organizational effectiveness

leadership dot #5061: merger

September 30, 2026September 30, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

Businesses and nonprofit organizations have recently undergone many mergers, consolidations, and buyouts. All of these raise questions about culture and how the transition to the new configuration will be managed.

It’s important in the early stages to define the intended outcome. Is entity A absorbing entity B, and the smaller entity is expected to adopt the procedures and processes of the buyer? This happens when a big bank buys a smaller branch, and the identity of the small bank disappears.

Or, are A and B combining to create a new option C, with a new structure and name? This happened when a neighboring school district realigned its facilities and merged two high schools into one new United High.

Whether it involves a multi-million-dollar conglomerate or a few small departments in the same organization, clarifying the goal is essential. The alignment won’t be easy, but proactively orchestrating the transition is much better than the consequences of ongoing misalignment.

leadership dot #5053: life stages

September 18, 2026September 17, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

Most people are conscious of the evolving developmental stages in children or pets, but fewer consider the life stages of an organization.

A recent board training reminded me that nonprofits (among other organizations) move through stages as the organization evolves.

Stage 1: Vision: where a founder(s) sees a possibility and imagines how an organization can fulfill it
Stage 2: Start-up: the organization becomes a reality and begins implementation
Stage 3: Building a foundation: Where processes allow the organization to grow
Stage 4: Maturity: The focus shifts from an entrepreneurial beginning to one of sustainability
Stage 5: Change: Requiring a refocus and review of the original mission and how to meet it
Stage 6: Dissolution: When the need has been met or the infrastructure to proceed ends

Organizations don’t move through stages linearly; instead, they may move back and forth between earlier stages as personnel, the environment, and circumstances change. I think of leadership dots and the decision to rethink the number of days I publish (stage 5), allowing the organization (me) to continue (stage 4). Without this renewal, I think I would have been close to stage 6.]

Where is your organization today? Assessing your organization through this lens may clarify where to focus and what resources you need to thrive.

Source: Board Bootcamp, Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque

leadership dot #5042: firsthand

September 2, 2026September 2, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

A school district community task force has been meeting for several months, and most meetings are held in a different school building. We build a brief tour into the agenda, allowing people to see the facilities and hear from the principals. We did this even in a non-air-conditioned building (in July!) to experience the difference climate control makes for the learning environment.

Long after the task force concludes its work, I think our rotating meeting schedule will help community members carry with them a better understanding of the district facilities and their needs.

I am a big believer in rotating meeting locations. When I worked at a college, each of my senior staff meetings was held in a different spot on campus. People whose organization has multiple buildings can utilize that variety to meet other colleagues and stimulate creativity. Even those who have limited office space can meet outside or at a neighboring organization.

Get outside the conference room and experience something firsthand.

leadership dot #5041: as designed

September 1, 2026August 31, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

The home improvement store Menards is known for its frequent “11% Rebate on Everything.” It’s a good gimmick that seems to get people into the stores.

It works well for Menards — but think about it from the consumer perspective. They make people save their receipts and postal mail them in with a rebate form. This creates a double barrier that undoubtedly reduces the number of rebates they provide. The next barrier: the rebate now comes “disguised” as junk mail. If I hadn’t seen a warning about this online, I would have tossed it, thinking it was nothing but a sales flyer. And finally, people need to save the paper rebate they inconveniently cut out of the oversized flyer, remember to bring it, and use it in the store, likely making even more purchases — so the cycle continues.

Menards could just reduce its prices by 11%. They could offer a cash rebate instead of a merchandise credit. They could allow for electronic submission of receipts/rebate forms. They could provide the rebate electronically or as a card, making it more portable and likely to be used, or at least mail the rebate clearly marked as such. But Menards has designed a system that accomplishes exactly what it is designed to do — increase sales and reduce redeemed rebates.

Any time you see something that isn’t working, look at the system and consider who benefits from it as is. More than likely, it means the system was intentionally created that way.

