Archive for November, 2007
My New Book
Thursday, November 29th, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
Since today’s post contains a bit of self-promotion I’ll keep it very short and to the point…My new book, “Leadership Matters…The CEO Survival Manual” was published this week and is available for sale in Hardcover at Amazon.com and various other online retailers and bookstores throughout the country. In today’s post I’ll give you a brief overview of the book…
Read The Full PostInitiative Overload…
Wednesday, November 21st, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
As we prepare for a long Thanksgiving Holiday weekend it is my most sincere hope that you will have time for a bit of reflective thinking. If and when you turn your contemplative thoughts to the business world I would ask that you ponder the following question: “Am I so busy that I’ve lost the ability to be as productive as I need to be?” One of the most common problems facing executives is the lack of ability to remain focused on highest and best use activities. In fact many executives are their own worst enemy when it comes taking themselves out of the “productivity zone” (see Finding the Zone). While we could talk about being better managers of technology, communications, interruptions and various other productivity killers, today’s post will focus on the number one killer of executive productivity which is biting-off more than you can chew or what I like to call initiative overload…
Read The Full PostInvesting In Talent
Tuesday, November 20th, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
I recently read a blog post on all the reasons not to hire “superstars” and I could not have disagreed more with what I read. The more I continued to read the drivel being espoused by this blogger the more I realized how prevalent his assertions and positions have become in today’s business world. I have always subscribed to the philosophy that the quality of an organization’s talent will have a direct correlation to their success…In other words the better a company’s talent the more successful the enterprise will be. In today’s blog post I will discuss the benefits of hiring Tier-One talent.
Read The Full PostTurning Crisis into Opportunity
Friday, November 16th, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
I was corresponding with a colleague earlier today who was inquiring into my experiences with crisis management, and after reviewing my e-mail to her I thought the subject was worthy of being published in today’s post. In the current always-on, real-time and often invasive world of media coverage any company is only a slight faux pas away from crisis mode. It is not really a question of if your organization will encounter a crisis, but rather it is a matter of when and how often a crisis will occur. In today’s post I’ll share my thoughts on how to successfully navigate a crisis…
Read The Full PostROI Reexamined
Thursday, November 15th, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
Measuring Return on Investment (ROI) is a solid business principle that helps guide corporate decisioning. However for purposes of this blog post I want you to think of ROI as return on imagination, ideas and innovation. It is the return on innovation that will allow companies to maintain their competitive edge and create sustainable growth. Peter Drucker said, “An established company which, in an age demanding innovation, is not able to innovate, is doomed to decline and extinction.”
Read The Full PostDon’t Negotiate…Facilitate
Wednesday, November 14th, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
There are many that would say negotiation is just part of doing business and that you cannot be successful as an executive or entrepreneur without becoming a great negotiator. So my question to you is this: Are you a great negotiator? To be considered a savvy negotiator is to be held in high esteem in the world of business and in some circles is worn as a proud badge of honor. If you possess a reputation as a shrewd negotiator you are feared in the board room as an adversary to be reckoned with. While many a consultant, author and trainer have made personal fortunes teaching the finer points of negotiation, it is my belief that if you find yourself negotiating you have already missed the boat. In today’s post I’ll share why negotiation is inherently flawed as a business practice…
Read The Full PostCEO Term Limits?
Thursday, November 8th, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
I read an interesting blog post on the subject of CEO Term Limits authored by Steve Mader on Forbes.com today. It was a very thorough discussion presenting a fairly balanced perspective on the topic at hand. That being said, I fundamentally disagree with some of Steve assertions and cannot really come up with a valid reason for supporting the concept of CEO Term Limits. Any such argument in my opinion is rooted either in flawed business logic or politically correct rhetoric. I would encourage you to read Steve’s comments and then to come back and read my arguments in opposition to CEO Term Limits…
Read The Full PostDo You Have An Internet Strategy?
Wednesday, November 7th, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
What drives your internet strategy? I’m always amazed that in today’s digital world where web based technologies reign supreme at the number of companies that still don’t get it…It is not at all uncommon for me to find corporate internet strategies that are at best cobbled together if they exist at all. It is as if the website is the corporate version of the “hot potato” such that every wants to have their say, but no one wants to take responsibility. Rarely do I come across corporate internet strategies that are aligned with the core business strategy. In an earlier post entitled “Who’s In Charge of Your Internet Strategy” I address many of the typical mistakes made with regard to the management of corporate internet initiatives, but in today’s post I’ll focus on the benefits derived by engineering a well conceived internet strategy.
Read The Full PostInterview with Robin Koval
Tuesday, November 6th, 2007By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth
Advising CEOs and entrepreneurs for a living I have had the pleasure of working with a wide variety of truly amazing individuals over the years. However when I look back amongst those individuals who have left an indelible impression on me it is not the smartest, toughest, wealthiest or most powerful executives, but rather it has been the “nicest” executives that made the lasting impression. Let’s face it, most C-level executives are savvy, intelligent, resourceful, shrewd, calculating and successful but how many of them are truly warm, caring and friendly? Sadly not as many as I would hope to be able to report. That being said, if Robin Koval has anything to say about it (and trust me she does) there is a paradigm shift in process within the business world which is bringing ”nice” back…
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