“Every older generation laments how easy the current generation has it. Evidence of this mentality can be seen in the proverbial, ‘Back in my day, we walked to school in the snow, uphill, both ways.’ Few will argue that today’s social and work environments differ dramatically from a generation ago. Time moves on, and with time comes technological improvements…”
“In the ever-evolving landscape of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), success hinges on an effective strategy and a well-defined corporate culture. However, the impact of a poorly communicated strategy and an ill-defined culture can be devastating. These two factors can have profound effects on the operations of SMBs…”
“Many have written in the post-COVID era about the struggle to find talent. It is not just the talent level to fill entry-level roles but also the seasoned and skilled talent necessary to grow an organization and its next generation of leaders…”
“As many seasoned leaders know, delegation is not just about distributing tasks. It’s an art that requires a strategic mindset, an understanding of people, and the foresight to prioritize long-term organizational goals. Recognizing its importance is one thing, but successfully implementing it is another…”
“Forging a high-performance culture is a challenging endeavor — a journey that will test an individual’s patience and fortitude. Old habits will need to be traded for new possibilities. Legacy thinking will be abandoned in favor of innovation, and more importantly, the status quo will need to be challenged…”
“There are few character traits more important than commitment. It is a critical ingredient in gaining and sustaining trust. Commitments can galvanize a person’s dependability, reliability, and tenacity when part of a team and is the fuel that powers you to overcome obstacles to achieve personal and professional goals…”
“Moore’s Law posits that technological capability (transistors in the law’s original form) roughly doubles every two years. Simultaneously, the cost of that same technology halves over the same time. In short, technology is speeding up and only gains more momentum with time…”
“Many have felt the emotional drain of working hard without meaningful or measurable gain. You spend your days firefighting, and by the time you extinguish one fire, two more have erupted. Time passes, and you watch in vain as the hours, days, and weeks go up in smoke…”
“Regardless of the business leader or the business book you consult, three words will surface during your discussion or reading — leadership, communication, and accountability. There are countless books, articles, and studies on leadership and communication…”
“‘In times of crisis, asking “why” something has happened is far less important than taking action. So when failure bursts onto the scene, asking, “What do we do?” is far superior to “Why did this happen?” Far too often, operations professionals opt for a find blame-first mindset…”
“Over the past two decades, coaching has become more popular as an option to achieve professional success. The power of coaching has been written about in books, hailed on talk shows, promoted on podcasts, and recommended by top-tier executives. But what is professional coaching?”
“‘Launch Maverick on Alert 5!’ is one of the classic lines from the 1986 movie Top Gun. For those unfamiliar with naval aviation, the “Alert 5” condition, also called “Ready 5,” is the placement of one or more fully manned, fueled, and armed aircraft on alert status to be airborne within five minutes of the launch command…”
“Many leaders have wallowed in the world of “why can’t.” Why can’t employees show up on time? Why can’t managers get their direct reports to perform? Why can’t we get the work done? Why can’t we deliver on time? Why can’t we see the problem? Why can’t we find answers? Why can’t employees be intrinsically motivated? Why can’t managers or employees just figure it out?…”
“The term ‘operations’ will trigger different definitions or impressions depending upon an individual’s role, knowledge of organizational design, longevity in business, or propensity to think strategically or tactically.
Operations, or ‘ops’ for short, is a black hole for some and the center of the universe for others, but few will argue its importance or influence on achieving business success…”