Leaders Show They Care

According to a recent survey conducted by Paychex, one of the top reasons people quit their jobs is that they felt their employer didn’t care about employees (52.77% of those surveyed).

What does that really mean?  And, what can employers do to let their employees know they do really care about them?

People feel cared about when we are treated with respect. People feel cared about when our efforts are appreciated.  We feel cared about when we are listened to and acknowledged for our contributions. When we are not taken for granted. When we are not yelled at or abused.  When we are paid well for our contribution (the #1 reason for people quitting is low pay!)

As leaders, our role is not to be buddy-buddy with our team, but to care about each person on the team and do everything you can to make his or her work experience a positive one while still being fair and consistent.  A challenge…right? But you can do it.

When appreciation is expressed through lame employee recognition events rather than a sincere thank you for a job well done, people feel patronized.  Employee recognition events are fine, but it makes some people feel great but other people feel crappy while they wonder why they aren’t being recognized.  As a leader, what are you doing to find the right tone for showing true appreciation?

Does the culture of the company lead employees to feel like children—always being told what they can’t do or shouldn’t do? Or is the culture one that communicates trust in the professionalism of your people?  Again here, as the leader, it is your task to find the right balance of rules vs. accountability given the employee mix that you have.

Do you listen to the ideas and thoughts your people offer? There is nothing more frustrating for an employee than to have a boss who feels like he/she has all the answers rather than leading a discussion.  After all—you hired people with expertise. Why not listen to them?

What about that trouble-making team member? You know—the one who bullies others, the drama queen, or the one who isn’t pulling his weight? Do you address concerns with that person in a caring but direct manner?  Letting that person slide and not taking care of issues that arise lead your people to feel like you aren’t taking good care of them and are letting things fester. That you don’t care enough to make sure the work environment feels safe and productive.

And then there is the dreaded annual review process.  How awful!  As the leader, you should be caring enough about your people to provide constant on-going collaborative feedback rather than waiting until the end of the year and surprising them with negative statements that what they have been doing ALL YEAR has not met your expectations.  If you are in an organization that requires annual reviews, by all means, provide them. But make sure nothing in the review is a surprise. Make it yet another opportunity for you and the team member to work together to set goals for the coming year.

And, do NOT create or implement a review process that requires your people to compete against each other. Nothing creates a more conflictual or competitive work environment than knowing that you are competing against your colleague for a raise.

There are so many opportunities every day on a personal level, and on a structural organizational level, for you to either show your folks you care about them or show that you don’t.   Most importantly, you really do need to try and actually care about them and appreciate their efforts—don’t take your people for granted!  Treat them how you would want to be treated. Then, always be aware of your day-to-day decisions and conversations and their potential impact on your team.

Is your staff overworked?

How does a leader know when enough is enough?  That your people have too much on their plates, are burned out and just piling more and more on them is causing you to lose ground rather than gain it? After all, research shows that productivity declines precipitously after 50 hours of work per week.

I know some companies that regard a 50 hour work week as just a start!

On the other hand, I have worked with teams where several team members complained loudly and often about being overworked and burned out, but they found time to join committees and participate in activities not related to their assigned tasks.

How do you know the difference?

If you are aware and paying attention, you already know who gets in early and who stays late. If you are meeting with each team member regularly, you should be able to discuss a list of tasks or deliverables they are assigned, along with timelines.

A most surprising and illuminating exercise is to conduct a time study for your entire team. While that won’t tell you how quickly people are working, it should tell you where your folks are spending their time.  Once you have the results of a few weeks in a row, spend some time reviewing each person’s results.

• What surprised you about his/her results?
• Does the way time is spent match their priorities?
• What can be done differently?
• What can be done by someone else?
• What do they need to stop doing?
• Are there projects that can be given later deadlines?
• Does a temp need to be hired to tackle backlog work?

Work through these questions and develop a new game plan for each person. Spend time when you meet regularly checking in to see how it is going and make adjustments as needed.

