I often wonder why people micro manage: trust issues, control issues, fear of their boss, misplaced demand for respect from their teams, perceived job security, lack of organizational skills, inexperience, any combination of the above... I suppose it depends on the Manager.
I worked for a micro manager about 8 years ago and I am convinced he micro managed out of boredom. He didn't have enough to do so he would ask me 100 questions a day. In reality, I could have accomplished a lot more if I didn't have to respond to his pointless questions.
I have worked with Micro Managers and listened to their teams talk about them behind their back. As a manager, you need to be involved but not to the point that it gets in the way of your team getting things done or undermines your teams confidence.
There is not one management book, that I am aware of, that endorses micro management and this article further demonstrates the negative impact of helicopter supervision.
Enjoy!
Susan Corcoran
Harvard Business Publishing is one of my favourite sites! Full of relevant information!
Micromanage at Your Peril
7:30 PM Thursday February 28, 2008
by Christina Bielaszka-DuVernay
Tags:Employee retention, Managing people, Managing yourself
All managers want their employees to be more productive--to collaborate more energetically, to work more efficiently. But in pursuit of productivity, many fine managers have traipsed down some perilous paths.
Yes, we're talking about micromanagement. It's a natural tendency, even among seasoned managers, to think close examination of a direct report's work will improve it. Sure, such scrutiny might reveal opportunities for improvement: processes she could streamline, shortcuts she's taking that undermine quality, shortcuts she's not taking that she should.
But tread this path too often, and any gains realized from process improvements will be offset by the deleterious effects of disengagement.
What is disengagement? Fundamentally, it is a state of distance from one's work. A disengaged employee puts in time but little else, and his apathy affects not only his own productivity but that of his colleagues. Because a consistent pattern of micromanagement tells an employee you don't trust his work or his judgment, it is a major factor in triggering disengagement.
And disengagement is costly.
According to the book 12: The Elements of Great Managing (Gallup Press, 2006), absenteeism caused by disengagement costs a typical 10,000-person company $600,000 a year in salary for days where no work was performed, and that "disengagement-driven turnover costs most sizable businesses millions every year." By contrast, engaged employees are more likely to show up to work, to stay with a firm longer, and to be more productive while they're on the job. Gallup research cited in the book finds that highly engaged teams average 18% higher productivity and 12% greater profitability than the least engaged teams.
The good news is that you, as a manager, have enormous influence over your direct reports' engagement levels. So what can you do to increase their engagement and hence their productivity? For starters, you can take a page from the Gallup playbook and make a practice of building on employees' strengths.
Say you have a direct report who rarely submits sales reports on time or fills them out correctly. Ask yourself, "At what tasks does this person excel?" Maybe he's great at troubleshooting customer complaints. Or he's a consistent source of creative ideas for the next promotional effort. Whatever his strengths, think about ways to build on them so that they can add more value to your organization. At the same time, see if you can minimize or redistribute some of the work at which he's less successful.
Budgets, capacity, and other constraints can sometimes make this impossible, and the best course will be to let the person go. But given turnover costs and the looming talent shortage, figuring out a way to make an employee's strength your strength is likely to be worth the effort.
Other actions you can implement:
• Be clear about performance expectations for new hires. As they grow more comfortable in their roles, lessen your direct supervision of their work.
• If you find yourself feeling consistently negative about a particular employee's performance, check that you're not falling into the set-up-to-fail syndrome described by Insead-affiliated management scholars Jean-François Manzoni and Jean-Louis Barsoux. This syndrome is marked by a downward performance spiral. The manager, expecting poor performance from the employee, starts noticing only mistakes and overlooking or minimizing successes. To avoid this pattern, regularly challenge your perception about the employee by asking yourself: What are the facts about her work? Is it as bad as I've been thinking? Of course, it may be that her performance is so bad that you'll have to let her go. But in some cases, adjusting your lens might reveal that she's actually doing some worthwhile work.
