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Do you read Fortune Magazine?  I do.  It’s my favorite business publication—mostly because it is accessible to a range of readers, straightforward in its point of views, and highly readable by a range of professionals who are working to be leaders.

Over a third of the students in my current class on “Organizational Behavior” signed up to subscribe to Fortune.  That gave me the inspiration to both go through a pile of previous Fortune magazines that had accumulated during a busy December and January—and to read the February 7, 2011 edition.

Below is a short list of the topics I found of interest in the most recent edition, those that would enlighten not just my students but other professionals.  (Previous articles will be cited in future posts.)

Typical Drilling Platform

The longest and by far the most interesting article I found as a management instructor was “‘An Accident Waiting to Happen’” by Peter Elkind and David Whitford with Doris Burke.  This is an outstanding piece of investigative journalism about the background and aftermath of BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster.  The term ‘process safety’ was used often; it refers to steps employees at all levels of the organization were to follow in order to correctly do their work.  IF process safety had been fully developed and adhered to, the chances are that BP could have averted the April 20, 2010, explosion that took 11 lives onboard their drilling platform in the Gulf Coast.

100 Best Companies To Work For  A list compiled by Milton Moskowitz, Robert Levering, and Christopher Tkaczyk.  Besides a brief summary of the factors of why a company earned a spot on the list, the authors include many organizations with the word ‘hiring’ in their profile.

100 Best Companies To Work For “Undercover Employee:  A Day On the Job at Three Best Companies” by David A. Kaplan.  The author, a Fortune writer details his experiences working at three Best Companies.  He was a Line Tamer at Aéropostale, a retail clothing store targeted to young adults (No. 94); an Assembly Line Worker at Hasbro, a company responsible for toys like ‘Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head’ and games like ‘Monopoly’ (No. 59); and Maintenance Worker at Nustar Energy, “a leader in pipelines, storage facilities, and asphalt refining” (No. 30).  Kaplan shares what he learned about the job, the culture of each company, and “how to treat employees right.”

Students in my “Organizational Management” class are encouraged to read the articles before starting their first written assignment on the topic of “My Organizational Behavior.”  I’ll post samples of their work in a future post.

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Please complete this sentence:  “Being a manager is like being a….”  The answers and explanations my students wrote in an exercise at the end of my summer and fall Management classes in “Organizational Behavior” were revealing and challenging.  The results confirmed what I have stressed not to do:  treat the workplace as family and assume roles similar to being a parent or expecting to be managed by someone as if they were a parent.

Out of fifty-two total responses from students in my two classes, sixteen responses were tied into family.  The responses I received in the fall were very similar to those in the summer class.  Of the 16 ‘family’ responses, 56% used the term ‘parent’ or ‘parents;’ 31% used the term ‘moms;’ and 12% used the term ‘dad’ or ‘father.’  The disclaimer I want to make is that these were my students’ first responses; yet, based on classroom discussions and behaviors, I feel that is what they truly believe.

The demographics of the responses are also interesting.  Out of 16 responses that included family, 14 or 88% were from women who feel that some form of parenting is the equivalent of being a manager.  From my perspective and experience, that is the challenge that women need to overcome in order to be a truly effective, business oriented, and successful manager.

There was another reference to family but this student wrote, “Being a manager is like being a kid/child because children always want to learn new things or why things work a certain way.  Being a manager requires on-going learning and some fun enjoyment.”  This student provided a succinct and on-target summary of the openness a manager must possess to experience the many changes that impact organizations.

Some of the explanations for ‘family’ responses included the following:
“Like a parent, you’re always pushing your kids or employees to be better.  You supervise their actions and serve as a support system for them when they require it.”
“To be effective requires organizational skills.  Each of your employees has individual needs that have to be tended to.  An ignored employee can sometimes act out in a cry for attention.  It’s very important to be strong during times of tribulation because everyone depends on you to be the leader.”

“A manager is not someone with a position; he/she is someone who puts in time and effort to care for what they are managing.”

“You are responsible for a group of employees who are like a family.”

Decision-maker with corporate responsiblities.

