realisedevelopment.net

Just another WordPress site

Archives for May 2007

Working Effectively in a Performance Management Framework

by

Frontline police called on the Government to reverse the target-driven culture that has forced them to make “ludicrous” decisions such as arresting a child for throwing cream buns.

The Police Federation annual conference in Blackpool will debate whether judging officers purely on how many arrests, cautions or on-the-spot fines they can deliver is making a mockery of the criminal justice system.

A not untypical story of modern life – but are ‘targets’ really the problem?

Would dropping targets help?

Or do we choose to blame the targets – when it is really poor management in a target driven organisation that is to blame?

How can managers prevent this type of gaming the system and ensure that support progress rather than act as a catalyst to stupidity?

What would you have done as the Officer in Charge – when you saw that arrest on the record books?

What would you have done before hand to ensure that the officer would have thought twice before adding this to their ‘portfolio of success’.

Happy to put up a small prize for the most useful response!

Jigsaw Cities – a challenge to regeneration orthodoxy

by

At the book launch for Jigsaw Cities its author, Professor Anne Power and John Houghton, emphasised the importance of understanding cities as made up of a number of different jigsaw puzzle pieces with no picture on the cover to help put it all together. For physical regeneration there was discussion about renovating existing stock, using micro-spaces, and developing mixed use communities.

I find it depressing that the presumed starting point for regeneration is still physical – rather than psychological.  In my experience it is when individuals find confidence and hope that a community can start to regenerate.  It takes more than uPVC windows and doors to bring a community hope as this article by Sue Townsend so brilliantly illustrates.

Why Feedback Does Not Work

by

People often tell me that when they give feedback it just does not work the way they hope. Either the feedback is ignored, or it causes a while load of justifications, excuses and rationales leading to a heated debate and a deterioration in the relationship.

There are several reasons why feedback might not have the desired affect and cause more problems than it cures. By far the most common reason for feedback failure is that the relationship is not right. We only accept and act on feedback when it comes from someone we trust and respect.  Giving feedback to someone who does not trust and respect you is not only a waste of breathe – it is likely to make the situation, certainly your relationship, worse.

Before you can give effective feedback, you have to earn the right (and this is not about just being the boss).  As well as trust and respect it is important that the receiver of the feedback knows that your motivation for offering feedback is that you want them to suceed in doing a great job.  They have to know that you are not putting them down or playing power games – you are sincerely trying to help them do things well.

So the next time you have an opportunity to give feedback – ask yourself – does this person trust and respect me enough to value my feedback?

Secondly ask yourself whether your motivation to give feedback is to help them to get better at their job?

If the answer to either of these questions is no, then you are better off keeping the feedback to yourself.  Instead find a way to work on your relationship so that in future your  feedback will be welcomed and acted upon.

Why Managers not Leaders?

by

I am often asked why I chose to set up a Progressive Managers’ Network. Surely a Progressive Leaders’ Network would be more appealing.

Well that maybe so – but the focus of this network is fiercely practical – and I want it to appeal to people who want to get things done. In my experience talking about ‘leadership’ attracts people who are strong thinkers and communicators – but not always doers.

And so much leadership theory is overly complicated – while this network is about doing the basics exceptionally well and then building from there. Too much leadership training fails to be effective because the basics of good management – especially the interpersonal stuff – are not in place.

But finally I just love good management. Done well it is a fine and noble profession. A good manager can be an even more powerful force for good than a good teacher or mentor. It is just sad that so few people can point to the experience of working with a really good manager.

Making Values Live

by

I helped to manage the production of a conference in Hull called Making Values Live – featuring the work of Mathew Smerdon and Geraldine Blake from Community Links. At the conference they provided an introduction to their report – Living Values: A report encouraging boldness in the third sector

The value-driven ethos of third-sector organisations is often cited as their distinguishing feature. But is this really the case?

The third sector has no monopoly on ‘values’. But are certain values more prevalent in the third sector than either the public or private sector? I have worked in all three sectors and from this personal experience – I doubt it.

Excellent organisations exist in all sectors. And excellent organisations always have strong values – a consistent set of values that runs through all of their work and helps to recruit, retain, and inspire talented people. The challenge is how to build an excellent passion and vision led organisation – regardless of its legal structure or the sectoral label it attracts.

The conference raised some further interesting questions – perhaps the main one for me being:

Is working explicitly with values worthwhile – or does it lead to hours of navel gazing with little real performance gain?

Can you work directly with something as abstract and ‘slippery’ as values?

How can you make the concepts involved more concrete and action oriented?

The best managers focus on working with behaviours, actions and results. Things that they can directly observe rather than infer. They then give affirmative feedback when these reinforce and express organisational values – or give adjusting feedback when they undermine them. This keeps the process of working with values very practical and action oriented.

In my experience though few managers give regular and rigorous feedback and many of those that do feel uncomfortable referring explicitly to values.