A former General Mills executive, Marc Belton, discussed three P’s: Perks, Privilege, and Power in an interview with Dallas Theological Seminary. Let’s discuss each of those this week beginning with Perks. As a young banker I once presented a loan request for a country club to our loan committee. The CEO was so excited he pronounced to the entire room […]

At times, I’ve risked my livelihood to start a new organization, but I’ve never risked my life like Christopher Columbus did when he went exploring. Even if Columbus’ premise of reaching the East Indies by sailing west had been correct, it was uncertain whether they would have adequate supplies, time, or weather. They took a big risk! In 2 Corinthians […]

Recently, I was researching the ethics of “bluffing” in business. Albert Carr wrote an article in Harvard Business Review about this very subject that stunned me with the depth of Mr. Carr’s rationalization for poor behavior. He contended that “business is a game and that anything is fair in a game, if it doesn’t violate the law.” He believed that […]

Competition in business may be commonplace, but some can take it to extremes. Bill Reneau is allegedly one of those people. Mr. Reneau owns a business called Gold Rush Exchange. One of his former employees started a competing business called Bobby Jackson’s Trading. Reneau must not have appreciated the competition. He was recently arrested for hiring a man to drive […]

Geoffrey Owens, better known as Elvin on the “Cosby Show,” experienced hard times after the Cosby Show reruns were cancelled due to Bill Cosby’s legal troubles. To feed his family and continue his acting career, Geoffrey began sacking groceries at Trader Joe’s. Unfortunately, someone posted a picture of Geoffrey working at Trader Joe’s, resulting in an article that he felt […]

Vicki Heath, a flight attendant for Southwest Airlines, befriended Tracy Sharp on a flight to Houston. On that flight, Tracy, a woman with Down Syndrome, shared with Vicki her dream of being a flight attendant. Vicki began calling Southwest personnel for approval to help fulfill Tracy’s dream to become a flight attendant. Weeks later, on a flight from Sacramento to […]

For several weeks one of the overhead lights in my office area had dimmed dramatically. Although I knew it needed replaced, I grew accustomed to the darker setting. One evening, maintenance changed the light. The next morning, I was amazed as to how well I could see my work. It not only gave me a better view; the changed light […]

A team without a functioning overseer will lack the necessary oversight to care adequately for their customers. This became evident when I took my son to a Wendy’s restaurant recently. The young male clerk was busy ringing up customers as fast as possible. The cooks were cranking out sandwiches, and the manager was totally absorbed with the drive-up window. Everyone […]

The hard thing for many to grasp about the “Me Too Movement” is why these women did not speak up sooner? A professional woman who has been at high levels in corporate America recently shared with me her perspective. She stated that women serious about their vocation come to realize that speaking-up has been typically a death wish to their […]

There are times when a good employee suddenly becomes disengaged. They begin putting in the minimum hours possible. Their work gets sloppy and assigned tasks go undone. Susan David, in a past Harvard Business Review article, has three great ideas for engaging the disengaged: She recommends assigning the disengaged workers more authority and responsibility. She suggests learning from your most […]