• You don't want to create a culture that says you're always right, and the employees are usually or always wrong. So invite employees to challenge your opinions. Over time, as they grow more comfortable in this role, they'll feel freer to discuss any performance concerns they have with you.
When your employees perceive that you value their strengths and their judgment, everyone benefits. As their engagement increases, it's likely that their performance will as well. And the time you might have spent micromanaging them can be put to more productive use.
http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/hmu/2008/02/micromanage-at-your-peril.php?cm_re=homepage-031909-_-body-left-r2-_-productivity
Monday, April 13, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
How to be more Persuasive
One of the more successful sales initiatives I have introduced with the last 3 teams I led was a Book Club. Every other month I would buy books for my entire team and once they were read, we discussed them. We would read the classics: 7 Habits, Good to Great, How to wind Friends and Influence People, The Trusted Advisor, Getting to Yes etc.
I have always had fantastic feedback from people on how these books helped them not only in sales but also in their personal relationships.
At Recite Conferencing, we just finished reading Winning Friends and Influencing People and the book is timeless. I love Dale Carnegie's eloquent writing style. The man was clearly ahead of his time.
As more research is being done on persuasion, a recent article from Harvard Business Publishing confirms what these business masters have been telling us about for decades. What I particularly like about this article is it's relevance to today's work environment and our functional roles and requirement for positive interaction.
Enjoy!
Susan Corcoran
Three Ways to Be More Persuasive
by Judith Ross
Tags:Communication, Managing yourself, Personal effectiveness
People who read this also read:People Who Like This Also Like
Great Entrepreneurs' Secret: Smarts, Guts, and Luck 22780640
Anthony K. Tjan10 Business Words to Ban 22747696
David SilvermanJon Stewart the Right Everyman, Jim Cramer the Wrong Villain 22990110
Karen DillonHow CMOs Should Function in a Recession 22281160
John Quelch Moving projects forward in today's flatter organizations, where cross-functionality is the norm, requires the ability to manage up, down, and sideways. Power and line authority go only so far.
That's where persuasion comes in, says Robert Cialdini, Regents' Professor of Psychology and Marketing at Arizona State University and coauthor with Noah J. Goldstein and Steve J. Martin of Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive (Free Press, 2008).
Much as martial arts combatants overcome their opponents using leverage, inertia, and gravity rather than brute strength, you can persuade others by exploiting the principles of social influence. These include the feelings of obligation generated between two people when one does a favor for the other, the tendency to say yes to people we like, and the desire to act in ways that are consistent with our commitments and values.
Activate reciprocity
One good turn generates another. Any favors you do today are likely to be reciprocated down the road:
Championing a colleague's idea in a meeting when others are giving it only tepid support. Sharing useful information with a coworker in another part of the company who otherwise wouldn't have received it. Pitching in to help a teammate finish a presentation or prepare for it. Don't be insincere and don't be cold-blooded; people will see through you and be on their guard. Just look for opportunities to be a good person. You won't just feel good; you'll create a network of indebted colleagues who will actively look for ways to help you out.
Reciprocity can also repair relationships that have gone sour, though not quite in the way you might expect. If you are trying to mend fences with a colleague, ask her for a favor. This sounds counterintuitive, but it works. You're giving her an opportunity to see herself as magnanimous. So ask her to help you out.
Cialdini recommends that the favor be in keeping with the person's job and will make him look good. From his own experience he cites a time when, after winning a heated debate about hiring, he immediately reached out to a colleague who had been in the opposite camp. Walking the colleague back to his office, Cialdini asked him for advice on a paper he was writing. "He gave me a few books and suggested resources," he recalls.
In the course of that discussion, Cialdini also learned what the colleague was working on. By the time he was ready to return the books, he had found some resources to recommend in return, thus cementing a positive relationship. "We didn't have a pleasant exchange in that faculty meeting. As soon as my side won, I could tell there was likely to be bitterness. But because I asked for his help, we've never been less than friends," he says.
