American business is in the trouble it is because of some basic philosophical errors. These errors permeate American companies and are wholeheartedly believed by top executives. Unfortunately, they have led to the spectacles we are currently observing on CNN every night. Here are some of the top philosophical errors.
1). Being totally “bottom line” oriented. American businesses look to make a profit, regardless. Regardless of what? Regardless of anything else, including ethics, morality, quality, customer service or the view of the public. While profit is important, so are many other values.
2). “Quarterly thinking.” Too many companies are focused on quarterly results. This keeps American companies from carrying out any long-term strategic plans which might cause a quarter or two of lowered earnings. This is very short-sighted, and few other nations have our peculiar view of things.
3). A belief that executives are special people. American media has lionized the executive. When once young people aspired to be a minister, a reporter, a doctor, or whatever, they now aspire to be a CEO. Having been a CEO I can tell you that CEOs are nobody special. It really isn’t that difficult of a job when you get down to it. It does require special talent and some brains. But there are many more difficult jobs in the world that should be paid much higher than a CEO. Like being a middle school teacher (horrors!).
4). Crass materialism. Our nation has made the Almighty Dollar into its main god. The results of this absurd idolatry are everywhere, and often end in “perp walks.” The worship of money and stuff by Americans has really gotten out of hand.
5). Gross disparity of pay. “Those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it.” The gross and growing disparity of pay between executives and the company average worker’s salary is very dangerous, and will, sooner or later, result either in draconian legislation or revolution or both. If executives don’t start to police themselves, very bad things are going to happen very soon. President Obama’s election is a beginning of a sea change in American business. Those businesses who “don’t get it” are going to be out of business pretty rapidly. Better learn now.
6). Arrogance. The arrogance of the Big Three Executives flying for a hearing in Washington on getting bail-out money each on their own private jet, and indicating that their absurdly high salaries were “about right” is an example of the extreme arrogance in America’s executive suites. This really, really makes people very angry. Frankly, I wouldn’t buy an American car if you paid me to buy one. These guys completely disgust me, and I won’t give them my business.
7). Lousy customer service. Just about every American company has customer DISservice, not customer service. Rather than making things easier for their customers, American companies are making things more difficult for their customers. Long phone wait times, endless computer loops, draconian return policies, the powerlessness of the lower-level functionaries to do anything and the absurd difficulty in reaching a supervisor are all symptoms of a system out of control. And don’t even get me started on the worst of the worst…the airlines. Many American companies, frankly, deserve to go out of business and, in a true free market economy, they would have. We need a true free market economy so that companies will be forced to be responsive to customers rather than forcing customers, otherwise known as “taxpayers,” to bail them out…the very customers to whom they are incredibly rude. This is adding insult to injury, and I don’t like it one little bit.
8). Shoddy product. In addition to lousy attitudes, American companies are producing shoddy products. It seems that every American product I buy falls apart. I’d love to buy American…if I could count on the product. As it is, I’ve got to look after myself, not some union worker…which brings me to…
9). Trade Unions. Unions are dinosaurs that should roll over and finish dying. The philosophy of both protectionism and overpayment of workers has had its time. Unions are one very big reason why America is in the mess it is in. We overpaid and protected shoddy workers while other countries were kicking our butts on quality and price. The right of employers to fire someone who is not producing should be absolute and not interfered with, either by the ($#$#_%) government or “collective bargaining.” The Unions had their day and their place. That is over. Now they simply protect incompetence and add billions of dollars of useless cost to American products.
10). Turf. Perhaps one of the largest causes of failures in American business is the concept of “turf.” Each executive is permitted to carve out an empire for him or herself, rather than being forced to work as a team, as in Asia. This has led to incredible redundancy and inefficiency in American businesses, as the very large egos of top executives are stroked by their buddies in the boardroom. And this is another example of turf. Boards are supposed to be independent representatives of the true owners of the company, the stockholders. Instead they are, all too often, rubber stamps for management. While this has changed somewhat with SarbOx, it hasn’t changed much. The closeness of boards to “C” Level executives is almost the definition of “conflict of interest.”
These are just a few of the mistakes made by American business. There are many more that we’ll visit at another time.
Showing posts with label coach. Show all posts
Showing posts with label coach. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Retaining Great Employees
I get fairly disgusted when a CEO says “Our people are our most important resource” and then commences with laying people off. I’ll bet that the CEO who says this doesn’t go to the IT department and throw computers out the window! The reality is that people, for many companies, are to be used to obtain what they want. And this attitude is a large part of the reason these companies are losing money and prestige.
If you want to thrive during recessionary times and kick butt during boom cycles, start with your people. The time and aggravation that goes into replacing one loyal and competent employee that company policies have torqued off one too many times is enormous, not to mention the financial cost of Churn. So start with some basic principles in your business and you will find that you will be a sought-after company to work with.
1). Understand that if your employees ar unhappy, nobody is happy. This includes your customers. Employees who are treated well and are happy help you keep customers. I know this is new and interesting information to some employers out there.
2). Kill bureaucracy. The piling of rules upon rules is unnecessary. The reaction of many companies to something going wrong with ONE employee is to write a rule about it. Kick out he rules-based people at once. Handle the problem with the one employee rather than making it global.
3). Make things easy and employee oriented. There is no real reason why an employee should have to fill out 5,942,853 forms in triplicate to go to the bathroom. It is some idiot on a power trip that puts these things in place. Make it simple as possible to access benefits, take care of family emergencies, and so on. If you have a desire to control other people, you don’t belong in management at all. Go be a prison guard or something where being a control freak might actually be O.K…though I doubt it, even in that situation.
4). Pay your employees as well as you can afford to. I am absolutely disgusted by companies where the difference between the lowest paid employee and the highest paid employee is 9000%. Let that CEO make less, and the people in the trenches make more.
5). Let everyone have the same benefits. Our employees get exactly the same benefits as my wife and I, the principals, do. Exactly.
6). Put management in the trenches. Grease Monkey is a great company. Executives at Grease Monkey have to lube cars, and every other job that everyone does before they can make even one executive decision. Imagine what it would do for morale if the CEO of GM worked on an assembly line a few times a year.
7). Share the pain. If things have to be cut or reduced, make sure that management has AT least as much pain as the lowest paid worker.
8). Share the success. Companies where the employees get a slice of company profits or bonuses based on what the whole company does have employees who really understand the concept of “teamwork.” Many companies talk about “everyone is part of the team,” but what they really mean is “you’re my slaves, now go make me money.” DOGBERT’S MANAGEMENT SECRETS is the most honest management manual on the market. Buy it and do everything the opposite of what Dogbert recommends. Make your employees truly a part of the team. Share the winnings with them.
9). Don’t treat them like children. Most people are honest and want to do a great job. They just discouraged by the office politics, the power-hungry managers, low pay, and gross inequities. Companies that have remedied these things have loyal employees who will do anything for the company. Treat employees like responsible adults and they’ll usually behave that way.
