Skip to main content

How To Lead Breakthrough Change Against Any Odds


David S. Pottruck's book, Stacking the Deck, teaches readers a nine-step course of action leaders can follow from the first realization that change is needed through all the steps of implementation, including assembling the right team of close advisors and getting the word out to the wider group.

This book tells the in-the-trenches stories of individuals who led bold, sweeping change. Stories that walk you through the social and emotional reality of leading others -- many of whom are fearful of change.

Stories from eBay President and CEO John Donahoe; Wells Fargo former CEO and Chairman Dick Kovacevich; Starbucks Chairman, President and CEO Howard Schultz; San Francisco Giants President and CEO Larry Baer; and Pinkberry CEO Ron Graves.

Part one of the book outlines the Stacking the Deck process -- the nine steps through which nearly every breakthrough change inevitably goes:
  1. Establishing the need to change and creating a sense of urgency.
  2. Recruiting and unifying your inner team.
  3. Developing and communicating a clear and compelling vision of the future.
  4. Anticipating, understanding, and planning to overcome potential barriers to success.
  5. Developing a clear, executable plan.
  6. Breaking the change initiative into manageable pieces.
  7. Defining metrics, developing analytics, and sharing results.
  8. Assessing, recruiting, and empowering the broader team.
  9. Piloting the implementation.
Part two covers the higher-order skills that are necessary for success in the process of leading breakthrough change.

This book will help you lead through any of these major changes:
  • Introduction of a new product.
  • Expansion into a new territory.
  • Downsizing.
Most important, Pottruck teaches readers how to learn to anticipate and to analyze logically and carefully; think creatively and embrace possibilities; learn what to prioritize, where to concentrate energy, and how to move forward while bringing others along with you.

David S. Pottruck

Pottruck is also coauthor of the bestselling Clicks and Mortar.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

10 Quotes From The 5 Levels Of Leadership -- John C. Maxwell

Soon I'll post my full review of John C. Maxwell's latest book, The 5 Levels of Leadership .  In the meantime, here are some of my favorites quotes from the book that I believe should become a must-read book by any workplace/organizational leader: Good leadership isn't about advancing yourself.  It's about advancing your team. Leaders become great, not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others. Leadership is action, not position. When people feel liked, cared for, included, valued, and trusted, they begin to work together with their leader and each other. If you have integrity with people, you develop trust.  The more trust you develop, the stronger the relationship becomes.  In times of difficulty, relationships are a shelter.  In times of opportunity, they are a launching pad. Good leaders must embrace both care and candor. People buy into the leader, then the vision. Bringing out the best in a person is often a catal...

How To Tap Into The Wisdom Of People Around You

“Too often, we don’t find out what’s truly on others’ hearts and minds because we don’t know how to  ask  the right questions in the right ways,” explains  Jeff Wetzler , author of the book,  ASK .   In his timely, must-read book, Wetzler shows you a powerful method called  The Ask Approach™ , based on a simple premise: that tapping into what other people truly think, know, and feel is a game-changing superpower for leaders.  Wetzler explains that the only thing that allows you to understand what’s on another person’s mind better is just asking them.   Following the powerful  The Ask Approach™  method will lead you to  smarter decisions, more creative solutions, and deeper relationships. Also, by asking more questions you’ll help break down barriers, resolve challenges, encourage collaboration, and imagine new ways of doing things.   The five practical steps of the research-based, pressure-tested  The Ask Approach™  m...

My Favorite Leadership Quotes From The 5 Levels Of Leadership Book

Here are some of my favorites quotes from   John C. Maxwell 's book,  The 5 Levels of Leadership  that I believe should become a   must-read book   by any workplace/organizational leader: Good leadership isn't about advancing yourself. It's about advancing your team. Leaders become great, not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others. Leadership is action, not position. When people feel liked, cared for, included, valued, and trusted, they begin to work together with their leader and each other. If you have integrity with people, you develop trust. The more trust you develop, the stronger the relationship becomes. In times of difficulty, relationships are a shelter.  In times of opportunity, they are a launching pad. Good leaders must embrace both care and candor. People buy into the leader, then the vision. Bringing out the best in a person is often a catalyst for bringing out the best in the team. Progress comes only from taki...

7 Honest-Feedback-Extracting-Questions To Ask When Hiring

Awhile ago, the  Harvard Business Review  published some great questions that  Gilt Groupe  CEO Kevin Ryan asks when he is checking references. Ryan serves on the board of Yale Corporation, Human Rights Watch, and  INSEAD , and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.  He holds a B.A. from Yale University and a M.B.A from INSEAD. His main seven honest-feedback-extracting-questions  (and follow-ups) are: Would you hire this person again?  If so, why and in what capacity?  If not, why not? How would you describe the candidate's ability to innovate, manage, lead, deal with ambiguity, get things done and influence others? What were some of the best things this person accomplished?  What could he or she have done better? In what type of culture, environment, and role can you see this person excelling?  In what type of role is he or she unlikely to be successful? Would you describe the candidate as a leader, a ...

