The other day I was clearing out my working space. I changed
jobs and the group I used to work for needs the space I was in. Fair enough. So
I sat in that cubicle for about 4 years. I tend to be a pack rat. I keep
everything. What caught my eye were all my different pieces of paper I had up
with push pins. Each one had a slightly different viewpoint, but all were
related to effective management.
As I looked around my cube going from left to right, I had a NCAA Tournament
bracket with Syracuse winning, a Zachman Institute pamphlet, a few recognition
posters, and etc. Here is etc:
A Dilbert Comic about meetings – http://arthurstromberg.com/personalgallery/main.php?g2_itemId=12597
Why: Because it goes along with motivation. The two guys are forced to have a meeting even though they don’t know why they are having it. So they meet the expectations since nothing is prompting them not to.
A Jim Collins Harvard Business Review called “Turning
Goals into Results: The Power of Catalytic Mechanisms”
Why: Because this HBR boils down his work fairly well.
The Five Components of Emotional Intelligence at Work
Self-Awareness
Self – Regulation
Motivation- Empathy
- Social Skill
Why: It goes into Definitions and Hallmarks so you can see what type of behavior someone with high Emotional Intelligence demonstrates.
The
Culture of Participation by Erick Schonfeld – Future Boy
Why: Because this article is a great example of how people are using technology to coordinate their ideas and express themselves. This is particularly important for governance.
A sheet that illustrates that two instances of reuse is the breakeven
point in terms of cost, everything after that is created value.
Why: It is a great visual. It shows how if you build in reuse for others, your costs up front will be about 60% of the original costs, but that recouping that cost will happen after only two instances of use. After that you start seeing the original cost get absorbed out.
An Accenture article by Ajit Kambil called “Leading
with an Invisible Hand”
Why: I love the idea of having a market inside a huge corporation. Corporations tend to be heirarchical, but having a market determine decisions would completely twist the power structure. Again, this is a huge idea for governance.
Jeffrey Pfeffer’s February 6th, 2006 article in
CNNMoney.com called “Why
Employees Should Lead Themselves”
Why: I like the idea of people leading themselves when it involves something they love. This article talks about an orchestra. The band members have to develop their own ideas since no one else is assigned that responsibility.
A playbook by Bridget Finn from April 2005 titled “Brainstorming
for Better Brainstorming”
Why: It mentions a few novel ideas for sparking creativity in the work environment.
Another Erick Shonfeld article called “Why
Gambling at the Office Pays Off”
Why: This is another example of markets inside a corporation. This talks more about the reward system used to make the market work, but it nonetheless is a great idea for putting current leadership on a slant.
“The
Mysteries of Mass” from ScientificAmerican.com by Gordon Kane
Why: Because sometimes you have to reexamine ideas that you take for granted – ask why things are the way they are.
Bill Swanson’s lifted “25
Unwritten Rules of Management”
Why: The rules are brilliant in their simplicity. Even though it was later found out that Mr. Swanson stole the ideas from an engineering book, they are still worth learning.
Malcolm Gladwell’s entry in the New Yorker for January of
2007 titled “Open
Secrets”
Why: I will discuss this more in an upcoming entry, but it talks about the difference in today’s problem solving approach versus successful workings in the past – it’s the methodology.
Fortune Cookies :
Keep your plans secret- You will be happy socially and in your work
- You are almost there
- Wake up. You are under the lucky star now
- Manny possibilities are open to you – work a
little harder
Why: No reason, other than that each was perfectly timed for what I was doing at that moment. Sometimes a little fortune cookie can make all the difference.
A
Checklist for Change
- Walk the Talk
- Interactions
- Contacts between Advocates and Apathetics
- Mass Exposure
- Hire Advocates
- Remove Resisters
- Reward and Recognition
- Infrastructure
Why: The print-outs I have detail much more information about the list above. I like to see other opinions on change. I cited Kotter in earlier blog entries.
And finally, Benedict Carey’s “This
is Your Life (and How You Tell It)”
Why: I find it interesting that people use stories for comprehension rather than lists or simple facts. Although the brain has associations, the harnessing of those associations comes about through linear naratives. For a business, to get what you need, you must play to both the associations and develop some sort of tale.
-> So these are the things I had around my work area. Take a moment and look at what you have. You might surprise yourself.
Working Thoughts 