10). Involve them in decision making. Companies who involve their employees in decision making have much happier, and much more reasonable, employees. No one likes to be ordered around or have something forced on them from the top. I’ve found that employees will do things to their own detriment if they’re involved in the process and see it is for the company good.
11). Give them detailed information. In the companies I’ve run, the books are completely open to every employee. When I make a job offer, I run a spreadsheet showing the prospective employee exactly what I’ll make or lose on them, and how much he or she has as total cost to the company. Companies are generally too paranoid and security conscious. While trade secrets should be kept quiet, finances should be generally available to all employees. This will eliminate lots of arguments, unless, of course, employees are getting shafted so management can enjoy undeserved benefits. The more information you give employees, the more involved they feel in decisions that effect them. Be open and above board in every piece of information possible, including what everyone is making in the company. If you’re ashamed to do this, maybe you should evaluate what you’re making a bit.
12). Be generous. Do things for employees that are generous acts of kindness. Google and other companies that do this have very productive employees who never leave.
13). Throw “do more with less” out the window. It is insanity to have employees working 80 hour weeks, or all weekend long. It is also very bad business. Well-rested employees with balanced lives are more competent and more productive than exhausted and burned out employees. Whatever idiot keeps telling companies to make their employees do more with less should be knee-capped.
14). Pay employees for giving back. Hourly employees should be paid their hourly rate for giving back to the community. Companies that have programs like this have very high employee retention, and excellent PR. Pay employees for 25 – 40 a year working for charity, their religious institution, or community service work. This doesn’t cost, it pays. And give them time during the business day to do this community work.
The above are some of the “best practices” that proactive and successful companies are taking. Companies following these best practices have great employee morale, unbelievably low Churn, and higher productivity per employee. If you are still operating in the 19th Century and treating employees like recalcitrant children, get over yourself. Time to come up to the 21st Century and succeed!
J.
If you want to thrive during recessionary times and kick butt during boom cycles, start with your people. The time and aggravation that goes into replacing one loyal and competent employee that company policies have torqued off one too many times is enormous, not to mention the financial cost of Churn. So start with some basic principles in your business and you will find that you will be a sought-after company to work with.
1). Understand that if your employees ar unhappy, nobody is happy. This includes your customers. Employees who are treated well and are happy help you keep customers. I know this is new and interesting information to some employers out there.
2). Kill bureaucracy. The piling of rules upon rules is unnecessary. The reaction of many companies to something going wrong with ONE employee is to write a rule about it. Kick out he rules-based people at once. Handle the problem with the one employee rather than making it global.
3). Make things easy and employee oriented. There is no real reason why an employee should have to fill out 5,942,853 forms in triplicate to go to the bathroom. It is some idiot on a power trip that puts these things in place. Make it simple as possible to access benefits, take care of family emergencies, and so on. If you have a desire to control other people, you don’t belong in management at all. Go be a prison guard or something where being a control freak might actually be O.K…though I doubt it, even in that situation.
4). Pay your employees as well as you can afford to. I am absolutely disgusted by companies where the difference between the lowest paid employee and the highest paid employee is 9000%. Let that CEO make less, and the people in the trenches make more.
5). Let everyone have the same benefits. Our employees get exactly the same benefits as my wife and I, the principals, do. Exactly.
6). Put management in the trenches. Grease Monkey is a great company. Executives at Grease Monkey have to lube cars, and every other job that everyone does before they can make even one executive decision. Imagine what it would do for morale if the CEO of GM worked on an assembly line a few times a year.
7). Share the pain. If things have to be cut or reduced, make sure that management has AT least as much pain as the lowest paid worker.
8). Share the success. Companies where the employees get a slice of company profits or bonuses based on what the whole company does have employees who really understand the concept of “teamwork.” Many companies talk about “everyone is part of the team,” but what they really mean is “you’re my slaves, now go make me money.” DOGBERT’S MANAGEMENT SECRETS is the most honest management manual on the market. Buy it and do everything the opposite of what Dogbert recommends. Make your employees truly a part of the team. Share the winnings with them.
9). Don’t treat them like children. Most people are honest and want to do a great job. They just discouraged by the office politics, the power-hungry managers, low pay, and gross inequities. Companies that have remedied these things have loyal employees who will do anything for the company. Treat employees like responsible adults and they’ll usually behave that way.
10). Involve them in decision making. Companies who involve their employees in decision making have much happier, and much more reasonable, employees. No one likes to be ordered around or have something forced on them from the top. I’ve found that employees will do things to their own detriment if they’re involved in the process and see it is for the company good.
11). Give them detailed information. In the companies I’ve run, the books are completely open to every employee. When I make a job offer, I run a spreadsheet showing the prospective employee exactly what I’ll make or lose on them, and how much he or she has as total cost to the company. Companies are generally too paranoid and security conscious. While trade secrets should be kept quiet, finances should be generally available to all employees. This will eliminate lots of arguments, unless, of course, employees are getting shafted so management can enjoy undeserved benefits. The more information you give employees, the more involved they feel in decisions that effect them. Be open and above board in every piece of information possible, including what everyone is making in the company. If you’re ashamed to do this, maybe you should evaluate what you’re making a bit.
12). Be generous. Do things for employees that are generous acts of kindness. Google and other companies that do this have very productive employees who never leave.
13). Throw “do more with less” out the window. It is insanity to have employees working 80 hour weeks, or all weekend long. It is also very bad business. Well-rested employees with balanced lives are more competent and more productive than exhausted and burned out employees. Whatever idiot keeps telling companies to make their employees do more with less should be knee-capped.
14). Pay employees for giving back. Hourly employees should be paid their hourly rate for giving back to the community. Companies that have programs like this have very high employee retention, and excellent PR. Pay employees for 25 – 40 a year working for charity, their religious institution, or community service work. This doesn’t cost, it pays. And give them time during the business day to do this community work.
The above are some of the “best practices” that proactive and successful companies are taking. Companies following these best practices have great employee morale, unbelievably low Churn, and higher productivity per employee. If you are still operating in the 19th Century and treating employees like recalcitrant children, get over yourself. Time to come up to the 21st Century and succeed!
J.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Leadership in Uncertain Times
Even the staunchest optimist would have to admit that we are in some difficult times. It is up to those of us in leadership positions to bring our companies and our nation through these times to prosperity and abundance again. There are a few tings that we can do to assure that we are leading effectively and toward prosperity.
1). Lead, don’t follow. Remember that it is your job to lead your company forward, not to follow the corrupt politicians and greedy traders on Wall Street. Let your employees know that, while things are, indeed, rough out there, your company intends to win in these difficult times.
