June 2000 Flash Points

Master of Startup Disaster (p. 52)
Article

What does your company do when it's in crisis?
Do you agree with Herzfeld that building a solid foundation should be a company's first priority?

A (Really) Brief History of Time (p. 58)
Article

Does email, as a one-click disposable medium, provoke the same degree of reflection and consideration from its readers that paper does?
Which medium do you use to deliver an important message? Why?
Is ''busy-ness'' just a way to avoid thinking about the most important matters?

Unit of One: The Road Not Taken (p. 103)
Article

Do you avoid traveling? Why? How?
Do you write weekly reports of your accomplishments? Could this help you?
Could teleconferences or other telecomm tools minimize or replace travel?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of in-person meetings? Remote meetings?

Getting it Done (p. 146)
Article

Does your company produce paper-based ''blueprints'' of future projects?
How do you get things done?
Are you fully informed about projects before jumping into them?
Do you agree that you shouldn't move until you know exactly where you're going?
Does your company have a central plan? Is it followed closely? How so?
Are projects in your company broken down into teams with specific tasks?
Does your company follow a project model?
Does your company strategize globally, but plan locally?
Do you agree with Cheung that rigid roles allow for a surprising degree of creativity? Do they reinforce a companywide sense of focus?
Is your company a ''memo writer's haven''?
Do your meetings follow a specific written agenda? Do they end with a specific action plan that clearly outlines who is doing what and when? Is this information copied to all meeting participants?
Are your meetings team-oriented? Who conducts them?
Do you agree with Drobny that if a project feels uncomfortable, then something's probably wrong?
Why do people get paid more for talking about things than they do for actually doing them?
Do you agree that knowledge gives you much less competitive leverage than it once did?
Do you worry about what you have to do today before worrying about tomorrow?
How can you bridge the gap between knowing and doing?

''Boooorrriinng!!!'' (p. 228)
Article

What's more important to effective leadership: charisma or emotional communication?
Should people be singled out as boring in order to gain perspective on themselves?
What role(s) do you play? Are you stuck playing out a certain personality?
Do you want to change the way that you're perceived? How so?

The New Fabric of Success (p. 252)
Article

What's your company's motto? Do you believe in it?
Is your work your life?
Do you agree that the more you give, the more you get back? Does your company?
How do you think Grupo M's policies will change sweatshops worldwide?
How much does top management in your company lend itself to the needs and desires of its employees and clients?

How to Play the Talent Game (p. 362)
Article

Do you think of the competition for talented workers as more of a game than a battle? Why?
Retaining talent is tougher than ever. How have you changed your recruiting strategy to keep pace with the job-leap mentality of today?
What questions do you ask during an interview?

All the Right Connections (p. 378)
Article

What are some connections between theater and business?
Do you agree that the only way to build a sustainable company is to build it not for customers but with customers?
What is the most important asset when managing the hypergrowth of a company? How do you keep up your connections?
To stay creative, is it important to stay small?

Zoë Barton contributed this month's Flash Points

June 2000 Connexus Connexus | Flash Points | Next Steps