http://artpetty.com Leadership, Management and Professional Development Wed, 23 May 2012 22:31:28 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 copyright by Art Petty, 2011 art.petty@artpetty.com (Art Petty) art.petty@artpetty.com (Art Petty) 1440 http://artpetty.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Lcpodcast144x144.png http://artpetty.com 144 144 http://artpetty.com/feed/podcast Leadership Caffeine Podcast Host Art Petty interviews leaders, leadership authors, management thinkers and other professionals about creating high performance teams and organizations and developing effective leaders at all levels, during this weekly program. The goal is to share practical, powerful ideas to help listeners improve their performance and the performance of their teams and organizations. Caffene, Ldrshp, Profesional, Dev, Ledership, Ldrshp, Caffeine, Proff'l, Dev Art Petty Art Petty art.petty@artpetty.com no no http://artpetty.com/2012/03/03/systems-thinking-meets-platform-strategy-and-social-media-via-nike/ http://artpetty.com/2012/03/03/systems-thinking-meets-platform-strategy-and-social-media-via-nike/#comments Sat, 03 Mar 2012 18:09:25 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=7248 While I admit to being one of those people who views the idea of running as much more attractive than the actual running part (thus far, I've been satisfied to pass runners on my Specialized Road Bike, thank you), I’m blown away by Nike’s strategy with their Digital Plus business and specifically, their Nike+ program for runners. If you are not a member of Nike+ or, if you are not familiar with it, put on your strategy and marketing glasses and take a close look at what they are doing to differentiate, build communities and increase the dialogue with their customers.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2012/03/03/systems-thinking-meets-platform-strategy-and-social-media-via-nike/feed/ 0 http://artpetty.com/2012/02/22/leaders-tattoo-this-causal-relationship-on-your-forearms/ http://artpetty.com/2012/02/22/leaders-tattoo-this-causal-relationship-on-your-forearms/#comments Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:47:59 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=7210 I’ve been mildly surprised that the book, Beyond Performance-How Great Organizations Build Competitive Advantage by Scott Keller and Colin Price, hasn’t commanded more attention in mainstream business circles. Perhaps we’ve grown numb to the almost endless number of books purporting to show us the way to sustained success. However, don’t let the existence of 25,000 or so books published on managing change during the past two decades, blind you to some of the important and data-backed conclusions of Beyond Performance. Here are some reasons why this may be one of the more important books you will read this decade:

]]> http://artpetty.com/2012/02/22/leaders-tattoo-this-causal-relationship-on-your-forearms/feed/ 6 http://artpetty.com/2012/02/08/lessons-in-management-innovation-from-main-street/ http://artpetty.com/2012/02/08/lessons-in-management-innovation-from-main-street/#comments Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:01:00 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=7064 During the past few years, I’ve marveled at the start-ups and small to mid-sized businesses in my community who didn’t need an army of consultants or MBAs to teach them the very relevant and important lessons that Reeves and Deimler share in their recent Harvard Business Review article, "Adaptability-The New Competitive Advantage."

]]> http://artpetty.com/2012/02/08/lessons-in-management-innovation-from-main-street/feed/ 4 http://artpetty.com/2012/02/01/no-one-asked-my-opinion-but-100-billion-for-what/ http://artpetty.com/2012/02/01/no-one-asked-my-opinion-but-100-billion-for-what/#comments Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:29:32 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6988 As of this writing, the world is abuzz with the expected Facebook IPO. The number $100 billion is being floated and passed around (probably by those who stand to benefit from a big IPO), and whether real or wild speculation, that’s a number that gives one cause to pause. This is beginning to feel like Déjà vu all over again (thanks, Yogi Berra), much like that fascinating period in the late ‘90’s when stratospheric valuations were applied to firms that had no products, no earnings and sometimes no revenues.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2012/02/01/no-one-asked-my-opinion-but-100-billion-for-what/feed/ 4 http://artpetty.com/2012/01/25/strategy-towards-hypotheses-experiments-involvement-learning/ http://artpetty.com/2012/01/25/strategy-towards-hypotheses-experiments-involvement-learning/#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 17:22:13 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6946 Few would argue that a nimble, quick-to-learn and quick-to-adapt organization is a bad thing. Given the rate of change in our world, those characteristics are increasingly table-stakes for survival and success. Why then has the approach to strategy and the notion of “strategic planning” in so many organizations remained mired in a 1960’s kind of static, top-down event-focused model? Here are six ideas to transform your organization's approach to and effectiveness with strategy.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2012/01/25/strategy-towards-hypotheses-experiments-involvement-learning/feed/ 6 http://artpetty.com/2012/01/20/the-heavy-lifting-of-career-re-invention-5-keys-to-moving-forward/ http://artpetty.com/2012/01/20/the-heavy-lifting-of-career-re-invention-5-keys-to-moving-forward/#comments Fri, 20 Jan 2012 16:02:52 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6930 Whether you are a few years removed from college or a few years removed from that time when prior generations began thinking about retiring, chances are, you or someone you know is involved in defining or redefining their career. It’s a daunting task in a world where the old rules no longer apply. Here are 5 key areas for you to focus on as you move forward with this challenging work:

