The 15th Principle - Place Common Interest First

This last checklist precept  is expressed in our oft-used phrases of "servant" or "selfless" leadership...

To mark the moment of surrender of April 9, 1865 by the south during the civil war, General Ulysses S. Grant ordered a follow-up ceremony for April 12, with more than 4,000 union solders to be lined up at attention on one side of a field.  Robert E. Lee's defeated infantry units were then to march onto the field to place their regimental flags and firearms at the foot of a Union officer in charge.  For the honor of orchestrating the event Grant designated Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.

As the first Confederate brigade approached Union forces at the field on April 12, four years to the date since the Rebel firing on Fort Sumter, Chamberlain ordered a bugle call that told Union solders to "carry arms" -- a posture of respect in which soldiers hold the musket in their right hand with the muzzle perpendicular to their shoulders.  Both Union and Confederate soldiers understood its meaning, since their military traditions had emanated from the same sources.

A Southern general riding near the front of the Confederate forces, John B. Gordon, appreciated the respectful signal that Chamberlain's soldiers displayed toward the Rebel soldiers on their day of ignominy, and Gordon ordered the same posture to be returned by his own troops.  As described by Chamberlain himself, "Gordon, at the head of the marching column, riding with heavy spirit and downcast face, catches the sound of the shifting arms, looks up, and taking the meaning," instructed "his successive brigades to pass with the same position."

The incident became known as a "salute returning a salute," a moment remembered for years by those who witnessed or heard of it, and one that implied reconciliation.  Some of Chamberlains fellow officers were angered by witnessing such a fraternal act after fighting the same soldiers on so many killing fields.  And for Chamberlain himself, it was a matter of saluting those who had tried to kill him only two weeks earlier.

For President Abraham Lincoln, the South's capitulation at Appomattox constituted not only an ending point for the armed rebellion but also a starting point for national reconciliation.  Even for him, however, the road to reunification was a bitter pill given the Union's grievous losses on the battlefields.  Events would take a horrible personal turn just two days after Chamberlain's salute to the Rebel army as the president and his wife watched a performance at Ford's Theater in Washington.

For both sides, though, gestures of reconciliation were more important than the hostilities that remained.  The latter were natural, the former learned, and Chamberlain's moment at the conclusion of the Civil War serves to remind us of the vital importance of a final Leader's Checklist principle: Placing common mission ahead of personal interest or animosity, especially when it seems least natural to do so.   This last checklist precept  is expressed in our oft-used phrases of "servant" or "selfless" leadership, and it is well captured in a U.S. Marine Corps dictum: "The officer eats last."

ACTION POINT: In setting strategy, communicating vision, and reaching decisions, common purpose comes first, personal self-interest last.

Failure to Face the Problem

If the challenge is not defined, it is difficult or impossible to assess the quality of the strategy.
A strategy is a way through a difficulty, an approach to overcoming an obstacle, a response to a challenge. If the challenge is not defined, it is difficult or impossible to assess the quality of the strategy. And, if you cannot assess that, you cannot reject a bad strategy or improve a good one.


International Harvester learned about this element of bad strategy the hard way. In July 1979, the company’s strategic and financial planners produced a thick sheaf of paper titled “Corporate Strategic Plan: International Harvester.” It was an amalgam of five separate strategic plans, each created by one of the operating divisions.

The strategic plan did not lack for texture and detail. Looking, for example, within the agricultural-equipment group—International Harvester’s core, dating back to the McCormick reaper, which was a foundation of the company—there is information and discussion about each segment. The overall intent was to strengthen the dealer/distributor network and to reduce manufacturing costs. Market share in agricultural equipment was also projected to increase, from 16 percent to 20 percent.  That was typical of the overall strategy, which was to increase the company’s share in each market, cut costs in each business, and thereby ramp up revenue and profit. A summary graph, showing past and forecast profit, forms an almost perfect hockey stick, with an immediate recovery from decline followed by a steady rise.

The problem with all this was that the plan didn’t even mention Harvester’s grossly inefficient production facilities, especially in its agricultural-equipment business, or the fact that Harvester had the worst labor relations in US industry. As a result, the company’s profit margin had been about one-half of its competitors’ for a long time. As a corporation, International Harvester’s main problem was its inefficient work organization—a problem that would not be solved by investing in new equipment or pressing managers to increase market share. By cutting administrative overhead, Harvester boosted reported profits for a year or two. But following a disastrous six-month strike, the company quickly began to collapse. It sold off various businesses—including its agricultural-equipment business, to Tenneco. The truck division, renamed Navistar, is today a leading maker of heavy trucks and engines.

