excellence. always. tom peters/14 april 2006/novosibirsk
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EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.Tom Peters/14 April 2006/Novosibirsk
“Organizations are not machines. That has been the central message of all my books. They are living communities of
individuals. To describe them we need to use the language of communities and the language of
individuals. That means a mix of words we use in politics and in ordinary everyday life. The essential
task of leadership (a word from political theory, unlike the word ‘manager’) is to combine the aspirations and needs of individuals with the
purposes of the larger community to which they all belong.” —Charles Handy
P.P.E.E.R.E.
People.Product.
Execution.Enthusiasm.Relentless.Excellence.
EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.Tom Peters/14 April 2006/Novosibirsk
Slides at …
tompeters.com
EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.
Excellence1982: The Bedrock “Eight Basics”
1. A Bias for Action2. Close to the Customer3. Autonomy and Entrepreneurship4. Productivity Through People5. Hands On, Value-Driven6. Stick to the Knitting7. Simple Form, Lean Staff8. Simultaneous Loose-Tight Properties”
What is In Search of Excellence all about:
People. Emotion. Engagement. Exuberance. Action-Execution. Empowerment. Independence. Initiative. Imagination. Great
Stories. Incredible Adventures. Trust. Caring. Fun. Joy. Customer-centrism. Profit. Growth. “Brand
You.” “Dramatic Differences.”Experiences. That Make You “Gasp.” Excellence. Always.
ExIn*: 1982-2002/Forbes.com
DJIA: $10,000 yields $85,500 EI: $10,000 yields $140,050
*Excellence Index/Basket of 32 publicly traded stocks
!
First-level Scientific Success:
Beyond Brains
Tom Peters/14April2006
First-level Scientific Success
The smartest guy in the room wins”
Or …
First-level Scientific Success
FanaticismPersistence-Dogged Tenacity
Patience (long haul/decades)-Impatience (in a hurry/”do it yesterday”)
PassionEnergy
Relentlessness (Grant-ian)
EnthusiasmDriven (nuts!)
(Brutal?) CompetitivenessEntrepreneurialPragmatic (R.F!A.)
Scrounge (“gets” the logistics-infrastructure bit)
Master of Politics (internal-external)Tactical Genius
Pursuit of (Oceanic) Excellence!High EQ/Skillful in Attracting + Keeping Talent/Magnetic
Prolific (“ground up more pig brains”)
Egocentric
Sense of History-DestinyFuturistic-In the Moment
Mono-dimensional (“Work-life balance”? Ha!)
Exceptionally IntelligentExceptionally Clever (methodological shortcuts/methodological genius)
Luck
First-level Scientific Success/Short Form
Scientific Success (Nobel-level) = Genius +
Execution + Master of Soft Skills + Enthusiasm + Magnetism + Destiny
(sense of) + Energy
Biz Bonanza Success = DDMMSTERL =
DramaticDifference + “Business” Acumen/Money + Good
“Marketing” Instinct/“Ice-to-Eskimos” Sales Instincts + Stellar
Talent + Aim for Excellence + Resilience/Tenacity/ Adaptability + Luck (The “Necessary Nine”: What Every Small Biz
Requires to Excel.) (Big, too.)
!
4/40Tom Peters/Novosibirsk/14 April 2006
De-cent-ral-iz-a-tion!
Ex-e-cu-tion!
Ac-count-a-bil-ity!
6:15A.M.
!
All You Need to Know*
*more or less
Tom Peters/14 April 2006/Novosibirsk
Amazing Tales
THREE BILLION NEW
CAPITALISTS —Clyde Prestowitz
Cause
“Create a ‘cause,’ not a ‘business.’’
—Gary Hamel
“I never, ever thought of myself as a businessman.
I was interested in creating things
I would be proud of.” —Richard Branson
Quest
“Groups become great only when everyone in them, leaders and members alike, is free to do his or her absolute best.”“The best thing a leader can do
for a Great Group is to allow its members to discover their
greatness.”
Source: Organizing Genius/Warren Bennis & Patricia Ward Biederman
Leadership’s Mt Everest
“free to do his or her absolute
best” …
“allow its members to
discover their greatness.”
“The role of the Director is to create a space where the actor or actress can become more than they’ve ever been before, more than
they’ve dreamed of being.” —Robert Altman, Oscar acceptance
“We are a ‘Life
Success’ Company”
—Dave Liniger, RE/MAX
Artist
Leader Job 1
Paint Portraits of Excellence!
Best Story
“Storytelling
is the core of culture.”
—Branded Nation: The Marketing of Megachurch, College Inc., and Museumworld, James Twitchell
Point of
View!
People
“Leaders
‘do’ people.” —Anon.
“We believe companies can increase their market cap 50 percent in 3 years. Steve Macadam at Georgia-
Pacific changed 20 of his 40 box plant managers to put more talented, higher paid
managers in charge. He
increased profitability from $25 million to $80
million in 2 years.” —Ed Michaels, War for Talent
Brand = Talent.
Our Mission
To develop and manage talent;to apply that talent,
throughout the world, for the benefit of clients;to do so in partnership;
to do so with profit.
WPP
A review of Jack and Suzy Welch’s Winning claims there are but two key differentiators that set GE “culture” apart from the herd:
First: Separating financial forecasting and performance measurement. Performance measurement based, as it usually is, on budgeting leads to an epidemic of gaming the system. GE’s performance measurement is divorced from budgeting—and instead reflects how you do relative to your past performance and relative to competitors’ performance; i.e., it’s about how you actually do in the context of what happened in the real world, not as compared to a gamed-abstract plan developed last year.
Second: Putting HR on a par with finance and marketing.
People
Employees: “Are there enough weird people in the lab
these days?”V. Chmn., pharmaceutical house, to a lab director
Decency
Amen!
