My last few posts drew excerpts and scenarios from the fictional story of Pete Leonard in Moose on the Table: A Novel Approach to Communications @ Work. Pete’s story showed how he avoided, discouraged, and finally encouraged courageous conversations. These difficult discussions identify and address the problems that are reducing a team or organization’s effectiveness. […]
Read post »As I was writing Moose on the Table, I facilitated a retreat at a ranch resort in the foothills of Alberta’s beautiful Rocky Mountains. This was a group of 21 managers and supervisors in a mid-sized family business. They were highly participative and keen to improve their leadership skills and further strengthen their company […]
Read post »During a media interview after publishing Moose on the Table: A Novel Approach to Communications @ Work, I was asked if there was any one incident that led me to write the book. Good question. I don’t recall my response. However, since my comebacks usually come back well after the discussion, I later reflected on […]
Read post »My blog, Moose on the Loose: Boeing Panic Over Quality and Safety, explained how I started using the moose-on-the-table metaphor. It also linked to a few excerpts from my only work of fiction, Moose on the Table: A Novel Approach to Communication at Work. The following few excerpts are from Chapter Four: Of Moose […]
Read post »Yet another article on the leadership and culture mess at Boeing was recently published in The Guardian. The article reports, “Boeing’s largest factory is in ‘panic mode’…with managers accused of hounding staff to keep quiet over quality concerns. …one mechanic at the complex, who has worked for Boeing for more than three decades, has claimed […]
Read post »Part Four of a Series on The Tempting Ten Wallow Words (Click to read Parts One, Two or Three) Following is a condensed scene from Moose on the Table: A Novel Approach to Communications @ Work. The book’s central character, Pete Leonard, is a middle manager in a tech services firm. He reports to […]
Read post »An elderly gentleman went to the doctor about a gas problem. “But,” he told the doctor, “it really doesn’t bother me too much. When I pass gas, they never smell and are always silent. As a matter of fact, I’ve passed gas at least 10 times since I’ve been here in your office. You didn’t […]
Read post »In his weekly Guardian column, Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, professor of public policy at the University of California at Berkeley, and author, explained how “Dictators like Putin surround themselves with liars and propaganda. That leads to very bad decisions.” He writes, “Trump, Putin, Xi — these men aren’t stupid. But they […]
Read post »Is this happening in your team? People are texting each other what they really think during a video or conference call The real conversation happens after the meeting or call Your team doesn’t debate all sides of important issues and avoids touchy topics People agree to a plan of action but then do something else […]
Read post »I had an exchange of messages with a reader about my blog post Stupid Busy: Is Your Leadership Team Overloading Your Organization? The reader, who we’ll call George, wrote, As a middle manager who is on the receiving end of this, you are hitting the nail squarely on the head. Unfortunately, there is no way […]
Read post »In the past two weeks I’ve facilitated a couple of variations of leadership team retreats featuring “moose hunting” exercises. Whether they’re called elephants-in-the-room, 800 pound gorillas, or moose/camel/kangaroo-on-the-table (we’ve used various creatures in different parts of the world), the idea is the same; identify key issues without names attached and figure out how to deal […]
Read post »Most managers proclaim an open door policy. “You can always come and see me about any problems or issues” they say. Or they’ll leave team meetings they’ve chaired believing there aren’t any issues or objections to plans they’ve set since no one spoke up. Before running a Moose-on-the-Table workshop for a management team, I had […]
Read post »We are working with a large industrial company having big problems with a multi-billion dollar project that will make or break the company’s future. To understand the roots of this potential disaster we interviewed and surveyed key project leaders, managers, and executives. This was followed by offsite retreats with key leaders that included “moose hunting” […]
Read post »Taking time to step back and work on the team and the organization instead of being overwhelmed by working within the team.
Watch video »The moose represents an issue that everyone knows is a problem but isn't being addressed. People are trying to carry on as if things are normal.
Read article »Strong leaders maintain a close connection between what they say and what they do. They don't try to make others into something that they are not themselves.
Read article »It's natural to strike out at someone or something that seems to be causing us problems. Instead of tackling the problem, poorly led teams devote their energies to allocating blame and avoiding responsibility.
Read article »Team members act like their leader – despite all attempts to train them otherwise. Changing them won't succeed unless it is preceded by the leader changing his or her behaviour.
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If you’re looking for a book that illuminates the topic of leadership in a useful, readable, and lively way, this is it. - Warren Bennis
View book/ebook/CD »Honesty and integrity are key ingredients in developing trust. Trust is a key element in establishing credibility. Our credibility is at the center of our ability to influence others and provide strong leadership. Examples of characteristics that are the hallmark of strong leaders — sincere, truthful, trustworthy, reliable, principled, and genuine.
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