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In today’s business environment, staying ahead of your competition requires not just innovative products or services, but also strategic foresight and careful planning. Business wargaming can help you with this by offering your company a unique tool to navigate the […]

A strategy without execution is merely an aspiration. For a strategy to be effective, it must be operationalized. What does it mean to operationalize a strategy? It’s about translating your long-term strategic objectives into tangible, achievable operational goals that form […]

In his final hit single, “Any Road,” former Beatle George Harrison sings, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.” The key question in this paradoxical wisdom is, do you care where you’re going? If […]

Leadership is a constant balancing act, especially when it comes to setting goals. How high should we aim? Should we set easily achievable targets or stretch our teams to their limits? This question has divided leaders into two camps – […]

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend the deactivation ceremony for Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 101 in Miramar, CA. I was honored to serve as the commanding officer (CO) of the “Sharpshooters” 17 years ago, where our mission was […]

In the realm of organizational policy-making, high-stakes decisions are often characterized by high uncertainty. These decisions can have far-reaching implications, and their outcomes can significantly impact the organization’s success. Research indicates that the quality of the discussion and debate preceding […]

Change is inevitable. It’s a fundamental principle that governs not just our personal lives but also our professional sphere. As a consultant who has assisted numerous executive teams with their corporate growth strategy, I’ve witnessed firsthand the necessity for change […]

More than 2,000 years ago, the Greek philosopher Heraclitus said, “The only thing that is constant is change.” Today, change management guru John Kotter, author of the New York Times best-selling book Leading Change, asserts that the greatest challenge business […]

I recently had a conversation with a leader in a large technology company that transitioned to a flat organizational structure (and threw out the org chart) in order to create a hierarchy-free environment that would eliminate titles, reduce bureaucracy, and […]

In today’s fast-paced business world, it’s easy to get caught up in the urgency of making decisions quickly. However, research shows that for high-stakes business decisions, the top predictor of a quality decision is the quality of the discussions and […]

Making decisions with limited information is difficult, but making decisions with too much information can be even more challenging. We think of this as a consequence of the digital age, but the problem isn’t new. In 1255, medieval French scholar […]

As a long-lasting effect of the coronavirus pandemic, the workplace has seen significant changes with the rise of hybrid and remote work over the past three years. Many leaders view the shift to hybrid and remote work as threatening, with […]

Companies continue to wrestle with how often their employees should come into the office versus work remotely. Different leaders have different opinions on what the best choice is, but looking at research can help management decide how they want to […]

Due to today’s tight labor market, this question is currently top of mind for every leader. Whether you’re just starting out or are an established business, one of the most important components to success is having a team of talented […]

In my recent series of blogs, I’ve been sharing some thoughts on the most frequently asked leadership questions I’ve heard from business executives over the past year. In my last article, I discussed the importance of delegating to help leaders […]

“How can I manage my time better so I can actually have a healthy life outside of work?” is one of the most common frustrations I hear from leaders. It’s an extremely important question because if you don’t answer it […]

Among the most frequently asked questions I hear from companies regarding effective leadership and management is, “How can I create better accountability within my team?” In other words, how can you get your team members to take individual ownership of […]

One of the most frequently asked questions I hear from companies regarding effective leadership and management is, “How can I get my team to work well together?” In other words, how can you get all of your team members efficiently […]

In our current world of accelerating uncertainty, one thing is certain: you will face crises as a leader. Why? Because your operating environment is more complex than ever, and people are human. Although we’d all like to avoid crises, they’re […]

When making an important decision, do you strive for consensus or alignment within your team? You may be wondering, “What’s the difference?” Fair question. If you’re a consensus-driven decision-maker, you want to ensure everyone agrees with the decision. But there […]

“Ideas are the currency of the twenty-first century. The ability to persuade, to change hearts and minds, is perhaps the single greatest skill that will give you a competitive edge in the knowledge economy – an age where ideas matter […]

Across a wide range of industries and sectors in the United States today, 70 percent of employees are avoiding difficult conversations with their boss, colleagues, or direct reports. This is unfortunate because avoiding difficult conversations reduces productivity, stifles innovation, erodes […]

Do you loathe conflict? If so, you’re not alone. Thirty-five percent of managers would reportedly rather jump out of a plane than address a problem with their team. I’m guessing most would prefer to have a parachute, but some might […]

John Wayne once famously said, “What’s the secret of success? Right decisions. How do you make right decisions? Experience. How do you get experience? Wrong decisions.” Although there’s some truth to The Duke’s quip, fortunately people can learn to make […]

One of the most inspiring things I’ve learned by observing and serving on many teams over the years is the consistency with which people rise to the standard that is set for them, especially when their leader holds themselves to […]

In 2009, Google embarked on a multiyear research initiative called Project Oxygen. The goal was to eliminate company hierarchy by proving that managers don’t matter. The research team analyzed data from Google employee exit surveys, job satisfaction reports, individual and […]

I’m often asked, “As a leader, what’s the key to empowering your team?” My answer: “Learn to listen and let go.” The next question usually is, “What do you mean by that?” I’m glad you asked. Every leader I know […]

Do you ever struggle with clarity about what’s important to you as a leader? Is it sometimes hard to generate alignment on your team around your organizational goals and objectives? Could you use some help empowering your team? And do […]

American workers are quitting their jobs at an astonishing pace. At the end of July, a record 11 million positions were unfilled, and two-thirds of all employees in the U.S. are looking for new jobs – a phenomenon termed “The […]

(Part three in a three-part series) Fred Haise, Jack Swigert, and Jim Lovell formed the crew of Apollo 13. Their mission was to demonstrate a precision lunar landing and conduct lunar exploration. It was the seventh manned mission in the […]

(Part two in a three-part series) Bill Crawford was a dormitory janitor at the U.S. Air Force Academy in the 1970s. He took pride in his job, and the dorm was always spotless. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons most […]

On September 21st, I’ll be releasing my first book titled, The Substance of Leadership: A Practical Framework for Effectively Leading a High-Performing Team. Having spent 25 years in the U.S. Marine Corps, including flying jets off of aircraft carriers and […]

(Part one in a three-part series) Over the past three decades observing and serving on dozens of high-performing teams in high-pressure environments from aircraft carriers to combat to TOPGUN to the business world, I’ve learned that the keys to leading […]

(Part three in a three-part series) Over the past century, Bell Laboratories has been one of the most innovative organizations in the world. It was founded in 1925 as the R&D arm of the Bell Telephone Company (now known as […]

(Part two in a three-part series) Change management guru John Kotter, a former leadership professor at Harvard Business School and author of the New York Times best-selling book Leading Change, says, “Perhaps the greatest challenge business leaders face today is […]

(Part one in a three-part series) One of my favorite “philosophers” of all time is Yogi Berra. As an All-Star baseball catcher for the New York Yankees from 1946 to 1963, he had a gift for making sense of things […]