The Find: Business strategy doesn't always have to be complicated and some things that can improve performance are simple; management guru Tom Peters lists a whopping 48 of them.- The Source: Tom Peters blog.
The Takeaway: Managers are, at least to some degree, at the mercy of the economy, but just because the strategic possibilities may feel constrained, doesn't mean there aren't plenty of simple things you can change about how you do business right now to help create sustainable growth. Tom Peters can think of 48. Today he offers these tidbits of back-to-basics advice on his blog, boiling each down to a memorable snippet that every manager can implement. That's too many to highlight in one short blog post, but here are ten of the best:
- Low enthusiasm. No hire. Any job.
- Hiring: Would you like to go to lunch with him/her. 100% of jobs.
- Lunch with folks in other functions. Measure it.
- Incredible care in first line supervisor selection.
- Construct small leadership opportunities for junior people within days of starting on the job.
- Promote "people people" for all managerial jobs. Finance-logistics-R&D as much as, say, sales.
- Exec team "looks like" customer population, actual and desired.
- Simplify systems. Constantly.
- Insist that almost all material be covered by a one-page summary. Absolutely no longer.
- Review your calendar: Work assiduously on your "To don'ts"--stuff that distracts.
For those who want the complete list as well as an explanatory pdf, check out Peters' blog.
(Image of advice stand by laughlin, CC 2.0)