Leadership tips, tools, and strategies to understand and implement scalable skills. http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog Mon, 18 Jul 2011 01:11:22 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/images/M_images/joomla_rss.png http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog Leadership tips, tools, and strategies to understand and implement scalable skills. CatapultedLeadershttp://feedburner.google.com http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/xDbo8mGET70/index.php I recently met a woman who described her CEO as real jerk. Yet, when she knew him ten years ago when he was a GM he was far more effective and a more descent person to be around. What is it that happens to leaders to change their personality as they lead? Here are a few reasons: pressure: a lot of people are depending on thempowerlessness: Leaders act out because they question their ability to have impact. They wonder if maybe they lack any real power. fear of failure: leaders are in a fight response to their demands.speed: its quicker to yell than understand.lack of perceived options: never learned any other options culture support: some managers praise you for negative traits that get resutlsSuccess is confusing. You probably have known one of these successful people: The CEO who screams at people to get things done. The salesman who lies to make the deal. The GM who threatens people at every turn. Successes can make you think your flaws are acceptable. As you are achieving important things, you are dragging your flaws right along with you. Sometimes it is hard to separate if your good behavior or bad behavior are the main reason for your success. Leaders begin to think their flaws and their success are part of the same package. So lets be real honest why we nurture our flaws: They work (at least part of the time). Yep we learned from a young age that certain behaviors can get results. But will the success of your flaws really be scalable? Can you afford to keep nurturing your flaws as you progress in your career? Tue, 03 Mar 2009 14:55:02 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=45&Itemid=41 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/aRR60uikQfE/index.php I have been asked to help leaders fire someone a few times in my career. I personally believe that my first goal is to save an employee. So, on more than one occasion, I have informed leaders that they were out of bounds in trying to fire the personHowever, I once gave a leader a set of questions to assess whether or not she should fire her employee. This was on a Friday. By Wednesday she had talked with the owner of the company, discussed each question, and FIRED the employee. When I saw her a few days later she seemed relieved. For months and months this employee had been a strain to manage. No one thing seemed serious enough to fire the employee over. But when the management team looked at the overall cost of the employee during the last six months they found that they were losing so much time in managing her that it really made no sense to keep her. I have to admit that for a few minutes I felt guilty that I had contributed to some one losing a job. Losing a job is serious. However, when I looked at the bigger picture it was the best thing that could happen for both the employer and the employee. The employee was not happy there. And the employer was losing money because of that unhappiness.. If you are struggling with an employee, here is a sample of questions to help you think about saving (or firing) that employee:Do you want to save the employee?Does the employee want to work? What would happen if you had to live without the employee?What are the costs--tangible and intangile--of having this employee stay (Make this one really clear for yourself and your manager). Are expectations totally clear to the employee?Does the employee have all the needed equipment? Is employee fully trained to do the job? As you begin to think about these, you may see that your employee lacks some essential support needed to succeed. When you provide that support you can often turn an employee around. I have seen more employees saved by dealing with these questions than fired. However, some times the best thing to do is to help the employee find a company that does not have the same high expectations as yours. If you go down this road, always consult with your legal counsel. I do. Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:55:51 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=42&Itemid=50 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/jxdyfFS8YBc/index.php I have been asked to help leaders fire someone a few times in my career. I personally believe that my first goal is to save an employee. So, on more than one occasion, I have informed leaders that they were out of bounds in trying to fire the personHowever, I once gave a leader a set of questions to assess whether or not she should fire her employee. This was on a Friday. By Wednesday she had talked with the owner of the company, discussed each question, and FIRED the employee. When I saw her a few days later she seemed relieved. For months and months this employee had been a strain to manage. No one thing seemed serious enough to fire the employee over. But when the management team looked at the overall cost of the employee during the last six months they found that they were losing so much time in managing her that it really made no sense to keep her. I have to admit that for a few minutes I felt guilty that I had contributed to some one losing a job. Losing a job is serious. However, when I looked at the bigger picture it was the best thing that could happen for both the employer and the employee. The employee was not happy there.  