Leadership and People Management
Managing Friction: Top-Down and Bottom-Up
In government and business, I have often heard that “teams in the field don’t understand the big picture” coming out of headquarters. Or, emanating from the grassroots level, “headquarters is clueless about what´s happening in the field.” How do you manage the natural friction between corporate headquarters and its divisions or subsidiaries? In Afghanistan, the tension…
Leadership and People Management
Cultural Differences: Are We Oversimplifying?
Globalism, crossing borders and interacting with people from other countries go hand in hand with cultural intelligence, that is, being aware of cultural differences, and being willing and able to adapt to them. With that notion in mind, I would dare to say that the majority of international companies take at least some initiatives towards…
Leadership and People Management
Leadership: finding a sweet spot between flexibility and control
I recall when I first started out as an officer in the military, it took time and me making mistakes to figure out a healthy balance between flexibility and discipline. During one of my first training exercises, I sat back and gave up some of my autonomy, trusting my subordinate leaders to get the job…