Blog
How to build a better, high-performing business.
Questions CEOs and founders should ask periodically
CEOs and founders tend to become focused on the immediate and most urgent requirements of running their business. The answers to these
The hidden system that drives Return on Equity
Have you ever considered that revenue can have a quality to it? It can: revenue is not neutral. There are good forms
You’re standing at the edge of what your business can become
This statement is significant regardless of where your business currently stands. As a leader, you are in a position to unlock potential,
A business is too good at absorbing pain
Absorbing pain is noble. I learned that on the rugby fields of South Africa: sometimes you have to run to the next
‘Making the turn’ toward career nirvana
I met with a past client for a drink yesterday evening. It had been a few years since we last saw each
Things that you need to let go of to build a Transcendent Business
1. The old ways of business. To build a remarkable business, you need to reimagine every aspect. This includes letting go of
Change is not change – pick a lane and mould your CEOship to it
Simply thinking about ‘change’ is intellectually lazy. We’ve all accepted, by now, that change is inevitable. That’s a tired point, and we
How does a Wise CEO begin setting a new trajectory?
‘The gap between cleverness and wisdom’ was a phrase I heard a few years back that has stayed with me. There are
There are multiple versions of a CEO. What have you chosen?
‘The variety of niches individual humans can occupy is immeasurably greater than the niches available to individuals of other species. This is
How do you build a better, Transcendent Business?
Building a Transcendent Business starts with being aware that there is a superior version of business out there. It involves meeting your
How to stay big when the squeeze comes
We all have big and small versions of ourselves. When my children are irritating me, and I react in a grumpy way
Become undulled and re-imagine your work
My son started boarding school yesterday, 35 years after I moved into the exact same dormitory. His bed is about 5 metres
Building a masterpiece of a business
Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon is often described as the greatest concept album ever produced. I remember hearing it
The hollow victory of business
There’s a moment I think about often — the final one. Not morbidly, but honestly: that last look back. It’s the reckoning
‘Docking’: when everything about your business is in flow
In ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ movies, I saw little space crafts approaching the mother ship in outer space and clicking into place
The truth of what’s unfolding in business
Once upon a time, businesses were small: mom and Pop stores catering to a local market. Fossil fuels arrived in the 1900s,
How to revitalise a business: renew its Life Force
In tidal pools, the ebb and flow of the water level is what drives its sustainability. Organisms have to adapt when the
Why do we resist transformation (using marriage as a metaphor)?
A butterfly has to be poisoned out of its chrysalis to become its beautiful self. Poisoned at its own hand. That’s how
Your problem is your Operating Model: Choose ‘new’
All the questions about business best practices, new approaches, different techniques, how to lead, how not to lead, ladder up to the
Repetition is persuasive
“But I’ve told them this so many times!” I’ve heard this refrain from dozens and dozens of CEOs in my work. What
A simple way to handle complex change (involving elephants …)
‘Switch’ is a very good book about managing change, with an elegant framework that can be very helpful if you – like
The bubbling of coming changes
Beneath the soil, there is a marvellous alchemy taking place, long before the flower, tree or plant emerges fully formed. That alchemy
Recognising the master-state of your business
Businesses used to be ‘closed systems’: impervious to external forces. What a pleasure this must have been for business owners: a smaller,
What to do when your business is plateauing
A plateauing business is one of the most tricky and nuanced organisational states to solve, primarily because of the absence of a
Your ‘organisational debt’ and why it limits your business’s performance
If you have personal debt, you know about it. If you have business debt you know about it too: you track it,
Order, Dis-order, Re-order: An important sequence for business – and life
The Ryder Cup golf tournament starts in late September (there goes 3 days I’ll never get back …). The teams are made
The thrill of transformation
About a year ago, a CEO client sat in front of me. He was discontent. He was slouched in his chair whilst
What makes a Transcendent Business stand out from the rest
There’s a new business in South Africa called Sealand. I’m not working in the business, but it’s run by a CEO client
The Art of the Business Transition
Within the advertising sector globally, a new entrant is now part of the decision process that determines which agency is selected for
Unpacking the 6 Key Business Transitions
Over the next month or so, I am going to be focusing on the concept of ‘Business Transitions’. There are six such