Month: November 2014 Page 2 of 5

Many of people have mastered the technique of looking busy while doing very little. In some cases, they stare at their computer screens reading one email after the next. They make it a habit to skip those requiring an action item, hoping that the initiator will forget it was sent to them. Unfortunately, a good percentage of employees spend the working day performing tasks that are routine, those that add little value to the bottom line. This is their comfort zone, and it is easier to live in this mediocre world.

Are You a Productive Worker?

A quick definition of productivity is the output of the worker. What is your output? Before you know if you are productive, it is important to understand the performance metrics. For example, a salesperson can brag about making 36 calls to prospects from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. during the Monday through Friday workweek. That sounds impressive because you know that prospecting is a critical success factor of sales.

However, an even more important metric is meeting with the prospects to promote your products and services. Beyond that, you need to measure your closing rate. Does the customer see value in what you offer, and do you convey the enthusiasm necessary to generate a sale? In other words, making prospecting phone calls is an important metric, but the real productivity measure depends on whether the customer bought.

Avoid Peaks and Valleys – Stay Consistent Throughout the Week

A Manpower study revealed that most work is done on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. It appears that most people have a tough time focusing on Mondays and Fridays. The researchers mentioned that workers need a little extra time re-orienting themselves to the workplace on Mondays. On Fridays, they can smell the weekend, and that makes it harder for them to focus on doing productive work.

The Manpower research, which was completed by workers in many industries, including manufacturing, transportation, and financial, discovered that workers spend on average 360 minutes working per day, translating to 6 hours. In a different study, however, Robert Half and Associates revealed that most workers commit only a couple hours per day on actual work. The rest of the time is consumed surfing the internet, going on breaks, and other non-work-related activities.

With this information in mind, you can be different. I recommend completing your routine and low-value work done in the day. By doing so, you have more time for high-value activities that can differentiate you from others. In fact, assuming even just 10% more responsibility will put you in the top 5% of your department. In essence, you avoid the downtime during the week by engaging in value-add work.

Plan – Do – Re-evaluate

This formula is simple. Take the time to determine the meaningful work needed in your company. Ask your manager how you can execute that work. Take action and start generating results. After a week or so, discuss your progress with your manager. From that meeting, re-evaluate and determine if you are on track.

I can tell you from experience that this formula will yield tremendous results for you. I am not proposing something that is easy, and it is not prescribed for clock-watchers.

We’ve all worked with bosses who are insecure about their abilities. They will not tell you why they are insecure, but the signs are evident. Working for a manager who lacks confidence is difficult, if not impossible. These are usually the managers who focus on technique, micro-manage, and spend most of their time trying to catch you do things wrong. That is how they determine their value because leadership is a foreign concept to them.

Here are 10 signs that you might observe:

1. You do something right, but you never hear from your boss. An insecure boss feels that praising you makes him weaker.
2. A mistake is observed in a report, and the boss fails to assume any accountability. Instead, the insecure boss will blame his staff.
3. A loose deadline suddenly becomes a hard due date. For example, you have an informal discussion with your boss about a deliverable which is due sometime in the near future. Your boss goes to a meeting in which he is told that the work is needed immediately. Instead of negotiating for a later date, or offering to help you, an email arrives in your Inbox asking why you are late.
4. A verbal agreement is ignored. You agree with your boss regarding a date for your vacation. At a later meeting, your boss informs you that he cannot remember the discussion, or that he now needs you at work. He also wonders out loud why you cannot easily change the flight date.
5. Most of the correspondence is done in writing. While email is a popular method of corresponding, the insecure boss uses email to prove a point, or as a tool to verify that you failed to deliver as expected. For example, “Sara, the report is now two days late. Explain.” A confident boss, on the other hand, will work with you to ensure the report is done on time. Everyone wins!
6. The insecure boss looks to develop working relationships with subpar employees. This type of boss finds it hard to interact with go-getters. It is easier for him to hang out with employees who are stagnant, especially since he believes they do not pose a direct threat.
7. The insecure boss over-delegates. Part of being insecure is the lack of competence, which means that he needs to have others do the work. This is an excellent strategy for an incompetent boss because he can blame others for work that fails to meet expectations. Of course, if good work is done, he will take full credit.
8. The insecure boss prefers to report facts, and not trends and forecasts. In other words, bosses who lack confidence will avoid going out on a limb. They are afraid of making mistakes.
9. Insecure bosses love meetings. Having meetings appears to be work, and these bosses want to look busy, as if they are doing something productive. The meetings usually contain information you can share via email, such as status reports.
10. Insecure bosses are more focused on their appearance. Because they are mostly incompetent, they tend to dress well to masquerade their poor leadership skills.

