Clik here to view.
A Reframing
When I say the word leader, quite understandably most associate it with the ‘one-in-charge’, the top person. Furthermore, since leader is synonymous with the one-in-charge, then leadership must be the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
It’s Rather Revolting
Ever notice how often people frame things in dichotomous terms, like leader/non-leader, performer/non-performer, manager/subordinate, winner/loser, have/have-not, producer/moocher or us/them? Why is...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Redesign for Capability Not Flatness
In an HBR Blog Network essay by Ron Ashkenas titled “More direct reports make life easier”, the case is made for increasing the span of control so that it becomes “possible to compress the number of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Black Holes
Let me begin with a statement from a previous posting: “When people are given the legitimate authority associated with a position in an organization’s (management) hierarchy, they are also...
View ArticleClik here to view.
When Being Cooperative is Destructive
Many elected public officials formulate legislation favoring those who provide large sums of money to them (in support of their election/re-election) irrespective of the legislation’s impact on the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
America, We Have A Problem!
Faced with mass murders (e.g. Columbine, Aurora, VA Tech, Tuscon, Oak Creek)—62 over the past 30 years—coupled with the gun violence that happens every day we haven’t sought to understand these...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Effectiveness Is Not Enough
Stephen Covey’s The 7-habits of highly effective people presented a discussion on Habit #1 about the relationship between one’s circle of concern and one’s circle of influence as a way of explaining...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mistakes Confusing Leadership
A recent HBR Blog post by John Kotter speaks to the confusion surrounding management and leadership. He continues by outlining three key mistakes people make in confusing management and leadership: 1)...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Toward Higher-Level Performance
Just imagine if those you managed were more self-acting and self-directed, had greater levels of creativity and had (really) good interpersonal skills. Wouldn’t this make for a higher performing team...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Of Austerity and Addiction
Richard Wolff, Professor of Economics Emeritus at University of Massachusetts, in Austerity: Another “Policy Mistake” Again states “punishing debtors, cutting payrolls and imposing austerity keep...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Analytics on management
There appears to be an enormous amount of interest in using data (a.k.a. analytics) as a management tool for gaining some degree of certainty of performance through better control of the tasks and the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Leadership or Dictatorship
Today, America’s captains of business and industry command increasingly vast sums as compensation for their services. Accordingly, there is an enormous disparity—on the order of 325-to-1—between what...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Cure
Cancer cells don’t know they are cancerous! Though this may be an obvious fact even a so what fact to many, if we think more critically about this we realize that it is quite significant. Why?...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me
How do you maximize the performance of an organization? Wait, wait…don’t tell me! I went to business school, I know! Be A Technocrat I learned to use reductionist analytical thinking which informs...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Unsustainable Contradictions
In spite of the persuasiveness of the business minded about both the management prowess in business and superiority of markets to serve the needs of citizens—privatize society—there are a few...
View ArticleClik here to view.
No Progress To Be Found
In their article on labor relations Ellen Dannin and Ann C Hodges remind us that when companies compete on price the most prevalent approach is to cut wages and benefits—globalizing labor is the latest...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Captured
Upon reflecting on the essay Why aren’t Americans fighting back, which presents many reasonable answers, I came away thinking about the idea of capture. Individually Captured When you rely heavily if...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On Being Instrumental, A Tool
We’ve all heard in so many ways by so many that the customer is important to (our) business. Why is the customer important to business? Simply, the customer is the one who purchases the goods or...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Removing The Public from Public Education
“The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men” (Plato). We (as a society) should be outraged over what people in high places are trying to do to (our) public...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Oil And Water Don’t Mix
Reflecting on “America’s Descent Into Madness” by Henry Giroux, we most certainly don’t but need to provide learning experiences in and through public education that will facilitate every person’s...
View Article