There were other similes that were quite interesting but I was most interested in the ones related to parenting.  These need to be addressed because of the use and concept of a ‘family’ orientation to the workplace especially by women.  I’m not anti-family by any means; however, I feel that women can ‘care’ too much and avoid ‘taking charge.’  And that you can create close relationships in the workplace without reference to a family (see my post on “Managing with Julia” about a thoughtful and caring manager).

Point #1:  A family orientation to the workplace is flawed because the bottom line is at stake.  You are employed as a manager to invest in and lead personnel to realize the company’s goals and produce outstanding performance and/or products that will reflect positively on financial returns.  Unlike a long-term relationship with family, an individual has deadlines to reach and a career to develop that could take you to another company.

Point #2:  You can’t be fired from your family.  You can be fired from work.  Your manager’s job is not dedicated to caring for you.  Your manager’s job is to get the most that he or she can from you.  And you, as the manager of another level, need to get the most out of your employees.  Those in their 20’s and 30’s might long for a warm, cozy company environment—and they are out there.  There are also companies out there that are focused on results first and then on how to engage and develop their staff.  Then comes the well-being part.  If you come in stoned or drunk (as some of my students seemed to do at the end of a class), you can be helped through and employee assistance program or suggested counseling but if there is continued similar behavior you can be terminated immediately.  A parent or other family could seek help for you and possibly provide support while you looked for another job.

Point #3:  Not all mom and dads are wonderful people.  They can be alcoholics, abusive, neglectful, and uncaring.  Raising or imagining the idea that a manager will be a good ‘parent’ to you—or that you will always be a ‘good disciplinarian’ to adults the way you would to a child—is to be in denial of the role of a manager.  A manager’s first priority is not your welfare; a manager’s first priority is to the welfare of a larger organization.  One of my executive coaching clients was having difficulty feeling respected by her manager, the president of the company.  After a difficult encounter that triggered memories of her abusive father, she asked me if I thought it was a good idea to tell her manager that he was like her father.  “No, no, no,” I said maybe not in those words but in that intent and emphasis.  It is not appropriate to bring in your past and expect sympathy or for your manager’s behavior to change.  My client was not close to the president outside of work so needed to stick with her role as an executive who was not fulfilling her job responsibilities and the expectations of the president of the company.

Point #4:  Family businesses can be just that:  a business that is run by family members.  A family company that’s growing moves from the entrepreneurial and collectively stages demonstrating a growing consistency in behaviors, formalization and control take over.  The internal dynamics within the company can change dramatically when the top layers of management are removed from the customer service associates or production workers.  And there are complicated employment laws to regulate the behaviors and performances of employees.  A family business can stop feeling like a close family.

Point #5:  Your colleagues are not your friends in the workplace.  Friendship is built up over time and space to learn about each other.  You may get along fabulously with co-workers and socialize with them after work.  Yet, if the situation develops, they are also obligated to taking action in the company’s interests and not yours.  And, when you are promoted to being the manager or a group leader, you need to keep a respectful distance from your ‘friends’ as you are the person charged with performance and bottom line responsibilities.

Being a manager is like working to be a leader.  You learn from doing and from listening to those around you and vicariously modeling those you respect and trust.  This person could be a parent.  Yet, I strongly suggest you frame a manager in a professional context, one that takes into account the well-being of ‘staff’ while at the same time demonstrating optimal performance, like one of my summer students described.

“Being a manager is like being a pilot.  You attend aviation school and you are given a manual to study.  It is obviously the basic guidelines you are to follow.  However, in case of emergency, the final decision rests with you.  No matter what the air tower traffic controller says, the pilot does what is best as in the case of Sully Sullivan who landed his plane in the Hudson River.  The important thing is that everyone is alive.”

A manager’s job is keeping everyone alive with energy and enthusiasm to do their best as individuals and to do the best for their organization.

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Saturday morning, I was casually listening to a show from American Public Media on radio station WNYC.  My ears perked up and my concentration deepened when the topic of “future jobs” was discussed. 

Where do you want to be in the hourglass?

