Category Archives: General

The case for developing leaders at all levels

Today I’m going to make the case for leadership development at all levels, not just at the top of the organization. Think about it, do you want those employees positioned closest to your customers to have that training? I would. Yes, it’s a question of cost for many companies, but if your customer-facing people aren’t doing the right thing, then cost won’t matter when you lose the customers!

That was just a taste of what you’ll find in the video below. Subscribers may need to click through to view.

(Fair warning, the video sometimes is skippy and doesn’t seem to align with the audio track, but the info’s still thought-provoking!)

Communicating with difficult team members

How do you communicate with team members with a chip on their shoulder? What do you do or say when they are stubborn, constantly interrupting, unapproachable, or unwilling to accept feedback? Well, for starters, you are not alone. Every workplace I’ve ever been has at least one of these people working there. Let’s look at a few ways to deal with the madness.

While there are multiple dynamics for this question (dealing with subordinates, peers, and managers), I’m going to stick solely with dealing with team members. 

A personal story

I had an, um, interesting experience at a previous employer with a coworker, and it was the closest I’ve ever come to quitting a job. Here’s my story:

The computers and network at this company were terrible. The internet connection, which I needed to complete my work, was unstable and usually worked about 25% of the time between the hours of 8:00am and 5:00pm. In order to get my work accomplished, I started showing up at work at 7:00am to get some stuff done before the network slowed to a crawl. Well, one morning I received an email about some training that I had been considering, so I opened up the links to the training website, leaving it running in the background so I could read it over my lunch hour.

During lunch, I was sitting there with my door closed when my coworker walked in and announced that she needed to use my computer because hers wasn’t working. I put my lunch down and asked if the internet connection was her issue, because mine wasn’t working either. She walked around behind my desk and pointed accusingly at me because the website was pulled up. Despite my attempt to explain that it was done hours earlier, she walked out and slammed the door.

I put it behind me. The woman had that reputation for being abrasive, and I didn’t need any further stress thanks to our shoddy technical resources.

The next day in our department meeting, our manager asked if anyone had anything to discuss. My coworker looked at her and said, “I think Ben’s not a team player. He was using his computer during lunch yesterday and wouldn’t let me get my work done.”

Of course I did my best, but I couldn’t keep from laughing. I explained the issue and how I had loaded the pages five hours before she came into my office demanding my computer, but I could tell it was a lost cause. The coworker had been working there for several years, and I knew my manager would believe her over me. I refused to give in, but when we left the meeting I felt humiliated by the accusations and betrayed by my manager. One thing was for sure, I was going to start looking for another job right away.

I wanted to tell my personal story as a warning. Everyone in the situation, the manager, coworker, and even me, could have handled the issue better. We all deserve some of the blame for it getting out of hand. Since that time I’ve done everything I can to be more aware of these situations and I try to follow the ideas I’ve listed below. It’s my own personal formula for communicating with difficult team members, so use at your own risk. :-)

How to deal with the issue

First, I would give them a chance to open up. Sit down and talk with them for a few minutes. The easiest advice to follow is that of the book “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie. Here are a few high points (more listed here):

  • Don’t criticize, condemn or complain-Starting with any of those three statements will instantly close the person off to further discussion and could hamper future communication efforts.
  • Give honest and sincere appreciation-Tell them something they did well, and make it sincere. People can tell when you’re setting them up with false appreciation, so make it truthful and heartfelt.
  •  Smile-It might be hard, but it can make or break your discussion.
  • Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language-This is a sales technique, and it works. People enjoy hearing their own name and you can use it to keep them focused on the conversation and what you have to say.
  •  Talk in terms of the other person’s interests-This is one I’ve used to great success. Instead of asking them to make your work easier, show them how making a change will actually help them in the long run. Make it about them, not you.
  • The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it-If an argument begins, drop it. There will be another time and place to continue the discussion, but arguments have a way of getting us to say things that we can’t recover from.
  • Show respect for the other person’s opinions. Never say, “You’re wrong.” Even if they have the dumbest idea and are completely incorrect, you need to be tactful in the handling of the issue. If not, they will (again) close off and become defensive instead of focusing on the problem and how it can be solved.
  • If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically-This can help teach others that it not only is okay to admit mistakes, it is preferred to the long, drawn-out battle of the wills over who is right and wrong.

