Commentary

• How are you being measured?
  • In business, it's important to be clear about your objective. In this task, the teams were measured purely by the numbers. Arrow understood this and adopted a winning strategy to sell, sell, sell. However, Angela made a good point in the boardroom that had this been a qualitative task -- in other words, had Universal executives measured success on how their brand was represented -- Arrow likely would have been docked for their questionable sales tactics. Trump had no problem with what Arrow did, noting there was "nothing illegal or immoral."
• Be careful with office romances.
  • If you are going to have an office romance, be clear that at work the priority is business. I wouldn't bet on either Tim or Nicole to be Trump's apprentice, as their eyes are now off the ball and on each other. They also have let their romance interfere with their teams' focus. Now that they are having trouble, both teams are affected by it. When workplace romances go south, everyone in the vicinity is affected.
• Know whom to trust.
  • The audience knows that Tim has lied to his team. He went behind their backs to warn Nicole that James was planning to target whomever had the roller-skating idea in the boardroom. Frank was on to him and confronted him about it. Tim compounded his disloyalty by lying to Frank, saying he just told Nicole good luck. Once trust is lost, it is very difficult to recover (in business and romance). I predict this will be a major issue for this team.
• Make your case clearly.
  • If you are going to explain something, you have to be clear, concise and direct. Angela failed to do this when Trump challenged her about whom he should fire. And if your team didn't succeed, as the leader you should take responsibility for the loss.
• Leaders need to make tough decisions.
  • I give James credit for making a tough decision. He could have copped out and flipped a coin. Instead, he wisely weighed the merits and strengths of his team members versus making it a popularity contest.
• Don't ignore feelings.
  • James said business is more important than feelings. But feelings provide us with valuable information regarding the importance and meaning of situations when we are facing decisions. Ignore them at your own risk, even in business.
• Is it truly the best idea?
  • Angela did nothing in her leadership other than be agreeable. She never questioned Nicole's idea of the roller skates. On roller skates, the girls looked like part of the attraction feeding people into Arrow's kiosk. Angela failed to facilitate a team process to consider other ideas or agree on the best one. The lesson here: Be careful not to let enthusiastic people carry the day. Effective leaders test ideas and consider alternatives with their team.
• Being adaptive is a winning strategy.
  • Arrow did a great job of being nimble and kept adapting to the market pressure. Though they were initially stunned seeing Kinetic on roller skates, they responded with scrappy and clever sales ploys. Though Kinetic had greater opportunity to be in more places through their mobility, they stayed in front of Arrow's table and failed to maximize their own advantage.
• Grow from your failures.
  • We often learn the most from our own failures, so instead of beating yourself up or casting blame elsewhere, reframe your mistakes as learning opportunities. Angela said, "When you lose you learn more about yourself." Wise words, indeed.

© 1998-2007 Maureen Moriarty/Seattle Post-Intelligencer