10 Tips to Help Manage High Performers with Difficult Personalities

10 Tips to Help Manage High Performers with Difficult Personalities Posted by Aoife Gorey on Wed, Oct 12, 2011 Managing high performers with difficult personalities is one of the greatest managerial challenges that leaders face. We see it all the time across every industry and function. Whether it is the rainmaker with the golden rolodex, the genius software engineer, or the prickly neurosurgeon, sometimes we can't live with these people but we can't live without them. So, what can leaders do to bring out the best in these people while minimizing negative impact they have on their co-workers and the organizational climate? Research conducted by Profiles International shows that today’s workplaces are overrun with “divas” and “jerks”. I’m sure we all have one in our office! Our research undertook the task of understanding the best ways to manage these ‘difficult’ workers. The study, which involved over 700 participants uncovered some interesting findings, which included: More than half surveyed claimed 25% of high performers in their organization were difficult to work with Sales and Operations were identified as the departments with the highest numbers of difficult high performers 72% disagreed that it is ok for managers to give special treatment to difficult characters just because they are high performers A shocking 49% of managers could not identify what makes a high performers successful 68% of managers did not understand why 'difficult' high performers behave the way they do 78% of managers did not know how to manage these employees effectively However, these issues do not go unnoticed, managers are reluctant to do anything about it, as the cost tends to exceed the benefits. 62% of participants agreed with this statement. The majority of managers surveyed claimed, they do not use assessments to work with difficult employees. These tools can be very useful in identifying not only high performers, how well the person will fit the job and most importantly these difficult employees. Chuck Wilson, Senior Vice President of Profiles International, shares how assessments help manage and coach difficult employees -- especially high-performers. For all you managers out there dealing with these Jerks, Prima Donnas and Hot Heads, here are 10 simple tips to to managing difficult employees. Have a one-on-one conversation with the employee in private Consult with other managers and your boss Provide the employee with outside training Make yourself available to the employee for additional training Be sure to outline clear guidelines of conduct for the employee Have a discussion about the issue at a meeting with the employees involved Schedule a formal employee review, even if one is not due Request that the employee to submit reports about how he or she is seeking to change their behavior Put the employee on probation for the appropriate amount of time For more serious problems, terminate the employee immediately, explain cause and provide pay for any hours worked. If the person's behavior goes too far, and they remain employed, it could seriously damage staff morale. Do not be too hesitate to let these people go, just because they are high performers. This one person could badly affect the remaining 'well-behaved' employees. These employees are the backbone of your company! To participate in this study and recieve a copy of results, please click here. If you would like to help managers in your organization more effectively manage high performers with difficult personalities, we encourage you to test drive our Profiles Performance Indicator assessment - 100% risk free. http://info.profilesinternational.com/profiles-employee-assessment-blog/bid/70594/10-Tips-to-Help-Manage-High-Performers-with-Difficult-Personalities

6 Essential Traits of Highly Effective Managers - Do You Have Them?

6 Essential Traits of Highly Effective Managers - Do You Have Them? Posted by Dario Priolo on Fri, Dec 09, 2011 Some managers inspire and motivate, but many fail miserably to engage their employees. The entertainment industry seems to have created the ultimate formula for the "bad manager" character, so why can't real managers understand how to be more effective? When employees choose to leave a position, it's often because of their manager or relationships with people in their working environment. People quit people, not jobs. An "effective" manager takes responsibility for ensuring that each individual within his department succeeds and that the team or business unit achieves results. Successful managers require both talent and skill. Managerial skills can be developed through training, mentoring, and experience. But if a manager is void of natural talent, then the odds that he will be successful diminish significantly. The most productive companies are typically more proactive than their peers when it comes to identifying and developing effective managers. The top six common managerial success traits include communication, leadership, adaptability, relationships, development of others, and personal development. 1. Communication. A manager with strong communication skills is able to instruct as well as he listens. Managers who can communicate effectively can process information and then relate it back to their teams clearly. Effective managers should be able to understand, decipher, and relate the organization's vision back to their employees in order to maintain productivity. Conversely, ineffective communicators will miss the point of what they’re being told, won’t be able to recognize the impact on their team, or will fail to share the message with their team. 2. Leadership. Leadership is a crucial attribute that many managers lack despite their job title. It is common practice for companies to promote employees who achieve the best individual results, but sometimes the best salesman doesn't make the best manager. True leaders are able to instill trust, provide direction, and delegate responsibility amongst team members. Dilbert's boss fails to inspire his team or deliver "visionary leadership." 3. Adaptability. The ability to adapt also contributes to a manager's effectiveness. When a manager is able to adjust quickly to unexpected circumstances, he is able to lead his team to adapt as well. Adaptability also means that a manager can think creatively and find new solutions to old problems. 4. Relationship building. Effective managers should strive to build personal relationships with their teams. Employees are more likely to exceed expectations when they trust their manager. When managers establish a relationship with employees, it builds trust and employees feel valued. Valued employees are more willing to get the job done right and apply extra effort when needed. 5. Developing others. The best managers know when their employees need more development and how to ensure that those developmental opportunities are successful. Developing others involves cultivating each individual's talents and motivating them to channel their talents toward productivity. 6. Developing themselves. Finally, an effective manager is aware of their own personal development. In order to successfully develop and lead others, managers must seek improvement in themselves. A manager who is willing to continue to grow and learn and use their natural talents to the best of their ability will be able to encourage the same behavior in employees. Effective management is comprised of several key components, and is not easily achieved. Organizations need to recognize the traits associated with successful management, and then promote employees based on those traits. The highest achieving employees do not always make the best managers, but employees that naturally exude these 6 attributes are sure to be effective and successful in management roles. http://info.profilesinternational.com/profiles-employee-assessment-blog/bid/72086/6-Essential-Traits-of-Highly-Effective-Managers-Do-You-Have-Them