ACTION POINT:  If you fail to identify and analyze the obstacles, you don't have a strategy.  Instead, you have a stretch goal or a budget or a list of things you wish would happen.

The Hallmarks of Bad Strategy

...a growing profusion of bad strategy...


The term bad strategy was coined by Richard Rumelt in 2007 at a Washington, DC, seminar on national-security strategy. His role was to provide a business and corporate-strategy perspective. The participants expected, that his remarks would detail the seriousness and growing competence with which business strategy was created. Using words and slides, He told the group that many businesses did have powerful, effective strategies.

But he also saw a growing profusion of bad strategy. In the process, he created a list of the key hallmarks of bad strategy to four points:

• the failure to face the challenge
• mistaking goals for strategy
• bad strategic objectives
• fluff.

ACTION POINT: Know what bad strategy consists of and avoid it.

The Perils of Bad Strategy II

Each of these elements is, of course, an important part of human life. But, by themselves, they are not substitutes for the hard work of strategy.


Bad strategy ignores the power of choice and focus, trying instead to accommodate a multitude of conflicting demands and interests. Like a quarterback whose only advice to his teammates is “let’s win,” bad strategy covers up its failure to guide by embracing the language of broad goals, ambition, vision, and values. Each of these elements is, of course, an important part of human life. But, by themselves, they are not substitutes for the hard work of strategy.


Make no mistake: the creeping spread of bad strategy affects us all. Heavy with goals and slogans, governments have become less and less able to solve problems. Corporate boards sign off on strategic plans that are little more than wishful thinking. The US education system is rich with targets and standards but poor at comprehending and countering the sources of underperformance. The only remedy is we must demand good strategy.

ACTION POINT: Understand that strategy is more than slogans, broad goals and raw ambition.

The Perils of Bad Strategy

Bad strategy abounds, says UCLA management professor Richard Rumelt.  Senior executives who can spot it  stand a much better chance of creating good strategies.

Horatio Nelson had a problem. The British admiral’s fleet was outnumbered at Trafalgar by an armada of French and Spanish ships that Napoleon had ordered to disrupt Britain’s commerce and pre-pare for a cross-channel invasion. The prevailing tactics in 1805 were for the two opposing fleets to stay in line, firing broadsides at each other. But Nelson had a strategic insight into how to deal with being outnumbered. He broke the British fleet into two columns and drove them at the Franco-Spanish fleet, hitting its line perpendicularly.

The lead British ships took a great risk, but Nelson judged that the less-trained Franco Spanish gunners would not be able to compensate for the heavy swell that day and that the enemy fleet, with its coherence  lost, would be no match for the more experienced British captains and gunners in the ensuing melee. He was proved right: the French and Spanish lost 22 ships, two-thirds of their fleet. The British lost none.

Nelson’s victory is a classic example of good strategy, which almost always looks this simple and obvious in retrospect. It does not pop out of some strategic-management tool, matrix, triangle, or fill-in-the-blanks scheme. Instead, a talented leader has identified the one or two critical issues in a situation—the pivot points that can multiply the effectiveness of effort—and then focused and concentrated action and resources on them.

ACTION POINT: A good strategy does more than urge us forward toward a goal or vision; it honestly acknowledges the challenges we face  and provides an approach to overcoming them.  

Study Leadership Moments

 a powerful reminder to examine whether you yourself are employing all the necessary principles.

A first step for learning to apply the Leader's Checklist is to become a self-directed student of leadership.  This study can take many forms:

• reading leaders' biographies
• witnessing leaders in action
• joining leadership development programs

What's critical is witnessing how others have worked with a full checklist or fallen short, often a powerful reminder to examine whether you yourself are employing all the necessary principles.

ACTION POINT:   Sharpen your leadership skills by learning from others in leadership positions.

green Business and the Growing Role of Government Conclusions II

The more complex value proposition and business case of many green business opportunities will demand a more consultative sales approach.

Distributors looking to turn the trends to their advantage will need to consider the following:

1. Building a deep understanding of the the underlying issues and drivers in both green business and government opportunity areas, positioning themselves as knowledgeable, trusted business advisers to customers and suppliers.
2. Integrating green business into their broader business strategy investment plans and human capital strategy.  The more complex value proposition and business case of many green business opportunities will demand a more consultative sales approach.
3. Work with trusted advisers, trade associations, government representatives, accountants, and peers to deepen knowledge of relevant existing legislation and regulations. 

ACTION POINT: Invest the time and effort into understanding the effects of trends on your business and market.

