On a regular basis people in leadership are asked to think at a strategic level, to identify a vision for the future, define key strategies to achieve the vision and convert those strategies into long-term objectives. For some people, this type of thinking is fun, easy and energizing. For others, who prefer to focus on [...]
I recently finished the book, Onward, by Starbucks’ founder Howard Schultz. Schultz does a great job, not only at explaining where Starbucks was at the time that he retook control of the company (after stepping down as CEO 8 years earlier), but he also created a road map on how he methodically brought Starbucks back from [...]
Everyone wants more cash, right? Well…..apparently not. Twenty-first century research on motivation, commonly called Motivation 3.0 (Daniel Pink, Drive), suggests that what employees really want is much more than cash. Today’s workforce is looking for: 1. Autonomy – the desire to direct their own lives 2. Mastery – the urge to get better and better at something [...]
Judging by the amount of times I’ve run into this phenomenon it’s probably safe to assume that most people have found themselves, somewhere along the way, in the midst of a battle between the operations side of the house, and the corporate / executive side. Now you might be asking yourself, I’m not really sure [...]
Recently, the New Directions team had another greatopportunity to be involved with the Albany-Colonie Chamber of Commerce’s Entrepreneur Boot Camp. I had the specific pleasure to read the 15 business reports from the class and be one of the panelists in the final presentation and judging of each report. Reading and reviewing the presentations, it’s [...]