Ok, so I know I have harped on the necessity for leaders to communicate and, more importantly, to know how best to communicate. Communication is a critically important activity involving all of the senses and in today’s economic environment, communication takes on an even more important role. Employees are not sure if their [...]

Well if we’ve ever needed an example of what it really is to lead during a crisis, this past week’s U.S. Airways flight 1549 water landing shows us loud and clear.  Just moments after takeoff, the 29-year U.S. Airways veteran captain of the plane and a pilot for 40 years, Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger, knew [...]

Some time ago, I posted a series on the lessons that leaders can learn from celebrities – and in this post about Britney Spears I explained my STOP approach to crisis management:

Story – I believe that a crisis is best handled head on. In a crisis, it is imperative that the leader OWNS the story [...]

In the past, I have written a series on “What Leaders Can Learn from …” entries focusing on leadership lessons gleaned from the lives of celebrities and athletes. In the course of our lives, we all are witness to the lives of such folks given the seemingly insatiable demand to know more and more [...]

This recent Time interview with Nelson Mandela provides a great, open and insightful view of leadership from someone who has known great power and also been bereft of its influence in his 90 years. His advice for leaders is practical, outcome-oriented and courageous. Be sure to take the time to read the article in full [...]

When it comes to leadership, no matter how much a leader may seek the valuable input from their village, at the end of the day, the final decision, regardless of the matter at hand, is the leader’s all alone.  This fact makes for interesting management of the decision-making process.  To be sure, leaders have different [...]

There is a long history of business looking to the military for inspiration [think Sun Tzu and the Art of War]. The link between strategy and tactics, determination and flexibility and the importance of communication can be, in the militaristic world, a matter of life and death. And with such high stakes, comes great insight, [...]

In good times, it is rather easy to keep employees motivated to “ride the wave.”  This goes without saying.  However, business leaders are not hired to lead only during good times.  In fact, true leadership reveals itself in times of difficulty.  Martin Luther King Jr. put this perspective into great words when he stated, “The [...]

Bad sight
Originally uploaded by rore
Are we, as business leaders, being driven to make decisions we might not otherwise make? What I mean by this is, are businesses, especially those that participate in the capital markets, making decisions that address short-term financial performance at the expense of looking at the long-term best interests of the company?
With [...]