By Mark Evenden at Developing People
Do you know who will be leading your business in the future? Do you have the people with the capability and potential you need? Or will you leave you leadership succession to chance?
Leadership succession is significant issue for many businesses, as too many do not have a systematic approach to succession planning and effectively leave it to chance. Succession planning is not just a business risk issue. In their research paper ‘Will Succession Planning Increase Shareholder Wealth?’ Shen, Cannella, and Albert, found that there is also evidence that that investors, employees and customers respond positively to companies who invest in planned succession management
Essentially the purpose of succession planning is to ensure that there is a ‘pipeline’ of people with the talent and capability to fulfil key roles and deliver the strategies of the business. Key roles are any role that drives a disproportionate share of the organisation’s performance. While traditionally, these roles are defined in terms of leadership roles, in reality these also include other roles such as technical, product or business development.
Succession planning is not a complex process. It starts with the organisation identifying what’s needed to deliver the strategy. For example:
• What are the ‘key’ roles needed to deliver the organisation’s strategic objectives?
• What capabilities do we need?
• Who might leave or retire?
• What gaps exist?
Once these questions have been answered the organisation can set about preparing specifications for roles and finding suitable people. Finding the right people means measuring and assessing a number of things, such as:
• Current levels of competence and performance.
• Technical skills - does the role require high, medium or low technical skill.
• Experience – for example industry and international experience.
• Cultural fit - personal style.
• Personal motivation.
• Potential.
Evidence to assess the above criteria can be collected from how a candidate has performed in their current/previous roles as well as through independent assessment. The advantage of using an independent assessment process is that decisions about who has/does not have the potential to fulfill a key role can be taken in a consistent manner across the business.
Once the business knows and understands the people it has and their own personal motivations, it can prepare a succession plan However, succession planning does not exist in isolation. For example, any gaps that exist may generate a requirement for recruitment. In addition, the performance of the successors will need to be regularly reviewed as well as appropriate development support provided such as leadership development or coaching to enable successors to reach their potential.
Ultimately, a highly tuned succession planning process cuts the risk to the future success of the business, succession is far too important an issue to leave it to chance.
Showing posts with label management performance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label management performance. Show all posts
Thursday, 1 April 2010
Tuesday, 27 October 2009
What to do if it looks as if your coachee is never going to change?
The underlying purpose of coaching is for the coachee to learn how to think differently so that they can improve their life either personally or professionally. As a coach, you must find a way of raising their self-awareness and help to find ways of taking new actions to improve not only your coachee’s action but also enable them to move towards independence and self-sufficiency.
However, this process can be difficult for a person new to the world of coaching and it may take time for the coachee to recognise all the possibilities available to them. Yet, if a coachee is showing no signs of taking on board the information you wish to impart, it can be very difficult to continue with the coaching. As a coach you should be able to find a way to relate to your clients, no matter how frustrating it may be to meet resistance.
How can you reach out to your coachee?
However, this process can be difficult for a person new to the world of coaching and it may take time for the coachee to recognise all the possibilities available to them. Yet, if a coachee is showing no signs of taking on board the information you wish to impart, it can be very difficult to continue with the coaching. As a coach you should be able to find a way to relate to your clients, no matter how frustrating it may be to meet resistance.
How can you reach out to your coachee?
- It could be that your coachee is still not very aware of their potential. You need to eke out a positive response and you can do this by admitting to your coachee that the sessions are not working as you expected and devise a plan to go forward together. Hand control back over to them.
- Could it be that there are external barriers stopping the coachee from progressing? They may not have originally been forthcoming with personal information that you need to be aware of, such as a sick relative, a complicated divorce or a medical complaint of their own. Coaching requires honesty on both of your parts and you need to adopt a holistic approach to helping a person improve professionally.
- Are your goals the same? As a coach, you may wish to help an individual improve professionally in different ways but your coachee may just want someone to talk to, to get issues off their chest. Some people just want to talk and be listened to. Some people do find a sympathetic ear empowering as it reminds them that they are worth listening to.
- Why has this person sought coaching? Some people truly want to improve their performance whereas other may simply begin coaching to please a superior. In a case like this, you may have to consider bringing the coaching relationship to an honest close as there is nothing you can do for them.
Monday, 21 January 2008
How to evaluate the impact of Management Training and Development
In 1959, Kirkpatrick first outlined four levels of training evaluation:
· Reactions – ‘liking or feelings for a programme’.
