success Archives

Constancy of Purpose In Pursuit of Success

Organizations and individuals march forward when they have a clear goal and sight and are driven by some deep collective conviction that when successful, the world will be a better place, that they will be better professionals and that their positions and as a result, their families will be secure. The earlier that a leader understands that creating “constancy of purpose” is a core task, the faster they are on their way to truly fulfilling their obligation and responsibility as a leader.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:21-05:00July 31st, 2008|Leadership, Leading Change, Strategy|2 Comments

Capturing Talent and Creating Great Customer Experiences: They Go Together

There’s no way that an organization that accommodates sloppy interviewing habits is landing and retaining the best and brightest. As a business leader, you want your customers to constantly be surprised and delighted. A manager that takes mid-interview smoke breaks and badgers a talented candidate about salary expectations is someone that I want working for my competitor.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:23-05:00July 18th, 2008|Leadership|0 Comments

Ironically, Mid-Level Managers May Save Your Business

Ever since terms like reengineering, right sizing and downsizing became part of the corporate lexicon; midlevel managers have been taking it on the chin. This once populous class has been synergized and right-sized almost to extinction. Those that remain often struggle with spans of control as wide as the Golden Gate Bridge and limited authority that is constantly challenged from above and below. I find it just a bit ironic (and appropriate) that this much-abused class of leader may just hold the key to surviving and prospering in tough times.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:23-05:00July 7th, 2008|Leadership, Product Management, Project Management, Strategy|0 Comments

It Might Be Time for You to Start Acting Like The Leader You Want to Be

A blog post at on Looking and Acting Like a Success at Alan Weis's Contrarian Consulting site triggered some thoughts on what it means to look and act like a leader. While Alan's post emphasizes how a successful person might act to present a desired image, how does a leader portray himself or herself as competent? If this seems superficial to some, I would challenge that a leader is responsible for acting (and to an extent looking) the part.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:26-05:00April 28th, 2008|Leadership|0 Comments

Product Manager does not Mean Product Emperor (and other helpful suggestions for success as a Product Manager)

t's long been my opinion that the Product Manager has one of the tougher jobs in an organization (see my post: In Support of the Product Manager as MVP). This position is one of those "all of the responsibility with none of the power" roles that grind up and spit out mere mortals with alarming frequency. There are a number of common mistakes that I've observed both new and experienced Product Managers make, that if understood and avoided, might increase the survival and success rate of this endangered species. In no particular order, these common mistakes and hopefully, helpful hints, include:

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:26-05:00April 24th, 2008|Product Management|0 Comments

Read Any Good Cultures Lately? Honing an Essential Career Skill.

Every organization has a distinct culture defined by its history, norms, values, and behaviors, and every team in an organization develops its own subculture. Learning to read a culture and adapt your style to fit (or at least complement it) is essential to success regardless of your level or role. It's also something that can be honed as a skill through increased awareness and consistent application of a few basic approaches.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:27-05:00April 9th, 2008|Leadership, Product Management, Project Management|0 Comments

More Thoughtful Career Advice to Ignore on Your Path to Becoming a Sales Leader

From the same organization that brought you this enlightened sales manager and his timeless advice on how to prosper: "The only way that you will succeed on my team is if you are married to the job," and "The reason that I am not in any family vacation pictures is because I'm on the phone. If I'm in the picture, you can be sure I have a blackberry stuck to my ear," is back with: "The problem with you is that you care too much about people." I love this organization. There are very few other places where a simple phone call offers me a priceless quote on really bad ideas from lousy leaders.

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:27-05:00April 4th, 2008|Leadership|1 Comment

Improving The Executive and Project Manager Relationship

As professional project management practices (and project managers) grow in importance to a firm's success (see my post: Struggling With Strategy? Think Project Management), it is critical that top leaders learn how to support the process rather than beat it into submission. And because as the saying goes, "it takes two to tango," Project Managers need to learn how to "manage" their executives to minimize unproductive involvement or outright interference.

By Art Petty|2008-03-16T13:06:27-05:00March 16th, 2008|Leadership, Project Management|2 Comments

A Dozen Interviews, Two Job Offers and Not One Discussion About Leadership.

A good friend that knows my passion for all things leadership, recently switched jobs and offered some comments on the nature of his dozen or so interviews. I paraphrase: "My leadership skills, experience or approach were not discussed during any of the interviews." I was shocked. "None of the top executives that I spoke with singled out and discussed leadership or people development during discussions about their business and strategy." I started to get depressed. And: "Nope, it wasn't covered with the recruiters either." I had a headache. What gives?

By Art Petty|2016-10-22T17:12:32-05:00January 14th, 2008|Leadership, Strategy|0 Comments

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