Leaders in today’s organizations need to continuously balance the expectations of three different groups of people—shareholders, customers, and employees. How these three groups are ranked within a company will largely determine the type of culture the organization has. A “shareholder first” organization is very different from a “customer first” or an “employee first” company. In a…
“Make sure that people understand your reasoning and process. If you decide that some information is just too sensitive to share openly, that’s okay. Just be sure that the process you use isn’t seen as secretive. In the absence of openness, people will imagine the worst,” says Scott Blanchard in a recent column for Fast…
“Do you want this job so you can serve—or so you can be served?” Of course if you ask most people this question straight-up, the answer will always be “to serve” in the mind of the applicant, but a closer examination of what is behind the desire to serve is still really an opportunity to…
Some organizations do a great job helping employees get started in a new role. In other companies, people don’t even have clear job descriptions, so the on-boarding process is a little bit like being thrown into a salad spinner. In a recent article entitled Three Keys to Effective On-Boarding, Madeleine Homan-Blanchard, cofounder of Coaching Services…
Ken Blanchard was a featured speaker during commencement ceremonies for the college of business at Grand Canyon University yesterday. In his remarks Dr. Blanchard encouraged the aspiring leaders to remember that leadership is not about you—it is about others, and that true success in life is not about what you get, but what you give. To…
There is a classic fable about a man who approaches three laborers breaking and shaping rocks. The man asks the first laborer what he is doing. “What does it look like I’m doing? I’m breaking rocks,” the laborer replies. The man asks the second laborer what he is doing and he responds that he is…
Employee engagement is a popular topic these days and a whole industry has sprung up around helping managers identify people’s strengths, discover their motivations, and provide the tools and resources people need to succeed. The goal is to create a high-energy work environment where people want to come to work and be their best. But do…
Join The Ken Blanchard Companies for a special complimentary webinar and online chat beginning today at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time (12:00 noon Eastern). Founding Associate Pat Zigarmi and Trust Practice Leader Randy Conley will be speaking on the topic of Building Trust and Transparency in Your Organization. The webinar is free and seats are still…
“Love” as the key ingredient to business success? Ken Blanchard and Colleen Barrett make a convincing case in their new book, Lead with LUV: A Different Way to Create Real Success. I received an early manuscript of this new book (due out in January) after attending Barrett’s keynote address at The Ken Blanchard Companies annual…
The underdog New Orleans Saints defeated the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 in yesterday’s NFL Super Bowl, in large part I believe, to the power of their purpose. Purpose is defined as “the reason for which something exists or is done; an intended or desired result; determination, resoluteness.” Not that the Colts didn’t have a purpose because…