Partners in EXCELLENCE - Making a Difference
Leadership
True leadership lies in guiding others to success. In ensuring that everyone is performing at their best, doing the work they are pledged to do and doing it well. —Bill Owens
Leadership is critical to success, whether self-leadership or organizational leadership. Too often, we confuse leadership and management. Both have their place, but leadership enables organizations to achieve.
We provide a variety of programs to support the development of leaders. Whether it is their role in the organization and how to perform. Developing/implementing strategies, setting performance goals and dealing with performance challenges. Or managing performance and maximizing engagement. Or coaching and developing people in their teams.
Our programs and consulting can be offered at the organizational level, working with people in developing a strong leadership capability within the organization.
We also work at the individual level, serving as coaches or mentors to individuals, maximizing their ability to lead and helping them to move forward in their careers.
Leadership Posts
“…..More Than A Job….”
I’m reading General Stanley McChrystal’s book, On Character. A sentence stood out, “During my career, the Army was more than a job—it was a life choice.” Coincidentally, I read another fascinating article from Alex McCann, The death of the corporate job. They are approaching the same issue, but coming at it from opposite directions. They […]
Resurrecting “MBWA”
When was the last time when you stepped out from behind your screens and reports to actually talk to and engage the people doing the work? In the late 70’s Tome Peters and Bob Waterman started talking about the concept of Management By Walking Around . In was a cornerstone of In Search Of Excellence […]
Conditions Of Employment
Too often, we reduce our expectations of work to quota performance, goals, and activity metrics. But there is another layer beneath these. There are expectations we have of our people in being a part of our organizations. These expectations are more foundational. In working in our organizations, we expect people to: None of these are […]
Are You Leading By Example?
Growing up, my father was a terrific coach and mentor. But I suspect I was a difficult student. Every once in a while, I would catch him doing things differently than he had suggested. I’d often say, “Dad, you want me to do these things, but I see you doing exactly the opposite…..” He always […]
The Hours You Work Are Irrelevant!
Every week, my newsfeeds are filled with executives pounding their chests about hours worked. Elon Musk is famous for his “80 hour” work week demands. Scott Wu of Cognition has said, “We don’t believe in work-life balance — building the future of software engineering is a mission we all care so deeply about that we […]
“Systems” Are People Interacting
When we look at our GTM strategies, ideally, we are leveraging systems thinking. We’re not just optimizing isolated functions or hitting departmental/individual KPIs, but designing how the whole organization works. We look at workflows, roles/responsibilities, OKRs, not just within the functions, but how they interact with other functions and the rest of the organization. Too […]
“8 Hours Of Work In 20 Minutes”
I used to think I was productive. Then I discovered how much more productive I could be–like how I use AI tools like ChatGPT. At least that’s what of one of LinkedIn’s many AI/Sales gurus has taught me. This individual has decided AI is key to our success (I don’t disagree). In his work and […]
Adapting To Today’s Realities, A Ruthless Pragmatist’s Guide
For the past several weeks, I’ve been writing some fairly esoteric/philosophical things. Talking about entanglement, durable revenue, rethinking value, and that value is in the friction. But most of you know me as a “ruthless pragmatist.” You are probably confused–and you should be. So I’m embarking on a series of articles, moving from philosophy to […]
What Is Coaching?
We know coaching is important–sadly we invest too little time in high impact coaching. Spending 30-60 minutes a week, per person is hardly adequate. But this article is not about the time we spend in coaching. I find people confused about what coaching is. The examples we see of coaching, the tools people leverage in […]
The Quiet Power Of Knowing Who You Are
The first Saturday every month, Ned, Jack, Tom and I jump on a Zoom call. They are roughly 60 minutes, generally run a few minutes longer. No agenda, we tend to wander around 3-5 topics. We started congratulating Jack on his new grandchild. We moved on to congratulate Tom on appearing on the Chris Voss […]
Leadership Testimonials
"After reading the Sales Manager Survival Guide and being impressed with David’s expert understanding of sales and relevance to our industry, we engaged David directly for a Sales Manager coaching program. The content was excellent and David’s engagement with our managers was outstanding. I highly recommend David and Partners In Excellence if you want to take your sales to the next level. " Brad Colledge, Executive General Manager
“I was asked to take the role of managing a sales organization. Having no prior sales experience, the task seemed quite daunting. Thankfully, David Brock was there to give me direction and encouragement. Yes, David helped me understand the sales process; however, more importantly, David provided me with firm, but supportive critique that has proved invaluable to me. David never soft-pedaled his approach with me. Instead, he spoke to me as an executive, and expected me to live up to the call. In addition to direction, David provided me with the encouraging words that I needed to believe in myself, and that I could be successful in my new role. “ Scott Dixon, Managing Director
“Dave sets himself apart in the industry with his ruthless focus on preparation and sales discipline. Dave's mentorship and coaching is designed to ensure I focus on the most qualified opportunities, bring exceptional value to each customer interaction, and win more deals. He has been an indispensable mentor and transformational influence.” Mary Grogan Strain, Business Development Manager
“Dave Brock literally wrote the book on sales management! Dave provides critical insights that are thought-provoking and directional. Better yet, Dave not only provides a different perspective, but he also has the ability to work with clients to build solutions that positively impacts sellers and coaches alike.” Jim Wood, Vice President of Sales
One of the greatest gifts a coach can give to a coachee is to help them think more accurately about themselves, about their challenges, and about the various ways they go about solving those challenges. But Dave’s gift is something more. So much so that Dave’s helped me to fundamentally shift the way I think to begin with. This process has resulted not only in increased performance, but in a continual learning process that hasn’t stopped since our first coaching session. It’s an honor to call him my coach and a privilege to continually learn from him, even on the days between our coaching sessions! - Nate Tutas
When I was about to move into my first sales management role I reached out to Dave after I had read his book that really resonated with me. It was fantastic to have Dave as a coach and sounding board during those first months and it really put me on the right track to succeed in the sales management role and also set the foundation for me to progress from that. Didrik Moe, EMEA General Manager