How to Prevent Your Talent From Falling Victim to The Peter Principle

How to Prevent Your Talent From Falling Victim to The Peter Principle Posted by Jeffrey Meyers on Thu, Nov 10, 2011 Don’t Gamble That Your Top Performers Will Succeed in Their New Roles It’s been more than four decades since Dr. Laurence J. Peter and Raymond Hull articulated the talent management blunder known as “The Peter Principle.” Their book provided a comical view of organizational hierarchies that explains why incompetent people are promoted into positions for which they aren’t suited. The trouble is, when you work for that person (or are that person), it isn’t funny. How can you avoid falling victim to The Peter Principle? According to Wikipedia, The Peter Principle: holds that in a hierarchy, members are promoted so long as they work competently. Eventually they are promoted to a position at which they are no longer competent (their "level of incompetence"), and there they remain, being unable to earn further promotions. It goes on to say that coworkers who haven’t yet reached their highest potential are the ones who take up the slack for those who have, and that subordinates should master the tactic of “managing upward” as a way to circumvent the effects of an incompetent manager. You’d think that after so many years someone would have figured out a way to avoid or eradicate this problem. Baby Boomers who were 20 when the book was published are now retiring – they’ve worked their entire careers at its mercy! It’s taught in business school, but apparently it’s a lesson learned but not taken to heart. It usually comes down to a gamble that “it won’t happen this time.” There are two situations in which The Peter Principle most often emerges: Being promoted to a manager from a position such as top-producing sales person or brilliant engineer Transitioning from individual contributor to a team leader or manager Failure #1. Top performers lack the necessary skills (or potential to develop them) to be promoted. The first scenario may be a tired cliché in business lore, but as long as the problem persists, we’ll continue to cite it. It’s as obvious as watching a suspense or horror movie – the protagonist is about to open the door, behind which the monster lurks. “Don’t go in there!” we think, but of course they go. Everyone knows it’s wrong, but we do it anyway. When people are good at what they do, it’s natural to assume that they can continue to perform at higher heights, increasing their abilities and living up to the next level of their potential. But what’s often taken for granted is that potential is limitless. Instead, some people’s natural abilities are only developed so far. It’s not to say that new skills and behaviors can’t be learned or cultivated, but recognize when they’re not yet present so that you don’t promote too soon and risk failure. You know the cliché, so you know the outcome: you not only lose your top sales person, but you also lose productivity and momentum of the team while needing to search for, select, and onboard the failed manager’s replacement. The opportunity costs lost can be significant. Craig Juengling shares a success story of using Checkpoint 360 with new leaders. Failure #2. Individual contributors lack the mindset to change from a “me” to “us.” The second situation is less cliché but just as common: strong individual contributors transitioning to team or group roles in which their thinking must change their mindset from “me” to “us.” The very nature of a hierarchy is to have leaders in charge of larger groups of subordinates. Within that tiered structure, there are managers, teams, and individual contributors. When an individual contributor is tapped to take on more responsibility, the change can be easy if they’re ready and capable of leading others. But for some the challenge is a greater leap. A successful individual contributor knows what he’s capable of, is able to complete his tasks on target and on time, and manages himself well. Broadening their role to be responsible for others and their work is foreign to them. They may not like telling others what to do, or even worse, take the reins of their new role too tightly and boss their colleagues to death. They like to do tasks themselves and aren’t comfortable sharing their work or delegating to others because it forces them to relinquish control (or they’re reluctant to accept it). This is not to say that the person is selfish, but rather that they haven’t developed their ability to manage others or tapped into their leadership charisma. How can you prevent The Peter Principle? Don’t gamble with your talent management and promotions that you can side-step The Peter Principle. Instead take the time to ensure that you’re getting the right people in the right roles for you and for them. 1. Ensure that the person has the desire and inclination to be a leader. If they don’t have inclination, don’t force it on them, but rather create career paths to maximize their contribution and receive the recognition they crave. And if they lack the desire to lead, don’t force it on them – they may be not ready or know inherently that they’re not suited for it. Some people are natural-born followers and are content to do so. Use assessments to help identify high-potential leaders at an early stage and help them develop so that when the opportunity to promote them arises, they’re ready and you’re confident in your decision. 2. Don’t assume that everyone knows how to lead. Especially for first-time managers, provide them with objective feedback and coaching early and often. If they easily transition into the role, then you can look forward to see how you can help them to broaden their skills and leadership repertoire to be ready for even bigger situations ahead. But most new managers would benefit from coaching rather than being thrown to the wolves only to discover that they’re failing miserably. As was highlighted in the accompanying video, providing 360-degree feedback can highlight a leader’s shortcoming s and provide opportunities for them to improve their performance. Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gb_fotos/273603327/sizes/m/in/photostream/ http://info.profilesinternational.com/profiles-employee-assessment-blog/bid/78230/How-to-Prevent-Your-Talent-From-Falling-Victim-to-The-Peter-Principle