Focus on the other person's positive attributes
Like reciprocation, focusing on a person's positive attributes is an ideal way to begin a relationship. This technique requires that you consciously look for something you genuinely like about a person. Even if he is a terror at work, there might be something you can admire about his personal interests, his past experiences, or the causes he supports.
Once you have identified the positive trait, compliment him on it. By showing your approval, you help him to like you. And that, says Cialdini, is when the barriers come down. "People feel safer and are more open and trusting with people who like them. They are more likely to give them the extra information that will help them succeed."
Focusing on the positive can help improve relations with a colleague you have historically disliked. For example, a manager at a pharmaceutical company had a tense relationship with her boss and the two were often at loggerheads. Using this technique, she realized that his tendency to hold work up was due to his desire to get it right.
When she complimented him on those values, his face lit up. The next morning he gave her the kind of information he'd never shared before: a detailed heads-up on what she should emphasize and be on guard for in gaining buy-in at an important meeting that afternoon.
"Without that information, things would have gone wrong. In the process of saying 'I admire your high quality standards,' she also gave him a reputation to uphold," notes Cialdini. He realized that if she appeared in a positive light, he as her boss would, too.
Invoke the person's previous opinions and behaviors
When you remind someone of his previous position on an issue — "Remember, Mark, how you argued that the company should devote greater resources to educating the sales team about the new product line?" — he is more likely to behave in a way that is consistent with that position. This is an example of the phenomenon known as labeling.
To use labeling to influence someone, you're giving him a reputation to uphold. If you want his support on a proposal to shift more marketing dollars from print to online ad buys to drive widget sales, invoke his track record of preferring online advertising for items similar to the widget. You want him to perceive that supporting your proposal is in line with his previous positions.
Labeling, as you can imagine, is especially effective with someone who thinks highly of his own decision-making prowess.
This technique requires familiarity with a person's priorities, values, and stated positions. If you have not worked extensively enough with someone to gain this insight, review presentations he has given and discreetly probe for information about him in conversations with those who work with him more closely.
Influence is ultimately about relationships. The more you have and the stronger they are, the better able you'll be to bring others to your side when you want their support.
This article can be found on the Harvard Business Blog: http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/hmu/2009/03/three-ways-to-be-more-persuasi.php?cm_re=homepage-031909-_-lede-_-image
I have always had fantastic feedback from people on how these books helped them not only in sales but also in their personal relationships.
At Recite Conferencing, we just finished reading Winning Friends and Influencing People and the book is timeless. I love Dale Carnegie's eloquent writing style. The man was clearly ahead of his time.
As more research is being done on persuasion, a recent article from Harvard Business Publishing confirms what these business masters have been telling us about for decades. What I particularly like about this article is it's relevance to today's work environment and our functional roles and requirement for positive interaction.
Enjoy!
Susan Corcoran
Three Ways to Be More Persuasive
by Judith Ross
Tags:Communication, Managing yourself, Personal effectiveness
People who read this also read:People Who Like This Also Like
Great Entrepreneurs' Secret: Smarts, Guts, and Luck 22780640
Anthony K. Tjan10 Business Words to Ban 22747696
David SilvermanJon Stewart the Right Everyman, Jim Cramer the Wrong Villain 22990110
Karen DillonHow CMOs Should Function in a Recession 22281160
John Quelch Moving projects forward in today's flatter organizations, where cross-functionality is the norm, requires the ability to manage up, down, and sideways. Power and line authority go only so far.
That's where persuasion comes in, says Robert Cialdini, Regents' Professor of Psychology and Marketing at Arizona State University and coauthor with Noah J. Goldstein and Steve J. Martin of Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive (Free Press, 2008).
Much as martial arts combatants overcome their opponents using leverage, inertia, and gravity rather than brute strength, you can persuade others by exploiting the principles of social influence. These include the feelings of obligation generated between two people when one does a favor for the other, the tendency to say yes to people we like, and the desire to act in ways that are consistent with our commitments and values.
