I’m generally not a fan of just a list of questions.  You know — “here are the 15 questions you should be able to answer right now… “ I tend to think “visually” more than in lists. 

But, sometimes, a list is just right.

So, if you are on an executive team – at or near the top of your organization – it seems that there are some questions you should be able to answer, and constantly “update.”

So, here’s a list.  I welcome suggestions to edit this list – to take some away, and to add questions I overlooked and should have included.

Questions about yourself:

#1 – Do you know what you are good at (what you are best at)?  Are you getting even better?
#2 – Do you know what you need to get good at (that you can’t delegate)?  Are you actually working on it?
#3 – Do you have any “working relationship” blind spots?  (Hint – probably, the answer is yes).  Can you identify them, and are you working on removing them?

Questions about your job as part of the leadership team:

#1 – Do you know the “why” for your organization? – What is this “why?”
#2 – Do you have an effective strategy for your organization?
#3 – Have you put together the right mix for your leadership team—the right mix of “skills,” with the right “chemistry?”
#4 – Is your organization effective at hiring the right people?
$#5 – Is your organization effective at identifying, and then developing, the next generation of leaders?
#6 – Is your organization effective at communication?  Internal?  And, External?
#7 – Is your organization good at execution?
#8 – Is your organization good at measuring the right things?
#9 – Is your organization good at identifying, and then removing, bottlenecks?  (Hint – there is always a next bottleneck).
#10 – Is your organization effective at constant improvement.  And, even, creating and implementing some of those “major” innovations?
#11 – Is your organization effective at keeping everyone on the same page?  (everyone aligned; with genuine buy-in?).

And, questions about the simple issues of organizational excellence:

#1 – Are you now offering a product, or service, that folks actually want—and will pay for?
#2 – Do you have systems in place that leave very little room for error.  Have you filled in all the “cracks?”
#3 – Are you finding new customers?
#4 – Are you keeping your current customers happy?

So, take a look at this list of questions.  Pretty comprehensive isn’t it?  Almost overwhelming.  And yet, I’ve got a hunch that the list is too short.

I know – you’ve go to have focus.  You can only work on one to two “main goals” at a time.

But, the “work “ on such goals requires quite a list of issues and challenges to master, doesn’t it?

This list of questions might be useful for setting the agenda for a series of meetings for your leadership team.

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Here is a visual representation of many of these issues.  (Thought there are good, entire books on each of these, I have a “basic” treatment of many of these in my e-book, The 12 Vital Signs of organizational Health).