Alliance Perspectives

“Return to Workplace” Planning and Strategies During COVID-19
April 29, 2020

In the spirit of sharing the collective wisdom of our Alliance community during the COVID-19 crisis, we invited leaders from world-class organizations to share their critical considerations for “Return-to-Workplace” (RTW) planning at our Alliance Leadership Forum on April 29, 2020.

Presenters in areas of Health Issues (One Medical), Employee Issues (Lattice Semiconductor), and specific industries including Manufacturing (Flex), Construction (Webcor Builders) and Scientific Laboratories (Triple Ring Technologies) shared their Back-to-Office principles and timelines, employee health, safety and training plans, strategies for risk mitigation and more.

Case categories include: Culture   Health   Human Resources   Leadership   Operations   Strategy & Planning   Trends   

Preparing for the Next Wave in Data Privacy
June 01, 2018

Alliance members Ian Cohen of Experian Consumer Services, Himanshu Dwivedi of Data Theorem, Ted Elliott of Jobscience, Ju-kay Kwek of Switchboard Software, Ersin Uzun of Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), and Christy Wyatt of Dtex Systems, discuss the sweeping new Data Privacy and GDPR rules taking effect, and how organizations should reconsider the ‘what, where and why’ behind their data practices.

Case categories include: Finance   Human Resources   International Business   Marketing   Operations   Sales   Strategy & Planning   Technology   Trends   

In Pursuit of Growth in a Gig Economy
January 30, 2017

Alliance leaders know that today’s labor force is experiencing fundamental, permanent change. Alliance members Laura Bergheim of Wordsmithie, Andy Berkenfield of Duncan Channon, Nathan Collins of SRI International, Ross Fernandes of Q Analysts, Glo Gordon of Cisco-Jasper, Kathy Zwickert of NetSuite, and Alliance Director Marion McGovern, share their strategies for growth in the gig economy. This transformation will create critical questions for today’s leaders, and their solutions will be customized for each unique situation. Given the track record of Bay Area innovation, we think it’s not a matter of if the answers will come, but when.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   Operations   Strategy & Planning   Trends   

An Innovation Straight From the Heart
July 01, 2016

Ebbe Altberg, CEO of the virtual reality pioneer Linden Lab, recently shared a curious facet of his company’s culture at an Alliance meeting. Called the “Love Machine,” this innovation sparked instant curiosity and captured the imaginations of the CEOs in the room. Just what is the Love Machine?

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   Operations   Trends   

Creating and Maintaining a High-Performance Workplace
July 28, 2012

Keeping your team in a healthy state of dissatisfaction is an underlying element of any high-performance work environment.

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Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   

Attracting and Retaining the Optimal Team
April 11, 2009

This article discusses a long-term workplace differentiation strategy that will enable you to attract and retain top talent, even in the talent shortage that challenges us all in every economic growth cycle. An ideal time to start is a year or more before the talent pool shrinks.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   Strategy & Planning   

The New CEO as a Change Agent
August 09, 2008

A private equity firm brings in a seasoned CEO to dramatically accelerate the growth of a stable, conservative company. The CEO carefully controls his own on-boarding process designed to identify and retain great talent and create momentum company-wide for high growth. This case study details his technique.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   

Keeping Your Team Focused on your Value-Creation Strategy
August 09, 2008

A high growth CEO builds value by being first to the market with hot new products and technologies. But that means moving faster than is comfortable for all his teams as his organization grows. The case talks about minimizing risk on new product introductions and managing the teams that must do the work.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   Strategy & Planning   

Values Based Organizations
April 16, 2008

CEOs are too tolerant of executives that aren't top performers and that don't behave according to the values that the organization holds dear. CEO Jim Pouliot of CSAA talks to the Alliance about his experiences cleaning up executive teams. This essay explores why CEOs continually struggle with this issue, and what they can do about it.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   

Don’t Let Success Destroy your Culture
October 06, 2007

This firm's success brought in so much business that it wasn't as much fun as it used to, and that endangered the quality of the work being performed. The CEO identified a customer in particular that was causing most of the problems and resigned the account, allowing her culture of fun and originality to survive.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   

Shifting Gears from Startup to Scaled Enterprise
April 12, 2007

Every successful startup goes from an entrepreneurial stage to a professional enterprise. Learn how the entrepreneur also successfully made the crossing point without hitting the wall.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   Operations   

Recruiting through Mutual Respect
January 21, 2007

Sometimes the best teammates are the ones that worked before. A CEO digs through past connections to forge a "dream team" of talent. The challenges and benefits are examined.

Case categories include: Human Resources   

Learning from Pure Innovation
October 06, 2006

Innovation leads to powerful results. A CEO fosters a rich culture of innovation by getting the most out of his top team.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   

Managing Young Employees Yields Insights for All
June 21, 2006

Showing genuine concern for your employees is good for business. The founders buy a troubled business with young, troubled employees, and turn it around by deeply engaging and tapping the potential in each employee.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   

The Courage to Fire
June 10, 2006

An incoming CEO fires the most senior technical expert because he won't embrace the new values that must take hold for the firm to survive. The bold move works without significant damage.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   Operations   

Intelligent Off-Shoring
February 06, 2006

A company finds an excellent way of managing off-shoring, taking advantage of the positives while avoiding the pitfalls. Blending the efforts of on-shoring with off-shoring and a commitment to close management are key.

Case categories include: Human Resources   International Business   Operations   

Sharing the Dream of Success Brings Top Talent for Less
November 21, 2005

Summary: Engineer turned entrepreneur bootstraps his company, but can't afford the talent he needs. Through careful sharing of equity, he builds a great team who bring results amazingly fast.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Strategy & Planning   

Stop Consultants Running Amok
September 10, 2005

A consultant provides great value and mentors the President, who being grateful, grants a three year contract, but then regrets it. Clients must always remain in control of consultants.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   

Taking Training Seriously
September 06, 2005

Summary: A retail chain has incredible training program, which instills corporate values in new hires and teaches product knowledge as well as systems and customer interface protocols. After the initial training, they weave training into the company's routine.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership   Operations   

Compensation Systems: Giving and Getting
June 15, 2005

Read about an executive compensation system that really worked. By generously sharing the bottom line, the owner quadrupled his take home. The concept is laid out, and critical elements to successful implementation are detailed.

Case categories include: Human Resources   Leadership