· Learning – ‘principles, facts etc absorbed by the participants.
· Behaviour – ‘using learning on the job’.
· Results – ‘increased production, reduced cost’s etc’.
What is the purpose of the management training?
What issues is the organisation struggling to resolve?
What does the organisation wish to see differently from its people?
· Increase productivity of staff?
· Reduced mistakes/quality problems?
· Increased sales or market share?
· Have more effective and productive working relationships between managers/functions?
· Improve motivation and reduce staff turnover.
· Individual – The impact the management training and development has had on the individuals performance and behaviour can be measured via achievement of personal targets (e.g. cost reductions, sales increases etc) as well as observations from their manager or via 360° feedback appraisals.
· Team – The impact the programme has had on the managers team can be measured via achievement of team targets and performance measures (e.g. customer satisfaction, absence rates etc) as well as observations on team behaviour from external/internal feedback surveys.
· Organisation – Ultimately the impact a management training and development programme has on the organisation can be assessed via the organisations own metrics (profitability, sales growth, market share etc) as well as internal employee satisfaction and motivation surveys.
 | Management Training Course, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching Developing People offer first class management training and development, with a business training course for every level of personnel, helping you increase productivity through employee training, leadership training |
Wednesday, 2 January 2008
Management development training for men and women – is there any difference?
We do know that men and women have slightly different characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. There are some observers who contend that in general women make better managers than men because they are usually more sensitive, responsive, organised and pay better attention to detail. Equally there are others who feel than men make better managers because of their general tendency to see the bigger picture, be more business like and more decisive.
So is this difference in style just a perception or is it based on any evidence?
We are aware of the animal studies than show the differences in behaviour between males and females that have characterised females as being more nurturing and of males classically exhibiting aggressive, dominant “A” type behaviour – but how far do these results transfer across to management roles in organisations?
We also know that there are differences in some physical performance aspects of men and women which have to be taken account – especially in occupations where physical strength and stamina is important e g The Army, The Fire Brigade
When we look at some of the more sophisticated Psychometric tests measuring personality characteristics such as 16pf, we do know that there are some gender differences which are significant enough for us to use different norm tables for men or women in order to normalise any comparative results.
So if we accept that there are some gender based differences in managerial style and approach should we then provide different forms of management development training for man and women?
I think that the answer is probably no – because there are other factors that are even more important to consider when we look at the role of a manager, their styles, approaches and when we consider the people that they are managing or dealing with as customers and clients.
The sorts of factors that are more important to consider are these:-
• What are the gender types and likely responses of the customer set for your product or service?
• How good are your managers at understanding personality differences and gender styles in this customer set? Can they deal effectively with diverse types?
• What makes a successful manager in your business from a competency point of view?
• What are the different learning styles of your participants on any training programme and how well are you delivering your programme to reach and appeal to these different styles of activist, pragmatist, reflector etc?
• What is the culture and style of your organisation that you are looking to reinforce and encourage – whether it is adopted my male or female managers is less relevant.
In conclusion whilst accepting that differences do exist in the styles of individual managers, there is a broad spectrum of styles and approaches produced by individual differences rather than by simple gender stereotyping and that there are other factors outlined above which are more significant.
So is this difference in style just a perception or is it based on any evidence?
We are aware of the animal studies than show the differences in behaviour between males and females that have characterised females as being more nurturing and of males classically exhibiting aggressive, dominant “A” type behaviour – but how far do these results transfer across to management roles in organisations?
We also know that there are differences in some physical performance aspects of men and women which have to be taken account – especially in occupations where physical strength and stamina is important e g The Army, The Fire Brigade
When we look at some of the more sophisticated Psychometric tests measuring personality characteristics such as 16pf, we do know that there are some gender differences which are significant enough for us to use different norm tables for men or women in order to normalise any comparative results.
So if we accept that there are some gender based differences in managerial style and approach should we then provide different forms of management development training for man and women?
I think that the answer is probably no – because there are other factors that are even more important to consider when we look at the role of a manager, their styles, approaches and when we consider the people that they are managing or dealing with as customers and clients.
The sorts of factors that are more important to consider are these:-
• What are the gender types and likely responses of the customer set for your product or service?
• How good are your managers at understanding personality differences and gender styles in this customer set? Can they deal effectively with diverse types?