If things don’t get better, or if you feel resistance to making changes, or if the person continues to complain about overwork you may be dealing with a person who doesn’t like the work in the first place. Spending their time doing something they don’t really enjoy would make anyone feel stressed and burned out. It is time to explore how the job itself is working for them.

• What do they like about their job?
• What don’t they like?
• Are there tasks they would rather be doing? Is that possible?
• When do they feel the most stress, and the least?
• How do they get along with other team members?

It is important to determine whether the job, in fact, is not a good fit for them.  If not, can they transfer to another department? Do they need to find a new position—one that makes them feel alive and excited? There is no shame in discovering that someone doesn’t really like what they were hired to do. When this occurs it can be time to assist them in making a graceful exit.

Finally, is your team the dumping ground for constant, seemingly urgent projects assigned from above?  When a team has no control over their assigned projects, and feel like they just get layered on top of one another, then it is time for you as the leader to step in and protect your team.

When your supervisor gives you yet another assignment, you need to find a way to ask about how she would like you to prioritize this project given all the other tasks your team is already working on. Negotiate a longer completion time. Ask for the budget to hire some temp help.

This is yet another time to be transparent with your team and let them know you are working to find a positive solution to another urgent project.

People feel stressed when they are overworked. They also feel stress when they have no control, or when they are bored.  As the leader, it is your job to work with each individual to find their ‘happy place’ if you can. If people refuse to be happy, that’s another issue!

Leadership: Asking for Feedback

As the leader, how are you supposed to know if what you are doing and how you are running the ship is working well and meeting the needs of the rest of the team members?  You ask them.

Feel free to ask for feedback of the group, and from each individual.  You can’t play favorites and only ask a few—include everyone in this practice. It’s interesting how sometimes it’s the Intern or the newest team member who has the most astute observations about how things are working!

When you are assembled in a team meeting, it is good from time to time to ask for feedback about:

• how they think the meetings are going
• how to improve the meeting agendas to get more accomplished
• how to better prioritize activities and work projects
• what could make the office space more comfortable
• basically, anything that involves them as a group.

When meeting one on one (which you should be doing regularly!), ask for feedback about them as individuals:

• Do they have any feedback for you and how you are leading the team?
• What could you do to better support them in their responsibilities so they can be more successful?
• Do they have any observations about what could improve within the team?
• What do they think could improve the overall team’s success?
• Do they have any observations in general about how you or the team are doing?

When you ask these questions of your team members on a regular basis they will begin to think about how to answer them, and know that they will have an opportunity to provide direct feedback to you about how their job is working for them, and about how you are leading them.

This is a great way to keep tabs on how each team member is feeling about their job and how much stress they are feeling and what that stress is about.  Because you can’t fix something g if you don’t know about it.

Asking for feedback requires trust.

You need to have enough trust in your team members to believe they will not skewer you if you ask for feedback.  If you ask in a respectful way and expect respectful honesty in return you are likely to get it.

On the other hand, they have to trust that if they are respectfully honest, that you a) won’t come unhinged or freak out; and b) that you won’t become angry and find a way to punish them later.

One way to do that is to explain the following:

1. You want to have their honest opinion;
2. You will keep their comments confidential (and you MUST);
3. You won’t be upset with them;
4. You will try to begin to address their concerns, but don’t promise any particular outcomes.

And finally, it is up to you to be prepared to hear some possible not-so-good things about yourself and how the team is doing, and to not lose your cool if you don’t agree. Be respectfully clear, however, if they cross a line into personal insults or criticisms about you or other team members.

Simply thank them for their observations and promise that you will think about them, consider them, and continue to work to make the work environment work for everyone.

And do just that. Then repeat.  Regular feedback is one of the most important things you can do as a leader to ensure that you are creating a positive work environment for everyone.

Leaders Take Action

Leaders take action.

