The snow-shoe hike to Donut Falls was supposed to be the capstone to last night’s overnight camp. So, why do I feel good about giving up on the hike this morning? Just yesterday I posted about sticking to your plan. Why am I satisfied now with an outcome that doesn’t resemble the plan?
Category: executive
Stooping for Pennies Loses the Crown
I’m on a scrum team. In sprint retrospective many members of the team share a concern that the team isn’t moving as fast as it could. Things seem to have slowed down. We brain storm as a team. We look closer at the coming sprint’s plan. The Product Owner considers the team’s concerns and throws some… Continue reading Stooping for Pennies Loses the Crown
Having an Open Door Policy
When you become a new manager you might want to say to your folks, “Hey, my door is always open.” Then shoot them a crooked smile with your finger gun. I know I did. In the spirit of over-thinking everything I went further and posted a formal open-door policy. As with many of my ideas,… Continue reading Having an Open Door Policy
Drucker’s Five Basic Operations of the Manager
There are five basic operations in the work of the manager. Together they result in the integration of resources into a viable growing organism. A manager … sets objectives. … She makes the objectives effective by communicating them to the people whose performance is needed to attain them. A manager organizes. … He classifies the work. He divides… Continue reading Drucker’s Five Basic Operations of the Manager
Everything I Do Doesn’t Have To Be My Idea
I want to take advantage of others’ experiences. But isn’t it phony for me to use some technique I read about in a business blog? For example, I might come across a podcast at Manager Tools that talks about how to give feedback. The podcast tells me rules to follow, words to say, and how to behave.… Continue reading Everything I Do Doesn’t Have To Be My Idea
Love of Status Quo Signals Decline
An organization that seeks to maintain the status quo is already in decline. Peter F. Drucker, Management (Revised Edition), Chapter 1 25:50
Being a Functional Manager
A functional manager’s job breaks apart into three handy headings: Cultivate Discipline Leverage Discipline Employee At Large
What Works isn’t Stupid
The second rule of the Army is, “If it’s stupid but it works, it’s not stupid.” We could modify that to say, if it’s awkward, but it works, get over your awkwardness. Mark Horstman, Trinity Rollout Email Course, “But it feels awkward!”