When working with an insecure boss, make sure that you are clear regarding expectations. You want to know exactly what is due from you. Take the time to review how you will be evaluated, and document any area in which you need assistance. If you feel the insecure manager will keep you from realizing your goals, look to find a different position either within your company or externally. You will not be the first one who observed the signs of insecurity.

You receive advice from many different people. In some cases, others offer guidance even when you don’t ask for it. When you seek advice, it’s important that you identify the right person to help you. Remember that you’re asking for advice, not sympathy.

Engine Tech, an IT company, recently hired Martin, and he was having a tough time making the adjustment. For more than a decade, he worked for AT&T, a traditional-type organization, which had a silo, bureaucratic structure. Engine Tech was at the other end of the spectrum, promoting a Google-like work environment in which employees wore clothes more suitable for a day at the beach.

Martin accepted the position as IT Manager, which was similar to the post he had held at AT&T. The laid-back environment at Engine Tech was refreshing at first, but Martin was missing the structured approach he had at AT&T. He needed someone to help him determine whether he should give Engine Tech more time, or if he should contact his AT&T manager for the opportunity to return to his previous position.

Martin called Lawrence, a long-time friend. Lawrence was a State Farm agent, but he had worked in industry for nearly 20 years. Martin knew he could count on Lawrence to provide candid feedback.

Martin: Hey, Lawrence. Thank you for joining me for coffee this morning.

Lawrence: No problem, my friend. What’s up?

Martin: You see, I don’t know if I made the right decision by taking the position at Engine Tech. I like the people, but it might not be the right place for me.

Lawrence: What do you mean?

Martin: There is very little structure. For example, we have plans and projects, but no one is accountable. At AT&T, everyone had clear goals, and they had to get the work done. When they didn’t come through it was obvious, and their performance ratings were affected.

Lawrence: I hear Engine Tech is doing very well. I read in the Business Journal that they plan to hire another 1,000 people by the end of this year. They must be doing something right.

Martin: Yeah, they’re agile. In other words, as a technology company, it has to be nimble. The leadership team is committed to maximizing its presence in cloud computing, and it has a growing customer base. I guess you can say Engine Tech is riding the technology wave, and its strong reputation in the industry makes a positive difference.

Lawrence: Is your performance okay?

Martin: That’s hard to say. I’m not even sure how we’re tracking progress. I do my work, go to the meetings, and play the “Glad to be part of the team” game, and that keeps the higher-ups thinking that all is fine.

Lawrence: It sounds to me like you have a disconnect with this type of organizational culture. I had the same situation at Alliance International. The company was terrific, and the people were great, but I realized that I needed to make a change. In other words, I was the component that didn’t fit the environment.

Martin: That’s when you decided to become a Start Farm agent, right?

Lawrence: Right. My only regret was that I waited too long to make the decision. I should have made the move earlier. Based on my situation, I recommend you make the decision quicker. I think your heart is already telling you what is right for you.

Martin: Yeah. You’re right. I have better idea of what I need to do. Thank you, Lawrence.

Some decisions are difficult to make because of the unknown. However, advice from a reputable source can provide the right information to help one make the smart move.

Image Courtesy: ronankavanagh.ie

I recently heard a manager state that he didn’t care if his employees liked him. Instead, he wanted them to respect him. Based on what I know about this situation, the employees neither like him nor respect him. In essence, he had what is known as position power and nothing else. The employees did the assigned work only because this manager had the authority to make matters difficult for them.

Managers must work hard to create a fair playing field. I agree that being liked is much less important than being respected, but having others appreciate who you are is a critical component to effective management. When making decisions, you need to consider how the employees will accept them. In other words, a top-down decision-making process is counterproductive to leading a workforce.