The only indication that the rebate is inside this folded and glued-together advertising flyer is a small corner notice

leadership dot #5040: in stages

August 31, 2026August 28, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

The Detroit Riverwalk features 5 miles of amazing — a free carousel, public restrooms, biking paths, greenery, places to rest and eat, and beautiful views of the river and Canada. It has been voted the #1 riverwalk in America for three years in a row…

…and, it’s not finished. In between the lovely landscapes, vacant lots, rundown buildings, and abandoned warehouses still remain. It’s a stark reminder of what “before” looked like on much of the banks.

Detroit could have waited until it had the funds to acquire all the property and perform the transformation, but, of course, it’s much better that they made improvements in stages. Not only does it provide present-day recreation for residents, but the visible progress creates momentum that can spur on future developments.

Are you waiting to complete your “riverwalk” until conditions are perfect, or are you following Detroit’s example to show incremental success? It’s almost always better to get started.

leadership dot #5029: dead

August 14, 2026August 13, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

At one of my “nothing” lunches with friends this week, the conversation started with youth sports and morphed into a discussion of baseball bats. To me, a bat is a bat is a bat. Maybe I knew about the distinction between wood and aluminum, but at lunch I learned that there is oh so much more to them. Different lengths, weights, inner cores, and more. And the price! I had no idea that even youth bats could cost several hundred dollars!

But what surprised me the most is that bats die. After so much use, bats are considered dead and no longer suitable for use in a game. They may look normal, but players know that the bat no longer hits as it should.

Consider whether you have tools that should be declared dead. They may still be around and in use, but no longer perform at their peak. If kids see the value in upgrading a bat, maybe it’s time to consider replacing something you use to increase your effectiveness.

leadership dot #5018: unrestrained

July 30, 2026July 29, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

The Michigan Central campus (see dots #5016 & 5017) includes several streets where the owners have been given permission to experiment free from regulations. This allows for speedier innovation trials, without the time lag to secure permits and approval from the city.

One use of this latitude involves piloting a test strip where wireless charging capabilities are placed underground so electric vehicles can charge their batteries without stopping. Currently, it only encompasses several blocks, but the hope is that it could have greater adoption in the future. The American Automobile Association (AAA) notes that “range anxiety keeps 60% of consumers from considering electric vehicles despite their environmental benefits,” so underground charging is an experiment to overcome that hesitation.

How can you adopt your organization’s policies as Detroit has done to provide more freedom and flexibility in the innovation process? Let your thinkers, artists, and engineers spend their time on creating rather than on navigating internal or external bureaucracy.

leadership dot #4993: wizardry

June 28, 2026June 27, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

In an amazing use of technological wizardry, Delta now allows you to scan your boarding pass to receive personalized connecting gate information. It also somehow shows this information only to you, even though others may be looking at the screen. No more scanning the giant flight information boards to find your flight, or wondering which direction to walk and how much time it will take you to get there. It’s now all laid out, just for you, even in your preferred language.

Technology can be wonderful for handling complex tasks and calculating massive amounts of data, but it also has valuable applications in producing micro-results from that process. Think about how you can narrow down what information you share and target the message to just what the person wants to know.

Thanks, Meg!

leadership dot #4971: a volunteer

June 6, 2026June 5, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

At a recent concert, the conductor claimed he was tired and asked for volunteers “age 15 or under” to conduct the last piece. A brave, young girl came forward and took the baton for the first time.

The actual conductor helped the orchestra cue the first note and stepped in to indicate the last, but his stand-in technically handled the rest. What a thrill for her, and perhaps the start of a new avocation.

Of course, his feigning tiredness was a ruse to get some audience interaction, and it worked. The switch added a bright spot to the performance as the young volunteer received rousing rounds of applause, and it cost nothing.

Think of how you can interject something unexpected into your organization’s routine. The novelty may strike a positive chord with all involved.

leadership dot #4964: server

May 30, 2026May 29, 2026by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

How many times have you forgotten your server’s name at a restaurant? Knowing who is assigned to you makes it much easier to ask someone else to send “your” server back to the table, or to ask for them specifically on your next trip.

A local restaurant solved those problems and made it easier for the server to remember which tables they were handling by utilizing a small sign at each table. It was so simple that I wonder why other restaurants don’t do something similar.

Your solutions don’t have to be fancy to be effective.