“What creates trust, in the end,
is the leader’s manifest respect
for the followers.”
— Jim O’Toole, Leading Change
Care
“The deepest human
need is the need to be
appreciated.”—William James
“The two most powerful things in existence: a kind
word and a thoughtful
gesture.” —Ken Langone
Intangibles
“Hard is soft. Soft is hard.”*
*In Search of Excellence
“Organizations are not machines. That has been the central message of
all my books. They are living communities of individuals. To describe them we need to use the language of
communities and the language of individuals. That means a mix of words we
use in politics and in ordinary everyday life. The essential task of leadership (a word
from political theory, unlike the word ‘manager’) is to combine the aspirations
and needs of individuals with the purposes of the larger community to which they all
belong.” —Charles Handy
Self-management
“The First step in a ‘dramatic’
‘organizational change program’ is obvious—dramatic
personal change!” —RG
You = Your
Calendar
“You must
be the change you
wish to see in the world.”
—Gandhi
“To change minds effectively, leaders make particular use
of two tools: the stories they tell and
the lives they lead.” —Howard Gardner, Changing Minds
MBWA
>25
“You can’t lead a cavalry charge if you think you look funny on a
horse.” —John Peers, President, Logical Machine
Corporation
Curiosity
“Why?”
Ears
“If you don’t listen, you don’t sell
anything.”
—Carolyn Marland/MD/Guardian Group
Conformity
“While everything may
be better, it is also increasingly the same.”
—Paul Goldberger on retail, “The Sameness of Things,” The New York Times
“To grow, companies need to
break out of a vicious cycle of
competitive benchmarking and imitation.” —W. Chan Kim & Renée
Mauborgne, “Think for Yourself —Stop Copying a Rival,” Financial Times/08.11.03
Conformity
“The Bottleneck is at the Top of the Bottle”
“Where are you likely to find people with the least diversity of experience, the largest investment in the past, and the greatest reverence for industry
dogma?
At the top!”
— Gary Hamel/“Strategy or Revolution”/Harvard Business Review
Dramatic Difference
Point of View!/Point of
Dramatic Difference!
“[Immelt] is now identifying technologies with which GE
will … systematically set out to build
entirely new industries.” —Strategy+Business, Fall
2005
Action
“Ninety percent of what we call
‘management’ consists of making
it difficult for people to get
things done.” – Peter Drucker
“Execution is the job of the
business leader.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram
Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
“Execution is a
systematic process of rigorously
discussing hows and whats, tenaciously following through, and
ensuring accountability.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
“The person who is a little less conceptual but is absolutely determined to succeed will usually find the
right people and get them together to achieve objectives. I’m not knocking education or looking for
dumb people. But if you have to choose between someone with a
staggering IQ and an elite education who’s gliding along,
and someone with a lower IQ but who is absolutely determined to succeed, you’ll always do better with the second person.” —Larry
Bossidy/Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
“GE has set a standard of candor.
… There isn’t an ounce of denial in
the place.” —Kevin Sharer, CEO
Amgen, on the “GE mystique” (Fortune)
“Never forget implementation
boys. In our work it’s what I call the ‘missing 98
percent’ of the client puzzle.” —Al
McDonald
Try ItTry ItTry It
Sam’s Secret
#1!
“Fail faster. Succeed sooner.”
—David Kelley/IDEO
“This is so simple it sounds stupid, but it is amazing how few oil people really
understand that you only find oil if you drill wells. You may
think you’re finding it when you’re drawing maps and
studying logs, but you have to drill.”
Source: The Hunters, by John Masters, Canadian O & G wildcatter
“While many people big oil finds with big companies, over the years
about 80 percent of the oil found in the United States has been
brought in by wildcatters such as Mr Findley, says Larry Nation,
spokesman for the American Association of Petroleum
Geologists.” —WSJ, “Wildcat Producer Sparks Oil
Boom in Montana,” 04.05.2006
“You only find oil if
you drill wells.”
Source: The Hunters, by John Masters, Canadian O & G wildcatter
Focus
“I used to have a rule for myself that at any point in time I
wanted to have in mind — as it so happens, also in writing, on a little card I carried around with me — the three big things I was
trying to get done.
Three. Not two.
Not four. Not five. Not ten. Three.”
— Richard Haass, The Power to Persuade
“Dennis, you need a ‘To-don’t ’
List !”
“We will not, I repeat not,
pretend to be ‘all things to all people.’” —CEO, Investec (03.06)
K.I.S.S.
450/8
“One bank is currently claiming to ‘leverage its
global footprint to provide effective financial solutions
for its customers by providing a gateway to
diverse markets.’ I assume that it is just saying that it is there to help its customers wherever they are.” —Charles
Handy
“I wanted GE to operate with the speed, informality,
and open communication of a corner store. Corner
stores often have strategy right. With their limited resources, they have to
rely on laser-like focus on doing one thing very well.”
—Jack Welch/Fortune/04.05
Change
“If you don’t like change, you’re going to like
irrelevance even less.” —General Eric Shinseki, Chief of Staff. U. S. Army
Change
We become who we
spend time with!
Measure “Strangeness”/Portfolio Quality
StaffConsultants
VendorsOut-sourcing Partners (#, Quality)
Innovation Alliance PartnersCustomers
Competitors (who we “benchmark” against)
Strategic Initiatives Product Portfolio (LineEx v. Leap)
IS/IT ProjectsHQ LocationLunch Mates
LanguageBoard
“Don’t benchmark, futuremark!
