Thoughts on Systems, Organizations & Leadership
These are principles I hold myself to as a leader. I accept responsibility for the people I select, the systems I create, and the results they produce.
1. Organizations eventually become what their systems reward.
People respond to incentives. If an organization says it values one thing but rewards another, the rewarded behavior will eventually define the culture.
2. Systems are perfectly designed to generate the results they produce.
When the same problem keeps recurring, look beyond the individuals involved. Persistent outcomes usually reflect the way the system is designed.
3. If I can’t find the problem, I assume the problem is me.
One thing I learned as CEO of a company was to start with myself. Leadership means considering whether my decisions, expectations, communication, or systems are contributing to the problem.
4. Firing an employee is an indication that I selected poorly.
Sometimes termination is necessary. But when I hire someone who ultimately has to be fired, I also need to examine my own hiring decision, expectations, training, and supervision.
5. When an employee resigns, they are firing me as their boss.
People leave for many reasons, but a resignation should always prompt some self-examination. What could I—or the organization—have done differently?
6. Incentives are the heart of economics.
If you want to understand behavior, understand the incentives. People and organizations generally respond to what makes an action worthwhile—or costly.
7. There is a right way to do everything.
That doesn’t mean there’s only one possible method. But I believe there is a BEST method. It means that every task deserves thought about the safest, simplest, most effective, and most reliable way to accomplish it.
8. Do I want to be right, or do I want it to work?
Being correct isn’t much of a victory if the problem remains unsolved. Effective leadership sometimes requires giving up the satisfaction of winning the argument in order to achieve the desired result.
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