One of the biggest challenges I see in the IT world today is the inability for techies/analysts/managers to be able to make meaningful change happen in their organization.  The typical story goes something like this, in a moment of brilliant insight; you come up with an idea to make a meaningful impact at your company. That idea could be anything from adding workforce management software in the contact center to simply hiring a developer.

In the early 1900s the workforce as we knew it went through a major disruption. We went from artisans producing masterpieces to factories that produced similar goods, but much cheaper and a lot faster.

I just finished watching John Kotter (Professor of Leadership, Emeritus Harvard Business School and author of an entire bookshelf full of books on change) talk about his new book Buy In. There are some takeaways for IT.

As I think back on one of the greatest innovators the world has ever known, I believe there is learning opportunity for IT professionals.

I’d never been to an NFL game until a couple of years ago.  CPI installed the phone system in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.  I was a member of the project team.  As a result, I was awarded tickets to a Colts game.  I also got to attend a game last season.  Wow – what incredible experiences.  The stadium was rocking – loud – enthusiastic – electric.  People were screaming, stamping their feet, and standing for every Colt’s play.  The fans even cheered for the silly little contests that were played by Blue, the Colt’s mascot, during time-outs!  They were truly awesome events to attend!

I was leafing through the pages of the latest Harvard Business Review the other day and caught a glimpse of an article by Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos on going to extremes for customers. In case you haven’t heard, Zappos’ remarkable reputation for extreme customer service has been key in taking in from 1.6M in revenue in 2000 to 1.2B in 2009, yes, that’s Billion with a “B”. Oh, and by the way, it’s harder to get a job at Zappos than it is to be accepted into Harvard University!

It’s March Madness and I’ve been talking about basketball.  In my last post, I talked about wanting to win.  Do your agents know your game plan?  What do they have to do every day to win?

March Madness is in full swing here in Indianapolis.  We Hoosiers are basketball crazy!  It all leads up to Final Four weekend to be played right here at Lucas Oil Stadium.  It is an exciting time for fans.

We are basketball crazy in Indiana…and especially this time of the year.  Indianapolis will have the privilege of hosting the NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four this year.  We’ve all done our brackets and we are cheering for our team.  It’s a fun time of year.

I am an optimist.  I believe in people.  I love being in a leadership position where I can have the opportunity to push people to develop themselves and achieve things they never thought possible.  Many years ago, a career counselor told me that I should be prepared for the “fact” that my “Pollyanna” approach to working with people wouldn’t always be successful.