Successful management teams understand that organizational success is much more dependent upon the effectiveness of their teams than any other market influence. Robert H. Waterman understood the importance of people in business when he wrote that organizations exist for only one purpose: to help people reach ends together that they couldn't achieve individually.

So the question that management faces on a daily basis is three-fold:

• How can we or I improve the wins for the team, the department and the organization?
• How do we or I close the gaps between todays outcomes and the desired future results?
• How do we or I create a positive return on investment (ROI) for the resources expended in trying to improve the wins for the team?

During my experiences as both a process improvement and performance improvement consultant, I have come to realize 7 business strategies for executive teams to increase their management batting average, close the gaps and create a positive return on investment (ROI) for the resources expended.

1. Build People Skills Where is the Focus within your organization on job specific skills or people skills?
2. Focus on Strengths Why do winning teams win because of the strengths or weaknesses?
3. Implement Executive Coaching How can you lncrease the productivity of your people while multiplying the bottom line results?
4. Identify Real Problems What is truly keeping you from reaching that next level of success?
5. Create Alignment Are your daily actions causing waste, reducing performance and actually setting your people up to fail?
6. Embrace Consistent Goal Achievement How can your people consistently achieve business goals when they probably cannot achieve personal goals?
7. Secure Measurable Results Why are you in business?

Through a series entitled How To Improve the Management Team Wins for Winning More Business, each of these strategies will be explored.

Are these the only ones? Absolutely not! However from my 25 plus years in both the business and educational arenas, I believe that these are among the top 7 business strategies that need to be incorporated if management truly wants to increase its wins.

P.S.: Since these strategies evolve from a strategic plan, there is a presumption that a strategic plan exists and the challenge is in the execution of that plan or eating the elephant one bite at a time.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith

Good Day. Thanks for visiting. I hope that you have enjoyed my articles. In 1999, I founded ADVANCED SYSTEMS because I saw that performance could and should be doubled in warp time. Individuals, small and large businesses could not afford expensive solutions that may or may not deliver improved results in 12 months.

From my corporate, small business and education experiences, I recognized the individuals must have opportunities for connecting their passion to their purpose to secure the desired performance results, but many lacked the necessary skills, strategies and tools.

With over 20 years in sales management and 10 years in education, I understand how to unite productivity with profitability by developing a proactive working culture. My previous experiences resulted in cost savings through one of the first implementations of a computer software in a wholesaler distributor to the creation of a vendor performance assessment.

Since facilitating over 500 sessions, developing and editing over 25 training programs and writing numerous articles focusing on performance improvement, I bring a results focused approach to my clients. Also, I am proud to be one of the first five nationally certified facilitators of America?s Rising Stars (a Student Leadership developmental curriculum).

My passion is to help others connect their passion to their purpose to double performance. As The small business coach in Chicago, my clients have easily doubled their performance. Since our greatest resource is our young people, I am now working with large urban schools to generate the same results.

Education Background

• Graduated with honors from Purdue University with a B.A. in Education
• Earned M.S. from Purdue University in Instructional Design and Curriculum
• Published in the national trade journal, The Supply House Times, and numerous national newsletters
• Developed seminars and training on diversity, communication, leadership, sales, effective trade show behavior, networking, knowledge management, goal setting and improved educational outcomes
• Co-authored M.A.G.I.C.A.L. Potential: 7 Capicities for Living an Amazing Life Beyond Purpose to Achievement, to be available in 2006
• Working a another book focusing on performance in public education
• Speaker in a national bureau - Resource Associates Corporation