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Archive for the ‘leadership’ Category
Monday, December 6th, 2010
This is that time of year when managers begin planning for an effective performance review with each person that reports to them. Performance reviews can provide excellent documentation for the company’s performance management process
Yet if not properly or effectively done – performance reviews can result in a lost opportunity for the performance management process or at least make your life miserable. Performance Reviews are traditionally held at the end of the year or within the first part of a new year. Below are proven techniques that can help you conduct a productive and highly effective performance review.
How to approach the Performance Review
While leaders should be coaching throughout the year, the yearly Performance Review is the one time when the leader has a formal opportunity to provide his or her employees feedback. Leaders owe it to the employee to take this process very seriously. The Annual Review should be an opportunity to create open and candid discussions. Typically the annual performance evaluation should not be a surprise to the employee. Your goal in the review should be to link performance to employee capabilities and to a developmental plan. Be SPECIFIC!
 How to write the Performance Review
Start by providing the employee the opportunity to “tell their story”. You might even have them write it in 3rd person – “Jeri did…. This provides an opportunity for coaching –know the employee’s successes as well as the areas for developmental opportunities. Review their comments as well as your own.
Review the last year’s Performance Evaluation. Where were they last year? Are they still being coached on the same things? Where has significant improvement been made? How have they impacted the team? The department? The organization? How have they increased workplace productivity?
Open your files. Hopefully, you have developed a system that records your routine coaching with the employee. Your records might follow a coaching guide or simply contain notes about the employee’s capabilities or competencies. You can have notes from meeting notes / participation, feedback sessions, and team input
Your file should also have productivity metrics or scorecards, specific examples via observation and be linked to any performance management issues.
Do not include vague comments such as “Kelly is a great employee.” These are useless without the specific behaviors on why the employee is good, outstanding, etc. Also be careful of the “halo” and the “pile-on” effects. Good employees need direction on specific areas for them to grow, improve and do better. Get examples of when or where the employee showed strong performance, weak performance, new employees.
Remember, in order for the Performance Review to be most effective, obtain employee feedback and write the plan together. Have the employee take ownership
Let them make the first draft Provide feedback, input and recommendations. Collaborate together to finalize the plan but remember – this should be their plan
Where and When to Conduct a Performance Review
Conduct review in semi-public places, an office suite, a meeting room, or break out room. The area needs to be relaxed area, not intimidating. A desk can provide a barrier and the bosses office can be intimidating. Do not meet in restaurants or hotel lobbies (too loud and no privacy).
Schedule a time when you can talk without interruptions. Make certain that the employee knows that this is their time. Most leaders preferably like to conduct reviews at the beginning of the day so the employee can reflect upon the review and start implementation of any development plans
How to Follow-up a Performance Review
Following up with the employee should be part of the performance evaluation. Review the plan at least quarterly – how is their progress? How is your support? What changes need to be made, if any? Set a specific time with the employee to check in on actionable items. Note dates/times for follow up on capabilities / competencies and don’t forget. If you can’t meet at the time set, make new arrangements before.
Performance Evaluations – when done effectively, can increase workplace productivity, provide welcomed feedback and are rewarding to the quality performers. They also serve as a useful tool for the manager in a performance management situation.
Tags: annual performance reviews, Employee Coaching, employee performance review, employee review, performance review, Staff Performance Reviews
Posted in continuous improvement, leadership, performance | No Comments »
Wednesday, November 10th, 2010
Great must have specific beliefs and core values they adhere too, for example:
1. Leadership – People want to be led, not managed. Instead, leaders must manage their actions and lead by example.
2. Vision – People want to know how their efforts matter. A leader must actively provide this vision to his/her people.
3. Pride – People want the leader to feel that they count for something. A leader should give appropriate praise often. Using a good positive measurement system will also help individuals know how they are contributing.
4. Congruence – People feel secure when they see the leader doing the right things. Once again, a leader must lead by example, walk the walk. Talking alone won’t’ help.
5. Trust – People need trust their leadership if they are to remain dedicated to the organization. Leaders must be fair, consistent with all employees.
6. Character – People ultimately find out what kind of person their leader is and will be influenced to behave in the same manner. Leaders must consistently demonstrate good work ethics.
7. Integrity – People need to respect their leaders. A leader must be accountable for his /her decisions and actions.
8. Responsibility – People feel gratified when commitments to them are kept. Leaders, who keep commitments, will have employees, who are accountable for their commitments.
9. Wisdom – People learn most from their leaders by example and coaching. Leaders need to temper their knowledge with good judgement and concern for others.