We all know the sayings: “The road to hell is paved with good intentions”, and “You are measured by what you do, not what you say you will do”, and many other that illustrate that accomplishing something is what leadership is all about.

It’s a lot like exercise–it is easy to sit at our desks or meet with our team and talk about getting things done or think about getting things done. It is much more difficult to actually get it done.

 

 

There is nothing more discouraging to a team member than to have the leader say they will do something, then not follow through.  It sets a bad example for the team, who then can begin to believe they don’t need to follow through on their responsibilities either.

Even worse and more discouraging, is when the leader seldom follows through, yet expects the team members to jump on things and get them done quickly.

Leaders are successful when they and their teams accomplish their goals.  That occurs when everyone is accountable for their job and they hold each other accountable. The leader sets the tone and example.  When leaders jump in and start making phone calls, sending out emails, scheduling meetings and reporting about what they have accomplished, that is the example set for the team. Over time that becomes the culture for the entire team—people know they are expected to follow through with what they agree to do.  No wasting time on this team!!

It is so easy to say to yourself “I will put that on the list for tomorrow”.

But, successful leaders don’t waste time or put off doing something they could get done right now:

• They make the phone call right in the meeting.
• They send the email right then.
• They set up the meeting so the pressing decision can be made as soon as possible or the discussion can be had with the right people in the room.
• They write that article by the end of the day.
• They have the discipline to get their list done first thing in the morning.

They do these things for three reasons.

• First, to actually move their projects forward.
• Second, because when they get their ‘to-dos’ done they are then able to hold their team members accountable when they don’t.
• Third, they know that success comes to those who get things done.

Leaders are accountable to their team and to themselves. Set the right example and get moving!

In Leadership Communication Counts

In leadership, communication counts.  The words you use, how often you talk and how much you say counts.

As a leader, your words have a lasting positive or negative effect on those you lead.  They illustrate who you really are, how much you really care, and whether or not you truly respect those around you.

It is your job to observe yourself and your communication patterns. Ask and fully receive honest feedback from others.  Ask for help in making changes in your communication patterns.

There is no bigger responsibility for any leader than to learn how to communicate positively, appropriately, and respectfully.  It is how you bring out the best in your team, it is how you help your team improve their productivity, it is how you increase engagement.

1. Do you acknowledge people? Do you take moment to cheerfully acknowledge members of your team and sincerely connect with them on a human level? A few words of greeting and brief conversation tells people they are a priority to you.
2. Does your language calm people in times of stress, or do they escalate the situation? “Why did you let this happen??” sets a very different tone than “Let’s sit down and figure out what our options are.”  One is a blaming tone and the other conveys that you can work together to figure out how to move forward.
3. Do you extreme words like ‘terrible’ or ‘complete waste of time’? Extreme words not only close off options for how to move forward, they also are very discouraging to those who hear them.  Rather, chose words that open conversation and possibilities, such as ‘that sounds like a challenging situation’ or ‘I wonder if there is a possibly more effective uses of our time’.
4. In conversations, when a concern or situation is brought up, do you jump right in with an answer? If so, consider that you may be shutting down the creativity of your team for solving their own problems.  And, in always having the right answer, you are also likely not listening as fully as you could or should.
5. How often do you ask questions? Getting input from others shows respect for their point of view and their professional opinion. You don’t always have to be right.
6. When you ask questions are you able to be quiet and actually listen to the answers? Asking questions is only helpful when you can be patient and listen to ideas that might be different from yours.  Jumping in and not letting the other person provide a complete answer is very disrespectful.
7. In fact, interrupting is completely disrespectful period. As a leader, you will never know (because no one will tell you) how annoying it is when you constantly interrupt, but there is no quicker way to shut people down and discourage them from talking.
8. Do you spend much of your time with others talking? I have sat through hundreds of meetings when one person monopolizes the entire allotted time without ever including others in the room.  At the end, you may feel like you had a successful meeting, but I can promise, everyone walking out of the room is frustrated and wish they could have spent their time elsewhere.
9. Do you ‘joke’ in ways that are hurtful or put others down? If you ever have to think twice about whether or not to say something, don’t say it. Remember, once something is said you can never take it back.

