I am struck by how often two “C” words appear in the press: “compliance” and “crisis,” as in crisis management or crisis communication. Corporations, particularly publicly held financial services organizations, are spending billions of dollars just assuring compliance with ever-increa

Physical therapy following shoulder surgery and back issues gave me a new appreciation for “core strength.” Physiologically, core strength is primarily a function of our abdominal and lower back muscles, pelvis and diaphragm working together to provide support, balance and power when

In older days, “Clear the deck!” was a common command to prepare for doing battle at sea. The command focused attention, cleared visibility to gain a better perspective on the action, eliminated distractions and quickly channeled resources where they were needed most. Literally or fig

Most of you have witnessed (and perhaps been victims of) disappointing or even disastrous organizational change efforts. A 2010 IBM comprehensive global study of organizational change initiatives revealed that 60% of them fail; JCP (the retailer formerly known as J.C. Penney) is the l

A new year lends itself naturally to reflection and planning, leading for some to make resolutions. My reflections and resolutions revolved mainly around what to let go of and what to make room for – what’s “out” and what’s “in.”  Of course organizations and their leaders need to make

Yes, I really do mean values proposition, not value proposition. We’re accustomed to thinking of an organization’s or business value proposition – the degree that it meets the needs, wants and requirements of target markets and customers. We pay less attention to how the values of an

We were on a nice port tack, but Raspberry Island was coming up fast; we needed to come about. I coached my nephews – one at the wheel and one at the winches – how to execute the maneuver, so soon we were “hard-a-lee,” turning through the wind to begin our starboard tack. There was on

I had the pleasure of lunch recently with the former VP of Sales for a $16 million technology company, published author and speaker. Mark Faris freely shares another distinguishing credential: he is a convicted felon for mail / wire fraud and money laundering who did eleven months of

We pulled out a time-honored family recipe over the holidays, and that got me thinking about what a recipe for success in 2012 might be.  I tried to follow the criteria for most good recipes: they should be relatively simple and clear, employ what is ideally at our disposal, allow for

It is sadly ironic that Penn State University and its leaders, concerned as they were about legacy, will perhaps best be known for their failures.  Over fifteen years, at least eight young boys were molested, some at Penn State’s athletic facilities, by the defensive coach of its reve