Management Round Table

This past weekend I was invited to sit in on a mini executive round table - I know the COO of a private company and he asked me to sit in and just observe the management team - how they acted, reacted, attitudes, etc. The room had six couches, all facing eachother, it was very relaxed, everyone was open and I felt quite at home - I did know a few of the team members.

The group chatted about the organization as a whole, pros, cons, strengths, weaknesses - was a very good, very productive session.

Take away - every VP / Director was excellent at their job, their area of expertise but had no clue about any other function. When we talked afterward I was asked what it would take to get the organization to the next level. First things first - get each VP to starting learning more and appreciating other departments, functions, responsibilities. Getting the management team to be expertise to their staff but generalists among eachother was key. Every senior manager had to start learning more about the other departments so that the organization could grow from one base simultaneously instead of each department growing individually and some playing catch up.

Leadership is a great thing.

Sometimes, as leaders, we get caught up in the day to day grind. I came across this presentation and thought it was a good refresher - take s a minute or two to load but worth the effort.

Not much to comment on, really speaks for itself.

http://s3.amazonaws.com/ppt-download/leadership-trainingv1-1227410222472541-9.pdf

Private Equity Pod Casts Kick Butt

The world is revolving around blogs, podcasts, ithis, ithat. I'm a pen & paper guy for the most part but have taken to various forms of communication that help turn a 24 hr day into a 28 hr day. I love podcasts. Downloaded onto an ipod or playing in the office I find they are a great way to stay current, hear something new, provide a spark for a fire.

The Financial Post has FP Executive

http://www.financialpost.com/podcasts/fp-executive/index.html

that has a number of PE, VC andother interesting topics. Our latest newsletter talked about Jacoline Loewen's podcasts that surround private equity. I've received more than a few comments from clients wrt these podcasts and thought I would send it out for larger distribution.

It's worth a listen.

5 Rules to Live By

There are five simple points I like to keep in mind whenever undertaking any project or working with any company:

1. You have to execute with discipline at all levels - no exceptions. Promote excellence in execution.
2. You have to create a culture where change is a matter of course.
3. Focus the entire business on a few initiatives.
4. Make effective trade-off decisions about investment.
5. Maintain strong metrics and feedback loops.

#4 is one I have been concentrating more on as of late and Jacoline Loewen of Loewen & Partners has several podcasts at http://www.financialpost.com/podcasts/fp-executive/index.html that discusses the private equity side of investing and how balancing the right amount of outside investment and support with internal structure can help an organization get to the next level. Jacoline has a number of podcasts, you can find more at http://www.moneymagnetbook.ca/