Change Management

When just playing defense isn’t enough

December 17, 2014
In October 2008, Fred Tomczyk spent his first month as TD Ameritrade’s CEO under fire. He found himself running the financial services firm amid a punishing global economic crisis. But rather than retreat into survival mode, he decided to overhaul the firm’s business model.

Honeywell’s David Cote drafts top 12 behaviors

October 30, 2014
When David Cote became Honeywell’s CEO in 2002, it was in disarray. And so he listed 12 behaviors that he wanted everyone to follow. He felt that unifying the company around the be­­haviors would work better than articulating vague, hard-to-measure values.

Spot influencers with ‘snowball survey’

July 7, 2014
Many senior executives think they can spot key influencers. But they are often wrong, survey results show. Use a snowball sampling to find out who those people really are.

A ‘CEO factory’ grooms future leaders

June 24, 2014

Can a company grow too big to ­manage? Based in India, Tata Consultancy Services has about 285,000 employees and $11.6 billion in annual revenue. Its CEO, Natarajan Chandra­­sekaran, faces a daunting challenge: main­­tain­­ing the firm’s fast growth without letting it balloon into a bloated mess.

Handle change after a merger

May 1, 2014
Merging organizations—or even departments and teams—pose tough problems for leaders. Often, “our way” vs. “their way” culture clashes cripple employee productivity and morale. Step up and help new colleagues work together.

Sowing seeds of trust–slowly

April 3, 2014
After Charalambos Vlachoutsicos advised a private equity fund to invest in a Romanian flour mill, the real challenge began. Suspicious of the mill’s new owners, the Romanian employees worried they’d be laid off. Heeding a Romanian friend’s advice, Vlachoutsicos embraced transparency.

A new CEO asked just 4 questions

March 20, 2014
Within a week of Kevin Johnson becoming CEO of Juniper Networks in 2008, he met with all his direct reports in a group. He told them he wanted to listen and learn, so he asked four questions.

Leadership Tips: Vol. 214

February 25, 2014
Meet your future C-suite execs … A cautionary tale on change … A thumbs-down on meetings.

McMillon takes reins as CEO at Walmart

February 24, 2014
The world’s largest retailer, Walmart, has a new boss. Doug McMillon, an Arkansas native and head of the company’s international division, takes over this month from retiring CEO Mike Duke, who has been at the helm for five years and will remain on the board.

A lifelong learner keeps learning

February 6, 2014
When Brian Cornell became CEO of Sam’s Club in 2009, he had just spent a successful two years as CEO of Michaels Stores, an arts and crafts retail chain. But he had never run a membership warehouse company like Sam’s Club, a unit of Walmart …