Any ideas about how to capture lessons learned for a knowledge base—i.e. getting colleagues to NOT fear repercussions of admitting 'mistakes' and/or admitting what they did not know? First, the Truth: most of us are afraid to admit mistakes or ignorance...
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Young Leader, Veteran Team
I am a projects and operations manager at a multinational oil giant based in Cape Town, South Africa. I have seven people reporting to me. I am twenty-four years old and the youngest member of my team—the ages range from thirty to forty-three. What...
The Essence of Leadership
As the author of this column, I receive a number of questions each month on the topic of leadership. Manu asks how young men and women in India can be taught to think about leadership. A pharmacy director in the U.S. is having difficulty firing up a small number...
No Authority? Use Persuasion
I am leading a cross-functional team in a company initiative but the members on the team do not report to me. How can I motivate them to stay committed to the team and stay focused on the goals established when they have their day-to-day work responsibilities?...
Great Leadership for Great Teams
I am establishing a publishing house in Africa, and have put together a team with great potential. What strategies and skills must I employ to make the most of this potential? What is the best way to lead a crop of great people? By assembling a great team,...
Inspiring the Jaded Employee
I am interested in motivating long-term employees who have fifteen-plus years with an organization. This group has heard all the visions of transient leaders who were furthering their own careers, and have become apathetic to improving their own lot, space, or...
How Leaders Use Questions
Do you have anything to share regarding the subject of asking the right questions? Someone once said "Forget the answers; focus on asking the right questions." I’ll always remember the mid-1980s commercials featuring Lee Iacocca, then considered one of...
Is Equity-Based Compensation a Good Thing?
Do you think an equity-based compensation plan is a good way to motivate employees? My first instinct was to write, “Yes, of course.” Halfway through my third rewrite, however, I discovered it’s a wickedly complex question. Yes, equity motivates, but the question is...
Managing Execs Who Didn’t Get the Promotion
The managing director heads an organization with three vice presidents under him. For the last two years the company has been run this way and has been successful in turning around. With reorganization on the agenda, it is proposed that one of the vice presidents be...
Is Belief Crucial To Success?
Do I have to believe in what I am doing in order to be successful at it? The power of belief is the stuff of legend. In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy must defeat the Wicked Witch of the West to build enough belief so the magic ruby slippers will send her home. But in real...