A Cultural Fix for Risk Management Failure

How to create a culture that combines healthy risk taking with effective risk management. Want to buy a pile of second mortgages with a loan-to-equity value of 99 to 1, and scant documentation on borrower qualifications? (By the way, those borrowers might not live in the homes they’re mortgaging.) And, sure, it’s possible the borrowers are lying about their income and job status. (But who cares?) Today, even considering such a package seems ridiculous. Yet most of these loans, part of

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Characteristics of the Creative Leader (versus Authoritative Leader)

I made this chart for my presentation at Davos World Economic Forum on "Creative Leadership" in January 2009. Since it has been requested ... here it is. I hope it's useful. -JM

Authorative Leader		Creative Leader
Symbol of Authority More Sticks Hierarchical Linear Path Plan and Execute: Launching with 1.0 Sustaining Order Yes or No (clear) Literal in Tone Concerned with Being Right Think like a General or Conductor Delegates Actions Closed System One-Way Close the Ranks Follows the Manual Loves to Avoid Mistakes Reliability Orchestra Model Community in Harmony Wants to be Right Open to Limited Feedback Your Opinion Matters		Symbol of Inspiration More Carrots Networked Nonlinear Path Iterate and Do: Living in Beta Taking Risks Maybe (comfort with ambiguity) Metaphorical in Tone Concerned with Being Real Think like an Artist or Designer Hands-On Driven Open System Interactive Permeable Improvises when Appropriate Loves to Learn from Mistakes Validity Jazz Ensemble Community in Conversation Hopes to be Right Open to Unlimited Critique What are You Really Thinking?

PS Here it is in the original visual form.

Read more: "Characteristics of the Creative Leader (versus Authoritative Leader) - Creative Leadership" - http://creativeleadership.com/characteristics-of-the-creative-leader-versus#ixzz0FCgSpvPZ&A

Source: Creative Leadership

Destination: Work - Thriving in a Tough Economy by Tapping Into the Discretionary Effort of Your Employees, Ross Reck, Ph.D. & Harry Paul

Has your company’s bottom line taken a serious hit because of today’s lousy economic climate? Has your company tried to fix the situation by undergoing a round or two of layoffs, only to see your productivity plummet because of reduced morale and your better performing employees jumping ship to other companies or surfing the internet for job postings on your time? If so, would you like to turn your situation around instantly—as in overnight? If you think something like this is impossible, think again. The secret for turning things around is to tap into the discretionary effort of your employees—get them excited about coming to work and applying every bit of energy, creativity and passion they have toward performing their jobs instead of doing only what they have to do to in order to stay employed. How important is discretionary effort to the success of a business? Towers Perrin looked at 50 global companies over a 12 month period and found a direct relationship between discretionary effort and company performance. They found that the companies that received high levels of discretionary effort from their employees had a 19 percent increase in operating income and nearly a 28 percent increase in earnings per share.

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Who’s Got Your Back: Why You Need the “Lifeline Relationships” that Create Success and Won’t Let You Fail, Keith Ferrazzi

Lifeline Relationships Behind every great leader, at the base of every great tale of success, you will find an indispensable circle of trusted advisors, mentors, and colleagues. These groups come in all forms and sizes and can be found at every level and in nearly all spheres of both professional and personal life, but what they all have in common is a unique kind of connection with each other that I’ve come to call lifeline relationships. These relationships are, quite literally, why some people succeed far more than others. There’s a good chance that you’ve already experienced the power and potential of lifeline relationships at some point in your life. Imagine some of the attributes of the best bosses you’ve ever had— the kind of boss who encourages you, who gives you space to grow, who appreciates your efforts, who doesn’t micromanage but guides your development with wisdom, and who handles your slip-ups with firmness, understanding, and candor. Or think back to that good friend or family member who dropped everything to be there for you at a critical juncture in your life and didn’t let you fail. Picture that associate you had at work who took a risk for you, and whose influence still touches you today. If you’ve ever had an important person or group of people in your life who’ve shepherded you in the right direction—even if you’ve had just a taste of it—you know what I mean.

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Brainwriting - Getting More from Your Idea Sessions

Many of us have taken part in brainstorming sessions. These are commonly used to generate ideas, and to come up with a creative solution to a problem. What can often happen during a brainstorming session, however, is that key players on the team speak up and express their ideas. Everyone else then enters the discussion about those few ideas, and they reach a consensus on the solution – without considering many other ideas that could have been generated.

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