“As a physician, we are taught that learning and education never stop - they are lifelong. I think education comes in various forms: formal, informal, and most importantly, experiential. All of this defines who we are and gives us if you will our abilities to function as leaders. I believe all of those pieces constitute formal education - it is invaluable to who we are and how well we perform.” ThinkingGivingBelieveI BelieveAbilityLeaderVariousLifelong Author:James Merlino
“You frequently hear the phrase "culture eats strategy for lunch!" This is something that they don't teach you in school and few leaders appreciate. Cultural influences come at you from two different directions. There is the organizational culture that you must understand if you are to impact significant strategic initiatives. If the "people" are on board, you can achieve anything. Vice versa if they are not - you will not achieve anything.” PeopleDifferentSchoolCultureLeaderTeachInfluenceAchieveAppreciateStrategySignificantInitiativeOrganizational Author:James Merlino
“I have participated as a leader in many organizations where the leadership culture was just mean - ugly, where competitiveness, and destructive relationships stymied progress. There should be healthy tension and candid debate, but leadership teams need to practice communication, relationship building, emotional intelligence, and be aligned around common purpose to achieve organizational success. Senior leaders, chief executive officers, others need to ensure they are fostering the right environment for leadership otherwise all of that ugliness will trickle through the organization.” MeanPurposeCultureCommonLeaderEnvironmentProgressTeamAchieveBuildingEmotionalCommunicationHealthyUglyDebateTensionSeniorUglinessCompetitivenessOrganizational Author:James Merlino