• What makes a successful manager in your business from a competency point of view?
• What are the different learning styles of your participants on any training programme and how well are you delivering your programme to reach and appeal to these different styles of activist, pragmatist, reflector etc?
• What is the culture and style of your organisation that you are looking to reinforce and encourage – whether it is adopted my male or female managers is less relevant.
In conclusion whilst accepting that differences do exist in the styles of individual managers, there is a broad spectrum of styles and approaches produced by individual differences rather than by simple gender stereotyping and that there are other factors outlined above which are more significant.
| Management Training Course, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching Developing People offer first class management training and development, with a business training course for every level of personnel, helping you increase productivity through employee training, leadership training |
Monday, 17 December 2007
Management Training – Making it stick!
How often have you been on a Management Training course and failed to implement what you were taught?
Many organisations struggle with the same issue – there is no point spending time and money on Management Training and Development if the participants don’t put into practice what was learned.
But how can you encourage your managers to ACT?
The key to ensuring Management Training is successful is quite simply to:
1. Make it relevant and useful.
2. Provide appropriate sponsorship, follow up and support.
Make it relevant
It is vital to make the Management Training relevant to the participants by ensuring that they can apply what they have learned immediately when they return to work.
For example, you may send someone on an advanced Excel course so that they can learn how to build complex spreadsheets. However, when they return if they don’t have an opportunity to apply their learning immediately, they will soon forget it. Habits are only formed by people continually practicing what they learn.
Sponsorship
The second element to ensuring success of a Management Training programme is sponsorship. To gain commitment from managers to use their learning, it is essential that Senior Managers sponsor the Management Training effectively. For example, senior managers should:
• Demonstrate public commitment to Management Training and the benefits it will deliver to the organisation.
• Regularly review with participants how they have applied their learning.
• Sanction any inappropriate behaviour from the participants (e.g. participants not turning up to training sessions).
• Regularly sell the benefits of training and development.
• Target and hold their managers accountable for delivering improved performance.
• Accept the significance of their role in the success of any Management Training.
By ensuring that Management Training programmes are sponsored appropriately by Senior Management and the content is relevant and useful to the participants, will ensure that the participants THINK and ACT differently as a result of their learning.
Many organisations struggle with the same issue – there is no point spending time and money on Management Training and Development if the participants don’t put into practice what was learned.
But how can you encourage your managers to ACT?
The key to ensuring Management Training is successful is quite simply to:
1. Make it relevant and useful.
2. Provide appropriate sponsorship, follow up and support.
Make it relevant
It is vital to make the Management Training relevant to the participants by ensuring that they can apply what they have learned immediately when they return to work.
For example, you may send someone on an advanced Excel course so that they can learn how to build complex spreadsheets. However, when they return if they don’t have an opportunity to apply their learning immediately, they will soon forget it. Habits are only formed by people continually practicing what they learn.
Sponsorship
The second element to ensuring success of a Management Training programme is sponsorship. To gain commitment from managers to use their learning, it is essential that Senior Managers sponsor the Management Training effectively. For example, senior managers should:
• Demonstrate public commitment to Management Training and the benefits it will deliver to the organisation.
• Regularly review with participants how they have applied their learning.
• Sanction any inappropriate behaviour from the participants (e.g. participants not turning up to training sessions).
• Regularly sell the benefits of training and development.
• Target and hold their managers accountable for delivering improved performance.
• Accept the significance of their role in the success of any Management Training.
By ensuring that Management Training programmes are sponsored appropriately by Senior Management and the content is relevant and useful to the participants, will ensure that the participants THINK and ACT differently as a result of their learning.
| Management Training Course, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching Developing People offer first class management training and development, with a business training course for every level of personnel, helping you increase productivity through employee training, leadership training |
Management Training – Measuring the Benefits
How does your organisation measure the impact of the investment it makes in Management Training and Development?
How much money was spent this year on Management Training and Development and what were the benefits?
To be able to measure the benefits from any Management Training and Development it is important to first be clear about what the objectives of the programme are and what particular people issues need to be resolved by the programme. For example, do managers need to:
• Have a greater impact on the performance of the business?
• Improve motivation and retention to reduce staff turnover?
• Be more proactive in developing their successors?
• Reduce the number of poor hires that they make?
Once the organisation is clear about what issues that need to be resolved, the benefits can be more easily measured. Evaluating and measuring the effectiveness of Management Training and Development programmes and interventions can be achieved in a number of ways.
