the actors and
become more
than they’ve ever been
before, more than
they’ve dreamed of
being.”
actresses can
—Robert Altman, Oscar acceptance speech
#1.
Strategic.
Priority.
Period.
“Development can help great
but if
I had a dollar to
spend, I’d spend 70
cents getting the
right person in the
door.” —
people be even better—
Paul Russell, Director, Leadership &
Development, Google
#1 cause of
Dis-satisfaction?
Employee retention & satisfaction:
Overwhelmingly
, based on the
first-line
manager!
Source: Marcus Buckingham & Curt Coffman, First, Break All
the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently
2/year =
legacy.
1. Hire
2.
st
1
Line
Supervisor
3. Promotion
We are the
company
we keep
Measure “Strangeness”/Portfolio Quality
Staff
Consultants
Vendors
Out-sourcing Partners (#, Quality)
Innovation Alliance Partners
Customers
Competitors (who we “benchmark” against)
Strategic Initiatives
Product Portfolio (LineEx v. Leap)
IS/IT Projects
HQ Location
Lunch Mates
Language
Board
The “We are what we eat”
axiom: At its core, every (!!!)
relationship-partnership decision
(employee, vendor, customer, etc) is
a strategic decision about:
“Innovate,
‘Yes’ or ‘No’ ”
“[CEO A.G.] Lafley has shifted P&G’s focus on inventing
all its own products to developing
others’
inventions at
least half the
time.
One successful
example, Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, based on a product found in
an Osaka market.” —Fortune
Little =
Big carts =
Source: Wal*Mart
Socks =
10,000
<TGW
and …
>TGR
[Things Gone WRONG-Things Gone RIGHT]
“May I
clean your
glasses,
sir?”
2-cent
candy
“Experiences
are as distinct
from services as
services are from
goods.”
—Joe Pine & Jim Gilmore, The
Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a
Stage
Acquire vs maintain*:
*Recession goal: Higher “market share” current customers
#31
Innovation’s “Fourteen Imperatives”
(1) Try it. Repeat. (“1/40.”)
(“R.F.A.”/Ready.Fire. Aim.) (Non-Linear!)
Prototype it./MTTP (Mean Time To Prototype.)/(Inno. =
Reaction to Proto.)
(2) Celebrate failure.
“Whoever makes the most mistakes wins.”
“Fail. Fail again. Fail better.”
“Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”
(3) Decentralize.
(4) Parallel Universe.
(5) “Hang Out” Axiom. (Hang “cool” = More
cool. Dull = Dull.)
(6) “d”iversity. (Every dimension.)
(7) Co-invent with outsiders./Entwined with
outsiders. (Including “Crowdsourcing.”)
Innovation’s “Fourteen Imperatives”
(8) “Strategic” Listening = Core competence.
(9) Hire and promote 100% innovators.
Innovator’s characteristic = Innovator.
Innovator’s characteristic = Angry. (Anger > Blowback.)
CEO=Innovation “bias.”
(10) XFX/Cross-functional Excellence!! (#1??)
(11) Chief Complexity & Systems Destruction
Officer.
(12) R&D Equality.
All functions equal. (VA centerpiece./All staff
VA-meisters.)
(13) Fun! Self-deprecating!
(14) Good luck! (Entropy rules.) (Major
acquisition = Dumb.)
(NB: All these things work except when they don’t.)
The
quality and quantity
and imaginativeness
of innovation shall
be the same in all
functions —e.g., in HR and
Iron Innovation Equality Law:
purchasing as much as in marketing or
product development.
#32
Skip the map
“Mapping your
competitive
position”
or …
The “Have
you …” 50
1. Have you in the
last 10 days …
visited a
customer?
2. Have you called a
customer … TODAY?
1. Have you in the last 10 days … visited a
customer?
2. Have you called a customer … TODAY?
3. Have you in the last 60-90 days … had a seminar in which several folks from the
customer’s operation (different levels, different functions, different divisions) interacted,
via facilitator, with various of your folks?
4. Have you thanked a front-line employee for a
small act of helpfulness … in the last three days?
5. Have you thanked a front-line employee for a small act of helpfulness … in the
last three hours?
6. Have you thanked a frontline employee for carrying around a great attitude … today?
7. Have you in the last week recognized—publicly—one of your folks for a small act of
cross-functional co-operation?
8. Have you in the last week recognized—publicly—one of “their” folks (another function)
for a small act of cross-functional co-operation?
9. Have you invited in the last month a leader of another function to your weekly team
priorities meeting?
10. Have you personally in the last week-month called-visited an internal or external
customer to sort out, inquire, or apologize for some little or big thing that went awry? (No
reason for doing so? If true—in your mind—then you’re more out of touch than I dared
imagine.)
