260: Detect and Eliminate Organizational Sabotage, with Bob Frisch and Cary Greene

Bob Frisch and Cary Greene: Simple Sabotage For over 30 years, Bob Frisch has worked with Senior Executive Teams and Boards on their most vital strategic and organizational challenges, both as a consultant and a corporate executive. Cary Greene has over 20 years’ experience working with senior executives and boards on challenging and complex strategic issues. They are co-authors of the book Simple Sabotage: A Modern Field Guide for Detecting and Rooting Out Everyday Behaviors That Undermine Your Workplace*. Key Points When creating a book on how to sabotage an occupying enemy’s industry, the OSS (precursor to the CIA) recommended a list of organizational sabotage techniques. Ironically, these techniques look very similar to common actions we see in our organizations today. Committees Make sure a committee is appropriate for the task. What is the purpose of a committee? Who actually needs to be on a committee? Make sure committees are structured and have an agenda. Make it clear what authority the leader of the committee has. Is the committee being asked to make a recommendation or asked to make a decision? Emails Overusing the CC function in emails creates an overwhelming and unnecessary amount of communication. Remember that sometimes it’s best to just pick up the phone or walk down the hall to communicate with someone. Use the email subject line effectively. Resources Mentioned Simple Sabotage Field Manual (1944) Simple Sabotage: A Modern Field Guide for Detecting and Rooting Out Everyday Behaviors That Undermine Your Workplace* Join the Weekly Leadership Guide Get each episode's show notes and Dave's handpicked resources for leadership in your inbox each Wednesday. Plus, get instant access to Dave's readers' guide listing the 10 leadership books that will help you get better results from others. Join at http://coachingforleaders.com/subscribe Related Library Episodes CFL74: The Importance Of Communication In A Family Business CFL144: How We Do Things Around Here To Get Results CFL210: How to Tame Workplace Incivility Next Episode Bonni and I return for the monthly question and answer show. Submit your question for consideration next week or for the first question and answer show the first Monday of every month at http://coachingforleaders.com/feedback