Happy Holidays!

We are taking a few weeks off and will resume providing weekly "Coaching Tips for the Top" in January 2008.
Wishing you each a joyous Holiday and prosperous New Year!

Welcome Bad News

When you are presented with bad news do you react or respond? Is your reaction impulsive and emotional or do you respond by taking a deep breath followed by asking questions?

It is important for employees to feel comfortable sharing bad news. To encourage your employees prod them during conversations to tell you what’s wrong as well as right. Ask, “What’s the toughest thing you’re dealing with right now?” or “What would make it easier for you to cooperate with your co-workers?”

Don’t scowl the minute they raise a conflict or insist you “don’t want to hear about it.” A culture where bad news is not accepted allows tensions to build – tensions that may explode later. Preventing conflict is even better than skillfully resolving conflict!

Managing The Boss

Managing your boss is an area of management ripe for conflict. This is a multidimensional issue so I’ll focus on managing your boss as it relates to setting priorities. And I'm going to assume that the boss isn't pushing off his work on the staff but is equally as overwhelmed.

How often do you find yourself working in “fire drill” mode because everything seems to be a priority? Unfortunately the management style of many executives is to delegate work in a reactive way without thought to communicating priorities. The boss may not even think of developing priorities for his own work responsibilities.

The lack of guidance regarding priorities may seem to communicate that the task "of the moment" is top priority. Unfortunately as team members jump from fire to fire everyone finds themselves in the middle of lots of projects. Having work partially complete with limited opportunity to wrap things up ... without working crazy hours, wears everyone down. The good news is the boss is not doing this on purpose and is quite often unconscious of the issues and turmoil his style creates.

What can you do? Though it may be difficult to approach the boss having a conversation about priorities is only path to change. Let your boss know that you want to respond to the requests in a way that supports him most effectively and that you aren't always able to figure that out on your own. Have a list of all your tasks and projects and ask for guidance around priorities and deadlines. Don't be afraid to negotiate when you can reasonable get something completed. Also if there is anything someone else can help you with ask your boss for support getting extra resources for special projects.

Please don’t expect miraculous things from the initial conversation. Remember change takes time so stick with it. Raise questions in the moment. When you are engaged in a project and your boss approaches you with something new ask which is a priority.

Tying your requests back to supporting your boss will help build a more trusting relationship and can help your boss shift his management style.

Conflict Resolution

Dan is notorious for withholding bits of information and “forgetting” to follow-up. His behavior is a nuisance yet Phil, Dan’s boss, continuously lets it slide. As the weeks pass Dan’s behavior further deteriorates frustrating his direct reports and co-workers. Dan misses key deadlines, argues with other employees, and conceals customer issues. Despite the serious nature of the problems Phil does not address Dan’s behavior.

How effective are your conflict resolution skills? Are you a Phil, avoiding conflict by putting your head in the sand hoping it will pass you by? If you reflect back upon the conflicts you have encountered throughout your career you will easily recognize that few resolved them self and most escalated.

The ability to resolve conflict has become a must have skill. Business leaders cannot afford the lost productivity, lost time, stifled creativity, or low morale that result from unresolved conflict.

So what can you do?

1. Acknowledge conflict exists – every manager faces conflict. When the elephant in the room is given a name people begin to feel free to discuss and resolve issues.
2. Become a skillful communicator – communication has two sides, speaking and listening. Carefully discern which will support the best outcome.
3. Set a good example – role modeling will inspire your team to approach conflict in a new way.

As you mindfully change your approach to resolving conflict you will make a significant impact on your relationships and your organization’s business results.

Who doesn’t want that?

Nonperformance

A month ago your employee John was assigned to a special project team. After 3 weeks you begin to receive complaints from team members that John is not completing his assignments. John’s nonperformance is affecting the team’s ability to meet its commitments.

You know John spends all day at this desk, typically even working through lunch, so the complaints come as a surprise. It would be easy to tell John to "shape up" yet because he has a record of getting his work done you decide to approach the issue as a development opportunity.

Here are some questions that will help John become more aware of what he is and is not accomplishing during the workday.

What did I accomplish today?
What tasks remain incomplete?
What excuses, stories, or justifications do I have for not fulfilling my commitment to complete the tasks?
What events, people, or personal limitations got in the way of completing the work?
What action will I take now?

Once John recognizes what’s getting in the way, the path to change can open.

Unnecessary Conflict

Hal is the company superstar. He hits the sales targets and generates considerable revenue for the organization. As a result Hal is rewarded handsomely.