10 Leadership Tips For First-Time Managers

10 Leadership Tips For First-Time Managers Posted by Jeffrey Meyers on Thu, Dec 01, 2011 When the time comes to promote strong, capable individual contributors into their first role as a manager, how do you prepare them? Although their performance has been good and you’ve assessed that they are a fit for the job, leading others will be an adjustment for most. Don’t assume that an effective worker will automatically become an effective manager – especially if he’s to manage a group of his peers. Here are 10 leadership tips to help your first-time managers succeed and avoid failure: 1. Accept that you still have much to learn. You will have worked hard for your promotion and have ample expertise in your chosen field, but you may find that you lack self-confidence in your ability to lead. Be prepared to learn from others – including your new team. 2. Communicate clearly. Always keep your team fully informed of project goals, priorities, and those all-important deadlines. Effective communication will be essential in both establishing your credibility and gaining the support of your team, so be sure to provide clear direction and always welcome questions and feedback from others. 3. Set a good example. Demand from yourself the same level of professionalism and dedication that you expect from others. If you expect the team to be upbeat and friendly, then make sure you are! If you expect written reports to be error free, then double check your own work! 4. Encourage feedback. Sometimes employees are unwilling to speak up about certain issues unless they are prompted. Canvass for opinions on issues such as support, training, and resources while maintaining an open-door policy so that your team knows that you are willing to listen to their concerns and ideas as well as help provide solutions to any problems. 5. Offer recognition. By publicly recognizing the efforts and achievements of your team, you not only build up their confidence, but also encourage future contributions and effort. Praise does not always have to be formal – praising employees can be part of your day-to-day communication with your team. In the video below, Ken Blanchard suggests that managers take an extra minute to offer praise, criticism, or make sure that instructions are understood. Ken Blanchard discusses the concept of the "Extra Minute Manager." 6. Be decisive. A quality leader needs to make decisions and stick to them. People do not feel comfortable with someone who changes his or her mind on a whim. You only have to look at public opinion of government U-turns to see how easily confidence in a leader can be weakened or lost altogether. 7. Help your team see the ”big picture.” Take time to explain to your team how their assignments and projects fit into the company’s larger goals and overall objectives. This will help demonstrate that every task they complete can have an impact on the company’s reputation, success, and bottom line. 8. Create an environment of constant learning and development – and include yourself in this process. Encourage your team to explore new methods for reaching their individual goals and those set by the company. Allow them to make – and learn from – mistakes and be sure to reward new and innovative ideas. 9. Provide professional guidance. A good manager and leader will also be a mentor. Make yourself available to staff members and show interest in their career development within the company. Don’t overlook the motivational power of positive reinforcement – your staff will appreciate your commitment to their progress. 10. Be patient with yourself. Developing strong managerial skills takes time – especially as you adjust to your new position. Seek guidance from colleagues, your line manager, or your professional network when you need it. In doing so you will enhance your leadership abilities and make strides toward becoming a great manager. While this list is intended for new managers, you could likely share these tips with your seasoned managers to remind them of the basics and help them avoid derailing. As is true with most things, the longer the person stays in a role, the more set in his ways he becomes. Reminders such as these might help to give them a new focus or outlook on their daily job, which will not only improve their own effectiveness, but increase the performance of those whom they lead. Dario Priolo contributed to this article. http://info.profilesinternational.com/profiles-employee-assessment-blog/bid/80101/10-Leadership-Tips-For-First-Time-Managers

