The First 100 Days

Dr. Beth Stroble has already broken ground and started building in her first 100 days as president of Webster University. Her construction is a pyramid of "next level" decisions.

"Everyone says to me 'how are we going to take Webster to the next level' and my answer back to them is what do you mean by the next level and let's figure that out," Dr. Stroble told Webster staff members over lunch Thursday.

The president's pyramid layers issues facing the international institution that by tackling will help move Webster forward. From infrastructure to people, partnerships to reputation enhancement, Dr. Stroble plans to use her next "hundreds" of days to confront them all and as openly with staff as possible.

"It will always be my intent as I communicate with people to be as transparent, honest and complete," Dr. Stroble said before taking questions from the group. Click here to read some of her answers.

The Carrot Principle

Pats on the back, a note in a file or even a boost in pay are all ways to recognize the good work of an employee. But is it recognition done right?

"Recognition to be powerful has to be frequent, very specific and timely," says Adrian Gostick, co-author of the bestselling book The Carrot Principle. "We found employers who recognize and reward their employees for excellence received a three times higher return on equity than those who don't."

The numbers don't lie in Gostick and Chester Elton's breakthrough study of 200,000 people over a 10 year span in businesses across all industries. For a review by Dean Akande of The Carrot Principle, click here. To listen to the SBT's exclusive interview with Adrian Gostick, click here.