David Maister: Doing What's Obvious But Not Easy - Based On The Book 'Strategy and The Fat Smoker'

Or call 508-405-0438

Based on his latest book Strategy and The Fat Smoker, David will explore in this webinar the fact that individuals and firms often know what they should be doing, why they should be doing it and (often) how to do it. However, since all improvement requires you to change your habits today to get a benefit in the future, we all are all good at postponing the strategies and improvement programs that we know would serve us well in the long run.

How can the temptations of the short-run be overcome? What creates the drive, determination and discipline to stick with the firm’s "diet and exercise program"?

David will explore the importance of ensuring that members of a firm truly want to "go somewhere together" – something that is often assumed, but not always accurate. He will explain that you have a strategy not when you have selected goals, but when you have designed the (non-negotiable) operating rules that members of your firm agree to live by.

He will talk about the key skills required in managing partners and practice leaders in providing the encouragement and discipline to help everyone stay the course to achieve the firm’s strategic goals.

At this seminar, you will learn:

• Why strategy is about resolve, not just good ideas
  
  
• How to build resolve in yourself and others
  
  
• What agreements members of a firm need to have with each other
  
  
• How a managing partner can create energy, excitement and enthusiasm
  
  
• The difference between transaction skills and relationship skills

David Maister is widely acknowledged as one of the world’s leading authorities on the management of professional service firms. For 25 years he has acted as a consultant to prominent professional firms around the world, on a wide variety of strategic and managerial issues.

He is the author of the bestselling books Managing the Professional Service Firm (1993), True Professionalism (1997), The Trusted Advisor (2000), Practice What You Preach (2001), First Among Equals (2002), and Strategy and the Fat Smoker (2008).

He spends about 40 percent of his time working in North America, 35 percent in Europe and 25 percent in the rest of the world.

David holds a Bachelor's degree in mathematics, economics and statistics from the University of Birmingham (1968), a Master's degree in operations research from the London School of Economics (1971) and obtained his doctorate in business from the Harvard Business School (1976). For seven years, he served as a professor on the faculty of the Harvard Business School (1979-85), prior to launching his consulting practice. 

Registration Fee

$99 per connection - Gather your colleagues around a monitor in the conference room and have everyone benefit from the advice shared.

Registration also includes:

• A copy of presentation slides
• A recording of the webinar
• A 30 minute interactive Q&A session

• A chance to win one of five copies of David Maister's new book, Strategy and the Fat Smoker.

Registration