” Impetus: “The future is already here; it’s just
not evenly distributed” —William Gibson
“[Immelt] is now identifying technologies with which GE
will … systematically set out to build
entirely new industries.” —Strategy+Business, Fall
2005
Forget
Forget > “Learn”
“The problem is never how to get new,
innovative thoughts into your mind, but
how to get the old ones out.” —Dee Hock
BigChange
No Wiggle Room!
“Incrementalism
is innovation’s worst enemy.”
Nicholas Negroponte
“Beware of the tyranny of making Small
Changes to Small Things.
Rather, make Big Changes to
Big Things.” —Roger
Enrico, former Chairman, PepsiCo
Five MYTHS About Changing Behavior
*Crisis is a powerful impetus for change*Change is motivated by fear*The facts will set us free
*Small, gradual changes are always easier to make and sustain*We can’t change because our brains become “hardwired” early in life
Source: Fast Company/05.2005
“Reward excellent failures.
Punish mediocre
successes.”Phil Daniels, Sydney exec
BigBiggerBiggest??????
“I don’t believe in
economies of scale. You don’t get better by being bigger. You get worse.” —
Dick Kovacevich/Wells Fargo/Forbes/08.04 (ROA: Wells, 1.7%; Citi, 1.5%; BofA, 1.3%;
J.P. Morgan Chase, 0.9%)
Agressive
Nelson’s secret: “[Other] admirals more frightened of losing than
anxious to win”
Speed-Tempo
“We don’t sell
insurance anymore.
We sell speed.”
Peter Lewis, Progressive
Passion & Enthusiasm
“Nothing is so contagious
as enthusiasm.”
—Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“A man without a
smiling face must not
open a shop.” —Chinese Proverb*
*Courtesy Tom Morris, The Art of Achievement
I am a dispenser of enthusiasm.
” —Ben Zander
Hustle
“Most important,
he upped the energy level at Motorola.” —Fortune on Ed Zander/08.05
Sunny
Half-full Cups: “Ronald Reagan radiated
an almost transcendent
happiness.” —Lou Cannon
Aim High
The greatest dangerfor most of us
is not that our aim istoo high
and we miss it,but that it is
too lowand we reach it.
Michelangelo
Get “better” vs
Get “different”
“You do not merely want to
be the best of the best. You want to be considered the
only ones who do what
you do.” —Jerry Garcia
Create
“A focus on cost-cutting and efficiency has helped many organizations weather the
downturn, but this approach will
ultimately render them obsolete. Only the constant
pursuit of innovation can ensure long-term success.”
—Daniel Muzyka, Dean, Sauder School of Business, Univ of British Columbia (FT/09.17.04)
SellSellSelll
. “Everyone lives by selling
something.”
– Robert Louis Stevenson
Value-added
And the “M” Stands for … ?
Gerstner’s IBM: “Systems Integrator of
choice.”
IBM Global Services: $55B
No Limits
“You can’t behave in a calm, rational manner. You’ve got to be out there on the lunatic fringe.”
— Jack Welch
!
Leadership23
Tom Peters/Novosibirsk/14April2006
Leadership23
1. Enthusiasm. Energy. Exuberance.2. Action. Execution.3. Tempo. Metabolism.4. Relentless.5. Master of Plan B.6. Accountability.7. Meritocracy.8. Leaders “do” people. Mentor. (“Success creation business.”)9. Women. Diversity.10. Integrity. Credibility. Humanity. Grace.11. Realism.12. Cause. Adventures. Quests.13. Legacy.14. Best story wins.15. On the edge. (“Wildest chimera of a moonstruck mind.”)16. “Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”17. Different > Better. (“Only ones who do what we do.”)18. MBWA. Customer MBWA.19. Laughs.20. Repot. Curiosity. Why?21. You = Calendar. “To Don’t.” Two.22. Excellence. Always.23. Nelsonian! (“Other admirals more afraid of losing than anxious to win.”)
Sir Richard’s Rules:
Follow your passions.Keep it simple.
Get the best people to help you.
Re-create yourself.Play.
Source: Fortune on Branson
!
People Power!
Tom Peters/Novosibirsk/14April2006
People Power: “Brand You”
Days
“One of the defining characteristics [of the change] is
that it will be less driven by countries or corporations and
more driven by real people. It will unleash unprecedented creativity,
advancement of knowledge, and economic development. But at the same time, it will tend to undermine safety net systems and
penalize the unskilled.” —Clyde Prestowitz, Three Billion
New Capitalists
“If there is nothing very special about
your work, no matter how hard
you apply yourself you won’t get noticed, and that
increasingly means you won’t get paid much either.” —Michael Goldhaber, Wired
“You are the storyteller of your own life, and you can create your own legend or
not.” —Isabel Allende
Distinct … or
… Extinct
New Work SurvivalKit.2006
1. Mastery! (Best/Absurdly Good at Something!)2. “Manage” to Legacy (All Work = “Memorable”/“Braggable” WOW Projects!)3. A “USP”/Unique Selling Proposition (R.POV8: Remarkable Point of View … captured in 8 or less words) 4. Rolodex Obsession (From vertical/hierarchy/“suck up” loyalty to horizontal/“colleague”/“mate” loyalty)5. Entrepreneurial Instinct (A sleepless … Eye for Opportunity! E.g.: Small Opp for Independent Action beats faceless part of Monster Project)6. CEO/Leader/Businessperson/Closer (CEO, Me Inc. Period! 24/7!)7. Master of Improv (Play a dozen parts simultaneously, from Chief Strategist to Chief Toilet Scrubber)8. Sense of Humor (A willingness to Screw Up & Move On)9. Comfortable with Your Skin (Bring “interesting you” to work!)10. Intense Appetite for Technology (E.g.: How Cool-Active is your Web site? Do you Blog?)11. Embrace “Marketing” (Your own CSO/Chief Storytelling Officer)12. Passion for Renewal (Your own CLO/Chief Learning Officer) 13. Execution Excellence! (Show up on time! Leave last!)
