h digitalfootprint web 728x90

Opinion

35341

On Leadership: Leaders focus priorities as possible recession looms

Despite the fact that the U.S. economy remains strong by many measures, business leaders are bracing for a recession. CEOs and boards from Wall Street to Main Street are reexamining – and in some cases …

35335

The Elbert Files: A decade of change

The hierarchy of Des Moines has changed a lot during the 10 years I’ve written this column. New leaders have surfaced as key players retired or moved on. Others, most notably Barry Griswell, Johnny Danos …

35329

The Elbert Files: Dick Johnson

Former State Auditor Dick Johnson was one of those rare politicians with a storehouse of seemingly unlimited knowledge and a sense of public purpose larger than his ego. 

He died recently at 87 following a …

35316

The Elbert Files: What to do about guns?

Science magazine debunked a common gun violence myth a couple of weeks ago when it editorialized immediately after the Uvalde, Texas, massacre of 19 elementary students and two teachers.


Mental health isn’t the problem, the …

35314

On Leadership: Leading your team through financial disruption

I recently overheard a young professional bemoaning the “shockingly high” 4.5% rate he’d just locked in for his new mortgage. After assuring him that this rate is still very low historically, it struck me that …

35284

On Leadership: Rethinking the organization

Workforce and talent are on almost every leader’s mind these days, so I was intrigued when I came across a new report from Korn Ferry called “Future of work trends 2022: A new era of …

35276

The Elbert Files: Farming and history

Growing up in Iowa gave me a false sense of agriculture.

 

I didn’t grow up on a farm, but I thought a lifetime of listening to cash-grain and feeder-cattle reports gave me an innate …

35260

The Elbert Files: The numbers

“It’s all about the numbers,” my friend K.C. said when I caught up with him at the John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park.

 

He was looking at “Thinker on a Rock,” the whimsical sculpture …

35252

On Leadership: Mental health in Iowa in decline – what can leaders do?

Back in March I wrote a column called “Why mental health is a business imperative,” in which I suggested mental health matters to leaders and directors guiding organizations because our workforces are our greatest assets …

35248

The Elbert Files: Forget the caucuses

It’s time to move on. 


The Iowa caucuses didn’t help or prevent Joe Biden from being nominated and elected in 2020. They also did not prevent the nomination of Donald Trump or help him in …