10 Important Questions to Help Identify High Potential Leaders

10 Important Questions to Help Identify High Potential Leaders Posted by Dario Priolo on Fri, Oct 14, 2011 According to research from the Corporate Executive Board, 40% of internal job moves made by people identified by their companies as "high potentials" end in failure. Many organizations make the mistake of looking simply at ability when assessing an employee for a management job. Think of the hot-shot sales rep or the genius software engineer. It is incredible how often high producing individuals get promoted into management jobs that require a totally different mindset to be successful. The reason these people fail often comes down to three critical factors: leadership behaviors, aspiration and engagement. Aspiration entails whether the candidate really wants the position and is willing to make the sacrifices it may require. Engagement involves the employee's commitment to the company and its mission. In focusing on whether an employee potentially can do a job, many organizations neglect the question, “Does he want to do this?" Defining the characteristics can be a tricky proposition, particularly with young employees. The characteristics people develop through training, experience and progress in their activity are not necessarily apparent from who they are when they start. Moreover, many managers have beliefs about leadership that look like something out of a movie -- loud, aggressive, in-your-face types of guys. Organizations should develop leadership competency models based on a set of traits and behaviors associated with success in the company and then measure employees on how well they do relative to those traits. Organizations need to be sure they are assessing employees not just for the present but for the future, looking at not only what has made people successful, but also what is likely to be important and what shortages they have. John Bradford, Profiles Senior Vice President of Training and Consulting Services, explains how assessments support the employee lifecycle. The 10 questions below, along with an effective assessment program, will help you more effectively identify high potential managers: Does this person have a proven track record for accomplishing impressive results – not just meeting expectations? Does this person take charge and make things happen? Or sit back and let things happen before producing? Does this person inspire confidence in his or her decision making? Can this person lead through persuasion and influence? Can he or she serve as an effective sounding board to others who are struggling with complex issues? Do others trust this person to lead projects and teams, even though he or she doesn’t have a leadership title? Does this person have an understanding of how to separate “what” from “how”? An awareness that establishing the destination before deciding on the mode of transportation is essential? Can this person keep a global perspective? Are priorities apparent, or does she or he become mired in the details and tactics? Do obstacles stop this person? Or do they represent challenges, not threats? What success has this person had with multitasking? How do unexpected changes affect this person’s performance? http://info.profilesinternational.com/profiles-employee-assessment-blog/bid/74838/10-Important-Questions-to-Help-Identify-High-Potential-Leaders

Creating a High Calling Culture

Mar 2, 2012 Creating a High Calling Culture by Sam Van Eman I need your help with a bit of culture creation . . . but first, let me give you some background. It wasn’t until my 20s that I began to merge what I considered the spiritual world—prayer, singing, reading the Scriptures—with everything else: academics, music, work, pop culture. I generally heralded daily devotions as the stuff that mattered, while studying and working were more like chores I did for responsibility’s sake, not for spreading the gospel. And culture, the topic of this conversation, was simply a list of items I either avoided or consumed depending on the item’s moral value. Which meant CCM was in; MTV was out. What I didn’t realize was that none of these weekly activities fit nicely into straight-forward categories. Culture turned out to be bigger than labels like “pop,” “elite,” “folk,” and “consumer.” In fact, I discovered that culture contained all of it, from preaching to puzzles, choir to chemistry. It contained both the prayer style I had employed and the company that kept me employed. For starters, let’s say that culture is the result of everything we create, manage, and consume (I’d say “and enjoy” but let’s face it: some culture is no fun to create, manage, or consume). Here at The High Calling, we try to host conversations about every area of our lives. We talk a lot about work in the traditional sense, which includes discussions on cubicle-world ethics and honesty in the workplace. But if you’ve been around a while, you know we believe that God cares about all seven days and everything we fill them with. So while work may be what you do to get a paycheck, items such as poetry, film, trends, language, holidays, and non-fiction may not. Yet both require work. To put it another way, Dave fixes my car. Dave also coaches Little League. Both are work, and both are cultural acts, even though only fixing my car earns Dave a paycheck. We are, as Andy Crouch says, “culture makers.” Some make improvements to cars for pay, yes, but we also make toys, music, houses, apps, children, communities, stories, language, history, libraries, justice, noise, and play. Culture is all day, every day. In addition, when we care about culture enough to make it a high calling, we take the acts of creating, managing, and consuming a step further into the realm of worship. God said it was all good, even very good. To the degree we reflect God’s own acts of creating, managing, and consuming, we worship by becoming more human, made in God’s image. Think about that. The better I handle, say, our checking account, the more I reflect the characteristics of God and therefore become the human God called me to be. Fascinating, isn’t it? Unfortunately, it isn’t always easy. Writing a new article can frustrate me. Keeping the lawn mowed is the last thing I want to do on hot summer days. Enjoying a good book is tough when my mind is too busy to calm down. Creating, managing, and consuming are both chores and beautiful gifts. How about for you—what do you spend a lot of time creating, managing, or consuming? How does it affect the culture the rest of us inhabit? How does it affect your own health? Where do you feel you most mimic God in the traditional workplace (including full-time parenting) and elsewhere? Do your cultural contributions help others become more whole, more human? [Update 3/30/12: Good conversation took place in the comments to this post, but before (or maybe instead of) landing on a single culture vision statement—as requested below—I've asked a number of writers to respond based on their particular vocational field. Enjoy the first installment called Everything Matters: Editing as a Cultural Act, by David A. Zimmerman. You'll find a complete list of articles there.] A Vision for Culture I’d like to create a statement that might guide the culture content here at TheHighCalling.org in the future. Believe it or not, I don’t currently have one written anywhere. It’s time. Will you help me shape one? If you include a vision component, it would imagine how our readers benefit from the cultural content we publish. If you include a mission component, it would say a bit about how we intend to realize that vision. Here are a few suggested guidelines: Keep your statement under 75 words Write it here or paste a link in the comments if you write it on your site See the About page for more about TheHighCalling.org if you are new here Begin your statement with “Everything you do matters to God.” Image by Thomas Shahan. Used with permission. Sourced via Flickr. Post by Sam Van Eman. http://www.thehighcalling.org/culture/creating-high-calling-culture

