Part 4 of a Series on Strategic Leadership In previous posts, I defined strategic leadership and began to identify one way to look at the strategic leader’s work by breaking it down into ten responsibilities to fulfill: Manage and lead yourself Create the team, generate their commitment, and get clear on who’s responsible for what. …

Continue reading The Strategic Leader’s Work (Reflection)

Part 3 in a Series on Strategic Leadership “Vision describes the specific direction our soul wants to go.”  - Bob Anderson and Bill Adams In previous posts, I defined strategic leadership and began to identify one way to look at the strategic leader’s work by breaking it down into ten responsibilities to fulfill: Manage and …

Continue reading The Strategic Leader’s Work (Vision)

Part 3 of 3 Geoff:  What’s the kind of culture you want to create? Gene:  I think, for one, it’s a place where people can feel like they’re doing really great work.  We want people who are engaged in what they’re doing and happy with the company that they are working for.  I feel like …

Continue reading Gene Clark, President, Clark Food Service Equipment (Focused)

Part 2 of 3 This post continues an interview with Gene Clark, President of Clark Food Service Equipment held February 11, 2019.   Geoff:  So what have your biggest "wins" been? Gene:  I mentioned that we’re in the business of distribution and how the company’s grown so much.  I think the biggest wins have been from …

Continue reading Gene Clark, President, Clark Food Service Equipment (Focused)

Part 1 of 3 When I played in the New Holland Band, I remember getting a call one day from a young man I had never met and he asked me, "Mr. Davis, how do I get in that Band?"  Eighth grader Gene Clark was focused even at that age and knew what he wanted.  …

Continue reading Gene Clark, President, Clark Food Service Equipment (Focused)

In my last two posts, I defined strategic leadership and began to identify one way to look at the strategic leader’s work by breaking it down into ten steps: Manage and lead yourself (Part 1) Create your team, generate their commitment, and get clear on who’s responsible for what. Set the vision Intentionally set time …

Continue reading The Strategic Leader’s (Part 2)

I am thankful to the Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit and Dr. Brian Barnhart for the opportunity to have clarified these ideas through presentations to both their senior leadership and their executive leadership teams during 2017. “Where once we could count on the seeming certainty and predictability of binary choices… choices and consequences are now far less …

Continue reading The Strategic Leader’s Work (Part 1)

“I must become an expert in a whole new set of skills.” – General George C. Marshall “Strategic leaders… simultaneously sustain culture, envision the future, convey that vision to a wide audience, and personally lead change.” – Army Leadership, p. 7-1 “Strategic leadership is framing the questions for which there are no known, textbook answers …

Continue reading “I’m Afraid Someone Will Figure Out that I’m Just Making this Up!” (Strategic Leadership)

Part 3 of 3. “Leadership is a complex system of relationships between leaders and followers, in a particular context, that provides meaning to its members.” – General Stanly McChrystal (US Army, Retired) In 2016 Kerryn became CEO of C.S. Davidson.  On January 9, 2019 I conducted a follow-up interview,  interested in seeing how her view …

Continue reading Kerryn Fulton, CEO, C.S. Davidson, Inc. (Transformation)

Part 2 of 3 “… we have to cultivate a culture in which brave work, tough conversations, and whole hearts are the expectations, and armor is not necessary or rewarded.” – Brene Brown In this post we continue the 2016 interview with Kerryn Fulton when she was COO of C.S. Davidson, an engineering firm headquartered …

Continue reading Kerryn Fulton, CEO, C.S. Davidson, Inc. (Transformation)