Activate reciprocity
One good turn generates another. Any favors you do today are likely to be reciprocated down the road:
Championing a colleague's idea in a meeting when others are giving it only tepid support. Sharing useful information with a coworker in another part of the company who otherwise wouldn't have received it. Pitching in to help a teammate finish a presentation or prepare for it. Don't be insincere and don't be cold-blooded; people will see through you and be on their guard. Just look for opportunities to be a good person. You won't just feel good; you'll create a network of indebted colleagues who will actively look for ways to help you out.
Reciprocity can also repair relationships that have gone sour, though not quite in the way you might expect. If you are trying to mend fences with a colleague, ask her for a favor. This sounds counterintuitive, but it works. You're giving her an opportunity to see herself as magnanimous. So ask her to help you out.
Cialdini recommends that the favor be in keeping with the person's job and will make him look good. From his own experience he cites a time when, after winning a heated debate about hiring, he immediately reached out to a colleague who had been in the opposite camp. Walking the colleague back to his office, Cialdini asked him for advice on a paper he was writing. "He gave me a few books and suggested resources," he recalls.
In the course of that discussion, Cialdini also learned what the colleague was working on. By the time he was ready to return the books, he had found some resources to recommend in return, thus cementing a positive relationship. "We didn't have a pleasant exchange in that faculty meeting. As soon as my side won, I could tell there was likely to be bitterness. But because I asked for his help, we've never been less than friends," he says.
Focus on the other person's positive attributes
Like reciprocation, focusing on a person's positive attributes is an ideal way to begin a relationship. This technique requires that you consciously look for something you genuinely like about a person. Even if he is a terror at work, there might be something you can admire about his personal interests, his past experiences, or the causes he supports.
Once you have identified the positive trait, compliment him on it. By showing your approval, you help him to like you. And that, says Cialdini, is when the barriers come down. "People feel safer and are more open and trusting with people who like them. They are more likely to give them the extra information that will help them succeed."
Focusing on the positive can help improve relations with a colleague you have historically disliked. For example, a manager at a pharmaceutical company had a tense relationship with her boss and the two were often at loggerheads. Using this technique, she realized that his tendency to hold work up was due to his desire to get it right.
When she complimented him on those values, his face lit up. The next morning he gave her the kind of information he'd never shared before: a detailed heads-up on what she should emphasize and be on guard for in gaining buy-in at an important meeting that afternoon.
"Without that information, things would have gone wrong. In the process of saying 'I admire your high quality standards,' she also gave him a reputation to uphold," notes Cialdini. He realized that if she appeared in a positive light, he as her boss would, too.
Invoke the person's previous opinions and behaviors
When you remind someone of his previous position on an issue — "Remember, Mark, how you argued that the company should devote greater resources to educating the sales team about the new product line?" — he is more likely to behave in a way that is consistent with that position. This is an example of the phenomenon known as labeling.
To use labeling to influence someone, you're giving him a reputation to uphold. If you want his support on a proposal to shift more marketing dollars from print to online ad buys to drive widget sales, invoke his track record of preferring online advertising for items similar to the widget. You want him to perceive that supporting your proposal is in line with his previous positions.
Labeling, as you can imagine, is especially effective with someone who thinks highly of his own decision-making prowess.
This technique requires familiarity with a person's priorities, values, and stated positions. If you have not worked extensively enough with someone to gain this insight, review presentations he has given and discreetly probe for information about him in conversations with those who work with him more closely.
Influence is ultimately about relationships. The more you have and the stronger they are, the better able you'll be to bring others to your side when you want their support.
This article can be found on the Harvard Business Blog: http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/hmu/2009/03/three-ways-to-be-more-persuasi.php?cm_re=homepage-031909-_-lede-_-image
Sunday, March 1, 2009
What Not to Do in an Interview
I would say that I conduct, on average, at least one interview a week. There are some terrific candidates out there and every once in awhile, I am floored by someone.