While other employees respect Hal for his business results they bristle when he walks in the room. Not only is Hal the company superstar, he is the company jerk. His words and tone cause unnecessary conflict, which has to be managed before anything gets done. Hal is aware how others respond to him, yet because his performance is generously rewarded does not believe his actions are inappropriate.

Hal is not an anomaly in the corporate world. Many individuals are elevated to the executive ranks based on high performance only to find a spotlight shining on their fatal flaws.

Believe it or not executives like Hal can change. More important, if the individual is loyal to the organization and success minded he will want to change. A place to begin is uncovering how the individual initiates the conflict. The following reflection questions can support the discovery process.

Do you use insensitive language?
Do you raise your voice often?
Do you use demeaning terms?
Do you use negative humor?
Do you offer conclusions, solutions, statements, dictates or answers early in a transaction?

The "Devil's Advocate"

Bob is the “devils advocate” dialed up to maximum. Any idea a team member raises is met with Bob fiercely arguing the opposite position. Every meeting that Bob attends either results in a heated argument or total silence. Bob’s true intention is to add value by surfacing both sides of every idea. In Bob’s words, “Aren’t good decisions the result of thoroughly evaluating all the options?” What Bob fails to realize is that his approach does not add value to the decision making process. It is divisive and alienating.

As Bob’s boss you have been inundated with complaints and defusing the resulting conflicts has turned into a part-time job. What are your options? The only respectful place to start is sitting Bob down for an honest conversation. Second you can begin to support change by offering Bob a few self-reflection questions. Some possible questions are:

What did you speak up for in meetings today?
What was the effect of your speaking up?
Is this the effect you intended?

Conflict Resolution - An Introduction

To ensure I'm addressing subjects meaningful to this audience I polled a few executives to surface topics of interest. Several individuals identified conflict resolution as a hot concern in their organization so I plan to commit several editions of "Coaching Tips for the Top" to this subject.

Before I launch into any subject I first turn to my trusty dictionary to look up key words.

conflict n. 1 A state of open, often prolonged fighting; a battle or war. 2. A state of disharmony between incompatible or antithetical persons, ideas, or interests; a clash.
v. 1. To be in or come into opposition; differ.

resolution n. 3. A course of action resolved on. ...... resolve v. 6. To find a solution; solve.

Conflict resolution is reactive .... one is responding to a conflict. Since forward thinking and problem avoidance are valued in our business culture I want to also touch on the idea of "conflict elimination". Is it possible to handle a conflict - not conflict in general, in a way that eliminates future incidence?

eliminate v. 1. to get rid of; remove.

Most of us are able to recognize when we come face to face with conflict. All too often one of us blinks and in that split second conflict has become the 800 pound gorilla in the room. While recognizable and pretty familiar the illusive aspect of conflict is its many sources. I wish I could provide you with a handy one size fits all approach to resolving conflict but conflict resolution is not a science .... it is an art.

The "Coaching Tips for the Top" that follow will address the more common sources of conflict.

definition source: The American Heritage College Dictionary, Third Edition.

Business Ethics, Part 5 of 5

The last of Mr. Byron’s “Ten Classic Ethical Principles” …

I sense many of you will have strong feelings about the inclusion of love on Mr. Byron’s list. Some may believe love has absolutely no place at work. To you please consider the question, “Is there just one kind of love, a love that’s only place is in our close relationships?”

There will also be individuals who feel love is critical to organizational success. The individuals who say “I love my job.” They often bring a passion to their work that inspires others and energizes their organization. Is this the love to which Mr. Byron refers?

Whether you are perched on the fence or solidly on a side I ask that you consider what expanding love in your work could mean for you.

Excerpt from The Power of Principles

“I’ve identified ten classic ethical principles and invite the reader to come up with his or her own understanding of each one. You are the world’s leading expert on your own opinion. It is important that you articulate your own opinion on these matters so that you can assess how widely shared, in your present or future workplace, are your values and the understandings you have of these classic principles. Remember, a culture is a set of shared meanings and values. How widely shared are your meanings and values relative to these ten points?

….

Tenth, the Ethical Principle of Love. I see this as a prin­ciple, an internalized conviction, that prompts a willingness to sacrifice one’s time, convenience, and a share of one’s ideas and material goods for the good of others.”


Byron, S.J., William J., The Power of Principles: Ethics for the New Corporate Culture, Orbis Books, 2006. Chapter One, Old Ethical Principles, pp 5-6.