“Transformational Leadership”Lesson Application from Linda Sasser

“Transformational Leadership”Lesson Application from Linda Sasser Transformational Leadership I love this look at transformational leadership and a leader’s responsibility to influence and steward change. What an exciting time to lead others! For this month’s application, I want us to focus on what John has outlined as essentially the three steps to transformational leadership: Identification of the needed change Vision to guide the change Execution to engage others to make the needed change Each step contains a series of questions we should be asking ourselves as well as actions we should take once we answer those questions so that we can live out each step. Take some time to work through these questions with a change that is needed in your business or personal life. Process of Transformational Leadership 1. Identify the change needed. Questions to Answer: What is the problem or opportunity that you want to address? What needs to change? Why should things no longer continue as they are? Why is change the solution? Action: Once you have clearly thought through these questions, write down the change needed. 2. Create a vision that guides the change. Questions to Answer: What is the desired result of the http://www.mileaderonline.com/preview/read/transformational_leadership

People Development

People Development "All that is valuable in human society depends upon the opportunity for development accorded the individual" ~ Albert Einstein "Too often, managers think that people development occurs once a year in performance reviews. That's not even close. It should be a daily event, integrated into every aspect of your regular goings-on. Customer visits are a chance to evaluate your sales force. Plant tours are an opportunity to meet promising new line managers. A coffee break at a meeting is an opening to coach a team member about to give his first major presentation. Think of yourself as a gardener, with a watering can in one hand and a can of fertilizer in the other. Occasionally you have to pull some weeds, but most of the time, you just nurture and tend. Then watch everything bloom." ~ Jack Welch "The conventional definition of management is getting work done through people, but real management is developing people through work." ~ Agha Hasan Abedi "Leadership is not magnetic personality—that can just as well be a glib tongue. It is not 'making friends and influencing people'—that is flattery. Leadership is lifting a person's vision to high sights, the raising of a person's performance to a higher standard, the building of a personality beyond its normal limitations." ~ Peter F. Drucker

