President Donald J. Shrek

Re: “How to Find a Good Leader”,  November 3, 2018, Peggy Noonan)

For those of you (Trump Haters and Never Trumpers) still angry and confused by the election of Donald Trump, perhaps you would be enlightened by the animated movie, “Shrek”.

Shrek is an ogre who lives in a swamp. He is crude, smelly, rude and uses ear wax for candles. He likes his life just the way it is. Because the cowardly prince, Lord Farquaad, has confiscated his property—Shrek has to bargain to get his swamp back.  The deal is that Shrek must rescue the Princess Fiona who is under the spell of an evil witch from a remote castle guarded by a fire breathing dragon. He dons a helmet and sets off with his donkey to rescue the princess.

Shrek and Donkey locate the castle, cross a rickety bridge over burning lava, and find the princess. Fiona is anxiously waiting for a gallant hero, but Shrek is not gallant, shakes her roughly and simply says Lets go! Fiona who was expecting something more, protests-- I am awaiting  a knight so bold as to rescue me. Should this not be a wonderful romantic moment?  You should sweep me off my feet and take me down a rope to your valiant steed!  You could recite an epic poem, or ballad…..

She continues to complain upon hearing the dragon roar:  You didn’t slay the dragon?  But this isn’t right! You were meant to charge in, sword drawn, banner flying.  That’s what all the other knights did.

Shrek, sarcastically:  Yeah, right before they burst into flames.  (Think all other Republican Congresses and Presidents!)

After a harrowing escape from the dragon and crossing the lava, Fiona insists that Shrek remove his helmet so that may share “true love’s first kiss”.  Reluctantly, he takes off the helmet. A shocked Fiona exclaims, You’re…an ogre!

Shrek replies: Oh, you were expecting Prince Charming?

Fiona:  Well, yes, actually.  This is all wrong.   You are not supposed to be an ogre. 

And so, this the lesson of Donald J. Trump.   Sometimes we don’t always get the leader that we expected or imagined.  The hero who is brave enough, bold enough and persistent enough to save the day--or the country—may not meet the highest standards of probity, eloquence and political correctness.

Or, you can refuse to be rescued by an ogre.  You can return to your lofty tower prison and wonder why your country was lost to socialism, mob violence and poverty.  You will compromise with the dragon and the evil witch as you “work together to get things done”.   There you will sit, waiting, growing old and demented, softly humming:  Someday my prince will come, someday I will find the one…….   

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Post was jointly conceived and written with my wife, Martha.

For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. Audio versions of The Claret Murders and  Diversion are available from iTunes, Audibles and Amazon. eBook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBook’s Store and Smashwords.com. 
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

TWO CERTAINTIES

Perhaps the most important model in my book, The Language of Excellence,  is the one for TWO CERTAINTIES. The term “death and taxes” in the flip chart image is often quoted as the two certainties in life voiced by Benjamin Franklin. The graphic pairs Franklin's common sense terms with the words “change” and “judged” because change and judged are better descriptions of the two certainties as faced by businesses. For deliberate long-term success, an enterprise must have an understanding and acceptance of the two certainties— (1) we either purposely change to improve, or natural forces erode and change us for the worse, and (2) what we are is determined through the judgment of others.

I wrote the The Language of Excellence as a teaching aid. I discovered by accident that when all members of an organization understand the implications of important management and leadership concepts, magic happens within that enterprise. It is as if someone pulls back the curtain and turns up the lights. Suspicions disappear, replaced by unity.

To learn about the behavior of change, to gain an understanding of the rule of the fewest, to be able to put a name to observed phenomena such as the life cycle and suboptimization tears down the iron curtain between “management” and “employees.” A team arises—a competent team, one that shares a core set of beliefs and a common sense of direction—eager to help write their own playbook.

