The Cranky Middle Manager Show #312 The Future of the MBA Ken Starkey
The Cranky Middle Manager Show 131 Contented Cows with Bill Catlette
Posted on 10. Feb, 2008 by Wayne in Podcast
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #131
Have you met Herman the Ermine?Think he’d make a good T-shirt?
Show Notes
0:00 Welcome to the show. Today we talk to Bill Catlette about his book “Contented Cows Moove Faster”. Lots of cow talk today, including our dedicatee… Joseph McCoy, brains behind the Abilene Cattle Drive and supporter of ummm entrepeneurs.
2:46 The quote of the week is from Epicurus who talks about contentment and being happy with what you have…. assuming what you have doesn’t suck the very soul from your being.
4:00 Welcome Bill Catlette. A lot of cow puns and I make the worst one but it’s my show darnit. Their research shows organizations can help contentment…but now they look at the manager’s role. That’s us, gang. By the way, there’s a lot of talk today about oomph- it’s the discretionary effort we all put out (or not). We do a quick dive into American football but stick with us.
8:45 Not everyone gives 100% all the time… so what makes the difference? When do they spend that extra effort and what’s the cost if they don’t?
10:35 There are “oomph boosters” out there that are up to us managers. Trustworthiness, competency (YIKES!) and concern for your teammates and compassion. Authenticity is vital, as is optimism. Yeah, we’ll get right on that. “Oomph busters include Not earning trust and taking people for granted.
15:30 There are processes that grind people down, but there are things we can do to eliminate those. Examine policies and procedures that make people crazy. Middle Managers should be on a relentless search for those things. Top of the list would be expense account reimbursement.
23:20 Bill’s resources include:
If Disney Ran Your Hospital Fred Lee
What Got You Here Won’t Get You There Marshall Goldsmith (you can hear him on two episodes of this show…. show one show two)
Take a field trip to somewhere people do great work and just watch them. Wegmans, Cirque de Soleil or Marriott hotels are examples.
Legal IT Podcast part 2
Posted on 06. Feb, 2008 by Wayne in General
For those who’ve been following along, I did a 3-part conversation with Tony Hartsfield based on “The 4 Disciplines” of this show, and the e-book of that name.
In part one, we talked about the importance of Business Acumen to a professional’s career.
In Part 2 we discuss Leadership and Process and Project Management. Take a listen and you’ll get a preview of some of the things I’ve been thinking about- including the role of peripheral vision in management. I smell a separate blog post on that one.
Check out Tony’s website as well, www.legallearning.netÂ
A Little TPN Mutual Love… Listen to Wayne on G’Day World
Posted on 05. Feb, 2008 by Wayne in General
Cameron Reilly, the mad genius behind The Podcast Network is a fine host himself. His G’Day World is the top rated podcast in Australia, and he’s talking to yours truly.
We discuss everything from Great Web Meetings (allegedly why we started to chat), to drugs in my daughter’s high school to my late lamented stand up career and why podcasts should only last half an hour.
The Cranky Middle Manager Show 130 Boss School with Jay Goltz
Posted on 02. Feb, 2008 by Wayne in Podcast
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #130
Before we go any further, I’d like to introduce you to someone:
This is Herman the Ermine. He’s kind of our mascot. You’re going to be seeing a lot of him.
The folks who subscribe to our newsletter already have seen this symbol many times. This (for the folks around the world who ask about weasels- apparently they’re in short supply in the Southern Hemisphere) is a weasel and the symbol is the motto of our show- Dont let the weasels get you down (T-shirts anyone?) Any time I send you an email or you see this on the blog, you know it means. Just thought I’d give you that explanation…. of course if you’d like to subscribe to our newsletter, you can do that by visiting www.crankymiddlemanager.com.
Today’s guest is Jay Goltz, who does the Boss School blog for Inc. Magazine. I’ve been a long time reader, but now that I’m running my own company (www.greatwebmeetings.com) I’m pretty much addicted. Today’s topic- managing when you really ARE the boss…. when you own the company. Is there a difference than when you’re just part of a soulless corporation?
SHOW NOTES
0:00 Welcome to the show. In line with the whole concept of Boss School, i got to thinking about business schools in general. Turns out the first focused, dedicated B-School in Europe was in Portugal (yeah like you knew that…) The Aula do Comercio. We dedicate this show to its founder, Sebastiao Jose de Carvalho e Melo, or the Marques de Pombal.
Apparently he needed to take some of his own courses, especially in succession planning.
3:04 The quote of the week is from Thomas Jefferson, who could have used a little business schooling himself, from Jay or someone… anyway the point of wisdom is to grow with power. Something to think about when you actually own the business and you ARE the boss. There’s also a plug for my e-book “The 4 Disciplines of Highly Effective, Leadership Exhibiting, Project Nailing, Cheese Moving Managers” and you can have me deliver the presentation at your company if you’d like…. check out the website for more details.
4:09 Welcome Jay Goltz, author of The Street Smart Entrepeneur as well as the Inc. Blog. We’re talking about what the difference is when you actually own the company, rather than just manage inside it. Is there a difference between being the Boss and being the Manager? First we have to define small business…most of them are WAY bigger than mine… but size is relative. No cheap jokes.. I’ll stop here. Stop snickering. Why don’t we like the word boss?
8:23 Like most of us Jay wound up thrown into the deep end. He learned the hard way that hiring is the single hardest part for the business owner. According to him, 75% of managing is hiring the right person in the first place.
11:10 The defining difference between the boss and the manager, is that for the business owner it’s intensely personal and the stakes are so much higher. The bottom line is a different sort of master than the regional VP.
14:45 Motivation is the number one problem… but demotivation is much more problematic. All the lovely programs in the world won’t help if you aren’t a responsible, respectful boss. And by the way, who teaches people how to hire?
19:30 Where do you go since “Boss School” doesn’t’ really exist. First, check out Peter Drucker…then there’s INC magazine ( of course). Seek out Business Groups to get the help because there are three disciplines for entrepeneurs
Marketing
Management ( of which there are 4 disciplines there, or so I hear)
Finance
27:42 Jay’s resources
The support of other entrepeneurs.
Don’t forget to vote for us on Podcast Alley so others can find us……
Don’t let the weasels get you down.