Green Business and the Growing Role of Government Conclusions

Each trend presents a host of real challenges and a wealth of potential opportunities for distributors,

Looking ahead, green business and the growing role of government will continue to gain momentum and have an impact on wholesaler-distributors.  The myriad green business segments have gained a critical mass and sufficient acceptance to be considered mainstream, and the role of government are sufficiently important and topical to warrant inclusion here.

Each trend presents a host of real challenges and a wealth of potential opportunities for distributors, both within their own organizations and with customers, suppliers, and markets.  Therefore distributors must stay abreast of these trends and their drivers and consider their impact on strategies and operations under various scenarios.

ACTION POINT: Look for opportunities within the green business segment and understand the role of government in your industry.

The Expanding Role of Government

government expansion is widely perceived as a drain on the overall economy, absorbing capital and stifling growth. 

Around the world and across industries there is a widespread perception that government has and will continue to plan an expanding role in business and society.  In some instances, this expanded role stimulates demand, mitigates risk, and removes uncertainty and ambiguity; having a positive impact on the economy.  Indeed, a number of distributors have reported growth in their government-related business.

However, these examples are limited.  Because of the expanding payrolls and budgets that come along with it, government expansion is widely perceived as a drain on the overall economy, absorbing capital and stifling growth.  The areas that wholesale distributors will most likely feel the government's role are:

• Environmental and safety regulations
• Immigration and labor
• International and domestic trade
• Stimulus, taxes, and tax incentives

ACTION POINT:  Understand the growing role of government and it's impact on your business in the areas above.

Green Business

Growth in this area is not limited to the electrical and industrial sectors; 

For distributors, green business represents two opportunity areas, each of which requires due diligence and planning to realize potential benefits, but which can also deliver incremental revenues and profits.

The first opportunity is in capturing a share of the rapidly growing market for green products and services.  Growth in this area is not limited to the electrical and industrial sectors; it carries over into practically all other lines of trade.  The other opportunity is for distributors to look internally at their assets, operations, and processes to identify sources of waste, inefficiency, and non-value-added cost.

ACTION POINT:  Look for green opportunities, both inwardly and outwardly.

Activating the Checklist

 Doing so for many managers is an acquired rather than a natural skill.

Would you have surgery performed by a doctor who routinely failed to confirm that the right patient was in the operating room and the correct procedure was about to be performed?  Or willingly fly with a pilot who regularly failed to check wind speed, flight plan, and all the other essential ingredients for ensuring a successful takeoff?

Obviously not.  Medical centers often require physicians to run through a specific checklist before commencing surgery.  Aviation authorities around the globe require the same of pilots before takeoff.   We take for granted a pilot's thoroughness or a surgeon's, but we too often give ourselves a pass on reviewing an analogous list, or merely have one to check,  even when we are facing moments during which a complete leadership inventory might be essential for sensibly directing or even saving the enterprise.

Even the best checklist has no value unless it is routinely activated to guide a leader's behavior.  Doing so for many managers is an acquired rather than a natural skill.  It has been found that managers fruitfully engage in six learning avenues that help them activate the Leader's checklist on a regular basis:

1. Study leadership moments.
2. Solicit coaching and mentoring.
3. Accept stretch experiences.
4. Conduct after-action reviews of personal leadership moments.
5. Endure extremely stressful leadership moments.
6. Experience the leadership moments of others.

ACTION POINT: Engage in the learning avenues listed to sharpen your leaderships skills.

A Slowdown in Commodity Prices

it is a challenge to talk with any credibility about the direction of commodity prices. 

Even during the most stable and predictable of times, it is a challenge to talk with any credibility about the direction of commodity prices.  The economic downturn coupled with a far more complex, unpredictable and volatile economic environment now makes such predictions and trend analysis a truly daunting proposition with very limited potential for making accurate forecasts.

The world's economies and the underlying markets are more closely integrated than ever, as evidenced man made and natural environmental crisis such as the Gulf oil spill and the Japanese Tsunami, The European debt crisis and the out sized role the Chinese appetite for commodities and raw materials plays on global prices.   If there is one word that best captures the "trend" in most commodity categories it is "volatile."

ACTION POINT: Be prepared to move fast in an environment of volatility.

The Changing US Workforce

Going forward distributors should consider how these trends affect your business and the markets you serve.

Four primary characteristics were reported on in 2007 on the broad trend of the the changing US workforces, they were:

• It is aging.
• There is slower labor force growth.
• The workforce composition is shifting.
• There is more diversity.

