Tags: #Confused Priorities, #Organizational Silos, #Personal Agendas

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Over the last half century, approaches to leadership have shifted and grown dramatically. Regardless, some areas (even with the most progressive and advanced training programs in place) continue to be problematic in organizations.

The most seasoned of leaders are prone to fall into certain traps, and these traps are often outside their awareness. The more aware leaders become of these behaviors, the more they will be able to mitigate their impact.

Per Robert H. Schaffer, HBR, here are the four main behavioral traps to be mindful of:

Behavior Trap 1: Failing to Set Proper Expectations

Everyone has seen senior managers announce major directional changes or new goals without spelling out credible plans for achieving them or specifying who’s accountable: for instance, “We are going to reduce the use of cash by 40% next year” or “We are going to cut train accidents significantly” or “We are going to shift focus from midmarket customers to the upper end during the next two years.” Such efforts go nowhere.

Behavior Trap 2: Excusing Subordinates from the Pursuit of Overall Goals

Every operating or staff manager is naturally preoccupied with the performance of her own unit. People with such singular focus tend to “delegate” responsibility for organization-wide performance upward to already overloaded senior managers, who often don’t push back.

Behavior Trap 3: Colluding with Staff Experts and Consultants

The work performed by internal staff experts and external consultants has multiplied by 20 to 40 times in the past five decades, and the scope of their activity has greatly expanded. But the vast majority of them still get senior management to go along with the same old flawed contract: They agree to deliver their “product” (such as a new system, organization structure, marketing plan, training program, or corporate strategy)—and even to implement it—but they don’t assume responsibility for outcomes. They imply that performance will improve but almost never include measurable gains as part of the deal.

Behavior Trap 4: Waiting While Associates Prepare, Prepare, Prepare

When senior managers challenge people to improve sales, accelerate turnaround, reduce costs, develop products faster, or make other needed improvements, the usual response is “Yes, but first we have to…” Finish the sentence: Train our people. Study the market. Replace a key player who retired. Launch the new system. Set up focus groups with some customers. Bring in Six Sigma. Make our culture more change oriented. And so forth.

Read the full article here.

Tags: #Confused Priorities, #Inaction, #Inadequate Training, #Personal Agendas, #Power Games, #Unrealistic Goals

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If you’re a connected leader, chances are you meet with your team weekly or bi-weekly to touch base and talk shop. While the details of the meeting will vary from leader to leader, the goal is usually the same: share ideas, innovate, and strategize.

However, when speaking with our clients, it’s common to hear that in actuality making these touch base meetings meaningful can be tough. Typically the conversations stay on the surface.

Below are three tips so you can begin to make the conversations within your group meetings more robust and deliberate while still having fun along the way.

Tip #1: Not All Agendas Are Created Equal

While there might be some logistical details that need to be covered in your meetings, they shouldn’t be put to the group in the same way as an idea that needs real creative thought around it. In our Team module, we use an idea prep form that breaks out what the issue is, why it’s significant, ideal outcome, and what help is wanted from the group. No matter what model you use, it should ask questions and share information in a way that gets the creative juices flowing so people look at the topic with the most knowledge possible. It also should get to the heart of the issue quickly to leave more time for conversation.

Tip #2: What Else?

If you’re running this meeting then your true purpose is to be a facilitator of the conversation. This means that you should probe for understanding and provoke the learning of others by asking – what else? On any given topic a good rule of thumb is to ask what else at least three times. Every time you ask, you go deeper.

Tip #3: Leave Room For Everyone

I’m an extrovert and an external processor, so I talk a lot in meetings. Chances are you have people on your team like me. However, we should not be the only ones that get our voices heard. As the leader of this meeting, you should leave space for others who don’t speak up as often to share their opinions by asking them directly for their perspectives. If this is not common in your culture, it’s a good idea to call out that you aren’t picking on these quieter team members, and in fact, you’re asking because you really want to hear their perspective and value their opinions.

So, how do you go deeper in your group conversations?

Tags: #Disengagement, #Groupthink, #Personal Agendas, #Unrealistic Goals

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If you’re a connected leader, chances are you meet with your team weekly or bi-weekly to touch base and talk shop. While the details of the meeting will vary from leader to leader, the goal is usually the same: share ideas, innovate, and strategize.

However, when speaking with our clients, it’s common to hear that hosting meaningful meetings can be tough. Typically the conversations stay surface level.

Below are three tips you can apply to make the conversations within your group meetings more robust and deliberate while still having fun along the way.

Tip #1: Not All Agendas Are Created Equal

While there might be some logistical details that need to be covered in your meetings, they shouldn’t be put to the group in the same way as an idea that needs real creative thought around it. In our Team program, we use an idea prep form that breaks out what the issue is, why it’s significant, the ideal outcome and what help is wanted from the group. No matter what model you use, make sure to ask questions and share information in a way that gets the creative juices flowing so people look at the topic with the most knowledge possible. Speak to the heart of the issue quickly to leave more time for conversation.

Tip #2: What Else?

If you’re running the meeting then your purpose is to facilitate the conversation. This means that you should probe for understanding and provoke the learning of others by asking – what else? On any given topic a good rule of thumb is to ask what else at least three times. Every time you ask, you go deeper.