10. Communication – People perform better when they understand the issues. A leader who is open and listens to concerns and ideas will gain more support from his/her employees. This communication can be verbal, non-verbal and even a simple visual measurement system. Do you have a positive measurement system in place?
Bottom line, the role of leadership is to add value to other people and the true measure of leadership is influence, thus a great leader must have the ability to change the attitude or behavior of others.
Flexible Leadership is a very positive way in which to help change attitudes or behaviors of others. Based on CMOE’s Flexible Leadership model there are six key styles a leader should implement based upon various situations that arise with different individuals and levels of development:
1. Control – provide specific instructions and closely supervise specific situations
2. Teach – the desire is to share information or knowledge.
3. Guide – ideal for when there is some disagreement about the ultimate target or intent of the action
4. Collaborate – when there is agreement about the desired outcome and when the leader’s experience and knowledge base is relatively strong.
5. Reinforce – most beneficial when the team needs positive reinforcement for their success. Key point – frequent reinforcement of positive behaviors and achievements will result in greater, long-term success.
Flexible leadership is not something you do to people, but something you do with people. Following personal leadership beliefs, core values, and implementation of Flexible Leadership helps leaders to become great. Great leaders are great teachers.
Tags: coacking, leadership, leadership values, meaning of leadership in management
Posted in Leadership Development, character, flexible leadership, leadership, qualities of leadership | 1 Comment »
Monday, October 11th, 2010
Having spent 5 years of my life playing on a Division IA college football team, I am getting very excited because the football season is here. I have my season tickets to my alma mater and have been reading and listening for the polls, predictions, and hoopla. It all makes me reflect back to this summer, I noticed a sad trend this last summer of negative publicity at many colleges.
• Big name schools are facing probation for ethics issues
• Players are being arrested for burglary and drug use
• Some top players have been dismissed from established teams and are finding themselves on new teams
• Coach’s are being sued for hiring away skilled coaches from other schools
Is this negative publicity just or unjust, right or wrong? Regardless of your opinion one question that keeps running through my mind is, “Do I really want that player or that coach on my team?” It has made me think about following the advice and research in the book Good to Great in the chapter “First Who… Then What.” What the author is referring to is that you need to get the right people first, then the ability to create a vision or direction and strategy will follow. I don’t see recruiting coach’s or recruiting players to be any different than hiring employees and executives, as these are the resources that will ultimately determine the success of the organization. The author of Good to Great quotes one executive in his research as saying.
 “Look, I don’t really know where we should take this bus. But I know this much: if we get the right people on the bus, the right people in the right seats, and the wrong people off the bus, then we’ll figure out how to take it someplace great.”
It appears this is occurring with several of these schools and football programs this summer. A football team is just like a business, literally. The highly paid Head Coach’s are the CEO’s of the team and are making important decisions about who will help or hurt their team. I think more and more of these “CEO’s” are figuring out that you must do as the author suggests, get the right people on the bus in order to achieve success. You have to have the right kind of players to perform as a team. One bad apple can spoil the whole bunch!
Tags: improving teamwork, teamwork, teamwork development, teamwork in the workplace, teamwork skills
Posted in leadership, team members, teamwork | No Comments »
Monday, October 4th, 2010
When I was given the opportunity to review Steven D. Wood’s book Be Bodacious, I took a moment to do a bit of research on the author prior to reading the book. Was I going to read a book about leadership or motivation? This led me to read one reader’s comment posted on Amazon.com.
The reader stated, “I liked this book, but I didn’t like it. The actual message of the book to me was that a person needs to take charge of their life (or be bodacious, bold, brazen) in order to rise above the ordinary and become successful. . . But it was NOT a leadership book!” “There is often times a difference between taking action and leading. Taking action can be done alone by just one person for that one person. But a leader has to take action that moves others along. The star of the book merely took action – he didn’t lead.”
 After reading the book, the answer to my question, whether the book is about leadership or motivation, was both. Yes, the book tells you to get moving but I have to disagree with the Amazon reader’s interpretation of the message. The message is if you want to be a successful leader, you have to get your hands dirty. What Wood is telling the reader is that as a leader you just can’t “sit on the fence and watch the cattle graze.” You have to “spend time in the cow pen.” I feel this is probably the best advice Wood gives, “A good cowboy becomes familiar with the individual cows by spending time with the herd. Cowboys do not spend time in meetings with other cowboys and the ranch foreman discussing the cows and their needs. Cowboys go to where the cattle are and spend time among the herd.” If you don’t know your team members how can you get them to move in a direction that will bring value to the organization?