So, once you’ve had the talk with the person and followed (as closely as you can) the suggestions above, you should hopefully be in a much better place to communicate with them in the future. Use these principles as a guide for future conversations and interactions and it’s hard to go wrong.

However, sometimes that just isn’t enough. There’s a continual clash between the two parties or even an irreconcilable difference that can’t be overlooked. What else can you do?

  • You can go to your manager for help. They might be able to offer insight or alternatives that aren’t immediately obvious to you.
  • You can do your best to continue your work without interacting with the person. This is less attractive because it can impact how decisions are made, and it’s not a 100% permanent solution.

And that’s about it, really. I’m a fan of handling the issue between you and the other team member if at all possible. However, sometimes there just isn’t a way to get the other person on board. That leaves you with the two options above as the end-of-the-line alternatives for resolution.

Thanks to Kathy Duffy for sending in this great question! Anyone else have an idea they’d like to share for communicating with difficult team members?

How to manage a team (four key concepts)

Many new leaders wonder how to manage a team. It requires a unique set of skills, patience, and charisma, and it’s not for everyone. In my short career I’ve led teams in multiple ways; however, while I haven’t led a formal team in the workplace, I have seen firsthand how my own manager leads the team I participate in, and I’ve learned more from that experience than I could have in a dozen books on the topic. I’ve seen four solid pillars for a good team management structure-autonomy, communication, equal footing, and capable leadership.

  • Give autonomy-When managing a team, it is important to remember that you are not the one who should be completing all of the work. That’s why you have a team. Set expectations for the team members (and let them set expectations for what they need from you), and then get out of the way. When people are given the autonomy to complete their work, they generally have more satisfaction in the completed product. Remember, you lead/manage, they do the work.
  • Communicate up and down-Providing short, factual feedback is one of the best ways to keep the team motivated and performing. I’ve seen so many teams fail not because they were not made up of capable workers, but because the team leader failed to provide feedback for course corrections, confirmation of satisfactory work, or any other purpose. It’s also important for the individuals on the team to provide feedback to the manager on what they need to be successful, whether it be resources, manpower, or even downtime to rest and recuperate. A note for both managers and team members: don’t assume the other party knows what you need!
  • Equal footing-This is one my manager does well. The departmental team is made up of different functions, but none of us think of ourselves as superior to one another. The administrative assistant has the same vote as the HR guy or the accounting staff. While the work we do is different, we each provide a valuable service to the organization, and there’s no way (or reason, really) to determine which is the most important function. A good example of this is a recent team interview. One of the candidates looked good on paper, but one of our team members did not feel comfortable with bringing the guy on board, so he was crossed off the list. Each of us has the veto power if we feel like the decision is not going to be good for the team.
  • Lead whenever possible-This is a tricky one to describe, but it’s also the piece of this that I’ve come to realize is most important. Many managers feel the need to use their position’s power to tell others what to do. A great manager not only offers to help, but they actually will step in and do the work if need be. That is the best definition and example of leadership that I know of.Not only are they stepping down from the “management pedestal” to do the work of the team, they are also demonstrating the concept above that each person is on equal footing. Sure, a manager can tell you to go do something and they have the authority to make you do it, but a good one will work with you to minimize the discomfort of an unpleasant task or help you to be excited about completing it, even if you were dreading the activity previously.

Is this list complete? Most certainly not. However, it’s a great start, and I’m learning new ideas every day for how to manage a team well.

Have an idea of your own to share? Feel free to leave a comment!

The What vs. The How

I covered the concept of the “what” and the “how” of work long ago in my review of The Pursuit of Something Better.