The negative communication patterns illustrated here (and hundreds of others) can make or break you as a leader.  It impacts your stress level every day, and it completely dominates how your team feels about coming to work every day and how they feel going home.

As a leader, you don’t want your lasting effect to be a negative one simply because you aren’t careful about how you communicate.

Simplify Decision Making

Making decisions is the bane of any leader’s existence.  Large or small, making decisions is what takes up a huge amount of a leader’s energy.

Who takes the lead on a new project?  Who cleans the kitchen this week?  Do we buy a standing desk for the receptionist?  Should we buy a new piece of equipment?  Who gets to go to this year’s conference?  The list goes on and on.

Any  sensitive leader knows that each decision made impacts the team—some might think it is unfair, or the decision favors another team member, or it doesn’t get them the piece of equipment they think they need. Maybe the investment in the new equipment won’t pay off and you will lose money. Each decision is fraught with danger.

As the leader, having the responsibility to make decisions is why you get the big bucks.

Decision making requires judgment, and the ability to weigh the costs and benefits of that decision on competing priorities and various people. No small task.

Here are a few ways to make decision making a bit easier:

1. Involve the team. Have the team help define the issue and also develop possible solutions. Eliminate those that are unacceptable for any reason, then gain consensus on the final solution. This works when the decision made impacts each individual in the group, such as determining who cleans the kitchen, or whether that new software would actually be used.
2. Know exactly what you are trying to accomplish. There are millions of ways to accomplish your goal, but you have to know what the goal is.  Articulate the goal, then brainstorm with the team lots of ways to get there.  For example, if you are planning the annual team retreat and need to decide what to do and where to go, determine whether you need to focus more on team building, or strategic planning. Do you want to leave the retreat with a concrete plan for the coming year?  Then perhaps planning a volunteer project for the retreat isn’t the best use of time. Instead, opt for the remote location with lots of white boards and not many distractions.
3. Create systems. By creating routines and systems you can eliminate numerous decisions.  Set up a plan for how often to replace equipment.  Create a revolving schedule for who goes to the conference each year.  Provide a certain amount each year per employee and let each person decide whether to spend it on that standing desk or on professional development, or their new laptop.  Create a revolving schedule for planning team meetings. Do whatever you can do to automate decisions.
4. Set up criteria about how to make decisions. Decide, for example, to only purchase a new piece of equipment if you can get a return on your investment in less than three years.  Or, that you will only incur a predetermined debt ratio, or that you only purchase supplies from local vendors.  While criteria don’t make the decision for you, it makes the decision process easier.

By managing and simplifying the decisions you need to make on a daily basis you will free up mental and even physical energy to devote to other aspects of your business.  You will be happier on a daily basis, and you will likely have a happier team

Leadership is an Active Sport

I once worked in a company where one boss spent most of his time behind a closed door. Not meeting with people, just by himself in his office. Doing what??  We didn’t really know.

While he was in his office, there was all kinds of dysfunction that occurred among his team.  Alliances were formed, work wasn’t getting done and no one was being held accountable, team members were yelling at each other and competing for his limited attention. This team, in its inaction, caused warnings for the company from federal regulators.  It was pretty awful to watch.  It wasn’t a surprise to watch the reputation of that department plummet throughout the company.

Don’t be this leader!

Your job, as the leader, is to work with the team to outline the vision of what needs to be accomplished, clarify who is going to do what, by when. And then dig in with your team to facilitate that process.