Wood reminds you that you have to pay your dues. That means learning the business inside and out. You aren’t going to be given all the information you will need. You have to dig for it, try ideas, and make mistakes. You will want to know what your competitors are doing, what your team is thinking, what is your organization’s mission? A leader is not always going to get the winning scenario. One must gain experience and learn. “To pursue your bodacious opportunities, you must be willing the pay the “entry fee” and accept the bodacious draws, which are opportunities.”
Wood states, “First, set aside an hour and a half for personal study time each day.” Too many leaders today get so wrapped up in the tactical issues of the business they forget to strategize for the future. That hour and a half gives you time to read, ask questions, and research to become familiar with changes in the industry, client needs, and/or competing products. You cannot continue to operate tomorrow the same way you are today and expect to compete in the world market.
Yes, Wood does emphasize passion and persistence. Passion comes from understanding and believing in the value of your actions. Most people cannot perform with excellence if they don’t see the value in the work they are doing. Without some passion, persistence will be twice as hard to maintain. Have you ever wondered how many great ideas have died because the inventor gave up? I image the results would be astounding.
Wood said more, but I’ll let you read the book. It is an easy read, containing basic personal and leadership development principles. In short, I would recommend Be Bodacious as a starting point for a new leader, or perhaps, as a refresher of leadership concepts to experienced leaders.
Tags: Be Bodacious, Leadership Book Review, Leadership Development, Leadership Training
Posted in Leadership Development, character, leadership | No Comments »
Monday, September 13th, 2010
 A few years ago, 1,500 managers responded to an Industry Week poll when asked to rate the level of trust in today’s workplace. The grade they gave was only a “C.” Now as it was then, trust is becoming both more elusive and more important. Trust ensures productive, satisfying, and long-term relationships in any type of organization or team. Organizations with high trust levels often have
• Increased focus on leadership as opposed to the task of managing.
• Quality partnerships between all types of people (team members, customers, suppliers, etc.).
• Better cross-team collaboration.
• More team based organizations and projects.
• Greater employee commitment and loyalty.
Is your team cohesive? Do your members work well with internal and external customers? What would members on your team say if you asked them, “What level of trust do you have in the organization?”
The following elements have been identified as key factors in the level of trust within an organization both as an individual contributor and as a team:
Results + Integrity + Concern = Level of Trust (Robert Shaw)
Achieve Results
Individual contributor: Follows through on business commitments
The Team:
1. Has a long-term, customer- and market-based vision
2. Establishes clear, ambitious and measurable performance targets
3. Has consensus on key targets and measures
4. Celebrates accomplishments
Act with Integrity
Individual Contributor: Behaves in a consistent manner
The Team:
1. Has a clear purpose and guidelines for working together
2. Openly shares essential information about the business
Demonstrate Concern
Individual Contributor: Promotes the well-being of others
The Team:
1. There is a feeling of one vision, one organization, one team
2. Peoples’ contribution are recognized and appreciated
3. Everyone benefits when business goals are met
As you review these elements for developing trust within an organization, which of these three areas do you feel your team needs to improve the most? Why? With this in mind and understanding the why, what are the three most important things your team could do right now to improve the team’s level of trust.
This is just a beginning as your team moves forward to raise their level of trust. As this is accomplished there will be more robust communication within the team and greater productivity as all work towards a common goal. Teamwork makes beautiful music.
Tags: Level of Trust, Team trust, teamwork, teamwork skills
Posted in leadership, trust | No Comments »
Monday, September 6th, 2010
Innovation starts with leadership. The foundation of growth, increase profits and productivity are a clear vision, a prepared and enabled workforce, a culture of accountability, appropriate rewards systems and an environment that fosters creativity while preserving the values of the organization. Leadership that gets results is leadership that knows the way, shows the way and has prepared their team so they, as leaders, can get out of the way. Are you doing the same thing you have always done and expecting different results? Consider the story below and see if it sounds like behavior and processes in your organization today:
Two Bears: A Story About Change And Obsolescence
(An adaptation based on a story by Father Anthony de Mello)
A guide friend of mine tells the story of two hunters that came up to Alaska from the lower 48 to partake in their annual bear hunt. There are few roads to access prime bear hunting territory in the Agoolawok region, so a guide with a plane fit for the task is essential. A favorite aircraft for bush pilots in the region is the DE Havilland Beaver; a twin engine, amphibious plane that is capable on land, water or snow.