I want to clarify that I claim no origination credit for the concepts in The Language of Excellence. They are a compilation of ideas collected, distilled, reshaped, blogged, and even tweeted during fifty years of on-the-job training and a lifetime of reading and listening to the great minds of business—people like Peter Drucker, W. Edwards Deming, Nancy Austin and Tom Peters. The use of graphics and trigger words that bring those visual images to mind was inspired by usability improvements contributed by icons in graphical user interfaces (GUIs), by the power of Tom Peters’s model of excellence, and by the effectiveness of Model-Netics, the graphic image-laden management training courses of American General during my brief tenure with the company.

The concepts inside The Language of Excellence, like the Two Certainties apply to life as well as business. The book is one of the best gifts one could give to a young professional. It can be invaluable to the entrepreneur starting a new business or to a seasoned executive frustrated by the difficulty of steering an unresponsive corporate ship.

The Language of Excellence teaches the skills for long-term purposeful success. The concept of the Two Certainties conveys that for that long-term success, you must learn to deal with and manage change, and you must accept that you and your accomplishments are what others perceive them to be. 

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For more about The Language of Excellence at a discounted price for bulk purchases go to http://www.tomcollinsauthor.com/language-of-excellence/. For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. Audio versions of The Claret Murders and  Diversion are available from iTunes, Audibles and Amazon. eBook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBook’s Store and Smashwords.com.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

πόλλ' οἶδ' ἀλώπηξ, ἀλλ' ἐχῖνος ἓν μέγα

The above ancient Greek text translates as "The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing."  A surprising number of fables and modern stories have been inspired by this bit of text attributed to Archilochus.  Jim Collins even included a version of one in his book Good to Great. Collins explains it this way:

“Picture two animals: a fox and a hedgehog. Which are you? An ancient Greek parable distinguishes between foxes, which know many small things, and hedgehogs, which know one big thing. All good-to-great leaders, it turns out, are hedgehogs. They know how to simplify a complex world into a single, organizing idea—the kind of basic principle that unifies, organizes, and guides all decisions. That’s not to say hedgehogs are simplistic. Like great thinkers, who take complexities and boil them down into simple, yet profound, ideas (Adam Smith and the invisible hand, Darwin and evolution), leaders of good-to-great companies develop a Hedgehog Concept that is simple but that reflects penetrating insight and deep understanding.”

The wily fox in chase or being chased uses a complex web of tactics and strategies to counter obstacles or challenges. Sometimes he succeeds and sometimes he doesn’t. The determined hedgehog, on the other hand, has one superior advantage in the world, his spiny needles. His goal may appear simple, with his superior advantage he perseveres against every foe. The fox is an opportunist and pounces from opportunity to opportunity—never gaining the clarifying advantage of superiority.

A good friend of mine, Tom Trebing, and a mentor to fresh entrepreneurs, tells (or re-tells) the story this way:

“A fox and a hedgehog were strolling through a country path.  Periodically, they were threatened by hungry wolves.  The fox — being blessed with smarts, speed, and agility — would lead packs of wolves on a wild chase through the fields and over hill and dale. Eventually the fox would return to the path, breathless but having lost the wolves and continue walking. The hedgehog, being endowed with a coat of spikes, simply hunkered down on its haunches when menaced by the wolves and fended them off without moving. When they gave up, he would return to his stroll unperturbed. The crafty cunning fox devises many strategies. The persistent hedgehog knows one effective strategy—i.e.—the fox knows many things but the hedgehog knows one GREAT thing.”  

Let me try expanding concept using The Language of Excellence. The essence of excellence in leadership is the concept of Management Candy, M&M’s—doing the main things with the minimum resources necessary to achieve the objective. Great companies succeed because they practice Management Candy. They also have clarity of a mission.  In the choice between the Doing the Right Thing and Doing Things Right they have chosen the Right Thing.

Simply put, great companies have chosen the right thing (their superior advantage), and they have stuck to it like glue!

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to the TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and ebook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. For an audio edition of The Claret Murders go to http://amzn.com/B00IV5ZJEI. Ebook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBooks Store and Smashwords.com.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

2nd & Church review of The Language of Excellence

The current issue of the literary magazine, 2nd & Church, includes a review of my book The Language of Excellence by talented author and distinguished business leader Gary Slaughter.

