Eric Jacobson On Management And Leadership

If you serve on a nonprofit Board, are the executive director for a nonprofit, or are responsible for raising funds for your nonprofit,  The Nonprofit Fundraising Solution ,  book by  Laurence A. Pagnoni  is a must-read for you. Pagnoni bridges the gap between theory and practical methods and shows you (often via  real-life case studies)  how to: increase your access to wealthy donors raise your community profile stretch gifts operate major campaigns avoid revenue plateaus create a fundraising culture within your organization take specific actions if your Board's core strength isn't fundraising conduct challenge gift campaigns integrate social media into your existing fundraising methods create a planned giving program When it comes to transforming prospects into donors, Pagnoni suggests you follow these basic five steps: Get to know your prospect Get your prospect involved Ask for a small gift of financial support Ask them to open their network of contacts...

Here's a good definition of the  difference between a  mission and a vision  by leadership book authors George Bradt, Jayme A. Check and Jorge Pedraza: Mission  - A mission guides what people do every day.  It informs what roles need to exist in the organization. Vision  - A vision is the picture of future success.  It helps define areas where the organization needs to be best in class and helps keep everyone aware of the essence of the company.

Here is some great advice from the book,  Anticipate, the Art of Leading by Looking Ahead ,  by  Rob-Jan De Jong . Use these 13 energizing verbs more often when communicating: Discover  (instead of See) Explore  (instead of Discuss) Radiate  (instead of Display) Uncover  (instead of Show) Transform  (instead of Change) Engage  (instead of Involve) Mobilize  (instead of Gather) Stretch  (instead of Develop) Boost  (instead of Increase) Propel  (instead of Move) Deliver  (instead of Give) Grasp  (instead of Understand) Connect  (instead of Join)

A successful sales force transformation can mean increased revenue, increased sales productivity, and reduced cost of sales. But, up to seventy-five percent of attempted transformations fail, according to the authors of the book,  7 Steps To Sales Transformation - Driving Sustainable Change In Your Organization . Transformation failures are often a result of an organization that neglects to address the human factor (skepticism, resistance, avoidance). Equally important, transformations must focus on truly transforming and not merely making tweaks. Authors  Warren Shiver  and  Michael Perla  use their own experiences transforming sales organizations, the lessons they learned from a host of interviewed sales professionals, and original, quantitative research to show readers how to  transform and modernize  a sales force -- including ones that are typically intrinsically resistant to change. The recommended transformation  seven steps  are defin...

Former University of Kansas head basketball coach  Roy Williams  once told  U.S. News and World Report   magazine that there are  three things that coaches as leaders must do to drive success : "Have everyone on the team focus on the same goal."  And, the leader must effectively communicate that goal to the team. "Emphasize those goals every day." "Understand that although everyone has a common goal, individuals also have goals, needs and dreams that must be cared for." According to Williams, in a commentary he wrote for the magazine, the third point is the most challenging to address and where leadership may be the most critical. And, I totally agree. Therefore, if you lead a team at work or within an organization, one of the best ways to work with each of your team players is to  tailor your motivation techniques  for each individual, and then  be prepared to tweak those techniques  if necessary as each person grows. Williams was ...

"It takes more than encouraging words to get a team thinking beyond the ordinary," explains  Jackie Barretta , author of the book,  Primal Teams . She suggests you must help team members to redefine the purpose of their work with broader and more expansive thinking. Use certain pointed questions to guide a team toward a loftier view of their purpose. Specifically, Barretta recommends you as the leader  ask the following purpose-broadening questions to encourage the team to think of providing value beyond the ordinary : What major contributions can our team make to the company's success? What do we do that makes our colleagues and customers happy? What does our work do to give our company a competitive advantage? What do we do that no one else can do? What legacy do we want to leave? What future possibilities excite us? What difference does our work make in the lives of others?

Stumped for what business books to add to your fall reading list? Here are  five must-read books for leaders  well worth adding to your list: Lead With A Story  -- A Guide To Crafting Business Narratives That Captivate, Convince, and Inspire . Author Paul Smith explains why storytelling has emerged as a vital skill for every leader and manager. In the book, you'll find over 100 ready-made stories you can use as templates to tell your stories. Stories are so powerful because they are simple, timeless, demographic-proof, contagious, easy to remember and inspiring. Most important, they put the listener in a mental learning mode. What's The Future Of Business? (WTF?)  -- Changing The Way Businesses Create Experiences . This book, by Brain Solis, details the incredible transformation happening in business today, driven by new social and mobile technologies. And, he explains how experience design helps your business and how you can harness its power for business growt...