“It’s always
showtime.”
—David D’Alessandro, Career Warfare
“Knowledge becomes obsolete incredibly fast.
The continuing professional education of
adults is the No. 1 industry in the next 30
years … mostly on line.” —Peter Drucker
!
People Power: The
Talent50
1. People First!
“The Creative Age
is a wide-open
game.” —Richard Florida,
The Rise of the Creative Class
Whoops: Jack didn’t have a
vision!*
*GE = “Talent Machine” (Ed Michaels)
2. Soft Is Hard.
Message: Leading “Talent” is all about
Love: Passion, Enthusiasms, Appetite for Life, Engagement, Commitment, Great Causes & Determination to Make a Damn Difference, Shared Adventures,
Bizarre Failures, Growth, Insatiable Appetite for Change.
3. FUNDAMENTAL PREMISE: We Are in an Age
of Talent/Creativity/ Intellectual-capital Added.
“Human creativity
is the ultimate economic
resource.” —Richard Florida,
The Rise of the Creative Class
4. Talent “Excellence” in Every Part of
Every Organization.
Wegmans:
#1/100
“Best Companies to
Work for”/2005
5. P.O.T./ Pursuit Of Talent =
OBSESSION.
“The leaders of Great
Groups love talent and know where to
find it.
They revel in the talent of others.”
—Warren Bennis & Patricia Ward Biederman, Organizing Genius
Les Wexner: From sweaters to … people!
6. Talent Masters Understand
Talent’s Intangibles.
Q: “If it were your $50K [life’s savings] and my $50K, what sort of Waiters would we look for?”A:
“Enthusiasts!”
7. HR Is “Exciting.”
Chicago:HRMAC
Are you …
“Rock Stars of the Age of Talent”?
“HR doesn’t tend to hire a lot of
independent thinkers or people who stand
up as moral compasses.” —Garold Markle,
Shell Offshore HR Exec (FC/08.05)
8. HR Sits at The Head
Table.
A review of Jack and Suzy Welch’s Winning claims there are but two key differentiators that set GE “culture” apart from the herd:
First: Separating financial forecasting and performance measurement. Performance measurement based, as it usually is, on budgeting leads to an epidemic of gaming the system. GE’s performance measurement is divorced from budgeting—and instead reflects how you do relative to your past performance and relative to competitors’ performance; ie it’s about how you actually do in the context of what happened in the real world, not as compared to a gamed-abstract plan developed last year.
Second: Putting HR on a par with finance and marketing.
9. Re-name “HR.”
Talent Departm
ent
10. There Is an “HR Strategy”/
“HR Vision”
“Omnicom very simply is about talent.
It’s about the acquisition of talent,
providing the atmosphere so talent
is attracted to it.” —John Wren
What’s your company’s … EVP/IBP?*
*Employee Value Proposition, per Ed Michaels et al., The War for Talent;
IBP/Internal Brand Promise per TP
EVP/IBP = Remarkable challenges, rapid professional
growth, wholesale respect, deep satisfaction, fun,
stunning opportunities, exceptional rewards, amazing peer group, full membership in
Club Adventure, maximized future employability
Our Mission
To develop and manage talent;
to apply that talent,throughout the world,
for the benefit of clients;to do so in partnership;
to do so with profit.
WPP
11. Acquire for Talent!
Omnicom's acquisitions: “not for
size per se”; “buying talent;” “deepen a
relationship with a client.”
Source: Advertising Age
12. There Is a FORMAL
Recruitment Strategy.
“Busy Executives Fail To Give Recruiting
Attention It Deserves”
—Headline, WSJ, 11.21.05
13. There Is a FORMAL Leadership Development
Strategy.
DD: 0 to 60mph in a flash (months)
14. There is a “World Class”
Leadership Development
CENTER.
Crotonville!
15. There Is a FORMAL
STRATEGIC HR Review Process.
“In most companies, the Talent Review Process is a farce. At GE, Jack Welch and his two top HR people visit
each division for a day. They review the top 20 to 50 people by name. They talk about Talent Pool
strengthening issues. The Talent Review Process is a
contact sport at GE; it has the intensity and the
importance of the budget process at most
companies.” —Ed Michaels
16. “People”/ Talent” Reviews Are the FIRST
Reviews.
17. HR Strategy = BUSINESS Strategy.
Wegmans: #1/100 Best Companies to Work for
84%: Grocery stores “are all alike”46%: additional spend if customers have an “emotional connection” to
a grocery store rather than “are satisfied” (Gallup)
“Going to Wegmans is not just shopping, it’s an event.” —Christopher Hoyt, grocery consultant
“You cannot separate their strategy as a retailer from their
strategy as an employer.” —Darrell Rigby, Bain & Co.
18. Make it a “Cause Worth
Signing Up For.”
“People want to be part of something larger
than themselves. They want to be part of
something they’re really proud of, that they’ll
fight for, sacrifice for , trust.” —Howard Schultz, Starbucks (IBD/09.05)
19. Unleash “Their” Full Potential!
“No matter what the situation, [the great manager’s]
first response is always to think about the individual concerned and how things can be arranged to help
that individual experience success.” —Marcus Buckingham,
The One Thing You Need to Know
RE/MAX: A “Life Success
Company”Source: Everybody Wins, Phil Harkins & Keith Hollihan
20. Set Sky High
Standards.
Did We Say “Talent Matters”?
“The top software developers are more productive than average software
developers not by a factor of 10X or 100X,
or even 1,000X, but
10,000X.”
