There are two big sports seasons in Texas: football and spring football. Last Saturday, the University of Texas played its annual Orange-White scrimmage. New head coach Charlie Strong made three …

March Madness is over. So is the first quarter of 2014. What’s your score? My survey of 6,000 executives worldwide shows that most organizations do a poor job of tracking performance. …

This post was first published in 2014, and is being re-posted due to popular response at the time. It’s a busy time of year. If your fiscal year ends Dec. …

This Sunday is Groundhog Day. It’s a custom begun in the 18th century among Pennsylvanians who brought this tradition from Germany: a groundhog that sees his shadow returns to his …

Forty years ago this month, sweet little old Clara Peller became a worldwide cultural icon when, in a TV commercial for Wendy’s, she received a hamburger that was mostly bun …

Happy New Year! And welcome to National Change Month, the time of the year when we get fired up about changing our lives. As you contemplate the changes you’ll commit …

Today’s the end of 2013. Looking back, what accomplishment brought you the greatest sense of fulfillment? A CEO and I were chatting over a glass of wine when he shared …

Professional football teams have just two games to play in their regular season. A few teams will advance to the playoffs.  Most will think back on another season squandered. Inside …

The leadership teams I work with run successful organizations. They are good at what they do and want to get better. When I lead strategic planning sessions, one of the …

The following includes excerpts from Accountability: The Key to Driving a High-Performance Culture, Greg Bustin’s latest must-read book for leaders that will be published February 2014 by McGraw-Hill.   There …

Halloween is in two days. Here are three sets of scary questions leaders should be prepared to answer from their team: Do we have the people on our team we …

One hundred years ago this month the Panama Canal opened, making it possible for ships to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through the Isthmus of Panama in half …

Every year, companies make huge mistakes during their strategic planning sessions. These mistakes result in frustration, lost dollars and another missed chance to get it right. This year, avoid those …

Most plans fail. Plans rarely fail because of misguided strategy or a lack of good ideas.  If anything, organizations have a bad habit of putting too many good ideas in …

Summer’s here and that means vacations are here, too. Will your organization maintain its momentum during summer, or will your plans slow down or fall behind as your talented team …

Strategic Planning Tips Learned from America’s Forefathers In two days – July 4 – Americans celebrate Independence Day. This national holiday commemorates the passage by the Second Continental Congress in …

How to Be a Smart Leader Spring is here, ushering in a new season of growth. Are you green and growing? Are you and your colleagues continuous learners? Are you …

The first quarter of 2013 will be gone in five days. It’s been 86 days since New Year’s Eve, and most New Year’s Resolutions have been forgotten. As you prepare …

Spring training has begun for major league baseball. Every team starts the year focused on the same objective: become a World Series champion. To win it all, teams must win …

In the last six weeks I led strategic planning sessions for three successful companies in Maryland, Florida and North Carolina. Three different industries. Three different cultures. Three different sets of …