Good books I like to share. Really good books I like to share with lots of people. And,  Nathan Magnuson ’s latest book,  StandOut! Become a Young Professional Who Wins at Work and Life , is a really good book you, and lots of people, should know about.  Written by a humble, wise, insightful millennial, Magnuson provides a timely resource to help young professionals excel in the workplace and beyond.  Call it a blueprint, handbook, guide or manual,  Stand Out!  is a must-read for young professionals early in their career, for recent college graduates, and for workplace leaders respectfully guiding and coaching the young professionals within their organizations.  Stand Out!  also makes for a good gift from a parent or life/business coach and is perfect for a millennial’s book club.  Magnuson tells it like it is, provides clear, practical, actionable advice and speaks with authenticity and in a conversational style that will resonate with young...

Eric Harvey and Al Lucia wrote a booklet called,  144 Ways To Walk The Talk . They provide the following great advice about giving feedback: 1. Make it  timely  -- give your feedback as soon as possible to the performance. 2. Make it  individualized  -- tailor your feedback to the feedback receiver. 3. Make it  productive  -- focus your feedback on the performance and not the  performer . 4.  Make  is  specific  -- pinpoint for the receiver observable actions and behaviors.

Be Decisive A manager who can't make a decision or who can't make a timely decision will frustrate his/her employees. Equally bad, a lack of decision will impede the  progress  of the manager's team. Some managers make endless requests for data as a way to postpone their having to make a decision. Employees end up spinning in circles, slicing and dicing the information far beyond what is truly needed for the manager to make a decision. Some managers are simply afraid to make a decision in fear of making a "wrong" decision. These managers don't necessarily request needless data, but simply just never made a decision. Successful managers (true leaders) gather the data from their employees, make any necessary follow-up requests (probing beyond what their employee may have researched/gathered on their own), and then make their decision...knowing that in virtually all cases most decisions are not black and white "right or "wrong," but are the best de...

I really appreciate author  Valerie M. Grubb 's broader than typical definition of  work ethic for leaders , as she details it in her book,  Clash of the Generations . Here is what she says defines  work ethic for leaders : Honest . Be truthful in your dealings with employees, vendors, customers, and anyone else with whom you come in contact on behalf of the company. Full of Integrity . Maintain high-quality standards despite schedule pressures. Demonstrate and uphold values and principles that create a climate of trust. Law-abiding . Act within the statutes of the law and the company's rules and regulations. Trustworthy . Speak the truth even when no one else does. Be candid and forthcoming. Give credit freely for others' accomplishments. Stand by your commitments and own up to your mistakes.  Fair . Be fair and just in dealings with employees. Value and support diversity and inclusion across the board. Respectful of others . Display grace under pressure and do...

Roger Fulton ’s book, Common Sense Management , offers this quick and easy-to-remember explanation of the three categories of management responsibilities :  Supervision : Overseeing the work of other people. That means making sure that they do their work and meet the goals and deadlines as expected.  Management : Bringing people and things together to be sure that the job gets done on time. It requires getting people, equipment, and parts to the right place at the right time, so it all comes together as a final and complete package.  Leadership : Having the vision to look ahead and know where you and your team are headed in the future and getting everyone on board to help you all get here. To be a successful leader, you must also be a successful supervisor and manager.

  How To Become A Rainmaker  is a quick, instructional book that reveals the rules for getting and keeping customers and clients. Written by  Jeffrey J. Fox , the handbook format provides you the best approaches to take to become a true rainmaker – one who brings clients, money, business, or even intangible prestige to an organization.  One of the real gems in the book is Fox’s  The Rainmaker’s Credo , which includes:  Cherish customers at all times. Treat customers as you would your best friend. Listen to customers and decipher their needs. Make (or give) customers what they need. Teach customers to want what they need. Make your product the way customers want it. Get your product to your customers when they want it. Give your customers a little extra, more than they expect. Thank each customer sincerely and often.

According to a survey as reported in John Baldoni’s book,  Lead with Purpose , more than  80 percent  of those surveyed say that  leaders can best demonstrate that they truly do put people first by : Delivering intrinsic awards (comp time, bonuses, etc.).  Offering developmental opportunities.  Providing timely recognition.  Promoting from within.