Competitive Advantage Through People Development

Competitive Advantage Through People Development Are those with fortunes simply fortunate? Do our life circumstances depend more on fate or choice? Are leaders born or made? Harvard economist Michael Porter looked at these questions from the standpoint of national economic performance. Why do German engineers, Swiss chocolatiers, and Japanese electronics manufacturers enjoy a competitive advantage over the rest of the world? Is it the luck of being in the right location or something else? Porter’s research contradicted conventional wisdom that industry leadership is explainable by geographical advantages such as plentiful natural resources, cheap labor, and abundant capital. He demonstrated that “a nation does not inherit but instead creates the most important factors of production—such as skilled human resources or a scientific base.” Countries develop their elite industries. The Three C’s of Developing a Competitive Advantage As leaders we sometimes feel like the deck is stacked against us. We envy others with more financial resources at their disposal, a better business location, or a more recognizable brand. The good news is that whatever the external circumstances of our business climate, we have the ability to gain a competitive advantage by developing our people. How do you create a superior culture of people development? Michael Porter discovered that world-class industries share three common traits: competition, challenges, and connectivity. Each quality is transferable to your organization and can help you tap into your most appreciable asset—your people. 1) COMPETITION Top global industries develop in countries with intense domestic competition. For example, in Italy’s leather-good fashion industry Gucci continuously must re-invent itself or else Prada and Fendi will steal away its share of the market. Conversely, when a firm enjoys a national monopoly, it lacks the pressure to innovate that comes from having local rivals. For that reason, national industries with a single, dominant business seldom attain global influence. There’s a reason why athletes swim faster and jump higher in the Olympics than they do in practice. People perform at their best when pushed by competitors. Even competing against ourselves motivates us to excel. After writing down our personal best time for a bike race, we then have incentive to do better the next time we ride. In what ways can you foster healthy competition within your organization? How can you encourage people to compete against themselves by setting performance goals? 2) CHALLENGES Porter found that industries in countries with noticeable disadvantages often ascended to global leadership on account of the creative solutions they invented in order to overcome economic handicaps. As a case in point, Japanese manufacturers in the 1970s and 1980s were limited by scarce natural resources and relatively high-cost labor. Yet by pioneering innovative management techniques (in the areas of quality control and just-in-time production) Japan’s automotive and electronics manufacturers attained international renown. People grow through adversity not ease. As a leader, what are you doing to nudge people outside of their comfort zones? 3) CONNECTIVITY World-class industries sustain global dominance through the cluster effect—having cutting-edge companies in close proximity to one another. For instance, software developers bunched together in California’s Silicon Valley benefit from rapid information flow and immediate technological interchange. Companies piggyback on one another’s novel applications to spur a dizzying pace of innovation in the industry. Within an organization, even a small one, work teams can become isolated from one another. When that happens, people not only miss out on the insights of their peers but also feel powerless to bring about change through their ideas. As a leader, you have responsibility to facilitate communication between upper management and those on the front lines, between customer service and product development, or between accounting and marketing. What steps are you taking to facilitate connectivity between your people? How are you clustering them together so that their ideas are transmitted throughout the organization? http://www.johnmaxwell.com/products-resources/leadership-on-demand/articles/competitive-advantage-through-people-development/

How Leaders Develop

How Leaders Develop Leadership is not an exclusive club reserved for those who were “born with it.” The traits comprising the raw materials of leadership can be acquired. Link them up with desire and nothing can keep you from becoming a leader. Some people have a more intuitive grasp of how to lead than others. These “natural-born leaders” will always emerge, but their influence hinges upon their ability to supplement inborn talent with learned skills. Ultimately, leadership is developed, not discovered. The Three E’s of Leadership Development 1) Environment People accustom themselves to their environment and take cues from their surroundings. In the 1980s, social scientists came up with the broken-windows theory which indicated that the physical appearance of a community affects its crime rate. Run-down properties, widespread graffiti, and trash strewn about in a neighborhood invite crime by signaling that no one is watching and that no one cares what happens. Oppositely, a clean and well-kept neighborhood gives the impression that people are monitoring their community and willing to take action to ensure its safety. Every organization is permeated by an invisible culture which communicates an unspoken message that shapes its people. As has often been said, “leadership is more caught than taught.” Be attentive to the influence of the following five elements of your organizational environment: habits of social interaction, physical design and decoration, morale / emotional tone, level of intellectual stimulation, and spiritual wellbeing. 2) Equipping Equipping begins with expectations. Namely, that leadership is influence, that leadership can be learned, and that leaders can multiply their influence by equipping others. Equipping succeeds with training. Telling is not teaching, and listening is not learning. We learn to do by doing; training must be interactive. Equipping continues with teaching. The reward of a teacher is a changed life. Success comes through achievement, but significance results from helping others to grow. Practically speaking, the equipping process can be broken down into five steps. • Say it: explain the task. • Show it: demonstrate how to perform the task. • Assign it: let the other person attempt the task. • Study it: observe how the person performed the task. • Assess it: offer feedback based on the person’s performance. 3) Exposure A little exposure trumps a lot of theory. To develop leaders, expose your people to expert practitioners. These real-world educators model how to lead; they set a living example which serves as a source of inspiration. Whereas equipping delivers job-specific training, exposure provides a vision or picture of what successful leadership looks like. Application Exercise Grade your organization, from A-F on the Three E’s of people development. For each, list one thing you’re already doing well as well as one way in which you can improve. http://www.johnmaxwell.com/products-resources/leadership-on-demand/articles/how-leaders-develop/

