Notre Dame is Back

December 9, 2024

Good morning! Do we have a new Wonder of the World, or simply a refurbished and recycled Wonder from the 12th century? Regardless, the Cathedral of Notre Dame Paris is already the talk of the town — and it has a pretty good pipe organ. A longtime friend and reader said to me the other day, “I read 95% of your column 95% of the time.” Do the math on that one… and this guy is a math genius, too.

• Your operative assumptions are only as good as your data… and how reliable are your data today?
  • Here at Without A Vision, among the things we track is the importance of collecting, storing, and using your own data — managed and protected by you.
  • This has become as much of a MUST DO for businesses and organizations as having a bank account.
• Outdoor recreation activities, ranging from fishing to mountain biking (Yes, Minnesota has a few mountains — somewhere), contribute more than $3 billion to the statewide economy.
  • People who study these things assure us that getting outdoors still lags well behind going to the retail outlets.  (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024)
  • BTW, anything done in the cold and snow is less than 10% of the total.
• This is disconcerting if true.
  • Someone tracked thousands of Starbucks cups purportedly being recycled from their point of purchase; i.e., recycling bins at the stores of origin.
  • The computer chip tracking devices yielded data suggesting four percent of all cups being tracked reached a recycling center, most went to landfills or incinerators.
• There are no data associated with this next section, only random, narrowly-focused, anecdotal observations.
  • You don’t need more information on the price of groceries, no one does, but…
  • … last week I had an hour to kill and so I decided to research the cost of groceries, really research, not just casually kick a few tires.
    • Ninety percent of my trips to grocery stores involve only the perimeter of the store-in-question, but this time…
    • … I set up a grid pattern, including trips up and down every single center aisle, observing each facing from floor to top shelf.
    • Alive!  The conclusion?  Prices have doubled, often tripled, since whenever my price points were locked into position — and I can’t say how far back those go, but…
    • I can’t say I was shocked, but I was shocked.
    • Yes, we all know about the eggs — and the butter — and the Who Roast Beast, but how about the JELL-O, and the beans, and where can you buy a fresh apple for less than a dollar?
    • How about one fresh, juicy, navel orange?  Green beans?  Campbell’s Soup!!!?  Peanut Butter?  Pickles?!  ($4++)
    • How about baking supplies?  Fresh produces?  Spices?  Cheeses?  Cream?  One loaf of any kind of bread?  A head of once-lowly cabbage?  Brand name cereal?  Crackers?
• Do you enjoy any of the traditional Advent/ Christmas season cultural events?  Which ones?
  • Nutcracker Ballet?  A Christmas Carol at the Guthrie?  St. Olaf?  Concordia?  Rockettes?  Rose Parade?  Fruitcake?  Caroling?  Fig Pudding?
• Add to the list of challenges faced by today’s CEOs:  Avoid Assassin bullets.
  • We will take this in two smaller bites because this checklist created by Dewar and team is SO GOOD it deserves thought, reflection, and CONTINUOUS ACTION by leaders.
  • The rest next week… the first part, right now.
  • This is SO good, we recommend clipping and saving this — and, if you keep an old-fashioned bulletin board, post it where you’ll see it often.
    • The CEO’s Essential Checklist
    1. Do we have a clear and compelling vision that reframes what winning looks like, and is it owned by the whole organization?
    2. Have we created a short list of clearly-defined big moves… that will distance us from our competitors?
    3. Are we thinking like outsiders to actively reallocate resources to our highest priorities, even when it’s hard to do?
    4. Are we targeting and systematically pursuing specific areas of cultural change to further execute our strategic imperatives?
    5. Is our organization characterized by a balance of stability and agility that maximizes the speed and effectiveness of execution?
    6. Are the most value-creating roles in your organization filled with the right talent, and do they have a strong leadership pipeline?
    7. Is my senior team the right size, comprising people with complementary skills and characterized by an ‘enterprise first’ mindset?
    8. Does my senior team effectively use data and dialogue to make timely decisions on topics only they can tackle?
    9. Does my senior team have an effective annual operating rhythm and business review cadence that drives execution and minimizes surprises?
    • Like we said, the rest next week… stay tuned at least 95% of the time.  (Dewar, Etc., et al., 2024)
• Movies out there right now:
  • Wicked — haven’t seen it… wanna see it
  • Conclave — haven’t seen it… wanna see it
  • Diplomat — really good; watching Season #2, but rationing and savoring it
  • Moana #2 — haven’t seen it, nor Moana #1… wanna see them (the first one, I’m told, is much better)
    • Must they be seen in the correct chronological order?
  • Gladiator — haven’t seen it… don’t wanna see it, not interested
  • Inside Out — haven’t seen it… probably should
  • Mario Brothers — haven’t seen it… would watch it with the right person(s) who grew up addicted to it
  • Totem — haven’t seen it — probably should
  • BabyGirl — Haven’t seen it — TMI for these pages?
  • Mufasa — Isn’t out yet, but yes
  • A Complete Unknown — isn’t out yet — Absolutely, yes
  • Leonarado da Vinci — disappointing
  • BTW, did you hear?  Emily is now in Rome!