‘Hard’ measures
The impact Management Training has on the performance of the Business, Function or Team can be readily measured using a range of ‘hard’ operational or financial performance measures such as:
• EBIT
• Staff turnover costs
• Recruitment costs
• Opportunity costs
• Customer service
• Business growth
Benchmarks should be set at the start of the training so that improvements can be easily tracked.
‘Soft’ measures
The impact that the interventions have had on behaviour and culture within the organisation can be assessed through a range of ‘soft’ or more subjective measures. For example:
• The impact the interventions have had on an individual manager’s behaviour can be assessed from observations and feedback from others (for example via a 360 degree leadership questionnaire) as well as on their ability to achieve their personal targets.
• The impact the training has had on teams, functions and the organisation’s culture, relationships, cohesiveness, morale etc can be assessed by using team analysis tools, and cultural and staff surveys and customer questionnaires.
Whatever Management Training and Development your organisation undertakes it is vital that the outcomes are clearly defined at the start and measures put in place to ensure that your investment pays off.
How much money was spent this year on Management Training and Development and what were the benefits?
To be able to measure the benefits from any Management Training and Development it is important to first be clear about what the objectives of the programme are and what particular people issues need to be resolved by the programme. For example, do managers need to:
• Have a greater impact on the performance of the business?
• Improve motivation and retention to reduce staff turnover?
• Be more proactive in developing their successors?
• Reduce the number of poor hires that they make?
Once the organisation is clear about what issues that need to be resolved, the benefits can be more easily measured. Evaluating and measuring the effectiveness of Management Training and Development programmes and interventions can be achieved in a number of ways.
‘Hard’ measures
The impact Management Training has on the performance of the Business, Function or Team can be readily measured using a range of ‘hard’ operational or financial performance measures such as:
• EBIT
• Staff turnover costs
• Recruitment costs
• Opportunity costs
• Customer service
• Business growth
Benchmarks should be set at the start of the training so that improvements can be easily tracked.
‘Soft’ measures
The impact that the interventions have had on behaviour and culture within the organisation can be assessed through a range of ‘soft’ or more subjective measures. For example:
• The impact the interventions have had on an individual manager’s behaviour can be assessed from observations and feedback from others (for example via a 360 degree leadership questionnaire) as well as on their ability to achieve their personal targets.
• The impact the training has had on teams, functions and the organisation’s culture, relationships, cohesiveness, morale etc can be assessed by using team analysis tools, and cultural and staff surveys and customer questionnaires.
Whatever Management Training and Development your organisation undertakes it is vital that the outcomes are clearly defined at the start and measures put in place to ensure that your investment pays off.
| Management Training Course, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching Developing People offer first class management training and development, with a business training course for every level of personnel, helping you increase productivity through employee training, leadership training |
Wednesday, 5 December 2007
How long does it take to coach someone?
When I first meet with a prospective coachee or their sponsor one of the key areas to address is the timing and duration of the coaching sessions that I plan to provide for them.
I will tell them that ideally I would like to provide 6 x 2-3 hour coaching sessions spread over 6 – 9 months – unless there is a specific development area that could be focused on in a more concentrated time frame.
The minimum number of sessions that I will offer is 4.
This is because of the following factors:-
- it takes the first session to get to know the background, circumstances, general goals, objectives, issues and opportunities of the coachee
- it takes one or two sessions for me to establish the necessary rapport and relationship understanding required for success between us and to get a sense of their personality
- it takes the first 1 or 2 sessions for the coachee to trust and respect me, understand the COACH process and our respective roles and to fell confident to talk honestly and openly with me about themselves and their real issues
- it takes 2, 3, 4, or more sessions for the coachee to fully and effectively to explore their thoughts and feelings about the important issues that effect them and for them to explore their options and to commit to taking ACTION to improve their satisfaction, performance and effectiveness
- it can then take a number of sessions for them to work deeply and successfully on their issues, skills, relationships, plans and opportunities
Coaching is not a one off activity where a person’s effectiveness, behaviours and performance can be transformed in one or two brief sessions.
It also therefore follows that the timing and duration of these coaching sessions is going to be longer, 2 -3 hours, than shorter, one hour or less, and spaced out over time 6 – 12 moths, to ensure action, implementation, monitoring and review rather than completed in a short timeframe e g one month.