The Future of Leadership Development

Tuesday, April 24, 2012 The Future of Leadership Development A colleague from another business school recommended the book, The Future of Leadership Development, Corporate Needs and the Role of Business Schools, edited by IESE Business School Dean Jordi Canals. She said it helped set the direction for her executive development program and really got her thinking about our profession. All of the content is written by business school professors and deans and much of it deals with MBA programs, so my practitioner readers may find it….well, academic. That’s corporate code word for deadly boring and irrelevant. However, it was interesting enough for me to wade through it and jot down a few nuggets that I thought were worth sharing. BTW, I’m also halfway through Physics of the Future, by Michio Kaku, so I’ve been thinking a lot about the future these days. This one actually creeps me out. It makes “The Matrix” and “The Terminator” look rosily optimistic. Anyway, here are 10 current and potential trends for leadership development that shouldn’t creep anyone out too much, from the book and with my own embellishment: 1. The use of coaching in leadership development programs. There are pros and cons to both group and individual leadership development. Groups facilitate networking and shared learning, and are efficient, but may miss the mark for some. Individual coaching is “all about you”, but is expensive. Why not combine them both, like a Reese’s Peanut Butter cup? I’m seeing more university based executive development programs incorporate both individual and small group coaching into their design (CCL’s been doing it forever). Coaching is even starting to work its way into some MBA programs, which is good news for the coaching industry. The challenge for business schools will be that most of their faculty don’t have coaching expertise and credentials, so when it’s outsourced, it’s often not fully integrated into the program. 2. Senior leadership development. Lots of people are planning to work beyond the traditional retirement age, and many of them are looking to make a career change (moving into a not-for-profit, etc…). There are plenty of “Youth” leadership development programs - why not a transition program for seniors? Maybe you could get 20% off the registration cost with your AARP membership. 3. Building Block leadership development programs. This would be kind of an umbrella concept which would include senior programs. The idea is that leadership development needs are very different depending on your age and where you are in your career. Instead of getting an MBA in your 20s and then that’s it, why not break it up into phases and make it a lifelong educational experience? While this one’s a bit self-serving for the business schools, the concept of life cycle leadership development is intriguing. 4. Social responsibility. Some say the organization of the future will be more socially responsibility – that profits will not even be the primary mission of an organization. This new business model will require a different model of leadership development – one that pays more attention to ethics, the environment, how decisions impact the community and society, and human rights. 5. Global leadership development. While not really a trend – globalization has been going on for decades – the world continues to get smaller. Global leadership development isn’t just for the big multinationals anymore, and we’ll continue to look for innovative ways to develop a global mindset. 6.Virtual reality. Second Life, simulations, avatars, virtual reality, gaming, and artificial intelligence all have the potential to change the way we develop leaders. These technologies have the potential to develop higher level competencies, like critical thinking and emotional intelligence, in a safe, accelerated, and realistic environment. Need to prepare for an upcoming performance review? There’s an app for that! 7. Liberal Arts and the “soft stuff”. Business schools have been slow to catch on to the importance of the “soft stuff”, while instead continuing to teach their MBAs analytical and quantitative skills. Some are even starting to question the value of a traditional MBA. In response, will business degrees and leadership development programs begin to integrate more “liberal arts” into their programs? In browsing some of the program descriptions for executive development programs, it appears the humanities, arts, and social sciences are beginning to infiltrate some of the more innovative programs. 8. “The Apprentice” model for leadership development. No, not the Donald Trump reality show. The idea is to develop leaders like we develop other skills trades – though hands-on doing vs. classroom learning, experiential learning, shadowing, mentoring, and certification. Why not? We do it with doctors, lawyers, electricians, and engineers – why not for the profession of management? 9. Those that teach have been there and done it. In the professions mentioned above (doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc…), the teachers usually, if not always, have extensive work experience. Why shouldn’t we demand the same from our leadership professors, instructors, and coaches? This could be a great way to tap into the knowledge and experience of “senior” executives that are looking to transition into teaching, instead of relying so heavily on professional instructors. 10. Woman’s leadership development. Instead of force fitting woman into a male model of problem solving, decision making, and leadership, progressive organizations are starting to recognize that there is tremendous value in cultivating both male and female ways of leading. One is not better than the other, but having an equal balance of both will give you a competitive advantage. What do you think? What’s the future hold for leadership development? Posted by Dan McCarthy at 4/24/2012 Labels: business schools, coaching, corporate social responsibility, future, Global Leaders, leadership development, MBAs, virtual reality, woman's leadership 8 comments: Ashok Vaishnav said... The article does point to quite a few pertinent issues. From my personal perspective – in so far as it concerns someone who has put in 38+ years, in India, and would like to pass on the advantage of hindsight view to the current drivers , I would certainly keenly focus on #2 , #4, #7 and #9. By creating a dynamic platform where [very] senior (not in the regular service) members can interact with the young, current, managers on the issues which have had surfaced in the past also would certainly go a long way in preventing the inventions of