Dr. Geoff Smart

Geoff Smart is the #1 thought leader on the #1 topic in business. He is the Chairman & Founder of ghSMART, a leadership consulting firm, and his purpose is to help leaders amplify their positive impact on the world.

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Are You a Great “Remote” Leader? Take This Checklist Challenge

The days of “management by walking around” are over.

Business books from the 1980s encouraged managers to wander around the office, chit-chat with colleagues, and learn valuable information at the water cooler. Today, leaders of all size organizations find themselves managing people remotely.

In recent weeks, I have discussed this with the CEO of a global public company, the student body president of an Ivy League university, the Executive Director of a not-for-profit that builds bridges in developing economies, the founder of a protein bar startup, a U.S. Senator (who manages D.C. and hometown office staffs), and the head of a private equity firm with offices in several countries.


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Is It Possible to Have a Job That Is Fulfilling and Lucrative — but Still Have a Life Outside of Work?

A little over 25 years ago, I founded ghSMART, a leadership advisory firm, for two reasons, the second of which may surprise you.

First, I wanted to use our expertise in human behavior to help CEOs and investors build valuable companies — and that scope has widened over the years to also include helping not-for-profit and government leaders achieve success. I believe leadership is the most important lever for positive change, and I wanted to build a world-class firm to help leaders amplify their positive impact on the world.


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How Crisis Revealed the Cultural Roots of the #1 Consulting Firm to Work for

At 7am this morning as I was writing this blog, my phone blared that jarring “Amber Alert” noise. But there was no missing child.

Instead, my state’s governor smartly alerted everybody to stay at home to slow the spread of the Coronavirus. What a weird experience; I felt like I was in an apocalypse movie.

The first thought that crossed my mind was gratitude that my family was healthy, at least at the moment.

The second thought that crossed my mind was how much “great leadership” matters in times of crisis. I’m proud of how our Managing Partner, Randy Street, and my other colleagues are leading through this crisis. And I realized how this crisis has revealed some of the cultural roots of ghSMART, the leadership advisory firm I founded 25 years ago.

Why you should care
If you are reading this article, you likely run or own a company or not-for-profit, or you aspire to lead an organization one day. ghSMART is a leadership advisory firm whose clients include CEOs of some of the largest companies in the world, influential entrepreneurs, and enlightened government and not-for-profit leaders. We help them to confidently hire, develop and lead talented and diverse teams that succeed.

You already know how much “culture” matters in propelling any organization forward. ghSMART recently won the “#1 company to work for” award in our industry for overall employee satisfaction, according to Vault. Vault said the main reason we won that award was due to the firm’s culture. And it’s during challenging times like these that a culture’s true DNA becomes crystal clear. So, I wanted to share with you 3 cultural roots that help ghSMART to power through crisis.

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