How I survived 6 rounds of layoffs, and lived to tell the tale
13 Strategies that improved my luck and kept me from getting a "Pink Slip"
Most organizations regardless of industry, size, or uniqueness, experiences times of great expansion and times of reduction. No one is immune, not even the federal government, which is known for its ability to expand in spite of whatever is happening in the economy. And if you believe juggernauts like Apple, Amazon, and Google could never […]
The Secrets of The Rainmaker
12 Essential skills of the best salespeople, account managers, program managers, and other brave client-facing people
Over the course of 25 years, I’ve met a lot of people. Some of the people who fascinate me the most are those brave “client-facing” individuals in sales, business development, program management, and account management. It takes a special type of person to go out there and risk rejection every day with every customer contact. […]
Vegas Marketing 101
My wife and I recently took a business trip to Las Vegas (For my international readers, Las Vegas, Nevada is the largest city for gambling and entertainment in the United States). While “Vegas” provided an absolutely memorable experience, I realized it has a lot to teach us about how businesses get noticed. Among them were […]
In Leadership, the ends do not always justify the means. If you kill your team to achieve a short-term outcome, people will remember and associate you with pain.
What all Great Projects Have in Common
The 3 Most Important Aspects of Every Well-Run Project
In my 25 year career, I have led and been a part more projects than I can honestly count in just about every shape, size, scope, and dollar amount. The largest project I ever led personally was a 4 billion dollar project that spanned 2.5 years. I’ve also seen great, well-led projects and poorly-led, rope-a-dope […]
What To Do When Our Mobile Devices Lose Power or Service
7 No-Tech Strategies to Overcome the Death Angel of Boredom When It Comes Near
In a previous post, Why we Need a Holiday From Our Screens, I talk about what we gain when we consciously turn our screens off, including a number of alternatives to spending time on our screens. But what happens when the unthinkable happens – when our mobile device has no service or battery life, and […]
There is a direct relationship between the amount of cooperation you have in an organization and the number of resources you need. Specifically, the more cooperation you have, the less resources you need. The inverse is also true, the less cooperation you have the more resources are consumed on organizational structures, processes, systems, and governance that all exist to compensate for the lack of cooperation.