2nd & Church is a literary journal by, for, and about writers and readers throughout the United States. The publication’s goal is to be inclusive of many different types of writers and writing. To have a review in 2nd & Church and to have Gary Slaughter as the reviewer is a tremendous honor. What does Slaughter have to say about my book on leadership and management?

“In my judgment, The Language of Excellence by Tom Collins is among the best five books I have ever read on this subject. “ 

“Tom Collins’ The Language of Excellence just may be the only guide book to personal and business excellence you will ever need to read. Borrowing from a lifetime of achievement, Collins lays out clear guidelines that can help you find your own success while enabling you to offer others the same excellence that has marked both his life and career. A must-read for achievers.” 

To subscribe to the 2nd & Church or view the publication online go to http://secondandchurch.typepad.com.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to the TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and ebook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. For an audio edition of The Claret Murders go to http://amzn.com/B00IV5ZJEI. Ebook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBooks Store and Smashwords.com.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Our Next President

Will the next president be a “problem solver”? I hope not.

Years of interviewing candidates for leadership positions have taught me

one thing: Never hire someone who describes their strength as problem solving. People who spend their time solving problems never seem to run out of problems to solve. Nor has solving a problem ever added value. At best things are just returned to where they should have been to start with.

Problems constantly confront leaders, but the best leaders devote most of their energy to pursuing opportunities. Those leaders don’t ignored problems, but they have come to understand that most problems are the symptoms of neglected opportunities. Pursue the right opportunities and many problems tend to take care of themselves.

What is needed in a President, or any leader, is the talent for doing the right things and building the right team. Great leaders focus on opportunities not problems.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to the TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and ebook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. For an audio edition of The Claret Murders go to http://amzn.com/B00IV5ZJEI. Ebook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBooks Store and Smashwords.com.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

How a Book Will Increase Your Business

A Florida company just purchased one hundred copies of The Language of Excellence as promotional items to get the attention of their VIP prospects. Here are more good reasons to consider a bulk purchase of this unique book on leadership and managing for excellence:

• As a door opener—a gift for the very important decision maker
• To increase existing business—reward your loyal customers and take the opportunity to find out how you can do even more for them
• For team training—equip your team to handle just about anything business (and life) can throw at them


Paperback—unsigned standard edition regularly $29.00:  

Bulk Price, free shipping
3 to 24...................$19
25 to 99................. $12
100 or more............ $10

Hard Cover—standard edition regularly $39.00:

Bulk Price, free shipping
3 to 24 signed by author............ $29
25 or more signed by author........$26

To arrange for a bulk purchase just email me, tom.collins@i65n.com.

Tom Collins’ books include his book on leadership, The Language of Excellence, and his mystery novels including Mark Rollins’ New Career, Mark Rollins and the Rainmaker, Mark Rollins and the Puppeteer and the newest mystery, The Claret Murders. For signed copies, go to the author’s online store. Unsigned print and ebook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. For an audio edition of The Claret Murders go to http://amzn.com/B00IV5ZJEI. The ebook editions only are available through Apple iTunes’ iBookstore and Smashword.com.

What people are saying about The Language of Excellence.

I'm on the road, in Sacramento right now. But, I wanted to take time to share with readers what people are saying about The Language of Excellence. 

Gary Slaughter, author of Cottonwood Novels said "I can't tell you how many leadership and management books I have read in the past past 50 years or so, but yours fall in the top 5." He also said its like the "Joy of Cooking" that in the 50's and 60's became a standard in every home--The Language of Excellence is a cookbook for achieving success in business.

Robert Hicks, New Your Times best selling author of The Widow of the South and  A Separate Country said, "Tom Collins' The Language of Excellence just may be the only guide book to personal and business excellence you will ever need to read. Borrowing from a lifetime of achievement, Collins lays out clear guidelines that can help you find your own success while enabling you to offer others the same 'excellence' that has marked both his life and career. A must-read for achievers."

