"What I want is someone who will do what I tell them to." "What I want is someone who works cheap." "What I want is someone who shows up on time and doesn't give me a hard time." So if this is what the boss really wants, how come the stars in the company don't follow these three rules? From Seth Godin's Linchpin … [Read more...]
25 Years of Management Wisdom
March 20, 2009 by 1 Comment
Jim Sinegal founded Costco 25 years ago. This is a great post capturing some of what Jim learned about management along the way. Full of wisdom! Show show if you set up a small business in the right way - it can become massive. … [Read more...]
Measuring Management
March 5, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Managers spend much of their time measuring - market share, year on year sales, voids, arrears, return on investment, customer satisfaction, orders fulfilled, calls handled per hour, orders placed, orders fulfilled (again), total invoiced, hours billed, attendance, productivity per employee etc Why the obsession with measuring stuff? Because it gives us the data to recognise what has changed, what needs to change, and when we make the change - whether it has had the impact we planned. But none of these metrics are about US - the manager. They are all about the performance of the system and the people that we manage. And this often lets us of the hook for making real change in the way we manage. What if we measured some more personal aspects of our management efforts? how much time we spend listening in 121 conversation with team members how many times we give REAL feedback - affirmative and adjusting - each day/week how often we make sarcastic or cynical comments how many times we interrupt others mid-sentence how often we check our blackberry in meetings how often we talk about values and vision the amount of time we spend in meetings that are inefficient or worse how many coaching contracts we put in … [Read more...]
Another take on 121s
March 2, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Dan McCarthy over at Great Leadership blog has written a piece giving his own take on 121s. … [Read more...]
Get rid of managers and we’ll all be happier
August 7, 2008 by Leave a Comment
This is the title of a provocative post over at Management Issues. Rather than adding value to their organisations, two thirds of British managers actually create negative working climates that leave employees feeling resentful and frustrated. Research by Hay Consultancy has shown that a fifth of UK workers are frustrated in their jobs, with rigid bureaucracy and poor management structures and systems hampering innovation and productivity. Half of workers believed they did not have the authority to make decisions crucial to their jobs, with the same proportion complaining of being discouraged from participating in decisions that directly affected their work. Managers were failing to design jobs in such a way as to capitalise on the talents of their workers, Hay also argued. More than a third of the workers polled believed their job did not make best use of their skills and abilities. The study of more than 3,100 leaders across 12 industries found that close to half of the managers were creating demotivating climates for employees, while a further 15 per cent generated only a neutral environment. Good managers who really add value (in the eyes of their employers and their team members) are few and far between. … [Read more...]
Money and Stress
July 9, 2008 by Leave a Comment
As the legendary Bruce Springsteen said back in the 1970s when he just started to win recording contracts - 'When they pay you $400 a day you get to have $400 dollar a day problems'. I found a great blog yesterday that quoted some research on the relationship between wealth and stress. The following five types of deal were offered: The Bum Deal: Being stressed out, overworked, and making less than $100,000 per year. The Really Bum Deal: Being stressed, overworked, and making less than $25,000 per year. The Submission Deal: Making around $20,000 per year, but accepting your dirt-poor status. Your dire situation, in turn, leads to a sense of resignation that allows you to relax and enjoy your free time. The You’re-An-Idiot Deal: Being ultra-rich (making more than, say, $3 million per year off interest income), having nothing to do, and stressing out over golf games, financial managers, and all the poor people trying to bilk you out of your fortune. The Sweet Deal: Making more than $3 million per year off interest income and relishing your liesure time with hedonistic pleasure. At the same time, you’re conscious enough to avoid misogyny and gambling addictions. Now I think that sometimes the deals people settle … [Read more...]
Sue Wiley on Why and How PMN Works for Her
July 1, 2008 by Leave a Comment
Sue Wylie is the office manager at re'new in Leeds. She has attended four PMN workshops and has used much of what we have covered in her work. In this podcast she talks about PMN and how it works for her. Sue explains why; she thought she would never have enough time for 121s - but now would not be without them, and how 121s actually save her time and avoid interruptions in her working day how the principles and practices have driven progress in her team the impact that 121s with her manager have had in her You can listen to the podcast here. Enjoy! Many thanks Sue! If you have attended PMN training and benefitted from it, and would like to make a podcast with me - just let me know! You could become an iTunes star! … [Read more...]
