Serendipity and Learning

The book is a story about Ford. And how Alan rescued Ford from the doldrums. What I liked about the book is the level of detail - not just in the story of Ford, but also in the details of the execution - as to how it happened. At one point, Alan notes - compelling vision and ruthless execution - and simple as that might seem, it is difficult in small firms, so imagine doing that in a gigantic firm. One of the remarkable features for me was the fact that in turning around Boeing in the post 9/11 scenario and in turning around Ford - Mullallys toolkits were the same. He continued to hone and use his core strength, he was technically sound, an engineer and took that level of interest and it paid. At each level - from appointing the right person to giving them the autonomy - measuring - building transparency - this is a story over a few years of both the vision and the execution and both of these would come under question. The second remarkable feature is the time he took to start m...

We are part of a Clash Royale clan. This clan is led by a 12 year old. This guy is the clan leader. He interacts with the 'clan', often pumps them up when a 'target' is to be met, 'promotes', doles out 'kicks'. And the clan has been in action for well over a year now - so he learns about keeping people together, getting them motivated - and this clan is a multi-national, diverse, intercultural clan. How cool is that? A mid sized manager in a company wont have this kind of diversity and team to deal with. You can argue that it is not the same, it is a game and whatnot - but the fact is that this kid is learning serious leadership skills from game... On the other hand, the boy at home is learning to negotiate with the leader and managed to get a promotion by persuading him a few weeks ago. As I read about Digital natives and how these guys will grow up into future leaders (even as we speak, they are entering the workforce) - it is interesting how th...

This has been in circulation for a while. The story of Project Oxygen at Google . As per this research, there were 8 things that managers do to a team. 1. Be a good coach 2. Empower the team and does not micro-manage 3. Expresses interest and concern for teams success and well being. 4. Is Productive and results oriented 5. Is a good communicator 6. Helps with career development 7. Has a clear vision and strategy 8 . Has technical skills that help him or her advise the team In the above blog , how does it apply to your company, two points stood out for me. One: A manager has to be a great coach. And this does not mean an executive coach certification though that is worth it. What one wants is a manager who makes every team member think for herself. How does that happen? By letting people be. By asking them the right questions. By encouraging them to think. Work on things they like to work. Enable their ideas. The second point ( mentioned on that link ) which in my view i...