#33
Profitable
“We are
thoughtful
in all we do.”
Thoughtfulness is key to customer retention.
Thoughtfulness is key to employee recruitment
and satisfaction.
Thoughtfulness is key to brand perception.
Thoughtfulness is key to your ability to look in
the mirror —and tell your kids about your job.
“Thoughtfulness is free.”
Thoughtfulness is key to speeding things up—
it reduces friction.
Thoughtfulness is key to transparency and even
cost containment—it abets rather than stifles
truth-telling.
#34
none!
139,380 former
patients from 225 hospitals:
Press Ganey Assoc:
none
of THE top 15 factors
determining Patient Satisfaction
referred to patient’s health outcome
P.S. directly related to Staff Interaction
P.P.S. directly correlated with Employee
Satisfaction
Source: Putting Patients First, Susan Frampton, Laura Gilpin, Patrick Charmel
“There is a misconception that supportive interactions require
more staff or more time and are therefore more costly. Although
labor costs are a substantial part of any hospital budget, the
interactions themselves add nothing to the budget.
Kindness is
free.
Listening to patients or answering their
questions costs nothing. It can be argued that negative
interactions—alienating patients, being non-responsive to their
needs or limiting their sense of control—can be very costly. …
Angry, frustrated or frightened patients may be combative,
withdrawn and less cooperative—requiring far more time
than it would have taken to interact with them initially in a
positive way.” —Putting Patients First, Susan Frampton,
Laura Gilpin, Patrick Charmel
“Kindness
is free.”
“Courtesies of a small and
trivial character are the
ones which strike
deepest in the grateful
and appreciating heart.”
—Henry Clay
#35
Excellence.
Excellence. Always.
If not Excellence,
what?
If not Excellence now,
when?
“Excellence can be obtained if you:
... care more than others think
is wise;
... risk more than others think
is safe;
... dream more than others think
is practical;
... expect more than others think
is possible.”
Source: Anon. (Posted @ tompeters.com by
K.Sriram, November 27, 2006 1:17 AM)
#36
**People
**Action
**Execution
**Innovation
**(un)Common Virtues
**“hard is soft.
Soft is hard.”
**Excellence.
**K.I.S.S.
#37
Excellence:
The
Leadership
50
bedrock.
1. Leaders …
serve.
Organizations
exist to serve.
Period.
Leaders live to
serve. Period.
The Basic
Mechanism.
2. Leadership Is a
Mutual
Discovery
Process.
…
“Ninety percent of what
we call ‘management’
consists of making it
difficult for people to
get things done.”
– Peter Drucker
Organizing Genius / Warren Bennis
and Patricia Ward Biederman
“Groups become great only when
everyone in them, leaders and
members alike, is free to do his or
her absolute best.”
“The best thing a leader can do for a
Great Group is to allow its
members to discover their
greatness.”
Leaders’ “Mt Everest Test”
“free to do his or her
absolute best” …
“allow its members to
discover their
greatness.”
The
Leadership
Types.
3. Great Leaders on White Horses Are
Great Talent
Developers (Type I
Leadership) are the Bedrock
Important – but
of Organizations that Perform Over
the Long Haul.
Whoops:
Jack didn’t have
a vision!
4. But There Are Times
When the “visionary”
“Type” (Type II
Leadership) Matters!
“A leader is a
dealer in
hope.”
—Napoleon
5. Find the
“Businesspeople”!
(Type III Leadership)
I.P.M.
(Inspired
Profit Mechanic)
6. All Organizations
Need … the Golden
Leadership
Triangle.
The Golden Leadership Triangle:
(1) Talent Fanatic …
(2) Visionary …
(3) Inspired Profit
Mechanic.
7. Leadership Mantra #1:
IT ALL DEPENDS!
Renaissance Men
are … a snare,
a myth,
a delusion!
8. The Leader Is
Rarely/Never the
Best Performer.
The
Leadership
Dance.
9. Leaders …
SHOW UP!
MBWA
“It’s always
showtime.”
—David D’Alessandro, Career Warfare
10. Leaders …
LOVE the
MESS!
“If things seem
under control,
you’re just not
going fast
enough.”
—Mario Andretti
11. Leaders
“We have a
‘strategic’
plan. It’s
called doing
things.”
— Herb Kelleher
12. Leaders
Re
-do.
Phil Crosby
is an idiot!
“We made mistakes, of course. Most of them were
omissions we didn’t think of when we initially wrote the
software. We fixed them by doing it over and over, again
and again. We do the same today. While our competitors
are still sucking their thumbs trying to make the design
perfect, we’re already on prototype version
#5.