]]> http://artpetty.com/2012/01/20/the-heavy-lifting-of-career-re-invention-5-keys-to-moving-forward/feed/ 8 http://artpetty.com/2011/12/31/thoughts-on-your-personal-and-professional-success-in-the-new-year/ http://artpetty.com/2011/12/31/thoughts-on-your-personal-and-professional-success-in-the-new-year/#comments Sat, 31 Dec 2011 18:02:48 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6877 I was truly gifted in 2011 to gain access to and work with and support some remarkable professionals across a number of different market segments…from high tech to professional services to manufacturing, and I learned something with every engagement and encounter. Here are Six Lessons Learned that Can Help Us All in the New Year:

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/12/31/thoughts-on-your-personal-and-professional-success-in-the-new-year/feed/ 0 http://artpetty.com/2011/11/29/3-key-strategy-questions-to-ask-your-teams-regularly/ http://artpetty.com/2011/11/29/3-key-strategy-questions-to-ask-your-teams-regularly/#comments Tue, 29 Nov 2011 17:49:51 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6801 In my experience, the management teams that lead the best performing businesses are those that incorporate at least three key strategic questions into almost every operational and status discussion. The gross majority of the dialogue in an organization is about How, and Who and When and the important What and Why issues are left for strategy meetings and other “high-level” discussions. While understandable in the hectic pace of the workday, the shortage of these important What and Why discussions reinforces a dangerous form of operational myopia, where the underlying and unspoken assumption is: If we simply get this done, we’ll be better off as a firm

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/11/29/3-key-strategy-questions-to-ask-your-teams-regularly/feed/ 6 http://artpetty.com/2011/11/08/ten-places-where-management-teams-misstep-on-strategy/ http://artpetty.com/2011/11/08/ten-places-where-management-teams-misstep-on-strategy/#comments Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:56:03 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6735 Strategy…the discussions…the decisions and of course, the execution, is hard work filled with ample opportunities to misstep. From revisiting and updating the underlying assumptions about your business, markets and competitors, to the vexing issues of deciding what to do and what not to do, it’s no surprise that many management teams avoid this work and focus more on incremental operations planning and improvement. However, for those who are courageous enough to go down this important path and do the heavy lifting, here are my top 10 pitfalls and speed bumps to avoid during your journey. 10 Places Where Management Teams Misstep on Strategy...

