How Going with the Flow Can Lead to Organizational Failures When it comes to the workplace, when did we become so obsessed with going along to get along?  Somewhere along the way, we became afraid to show a healthy dose of disagreement. We have become so obsessed with “teamwork” and so frightened of being viewed […]

Recruiters and trusted advisors always recommend that you make sure you’re a “cultural fit” with an employer—and with good reason. An entrepreneurial soul may feel restricted at a company that favors the tried and true; likewise, a relationship-oriented person may feel out of place when algorithms are valued over human judgment. You perform your due […]

On May 11th, 1997, a chess-playing IBM computer dubbed “Deep Blue” beat grandmaster Garry Kasparov. The Russian prodigy had won the first game, lost the second, took a “draw” on the next three, and lost the final. Incredulous, he suggested that the computer had been controlled by a human grandmaster. Though few realized it at […]

When I first began my corporate career and was managing a blue-collar workforce, one of the senior engineers told me the best treatment plant operators were those who could “see around corners.” They had what I eventually came to recognize as wisdom. While all the operators in that plant were knowledgeable and well-trained, the “corner […]

At my recent annual physical I was reminded how each and every employee of any organization is an emissary of that institution and bears the corresponding responsibility. As I walked into the reception area and approached the young lady at the desk, her gaze remained fixed on her computer screen. She told me, in a […]

Over the past three decades, I have promoted scores of individuals into management positions — often with disappointing results in the early years, despite a seemingly rigorous selection process. It’s not that these folks were abject failures in their new managerial roles. It’s just that too few of them displayed the level of excellence that […]

For several years now a good friend and I have been running on a well-established trail in his town. Our conversations are far ranging, from politics to the stock market to our respective work environments. For almost as long we’ve been running, my buddy has been complaining about this one chap who works for him. […]

The year was 1981, and I had just been hired by Combustion Engineering in Ottawa as a fledgling HR staffer. The annual performance review quickly became the bane of my existence; it was clear managers were not taking the process seriously. I brought my complaint to my department head, the Vice President of HR. He […]

Why aren’t chief human resources officers given the same respect as fellow members of the C-Suite? The HR Chief may have a seat at the table, but not much of a voice. This is perhaps never more apparent than when the subject of succession must be addressed by the CEO and the board. When members […]

When President Andrew Jackson assumed office in 1829 as the seventh President of the United States, the Cabinet that he had appointed was ruptured by dispute, largely the result of an ongoing battle between Vice President John C. Calhoun and Secretary of State Martin Van Buren. The fierce infighting disabled the Cabinet to the point […]