—Nathan Myhrvold, former Chief Scientist, Microsoft
21. Enlist Everyone in Challenge Century21.
Distinct …
or … Extinct
22. Pursue the Best!
From “1, 2 or you’re out” [JW] to …
“Best Talent in each industry segment to
build best proprietary intangibles” [EM]
Source: Ed Michaels, War for Talent
23. Up or Out.
“We believe companies can increase their market cap 50
percent in 3 years. Steve Macadam at Georgia-Pacific
changed 20 of his 40 box plant managers to put more
talented, higher paid managers in charge. He increased
profitability from $25 million to $80 million in 2
years.” —Ed Michaels, War for Talent
24. Ensure that the Review
Process Has INTEGRITY.
25 = 100*
* “But what do I do that’s more important than developing people? I don’t do the damn work. They do.”—GS
25. Pay Up!
“Top performing companies are two to four times more likely
than the rest to pay what it takes to
prevent losing top performers.” —Ed Michaels,
War for Talent
26. Training I: Train! Train!
Train!
26.3
3 Weeks in May
“Training” & Prep: 187“Work”: 41
(“Other”: 17)
1%
vs.
367%
Divas do it. Violinists do it. Sprinters do it. Golfers do it.
Pilots do it. Soldiers do it. Surgeons do it. Cops do it.
Astronauts do it. Why don’t businesspeople do it?
27. Training II: 100% “Business
People.”
28. Training III: 100%
LEADERS.
“I start with the premise that the
function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.” —Ralph Nader
29. Training IV: Boss as Trainer-
in-Chief.
“Workout” = 24 DPY in the Classroom
30. Training V: The REAL
Bedrock of the “Talent Thing.”
“My wife and I went to a [kindergarten] parent-teacher conference and were informed that our budding refrigerator
artist, Christopher, would be receiving a grade of Unsatisfactory in art. We were shocked. How could any child
—let alone our child—receive a poor grade in art at such a
young age? His teacher informed us that he had refused to color within the lines, which was a state requirement for demonstrating ‘grade-
level motor skills.’ ” —Jordan
Ayan, AHA!
31. Wide-open Communication: NO BARRIERS.
“The organizations we created have become tyrants. They have
taken control, holding us fettered, creating barriers that
hinder rather than help our businesses. The lines that we
drew on our neat organizational diagrams
have turned into walls that no one can scale or
penetrate or even peer over.” —Frank Lekanne Deprez & René Tissen, Zero Space: Moving
Beyond Organizational Limits
32. Respect!
“What creates trust, in the end,
is the leader’s manifest respect
for the followers.” — Jim O’Toole,
Leading Change
33. Embrace the Whole Individual.
34. Build Places of “Grace.”
35. MBWA*: Visible
Leadership!*Managing By Wandering Around
“The first and greatest imperative of command is to be present in person. Those who impose
risk must be seen to share it.” —John Keegan,
The Mask of Command
36. Thank You!
“The deepest human
need is the need to be
appreciated.” —William James
37. Promote for “people skills.” (THE REST IS
DETAILS.)
“When assessing candidates, the first thing I looked for was energy
and enthusiasm for execution. Does she talk about the thrill of getting things done, the
obstacles overcome, the role her people played —or does she keep wandering back to strategy or philosophy?” —Larry Bossidy, Honeywell/AlliedSignal, in
Execution
38. Honor Youth.
“Why focus on these late teens and twenty-
somethings? Because they are the first young who are both in a position to change the world,
and are actually doing so. … For the first time in history, children are more comfortable, knowledgeable and literate than their parents about an innovation central to society. … The Internet has
triggered the first industrial revolution in history to be led by the young.”
The Economist
39. Provide Early Leadership
Assignments.
The
WOW!
Project
40. Create a FORMAL System of Mentoring.
41. Diversity!
“To be a leader in consumer
products, it’s critical to have
leaders who represent the population we
serve.” —Steve Reinemund/PepsiCo
42. WOMEN RULE.
“AS LEADERS, WOMEN RULE: New
Studies find that female managers outshine their
male counterparts in almost every measure”
Title, Special Report/BusinessWeek
The Core Argument
1. We are in a War for Talent.2. The war will intensify.3. Women are under-represented in our leadership ranks.4. Women and men are different.5. Women’s strengths match the New Economy’s leadership needs—to a striking degree.6. Women are also the principal purchasers of goods and services—retail and commercial.7. Ergo, women are a large part of “the answer” to the War for Talent issue/opportunity.
43. Hire (& Protect!) Weird!
The Cracked Ones Let in the Light
“Our business needs a massive transfusion of
talent, and talent, I believe, is most likely to be found
among non-conformists,
dissenters and rebels.” —David Ogilvy
44. We Are All Unique.
Beware Standardized Evals: One size NEVER fits all. One size fits
one. Period.
45. Capitalize on Strengths.
“The key difference between checkers and
chess is that in checkers the pieces all move the same way, whereas in
chess all the pieces move differently. … Discover
what is unique about each person and capitalize on
it.” —Marcus Buckingham,
The One Thing You Need to Know
46. Bosses “Win People
Over.”
PJ: “Coaching is winning
players over.”
47. GOAL: Voyages of
Mutual Discovery.
Quests!
48. Foster Independence.
“You must realize that how you invest your human capital matters as much as how you invest your
financial capital. Its rate of return determines your
future options. Take a job for what it teaches you, not for what it pays. Instead of a potential employer
asking, ‘Where do you see yourself in 5 years?’ you’ll ask,
‘If I invest my mental assets with you for 5 years, how much will
they appreciate? How much will my portfolio of career options
grow?’ ”Source: Stan Davis & Christopher Meyer, futureWEALTH
49. Enthusiasm!
“It’s simple, really, Tom. Hire for s,
and, above all, promote for s.”