In the book, U.S. Cellular is going through a dramatic culture change, and a large aspect of that is the shifting mindset from focusing on the “what” to focusing on the “how.”

Here’s a good example. Many years ago when the majority of the workforce was employed in factories performing manual labor, companies dominated the “how” of work. They told employees when to be there, how the work was to be performed, and when they could leave.

But that’s obviously not the case for most work these days. Companies are realizing that giving people control of the way work is accomplished (the “how”) is a great way to get employees engaged in their jobs.

Back to U.S. Cellular. The company started putting less emphasis on the “what” (sales targets, number of calls received, and other metrics) and more on the “how” (communication, ethical behavior, etc.). Despite the critics’ belief that they would fall on their face for taking their eyes off the all-important numbers, the company actually flourished. And, in time, the numbers looked better than ever, because the leaders within the company had the courage to focus on the bigger picture.

Take a moment to think about your own workplace. Is more emphasis being put on the “what” than the “how?” Are people pursuing good numbers and letting their ethics and morals fall by the wayside? Are managers using intimidation and fear to get the results they want instead of offering a thoughtful, considerate point of view?

Sometimes it can be difficult applying these abstract concepts to the way real work is done. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. Coaching managers on how to change their thinking won’t be simple, but it is worth the effort. Doing so can mean the difference between success and failure for your people!

3 HR and Recruiting Tools I’ve Used Lately

In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve been bombarded at work lately (hence the low number of posts!). Some of that busyness is driven by projects I’m working on (recruiting, baby!). Other parts of it are self-imposed, because once I have an idea I have a hard time letting it go. The good part for you, though, is that you get to enjoy the fruits of that labor and investigation! Here are the three free HR and recruiting tools I’ve been playing with lately.

SmartRecruiters

This is a free ATS (Applicant Tracking System) that I use for recruiting where I work. While it’s not as robust as a paid service, it has some amazing features. Plus, it completely blows away our old way of doing recruiting. Opening up an HTML editor, coding a job ad by hand, and posting it on our own website. Then applicants had to email their resumes if they were interested.

Ugh.

Now I post a job in my SmartRecruiters menu, automatically share that across free job boards like Indeed.com (one of the largest job aggregators around), and get notifications when people apply. Then I log into the system and do a quick screen before sharing it with the hiring manager for review. Very simple and such a relief for an HR/recruiting department of one person!

Fun @ Work from Baudville

This is a (free) handy PDF guide with 52 ways to have fun at work included. I am always looking for new ideas to keep lines of communication open across the organization, and I have really dug into this guide to find some ideas lately. With all of the stress of work and life that employees are dealing with these days, why not help them have some fun @ work?

Zappos Culture Book

If you’ve heard of Zappos, you know that they have a legendary corporate culture. It’s unique, and it’s a differentiator for them. Employees love being there. Customers love shopping there. It’s really an amazing phenomenon. Well, in my relentless pursuit of corporate culture development, I ran across the Zappos Insights website where you can order a free Culture Book! If you sign up for one, you’ll receive it in about a week. I just got mine and have already started seeking out ideas.

And that’s how I’ve been spending a portion of my time lately! Anyone else have any neat, free tools that they use as HR or recruiting professionals? 

Managing performance at work

When it comes to managing performance at work, a lot of people cringe. Managers think employee appraisals are a waste of time. Employees rarely get the proper feedback and guidance from their supervisors. And HR, well, we are the ones who are supposed to make those two unwilling parties play nice so we can “get through” yet another review cycle.

If that sounds anything like what you deal with, let me hear an “amen.” :-)

Seriously, though, it is a problem. If you asked anyone, they would say that they want their employees performing at the top of their game. But when it comes to giving critical feedback about performance, most people shy away.

Recently I wrote a series over at my other blog about this phenomenon and how to make it more manageable. I highly encourage you to check it out!

Table of contents

If you have a specific problem or issue with your own performance management system, feel free to leave a comment! I would love to write something that might give you some ideas on how to solve it.