Here are some tips for leaders responsible for writing an effective annual report for their non profit organization. Consider making these  objectives  for your report: To demonstrate accomplishments ( not activities ) ( results  and how you did it). To recognize important people (volunteers, donors, major funders, partners). To provide an account of your organization's work for the past year. To share your mission with a wide audience. To generate new donations, retain donors and grow partnerships. Consider these  audience sectors  when writing your report: Donors Volunteers Community leaders Future board members Supporters (in-kind) Elected officials  Potential partners, grant funding entities Allow  three to four months to prepare your report : Create and outline Gather an organize content Engage your management team Design Review/Proof Print Distribute Consider packaging your report with a  theme , such as one of these: Transformation Day in ...

Fortunately, I've benefited from having great mentors throughout my career. And, I've have the honor and good fortune to be a mentor, both formally and informally, for various individuals the past few decades. Mentoring is powerful. Both being a mentor. And, being mentored. That's why I became an instant fan of the book,  One Minute Mentoring: How to Find and Work With a Mentor -- and Why You'll Benefit from Being One . The book presents a fictional parable about the power of finding, or being, a mentor. In what is about a one- to two-hour read, you'll gain knowledge and easy-to-use tools for  how to find and leverage mentoring relationships . Ken Blanchard You'll also learn why developing effective communication and relationships  across generations  through mentoring can be a tremendous opportunity for companies and individuals alike. Bestselling author,  Ken Blanchard, Ph.D . teamed up with  Claire Diaz-Ortiz  to write  One Minute Mentoring . B...

If you want to create a heart culture and a people-first culture at your workplace, read the book,  Advisory Leadership , by  Greg Friedman .   Although the book is authored by an award-winning financial advisor and primarily written for professionals in the financial services industry, this book is a must read for any leader who wants to create a nurturing  heart culture  that hinges on the human-centric values the next generation of employees hold in high regard. And, what exactly is  heart culture ? Friedman says, "At its core, heart culture symbolizes how a company values more than just an employee's output. It's not about the work, but rather, the  people  who do the work." He further explains that leaders can no longer afford to ignore the shift toward a people-first culture and its direct influence on a healthy, effective work environment. Friedman teaches that there are  seven steps , based on human virtues we all strive to achieve, t...

Earlier this year brought the book,  Create The Future: Tactics For Disruptive Thinking ,  by J eremy Gutsche , CEO of Trend Hunter. Flip the book over, and you have Gutsche’s updated and expanded, bestselling,  Exploiting Chaos , book now called,  The Innovation Handbook , featuring memorable real-world case studies and plenty of thought-provoking questions to inspire next steps for innovation. It's the ideal guide to turn your big idea into a reality. Gutsche shares that,  Create The Future , "is a book about Disruptive Thinking, so it makes sense that it shouldn't follow conventional norms. That led me to create a double-sided book, where the first part is all about resetting your expectations and learning how to make change happen. Once you are primed for change, you can flip it over to read,  The Innovation Handbook , and began the journey to finding your big idea. He adds, "however, another way to think about this is that I don't think you can tr...

According to  entrepreneur and author   Margaret Hefferman , as reported a few years ago in  Inc.  magazine, the  secrets of the most productive people are that they do these three things : They  take breaks . Breaks refresh the mind and allow you to see new situations.  They  are   great collaborators .  They  have lives outside work . In fact, the most successful have rich private lives that include interests that hone different skills and that let them think in different ways.

Today, we look back to 2016 : 2016 brought the much anticipated release of  Paul Smith 's book,  Sell with a Story: How to Capture Attention, Build Trust, and Close the Sale . I'm a big fan of Paul's earlier best-sellers, including  Lead with a Story  and  Parenting with a Story . And, the newest installment in the series is equally good, informative, practical and actionable. If you have not read it, please do. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with procurement managers, Paul  teaches you how to : Select the right story Craft a compelling and memorable narrative Incorporate challenge, conflict, and resolution Use stories to introduce yourself, build rapport, address objections, add value, bring data to life,  and create a sense of urgency Storytelling definitely works in sales, explains Paul, "because a great story changes everything. It causes buyers to put down their defenses. It helps them relax. It engages their minds and their hearts by appealing...