In: book study| leadership
13 Jul 2008Last thought on Michael Watkins’ “STaRS” organizations in his book, The First 90 Days.
When walking into a new organization, we must decide how we focus our energy. We have two sets of choices:
How much emphasis will we put on “learning” as opposed to “doing”?
How much emphasis will be put on “offense” as opposed to “defense”?
Different [...]
In: book study| leadership
11 Jul 2008The First 90 Days book identifies two types of teams that are needed in different organizations: HUNTERS and FARMERS.
Hunters
Best used in: START-UPS and TURNAROUNDS
team members who can move fast and take chances
act quickly and decisively, often on the basis of incomplete information
make rapid diagnosis
the problems teach them about the need for change
they handle ready-fire-aim situations
in [...]
In: leadership
9 Jul 2008The First 90 Days book outlines the possible PSYCHOLOGY of the teams in the four organizations:
START-UP
Excitement, hopeful, confused
Less focused on key issues because vision, strategy, structures, and systems that channel organizational energy are not yet in place
SUSTAINING SUCCESS
Motivated to succeed, but…
maybe complacent, proud of their past success
REALIGNMENT
Denial, blindness to the issues
complacency
TURNAROUND
Indecision about what to do [...]
In: leadership
7 Jul 2008Michael Watkins talks about the OPPORTUNITIES of the four types of organizations:
START-UP
You can do things right from the beginning.
People are energized by the possibilities.
There is no preexisting rigidity in people’s thinking.
SUSTAINING SUCCESS
A strong team may already be in place.
People are motivated to succeed.
Foundations for continued success (such as the product pipeline) may be in place.
REALIGNMENT
The [...]
In: book study| leadership
5 Jul 2008Michael Watkins talks about the CHALLENGES of the four types of organizations:
START-UP
Building structures and systems from scratch without a clear framework or boundaries.
Welding together a cohesive high-performing team.
Making do with limited resources
SUSTAINING SUCCESS
Playing good defense by avoiding decisions that cause problems.
Living in the shadow of a revered leader and dealing with the team he or [...]
In: book study| leadership
3 Jul 2008In The First 90 Days, Michael Watkins writes about the “STaRS” model of organizational evolution. He notes there are four situations you may find yourself walking into when starting a new job: a Start-Up, Turnaround, Realignment, or Sustaining Success.
This is your job in each one:
START-UP - Assembling the capabilities {people, funding, technology} to get a [...]
For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the LORD and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel