A few months ago, I found myself in an odd situation. I was about 45 feet below the surface in the waters off Montego Bay, Jamaica. And I needed a calculator. I was completing a course on underwater navigation for recreational divers. After successfully showing all the skills I needed…

I just finished reading a book about reading. It made me think. It made me change some of my own behaviors. It made me want to share. That book is Read to Lead: The Simple Habit That Expands Your Influence and Boosts Your Career by Jeff Brown and Jesse Wisnewski. …

I recently had a phone consult with a small non-profit on their strategic planning process. We talked about their mission and their vision. We talked about their goals and the innovative ways they wanted to reach those goals. We talked about their real challenge — building a plan to transform…

The interviews are over. You combed through 250 resumes. You interviewed maybe a half dozen. But now you have to decide. Who do you hire? Do you hire anyone? How do you compare the performance of the candidates across all the dimensions you are considering and identify the best hire…

Many many years ago when I was managing software development at a small startup, I struggled to find developers who could develop software. The candidates had the right skills on their resumes. The candidates answered the questions we asked. But they just weren’t up to the daily responsibility of writing…

You have a great job description that articulates both the functional and non-functional requirements for the job you are filling. You’ve narrowed down the 250 resumes to the half-dozen you want to interview. Now you have a candidate in front of you and you get to ask questions to determine…

According to Glassdoor, a corporate job opening will attract an average of 250 resumes. Of those resumes, between four and six candidates will get an interview and one will get a job. That’s a lot of resumes to read. …

Before you interview a job candidate, you need to understand the job you are interviewing them for. You need to understand the requirements of the job you are interviewing them for. The natural place to start for job requirements is the job description. I know you’ve seen job descriptions. You…

Not long ago I led a session on strategy as part of the Arts and Business Council of Nashville’s Arts Nonprofit Nuts and Bolts program. I really enjoy these sessions because they give me the opportunity to connect with people passionate about making a difference in the world and who…