"Author Tom Collins is both left-brained and right-brained. His creative side has given birth to the Mark Rollins mystery series which features the author’s love of wine and mystery, set in and around the Nashville area. His logical side calls upon his vast business experience to offer the wisdom of his years in his latest book, “The Language of Excellence.”-- Donna O'Neil, Author and former Williamson Herald Managing Editor

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Tom Collins’ books include his book on leadership, The Language of Excellence, and his mystery novels including Mark Rollins’ New Career, Mark Rollins and the Rainmaker, Mark Rollins and the Puppeteer and the newest mystery, The Claret Murders. For signed copies, go to the author’s online  store. unsigned print and ebook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. For an audio editon of The Claret Murders go tohttp://amzn.com/B00IV5ZJEI. The ebook edition for the iPad is available through Apple iTunes’ iBookstore.

Plans Cannot Predict the Future, but Planning Can Prepare You for It

Rob Millard, founder and partner of Venturis Consulting Group, once wrote, “All too often, I find myself facing blank stares from clients who want me to help them craft a plan that will lead them to greatness. This is only possible where the future is certain. Which, of course, it is not.”

The point is that strategic plans are based on assumptions about the future, and those predictions are too inaccurate to reliably steer an organization. Thus, if you unwaveringly pursue a plan based on those inaccurate assumptions, you will eventually implement the wrong strategy—you will “successfully fail.”

Now wait just a minute! We know that planning is one of the five things that distinguish successful organizations from the “also-ran” and the unsuccessful. Now you are telling me that following that plan will lead to successfully failing?

You got it. The “plan” must be to change the “plan”! Plans provide an essential fixed point for reacting to future events—for revising your assumptions, tactics, and strategies as the future becomes clearer. You can’t accurately predict the future, but by revising your predictions and your plans, you prepare your organization for it. Make sense?

The inaccurate character of assumptions is why planning must be a continuous

process. Through that continuous process of changing the plan as the future unfolds, successful organizations achieve that success by doing the “right things.” It is because of the continuous nature of the planning process that I emphasize that the tangible product of strategic planning, “the plan” should consist of words, phrases, and sentences, not paragraphs, pages, and chapters. It is the “play book,” that coordinates and shapes an organization’s actions and decisions, and that is changed by those actions and decisions on the front line in reaction to an unfolding future. Taking a line from the Pirates of the Caribbean about the Pirate’s Code, “It is more of a guide than an actual code.”

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“In this exciting age of fast-paced growth and innovative communication technology, Tom Collins has managed to incorporate timeless principles with modern advancements to achieve results-driven success in today’s business world. I can't think of anyone who wouldn't be enlightened by its contents.”—Jack Grant, Business Management Consultant

Tom Collins’ books include his book on leadership, The Language of Excellence, and his mystery novels including Mark Rollins’ New Career, Mark Rollins and the Rainmaker, Mark Rollins and the Puppeteer and the newest mystery, The Claret Murders. For signed copies, go to the author’s online store. unsigned print and ebook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes& Noble, and other online bookstores. For an audio editon of The Claret Murders go to http://amzn.com/B00IV5ZJEI. The ebook edition for the iPad is available through Apple iTunes’ iBookstore.

Listening for 900 Miles

Last week I drove 900 miles from Naples, Florida, to Franklin, Tennessee. I hate driving. However, this particular trip went by quickly. Why?

I purchased an audiobook before starting my road trip. The book turned a normally unpleasant fourteen hours into an enjoyable listening experience. It was one of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher mysteries and had a little more splattered brain matter and destroyed knees than I prefer—but then there were a couple of drivers I encountered during the trip that I would have liked to introduce to Jack Reacher in a dark alley.

If you are planning a driving trip anytime soon, consider purchasing the audio version of my book The Claret Murders. Even if you previously read the book, you will enjoy having the mystery and the Nashville flood experience brought to life through the voice of the reader. The audio version is available on Amazon.com or iTunes. Did you know there is talk of TV and movie rights? If you missed it, you can read the announcement for release of the audio edition by going to http://t.e2ma.net/message/vcadh/rptxeh.

