Management Theory: Two trips to IKEA

Management Theory and IKEA

About three weeks apart, I took two different trips to IKEA. The contrast in those trips taught me a ton about management theory. Continue Reading

Business process buried results

Business Process

Hmmm… business process. That’s a multi-layered topic, no? Let me do my best here. I think the first place you need to begin is with the idea that for most senior executives — or quote unquote decision-makers — within an… Continue Reading

How to get organized at work

How to get organized at work

I’ve probably worked with 1,500 different people in various jobs I’ve had. I could count maybe 4 that ever spent a second thinking about how to get organized at work. The common way most people approach the concept of ‘how… Continue Reading

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How to be strategic about responding to work e-mails

Responding to work e-mails

E-mail, at least to me, is a total boondoggle. Responding to work e-mails is an even bigger boondoggle. Let’s start with a couple of basics: There are no established ‘norms’ on how to handle e-mail E-mail represents work, but it’s often not actually… Continue Reading

A hidden key to 2016 strategy planning

Strategy Planning

Hopefully you’ve already done some 2016 strategy planning for whatever size business you work at or run — because, you know, we’re halfway through Month II of the year at this point — but even if you have, you can… Continue Reading

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How do you align strategy and execution?

Align strategy and execution

I’ve had a bunch of different jobs, and I’ll be honest: by this point, about 13 years into working, I oftentimes have no idea what strategy even is. I know that senior leaders of companies typically have a couple of big meetings… Continue Reading

No workplace can be ‘creative’ under current management models

No workplace can really be creative under current management models

Managers love to talk about having creative teams, or creative people, or creative ideas — but most of that is a crock. Just like we confuse “strategy” (which is a long-term vision) with “operations” (which is the day-to-day execution of… Continue Reading

On ‘management by due date’

Management by Due Date

There are differing types of less-than-stellar management, including: The Merry-Go-Round The No-ROI Deliverables Model The ‘Set A Fire, Resolve A Fire, Brag About Fixing It’ Model The ‘I’ll Tell You Exactly How This Needs To Be Done’ Model The ‘Let’s… Continue Reading