It is common, especially when employees are promoted into a management or supervisory position, they often have trouble with the transition from being a buddy to being a boss.

Q: Do they become too soft on people, or too tough?

A: It can be both, some let the promotion go to their head and get all bossy and others go easy on people hoping that they will be liked.

The too-tough boss, pulls the “I’m the boss and you’ll do what I say” routine which is destructive. The previous co-workers often turn on this style of boss, hide stuff from him or her or even try to make the boss look bad. This of course causes stress for the boss and reduces productivity.

The “I’m still your buddy” boss often tries to make everyone happy. They don’t ask much of the employees and often do a lot of the work themselves. The employees then resent the fact that the boss doesn’t expect much and won’t address performance problems. They lose respect for the boss and productivity goes down.

Q: So what do you suggest?

A: My recommendation is first – for the company to be sure they have selected someone with leadership potential, interest and aptitude. Then it is important to give the new leader some leadership training so they can learn some of the basics – like the importance of taking a personal interest in the people you manage and also challenging them to grow. Delegating work and following up to make sure it got done. How to give praise for a job well done and confront and correct an employee when they are off track.

For more info, go to LeadershipWizard.com.

Be sure to join us this Thursday for the Exceptional Leadership Seminar and learn how to be the type of leader that people want to follow.Register at LeadershipWizard.com or call Greg at 1-866-700-9043.
http://www.leadershipwizard.com/seminar.htm

One thing that differentiates leaders from everyone else is their ability to look beyond today’s challenges and set a positive tone for future success. This is not just putting a positive spin on gloomy news – this is seeing the possibility of future success and leading people there.

Windsor has seen its share of ups and downs related to the auto industry, and Windsor has many strengths in terms of skilled workers and manufacturing know how.

There are approximately 100,000 people in the workforce in and around Windsor and even with a 9.7% unemployment rate, there are still 90,300 people earning a living. These people are customers for businesses, so if you own or manage a business, you need to be motivating your staff to not only survive but thrive. In fact given that the normal unemployment rate is 6%, it means that we have about 3700 people not working currently who would like to be.

As leaders can you use challenging times to motivate your employees to do even more to succeed. It is normal for people to focus on the negative – a leader needs to look beyond the hood of the car and the potholes of today – towards the horizons of tomorrow.

It may be that because of business conditions, some other companies may need to downsize slightly. Many managers and business owners will acknowledge that scaling your business down should be done sooner rather than later. And while that may strike people as painful and uncaring, the business needs to survive in order to grow.

The key is vision and communication. The leader needs to point out that if the organization focuses on doing the little things well, it can achieve even greater success in the future.

Get your people together – acknowledge that things are tough and use it as a rallying point. For example if you are in the hospitality business, your team needs to bring joy to customers to distract them from the reality of life. And by being fun and positive, customers will be more attracted to your business.

If your business is going through tough times, then you will need to make some difficult decisions in the short term – take action and then focus the people you have left on getting more business, being creative and innovative.

Be sure to highlight every positive occurrance and celebrate every success.

For those managers who want to take on the challenges and become great leaders, they should join us at the Exceptional Leadership Seminar on March 1st at the Caboto Club. To register, use the link below or give me a call at 866-700-9043.
http://www.LeadershipWizard.com/seminar.htm

I had a listener ask me for some help on how she should ask for a raise at work. So I thought it would be good to tackle the issue of how to ask for a raise at work and also, as a manager, what to do when your employee asks for a raise.

Q: Should employees ask for a raise or wait until their boss offers one?

- There is a saying that you get what you ask for – so when it comes to asking for an increase, you should ask for it – respectfully and for a good reason – because you’re worth it!

Q: How should an employee ask for an increase?

- First of all, you have to convince yourself that you are worth it – so that means that you should feel that you have mastered what is asked of you at the job and that you are contributing significant value to your organization. You should look at how the organization is doing, and the circumstances. If the timing is right, and you can justify how much value you are adding, then decide how much you would be happy with and ask the boss?

- Always approach the manager with tact and professionalism. This is not a time to make ultimatums, orto whine and complain. Simply ask to meet because you want to discuss compensation. I suggest a two meeting approach. In your first meeting, raise the issue of compensation and that you would like to ask for an increase. Describe the reasons for getting an increase – what results have you generated, perhaps you are helping train new employees, perhaps you helped attract or retain a major customer or contributed ideas for cost savings. When asked how much, you can either say a specific number or percentage, or you can ask the manager to consider it and that you would like to meet again in two or three days.