Here are 10 signs that demonstrate your employees don’t respect you:

1. The employees attend only mandatory meetings. Of those “mandatory” meetings, they will look for excuses to miss some them, such as a “pressing deadline.”
2. When you talk, they fail to maintain eye contact. If during a meeting, they are doodling or intensely immersed in their Blackberry or iPad.
3. The employees exhaust sick days and vacation time, even when a deliverable is urgent. The more time they are away from work, the more likely they are interviewing for positions external to the organization.
4. A “status” meeting quickly evolves into a complaining session. The discussion shifts to personality difference and is not directly related to goals and objectives.
5. The employees are uninterested in professional development opportunities specific to the work they do. Instead, they are pursuing advanced education through the organization’s tuition reimbursement program. They want skills and knowledge that are transferrable.
6. You hear “credible” rumors (those that surface almost daily) that playing favorites is part of your management style. For example, you approve an expense for one employee you know well, but deny a similar request from another staff member.
7. Your employees make it a habit to avoid you. For example, you are on a company business trip in St. Louis, and you are riding solo in your rental car. The rest of the staff mysteriously left you behind.
8. It’s your birthday, and only a handful of the employees (“victims”) decided to attend the “party.”
9. No one asks you for a letter of recommendation. In fact, they don’t care what you think about them.
10. You decide it’s time to leave the department or organization, which leads to a newfound enthusiasm among your employees. Now that you are departing, they are looking for ways to improve the quality of their work. They wouldn’t do that before because you might receive the credit.

Awareness is Important

You have to be aware of how your employees feel about you. Avoid thinking that you have every answer. More important, understand that micro-managing people is counterproductive. The employees who want you to monitor their every step are usually the low producers.

Gaining respect from our employees takes time. You can speed up the process by using a consensus-building approach. Ask your employees what they need to do their work more effectively. Let them know how you are measured, and give them the tools and authority to help you reach the departmental goals. The attitude must be that success only comes from working as a team, and you cannot afford to let each other down.

For the most part, you would like all your employees to succeed. You want them to meet expectations, and to become meaningful participants of your organization. The fact, though, is that about 10% of your staff will fail to deliver on the work assigned to them.

If you have a turnover rate of 10% or higher, the problem is likely not the employees. Instead, the issue is probably related to poor hiring practices. I understand that each industry will have an allowable turnover rate, but a busy revolving door is counterproductive to running an efficient organization.

Here are 10 reasons you might ask an employee to leave the organization:

1. The employee is having a tough time meeting the basic requirements of the job description. You provide guidance and training to the employee, but he fails to learn the necessary skills. The issue here might be related to lack of interest or motivation.
2. The employee delivers inadequate work. The assignments are completed, but there are too many errors. For example, financial reports have noticeable errors, which means you spend more time on re-work.
3. The employee will often arrive work late and leave early. This employee will also maximize break time, extend lunchtime, and squeeze in an hour or so at the fitness room.
4. The employee is absent from work, despite no longer having personal time. This individual will use all the vacation and sick days, and subsequently make up excuses to miss more work time.
5. The employee has a negative attitude toward the work assigned. The problem with this situation is that you avoid giving additional work to this employee to avoid the negative reaction. Instead, and unfortunately, you assign more work to your highly-skilled employees, which causes them to be overwhelmed.
6. The employee often criticizes staff members. It’s standard operating procedure for poor performers to criticize other employees, the organization, and anything else within their reach. Instead of assuming accountability for their ineptitude, they blame others. They foolishly believe that they were passed up for raises and promotions because of “politics.”
7. The employee makes it clear that he will not accept any team assignments. This low-producing employee has developed the skill of looking busy even though they are doing very little. It’s an art! By giving the appearance that his plate is full, he hopes the manager will pass him up when team assignments are made. He tells the manager that there is no time for any more work.
8. The employee is abusing company time for personal issues. Reading email, checking out SportsCenter, and making a few purchases on Amazon are part of the daily activities for the employee. In some cases, he even finds time to run a business right from his cubicle.
9. The employee fails to engage in any professional development opportunities. There is no time to learn anything new. One reason this employee shuns training sessions is to avoid becoming competent at anything. By knowing more, and showing a higher level of interest, the employee fears more work. For that reason, learning opportunities are a no-go.
10. The employee is unprofessional in conduct. In some cases, the employee uses foul language, dresses inappropriately, shares confidential information with outsiders, and flat-out has no respect for the organization and its people. The only reason the employee comes to work is for the paycheck.

Human Resources has the tough task of hiring the right people to do the right work at the right time, and at the right price. Once hired, the management team must ensure that these employees receive the proper training to excel.

However, you must be prepared to make a change when you identify individuals who are unfit to work in your organization. You cannot waste too much time making these decisions. The longer you have a “bad apple” on staff, the more peril faced by the organization.

Key takeaway: Hire right.

Success is much easier than you might think: You decide what you want to do. You take action every day. You stop listening to people who tell you it’s not possible. You understand that obstacles are part of the journey. You overcome these obstacles. You keep going. Ready. Aim. Fire! Fire! Fire! Fire! Fire!

In a nutshell, that’s what it takes for you to become successful.

Here are 10 characteristics that define winners:

1. Develop a career plan that has precise deliverables. For example, determine if you wish to lead a department, the entire organization, or your own business.
2. Make sure you have the necessary skills to succeed. Have you met the educational requirements? Do you have the professional credentials?
3. You’re unconcerned about the petty issues that permeate today’s organizations. It’s far too difficult to advance in your career if you are thinking about issues that can slow you down.
4. Have a clear understanding of the critical success factors. There are work requirements that are more important than others. Set up a time to meet with your manager to determine which activities carry more weight. Once you know, spend the majority of your time working on them.
5. Forget the minimum hours you’re required to be on the clock. The winners in your organization are committed to the work itself, and not to a 40-hour week. If the project is important, work into the evenings, and on the weekends.
6. Make a commitment to becoming a problem solver. When you observe a problem, determine how you can solve it without making a big deal. Learn how to accept responsibility and solve problems at your level. In other words, avoid escalating issues to upper management. It’s also unimportant to make a big announcement stating you resolved an issue. Good work will eventually be recognized.
7. Avoid thinking you are too important and irreplaceable. You can easily lose focus when you think that you are the answer to everyone’s problem. The fact is that the company will continue to operate even without you. A humble and hard-working approach is refreshing. Give it a try.
8. Make a commitment to focusing on the real problems. It’s far too easy to worry about symptoms. For example, the customer is unhappy because the order arrived late. Before blaming the shipping department, conduct a quick investigation to determine the root cause. You want to make intelligent decisions, and this means having a clear idea regarding what caused the delay.
9. Avoid blaming others for issues you could have prevented. Becoming a winner requires that you are fully accountable for all work delivered by your team. It’s easy to scapegoat a team member, and it might make you feel better. However, you will soon lose respect, and eventually you will settle into mediocrity, or far worse.
10. Don’t turn off the lights until you make the final sweep. Before going to bed, make sure you’ve reviewed the critical items for the day. Winners have an alarm in their brain that is illuminated when danger is near. Resolve the issue before it becomes a catastrophe.

Winners have a clear focus, and they are going to do whatever it takes to get the work done. It may not be pretty, but effectiveness is important. Get your plan in place today, and start building your team. Your chances of success will skyrocket when others believe in your vision and are willing to provide their talents to the mission.

Different from a leader, a manager is more tactical based. This person will take the goals and objectives outlined by the company executives and transform them into work that is performed by the employees. Excellent managers are those who avoid an autocratic approach in which the employees are mostly following orders.

Here are three traits of a successful manager:

#1: Hire Smart

Managers have the opportunity to hire the right people to work in the department. While HR will filter through the applications of prospects, you must ensure that the expectations of the work are clearly outlined. Avoid the temptation to merely email the job description to HR. A top manager will meet with the hiring team to provide additional details and to answer any questions that arise.

When selecting the candidate for a position, make sure to consider culture fit. While some individuals might possess all the knowledge and skills prescribed by the job, they might lack the ability to assimilate with the rest of the team. Therefore, it’s imperative that managers interview the candidate and ask situational questions that provide additional details.

