Employee-only temporary relocations — when families stay behind — often result in troubled marriages, depression, and child behavior problems, according to a new study by Dwellworks, a relocation firm. Financial pressure adds to the stress. 35% of respondents said their relocations resulted in extra financial obligations for the family, including childcare and help with household…
Month: July 2009
Organization Development Models – Force Field Analysis
Kurt Lewin developed the model for analyzing and managing organizational problems which he has termed Force Field Analysis (French & Bell, 1995; Fuqua & Kurpius, 1993; Lewin, 1951) in 1951. This model is relatively simple to understand and easy to visualize. A depiction of the model (see Figure 1) identifies both driving forces and restraining…
Rich, Young, and Chinese
China’s rapidly growing wealthy class — its 1.6 million households could grow to 4.4 million by 2015 — differs not only from less affluent Chinese consumers, but also from other wealthy customers around the world. For one thing, they’re younger: 80% are under 45, compared to 30% in the United States and 19% in Japan….
Create a Sustainable Culture
I have recently been asked by a client about how to make sustain the service culture we’ve been working on. In short, three things: 1. System/Process – A process is basically a pre-determined set of actions which leads to a desired outcome. Having processes that are deliberated and documented helps promote consistency of outcomes. One…
How to Perfect an Elevator Pitch About Yourself
I love this short article from Harvard Business. I need to work on this myself!______________________________________________ You’re in the elevator with the hiring manager of Dream-Job Corporation. As the door slides shut, you feel a combination of adrenaline and slight nausea: you’ve got 15 seconds, if that, to communicate your value as a potential employee in…
Lieutenant and Private
A simple, funny but meaningful story on leading people: A young second lieutenant at Fort Bragg discovered that he had no change when he was about to buy a soft drink from a vending machine. He flagged down a passing private and asked him, “Do you have change for a dollar?” The private said cheerfully,…
5 Myths about Leadership
Myth 1 – Leadership is a rare ability only given to a few.Many people still think leaders are born not made. This can’t be further from the truth. Most people have the potential to become good leaders. Leadership is not like a diet pill. Like most learned skills, it takes time, training, and lots of…
Questions I Ask Myself as a Leader
Here are five great questions from John C. Maxwell: 1) Am I Investing in Myself?This question probes your commitment to personal growth. An empty glass won’t refresh anyone. Before you can influence others, you need to contain something worth offering to others.Don’t be content to stockpile knowledge. Once you’ve ascertained a new insight or developed…
Leading in Challenging Times
In response to a LinkedIn question – As a manager, what do you do to build and sustain optimism in these challenging times? I think this is a great and totally relevant question not just for times like this but really for all leaders to consider. I had the pleasure of working for one of…
Everyone A Leader 