Should a leader be held accountable to a higher standard of moral and ethical conduct than their employees? This is a compelling question that is raising suspicion, fear, and hackles of many in the workplace and in government. The visible he ‘said – she said’ disputes between President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky have focused this …
Warm, endearing stories and poems are often not part of an organizational culture. Business war stories of an individual or a team developing a hot product, working outrageous hours to please customers, or blazing new profitable markets are more often the stuff of corporate myths and legends. What’s different now is that organizations are paying …
Japanese fathers spend an average of 17 minutes a day with their young children.” Jordan, Mary and Sullivan, Kevin, “Japan Pushes Dads to Spend More than 17 Minutes a Day with Kids,” The Oregonian, May 9, 1999, p. A16.
Lead the cultural change or transformation Make a case for cultural change Use organizational design as part of the business strategy Ensure the successful change effort is collaboratively, systemically, and competently managed Promote a continuous learning and adaptation environment Are keepers of the organizational vision.[i] [i] Sherwood, John J; Hoylman, Florence M, “The Total …
Quality, value, and customer service are often integrated into the vision, mission, values, and guiding principles. Some better-known Brand U guiding principles are: Nike: ‘Just do it’ and ‘I can’ Lockheed Martin: ‘Mission success’ Forbes Magazine: ‘Capitalist tool’ Hertz: ‘Exactly’
No more glass ceilings Equal representation of the sexes at all levels of government Understanding and celebration of gender differences It’s okay to be single Control over childbirth Community based childcare Human scaled institutions Equal education for women throughout the world A clean environment based on principles of sustainability Less war, crime, and violence[i] [i] …
Leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions. Harold Geneen, CEO ITT
Why are sports coaches becoming Brand U business leaders? One reason is that they succeeded as Brand U leaders in sports. So, isn’t Brand U leadership transferable? From the top to an organization’s bottom, Brand U managers spend more time coaching and building virtual project teams. They must constantly transform organizations and rebuild people systems. …
Going a step further into the unknown, Gay Hendricks and Kate Ludeman, authors of The Corporate Mystic, assert that corporations and organizations are full of spiritual mystics. The authors propose that “successful corporate leaders of the twenty-first century will be spiritual leaders.”[i] When I read this, I thought it was a little too new-agey for …
Brand U leadership can also be defined by circumstances. When a critical situation arises, a Brand U leader will arise. So today, we’re seeing Brand U leaders in all areas of an organization arising from the force of circumstances because of employee empowerment, corporate restructuring, information explosion, and pace of change. Another common difference between …