By the time our rivals are
ready with wires and screws, we are on version
#10. It gets back to planning
versus acting: We act from day
one; others plan how to plan—
for months.” —Bloomberg by Bloomberg
13. BUT … Leaders
Know
When to
Wait.
Tex Schramm:
The
“too hard”
box!
14. Leaders Are …
Optimists.
Hackneyed but none the less
LEADERS SEE
CUPS AS “HALF
FULL.”
true:
“[Ronald
Reagan] radiated an
almost
transcendent
happiness.”
Half-full Cups:
—Lou Cannon
15. Leaders
FOCUS!
“Dennis, you need a …
‘To-don’t ’
List !”
“I used to have a rule for myself that at any point in
time I wanted to have in mind — as it so happens,
also in writing, on a little card I carried around with
me — the three big things I was trying to get done.
Three.
Not two.
Not four.
Not five.
Not ten.
Three.”
— Richard Haass, The Power to Persuade
“The one thing you need
to know about sustained
individual success:
Discover what you don’t
like doing and
stop
doing it.”
—Marcus Buckingham, The One Thing You Need to Know
16. Leaders … Send
V-E-R-Y Clear
Signals
About
What’s Important!
Danger:
S.I.O.
(Strategic Initiative Overload)
“Really Important
Stuff”: Roger’s
Rule of Three!
If It Ain’t
Broke …
Break It.
17. Leaders …
FORGET!/
Leaders …
DESTROY!
Forget>“Learn”
“The problem is never how
to get new, innovative
thoughts into your mind,
but how to get the old
ones out.” —Dee Hock
“I am often asked by would-be entrepreneurs
seeking escape from life within huge corporate
structures, ‘How do I build a small firm for
Buy
a very large one
and just wait.”
myself?’ The answer seems obvious:
—Paul Ormerod, Why Most Things Fail:
Evolution, Extinction and Economics
18. BUT … Leaders
Have to Deliver, So They
Worry About “Throwing
the Baby Out with the
Bathwater.”
“Damned If You
Do, Damned If You
Don’t, Just Plain
Damned.”
Subtitle in the chapter, “Own Up to the Great Paradox: Success Is
the Product of Deep Grooves/ Deep Grooves Destroy Adaptivity,”
Liberation Management (1992)
19. Leaders …
HONOR THE
USURPERS.
Saviors-in-Waiting
Disgruntled Customers
Upstart Competitors
Rogue Employees
Fringe Suppliers
Source: Wayne Burkan, Wide Angle Vision
20. Leaders Make
[Lots of]
Mistakes – and
MAKE NO BONES
ABOUT IT!
“Fail faster.
Succeed
sooner.”
—David Kelley/IDEO
21. Leaders Make …
BIG MISTAKES!
“Reward
excellent
failures. Punish
mediocre
successes.”
—Phil Daniels
Create.
22. Leaders Know that THERE’S
MORE TO LIFE THAN “LINE
EXTENSIONS.” Leaders Love to …
CREATE NEW
MARKETS.
“Acquisitions are about
buying market share. Our
challenge is to
create markets.
There is a big difference.”
—Peter Job, CEO, Reuters
23. Leaders … Make
Their Mark /
Do Stuff
That Matters
Leaders …
“I never, ever thought of
myself as a businessman.
I was interested in
creating things
I would be
proud of.” —Richard Branson
24. Leaders Push Their
W-a-y
Up the Valueadded Chain.
Organizations …
And the “M” Stands for … ?
“Systems
Integrator of choice.”/BW
Gerstner’s IBM:
(“Lou, help us turn ‘all this’ into that long-promised ‘revolution.’ ” )
IBM Global Services*
Services Corp.):
$55B
(*Integrated Systems
25. Leaders Push Past
Service “Transactions” to
… Scintillating
Experiences.
“Experiences
are as distinct
from services as
services are from
goods.”
—Joe Pine & Jim Gilmore, The
Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a
Stage
26. Leaders
LOVE the
New Technology!
Power Tools
For Power
Strategies/
ARD 40K
27. Needed? Type IV
Leadership:
Technology
Dreamer-True
Believer
The Golden Leadership
Quadrangle: (1) Talent
Fanatic … (2) Visionary …
(3) Inspired Profit
Mechanic …
(4) Technology DreamerTrue Believer.
Talent.
28. Leaders …
DO TALENT!
Brand =
Talent.
‘do’
“Leaders
people.
Period.”
—Anon.
29. When It Comes
TALENT
to
…
Leaders Always Go
Berserk!