2). Don’t be greedy. The spectacle of CEOs taking multi-million dollar payouts when their companies are failing is not only disgusting, it is very dangerous, not to mention immoral. It is dangerous for several reasons. First, it invites greater government intervention in corporate decisions. Second, it incites fury. While the time in America is not here where CEOs are pulled from limos and killed in the streets, this has happened at many other periods of history throughout the world. And some of the most dangerous words in the English language are: “It can’t happen here.” Third, it takes needed capital from the company.
You must show leadership by sharing the pain of all stakeholders with them. If your employees and stockholders or members of your firm are suffering, you shouldn’t be taking major bonuses. Use your head.
3). Don’t be stupid. Keep in mind that every single decision you make is a public relations and employee relations decision. If you’re one of the “C” Level executives who has been foolish enough to surround yourself with “yes” people and butt-kissers, get a clue and fire them! It is time that leaders realized that they are nothing without their employees. It is also time to realize that employees may stick with an uncaring and arrogant executive in the tough times because jobs are scarce. But executives also need to realize that their best employees always have other options and that, even for their mediocre employees, there will come a time when changing jobs is much easier. Good employee relationships now will help assure that you make it through these times, and continue to prosper when the tough times are over.
The same holds true of customers, only more so. Customers will not stick with a company in tough times unless that company has built solid customer relationships. And don’t think that doing things like taking a big bonus when you’re laying people off isn’t both known and taken into account by the public when making decisions about which stock to invest in, which product to buy, and which companies they favor.
4). Get out of La-La Land. I see far too many “C” Level executives living in a world of their own. We had one of our Executive Round Tables about 8 months ago where I and a couple of our clients predicted the mess we’re in now. One of our “C” Level executives was furious. He spouted the party line that everything was solid and it was simply “Liberal propaganda” that things were getting close to a dangerous point. Well, I’m not a Liberal, although I don’t have the unreasoned hatred for Liberals that so many seem to have. Neither were the other people predicting this mess. But the reaction of reactionaries tends to be to discount any truth or facts that don’t fit with their world-view. Their mind is made up. Who needs facts?
A leader is intelligent and farsighted enough to recognize when things are going downhill and takes effective action, not burying his head in the sand. The CEO who got upset with us has landed at a company as its CEO now. I sincerely hope for the sake of his stockholders that he has taken his head out of the sand (or certain parts of his anatomy) and is operating on reality instead of ideology. Save ideology for arguments over adult beverages. Practice pragmatism and reality in running your company.
5). Practice prosperity thought and behaviors. One of the more foolish things that executives can do in tight times is to panic and act like the sky is falling. Reality: America and American companies have weathered tough times before and they will this time. Keep in mind that a good deal of the panic out there is manufactured by the political candidates and the media. It gets candidates elected and sells product for the media.
Instead of buying into the hype, as a leader you need to both keep calm and convey calm to your employees, your customers, the public at large and the markets. Wall Street is a place where emotion rules. The stock price of a company has little to do with its actual prospects but, rather, with a perception as seen by highly emotional traders. This has very little place in your boardroom. See the whole picture. Operate with logic and calm. And believe in the future of your company and the free market system as a whole. Walk and talk prosperity and abundance and they will be yours. Don’t commit fraud, of course, or lie to people, but put on the best honest face possible and believe that you will come through any troubles.
6). Fight government interference. Finally, we are in a position to have a great deal of influence on how far the government gets to stick its very large nose into our businesses and lives. Keep them out of it as far as possible! Don’t support government intervention.
In a free market system government intervention is deadly. It makes losers out of winners and winners out of losers. We know best how to run business, the government doesn’t. And, look, none of the candidates running for the top offices, and very few of the Congressional candidates have ever actually run a highly successful business. Contrary to propaganda, government and business are two highly different entities. While the government and businesses have been getting in bed with one another a great deal recently, this is a loss for everyone. For the people, it curtails our civil rights and freedoms. For businesses it curtails our rights to run our businesses the way we believe will generate the best cash flow. Businesspeople who support government intervention would do well to remember the old adage about government and business. Getting in bed with the government is like getting in bed with a hippopotamus. It is very warm and comfy until the hippo roles over.
Now go out and lead!
J.
1). Lead, don’t follow. Remember that it is your job to lead your company forward, not to follow the corrupt politicians and greedy traders on Wall Street. Let your employees know that, while things are, indeed, rough out there, your company intends to win in these difficult times.
2). Don’t be greedy. The spectacle of CEOs taking multi-million dollar payouts when their companies are failing is not only disgusting, it is very dangerous, not to mention immoral. It is dangerous for several reasons. First, it invites greater government intervention in corporate decisions. Second, it incites fury. While the time in America is not here where CEOs are pulled from limos and killed in the streets, this has happened at many other periods of history throughout the world. And some of the most dangerous words in the English language are: “It can’t happen here.” Third, it takes needed capital from the company.
You must show leadership by sharing the pain of all stakeholders with them. If your employees and stockholders or members of your firm are suffering, you shouldn’t be taking major bonuses. Use your head.
3). Don’t be stupid. Keep in mind that every single decision you make is a public relations and employee relations decision. If you’re one of the “C” Level executives who has been foolish enough to surround yourself with “yes” people and butt-kissers, get a clue and fire them! It is time that leaders realized that they are nothing without their employees. It is also time to realize that employees may stick with an uncaring and arrogant executive in the tough times because jobs are scarce. But executives also need to realize that their best employees always have other options and that, even for their mediocre employees, there will come a time when changing jobs is much easier. Good employee relationships now will help assure that you make it through these times, and continue to prosper when the tough times are over.
The same holds true of customers, only more so. Customers will not stick with a company in tough times unless that company has built solid customer relationships. And don’t think that doing things like taking a big bonus when you’re laying people off isn’t both known and taken into account by the public when making decisions about which stock to invest in, which product to buy, and which companies they favor.
4). Get out of La-La Land. I see far too many “C” Level executives living in a world of their own. We had one of our Executive Round Tables about 8 months ago where I and a couple of our clients predicted the mess we’re in now. One of our “C” Level executives was furious. He spouted the party line that everything was solid and it was simply “Liberal propaganda” that things were getting close to a dangerous point. Well, I’m not a Liberal, although I don’t have the unreasoned hatred for Liberals that so many seem to have. Neither were the other people predicting this mess. But the reaction of reactionaries tends to be to discount any truth or facts that don’t fit with their world-view. Their mind is made up. Who needs facts?
A leader is intelligent and farsighted enough to recognize when things are going downhill and takes effective action, not burying his head in the sand. The CEO who got upset with us has landed at a company as its CEO now. I sincerely hope for the sake of his stockholders that he has taken his head out of the sand (or certain parts of his anatomy) and is operating on reality instead of ideology. Save ideology for arguments over adult beverages. Practice pragmatism and reality in running your company.
5). Practice prosperity thought and behaviors. One of the more foolish things that executives can do in tight times is to panic and act like the sky is falling. Reality: America and American companies have weathered tough times before and they will this time. Keep in mind that a good deal of the panic out there is manufactured by the political candidates and the media. It gets candidates elected and sells product for the media.