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/11/08/ten-places-where-management-teams-misstep-on-strategy/feed/ 0 http://artpetty.com/2011/10/19/leadership-caffeine-podcast-10-geoffrey-moore-on-escape-velocity/ http://artpetty.com/2011/10/19/leadership-caffeine-podcast-10-geoffrey-moore-on-escape-velocity/#comments Wed, 19 Oct 2011 14:58:06 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6688 Organizations of all sizes and types, from high tech to manufacturing and not-for-profit, struggle with a common dilemma...how to escape the pull of the past as they look forward into a fast-changing and very different world. Geoffrey A. Moore, the renowned high-tech strategist and author, perhaps best known for his book, Crossing the Chasm, a guide to helping firms move from early adopters across this fateful and often fatal canyon, is back with his latest book, Escape Velocity-Free Your Company's Future from the Pull of the Past. In the book, Moore tackles this tough topic of moving beyond successes of the past towards new generations of offerings and growth.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/10/19/leadership-caffeine-podcast-10-geoffrey-moore-on-escape-velocity/feed/ 5 0:26:14 Organizations of all sizes and types, from high tech to manufacturing and not-for-profit, struggle with a common dilemma...how to escape the pull of the past as they look forward into a fast-changing and very different world. Geoffrey A. Moore, the [...] Organizations of all sizes and types, from high tech to manufacturing and not-for-profit, struggle with a common dilemma...how to escape the pull of the past as they look forward into a fast-changing and very different world. Geoffrey A. Moore, the renowned high-tech strategist and author, perhaps best known for his book, Crossing the Chasm, a guide to helping firms move from early adopters across this fateful and often fatal canyon, is back with his latest book, Escape Velocity-Free Your Company's Future from the Pull of the Past. In the book, Moore tackles this tough topic of moving beyond successes of the past towards new generations of offerings and growth. Caffene, Ldrshp, Profesional, Dev, Ledership, Ldrshp, Caffeine, Proff'l, Dev Art Petty no no http://artpetty.com/2011/10/17/leadership-caffeine-speed-kills-10-situations-to-call-a-timeout/ http://artpetty.com/2011/10/17/leadership-caffeine-speed-kills-10-situations-to-call-a-timeout/#comments Mon, 17 Oct 2011 14:15:23 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6646 Somewhere on the way to this world we now live and work in, “speed” became a proxy for success. Speed is undoubtedly important, but beware relying on it as the sole indicator of effectiveness. It’s a cruel tyrant, demanding fealty from followers, while discouraging critical and deep thinking and focusing solely on time-to-response as a metric of success. Here are at least 10 situations where you should resist the need for speed and call a timeout:

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/10/17/leadership-caffeine-speed-kills-10-situations-to-call-a-timeout/feed/ 3 http://artpetty.com/2011/09/12/leadership-caffeine-always-lead-with-context/ http://artpetty.com/2011/09/12/leadership-caffeine-always-lead-with-context/#comments Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:44:02 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=6452 Context in this case is that not-so-secret ingredient that helps people understand the idea or issue and how it connects to something important in the workplace. Context provides the basis for understanding and assessing a situation or a request to do something. It has the equivalent workplace outcome of adding yeast to the process of making bread. Without it, everything is flat. Improve performance by providing critical context at the organizational, strategic and personal levels.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/09/12/leadership-caffeine-always-lead-with-context/feed/ 7 http://artpetty.com/2011/06/08/why-its-time-to-ditch-your-plans-for-the-summer-strategy-off-site/ http://artpetty.com/2011/06/08/why-its-time-to-ditch-your-plans-for-the-summer-strategy-off-site/#comments Wed, 08 Jun 2011 13:51:10 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=5839 From the symbolism of the annual off-site strategy event to the cost to the fact that strategic thinking time is reduced to a once or twice a year event, this approach is anachronistic in a world with markets and conditions changing daily. In twenty years of these things with some great people and great businesses, I’ve yet to see anything come out of these meetings that changed our businesses. I will offer that they did allow for another layer of vetting and idea absorption. Nonetheless, the heavy lifting took place with others outside of the cozy confines of a resort or hotel meeting room. It's time to ditch the annual strategy off-site.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/06/08/why-its-time-to-ditch-your-plans-for-the-summer-strategy-off-site/feed/ 0 http://artpetty.com/2011/05/11/frontline-leaders-help-our-firms-go-and-grow/ http://artpetty.com/2011/05/11/frontline-leaders-help-our-firms-go-and-grow/#comments Wed, 11 May 2011 13:37:04 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=5731 Great frontline leaders create great experiences for their employees. This flows immediately and directly to customers. And then it flows to the top and bottom lines.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/05/11/frontline-leaders-help-our-firms-go-and-grow/feed/ 7 http://artpetty.com/2011/04/25/leadership-caffeine-motivate-with-context/ http://artpetty.com/2011/04/25/leadership-caffeine-motivate-with-context/#comments Mon, 25 Apr 2011 16:15:20 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=5690 We waste fortunes inside our organizations on misguided programs and oddball incentives, seeking ways to motivate and inspire people to work hard, innovate, create, care and to live up to their potential, when the real solution is literally on the tip of our tongues. Here are 5 ideas for curing Context Deficit Disorder:

