If you answer no to any of the following questions, your company’s incentive plan may be in need of a tuneup or a complete overhaul.

• Do line managers support the plan and use it to manage and guide employees?
• Does everyone on the executive team understand and agree on what the plan is designed to accomplish?
• Is the plan rewarding the right behaviors?
• Do employees understand what the

… [ Read more ]

Author: Joanne Sammer
Source: The Incentive Comp Quandary
Subject: Human Resources Questions

Which activity-based costing/management (ABC/M) software you choose depends on characteristics of your business; one solution isn’t right for every organization. Use the following questions to find the product that will work best for your company.

1. Does the software offer multi-dimensional analysis — in other words, can it separate out costs by customer, product, geographical region and business channel?
2. Can you use it to extract information

… [ Read more ]

Author: Tad Leahy
Source: Comparison Shopping for ABC/M Software
Subject: Finance Questions

Here’s a simple diagnostic tool that can be used to facilitate your firm’s discussions of the characteristics it seeks in a leader.

The questions that follow include a series of “paired” qualities that a good leader might possess. In each pair, either quality may be desirable. However, the point of pairing these qualities is to ask, “if there had to be a choice between the two … [ Read more ]

Author: David Maister
Source: Selecting a CFO: Do We Know What We Want?
Subject: CEO / Executive Questions

• What is the mission of the organization? The response should be why it does what it does, the organization’s reason for being. If there is no mission statement, or the response focuses on the what and not on the why it does what it does, say good-bye.
• What is the board’s vision of the future? This question should bring an illuminating response. No vision, no

… [ Read more ]

Author: Frances Hesselbein
Source: Thought Leaders Forum: Frances Hesselbein on The Indispensable Partnership
Subject: Corporate Governance Questions

Here are seven key questions that people who are considering joining a board should ask their attorneys. Sitting directors can use the questions as a checklist to gauge what to demand from a company to stay on its board.

1. Are my assets covered? No question is likely to be more important than this one, regardless of how diligent and honorable a director, other board

… [ Read more ]

Author: Randy Myers
Source: Seven Questions to Ask Your Own Attorney Now
Subject: Corporate Governance Questions

There’s a lot of talk these days about the lack of independent directors on corporate boards. But it’s not just a big-company issue. There should be at least one outsider on your board, too. Here’s what to ask to get the right person in the chair.

1. What will it take for my company to grow from $10 million to $100 million? Insert your own

… [ Read more ]

Author: Jennifer Gill
Source: Smart Questions: How to Vet a Board Member
Subject: Corporate Governance Questions

These are the questions that every director should be able to answer—with a “yes,” in the case of the first nine, and with a reasonably comprehensive explanation in the case of the latter three.

1. Strategic Direction: Does management have a comprehensive strategy and operating plan for the company to realize its performance potential?
2. Resource Allocation: Are the necessary human, financial, physical, and other supporting resources

… [ Read more ]

Authors: Bill Birchard, Christian Burger, Paul F. Kocourek
Source: Corporate Governance: Hard Facts about Soft Behaviors
Subject: Corporate Governance Questions

Have you:

• Planned for the management of transition as you would for any critical business initiative by allocating the necessary leadership, resources, time, and executive-level attention?
• Considered how much change the organization can absorb over what period of time, and planned accordingly?
• Designed a process for creating an integrated change agenda that incorporates input from relevant constituencies and allows the CEO and executive team to shape and

… [ Read more ]

Source: Transition Leadership: A Guide to Leading Change Initiatives
Subject: Change Management Questions

1. How does this person compare to the best you’ve ever seen in the role?
2. On a scale of 1 – 100, how would you rank this person?
3. On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest), how do you rate XYZ on [specific trait or ability]?
4. Can you tell me about a project that would have failed without [candidate]?
5. What haven’t I asked that, if you were

… [ Read more ]

Source: Add More Rigor to Your Reference Calls With These 25 Questions
Subject: Human Resources Questions

Ask yourself these nine questions before you lend your company’s voice to an issue. If you answer no to any of them, it’s unwise to proceed.

1. Is the issue central to your business’s values, code of conduct, or other existing public commitments?
2. Is the issue an environmental or social priority, according to a rigorous materiality assessment?
3. Does the issue pertain to commitments you have made to

… [ Read more ]

Author: Alison Taylor
Source: Author Talks: The business of ethics for leaders
Subjects: Communications Questions, Social Responsibility Questions