Last week I interviewed a candidate from the Conferencing industry. He had been with a competitor of ours for almost two years. Here is a list of words he used in our interview:
Fart
Shit
Stupid
Racist
Dude
Screw them
Just the guts were rotten
I like people as long as they are not screaming or complaining. No one like to eat shit all day long
(This is about him and his old boss getting in a disagreement ) Dude, we are going to have to step out back and fix this
Alternatively he said he would play hockey with his boss and “take it out on him on the ice”
Corporate America are conniving liars
My father wont get off my ass (about going back to university)
He concluded the interview with a little story on how he threatened to fly to Chicago so his boss could tell him to his face an activity requirement
A word of advice, we all worked for companies that were not a match for us. That being said, under NO CIRCUMSTANCE should you bring your baggage to an interview.
Employers are trying to determine how you will act in front of their customers, Your interaction with superiors, your psychological mind set and make up.
When I interview people like this, I wish my competitor had kept them on payroll!
Remember what your parents told you: if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all!
Last week I interviewed a candidate from the Conferencing industry. He had been with a competitor of ours for almost two years. Here is a list of words he used in our interview:
Fart
Shit
Stupid
Racist
Dude
Screw them
Just the guts were rotten
I like people as long as they are not screaming or complaining. No one like to eat shit all day long
(This is about him and his old boss getting in a disagreement ) Dude, we are going to have to step out back and fix this
Alternatively he said he would play hockey with his boss and “take it out on him on the ice”
Corporate America are conniving liars
My father wont get off my ass (about going back to university)
He concluded the interview with a little story on how he threatened to fly to Chicago so his boss could tell him to his face an activity requirement
A word of advice, we all worked for companies that were not a match for us. That being said, under NO CIRCUMSTANCE should you bring your baggage to an interview.
Employers are trying to determine how you will act in front of their customers, Your interaction with superiors, your psychological mind set and make up.
When I interview people like this, I wish my competitor had kept them on payroll!
Remember what your parents told you: if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
How to Move the Peanut Forward: Next Steps
Sales is like navigating a busy city. There are green lights, yellow lights, stop signs, detours, big hills, pot holes and wide open stretches where you can pick up speed. I have had a picture circa 1950's in my office for years of California Street in San Francisco. It reminds me that some people are climbing the hill and that some people are coasting down. For what ever reason, it reminds me of the struggles and highs of sales.
In every Sales Cycle, the question is "What is the next step?". Every call or meeting should have that in mind. The question is how do you move the peanut forward?
The answer is in the questions you ask. I often laugh when people say that others would be good in sales because they like to talk a lot. Of course we all know that this is very untrue. The best sales people are the ones who listen but more importantly, who can ask questions without is sounding like an interrogation.
Think of your prospects like you were in their shoes. What do you want? To be educated? To look good in front of your boss? To make good decision? To surround yourself with people you trust and who like you? Do you like to be told things are have people ask you your opinion? Boil it down to basic human nature and then build your questions within a selling arena.
What have you done to educate your prospect today?
Have you helped them uncover business pains and explored ways to solve them?
What happens if they make this decision? What happens if they don't move forward?
Who does their decision impact and in what ways?
Are their any key power users that you could engage to test the service/product?
What are the top 3 things they like about their current service/product? What would they like to change?
Has budget been put aside for the product or service? Could that funding be taken away or reallocated?
If you offer a cost savings, how would those funds likely be redeployed?
By exploring these topics, you help the prospect articulate cause and effect. By understanding cause and effect, it opens the door to the next conversation and hopefully through to negotiation and a close.
Happy Selling!
Susan Corcoran
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Perkanomics: Employee Perks in a tight market
There are books, articles and awards for companies that offer the best Perks for employees. There is every spectrum of perk from the likes of Google (free organic food, free bike repairs and free hair cuts - no joke!) to Adobe, who offers biodegradable and compost freindly cutlery.