#2: Avoid Leaving Details to Chance

Managers should refrain from thinking that employees can read their minds. Instead, it’s much better to provide the details necessary to avoid mistakes. For example, instead of saying the following: “Let’s make sure and communicate with the customer often.” We should try the following: “Amanda, I want to confirm that you will call Ron at Data Systems once per week to provide an update regarding the project.”

The approach detailed above is proactive, and not micromanagement. When you reinforce the importance of calling the customer once per week, you make the employee accountable for the work performed. Put differently, you empower the employee to take action.

#3: Focus on Positive Reinforcement

For many years, the model consisted of contacting employees only when they fell short of expectations. This punitive approach is counterproductive, and should be avoided. The manager should look for opportunities to praise employees.

Here’s an example: “Steve, I observed how you managed the web conference this morning. It was good that you described the topic first, and then allowed the participants to provide their thoughts. In other words, you guided the discussion well, and we now have a resolution. Nice work!”
Management is a learned skill. Organizational leaders should provide training that allows interested individuals to pursue a management track. An important point here is that not everyone might want to manage a department. Thus, you should take the time to discuss the career goals of the employees.

While managers are focused on day-to-day activities, they must also be aware of the vision of the organization. The work done in their respective departments helps realize the long-term goals of the organization. Therefore, the leaders must invite managers to planning sessions, and ask them to participate in the process. By doing so, you can expect buy-in from these key stakeholders in the organization.

The bottom line is that managers are the people who drive the performance engine. Without their engagement, success is impossible.

Over the past couple of decades, I’ve had plenty of managers, some great and some so-so. A mentor once told me that I should focus mostly on meeting the expectations of my manager. When my direct gives me an assignment, I need to ensure these requirements are done on time, within budget, and at a high-quality level. In other words, exceeding expectations matters.

How do you know that your manager likes you? What are the signs that you are on the right track? Is it okay to ask if you are on the same page? How do you handle the situation in which you feel there is a disconnect with your manager?

1: Your Opinion Matters

One sure-sign that your manager likes and respects you is when she asks for your opinion. For example, you are getting ready to launch a project, and your manager asks you who should be on the team. You might also be asked to become the project manager. You are given extra responsibility, and the manager is confident you will be accountable for the work.

You often find these people sitting in the manager’s office, day-after-day. In some cases, the meetings include lunch and even an after-work drink. In essence, the manager is looking for someone to provide honest feedback, and she respects this person’s opinion.

#2: You Receive High-Value Assignments

One notable advantage of being liked by your manager is that you are first to hear of excellent work assignments. These opportunities are not promotions per se; instead, these projects will usually place you in front of the VIPs of your company. The pressure will be on to ensure you do well, but your manager will make sure you have the right people and resources to excel.

When working in a Fortune 500 company, I was assigned as a key team member for an enterprise-wide project. My manager knew I had the technical skills to do the work, and he asked if I wanted to participate. He knew this project would allow me to interact with many influential people in the organization. It was a terrific opportunity that exposed me to many vital business functions, and eventually led to other career opportunities.

#3: Your Incompetence is ignored

In a previous job, I recall an employee (Martina) who was mediocre at best. In fact, she spent most of her time on Facebook and texting with friends. When Martina wasn’t killing time on the computer, she was on-break or out-to-lunch. In fact, a previous manager threatened to fire her because her performance was far below expectations.
Enter the new manager, Jack. Martina went from nearly getting the pink slip to receiving a promotion. She convinced Jack to transfer her to a low-profile position in which she could operate under the radar. In other words, the metrics to measure her performance were now intangible, which meant she could survive, and even thrive, in this new position.

If you find that your manager is not too high on you, it’s important to determine the problem. You have to take the initiative. The best approach is to ask for more responsibility. You are interested in opportunities in which you are accountable for a critical business function.

Most managers respect someone who is bold and willing to improve the organization. Once you are given the assignment, you must hit a home run. By exceeding expectations, you will become a favorite of your manager.

Like top-notch employees, terrific managers are hard to find. In my last corporate job, I had the privilege ofworking for a smart, committed, and fair manager. While I’ve had other good managers in the past, I felt Tom was the best.

Applying and Interviewing

In the job classifieds section of the San Antonio Express-News, I noticed an IT position for a large insurance and investment company. The position called for several skills that were a good match, and I decided to apply.