Going forward distributors should consider how these trends affect your business and the markets you serve.  What will happen to your customer and supplier base over the next 10 - 15 years?  Distributors should also evaluate how their workforce strategy is tied to your overall business strategy.  Finally, they should consider recruiting, development and retention plans that reflect and adjust for these trends.

ACTION POINT: Look deeply at your where your work force is and where it needs to be in light of these trends.

A Quick Look Back: Previous Emerging Trends

 it helps to consider past predictions and the factors that influenced their alignment or divergence with actual events.  

In looking at and prioritizing today's trends, it helps to consider past predictions and the factors that influenced their alignment or divergence with actual events.  The three emerging trends highlighted in the 2007 Facing the Forces of Change report were:

1. Acquisition activity
2. The changing US workforce
3. A slowdown in commodity prices

Acquisition Activity:

While credit markets loosened somewhat, they will likely remain tight as banks, businesses, consumers, and governments each look to reduce debt levels and the various credit rating agencies seek a modicum of redemption via more rigorous analysis and conservative ratings of borrowers and transactions.  That said, mergers and acquisitions will continue--the strategic imperatives driving consolidation are simply too strong.

ACTION POINT: Going forward distributors should carefully consider what role they intend to play in industry consolidation, ensure the alignment of their business and investment strategies--including capital budgets and information technology budgets, and their human capital strategies, and continuously explore merger, acquisition, or other joint venture partnership/options.

Capitalizing on Key Trends

These trends are more relevant than ever to wholesale distribution--both in terms of opportunities and challenges...

Given the lingering amount of uncertainty, unpredictability and volatility in the global and domestic economy, making predictions of any sort is likely to be a risky proposition.  However, two trends that appear to have sufficient breadth and depth to maintain their relevance to wholesale distribution are as follows:

1. The continued expansion of the broadly defined "green business segment," including renewable energy generation; energy efficiency; carbon and water efficiency; waste reduction; recycling; and, the food sector organics and sustainability.
2. An expanded role of government in areas such as environmental, labor  and safety regulations; internationals and domestic trade; and of course, taxes and tax incentives.

These trends are more relevant than ever to wholesale distribution--both in terms of opportunities and challenges--and therefore must capture a share of management's attention and investment going forward.

ACTION POINT: Capitalizing on these trends now can help distributors gain a substantial competitive advantage down the road.

Customizing the Checklist - Country

In a study of Indian executives it also revealed four distinct principles constituting a kind of "India Way" for leading business...

Core leadership principles of the kinds referred to earlier are much the same in many countries and have been found to be essential in running a business in all major economies.  Company leaders everywhere emphasize company strategy and motivating the work force.  In a study of Indian executives it also revealed four distinct principles constituting a kind of "India Way" for leading business on that subcontinent:

• Holistic engagement with employees.  Indian business leaders see their firms as organic enterprises where sustaining employee morale and building company culture are critical obligations.  People are viewed as assets to be developed, not costs to be reduced.
• Improvisations and adaptability. Improvisation is also at the heart of the India Way.  In a complex, often volatile environment with few resources and much red tape, business leaders have learned to rely on their wits to circumvent recurrent and innumerable hurdles.
• Creative value propositions.  Give the large and intensely competitive domestic market, Indian business leaders have of necessity learned to create value propositions that satisfy the needs of demanding consumers and do so with extreme efficiency.
• Broad mission and purpose.  Indian business leaders place special emphasis on personal values, a vision of growth, and strategic thinking.  They take pride in not only enterprise success but also family prosperity, regional advance, and national renaissance.

ACTION POINT:  Identify the cultural leadership principles within your organization.

CRM Considerations II

"Why are we doing this?" 

Some other things to consider for any CRM project include:

Create a CRM business case that answers the question: "Why are we doing this?"  The business case:

• Identifies areas with the highest ROI potential
• Defines metrics that will be used to assess performance
• Provides the justification for moving ahead
• Defines the framework for prescribing, supporting, and monitoring subsequent actions.

Identify and prioritize the CRM value proposition: "What business benefits can we expect from CRM projects?"

Design a CRM operational "blueprint" that answers the question: "What is the desired end state for this phase of the journey?" The blueprint:

• Defines the resulting stakeholder experience
• Allocates resources
• Describes how the IT infrastructure will be built and how processes will be designed.

Construct a long-term road map for implementing CRM solutions.  This should answer the question: "What will we do and when?"  and convert the "blueprint" into a prioritized sequence of projects/initiatives.

Build and maintain support for the company's CRM efforts, and stay on course.  

