Category Archives: Management Thoughts

Senior executives are frequently disconnected with reality. The most toxic manifestation of this disconnection is a phenomenon called “Management by Playing Chicken”: it causes company demises and also career derailments. The big shot is under duress, he examines the options … Continue reading →

Years ago, I wrote about the general etiquette on quitting. It was really autobiographical; I was resigning from my job then. The spirit of that process was simple: keep it professional. It is easier said than done. Since then, I … Continue reading →

Program Managers own the list, probably not anything on the list, but the list itself. Owning means to make sure the items on the list got checked. Every now and then, they go back to the beginning and check them … Continue reading →

Anti-discrimination are laws. As a manager, it is illegal to consider actions toward employees based on the “protected classes.” Legally, it is OK to discriminate those who are not in one of those classes. But they have expanded to cover … Continue reading →

I have fell into this trap several times, each time it took considerable effort to crawl out, with scars visible to date. Never run away from your current job, however intolerable it is. Always run toward a better opportunity, whatever … Continue reading →

New managers actually do not know how to “command and control.” Heck, many experienced ones don’t either. The class trap is to be explicit on the procedure and process. Do this, then do that, talk to that guy, then do … Continue reading →