Instead of buying into the hype, as a leader you need to both keep calm and convey calm to your employees, your customers, the public at large and the markets. Wall Street is a place where emotion rules. The stock price of a company has little to do with its actual prospects but, rather, with a perception as seen by highly emotional traders. This has very little place in your boardroom. See the whole picture. Operate with logic and calm. And believe in the future of your company and the free market system as a whole. Walk and talk prosperity and abundance and they will be yours. Don’t commit fraud, of course, or lie to people, but put on the best honest face possible and believe that you will come through any troubles.
6). Fight government interference. Finally, we are in a position to have a great deal of influence on how far the government gets to stick its very large nose into our businesses and lives. Keep them out of it as far as possible! Don’t support government intervention.
In a free market system government intervention is deadly. It makes losers out of winners and winners out of losers. We know best how to run business, the government doesn’t. And, look, none of the candidates running for the top offices, and very few of the Congressional candidates have ever actually run a highly successful business. Contrary to propaganda, government and business are two highly different entities. While the government and businesses have been getting in bed with one another a great deal recently, this is a loss for everyone. For the people, it curtails our civil rights and freedoms. For businesses it curtails our rights to run our businesses the way we believe will generate the best cash flow. Businesspeople who support government intervention would do well to remember the old adage about government and business. Getting in bed with the government is like getting in bed with a hippopotamus. It is very warm and comfy until the hippo roles over.
Now go out and lead!
J.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Integrity
“The louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted our spoons.” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
We live in a country which has become bereft of honor and integrity. Integrity is a concept about which I should never need to write. In times past a man or woman without integrity would be ostracized by the community. Now, we elect Presidents who consistently lie, whether it be about blue dresses or weapons of mass destruction. We see corporate head after corporate head doing the “perp walk.” And cheating others has become a way of life.
I used to operate my business on a handshake. No more. If I did so now, I’d be broke. My contract, over the years, has grown longer and longer as “loopholes” have had to be sewn up to make it more difficult to defraud me of my fee for work performed. But integrity is the foundation of being a good leader, although, given the “role models” that we have, one would never know it.
I find that, increasingly, “C” level executives are taking honor and integrity less and less seriously. Rather than honoring one’s word, it has become “what can I get away with?”. Many top-level executives do not see their word, or even contracts, as having any meaning. Virtually before the ink is dry on the contract, they’re at their attorney’s office trying to find a way to break it. Here are a few of the things that integrity means to me.
1). Do what you say you’re going to do when you say you’re going to do it. This seems elementary to me, but, apparently, is not to many people. If you cannot do what you say you’re going to do when you say you’re going to do it, negotiate so that you are doing as close to what you said you were going to do and when you said you were going to do it as possible. But only negotiate if there are such overwhelming circumstances as to make doing what you say you’re going to do when you say you’re going to do it literally impossible.
2). Carry through on your word, even if it costs you money, time or other things. No, there is not a built-in clause in every promise or contract that says, at the end of something which must be performed, “if I feel like it.” If you sign a contract or make a promise and then find out that the contract or promise is more costly than you thought, follow through on it anyway.
Of course, I’m leaving out fraud here. If the person you made the promise to or signed the contract with was making false statements to you to induce you to make a promise or sign a contract, you are not, of course, bound by your word. But let’s be sure that we are sure that the other person lied before vacating our word.
3). Leave other people’s stuff and relationships alone. I’m truly amazed at the prevalence of adultery and theft in our society. No society can long survive if the basic institutions of society are not respected.
Marriage is being eroded daily. No, not by gay marriage. Two people of the same gender making a loving commitment to one another does not erode marriage. The incredibly high rate of infidelity and divorce erode marriage. This is an integrity issue.
So is the widespread fraud that is going on in American businesses today. Halliburton, for example, has made its stockholders wealthy by stealing from American taxpayers and not providing our troops with the necessities they were contracted to provide them with. And what will happen? Well, look at the people who own large blocks of stock in Halliburton. Probably nothing will happen. They’ve gotten away with the theft of billions of dollars — billions that we, the taxpayers, have paid them. But just because they won’t be held criminally accountable, doesn’t mean it is OK or make it right.
4). Behave as if everything you did will be on the 6 PM news or CNN. I won’t do business with someone I know is cheating on their spouse. Why? Because if your own spouse can’t trust you, why should I trust you? If you can’t keep a vow, what makes me think that you’ll keep a contract, hmmm?
Integrity is a seamless garment. You either have it or you don’t. You cannot be one kind of person and another kind of businessperson. You can’t be a lousy husband, wife, father, mother, friend, etc. and be, for example, a good doctor. You may be skilled, but you aren’t good, and there is a difference. Give me a man or woman who is less skilled, but a better person over a highly skilled fraud any day.
5). Don’t defend those who are not acting in integrity. Doctors do it. Police officers do it. Men do it for other men and women for other women. There seems to be a growing code that defends those who are not acting in integrity. I see this more and more in the business world. If you cover up for or defend those who have performed an act which is deceitful, fraudulent, or otherwise dishonest, you are no better than they are. I will not do business with nor otherwise trust an individual who defends someone who has been shown to be a dishonest person because they have displayed both personal dishonesty and poor judgment.
Remember, if you defend someone who is dishonest you are “hitching” your reputation to theirs. Do you really want to do that? (Obviously, there are times when defend someone before we know the facts. I’m speaking here of continuing to defend someone when it is clear and conclusive that individual is dishonest or dishonorable.)
6). Don’t “hang” with those who do not have honor. There is an old saying “if you’d steal for me, you’d steal from me.” This is incredibly true. If someone has betrayed a friend, you will be on the chopping block sooner or later. If they’ve stolen from others, watch your wallet. I’m continually amazed at the defensive circle which forms around business or political figures who have obviously cheated, stolen, and so on. It turns my stomach to watch the wives of politicians caught in the act of infidelity standing there smiling at the press conference next to the slime they married. Be careful who you have around you because Mom was right. You will be judged by the type of friends you have.
7). Defend your honor. If you have, indeed, acted in integrity and someone else has not, and you are being tarred with their brush, quietly but firmly defend your honor. This is sometimes costly, and usually inconvenient. But do not allow anyone to tarnish your good name — and they WILL try. Go to court if necessary, but do whatever you must do to defend your name and your honor if you, indeed, have kept it intact.
This certainly does not exhaust the topic of integrity. But it is a start. Every day you must ask yourself if you have performed in such a way that others will look at your integrity and feel reassured that they, too, are in good hands. Integrity is almost like being a virgin. Once it is broken it is difficult to go back. Don’t lose your integrity virginity.
John.
We live in a country which has become bereft of honor and integrity. Integrity is a concept about which I should never need to write. In times past a man or woman without integrity would be ostracized by the community. Now, we elect Presidents who consistently lie, whether it be about blue dresses or weapons of mass destruction. We see corporate head after corporate head doing the “perp walk.” And cheating others has become a way of life.
