Sometimes, as managers we feel compelled to ‘warm up’ with an associate when it comes time to deliver performance feedback, when it is much less painful for the giver and receiver of a message to just get to the point.

I recently stumbled across an article by Johanna Rothman that provides a simple, yet poignant scenario of how to give some sensitive feedback. Johanna shows us it really is “kind to be firm.” She also offers a useful recipe to deliver feedback that goes like this:

• Create an opening to deliver feedback.
• Describe the behavior or result in a way the person can hear.
• State the impact using “I” language.
• Make a request for changed behavior.

If an employee’s performance is generally satisfactory they should be aware of that. It is easier for employees to accept, and welcome, feedback for improvement if they know management is essentially pleased with their overall performance.There are some key ingredients that should be the foundation of any feedback plan: Continue Reading »
Feedback Made Easy?

Does diversity in the workplace really make a difference? This author agrees that it does. Evidence abounds that when diversity is leveraged, positive results will occur. Measuring diversity’s impact is not easy, and it is not just a matter of dollars and cents. However, the challenge is to figure out how best to use the varied perspectives that people bring to the office. Some workplaces are still trying to recruit a more diverse staff. Others may look diverse but have an undercurrent of cynicism because employees liken diversity with yearly being held hostage for a boring seminar that shoves one person’s values down another person’s throat. Nevertheless, where there is a top-down commitment to diversity, it is becoming much more intertwined with other aspects of employee improvement and responsibility. (Racial Diversity Reconsidered)

According to ABC News, racial and gender diversity Continue Reading »
Does Diversity in the Workplace Really Work?

The Internet Article, Management that Leads , clearly addresses issues between leadership and management that are not often described in this manner. The co-dependency on both characteristics of leadership and management are discussed in a light that shows one quality works best with the presence of the other. Oftentimes, we try to express that one is a leader and not a manager, and vice-versa. However, when the two talents are merged we can begin to see how interdependent they really are. As a result, we are then more likely to improve the quality of our work at getting work done through others.

Leaders must learn to manage, and managers must learn to lead. When we see the two as interdependent we are more apt to Continue Reading »
Management That Leads

What does it take to be a leader? Leadership is not about personality or knowing the goal in advance. A true leader has character, and is open to ideas from everyone. The American Management Association gives some good bullet points on leadership: Continue Reading »
What Does it Take?

Too often when we think of diversity the first thing that comes to mind is race. If we keep a narrow definition in our minds as what diversity is, we will never fully leverage its benefits.

When we see diversity simply as it relates to gender, nationality, and ethnicity, it is more of a superficial diversity. A deeper level of diversity will include differences in values, experiences, knowledge, age, as well as gender, orientation, ethnicity, and nationality. If we can leverage this deeper-level diversity Continue Reading »
Leveraging Diversity in the Workplace

Throughout my lifetime, the common thread that seems to tie everything together with regard to ethics is the general definition that it is doing the right thing when no one else is looking. In Do the Right Thing, (Salopek) Frank Navran says, “Values are our fundamental beliefs or principles. They define what we think is right, good, fair, and just. Ethics are behaviors and tell people how to act in ways that meet the standard our values set for us.” Bringing ones’ own value system into the equation is the in which way most answer the question “What is/are ethics.” Continue Reading »
True Diversity: Ethics Development, Understanding, and Application

Leaders are not leaders simply because they have a title that says they are. Certain sets of behaviors that people depend on and look to will be evident in a true leader. This is because leadership is a behavior, not a title. One of the main objectives of a good leader in the workplace is to remove obstacles and barriers that would prevent employees from being able to do their jobs. Continue Reading »
Leadership 101

The most effective employees are the ones who are able to render the company mission and values into the types of operational, strategic and tactical decisions made along the management chain. Managers, who characteristically translate ideas into action, can benefit from a common and clearer understanding of the correlation between decisions made at the top levels and the impact those decisions have down on the production levels.

Disseminating such information in a timely fashion with regard to the values and mission of the company is a vital tool toward building a shared culture. Inspiring middle managers with confidence to execute their jobs and direct their teams in the support of the goals of the organization is a primary key toward building this culture. This blog will try to provide useful insight to link managers more closely to those goals, in order to have the perspective to manage around them. When middle managers feel like they can truly impact the business, they recommit themselves to the goals of the organization. Sharing experiences and best practices in this format may be beneficial to us all. Remember what one author wrote when he stated “None of us is as smart as the sum of us.” –Larry