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At that time, Jack was famous for his personal leader’s notes. In business, Jack Welch was the most famous advocate of cvs2bvs in the US.
Jack used cvs2bvs at GE to help him change the culture of a 100-year-old manufacturer to the most valuable company (at the time he left it) in the history of the world!
I was invited to GE soon after he became chairman and CEO. In the 1980s I spent several years, at his request, installing the cvs2bvs brain software at GE. He wrote to me saying,
“I would love to have a management team that really understood the cvs2bvs algorithm. It’s the ‘value-added’ role in the management process”.
In his book about his time at GE called, Jack (Warner Books 2001), he wrote, “It would make each of us wake up with the goal of “Finding a Better Way Every Day”. It was a phrase that became a slogan, put up on the walls of GE factories and offices around the world”.
Jack also used cvs2bvs in crisis management situations and on one very serious occasion involving a crisis between GE and President Reagan’s Defense Secretary, Caspar Weinberger, Jack asked me to meet with him privately, in Manhattan, to apply cvs2bvs to finding a solution.
He also told me that it helped him design new concepts like ‘Boundarylessness’ and ‘Work-Out’. He wrote, “Suddenly, “Finding a Better Way Every Day” wasn’t just a slogan. It was the essence of boundaryless behaviour, and it defined our expectations”.
As my Dad used to say, “Nobody’s perfect!” and Jack had his share of setbacks but he was a genuine strategic thinker and one of the most accomplished business leaders of his time.
Jack was famous for the little hand-written notes he would send to people. He sent me several and the one I prized the most was, “Michael, you are a friend of our company”.
Hand-written notes are a very personal and powerful communication. I have known several leaders who use handwritten notes with great effect.
I first was taught to use ‘The Leader’s Note’ in the Army and I saw recently where the Duchess of Cornwall (who is Royal Colonel of the 4th Battalion The Rifles) sent handwritten notes to all the soldiers in her regiment who were wounded in Iraq.
Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Sanders, commander of 4 Rifles, said,
She bled with us throughout the tour. She wrote by hand to all the wounded and the families of those killed. She gave each of the wounded presents – whisky or hampers. We feel incredibly lucky to have her as our Royal Colonel. At a time when people in England did not really know what we were going through, she did.
DFQ #20:
PTO: Write a Leader’s Note!
On a postcard, engraved writing paper or special paper for the purpose (not email), write a short personal note of encouragement (around 10 to 100 words) to someone who sees you as their leader or mentor.
Post that you have completed this PTO within the next 24 hours saying who, when, where etc:
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Loved this task so I went overboard.
I prepared three for personal reasons (my husband for how hard he works, my daughter for always being so thoughtful and my son who did really well in his NAP test).
So then I had to prepare 3 for work colleagues. Two for staff that I have supervised. One, who does an excellent job and has received recognition from others due the changes that she has been able to implement. The other, who also does a wonderful jub, but does not receive any recognition from her main supervisor for her efforts. The last one is for a colleague who does a lot of work in our financial systems and has a constantly challenging work environment to deal with.
I sent a note to a colleague at work commending her on the excellent job she had done co-ordinating and subsequently reporting on a series of detailed planning meetings. This person lacks confidence as she fails to see her strengths and qualities in an organisation (DPI) full of very clever intelligent people.
Done.
I congratulated an employee on a job well done in sorting out a difficult issue the day before on a major contract. I put a note on his desk this morning.
I left a note for a student of mine congratulating him on his enthusiasm and great work on completing his project.
Easy. Two children (not sure if they see me as their mentor they probably see me as mental most of the time), two notes.
My daugther (7 yo) is leading a Tinies calisthenics team, and they performed exceptionally well at a championship competition. She also started playing the piano this week.
My son (12 yo) prepared and presented his Year 6 project on how technology advanced from the 1950s through to today without any help, and he also did exceptionally well.
Can we expect to see a hand-written note from you, Michael, to commend our persistence with PTO? Just kidding …
Looking forward to the next class!
Sometimes to share the happiness, just to let those around you know that you are happy, it can be infectious. So my happiness note is that our water levels are now above that of last year, yeah!
I love the handwritten note thing and use it semi regularly. I like to get into work early and leave them for the recipients to find upon arrival. It’s a good way to start the day. I made a delivery this morning so I guess this DFQ is an easy one as the job is already done. The details go like this: yesterday I purchased two cards for two very special people that work with me. The three of us recently attended a big work related conference. For both of them it was their first time speaking at a conference or to any large gathering. Both were quite nervous and both did a fantastic job. The cards were to tell them what a great job they did, to thank them for their hard work in preparing for the event and to let them know how much I enjoy working with them.
I sent a personal note to a friend of mine telling her what a wonderful job she has done raising her children pretty much by herself.
wilson ,today, in accra letting him know that there is always.and that there is always a better view of the situation.that some situations are ptos and to help us understand issues better we can always do a gbb.
For my children, urging them never to be satisfied with the CVS.