Several weeks after submitting my application, I received a call from HR to schedule a series of interviews with managers of the IT department. The last interview was with a Tom, and he asked me one key question: Will you tell me more about Management by Objectives used in previous jobs?

I’m glad that he asked this question because I’m a big fan of MBO. The approach here is to meet with the manager early in the year and outline the objectives that will be completed. In essence, the manager helps me when I run into issues, but I am also accountable for my work.

Tom was pleased with my response, and he later told me that my knowledge and enthusiasm responding to this question made me the top candidate for the position. In fact, more than 1,000 prospects had applied.

Tom’s Managerial Approach

I enjoyed working for Tom because he was a no-nonsense manager. He was clear with the requirements, and he took the time to communicate expectations to those who worked for him.

Here are three reasons that Tom was a competent manager:

#1: He intervened when necessary.

As part of my duties in the IT department, I was assigned the $11.5M budget. This was hard work, especially when I had to collect information from other IT managers. The managers were busy, or they were unwilling to share information with me. Tom was proactive, oftentimes walking with me to speak directly with the managers. In short order, I had the information I needed to complete my work.

#2: He promoted training opportunities.

This particular organization offered many training sessions. Given that I used the MS Office Suite for much of my work, I completed every course in the program. This knowledge opened several key opportunities for me within the organization.

#3: Tom was transparent.

I recall the time when the company was downsizing, and every department was going to lose 10% of the staff. Given we had 10 people on our team, one person was going to be given the pink slip. The week before the announcement, Tom stated: I want to let you know that one of us will be cut from the team. I’m unsure right now who that person is, but it does include me. As it turns out, one employee from our department accepted a severance package, which reduced our staff by the 10% mandate.

Tom was not perfect, but he was talented. We could ask him for assistance, and he would help. If we stayed late working on a project, he stayed with us. He understood the importance of valuing employees. By doing so, we were committed to exceeding expectations.

You can’t escape the overbearing, conceited, and arrogant co-worker. There is at least one in every department. You can spot them from a mile away. They have every right answer, and they have a ridiculous desire to be the center of attention. In some cases, they have a certain skill or knowledge base that provides a level of uniqueness. Of course, they will talk non-stop about that ability because that makes them feel important.

Over the years, I have learned several approaches to working with overbearing fellow employees – and here they are:

#1: Have a concrete agenda for meetings involving these individuals.

People who are pompous and dominating prefer meetings that have open agendas. They want to have the floor, and a non-existent set of discussion points allows them to control the meeting. Therefore, you must have an agenda and assigned experts who are in charge of the particular topics. Of course, make sure you have hard start and end times to meetings. It’s critical that everyone understands the ground rules for meetings.

#2: Focus on the content provided by overbearing co-workers, and not their personality.

It is easy to lose focus on what is important when someone is showing-off. However, as a professional, you must look for the important information contained in the midst of the fluff. In other words, concentrate on what the individual is saying, and not on how he is communicating it.

Example:

“I’ve been working here for 10 years, and I have been able to maintain excellent standards because of the training I’ve taken. I produce excellent results because my skills are perfect for this position. The last guy who had this job was incompetent. It took someone like me to meet the quality standards required by the industry. I have no idea where this company would be without me in this position!”

Translation:

This employee has a clear idea regarding industry expectations, and likely works in a department in which others are contributing equally to meet the quality standards.

Instead of ignoring the conceited employee, think about what can be learned. He is likely following a process that can be replicated in a different department. Keeping an open mind will improve the lessons learned process.

#3: Avoid complaining about the overbearing employee.

If this person has any longevity in the company, it’s highly probable the leadership team has him on the radar. For that reason, it’s best to avoid lodging a complaint. If you do, you are no different from the other countless victims who have gone before you.

The best approach is to show how you are working with Mr. Arrogant. In fact, your ability to lead people, especially those who are difficult to manage, makes you an effective leader. In essence, the overbearing co-worker has provided you with the opportunity to differentiate yourself from others.

The lesson here is that working with overbearing, conceited, and arrogant people is part of doing business. For you to climb the corporate ladder, it’s imperative to develop the leadership skills to ensure everyone is moving to the same target, regardless of their personality types.