HBR – Freek Vermeulen – Many Strategies Fail Because They’re Not Actually Strategies

“new strategies” are often not strategies at all. A real strategy involves a clear set of choices that define what the firm is going to do and what it’s not going to do. Many so-called strategies are in fact goals. “We want to be the number one or number two in all the markets in which we […]

HBR – Distill Your Message to Just 15 Words

Know how to pitch. Start with the idea and why you are the right person to take the stage and deliver this big idea. While it must be a big idea, you need to be able to communicate it in 15 words or less. Share what the audience will take away, as well as the global […]

FORBES – The Benefits Of Simplicity

Being an effective manager is not about mastering mysterious and complicated methods. It’s about keeping it simple and following old, proven, and even obvious ideas. What made a good leader in the past is still what makes one today: being competent, caring, and benevolent. Take time to understand your employees. Set thoughtful, logical goals for […]

Speaking is no longer a soft skill

“If an entrepreneur can’t tell a convincing story, I’m not investing. You call it soft. I call it fundamental.” Warren Buffett would agree. Whenever Buffett is asked about the one most valuable skill that anyone can build today, he says public speaking. He even puts a value on it, “The one easy way to become worth 50 percent […]

Apple CEO Tim Cook Applies Three Persuasive Communication Techniques To Answer Tough Questions – Forbes, Carmine Gallo

Excerpt from Forbes article by Carmine Gallo; 1. Use a simple three-part story structure. Cramer asked Cook to make the case for Apple’s stock, which had fallen about 4% since the first of the year. Cook immediately took control of the narrative and shifted the story away from the stock price which, as he correctly points […]

When Satya Nadella became CEO of Microsoft in 2014, he inherited a company whose culture was known for hostility, infighting, and backstabbing among its top executives. To turn the company around, he made the members of his senior leadership team read the 2003 book “Nonviolent Communication” by the psychologist Marshall B. Rosenberg. Nadella handed out […]

Establish clear objectives for every business unit and team

Having a clear overall strategy is not, on its own, sufficient – you must ensure that each department and team within the organization knows what its objectives are, and how those objectives relate to, and align with, the overall strategy. One way that many great CEOs ensure proper alignment is to use the Objectives and Key Results […]