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/04/25/leadership-caffeine-motivate-with-context/feed/ 13 http://artpetty.com/2011/02/11/management-week-in-review-for-february-11-2011/ http://artpetty.com/2011/02/11/management-week-in-review-for-february-11-2011/#comments Fri, 11 Feb 2011 13:28:04 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=5258 Every Friday, I share three thought-provoking management posts for the week. Fair warning: I take a broad view of management, so my selections will range from leadership to innovation to finance and personal development and beyond. This week's selections feature content on corporate struggles in a changing world, ideas on creating organizations that drive remarkable commitment from their employees and customers, and a buffet of great leadership reading options at the February Leadership Development Carnival. Enjoy!

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/02/11/management-week-in-review-for-february-11-2011/feed/ 3 http://artpetty.com/2011/01/12/want-to-change-the-world-dont-forget-to-build-your-business-model/ http://artpetty.com/2011/01/12/want-to-change-the-world-dont-forget-to-build-your-business-model/#comments Wed, 12 Jan 2011 13:37:35 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=5073 Over the past few weeks, I’ve connected with some brilliant individuals in multiple entrepreneurial organizations. In every instance, I heard some form of “We want to change the world” as these high-energy individuals described their ideas and their motivation. I love “change the world ideas” put forth by people passionate about doing something new, doing something better and helping others along the way. There’s no way I can avoid cheering for these teams. However, I can worry for them. Here's why...

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/01/12/want-to-change-the-world-dont-forget-to-build-your-business-model/feed/ 4 http://artpetty.com/2011/01/07/management-week-in-review-january-7-2011/ http://artpetty.com/2011/01/07/management-week-in-review-january-7-2011/#comments Fri, 07 Jan 2011 15:08:14 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=5027 One of my professional goals this year is to do a better job sharing insights and perspectives from a broad range of great leadership and management writers and thinkers. Every Friday, I will share my three favorites for the week. This week, I'm including content on transforming yourself, testing your strategy and turning some of the disasters of 2010 into great lessons for 2011. Enjoy!

]]> http://artpetty.com/2011/01/07/management-week-in-review-january-7-2011/feed/ 4 http://artpetty.com/2010/12/08/management-excellence-book-series-six-disciplines-execution-revolution-with-gary-harpst/ http://artpetty.com/2010/12/08/management-excellence-book-series-six-disciplines-execution-revolution-with-gary-harpst/#comments Wed, 08 Dec 2010 14:55:33 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=4673 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. Enjoy the thoughtful, actionable and experience-tested guidance from Gary in our podcast interview!

]]> http://artpetty.com/2010/12/08/management-excellence-book-series-six-disciplines-execution-revolution-with-gary-harpst/feed/ 0 0:27:57 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 Discipli[...] 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. Enjoy the thoughtful, actionable and experience-tested guidance from Gary in our podcast interview! Leadership, Performance, Strategy Art Petty no no http://artpetty.com/2010/12/07/10-of-my-favorite-dumb-ass-management-mistakes/ http://artpetty.com/2010/12/07/10-of-my-favorite-dumb-ass-management-mistakes/#comments Tue, 07 Dec 2010 15:00:35 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=4666 In the spirit of my post, “At Least 20 Things to Stop Doing as a Leader,” which has grown well north of 50 thanks to a deluge of reader comments, I’m back with a list of some insanely stupid and all-too-common management mistakes. These focus more on the decisions, actions or inactions that contribute to creating even bigger problems. While I’ve remained on the positive side of the law here (felons, you’ve had your day!), some of these mistakes are truly criminal. Please feel free to chime in with your additions.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2010/12/07/10-of-my-favorite-dumb-ass-management-mistakes/feed/ 9 http://artpetty.com/2010/10/26/marketers-4-ideas-to-avoid-falling-victim-to-the-felt-need/ http://artpetty.com/2010/10/26/marketers-4-ideas-to-avoid-falling-victim-to-the-felt-need/#comments Tue, 26 Oct 2010 13:04:16 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=4450 The article, “The Felt Need” by Dan and Chip Heath in the November, 2010 issue of Fast Company is worth the price of the annual subscription for it’s reminder value alone. The Heaths tackle a topic that just about all of us involved in selling, marketing or strategy have succumbed to at some point in our careers: the felt need versus the burning need. Here are four ideas to avoid being victimized by "The Felt Need."

