External Assessment There are seven components of a good external assessment: Industry/market trends Technology trends Competitor assessment Social and regulatory environment Macroeconomy and demographics International threats and opportunities Overall threats and opportunities INDUSTRY/MARKET TRENDS Take a quick snapshot of your industry. How are

One of our favorite examples of a good mission statement is Britain’s mission in 1940, as articulated by Winston Churchill: Our whole people and empire have vowed themselves to the single task of cleansing Europe of the Nazi pestilence and saving the world from the new dark ages. We seek to beat the life and soul out of Hitler and Hitlerism. That a

Kenneth Atchity, president of Atchity Entertainment International, observed that there is a vital difference between managing time and managing work: work is infinite; time is finite. Work expands to fill whatever time is allotted to it. To be productive, therefore, you must manage your time, not your work. The key question to ask yourself is not “

With a wisdom rare in corporate America, the board decided not to seek another savior from outside and decided instead to look for a proven leader from within. Whom will people follow? In whom do people believe? For whom will people double their energies? Whom will people trust? Who has proven results? Who has created pockets of greatness every ste

One core value that Bill instilled in me is the sacred nature of commitments. “Be very careful what you commit to,” Bill advised. “Because there’s no honorable way to fail a commitment freely made.”

Some love to give speeches; others are nervous in front of a crowd. Some are charismatic; others are not. (Do not confuse leadership with charisma. Charisma does not equal leadership, and some of the most effective leaders have very little charisma.)

Corporate vision provides a context within which people at all levels can make decisions. The importance of this cannot be overemphasized.

The function of leadership—the number-one responsibility of a leader—is to catalyze a clear and shared vision for the company and to secure commitment to and vigorous pursuit of that vision.

The function of leadership—the number-one responsibility of a leader—is to catalyze a clear and shared vision for the company and to secure commitment to and vigorous pursuit of that vision. This is a universal requirement of leadership, and no matter what your style, you must perform this function.