Responsible Leadership in an Unforgiving World is the title of a 2013 book by Joseph Badaracco. Badaracco is a professor of Business ethics at Harvard Business School. He is also a Senior Associate Dean, Chair of the MBA Program. This work made me reflect on some of the Family Businesses HRB is working with — [Continue Reading]
Nom de Guerre
The chess player views the whole board and envisions two moves ahead. Some family business have members at the top who don’t look forward. What is your assumed name – nom de guerre – in the Family Business? What is your assumed name? Are you a front-runner, ground-breaker, or second-rate, insufficient? Nom de guerre is [Continue Reading]
Business Leaders — Tested by Fire?
Business Leaders motivate, Business Leaders acknowledge failure as part of the process, Business Leaders delegate and listen. In 1989 Abraham Zaleznik, wrote “Leaders are ‘twice-born’ individuals who endure major events that lead to a sense of separateness…from their environments,” he continued. “That sense of separateness may be a necessary condition for their ability to lead.” [Continue Reading]
Talent Management Critical to Family Business Success
Talent Management is influenced by a number of economic trends, global issues, demographic, generational swings; this business strategy needs to be included in the overall business plan. “It’s Christmas. It’s Christmas what a wonderful season” Gas prices dipped below $2.00/gallon and Leading Economic Indicators Grow for Third Consecutive Month. Family businesses will grow in [Continue Reading]
5 ways to focus on Corrective Action or Innovation
Internal issues versus External issues, often when an automotive OEM called the Family Owned business it was not good news, a quality issue. Most times they required an 8D. Eight Disciplines of Problem Solving (8D) is a method used to approach and to resolve problems, typically employed by quality engineers or other professionals. Its purpose [Continue Reading]
Things that Get Measured
The next time tells you we don’t make anything anymore in the USA; invite them to a take a foundry tour. What gets measured gets done. — Tom Peters A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal in a mold, [Continue Reading]
What Are The Three Requests Most Leaders Forget?
Three Requests Most Leaders Forget: • Ask for Forgiveness • Promise Problems • Ask for Help Successful Family Business Leaders remember these three tools. Be open and ask your Team for forgiveness. Some of the benefits include: Creating candor and a willingness to change the status quo and improve. It shows you are vulnerable, transparent. [Continue Reading]
Does your Family Owned Business have a Code, an Ethos, a culture?
What is your Family Owned BusinessCode, Ethos or culture? Ethos is a Greek word meaning “character” that is used to describe the guiding beliefs or ideals that characterize a community, nation, or ideology. Culture is comprised of many different elements that have been passed down for generations, including knowledge, belief systems, experiences, values, attitudes, religion, [Continue Reading]
Family Business and Chaos Theory
Family Business and Chaos Theory. Our Team continued to work at the family’s manufacturing plant. Improvement is difficult without stability. Do you know anything about the chaos theory? It has to do with fractal mathematics. A fractal is a natural phenomenon or a mathematical set that exhibits a repeating pattern that displays at every [Continue Reading]
THE PLANT — Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing
Do you recognize this phrase – Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing? Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” The Team arrived on Monday. This family owned business was really challenged. We joined the production meeting. First clue, it did not start on time. Our suspicions were confirmed when the [Continue Reading]