There are of course exceptions to these timing guidelines for example:-
• the development need is very specific e g improve presentation skills
• the need is a short term one e g prepare for a launch, a reorganisation
• the work is part of a capability or disciplinary process with a specific timeframe
• Some of the people that I coach are very busy and quick thinking and for coaching to work effectively for them they want to get straight down to the point of the work and they are very clear and decisive about their issues and solutions – so I find a way to work efficiently and quickly with them to get to their bottom line
So overall my coaching approach is about offering a number of face to face sessions to clients over a 6-12 month period but with the prospect of flexibility where it makes sense and where the integrity of my coaching work can be upheld.
I will tell them that ideally I would like to provide 6 x 2-3 hour coaching sessions spread over 6 – 9 months – unless there is a specific development area that could be focused on in a more concentrated time frame.
The minimum number of sessions that I will offer is 4.
This is because of the following factors:-
- it takes the first session to get to know the background, circumstances, general goals, objectives, issues and opportunities of the coachee
- it takes one or two sessions for me to establish the necessary rapport and relationship understanding required for success between us and to get a sense of their personality
- it takes the first 1 or 2 sessions for the coachee to trust and respect me, understand the COACH process and our respective roles and to fell confident to talk honestly and openly with me about themselves and their real issues
- it takes 2, 3, 4, or more sessions for the coachee to fully and effectively to explore their thoughts and feelings about the important issues that effect them and for them to explore their options and to commit to taking ACTION to improve their satisfaction, performance and effectiveness
- it can then take a number of sessions for them to work deeply and successfully on their issues, skills, relationships, plans and opportunities
Coaching is not a one off activity where a person’s effectiveness, behaviours and performance can be transformed in one or two brief sessions.
It also therefore follows that the timing and duration of these coaching sessions is going to be longer, 2 -3 hours, than shorter, one hour or less, and spaced out over time 6 – 12 moths, to ensure action, implementation, monitoring and review rather than completed in a short timeframe e g one month.
There are of course exceptions to these timing guidelines for example:-
• the development need is very specific e g improve presentation skills
• the need is a short term one e g prepare for a launch, a reorganisation
• the work is part of a capability or disciplinary process with a specific timeframe
• Some of the people that I coach are very busy and quick thinking and for coaching to work effectively for them they want to get straight down to the point of the work and they are very clear and decisive about their issues and solutions – so I find a way to work efficiently and quickly with them to get to their bottom line
So overall my coaching approach is about offering a number of face to face sessions to clients over a 6-12 month period but with the prospect of flexibility where it makes sense and where the integrity of my coaching work can be upheld.
| Management Training Course, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching Developing People offer first class management training and development, with a business training course for every level of personnel, helping you increase productivity through employee training, leadership training |
Coaching - is it better face to face or by telephone?
When I first meet with a prospective coachee or with the line management or HR sponsor for this work, the conversation inevitably gets round to the coaching approach that I will take.
My response to this question is based on my preference to coach people face to face in a number of coaching sessions 4 - 6, spread out over time 4 - 12 months. This gives me and the coachee adequate time to establish the necessary relationship, rapport and understanding for them to do the necessary thinking that in turn leads to them ACTING in a new, more confident, focused and decisive way in the areas of work and life that are really important to them.
In my experience that can be done best through this series of face to face meetings, possibly supplemented by e mails or telephone conversations, rather than by telephone coaching conversations alone.
This face to face approach is the way that I learned to coach people 15 years ago and I think that it offers all of the communication benefits of this type of relationship that are not available over the telephone. However I have to recognise that in recent years telephone coaching has risen rapidly in popularity and that it forms the cornerstone of the life coaching industry and of the training courses offered to people who are new to coaching and learning about how to do it.
The potential benefits of telephone coaching are these:-
- no travel time or cost
- it can take place anywhere in the world, day or night
- it provides a concentrated, focused approach
- it avoids other visual distractions
- it provides for a level of personal safety and security.
The drawbacks to telephone coaching are these:-
- it may provide a shield for a person
- all of the body language signals are absent and therefore more than 50% of the meaning & understanding may not be available and transmitted to you as a coach
- some of the key signals between coach and coachee are missed
- the rapport established is different at best and much less effective at worst.
