As a leader one must motivate, inspire, set standards, coordinate, improve, communicate, collaborate and so on, but they should never mistakenly believe and act as if they know everything. There is a multitude of reasons why teams are built with people of diverse backgrounds, experiences, knowledge and education in order for them to complement each other and cover all responsibilities. …
CIO: one of the most rewarding positions
In my humble and somewhat biased opinion, one of the most rewarding positions is that of a CIO (Chief Information Officer). I say this based on their potential to influence positive transformation, change and growth within organizations. CIOs are uniquely positioned and have exposure and partnership opportunities with all business areas (finance, legal, marketing, operations…you name it, technology is involved …
CIOs are joining Boards of Directors
Technology is a the core of nearly everything we do in modern business and as such it needs to be considered as one of the greatest opportunity and difference makers around. With this in mind, it is natural to see more and more technology executives, most frequently Chief Information Officers (CIOs) joining both boards and top management teams. These teams …
Be a leader, not a decision maker
Leadership is earned, not given and as such you need to justify your privilege to lead others. Your title alone is not enough to make you a leader. Your position as a CEO, CIO, CFO, CMO, President, Vice President…gives you an opportunity to make decisions, not necessarily lead people forward. To lead others you must win their hearts and minds, …
One conversation at a time, no side chatter & respect the calendar
Communication is an essential pillar in building successful teams, but at times, it needs to be managed. While in meetings it is essential for everyone to be on the same page and focused on the topic at hand. People must be both physically and mentally present and engaged into what the team is working on. This is something that I …
Say yes to opportunity
Opportunities are frequently unexpected and very commonly show up unannounced. How we react to them is what makes the ultimate difference in how valuable they become to us. I have already emphasized the importance of embracing opportunities and have shared a few examples last year which support the fact that opportunities and new clients don’t come announced which was, once …
Best ideas must win
Best ideas must win. They must win irrespective of who brought them up and how long that person has been with your organization. Whether they are a CEO, a President, or another executive or a temporary employee who started last week, quality ideas must always be enabled to rise to the top. Diversity of opinions, experiences, backgrounds and education is …
Never stop learning
Learning is essential and as such should never stop. Do what you can to broaden your horizons each and every day; learn something new and don’t forget to contribute to your respective areas and professions as well. Educate yourself formally and informally, get involved (attend conferences, seminars; read books, journals, websites…) and expand your experiences. Do all of this with …
Made a mistake? Own it, apologize and fix it
All leaders and all organizations make mistakes and will continue to make mistakes. However, what differentiates them is how they react after the mistake has been made. If a mistake (whatever it may be, a security breach, performance or stability issues…) is made by you or your organization as a whole, own it, apologize, fix it and learn from that …
Facebook knows they made a mistake
Facebook seems to have realized that they went overboard with their recent “Terms of Use” changes and has decided to revert back to their previous version. According to Mark Zuckerberg (their CEO & Founder) they have acknowledged and took ownership of this mistake. His exact words were (quoted from FB blog): A lot of the language in our terms is …