Management Archives

How to Develop a Business Strategy: Best Advice

Do you want to learn how to develop a business strategy? What factors should you take into account when designing a big-picture strategy for your business? According to Richard P. Rumelt, the author of Good Strategy, Bad Strategy, your business strategy must be designed in such a way so as to capitalize on the key strengths of your organization. Once you’ve identified your strengths, figure out how you can them to increase your competitive advantages. You can do this by leveraging your strengths onto one pivot point, and by pressing your advantages by increasing them, broadening their influence, or increasing

The Carrot and Stick Method: Rethinking Motivation

What is the carrot and stick method when it comes to the workplace? Why doesn’t this method work in the modern day? The carrot and stick method is when somebody hangs a carrot in front of a donkey and jabs it with a stick to get it to move. This approach is often applied in the workforce—although not with literal carrots and sticks. Author Paul Marciano asserts that trying to motivate employees with financial incentives (carrots) is not the best way to promote good work habits. Keep reading learn why Marciano thinks financial incentives are outdated.

How L. David Marquet Turned the Ship Around

What did L. David Marquet do when he first took command of a submarine? What leadership lessons did he get a chance to put into action? Today, L. David Marquet is known as a remarkable leader who turned things around for a demoralized submarine crew. He did this by putting into action the leadership lessons he learned in his early years in the Navy. The primary lesson was realizing that everyone can think and act like a leader. Read more to learn what L. David Marquet did in the first few months of his new command.

Strategic Management: Strategy Design and More

What exactly is strategic management? How do businesses develop strategies? What goes into a business strategy? In the most basic terms, strategic management involves setting objectives and devising strategies to attain them. According to Richard P. Rumelt, one of the most influential thinkers and strategic management and strategy design, a good organizational strategy must have a “kernel”—an underlying structure consisting of three components: 1) diagnosis, 2) guiding policy, and 3) action plan. Read more about the two primary truths about an organizational strategy and the kernel at the heart of any good strategy.

How to Instill a Proactive Mindset in Your Team

How can you develop leaders by helping them have a proactive mindset? How can a change in language make a big difference? A proactive mindset helps people take ownership in their work. It goes hand in hand with authority to make decisions and promote progress. It can be as simple as declaring an intention to do something—rather than asking permission or waiting to be told to do it. Read more to learn how to instill a proactive mindset in your team members.

Why Job Engagement Is Crucial to Performance

What does it mean to be engaged at work? In what ways do engaged employees do better? How can you increase your workplace engagement? According to Paul Marciano in his book Carrots and Sticks Don’t Work, employee job engagement is essential for your employees to produce their best work. However, studies show that most employees feel disengaged from their work. Here is why job engagement is so important and steps you can take to increase your employee engagement.

To Bring out Leaders, Delegate Responsibility

As a leader, are you delegating responsibility to develop more leaders? What are some practical ways to delegate responsibility? Captain David Marquet learned the power of delegating responsibility when he commanded the USS Santa Fe. He found that, when he communicated the goal in addition to (or rather than) giving orders, officers and crew were more involved in making decisions. When Marquet stopped providing solutions, his team found them on their own, and new leaders were born. Read more to learn how to develop leaders by delegating responsibility.

Business Strategy Design: A Holistic Approach

What makes a good business strategy design? What elements should you take into account when designing a big-picture strategy for a business enterprise? A good strategy is a well-integrated, tight design made up of parts (divisions, resources, initiatives, and so on) working together to form a coherent whole. Good performance is the result of a clever business strategy design efficiently harnessing an organization’s resources and capabilities to produce a competitive advantage. Read more about business strategy design from a holistic perspective and consider the consequences of a lack of a well-put-together strategy on a real-world example.

The RESPECT Model: Building Employee Engagement

What is the RESPECT model for engagement? Why is respect more important than monetary incentives? In his book Carrots and Sticks Don’t Work, Paul Marciano discusses the RESPECT model for engagement. He breaks down the five directions of respect: respect for the organization, leadership, team members, work, and the individual, and why each one is important. Here is what Marciano had to say about respect in the workplace.

Clear Communication in the Workplace: Think Out Loud

How can you achieve clear communication in the workplace? What is the “think out loud” method? Thinking out loud goes against Navy training and culture, which says that, when reporting something up the chain of command, you should say as little as possible. Submarine captain David Marquet threw out this tradition and instituted the “think out loud” method of clear communication in the workplace. It allowed him to keep quiet and let his team do their jobs. Read more to learn about this method of achieving clear communication in the workplace and how it worked for Marquet.