So when I hold these initial, preparatory conversations with prospective coachees, I explain what I do and how I coach i.e. face to face, and I describe how I think that telephone coaching differs from and compares to my approach and I let the prospective coachee or sponsor decide. I do not overtly criticise telephone coaching - but it is not the sole coaching experience that I am prepared to provide
My response to this question is based on my preference to coach people face to face in a number of coaching sessions 4 - 6, spread out over time 4 - 12 months. This gives me and the coachee adequate time to establish the necessary relationship, rapport and understanding for them to do the necessary thinking that in turn leads to them ACTING in a new, more confident, focused and decisive way in the areas of work and life that are really important to them.
In my experience that can be done best through this series of face to face meetings, possibly supplemented by e mails or telephone conversations, rather than by telephone coaching conversations alone.
This face to face approach is the way that I learned to coach people 15 years ago and I think that it offers all of the communication benefits of this type of relationship that are not available over the telephone. However I have to recognise that in recent years telephone coaching has risen rapidly in popularity and that it forms the cornerstone of the life coaching industry and of the training courses offered to people who are new to coaching and learning about how to do it.
The potential benefits of telephone coaching are these:-
- no travel time or cost
- it can take place anywhere in the world, day or night
- it provides a concentrated, focused approach
- it avoids other visual distractions
- it provides for a level of personal safety and security.
The drawbacks to telephone coaching are these:-
- it may provide a shield for a person
- all of the body language signals are absent and therefore more than 50% of the meaning & understanding may not be available and transmitted to you as a coach
- some of the key signals between coach and coachee are missed
- the rapport established is different at best and much less effective at worst.
So when I hold these initial, preparatory conversations with prospective coachees, I explain what I do and how I coach i.e. face to face, and I describe how I think that telephone coaching differs from and compares to my approach and I let the prospective coachee or sponsor decide. I do not overtly criticise telephone coaching - but it is not the sole coaching experience that I am prepared to provide
| Management Training Course, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching Developing People offer first class management training and development, with a business training course for every level of personnel, helping you increase productivity through employee training, leadership training |
Linking Competencies to Personal Development Needs
A competency is best described as "the underlying characteristics of a person that cause effective or superior performance in a job”. Competency is about an ability to do something and as such comprises a combination of skills, knowledge and personal motivation that result in particular behaviours (or outcomes) at work. For example, during a person’s life they have an increasing ability to communicate with their fellow human beings:
Increasing levels of ability to communicate
Behaviour
-> Baby gurgling
-> A child speaking their first few words.
-> Is able to read and write.
-> Articulate in discussing simple subjects.
-> Capable of explaining complex or difficult concepts to a wide range of people.
Competencies can therefore set expectations about how managers and staff should behave on a day to day basis in an organisation. Competencies can be set around a range of different areas such as: leadership, team working, strategic thinking, communication etc.
Organisations can readily use the statements to identify how managers and staff currently behave and what their strengths and weaknesses are. However, while development needs might be fairly easy to identify, many managers and organisations struggle to identify what actions they or their staff should take to develop, (without advocating the proverbial training course!). In reality there are many other practical actions that an individual can take to learn and develop. To close this loop for managers and staff, development actions need to be aligned to each competency.
The following is an example of this, for the competency ‘Strategic Thinking’ and development ideas have been set out under four headings:
-Personal actions that the individual can take.
-Coaching/mentoring actions that the individual can take in conjunction with others.
-Reading materials and web resources that would improve the individual’s knowledge.
-Internal and external courses.
The development ideas presented below are not meant to be exhaustive but as an example of what actions could be taken to develop the competence ‘Strategic Thinking’.
Competency - Strategic Thinking
Development Ideas – Strategic Planning Skills
Personal Actions
-Read the business pages of a quality newspaper such as The Times, Financial Times, Telegraph etc. Alternatively subscribe to the Harvard Business Review. Learn about strategies and actions that other organisations have taken to improve their performance. Determine which ones of these would work well within your business.
-Prepare a ‘strategic perspective’ for your business/function. Research what the likely key trends and changes will be in the next 3-5 years? For example changes in technology, applications, competition, legislation, demographics, etc. What opportunities and threats does this provide?
-Research your major competitors and develop a detailed profile of each competitor. What can you learn from them?
-Analyse your customer’s needs. What is it they need and want in your products applications and services now and in the future?
-Volunteer to work on a cross functional business project.
-Learn to play chess.
