As the old saying goes, the only constant in business is change. Inevitably, all organizations will at some point need to evolve by implementing a more structured and radical change program. There are several reasons for this including increased competition, lack of stakeholder confidence, reputation of the business at stake and technological advances.
According to The Economist, if there is a harsh lesson to be learned from China’s recent panic it’s that the rest of the world needs to raise its level of productivity. Long gone are the days where relentless Chinese expansion could be relied upon to keep the global economy moving, and despite external factors that promote robust productivity growth, companies continue to lose ground. If tackling productivity at the microeconomic level is the key to unlocking a nation’s true potential, then business leaders must be part of the solution.
An interview with former Chevron President, Ray Wilcox
As the petrochemical industry adapts to the current business environment, many in the upper echelons of the business are relying on operational excellence (OE) strategies to become more efficient.
The issue of poor time management does not discriminate – affecting all industries and facets of a business. It can be a real eye-opener for executives when examined from a cost perspective, but it also presents a tremendous opportunity for improvement.
Recently, former President & CEO of Chevron Phillips Chemical, former President of Chevron NA Exploration & Production and current Alexander Proudfoot Advisory Board member, Ray Wilcox had the opportunity to speak at this year’s Operational Excellence in Oil and Gas Summit held in Calgary. His keynote speech “Bridging the Execution Gap” was well received by the many oil and gas executives that were in attendance.
CEOs from around the globe recently touched on how important it is for senior executives to be able to predict a future state that not only rewards investors, but also lays the foundation for a strong customer base. The decision to move in any given direction should be unanimous. Otherwise, the chances of successfully driving necessary change initiatives are greatly diminished.
Most sales organizations consistently fall short
A common problem among CEOs is sales organizations that overpromise and underdeliver. Our past experience shows that executives often struggle to transform their sales force into a high-performing, customer-centric team. One mistake we typically see is the tendency for executives to depend heavily on a select few top-performers to carry the sales load.
Corporations are bound by the rules of short-term earnings. It is a vicious cycle that repeats itself every quarter and consumes a significant amount of an executive's time. During this short window of time, the goal is to produce consistent and predictable results that will, in turn, deliver a strong share price and a higher valuation. In order to keep up, priorities typically shift to the day-to-day execution of operations
In recent discussions with several former C-suite executives, we had a chance to ask them why internal teams typically struggle to accelerate performance initiatives when the opportunity arises. David Eldon, former Chief Executive and Chairman of HSBC said, “Internal improvement teams can deliver good value, but are subject to a number of drawbacks.”
Alexander Proudfoot would like to congratulate one of its Advisory Board members, Ozires Silva for winning the Personality of the Year Award from the Sales and Marketing Leaders of Brazil Association (ADVB).
The term “big data” is getting a lot of attention these days, but for all the wrong reasons. In theory, the concept of big data analytics – acquiring systems to analyze large quantities of data – makes sense for businesses inundated with information.
The evolution in the style of the successful CEO over the past several decades has been dramatic. Today’s style, marked by collaboration and efforts to mold consensus, and alignment, was preceded by a micro-managed, top-down hierarchical and power-driven approach.
Multiple factors are combining to intensify the pressures on chief executives to realize the full potential of their business within shorter and shorter time frames. Faced with this reality, the challenges facing every chief executive are daunting. And yet, in
spite of the rising tide of change at the top, many regularly and consistently execute their strategy with precision and flair to deliver solid results for the company and their stakeholders.
Managing talent is a critical tool in enabling a company to achieve its business goals. Investing in human capital to develop skills, capacity, flexibility and adaptability creates a solid foundation for long term competitive advantage. By managing talent effectively, companies can both speed growth and amplify results. But whilst many organisations have expressed their commitment to developing a sturdy pipeline of talent, many are failing to make this happen in reality and generate the results desired.
The defining characteristics that separate the best from the rest
With demand stagnating across most of the developed economies and faltering across many of the developing countries, identifying and steadfastly pursuing a path to prosperity is complex and demanding for the one at the helm, the company’s chief executive