The two hunters hired out an experienced guide to take them in for a 6 day excursion. He dropped them off with their gear in the heart of bear country promising to pick them up at a designated time and place at the end of their outing.
It was a successful week and each hunter had bagged a decent size brown bear. They had field dressed the animals and, as agreed, the guide was at the meeting place to pick them up. Looking over the load including the two bears the guide suggested that the load was too heavy and they would have to leave one bear behind. Somewhat taken back one of the hunters proclaimed that the guide they had last year was very willing to take them out with the same load; the same two hunters with the same gear and two bear about the same size. Hesitant, the pilot looked the load over and did a little math.
“Are you sure it was the same load with about the same size bears?” the pilot asked.
“Yep” persisted the hunter. “Same stuff. I may have put on a few pounds in a year” he joked “but otherwise all the same”.
“Same aircraft?” the pilot wanted to be sure.
“Yep, DE Havilland Beaver” the hunter replied.
The pilot finally gave the ok. “Load ‘er up”.
They loaded up the plane and took off. Sure enough, about a mile out the aircraft didn’t have enough lift to get up over the next hillside. Fortunately the pilot was able to set the plane down safely in a clearing. It was a bit of a rough landing but no one was hurt and there was no damage to the plane. The two hunters climbed out and scrambled up the hillside to get their bearings.
“Where do you suppose we are?” one hunter asked the other.
“Best I can tell, just about a mile from where we had to set down last year!”
 Are there instances in your organization where you are loading the “same two bears” over and over and expecting different results? Look at your business and see what processes, behaviors and routines are standing in the way of improving your bottom line profits. Get your leaders and your people involved and focus on driving business results.
Tags: being an effective leader, Increase Profits, Leadership That Gets Results, productivity, Two Bears: A story about change and obsolescence
Posted in bottom line leadership, bottom line performance, bottom line results, leadership, problem solving, results based leadership | 1 Comment »
Monday, August 30th, 2010
The term “scorecard” is becoming more and more common in the business community. But what is a balanced scorecard? To give a little background, the balanced scorecard is a management methodology that was introduced by Robert Kaplan and David Norton in the 1990’s.
A balanced scorecard serves as a strategic management system that translates corporate Vision and Strategy into action, communicates and ties together strategic objectives and measures, helps establish corporate targets and aligns initiatives, and increases feedback and learning.
The balanced scorecard approach proves very effective in tracking and establishing “key performance indicators” (or KPI’s”) from different business units within the enterprise. Business units may include operations, finance, or human resources and allows them to track the metrics that allow those organizations to help achieve their corporate strategy.
Balanced scorecards consist of four generally accepted target areas:
1. Financial – How do our shareholders identify financial success?
2. Customer – How do we appear to our customers in achieving our vision?
3. Process – What processes you must be exceptional at with customers, and shareholders?
4. Growth/Learning – How will we sustain the ability to change and improve over the long term?
In practice the balanced scorecard recognizes that corporate performance measurement is not done by individual function, but a combination working together. The approach highlights the “links” or measures that impact Functional Areas across business functions.
While the balanced scorecard is a good process, other scorecard and scorekeeping system exist that may be a better option depending on your needs.
Tags: balanced scorecard concept
Posted in leadership | 2 Comments »
Monday, August 16th, 2010
Recently, I had the opportunity to hear Rudolph Giuliani speak about his experience as the Mayor of New York City during the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 and what he has been doing since that time. I particularly enjoyed hearing about his experience as a mayor and the lessons he learned and now applies them in his life.
Mr. Giuliani spoke about how he was able to reduce the crime rate in New York City. Mr. Giuliani said, “Tracking and finding the areas that need improvement is the first step.” He implemented a system for tracking where, what time, and what type of crimes were occurring in the city. Using this data he was able to identify the areas where more law enforcement was needed and know what time of the day demanded the largest number of law enforcement personnel in the city. Through having the right number of law enforcement personnel in the right areas, at the right time, he was able to reduce the crime rate in New York City by 60-70%. New York City is now considered to be one of the safest large cities in the United States.
Mr. Giuliani then spoke about how he was able to decrease the number of people in NYC on welfare. He began by looking at how the case workers were being compensated for their work. He found the case workers for many years were being paid according to the number of welfare clients they had. Therefore, it was more lucrative for the case workers to have people remain on welfare. He decided to make a change and pay based on the number of jobs the case worker helped find for their welfare clients. Through this change, in a span of 4 years, the number of people on welfare decreased from 1.1 million to 550,000. A decrease of 50%! This improvement in saving the tax payers tens of millions of dollars.