• Make sure the team has the right tools. Is there a software program that will simplify the task? Is training needed in a new technology or process?  Does your space facilitate the necessary sharing of information?  Whatever it is, do what you can to make sure the foundational tools are in place.
• Talk over progress with the team. Know when steps toward the goal are accomplished. It is also critical to know if steps aren’t getting done in a timely way so issues can be resolved and so that the next steps won’t be delayed.
• Remove barriers. Is another department failing to collaborate? Work with them to get them on board.  Is communication falling by the wayside? Schedule and facilitate effective, productive meetings. Your job is to remove barriers to success.
• Resolve conflicts that arise. It is natural for members of a team to have different ideas of how to accomplish something.  If these differences turn into conflict, you must address and resolve it. You may have to make a decision about how to proceed, but don’t avoid addressing conflicts—deal with them as soon as you know they exist and before the situation escalates.
• Be your team’s cheerleader. Let others know how great things are going. Talk your team up to leadership.  Celebrate progress with your team regularly and make sure they know you appreciate their efforts. Highlight them on social media, share photos in the newsletter.
• Ask team members for feedback about the process. What is working for each of them? What is getting in the way?  What is driving them crazy?  How could this process go a little better? As the leader, it is important to know and resolve what you can so the process goes more smoothly.
• Add positive energy to the process. Creating a strong team and making the process fun is key. Order lunch in. Show funny movie clips during a meeting. Plan a happy hour. Bring chocolate. Cheer, clap, hoot and holler when things are going well.

As the leader, you set the tone. Make it a good one. Hiding your head in the sand and hoping things go well, like the leader who spent all his time behind a closed door, doesn’t ever work.

The Three Keys to Leadership

From my perspective, there are three basic parts to leadership—character, vision, execution of the vision.  The important thing to know is that all three need to be in place to be an outstanding leader.

Character is who you are as a person. Are you honest, do you have integrity, are you reliable and trustworthy? Do you care about your people and work on their behalf? This is the being of leadership.

Vision is being able to see and communicate where your team needs to go to accomplish its purpose. It also can be about how the team goes about accomplishing its purpose.

Execution of the vision is leading the team to the vision—dealing with issues as they come up, resolving conflicts, checking in, providing feedback, problem solving, leading meetings and holding people accountable. This also involves having the technical expertise to guide others. This is the actual doing of leadership.

I know that leadership is hard, and each of these aspects of it is very complex, but bear with me as I try to keep it somewhat simple.

All three of these basic parts must be in place and done well to be an outstanding leader.

I know a leader who had a terrific vision. He worked hard to sell his stakeholders and staff on this vision.  They started working toward the vision, but he didn’t have the skill to execute the vision—it got muddled in the day to day execution as his priorities changed frequently and he rewarded staff activities that led to varying goals.  Things really fell apart when, under pressure, he began lying to certain staff members about what he had other staff working on.  Trust fell apart and mass staff exodus occurred.

In this situation, he started well with trust by the staff, but his execution fell apart and then his true character emerged.

Another leader had a strong vision of creating a high quality organization with a world class reputation, and had good people and the right structures in place to execute on that vision. Unfortunately, even though she thought she exhibited a strong trustworthy character, on a day to day basis she did not show the personal courage or integrity to inspire trust.  Her leadership team would roll their eyes when she tried to execute on the vision because they knew that within 24 hours she would again let the team down and prove herself unworthy of trust.

In spite of the goal of having a quality product and organization, what existed was a toxic environment when all people did was protect themselves.

Yet another leader had a sterling character—no one doubted it. She also had a good vision of where the organization needed to go. Unfortunately, she struggled each day to execute.  There was little follow through on promises or activities, accountability was extremely weak, and little communication existed among team members.  Team meetings were lackadaisical and wandered from topic to topic. Her leadership team felt discouraged and unvalued as she paid little attention to their work.

Deadlines and opportunities came and went as this leader exhibited little focus on execution.

This is why thought leaders talk about leadership being difficult. The leader really needs to be firing on all three cylinders, constantly striving to do better, constant working on his or her own issues, constantly checking in with staff to inspire them towards success, constantly holding and communicating their vision.