Dan Lagani, New York Times; Keep Management Simple:
"I feel as if I’ve spent the last 25 years getting ready for what I’m doing now. During that time, I’ve found that simplicity is crucial in running a business, from keeping your mind open to ideas that present themselves in everyday life to ensuring that your processes are straightforward. It’s a matter of paring complex problems to the essentials."
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Do You Share Our Goals? Sign Our Constitution; New York Times, 2/18/12
Adam Bryant, Corner Office, New York Times; Interview with Steve Stoute, chief executive of Translation LLC, an ad agency: Do You Share Our Goals? Sign Our Constitution:
"Q. How do you make sure people are aligned?
A. Well, the companies have clear mission statements, and we have clear goals and objectives that are outlined, and there’s a way in which we want to achieve those goals. There’s a specific way in which I want growth in my companies to happen and take place. To me, that’s where it starts. I have to be crystal clear. They then have to be clear that they understand the mission, and then we can look at each other in the eye and judge each other for how we move forward. If then I start seeing people going off of the track and having their own belief systems, then it’s very clear that somebody is blatantly not aligned to the mission even though they said they were.
Sometimes, I would even go as far as to have people sign a group document — almost like a constitution — so that everybody is aligned around the mission statement, so everybody knows what they’re responsible for. I’m very upfront, I expect the best, and I hold people accountable for everything that comes out of their mouth. Don’t say you’re going to do something and not do it, because in a company of this size, everybody is directly responsible for the person next to them."
"Q. How do you make sure people are aligned?
A. Well, the companies have clear mission statements, and we have clear goals and objectives that are outlined, and there’s a way in which we want to achieve those goals. There’s a specific way in which I want growth in my companies to happen and take place. To me, that’s where it starts. I have to be crystal clear. They then have to be clear that they understand the mission, and then we can look at each other in the eye and judge each other for how we move forward. If then I start seeing people going off of the track and having their own belief systems, then it’s very clear that somebody is blatantly not aligned to the mission even though they said they were.
Sometimes, I would even go as far as to have people sign a group document — almost like a constitution — so that everybody is aligned around the mission statement, so everybody knows what they’re responsible for. I’m very upfront, I expect the best, and I hold people accountable for everything that comes out of their mouth. Don’t say you’re going to do something and not do it, because in a company of this size, everybody is directly responsible for the person next to them."
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Ambitious NYPL Renovation Back on Track; LibraryJournal.com, 2/17/12
Meredith Schwartz, LibraryJournal.com; Ambitious NYPL Renovation Back on Track:
"The New York Public Library is restarting its plan to revamp the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street."
"The New York Public Library is restarting its plan to revamp the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street."
Judge Blocks Simi Valley from Privatizing, For Now; LibraryJournal.com, 2/17/12
Meredith Schwartz, LibraryJournal.com; Judge Blocks Simi Valley from Privatizing, For Now:
"Ventura County Superior Court Judge Henry Walsh temporarily blocked Simi Valley from contracting with a private company to run its library. Although the city expects to receive proposals to run the library by the end of February, on February 7th, Walsh ruled that the city cannot contract with a private library services company such as Library Systems & Services (LSSI), which already runs two nearby libraries, until the case’s next hearing. At that hearing, on April 9, the plaintiffs will seek a preliminary injunction."
"Ventura County Superior Court Judge Henry Walsh temporarily blocked Simi Valley from contracting with a private company to run its library. Although the city expects to receive proposals to run the library by the end of February, on February 7th, Walsh ruled that the city cannot contract with a private library services company such as Library Systems & Services (LSSI), which already runs two nearby libraries, until the case’s next hearing. At that hearing, on April 9, the plaintiffs will seek a preliminary injunction."
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Always Be Proud to List ‘Waitress’ on Your Résumé: Interview with Amy Astley, editor in chief of Teen Vogue; New York Times, 2/4/12
Adam Bryant, Corner Office, New York Times; Interview with Amy Astley, editor in chief of Teen Vogue; Always Be Proud to List ‘Waitress’ on Your Résumé:
"Q. How do you find out about their work ethic?
A. You can get some of it off the résumé. You can call the people where they interned and find out what they were like. I also find that if you ask someone in an interview, “Are you a morning person?” the truth always flickers across their face, no matter what they say.
But, as I said, it also comes out in the résumé. I’ll see someone who was a waitress for many summers and I’ll say, “Well, tell me about that.” In today’s upwardly mobile résumé, you don’t always see that. You often see kids who’ve never had a job. But I love seeing someone who scooped ice cream or was a waitress. To me, it means they had to make some money and they had a job dealing with the public. And what was that all about? Tell me about it.
I had jobs like that, too, when I was a kid. I respect it. I respect all forms of work, and I don’t see it on a lot of résumés anymore. If I do see someone has had those kinds of jobs, that doesn’t necessarily mean they have a good work ethic, but it’s a jumping-off point where we can talk about it."
"Q. How do you find out about their work ethic?
A. You can get some of it off the résumé. You can call the people where they interned and find out what they were like. I also find that if you ask someone in an interview, “Are you a morning person?” the truth always flickers across their face, no matter what they say.
But, as I said, it also comes out in the résumé. I’ll see someone who was a waitress for many summers and I’ll say, “Well, tell me about that.” In today’s upwardly mobile résumé, you don’t always see that. You often see kids who’ve never had a job. But I love seeing someone who scooped ice cream or was a waitress. To me, it means they had to make some money and they had a job dealing with the public. And what was that all about? Tell me about it.
I had jobs like that, too, when I was a kid. I respect it. I respect all forms of work, and I don’t see it on a lot of résumés anymore. If I do see someone has had those kinds of jobs, that doesn’t necessarily mean they have a good work ethic, but it’s a jumping-off point where we can talk about it."
Friday, February 3, 2012
Zuckerberg Remains the Undisputed Boss at Facebook; New York Times, 2/2/12
Somini Sengupta, New York Times; Zuckerberg Remains the Undisputed Boss at Facebook:
"Mr. Zuckerberg’s success is an object lesson in what works in crowded, competitive Silicon Valley: Remain in charge, stave off potential predators and expand the company so quickly that no one can challenge the boss."
"Mr. Zuckerberg’s success is an object lesson in what works in crowded, competitive Silicon Valley: Remain in charge, stave off potential predators and expand the company so quickly that no one can challenge the boss."
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