I used to operate my business on a handshake. No more. If I did so now, I’d be broke. My contract, over the years, has grown longer and longer as “loopholes” have had to be sewn up to make it more difficult to defraud me of my fee for work performed. But integrity is the foundation of being a good leader, although, given the “role models” that we have, one would never know it.
I find that, increasingly, “C” level executives are taking honor and integrity less and less seriously. Rather than honoring one’s word, it has become “what can I get away with?”. Many top-level executives do not see their word, or even contracts, as having any meaning. Virtually before the ink is dry on the contract, they’re at their attorney’s office trying to find a way to break it. Here are a few of the things that integrity means to me.
1). Do what you say you’re going to do when you say you’re going to do it. This seems elementary to me, but, apparently, is not to many people. If you cannot do what you say you’re going to do when you say you’re going to do it, negotiate so that you are doing as close to what you said you were going to do and when you said you were going to do it as possible. But only negotiate if there are such overwhelming circumstances as to make doing what you say you’re going to do when you say you’re going to do it literally impossible.
2). Carry through on your word, even if it costs you money, time or other things. No, there is not a built-in clause in every promise or contract that says, at the end of something which must be performed, “if I feel like it.” If you sign a contract or make a promise and then find out that the contract or promise is more costly than you thought, follow through on it anyway.
Of course, I’m leaving out fraud here. If the person you made the promise to or signed the contract with was making false statements to you to induce you to make a promise or sign a contract, you are not, of course, bound by your word. But let’s be sure that we are sure that the other person lied before vacating our word.
3). Leave other people’s stuff and relationships alone. I’m truly amazed at the prevalence of adultery and theft in our society. No society can long survive if the basic institutions of society are not respected.
Marriage is being eroded daily. No, not by gay marriage. Two people of the same gender making a loving commitment to one another does not erode marriage. The incredibly high rate of infidelity and divorce erode marriage. This is an integrity issue.
So is the widespread fraud that is going on in American businesses today. Halliburton, for example, has made its stockholders wealthy by stealing from American taxpayers and not providing our troops with the necessities they were contracted to provide them with. And what will happen? Well, look at the people who own large blocks of stock in Halliburton. Probably nothing will happen. They’ve gotten away with the theft of billions of dollars — billions that we, the taxpayers, have paid them. But just because they won’t be held criminally accountable, doesn’t mean it is OK or make it right.
4). Behave as if everything you did will be on the 6 PM news or CNN. I won’t do business with someone I know is cheating on their spouse. Why? Because if your own spouse can’t trust you, why should I trust you? If you can’t keep a vow, what makes me think that you’ll keep a contract, hmmm?
Integrity is a seamless garment. You either have it or you don’t. You cannot be one kind of person and another kind of businessperson. You can’t be a lousy husband, wife, father, mother, friend, etc. and be, for example, a good doctor. You may be skilled, but you aren’t good, and there is a difference. Give me a man or woman who is less skilled, but a better person over a highly skilled fraud any day.
5). Don’t defend those who are not acting in integrity. Doctors do it. Police officers do it. Men do it for other men and women for other women. There seems to be a growing code that defends those who are not acting in integrity. I see this more and more in the business world. If you cover up for or defend those who have performed an act which is deceitful, fraudulent, or otherwise dishonest, you are no better than they are. I will not do business with nor otherwise trust an individual who defends someone who has been shown to be a dishonest person because they have displayed both personal dishonesty and poor judgment.
Remember, if you defend someone who is dishonest you are “hitching” your reputation to theirs. Do you really want to do that? (Obviously, there are times when defend someone before we know the facts. I’m speaking here of continuing to defend someone when it is clear and conclusive that individual is dishonest or dishonorable.)
6). Don’t “hang” with those who do not have honor. There is an old saying “if you’d steal for me, you’d steal from me.” This is incredibly true. If someone has betrayed a friend, you will be on the chopping block sooner or later. If they’ve stolen from others, watch your wallet. I’m continually amazed at the defensive circle which forms around business or political figures who have obviously cheated, stolen, and so on. It turns my stomach to watch the wives of politicians caught in the act of infidelity standing there smiling at the press conference next to the slime they married. Be careful who you have around you because Mom was right. You will be judged by the type of friends you have.
7). Defend your honor. If you have, indeed, acted in integrity and someone else has not, and you are being tarred with their brush, quietly but firmly defend your honor. This is sometimes costly, and usually inconvenient. But do not allow anyone to tarnish your good name — and they WILL try. Go to court if necessary, but do whatever you must do to defend your name and your honor if you, indeed, have kept it intact.
This certainly does not exhaust the topic of integrity. But it is a start. Every day you must ask yourself if you have performed in such a way that others will look at your integrity and feel reassured that they, too, are in good hands. Integrity is almost like being a virgin. Once it is broken it is difficult to go back. Don’t lose your integrity virginity.
John.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Your Ego is Your Worst Enemy!
Over the years that I’ve been helping people with their careers I’ve seen a couple of types of executives. There are those who are spectacular successes and those who are successes. Give me the one who is merely a success any day, because, sooner or later, the “spectacular success” is going to crash and burn. If you’re a stockholder or board member of a company run by a spectacular success, better hope that he or she doesn’t take your company along with him or her when the fall comes.
I don’t think I need to give a list of the CXOs whose egos have resulted in the fall of once-high-flying companies like Enron, etc. Here are some things to take a hard look at if you’re a board member, a stockholder, or a “C” level executive to keep your company from winding up in the "Hall of Shame."
1). Why is the person who is CXO in that chair? This is a very hard question that boards should ask. Many people are bamboozled by “C” level charisma. Take it from my 25+ years of experience, charismatic CXOs are very dangerous. The best individual to run a company is not charismatic, but a little on the boring side.
Too many boards have been taken down the primrose path by a man or woman with “star power.” Unfortunately, men and women with “star power” have gigantic egos. They like to be in the limelight, and this can, and probably will, mean losses for your company.
The best CXO is one that is taking care of business, not polishing an image. The gladhander who knows everyone is almost certainly going to eventually be a poor CXO. The reason is simple — these people are narcissists. They will do whatever is necessary to get their “strokes” and attention. Give me the quiet, competent type any day to the “celebrity CEO.”
2). Is this person being paid too much? The answer is almost certainly “yes.” American companies have gotten into a very bad habit of paying “C” level executives based on hype as opposed to performance. I’m amazed when a “C” level executive is paid a huge bonus when the company has lost money. While I’m firmly against government regulation of this practice (or any other business practice) it is bad business and the “payday” will come sooner or later.
Pay “C” level executives for performance and revenue, not smoke and mirrors.
3). Whose interests is this person looking after — yours and the company’s or his or her own interests? Good CXOs see that they succeed when the company succeeds, and believe in a “team success” approach. Egotistical (poor) ones think that what is good for them is good for the company. A good CXO is like a good naval ship officer — the company comes first.