—Starbucks follower/WS analyst
50. Talent = Brand.
The Talent50
1. People first!2. Soft is Hard. 3. FUNDAMENTAL PREMISE: We are in an Age of Talent/ Creativity/ Intellectual-capital Added.4. Talent “excellence” in every part of the organization.5. P.O.T./Pursuit Of Talent = Obsession.
6. HR sits at The Head Table.7. HR is “cool.”
Brand =
Talent.
!
The Irreducible20
9Tom Peters/Novosibirsk/14April2006
A frustrated participant at a seminar for investment bankers in Mauritius listened impatiently to my
explanation of differences of opinion among me, Mike Porter, Gary Hamel, Jim Collins, etc. Finally, he’d had
enough. “What, if anything,” he asked, “do you believe ‘for
sure’?” I mumbled something, but his query started rumbling around in my mind. Three days later,
wandering on a Sunday in London, the idea of “the irreducibles” occurred to
me—and I started jotting down notes on stuff I do indeed believe “for sure.” Before I knew it, a few days
later, the list had grown to 209 items. Hence “The Irreducible209” that follows.
Tom Peters
1. Hare 1, Tortoise 0. (Hare-y times.)2. Tempo. (O.O.D.A.)3. MBWA.4. Appreciation. (“Motivator” #1.) (Can’t be faked. Good.)5. Decency.6. Hurry.7. Time out.8. One matters. 9. Big change. Short time. (Alt not work.)10. Excellence. Always.11. Passion. Energy. Hustle. Enthusiasm. Exuberance. (Move mountains. No alt.)12. You must care.13. Emotion.14. Hard is soft. (Soft is hard.)
15. Men. Women. Different. Contend. Connect.16. Women. Buy. All. (RU listening?)17. Quality. (“Mind-blowing.” Beyond 6-Sigma.)18. Re-invent. Re-pot. (Required.)19. Jaywalk.20. Big change. Small # of people. (Always.)21. Experiment. Now.22. Failure. Normal. 23. Most failures, most success. (Fail. Forward. Fast.) 24. “Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”25. Women leaders. (Altered times.) 26. Extremism. (Good business. Bad politics.)27. Innovation source. Only. Extreme irritation.28. Smile.
29. You must care.30. Mentor. (Highest ROI.)31. Best “roster” wins.32. Wow. (Okay in biz.)33. We all have customers. (Biz. Personal.)34. All contacts = Experiences.35. Cirque du Soleil. (Peerless.)36. Leaders create space for growth.37. Quests. (Only.)38. High aspirations, “high” results. (Self-fulfilling prophecy.)39. Attitude 1, Skills 0. (Mostly.) (Attitude 1, Skill 0.3?)40. Sometimes: Skill 1, Attitude 0.1.41. Must “love,” not “like.”42. Wegmans.” (No excuses. “Mere” groceries.)43. Less than your best. Cheating.
44. Brand You. (No alt.)45. Self-sufficiency. (Biggest LT turn-on.)46. In the moment.47. The moment wins.48. Tomorrow = Never. 49. Action 1, Plan 0.1.50. “Execution” can be a “system.”51. Realism.52. Own up. Move on.53. Accountability.54. Work hard > Work smart. (Mostly.)55. Feedback. Necessary. Fast. (R.F.A. in “RFA times.”)56. Customers. Listen. Lead. (Paradox.)57. “On stage.” Always. (GW, FDR, RG = Supreme actors.)
58. Master statistical analysis.59. Excellence = Set the table.60. Legacy. (Will it have mattered?)61. “Great.” (Why not?)62. Radicals rule. (Think … Olympics.)63. !!! = Good.64. Red 1, Brown 0. (Red times.)65. Talk. Listen. (“Big 2.” Master.)66. Politics. (Normal-inevitable state of affairs. Master.)67. Student. Forever.68. “Why?” (Question #1.)69. Don’t belittle.70. Respect.71. All we have: this moment. (“Moments matter most”?) 72. Now. (Procrastination. Death.)
73. Exercise.74. Paint. (Leader. Portraits of Excellence.)75. Best story wins.76. “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”77. Two “big ones.” Max. (Priorities.)78. No “I” in Team. (“I” in Win.)79. “I” in Win. (No “I” in Team.)80. Different 1, Better 0. (Better = 0.1)81. Imitation = Mistake. (Learn, from who?)82. Choose/battle the “right” competitor.83. Schools. Creativity. Entrepreneurship. (Not.)84. MBAs. Creativity. Entrepreneurship. Leadership. (Not.)85. Design. Under-rated. Wildly. (Still.) (Everything.)
86. You = Calendar. (Calendar. Never. Lies.)87. Laugh.88. Handshake. (Quantity. Quality.)89. Don’t fold your hands in front of your
chest. Ever. (Never.)90. Grace. (“Works” in biz.)91. Weird. Wins. (Weird times.)92. Crazy times. Crazy orgs.93. Internet. All.94. Women. Boomers-Geezers. Market. All.95. Passion. (Repeat. So what?)96. Energy. (Repeat. So what?)97. Hustle. (Repeat. So what?)98. Enthusiasm. (Repeat. So what?)99. Exuberance. (Repeat. So what?)100. Smile. (Repeat. So what?)101. Care. (Repeat. So what?)
102. Simplicity. Redundancy. Resilience. Bloody- mindedness. Visible optimism. (Success.) 103. Act. (Repeat. So what?) 104. Appreciate. (Repeat. So what?)105. Fun. (Biz. Why not?)106. Joy. (Biz. Why not?)107. Sales = Life.108. Marketing = Life.109. Long-term. “Top line.”110. Great company = Creates the most individual success stories. (RE/MAX)111. Talent first, performance byproduct.112. Sustained Wow* 1, “Shareholder value,” 0.2 (*Product, People.)113. Commitment, by invitation only.114. Creativity, by invitation only. 115. HR = #1. (Ought to.)116. Face-to-face. (5K miles, 5 minutes.)
