Margaret Hamburg Quotes

We started Kotter International to improve leaders' ability to deal with big, important transformations in organizations - and in their lives.

The task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been.

Create a compelling vision, one that takes people to a new place, and then translate that vision into a reality.

Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world.

To me, success in the job is setting a vision, guiding an organization through change - which is exactly what I did at Digitas, and I'm very proud of that - and bringing people together and with you. That, to me, is what it takes to be successful.

The one thing we know today is we can't continue to do business the way we have in the past.

Don't be scared to try new things, but remember to hold on to the vision of your company and the initial successes that defined your brand.

You've got to have a vision. You've got to have a message.

I think that the CEO is responsible for setting the vision, for articulating the mission, and for building a team of powerful evangelists that share that mission and that passion, because no one person can do anything by themselves.

Our next CEO needs to thrive in a highly dynamic environment, to be capable of accelerating what is working very well for Cisco and disrupting what needs to change.

You can have X's and O's, you can have talent, but if you don't have a vision, it won't work.

When we talk about change, we, the business leaders, have to implement it. We have to look at what we're not doing and what we should be doing.

My goal is to change NXT. It is to change every company I've ever been to, and I've changed every company.

There is an inexorable correlation between leadership and change.

The transformation will come from leadership.

It's important to have a plan, a big picture. You can deviate from it or change it completely, but it gives you something to work for.

In a business, you've got to move on.

You have to be damn certain you're putting something better in its place.

The fundamental vision hasn't changed. What does change is how you get there, because there are still problems you have to figure out.

Basic philosophy, spirit and drive of an organization have far more to do with its relative achievements than do technological or economic resources, organizational structure, innovation and timing.

You have to have a big vision and take very small steps to get there. You have to be humble as you execute but visionary and gigantic in terms of your aspiration. In the Internet industry, it's not about grand innovation, it's about a lot of little innovations: every day, every week, every month, making something a little bit better.

In any business, you have to evolve.

It's so important to adapt, think outside the box, and stay ahead if you want to grow.

I learned from my dad that change and experimentation are constants and important. You have to keep trying new things.

Your ability to shape your future depends on how well you communicate where you want to be when you get there. When ideas are communicated effectively, people follow and change.