From “1, 2 or you’re out” [JW]
to …
“Best Talent in
each industry segment to
build best proprietary
intangibles” [EM]
Source: Ed Michaels, War for Talent
30. Leaders Listen.
Leaders
Consult.
The “One line of code”
Theorem: All we-“they”me want is (1) to be
consulted, (2) to be taken
seriously, (3) a tiny show
of appreciation
Passion.
31. Leaders …
“Sell”
PASSION!
“People want to be part of
something larger than
themselves. They want to be
part of something they’re
really proud of, that they’ll
fight for, sacrifice for ,
trust.”
—Howard Schultz, Starbucks (IBD/09.05)
“Create a
‘cause,’ not a
‘business.’ ”
Gary Hamel:
32. Leaders Know:
ENTHUSIASM
BEGETS
ENTHUSIASM!
BZ: “I am a …
Dispenser of
Enthusiasm!”
“Nothing is so
contagious as
enthusiasm.”
—Samuel Taylor Coleridge
33. Leaders Are …
in a Hurry
“We don’t sell insurance
We sell
speed.”
anymore.
Peter Lewis, Progressive
“Metabolic
Management”
34. Leaders
Focus on the
SOFT STUFF!
“Hard” is
“soft.”
“Soft” Is
“hard.”
The “Job” of
Leading.
35. Leaders Know It’s
ALL SALES ALL
THE TIME.
If you don’t
LOVE
SALES … find
another life. (Don’t pretend
you’re a “leader.”)
36. Leaders
LOVE
“POLITICS.”
If you don’t LOVE
POLITICS … find
another life.
(Don’t pretend
you’re a “leader.”)
All success is a
Matter of
implementation.
All implementation is
a matter of politics.
37. But … Leaders Also
Break a Lot
of China.
Characteristics of the “Also rans”*
“Minimize risk”
“Respect the chain of
command”
“Support the boss”
“Make budget”
*Fortune, “Most Admired Global Corporations”
38. Leaders
Give …
RESPECT!
“It was much later that I realized Dad’s
secret. He gained respect by giving it. He
talked and listened to the fourth-grade kids
in Spring Valley who shined shoes the same
way he talked and listened to a bishop or a
He was
seriously interested in
who you were and
what you had to say.”
college president.
Source: Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, Respect
Amen!
“What creates trust, in
the end, is the leader’s
manifest respect for
the followers.” — Jim O’Toole,
Leading Change
39. Leaders Say
“Thank
You.”
“The deepest human
need to
be appreciated.”
need is the
William James
40. Leaders
Are …
Curious.
The Three Most Important Letters …
WHY?
41. Leadership Is
a…
Performance.
“It is necessary for the
President to be the
No. 1
actor.”
nation’s
FDR
42. Leaders … Are
The Brand
“You must
be
the change you
wish to see in the
world.”
Gandhi
43. Leaders …
GREAT
STORY!
Have a
“A key – perhaps the key –
to leadership is
the effective
communication
of a story.”
Howard Gardner
Leading Minds: An Anatomy of Leadership
“Leaders don’t just make
products and make decisions.
Leaders make
meaning.”
– John Seely Brown
Leader Job 1
Paint
Portraits of
Excellence!
Introspection.
44.
Leaders …
Enjoy
Leading.
“Tom, you
left out one
thing …”
45. Leaders
LAUGH!
46. Leaders …
KNOW
THEMSELVES.
Individuals (would-be leaders)
cannot engage in a
liberating mutual discovery
process unless they are
comfortable with their
own skin. (“Leaders” who are not
comfortable with themselves become petty
control freaks.)
47. But …
Leaders have
MENTORS.
Upon having the
Leadership Mantle placed
upon one’s head, he/she
never
shall
hear
the unvarnished truth
again!*
(*Therefore, she/he needs one faithful compatriot
to lay it on with no jelly.)
The End
Game.
48. Leaders
are …
RELENTLESS.
“This [adolescent] incident [of getting from point A to point B] is notable
not only because it underlines Grant’s fearless horsemanship and his
determination, but also it is the first known example of a very important
Grant had an
extreme, almost phobic
dislike of turning back
and retracing his steps.
peculiarity of his character:
If he
set out for somewhere, he would get there somehow, whatever the
difficulties that lay in his way. This idiosyncrasy would turn out to be one
the factors that made him such a formidable general. Grant would always,
always press on—turning back was not an option for him.”
—Michael Korda, Ulysses Grant
Relentless: “One of
my superstitions had always been
when I started to go anywhere or
not to
turn back , or stop,
to do anything,
until the thing intended was
accomplished.” —Grant
“Success seems to be
largely a matter
of hanging on
after others have
let go.”
