Aug 26

Crucial Conversations

By Dick Dooley Leadership, Leadership Learning Forum, Learning, Personal No Comments »

One of the books referenced below in that superb internal Leadership Learning Forum is ” Crucial Conversations” by Petterson,Grenny, McMillan & Switsler.   If you haven’t got it, or read it, do both for sure, please! It’s a core book [Adlerian definition = a book that grows with you!] in almost all the Forums done recently. And invariably such reviews are accompanied by off- the-cuff remarks like “My favorite”….. “life changing…. “addresses a real need I have.”, etc. It’s been on my list of “core books” for some time also [ Click here for that list]. They have also written two other superb additions to our learning/growth/change…. “Crucial Confrontations” … and …..”Influencer”. Same coments re. both.

A fast taste of what’s in “Crucial Conversations”.              Super  quotes throughout, summaries of each chapter, flyleaf praise & forward, excellent diagrams, & examples. Definiton = 1) Opinions Vary 2)Starkes are high  3) Emotions run strong. STATE = Share your facts. Tell your story. Ask for others’  path. Talk tentatively. Encourage testing

Some one-liners = p11 “In the best companies, everyon hlds everyone else accountable”…p22 “When people purposefully withhold meaning from one another, individually smart people can do collectively stupid things”…….. throughout =”Make it Safe”…… p217 ” “your ability to pull yourself out of the content of a discussion and to focus on the process is inversely proportional to your level of emotion”
p220-221 “there’s too much material in this book to try to master in one sitting….you haven’t talked them [concepts] enough to make them part of your vocabular”….p224 “Remmeber the costs: focus on the rewards”

There’s much much more!!

 

Aug 11

Conflict Resolution

By Dick Dooley About TDG, Inc., Leadership Learning Forum, Learning No Comments »

Conflict resolution is a process that’s been a functional area of concern for decades. It still needs attention by all evolving leaders, in my opinion, and is often not handled well by executive leadership. In a recent session during an internal Leadership Learning Forum, lead by Henry Givray, the CEO of SmithBucklin Corporation, participants discussed, and exercised cases, as a group, developing their own capacity with this process, using superb materials which are a part of that on-going program. Most staff are not so fortunate, to be  part of such unique developmental opportunities, but never-the-less have a  similar need to perform better. Attached [click here] is a brief checklist of ideas  for you to consider  pondering, & to develop your  own increased effectiveness. We all need to get better doing conflict resolution in our work, in our homes, in our communities!!

In the same LLF session, three books were reviewed, all of which are LLF “core” readings: “Blink”, “Crucial Conversations”, and “Defining Moments”],  and all helped integrate different  approaches to conflict ,with examples of both sucess or failure. I will share again, in coming weeks here, a brief review, of these favorite LLF books and how they connected so powerfully

Jul 04

Re-connecting!!

By Dick Dooley About TDG, Inc., Leadership Learning Forum, New website corrections/changes, Personal No Comments »

I chose to allow a long diversion from this communication  vehicle, unbelievable c. 8 months…..while helping several Retainer Clients do their own form of internal Leadership Learning Forums…and because of two quite serious, surprise, unusual surgeries while vacationing on the west coast with Barbara. Luckily we were right by Stanford Medical Center whose emergency room staff, & recovery facility, handled me superbly well over 8 days. Now having returned to Cape Cod, & largely finished careful rehabilitation, I am refocusing in my 6th  life phase. The Legacy Phase . And will detail those phases, on this website,  in connecting with my Legacy Representational Perspectivre Next 15 years  [LRPN15], which has been shown here for the last almost 20 years! [under”My work” as  E -15 year Full Plan]

Oct 10

Spectacular Third LLF @ Cantigny

By Dick Dooley About TDG, Inc., Cantigny, Leadership Learning Forum No Comments »

36 of us shared ideas, techniques and plans for internal Leadership Learning  Forums, using the historically  powerful First Division Museum @ Cantigny, outside Chicago, for the third time. Very provocative talks , tours, &  breakouts. Nine presentations,  plus 13 client leaders with short topics, or views presented from the audience, along with my stream of comments  and context, made for a unique learning experience for all. The materials posted ahead of the forum, and several since added, are all available to clients, under Cantigny, under materials 2012

Jun 16

A superb LLF 2.1 led by Walter Berkowicz, with 19 other Forum graduates

By Dick Dooley About TDG, Inc., Cantigny, Leadership Learning Forum No Comments »

On 6/14, as referenced below, we discussed complexity,and sweeping continual change, and their impact on current challenges in I.T. today [see “Horizontals”  below also] . There was a very relevant dialogue about “Ethics”  in all our careers. Also about preparing for “The Signularity”[ i.e., having a learning plan]. And about the professional value of TDG, Inc’s  Cross Industry Field Trips, e.g., Normandy , Gettysburg, Cantigny  [ next 10/1-2].

Join us on 7/12 to understand more about the unique benefit of our next Cantigny Forum.

A relevant ? for everyone… with such sweeping & continual change, what doesn’t change for you??

May 31

An increasingly vivid perspective for all I.T. Groups

By Dick Dooley About TDG, Inc., Internal Consulting, Leadership, Leadership Learning Forum, Learning No Comments »

Some version of the below 8 trends/focus points seems to be in every interaction I have today with clients or LLF graduates. Does this loose, macro view, resonate, in part, with your sense of things??