 Many times businesses “leave” money on the table because they are working ineffectively, like the New York City was with law enforcement, by not knowing where their people should be and when they should be there. Often they are scared to make some of the simple changes because they have been working the same way for so long, just like the case workers in NYC who were being paid and incentivized to keep their clients on welfare. What if your employees tracked the information that made them successful? What if they not only tracked the information, but understood and used the information as feedback to identify what they could change to be more successful? What if your employees were compensated, motivated, and/or driven to do those things that would add to the bottom line profits of the business? What would be the increase in profits? What would be the decrease in costs and spending?
Bottom Line Leadership is specifically designed to address these questions. It is created to have immediate and long-term positive influence on the bottom line profits of your business. It will increase motivation in your employees by helping them answer the question, “What is it that I do, what do I get paid for?” It will offer the leadership in your organization a better understanding and utilization of key fundamental leadership skills to drive the changes. This program is a “game changing” business solution and for some companies an overall intervention. It has been so successful in providing a Return on Investment that it is guaranteed to pay for itself by the time the program is done. You truly have nothing to lose!
Tags: bottom line leadership, Improved Results, Leadership That Gets Results, Leading for bottom line results, results based leadership
Posted in bottom line performance, bottom line results, leadership | 1 Comment »
Thursday, August 5th, 2010
Many organizations today are finding that they don’t have the right talent or enough talent in their organizations to be successful. If you have experienced this, you know it is frustrating, challenging, and can drain energy and emotion in trying to execute daily business responsibilities.
 This past week, there was an article in the Wall Street Journal by Joe Light titled: Leadership Training Gains Urgency Amid Stronger Economy. In the article, Mr. Light discusses how many organizations have cut spending on leadership development initiatives over the past two years during the economic downturn. Now that the economy is starting to recover, these organizations are worried they will experience the exodus of baby boomers and retirees as their investment portfolios start to recover. Many organizations are finding they simply don’t have the leadership pipeline within the organization to fill these leadership roles as companies shift towards a growth focus. This scenario leaves any organization vulnerable to the competition. Add to that the severity of the economic downfall and it only compounds the challenges further.
For individuals who work in the learning and development industry, this news and information is nothing new. For many other individuals this may be a shocking surprise. Organizations need to spend more money to develop talent to drive the business. Remember, half of your assets do not show up on the balance sheet – your people. Organizations spend thousands of dollars on computers, specialized software, mobile phones, and office space. Why not spend a few hundred dollars developing your people to maximize performance and drive bottom line results. If you have not already done so, think plan, and act to develop your high-potential leaders.
Tags: Good leadership skills, leadership, Leadership Development, leadership skills, Leadership Training
Posted in leadership, planning, talent | No Comments »
Monday, June 28th, 2010
Did you pick up your new iPhone this week? Unless you slept on the street for a couple of days, chances are you will need to wait until supply balances out with demand. Isn’t it fascinating that people take time off work and sleep on the ground outside a store just to obtain a $200 device? Why do people put forth so much effort for so little?
It’s ironic that people sacrifice time and wages, lose sleep, and exert a significant amount of physical effort to obtain a unique possession. People are willing to spend money, buy “apps” (applications), and spend large amounts of time to become experts on such devices. Yet we rarely see this type of passion, energy, and motivation in the workplace to drive results and increase profits. Isn’t the time we spend at work more important and valuable?
Dr. George Odiorne, is a well known management expert known for his concept “Management By Objectives.” What if we spin this concept slightly and implement “Management By Motivation.” What if you create the conditions for motivation in your organization. Like a new gadget, toy, or phone, discover what stimulates a behavior change in people at work. Hint: Everyone is a little different. Organization, productivity, and improvement in profits will increase when individuals discover what excites them. If people get excited and involved in their work like it is the latest and greatest gadget phone, organizations will find it truly amazing as to how they can flourish. There is no doubt that excitement and involvement will make a huge impact on the bottom line of any organization.
 As I write this article, I stare at my new phone (the latest and greatest) in a box, ready to be turned on. However, I feel enough motivation in my work that writing this content offers more value to me, my team, and my organization than heading to the break room to play with a new gadget. Are your people motivated to work or motivated to head to the break room and play? Let’s get our people excited and engaged to the goals and objectives that benefits everyone.
“Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.”
-Aristotle
Tags: iphone hysteria, motivating employees, motivating work, motivation, motivation in the workplace, motivation to increase performance, work environment motivation
Posted in goals & goal setting, leadership | No Comments »
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