In the second meeting, be prepared to negotiate. Ask the manager what amount they would consider. If it is acceptable, take it, If not say that you were expecting more and why. Be prepared to ask for a third meeting, or accept the increase as an interim, with a promise to review it again in the future. You can also ask what the manager would like you to do to justify a larger increase next time.

Q: What should the boss do when asked for a raise?

- The manager should listen to the employee. The manager can ask what has prompted the employee to ask for an increase. They can ask what specifically the employee has done to add value to the organization. The manager can ask what level of increase the employee would like. If the timing is bad for business reasons, the manager can decline an increase or give a partial increase and let the employee know what they should do to position themselves for a larger increase down the road.

- If the manager can approve an increase and the employee deserves it, then go ahead and approve it. If not, set a time to reconsider and the circumstances – then be prepared to follow up as agreed.

- If the employee is off base and does not deserve an increase, tell the employee what they need to do to earn more in the future. This is why regular performance discussions are helpful.

If you are a manager or a future leader be sure to register for the Exceptional Leadership Seminar in Windsor on March 1st from 9 AM to 3:30 PM.
http://www.leadershipwizard.com/seminar.htm

As we approach an employment market where some of our most talented and experienced workers will retire, it will become even more crucial to attract and retain talented staff. So how attractive does your company rate? Do your leaders live up to the promises made during the recruiting and hiring process? Let’s examine how leaders can become talent magnets for your organization.

Promises Made, Promises Broken?

Many larger organizations spend a great deal of time and money recruiting new employees. With fancy brochures, lists of benefits and promises of flexibility and advancement, there is often a setting of expectations during the hiring process that leads to a disappointing let down in the future. You can probably recall a time in your career when what you expected from your job or employer was different than what you actually experienced.

So when your organization gets ready to fight over scarce talented employees in the future, will your leaders be able to cash the check that your recruiters are writing?

How Some Managers Repel Talented Employees

- Not clearly communicating what is expected in a personal one on one conversation
- Not providing corrective feedback that would help the talented employee increase in value
- Not addressing performance issues with marginal or poor performers – which causes resentment for the talented employee who no longer respects their leader
- Not providing praise, encouragement and recognition of the achievements and success demonstrated by the talented employee
- Not communicating the information that employees need to know to perform their jobs to the highest possible level
- Not fighting for and justifying adequate resources so talented employees can maximize performance
- Not supporting teamwork by treating people inequitably and unfairly

How to Get Managers to Be Talent Magnets

Make sure that your managers are up to the task – It is likely no surprise that 10-20% of your managers and supervisors are not well suited to the position of leader. You know who they are and yet the organization puts up with their poor leadership behaviors. Get your senior leadership team together and do what the largest corporations do – sit around the table and talk about the people you entrust leadership to at the middle and front line of your organization.
Confront, correct, develop or terminate the marginal leaders. Swallow the severence costs knowing it it the right thing to do.

Make Managers Accountable for Their Leadership Behaviors – If your managers are only rewarded or promoted based on financial measures, it is quite likely that they will interpret the intent as, “Just get the numbers, no matter how you treat people!” Some progressive organizations have built into their performance management systems and reward systems, a way to identify managers who do not live the organization’s values and put talent management as one of their priorities. If a manager realizes that their job performance and bonus rests upon achieving business results while exhibiting leadership behaviours, they will adapt and change.

Take Succession Planning Seriously – Many organizations have identified succession planning as a significant need and yet have made little progress. One way to jump start the process is to make each manager accountable for developing at least two of their employees into candidates for their job. If the manager does not have two people capable of taking over their job, then the manager is penalized in terms of their performance review and bonus.

Develop Solid Leadership Behaviors – Call them competencies or other fancy names if you like. Basically, you need to spell out clearly what behaviors are considered acceptable and which are not. Then provide the opportunity to develop the missing skill set by scheduling some leadership development sessions.

Ask Your Employees – Your employees know the difference between an effective leader and an ineffective one. And while you might think that employees would favor an easy going boss over a tough task master, in truth most prefer a leader who sets ambitious goals, energizes the work group and empowers talented employees to take action.

Enrol in the Exceptional Leadership Seminar March 1st at the Caboto Club:
http://leadershipwizard.com/seminar.htm