The Unique Potential [Overwhelming??] Impact of Eight, Current, tightly Integrating “Horizontal”   Organizational Processes   Four  traditionally based or driven by I.T., or deeply impacted by I.T. Initiatives   Two [#5 & 6]  are often independently started there, and the last two [#7 & 8] are basically not indigenous, likely even “strange” to many I.T. groups

 

1.      Overall Technical Architecture  [OTA]- long standing quest, still elusive

2.      Project Management Office – discipline/processes – a few are corporate wide

3.      Enterprise Wide System[s] & business process redesign – primarily I.t. driven often owned or lead by a senior line executive

4.      Mobile-handheld-APP based development-cloud residence- multiple function devices[ BYO]- Hardly well in hand anywhere –not seen as I.T.’s especially by the “younger generations”

 

5.       Security- fullest sense- sometimes I.T. located

6.       Leadership Development – needed desperately in I.T., then in concert corporately – My work has been with I.T. groups who wanted this as a priority, largely because of the whole 8!!

 

7.      Ownership & Accountability Expectations –very uneven approaches

8.      Organizational Culture and Change – Human Recourse “Should”, almost never “is”

 

 

Richard E. Dooley 5-29-12

 

 

Nov 16

44th Annual SIMposium

By Dick Dooley Leadership Learning Forum, Magic, Personal No Comments »

Barbara and I just returned from the 44th annual Conference of the Society of  Information Management [SIM]. As one of the 11 founders, I have attended 42 so far, and hope to make the 5oth!

It was very rewarding to be approached by scores of attendees, offering thanks for helping start the Society and especially for founding and guiding the development of The Regional Leadership[RLF]  progam!

Having just finished choosing, &  updating, for my clients, the 50 basic documents, in my prespective, of the Forum process, and it’s “Magic”, it is very powerful for me to see others absorbing this in their own way, and doing internal self- sustaining leadership development progams inside their organizations! It’s wonderful for them ….and surely so for me!!

Oct 10

LLF @ Cantigny 10/4-5/11

By Dick Dooley About TDG, Inc., Cantigny, Leadership Learning Forum No Comments »

Our LLF @ Cantigny 10/4-5/11 was spectacularly successful for every one of the 27 attendees/speakers/facilitators. Their feedback was extraordinarily positive, &  appreciative. That’s always been the case@ Cantigny though every session is different. Go to the tab above for more detail. I’ll put up some of the attendees comments re. value.We plan to return next October 2-4, 2012. Pencil it in, please. And make your own comments please to this blog if you were there

The two photos below show some of the ongoing interaction there!

A break-out session of Cantigny LLF’ers

 

Henry Givray delivering the ending keynote talk on leadership @ Cantigny

Oct 09

Special LLF 2.0 on October 12th

By Dick Dooley Cantigny, Internal Consulting, Leadership Learning Forum No Comments »

Craig Allen, a Forum graduate, now with Total Wine, Inc., will speak of his work combining his passion which was & is a long standing hobby, and earning a living/following his career path. We can all learn from this perspective in today’s intense work environments. He will be joined by several others of the same persuasion,

And I’ll comment very briefly on the LLF just held @ Cantigny [ see the below post or the above tab]

Oct 01

Return to a “Traditional” LLF

By Dick Dooley Cantigny, Leadership, Leadership Learning Forum No Comments »

After almost 30 virtual LLF 2.0 calls, I am returning to the “traditional”  process of meeting on a special site, with a small very select, commonly interested, set of forum graduates or clients. General Hal Nelson and I have used these facilities before to help us all focus on new leadership perspectives and processes, in today ‘s more challenging situations.   It’s stunning to me, through I’ve done this for 28 + years, how much care/preparation/speaker pre briefing/agenda placement, etc., it takes, to do it right. I  think it will show. It’s clearly something I love doing

Click on “Cantigny” above, & then “materials” for some info. Come if you can. Or just connect with me one way or another, please!

Aug 03

Thought “Gems” from Dr. Carl Hammerschlag on TDG LLF 2.0

By Dick Dooley Leadership Learning Forum, Learning No Comments »

On Thursday 7/28,  c.34 of us benefited hugely from interacting, virtually, with Dr. Carl Hammerschlag who has spoken scores of time to LLF forums and SIM audiences.  A few of those referenced in the extensively positive feedback that I received………The very large “Cost” of attempting to multiprocess…. and the guilt that often drives that attempt….and the pervasiveness of  “Continuous partial attention ” in out leadership activities…several books recommended, including Dr.Carl’s   latest book,which is available on-line now, “The Kindling Spirit: Healing from Within”… the importance of dinner time with children, and offered examples thereof from the participants…. The powerful statement that “those who tell the Stories define the culture” and how that plays out in today’s world…. and the resulting growing need for many of us to tell our positive, more hopeful, personal stories to provide a counterbalance…and of course the focus on continual learning and connecting to others besides ourselves!!  All very special!!

On the next LLF 2.0, on Thursday 8/25 @ 12:30 pm ET, Patricia Skarulis VP & CIO of Sloan Kettering Medical Center in NYC will share  her extensive experience in leadership and in developing it in others. Dial in for sure!! These are all excellent refresher/learning moments!!

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