And the employer was losing money because of that unhappiness.. If you are struggling with an employee, here is a sample of questions to help you think about saving (or firing) that employee:Do you want to save the employee?Does the employee want to work? What would happen if you had to live without the employee?What are the costs--tangible and intangile--of having this employee stay (Make this one really clear for yourself and your manager). What are the costs--tangible and intangile--of having this employee leave Are expectations totally clear to the employee?Does the employee have all the needed equipment? Is employee fully trained to do the job?  As you begin to think about these, you may see that your employee lacks some essential support needed to succeed. When you provide that support you can often turn an employee around. I have seen more employees saved by dealing with these questions than fired. However, some times the best thing to do is to help the employee find a company that does not have the same high expectations as yours. If you go down this road, always consult with your legal counsel. I do.    Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:55:51 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=43&Itemid=42 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/Wpk6OYQg-ds/index.php Whenever a manager tells me an employee is not performing, I always start with the same question: "How clear are the expectations?"Expectations are the starting and ending point of all performance. When expectations are clear you have freedom to make decisions. When expectations are clear, you are able to act quicker. When expectations are clear, you are able to correct detours. When expectations are clear, you can reward the right things.Expectations should be set and reset regularly.Set expectations when a projects startsSet expectations when an employee joins or leavesSet expectations when new information occursSet expectations when a problem comes upBasically, make any excuse you can to set expectations. Expectations can be around purpose, mission, goals, values, processes, relationships, timing, deadlines, quality and whole host of things. Don't assume that everyone see it your way. An unstated expectation is a wish.And remember, it is a two-way conversation. You need to make sure people accept the expectation. Take the time to have the conversation that allows input.One manager shared that after clarifying expectations with the team, the team applauded.Why don't you go for a little applause this week. Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:53:34 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=41&Itemid=51 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/arTtnwYHDjM/index.php Research completed before the economic crisis began stated that approximately 71% of employees are not fully engaged in their work. These employees were more interested in what they could take from their jobs than what they could give. Now that jobs are more precious, some managers have noticed some employees are less likely to miss work or be late on projects. However, are employees more engaged or are they simply scared? I argue that the current fear is not enough to sustain the type of creativity needed to get us through the crisis and beyond. Employees need something beyond fear to keep them engaged.Prior to the crisis, the #1 thing low contributors were asking for was more of the "What" and "Why." Employees needed a better understanding of the priorities and the reasoning for those priorities. If this was important before the crisis, imagine how much more critical it is for employees to have clarity now. Employees who are fearful are craving clear direction. When employees have clarity of "what" and "why," they can make decisions easier, even when you aren't there.Try a simple test at your next staff meeting. Ask all your employees to write down the top three priorities and reasons for those priorities. If they don't agree don't blame them. Just mutually clarify. And then keep clarifying.The crisis has made your employee engagement efforts more critical. And the good news is that many of the levers that increase employee engagement are fully within your power to control.    Mon, 02 Mar 2009 22:15:26 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=40&Itemid=45 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/JP95SK5Jy78/index.php You and I probably view conflict quite differently. I was raised in a house where heated discussions were not allowed. You didn't argue at the dinner table. You didn't raise your voice. And, you didn't openly state your position. So we avoided a lot of things that maybe should have been dealt with. And in some instances this was probably a good idea. But there where other instances where we probably should have tried another approach. I have since learned that life requires many approaches--at home and at work. The classic framework to look at approaches to conflict is known as the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Modes. It suggests that we tend to come at conflict from one or more modes: competition: I win-you lose collaboration: Win-win compromise:I lose some-you lose some...but we move onaccommodation: I lose-you win avoidance: I won't play at all The question is not which one is right. The question is which one is right for the situation. It is important to remember that these are modes or approaches. Not rights or wrongs.If you use competitive, when you should use collaborative, you are likely to lose in the long run. If you use  collaborative when you should be using competitive, you will lose as well. You need to look at each situation and ask if you are using the right mode for the type of conflict.If you only know one mode, like when I grew up, you are only going to be effective with certain conflicts. If you disagree with me feel free to argue your point. But if you find my response to be a little lacking in passion, it may be because I still want to avoid the conflict.   