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THE GENERAL MANAGER’S JOB: MYTHS, REALITIES & TIPS

THE GENERAL MANAGER’S JOB: MYTHS, REALITIES & TIPS. MICHAEL W. PICZAK Dipl.T., B.Comm., MBA. 11/16/00. THEY GO BY A VARIETY OF TITLES: Chairman of the Board President Division Manager Executive Director Managing Director Chief Executive Officer (CEO) General Manager (GM)

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THE GENERAL MANAGER’S JOB: MYTHS, REALITIES & TIPS

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  1. THE GENERAL MANAGER’S JOB: MYTHS, REALITIES & TIPS MICHAEL W. PICZAK Dipl.T., B.Comm., MBA 11/16/00

  2. THEY GO BY A VARIETY OF TITLES: Chairman of the Board President Division Manager Executive Director Managing Director Chief Executive Officer (CEO) General Manager (GM) Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) AND OTHER TITLES INCLUDING: Top Dog Big Kahuna Top Banana Grand Fromage The Big Guy The Big Shot Head Honcho SO WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE? Sam Walton, Walmart

  3. WHAT WE ARE TAUGHT... • PLAN • ORGANIZE • LEAD • MOTIVATE • CONTROL Amy Brinkley, President, Bank of America

  4. AND WE GROW UP TO BE • MARKETING MANAGERS • ACCOUNTING MANAGERS • OPERATIONS MANAGERS • HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGERS • AND SO ON… Jack Welch, General Electric

  5. THREE GENERIC SKILLS • TECHNICAL • HUMAN • CONCEPTUAL KATZ, HBR, 1958 William Clay Ford, Jr., Ford Motor Company

  6. HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO? YOU’LL FIGURE IT OUT… Joe & Tricia Camillo, Niko Apparel

  7. NEW BEHAVIOURS REQUIRED Ken Lay, Enron

  8. MYTH 1: YOU’RE THE BOSS, YOU GIVE THE ORDERS REALITY: • LEADERSHIP IS AS MUCH ABOUT PROVIDING VISION AND DIRECTION AS IT IS BUILDING CONSENSUS AROUND THAT DIRECTION • PEOPLE DO NOT RESPOND TO DICTATORSHIPS • SO YOU HAVE THE MARKET CORNERED ON ALL THE ANSWERS? Martha Stewart, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia

  9. MYTH 2: YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO LEAD– AFTER ALL, YOU ARE THE LEADER REALITY: • THERE IS A TIME FOR LEADERSHIP AND A TIME FOR FOLLOWERSHIP • THE ULTIMATE IN LEADERSHIP OCCURS WHEN SUBORDINATES, UPON COMPLETION OF A TASK, CLAIM THAT “THEY DID IT THEMSELVES” • DON’T CONFUSE CONTENT WITH PROCESS Betty Cohen, Cartoon Network

  10. MYTH 3: GO WITH PROGRAM AFTER PROGRAM, FOLLOWED BY PROGRAM FOLLOWED BY… REALITY • A MANY PROGRAMS APPROACH = FLAVOUR OF THE MONTH • TOO MANY PROGRAMS CONFUSE RATHER THAN CLARIFY • IN LONG RUN, AN ALPHABET SOUP APPROACH PROMOTES CYNICISM Steven Jobs, Apple Computers

  11. MYTH 4: THE MAIN FOCUS IS INTERNAL REALITY • CUSTOMERS ARE KEY • DUAL RESPONSIBILITY • POINT OF KEY CONTACT FOR THE ORGANIZATION Herb Kelleher, Southwest Airlines

  12. MYTH 5: STRATEGY IS SYSTEMATICALLY PLANNED & EXECUTED REALITY • RATHER THAN BEING A REFLECTIVE, SEQUENTIAL PROCESS, STRATEGIC PLANNING & EXECUTION IS OFTEN EMERGENT • MANY BENDS IN THE ROAD Anne Mulcahy, Xerox

  13. MYTH 6: THEY KNOW WHAT TO DO– THEY DON’T NEED ME TO TELL THEM REALITY • TOP PERSON SETS THE DIRECTION AND EXPECTATIONS • NOT SPECIFICS, BUT VALUES, MORAL GUIDEPOSTS, AND BROAD GOALS/OBJECTIVES Ron Foxcroft, Fox 40 Products

  14. SPECIALIST COSTS=FOCUS SHORTER TERM FUNCTIONAL MEASURES NARROWER SCOPE OPERATIONAL DECISIONS GENERALIST PROFITS=FOCUS LONGER TERM EFFECTIVENESS & EFFICIENCY BROADER SCOPE STRATEGIC DECISIONS MYTH 7: IT’S THE SAME AS BEFORE + A BIT BEFORE A BIT Oprah Winfrey, Harpo Entertainment Group

  15. A BIT MORE… Jeanne Jackson, Walmart.com

  16. 4 BROAD CATEGORIES OF OPERATING PERFORMANCE • PROFITABILITY • FINANCIAL POSITION • MARKET PERFORMANCE • SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Meg Whitman, eBay

  17. PROFITABILITY • PROFIT MARGINS (GROSS & OPERATING) • KEY EXPENSE RATIOS • ROA • ROE • ROS • STOCK PRICE Peter George, McMaster University

  18. FINANCIAL POSITION • LEVERAGE RATIOS (DEBT TO EQUITY, INTEREST COVERAGE) • LIQUIDITY RATIOS (CURRENT, QUICK) • ACTIVITY RATIOS (ASSET AND INVENTORY TURNOVER) Thersa Cascioli, Lakeport Brewery

