Tag: leadership

The Science of Great Teams

June 26, 2012 Blog no comments


Courtesy of Blaze Institute

Why do some teams produce outstanding results while others lag behind given similar resources?

The secret, according to “The New Science of Building Great Teams” in Harvard Business Review, is that successful teams have higher energy, are more engaged, and spend more time exploring outside the group. These patterns of communication and interaction are strongly correlated with performance metrics such as the average handling time in a bank’s call centre.


Hacking Work: A Smart Solution to Stupid Processes

June 24, 2012 Business and Management 1 comment

hacking-work-book-review

Courtesy of Technotraps

Beleaguered employees can now leverage on a “cheat code” to streamline work and increase their productivity – without getting into trouble.

With the subtitle “Breaking Stupid Rules For Smart Results”, Hacking Work by Bill Jensen and Josh Klein encourages workers of all stripes to utilise “benevolent” hacking to get their jobs done more effectively and efficiently.


Steve Jobs: Lessons from a Legend

May 1, 2012 Book Reviews 7 comments

steve-jobs-lessons-from-a-legend

Image from Mashable.com

Everybody knows Steve Jobs.

Icon, innovator, brilliant entrepreneur and creator of “insanely great” products, Jobs was the founder and CEO of Apple.

Creator of legendary products like the Macintosh computer, iPod, iTunes Store, iPhone and iPad, Jobs founded the Disney beating Pixar Animations (which was later sold to the behemoth), and opened the much lauded Apple Store.


Setting and Scoring Corporate Goals

February 20, 2012 Blog 3 comments


Jeremy Lin sure knows a thing or two about scoring (courtesy of streetball.com)

Establishing clear goals is one of the most important things you need to do in any organisation which you work in. Otherwise known as objectives, goals provide an end point for one to aspire and work towards, providing purpose and meaning to any endeavour.

The analogy of sports provides the clearest example of goal setting. With a clear goal in place – kicking the ball through the goal posts, throwing a ball into a basket (who haven’t heard of Jeremy Lin?), or hitting a ball through an opponent’s racket – players and spectators alike would know where to focus their energies and emotions.


Interviewing Crystal Jade’s Chairman Ip Yiu Tung

January 16, 2012 Business and Management no comments

Crystal Jade Golden Palace
Crystal Jade Golden Palace in The Paragon (courtesy of Crystal Jade)

In the restaurant-eat-restaurant world of F&B, few local brands have stood up as clearly as Crystal Jade, one of the market leaders in Singapore.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary last year with a refreshing of its identity that involved extensive refurbishments at its restaurants, Crystal Jade enjoyed a turnover of S$240 million in 2010.


Was Steve Jobs the Perfect CEO?

December 23, 2011 Blog no comments

As the head honcho leading an organisation, being a good CEO isn’t an easy job. Sure, they’ll probably pay you more (or much much more) than the average salary man down the food chain, but the expectations are often sky high.

For a start, a good CEO has to have vision, ambition and the ability to inspire and motivate the troops. She needs to be great with forging relationships with customers, employees, partners, board members, investors, suppliers, government regulators and other stakeholders. Functioning as a mentor, coach, drill sergeant, and referee, she wears multiple hats depending on whom she speaks to.


Why Leaders Should Embrace a Higher Calling

December 9, 2011 Blog no comments


Michael Beer (courtesy of Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute)

To rise above the vagaries of the uncertain economy, what should companies do? How can they manage the wrath of Wall Street and the severe backlash of a liquidity crunch?

Well according to Michael Beer from Harvard Business School, the answer is that companies should embrace a higher purpose. In an excellent podcast from HBR Ideacast, Beer shares some of the characteristics of these firms and the leadership styles that they embody.


How Tightly Should You Manage Your Team?

December 5, 2011 Blog no comments


Should you control your subordinate’s every move? (courtesy of River Empowerment)

There are two major schools of thought in leadership and management.

The first approach is the older “Command and Control” style. Here, an authoritative leader uses a clearly domineering way of getting things done. Charging ahead like a bull, he/she will steamroll over anything – or anybody – who gets in his or her way. Instructions given are clear, specific and often unidirectional. Its “my way or the highway”.