PrimeGenesis Blog
How John Smale Changed the Business Environment for Procter & Gamble
In the pantheon of signs, symbol, and stories that help people understand Procter & Gamble’s (P&G) culture, one of the classics is how former P&G CEO John Smale got the American Dental Association (ADA) to change its approach to approving products and...
Recovering from an Early Fumble – Lessons from Harvard-Yale 2011
We've all done it. Blown that early meeting, messed up the first slide of the presentation, gotten off on the wrong foot with someone. We've all been thrown by that first punch, knocked down by that early surprise, derailed by something. It...
Five Keys to Managing an Unpredictable Boss
Wouldn’t it be nice if management theory actually worked in practice? Wouldn’t it be nice if you could follow the tenets of The New Leader’s 100-Day Action Plan to get your strategic, operating, and organizational processes in place and let them run without interruption? Wouldn’t it be nice if your boss had perfect leadership skills and gave you clear direction and then never changed his or her mind?
Welcome to the real world. The real world is messy. Things change. And we all must adapt to those changes on an ongoing basis.
Top Three Excuses for Onboarding Failures
"Poor fit!" "Didn't deliver!" "Things changed!" 40% of executives fail in their first 18 months*. The vast majority of the roundabout, convoluted, euphemisministic explanations we hear for those failures are subsets of...
Oops
Webster defines "oops" as —"used typically to express mild apology, surprise, or dismay". Rick Perry had an oops in this week’s presidential debate. He forgot the Department of Energy as he was trying to name three governmental...
What Greece’s Interim Prime Minister Lucas Papademos Must Do
Managing an interim assignment is one of the most challenging things any leader ever does under any circumstances, let alone when your charge is on the verge of defaulting, scuttling the EU, and “putting a dent” in the world economy in a bad way. What then is Lucas Papedemos to do as Greece’s interim prime minister?
The basics of onboarding into a new role always apply. A little discipline goes a long way. Papedemos can improve his chances of success by getting a head start, managing the message and building the team – even in an interim assignment. He should:
Get a head start by making sure the coalition is committed to what it’s telling him to do.
Manage the message with all the critical stakeholders including the coalition, EU leaders, and Greek populace as a whole.
Build the team – even for the interim. This team is going to ramp up, complete its task and go away. None of that makes its ability to function as a high-performing team any less important.
When to Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way: Leadership Lessons from the Greek Bailout
Make your organization ever more ADEPT by Acquiring, Developing, Encouraging, Planning, and Transitioning talent:
Acquire: Recruit, attract, and onboard the right people
Develop: Assess and build skills and knowledge
Encourage: Direct, support, recognize, and reward
Plan: Monitor, assess, plan career moves over time
Transition: Migrate to different roles as appropriate
Just as not all people are right for all roles, not all leaders are right for all situations. We’re all new leaders all the time. As you take a look at your next 100 days, make sure you know when to lead, when to follow, and when to get out of the way.
The Five Most Important Questions for BRAVE Leaders
Anyone who thinks the next 100 days are going to be anything like the last 100 days is in for a surprise. This is why we’re all new leaders all the time and must continually inspire and enable others to do their absolute best, together, to realize a meaningful and rewarding shared purpose, leveraging five questions across Behaviors, Relationships, Attitudes, Values, and Environment (BRAVE leadership) from the outside in:
Where to play? (Environment – context)
What matters and why? (Values – purpose)
How to win? (Attitude – strategy)
How to connect? (Relationships – communication)
What impact? (Behaviors – implementation)
Announcing New Leader Smart Tools iPad app
In response to a need for even smarter and even more immediately actionable guidance on how to succeed as a new leader in today's turbulent job landscape, I am thrilled to announce the launch of our New Leader Smart Tools iPad application (app). Just released in...
IBM CEO Ginni Rometty’s New Leader 100-Day Action Plan
On the one hand, Virginia Rometty’s transition into the CEO role at IBM should be relatively easy. The company is in good shape. She’s been there 30 years, knows everyone, and is getting the job “because she deserves it,” as her predecessor Sam Palmisano put it. On...