How to Manage the Most Difficult Stakeholders
Difficult stakeholders are a chance to grow your influence. You look at the phone and your heart sinks. It’s the night before you’re supposed to wrap up your assignment and brief the leadership team on what you’ve done. It’s Bruce, a charismatic VP –and one of your...
The Surprising Way to Focus Your Team on Fundamentals
Why focus on the fundamentals? When I was defending my master’s thesis over 25 years ago, one particularly snotty professor (who had never actually worked in an organization outside of academia) leaned back in his chair and smirked, “It strikes me that...
How to Respond When You Can’t Use an Idea
When You Can’t Use an Idea, Pivot to Get More Ideas “I need people to think.” Mattias, the CEO of a mid-sized human service provider, leaned back in his chair and sighed. “They have all kinds of ideas that just don’t work. The market’s changing and it’s like no one...
