Commitment

Leaders Must Be Present to Win

Leaders Must Be Present to Win

How many times have you attended an event and purchased raffle tickets to win something of value but with one hitch? You must be present to win. You couldn’t just show up for a little while, leave early and hope to learn or hear something interesting or to engage with someone who might be a mutually beneficial business connection. You had to stay…until the end…because that’s when the winners were announced. Even if you didn’t win a prize, you had a greater opportunity to gain something of value from being there until the very end.

The same thing happens in other aspects of life and work. If you want to gain clients, information, understanding, insight or relationships that are worthwhile, you have to be present to win. You can’t sit in your office and wish it to happen. You have to go someplace, do something, meet someone, invest time and money (time IS money of course) and give of yourself by engaging with others. More importantly, you have to take a risk and give at a level where you stretch beyond how you may feel at the moment or beyond your comfort level. (more…)

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The 3 C’s to Establishing Tone at the Top

The 3 C’s to Establishing Tone at the Top

Michael left the office early for once. He was on his way home to celebrate the position he had just accepted at a new company. After 25 years of hard work and great personal sacrifice, he finally got the VP position he felt he deserved. He had more than enough experience to step into the role and produce solid wins for his new employer. Everything was moving along smoothly until that night when he got the call from the executive recruiter. There was a problem with background check they just completed. They couldn’t find record of him having completed his MBA. He recognized that when he presented his credentials, he neglected to mention that he was two classes short of graduation, but he felt that his vast experience more than made up for that. Unfortunately for him, his new employer disagreed. The offer was withdrawn, not because he lacked the degree, but because he hadn’t come clean about it.

Joan was celebrating for a different reason. Her team exceeded their stretch sales target for the fiscal year, a herculean effort on the part of everyone. Her leadership, strategic planning, and ability to pull the group together to find innovative approaches to problems had paid off. This news would be well received by investors and provide her and the team with a significant bonus opportunity. The president called and asked her to stop by his office. As she walked down the hall to see him, she imagined his congratulatory words. She might even get a promotion! But when she opened the door and saw a somber look on his face, and the HR VP already present, she knew the message was going to be very different. Someone had reported a few irregularities in Joan’s sales tactics. She had simply taken a bit of interpretive license in several guidelines, just a gray area that didn’t hurt anyone. But the president didn’t see it as a minor issue. And he dismissed her on the spot for her lack of integrity. (more…)

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