Rooting for Laundry; Engaging Moves? Tech for the Rest of Us; Which Team are You Leading? The Culture Doctor; Econ Recon

  • March 5, 2018
  • Posted by: Stephen Johnson
  • Category: Vistage
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“Success consists of going from failure to failure
without loss of enthusiasm.”

Winston Churchill

Rooting for Laundry

Most of us complain about how polarized our society has become; but if we’re honest, are we not really complaining about how others don’t share our opinions?

Columnist Bernard Goldberg thinks that whether we see ourselves as conservatives or liberals “having strong beliefs and hanging on to your principles is a good thing. But as a friend puts it, it’s not beliefs we’re hanging on to, it’s identity that we cling to; what matters most now is what team we play for.”  In a one page opinion piece he describes this tendency to value our tribal affiliation over our true principles as  “rooting for laundry.” 

Required reading for everyone, in my opinion; especially now.

Engaging Moves?

Fully engaged customers makes sales and marketing a lot easier, but it takes great sales and marketing in the first place to engage those buyers.  In a recent Inc Magazine article, Vistage Research Chief Joe Galvin shares five strategic initiatives that his research reveals to be effective in creating higher levels of customer engagement which “means attracting more prospects, converting more prospects into customers, and then ensuring customers’ success through outstanding customer service.” How well is your team doing in these areas to create higher levels of engagement?

Tech for the Rest of Us

Most Boomers are not technology natives and often feel behind the curve when it comes to the tech world.  A relatively new website, Recode, goes a long towards helping C-Level executives understand the business of technology in a concise and well organized format. Recode was founded by Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher who penned the Wall Street Journal’s “All Things Digital” offering for several years.

I encourage you to visit the Recode site and then sign up for their daily blog which is emailed daily and has a Kiplinger Letter format that busy executives will appreciate. And it’s free!

Which Team are you Leading?

The great Chinese general Sun-Tzu warned leaders that “Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” While both are necessary, Sun-Tzu would advise your team to be strategic first.  This short video by Rich Horwath, CEO of the Strategic Thinking Institute and best-selling author may help you get your team focused on the big picture.

The Culture Doctor

Executives everywhere are concerned about creating and maintaining a high performance company culture. The recent shootings in Florida and elsewhere, however, have turned the conversation to the impact of our national culture on those who would commit such atrocities.

Whether at the corporate or societal level, Vistage Speaker and Culture expert Dr. Gustavo Grodnitzky always has valuable insights. His website features a blog with commentary not only on the cultural aspects of the recent shootings,  but on the lessons to be learned from the problems at VW and Wells Fargo as well. If you want a reliable and insightful resource for all things cultural, visit Dr. Gustavo’s “Culture Trumps” blog.

Econ Recon

The Tariff Sheriff: President Trump surprised both industry and the financial markets with his unexpected announcement on Friday imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum. If you want the quick primer on this issue from an economic and not a political perspective,  Check the latest blog entry from ITR Economics.