Business, Chow Yong Han, Page 10

Having management depth at every position

(Extracted from Bloomberg on Bloomberg) Whether by building or buying, there are dangers in growth you ignore at great peril. We insist on management depth at every position. Lack of it would leave us vulnerable...

October 6, 2019| People Read More

Minimise class divide

(Extracted from Bloomberg on Bloomberg) We have no reserved parking spaces for senior executives. If you want to leave your car right by the door, just come in earlier. Creating class distinctions isn’t...

October 4, 2019| People Read More

Promotee should expect to deliver more

(Extracted from Bloomberg on Bloomberg) We handle perks differently, too. At Bloomberg, as you get promoted and your compensation increases, you aren’t expected to work less and take more vacations. Quite the...

October 4, 2019| People Read More

An open office reduces friction

(Extracted from Bloomberg on Bloomberg) I’ve always believed that management’s ability to influence work habits through edict is limited. Ordering something gets it done, perhaps. When you turn your back,...

October 4, 2019| Execution, Structure drives behaviour Read More

Buy what’s delivered, not promised

(Extracted from Bloomberg on Bloomberg) The risks attendant with developing technology I think properly belong to the manufacturer or software writer. They get the profits if it works; they should take the grief if...

October 4, 2019| Execution Read More

Get programmers to explain to a novice

(Extracted from Bloomberg on Bloomberg) Another software development practice I started at Salomon (and apply at Bloomberg today) was to insist on an explanation from the programmers of what they were trying to do...

October 4, 2019| Execution Read More

Play as many hands as possible, whatever cards you are dealt with

(Extracted from Bloomberg on Bloomberg) Don’t devise a Five-Year Plan or a Great Leap Forward. Central planning didn’t work for Stalin or Mao, and it won’t work for an entrepreneur either. Slavishly follow a...

October 3, 2019| Execution, Life, Optionality, Path Dependence Read More

Leadership is about genuinely having people’s interest at heart

(Extracted from Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master’s Insights on China, the United States, and the World) When campaigning, no one has to listen to you at all. And when the campaign is over, people have to believe...

September 24, 2019| Life, People Read More

You are what you communicate

(Extracted from Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master’s Insights on China, the United States, and the World) If I had not been able to reduce complex ideas into simple words and project them vividly for mass...

September 24, 2019| Life, Sales Read More

10x better

(Excerpt from Zero to One by Peter Thiel) Companies must strive for 10x better because merely incremental improvements often end up meaning no improvement at all for the end user. Suppose you develop a new wind turbine...

September 21, 2019| Strategy Read More