While I don’t recommend reading it while driving, I hope you will soon read The Language of Excellence if you haven’t already. It is my fifth full-length book and the first focused on business. I am particularly happy that the book is being talked about as a breakthrough for its clarity and simplicity in its treatment of leadership and management issues. The CEO of LIVESTRONG said it teaches you how to deal with almost anything business or life will throw at you. The book is available in print and eBook formats on Amazon, other online bookstores, and through your favorite bookstore. The Language of Excellence is the perfect gift for someone about to graduate from college or for those already in the business world in pursuit of long-term durable success. To purchase from Amazon go to http://amzn.com/0985667346.

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Tom Collins’s books include his book on leadership, The Language of Excellence, and his mystery novels including Mark Rollins’ New Career, Mark Rollins and the Rainmaker, Mark Rollins and the Puppeteer, and the newest mystery, The Claret Murders. For signed copies, go to the author’s online store. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. For an audio edition of The Claret Murders, go to http://amzn.com/B00IV5ZJEI. The eBook edition for the iPad is available through Apple iTunes’ iBookstore.

Drowned by Drops

Ever think of suing or, for that matter, going to court rather than giving in to someone’s demands? Here is a bit of advice from Charles Dickens. In his novel, The Bleak House, he warns that whatever one does they should stay away from the Chancery [Court]. “It’s being ground to bits in a slow mill; it’s being roasted at a slow fire; it’s being stung to death by single bees; it’s being drowned by drops; it’s going mad by grains.”

Even putting aside the vision of being “drowned by drops,” the cost of litigation in terms of money, time and disruption frequently outweighs the benefit—even when you are in the right. Therefore, mediation or negotiated settlement is usually the better course.

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March 11 reception to introduce my new book:
I will be having a VIP reception and book signing for the release of my fifth book,
The Language of Excellence, Tuesday, March 11 at Landmark Booksellers in Franklin. The event starts at 5:30 pm. Join me for a little wine, caviar, and other treats. Unlike my previous books, this one is not a whodunit; however, it does tackle a mystery—the mystery of leadership. The event is an opportunity for us to discuss the Two Certainties in life as well as some of the other concepts in the book for dealing with just about everything life or business can throw at you. Landmark Booksellers is located at 114 East Main St., Franklin, Tennessee.

If you are not able to join me for the March 11 event, you can purchase my books on Amazon, other online stores, or at your favorite bookstore. Books include The Language of Excellence as well as my adventure mystery series including Mark Rollins’ New Career, Mark Rollins and the Rainmaker, Mark Rollins and the Puppeteer, and The Claret Murders.

Whiteboards and Flip Charts

Creative destruction fueled by technology advancements leaves a lot of dead practices and products in its wake—handwritten letters, typewriters, fax machines, etc.—but the flip chart and the whiteboard not only endure, The Wall Street Journal called them “High Tech’s Secret Weapon.”

Farhad Manjoo writing in The Wall Street Journal explained, “Whiteboards are to Silicon Valley what legal pads are to lawyers, what Excel is to accountants, or what long sleeves are to magicians. They’re an all-purpose tool of innovation, often the first place a product or company’s vision is dreamed up and designed, and a constant huddling point for future refinement.”

The whiteboard and flip chart are so important to the art of leadership that my new book, The Language of Excellence targeted for release on July 17, is dedicated to them. The dedication reads in part:

This book is a testament to the power of

the flip chart and the whiteboard. Visit

any innovative organization and you will

find them throughout. 

The Language of Excellence is a new genre for me. It is not a “whodunit mystery.” Nevertheless, I trust that it will unlock the mystery of leadership for young professionals, entrepreneurs starting a new business, or seasoned executives frustrated by the difficulty of steering an unresponsive corporate ship.

