Three Lessons Executive Leaders Can Learn from the S. F. Giants

By Marcia Ruben, PhD, PCC on Thu, Nov 04, 2010

Okay, I admit it. I am a fair weather San Francisco Giants fan. I tuned in to the team in the last weeks of the series as they began their championship playoffs. I found myself playing catch up, learning the names and stories of the players. All of a sudden I really cared. As the Giants came closer and closer to winning the World Series, a goal that eluded them for 56 years, I put on my Tangle Doctor hat. How did the team's management orchestrate this turnaround? What can business leaders learn from a team that seemed so unlikely to win a championship trophy?

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Cough it UpTM How to Rid Yourself of Corporate Hairballs

By Marcia Ruben, PhD, PCC on Fri, Mar 19, 2010

When I began my research into seemingly unsolvable corporate messes, I used the metaphor of a cat hairball to conduct my inquiry. Some people loved the metaphor. Others had negative visceral reactions.  Hairballs subsequently became tangles, although much of my work is inspired by my research results on corporate hairballs. I had a lot of fun comparing a cat hairball to a corporate hairball. What follows is just a taste.
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Active Listening Tips for Avoiding Strangling TanglesTM

By Marcia Ruben, PhD, PCC on Wed, Apr 22, 2009

A Strangling TangleTM paralyzes organizations and can lead to plummeting profits, lost revenue, and precipitous falls in market share. There are a number of causes for Strangling Tangles. Based on my experience and research, organizations with corporate cultures that discourage speaking up and sharing bad news are particularly vulnerable. Leaders play a huge role in building, maintaining, and changing corporate culture. One way leaders can change the culture is by learning and demonstrating active listening skills.

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Why Putting People Issues on Back Burner Is a Bad Move

By Marcia Ruben, PhD, PCC on Mon, Nov 24, 2008

According to a recent Conference Board Report, described in the November 20 edition of the Wall Street Journal, executives are now putting people-issues on the back burner. Top executives' highest concern is excellence in execution, and consistent execution of strategy by top management. While it makes sense that efficiency and flawless execution are front-burner issues, I believe that this is an over-correction that will come back and bite executives once the economy starts to straighten itself out.
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Three Tips for Heeding Warning Signs Before They Strangle Your Business

By Marcia Ruben, PhD, PCC on Tue, Nov 18, 2008

The current economic meltdown seemed to come out of the blue. Sure, there were warning signs that the economy was slowing, beginning early this year. I was in Taiwan on business the week of September 15, and was stunned to read headlines that the whole global system was in danger of a systemic meltdown. If ever there was a lesson in the importance of reading and heeding warning signs, this is it.
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Merrill Lynch's Culture of Fear Led to Strangling Tangle

By Marcia Ruben, PhD, PCC on Sun, Nov 09, 2008

In today's New York's Times, Gretchen Morgenson recounts the rise and fall of Merrill Lynch. I read the article and said to myself, eureka, this is a Hush-Hush Tangle! According to my definition, a Hush Hush Tangle occurs when critical information is not shared, and lines of communication are cut off. Everyone knows that there is a problem but no one talks about it. It becomes a tangle because human dynamics are further complicated by a very complex business challenge. Complexity doesn't do justice to the complicated nature of collateralized debt obligations (CDO's). CDO's are a financial product group comprised of derivatives. Merrill Lynch became enchanted with this product and it led to the company's precipitous fall.

According to Morgenson, E. Stanley O'Neal, Merrill's CEO, is described as an autocratic leader. Two of his lieutenants discouraged open communication between the risk management arm and the sales arm. One of the lieutenants was Osman Semerci. Semerci she wrote, "often played the role of tough guy . . . silencing critics who warned about the risks the firm was taking." He also "would chastise traders and other moneymakers who told risk management officials exactly what they were doing." We can only infer that important lines of communication and necessary discussions to determine true risk were cut off. Most likely, not talking about the obvious, unexpected, or anything out of the ordinary became the norm. Some employees described Semerci as intimidating. Like the frog who gets comfortable as the temperature of the lukewarm water rises, Merrill employees no doubt became used to the culture of fear and didn't speak up.

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Marcia Ruben Ph.D, PCC, CMC

Marcia Ruben Ph.D, PCC, CMC

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