[September 18, 2013] He who defends everywhere, defends nowhere. – Sun Tzu The senior executive leader is personally responsible to ensure that an effective strategy1 is developed and that their organization is properly guided along a path to achieve its objectives and goals. Without a strategy, there is no map for this journey. What does strategy allow us… Read More »
[September 17, 2013] One of the key attributes of senior executive leaders is their ability to select the right people for the right job. Unfortunately, sometimes people are chosen even to be senior leaders who turn out to be stunning failures. Choosing leaders is not just a difficult task, but new senior executive leaders should quickly establish their… Read More »
[September 16, 2013] Honesty and integrity are absolutely essential for success in life – all areas of life. The really good news is that anyone can develop both honesty and integrity. – Zig Ziglar, author, motivational speaker, salesman. There is a short-list of values that are essential to all leaders. One of the most important among them is… Read More »
[September 15, 2013] As part of this blog’s profiles in senior executive leadership, the first great leader will be an obvious choice: General Douglas MacArthur. William Manchester writes of General MacArthur that: He was a great thundering paradox of a man, noble, and ignoble, inspiring and outrageous, arrogant and shy, the best of men and the worst of… Read More »
[September 14, 2013] If there had to be one common characteristic of all leaders, basic to senior executive, honesty would be it. “The buck stops here” is a phrase that was popularized by President Harry Truman, who kept a sign with that phrase on his desk at the White House. The phrase refers to the fact that the… Read More »
[September 13, 2013] Articles on toxic leadership and how to spot a bad boss have been fashionable of late. There is no denying that failed leaders are not uncommon and that some will be discovered; and with due diligence removed before too much damage is done to the organization and to people’s careers. Many of these poor leaders… Read More »
[September 12, 2013] Henry Kissinger saw that one of the challenges of senior leaders on foreign policy was being able to discern between urgent and important matters, and then developing procedures to keep the urgent from overcoming the important. What the Honorable Kissinger was saying is that leaders are sometimes so busy coping with urgent issues, like the… Read More »
[September 10, 2013] I was once told that a philosopher said that if there is no answer to a question, then one should not worry about it. My personal opinion is that is exactly the opposite of what we should do. Senior executive leaders have an obligation to think – and program themselves the time to think critically… Read More »
[September 9, 2013] A fundamental attribute of the senior executive leader is the ability to build trust and confidence in the people who work for us, supervisors, peers and associates, and clients. Building and management of that trust and confidence ranks as one of the top factors to achieve and sustain high levels of organizational strength. It is… Read More »
[September 9, 2013] You live in a fishbowl for all to see. As a senior executive leader, if you work in a highly visible organization, in particular those that are taxpayer or privately funded or a highly competitive commercial corporation, then expect that your public and private life will be seen and judged against diverse moral, legal, and… Read More »