Management Excellence Book Series Podcast-Full Steam Ahead
Filed under: Leadership, Life and Business, Management Education, Management Excellence Book Series, Organizational Transformation, Performance, Values
I had the pleasure to connect on the phone with Jesse Lyn Stoner, co-author with Ken Blanchard of Full Steam Ahead-Unleash the Power of Vision in Your Work and Your Life (second edition), and this podcast is the output.
I like the book a great deal…and as I indicate in my intro comments, I tend to approach books on Vision with a bit of trepidation. Not only did Jesse and Ken quickly assuage my concerns that this might be another challenging walk through the V topic, but they had me turning the pages and truly loving both the story-line and the power and simplicity of their approach to this important but often abstract topic.
Full Steam Ahead truly helps bring the topic of vision to life for all of us on a professional and a personal level.
As an aside, some interviews flow and some are just a bit awkward. Talking with Jesse was a delight for so many reasons. Her energy, clarity and obvious deep practical knowledge and thoughtfulness on the subject matter, made this a true pleasure. I hope you enjoy the discussion about with Jesse as much as I did!
Note: My copy of Full Steam Ahead was provided by Jesse. Unlike many books that I receive, this one has earned a permanent place on my business bookshelf.
Important Reads: Almost Isn’t Good Enough, Wayne Elsey of Soles4Souls
Filed under: Fresh Voices, Leadership, Leading Change, Life and Business, Management Excellence Book Series, Organizational Transformation, Performance, Talent Management, Values, Your Professional Development "To Do" List
A Management Excellence Book Review:
This is not so much a book review as it is my reaction to a powerful work from a man doing remarkable things to change the world.
Almost Isn’t Good Enough by Soles4Souls founder, Wayne Elsey, is also a book about shoes. And about a man. And about the human condition. And about management and leadership. And about revolutionizing the management and fund-raising practices in the world of not-for-profit organizations.
That’s a lot of “Abouts” packed into 161 pages of pure motivation and inspiration. I read the book in one sitting (in lieu of watching the National Championship) and set the book down and sat there, almost breathless from the scope and scale of what Wayne and the team at Soles4Souls are working to achieve. To date, they’ve provided over 12 million pairs of shoes to those in need around the world, and the ticker on their web-site indicates one pair is provided every 7 seconds.
In addition to the good work that this former Shoe-industry executive and his team are doing to ease pain and suffering, I found Wayne’s approach to leading, managing and his propensity for action, action, action, refreshing. There’s inspiration and practical guidance here for every manager, leader and aspiring professional, regardless of industry or profit orientation.
Setting the Stage:
-From the Foreword by Dan Pallotta, author and nonprofit sector innovator: “This amazing book is part blueprint for running a 21st century humanitarian organization operating on the power of daring 21st century ideas, and part personal manifesto.”
-And from the Introduction by Wayne: “This book is a roadmap. It’s not another leadership book that offers a step-by-step program for success. It offers key principles that have defined my personal decision making and guided my professional success as a corporate executive and as a philanthropist and nonprofit leader.”
Art’s Comment: the book lives up to those bold claims. The story of Soles4Souls is appropriately told as part of the autobiography of its founder and offers his views on a broad range of managerial and leadership issues.
-On the power of clarity in pursuit of success: “Our success is a direct result of our commitment to keep our focus simple and clear. “Soles4Souls is about providing shoes to people in need.” Whatever other initiatives may come along, that one will remain the foundation of our organization.”
And:
-“Absolute clarity is the key to unlocking the complex nature of business and tapping into the energy that converts an idea to reality and transforms a hobby to an organization.”
Art’s comment: (roar of the crowd) “Yeah!”
More of What You Can Expect Without Stealing the Thunder:
- Beyond the opening and interesting autobiographical content, Wayne serves up a series of chapters rich in business lessons along with his perspectives on what it takes to succeed as a humanitarian organization in this chaotic world. And you cannot miss his consistent drumbeat on the need for Not-for-Profit leaders to revisit the assumptions on how they manage their organizations.