Doug Ulman, President/CEO the LIVESTRONG Foundation, after reading a

draft of the book wrote, “His book teaches you how to equip your team to deal with almost anything business or life will throw at them.”

Edward Rosenberg, Designer/CEO Spectore Corporation, said, “Collins defines the essential ingredients in a business with masterful simplicity and clarity. I wish I had read this 30 or 40 years ago.”

The hardcover edition of The Language of Excellence is priced at $39.00, but right now, you can place a pre-release order for only $19.00 by going to www.thelanguageofexcellence.com.

Mystery of Leadership

It is cold and raining with sleet and snow threatening. I pulled a previously read book off the bookshelf and settled into my favorite leather chair. It was A Passion for Excellence by Tom Peters and Nancy Austin. Tom Peters is also the coauthor of the groundbreaking book, In Search of Excellence. While it was the cover that caught my attention, I selected it because of what was inside.
I am putting the final touches on my own book dealing with the pursuit of excellence through leadership. The new book is titled The Language of Excellence. Tom Peters’s ideas were part of my inspiration for the book, particularly his model for “sustained superior performance over the long haul.” I call it a Model of Excellence.

I had just signed off on the cover design of the new book, and in addition to the title and a few other things, that cover contains the words “This book is simple.” So when I read page four of Peters’s book, I gave myself a pat on the back. Page 4 includes the following:

“Many accused In Search of Excellence of oversimplifying. After hundreds of post-In Search of Excellence seminars, we have reached the opposite conclusion: In Search of Excellence didn’t simplify enough! In the private or public sector, in big business or small, we observed that there are only two ways to create and sustain superior performance over the long haul. First, take exceptional care of your customers (for chicken, jet engines, education, health care, or baseball, etc.) via superior service and superior quality. Second, constantly innovate. That’s it. There are no alternatives in achieving long-term superior performance, or sustaining strategic competitive advantage, as the business strategists call it.”

Simple yes; easy no. Few businesses or public entities even come close to the objective. If it is so simple, why is it so hard? Achieving both, Care of Customers and Constant Innovation is achieved through people with the essential ingredient of Leadership. Even if you believe in the necessity of Customer Care and Innovation, the trick is you have to achieve them through people via the elusive quality of Leadership. Leadership is the mystery ingredient.

My new book, The Language of Excellence, turns up the lights and pulls back the curtain on this mystery ingredient--leadership. The book applies to life as well as business—I think it is the best gift one could give to a young professional. It can be invaluable to the entrepreneur starting a new business or seasoned executive frustrated by the difficulty of steering an unresponsive corporate ship.

For more information about my new book, The Language of Excellence, and for a special pre-release offer go to http://thelanguageofexcellence.com.

Businessman Concept

One of the things any effective leader would like to instill in their team members is the feeling that it is “my business.” You are the businessperson. It is your reputation. Your money is on the line.
As a college student, I worked at night at The Tastee Bread Company in Nashville, Tennessee. Their motto was “Baked while you sleep.” The company had a suggestion box and rewarded employees with monetary payments for suggestions that saved money or improved productivity. A member of the maintenance department measured the water being lost by a leaky faucet and applied the utility’s rate to calculate the monetary cost of water being lost yearly. He entered a suggestion that the bad washer causing the leak be replaced. The suggestion even included his calculation of the dollar amount the replaced washer would save the company. The next day, after the suggestion box had been opened and his suggestion read, he was fired.

You see, he was the maintenance man. It was his job to repair the faucet. Something he would have done if he had looked at The Tastee Bread Company as “my business.”

With a common sense of direction and an understanding of the rules of the road, you will make the right decisions and avoid the wrong ones as long as you treat this as your business.
It is your business; just stay on I-65 North!

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Mysteries by Tom Collins include Mark Rollins’ New Career, Mark Rollins and the Rainmaker, Mark Rollins and the Puppeteer and the newest, The Claret Murders. For signed copies go to http://store.markrollinsadventures.com. Print and ebook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other online bookstores. The ebook edition for the iPad is available through Apple iTunes' iBookstore.

