Peter McGinn speaks and writes on topics of leadership, employee engagement, developing executive and management skills, and improving board performance.
Whether Pete is writing or speaking, he seeks to engage the reader or listener as a partner in a shared journey. Leadership calls upon our personal core -- our individual personalities and values. How we lead reflects who we are, our history, and the current direction of our lives.
No one can learn leadership by passively hearing and accepting the ideas of others. Whether you are reading or listening, you should expect to be motivated to apply your own ideas and experiences to the topics at hand.
Speaking and Workshop Topics:
CEOs and Leadership
“CEO: Consultant to the Board” proposes a new model of CEO/Board Relations hat emphasizes the parity and partnership between CEOs and their boards. While boards possess the legal authority for their organizations and hire, fire, evaluate, and compensate their CEOs, those CEOs typically possess more industry knowledge and wield considerably more practical authority. Indeed, it is usually up to CEOs to work with their boards to build them into effective deliberative and decision-making bodies. This presentation provides practical guidelines for both CEOs and boards. It can be delivered as a keynote or a half-day workshop.
Leadership
“Leading Others, Managing Yourself” is based on my book by the same title. Leaders engage the actions, energy, and intelligence of others to accomplish important work. The art and practice of leadership depends on leaders’ abilities to understand what makes them and others tick. This presentation considers the fundamental tasks of vision, analysis, and action and encourages members of the audience to examine their own leadership skills in the context of these challenges. It can be delivered as a keynote or a half-day workshop.
Organizational Development and Team Building
“If You Are Coasting, You Are Going Downhill.” Business cycles – like bicycle rides – have their ups and downs. In both business and biking, there are opportunities to coast, and in both cases, coasting can disguise hidden dangers. When things are going well in a business, leaders and organizations can lose their competitive edge, just as bike riders can mistake effortless pedaling on a slight downhill grade as a sign of superb conditioning. It takes a compelling vision, measurement against goals and standards, and communication to counteract complacency and build a culture of performance. The theme of this presentation is that what is good for people is good for organizations. The presentation uses stories and interactive exercises to encourage self-assessment so it is best as a short workshop although it can be modified to be a keynote.
Management
“Bringing Out the Best in People.” The most important assets of any service organization are people – who come with diverse skills, experiences, personalities, and preferences. Therefore, leaders should see themselves more as coaches of others than as controllers of them. Bringing out the best in others requires the willingness and skills to listen and learn and to guide and inspire. Leaders are not “heroic doers” but rather “energized enablers” who stimulate outstanding performance by others. This presentation uses examples from real life and principles from business to help leaders reflect on their own leadership performance and identify strategies for their own professional development as coaches of others. It can be offered as a keynote or an interactive workshop.
Time Management
“Increasing Management Productivity.” Next to raw ability, the time that managers have is the greatest limiting factor in their ability to get things done. Therefore, increasing management productivity relies on using time and talent efficiently. Standard time management tools and tips form an essential first step in confronting the multiple demands on time that managers contend with. However, there are three other critical success factors for effective time management that are usually overlooked: avoiding avoidable problems, dealing with defensiveness, and using teams effectively. This presentation looks beyond the usual approaches to time management to show how management productivity is tied to personal awareness and growth. This can be offered as a short interactive workshop or as a keynote.
Work-Life Balance
“Low Stress Leadership.” Life is not all about work; even work is not all about work. However, due to the combined influences of competitive pressures, the economy, and technology that offers 24/7 access to work, managers are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain a sense of balance. This interactive presentation helps participants combine the lessons of their own experiences with insights from human psychology to work more effectively and preserve more time and energy for other priorities as well. It is usually offered as a half-day workshop but abbreviated versions are also available.
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