Latest

Latest

The PeopleCap Playbook

Timely insights and actionable people strategies for leaders.

What We’re Reading: Blitzscaling

Posted on by Meg Crosby

If your company is growing rapidly, then this book is for you!

Blitzscaling is loosely defined as the playbook for “building a dominant world leading business in record time.” Most importantly, Blitzscaling requires prioritizing “speed over efficiency in the face of uncertainty.”

Blitzscaling is not for everyone. We’re talking hypergrowth and first mover advantage here. It’s not for those who crave work life balance or modest market share. This is the winner-take-all model that companies like Amazon, Google, Facebook, and Apple have built. Continue reading “What We’re Reading: Blitzscaling”

Get in the Rink

Posted on by Howard Cleveland

I can’t roller skate. Never learned. While roller skating isn’t a skill I need regularly at this point in my life, the reason I can’t roller skate is important.

When growing up, it seemed like every birthday party was at Skateland. Every. Single. One. I couldn’t skate; and so every time, I sat at the tables outside of the rink and watched everyone make fools of themselves – slipping and falling. Some kids were so bad, they had to have a walker to hold them up. I wasn’t about to make a fool out of myself, and I stayed safely on the outside. Continue reading “Get in the Rink”

Receiving Feedback is Humbling

Posted on by Meg Crosby

people in audience

I have been working for months on the content for a 4-hour workshop to help executives lead effectively in a talent-driven economy. This past week, I had the opportunity to conduct the workshop with three consecutive groups of key leaders – totaling about 55 people. At the end of the workshop, the group leader asked each member to provide feedback on what went well and what I could improve. So, by the end of the week, I had stood in front of 55 people each of whom told me something negative about my presentation or my delivery. My self-esteem was in the toilet. Continue reading “Receiving Feedback is Humbling”

You Can’t Leave without Telling Me!

Posted on by Howard Cleveland

Recently, I was out of town facilitating a Board/CEO retreat. The retreat was incredibly productive. Everyone willing to put tough issues on the table and candidly discuss them. At the end of the retreat, strained relationships had been strengthened, expectations had been clarified and agreed upon, and there was an understanding and appreciation of the value each member of the Board could bring to the CEO. There was an enthusiasm, cohesion, and excitement in the group that hadn’t been present for months. To say that I was riding high would be an understatement. Continue reading “You Can’t Leave without Telling Me!”

No Short Cuts on a Ladder

Posted on by Meg Crosby

Recently I attended my first wedding as a “friend of the Groom’s parents.” I’m happy to report the wedding circuit redux is as much fun as the first time around but with less responsibility. (I didn’t have to wear a bridesmaid’s dress or write a toast!) In between the first dance, the cutting of the cake and the dance floor favorite, “Twist and Shout,” the conversation among the parents of 20-somethings turned to child’s career plans.

One common theme from this group of highly accomplished professional parents was this: Our kids from the on-demand generation may not fully understand that the road to success is long. Continue reading “No Short Cuts on a Ladder”

Don’t Let Your Team Sink

Posted on by Katie Spencer

image by mellin paulo bernardo
image by mellin paulo bernardo

How We Miss Each Other Based on Differing Interpretations of Shared Experiences

When I coach teams struggling to build trust and get on the same page, I’ve started asking a new question: “What is the pressure on you and where does it come from?”

Over time I’ve learned that in many types of relationships we miss each other, just barely, due to misinterpretation of a shared experience – like ships passing. Continue reading “Don’t Let Your Team Sink”

NACD Nashville: Compensation as a Strategic Lever for Boards

Posted on by Beth Brock

Meg enjoyed being part of NACD’s Nashville Panel on Tuesday, October 16, 2018, to discuss the expanded role of Compensation Committees in managing culture and talent.

