Avoiding Another Dumb Management Mania-The Disposable Worker

I wrote last week on “Thoughts on Leading and Managing in the Era of the Disposable Worker.” The post was prompted by an article in BusinessWeek, outlining this latest gem of management wisdom that has organizations of all types rethinking the need for employees and shifting to contract workers. Positions from the CEO suite to those types of roles that we’ve become accustomed to outsourcing, and everything in-between, are fair game. I’m traditionally leery of fads of all sorts, as they tend to be driven by hysteria, causing normally sane and rational people to act in a manner that defies explanation. I'm fearful that we are on the brink of another horrendous, value-destroying mania as we embrace the short-term cost convenient fad of creating disposable workers.

By |2016-10-22T17:11:57-05:00January 20th, 2010|Uncategorized|9 Comments

Leader, What Are You Doing to Improve Your Value Creation?

Leadership should be one of the principal value creation components of the management system, yet poor leadership practices often result in increased complexity, added waste and blocked attempts to streamline processes and make improvements that would otherwise benefit the organization and its customers. One of the key reasons that leaders and leadership practices often fail to create value (or to create more value) is the lack of a common operational and actionable definition for the role of a leader.

By |2016-10-22T17:12:17-05:00December 26th, 2008|Leadership, Leading Change, Management Innovation|1 Comment

Is it Time to Panic?

It is a time to adopt a philosophy that seeks to find opportunity in chaos. It is a time to carefully evaluate your strategies and check your assumptions. It is also a time to consider making some hard calls on your future.

By |2016-10-22T17:12:20-05:00September 27th, 2008|Leadership|0 Comments

We Are All Just Temporary Stewards

From my own perspective, I like the concept of thinking about our tenure as finite. It creates a sense of urgency and it helps focus on priorities. I’ve observed too many corporate managers that lost track of the fact that they are not guaranteed a job or even that their company will be there next week. Once you start acting like you own the bricks and mortar and the chair and desk that you sit at and even the people that work for you, your judgment clouds, your motivation weakens and your intentions become suspect.

By |2016-10-22T17:12:21-05:00August 20th, 2008|Leadership|5 Comments
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