The first nugget of knowledge I heard was that the future workplace is going to look like an hourglass.  That is, the top earners will occupy the upper part of the “timer” and the lowest earners will be in the bottom portion.  The middle class occupies the narrow part of the hourglass.  Not only is this a good analogy, it is statistically on target.  The estimate of the average CEO to average worker pay ratio is over 250 to 1, a giant leap from what it was over ten years ago and out of sync from that in European countries, for instance.

Below is my translation of the notes that I took listening to the rest of the segment:

• Employee sustainability will be based on education, adaptability, and more education.
• Flexibility is key to getting and keeping a job; knowing how to adapt to new workplace cultures is especially important for Gen Ys since their style is to be mobile and transport their skills from workplace to workplace.
• The top jobs in the future will be in health care; new technology and scientific advances; plus service jobs that can’t be outsourced.
• Be thoughtful about your future, plan your career, and be forward looking.
• The workplace is going to be more and more competitive; to sustain a position you need to be aware and alert to change and the implications for more education and improved adaptability.

If you want to learn more about the profile of future jobs, visit Future-Jobs-O-Matic!

Take some time while working to be a leader to plan your future—a future that can move you closer to the top of the hourglass.

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What is the greatest challenge facing the world today?

Developing, rewarding, and supporting smart, intelligent leaders who respect the use of their power to influence, educate, and develop their followers.

The world needs effective leaders.

The global economic, environmental, and educational crises are challenging leaders to not just do the right thing but to find the right solutions.

In the United States, staying relevant while working to be a leader of a diverse, multigenerational workforce—one that operates in a global environment impacted by rapid technical advances and bottom-line pressures—is an ongoing challenge.

To say that being a leader today—and in five to ten years—is more challenging than anytime in history is an overstatement. Yet, as leaders throughout history have learned, assuming the role of a leader means taking on the responsibility to inspire by example and motivate employees to reach their optimum performance and productivity levels.  Being a leader is an ongoing job that requires continuous learning.

I’m worried that business schools, colleges and universities, and organizations are not preparing wise and respectful leaders who can make good judgment calls when needed.

In the course of working to be a leader, researching leadership development, and educating diverse audiences on the topic of leadership, I’ve isolated six key traits of an effective leader.

1.  Authenticity: The ability to be fully present for others. You can only earn authenticity through quality interactivity with others. Followers can feel if they have been tricked or misled.

2.  Respect: Starts with self-esteem for who you are and what you can become then extends to how you value others. To respect someone is to convey high regard for being who they are and performing at their optimum capabilities.

3.  Vision: Be above the moment to see the horizon and beyond. A wise leader focuses on the big picture to get effective perspective on emerging opportunities and daily progress.

4.  Strategic Thinking: Leaders are focused on the best paths to reach goals and utilize tactical approaches so that key personnel can achieve needed results for the organization.  The impulse is to make a decision in a blink; the wiser approach is to take into account the variables and the opportunities that can impact results.

5.  Talent Development:Commitment to create a learning environment and to engage in meaningful learning opportunities to help meet new challenges. “The head teacher is the leader no matter the size of the company,” according to Noel Tichy, Professor, Ross School of Business, University of Michigan and co-author with Warren Bennis of Judgment: How winning leaders make great calls.

6.  Wise Judgment:The process to make “tough calls when the stakes are high and the right path is far from obvious,” according to Tichy and Bennis.  “The quality of a leader’s judgment determines the fate of the entire organization” and is based on well-planned out decision-making that takes into account the greater good and long-term results.

Warren Buffet, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., and one of the world’s most successful investors, said in a televised conversation that “the longer term is pretty darn certain.”  Are you preparing yourself for the longer term while working to be a leader?  I hope so.  The U.S.—and the world— need the most effective leaders possible.

If you seek guidance to help you improve your work as a leader, contact Leigh@LTR-NYC.com

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I love to read.  And I love to read Fortune Magazine.  Why?  The voice, the tone, the integrity of its articles and the scope of business covered.

