In this month’s blog, we talk about the level of accountability a leader has to “Put the right people in the right seats on the bus” as the oft-quoted line from Jim Collin’s book “Good to Great” professes.  I came across a book several years ago that lays out a game plan to do just that and then some.  “The Accountable Leader: Developing Effective Leadership Through Managerial Accountability” by Brian Dive spells out 10 Key Management Accountabilities every leader must have.  The first 2 of the 10 speak directly to this aspect of having the right people based on: Deciding who comes onto the team... Deciding who will work where, in which jobs and when.Being an acknowledged supporter of business alignment, the book also identifies 7 Elements of the Decision Making Accountability (DMA) Solution Set that helps leaders align their activities to optimize accountability.  The idea is these elements help determine...

Trust is a sustainable success multiplier in today’s dynamic business world often described in terms that belie distrust and suspicion.  The problem can be people may not know, or have forgotten, how to trust others, especially in a competitive business environment.  In their recent book, “Smart Trust”, Stephen M. R. Covey and Greg Link set out to outline five trust actions that are common to high trust people and organizations.Of the five smart trust actions outlined in the book, my favorite is the discussion around action #4, which is to “Do What You Say You’re Going To Do”.   While this seems almost too obvious an action, it is set out as a key action for a reason; too many people don’t “Walk the Talk”.  The ability to model the behavior that builds a culture of trust becomes a performance multiplier both for individuals and for organizations.  Of note, is the importance...

In this month’s blog I spoke of the importance of personal integrity.  So it is only fitting that this month’s book review speak to the topic by way of personal accountability.  In "Making Yourself Indispensable: The Power of Personal Accountability", Mark Samuel identifies the choices and behaviors required to truly be accountable people and by definition, self-leaders. The heart of the book in my mind is not only identifying accountability as a choice, but creating a model in which we see the consequences of our choices.  Essentially, in any given situation, we face two choices based on our intention within the given situation.  One set of choices takes us to personal accountability while the other set of choices take us down the road to being a victim.  Either which way, the choice is ours! Enjoy the Book!

The end of the year holiday season is, among other things, a season of hope. As we take stock of 2012 and begin to focus on 2013, we are filled with hope for a better life in whatever way is meaningful to us. However, hope alone is not going to carry the day. Hope has to become a Vision which further translates to Strategies, Goals and Actions that lead to Improved Results. In his 2002 best seller "Hope Is Not A Strategy - The 6 Keys to Winning The Complex Sale", Rick Page lays out very definitive sales strategies to differentiate your value and effectively close sales in a business-to-business selling environment. While the definition of complex may have changed in the last 6 years, in today's global and very uncertain business landscape, we can ill afford to "hope" we close a deal or "hope" the client buys from us again....

I recently finished reading "Leaders At All Levels" by Ram Charan and would recommend it as part of your professional leadership library. Ram Charan is a world-renowned advisor to business leaders and corporate boards as well as best selling author or co-author of 14 books. He zeroes in on different ways to ensure organizations have the quality and quantity of leaders in their ranks to ensure continuity of leadership. I especially found his views on how to spot and develop leaders within the organization to be insightful. In one section in particular, he states, "The military is another source of leadership talent. Its leadership training is second to none." As I reflected on why I integrate military leadership lessons into my leadership practice, it occurred to me it wasn't that I was just learning how to lead, but rather I was learning to lead extremely well under adverse circumstances that makes a...