Human experience shows that people, not organizations or management systems, get things done. – Admiral Hyman G. Rickover Major industrial accidents in the 1980s led to a focus on management systems to understand and control risks. The focus was on the work processes needed to control risks and the effectiveness of those processes. Explicitly, expectations … Read more
If you want to change attitudes, start with a change in behavior. – William Glasser The behaviors that are engrained in your organization are well established. They make up the culture of the organization and act as a north pole. They tend to bring the organization back to its established way of doing things. This … Read more
In March, as the pandemic rolled in and began to uproot our daily lives, I made a prediction. Predicting a 50% increase in remote work in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic felt radical. Yet today, the question itself feels fundamentally outdated. There are no longer “in-office” or remote employees. There are simply employees, … Read more
What is operating culture anyway? Simply put, operating culture is the genome of an organization. It is the way “things get done around here”. As DNA is the building block of a gene, behaviors – what people say and do – are the building blocks of culture. Why is culture important? Culture is the catalyst … Read more
The air feels heavy and choking. Every action is second guessed and scrutinized. Welcome to the dysfunctional organization where revenue is stunted, discord is encouraged and insolvency looms around the corner. “All happy families are the same, but every unhappy family is unhappy is its own way states Leo Tolstoy’s in his novel Anna Karenina, Leo … Read more
Time and time again an executive gives a state of the company speech to the huddled masses. It concludes with, “My door is always open! I’m here for you.” It’s a line met with skepticism and even disdain as many executives could less what their employees have to say. And even when the venue for … Read more
In January 2000, the merger of Time-Warner and AOL went public. “Together, they represent an unprecedented powerhouse, said Scott Ehrens, a media analyst with Bear Stearns. “If their mantra is content, this alliance is unbeatable. Now they have this great platform they can cross-fertilize with content and redistribute.” Soon after, the combined $350 million entity … Read more