Watch your management team carefully and see whether or not the company is coming first. If not, it is time to chop some heads and put in some folks who will fulfill their duty to the stockholders, employees and customers of the company instead of polishing their own image or enriching their own bank accounts at the expense of the company. (Don’t get me wrong — I have nothing against large CXO salaries or money! I just think that it should be obtained the old fashioned way — by earning it.)
4). Is the CXO surrounded by “yes wo/men?” No one can make good decisions when they’re being told how wonderful they are at everything. A good CXO has advisors that will tell him/her the truth. As an executive coach, I often have to deliver an ego blow to help the executive. I can do this because I don’t work for the executive. Yes, I have had executives whose egos were too big to take this. They eventually failed, usually sooner than later. If your executives are surrounded by toadies, they’re not looking out after your interests. If you’re a board member or major stockholder, insist that your management team have coaches, advisors, or some way of getting independent, third party advice. Of course, assure that the coaching team is going to keep your business secrets secret. A good non-disclosure form with teeth helps. Your corporate counsel can, I’m sure, give you an example.
5). Is your CXO constantly seeking the limelight? While it is good to get publicity for the company, the media is notoriously fickle. They’ll love you one day and fry you the next. The CXO should be handling the company or division, and the PR Department should be handling the media (or carefully coaching the executives on how to do so). Keep your corporate officers away from the media as much as possible, leaving media relations to professionals at it.
6). What is the lifestyle of the CXO. You want a CXO that has a solid and tranquil domestic life with a partner that loves him or her, grown or well-behaved kids, and no nasty habits. You don't want your CXO in “People Magazine.”
Executives with mistresses, flashy lifestyles, playboy (or playgirl) habits, addictions or strange behaviors are not what you want! You want the attention to be on the company, not the lifestyles of the corporate officers.
Too many times American businesses have lost sight of the goal, which should be to make money for stockholders, provide customers with a quality, reliable product or service, employees with stable and enjoyable employment, and future generations with a company as a legacy.
The “perp walks” of the early 2000’s should have been a wake-up call to American business to police its own house. Instead, all it got us was SarbOx (a terrible law that does nothing except cost us money and time), and a black eye in the mind of the American public.
Good CXOs keep their eye on the ball and don’t get distracted by their egos. If you want to be a movie star, go to Hollywood. If you want to run a company, run a company. It’s that simple.
Here's to your prosperity,
J.
I don’t think I need to give a list of the CXOs whose egos have resulted in the fall of once-high-flying companies like Enron, etc. Here are some things to take a hard look at if you’re a board member, a stockholder, or a “C” level executive to keep your company from winding up in the "Hall of Shame."
1). Why is the person who is CXO in that chair? This is a very hard question that boards should ask. Many people are bamboozled by “C” level charisma. Take it from my 25+ years of experience, charismatic CXOs are very dangerous. The best individual to run a company is not charismatic, but a little on the boring side.
Too many boards have been taken down the primrose path by a man or woman with “star power.” Unfortunately, men and women with “star power” have gigantic egos. They like to be in the limelight, and this can, and probably will, mean losses for your company.
The best CXO is one that is taking care of business, not polishing an image. The gladhander who knows everyone is almost certainly going to eventually be a poor CXO. The reason is simple — these people are narcissists. They will do whatever is necessary to get their “strokes” and attention. Give me the quiet, competent type any day to the “celebrity CEO.”
2). Is this person being paid too much? The answer is almost certainly “yes.” American companies have gotten into a very bad habit of paying “C” level executives based on hype as opposed to performance. I’m amazed when a “C” level executive is paid a huge bonus when the company has lost money. While I’m firmly against government regulation of this practice (or any other business practice) it is bad business and the “payday” will come sooner or later.
Pay “C” level executives for performance and revenue, not smoke and mirrors.
3). Whose interests is this person looking after — yours and the company’s or his or her own interests? Good CXOs see that they succeed when the company succeeds, and believe in a “team success” approach. Egotistical (poor) ones think that what is good for them is good for the company. A good CXO is like a good naval ship officer — the company comes first.
Watch your management team carefully and see whether or not the company is coming first. If not, it is time to chop some heads and put in some folks who will fulfill their duty to the stockholders, employees and customers of the company instead of polishing their own image or enriching their own bank accounts at the expense of the company. (Don’t get me wrong — I have nothing against large CXO salaries or money! I just think that it should be obtained the old fashioned way — by earning it.)
4). Is the CXO surrounded by “yes wo/men?” No one can make good decisions when they’re being told how wonderful they are at everything. A good CXO has advisors that will tell him/her the truth. As an executive coach, I often have to deliver an ego blow to help the executive. I can do this because I don’t work for the executive. Yes, I have had executives whose egos were too big to take this. They eventually failed, usually sooner than later. If your executives are surrounded by toadies, they’re not looking out after your interests. If you’re a board member or major stockholder, insist that your management team have coaches, advisors, or some way of getting independent, third party advice. Of course, assure that the coaching team is going to keep your business secrets secret. A good non-disclosure form with teeth helps. Your corporate counsel can, I’m sure, give you an example.
5). Is your CXO constantly seeking the limelight? While it is good to get publicity for the company, the media is notoriously fickle. They’ll love you one day and fry you the next. The CXO should be handling the company or division, and the PR Department should be handling the media (or carefully coaching the executives on how to do so). Keep your corporate officers away from the media as much as possible, leaving media relations to professionals at it.
6). What is the lifestyle of the CXO. You want a CXO that has a solid and tranquil domestic life with a partner that loves him or her, grown or well-behaved kids, and no nasty habits. You don't want your CXO in “People Magazine.”
Executives with mistresses, flashy lifestyles, playboy (or playgirl) habits, addictions or strange behaviors are not what you want! You want the attention to be on the company, not the lifestyles of the corporate officers.
Too many times American businesses have lost sight of the goal, which should be to make money for stockholders, provide customers with a quality, reliable product or service, employees with stable and enjoyable employment, and future generations with a company as a legacy.
The “perp walks” of the early 2000’s should have been a wake-up call to American business to police its own house. Instead, all it got us was SarbOx (a terrible law that does nothing except cost us money and time), and a black eye in the mind of the American public.
Good CXOs keep their eye on the ball and don’t get distracted by their egos. If you want to be a movie star, go to Hollywood. If you want to run a company, run a company. It’s that simple.
Here's to your prosperity,
J.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
The Top Ten “C” Level Errors
If you’ve made it to the top you have probably developed a great many skills and talents. However, in my 28 years of dealing with top executives I’ve noticed a few common errors that people at the top make time and again. Here they are, with a couple of tips on avoiding them.
