top of page
Sam Decker Blog

Jan 14, 20071 min read
Career Tip #6: Inform Others
Inform your manager and peers about what’s going on. In 1x1s, in email, in staff meetings, make sure you are giving updates and status on...


Jan 7, 20072 min read
12 CEO (Leader) Diseases and Prescriptions
Dr. Robert Kuhn, who has 12 years experience in M&A and has worked with 15,000 companies and their CEOs, summarized 12 CEO Diseases and...

May 23, 20062 min read
How Measurement Leads to Money — 6 Steps
A mid-manager came up to me after a recent conference presentation and asked me how to convince his people – and even some executive...
May 6, 20065 min read
WHAT You Measure WHEN Determines HOW You Will Succeed
I just got back from presenting at Visual Sciences event on "How to Put eBusiness in the Heart of Your Business." I’ll share some...


Apr 17, 20063 min read
Three Questions: Change Leadership & Culture with Linda Ford
Such a consultant is Linda Ford, who shares a passion for culture and change leadership and has over 15 years of day-to-day management...
Mar 21, 20061 min read
5 Findings on Change Management
Prosci’s Change Management learning center features a report titledBest Practices in Change Management. As summarized by Be Excellent,...
Dec 8, 20051 min read
25 Characteristics of The Ideal Startup
This is a list I created some time ago of the ideal startup… Defendable and differentiated Competitive cost structure Attractive...

Sep 23, 20052 min read
Achieve Prioritization with Six Disciplines for Excellence
One of my favorite 'saved' books is Six Disciplines for Excellence by Gary Harpst. Here’s what differentiates this book: it bridges...


Sep 22, 20052 min read
How Culture is an “Atmosphere for Success”
Rick Barnes, prior Head Basketball Coach for the UT Longhorns men’s basketball team, spoke to my team once about leadership. Here are...


Jul 5, 20051 min read
The 3 Tributary Principles of Leadership
Take, for example, the recurring natural theme of tributaries and branching You see this in rivers, branches, our nervous system, our...

May 30, 20051 min read
The #1 Key to Successful Partnerships
Through startups and Dell, I’ve worked hundreds of partnerships with suppliers and vendors. Many of them succeeded, and many failed. I’ve...
Mar 20, 20051 min read
3 Innovation Quotes for March
One must be a god to be able to tell successes from failures without making a mistake. – Anton Pavlovich Chekhov There are two classes of...
Jan 2, 20052 min read
How to Matter More
Everyone matters to someone…and if you can’t think of anyone, you matter to your mom! But you can choose to matter more. Here are some of...

Nov 28, 20041 min read
Voice of Customer Checklist
Is your company customer-centric? Have you unearthed customer needs. Do you hear the Voice of Customer? To find out, see how many...

Sep 8, 20042 min read
How “Functional Fluidity” Breaks
Every company has disparate functions, such as sales, accounting, marketing, etc. And in large companies there are similar functions in...


Jul 19, 20042 min read
First Break All the Rules: “Skills, Knowledge and Talents”
One of the best management books I’ve ever read is First Break All the Rules. With that kind of endorsement I’m hoping Marcus Buckingham...


Jul 10, 20043 min read
"Get Back to Basics" -- Patrick Lencioni
Patrick Lencioni has been a friend of my father's for years. I got to know him many years ago too, and he honored me by answering a few...

Jun 23, 20042 min read
Cookbook for a Business Recovery
There's a revenue crisis. You need to do a business recovery. There are three choices: 1. Do nothing…i.e. keep on trucking, status quo....

Jun 16, 20042 min read
10 Questions Before Business Planning
Entrepreneur posted an article called 7 Habits for Business Success by Brian Tracy, exerpted from his book “Million Dollar Habits”....


Jun 14, 20042 min read
The Story of Rock and Sponge
Here’s what happened... Rock was a hard, seasoned pro. He threw weight into a problem and bulldozed through people to ‘make IT so’. “It”...
bottom of page