What is interesting about Googles perks, different from others, is that all their perks are centred around freeing up employee time so that their employees can work MORE! It is genius! They take away time consuming tasks (going to the dry cleaners, doing laundry, preparing food) so that their employees can have their schedules cleared for more work productivity.
Kira Vermond wrote an interesting article in the Globe and Mail about Perks in the time of a recession. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081223.wworkout1227/BNStory/robAtWork/
Some of the perks in question from Kira Vermond;s article are perks for the "Have's". In times of motivating a work force, employees "C" level to "Entry" level, should feel that they are all giving something up equally. Corporate Culture is a fragile entity. I agree with cutting back perks that only a few can participate in - Executive Trips, Corporate vacations. Perks, in my opinion should have an objective. Building interoffice relationships, cross training, resume building, recognizing the employees family for their support of the organization.
It is time to get creative on how we recognize and retain talent. I like any perk that improves a person: One free day off a quarter to do volunteer work on behalf of the company (Junior Achievement for example). How about bringing a Kick boxing instructor in? A Yoga instructor? Cooking Instructor? Almost every facet of entertainment these days is about giving the audience a new experience. Perhaps that is where employers should focus. A big motivator for me would be a leadership course at Richard Ivey. Better yet for the company - send me with my colleagues and create a buzz along with a renewed passion for work!
In some ways, as sad as this is to say, some people don't know they have had a good day until they have a bad day. They have no reference point. Employees forget all the thought and good will having gone into their current benefit plan. Unfortunately, it may only be until the benefits are gone, will they truly appreciate them.
As an employer, I am looking for high value, low cost, BIG impact benefits. I look forward to watching as myself and other companies, big and small, reinvent the meaning of "Employee Benefits" that create sustainability for all.
Happy 2009!
Susan Corcoran
What is interesting about Googles perks, different from others, is that all their perks are centred around freeing up employee time so that their employees can work MORE! It is genius! They take away time consuming tasks (going to the dry cleaners, doing laundry, preparing food) so that their employees can have their schedules cleared for more work productivity.
Kira Vermond wrote an interesting article in the Globe and Mail about Perks in the time of a recession. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081223.wworkout1227/BNStory/robAtWork/
Some of the perks in question from Kira Vermond;s article are perks for the "Have's". In times of motivating a work force, employees "C" level to "Entry" level, should feel that they are all giving something up equally. Corporate Culture is a fragile entity. I agree with cutting back perks that only a few can participate in - Executive Trips, Corporate vacations. Perks, in my opinion should have an objective. Building interoffice relationships, cross training, resume building, recognizing the employees family for their support of the organization.
It is time to get creative on how we recognize and retain talent. I like any perk that improves a person: One free day off a quarter to do volunteer work on behalf of the company (Junior Achievement for example). How about bringing a Kick boxing instructor in? A Yoga instructor? Cooking Instructor? Almost every facet of entertainment these days is about giving the audience a new experience. Perhaps that is where employers should focus. A big motivator for me would be a leadership course at Richard Ivey. Better yet for the company - send me with my colleagues and create a buzz along with a renewed passion for work!
In some ways, as sad as this is to say, some people don't know they have had a good day until they have a bad day. They have no reference point. Employees forget all the thought and good will having gone into their current benefit plan. Unfortunately, it may only be until the benefits are gone, will they truly appreciate them.
As an employer, I am looking for high value, low cost, BIG impact benefits. I look forward to watching as myself and other companies, big and small, reinvent the meaning of "Employee Benefits" that create sustainability for all.
Happy 2009!
Susan Corcoran
Monday, December 1, 2008
Hiring Generation Y
As a Generation X'er, I find the Y generation perplexing at times. I recently read an article in Profit Magazine that did a good job at summarizing a generation so different from Gen X'ers and Zoomers.
Generation Y: Born 1981 to 2000 They represent 26% of the Canadian Population or roughly 8.3 Million strong
This is a generation that has by in large never been told no. There was very little winning and losing but positive reinforcement just for trying. Almost a socialism of competitiveness. They have been encouraged to voice their opinions and question their surroundings. This TV, Multi Media, Video Game playing, immediate gratification generation has been highly supervised from school to day care to camp to organized sports that they require more hands on direction than previous generations at work.
