The Great CEO Within / Великий исполнительный директор внутри

Книгу я обнаружил буквально неделю назад и с того момента читал фактически каждый раз, когда было время! Я не помню, когда последний раз меня книга так засасывала!

Книга опубликована в сети Лично я сделал PDF бэкап. Чтиво довольно короткое, всего 100 страниц, однако количество полезной информации просто поражает! Никакой воды, ни шагу в сторону, все кратко, чётко и сфокусировано. Местами создаётся ощущение, что можно было бы притормозить и вдаться в пару под-тем, однако автор не тормозит ни на секунду! Любая тема, которая стоит более глубокого рассмотрения, тут же передаётся по внешней ссылке на другой ресурс (книгу).

Книга ориентирована на исполнительных директоров стартапов (обычно они же основатели) и мой личный интерес к стартапам чисто теоретический. Однако я нахожу огромное количество полезной информации в таких материалах, так как методики управление и ведения дел могут быть применены в любой компании, которая хочет стать более эффективной. Пару методик я решил скопировать из книги, чтобы были под рукой – их я предоставлю после “итого”.

Итого:
+: Простое изложение
+: Кратко и чётко – без воды
+: Большое количество целенаправленных методик
+: Наглядные примеры
+: Рассмотрение типичных ошибок
=: На мой взгляд книга просто отличная! Она пригодится не только директорам, но и всем кто хочет оптимизировать процессы как на работе так и в своей жизни. Суммируя технически: ROI книги просто феноменален!

Название: The Great CEO Within
Автор: Matt Mochary
Обложка: Нет

Вырезки из книги:

Writing vs Talking

When two people are discussing an issue, the need to be efficient is important. When a team is discussing an issue, the need to be efficient is paramount, because each inefficient minute is multiplied by the number of people in the discussion.

If you want the most effective and efficient decision-making process, require that anyone who wants to discuss an issue write it up, along with the desired solution, ahead of time. The goal of this write-up is to be thorough enough that at the time of decision-meeting, there are few or no questions. This can be achieved one of two ways:

1. The hard way: Write an extraordinarily thorough analysis from the get-go.
2. The easy way: Write a draft, circulate it to the meeting participants before the meeting, and invite comments and questions. Then write out responses to all of these comments and questions prior to the meeting.

Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon, is famous for using this written method. He requires that anyone who wants to bring up an issue or proposal must write up the item fully prior to the decision meeting (with someone else writing up a counterproposal if necessary). The meeting is then spent reading the write-ups. Once the decision-making team has read them all, a decision is made.  If consensus is not reached, an appointed decision-maker makes the call. If there are still open questions, then the decision-maker assigns one or more people to research, and of course write, the needed follow-up. At the end of the next meeting, the decision is made.

This method, though time-consuming for the sponsor, yields extraordinarily thoughtful decisions in a very short amount of time. The extra effort and work by one person creates a net savings in time and energy across the whole group.

Imposing this process on a group is daunting.  Here is a way to ease a group into it:

1. Reserve the first 15 minutes of the meeting for all participants to write out their updates and issues.  Then use another 10 minutes of the meeting for all participants to read each other’s updates and issues. Then discuss and decide.  Use this method for 2-3 meetings, then …

2. Require that all participants write their updates and issues prior to the meeting.  Do not allow people to bring up an issue that they have not already written up. Use the first 10 minutes of the meeting for all participants to read each other’s updates and issues.  Use this method for 1-2 meetings, then …

3. Require that all participants write their updates and issues by a certain time prior to the meeting (eg- 9pm the night before).  Require that all participants read and comment on each other’s updates and issues prior to the meeting. People prove that they have read the docs by having their comments in the docs themselves.  Do not allow people to make comments in the meeting if they haven’t already commented on the docs themselves.

Joy vs Fear

When people start diving into the Conscious Leadership work, they quickly lose their fear.  And just as quickly, they realize that fear was their primary motivator. Once fear is gone, their life becomes much better, but their business suffers.

It is important at this point to keep pushing forward with the CLG work (quickly) to get to a place where you are motivated by joy. Then you will have the best of all worlds.  Joy is an even better motivator than fear, so your business will thrive. And your life will be amazing!

Areas of Responsibility (AORs)

“Tragedy of the commons”.  When several people share responsibility for an action or process, often that action doesn’t get done well, or at all.

To prevent this from happening, group tasks into categories, and assign each category to one—and only one— person. These are your Areas of Responsibility. Apple is famous for having pioneered AORs in Silicon Valley, but now most successful tech companies use this method.

Create a document listing every possible function in the company. Next to each function, list the responsible person. This is the AOR list. It serves as a company directory and ensures that no functions fall through the cracks. Make sure everybody in the company knows how to access the list, and update it as new functions arise or as responsibilities shift.

Sell Yourself, Not Your Company

Cliff Weitzman, CEO of Speechify, realized that it was key to sell himself and not his company. If he was able to do so, he would gain investors for life—investors who would follow him through every pivot, and every company. So, when Cliff realized that trust and like had been established, he shared the story of his life—using a method that his brother Tyler had discovered.

Tyler Weitzman, CEO of BlackSMS, is a unique guy. He likes to research social situations. As an undergrad at Stanford, he researched a method for conveying one’s achievements (or bragging, if you prefer!) while remaining humble and relatable. Through countless interviews of master storytellers, Tyler determined the ultimate structure for telling one’s story in a humble way:

–    Credit: “It could not have happened without [name the others involved].”
–    Hard Work: “We had to put in so much to make it happen, for example, [describe the hard work].”
–    Vulnerability: “It was most difficult for me when…”
–    Duty: “We were driven by our dream to [noble motive].”
–    Gratitude: “I am so proud and thankful that…”

I encourage you to tell your story to a friend using this exact structure. See what comes out. Ask your friend for her reaction. I think you will be amazed.