It’s a phrase I heard just last week, “we may have the same badge, but we are not on the same team.” When you hear something like that, it’s highly likely you have just discovered that unseen boundary in the firm called a “silo.” And in the fast-moving agile era, silos are way too costly. […]
One-shot. The small R&D team had been working for months, laying the groundwork for what they hoped would be a dramatic new product. It seemed like it had it all: market runway, clients who were accessible by the existing team, and good utilization of the firm’s existing capabilities. Unfortunately, many firms have a process that […]
Every airport is fundamentally the same. At its simplest, it’s a way to connect passengers to airplanes – and then put them back into the world once they’ve landed. Like Chutes and Ladders for adults, the airplane is simply a reality accelerator. You go in the airport door and come out somewhere new (averaging 400 […]
For many of you reading, it can be a very common pattern. In reflecting on your program to encourage Growth Leadership in your firm, it sure seems like you’ve made the investment. You’ve provided training, workshops and outside speaker events. Yet when you look at the results and that fresh new work you’ve been expecting, […]
I have the privilege of advising and coaching a number of technical and business leaders in a cross-section of the manufacturing and services space, and it’s very clear that there has been a shift. Not that long ago “grit” and “hard work” were enough to make your firm successful. Now I’m finding leaders asking themselves […]
I had an energetic conversation during a workshop session recently – it was one of those moments when ideas are just flowing. We were talking about the very low success rate of new projects inside established firms (it’s about 1 in 5), and the role that the “business case” plays in the success or demise […]
There is dialogue in the press these days that suggests we have hit the top of our ability to drive economic growth – and a recession may be around the corner. What this means to many people, is that we should begin to be conservative with our firm’s investments and pull back to essentials only. […]
I had the opportunity to do a workshop recently with a group of senior executives where we spent some time thinking about this question: “what has changed to make the process of getting growth and change programs done in firms so difficult?” The narrow road to breakout growth has two ditches. These ditches are formed […]
Just a few short years ago I purchased a new home with a larger yard than we previously cared for. We were just getting settled in when I noticed that the grass in the yard didn’t appear nearly as green the second spring. I didn’t think a lot about it, but as August came and […]
I’ve recently supported several teams by doing diagnostic assessments for them. The goal, was to help them lay out a strategic path that will result in better client listening skills, internal alignment and the agility to address new products and services. It’s always quite surprising to the leadership teams that it’s so hard to get […]