10) Not taking time for your own growth. So many of my clients get caught up in the running of their businesses that they don’t take time to look at the “spiritual” and emotional sides of life. You can’t be a shallow person and a good CEO…or any kind of executive. The kind of person one is winds up being the kind of executive he or she is. Remember this and take the time to be the kind of person you’d be proud to work for.
9). Losing sight of your goals. American businesses are way too short-term oriented. We are far too focused on monthly and quarterly numbers and nowhere near enough focused on the goals of the company for the long term. While your Board and Stakeholders are demanding those numbers stay up (and you must do so), don’t forget your long-term goals. If you forget the long term, the short-term will soon be in trouble.
8). Making “money” decisions. Too many “C” Level executives make decisions solely based on the “bottom line.” Big mistake. While money must be one of the many factors in any decision, it should rarely be the sole determining factor. Look at things like community values, company values, personal values, employee and customer satisfaction and so on as well. Usually if you’re satisfying the customers and have good employee morale, some of the dollar issues take care of themselves.
7). Isolating yourself. Don’t restrict your friend and contact list to others in your same country club or who have “C” in their title. This is incredibly isolating and incredibly stupid, as well. Your friends and networking list should consist of people at many walks of life and with many titles (or no title at all). And don’t stop attending networking functions and professional associations and mingling with everyone. It is vital to your career.
6). Living an ostentatious life. There is an old saying that goes “Live simply so others may simply live.” Those of us who make large sums of money have a responsibility to the community and to others. There is nothing wrong with having a nice house, good cars, etc., but only a very shallow person lives his or her to obtain these things. They should be “perks” along the way of a life well lived.
Besides which, an ostentatious lifestyle takes lots of energy to maintain — energy you could be using for other things. Live a nice life, but a simple one. Have nice things, but don’t burden yourself with tons of “stuff.” Make the driver to be successful an internal one rather than being driven by mere acquisition.
5). Losing touch with your staff and employees. Don’t barricade yourself in your office. You should know a bit about each employee, including the custodian and be able to chat with each and every one of them. Learn the “Farley File” system (more on this in a later post) and use it. People will go to the wall for a CEO who asks how their kids are doing and really listens and cares. People are loyal to people, not to corporations. Make your people fanatic about you by caring deeply (honestly) about them, and showing it often.
4). Losing touch with your customers. Clement Stone, the mentor of Napoleon Hill and founder of one of the largest life insurance companies in the world answered his own phone and had his door open. What a great man! He never wanted to lose touch with those who “paid his salary.” Neither do you.
3). Surrounding yourself with “yes” people. Surround yourself with people who will tell you that your fly’s open if it is. Also have a “consigliere” like the Godfather did — a trusted outside “third party” advisor who isn’t afraid to tell you things like they are. A skilled executive coach who is used to dealing with “C” Level executives can be worth his or her weight in gold. You can’t make good decisions if you are always being told that you’re right.
2). Trusting the wrong people. Don’t keep a snake in your t-shirt or bra. They bite. A sycophant will turn on you sooner or later. Someone who steals for you will steal from you. Someone who lies for you will lie to you. Remember this.
And the top number one error “C” Level executives make is:
Pride. Humility is absolutely essential to success as a “C” Level executive. Remember where you came from, who you are, and that you get dressed just like everyone else in the morning, even if it is in better clothes. Remember that you’re running a business, not a Universe, and that you do not walk on water, heal occasional lepers or levitate on alternate Saturdays. You are just a plain old person who was born naked and who turn to dust in the ground. Your title and money and authority are, in the grand scheme of things, meaningless. Ask any CEO who has lost a beloved spouse or child if they wouldn’t trade all of their money and titles for one more day with that person and put some things into perspective.
This blog will have a new article about once a week or so. Please feel free to subscribe if you enjoyed this article. I intend to give some very blunt and hard-hitting advice on this weekly blog. If you find this sort of advice offensive, I will really push your buttons and you probably shouldn’t read this. But if you want to cut through the happy horsepucky you usually read from Executive Coaches, you will probably like this blog.
Feel free to give me a call at any time to chat about an article or ask a question. I also am pleased to sit down with you for coffee if you live in the Metro Denver area, or are in town for a few days, or by phone or Skype if you are outside of Denver.
All the best,
J.
10) Not taking time for your own growth. So many of my clients get caught up in the running of their businesses that they don’t take time to look at the “spiritual” and emotional sides of life. You can’t be a shallow person and a good CEO…or any kind of executive. The kind of person one is winds up being the kind of executive he or she is. Remember this and take the time to be the kind of person you’d be proud to work for.
9). Losing sight of your goals. American businesses are way too short-term oriented. We are far too focused on monthly and quarterly numbers and nowhere near enough focused on the goals of the company for the long term. While your Board and Stakeholders are demanding those numbers stay up (and you must do so), don’t forget your long-term goals. If you forget the long term, the short-term will soon be in trouble.
8). Making “money” decisions. Too many “C” Level executives make decisions solely based on the “bottom line.” Big mistake. While money must be one of the many factors in any decision, it should rarely be the sole determining factor. Look at things like community values, company values, personal values, employee and customer satisfaction and so on as well. Usually if you’re satisfying the customers and have good employee morale, some of the dollar issues take care of themselves.
7). Isolating yourself. Don’t restrict your friend and contact list to others in your same country club or who have “C” in their title. This is incredibly isolating and incredibly stupid, as well. Your friends and networking list should consist of people at many walks of life and with many titles (or no title at all). And don’t stop attending networking functions and professional associations and mingling with everyone. It is vital to your career.
6). Living an ostentatious life. There is an old saying that goes “Live simply so others may simply live.” Those of us who make large sums of money have a responsibility to the community and to others. There is nothing wrong with having a nice house, good cars, etc., but only a very shallow person lives his or her to obtain these things. They should be “perks” along the way of a life well lived.
Besides which, an ostentatious lifestyle takes lots of energy to maintain — energy you could be using for other things. Live a nice life, but a simple one. Have nice things, but don’t burden yourself with tons of “stuff.” Make the driver to be successful an internal one rather than being driven by mere acquisition.
5). Losing touch with your staff and employees. Don’t barricade yourself in your office. You should know a bit about each employee, including the custodian and be able to chat with each and every one of them. Learn the “Farley File” system (more on this in a later post) and use it. People will go to the wall for a CEO who asks how their kids are doing and really listens and cares. People are loyal to people, not to corporations. Make your people fanatic about you by caring deeply (honestly) about them, and showing it often.
4). Losing touch with your customers. Clement Stone, the mentor of Napoleon Hill and founder of one of the largest life insurance companies in the world answered his own phone and had his door open. What a great man! He never wanted to lose touch with those who “paid his salary.” Neither do you.
3). Surrounding yourself with “yes” people. Surround yourself with people who will tell you that your fly’s open if it is. Also have a “consigliere” like the Godfather did — a trusted outside “third party” advisor who isn’t afraid to tell you things like they are. A skilled executive coach who is used to dealing with “C” Level executives can be worth his or her weight in gold. You can’t make good decisions if you are always being told that you’re right.
