Thoughts on building great teams, delivering results and becoming successful
Many students believe that with clarity, clear thinking, and good data, every CEO should be able to make strong, quick, and sensible decisions at any given moment. That is harder than many people think. Teaching the real complexity of CEO-level decisions comes from putting the students into the CEOs shoes. At least for a little … Read more
Think of the last time you had a really strong argument with someone. A real one. Not a polite disagreement. An emotionally burning fight. Raised voices. Maybe even shouting. Picture the sitution in your head. Precisely. Feel the emotion, the tension, the anger. Now imagine: In the next moment you say something. And your counterpart … Read more
When projects fail, we usually blame the usual suspects. timelines budgets technology requirements It feels comforting. Those things are tangible. They show up in PowerPoint. They can be escalated. What we hesitate to confront is the team. Not because the team did not work hard, but because the team dynamics quietly undermined everything else. The … Read more
When people talk about project risk, they usually mean timelines, budgets, or technical dependencies. What they rarely mean are stakeholders. And yet, in real projects, stakeholder management is one of the most decisive success factors. Not because stakeholders write code or design processes, but because they shape the environment in which projects either move forward … Read more
Let’s start with a little challenge. Before you scroll further, look at the image below and count the number of times the letter F appears in the sentence. Take 5 seconds. Count carefully. (This is the actual slide I use in class) Ready? So, how many did you count? Three? Four? Five? Six? Almost every … Read more
Most people think leadership is a skill someone learns from books or job titles. A promotion comes, a new role comes, and suddenly the expectation is to lead. But leadership does not start with the title. It starts much earlier, in the moments where people naturally decide to follow someone. During my project leadership classes … Read more
And why nobody talks about the first ten days.Preparation decides everything — in surgery as well as in projects. Most people believe projects fail at the end.When deadlines slip.When budgets explode.When coordination collapses.When everyone is frustrated. But the truth is different, and far more uncomfortable: Projects do not fail in month six.They fail in week … Read more
“Communication is rather an art than a science.” — Thich Nhat Hanh Fully true, in my opinion. Just like in art, communication comes in many forms and styles. Which one you prefer depends on your personality and on how you naturally connect with others. But mastering this art pays off immensely. A Harvard Business School … Read more
One of the most important skills to be developed during anyone’s career is the ability to make things happen. When explaining at university what I believe is the basis for good management, I usually start talking about DRIVE and BARBECUEs. THE BARBECUE! We all know this, we have all seen this. Imagine you are hanging … Read more
If you don’t know where you are going, no route will take you there. (Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland, 1865) Without defining what is to be achieved, efforts can’t be coordinated and success becomes impossible, both for individuals and for organisations. As one of the most influential managers in Silicon Valley and the 1997 Time … Read more