Therefore, each and every New American Leadership System™ concept is measureable. The instruments we provide have been tested and proven valid and accurate, especially when leaders and managers who use them are seen by those involved as genuinely wanting to improve himself or herself, their immediate team and the whole organization's performance. After measuring these concepts, it is essential to rapidly initiate and complete “focused” management actions that will address the issues or problems honestly expressed by participants and then re-measure to assure victory.
Managing Motivation by Measurement – The New American Leadership System™ Way
Leaders who are afraid of conflicts or so security-oriented that they choose to avoid measuring and holding people accountable ultimately fail their organization and shareholders, and sometimes taxpayers.
We have developed, over many years, measurements that are relevant to most organizations. They are part of a system of management and organization improvement.
Measurement always works to motivate when leaders follow through on agreed-upon measurements and when the rewards/punishments are clearly and objectively applied to results achieved.
Measurements should be both objective and subjective. They should always be stretch targets in a dynamic organization.
The New American Leadership System™ measurements tell you, the leader and manager, exactly what to do with these measurements!
They are:
•Relevant to heads of all business units.
•Action- and training-oriented.
•Targeted to the goals of management.
•Able to distinguish between the way things are and the way people want them to be. These differences are significant to managers as target areas for improvement.
•A means to deal directly with responsibility and accountability at every level of management.
•Also important for self-improvement of non-managers.
•Easy to use and sometimes fun.
•A baseline and re-measurement to ensure people that the company is serious about improvement.
The New American Leadership System™ provides a complete set of measurement tools meeting the fore stated characteristics in each section where appropriate.
What Measures?
We briefly touch on the objective and normal business measures. They are clear in terms of budgets, expense/revenue ratios, completing projects on time with quality as determined by the user or customer, etc.
The subjective or qualitative measures are more powerful and used well by fine leaders. Admittedly, they are rarely used as a complete system as The New American Leadership System™ does.
We propose that leaders measure their people on:
•Team Excellence™
•The Organizational Culture
•Gaining Ownership and Commitment
•Building Excellent Motivated Relationships (CRAVE-U)™
•The Process of Excellence™ in Quality and Productivity
•The Maximum Utilization and Development of Their People
•Character and Ethics
Questionnaires are provided to conduct all of these measurements.
There are other subjective measurements that the dynamic leader can invent and innovate for his/her own use.
Coaching ... Character Coaching
Coaching of people to perform or behave as needed for mutual benefit is best executed by mastering the concepts and skills of The New American Leadership System™, especially with the aid of the questionnaires.
Beyond 2010: Two Companies Built on Character-Based Leadership and Profit
These two companies are industry leaders with track records of revenue and profit growth and incredible employee loyalty and commitment because of superb management. The companies are SAS in Cary, North Carolina started 33 years ago with CEO Jim Goodnight at the helm and Nucor Corporation in Charlotte, North Carolina started 45 years ago with the hiring of Ken Iverson. Ken stepped down in 1995 and his successor, Dan DiMicco, took over with his own brand of leadership while sustaining the culture of character initiated by his predecessor. He also led the once smallest steel company in the USA to now the largest in the USA.
SAS is their industry leader as one of the largest privately held software companies in the world. They are dedicated to performance to their customers and to high levels of performance from all. Continuous profitability and employee commitment to them is returned and valued ever since 1976.
Each of these outstanding leaders has proven the “real-world” business value of every element of The New American Leadership System™. Each deserves in-depth study. Along with others cited in this course material, idealism still thrives and is alive and well even in troubled times. These leaders and their achievements are the contemporary examples of the kind of organization culture and innovation that need to be emulated and built on to further The Central Productive Process™ and the Seventeen New Industries that are needed to move the USA to its resurgence beyond this second decade of the millennium. These leaders have the leadership DNA to revive the vibrancy of Capitalism as it must function for the growth of the economy of the USA. The resurgence of Capitalism in the USA is discussed in detail in Chapter Fourteen of The New American Leadership System™.
These stories are my personal hands-on experiences as Leader and Coach. The dates of publication are cited to demonstrate the timeliness and goodness of fit over the short- and long-term.
“Have and Hold High Standards”
Richard G. Lazar, PhD, PrimeLife Magazine, September 2006
In everything we do, and I do mean everything, we have a major decision to make. Do we just do OK or do we shoot for the stars ... the highest standards for ourselves? The ordinary person, like me, can do above average and often superb things. We can aim to be “World Class,” the best in the products and service that we provide to one another.
Some Real Great Experience
The credit for this story belongs to the state officials, county commissioners, staff and volunteers who were all committed to a high standard in a breakthrough bus system that was needed. They all served their community-giving them the best. I was delighted to be a part of this effort.
For 10 years my wife and I lived in Gwinnett County, GA just outside of Atlanta. For eight of those years I was elected and re-elected president of our homeowners association of 300 homes. We tackled and resolved problems like getting the streets re-paved, overcame conflicts, domestic violence disturbances, vandalism, youthful damage, speeding, drug use, racial problems, mail delivery and re-zoning.
Our District County Commissioner, Kevin, was running for re-election. Kevin was my son's age and a real estate broker and developer, heavily committed to smart growth. Kevin frequently had dinner at our house and