117. Negotiation. Make all winners. (Save face.)118. Grace makes enemies friends.119. Network.120. Invest in relationships. (Think ROIR. Return On Investment in Relationships.)118. Relationship investment. Forethought. Calendar item. Intensity.119. Innovation. Easy. (Hang out with weird.)120. Weird = Win. (Weird times.)121. “The bottleneck is at the top of the bottle.”122. Good Board = Weird Board. (At least, surprising.)123. No contention, no progress.
124. “Crucial conversations.” “Crucial confrontations.” (Study. Learn. Do.)125. Honest feedback.126. Gaspworthy. Yes. 127. “Insanely great.”128. “Astonish me.”129. “Make it immortal.”130. “Will you remember it in 20 years?”131. No small opportunities. (Reframe.)132. One playmate, one playpen = Enough.133. End run. Sensible.134. Allies are there for the finding.135. Find successes. Build on successes. (Pos > Neg. Encourage > Fix.)136. Somebody’s doing it today. Find ’em.137. Someone is living 2016 in 2006. (Find ’em. Study ’em.)
138. Don’t “benchmark,” “futuremark.” (2016. Happening. Somewhere.)139. “PMA.” It works.140. There are no experts. (You are the expert.)141. Life is short. 142. “Sustained success.” Fat chance. Make today matter. (“Sustained.” Ha.)143. Collaborate. (Networked world.)144. Go solo. (Individual. Unit of Intellectual Capital.)145. There are no “perfect” plans. (Do. Wins.)146. Plans motivate. (Right or wrong. Sense of purpose.)147. Never rest.148. Get some sleep.149. Winning = Embracing paradox.150. Ambiguity = Opportunity.
151. Resilience.152. Relentless-ness.153. None. Above. Comeuppance. (GM. Sears. U.S. Steel. DEC.)154. Be yourself. Period.155. Never work with jerks. Including customers. (Life. Too short.)156. Under-promise, over-deliver.157. Talent. (Powerful word.)158. “Customer = Anyone whose actions affect your results.”159. Competition stinks. (Seek the soft spots where you can dominate.)160. K.I.S.S./Keep It Simple, Stupid.161. Beauty. (Good biz word.)162. “See the beauty in a hamburger bun.” (Go. Ray.)
163. Own up. Quick. ( Denial. Cancer.)164. Celebrate. Often.165. 78 people = 78 approaches. (Each. Unique.)166. Weed. Ceaselessly. (Prune. Stupid. Rules. Non-stop.)167. Get out of the way. (You = The problem.)168. Smile. Sunny. Optimism. (If it kills you.)169. Flowers. (Cheery workplace.)170. Enjoy. (Or get the hell.)171. Be intolerant of “sour.” (1 = Major pollution)172. No “quick trigger” on promotion. (Too important.)173. Evaluation = Lots of study-time.174. Evaluation = “Life or death” to evaluee.175. “360” evaluation. No fad.176. Exit when you’re done. (Done. Sooner than you think.)
177. Today. Now. My Project. Am. Is. I. Period.178. “Beautiful” systems. (Good biz phrase. Not oxymoron.)179. Build on strengths > Fix weaknesses.180. “To don’t” = “To do.” (“To don’t” > “To do” ?)181. Leaders “Do” People. (Period.)182. Leaders enjoy leading.183. Serious leadership training = Serious.184. Priorities. Obvious. (Or else.)185. 5 “Priorities” = 0 Priorities. (3 “Priorities” = 0 Priorities?)186. People. First. Last. Always.187. It. Is. Always. The. People.188. Handshake. (Quantity. Quality.)
189. Don’t fold your hands in front of your chest. Ever. (Never.)190. Simplicity. Redundancy. Resilience. Bloody-mindedness. Visible optimism. (Success.) (Repeat.)191. Employee Entrance = Guest Entrance.192. Put the customer SECOND. (Thanks, Hal.)193. Flowers. (Or did I say that before? No matter if I did.)194. Big Mergers don’t work. Small acquisitions can/do work—if you don’t screw with their energy.
195. Instinctively “head for the front line.” (In all contexts.)196. Success = DDMMPR/"D-squared, M-squared, PR” = DramDiff + Money-Financial Acumen + Good “Marketing” Instincts + Stellar People + Resilience (The “fab five”: What. Every. Small. Biz. Needs.) (Big too.)197. Core Mechanism (“Game-changing Solutions”): PSF (Professional Service Firm “model”) + Wow! Projects (“Different” vs “Better”) + Brand You (“Distinct” or “Extinct”)198. 2011/2016 has already happened. Find it.
199. Kids “know” kids. Oldies “know” oldies. Women “know” women. (Staff accordingly.)200. Everybody is my customer.201. Cosset “vendors.”202. I want to run a Housekeeping department. (And you?)203. The military doesn’t follow the “military model.” (Initiative = Excellence.)204. No such thing as “going to absurd lengths” to serve the Customer. (HSM & Lefties.)205. Forget the “customer.” All = “Clients.”206. It takes decades to get over “sleights.” (So don’t sleight.)207. Don’t “dumb down.” Ever.
208. NO LESS THAN EXCELLENCE. EVER.209. EXCELLENCE. ALWAYS.
!
Tom’s
60TIBs**TIB = This I Believe
Version: 14April2006
1. TECHNICOLOR RULES! (Passion Moves
Mountains!)
2. Audacity Matters!
3. Revolution Now!
4. Question Authority! (& Hire
Disrespectful People.)
5. Disorganization Wins! (LOVE THE
MESS!)
