Wall Street Journal | Leadership Tangles

What Leaders Can Learn from Twitter, Facebook, and #Iran Election?

For the past ten days, I have been glued to the media and social networking sites, especially Twitter. I am not alone. I have been awed by the level of interest, caring, and actions taken by so many after the June 12 election. As I sat in my office, watching my computer screen, I felt [...]

How Organizational Structure Contributes to Organizational Tangles

Wall Street Journal reporter Kara Swisher interviewed Carol Bartz, CEO of Yahoo, at the recent All Things Digital Conference. I was struck by Bartz’s assertions that organizational structure has limited Yahoo’s ability to innovate. Bartz’s comments validated findings from my own research. I was interested in uncovering the organizational enablers that contribute to the unwinding [...]

A Realistic Approach to Decision Making That Avoids Tangles

Jason Zweig, author of the Wall Street Journal’s Intelligent Investor, writes that “smart people trying to do good, honest work on behalf of others” may have been responsible for the financial crisis. Zweig’s article masterfully lays out some of the challenges that investment committees, boards of directors, and state boards of trustees can face in [...]

How Taking Accountability Eases Tangles: The Case of a Local Police Sergeant versus Bernard Madoff

Earlier this week, I received a call from a sergeant in our local police department. He didn’t leave a specific message, although he said he was from the narcotics division and asked me to call him back. Last August 2008, I had parked my car in front of our home in a nice neighborhood in [...]

Leaders . . . Untangle Your Own Fears and Minimize Your Corporate Tangles

As the leader of my own firm, the hardest thing that I have had to do during these challenging times is manage myself . . . and my own fear. The newspaper headlines do not help. This morning, one of the top headlines in the Wall Street Journal screamed “New Fears as Credit Markets Tighten [...]

Invest in Developing Leaders Who Must Lead in Turbulent Times

photo credit: Serendigity
This morning, I was browsing the Wall Street Journal online, looking for some good news. I came upon two articles byDana Mattioli. Her first article, “Despite Cutbacks, Firms Invest in Developing Leaders,” brought a smile to my face. Apparently, many firms realize that they need to continue developing their leaders if they [...]

What Hard Choices are Sabotaging Your Business Ethics?

Most professionals — doctors, lawyers, dentists, and psychologists – are regulated by a written code of ethics. These standards dictate minimum, not optimal standards for purely ethical behavior. For example, even though an attorney can represent both a husband and wife in drafting a marital settlement agreement, a highly ethical attorney would not consider [...]