Category: International College of Businessry and Managering
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Such Sweet Sorrow
Saying goodbye to a trusted colleague and work friend can be a difficult time. It may be the hardest thing most employees will face during their entire working career. Years or even decades of camaraderie somehow get washed away with a few gluten-free cupcakes at 2PM in the break room. You’ve been through challenges together… Read more
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No I in Team
As the old saying goes “There is no ‘I’ in team”, but that’s just an old cliche dragged out to remind people not to be too full of themselves, right? Why then, would Frederick E. “Fredly” Frederickson, Professor of Leadering and Manageristical Arts trot out that old saw? Because there is truth that must be… Read more
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The Death of the 80/20 Rule (part 1)
As I was taking the elevator to the 85th floor yesterday I overheard two CFO-type executives talking about how so-and-so was no longer on the favorable side of the 80/20 rule. “He’s not part of the 20% doing the lion’s share of the work anymore” the younger of the two gentlemen offered. Across the executive… Read more
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The Death of the 80/20 rule (part 2)
In case you missed it, the 80/20 rule is dead and the reasons are simple: Employees started gaming the 80/20 rule and helped make it obsolete. Like disco, it had to go. It failed to track employee accountability and productivity. A lawsuit brought on by the late “Greasy” Pete Shepanski’s estate. Not far in our… Read more
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So this is “goodbye”
One of the exercises each student at the International College of Businessery and Managering is required to complete before graduation is to write a “goodbye” letter. Something heart felt and inspirational. A message a great leader should feel compelled to share with their team upon accepting the inevitable promotion a degree from ICBM brings. We… Read more
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The Truth & Lindbergh’s Baby
The truth is too important to be tethered to just the facts as we know them. Truth is very much like faith, you must see the Divine before it appears. As the story goes: Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr. was the child of famous aviator Charles “Lucky Lindy” Lindbergh. “Little Lindy”, as he was called, was… Read more
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Meeting-nomics: Supply and Demand
Established economic theory states that as the supply of something increases the price (value) of that thing will fall. Similarly if the demand for a thing increases without a corresponding increase in supply the price will rise. Inflation is often explained as too much money chasing too few goods. Having defined these basic terms it… Read more
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When Failure is THE Option
NASA is famous, or infamous, for the saying “failure is not an option.” Few things could be further from the truth, failure is always an option. Frequently it is the easiest option, but did you know that sometimes failure is also the best option? NASA understands this better than most. This is not to pick… Read more
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Man-ager in the Middle
Middle managers get a bad rap; some say they add overhead, create uneeded bureaucracy, slow down organizations and add expense. Some so called “lean and mean” corporations are even eliminating middle mangers. Scary thought isn’t it. What would a world without middle management look like? No weekly status meetings, no yearly reviews, no empire building.… Read more
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100 Years Down the Drain.
Fred and I do most of our writing and blogging in a quiet, removed part of our corporate offices affectionately named ‘The Loft’. Imagine a 1200 square foot singular creative space with admittedly too much Lovesac and not quite enough pendant lighting. The overlapping throw rugs and light jazz gently oozes a calm vibe from… Read more