One of the hardest challenges facing leaders is making decisions in the face of uncertainties. To deal with the discomfort of uncertainty, some leaders turn their assumptions and beliefs into “facts” in their mind. That’s unfortunate. Stick blindly to ill-informed thinking, as some prominent leaders have done, and you’ve doomed your company to decline. Let’s look at some examples. Ironically, it was a Kodak engineer (Steve Sasson) who invented one of the first digital cameras in 1975. Three decades later, Kodak’s leaders made decisions seemingly based on a belief that digital photography would have a slow uptake, even though by that time digital cameras dominated the marketplace. Why? Digital technology made saving and sharing photos effortless. Blockbuster believed stores offered the most convenient video rental and purchasing experience. Its CEO turned down an opportunity to purchase Netflix in 2000. “Netflix doesn’t do anything…
It’s all about the money, stupid.
The following post is authored by Bill Kraus, a senior executive in the insurance business who served as Chief of Staff for GOP Governor Lee Dreyfus in Wisconsin. The message is so important I am posting it in place of my blog this week. Former Governor Lee Dreyfus’s golden rule for politics: Those who have the gold make the rules. The Wisconsin Democracy Campaign recently published the list of the top 20 “rule makers” in Wisconsin over the last 4 1/2 years [www.wisdc.org]. In total this group contributed $128,691,113 during that period to advance their interests by promoting ideas and candidates or by criticizing opposing ideas and candidates. Many of the groups interests are obvious. The teachers union is on the list. It won’t be there long, however, since Act 10 shut down its revenue stream. The state’s largest business organization is also…
Lessons on scaling a business
You’ve started your business and survived. Now, what? How do you move from struggling to established to growing consistently and profitably? The answer is scaling, a concept very different from lean thinking. The latter pulls out costs that do not add value. Scaling allows you to reduce the costs of processes that do add value thereby sustaining competitiveness and enhancing profitability. Here’s one man’s story, that of Barry Fleck, CEO of Patterson Precast Concrete Supplies with whom I recently caught up. Fleck joined Patterson in 1982 when it was largely a manufacturers’ representative organization for manufacturers serving the precast-prestressed concrete industry. This industry designs builds and erects huge Lego-like structures for commercial buildings and concrete sidings that mimic real stone. Years back, I worked with 40 CEOs in this industry, Fleck included. Fleck acquired the company in 2004 and has since increased its…