- The chapters on decision-making, the importance of growth, promoting a culture of action, obsessing over numbers and developing comfort with chaos, all offer pragmatic guidance backed by a loud reminder to quit talking and get moving.
- The parting content offers guidance for dealing with failure, the need to focus on the view out of the front windshield and the universal power of creating and providing hope. Last and not least, Wayne wraps the book up focusing on the motivational and transformational power of human connections.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
I’ll end where I started. This book moved me. I can count on one hand the number of books in the business/management genre that have had this impact.
There’s a series of powerful messages here, coupled with a call to action for all of us to get up and get moving. I’m drawn to non-traditional approaches to building great organizations and teams, and the book is filled with real-time and real-world examples.
At the end of the day, the leadership and management guidance here is both simple and profound: hire great people and pay them well, constantly clarify your mission, measure carefully and constantly, teach people to make fast decisions, say “no” to the wrong stuff, ensure that leaders knock down obstacles and promote action, action, action!
I truly hope that you enjoy the book as much as I did. Of course, after getting to know Wayne through the book, I think that he’ll care little for whether we like or don’t like the book, and be truly concerned on what we do with the insights to help our fellow travelers on life’s journey.
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Notes:
-I received a complimentary copy of the book from Wayne.
-The link to Amazon includes my affiliate link. Any and all commissions earned from this book will be passed along to Soles4Souls.
Management Excellence Book Review: Management? It’s Not What You Think
Filed under: Career, Fresh Voices, Leadership, Leadership Skills, Leading Change, Life and Business, Making Decisions, Management Education, Management Excellence Book Series, Middle Management, Organizational Transformation, Performance, Professional Growth, Social Commentary, Strategy, Surviving Lousy Leaders
I confess to having a proclivity for essay collections when it comes to reading about management. Essays move along quickly and they offer the reader the opportunity to capture quick sound bites over breakfast, on the train or in other ideal reading rooms. Also, there’s the reality that many management books struggle to adequately fill the space between the book-covers, offering up their best in the introduction, the first chapter and the wrap-up chapter.
Irreverent, Funny and Pointed with a Point:
I enjoyed the often irreverent, frequently amusing and always thought-provoking collection of essays in: Management? It’s Not What You Think, by Henry Mintzberg, Bruce Ahlstrand and Joseph Lampelis.
Like watching the popular show, The Office, reading many of these essays induces a cringe factor. The situations are a bit too close to reality for our own comfort, and we can see and hear ourselves and others in similar situations.
I laughed out loud while reading, Accenture’s Next Champion of Waffle Words, which unabashedly tackles the issue of our abuse of the language with business-speak…meaningless jargon wrapped in layers of B.S.
Other essays that induced laughter and agreement included: PowerPoint is Evil, Maxims In Need of a Makeover, and A Long Overdue Letter to the Board. Oh to meet a senior executive capable of writing that letter!
Mintzberg is known for his discomfort with contemporary MBA education (a view that I share), and his essay, Managers, not MBAs, strikes a blow for experience and immersion in the business over the stripes that we confer in the classroom.
Some Important Ideas Between the Covers:
And while there’s a decidedly irreverent tone concerning the traditional practice of management and leadership, the editors and authors serve up some important and thought-provoking ideas.
In the essay, Change Management, the author skewers the “dubious consulting industry and profession claiming to provide change management services.” The author offers, “Change can’t be managed. Change can be ignored, resisted, responded to, capitalized upon and created. But it can’t be managed and made to march to some orderly step-by-step process.”
Mintzberg’s essay, “Managing Quietly,” is a fitting capstone, based on the premise, “Quiet management is about thoughtfulness rooted in experience,” and, “…the best managing of all may well be the silent.”
The book is organized in 9 sections (including that ever-valuable, Introduction section) ranging from Misleading Management to Management of Meaning, Myths of Managing, Maxims of Managing, Managing Modestly and several others.