Business Ethics, Part 4 of 5

The next three of Mr. Byron’s “Ten Classic Ethical Principles” …

As you read this excerpt please consider a few questions.

Are these principles part of what I consider important?
Do they currently influence my actions and choices?
How might they in the future?


Excerpt from The Power of Principles

“I’ve identified ten classic ethical principles and invite the reader to come up with his or her own understanding of each one. You are the world’s leading expert on your own opinion. It is important that you articulate your own opinion on these matters so that you can assess how widely shared, in your present or future workplace, are your values and the understandings you have of these classic principles. Remember, a culture is a set of shared meanings and values. How widely shared are your meanings and values relative to these ten points?

….

Seventh, the Principle of Social Responsibility. This points to an obligation to look to the interests of the broader com­munity and to treat the community as a stakeholder in what the corporation or organization does.

Eighth, the Principle of the Common Good. This operates as an antidote to individualism; it aligns one’s personal inter­ests with the community’s well-being. This may indeed be the most difficult of all these principles around which to form an organizational consensus relating to the common good of the corporation and then relating that understanding to an un­derstanding of the broader common good outside the organi­zation.

Ninth, the Principle of Subsidiary. This might best be un­derstood in terms of delegation and decentralization, keeping decision making close to the ground. (I’ll call it the principle of delegation when I give it fuller treatment in Chapter 11, simply because “subsidiary” is an unfamiliar term to most American readers.) It means that no decision should be taken at a higher level that can be made as effectively and efficiently at a lower level in the organization. This could be viewed as a “principle of respect for proper autonomy.” It could also be understood in terms of Saul Alinsky’s “Iron Rule” for his In­dustrial Areas Foundation: “Never, never do for others what they can do for themselves.””

Byron, S.J., William J., The Power of Principles: Ethics for the New Corporate Culture, Orbis Books, 2006. Chapter One, Old Ethical Principles, p 5-6.

Ethics in Business Decision Making

While doing research for this article I found lots of information describing corporate evildoers, a list of 100 top corporate citizens and volumes of university produced case studies. Everything I found described the actions, the good and the bad, and speculated on the question “What motivates unethical choices?”

The writing contained very little that inspired self-reflection or discussion on the subject of motivating ethical decision-making.

So what does motivate individuals to make choices one would label ethical? How do we each discriminate right from wrong? What are the accepted rules of right conduct?

I believe the answer is rooted in one simple statement “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Though simple it challenges us to be forward thinking and considerate of the consequences of our choices. Good intentions are irresponsible intentions if projects are initiated without exploring all the possible outcomes. Will we get it right 100% of the time? Even if a decision is made based on the best information available and sound assumptions, the answer is no.

It is critical to understand that while one choice puts a project into motion, continuously assessing progress, checking assumptions, and making mid course corrections sustains the integration of ethics in decision-making.

What can you do? Find a compass that will support your ethical decision-making – maybe it is the simple statement that I’ve shared. Ask questions. Evaluate your current work environment.

Does your organization’s top leadership role model ethical decision-making?

What does your organization reward? Doing what is best for all the stakeholders or pure revenue and sales generation?

When evaluating project costs and benefits are only financial factors taken into consideration? How about the implications for all stakeholders?

Regardless of the answers you do have the power to make a difference. I encourge you to foster open dialogue with your team. Start talking about ethical decision-making, and start with the small issues so when the big ones come along no one is intimidated to ask the tough questions.

Business Ethics, Part 2 of 5

As I read and re read Mr. Byron’s “ten classic ethical principles” I find myself with more questions than answers. My first response to the discomfort of being in question? Rush to find answers! I often find that life, job, and family are only hungry for answers.

As you explore what these principles mean in your life I hope you will hang out in the questions. Here are a few questions to consider

Are these principles part of what I consider important?
Do they currently influence my actions and choices?
How might they in the future?


Excerpt from The Power of Principles

“I’ve identified ten classic ethical principles and invite the reader to come up with his or her own understanding of each one. You are the world’s leading expert on your own opinion. It is important that you articulate your own opinion on these matters so that you can assess how widely shared, in your present or future workplace, are your values and the understandings you have of these classic principles. Remember, a culture is a set of shared meanings and values. How widely shared are your meanings and values relative to these ten points?

….

Fourth, the Principle of Human Dignity. This bedrock principle of all ethics—personal and organizational—acknowl­edges a person’s inherent worth. It prompts respectful recog­nition of another’s value simply for being human.

Fifth, the Principle of Participation, workplace participa­tion in this case. This principle respects another’s right not to be ignored on the job or shut out from decision making within the organization.

