Archive for the ‘Management’ Category

Whether you’re new to managing a business or are an old hand at using management tools, practices and literature, there is no doubt that you’ve been touched one way or another by the writings and insights of management/leadership guru, Dr. Henry Mintzberg. For over 40 years, Mintzberg has been the Canadian business thought-leader.

With 15 internationally acclaimed inventive and practical business books to his credit, Dr. Mintzberg has added a new title to his repertoire — and, it just may make him a household name on the scale of Malcolm Gladwell (The Tipping Point), Jim Collins (Good to Great) and Tom Peters (In Search of Excellence). The new book, entitled,  “Management? It’s Not What You Think!” is written for today’s busy manager/leader — in that its structure, content and language reads more like a series of provocative and insightful blog articles than a lengthy academic tome.

For BusinessCast #170, Robert and I sat down with Henry Mintzberg to talk about his new co-authored book, some of his previous best selling books, and to get his insights into today’s most critical management/leadership issues. We were surprised with his take on some of the challenges central to the success of all managers/leaders…and we suspect you will be too.

Listen to BusinessCast #170 and find out what the Nation’s business thought-leader has up his sleeve.

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Are your competitors dictating your business plans, your targets, your product offerings and your day-to-day operations? If they are, you’re in the throws of hyper-competition. So, how do you survive this intense and high-risk time in your business’ life? To get answers to this critical question, in BusinessCast #165, we sat down with John Sculley — the former President/CEO of Pepsi and Apple. John led these world-wide brands through some of their most turbulent and successful times — while thriving and optimizing hyper-competition. 

Listen to BusinessCast #165 and you will tap into the insights and critical lessons from one of the world’s most successful (and for some, contentious) business leaders.

For another BusinessCast episode that provides relevant lessons, list to Big Lessons from Big Business – with Carl Yankowski, former CEO of Reebok, Palm and Sony Electronics who shares insights, stories and tips for all business leaders and managers.

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All entrepreneurs have powerful stories to tell and are often compelling story-tellers. In fact, story-telling is so important to business success that we recently interviewed Chris Carder, Thindata 1:1′s President on how to use story-telling to close business deals, build stronger relationships and inspire your teams.

But, what typically catapults entrepreneurs to achieve and sustain success is the less glamorous part of story-telling: the ability to listen. And, that means the ability to listen to the market, listen to clients, listen to advisors and listen to colleagues/employees.

As evidence of the importance of listening for entrepreneurs, for BusinessCast #163, we interviewed Evan Thompson, Managing Director at Thompson Wiley & Associates. His company has thrived because of its ability to actively listen to key stakeholders as well as help their clients listen better.

Evan shares some of his many critical business insights. Listen to BusinesCast #163 and benefit from the wisdom found in listening.

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As your business grows, have you ever hoped, perhaps secretly, for some way to avoid those costly and time-consuming pitfalls that are a natural, but painful, part of your inevitable success? Well as it turns out, entrepreneurs just like you often confide in Robert and me a desperate need for practical ways to steer clear of common business hazards.

That’s why for BusinessCast #162, we sat down with Rick Spence to uncover today’s most common “entrepreneur bear traps” — those traps that snare even the most thoughtful, innovative, well-funded and profitable businesses.

Rick shares our passion for helping entrepreneurs achieve professional and personal success. For over 20 years, he has shared his observations and insights in many of North America’s most widely-read online and offline business publications. Together with Rick, we identify and tackle today’s “entrepreneur bear traps” in business strategy, marketing, operations, financing and human resources.

Listen to BusinessCast #162 and avoid some entrepreneur bear traps before they catch you off-guard.

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North America’s economy is a reflection of how entrepreneurs tackle challenges and embrace growth opportunities. That’s why it’s so important to review, analyze and understand the entrepreneurial mindset. And, that’s why for BusinessCast #161, Robert and I sat down with Eric Nielsen, the VP & General Manager, Small Business Services, Amex Bank of Canada.

Throughout the year, Amex conducts a rigorous National study that provides insights into entrepreneurial visions and expectations. The result: a good understanding of how entrepreneurs will be approaching business over the next several months. Listen to BusinessCast #161 as Eric shares some of the study’s key findings.

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