We surveyed over a hundred of our Performance Management Essentials workshop participants, and here are at the areas they struggled with in regards to performance management and having difficult / crucial conversations:
Difficult conversations — whether you are telling an underperforming an employee that they need to do to improve, or advising your boss of a missed deadline — are part and parcel of being a leader, manager or supervisor. What is the best way to prepare for this type of conversation? What should you say (or not say)? How do you find the right words in the moment and be able to respond in an appropriate way if the person doesn’t agree or acknowledge what you have raised? And, how can you manage the ‘back and forth’ of the conversation so that it goes smoothly and you get the outcome you want?
I’m asking for your help to donate to the 2019 Vinnies CEO sleepout on 20 June 2019. Let’s be honest – it isn’t that great a discomfort to sleep out for one night. I have a home to return to, a job to work at, a family providing support that I get to return to. Most homeless people don’t have that luxury, nor the choice to return home.
Michael Peiniger and James have been completing Executive Leadership Coaching together for more than 6 months – a great consistent effort that has turned into amazing results.
‘Leadership coaching with Michael Peiniger has helped me more than I thought it would, I wasn’t sure what to expect but his coaching brought out the leader who was always in me, but perhaps was a little afraid. Michael has taught me to be assertive, organised and efficient, he also guided me to be more open with my team which sometimes means being vulnerable which is a strength I never recognised.
IMLDs leadership programs provide leaders with knowledge, behaviour and practical skills required to lead and adapt to a changing work environment. Irrespective of where you are staring from – brand new to leadership or s seasoned professional – IMLD leadership programs have something for you to continue your leadership development journey. From the Emerging Leaders Program, to the Executive Leadership Program and the Diploma of Leadership and Management, there is a leadership program designed to take your skills to the next level. If this sounds like it could be useful for you or members of your team, get in touch with us today.
More often than not, business leaders wait too long to identify, nurture and develop leaders in their business. By the time most businesses consider leadership development training, poor communication, values and behaviours have become so ingrained it can be hard to undo. These mistakes can hamstring both the individuals development and the businesses future. I believe there are 5 lessons managers could learn from leadership development in the military.
I was one of the first people to see The Avengers – I love Marvel comics that have been turned into movies. One of my favourite characters is Hawkeye, an expert bowman who has a specific arrow for seemingly every situation that arises. Need to unlock a security keypad? He has an arrow for that. Take down a large-scale alien spacecraft? He has one for that as well.
What type of Hawkeye qualities do you and your team possess? Do you have an arrow (skill set) for every situation you have to encounter?
‘Where there is great power, there is great responsibility’, Winston Churchill, 1906
Leading any group of individuals takes time, effort and courage. When assuming responsibility for a business or a team, there is both privilege and an expectation of service to that business or team. A CEO, or any leader taking ultimate responsibility for a business and the people within it, has 5 expectations to fulfil and maintain. Failure to attend to any or all of these expectations creates both short and long term issues for both the business, and more importantly, the people in it.
If you have been in a leadership or management role for any length of time, I am sure you would have heard some of these statements or know the analogies:
We have all heard of the fight or flight response. Two options, not much information, stress mounting, time critical decision. Yes or no? Go backward or forward? Left or right? Buy or sell? Fight or flight? What is often forgotten when people talk about fight or flight is the third response – not making a decision (perhaps because in nature, where Walter Cannon first described the response, those animals that hesitate don’t survive).
What would it take for you to be your word in everything that you did today?
What impact would it have on your business if everyone was their word today?
I know what you are thinking – that will never happen! But imagine for a moment if it did. Imagine a workplace where everyone decided ‘I am going to be at work on time today, no matter what it takes’, and they all arrived on time.
Managers could use their training budgets far more effectively if they thought about problems in their business the same way as they thought about their own health.
In a time when money is tight and training budgets are precious, part of the problem is that Managers often self-diagnose a problem in their business and go straight to the remedy, without often considering what all the symptoms are.
If you were ill, you might live with the illness for a while and try and plough through it, thinking that it will go away over time. But if the illness is a little more serious, only then do you go to the Doctor. It might seem obvious, but the Doctor doesn’t just hear what you have to say and then prescribe medication. To do their job properly, they ask questions, run some basic tests and confirm their thoughts with relevant data. If the illness is more serious, they may refer you to a specialist for further tests.
The same applies to business.
I was reminded of the concept of resilience when working with the great Managers at GE last Thursday. Resilience is a value that is being promoted (along with others) and it struck a chord with me, as it seems to be a weak point with so many Management groups (let me say now though, the resilience of the GE group I worked with was pretty good).
When I think of resilience, I am thinking of the ability to recover from setbacks; to be able to get back up when you have been knocked down; to try for something again after being rejected or not succeeding. It is why I have linked this Video – a great sequence from Rocky 5.
Remember that each team has different rules to live by.
Working with a large variety of teams under development has reminded me of one small but crucial detail when working with teams – they are all different.
This was highlighted with Jake on the weekend at the beach. While we were happy to let Jake frolic on the dog beach, other dog owners were not. While just is scolded when he tries to jump up on people, other dogs were not. While there are some common sense rules to follow when owning dogs, the nuances are what makes each of us different.
A different style of post today. I thought I would include one of my favourite inspirational video clips on Youtube. I use this video as a basis for discussion on team coaching, development, goal setting and personal leadership style.
I think I love this video so much because of a question the coach asks an individual player on his team – ‘Are you going to give me your best?’
Lesson 7 – Learn the things that you shouldn’t do in the team
There are many disadvantages to running your own business, but one advantage is being able to work the way you want; particularly when the subject of this blog is asleep at my feet.
Lesson 7 follows on from Lessons 1, 5 and 6, and relates to behaviour that is not accepted by the team.
Greet your team members like you are meeting them for the first time every day.
This lesson sounds over the top and cheesy, but give me the opportunity to explain.
I am sure that you have seen dogs like Jake before; as soon as I get home there is a huge wag of the tail, more jumping than I would like, and a desperate need to be patted. There is no doubt in my mind that he is happy to see me. Jake also has the advantage (or disadvantage?) of having a tail that completely reflects his mood – if the tail is wagging he is happy, wagging furiously and he is excited.
Listening and Being Present are Important to you Team
Having a team leader that is motivated, passionate, driven and excitied by making change are all wonderful things to have when you are in a team. Equally, it is very comforting to know that your Team Leader is there to listen and provide advice when you need it – it provides the ‘steady hand’ that is required to guide a team through difficult times.
Jake is the newest member of our team / family. He is an 18 month old labradoodle (pictured) and the last 15 months have been an exercise in joy, commitment, frustration and persistence. When I think on the impact our new member has had on the rest of the family, I have realised that it is not very different to a new person entering a team in business. I have also realised that animals know an awful lot about being in a team – they have existed and survived in packs for thousands of years.
Here are some of the lessons learnt with Jake on being a good team member and being a good leader of a team.