Friday, February 17, 2012

Dwight Eisenhower: Mission Driver

By: Stephen Delaney

President Eisenhower had a mission: defeating the Nazis. FedEx has a mission: delivering to any destination and as quickly as possible. It may seem silly to juxtapose the two, a world war and a commitment to rapid shipping. Yet in a post on Forbes titled “The Secret to Success? Stick to Your Mission,” Geoff Lotus, author of "LEAD LIKE IKE: Ten Business Strategies from the CEO of D-Day," draws parallels between the two.

To Lotus, success is achieved by ensuring that planning and operations, logistics and communications (specifically marketing) are all aligned behind mission. He views Eisenhower from a business perspective, examining how he kept all of those processes focused on mission. To illustrate, he names FDR and Churchill as Eisenhower’s bosses and the citizens of the United States, England and Canada as the majority shareholders.

Lotus’ message is simple: no matter the size of the challenge, the most important key to success is to stay on mission. Whether a president conducting an international war or a CEO directing his corporation, remaining mission-driven is the principal concern.

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