Q: How did 3M in one year pass the likes of GE and IBM in leadership development?

A: Infrastructure was already installed when I arrived. But I didn't always agree with Jim (McNerney, now BoeingCEO). He moved senior people around a lot. They hopped from job to jobevery year or year and a half. I slowed the pace. They have to be inthe job long enough, not only for their successes to visit them, butfor their failures to visit them. We all have both. When people movetoo often, there is more thought given to the next place, not todeveloping people and developing relationships.  3M CEO George Buckley in a recent interview.

Using this and other principles, Mr. Buckley changed 3M's rankings, among its corporate peers like GE and IBM, for developing leaders from 15th to 1st.

Is being a leader worth letting your mistakes catch up with you?


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