Blog

Three Simple Steps to Declaring It – and Making It – Your Best Year Ever!

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

Happy New Year! Was 2013 a great year for you? Maybe not so much. Either way, are you ready to make 2014 your best year ever?

Three Simple Steps to Declaring It - and Making It - Your Best Year Ever!

As my good friend used to tell his four-year-old son, “It’s good to want.” Wanting doesn’t necessarily make something happen though, especially when that something involves ice cream before dinner! So here are three simple steps for not just wanting or hoping or even thinking that maybe this could be your best year ever. Instead, we’re actually going to declare it and then make it your best year ever. Read more ›

Posted in Commitment, Declaration, Implementation, Strategic Planning, success, Visioning

There are No Failures or Mistakes in Lessons Learned

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

For the longest time, I have strived for perfection in all that I do. That’s nice in concept. It isn’t very practical though and rarely produces any breakthrough results. I often end up taking too long to do things with “perfection” as my goal, and I regularly miss out on other opportunities while doing so.

There are No Failures or Mistakes in Lessons Learned

Over the last few years, I’ve come to realize that I won’t fail simply from trying something new or different as long as I’m willing and able to learn from those experiences the next time around. To be honest, I don’t even believe in making mistakes anymore as long as I look at those supposed mistakes for what they are – experiments that may or may not produce my intended results. Read more ›

Posted in Breakthrough, Experiment, Failure, Lessons, Lessons Learned, Light Bulb, Mistake, Perfection, Thomas Edison

What a Performance Review Is – and What It Isn’t!

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

So what is performance? Performance is the results we get (the what) plus the behaviors that give us those results (the how). And why do we care about managing performance in organizations? It’s the only reliable way to assure our people are working on the right things, give them the feedback – both positive and constructive – they need to succeed, and ultimately to get continuously better results. If you think “good enough” is good enough in your organization, you need not read further.

What a Performance Review Is - and What it Isn't!

People often think of performance management as that thing you have to do at the end of every year for HR. While that may be part of the performance management process, I hope for your sake that isn’t all that performance management represents in your organization! Read more ›

Posted in Best Practices, employee engagement, Empowerment, HR, Human Resources, Leadership, Motivation, OD, Organization Development, Performance Assessment, Performance Management, Performance Review

Plus Delta CEO Leads Discussion on Organization Design and the Evolving Roles of HR & OD in Getting the Right People in the Right Place

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

Later this month, ASTD Los Angeles and the California School of Professional Psychology are partnering together to host a panel discussion on organization design and the evolving roles of HR and OD in getting the right people in the right place in organizations.

Plus Delta CEO Leads Discussion on Organization Design and the Evolving Roles of HR & OD in Getting the Right People in the Right Place

 

Plus Delta CEO Leads Discussion on Organization Design and the Evolving Roles of HR & OD in Getting the Right People in the Right Place

“Org Design” as we call it has become a hot topic in HR and OD circles. So many companies are downsizing one division as they grow another and re-structuring their teams, their business units, and divisions.  If you’re in HR or OD and you haven’t yet been involved in an org design project, you’re probably going to sometime soon. In this workshop, participants will learn what org design is all about and how they can contribute to org design success in the future. Read more ›

Posted in HR, Human Resources, OD, Organization Design, Organization Development, Organizational Alignment, organizational culture, Professional Development, Training, Workshop

Focusing on the How in Succession Management, Not the Who!

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

I support a lot of individual business leaders and owners who are quickly turning their attention to their “third acts” in life. In every one of these situations – whether it’s the third-generation business leader maintaining the family’s traditions for the next generation to follow or simply the professional manager who has enabled the organization’s continued growth and success for 20+ years – they all have accomplished some amazing things surely to be proud of. Yet in every one of these situations, these individuals are not interested in closing the doors on their companies or taking them to their graves simply because they are moving on. Instead, they each have one more heroic act in them before they walk away.

Focus on the How in Succession Management, Not the Who!

It is the responsibility of every business leader to look to the future and ensure the success of their companies. So how do you do that when you aren’t going to be the one leading by then? You identify and develop the leader who will be in charge. Yes, your successor! Read more ›

Posted in Leadership, Leadership Development, Management, Next-Generation Leader, Retirement, success, Succession, Succession Management, Succession Planning, Transition

Tell Them Once and Never Have to Tell Them Again!

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

I am fortunate to have an uber-perfectionist named Jessica by my side. She is incredibly responsible, completely reliable, and in general just a wonderful person to work with.

At times, I forget that Jessica strives for perfection in all that she does. She literally lives to serve – serve me and our business, serve her son Gage who is quite possibly the luckiest kid in the world to have Jessica as his mom, serve anyone she comes into contact with whenever there is something she can do to serve.

Tell Them Once and Never Have to Tell Them Again!
Based on the above, it’s clear that Jessica is not the problem when things go wrong. Quite frankly, Jessica is wired never to be wrong! The problem is that I don’t always provide Jessica – and others like her – enough information to be successful in her role.

