Got a question about how to establish a Strategic Profile for your organization. While the exact process takes some time and practice, I thought I could share the key 15 questions executives need to ask regarding their organization. The answers to these questions will begin the process of creating a strategic profile for your organization.
So here are the 15 Question for looking at your current Strategic Profile… Continue reading ‘15 Questions for Strategic Profile creation’ »
One of the most important things I have learned about the Strategic Planning process is how it can impact ALL areas of the organization. This is more that a top group think tank exercise. It will truly impact every area of the organization. One of the trailblazers of the understanding this interrelationship was the consulting firm of McKinsey.
They promoted and used a model referred to as the Seven S model of organizational effectiveness. Within this model, they determined there were no hierarchical boundaries – meaning each S was equal in need and priority – and as an organization you could rarely work on one area without impacting another. In fact, all seven S’s work together to create your effectiveness as an organization and as a leader, you must be prepared to work on all seven areas or elements to be successful in today’s competitive environment.
So what are the Seven S’s of this model? Here is the list of the seven, remember there is no one element with a priority over the other… Continue reading ‘Take a Holistic View to Strategic Planning’ »
Character is the twelfth C in the twelve part series of the C’s of Success. Part two covers the organizational side of character.
Character can be considered the ultimate indicator of true success at both the individual and organizational level. Character can dramatically separate organizations and are usually a mirror image of the leadership’s character.
What is character? The dictionary defines character as…
The aggregate of features and traits that form the individual nature of some person or thing; moral or ethical quality; qualities of honesty, courage, or the like; integrity; reputation, having a good repute; refers to the distinctive qualities that make one recognizable as a person differentiated from others; refers particularly to the combination of outer and inner characteristics that determine the impression that a person makes upon others.
When you get down to the real bottom-line, character is about integrity. It seems people and organizations either have it or don’t have it. The black-white comparison is due to the use of integrity – you either have it or don’t have it. Selective integrity or ethics is really not having it.
Why is character so important to success? Well, if we don’t have character, then anything goes which can be a bad thing if totally unchecked. I will give examples of unchecked character and integrity later in this post. For the time being, just remember that character is an accumulation of your beliefs and values regarding life and business. These same qualities (or no qualities) are transferred to organizations from the leaders and management of the organizations.
Commitment is the eleventh C in the twelve part series of the C’s of Success.
Commitment is the one factor or element that truly separates individuals and organizations. The individuals who understand the value of commitment will flourish with purpose and positive outcomes – the ones who hold back on commitment will seldom reach their full potential. And if there is one thing I hear more often from leaders – I wish we had more commitment. Interesting the impact of commitment.
The dictionary defines commitment as… Continue reading ‘Success and Commitment’ »
Courage is the tenth C in the twelve part series of the C’s of Success.
Courage can be considered the catalyst for getting higher levels of performance. It really is about the willingness to take a calculated risk to get the higher returns. Without courage, individuals and organizations would be under performing on a regular basis.
Consistency is the ninth C in the twelve part series of the C’s of Success.
Consistency can be considered the catalyst for getting things done at both the individual and organizational levels of performance. Many people have the misconception that flash is more effective, yet, those who are consistent in their work seem to always get things done – completely and on time. There is merit to the ones who appear to plug away working on projects until it is completed.
Creativity is the eighth C in the twelve part series of the C’s of Success.
Creativity can be considered the catalyst for competitive advantage at both the individual and organizational levels of performance. Creativity can separate individuals and make one unique or seen to be unique in the eyes of others. This perception is sometimes the only thing that separates the individual from others in the eyes of customers, managers and peers.
Wikipedia defines Creativity as…
Creativity is a mental and social process involving the generation of new ideas or concepts, or new associations of the creative mind between existing ideas or concepts. Creativity is fueled by the process of either conscious or unconscious insight. An alternative conception of creativeness is that it is simply the act of making something new.
This is about as accurate as I’ve seen regarding the pure definition of creativity. While this definition is universal in nature, and research studies have shown that all individuals possessed high levels of creativity during their youth – yet, only a small percentage of people consider themselves as creative or possessing creative skills. Continue reading ‘Success and Creativity’ »
Continuous Development is the seventh C in the twelve part series of the C’s of Success. Today will review the core from Part One and then discuss Continuous Development at the Organizational level.
Continuous Development can be considered the catalyst for all current and future growth and improvement. Without it, the status quo would rule the day and very little improvement or growth could occur in both individuals and organizations. There is a strong need for purposeful continuous development at all levels of organizations. Individuals who get ahead in life do so by improving themselves either by improving skills or their wisdom.
The sixth C in the twelve part series on success is Consideration.
Consideration is a very unique trait of the most successful people and organizations and probably the least understood. The unsuccessful have no understanding of the importance of this characteristic and have little understanding of its true value to success. If consideration is missing or limited, then you will find unhappy and unresponsive people working with you or around you. The true indicator of the degree of consideration being used is the number of people who actually WANT to work or be with you.
The fifth C in the twelve part series on success is Concentration.
Concentration is a unique trait of the most successful people and organizations. The unsuccessful usually have no understanding of the importance of this characteristic. If the ability to concentrate is missing or limited, then you will find people working on mostly low priority items or activities. The outcomes and results are also limited, therefore, high performance is not possible.
