Excerpt: People Edge (Chapter 5, Page 49)

There is another edge that great leaders have called the people edge. This is an edge with a personal twist, because it sometimes involves giving people tough feedback about how they're doing and what they value. Noel Tichey, the author of The Leadership Engine, describes how Jack Welch used a simple matrix to determine how to use the people edge. I have recreated my own version in Figure 1.

FIGURE 1. PEOPLE EDGE MATRIX

In the matrix, Roman numeral I represents a person who shares company values and delivers on commitments. II is someone who does neither. These people are easy to deal with -- the first is thanked for his performance and usually moves up in the organization. II is asked to leave.

The other two require people edge -- III shares company values but does not deliver on commitments and IV delivers on commitments but does not share company values. III should be given a second chance with honest feedback about performance and failure to deliver. IV requires people edge. In other words, IV should be thanked for performance but told to go. This should be done honestly but without cruelty. This is what is meant by people edge.

Back to Media Kit
Back to Article Ideas/Interview Topics