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Quick Links and Good Ideas, January 2011

Happy New Year! We hope that you were able to take a few minutes over the holidays to spend with family and friends and that you are back in the saddle, ready to attack 2011 with vigor.

I don’t recall what the pundits were saying at the beginning of last year, but looking at the year in the rearview mirror, it was certainly eventful. The changing expectations about business conditions, the jobless recovery in the US, the extent of problems in the southern Eurozone, and the upheaval in Washington were all elements in a fascinating story that is still being written.

In looking at the coming months, it seems that those who make forecasts are again calling for everything from doom and gloom to cautious optimism (I am still waiting for the wildly optimistic piece, but am not holding my breath). The implications from all that I am reading are that we all need to continue to focus on the basics in our businesses while continuing to communicate with our teams about where we are going, how we are going to get there, and why. In summary, from my perspective, there is no such thing as over communicating.

Empower Your Troops

There are a number of lessons that can be learned from the military. In Leadership Lesson from the Military: Put Away Your Iron Fist and Empower Your Troops, we discussed the articles from Harvard Business Review’s November Spotlight Series, "Leadership Lessons From the Military." The articles ranged from an interview with Admiral Thad Allen about his experiences leading the response to the Gulf oil spill and Hurricane Katrina; to an assessment of the different types of businesses that military leaders thrive in based on the branch of service in which they served, from Boris Groysberg, Andrew Hill, and Toby Johnson; to a look at Michael Useem’s article on how the military fosters adaptive leadership styles. In summary, people with military experience are assets in most if not all organizations, but finding the right people and the right team to accomplish the mission are always key. 

Test Your Strategy

In Measuring the Success of Your Strategy Starts with Asking the Right Seven Questions, we discussed the need to view strategy development as part of a process rather than as a stand-alone event. Another article from November’s Harvard Business Review, "Stress-Test Your Strategy: The 7 Questions to Ask" served as the launching point for this note. Too often, challenging and revising the plan is not part of the planning process. The seven ideas highlighted here should get your business plan review and measurement process started.

A Few Parting Words

I have enjoyed collaborating on writing both Strategy Insights: Quick Links & Good Ideas and blog entries over the last two years. This will be my final issue as a member of the Blackman Kallick team as I will be leaving the firm to become the President of Maine Plastics and A Greener Solution. I look forward to continuing to receive these messages from Blackman Kallick in the weeks and months ahead.

All the best for a prosperous, healthy, and happy 2011,
David Spitulnik, former Managing Director, Strategic Services

This publication is part of Blackman Kallick’s marketing of professional services, and is not written tax advice directed at the specific facts and circumstances of any person and/or entity. Contents of this publication are of a general nature, and you should not act on this information without obtaining professional advice from your business advisor that is appropriately tailored to your individual needs and circumstances. This written advice is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used by any taxpayer, for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed under the Internal Revenue Code.