NACD and Lipscomb University’s Dean Institute for Corporate Governance & Integrity in Nashville, TN had an interactive discussion on the board’s evolving role in compensation oversight, including:

  • The latest in compensation trends from Deloitte’s recent latest report
  • How compensation can drive both short – and long – term value creation
  • Compensation’s role in cultivating a vibrant corporate culture
  • Risks of various compensation approaches

For more information about NACD, click here.

Leading an Investor-Backed Company

Posted on by Howard Cleveland

 

puzzle pieces

Growth is a double-edged sword. Success provides the opportunity to grow. Growth is a reward for hard work and success. And yet, growth is hard. It often requires a new focus, new leadership, different skills, and possibly a new structure. As CEO, you are tasked with building a new, larger company while continuing to run the company that currently exists. The downside to growth is that it comes with significant risk; because so much has to change, you can’t just go back to the way things were if the change is not successful. In many ways, growth is an all or nothing endeavor – it is critical to get it right. 

This dynamic becomes even more complex when the growth is backed by investors who join your Board. Continue reading “Leading an Investor-Backed Company”

Performance Management is Evolving: The New Paradigm

Posted on by Howard Cleveland

paradigm shift key on keyboard

The necessity of developing talent is at an all-time high; yet, prehistoric performance reviews roam free – devouring hours of productivity and lowering morale without having any meaningful impact on organizational performance. Most HR departments don’t believe annual performance evaluations provide accurate data, and many managers and employees simply dread the process. In a study by Mercer, 95% of managers reported being dissatisfied with their performance management process and 90% of heads of HR did not feel their system provided accurate information. Continue reading “Performance Management is Evolving: The New Paradigm”

What We’re Reading: Measure What Matters

Posted on by Meg Crosby

book cover Measure What Matters

One of PeopleCap’s 6 Imperatives for High Performance  is “Sharpen Focus.” We are always looking for creative ways to help our client companies set clear direction and align their organization accordingly. It was with that in mind that I picked up a copy of Measure What Matters by John Doerr to read at the beach this summer. It inspired me to sharpen my own focus and put into practice the organizational goal setting methodology detailed in the book that promises to “turn good ideas into superior execution.” Continue reading “What We’re Reading: Measure What Matters”

Culture is the Boss

Posted on by Meg Crosby

The topic of corporate culture is ubiquitous. You cannot open a copy of the Harvard Business Review or a McKinsey Blog without seeing some reference to corporate culture and the need for executives and boards to manage it. And while there has been a lot published on this topic, we still find that many don’t quite understand what “it” is: They don’t understand what culture is and why it is so important. So, for them, I offer this explanation: Culture is the Boss when the Boss is not around. Continue reading “Culture is the Boss”

Succession is Not About the Corner Office

Posted on by Katie Spencer

Photo by Philipp Birmes
At some point, leadership transition is a reality for all companies. One HR executive I recently spoke to is concerned that her 300-person company has built such amazing employee loyalty that approximately 35% of their workforce will retire in the next five years! Another organization is concerned that their founder-based brand will not survive the CEO’s retirement. And the CEO of yet another larger company has unintentionally sparked a c-suite jousting match leaving his executive team more focused on positioning themselves for his crown than on working together to run the company.

Whether a leadership transition is imminent or a decade off, succession planning is not about identifying an eventual replacement for your CEO — it’s not about who winds up in the corner office. Continue reading “Succession is Not About the Corner Office”

When It Comes to People Strategy, Success is in the Grind

Posted on by Howard Cleveland

Last year, I decided on a whim that I wanted to do a Half Ironman.

As I started to sketch out a plan, the enormity of the race started to sink in – a 1.2 mile swim, followed by a 56 mile bike, followed by a 13.1 run. I had a long way to go. I had never done a triathlon — not even a baby one. I had never swum a complete lap without stopping; my longest bike was 25 miles; and I hadn’t run in almost 2 years — and even then, my longest run had been 5 miles. Continue reading “When It Comes to People Strategy, Success is in the Grind”