wheels. Here we are not talking of methodology of solving the problem on hand, because there is no reason to believe that current team is any way less competent in the problem solving skills. The point is to maintain a bridge where transfer of knowledge of what happens with the unintended effects, unanticipated issues as well as transfer of the non-documented, soft, alternative interpretations and discussions. This will provide an additional cushion of time to the retired seniors as well as the current management towards the transition as an on-going mechanism. These seniors can also spare that much needed ‘extra’ time for and effective dialogues with the stakeholders on the other side of the table of the SCR initiatives. The SCR initiatives need a far more careful ‘listening’ while planning , implementing as well as during post-implementation feedbacks. The seniors can bring in a much needed inherent impartiality to the whole exercise as well. This in way means that managers who are on the jobs currently are prone to seeing only bric-and-mortar view of a house, which does not make a home. But, it is natural for these individuals’- whose career performance- and that of their organizations’ strategic and tactical perspective being so tilted towards numbers – talk of numbers first. There is probably no doubt that leadership can be taught, but there is much beyond what is enshrined in the excellent text books and well-documented case studies. It would certainly be impossible to capture all experiences into the text books of a structured study program. Tuesday, April 24, 2012 11:56:00 PM EDT Jae said... Thanks. We might not appreciate it immediately, but leadership is so very important. Wednesday, April 25, 2012 6:56:00 AM EDT GBE said... Thanks for the excellent post. Your post got me thinking not only of the future, but about the past as well. Over the past several decades (since the 1970's from my personal research) the number one reason why people leave jobs is because of their boss/leader/manager. Leadership development has been around even longer. So after all these many years of leadership development, why is it that employees continue to leave companies because of their “bad” bosses? Perhaps leadership development programs focus on the wrong things; perhaps it’s due to poor training programs and training transfer; perhaps it is a poor cultural environment; perhaps there is a lack of personal responsibility and accountability; perhaps it is a combination of all these and other unrealized forces. I doubt that another “program” in any organization that had such a dismal ROI as leadership development would be allowed to continue, yet it does. Why? Thank you for the opportunity to share. Wednesday, April 25, 2012 8:51:00 AM EDT Tim G said... Thanks for sharing, interesting stuff! Here's a trend I'm hoping catches on: I've come to believe (and am trying to push the idea in my own organization) that leadership development should be more like a workout regimen, and less like a weekend in Vegas. What I mean is, many leadership development programs occur over a relatively short time, and the participants are given way more than they can realistically absorb, meaning that much of what happens in "Vegas" (aka the program) stays in "Vegas." Instead, I'd like to see more leadership development programs that are more like a health/fitness program - small, incremental, sustainable improvements over over time, and with a clear end goal in mind. (BTW, I don't think "academic" is code for boring and irrelevant - many the important business concepts originate there - we just business thinkers who can connect the dots between academic concepts and practical application!) Wednesday, April 25, 2012 9:06:00 AM EDT Unknown said... I too am very interested in item #2 - tapping the experience of senior talented people is potentially a new wave that will hit. Marc Freedman has written a few books in this area: The Big Shift basically identifies the "third age" ...and explains why the old stages no longer apply - retirement being one. I think there will be a huge opportunity in this area to create programs external and internal to get the ball rolling (there probably already are!) Wednesday, April 25, 2012 1:38:00 PM EDT Dan McCarthy said... Ashok - Sounds like a plan for senior leader development - thanks! Jae - Thanks! GBE - Thanks. You are not the first person to ask that questions....having spent my career in leadership development, I'd be too biased and close to the issue to answer it. Tim - Thanks - I like your thinking - at least it's a different approach. And thanks for sticking up for academia. I agree, great leaders are able to connect the dots and figure out how to apply the therory. Others will whine becuase they have not been spoon fed. Unknown - Thanks - I'll bet there are! Wednesday, April 25, 2012 3:23:00 PM EDT Ben Simonton said... The leadership industry has a very poor record of success as reported here http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-books-20120429,0,5474915.story In my 34 years of managing people, I spent huge amounts of time trying to become a better leader of my people, as few as 22 and as many as 1300. In my first 12 years I mainly tried to learn from books on leadership and management and also from those on religion, history, psychology, and the brain. Not much help! After those 12 years, I was challenged to start truly listening to my people rather than spend most of my time figuring out my next order. I found that they had many complaints, suggestions and questions. The more I responded reasonably to those the better they performed, actually in lockstep. Eventually, they taught me exactly how they react to managerial actions and inactions, my leadership. When I learned how to convert them from being followers (they waste huge amounts of brainpower on following) to using their own value standards in how to perform their work thus unleashing huge amounts of creativity, innovation, and productivity, I found that people are at least four times more capable than thought humanly possible. From those experiences, literally a 24/7 experimental laboratory, I authored the book "Leading People to be Highly Motivated and Committed". These people were fully engaged and literally loved to come to work. Best regards, Ben Simonton Sunday, April 29, 2012 10:25:00 AM EDT Dan McCarthy said... Ben- Thanks for your comment. I was wondering where you were going with the "all those leadership books didn't help me" story. Then it turned out to be a plug for your own book. Hmm..... Sunday, April 29, 2012 5:19:00 PM EDT Post a Comment http://www.hci.org/external/1425479