6. Think 3M: Markets Matter Most. ONLY EXTREME
COMPETITION STAVES OFF STALENESS. (You can take the
boy out of Silicon Valley, but you can’t take Silicon Valley
out of the boy!)
7. Three Hearty Cheers for Weirdos. (Bill Gates,
Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison, Scott McNealy, Craig
Venter et al.)
8. Message 2006: Technology Change (Info-sciences, Biosciences) Is in Its Infancy! (WE AIN’T
SEE NOTHIN’ YET!)
9. Everything Is Up For Grabs! Volatility Is Thy Name! (Forever & Ever. Amen.) RE-INVENT …
OR DIE!
10. Big Stinks. (Mostly.) (VERY
Mostly.)
11. “Permanence” Is a Snare & a Delusion.
(Forget “Built to Last.” It’s Yesterday’s
Idea.) (Try “Built for Impact.”)
12. “Kaizen” (Continuous
Improvement) Is VDS/ Very … Dangerous
… Stuff.
13. DESTRUCTION RULES!
14. Forget It! (“Learning” = Easy. “Forgetting” = Nigh
on Impossible.)
15. Innovation Is Easy: Hang Out with Freaks.
(Employees, Board Members, Customers, Suppliers, Alliance
Partners, Consultants.)
16. Boring Begets Boring. (Cool Begets Cool.)
17. Think “Portfolio.” (We’re All V.C.s.)
18. Perception Is All There Is. (“Insiders” … ALWAYS … overestimate the Radicalism
of What They’re Up To.)
19. Action … ALWAYS … Takes Precedence. Think:
R.F!A./Ready. Fire! Aim. (REWARD SUCCESS. REWARD
FAILURE. PUNISH … INACTION.)
20. He Who Makes & Tests the Quickest & Coolest Prototypes
Reigns!
21. Haste Makes Waste.
(SO GO WASTE!)
22. Screw-ups are … the … Mark of Excellence. (“Do It
Right the First Time” Is a Very Stupid Idea.)
23. Play Hard! Play Now! (Cherish Play!)
24. TALENT TIME! (He/She Who Has the Best “Roster”
Rules!)
25. Re-do Education. Totally. (FOSTER CREATIVITY … NOT
UNIFORMITY.) (THE NOISIEST CLASSROOM
WINS.)
26. Diversity’s Hour Is Now!
27. SHE … Is the Best
Leader!
28. MARKETING MANTRA: Embrace the “BIG THREE”
Demographics. (1) SHE … is the Customer. (For everything.) (2)
Rapidly Aging Boomers Have … ALL THE MONEY. (3) Green
Matters. (TRILLIONS OF $$$$$ Are at Stake.) (NOBODY … Gets It.)
(Mere “Programs” Will Not Suffice.)
29. Re-boot Healthcare. (UNDERSTATEMENT.)
30. WHAT ARE WE SELLING? “Experiences” &
“Solutions” > “Quality” & “Satisfaction.” (The
Traditional Value-added Equation Is Being Set
on Its Ear.)
31. DESIGN = New Seat of the Soul.
32. Branding Is for … EVERYONE. He Who Has the
… BEST STORY … Takes Home the Marbles.
33. DRAMATIC DIFFERENCE = Only Difference.
34. WORDS/Language Matters … a Lot. (E.g.: Three Hearty Cheers
for “Wow”!)
35. WHAT MATTERS IS STUFF THAT
MATTERS. (Query #1: “Are You Proud
of It?”)
36. eALL. (IS/IT: Half-way = No Way.)
37. DREAM … Big! DREAM … Enormous!
DREAM … Gargantuan! (These Are XXX Times.)
38. THINK MIKE! (Michelangelo: “The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too
low and we reach it.”)
39. There Is Only … ONE BIG ISSUE: (Crappy) Cross-
functional Communication.
40. Stop Doing Dumb Stuff. (SYSTEMATIZE THE
PROCESS OF “UN-DUMBING.”)
41. Beautiful Systems Are …
BEAUTIFUL.
42. The … WHITE-COLLAR
REVOLUTION … Will Devour
Everything in Its Path.
43. Take Charge of Your Destiny!
BrandYou Moment! DISTINCT … OR
EXTINCT!
44. “Powerlessness” Is a State of Mind!
Think: King. Gandhi. De Gaulle.
45. Pursue Adventure … in
Every Task.
46. EXCELLENCE … Is a State of Mind.
(Excellence Takes a Minute.) (No Bull.)
47. SHOW UP! (If You Care, You’re
There.)
48. YOUR CALENDAR KNOWS ALL.
(You = Calendar.) (Mind Your “TO DON’T” List.)
49. LIFE IS SALES. (The Rest Is
Details.)
50. Boss Mantra #1: “I DON’T KNOW.” (“I
Don’t Know” = Permission to
Explore.)
51. Management Role 1: GET OUT OF THE WAY.
(Clear the Way.) (“Manager” = Hurdle Removal
Professional.)
52. Epitaph from Hell: “He Woulda Done Some
Truly Cool Stuff … But His Boss Wouldn’t
Let Him.”
53. Change Takes However Long You
Think It Takes. (Eschew …
“Incrementalism.”)
54. Respect! (Rule 1: Don’t Belittle!)
55. “Thank You” Trumps All!
56. Integrity Matters! Integrity = Credibility.
(Dennis K. Is a Jerk.)
57. SOFT IS HARD. HARD IS SOFT. (Numbers Are
Soft. People Are Not.)
58. Try Sunny! (Sunny Begets
Sunny. Gloomy Begets
Gloomy.)
59. DISPENSE
ENTHUSIASM!
60. FUN …Is Not a 4-Letter Word. So, too … JOY. (And GRACE.)
The End.
!
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