Recently I stumbled across a book with which I was impressed and intrigued by their approach to solving problems and establishing creative solutions! Many of my clients are wrestling with the same old issues and in many cases are approaching their resolution in the same old way. This book challenges us and encourages us to get out of our rut and look at things differently – all from “inside the box.”

Over the past several years, there has been an onslaught of E-friendly, organic, and 100% natural products and services being offered. I have been a fan of Whole Foods Market since it was founded back in 1980 in Austin, Texas. They have built a credible and reliable brand for their strict standards relative to the products they offer. Does this really matter? I mean…does this translate to real ROI??

Recently ousted CEO of JCPenney, Ron Johnson, was slammed for relying too much on intuition versus hard data as he led the revamping of the JCPenney stores. Most will agree that JCP’s new stores are very creative and well done…yet, the company is in a free fall. What went wrong?

Last week I was posed a question by a member in an audience of savvy business executives. The question was: “How come Corporate America does not treat their employees with respect, concern, and care? How come they always put their customers ahead of their employees?” Interesting question……

Let’s face it, Facebook has changed our world; and this was the brainchild of one, young entrepreneur. Literally. Facebook has single-handedly revolutionized the way more than one-seventh of the world’s population communicates, engages, and consumes information. What can we learn from this organization and from its leader?

Thank you to our clients for taking the time to share your feedback with us at Alignment, Inc. As promised, we will be posting this information to our website for those who are interested in the details. The high-level results are included in this post.

Recently, I heard a compelling speech on the topic of how to achieve ‘power’ in business. The perspective was relevant to me. I am interested in hearing your perspectives……

Research has shown that employees who feel appreciated are more productive and loyal. Yet, amazingly, that message hasn’t reached many of those in charge. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal discusses a steep decline in gratitude in the workplace. What is up with that?!

Recently I was reading one of my favorite weekly columns, The Corner Office, where Adam Bryant interviews CEOs from virtually every industry to cite leadership principles learned from their experience. In this week’s interview, I was intrigued with one CEO’s perspective on beauty in the workplace.

Have you ever been dressed down by someone seemingly smarter than you just so that person could make a point? Have you ever been called out – or even worse – dismissed because you were behind the learning curve on a particular issue? Have you ever been interrupted or talked over, implying that your opinion or perspective was not worthy of even being heard? I have; and it is the worst feeling in the world.