Tip #3: Leave Room For Everyone

I’m an extrovert and an external processor, so I talk a lot in meetings. Chances are you have people on your team like me. However, we should not be the only ones that get our voices heard. As the leader of this meeting, you should leave space for others who don’t speak up as often to share their opinions by asking them directly for their perspectives. If this is not common in your culture, it’s a good idea to call out that you aren’t picking on these quieter team members, and in fact, you’re asking because you really want to hear their perspective and value their opinions.

So, how do you go deeper in your group conversations?

A version of this blog was originally published October 30th, 2013 on the Fierce Leadership Blog.

Tags: #Groupthink, #Personal Agendas

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This week’s Fierce resource was originally published by The Muse  and provides twelve strategies for dealing with a boss who consistently plays favorites.

Whether you have had a boss that played favorites or have witnessed it in some capacity, those managers are out there, and it is important to know how to deal with them.

It is human nature to be drawn towards certain people or personalities, but it is up to the individual leader to act in a professional manner and treat all of their direct reports with the same amount of attention and enthusiasm.

If you find yourself in a situation like this, it can be damaging on multiple levels. Perception of lower self-worth swirl around with the knowledge that your journey towards promotion may be significantly harder than some of your peers within the organization.

Stacey Gawronski, The Muse, offers some steps you can take to navigate this and improve the situation.

1. Behave normally. Reacting to the favoritism and bringing emotion into the situation is the worst thing that you can do. In truth, you don’t know where you rank on your boss’ totem pole so it’s best to not react negatively and REALLY get on their bad side.

2. Continue to build the relationship. Don’t assume that things will not change and you cannot change your boss’ perception of you. Continuing to produce high-quality work and proving to your boss that you are a valuable asset to the team is the best thing you can do.

3. Find a mentor. Before escalating the situation and confronting your boss or going straight to HR, find a mentor that can offer some guidance through the situation. Maybe they have been at the company for a while, and have been through the same experience. If not, they can help hone your strategy to get the recognition you deserve.

Read the article and discover the other tips.

Tags: #Demoralization, #Disincentives, #Personal Agendas, #Power Games, #Work Relationships

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A fierce leader does not blame others. A fierce leader asks, listens, and describes what has happened – without laying blame (that’s the hard part).

I’ve worked with leaders in my past who would throw the first person they could under the bus when something went awry. Do you work with someone like that? Or more importantly – are you that person pointing the finger?

If you are, I understand how tempting it is to share the juicy faults or issues, to share what really happened and lay out all the missteps. It’s great gossip fodder. And besides that, it is often REALITY.  It is very hard to take responsibility for results that aren’t necessarily completely in your control.

There are prices you pay, though. When you blame someone else, people trust you less. And in today’s workplace – trust is a scarce resource. According to a new Edelman “Trust Barometer”, which surveys 33,000 people in 28 countries, one in three people do not trust their employer. Also, as you get closer and closer to the frontline, people trust the organization less. In fact, less than 50% of frontline staff say they trust their organization compared to executives at 64%.

Building trust is a choice that you need to make as a leader. And one simple way to do that is to take responsibility collectively for results instead of excuses. As Susan Scott, our Founder says, “You can own the results or own the excuses – not both.”

This week’s tip is to describe reality without laying blame. When something goes wrong, instead of pointing fingers, describe the situation and move to solution mode. Create and support an environment that allows everyone to own their mistakes, and therefore, everyone can own the results together.

What will get in your way?

Tags: #Hostile Work Environment, #Personal Agendas, #Power Games

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This week’s Fierce resource was originally published on Ted.com and uncovers the three simple but crucial questions would-be company chiefs need to ask to thrive in the future.

A recent leadership study conducted by The Conference Board found that 4 of the top 10 challenges that CEOs face are focused on leadership. Yet, many organizations lack a well-developed leadership pipeline. CEOs know their organizations cannot retain highly engaged, high-performing employees without effective leaders who can manage, coach, develop, and inspire them.

So I ask: How do we address the every-widening leadership gap? First, we need to start by distilling the characteristics of great leaders.

Read the complete transcript here.

Tags: #Accelerated Growth, #Personal Agendas, #Role Clarity, #Unrealistic Goals, #Unreliability

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Fierce Accountability: A desire to take responsibility for results; a bias towards action. An attitude, a personal, private, non-negotiable choice about how to live your life.

I would venture to guess that most people, when directly asked, say they want to be accountable for their actions, decisions, and commitments within their organization.

So why is accountability an issue for organizations?

First, accountability can be a messy topic, and so people avoid talking about it. Many organizations’ cultures have developed around the idea that it is easier to just not say anything. As a leader, it can seem difficult to approach the topic with those on your team who are not fulfilling their responsibilities. It can often become a blame game. Regardless, it is necessary to have the conversations.

Second, too often accountability is something we try to legislate. Accountability is not a process or a tool. It is a choice that each individual needs to make to be responsible for his or her results. You cannot make someone accountable. Effective leaders model and coach in a way that their teams choose accountability, and each member understands that this is the choice they need and want to make to be successful in their organizations.

What are your thoughts? Why is accountability such an issue?

Tags: #Bias, #Inaction, #Personal Agendas

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