The September 6, 2010 issue is now torn apart.  Not out of frustration or anger.  It is torn apart because as I went through the issue, I tore out a single page of an opinion piece, seven pages of a profile, etc.  Right now, you may be asking yourself, “Why do you tear out articles?”

I inherited the gene from my mother.  I remember that she tore out and referenced articles from at least two if not three newspapers to share with her children or neighbors.  I continue this habit.  A habit that I know could be eased by going to the www.fortune.com website, reading the article online and sharing the article electronically.

I like paper.  I like that I can sort the articles into five “destinations” or folders:  1) MGT 3300—“A Management Approach to Organizational Behavior”—the undergraduate class I teach in the Management Department at the Zicklin School of Business within Baruch College, part of the City University of New York; 2) “Ideas” that can help my business; 3) “Writing” that inspires me to be a better writer; 4) “Investments” that can help my bottom line; and 5) “Other” which includes “Technology” articles to reread and then maybe discard.

For instance, this is the beginning of a new semester and I’ve filed the following in MGT 3300:

The cover story, “Trader Joe’s:  America’s hottest retailer is also notoriously hush-hush.  Fortune uncovers the secrets of its success” will be used to illustrate organizational culture.

“Why J&J’s Headache Won’t Go Away:  Once praised for setting the standard in management crisis, the health care giant is battling a stream of drug recalls.  Fortune investigates what went wrong—and why it isn’t getting any better.”  This can be of interest in the leadership, communications, or other sessions; my corporate communications majors will find this of interest.

“Chrysler’s Speed Merchant:  CEO Sergio Marchione is racing to fill a dry product pipeline; his unorthodox methods aren’t for everyone” by Alex Taylor III will be discussed in class tonight.  The assigned reading in the textbook for the session is “Foundations of Organizational Structure.”  The chapter starts with a picture of CEO Sergio Marchione (in the very same clothes he is wearing in the Fortune photo) and an overview of “Restructuring Chrysler.”  Good timing!

The next article will eventually go into “Writing,” a bulging folder that has more than one article by the excellent Wall St. author William D. Cohan.  His latest for Fortune is, “Dick Fuld in Exile:  Already lampooned and vilified, the former Lehman Brothers CEO now faces investigation and maybe a cash crunch.  Now wonder he’s working so hard.”  Fuld will be discussed during the chapter “Personality and Values” or “Emotions and Moods.”

There are too many technology articles that I’ve saved to mention.  Technology is defining our culture and determining our future.  I want to keep up-to-date and I also want to provide my students rational anticipation of how their “technical future” will evolve by 2020.  Actually, writing about the impact of technology on the future of business is going to be part of their term project.  And I’m ready to share with them the articles in my files that I tore out from Fortune!

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“The Impact of Technology in the Workplace” is the topic of Written Assignment #3 for my summer students enrolled in “A Management Approach to Organizational Behavior” or AMAOB.  Why?  Because technology changes behaviors.  And not always for the good.  Leaders, managers, and staff need to be smart on the how they use technology and the systems that they put in place.

The textbook I use in AMAOB is hot off the press.  Yet, there is little if anything of significance in the chapters of this latest edition that addresses how technology programs and devices change workplace behaviors.  When I looked up “Technology” in the Index, the definition was “The way in which an organization transfers its inputs into outputs” and mentions three pages where the topic can be found in the text.  The purpose of AMAOB’s written assignment is to help my students understand and manage the uses and/or abuses of technology by employees.

On July 26, 2010, Fortune Magazine published an article on “Ten Smartest People in Tech.”  What goes into being the smartest people in technology?  Fortune states that it’s, “An alchemy of intellect, ambition, and that uncanny ability to peer around corners.”

Not used in AMAOB

When looking through the list of the smartest people in tech, I started thinking about a guideline I have in my classroom.  That is, I do not allow the use of laptops and request that all technical devices such as cell phones are turned off—or on vibrate—and placed out sight.  It has taken a few class sessions to get full compliance.

Mine is a classroom based on experiential learning.  I want my 30 ambitious students each evening to have their full attention on listening to me and their classmates, contributing their thoughts and experiences, and being respectful of the sanctity of the classroom.  The classroom is where seeds are planted, ideas are generated, knowledge transferred, and invitations to “peer around corners” delivered.  It’s an opportunity to learn and grow from one another.  It is also a chance to be intellectually challenged.

