I opted to listen to a choral version of Jerusalema, so brought up the Stellenbosch University Choir. They are one of the best choirs in the world and I enjoy listening to them almost as much as I marvel at how they bring vocal excellence to life.

After Jerusalema, I clicked to listen to their arrangement of Fun\’s 2012 song, Some Nights. As the choir’s wonderful harmonies outlined the protagonist\’s existential challenges (what do I stand for / five minutes in and I\’m bored again), I was reminded not only how important it is for people to have a sense of purpose and for that purpose to be worthwhile but also that it is incumbent on organizations that wish to be excellent to enable this.

The next song came on, another cover of a song from 2012. Jason Mraz\’s I Won\’t Give Up. Although the context of this song is different, I found some of the lines from it also hold messages for those who wish to strive for excellence. Specifically, the points about having a lot to learn, about staying the course to make the impact you can, and the fact that people\’s differences help us learn from each other. 

I was certainly influenced by the beauty of the African voices but, nonetheless, a decade after their release, I found the songs timely on the eve of a new year when organizations around the world need to step up for the benefit of all their stakeholders.

I wish you all an excellent 2023.

Image by Gerd Altmann

Don’t be an average manager, sign the Excellence Manifesto.

Sign here

To be professional and not an amateur,
Don’t be an average manager.
Most of whom don’t make the grade,
Not worth the salaries that they’re paid.
Take simple steps to outperform
This mediocre, frequent norm.

Select people with the care that’s due,
Then motivate them to work with you.
Listen well, think, then decide.
Forge a team, get all on-side.
Let people know what they’re to do
And when it’s done, say “thank you.”
Help them when they need support,
Inform them when they fall short.
Trust those to whom you assign a task
There’s little more that one could ask.

Results will follow this approach
You’ll be a manager beyond reproach.

Ingrid Baecker

The second is that we’re delighted to welcome Krisztina Rozgonyi to our Advisory Board. Krisztina is an international media, telecommunications, and IP policy expert. She is an Assistant Professor of Communications at the University of Vienna.

Krisztina Rozgonyi

This one-day interactive workshop for public and private sector leaders on business excellence, facilitated by the BEX core team, is being held in downtown Toronto in the Royal Canadian Military Institute, 426 University Avenue.

The day will involve a lot of learning about excellence and includes an active learning session using APEX, the Institute’s learning game which has lessons on leadership, strategy, decision making in the face of uncertainty, communication, and teamwork. There will also be a presentation by Bill Smalley, author of Intelligent Selling. Lunch is included.

Date

20 June 2019

Venue

Royal Canadian Military Institute, 426 University Avenue

Start

9:00

End

 17:00

Book Now

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They are the Institute’s first cohort of Certified Excellence Assessors who have been trained to be competent assessors able to assess excellence in any organization using any excellence model or framework.

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