A fascinating read providing some insight into causes, or possible effects, of division in the United States. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204301404577170733817181646.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_10_1
I’m not sure whether this article identifies causes or effects, but it seems clear that people who profess a religion, delay children until after marriage, stay married, and finish high school, if not college fare better economically than people who profess no faith or religion, have children outside of marriage, get divorced, and do not, at least, finish high school. The article does not examine whether the more “traditional” lifestyle leads to more economic success or whether people who are more economically successful gravitate toward a more “traditional” lifestyle. The presented facts are food for thought.
The demographic differences seem to suggest that, as the middle class experienced division since 1960, during a time of broad cultural change in the United States and elsewhere, two seemingly distinct cultures emerged. These distinctions may help account for the increasing sense of division in U.S. society and among our elected officials, along with the increasing sense of polarization in general. Whether these are causes or effects, what is the vision of leaders for addressing the causes and the effects?
Interesting discussion of what leadership actually looks like! http://majorium.wordpress.com/2011/12/15/seven-ways-to-lead-by-example/
Two links, parts 1 and 2 of a lecture I gave to the University of Phoenix Leadership Colloquium. 500 doctoral learners and faculty from Phoenix’s School of Advanced Studies registered. I have another 10-20 minutes of responses to questions posed during the lecture and am constructing a document drawn from online discussions during the week before and the week after the lecture.
Leadership and Innovation, Part 1 (10:31)
Leadership and Innovation, Part 2 (10:22)
This Industry Week article provides examples of some of the innovations I had in mind when I speak on innovation and leadership as engines of economic recovery. http://www.industryweek.com/PrintArticle.aspx?ArticleID=26015&cid=NLIWIT
In the August 22, 2011 issue of Time, Thornburgh, Adams, Assinder, Cooke, Mayer, and Grose (2011) noted some similarities between the economic situation in the United Kingdom, Egypt, Tunisia, and the United States. While Thornburgh et al. focused on the violence and unrest in the United Kingdom, he observed that the United States has more income distribution inequality than the United Kingdom although more people in the United States seem more optimistic about their economic prospects than their U. K. counterparts.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development reported that income distribution inequality, as measured by the Gini coefficient, was 0.26 in Sweden; 0.30 in Germany and Australia; 0.32 in Greece, in Canada, in Japan, and in Spain; 0.34 in the U.K.; 0.35 in Italy; and 0.36 in Portugal. By comparison, the Gini was 0.38 for the United States and Yemen, 0.43 in Turkey; 0.47 in Mexico; 0.34 for Egypt, 0.40 for Tunisia, 0.42 for Syria and for Iraq, and 0.4 for Jordan.
Another apparent measure of potential unrest seems to be unemployment in various demographic groups. Table 1 shows the unemployment rate for 16-24 year-olds and overall and measures of national debt, % GDP of exports, and % college graduates.
Table 1
Unemployment, national debt, export, import, and college graduation levels by country.
Country Unemployment15-24 UnemploymentTotal National Debt % GDP Export % GDP Import % GDP % College Graduates Australia 11.5 5.2 11.0 22.5 23.1 33.7One of the sources of uncertainty about the global economy is the unsettled debate among leaders in Western Europe’s Eurozone about the use of monetary policy to solve economic problems. That debate rages in the United States despite rarely seeming to be framed in those terms.
The downturn in 2008 was led by a liquidity crisis, a shortage of cash, that resulted from mythical wealth and cash from over-valued real estate. The real estate bubble resembled a grand Ponzi scheme without a Madoff-like figurehead to blame. The feared second dip is not a result of a crisis of liquidity but of confidence and uncertainty. Bruder (2011), writing about Egypt following their Arab Spring episode, observed that investors do not and will not pour capital into economic environments when the direction of the country is uncertain. In that regard, the current climate in the United States is similar to that of Egypt.
Hough (2011) observed that publicly-traded U.S. companies, excluding financial companies, currently hold 12% of reported assets in cash, the highest reported level since 1954. Business executives are unwilling to release the estimated $1.2-2 trillion in cash on their balance sheets (Foroohar, 2011), and unknown amounts hidden offshore and elsewhere, until people in positions of leadership lead and re-establish certainty and a sense of confidence about fiscal policy, tax policy, spending policy, the deficit and whether to continue deficit-driven budgets, and what to do about companies and countries allegedly to big to fail. Compounding the uncertainty are conflicts and political turmoil seemingly around the globe and the limited recognition that the issue of debt extends beyond nations to states, businesses, and individuals.
The Context
The Mid-Markets Channel of a global telecommunications company completed it best revenue year, thanks in part to the implementation of a new strategy, and the executive team wanted to continue the accelerated growth curve.
The Problem
The increase in revenue for the channel, consisting of 2,000 sales and service representatives, was largely a result of a 53-branch rollout of the channel’s new operating model. The new model helped increase sales and service representative activity by 45% and sales by 32%. Raising the bar again required new tools.
The company had tried, and failed, on three earlier attempts to introduce sales force automation to its 1,200 sales representatives plus sales managers. The company believed that sales force automation would be part of the answer and recognized that the cost, both financially and in terms of credibility, made the stakes high for a fourth attempt. On the heals of a successful 18-month initiative to implement the channel’s new strategy and organization, the executive team recognized that bottom-up behavioral change was essential and engaged the same team of “outsiders” to lead the sales force automation design and implementation effort.
The Solution
The timing was ideal. Presenting the sales force automation (customer relationship management) initiative as an opportunity to automate the new processes and behaviors of the field sales force and to equip the sales managers to monitor and manage those new processes and behaviors provided a logical basis for the new technology.
The Context
The client was, and is, a major global telecommunications company who had recently received a new strategic plan from a major global strategic planning consulting firm.
The Problem
Internal efforts to implement a new organizational structure and strategy failed. Adoption by dozens of domestic field offices had no traction and did not produce the increased focus on acquisition and retention of customers. The fundamental strategy called for the client to shift from a geographical orientation to a customer-centered focus, resulting in acceleration of new account acquisition (‘new logos’) and retention and growth within established accounts. Improving customer service relied on changing mindsets of the sales organization and the field service team with enhanced alignment of the sales and service elements in each branch.
Simply having a new strategy did not yield increased sales productivity and revenue or service level gains desired by the client and anticipated by the strategy consulting firm.
The Solution
The consulting team used representative locations to identify existing technology, sales and service processes and organizaation, and management techniques. The team developed consensus on best practice business processes among the representative locations, created and implemented new management techniques and reward andrecognition tools, and developed training materials to support standardized processes and terminology and the new business model.
The Results
Across two years following the initiation of the strategic plan implementation, the client reported the following results:
- Initial meetings with prospective new accounts, 36% increase;