If I had one thing to say to the smartest people in technology, it’s this:  “Technology is important.  I couldn’t communicate the way I am doing now without the use of technology.  Yet, there are limits when people need to take center stage and interact with one another.  A classroom on the topic of management is a time to unplug students from technology and allow them to relate to what they will be doing in their careers:  developing interpersonal skills and understanding workplace behaviors.

Okay, it’s now time to answer the question: Who are the smartest people in technology according to Fortune Magazine?  Here’s the list:

Smartest CEO:  Steve Jobs, CEO, Apple
Smartest Analyst:  Mary Meeker, Analyst, Morgan Stanley
Smartest Founder:  Mark Zuckerberg, CEO, Facebook
Smartest Engineer:  Christophe Biscigila, Co-Founder, Cloudera
Smartest Designer:  Jonathan Ive, Senior VP of Industrial Design, Apple
Smartest Investor:  Jim Breyer, Accel Partners
Smartest Hybrid:  James Cameron, Director, Avatar
Smartest Scientist:  Robert Morris, VP, Services Research, IBM Research
Smartest Academic:  Danah Boyd, Social Media Researcher, Microsoft Research
Smartest Executive:  Todd Bradley, EVP, HP Personal Systems Group

And I am going to be the smartest person in class this evening.  Why?  I’m going to use technology to transfer knowledge contained in a PowerPoint presentation to my class while interacting each one of my students, all of whom will be giving me their total attention since they are not using technology.

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Look at this picture.  What do you see?  Who do you see?  How do you see them?  Where do you see them?  Why do you see this picture?

Spring 2010---A Management Approach to Organizational Behavior

When I look at the picture, I see my spring 2010 class of “A Management Approach to Organizational Behavior”—a class that whether they liked it or not, moved out of their comfort zones to meet and excel at challenging course expectations.

When I look at the picture, I see a microcosm of Baruch College, the nation’s most ethnically diverse campus of over 15,500 students who speak 110 languages and come from 160 countries.

When I look at the picture, I see decision makers who will climb the corporate—or small business—ladders to achieve the success that they so much want to attain.

When I look at the picture, I see the future, a future that includes other students in classes like mine who will take what they have learned in college and use it to be effective and efficient managers and leaders.

When I look at this picture on my computer or now posted on my blog, I smile.  These “students” are part of today’s workforce.  While working to be a leader, they are making a difference in people’s lives as a manager, an intern, a small business owner, an executive at their parents’ company, a receptionist at a medical office, a technology lab assistant.  They are working to be managers and leaders, and in that process using directly or indirectly the knowledge that they gained in my class.

When I look at this picture, I see these and other individuals who in coming years will be making decisions about the future of America.  I like to think that the curriculum of the class that they took with me will help them make those decisions.  That required essays to examine their organizational behavior; identify and understand the bully or the procrastinator or the older worker in the workplace; acquire a realistic perspective on women in leadership from guest speakers and conference panelists; and compare a founding father with a technology pioneer helped to put innovation and risk-taking into a meaningful and historical context.

Part of my students’ final written assignment was to write about workplace 2020—what they will be doing, how they will be working, where they will be doing that work, etc.  Their essays included finding work-life balance and needing to be continuous learners.  One student, the only one in a class where everyone included technology as part of their future, mentioned that soft skills—interactions with others—will also be needed.

Relationships are part of the future.  My relationship with my students was a rewarding one, one where I could see the future develop during each and every class.  I salute my class of spring 2010 and wish them great achievement.

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Have you heard of a “Stay Interview”?  Unlike an “Exit Interview” which is given when you leave a company, a stay interview is conducted when an employee is continuing in an organization.  The purpose of a stay interview is to find out what will keep the employee happy within the company, identify what sort of motivation she needs, inquire about a specific training or development program the employee wants, and hear any concerns or grievances the employee voices.

