Bob Schultek

Bob has more than 30 years of service as a senior sales and business development executive, CEO and business owner. His expertise includes customer-partnered business development, strategic planning, sales management, customer service, operational alignment, lean process analysis and improvement, quality assurance, and performance management. He has worked in the energy, medical device, bioscience & pharmaceutical, discrete and process manufacturing, packaging and distribution, communications and information technology, and business-to-business service industries.

Pursuing Agility

by

At the nexus of urgency, efficiency and reliability lies agility, the competence of a business to promptly respond to change or challenge.  The rapid evolution of technology continues to heighten complexity and unpredictability in the marketplace, increasing uncertainty about changing customer needs and goals. Pursuing agility enbles a business to respond quickly and effectively to opportunities, as well as to changes or threats. While characteristics like apodaptability or flexibility convey a passive, reactive strategy, agility implies an …

Read more

Preserving Culture in a Downturn

by

When business turns down, and layoffs are necessary, preserving culture can be challenging for leadership.  Leaders who sustain the dignity of those who must depart, who communicate clearly and honestly, employ a fair, ethical process, and offer resources to assist are seen as modelling a company’s core principles, thus preserving some trust with the survivors.  A poorly managed downsizing damages that trust, perhaps irrevocably. It also crushes morale and loyalty, increases resentment, and reduces employee engagement …

Read more

Investing in Appreciation

by

During this prolonged time of disruption and stress, those you lead benefit from your personal attention in letting them know that they are appreciated and valued. The return on these efforts is higher individual and team performance, greater collaboration, increased willingness to invest in changes that deliver improvements, and enriched job satisfaction for your people.  Good employees are hard to find, develop, and keep. And replacing trained, experienced people is often quoted as the #1 non-productive cost …

Read more

Daily Choices

by

The first month of the new year is almost complete, and by now, you’re likely settled back into your habitual routines again. Which means you’re back to daily choices, priority changes and distractions…and the challenge of making the best of your valuable time. There’s plenty to keep you busy, with many demands upon that time. But as a leader, you know that time is irreplaceable, so this year like every year, your plan is to invest your …

Read more

Kindness

by

We defeat disruption, fear, and uncertainty by relying on our beliefs, values and stories. Challenging situations can dismay and paralyze, or they can inspire and energize. Each of us chooses which path we will take. I’m writing this on Martin Luther King Jr. day. Dr. King chose to take control rather than be controlled. And on this day, we honor his choice, his decision to persevere with his message and methods which continue to be reasonable, positive and …

Read more

It’s Not The People…It’s The Leadership

by

We begin our careers by accepting an entry level job with specific requirements and responsibility only for ourself. If we do well, and increasingly master our assigned duties, we get promoted; if we sustain our high performance, then we continue to earn greater responsibility. Eventually, given our reliable performance and high mastery of skills, we’re promoted into a leadership role and required to lead others who are responsible for doing the tasks we excelled at doing. We’re …

Read more

Altered Urgencies

by

For many of us, it’s back to work in a new year. Catching up, answering emails, checking with the boss, revisiting pending deadlines. It’s typically a time when fewer things are urgent, a time for resolutions and reviews, a time to reflect on what worked well during the past year and what could improve. Remember those process deficiencies you wanted to fix but couldn’t because daily urgencies consumed you? Now is the time to make those process improvements …

Read more

Valuing Observation

by

These days, we spend much of our time focused on screens.  Such an existence can diminish our offscreen awareness of the people and the activity around us. Having become increasingly dependent on technology, and inhibited by masks and distancing, our connecting and observational skills erode. What we observe informs what we think, and influences how we act; a weakened observation capacity hinders our ability to learn, to restore and to grow. Observation is the most direct method …

Read more

Customer Experience Insulation

by

The customer-driven market is the future of business. Those who thrive in it anticipate disruption, partner with key customers, relentlessly challenge the status quo, and drive, rather than adapt to, change. Decisions related to these strategies rely upon urgent, unfiltered feedback from customers. How insulated are you from this direct feedback? When a small business delivers a poor customer experience, the leaders quickly learn about it. Complaints rise and customers leave. Post-purchase reparations are expensive, and goal achievement is …

Read more

Evolving Values

by

For numerous companies, this is the 2021 planning season. The widespread disruption to business during 2020 raised awareness about what can and cannot be managed when overwhelming, unexpected events occur. Uncertainty is no stranger to business leaders, but the profound, unprecedented impact of the Covid challenge caused many to reconsider their purpose, values, and vision before delving into goal setting, strategy development and action planning. Among the results of this foundational review is a refocusing …

Read more