  19. MARKET PERFORMANCE • GROWTH • ABSOLUTE LEVEL & GROWTH RATE OF SALES • MARKET SHARE (UNITS & REVENUE) • NEW PRODUCTS AS A % OF SALES & PROFITS Don McNally, Net Access

  20. WHAT ABOUT ORGANIZATIONAL HEALTH? • INTERNAL VIEW OF PERFORMANCE • SOFTER MEASURES • OFTEN NEGLECTED • CAN IMPACT FINANCIAL WELL BEING • OFTEN ASSUMED WILL TAKE CARE OF ITSELF Bill Gates, Microsoft

  21. PEOPLE POWER MEASURES • INNOVATION • MUTUAL TRUST AND RESPECT • TEAMWORK • DIVERSITY Carly Fiorina, Hewlett Packard

  22. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? • SET MORE CHALLENGING GOALS WITH MORE INVOLVEMENT WITH THIS PROCESS • LINK COMPENSATION TO COMPLETION OF THOSE GOALS • MORE ORIENTATION TOWARD LONG TERM PERFORMANCE

  23. SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY • DUTY TO STAKEHOLDERS INCLUDING CUSTOMERS, SUPPLIERS, EMPLOYEES, THE PUBLIC • LEADERS INCLUDE: TARGET, NEW YORK TIMES, MERCK, DOFASCO, BMW Train Tortoise

  24. WHAT DO THEY LOOK TO YOU FOR? • VISION (CHANGE DIRECTION & PACE) • WHAT IS EXPECTED? • WHAT IS ALLOWED? • WHAT IS IMPORTANT? • WHAT GETS MEASURED? • STYLE Catherine Rellinger, Mohawk College

  25. CONTRASTING 2 HIGH VISIBILITY GENERAL MANAGERS’ STYLES

  26. SLEEP IN NO APPOINTMENTS UNTIL 9 11:40, 2 HOUR PRIVATE TIME BACK AT 1:30, NO MEETINGS UNTIL 3 PLAY VIDEO GAMES, SURF NET MEETINGS CONSIST OF CHIT CHAT (BASEBALL TALK) UP AT 5:30 REVIEW MORNING PAPERS POLICY BRIEFING BREAKFAST FULL SLATE OF LEGISLATIVE MEETING ADMINISTRATIVE MEETINGS STATE MEETINGS CONTRASTING GEORGE W. BUSH AND AL GORE

  27. DELEGATE RESIST MEETINGS (“THEY’RE BORING”) 5:00 P.M. LEAVE KICK OUT FRIENDS AT 9:00 FOR BED WORKING LUNCH POLICY BRIEFINGS CABINET MEETINGS JOG POWER SNOOZE PUBLIC APPEARANCES WATCH MAJOR NEWSCASTS READ AFTERNOON PAPERS FINAL MEETINGS/BRIEFINGS FOR NEXT DAY GORE VS. BUSH ROUND 2

  28. SOME TIPS BY “US” • SKILLS/TRAITS REQUIRED • HOW TO GET NOTICED AND SHOW POTENTIAL • WHAT IT WILL BE LIKE ONCE YOU’RE THERE • THE DANGERS ONCE YOU’RE THERE • DAY TO DAY ISSUES YOU WILL CONCERN YOURSELF WITH • OTHER TIPS Don Fell, Fel-Fab Industries

  29. SKILLS/TRAITS REQUIRED • CONCEPTUAL THINKING • OPEN MINDED • SINGULAR PURPOSE • SAY WHAT YOU MEAN & MEAN WHAT YOU SAY • HAVE YOUR VALUES & BELIEFS IN ORDER • RETAIN THE COMMON TOUCH • BE BOLD, BE PASSIONATE Stacey Snider, Universal Pictures

  30. HOW TO GET NOTICED AND SHOW POTENTIAL • WRITE IT DOWN – MAKE THEM WORK FROM YOUR DOCUMENT • SUMMARIZE DISCUSSIONS • “WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?” • ATTEND TO DETAILS WHILE MINDFUL OF THE BIG PICTURE • HAVE A 5 PRONG PROGRAM/PLAN Andrea Jung, Avon Products

  31. WHAT IT WILL BE LIKE ONCE YOU’RE THERE • LONG HOURS • ALONE • WATCH OUT NOT TO PLAY FAVOURITES • FISH BOWL • WON’T KNOW IF YOU’RE EFFECTIVE UNTIL TIME PASSES Barry Brownlow, Brownlow & Associates

  32. THE DANGERS ONCE YOU’RE THERE • WALKING THE TALK • NOT WALKING THE TALK • CLOSER TO THE DOOR • NOT BEING AVAILABLE • NEEDS OF COMPANY CHANGE BUT YOU STAY THE SAME • EVERYONE NOT LIKE YOU • WATCH PERSONAL LIFE Sherry Lansing, ParamountStudios

  33. DAY TO DAY ISSUES YOU WILL CONCERN YOURSELF WITH • ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE • MOVING PROCESS/PROGRAMS ALONG • PROBLEM FINDING • OPPORTUNITY FINDING • MANAGING CULTURE • FORCING STRATEGIC THINKING Bill Henderson, GHTEC

  34. FINALLY • HAPPINESS IS A WARMED UP RESUME • BE FORTHRIGHT • HOLD PEOPLE ACCOUNTABLE • FOLLOWUP ON ASSIGNMENTS • OBSTACLES ARE THE OTHER GUY’S PROBLEMS • DON’T MAKE A DECISION, THEN HAVE A MEETING FOR “INPUT” • GET OUT OF YOUR OFFICE • STAY CURRENT – READ, PURPOSEFUL TV, TRAVEL • USE YOUR COMMON SENSE

  35. THIS IS YOUR FUNCTION… Larry Ellison, Oracle Systems

  36. BLEED CORPORATE

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