If you are scheduled for a stay interview and want to be clear on what you need to remain at the company, try using the “Mojo” process that Marshall Goldsmith describes in his book, Mojo: How to Get it, How to Keep It, How to Get It Back If You Lose It.

If you’re thinking that mojo is a folk belief in the supernatural powers of a voodoo charm, you’re right.  It’s used in other contexts to describe alignment of one’s energy so good things can happen.  Ever hear a recording of American blues musician Muddy Waters singing “Got My Mojo Working”?  Listen and you’ll understand mojo.

Goldsmith, one of the top ranking executive coaches in the world, has brought Mojo into the business world: “Mojo is that positive spirit toward what we are doing now that starts from the inside and radiates to the outside.”

Below are his four vital ingredients that combined will bring you clarity and great Mojo.

1. IDENTITY
“Who do you think you are?”  The key to answering the question is to be honest and truthful about how you perceive yourself.  This is not about what others think of you; it is about your self-assessment.  Don’t back away from owning and sharing your self-appraisal.

2. ACHIEVEMENT
“What have you done lately….that have meaning and impact?”  A good question, isn’t it?  With many of my coaching clients, I suggest they write a monthly report and e-mail it to their supervisor regularly.  Although the supervisor may never acknowledge or mention it, you will be aware of your accomplishments—and ready for your annual performance review.

Goldsmith looks at achievements from two perspectives:  “What we bring to the tasks?” and “What the task gives to us?”  Think about your answers and dig deep to find your truths about the give and take of what you do.  “Until we can honestly put a value on what we’ve accomplished lately, we may not be able to create or regain our Mojo,” are words the coach uses with a CEO or her reports.

3. REPUTATION
“Your reputation is a scorecard kept by others,” Goldsmith writes in yet one more best-selling business book (to see more go to http://marshallgoldsmithlibrary.com).  What he says is true, especially in a world where online networking, communication, and evaluation websites (such as www.RateMyProfessors.com) offers ways to influence an individual’s reputation.  Questions you can ask yourself about your reputation include, “Who do other people think you are?  What do other people think you’ve done lately?”  (Visit www.ReputationDefender.com if you want help to monitor and manage your reputation.)

4. ACCEPTANCE
“What can you change and what is beyond your control?”  Another good question, isn’t it?  I’ve written about acceptance before as too many of my clients perseverate about what they can’t change and don’t invest their valuable time in what they can change.  “When Mojo fades, the initial cause is often failure to accept what is—and get on with life.”

Feeling any Mojo from answering the above questions?  Are you feeling a positive spirit toward what you are doing that starts inside and is radiating out so that others can experience your best self?

 Want to know your Mojo score?  Go to www.mojothebook.com to download a guide to Mojo and the Mojo scorecard.  Using these tools can improve your self-awareness.  The process can also help you set priorities and gain clarity when you are called in for a stay interview—or decide that it is really your exit interview.

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“Firestorm on Wall Street” was the title of the second program in the “More than Money:  An Interview Series with Myron Kandel.”  Since the founding financial editor and economic commentator for over 25 years at CNN had stellar guests previously—Steve Forbes, Editor in Chief of Forbes Magazine; and Joseph Stiglitz, an economist, professor at Columbia University, and winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics (2001)—I knew that I didn’t want to miss this event.

After a brief overview of his program, Kandel introduced William D. Cohan, author of House of Cards:  A Tale of Hubris and Wretched Excess on Wall Street and a contributing writer for Fortune magazine; and Gregory Zukerman,  The Wall Street Journal reporter who writes the paper’s column “Heard on the Street” and author of The Greatest Trade Ever:  The Behind-the-Scenes Story of How John Paulson Defied Wall Street and Made Financial History.

Offering the background to the headlines, Kandel’s guests shared stories of the executives who individually and collectively ignored the indicators of a financial crisis.  According to his publisher Random House, Cohan’s book on Bear Stearns is “A blistering narrative account of the negligence and greed that pushed all of Wall Street into chaos and the country into a financial crisis.”  Zuckerman described in some detail how the risk-taking Paulson sought out and then earned billions by betting on the housing collapse others—including mortgage, real estate, and investing experts—had missed.  Since Paulson had created a market for his product by using Goldman Sachs as a salesman, the two brilliant business writers weighed in on the government investigation of Goldman.