2). Trusting the wrong people. Don’t keep a snake in your t-shirt or bra. They bite. A sycophant will turn on you sooner or later. Someone who steals for you will steal from you. Someone who lies for you will lie to you. Remember this.
And the top number one error “C” Level executives make is:
Pride. Humility is absolutely essential to success as a “C” Level executive. Remember where you came from, who you are, and that you get dressed just like everyone else in the morning, even if it is in better clothes. Remember that you’re running a business, not a Universe, and that you do not walk on water, heal occasional lepers or levitate on alternate Saturdays. You are just a plain old person who was born naked and who turn to dust in the ground. Your title and money and authority are, in the grand scheme of things, meaningless. Ask any CEO who has lost a beloved spouse or child if they wouldn’t trade all of their money and titles for one more day with that person and put some things into perspective.
This blog will have a new article about once a week or so. Please feel free to subscribe if you enjoyed this article. I intend to give some very blunt and hard-hitting advice on this weekly blog. If you find this sort of advice offensive, I will really push your buttons and you probably shouldn’t read this. But if you want to cut through the happy horsepucky you usually read from Executive Coaches, you will probably like this blog.
Feel free to give me a call at any time to chat about an article or ask a question. I also am pleased to sit down with you for coffee if you live in the Metro Denver area, or are in town for a few days, or by phone or Skype if you are outside of Denver.
All the best,
J.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Welcome!
Welcome to the CEO Skills Corner. This new blog will exclusively address the skills and concerns of "C" Level executives in corporate America.
This blog will receive new articles at least weekly on a variety of topics. Of course, I always welcome your questions and comments, and will do my best to address them either personally or in an article. If you're asking a question, it is likely that many of your colleagues have a similar concern.
Who am I and why should you spend the time reading my articles? For the first post, here is my bio.
John Heckers, MA, CPC, BCPC is President of Heckers Development Group, LTD, an executive coaching and consulting firm based in Cherry Creek, Colorado, specializing in high level Executive Coaching, Corporate Training, Executive Transition Consulting and Strategic Corporate Coaching. John has consulted to both Fortune 500 and smaller companies, and has trained and coached executives from AT&T, New Horizons Computer Learning Centers, Microsoft Corporation, IBM, Maxtor/Seagate, The Prudential, United Airlines, Children’s Hospital, Concentra Health Systems, Merck-Medco, Hewlett/Packard, Citibank of New York, Corporate Express, Stryker Corporation, Qwest, First Data Resources, FEMA, The United States Armed Forces, and many other organizations. John has over 28 years of experience in helping and counseling executives, professional counseling, executive transition (career) counseling and professional training.
John Heckers is published both nationally and internationally as a business columnist, is featured as an employment blogger for ColoradoBiz Magazine Today on-line, on the Jobing.com website (Jobing.com is a national job board and employment advisory website), has served as an employment expert on the Diversity Website Latpro and served as the internationally syndicated employment columnist for The Denver Business Journal and the national and international online bizjournals.com for over 6 years. His articles have been syndicated in business journals across the United States and Canada, and has also had his articles republished in business periodicals in Europe and Asia, translated into five languages. He has had frequent appearances on numerous television news programs and radio talk shows as an employment expert, including Denver’s KCNC, WB2, and KHOW radio, among others.
John Heckers graduated with his Baccalaureate degree in Psychology and Philosophy from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1977, did graduate studies at the University of Toronto, Trinity College, in 1978 and 1979, and graduated from Denver’s Iliff School of Theology with distinction with his Master of Arts degree in 1989.
He is past president of the Colorado Association of Psychotherapists, served on the boards of directors of the Jefferson Center for Mental Health, the Rocky Mountain Information Management Association, and the International Attention and Behavioral Institute. In 1995, Heckers was appointed by Governor Roy Romer to the Colorado State Mental Health Grievance Board, where he served for three years. He also has served as a Senior Research Fellow for the Magellan Center, a non-partisan and not-for-profit think tank in Colorado devoted to employment issues.
So, there you have it. You may expect a new post on this blog in the next couple of days. If you’d like to know whenever we update, don’t forget to subscribe via the link on the sidebar.
Thanks, and I look forward to having you as a regular reader.
John H. Heckers, MA, CPC, BCPC
This blog will receive new articles at least weekly on a variety of topics. Of course, I always welcome your questions and comments, and will do my best to address them either personally or in an article. If you're asking a question, it is likely that many of your colleagues have a similar concern.
Who am I and why should you spend the time reading my articles? For the first post, here is my bio.
John Heckers, MA, CPC, BCPC is President of Heckers Development Group, LTD, an executive coaching and consulting firm based in Cherry Creek, Colorado, specializing in high level Executive Coaching, Corporate Training, Executive Transition Consulting and Strategic Corporate Coaching. John has consulted to both Fortune 500 and smaller companies, and has trained and coached executives from AT&T, New Horizons Computer Learning Centers, Microsoft Corporation, IBM, Maxtor/Seagate, The Prudential, United Airlines, Children’s Hospital, Concentra Health Systems, Merck-Medco, Hewlett/Packard, Citibank of New York, Corporate Express, Stryker Corporation, Qwest, First Data Resources, FEMA, The United States Armed Forces, and many other organizations. John has over 28 years of experience in helping and counseling executives, professional counseling, executive transition (career) counseling and professional training.
John Heckers is published both nationally and internationally as a business columnist, is featured as an employment blogger for ColoradoBiz Magazine Today on-line, on the Jobing.com website (Jobing.com is a national job board and employment advisory website), has served as an employment expert on the Diversity Website Latpro and served as the internationally syndicated employment columnist for The Denver Business Journal and the national and international online bizjournals.com for over 6 years. His articles have been syndicated in business journals across the United States and Canada, and has also had his articles republished in business periodicals in Europe and Asia, translated into five languages. He has had frequent appearances on numerous television news programs and radio talk shows as an employment expert, including Denver’s KCNC, WB2, and KHOW radio, among others.
John Heckers graduated with his Baccalaureate degree in Psychology and Philosophy from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1977, did graduate studies at the University of Toronto, Trinity College, in 1978 and 1979, and graduated from Denver’s Iliff School of Theology with distinction with his Master of Arts degree in 1989.
He is past president of the Colorado Association of Psychotherapists, served on the boards of directors of the Jefferson Center for Mental Health, the Rocky Mountain Information Management Association, and the International Attention and Behavioral Institute. In 1995, Heckers was appointed by Governor Roy Romer to the Colorado State Mental Health Grievance Board, where he served for three years. He also has served as a Senior Research Fellow for the Magellan Center, a non-partisan and not-for-profit think tank in Colorado devoted to employment issues.
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Thanks, and I look forward to having you as a regular reader.
John H. Heckers, MA, CPC, BCPC
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