The binders, the charts, the grids may seem formidable, but the meetings themselves are built around informality, trust, emotion and humor.

Trust happens when leaders are transparent.

We know where most of the creativity, the innovation, the stuff that drives productivity lies - in the minds of those closest to the work.

Trying to get people to face reality and see the world the way it really is is an absolutely critical aspect of leadership, in my view.

Some think that it is cruel or brutal to remove the bottom 10 percent of our people. It isn't. It's just the opposite. What I think is brutal and "false kindness" is keeping people around who aren't going to grow and prosper. There's no cruelty like waiting and telling people late into their careers that they don't belong - just when the options are limited and they're putting their children through college or paying off big mortgages.

If you reward candor, you'll get it.

Common mission trap for companies: trying to be all things to all people at all times.