Award-winning, veteran journalist William J. Holstein has written a little gem of a book filled with wise advice for CEOs about how to manage today’s media. Manage the Media is one of Harvard Business Press’s new “Memo to the CEO” series. It’s a quick read and to the point which should be perfect for time-starved executives. I highly recommend it for CEOs, board members, members of senior management and anyone interested in media coverage of organizations.
I recently recorded an interview with Wayne Turmel, host of the “Cranky Middle Manager Show” on The Podcast Network. Wayne is an interviewer extraordinaire. His valuable insights and sense of humor always enliven and enlighten listeners (and guests) alike. Wayne and I had a great chat about Connection Cultures and how they increase employee engagement. To listen to the interview, click here. Also, be sure to check out the other 139 interviews Wayne has recorded since the Cranky Middle Manager show’s inception.
Apple is on a roll. And so is its co-founder Steve Jobs. Why?
In a world of muted, bland corporate identities and product designs, Apple dares to take a stand. Its corporate visual identity, store design and product designs are inspiring. They move people on an emotional level when most products utterly fail to inspire. Who can forget the Think Different ads featuring iconic individuals such as Gandhi, Einstein and Picasso, the animated ads featuring U2 performing their hit song “Vertigo,” or the stunning design of the iPhone? When critics of the iPhone complained that Apple sacrificed battery functionality for design, I thought to myself, “what did they expect?” Steve Jobs has an off the charts passion for aesthetic beauty and excellence. Understanding this is key to decoding what Jobs and Apple are all about. It also helps explain why they’ve been extraordinarily successful.
Let’s begin by making it clear what Steve Jobs is not.
William J. Holstein, the well-respected business journalist who writes for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Business Week and other publications, described my new ebook on connection this way: “For those of us who write about business, every once in a while, a book or an article comes along that seems so simple on some levels yet communicates great wisdom. “The Connection Culture: A New Source of Competitive Advantage” is one such work.”
On his blog, Holstein invites readers of The Connection Culture to share their thoughts. Would you consider sharing your reaction by posting a comment on Holstein’s BNet blog entitled “The Corner Office?”
GUEST: Michael Stallard
TOPIC: What are you doing to make sure your employees are engaged? Michael Stallard joins Jim to talk about how to make our team members feel that they actually have an important stake in the direction of the business.
Brought to you by The Small Business Advocate®
The band U2 has had a phenomenal run since they came together in 1976. Critics rave over their music and fans can’t seem to get enough of their songs and concert appearances. All the signs indicate that U2 is at the top of its game and will be going strong for the foreseeable future.
Why has this particular band been together for more than 30 years when most other bands that experience success for a period of time eventually fall apart?
GUEST: Michael Stallard
TOPIC: How important is having a family spirit in your business? Michael Stallard talks with Jim Blasingame about how a family spirit culture in your business improves employee engagement and becomes contagious with customers, too.
Brought to you by The Small Business Advocate®
Several leaders who opposed America — Adolf Hitler, Nikita Khrushev and Osama Bin Laden, to name a few — thought that America’s diversity would pull the nation apart in the face of adversity. They seriously underestimated the power of shared values. Americans are rationally and emotionally committed to a set of values that include freedom of speech, religion and assembly, the right to vote and equality of opportunity. They’re like bees buzzing around with no apparent connection to one another, that is, until they are under siege…then just watch them come together to oppose their enemies. This advertising spot, entitled “I am an American” sponsored by the Ad Council and conceived by the GSD&M advertising agency following the September 11 terrorist attacks, makes the point in a profound and moving way.
Few leaders understand how powerful shared values can be to increase the trust, cooperation and performance of group members. Sometimes simple mantras unite people. Disney’s mantra “to make people happy” or Charles Schwab’s mantra to “make the most useful and ethical financial products in the world” move the hearts of true believers and motivate them to go the extra mile, individually and collectively.
Sometimes it’s difficult to identify a mantra that resonates. If you’re in the waste management business, your employees are not exactly drawn to disposing of trash. How you conduct your business, then, can be a way to unite them. One private company CEO I know in the waste management business clearly explains to employees what he and his colleagues believes in and how they expect everyone to live up to a set of aspirational values. This CEO treats his employees like family. He knows them. He’s there for them. He expects them to respect and help one another. He also has high performance expectations and he works harder than anyone else to meet them. These are universal values that everyone can rally around provided that the leadership’s “walk” is consistent with its “talk.” The result of the waste management CEO’s values-driven leadership has been low employee turnover, a reputation for reliability and integrity, and a highly profitable business.
If you’re a leader, what values do you believe in when it comes to the business you are responsible for leading? Taking time to identify your values, your personal experiences that formed those values and why employees should embrace them, could help take your business to the next level of performance.
More people today want to be genuine at work. They feel it is unhealthy to “put on an act” at work in order to fit in and be more promotable. Instead, they want to work at companies that celebrate individuality rather than at companies that force individuals to conform to a corporate stereotype. I once thought that I needed to maintain a certain distance from co-workers in order to be promoted. Experience has taught me otherwise. To read an article on this topic that I wrote for CustomerServiceCrossing.com, click here.