They require regular informal feed back. They have been conditioned to receive praise for everything that they do. We just need to remember this as we manage them. Immediate feed back is the best.
Motivators are affiliation, purpose, recognition, responsibility, being mentored by leaders, training, contributions to making a difference at an organization as well as skills they can take to the next job. Let's not forget about money! Their expectations for their monetary worth may be a bit lofty, especially given the current economic conditions. Create a compensation plan that pays for performance.
Since the Y Gen is young (or this is an obvious sign of how old I am getting), they may look at work as something to do between weekends or a means to a lifestyle, it is best to use interview techniques that uncover intrinsic motivation and work ethic.
Set expectations as we may assume they understand corporate environments, including: being on time, the use of the company email address book (you know what I mean!), attire, language, cell phone/black berry etiquette, time management, authority and calling in sick.
We need to nurture this generation as we watch them flourish into our community's future pillars of enterprise!
Gain the competitive edge and embrace Generation Y!
Susan Corcoran
Generation Y: Born 1981 to 2000 They represent 26% of the Canadian Population or roughly 8.3 Million strong
This is a generation that has by in large never been told no. There was very little winning and losing but positive reinforcement just for trying. Almost a socialism of competitiveness. They have been encouraged to voice their opinions and question their surroundings. This TV, Multi Media, Video Game playing, immediate gratification generation has been highly supervised from school to day care to camp to organized sports that they require more hands on direction than previous generations at work.
They require regular informal feed back. They have been conditioned to receive praise for everything that they do. We just need to remember this as we manage them. Immediate feed back is the best.
Motivators are affiliation, purpose, recognition, responsibility, being mentored by leaders, training, contributions to making a difference at an organization as well as skills they can take to the next job. Let's not forget about money! Their expectations for their monetary worth may be a bit lofty, especially given the current economic conditions. Create a compensation plan that pays for performance.
Since the Y Gen is young (or this is an obvious sign of how old I am getting), they may look at work as something to do between weekends or a means to a lifestyle, it is best to use interview techniques that uncover intrinsic motivation and work ethic.
Set expectations as we may assume they understand corporate environments, including: being on time, the use of the company email address book (you know what I mean!), attire, language, cell phone/black berry etiquette, time management, authority and calling in sick.
We need to nurture this generation as we watch them flourish into our community's future pillars of enterprise!
Gain the competitive edge and embrace Generation Y!
Susan Corcoran
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Be a leader, not a cheerleader
Just the other day a friend of mine and I were discussing the Five Temptations of a CEO and how relevant it is to so many work situations. We have watched many senior level executives stumble, maybe not fail but certainly lose credibility in the eyes of their subordinates based on these temptations.
Be a leader, not a cheerleader
Harvey Schachter, 03/11/08 at 8:06 AM EST
In his work with companies, consultant and best-selling author Patrick Lencioni says he sees five behavioural patterns that undermine leaders and cause them to fail. Those tendencies - first described in his fable The Five Temptations of A CEO 10 years ago - involve succumbing to temptation that can be poisonous to their careers
Choosing status over results
Leaders must produce results, and yet many leaders put the desire to protect the status of their careers ahead of results on their list of priorities. They have climbed the ladder, don't want to fall back, and focus on preserving their status. Ego or reputation becomes all-important, and they reward people who massage their ego, instead of those who contribute to the results. To avoid this temptation, make results the most important measure of personal success.
