or how is truth to be got at?” – Lord Byron
opinions on transformational leadership
white papers
All Executives Are Unethical
- the moral case for rightshifting
Are all executives unethical? Bob Marshall argues that, absent objective evidence, it’s simply unethical for executives to believe that product and software development in their organisations is reasonably effective.
questionnaires
Just How Good Are You At Development?
- a Falling Blossoms Questionnaire
Just how good are you - as an organisation – at developing software-intensive products and services? This questionnaire has thrity eight simple questions which will tell you just how good your development organisation really is. Mark the answers yourself or send your answers to Bob Marshall for a free, no-obligation assessement of your development capabilities.
analyses
The Righshifting Landscape
- Root causes of Management Inaction
A Current Reality Tree using a Theory of Constraints technique for analysing root causes of complex problems.
recommended articles
The Neuroscience of Leadership
- David Rock and Jeffrey Schwartz
Recent advances in Neuroscience shed light on what's really happening in the brain when people are faced with change. This article consider organisational transformation in this new light, and provides some insights into how to use this new knowledge to make transformation efforts more successful.
Watch out for the Tool Heads
- John Seddon
(Free registration required for article by email)
Billed as "Everything you need to know about lean manufacturing tools and why they won’t work in service organisations", hugely informative (and entertaining) in itself, but also by (extension) an explanation of why lean manufacturing techniques won't work in software and product development organisations, either. Also a comprehensive critique of the pitfalls of hiring Six Sigma and other "tool head" consultants who just parrot received wisdom rather than understand lean fundamentals themselves.
Transformational leadership: a US military perspective
- Colonel Mark A. Homrig
In the military, effective leadership is often a matter of life and death. Colonel Mark Homrig, USAF, conducts an in-depth investigation of the theory and background of transformational leadership.
Become a More Effective Leader by Asking One Tough Question
- Marshall Goldsmith (Harvard Business Review)
Marshall Goldsmith examines the fundamental question to which so many well-intentioned would-be leaders search for an answer.
A Business Case For Better Software Practices
- Steve McConnell
Excerpted as a chapter from his book "After the Gold Rush", this paper started the whole Rightshifting movement and describes how and why some form of systematic improvement in software and product development effectiveness pays major dividend in terms of both tangible (bottom-line) and intangible returns on investment.
And for an opinion on your own situation, straight from the horse's mouth, call Bob Marshall now on +44 (0)1474 703940.
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