Greetings!
Welcome to the March 2010 issue of Staying Great with ODC.
Regardless of the timing for 2010 economic improvement, we are sharing a list of Leadership Prescriptions that provide opportunities to leverage your performance. The first five are contained within this month's newsletter and the final five will be provided next month.
ODC offers many services related to our theme of "Peak Performance/ Staying Great." If you are still plagued with a status quo environment within your organization, then we should meet for a thoughtful discussion to review how we can facilitate change or become a catalyst to spur positive "restlessness." This initial meeting is free of charge, enabling us to have a candid exploration of key issues.
1.
Attracting,
keeping, and developing good people.
Good people are the foundation of any effective organization. Jim Collins's catch phrase from Good to
Great about "getting the right people on the bus" remains relevant and
important. To compete effectively in
the marketplace, organizations must maximize the contributions of the
employees. This is a strategic organizational
concern, by the way, not a tactical matter left for the human resources
department to manage.
2.
Thinking
and planning strategically.
In today's fast-paced and competitive world, leaders need to be
critical thinkers, systems thinkers, discontinuous thinkers, and proactive
decision makers. Leaders, especially
top leaders, must pay attention to the Three C's of the external business
environment (i.e., Customers, Competition, and Change) in order to lead
adaptation and innovation efforts on an ongoing basis.
3.
Cultivating
a peak performance climate.
"Make each day your masterpiece" is one of the axioms associated with
John Wooden, former UCLA men's basketball coach whose Bruin teams won ten NCAA
championships in twelve years in the 1960's and 1970's. Wooden, who will turn 100 this year, had it
right. Doing things well is not a "once
in awhile" occurrence for a high performance organization. No, high performance organizations do things
well every day. Leaders in such
organizations recognize that while perfection is not attainable, performance
excellence is.
4.
Improving
customer satisfaction.
The organizational success equation must be focused on meeting the
needs of customers. Without customers,
the organization has nothing. Brand and
identity in the marketplace don't mean much if what is promised is not
delivered. Work on making sure your
organization "behaves into its brand" (i.e., employees carry out the brand
promise to customers). Excite your
customers by aligning both processes (i.e., "high tech") and
interactions ("high touch"). This is an
"HT2" approach that is the foundation for a high performance
organization.
5.
Managing
time and stress.
Taking time for self-care is essential, especially given the "24-7"
workweek expectations that permeate our Information Age. Weren't all of those technology tools going
to make our work lives easier? What
became of the extra free time they were going to offer us? The prescription here is to make personal
health a priority. Set parameters that
separate work from personal time.
Pursue a healthy diet. Build
time for exercise and reflection into your weekly schedule. Choose wisely; only you can take care of
you.
Our services are affordable and customized to your situation. A limited example includes:
- Future planning - "What can be" vs. "What is"
- Revenue and growth strategies - "Rethinking sales and marketing"
- The "other bottom line" - Creating a positive corporate culture
- Pursuing "high touch" interactions - customer and employee alignment = profits
- Systems thinking- Making connections across work units and removing silos that inhibit performance
- Leadership Development - Leaders drive organizations...how's it going by you?
- Strategic thinking - examining the organizational life cycle, asking critical questions, and exploring "What if's"