Mon, 02 Mar 2009 21:04:57 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=39&Itemid=43 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/xNRU0K9np7Q/index.php When it comes to delegating, "many fools rush in where angels fear to tread." It is easy to give a list of things that need to be done. It is much harder to get buy-in for the list. Getting people to buy-in takes more than "do it because you are my employee."One way to increase buy-in is to focus on CONTEXT. That's right spend more time on the big picture.What has happened already: What are the pain points that are being met?  What are clients needs? What are other stakeholder's needs?Where is this going: What opportunities is this creating for company, team, individuals? What are the expected payoffs?How does this affect other priorities: What will be delayed? What comes first? What will we stop doing? Which stakeholders are involved: Which clients, vendors, internal partners, team members are affected? Who is sponsoring the this project?What is your role: Will you be directly involved or more of a supporter? How should they expect to interact with you throughout this project? Once the context is in place, you can move to specifics about what needs to be done. But remember, connect those specifics with the big picture.  Mon, 02 Mar 2009 17:35:24 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=44 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/hHeNGggW6lo/index.php Most every language has a comparable proverb for the "straw that broke the camel's back." It can be the the "feather that broke the horse's back" or "the drop that overflowed the barrel." They all mean...one thing too much. Delegating one more thing to employees can be the straw, feather, or drop that stops all work. From your point of view it is a small thing.  Any outside observer would say that it is too small of thing to matter. But, you are WRONG. It does matter.A few ways to help the situation: Ask what the employee sees as current priorities (and really listen)Stop saying everything is #1. Something has to fall off the platter.   Help them reprioritize: Help them think about what can come off or be delayed.Negotiate--Don't dictate: Give perspective on the new priority and find out how they think it fits. Their perspective may actually change your priorities. Remember, it does not matter whether or not is is hard for you.  It is hard for employees to add on "one little thing." They have already spent time and soul committing to your previous "straws." Mon, 02 Mar 2009 17:01:50 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=37&Itemid=44 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/y2SXhVZzCrI/index.php The tightening economy has catapulted leaders into situations beyond their experience. Expanded duties, unfamiliar problems, tighter budgets, and reduced customer spending leave little room for error. Leaders are scrambling to get their organizations aligned and committed. Given the pressure, smart leaders are returning to the proven tools of clarifying the vision, mission, and values for their company or department.  The argument is really quite simple—People perform better when they know where they are going and why they are going there. However, leaders must BE CAREFUL, because during these bad economic times you can't make any mistakes…THERE IS NO ROOM FOR ERROR.  If you don't develop your company's vision, mission, and values in the right way, you could send your company in the wrong direction and there will be no time left for course corrections. Many careless leaders will stomp off to an expedited retreat, pound out a few cute phrases and assume they have buy-in. They'll come back to the office and proudly post their new statements on the wall and blast out an email telling everyone to follow this new standard.And when that all-to-common mistake is made, employees will predictably respond with hesitancy—assuming it will pass quickly if they ignore it. Within a short time, chaos will reign as some employees go back to work as if nothing happened, while the others will berate their leaders' for creating confusion and use it as an excuse for poor performance.So what should a smart leader do?  How do you avoid the pitfalls and reap the benefits of setting the vision, mission, and values? Below are seven critical steps that will help you as a leader to establish and maintain alignment to the best vision, mission, and values for your company. 1. Think in terms of processYou need to look at vision, mission, and values as an everyday way of doing business, not an event. Your success will be created by thinking in terms of a process that you build upon each week and integrate into everyday life. You may start with a well-designed retreat. But, you can also make the process part of staff meetings. You will achieve greater alignment and commitment by making it a way of doing business.2. Define who you are todayYou can begin your process by thinking in terms of what business you are really in. Look at what value your organization provides to your customer. Does your organization exist to provide service, quality, speed, price, or innovation? It is likely to be combination of a few of these but one of them is sure to take priority over others. You can’t be great at everything. Take a stand on what your organization provides.3. Describe the desired futureYou can start creating the desired future by discovering key words and pictures that describe the organization. Ask yourself (and your stakeholders) “What are 5 words that customers would use to describe us in the future?” “What are 5 needs we can fill for our customer?” Or, “What are 5 words our Board of Directors would use to describe us in the future?”To push your thinking process even farther, you can use pictures or simple drawings to describe the future. The goal is to get out of world of the familiar and start looking at the future with new eyes. A picture allows you to question your thinking because you and others can see broader relationships and potential conflicts.Throughout the discussion, you should encourage critical feedback on the words and pictures used. You must create a conversation that lets team members fully express concerns. If you fail to really hear the feedback, you have missed the point of the discussion. Once the creative process is over, you can turn your data into a draft mission statement. You should test the draft with stakeholders and then create a final edition.4. Assess your alignmentWith your mission statement in hand, you can assess your organization for current behaviors that are aligned with your statement. Use observation, focus groups, surveys, or computer data to help you see where the organization is aligned. It does not have to be extravagant, but it does need to be done. The very process of going out and talking about alignments helps you create more alignment.  