Sixth, the Principle of Commitment. What I have in mind here is that a committed person can be counted on for de­pendability, reliability, fidelity, loyalty.”


Byron, S.J., William J., The Power of Principles: Ethics for the New Corporate Culture, Orbis Books, 2006. Chapter One, Old Ethical Principles, p 5.

Business Ethics, Part 1 of 5

Business Ethics is such an important topic that I plan to dedicate the October “Coaching Tips for the Top” to the subject. Events of the last few years have inspired a lot of discussion about the absence of ethics in business. I was recently introduced to a powerful book by William J. Byron, S.J. on this subject and am so inspired by the content that I want to share Mr. Byron’s words. He discusses “ten classic ethical principles” which are pretty weighty so I’ll include a few each week. As you read each week’s segment please consider a few questions:

Are these principles part of what I consider important?
Do they currently influence my actions and choices?
How might they in the future?


Excerpt from The Power of Principles

“I’ve identified ten classic ethical principles and invite the reader to come up with his or her own understanding of each one. You are the world’s leading expert on your own opinion. It is important that you articulate your own opinion on these matters so that you can assess how widely shared, in your present or future workplace, are your values and the understandings you have of these classic principles. Remember, a culture is a set of shared meanings and values. How widely shared are your meanings and values relative to these ten points?

First, the Principle of Integrity. I think of integrity in terms of wholeness, solidity of character, honesty, trustworthiness, and responsibility. What would you add or subtract from that list?

Second, the Principle of Veracity. This, to me, involves tell­ing the truth in all circumstances; it also includes account­ability and transparency.

Third, the Principle of Fairness. By this, of course, I mean justice, treating equals equally, giving to everyone his or her due.”


Byron, S.J., William J., The Power of Principles: Ethics for the New Corporate Culture, Orbis Books, 2006. Chapter One, Old Ethical Principles, p 5.

Regaining Control of Your Time

A follow up to September 10’s Time Management Tip

Bob, a vice president with a large general contracting company, carefully tracked his time over a two week period. After analyzing the data he was surprised to discover that his 72 work hours are spend doing the following:

40% responding to unanticipated situations,
10% checking and responding to e-mail,
30% attending meetings,
5% doing his own work,
5% listening to Henry complain,
5% doing administrative tasks (scheduling appointments, making copies, etc.),
5% on miscellaneous breaks.

Bob’s own work is suffering so he’s serious about taking control of his time. What can Bob do differently?

Here are a few suggestions.

1. Bob could further evaluate the almost 29 hours he spends responding to unanticipated situations. How many times was his expertise really needed verse how many times was an employee looking to Bob to solve his or her problem? If an employee comes to the door when you are in the middle of something it is okay to ask a few questions before dropping everything. Try “Is this urgent or could it wait 30 minutes until I complete this task?” You’ll be surprise how often someone resolves their own issue in that 30 minutes.

2. Build blocks of time into your schedule to respond to e-mails. Sitting on e-mail is a huge time waster. If you have a Blackberry respond to a message by asking yourself “is this urgent or could it wait until later?”

3. Get rid of Henry the complainer. If Henry’s complaints are legitimate either work to alleviate them or send him to someone who can appropriately address the issues. If Henry’s complaints are way off base take control of the conversation and tell him you don’t agree. You want to nip this in the bud.

4. Bob has an assistant who can be doing 90% of his administrative tasks. Learn to ask for assistance and cultivate a good working relationship with an assistant. This is the person who is going to look out for you.

Delegating

Anyone in your organization doing the work of a team because he or she doesn’t delegate? Most leaders find delegating takes a lot of effort. Effort that is worth expending because everyone’s success, the executive, team, and organization’s, depends on it. What can make the effort successful?

Here’s a scenario: You need a financial report illustrating the fiscal health of your department over the last 6 months. You could generate the report yourself but a few of your team members could also complete the project.

Where do you start? Have a conversation to clearly define what you need and when you need it. Talking through the project provides you and your staff member an opportunity to uncover the details and create a roadmap.

Beware … of a command and control approach – telling an individual what to do, getting the “I understand” head nod, and then dismissing the person to do what you’ve asked.

Next, set up a schedule for monitoring progress and then follow through. It is great news if things are moving forward as needed. If things are not going well you have the opportunity to support your employee to get the project back on track. Let me repeat … support your employee to get the project back on track … not take over completing the work.

