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Author Archives: David Shedd
The 4 Innate Qualities of Great Employees
With title inflation, clever wordsmithing, and self-marketing campaigns, every employee or potential employee appears to be a great employee. However, we all know the truth; few people are stars. In order to differentiate people and find the gem, seek out … Continue reading
Fast Track to Waste-Free Manufacturing – Appropriate for Any Process
In his still-insightful 1999 book, Fast Track to Waste-Free Manufacturing: Straight Talk from a Plant Manager, John W. Davis discusses how to improve a manufacturing operation by a simple and relentless focus on waste. The methodology he describes is really … Continue reading
Lessons from a Customer
Over the last month, my family and I have moved from Chandler, Arizona to Newport Beach, California. We sold our house in Chandler, moved ourselves and our belongings, and bought a house in Newport Beach. As so many of you … Continue reading
The Leadership Machine – Developing Skills for Your Leaders and Executives
In their book, The Leadership Machine (Architecture to Develop Leaders For Any Future), Michael W. Lombard and Robert W. Eichinger discuss ways to build leaders and develop leadership competencies (skills) in any company. Although the book is a bit too … Continue reading
The “Hard Work” Myth
A few months ago, there was a lot of discussion and a bit of vitriol about Sheryl Sandberg, the COO of Facebook, and her habit of leaving the office at 5:30 pm in order to have dinner with her family. … Continue reading
Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance – An Inside View of a Successful Turnaround and Culture Change
In Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance? – Leading a Great Enterprise Through Dramatic Change, former IBM CEO, Lou Gerstner, gives a first-hand account of how he led the turnaround of IBM in the 1990’s. I recommend the book for businesspeople … Continue reading
“Do You Want Fries With That?” – An Opportunity for Profitable Growth
McDonald’s employees are trained to ask all customers whether they want fries with their meal. This little question, repeated millions of times a day in thousands of McDonald’s restaurants worldwide, creates millions of dollars of profits for McDonald’s as millions … Continue reading
The McKinsey Way – A Strong Primer on Problem Solving
Way back in 1999, Ethan M. Rasiel (full disclosure: a business school colleague of mine) penned The McKinsey Way: Using the Techniques of the World’s Top Strategic Consultants to Help You and Your Business. In the book, Rasiel reveals the … Continue reading
Lady Luck Always Has Her Day
Whether we like it or not, a good deal of what happens to us in our lives, our careers and our businesses comes down to luck and fortunate timing. The chance meeting with someone that led to a job and … Continue reading
The Oz Principle – Be Accountable, Be Responsible, Be Answerable
In their book, The Oz Principle – Getting Results Through Individual and Organizational Accountability, Roger Connors, Tom Smith and Craig Hickman discuss the pervasive lack of accountability in the corporate world. Dirty Little Secret The dirty little secret is that … Continue reading
Grow and Win With New Product (and Service) Development
In today’s slow-growth economy, companies are struggling to find new ways to grow. All too often, current products are mature and current markets are saturated with competition. To escape these brutal facts and find a new avenue for growth, companies … Continue reading
Tuned In – Valuable Insight in Finding That New Avenue for Growth
In Tuned In: Uncover the Extraordinary Opportunities That Lead to Business Breakthroughs, Craig Stull, Phil Myers and David Meerman Scott describe the ‘Tuned In’ methodology that your company can use to find your next avenue for growth. ‘Tuned In’ creates … Continue reading
Posted in Growth and Strategy, Sales and Marketing
Tagged Growth, Market Development, Marketing, Product Development, Strategy
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4 Basic (Often Overlooked) Steps to Operational Excellence
Achieving operational excellence is vital to ensure that your company executes and fulfills its strategic goals. As a result, companies have spent millions of dollars and countless hours on advanced programs such as lean manufacturing, six sigma, kaizen events, ISO … Continue reading
Understanding Michael Porter: An Indispensable Handbook on Strategy
Published in December 2011, Joan Magretta’s Understanding Michael Porter: The Essential Guide to Competition and Strategy, is an excellent and timely book about business strategy. It discusses the ideas and frameworks from the guru of business strategy, Michael Porter. I … Continue reading
Growth By Acquisition – An Introduction
Mergers and acquisitions can be effective tools to speed the growth and development of your company. Through acquisitions your business can expand into new geographic areas, enter new market spaces, broaden product lines, develop relationships with new and growing customers, and … Continue reading
Posted in Growth and Strategy, Perform / Execution
Tagged Acquisitions, Growth, Mergers, Strategy
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How to Grow When Markets Don’t – More Relevant than Ever!
Published in late 2004, How to Grow When Markets Don’t by Adrian Slywotzky and Richard Wise (with Karl Weber) is more relevant than ever in today’s slow-growth business climate. The Growth Crisis The economy is maturing and population growth is … Continue reading
To Get Things Done, We Need More Meetings…With Ourselves
The majority of businesspeople are drowning in meetings – staff meetings, review meetings, planning meetings, etc…. The majority of businesspeople are inundated with distractions – colleagues stopping by open offices, a tidal wave of E-Mail, the allure of Facebook and … Continue reading
Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength – A Critical Book to Help You Realize Your Business and Personal Success
In their excellent book, Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, Roy F. Baumeister and John Tierney discuss the importance of willpower in ensuring that you get done what you need to get done and thus achieve your goals. Please use … Continue reading
Posted in Perform / Execution, Personal Success
Tagged Self-Control, Success, Willpower, Willpower Book Summary
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Competing in a “Low Price” World
In most industries, the business environment remains brutal: growth is slow or non-existent; and price competition is rampant. The question on the minds of many business executives is simple: How can I increase profits and grow when all my customers … Continue reading
Posted in Growth and Strategy, Perform / Execution
Tagged Competition, Low Price, Strategy
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The Essential Drucker: Insights from the Original Management Guru
The Essential Drucker: The Best of Sixty Years of Peter Drucker’s Essential Writings on Management is an indispensable read to help you enhance your business leadership and improve your business. What makes it particularly interesting is that much of it … Continue reading
