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thinzine™
january 2009 - Vol 4, Issue 1
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Greetings!We’ve been asked by many of our customers for periodic, no-nonsense emails with just-in-time information for managers and knowledge workers on how organizations work. This is our 28th edition and we hope you enjoy it. Past editions are available on our website. If you would like to remain on the email list there is no need to respond. If your email address is included in error, we apologize for the oversight. Click on unsubscribe below to remove your email address. What We're Reading
My great teacher and mentor, Professor John Slocum pointed me to this article 17 years ago as I was struggling to finish my thesis. It is a classic although not available online so I recently purchased a pdf copy to re-read. The author sets out to "contrast the attitude and behavior of less successful companies with more successful companies." He chooses the food processing industry and does a content analysis of their annual reports as a basis for his study. He is reviewing annual reports from 1974, which reflect the economics of 1973. For those of you who need a refresher, there were government price controls in place to curb inflation and a serious energy shortage. Here is the summary of his findings:
The contrast between the return on equity between the companies designated successful and unsuccessful is 17.1% and 5.9% so there are clear differences in results. What they have in common is that they were all working within the same environment, and shared similar challenges and weather! Why did the less successful companies complain about the weather? Why did the more successful companies instead explain how they were proactively dealing with the same challenges? Why did they give concrete and in depth analysis of how they would go forward vs. looking back at the past with excuses? Fast forward to today: Companies are led by leaders and leadership does matter. Those who have the elusive and rare talent of true leadership look at challenges as opportunities. Those who have little or no leadership ability make excuses and blame others. And as Andrea and I pointed out in the Naming Elephant book, arrogant leadership is a cover for insecurity. There is a fine line between confidence and arrogance and yet many great leaders walk that line successfully every day. Good to Great author Jim Collins makes clear in his description of Level 5 Leadership, that great leaders are humble, and they gather great minds around them because they know they cannot do it alone and do not know it all. They use their power for the common good and have a purpose of making life better for their customers and constituents, not for the purpose of becoming rich at the expense of others. They do not make excuses or point fingers and they certainly don't blame the weather! Naming Elephants on Sale!Helping leaders gather and listen to the wisdom of all those who join organizations to make a difference is the goal of our work. I believe the The Thin Book of® Naming Elephants book is as relevant this month as it was 5 years ago and hope you do too. It will be our special for the month at 20% off. I can only dream of being as relevant in 33 years as Ed Bowman's work is today. It's corporate annual report "season". Watch for the reports that are issued in the next few months. Look for the difference in those who make excuses and assign blame and those who explain exactly how the challenges we face will make us better. Thin Books Now Available On Kindle!The Thin Books of: are now available on the Kindle. If you're not familiar with it, it's Amazon's new portable reading device that provides the ability to wirelessly download books, blogs, magazines, and newspapers. Click on any of the above titles to purchase the book at Amazon. Click here for more information at the Kindle page on www.thinbook.com. * * * * * Here's to an exciting 2009! Thanks for your interest and support!
Sue Annis Hammond
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