The Bottom-Line for Now:
If this were a movie review, I would be more positive than negative.
This collection of management essays is ideal for anyone on your list that is a thoughtful practitioner and student of the craft of management. The reader will enjoy the lighter moments as well as the irreverent pokes at much of what passes for contemporary management thinking and practice.
I’m not certain that there’s content in Management? It’s Not What you Think!, that will alter anyone’s view or drive new actions and cure old ills, but for those looking for reassurance that we’re all living and working in a universe that parallels “The Office” a bit too closely, this is entertaining and stimulating.
Management Excellence Book Series: Six Disciplines Execution Revolution with Gary Harpst
Filed under: Fresh Voices, Leadership, Management Education, Management Excellence Book Series, Performance, Strategy
I started this book series to share the insights and approaches of some truly sharp people on solving vexing business problems. This particular interview with Gary Harpst, author of, Six Disciplines Execution Revolution and the earlier Six Disciplines for Excellence, taps into Gary’s hard won, practical experience and his great ideas on helping small and mid-sized businesses deal with strategy execution.
On a personal note, the discussion, while remaining true to the strategy execution topic, ranged fairly far beyond the borders of the book. Talking with Gary during this interview was like engaging with the wise, thoughtful and helpful business advisor that we all wish we had. Gary offers experienced based, actionable ideas on improving business performance through great execution, that we can all put to use immediately.
Gary’s premise for his “Business Excellence Model” is described in the book as:
- “Excellence is the enduring pursuit of balanced strategy and execution.”
- “Planning and executing, while at the same time dealing with the inevitable surprises, is the biggest challenge in business.
- “Overcoming this challenge is what we mean by “solving the problem that makes all others easier.”
- “Failing to solve the problem destines your organization to a reactive, fire-fighting future.
During the podcast, we talk about the different stages/phases found in the “Business Excellence Model,” and reference the four-box matrix pictured here:
Enjoy the podcast and this unique opportunity to learn from someone that has lived what he is talking about from the business-owner’s side of the table, and now helps clients realize success by guiding them on effective strategy execution. I’m thrilled to feature Gary Harpst and his important thoughts on strategy execution here in the Management Excellence Book Series!
Gary Harpst Six Disciplines Execution Revolution podcast [ 27:57 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download–
Note from Art: I purchased the book, Six Disciplines Execution Revolution on my own and have no commercial motive for sharing this podcast and linking to Gary’s website. The Management Excellence Book Series podcasts are intended to share thoughts from leading figures in business and management writing.
Management Excellence Book Series: Power by Jeffrey Pfeffer
Filed under: Career, Fresh Voices, Leadership Skills, Life and Business, Management Education, Management Excellence Book Series, Marketing Yourself, Middle Management, Professional Growth, Your Professional Development "To Do" List
Power and influence are topics in the workplace that everyone recognizes but that few talk about. I suspect that after reading Jeffrey Pfeffer’s newest book, Power (available 9/14), this will change.
Pfeffer does a great job drawing the topic out, making it relevant and then politely suggesting that we ignore the development of our own influence…and ultimately, our power, at our own career peril. The book is filled with good examples, practical guidance, and I suspect for some people, eye-opening perspectives on why you should care about cultivating your influence.
I posted recently on this topic in a Leadership Caffeine piece, entitled: “The Noble Pursuit of Power and Influence,” which was in part inspired by a cover-to-cover reading of Jeffrey’s book. The topic is easily misconstrued and even inappropriately linked to the many ethics and legal violations that we’ve seen from too many leaders during the past decade. The comments and feedback on the post reflect both the recognition of the importance of the topic and some of the angst that we have over those that actively and overtly pursue power. At the risk of being redundant, I suspect that “Power” will help move the conversation towards the positive.
My bottom-line: this is an important “Why” and “How” guidebook for the modern professional.
Enjoy the conversation!
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Disclosure: a copy of the book was provided at no charge for my review.
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