Coaching Actions
-Discuss with a trusted colleague or your coach your ability to strategize and see the ‘big picture’. Identify weaknesses or blind spots. Discuss ideas to force yourself to move from details to the ‘big picture’ to gain a broader prospective.
-Seek someone who could act as a mentor (either internally or externally) and could guide you through a strategic planning process.
-Discuss with your manager your ability to make sound judgements and business decisions. What feedback can they give you about your effectiveness? What decisions could you have made differently?
-Identify the most important decision that you have to make in the next 3-6 months. Discuss with your manager or colleague the key steps to making the decision and likely information you will need. Start gathering the relevant information.
Reading Materials
-Applied Strategic Planning – Goldstein, Nolan and Pfeiffer. McGraw – Hill.
-Competing for the Future – Hamel and Champy. Harper Business.
-Competitive Strategy – Porter. The Free Press.
External Courses
-Take a course or formal qualification (e.g. MBA) to help you to:
-Formulate and execute strategic plans
-Detect the opportunities, threats, strengths and weaknesses that drive a strategic plan
-Identify strategies to better position your organisation for long-term competitive advantage.
Internal Courses
-Attend our Strategic Leadership programme. Contact Fred Smith 0044 123 456.
Such a document can be provided in hard copy format, for example as a ‘Development Guide’, or alternatively via the business’ intranet site. In this way the link is clearly made between the standards expected from an employee and the actions that they can take to develop themselves.
Increasing levels of ability to communicate
Behaviour
-> Baby gurgling
-> A child speaking their first few words.
-> Is able to read and write.
-> Articulate in discussing simple subjects.
-> Capable of explaining complex or difficult concepts to a wide range of people.
Competencies can therefore set expectations about how managers and staff should behave on a day to day basis in an organisation. Competencies can be set around a range of different areas such as: leadership, team working, strategic thinking, communication etc.
Organisations can readily use the statements to identify how managers and staff currently behave and what their strengths and weaknesses are. However, while development needs might be fairly easy to identify, many managers and organisations struggle to identify what actions they or their staff should take to develop, (without advocating the proverbial training course!). In reality there are many other practical actions that an individual can take to learn and develop. To close this loop for managers and staff, development actions need to be aligned to each competency.
The following is an example of this, for the competency ‘Strategic Thinking’ and development ideas have been set out under four headings:
-Personal actions that the individual can take.
-Coaching/mentoring actions that the individual can take in conjunction with others.
-Reading materials and web resources that would improve the individual’s knowledge.
-Internal and external courses.
The development ideas presented below are not meant to be exhaustive but as an example of what actions could be taken to develop the competence ‘Strategic Thinking’.
Competency - Strategic Thinking
Development Ideas – Strategic Planning Skills
Personal Actions
-Read the business pages of a quality newspaper such as The Times, Financial Times, Telegraph etc. Alternatively subscribe to the Harvard Business Review. Learn about strategies and actions that other organisations have taken to improve their performance. Determine which ones of these would work well within your business.
-Prepare a ‘strategic perspective’ for your business/function. Research what the likely key trends and changes will be in the next 3-5 years? For example changes in technology, applications, competition, legislation, demographics, etc. What opportunities and threats does this provide?
-Research your major competitors and develop a detailed profile of each competitor. What can you learn from them?
-Analyse your customer’s needs. What is it they need and want in your products applications and services now and in the future?
-Volunteer to work on a cross functional business project.
-Learn to play chess.
Coaching Actions
-Discuss with a trusted colleague or your coach your ability to strategize and see the ‘big picture’. Identify weaknesses or blind spots. Discuss ideas to force yourself to move from details to the ‘big picture’ to gain a broader prospective.
-Seek someone who could act as a mentor (either internally or externally) and could guide you through a strategic planning process.
-Discuss with your manager your ability to make sound judgements and business decisions. What feedback can they give you about your effectiveness? What decisions could you have made differently?
-Identify the most important decision that you have to make in the next 3-6 months. Discuss with your manager or colleague the key steps to making the decision and likely information you will need. Start gathering the relevant information.
Reading Materials
-Applied Strategic Planning – Goldstein, Nolan and Pfeiffer. McGraw – Hill.
-Competing for the Future – Hamel and Champy. Harper Business.
-Competitive Strategy – Porter. The Free Press.
