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1. Establish a vision for the whole company.
2. Set clear expectations for every level of the company.
3. Construct realistic strategies that don't require rocket science.
4. Focus everything on the customer, because the customer is the ultimate arbiter of success.

1. Surround yourself with the best - this is a theme I've heard presented many times in many ways. Shelby Carter said something similiar which I shared here, and one of the main elements of success uncovered in this research was the importance of getting the right people on the bus (if you like that one, don't miss the original).
2. Create a North Star - it is important to decide for yourself where you stand on an issue. Choose your position and then move on to the next step.
   
3. Facilitate Debate - once you know where you stand on an issue, facilitate debate between the best and the brightest on all sides of the issue. If you do this well the "Pearls will fall to the table" as Mr. Dewhurst put it.
4. Maintain Perspective - resist the tetendency to dislike those that disagree with you. If someone agrees with you 80% of the time you probably have more in common with them than some of your closest friends.

Like many parents I am very interested in the lives my children lead at school. My three boys are in the 2nd grade, kindergarten, and pre-K. As you might expect the standard response to the question "What did you do at school today?" is "I don't remember". Even if I ask specific questions I get one word responses. But I've got great news, I get weekly status reports on what my boys are doing at school. It's called the Wednesday folder. Every Wednesday they come home with a folder full of their work from the previous week. It's terrific, I get to see everything they've done and we get to sit down and talk about it.

As a manager, I find that nothing causes employees to roll their eyes quite like a request for a status report. But just like Wednesday folders, they are a great tool for a manager and a team to share information. Nothing quite replaces the quality of information that can be exchanged in a 1-on-1 or in casually touching base, but status reports go a long way towards complementing these regular touch points. A status report is a great way for a person to tell their manager what they worked on that week that is of importance. I ask my engineers to share their accomplishments (what's done), good news (what significant breakthrough has occurred), bad news (what obstacles are standing in the way), and regular status (what else is of interest) on a bi-weekly basis. I then take the time to summarize these reports in writing (heck I'm already doing it mentally) and then send this summary back to the team. This is a very important step because it helps the team gain some perspective on the efforts of their peers as well as to put their efforts into the larger context of what the team is working towards. Finally, this summary represents a mental map of where we as a team currently stand that enables us to better inform others, negotiate requirements, etc.

As a parent and as a manager, staying informed is critical to my job and whether its Wednesday folders, or weekly status reports, a regular summary goes a long way towards helping me and the team.

I have the distinct pleasure to be taking a Corporate Governance course this semester at UT with two of the most accomplished men I've encountered. They are Shelby Carter and William H. Cunningham. I can’t find a good profile on Mr. Cunningham but he is only the 2^nd man in history to be the Dean of a UT school, President of the University, and Chancellor of the UT School system. He sits on the board of directors for several fortune 500 companies and is brilliant.

This past week Mr. Carter provided us some insight into his Ten Commandmants for an Intrepreneur. An intrepreneur is similar to an entrepreneur but they operate within a company as opposed to creating one. This is the first time I've heard that term but I really identify with it. In some ways I think the intrepreneurial opportunity is more exciting than the entrepreneurial one because of the scale on which you can operate. I've been asked many times over the past couple of rough years for Sun why I am still here. My answer has always been the same. How many times do you see a > $10 billion company with 30,000+ bright people and an $180 billion install base reinvent itself? I would rather be inside that company, helping to make the turnaround happen, than on the outside watching it happen.

Here are Shelby Carter's top 10 commandments for the Intrepeneur (yes I know there are 11 of them):

1. Come to work every day willing to be fired.
2. Circumvent any orders aimed at stopping your dream.
3. Do any job needed to make a project work.
4. Find people to help you.
5. Follow your intuition about the people you choose and only work with the best.
6. Fair is only for children.
7. Work underground as long as you can. Complicity will only wake up the corporate immune system.
8. Never bet on a race unless you are running it.
9. It is easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission.
10. Be true to your goals, but be realistic about how you're going to meet them.
11. Honor your sponsors, if they're betting on you, then you must back them.

I’m learning a lot from both Mr. Carter and Mr. Cunningham and will provide more later.