I was wondering about flamingos recently, and it led to a little research. I had caught myself saying that a well-developed organization with a weak board is like a flamingo — a being that stands on a straw-like leg.  It was a way of describing the diagram below (more about that in a minute). My nagging question was whether the image of a flamingo was a good analogy, since we don’t actually see flamingos tipping over. We do, however, see seemingly successful organizations toppling over from board and executive-level scandals, two recent examples being Liberty University and McDonald’s.  

 

 

 

 

With this post the name of this long-standing blog is changed from "The Organizational Development Muse" to "The Third Turn.”  The focus on the intersection of  organizational and executive development remains, but much more for the benefit of the mature and soaring executive—those leaders focused on future value and legacy. The re-titling of this blog is part of a larger initiative for maestro-level leaders being launched this fall.