External Courses
-Take a course or formal qualification (e.g. MBA) to help you to:
-Formulate and execute strategic plans
-Detect the opportunities, threats, strengths and weaknesses that drive a strategic plan
-Identify strategies to better position your organisation for long-term competitive advantage.
Internal Courses
-Attend our Strategic Leadership programme. Contact Fred Smith 0044 123 456.
Such a document can be provided in hard copy format, for example as a ‘Development Guide’, or alternatively via the business’ intranet site. In this way the link is clearly made between the standards expected from an employee and the actions that they can take to develop themselves.
| Management Training Course, Leadership Development, Executive Coaching Developing People offer first class management training and development, with a business training course for every level of personnel, helping you increase productivity through employee training, leadership training |
Friday, 23 November 2007
Managing the Performance of Someone with a ‘Bad Attitude’
‘I have just had it with Fred’, said the Manager, ‘He has a terrible attitude to time keeping, he is always late, and I told him so! The problem is we have now fallen out. He claimed he has a good attitude to his work and time keeping, I told him that he hadn’t and it degenerated into an argument, what the heck do I do now?’
This scenario is all too familiar. Managers ‘know’ that a member of staff has a bad attitude towards some aspect of their work. They then decide to sit down with the individual either formally (as part of a performance management or appraisal process) or informally and tell it like it is.
The problem with this approach is that a Manager cannot prove whether someone has a bad (or even good attitude) towards something, any more than the individual can prove their own attitude towards it. The consequence of this is that people become offended (because their attitudes have been criticised), and they immediately defend themselves. The issue therefore doesn’t get resolved and the individual continues with their ‘poor attitude’.
To avoid performance management discussions degenerating into a farce, focus on behaviour, results or approach and not on an individual’s attitude. You might not be able to prove someone’s attitude; but you can prove their behaviour, their approach and the results they achieve.
Do not therefore use phrases such as ‘you have a poor attitude to time keeping or towards meetings.’ Translate your views into specific examples of their behaviour. For example, say, ‘You turned up 20 minutes late to meeting xyz on Thursday, and then 30 minutes late to meeting abc, on the following Tuesday. The consequence of this was that both meetings finished late which impacted on all the other attendees, and the work they had to do that day. It is important that we start our meetings on time – is there anything that might prevent you from attending meetings on time in the future?’
If you think that someone you manage has a ‘bad attitude’ towards an aspect of their work, stop and think before you confront them. Ask yourself, ‘what did they do that caused me to believe their attitude was poor? When and where was it? How can I be specific? What were the consequences? Following these simple guidelines will hopefully prevent your discussions from degenerating into a ‘tit for tat’ argument, and secure a change in the individual’s behaviour.
This scenario is all too familiar. Managers ‘know’ that a member of staff has a bad attitude towards some aspect of their work. They then decide to sit down with the individual either formally (as part of a performance management or appraisal process) or informally and tell it like it is.
The problem with this approach is that a Manager cannot prove whether someone has a bad (or even good attitude) towards something, any more than the individual can prove their own attitude towards it. The consequence of this is that people become offended (because their attitudes have been criticised), and they immediately defend themselves. The issue therefore doesn’t get resolved and the individual continues with their ‘poor attitude’.
To avoid performance management discussions degenerating into a farce, focus on behaviour, results or approach and not on an individual’s attitude. You might not be able to prove someone’s attitude; but you can prove their behaviour, their approach and the results they achieve.
Do not therefore use phrases such as ‘you have a poor attitude to time keeping or towards meetings.’ Translate your views into specific examples of their behaviour. For example, say, ‘You turned up 20 minutes late to meeting xyz on Thursday, and then 30 minutes late to meeting abc, on the following Tuesday. The consequence of this was that both meetings finished late which impacted on all the other attendees, and the work they had to do that day. It is important that we start our meetings on time – is there anything that might prevent you from attending meetings on time in the future?’
If you think that someone you manage has a ‘bad attitude’ towards an aspect of their work, stop and think before you confront them. Ask yourself, ‘what did they do that caused me to believe their attitude was poor? When and where was it? How can I be specific? What were the consequences? Following these simple guidelines will hopefully prevent your discussions from degenerating into a ‘tit for tat’ argument, and secure a change in the individual’s behaviour.
| Performance Management | Managing performance | Talent Management Developing People offer first class management training and development, with a business training course for every level of personnel, helping you increase productivity through employee training, leadership training |
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