Terminations

The graphic for terminations is blank for a very good reason. In spite of what the human resources people will tell you, there is no right way to terminate people. Yes, there is the three-step method:

1. Agree there is a problem
2. Agree on what is required to correct it and by what specific date
3. Agree on the consequence if the corrective action does not occur

You cannot be an excellent leader unless you are prepared to get the wrong people off the bus. However, it is never easy.  There are people you want to march to the door immediately, and they deserve it. There are people who just cannot get along. There are those who will not follow the playbook. There are people who just continue to insist that the organization should go south, east, or west rather than north. There are people in over their head—they do not have the KASH needed for the job. Then there are those who seem to everything needed to succeed, but for whatever reason, including bad luck, just cannot seem to achieve the objectives. You have an obligation to put someone new in their spot who you believe can take the company where it needs to go.

When you cut through all of the reasons, it comes down to two groups of people:

• Those who deserve to be terminated and got there without any help from you, and
• Those who are hiring or promotion mistakes.

Everyone makes mistakes, but if you are in a leadership position then you either are up to the job of correcting those mistakes—or you are the one that needs to be on the street looking for a job. As hard as it is at times, it is your job to build a winning team and that means cutting people as well as giving new people a chance to play on the team. If it is your mistake, you need to go the extra mile to help the individual move on to a position inside or outside the company where you believe they can be successful. That means giving them the time to relocate or at least providing them with a generous separation arrangement.

 

We live in a very litigious period and our government is always coming up with laws and regulations designed to protect employees from employers. The hiring and firing functions are minefields that have to be navigated with great care.

 

When it comes to hiring for example, it is your job to determine if a candidate fits the job picture: “Can and will they do the job in this environment with these people.” There are all kinds of interview questions that are off the table because of government rules and regulations. That makes your job of hiring the right people harder, but that does not relieve you of your responsibility. You have to know the rules, and you have to acquire the skills to get the job done within those rules.

 

When it comes to terminations, it is one thing to terminate someone immediately for misconduct; it is altogether different when there is no misconduct. Fairness requires that you deal with each case in light of the circumstances. Yet at the same time, treating people differently exposes you and the company to the risk of litigation. That is why many companies have rules providing for notice or separation pay based on length of employment. Nevertheless, before there is an issue of termination, there is nothing to prevent you from counseling an individual about where their talents lie and what their future prospects are within your organization. There is nothing to stop you from helping someone secure a position elsewhere. The best resolution of a hiring or promotion mistake is one that does not result in termination.

 

The idea of “In this environment with these people”, means that just because a person did not work out in a particular situation does not mean that they will not be a success elsewhere. That is an important message. It is particularly important in those situations where a hiring or promotion mistake has occurred. The concept is helpful when counseling an individual about their future. It helps when recommending someone to other employers.  If counseling does not solve the problem, the concept is helpful when you terminate a person.  You can do so without branding them as a failure. Your action is only communicating that the individual it did not work out in this environment with these people, but that does not necessarily mean that the individual will not succeed elsewhere.

 

As for the people who earned a termination without any help from you, you owe them nothing.

 

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Join me at the Southern Book Festival this Friday October 11, 2013.  I will be discussing and reading from my novel, The Claret Murders, in room 29 of the Legislative Plaza from 4:00pm to 5:00pm. Then from 5:00pm to 5:30, I will be signing books on the War Memorial Colonnade. 

 

  

 

Pros Play Hurt

Do not confuse “management” as something that applies only to those in a supervisory or executive role. In the modern world, we are all “managers.” Even stay-at-home Moms or Dads have management challenges and depend on the cooperation of family members to achieve objectives. Professionals within a company that have no direct line still must influence clients and coworkers to accomplish their responsibilities. Management Candy represents the knowledge you need to succeed in your leadership and management role, but knowledge is never enough. To be on the “A” Team, you have to have the right stuff. You have to play like a pro—and they show up and play their best even when hurt!

