We create organizational cultures as we go along, sometimes consciously, often unconsciously–but always through decisions. When leaders decide to build a powerhouse of excellence, they start by asking themselves what needs to change and what should stay the same. When companies embrace a change orientation, they consider innovation as part of that culture, not aRead more
Often by mid-year New Year’s resolution and strategic targets have long been abandoned. To prevent this, adjustments to the strategy should happen continually and consistently, but there’s no better time to check your course than now. To determine if your well-laid plans have gone asunder, ask yourself these essential questions: 1. To what extent isRead more
Long before the ink dries on the legal agreement to acquire a company or to merge two entities, the integration strategy should be clear, but in the heat of finalizing the deal, integration is often left until the last minute or ignored completely. Rather than roll the dice, consider the following framework, the Five EssentialRead more
When companies merge or acquire, stakeholders usually expect that the whole will be greater than the sum of its parts. Unfortunately, the facts tell a different story. One plus one does not equal three, and too often it moves shareholder returns to the wrong side of zero. A once-exceptional organization can quickly take a turnRead more
“Culture,” the new buzzword of the financial recovery, has transformed from an ethereal, abstract otherworldly word to a blunt instrument for finding fault on myriad qualitative matters affecting the organization. When an individual, merger, or organization fails, culture takes the blame. We use the word fairly arbitrarily, citing it to explain why things don’t change,Read more
