The Stagnation Assassin Blog
Weapons-Grade Wisdom
Short Slaughters, Permanent Profits
Start Here: My Most-Read Articles
The Stagnation Encyclopedia: Why Is Your Company Dying While You Celebrate Success?
The warning signs most executive teams miss, in one reference.
The Three Essential Leadership Behaviors That Make or Break Organizational Transformation
Three behaviors that quietly sabotage change efforts, and how to master them.
HOT System Transformation vs. Kotter's 8-Step Change Model
A 90-day rapid turnaround approach compared with the classic 8-step model.
The 3-Question Transformation Leader Test
Three questions that show who can actually run a turnaround.
What's the “70% Rule” and Why Does It Work?
Decide before you have every fact, and stop paying for delay.
What's the Difference Between Activity and Productivity?
The audit that turns busyness into measurable impact.
Drowning in Data but
Starving for Strategic Solutions?
Transformation Readiness Assessment, No Email Required
What does this article cover? How does this work? The five gates The twenty questions How do you score it? […] Read More
The Operator’s Guide to Working Capital
What Working Capital Actually Is, in Operating Terms The Cash Conversion Cycle, and How to Read Yours Why It Is […] Read More
What Kind of Employee Are You? 3-Word Test
What Kind of Employee Are You? This Is Not the Four-Position Framework Run the Play Give Me the Ball Let […] Read More
The 4 Cycles That Set Your Turnaround Clock
Why "it depends on the situation" is not an answer The four cycles that set the floor Duration by situation […] Read More
Too Many SKUs vs Too Few: Which Costs More?
Your price book has grown past the point where anyone in the building can recite it. The planner builds the […] Read More
The 12 Business Types: A 10-Minute Diagnostic
What does this article cover? What do you need to run this? How do you calculate the three metrics? Which […] Read More
Every Buyback Is a Confession: The Real Test
Two Headlines, One Decision What a Buyback Actually Announces The Buyback Hurdle Rate Test Why Nvidia Probably Clears the Bar […] Read More
How to Tell If You Need a Consultant
1. Count your own constraint first 2. Log how long a decision takes 3. Pull four years of margin by […] Read More
When to Hire Each Kind of Outside Help
The one question the choice turns on The situation we will run through all three The turnaround consultant The interim […] Read More
Gilt vs Zulily: Kevin Ryan vs Mark Vadon
Winner by split decision (3–2): Kevin Ryan. Mark Vadon decisively won the flash-sale battle — better model, bigger exit, perfect […] Read More
A Buyer’s Guide to Turnaround Consultants
Turnaround consulting has no published price and there is a structural reason for that, which is worth understanding before you […] Read More
Three Reasons Not to Book Me as Your Speaker
What does this article cover? Three reasons not to book me What is the track record? What actually happens in […] Read More