Jim Collins and co-author Porras wrote the bestseller Built to Last in 1994. (The phrase was also the title of the 13th and final album of the Grateful Dead, recorded in 1989). That book, over 15 years ago encapsulated the “successful habits of visionary companies’, assumably the ones that would win forever, or at least …
In today’s world, pricing is becoming a enigma. How do you set prices to ensure value for the customer AND maximize margins? There are definitely some do’s and don’ts to consider. My biggest DON”T is nickle and diming. Which of us likes that? Let me give you a few examples: The airlines that charge for …
In March, I blogged about “The top ten reasons NOT to do strategic planning.” The number one reason listed? “I already have a plan.” Maybe you do. If so, great. Chances are that you don’t. Many leaders confuse an operating plan with a strategic plan. (If you use Rockefeller Habits for example, which is a great …
In a recent article of the Financial Post Entreprenuer, Jameson Berkow shared his views regarding when a company needs to consider seeking help from outside resources, how consultants can support growth and how to find the right resource. Excerpts of the article follow. To read the entire article click here. Who needs outside resources? “The bottom line is …
At the pace we move it is so easy to think in generalities, assumptions and stereotypes. Recently, I was reminded that thinking that way is our loss as we miss so much when we do. My mother-in-law has moved in with us. She finally sold her condo in real estate depressed Alabama and I went with her to …
We all know who the leaders in our organization are, right? They are the people in the corner office, the ones who have the political clout, the folks always assigned to the big task force. I’m not so sure. Sometimes the best leaders are not so obvious. From Jim Collins level 5 leadership which touts humility as …
In the January-February 2011 Harvard Business Review, the article, Reinvent your Business Before It’s Too Late, claims that “things often look rosiest just before a company heads into decline.” When we think of the standard bell curve of a business cycle, we understand that revenue and profit is often maximized as the company edges closer …
The last two years I have heard many CEO’s state, “I am just trying to be sure my company survives.” Sound familiar? Now, I am starting to hear, “sales are coming back”. Companies hope to regain the ground they lost the last two years. Later, with their feet back under them, they will think about growth. …
Undeniably, most companies have a culture. The culture is defined as ” the behaviors and actions that individuals use to decipher what is acceptable practice”. In most companies, the culture exists as a collection of practices established by an inner group–be they top executives or favored employees–an eclectic accumluation of values and behaviors evolved over time. Contrast …
You would probably have to be Rip Van Winkle not to notice we are in an era of change. The economy, the government and yes, your business world, is changing. No matter how hard we wish it wouldn’t, the evolution (or maybe revolution) isn’t slowing down to wait for us. The question is, are we …
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