How do you treat your intelligent failures? Embarrassed or excited?

Leadership Memo 2023-12 Would you agree that failure (try something out that didn’t work the way you’d hoped) is a lot more common in highly uncertain environments than it is in better-understood situations? Yet, instead of learning from failures, many…

Do you think all failures are created equal?

Leadership Memo 2023-11 Do you want to be able to respond and adapt to this fast-changing and increasingly complex world, instead of just reacting and always worried that you made a wrong decision? Then you need a culture of learning…

Want to know how to build a culture of trust? Leaders trust first!

Leadership Memo 2023-10 At the World Agility Forum last month, Hyatt Hotels Corporation CEO Mark Hoplamazian emphasized that senior leaders need to shift their mindset to succeed in a complex world. He shared that even the best business models can…

What does it mean for employees to feel safe?

Leadership Memo 2023-9 21st-century leadership is not about telling employees what to do and monitoring their progress like a hawk. It is about creating and maintaining an environment where employees feel safe and motivated to contribute to their fullest. We…

Preventing Dry Rot

Leadership Memo 2023-7 We have been discussing Ukrainian President Zelenskyy’s leadership traits for the last 3 months. If you missed them, you can read them here. However, I know that not everyone gets excited about management and leadership concepts. But…

21st-century leadership traits as shown by Ukrainian President Zelenskyy (Part 3)

Leadership Memo 2023-6 “I am transfixed by the example of President Zelenskyy. I have watched every one of his addresses. He is plainspoken, quietly forceful, and unstinting with the truth. I have been studying leadership and fearlessness my whole life.…

21st-century leadership traits as shown by Ukrainian President Zelenskyy (Part 2)

Leadership Memo 2023-5 After more than a year, Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, continues to inspire his fellow countrymen to fight on, and he continues to lead an international campaign to garner monetary and military support. An amazing feat by a…

21st-century leadership traits as shown by Ukrainian President Zelenskyy (Part 1)

Leadership Memo 2023-4 Since Feb 24, 2022, the world has taken notice of Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as he led his people through one of the biggest land invasions in recent memory. President Zelenskyy is not a seasoned politician or…

What should leaders do to help their teams transition such shock?

Leadership Memo 2023-3 Many people around the world are in shock! Layoff was a US thing. Whenever things are tight, US companies would lay people off. That didn’t happen anywhere else in the world. Even the labor laws outside of…