Comment on Node ant

Alma Tisher — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 12:39:51 -0500

Do situations make a leader or do leaders make situations? Well, this is quite like the chicken and the egg discussion.

In my experience, it is a bit of both. This may sound like I am straddling a fence but the reality is that leaders have life experiences that allow them to make mistakes and learn how to be a leader. They are put in situations that help create leadership skills. During this journey as a leader he/she lays a foundation for the future as a honest/dishonest, benevolent/selfish.... leader by directing those around him/her and creating situations.

Fast Talk Response -

Alma Tisher — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 20:06:19 -0500

DEPENDS...I agree that everyone likes to work in a cool, swanky environment. It probably increases productivity. Would you trade it for your bonus? I recently worked with a smaller company that invested in its environment in lieu of paying its employees. Instead of raises and bonuses everyone has a new desk or bigger office. The owner said, "Your bonus is working in a nicer environment." It caused lower productivity and lower morale to learn that all the profit for the year went into remodeling the office leaving nothing for the employees who had worked so hard all year.

Comment on Node ant

Alma Tisher — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 19:40:44 -0500

I have to agree that my initial reaction is: "Is this trying to be another LinkedIn competitor." I can see that Fast Company offers an advantage to its competition. Now the challenge is to clearly focus on what this advantage is. How does Fast Company leverage its contacts, name recognition, content, readership, and loyal people like me to make this more than just a social networking site? I think you will have to dig deep to examine how to pull away from your competition and create the "Blue Ocean Strategy" for this endeavor that differentiates it. Where is the WOW?

Does Your Manager Have Values?

Alma Tisher — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 19:27:52 -0500

OK, I guess values are not very interesting. Just like mission, vision. They end up in a drawer some where not to be touched or re-visited and often companies do not walk the walk so why bother. I tell you why I bother to have values....

Operating Values

Alma Tisher — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 02:46:36 -0500

Would anyone like to share their company's operating values? Do you have written values? How does your company use its values? Do these values set the tone for your company culture?

One of my favorite set of Company operating values comes from Intuit.

http://web.intuit.com/about_intuit/investors/corporate_gov/downloads/operating_values.pdf