—William Feather, author
49. Leaders
???:
“Leadership is the
PROCESS of ENGAGING
PEOPLE in CREATING a
LEGACY of
EXCELLENCE.”
50. Leaders Free
the Lunatic
Within!
“You can’t behave
in a calm, rational
manner. You’ve got
to be out there on
the lunatic fringe.”
— Jack Welch
The greatest danger
for most of us
is not that our aim is
too high
and we miss it,
but that it is
too low
and we reach it.
Michelangelo
Kevin Roberts’ Credo
1. Ready. Fire! Aim.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
If it ain’t broke ... Break it!
Hire crazies.
Ask dumb questions.
Pursue failure.
Lead, follow ... or get out of the way!
Spread confusion.
Ditch your office.
Read odd stuff.
10. Avoid moderation!
51. Leaders
Relentlessly Pursue …
Excellence
Excellence Is a
Universal
Striving.
If Not
Excellence,
What?
#38
The
Recession 44.
Forty-four “Secrets”
and “clever Strategies”
For dealing with the
Recession of 2008-XXXX
I am constantly asked for
'secrets'
“strategies/
for
surviving the recession.” I try
to appear wise and informed—
and parade original,
sophisticated thoughts. But if
you want to know what’s
really going through my
head, see the list that follows.
44 “Secrets” and “Clever Strategies” For
Dealing with the Recession of 2007+
You come earlier.
You leave later.
You work harder.
You may well work for less; and, if so, you
adapt to the untoward circumstances with a
smile—even if it kills you inside.
You volunteer to do more.
You dig deep and always bring a good attitude
to work.
You fake it if your good attitude flags.
You literally practice your "game face" in the
mirror in the morning, and in the loo
mid-morning.
You give new meaning to the idea and intensive
practice of “visible management.”
44 “Secrets” and “Clever Strategies” For
Dealing with the Recession of 2008-XXXX
You take better than usual care of yourself and
encourage others to do the same—physical
well-being determines mental well-being and
response to stress.
You shrug off shit that flows downhill in your
direction—buy a shovel or a “pre-worn”
raincoat on eBay.
You try to forget about “the good old days”—
nostalgia is self-destructive.
You buck yourself up with the thought that
“this too shall pass”—but then remind yourself
that it might not pass any time soon, and so
you re-dedicate yourself to making the
absolute best of what you have now.
44 “Secrets” and “Clever Strategies” For
Dealing with the Recession of 2008-XXXX
You work the phones and then work the
phones some more—and stay in touch with
positively everyone.
You frequently invent breaks from routine,
including “weird” ones—“changeups” prevent
wallowing and bring a fresh perspective.
You eschew all forms of personal excess.
You simplify.
You sweat the details as never before.
You sweat the details as never before.
You sweat the details as never before.
You raise to the sky and maintain at all
costs the Standards of Excellence by which
you unfailingly evaluate your own performance.
You are maniacal when it comes to responding
to even the slightest screw-up.
44 “Secrets” and “Clever Strategies” For
Dealing with the Recession of 2008-XXXX
You find ways to be around young people and
to keep young people around—they are less
likely to be members of the “sky is falling”
school.
You learn new tricks of your trade.
You remind yourself that this is not just
something to be “gotten through”—it is the
Final Exam of character.
You network like a demon.
You network inside the company—get to know
more of the folks who “do the real work.”
You network outside the company—get to
know more of the folks who “do the real
work” in vendor-customer outfits.
44 “Secrets” and “Clever Strategies” For
Dealing with the Recession of 2008-XXXX
You thank others by the truckload if good
things happen—and take the heat yourself if
bad things happen.
You behave kindly, but you don't sugarcoat or
hide the truth--humans are startlingly
resilient and rumors are the real killers.
You treat small successes as if they were
Superbowl victories—and celebrate and
commend accordingly.
You shrug off the losses (ignoring what's going
on in your tummy), and get back on the
horse and immediately try again.
You avoid negative people to the extent you
can—pollution kills.
You eventually read the gloom-sprayers the
riot act.
44 “Secrets” and “Clever Strategies” For
Dealing with the Recession of 2008-XXXX
You give new meaning to the word "thoughtful.“
You don’t put limits on the flowers budget—
“bright and colorful” works marvels.
You redouble, re-triple your efforts to "walk in
your customer's shoes." (Especially if the
shoes smell.)
You mind your manners—and accept others’
lack of manners in the face of their strains.
You are kind to all mankind.
You keep your shoes shined.
You leave the blame game at the office door.
You call out the congenital politicians in no
uncertain terms.
You become a paragon of personal accountability.
And then you pray.