Today I’m tackling one of the biggest challenges that business leaders face: how do you grow from a small, cool company into a large, cool one? When you’re small, it’s relatively easy to cultivate a vital company culture and establish a differentiated niche brand — but as you add more people, products, and/or places, it’s […]
Ron Johnson’s departure from J.C. Penney last week can be attributed to his low CQ, that is, Customer Quotient. Just as some leaders have been accused of low EQ, emotional quotient (defined as the ability to identify, assess, and control the emotions of oneself and of others), Johnson lacked the ability to identify, assess, and […]
brand-as-business bit: In Deadlines and Disruption, the memoir by Stephen B. Shepard, editor-in-chief of Businessweek from 1984 to 2005, Shepard writes about a conversation with Oz Elliott, former editor of Newsweek: He thought that institutions—whether magazines or companies—sometimes fail because of weak leadership. There is no vision or strategy. But sometimes, he said, even strong leaders with […]
Welcome to the last two videos in the series, “How to Build a Breakthrough Brand” – these 10 short sessions provide the tools and instruction you need to build a brand that breaks through the clutter and competition and helps build valuable relationships with your customers. […]
Fast-casual restaurant chain Firehouse Subs is…on fire! Founded by firemen, the 450+ unit chain had a record-breaking 2011 with increases in same-store sales, AUVs, restaurants opened, and donations made through its Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation. In today’s interview, CEO Don Fox joins me to share some of the secrets behind the brand’s success. It […]
brand-as-business bit: Last week, my guest post “Once Upon a Company” ran on upMover, the blog of UpMo, an employee-centric career management company. I wrote about the power of storytelling to engage employees. I realize that some business leaders may want to leverage internal storytelling but may not know how to do so. Here are a […]
A new definition of brand. Inspiring employees. My take on the Super Bowl ads and the new Taco Bell tagline. Check out my writings on these and other topics in the following “brand-as-business buffet,” a round-up of content from me from this past month. retail and restaurants: How to Keep ‘Em Coming Back — my […]
Today’s interview takes a peek behind the curtain at an extraordinary company, Patagonia. Patagonia is known worldwide as an outdoor clothing and gear brand, but I wanted to better understand the company’s retail strategy. Who better to ask than the head of marketing for the North America Retail Division at Patagonia, Vickie Achee. A twenty-plus […]
In the spirit of New York Times Magazine’s annual Year in Ideas, I’ve compiled an alphabetical digest of ideas, from A to Z, that I wrote, spoke, and passed along over the past 12 months. The following are excerpts — the original pieces linked. […]
What happens when a $2.1BB+ organization re-commits its 20,000+ people to its vision and values?! I got to find out last week when I attended “Extraordinary: The Power of Ten” the All-Staff Assembly put on by Sharp Healthcare. Thanks to a generous invitation from Mark Tomaszewicz, the director of The Sharp Experience, I got […]