It’s a common refrain during aviation training: aviate, navigate, communicate. Flight instructors drill this mantra into pilots because it gives an instant prioritization of the things they should be working on at a given moment during flight. The enemy of safety is pilot overload and distraction, and this mantra provides a quick way to get […]
I was working with a senior leader on a recent call who was debating about whether they should set up dedicated innovation labs and was looking for insights on how they might be structured. This is a very common question when people look carefully at the implementation needs for their strategies. At the outset, it […]
It’s a very, very common dialogue in the work I do as a strategic advisor. The discussion usually starts with a firm citing all the new tools they have purchased and implemented into their firm to “solve the innovation problem.” It’s clear that the firm has invested and worked hard to build in some […]
Something absolutely unique happens during the execution of a growth program: on the one hand, it’s exhilarating in its novelty and the new ground being tilled. You are out talking to new clients, industry gatekeepers and thought leaders. Because of this, projects are usually led by those who enjoy stepping up to the challenge and […]
I was in a room full of mid-senior leaders recently, helping them do the work of building transformation projects for their firms. We use a playbook I’ve developed called Right Project, Right Team, Right Plan, which allows them to go from having a solid idea to a scalable plan. With a plan in place, then […]
It’s a siren song that many corporate innovators succumb to – competing with the venture-backed VC startups for the newest and edgiest applications. On the surface, it feels safe: we have our core business, and will be adding some fresh “capability” in this new area and “testing” a new business model. It will also give […]
I’m a huge fan of the Marvel Universe driven movies and TV series that have emerged from the dusty archives to modern updated looks and characters. One of the reasons for their immense popularity is that the storytelling is fiction that is so relatable to real life. Yes, there are superpowers and out-of-this-world special […]
I’ve been having a great season of connecting with many clients and colleagues and it’s given me a great opportunity to think deeply about how to work with you and your teams so that you can take your results to the next level. A really important dialogue thread that has come up several ways is […]
We are all still in a bit of shock over the rapid decline in the market valuation of GE. As of this writing, the stock is hovering at 50 percent of its previous valuations, and a plan has begun to break the company into several pieces. Stock options are underwater and talented people are taking […]
I’ve had opportunities recently to work with several larger clients and attend a number of conferences in my core spaces of manufacturing, energy and materials. As I listen to comments about talent, scale and process, it’s clear that there has been a shift. First, let’s just say that we are all really busy. The talent […]
