A #NewYear’s resolution: Connecting in a deeper manner with your work team. We spend a great deal of time together being #productive. Let’s answer the question: “Who are we?” At my father’s retirement ceremony as a college president, the local reigning politician concluded his remarks with a heartfelt statement. He indicated that if he wereContinue reading “A New Year’s Resolution for #Leaders and #Teams: Who Are We?”
Category Archives: Organizational Performance and Design
Being in a Thanksgiving Reality Show: The Uber Leadership Development Experience
My family was filmed last weekend for a reality show depicting how American families celebrate Thanksgiving. Since the show was produced by a German pop up museum, I am referring to our experience as the “Uber” leadership development experience. For you non-Germanic folks, Uber means “being a superlative example of its kind or class”. TheContinue reading “Being in a Thanksgiving Reality Show: The Uber Leadership Development Experience”
A Creative Method For Developing Innovative Solutions: Magic Tool Box
It can be helpful to use analogies to inspire new ideas. I have leveraged a brainstorming tool for years called the Magic Tool Box. In this exercise one uses a box full of tools as a metaphor for solving the problem at hand. The objective is to spur new thinking. I leveraged this brainstorming exerciseContinue reading “A Creative Method For Developing Innovative Solutions: Magic Tool Box”
True Organizational Culture Change: “Everyone Talks Different”
The #culturechange that Sandra Johnson engineered at a challenging City Government division is the most astounding cultural turn around that I have ever witnessed. An informal City leader who missed 50% of the meetings due to an illness came back and said, “I don’t know what happened but all I can say is everyone talks different.” It isContinue reading “True Organizational Culture Change: “Everyone Talks Different””
No more Drivel! Give us the Practical and Useful.
There is no substitute for business advice which is practical and useful. Yes, I am talking about suggestions which actually work. … As in make things better in the real world! Drivel, on the other hand, is defined as “silly nonsense”. Unfortunately there is a lot of these unhelpful opinions flying around our field ofContinue reading “No more Drivel! Give us the Practical and Useful.”
Am I On Track With My Professional Purpose? [“Start With Why”]
“The two most important days of your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why.”—-Mark Twain Mark Twain offers up the profound idea that our primary mission in life is discovering why we are here. Once we have a driving reason for getting up each and every morning ourContinue reading “Am I On Track With My Professional Purpose? [“Start With Why”]”
The Importance of Peers In Our Organization Development Work
“We have all known the long loneliness, and we have found that the answer is community.” Dorothy Day As #OrganizationDevelopment (OD) professionals working with peers is one of the most important factors leading to our success. Helping our organizations succeed is a team sport and the ideas and support we receive from our fellow ODContinue reading “The Importance of Peers In Our Organization Development Work”
If Mayors Ruled the World!
If Mayors Ruled the World [http://bit.ly/1kq50ah] it would be a better place! This premise of a recently released book is becoming increasingly true as each day passes. As gridlock and a circus-like atmosphere permeates Washington, with many State governments not far behind, the important work being carried out at the City level chugs on! DuringContinue reading “If Mayors Ruled the World!”
How to Renew Your Organization
Whipping down the streets of Washington D.C. in a taxi, I was dreading my arrival at a recent business acquisition. I mistakenly believed that my organizational design role was to break the hearts of these leaders. Twenty years earlier, they had founded a company in their garage and now they had made it big, havingContinue reading “How to Renew Your Organization”
Organizational Structure: Start with Design Principles
It would be foolish to design a home without first thinking through your needs. How much living space do you need? How many bedrooms? What style do you like? However, organizations are built each and every day without considering these types of fundamental questions around what the design is attempting to accomplish. In order toContinue reading “Organizational Structure: Start with Design Principles”
Kevin Anderson, Dr. Organizational Design 