Archive of Corporate Leadership

A Culture Exposed: Goldman Sachs’ Employer Branding Debacle Thumbnail

A Culture Exposed: Goldman Sachs’ Employer Branding Debacle

Greg Smith, ex-executive of Global Investment Bank, Goldman Sachs, this week launched a huge parting shot at his former employer, describing the culture as “toxic and destructive”. Not the first time, by the way, I have heard an ex-employee describe his/her previous employer in that way. What is possibly most damaging is the specific language that he claims is used to describe customers, alleging in some instances they are referred to as “muppets”.

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Agile Intelligence: Innovation is Speed Thumbnail

Agile Intelligence: Innovation is Speed

I recently heard a great presentation from Stuart McLean, CEO of Google Enterprise, who is based here in Australia. Several times Stuart said, “Innovation is speed.” This certainly supports my view of the world we live in and the challenges that both individuals and organisations face with accelerating change now the norm rather than the exception.

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The only thing we have to fear is fear itself…. and the resulting poor performance and culture it induces. Thumbnail

The only thing we have to fear is fear itself…. and the resulting poor performance and culture it induces.

Globally, the market (yet again) is in a spin….what will 2012 be like? How will the European markets affect our economies and what exactly will happen there….will there be a collapse of the economy? Will someone come to their rescue? Will ‘they’ wisen up and change the way they manage their economy, culture and employment? And it’s not just Europe, what of the USA market? Will it experience another dramatic, yet predicted fall? Whatever the outcome, it will not be solved overnight so the reality is that we need to manage our economy and businesses the best we can and put in place strategies to counteract multiple situations.

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Corporate Restructuring: Musical Chairs, Anyone? Thumbnail

Corporate Restructuring: Musical Chairs, Anyone?

People fear the words restructure or reorganisation. I like the analogy Ron Ashkenas uses when he says that reorganisation or corporate restructuring is often perceived as musical chairs by people in the workplace, with the end result being less people!

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The Carbon Tax Debate: Good policy, bad policy or poor change management? Thumbnail

The Carbon Tax Debate: Good policy, bad policy or poor change management?

I’m trying to get my head around the Carbon Tax. Who could argue that we should pollute our world less? Who wants to breathe worse air, and damage the planet? Not many I suspect. So, why are we having such an emotively charged political debate? In my opinion, it all comes back to the key principles of change management...

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Is Your Gatekeeper Holding the Keys To Your Office or Your Kingdom? Thumbnail

Is Your Gatekeeper Holding the Keys To Your Office or Your Kingdom?

"This is great, but we should have started six months ago". That statement was said to me by the CEO of a not insignificant Melbourne manufacturing company last week...

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What’s Your Strategic Zoom Set To? Thumbnail

What’s Your Strategic Zoom Set To?

When listening to an interview with Harvard Business School Professor, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, I thought about the criticality of leaders having an ability to adjust their focus to think strategically when leading through change in organisations.

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Survive or Thrive… Your Choice Thumbnail

Survive or Thrive… Your Choice

Although Australia was not hit by the GFC nearly as badly as the rest of the Western world, we still felt the effects. Commerce slowed down, and we had to fight harder for business we won. Revenue was good but not buoyant through most of 2010. For Mindset, our activity and profit sky-rocketed in the last quarter. It was like someone suddenly turned the tap on full again.

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We’re all in this together: Surviving a corporate catastrophe Thumbnail

We’re all in this together: Surviving a corporate catastrophe

I sit here in Melbourne and watch the TV footage of the unfolding flood catastrophe in Queensland. I have many friends in Brisbane; a few have evacuated their houses. One I know has a thriving retail business which is now underwater. I think to myself what would I do if it was my business?

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