An anonymous commenter just offered up a piece of brilliance in response to this post and this post, and we wanted to highlight it:
My father (who was in a position to know) used to tell me that you can tell a company’s position in its lifecycle by looking at who is calling the shots in the executive team.
1. birth – creatives such as inventors, engineers, scientists to create the company
2. growth – sales and marketing to generate new sales
3. maturity – accountants, et al for cost reduction and efficiency
4. death – lawyers to handle M&A, bankruptcy or to finesse how to sell products at a price no longer justified by their actual value.
I’ve worked for half a dozen companies over the last 30 years and I’ve seen the same pattern.
Makes you think about situations like this, doesn’t it!
Indeed.
Ok, so what about when you have a micromanaging president who thinks he knows more than the rest of the team combined, and doesn’t let anyone else call any of the shots?
*Phew* I feel better now.
Uh-oh…I think I might know where you work.