1. Keep Your Foot on the Gas: Don’t let up on the gas (effort) just because you are almost to the top of the hill (challenge).
2. Persevere: Never throw in the towel.
3. Standing 8: When knocked down, take the time to refocus. 
4. Play Offense: Act, don’t react. 
5. Presentation Counts: A cake is one thing; a cake with icing is altogether another. 
6. Finish, Don’t Quit: Achievers bring things to a conclusion.
7. Listen to be Heard: Great conversationalists ask and let others talk. 
8. Dress for Success: Clothes may not make the man, but they make an impression. 
9. It Is All About Giving: Relationships are built by helping others. 
10. Two-Word Phrases to Use: “Thank you.” “You’re welcome.” “I’m sorry.” 
11. Put People in the Bank: Save them; they pay a great return.

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Playbook

Playbook

Do plans need to be in writing?  Yes, but in a form that serves its purpose.  That is not as a bound volume that resides on a bookshelf never to be referenced once the creators have “finished” their planning task.  It is a communication vehicle—best conveyed in words, phrases, short paragraphs, charts, key performance indicators, and pictures.  It should be in a form easily changed and updated.  It should not be burdened with the niceties of a literary quality.  Its purpose is to have every member of the team guided by the same “playbook.”
 
In this age of advanced communications and technology, the playbook should be maintained as an integral part of the enterprise’s internal systems.  Those internal systems should serve as the enterprise’s command and control center.  Their purpose is to empower members of the team by giving them the clarity needed for the confidence to make decisions and take action on the frontline.  Management is about achieving objectives through others.  It follows that maintaining and refining the “playbook” is job one for the leader.  In today’s world, the “playbook” isn’t one thing—it is the leader’s blog, the organization’s intranet site, it is periodic video conferences or planning retreats, it is the business’s key performance indicators, its bonus, commission, and reward plans.  Wherever possible, words are better than phrases, phrases are better than sentences, sentences are better than paragraphs, and paragraphs are better than pages.  That is because the excellence company communicates so frequently and so clearly, that words and phrases become triggers conveying much more extensive content.  The use of words and phrases makes the job of constantly communicating, refining, and changing the dynamic plan easier. 

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A beautiful Nashville lawyer, an inheritance at risk, a devastating storm and wine to kill for—The Claret Murders, a new Mark Rollins adventure.

Slot Machine Management

One of the wrong ways to make change is characterized by Slot Machine Management—the slot machine manager makes frequent changes similar to a compulsive gambler repeatedly pulling the arm of a slot machine hoping that that next pull will be a winner.

Change is essential for the long-term success of a business. Without change, success doesn’t happen.  Yet the paradox is that the failure of management to understand change and competently manage it is high on the list of reasons businesses fail—not merely small businesses or new businesses.  Well established businesses often fall victim to the lack of a corporate memory.  Each generation of management tends to relearn the mistakes of prior generations.  While their sheer size insulates giant corporations from disappearing altogether, they can wind up on the dustbin of wannabes—companies that are no longer in the leadership positions they once held.  The culprit is often a slot machine approach.  IBM is one example.  There was a period of time when the company reorganized frequently—shifting managers to new rolls and specialties before they had become competent in their current assignments.  They realigned their sales force every six to twelve months—changing industry assignments, making regional and division assignments, etc.  Each reorganization (each pull of the one-armed bandit) rendered the company less successful and less competitive, symptoms of Slot Machine Management.

As performance goes south, the slot machine manager reacts by implementing more change to stem the fall in performance.  In effect the gambler reaches up and pulls the slot machine handle with the hope that maybe this time he will hit the jackpot rather than lemons.  That precipitates another fall in results and more changes by management, spiraling the company down to lower and lower results.

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In 2010 Music City suffered a great flood.  Nashville streets were turned into streams and the streams into raging killing zones.  That is the setting for my newest novel, The Claret Murders, available on Amazon.com for $15.99 or at only $2.99 for the Kindle, Nook and through iTunes for the iPad.