5. Invest in the pathYou must invest training, feedback, systems, procedures, and ongoing discussions to keep the vision alive. There is no shortcut to getting and maintaining buy-in. You may be able to get compliance by creating demands, but you will not achieve discretionary effort without investing in the people and systems. In many cases, your organization must reevaluate its rewards system. If your leaders talk one way, but reward another, no changes can be expected. Your leadership team needs to discover if the organization is rewarding poor performance or punishing good performance. It all comes down to communicating more than seems necessary.6. Measure and acknowledgeYou tell people what is important by what you measure and acknowledge. Measures create a standard for accountability and, in turn, influence performance. Measures should be talked about and results shared. The measures don’t have to be fancy, but they do need to be representative of what is important.When you acknowledge results you accelerate progress. Your truly personal recognition makes a lot of difference in an employee’s life. You don’t want to make the common mistake of failing to share good news. If you treat acknowledgment as nothing more than a duty, you will miss out on the opportunity to encourage discretionary effort toward the vision. Let people know they matter and you will reap the rewards.7. Maintain the conversationYou keep the vision, mission, and values alive and relevant by maintaining the conversation. You are the magnifier or dampener of what is important. Your conversations, your questions, and your openness say a lot about what is really valued.You need to make a habit of discovering success stories from employees, managers, and customers. Once you hear these stories, share the good news repeatedly. In addition to talking about the vision, mission, and values generally, you should share success stories of how the statements guided recent decisions. Your organization needs clarity now more than ever. Your team is unsure about the future and they need something to believe in. Taking the time to create vision, mission, and values can lead to greater results. When you get out of the habit of treating vision, mission, and values like an event, you create long-term alignment and commitment with your stakeholders. Sun, 01 Mar 2009 05:08:43 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=36&Itemid=40 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CatapultedLeaders/~3/eXnUvFbYKv4/index.php Morgan sat staring out the window as he waited to meet with the Vice President.  Morgan’s project had failed. Millions of dollars were lost. Company and individual reputations were smashed. People were leaving for other jobs. Morgan hoped he could find someone or something to blame. Unfortunately, he is not likely to find the real culprit until he is willing to look in the mirror. if Morgan could look openly at the last year, he would see some obvious reasons for the fiasco. At the beginning of the project, several team members brought up concerns. Morgan discounted their input and insisted on moving full speed ahead. A few weeks later, Sally, came to Morgan to point out a flaw in the design. Morgan half-heartedly listened but assured her it would be worked out when they debugged later. After a month, the team drew straws to decide who would have to tell Morgan about another problem. Lance lost and had the unlucky task of sharing the bad news. Morgan was angry about Lance’s warnings and said we all just need to pitch in and make this happen.After that interaction, Morgan didn’t hear any more issues from any of the team members. Meetings and one-on-ones seemed rather routine and trouble free. When he asked for feedback, everyone said everything was fine. Morgan felt sure things were humming along.  That was until this week when he got word from customers that they were cancelling all future orders. If Morgan could relive the last year, what could he differently? Here are four ways Morgan and you can listen differently. What exactly are people saying (or not saying)? Take time to hear your people out. Encourage them to expand on concerns, perceptions, and ideas. And, most of all, keep your mouth shut. Don’t interrupt or make the story about you. Avoid the need to add to everything and have the final word!What is the concern behind the concern? Find out the real meaning of issues. Go beyond their words and look for implications. Don’t expect your people to speak with perfect clarity. Nudge them to say more. Help them discover what they really mean. What are they really recommending? People often make vague recommendations. Ask them specifically what they want to see happen. Once you hear the recommendation, check back to make sure that what they said is what you understood. What else do I really need to hear? Most people will only share up to the level they believe you are willing to hear. Invite more information so your people will know you really are concerned. And, of course, don’t shoot the messenger. When you get the feedback, make changes and let people know you have acted on their input.Don’t wait for your project to fail before you start really listening to your team. Top performing leaders learn early that real listening provides a competitive advantage. Sun, 01 Mar 2009 04:55:27 +0100 http://www.catapultedleader.com/blog/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=35&Itemid=49