Food for Thought

Ever wondered why certain organizations reach the zenith while others struggle to make a leap or sustain? What makes organizations reach certain height? How do they transit from 'good to great'. Is it the strategies they choose, or their visionary leader, or is it the team team they employ? Read along to find out the essential ingredients on the incredible transformation. Good is the enemy of Great! On contrary to the popular belief the transition does not happen due to larger-than-life charismatic persona of the leader but it is due to systematic process that an organization undergoes. Author Jim Collins, in his book  Good To Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't , outlines a framework of this based on his research. The framework has three components, namely, 1. Process: This involves taking the first step towards greatness and continuing in the same direction (indicated by build up in the above diagram) till you reach an inflection point...

Book: 12 Disciplines of Leadership Excellence: How leaders achieve sustainable high performance Authors: Brian Tracy, Dr. Peter Chee Summary The authors describe 12 principles to succeed as a Leader. These can be developed over time by practice and experience. These are listed below: 1.  The Discipline of Leadership Excellence Current age employees most of the times look for what is in-stored for them in any work. Thus in current era, two types of leaders are more valuable as per author - charismatic transformational leaders who inspire people to do their best and transactional leaders who possess the ability to work with and achieve through others. Great leaders connect their team with the larger purpose by articulating their vision effectively and adding meaning to their team's work. As a leader one should make decisions and take actions and be accountable for the results. Leader should be prepared for adversity by planning for the worst-case scenario. Ope...

Book: 5% More: Making Small Changes to Achieve Extraordinary Results Author: Michael Alden "You can increase your productivity in virtually every aspect of your life by just 5%, and it will have long-term and life-changing benefits.” Everyone wishes for a better life; but, many fail in achieving this due to either unrealistic expectations or lack of action. The success comes by doing (acting) and not just day-dreaming about it.  The book suggests putting 5% more efforts in the direction of the goal one wishes to achieve. This may not bring-in 5% more results but will definitely take a step closer to the set target. To achieve 5% more, one must hold him/herself accountable. Start by writing down daily and weekly goals and be honest and realistic about it. (This can also be done for a team i.e. setting team goals and communicating them with the team). Incremental adjustments can be made eventually to the goals (targets). Author's colleague Brian encouraged him to ...

Sam Walton along with his brother James Lawrence Walton opened first Wal-Mart store in Rogers, USA in 1962. In Sam Walton’s best-selling autobiography “Made in America: My Story” was published in 1992. He outlined in it the very popular 10 rules of building a successful business which formed the basis for Wal-Mart’s success. The rules are as follows: Rule # 1 Be committed to the business. Have an infectious passion for one’s work. Rule # 2 Sharing profit with employees and treating them as partners brings great performance. Rule # 3 Motivating your partners beyond money and ownership by setting high goals, encouraging competition and keeping track is important. Don’t hesitate in keeping goals shockingly high. Rule # 4 Communication to partners is vital as it develops understanding and makes them caring. Empowering employees with information helps to mitigate risks from competitors. Rule # 5 Realize the importance of appreciating the employees. It works wond...