]]> http://artpetty.com/2010/10/26/marketers-4-ideas-to-avoid-falling-victim-to-the-felt-need/feed/ 2 http://artpetty.com/2010/09/09/the-importance-of-strategy-fueled-leadership/ http://artpetty.com/2010/09/09/the-importance-of-strategy-fueled-leadership/#comments Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:20:50 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=4310 I’ve written on the topic of Strategy Fueled Leadership several times, and fresh off of a great podcast interview with Gary Harpst, author of Six Disciplines Execution Revolution (stay tuned for my posting) and my recent interview with Jocelyn Davis for Strategic Speed, I am on my soapbox again. It is critical to link leadership with strategy and vice-versa and the failure to do this is one of the root causes of strategy and execution failure in organizations.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2010/09/09/the-importance-of-strategy-fueled-leadership/feed/ 3 http://artpetty.com/2010/08/31/management-excellence-book-series-podcast-strategic-speed/ http://artpetty.com/2010/08/31/management-excellence-book-series-podcast-strategic-speed/#comments Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:25:01 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=4250 I had the good fortune to connect recently with Jocelyn Davis, one of the co-authors (along with Henry Frechette, Jr., and Edwin Boswell) of Strategic Speed, for an interview, where we discussed the high failure rate of strategies, the meaning of "strategic speed," and a number of other issues important to anyone interested in improving strategy execution. Jocelyn's insights into the book and the world of strategy and leadership were fascinating.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2010/08/31/management-excellence-book-series-podcast-strategic-speed/feed/ 1 0:23:50 I had the good fortune to connect recently with Jocelyn Davis, one of the co-authors (along with Henry Frechette, Jr., and Edwin Boswell) of Strategic Speed, for an interview, where we discussed the high failure rate of strategies, the meaning of "s[...] I had the good fortune to connect recently with Jocelyn Davis, one of the co-authors (along with Henry Frechette, Jr., and Edwin Boswell) of Strategic Speed, for an interview, where we discussed the high failure rate of strategies, the meaning of "strategic speed," and a number of other issues important to anyone interested in improving strategy execution. Jocelyn's insights into the book and the world of strategy and leadership were fascinating. Leadership, Performance, Strategy Art Petty no no http://artpetty.com/2010/08/25/finding-time-to-focus-or-speed-kills/ http://artpetty.com/2010/08/25/finding-time-to-focus-or-speed-kills/#comments Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:52:41 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=4222 The lot of professionals inside many organizations can easily be characterized by a series of endless status meetings, hurried hallway conversations and messages quickly dispatched on a pda while walking, ignoring the meeting in process or consuming a protein bar on the run. Nonetheless, work gets done, customers are served and growth often created. I do however, worry and wonder about the human costs and the cost to the organization in lost-ideas, missed opportunities and a much more superficial existence.

]]> http://artpetty.com/2010/08/25/finding-time-to-focus-or-speed-kills/feed/ 13 http://artpetty.com/2010/06/16/what-if-why-not-and-other-incredible-business-adventures/ http://artpetty.com/2010/06/16/what-if-why-not-and-other-incredible-business-adventures/#comments Wed, 16 Jun 2010 12:36:59 +0000 Art Petty http://artpetty.com/?p=3917 While we celebrate companies that pursue and succeed in radically changing the rules of the game, let’s face it, most organizations run on inertia. For every company that redefines their little part of the world and changes our culture just a bit, there are plenty of firms that run on autopilot until the fuel runs out and the plane needs to be ditched in the ocean. The forces of globalization and digitization create storms and headwinds for some that are just too strong to overcome.

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