If you ever feel “working mother guilt,” this post is for you. No matter how flexible your job, conflicts inevitably arise. A child gets sick on the day of an important meeting. The preschool Mother’s Day Tea is at 10:30 a.m., smack in the middle of the business day. A meeting runs long, and you must scramble to find someone to pick up your child, because you can’t get to the school on time. An urgent business call comes in at 8 p.m. as you are reading your child’s bedtime story.
At a time when companies are looking for ways to reduce costs and become more productive, employee recognition can be a powerful force for engaging employees and unleashing their full potential. Unfortunately, there is a tendency for managers to underestimate the power of employee recognition. They treat it like a warm fuzzy concept instead of » Read More
When employees come to speak with you, do you put everything down, turn off your phone, and feel truly eager to hear their thoughts? Few managers actually do this on a daily basis, and as a result, they are like air traffic controllers without radar. Listening is an active quest to understand the knowledge, concerns, insights and ideas your employees bring to the table, and you need this information to do your job well.
I finished a training series recently. On the evaluation forms I suggested a variety of topics that we could do next. Among topics like Managing Stress and Managing Change, I added “Managing Up.” This topic provoked the most interest, far and away. I followed up with an anonymous survey to get really specific as to » Read More
“Safe to Say” was the term one of my clients used to describe the kind of environment they wanted to create. By “Safe to Say” they meant people felt comfortable sharing bad news and could openly talk about what was not working and what they did not like without fear of repercussions formally or informally. » Read More
Building consensus is key in the democratic process. When you have a vote you “have a say” in the outcome. Even if the vote doesn’t go your way, you still had the privilege of having a voice. Voting may be an effective way to elect someone into office. After all, you will rarely, if ever, » Read More
Master the art of asking and you will enrich your understanding of employees, the challenges they face, and their ideas for meeting those challenges. Workers will sense that you care about what they have to say, and that will lead to higher employee engagement and stronger business results.
You know those nagging little thoughts or feelings you have sometimes? Let’s say one of your direct reports says something to you, but the vibe of the exchange makes you wonder if there really is something else going on. This can be frustrating to say the least. At its worst it can be a sign » Read More
Organizations often put Bulls in managerial positions, expecting them to deliver great things. For a time, results may look good. But if you dig deeper, you will find eroding employee engagement, which leads to expensive turnover and sub-optimal business performance.
A surprising number of organizations still deliver once-a-year performance appraisals without providing much interim feedback. Have you considered the dangers of this approach?