Choosing popularity over accountability
Leaders often fail to hold their direct reports accountable for delivering on commitments that drive results because they desire to be popular. They become friends with their reports, develop camaraderie, and balk when they must tell their people that they are not meeting expectations. Indeed, he argues CEOs conduct performance reviews for their direct reports far less diligently than managers at other levels. Instead, work for the long-term respect of your direct reports, not their affection. Don't view them as a support group, but as key employees who must deliver on commitments
Choosing certainty over clarity
Leaders often don't hold direct reports accountable because they don't make it clear what those people are accountable for doing. The leaders are seeking certainty - fearful of not making a "correct" decision - and so often postpone decisions or fail to make their people's deliverables clear. They provide vague and hesitant direction, hoping subordinates will figure out the right answers. Instead, make clarity more important than accuracy. Your people will learn more if you take decisive action than if you wait for more information. If you happen to make the wrong decision, change plans and explain why. "It is your job to risk being wrong. The cost to you of being wrong is loss of pride. The cost to the company of not risking being wrong is paralysis," he writes in Executive Excellence.
Choosing harmony over productive conflict
Leaders don't feel comfortable with the decisions they make unless their direct reports are all in harmony. That comes from a belief it is better for people to agree and get along than disagree and conflict. However, harmony may restrict productive conflict - the passionate interchange of opinions on an issue, which gets all knowledge and perspectives on the table and leads to better decisions. His advice: Encourage everyone to air their differences with passion. View tumultuous meetings as signs of progress.
Choosing invulnerability over trust
Leaders are uncomfortable displaying vulnerability with their peers. They believe that they lose credibility if their people feel too comfortable challenging their ideas. Instead, invite others to challenge your ideas. "Trust them with your reputation and your ego. They will return this trust with respect and honesty," he says.
Be a leader, not a cheerleader
Harvey Schachter, 03/11/08 at 8:06 AM EST
In his work with companies, consultant and best-selling author Patrick Lencioni says he sees five behavioural patterns that undermine leaders and cause them to fail. Those tendencies - first described in his fable The Five Temptations of A CEO 10 years ago - involve succumbing to temptation that can be poisonous to their careers
Choosing status over results
Leaders must produce results, and yet many leaders put the desire to protect the status of their careers ahead of results on their list of priorities. They have climbed the ladder, don't want to fall back, and focus on preserving their status. Ego or reputation becomes all-important, and they reward people who massage their ego, instead of those who contribute to the results. To avoid this temptation, make results the most important measure of personal success.
Choosing popularity over accountability
Leaders often fail to hold their direct reports accountable for delivering on commitments that drive results because they desire to be popular. They become friends with their reports, develop camaraderie, and balk when they must tell their people that they are not meeting expectations. Indeed, he argues CEOs conduct performance reviews for their direct reports far less diligently than managers at other levels. Instead, work for the long-term respect of your direct reports, not their affection. Don't view them as a support group, but as key employees who must deliver on commitments
Choosing certainty over clarity
Leaders often don't hold direct reports accountable because they don't make it clear what those people are accountable for doing. The leaders are seeking certainty - fearful of not making a "correct" decision - and so often postpone decisions or fail to make their people's deliverables clear. They provide vague and hesitant direction, hoping subordinates will figure out the right answers. Instead, make clarity more important than accuracy. Your people will learn more if you take decisive action than if you wait for more information. If you happen to make the wrong decision, change plans and explain why. "It is your job to risk being wrong. The cost to you of being wrong is loss of pride. The cost to the company of not risking being wrong is paralysis," he writes in Executive Excellence.
Choosing harmony over productive conflict
Leaders don't feel comfortable with the decisions they make unless their direct reports are all in harmony. That comes from a belief it is better for people to agree and get along than disagree and conflict. However, harmony may restrict productive conflict - the passionate interchange of opinions on an issue, which gets all knowledge and perspectives on the table and leads to better decisions. His advice: Encourage everyone to air their differences with passion. View tumultuous meetings as signs of progress.
Choosing invulnerability over trust
Leaders are uncomfortable displaying vulnerability with their peers. They believe that they lose credibility if their people feel too comfortable challenging their ideas. Instead, invite others to challenge your ideas. "Trust them with your reputation and your ego. They will return this trust with respect and honesty," he says.
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