Good leaders must lead by example. When the actions of leaders are in alignment with what they say (“Walking the Talk”), they become people that inspire others to want to follow them. When leaders say one thing but do another, they erode trust, a critical element of productive leadership. When people are cynical and distrustful, […]
Not many people enjoy having challenging conversations. You know the ones; you don’t agree and the emotions are likely to be strong. Some examples might be: Dealing with offensive behaviour from a co-worker Giving the boss negative feedback Giving a poor performance review Critiquing a colleagues work Recall your last crucial conversation. What happened? Did […]
What is the best way for a manager to motivate employees? The traditional answer would be to give them a cash bonus, but studies have shown that cash bonuses are becoming less effective. The practice has become so common that most employees now expect it – it’s just a part of their salary expectation. That […]
Is your workplace having fun? As counterintuitive is it may seem, incorporating fun into the workplace can create a big boost in productivity. Indeed some of the most successful companies in the world are also some of the most fun places to work. Mind you, not every employer wants to follow Google’s example and start […]
I have spent many years working with, observing, teaching and coaching leaders. I have also heard many stories from employees about leaders they have loved to work for and those they have not enjoyed as much. There are some key themes that I have observed in leaders who are highly effective and get the best […]
I was recently reading the reports of the inquest into the death of a Merrill Lynch intern who suffered an epileptic fit after working for 72 hours straight. The inquest returned a verdict of death from natural causes that “may have been triggered by fatigue” and has sparked debate about intern working conditions in highly […]
Today’s guest post comes from Darren Sprod of Halogen Software: Organisations talk a lot about employee engagement, and some go to great effort and expense to install comforts and conveniences meant to put smiles on employee faces. But unless it matters to employees, it’s just another HR program that’s not helping to support business goals. While […]
On a recent trip for a conference, I had lunch with one of my clients at a restaurant in the casino complex. We were discussing organisational culture as we entered the restaurant, so as a learning experience and a bit of fun I asked my client to “guess the culture”. Her observations were: When we […]
Think back to your early experiences as a manager – your “Management 101 class”. You were probably given some training or direction on goal setting. It was likely a variation on the SMART acronym, and you would have been told that goals are good because having targets motivates people. All good and useful stuff. However… […]
This is an article I wrote for Leaders in Heels. It got an extraordinary response and obviously resonated with their readers, so I thought I’d re-post it for readers of my blog. Management styles and when to use them is a topic every leader can take something from. Think back on your career and the […]