Core Values

                Here are some of the core values to which I commit as I exercise leadership.

Principle-Centered Leadership-The title of a book by Stephen R. Covey, this has become for me the central theme of my leadership style.  Briefly, this is the thesis that leadership is about character, integrity, and empowerment being exercised in an atmosphere of accountability, trust, and positive expectancy.

Strengths-Based Leadership-I have made an in-depth study of two resources from the Gallup management group (First, Break all the Rules and Now, Discover Your Strengths). These provide an intellectual foundation for a core belief, namely, that the path to excellence is through building a thoroughly strengths-based culture that thrives on accountability and challenge.

Commitment to "mission" personally and organizationally-Whether in Covey's First Things First (the "textbook" of life mission development) or in Covey's Habit 2 of the Seven Habits, I find focused mission statement building to be a powerful tool in both personal and team leadership.

Teambuilding based on individual strengths-I've found the greatest success in building effective teams in the following strategy: First, enthusiastically identify the strengths of individual team members.  Second, discover with the team (and in the context of stakeholder needs) what the team mission is. Third, establish specific connections between the two. Fourth, develop systems, both "hard" and "soft", to make explicit these connections (see "Win-Win Performance Agreement" below for an example)

Win-Win Performance Agreements (WWPA)-(derived in part from the work of both Peter Drucker and Stephen R. Covey) The WWPA has been an powerful tool for me in releasing the potential of team members in a disciplined way. The focus upon the WWPA elements (desired results, guidelines, resources, accountability, and consequences) facilitates a high degree of team member investment in the agency vision.

Wraparound Philosophy

I am committed to fully exploring the depths of the core wraparound values, as articulated by the California Wraparound research team (May, 1998). These standards include the commitment to a service and management philosophy that is strengths-based (a disciplined and expectant focus on the capacities of individuals rather than their deficits), needs-focused (a belief that families know families best); team-driven (a confidence that the team process, both in staff and family teams, holds the greatest promise for excellence), and accountable (a rigorous commitment to "beginning with the end in mind" and following through with this vision in thorough, reality-based, evaluation).

Though I read lots of management and clinical books and journals, the following books are ones I re-read fairly regularly. As such, they provide some quick indicators to the standards of management (and biases) to which I am striving (or am prone).

Principle-Centered Leadership, Stephen R. Covey (1992)

A great resource for leadership based on what Covey calls the "character ethic". I am particularly enamored of the "Win-Win Performance agreement," the "six conditions of empowerment," and his "thirty methods of influence".

Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Covey (1989)

This has been a great resource for me, both personally and as a teambuilding resource. I've found in this book a powerful vocabulary for identifying team strengths and weaknesses and then developing a consensus around appropriate strategies.

The Power Principle, Blaine Lee, Covey Leadership Center (1998)

This reviews much of Covey's leadership material but adds the dimension of increased power through honoring the members of one's team through such strategies as persuasion, gentleness and discipline.

First Things First, Stephen Covey et al. (1995) This is where I gained much of what I know about mission statement development. It also has been invaluable in introducing me to the "Quadrant II" planning process, a weekly strategy by which one can focus on "First Things" through consideration of "roles and goals" in making decisions about where to invest one's time/energy resources. Covey's concept of "integrity in the moment of choice" has been a great benefit  in my attempt not to get "caught in the thick of thin things".

Other Major Influences

I've had lots of great clinical and leadership influences throughout my career. Here are some of the highlights.

Salvador Minuchin-I've been privileged, through his writings, his live workshops, and his successor at the Philadelphia Child Guidance Clinic, to be exposed to what may have been the precursor of much of today's "wraparound" thinking. Dr. Minuchin demonstrated that through dramatic structural system changes even the most dysfunctional families could be strengthened in ways that often precluded higher levels of care.

Stephen R. Covey-I have a deep appreciation of the heights to which human effectiveness can reach when based on commitment to correct principle. Though Covey's concepts often get lip service in superficial application, I have come to value the most rigorous applications of seemingly simple ideas such as "Win-Win" and "Synergize". Attendance at the Franklin-Covey Seven Habits workshop fueled some of this appreciation as I was privileged to interact with Franklin-Covey staff around these principles.

Tom Peters-Tom Peters once did a talk entitled, "The Heart and Soul of Excellence". For me Peters' thought has been the heart and soul of passion and creativity in leadership excellence. He taught me about: the willingness to re-evaluate even cherished, long-held assumptions; the value of constantly striving to enhance the creative leadership process; and the prime importance of believing passionately in whatever project on which one is currently working.

Public Sector-Both within San Bernardino County's Behavioral Health Department and through consulting with California's Mental Health Department, I have gained an understanding of Medi-Cal clinical principles and administrative procedures.

Wraparound Philosophy-As mentioned above, the Wraparound process of service delivery has been a huge influence. I served as Clinical Program Manager to EMQ Children & Family Services' San Bernardino wraparound team, in which, in collaboration with EMQ and statewide consultants, I developed San Bernardino's wraparound effort. As a certified trainer/consultant (through Department of Social Services) of California's Wraparound principles, I hope to make a contribution to California's intensive children's services efforts.