Articles

Darth Vader & the Contribution Chain Growth

Darth Vader & the Contribution Chain

Vision, Mission & Purpose are Outdated How do you drive internal engagement? Ernest Hemingway said: “When people talk listen completely. Don’t be thinking what you’re going to say. Most people never listen. Nor do they observe.” It’s often the case companies don’t listen to themselves.

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
Confidence Leadership

Confidence

Hi guys How confident are you at the moment? Just look at business founders this year. Some 49 percent say they are ready to quit… We spend so much time discussing mental health, but very little on confidence, which (in my opinion) is the more important side of the coin. Confidence drives

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
War, hidden gems and chip-heated pools Geopolitics

War, hidden gems and chip-heated pools

And how to cut costs from useless tech apps Hi guys I’m late with the Executive Summary because I’ve been out meeting people at events. So here’s what I learned this week: 1 – Is war coming? I went to the Cavalry and Guards Club for a Firstlight Trust charity event hosted by Dorinda

Dan Ilett · 3 min read min read
Empty airports and naming the enemy Leadership

Empty airports and naming the enemy

The upside of this recession? Hi from sunny (ish) Dublin Recessions: The Executive Summary: * The sooner you’re in a recession, the sooner you’re out * Buyer rationale is easier to predict as there’s more certainty * A lot of bad stuff has already happened * AI – the Average Intern – won’t

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
Beating the big firms: Part 2 AI

Beating the big firms: Part 2

The holes in AI messaging Hi guys Sorry it’s late this week. Half term and kids running around. (Quite nice really, but they’ve been banned from their computers today for being naughty.) Now with all the noise about AI, this week I have a test for you. I’m not seeing a credible benchmark,

Dan Ilett · 3 min read min read
Welcome to the Executive Summary. Leadership

Welcome to the Executive Summary.

The Swiss Army Knife of Leadership Tools Welcome to The Executive Summary. This is my email to the CEOs I know. It covers strategy, leadership and communication – and whatever is the flavour of the day. One concept per email. The Executive Summary doesn’t follow the news agenda. I did that

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
The Executive Summary: Episode 1 Leadership

The Executive Summary: Episode 1

Welcome to the Executive Summary… This is my email to the CEOs I know. It covers strategy, communication and leadership. You’ll find hacks, trends, recommendations, introductions and the bleeding obvious all laid out in a few short paragraphs. It’ll will also serve you with a diverse array

Dan Ilett · 1 min read min read
Beating the Big Four Growth

Beating the Big Four

And other major consultancies… Hi guys, Taking out the incumbent can seem overwhelming, but if you don’t try, you’ll never know. I’ve led a number of projects either in brand comms or bid sales – to replace the existing supplier to a customer. Often big, hefty organisations that look

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
Biting the hand that feeds you Growth

Biting the hand that feeds you

Paws for Thought: Insights on Pet Care Pricing A month ago, I had to take my dog to the vet. She had an infection of the womb called Pyometra. The vet looked at me and said: “This is very serious. We need to operate on your dog now to remove her womb or she could die. Pyometra kills a lot

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
WEF Selfies, Sweet Investing & 25 Teaser Topics Downtime

WEF Selfies, Sweet Investing & 25 Teaser Topics

Get involved… Hi folks How has 2024 been treating you? Did you tune into the World Economic Forum with avid interest? Or did you just see your mates taking selfies there? I’ve left this edition a couple of weeks into the year to give you (me) time to wake up. There’s more optimism in the

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
The last one... Downtime

The last one...

Sushi shops, micropublishing and divine interventions This is the last post for 2023 and it’s no place for the standard annual wrap up. Instead I wish to say a huge thank you for reading The Executive Summary this year. When I lived in Japan, I used to love the tiny sushi shops that could

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
Are you going into space? Downtime

Are you going into space?

The $1tn industry you shouldn’t ignore So here’s a Sunday evening curveball for you. Have you ever thought of working in space? Not as an astronaut, but leading your industry there to create new products or services. The pharmaceutical industry is already developing drugs in space to take

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read