ACTION POINT: When implementing CRM ask the question "Is everyone committed and are we aligned?"  and address ongoing sponsorship, governance, and change management.

CRM Considerations

CRM systems are highly strategic and potentially disruptive--therefore they require careful consideration.

Given the high-profile they play in the organization and the changes they will likely drive in the behaviors of sales-force and customer-service personnel, investments in CRM systems are highly strategic and potentially disruptive--therefore they require careful consideration.

Distributor managers should explore the implications of change management (that is, the impact the implementation will have on individual responsibilities, roles and job tasks) when investigating such a system.  This information coupled with an understanding of individuals' ability and willingness to change, will form the basis of a change management plan that must accompany any CRM project.

ACTION POINT:  Understand the behavior changes that must accompany any CRM project.

Pushing Beyond E-Commerce

this starts with the features and functionality of their website.

A robust, intuitive, highly functional web presence is already an important sales channel for most distributors--and an increasingly central component to their marketing, customer service, and communications activities.  Yet, as mentioned earlier, many distributors indicate they are "not easy to do business with."  In many cases, this starts with the features and functionality of their website.

Today's websites must be well developed, information-rich, and equipped for e-commerce and online customer service.  The most basic expectation is that a distributor's website facilitates the quick and accurate completion of various transactions (such as sales, returns, discounts, rebates, and application of payments) via an intuitive interface.  Automating these tasks is is essential to improving response times, reducing errors and assuring reliability, which collectively creates differentiation for the distributor.   The e-commerce experience should provide other functions, such as advanced product search; an easy-to-navigate product catalog (one that provides specification, images, schematics, price, and performance information, ready access to order history, and status; updated material safety data sheets (MSDS) where applicable; and multiple "contact us" options via e-mail, chat, or phone.

ACTION POINT:  Use your website to automate and enhance the customer experience.

Steve Jobs 7 Principles

His innovative spark changed the world we live in today.

Steve Jobs recent resignation marked the end of one of the most inspiring careers in business history.  Some people will impact an industry, Steve Jobs revolutionized several, computing, telecommunications, music and movies.  His innovative spark changed the world we live in today.

Research identified 7 principles that were central to Steve Jobs and Apples success.  They are:

1. Do what you love -"Life is too short for living someone elses dream"

2. Put a dent in the Universe - In the 70's when computers were only in the hands of a few hobbyist's, Jobs had the vision of computer in the hands of everyday people.  The Mac was born.

3. Connect things to spark your creativity - Job's once said that "creativity is connected things."  People with a broad set of life experiences can often see things that others miss.

4. Say no to 1,000 things -  Steve Jobs was proud of what Apple does, but he is also proud of what Apple chose not to do.  Job's said innovation comes from "saying no to 1,000 things.   This speaks to simplicity.  Simplicity is the elimination of clutter.  There is only one button on a Ipod, Iphone, and Ipad for a reason.  It's simple.

5. Create insanely different experiences -   Jobs created many product innovations but he also innovated around the customer service experience.  The Apple store concept was not about moving boxes but about enriching peoples lives.  As a result Apple stores make more money per square foot than any other retailer and they are packed morning to night.

6. Master the message - Great ideas are nothing if they can't be communicated.  Steve Jobs is the world's greatest corporate storyteller.  His presentations informed, educated, inspired and entertained.  Steve Jobs thought visually, his presentation slides used very few words.  People remember information better when it's presented with words and pictures.

7. Sell dreams, not products - Steve Jobs captured our imagination because he really understood his customer.  Your customers don't care about your product, they care about themselves, their hopes, their ambitions.  If you help your customers reach their dreams, you'll win them over.

ACTION POINT: Get your Apple on.

Empowering the Sales Force

Distributors can achieve these goals with SFA (Sales Force Automation) applications,


Supplier’s expectations concerning the availability of downstream information are increasing—a situation that demands more from the wholesaler-distributor’s sales force. As a result, the sales force’s ability to monitor, capture, and communicate customer activity and inventory levels—and report on local market conditions and trends—is becoming more and more valuable.

Distributors can achieve these goals with SFA (Sales Force Automation) applications, which also enhance their ability to ensure that their own sales force and any agents have the latest information about products, prices, promotions, order status, order history, credit quality, and market conditions.

Assessing sales force productivity is also viewed as the most important activity among distributors. Given the premium customers place on receiving value from their supplier, it is incumbent upon distributors to provide their sales force personnel with the tools and techniques they need to excel in their jobs and to measure their effectiveness and efficiency.

ACTION POINT: Identify the technology tools that will equip your sales team with the latest information and track their productivity.