Wikipedia’s definition of a firestorm “is a conflagration which attains such intensity that it creates and sustains its own wind system.  It is most commonly a natural phenomenon, created during some of the largest bushfires, forest fires, and wildfires….Firestorms can also be deliberate effects of targeted explosives.”  A conflagration is defined as “an uncontrolled burning that threatens human life, health, property or ecology.  A conflagration can be accidentally or intentionally created (arson).”  Kandel’s choice of the word firestorm for his event seems very appropriate.

The reason I attended the program was to further my education on the culture of Wall Street, and especially, to hear Cohan speak.  His previous book, The Last Tycoons: the Secret History of Lazard Frères & Co., spins “A tale of restrained ambition, billion-dollar fortunes, Byzantine power struggles, and hidden scandal.”  Cohan’s employment as a vice president at one of the world’s preeminent financial advisory and asset management firms coincided with mine.  However, he was involved in the business transactions while I was on the sidelines watching the action from my position as a temporary secretary.  In my over five years at the firm, I worked with a majority of partners, numerous vice presidents, and many other bankers.

When Zuckerman mentioned that Paulson’s analyst in creating his deals was Paolo Pellegrini, my ears perked up since he, too, was a former Lazard banker.  However, unlike Cohan who moved from Lazard to be a managing director of telecom mergers and acquisitions at JPMorgan Chase, Pellegrini according to Zuckerman in an article (“Profiting from the Crash,” WSJ, 10/31/09) had “a career of disappointments” and that “Paulson & Co. likely was his last stop on Wall Street.”  The disappointed analyst earned an estimated $45 million in his first year at his “last stop.”

What I took away from hearing the stories and learning more about Wall Street’s demeanor and greed was nothing new.  It was the same old story:  the behavior on Wall Street won’t change.

Specifically, words that I recorded in my notebook in the darkened auditorium include these thoughts from Cohan on proposed government regulation of Wall Street: “Wall Street buys the sort of regulation they want” … “Their actions are just smart enough not to go over the edge” … “We haven’t changed how Wall Street behaves not even in a small way” … “Goldman people don’t feel comfortable voicing dissent.” … “Nobody is blowing the whistle.”

Cohan made a very interesting statement: “There is no memory on Wall St.”  The younger people on Wall Street make decisions not knowing the history of the previous crisis—like the Internet IPOs in the late 90’s or the housing downturn in the early 90’s—and don’t take time to reflect on the consequences of their behaviors.  Instead, it seems clear, Wall Street moves from one crisis to another, like an addict who seems incapable of staying away from drink, drugs, or other substances to get a high, all the while knowing but not accepting that a big downer follows.  Rather, the user, when he needs it, seeks out another source to get high.

Zuckerman stated that, “We need the best and the brightest to be in financial services.”  To me, that seemed to affirm that what was going on within Wall Street firms was okay.  And that the results, although possibly catastrophic for the majority of America and a good part of the globe, are what matters.  It matters to those who profit from the results.  Do bankers stop to think about those who are negatively impacted by the results?

Last year, I wrote a special report entitled, “Temping with Tycoons:  Lessons from My Leadership Reinvention” —an account of what I learned at Lazard about the firm’s culture, group behavior, and individual actions. Documenting what I observed and reading about the firm, I used Lazard as the business school I could afford.  And it was during those years experiencing the hubris of bankers, the carelessness of analysts, and their overall ignorance of the real world that inspired me to teach future leaders about the human side of business.  “Temping with Tycoons” is required reading at the beginning of “A Management Approach to Organizational Behavior,” a course I teach to undergraduates at the Zicklin School of Business within Baruch College, the nation’s most ethnically diverse campus.  Primarily working class and first generation, the students are able to learn about some behaviors on Wall Street. They are also often aghast and angry at what they read.

One of my students put it very simply, “Why is there such a divide?”

