Tighten the Lug Nuts: The Principles of Balanced Leadership

by Rocky Romanella

At the end of the first 100 days I would like to be able to answer these questions from my visits, interactions, and communications: Who are the primary customers in each business unit? This is more than the name of a customer. It is who the customer is, what the opportunities with that customer are. Who is our top churned customer in each business unit and why? How do we, our leaders, our people prioritize our core values of our customers, our people, and stakeholders? What are the critical performance metrics that are being tracked in each staff function and business unit, and do they meet the expectations of all three constituents? What strategic boundaries are we willing to set? What are the things or areas that won’t be compromised? Do we create positive creative tension, or is there an adversarial relationship among the staff functions and business units? How committed are our people to helping each other regardless of who and where they work? Do our people check their own personal agendas at the door? What strategic uncertainties keep them awake at night? If they owned this business what would be on their horizons? Is this their Candy Store?