Entries by Geoff Wilson

Are you measuring or are you moving?

Effective executives balance time spent moving vs. time spent measuring. The case One fine day at a backyard barbecue, a utility executive says to a cloud software executive, “I have found that a dashboard for my business helps me understand it.” The software executive says “great, what’s happening today?” The utility executive, a little exasperated, […]

Stay a little bit childish

Albert Einstein once said that the reason he was so good at thinking about time and space was that he was delayed in his childhood development to the degree that he forgot to forget about such wondrous things as an adult. The direct quote is this: “I sometimes ask myself how it came about that […]

The great strategic “wreck-oning”

The shocks to your system might not be what you think they are.  You’d better take a closer look. Hey, you there…the guy or gal with the life you always wanted.  How does it feel? You are working from home.  Your computer screen has become your window into the world.  And, you have realized that […]

Who do you turn to when the blood hits the floor?

Times like these tend to reveal who we can really trust to deliver. A crazy phenomenon has happened over the past couple of weeks as the world has digested the coronavirus shock. Executives, many of whom have never been in executive roles in a massive shock, have had to take stock of their teams in […]

When it all goes to VUCA, what do you do?

Is there an operating system for strategy under absolute uncertainty? Well, the world has gone to hell in a handbasket. It certainly didn’t take long, did it? Ask anyone and they will tell you that the world is somewhere between an intense over-reaction and The Walking Dead’s best impression of The End Of The World […]

Legacy lessons from NASCAR’s worst wreck ever

We all leave a legacy of some sort. Ryan Newman’s survival of NASCAR’s worst wreck ever highlights the contrasts of passive and active legacies. Do you know the legacy you are leaving with your business, team, or organization? It’s surprising how little this topic actually gets highlighted when managers and executive teams focus on their […]

Are your people uninspired? Maybe it’s time to hang the DJ.

Your strategy is supposed to inspire.  Have you forgotten? What’s the purpose of your strategic plan? The possibilities are endless.  Some might say that the sole purpose is to “enhance shareholder value.”  I’d argue that this old trope is no longer the gold standard.  Some adhere to the stakeholder model…which might be closer.  Regardless of […]

It’s what you give that matters

How much do you focus on what you give vs. what you think you do? “It’s not what you got, it’s what you give / it ain’t the life you choose, it’s the life you live.” – What You Give, Tesla (the rock band) Have you ever met an executive that focuses a LOT on the skills […]

New year, new you?

Renewal is the word to embrace at the start of the year. 2020. Two thousand twenty. For those of us born and reared prior to the turn of the century, just the concept of 2020 is striking…it’s as if we are living in the future. The turn of the decade brings to mind an important […]