You see, I tend to live my life at warp speed – oftentimes, doing things last minute just when the ideas pop into my head. I then move on to the next “shiny object” that attracts my attention, completely forgetting – and at times neglecting! – what had my focus just moments ago. Read more ›

Posted in Communication, Delegation, Direction, employee engagement, Intentions, Leadership, Management, Motivation, success, Vistage

Planning Your Future from the Future to Take Your Organization from Strategy to Action

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

Whether your organization is large or small, strategic planning is critical to the success of your business. Even individual departments must create their own strategic plans to drive sustained business results. Whatever our size or scope, we need to plan where we’re going and how we plan to get there in order to achieve our objectives. Otherwise, we run the risk of never reaching our intended destination!

Planning Your Future From the Future to Take Your Organization from Strategy to Action

In my experience, there are two ways to develop a strategic plan. The first approach plans from past experiences, reviewing where we’ve been and deciding where we want to go in the future. A second and more effective approach, I would offer, jumps forward to some point in the not-too-distant future to focus instead on possibilities regardless of where we’ve been in the past. We may learn from and be informed by our past. To be strategic though, I don’t want simply to repeat my past by putting it in my future. Instead, I want to work backwards from an ideal future state to determine how best to create this alternate future. Read more ›

Posted in Action Planning, Future, Innovation, organizational change, Past, Performance Improvement, Strategic Planning, transformation, Visioning Tagged with:

Worrying About Today’s Problems Is Not My Problem!

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

I was recently sitting in a Vistage Chief Executive forum when one of my best friends and professional role models shared this revolutionary idea with our group. Today’s operational issues are someone else’s problem. According to him, if as a business leader you’re dealing with today’s issues then you haven’t done your job of focusing on tomorrow’s business opportunities and operational challenges. That seems like such an obvious concept, yet so many leaders I coach – yes, me included – constantly get stuck dealing with today’s problems.

Worrying About Today's Problems Is Not My Problem

How are we going to cover payroll this week? Why is our online store down again? What are we going to do now that our biggest customer just pulled the plug?  Read more ›

Posted in CEO, Entrepreneur, Future, Job Duties, Leadership, Management, Organizational Performance, Past, Planning, Present, Problem-Solving, Visioning, Vistage

Recognizing “I Have a Dream” 50 Years after Rev Martin Luther King

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

Fifty years ago today, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his unforgettable “I Have a Dream” speech to 250,000 supporters, punctuating the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Well, on this day 50 years later, I had the distinct pleasure of hearing another powerful, charismatic African American leader who is clearly making his mark on society by reminding all of us identity matters and to commit to our vision for the future, very much in line with Rev. King’s message 50 years ago.

Recognizing “I Have a Dream” 50 Years after Rev Martin Luther King

Mr. Stedman Graham (@StedmanGraham), Chairman and CEO of S. Graham & Associates, is a best-selling author, educator, and entrepreneur. Born in Whitesboro, New Jersey, Graham was told as a young boy that he would not amount to much and therefore shouldn’t bother going to college. Why? Because he was black. Turns out that “poor black boy” as he was considered by some in his community not only graduated from college but also received a Master’s degree in Education, played basketball professionally in Europe, and wrote nine books. He is even worth a reported $10 million these days, so he clearly has figured out a few things about how to reach beyond oneself and achieve one’s dreams in life! Read more ›

Posted in California HR Conference, Commitment, Confidence, Dreams, Identity, Martin Luther King, PIHRA, Self-confidence, Stedman Graham, Vision

Five Keys To Managing the Human Side of Technology Change: Your System Is Useless If Your People Don’t Use It!

Posted on by Jeremy Lurey

Does this sound familiar? You try implementing a new technology system only to feel like you’re walking across a tightrope juggling 10 heavy balls – of different shapes and sizes – in the air all at once. Even when you think you’ve got it under control, you feel the tension, pressure, and resistance of being on the tightrope. It requires a delicate balance to make it across smoothly without dropping a ball.

Five Keys To Managing the Human Side of Technology Change: Your System Is Useless If Your People Don't Use It!

New technology solutions have become increasingly popular as a way for organizations to streamline business operations and replace their aging legacy systems. Here’s the rub: ERP systems – like SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, etc. – and other more targeted applications – like Salesforce, SuccessFactors, etc. – can affect nearly every aspect of an organization’s business. Whether it’s an HRMS or ERP or any other 3-letter acronym, effectively implementing these computer systems requires simultaneous stakeholder commitment, a strong project plan, and sustained employee involvement before, during, and after the implementation. Without these critical components, these system installations actually have a better chance of failing than succeeding! Read more ›

Posted in Change management, Communications, Employee Communications, Enterprise Resource Planning, ERP, Performance Improvement, Return on Investment, ROI, Stakeholder Management, System Implementation, Technology Adoption, Training

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