Ask questions to get to the root of the situation. Some possible reasons things aren’t going well include

· additional detail or clarity is needed
· additional resources are needed
· competing priorities exist

Notice that “your staff members are incompetent, lazy, saboteurs” is not on the list!

You may go through several cycles on the path to project completion – stick with it. Delegating frees up time for you to focus on strategic issues, communicates that you trust, respect and value the people working for you, and develops tomorrow’s executive leaders.

Effective delegating does take practice. Learn to be the guiding hand that supports others to achieve superior business results.

Time Management

Is time management a problem yet your executive doesn’t seem to be over committed or struggling with setting priorities?

In order to best diagnose the cause of a time management problem the executive must do an assessment of their time utilization. How are they spending this limited resource?

Here’s an assessment exercise you can offer your executive.

1. For the next 2 weeks document how you spend your time. Write down all of the activities and the time committed to each. No one will see this information so please include everything – scheduled meetings, unscheduled meetings, phone calls, e-mail, administrative responsibilities, conversations at the coffee pot, lunch, etc.

2. After completing your documentation ask yourself the following questions to evaluation your data.
What did you actually spend your time doing?
On what did you anticipate/ expect to be spending your time?
How do you feel about how you are actually spending your time?
What action will you take from what you observed in this exercise?

Setting Priorities

Is anyone in your organization missing deadlines because they are overwhelmed by job responsibilities? Many people find themselves pulled in several directions due to diverse project and team responsibilities. And they report to, or are accountable to, several people with conflicting priorities.

How can you support others to set priorities?

1. The best support you can provide is to ensure the individual understands the culture and the criteria important to establishing priorities. Are priorities always set by deadline? How does senior leadership influence priorities?

2. Periodically ask what support the individual needs to be successful. He or she may feel too overwhelmed to even ask for help.

3. The following questions also support an individual to successfully evaluate priority actions on a daily basis:

What is most important for me to accomplish today?
What is most important for me to communicate today?
What actions will move me toward fulfilling my responsibilities?

Setting priorities and using them to guide actions causes a dramatic increase in productivity – try it out.

Over Committed?

Are your executives over committed? Do they have any of these symptoms:

· Chronically late to meetings?
· Drop in work quality?
· Work many hours of overtime?
· Feel tired and stressed?

In the fast pace of today’s business climate many executives suffer from these symptoms. They get caught in the whirlwind of meetings, problems, e-mails, and phone calls, and lose an awareness of how they are investing their precious time. Have you heard any of your employees say, “I did a lot today but I didn’t get anything done.”

If executives intentionally choose how to spend their time the results are greater productivity and lower stress. Unplanned events will always arise but a plan of action will ensure the unplanned events are the exception not the rule.

Here’s a simple scheduling and debriefing practice to share with an over committed executive.

1. Each day before leaving work, make a “To Do” list for the next day inclusive of a time schedule. Include all meetings, preparation, and travel time.

2. The ask the following questions:
· Is this scheduled really possible, given how often I’ll be interrupted?
· If not, what action can I take now?
· Can one of my staff take on this responsibility? Do I really need to do it myself?

3. Debrief at the end of the day with the following questions:
· What did I accomplish today that’s important for my goals?
· How can I correct tomorrow’s scheduling by what I learned today?

This practice may seem too simple to alleviate the symptoms of over commitment yet I challenge you to have your executive try it for 2 weeks. The small investment will yield a great return.

Coaching in the Moment

Coaching in the Moment

A significant issue is elevated to your level and after evaluating the information you understand the problem developed because one of your employees made a series of bad decisions. What do you do? Take care of the issue yourself? Blow up at the employee? While many executives often choose one of these two options, a third possibility does exist.

Coaching in the moment is a very powerful means of guiding an employee to a successful outcome, and is also quite effective in "de-briefing" after something hasn't gone quite as well as you would have liked. Here's a brief process to help you effectively coach your employees:

Start by uncovering what lead the employee to their decisions. Come from a place of curiosity and ask a few simple questions.
What did you intend to accomplish?
How did you analyze the situation?
How did you decide what to do?

Beware ..... of asking, "Why did you do that? as the question often triggers justification and defensiveness.

Second, invite the individual to see the issue from a different point of view. The wisdom gained through your experience will open up an opportunity for your employee to see the situation in a new way.

Beware ..... of shifting into a problem solving approach and sending the employee off with a directive.

Third, coach your employee to develop his or her own action plan. Questions to guide this process include:
What actions will you take?
How will you monitor progress?
In what ways can I support you?

I encourage you to try using this tool. While it may initially feel uncomfortable practice will bring proficiency.