Discover Your True North And Internal Compass

In his book,  True North , Bill George shows you how to discover your true north - your internal compass that guides you successfully through life. "Only when you discover your true north can you unlock your full potential as a leader and human being," explains George. In the book, published a couple weeks ago, George shares with you how to: Cultivate self-awareness Define your values Find the "sweet spots": of your motivated capabilities Build your support team and lead an integrated life Make the journey from "I' to "We" as an empowering leader Become a global leader Bill George George shares  profiles and stories from more than 100 leaders  who in their own words explain how they discovered their true north.  He also explains the characteristics differences needed to be a leader in the Twenty-First Century versus the Twentieth-Century. Today's leaders, he says need to be: Purpose-drive versus charismatic Globally focused versus U. S.-centri...

The 12 Ways Marriott Practices Good Leadership And Customer Service

The next time you stay at a Marriott hotel look in the nightstand drawer for Marriott's booklet that highlights its milestones and tells the Marriott story. In the booklet, you'll find the following 12 ways that Marriott practices good leadership AND customer service : Continually challenge your team to do better. Take good care of your employees, and they'll take good care of your customers, and the customers will come back. Celebrate your people's success, not your own. Know what you're good at and mine those competencies for all you're worth. Do it and do it now. Err on the side of taking action. Communicate. Listen to your customers, associates and competitors. See and be seen. Get out of your office, walk around, make yourself visible and accessible. Success is in the details. It's more important to hire people with the right qualities than with specific experience. Customer needs may vary, but their bias for quality never does. Elimin...

How To Provide Caring Criticism

Negative feedback is part of growing as a leader -- both delivering that feedback and sometimes receiving that type of feedback. Keith Ferrazzi , CEO of Ferazzi Greenlight , a research-based consulting and training company, suggests practicing " caring criticism ," as he explained it in the Harvard Business Review . "Negative feedback can hurt, but usually it's a gift aimed at helping the recipient improve performance or avoid mistakes.  We should deliver and receive it that way," says Ferrazzi. "Use phrases like 'I might suggest' and 'Think about this'" when giving feedback. And, then Kerrazzi suggests when receiving candid feedback, that you thank the person who offered it and make clear the points on which you agree.  He's found that if you think of the person giving you honest feedback as generous, rather than critical , you become less defensive and more open to changing your behavior.

How To Maximize Your Chances Of Landing The CEO Role

In the new book, CEO Ready , authors Mark Thompson and Byron Loflin reveal what you need to do to maximize your chances of being the one who secures the top spot. Specifically, they detail the seven key stakeholders  who weigh in on whether to choose you as CEO.   “Collectively, we have coached more than 200 executives who have been selected by their board members to become CEOs,” share the authors. “We can help you prepare to be a great CEO either in your current organization or elsewhere. We will share tools you can use to get objective feedback from all stakeholders, so you have complete visibility into what you’re up against.”   As you seek the CEO role, the authors explain that leadership selection isn't the methodical, objective process that one often imagines. They add that decisions aren't made by robotic executives ticking boxes for attributes such as strategic fit, core competencies, or cultural alignment. Instead, the process is deeply personal, emotional, a...

How to Be a Leader – 9 Principles from Dale Carnegie

Today, I welcome thought-leader Nathan Magnuson as guest blogger... Nathan writes : This is it, your first day in a formal leadership role.   You’ve worked hard as an individual contributor at one or possibly several organizations.   Now management has finally seen fit to promote you into a position as one of their own: a supervisor.   You don’t care if your new team is only one person or ten, you’re just excited that now – finally – you will be in charge! Unfortunately the euphoria is short-lived.   Almost immediately, you are not only overwhelmed with the responsibilities of a team, but you quickly find that your team members are not as experienced or adroit as you.   Some aren’t even as committed.   You find yourself having to repeat yourself, send their work back for corrections, and staying late to fill the gap.   If something doesn’t change soon, you might just run yourself into the ground.   How did something that looked so easy ...

The Ordinary Skills Of Exceptional Leaders

New York Times - bestselling author, chartered psychologist and Professor of Leadership at the University of Exeter Business School, John Amaechi , has released It’s Not Magic: The Ordinary Skills Of Exceptional Leaders .   It’s an important read for particularly managers, executives, board members, and other business leaders, and anyone else expected to motivate and inspire others to achieve great things.   The book walks you through the seemingly obvious but difficult-to-nail mindsets and intentions you’ll need to adopt to influence and motivate others. You’ll learn strategies and techniques you can apply immediately, including:   Easy-to-follow explanations of the straightforward behaviors you can model to improve your ability to lead others. Habits you can adopt immediately to motivate others in any setting, from the boardroom to the classroom or the battlefield. Data-driven insights into the tiny, little things that great leaders do every day and how to incorporate t...