I don’t know exactly.  Future posts will include notes from “M.B.A. Under Siege:  Reimagining Management Education,” an all-day conference held at Fordham University where business school educators from as far away as Kazakhstan in Eurasia listened to presentations from highly regarded business school professors and participated in discussions.  Especially of interest was the role that management—or lack of it—played in the collapse of the global economy.  Watch this space for more information on the culture and management of Wall Street.

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What’s your recipe to be an effective manager?  Don’t know what I mean?  If not, you might find this post of interest in helping you create a new receipe or learning how to enhance the one you currently use.

Last August, my niece and I went to see “Julie & Julia”—a delightful movie about the life of Julia Child who, in 1948 and in her mid-thirties, discovered her career as a French chef and educator then evolved into a major cookbook author and television personality and making public appearances until her death in 1992.  The character “Julie Powell” was portrayed in the movie as a young writer whose job was to answer phones for those needing help after 9/11.  She felt frustrated at work and started a blog about Julia Child.  She also decided that she was going to cook 524 recipes from Mastering the Art of French Cooking co-authored by Julia Child in 365 days.

This spring, this same  niece lent me her copy of My Life in France, an autobiography of Julia Child written with Alex Prud’homme.  I started reading it at a pace of about 10 pages a day.  However, when I was about 100 pages into the book last weekend, I thought, “Why am I reading this?  I don’t really like French food!  I grew up on the basics, I cook the basics and I eat out to savor complicated dishes.”  Not one to give up on a book, however, I began to think about why I should continue reading and that brought me to remembering the first time I heard about Julia Child.

When I was a junior at the University of California at Berkeley, I had a part-time job as a work-study student in the Art & Music (A&M) Department at the Main Branch of the Berkeley Public Library.  As a Librarian’s Assistant, I helped patrons locate books, albums (!), and prints of major artists.  And I was also to report the behavior of a regular visitor—one of the many “characters” who at times put mirrors on the top of their shoes and stood very close to a female patron who was wearing a skirt.

Bruce Munly was the Librarian for A&M and manager of one full-time and many part-time employees.  Other part-time people included four middle-aged (and slightly older) women married to college professors and another Berkeley undergraduate student (he later became my husband).

“What did you think of Julia?” was Mr. Munly’s ritual greeting when one of the women arrived in the department.  They then would proceed to talk about the delicacy that Julia had prepared on the latest episode of “The French Chef” on our local public broadcasting station.  It was “all about Julia” for the first ten to fifteen minutes of a woman’s shift—and would often be revisited, many times when another gourmand arrived to talk about what Julia had prepared.

An effective manager who made the most of this diverse group, Mr. Munly organized a staff dinner once or twice a year.  This potluck supper was held at his or one of the women’s homes, often one in the Berkeley Hills with a spectacular view looking out beyond the Golden Gate Bridge.  When it came time to volunteer to bring food to the dinner, Mr. Munly and the women would decide which dish they would bring—usually a “Julia” dish.  The college students and the full-time employee would bring wine, bread, and possibly dessert—first asking the “elders” for specific instructions on what to buy.

Memories of one—if not the best—workplace experience of early career came flooding back to me last weekend as I turned each page of My Life in France.  Ignoring the world outside, I gave myself the afternoon to follow Julia’s journey through her writing career which she embraced enthusiastically and spent the evening learning how she had found her way to television.  Reading her book was like eating a good meal; I finished it feeling satisfied and satiated with good memories.

Looking back at his management style, I see how Mr. Munly maximized the talent he had in his small department.  He created a congenial atmosphere—based in part on Julia’s recipes—where he engaged and motivated his team to be productive through food, a love of the arts, and a great spirit.

At the close of each episode of “The French Chef”—and at the very end of her book—Julia wishes everyone a bon appétite!

As I asked at the beginning of this post, what is your recipe to be an effective manager?  No matter your “cuisine,” or your particular management style, I wish you time to think about how you manage.  Specifically, what is the thread of the conversations you have with your staff members and how do you connect with them on a regular basis?

While you are creating and enhancing your own recipe of effective management, I wish you bon appétite!