Start looking beyond SWOT

Authenticity isn't always the answer | An easy way to show employees that you care | Gap bets on basics in bid for new growth Created for {EMAIL} | [Web Version] April 25, 2016 CONNECT WITH SMARTBRIEF  [LinkedIn] [Facebook] [Twitter] [Google+] [Â] [SmartBrief on Leadership] Innovative Ideas. Ahead of the Curve. [SIGN UP] ⋅ [FORWARD] Leading Edge [Authenticity isn't always the answer] Leaders should strive for authenticity, but not at the expense of employees' morale and productivity, writes Peter Barron Stark. He shares how he tried to cope with losing a child while supporting his family and doing his job. Ask yourself, "What actions do I need to take to help myself so I can be the leader people want to follow?" Stark writes. [Peter Barron Stark blog] (4/19) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] [An easy way to show employees that you care] Great bosses know how to show people that they're valued and respected, writes Chris Laping. That doesn't come from team building or corporate slogans, but rather from a willingness to engage with people and to make a genuine effort to support them. "I know all of this may seem squishy and soft, but it's transformative to life and business," Laping writes. [SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Leadership] (4/22) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Strategic Management [Gap bets on basics in bid for new growth] [Old Navy story] (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images) Gap has struggled to attract shoppers in recent quarters, with even Old Navy seeing a slowdown in sales growth. The company will be offering a new line of basics in the hopes of differentiating itself from other low-cost offerings. Some industry experts see Gap's struggles as an indicator of a broader problem: an oversupply of stores combined with mobile and online taking a bigger share. "It isn't that a retailer can't prosper, it's the model that's got to change" says Joan Volpe of the Fashion Institute of Technology. [Bloomberg] (4/21), [Racked.com] (4/21), [National Real Estate Investor online] (4/21) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] [Start looking beyond SWOT] Many leaders still rely on SWOT analysis -- strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats -- but that's an outdated approach, writes Jon Warner. He offers as an alternative a resource-focused framework that can be used to create strategy that can be distilled into a clear and easily understood mission. [ReadyToManage blog] (4/22) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Smarter Communication [How to tell someone they need to improve their performance] Delivering hard news is never easy, but you can usually avoid acrimony with a nuanced and sensitive approach, says psychologist Karissa Thacker. Offer focused and specific criticism matched by moments of equally specific positivity and clear suggestions for improvement, CEO adviser Mindy Mackenzie says. [Fast Company online] (4/22) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Smarter Working A weekly spotlight on doing more without working longer [The cult of productivity] Productivity has evolved into a belief system for the modern workplace "in spite of its spiritual vacuousness," writes Intel researcher Melissa Gregg. Productivity gains are often chased without consideration of the utility or significance. Productivity "is an accommodating aspiration for people inhabiting a world in which activity trumps meaning," Gregg argues. [The Atlantic online] (4/22) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] In Their Own Words [Leadership is about helping your team to improve] [Shopify CEO] Lutke (Shopify) The core job of any leader is to help teams improve, says Tobi Lutke, CEO of Shopify. This is easier said than done, considering people are not great at this, he argues. "I work under the assumption that we have no idea how to build companies yet," he says, "and that 50 years from now people will look back at the companies of today and they will seem like the black-and-white footage of the first hockey games." [The New York Times (free-article access for SmartBrief readers)] (4/22) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Daily Diversion [Humans are hard to predict, say weather forecasters] Meteorologists are getting better at predicting tornadoes, but they're still struggling to determine when to warn people. Issue warnings too early, and people ignore them or put themselves in danger by fleeing rather than hunkering down. Studying human psychology is "infinitely harder than studying physical processes," says Kim Klockow of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. [The Associated Press] (4/23) [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] Most Read by CEOs - [How to be critical while still being helpful] Fast Company online - [Leadership is about influencing others] SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Leadership - [9 qualities necessary to create change in your organization] SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Leadership - [Put character first when choosing leaders] Leadership Freak blog - [Don't expect change if you don't prioritize change management] The Context of Things Whatever it takes to finish things, finish. You will learn more from a glorious failure than you ever will from something you never finished. Neil Gaiman, writer [LinkedIn] [Twitter] [Facebook] [Google+] [Email] [Sign Up] [SmartBrief offers 200+ newsletters] [Advertise] [Learn more about the SmartBrief audience] Subscriber Tools: [Manage Subscriptions] [Update Your Profile] [Unsubscribe] [Send Feedback] [Archive] [Search] Contact Us: Jobs Contact - [jobhelp@smartbrief.com] Advertising - [Laura Thompson] Editor - [James daSilva] Contributing Editor - [Ben Whitford] Mailing Address: SmartBrief, Inc.®, 555 11th ST NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20004 © 1999-2016 SmartBrief, Inc.® [Privacy policy] | [Legal Information] Â