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5 counterintuitive principles that will change your life
Hank Boyer Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementIt's not easy to be counterintuitive and go against the old paradigms. Yet history teaches us that most breakthrough successes have come from running counter to the prevailing paradigms. For example, where would we be today if, in 1981, Bill Gates of Microsoft had believed his own pronouncement, "640K of memory ought to be enough for anybody," and stopped pushing the limits of what computers could do? So, take a walk on the wild side, try these five counterintuitive principles for yourself, and see if they help you achieve breakthrough performance.
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The cost of changing jobs
Anne Rose Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementWhat is the cost of changing jobs? Make no mistake, there is always a cost involved that has nothing to do with salary. Gone are the days when the norm was to work one job at one company until retirement. We have a much more mobile workforce with more opportunities, and people change jobs often to avail themselves of perceived advantages, better pay, and better work-life balance. But sometimes when you change jobs, the benefits don't materialize as you'd expected, and regrets ensue.
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Why you should ban the yearly planning meeting
Robert C. Harris Association ManagementI would ban the yearly planning meeting, preferring a three-year approach to strategic planning. Strategic planning is the process for defining direction, setting priorities and aligning resources. It serves as a guide for successive boards, committees and the staff. It is developed at a multi-year leadership retreat. Some organizations convene a yearly planning meeting where directors are asked to set 12 months of priorities. This is quite different than a periodic leadership retreat, though the two concepts are sometimes confused.
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Tips for choosing to make smarter decisions
Terri Williams Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementIf you're driven and ambitious, you know that there's usually a trade-off in life. Typically, your health and relationships suffer in the process, and it becomes difficult, if not impossible, to sustain long-term success while protecting what matters the most. However, it’s possible to have your cake and eat it, too. As a result of 25 years of extensive study and executive coaching, international leadership coach Janine Woodcock has developed a trademarked program for making smarter decisions and developing skills to gain liberation from the unrelenting pressures of success.
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How HR technology is mitigating compliance risk in 2020
Michelle Lanter Smith Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementEach year, ensuring HR compliance gets a little harder, and 2020 is no exception. States are increasingly creating their own compliance regulations — and each of them is unique. Meanwhile, the human resources landscape continues to evolve at rapid pace, and each industry faces its own set of challenges. How can an employer keep up? One powerful strategy is to utilize HR technology that automates and optimizes labor compliance.
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Top 10 signs of a dysfunctional board
Bob Harris and Mark Alcorn Association ManagementIn 2002, attorney Mark D. Alcorn pointed out the key indicators of a dysfunctional association board of directors. He said, "I believe the troubled boards outnumber focused, efficient boards by a substantial margin. When a board of directors has more than its share of trouble and struggles, it can be dysfunctional. The presence of more than a few of these signs is cause for concern," he added. I wanted to review the dysfunctions identified nearly two decades ago to check their relevance to today.
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Lazy thinking perpetuates stereotypes. Here’s how to stop it
Simma Lieberman Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementIt's all around us, the idea that we are a divided country. Articles and books offer solutions for what we need to do as a country to close racial, gender and any other divisions based on demographics. But all those solutions go nowhere if we're not looking at ourselves and taking responsibility for our actions. Whether we want to hire the best people or close demographic divisions, we need to stop practicing lazy thinking that leads to stereotyping, labeling people with generalizations and missing people with whom we can connect in our workplaces and in our communities.
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Practical steps to take your leadership to new heights
Terri Williams Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementBeing a transformative leader — more than just a good leader — takes a lot of work. Many leaders try to emulate other successful leaders, and they often end up getting stuck in a rut. However, according to Doug Conant, building a sturdy and firm foundation is the key to enduring success as a leader. Conant is the founder of Conant Leadership and has served in the senior ranks of leadership for various companies over 20 years. He is also author of "The Blueprint: 6 Practical Steps to Lift Your Leadership to New Heights." We asked Conant to share some of his tips with MultiBriefs readers.
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Who needs a strategic plan?
Bob Harris and Matt Harrington Association ManagementIn a meeting with a dozen executive directors, a colleague said, "Who needs a strategic plan anymore? That stuff doesn’t work." From the nods and statements of other executives, the rest of the room seemed to concur. It was incomprehensible. I thought, "No strategic plan?" My heart sank. How can we expect volunteer leaders to advance a mission and priorities if there is no roadmap? Do they adjust their priorities at each meeting? React to a crisis of the month, or wait for the current chair to identify his or her legacy projects?
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Project management essentials for project success
William D. Pawlucy Association ManagementA project is an activity with a specific goal in mind and a clear beginning and end. Unlike ongoing services and operations, a project will end, ideally, with the accomplishment of the stated goal. Identifying clear goals and establishing a project plan are critical to effective utilization of resources. It is important that the following questions are asked for every project by the staff team, led by the executive director.
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