Dear Santa,

I have been a good employee all year and wish that you could help my manager bring me the following gifts this season. They would help me become happier and more productive next year.

1. Give me the gift of clear expectations – help my manager become more clear in what he or she expects of me. I am tired of guessing the expectations and getting limited direction.
2. Give me the gift of regular feedback – rather than wait until my performance review, I wish my manager would give me feedback regularly – daily, weekly and monthly. If he or she gave me regular feedback on what I was doing well or needed to improve, I would do my best to improve.
3. Give me the gift of feeling part of the team – like everyone else I have the need to belong and feel part of the team. Help my manager build a stronger team by treating people fairly, not playing favorites and not talking about people behind their backs.
4. Give me the gift of better communication – help my manager keep me better informed about what is going on. If communication is so important, why does my manager do so little of it? Sure they are busy – typically doing things that we the employees could do if only they would delegate and stop trying to make every decision themselves.
5. Give me the gift of praise and recognition – it’s natural to find faults but please help my manager notice all the good things we are doing and tell us about them more often. We will be more likely to repeat the good things if they are mentioned to us more often. On the other hand when our manager focuses on the negative, we tend to give him more of that. Human behavior is funny, eh Santa?
6. Give me the gift of a challenge to grow my talent – My manager finds it easier to keep giving the same assignments to the same people. He thinks it makes his job easier but it really hurts our flexibility and we want something new to do every once in a while. One of the reasons I will stay in my job is because I can learn something new.
7. Give me the gift of training (and train my boss too!) – Show me I am important by investing in me to do my job better. My manager could benefit from some training too – making my wishes come true. I think even my manager’s manager needs some training because my boss behaves the way his boss expects. In fact most of the behaviors my boss wants to change come all the way from the top!

I will remember to leave out the milk and cookies!

I probably shouldn’t have been thinking about business when I was supposed to be enjoying a meal out with my wife and daughter. We headed down to the closest location of a national italian restaurant chain. Based on previous experiences, it wasn’t my first choice.

I should have trusted my gut. The men’s washroom was littered with paper towel, the service was slow and the staff were frazzled. This wasn’t an isolated incident; previous visits had exposed similar poor performance.

Another location in the same chain had a totally different feel. Staff were happy, service was fast and as customers we were happy. While I didn’t have actual data, one outlet certainly looked busier than the other.

How can it be that two locations of the same chain in different cities could have such a different customer experience? Sites are selected using strict criteria and there are standard operating procedures. So what would explain the difference? Leadership.

In our experience a weak manager or supervisor will cause differences in profitability, sales, costs, cleanliness, morale and turnover. This variation doesn’t just show up in restaurants. It applies to retail stores, factories, production lines and engineering groups.

What leadership behaviors lead to these variations in performance?

1. Expectations: A weak manager doesn’t make his or her expectations known clearly to all staff. Without clear standards, performance tends to drop to the bare minimum.
2. Hiring: A manager will contribute to his or her own demise be being less selective in hiring decisions, poor interviewing skills and deviating from standard procedures and guidelines.
3. Training: Weak managers will either omit training or delegate training to staff members who are not qualified to teach the company system.
4. Monitoring: Managers need to personally observe performance and make sure staff are doing what is expected, correct unacceptable performance and provide encouragement.
5. Communication: Weak managers spend less time speaking with staff one on one and in team meetings.

A new business season is upon us and with it comes some old challenges and some new ones. Here are three action steps to achieve a strong finish in 2009 and set your organization up for a great year in 2010.

1. Get a Recovery and Growth Mindset

Now is the time for you and your team to shift thinking from defense to offense. As the recession begins to fade there are tremendous opportunities to grow your business. The challenge is to recognize the opportunities and then take action to exploit the potential.

2. Upgrade Your Mental Software

When was the last time you invested in growing the knowledge, skills and capabilities of yourself and the team around you? Is your team trying to achieve success in 2010 with a 2004 mindset? If your organization isn’t changing as rapidly as the environment around it then you might want to upgrade capabilities with training, coaching or consulting aimed at the areas of greatest need.

3. Lead

The root cause of both success and failure is leadership. If your team isn’t up to the challenge it may be them or it may be the leader. Develop a clear idea in your mind on what you want to achieve and then ask the team how they can make it happen. Challenge is a top motivator so get your team reenergized by focusing on a big goal that they can sink their teeth into.

If we can help your organization reenergize and refocus, please connect with us for a complimentary consultation.

With business demands and the amount of information increasing, it is tempting for managers to hunker down and spend most of their attention on tasks – dealing with customer/supplier issues, operational issues, answering email, endless meetings and the never ending to-do list.

By spending so much time on tasks, the leader tends to spend less time on the people side of their job. The people side includes explaining expectations, delegating, communicating face to face, providing coaching, training staff, giving performance feedback, and challenging, correcting and recognizing employees.

In the short term, focusing on tasks gets things done. Think of how much you get done on the day before leaving for vacation. In the medium to long term, the task-focused manager creates even more work for themselves because they allow the team to wither and become demotivated. This causes a drop in productivity and results begin to wane. It becomes a death spiral when the manager puts even more emphasis on tasks, hoping to turn things around.

Tips to Get a Better Balance Between Tasks and People

1. Monitor Where You Spend Your Time

For one week, take an inventory of your time usage. As you complete a task, deal with an issue or attend a meeting, ask yourself if someone else on your team could do that task if you were to delegate and coach them. Ask yourself if the task requires your personal attention or could be completed by someone else at a lower cost allowing you to focus on higher value tasks. Ask yourself if your time is being absorbed by activities caused because you did not spend enough time communicating expectations, training staff or addressing a problem sooner.

2. Grow the Capability and Capacity of Your Team

Take the tasks and opportunities you identified in step one and determine how to get your team to take ownership of that task. It may be a simple matter of asking an individual to take on the task, or it may require some clarification of expectations and coaching. View this time as an investment that will pay dividends when you no longer have to take valuable time to do it yourself.

3. Redirect Your Efforts

Without as many tasks competing for your attention, use your new found time to plan, set goals and develop people for the medium and long term. Be known as a developer of people and you will quickly rise to higher levels of leadership responsibility.

Spending more time on the people side of the leadership equation will raise business performance and get more accomplished with less stress and aggravation.

Accountability becomes mission-critical in challenging times. We need everyone in our organization to take ownership of results and make things happen. Creating an environment of accountability rests with management. Based on our 22 years of experience in organizational development and leadership training, we have discovered that managers systematically remove accountability. As a result the manager themselves ends up shouldering all the responsibility and stress.

A lack of accountability in your organization causes the following problems:

• reduced profitability
• poor customer service
• silos and lack of cooperation between departments
• projects that fail to create intended results
• lack of personal growth for employees
• added stress and frustration for the manager

Cascading accountability

The manager is always accountable. The key leadership skill is to transfer portions of this accountability to individuals in the workgroup. If accountability is not transferred, then employees will potentially put the manager in jeopardy by not keeping their commitments. The manager then has to continually chase people to get things done, or take care of it themselves. Either way, the productivity and value created by the department will be below potential.

We crave accountability and we are afraid of it at the same time

Employees crave accountability because it creates a sense of accomplishment. They can take pride in owning the success that comes with the achievement. At the same time, employees are afraid that the punishment for not meeting objectives will be more severe than the possible praise that comes with a job well done. Managers can counteract this by shifting emphasis from catching mistakes to celebrating achievement. Once employees let go of the fear, they can step forward and create better results.

Micromanaging does not create accountability

Accountability comes when the manager makes it clear what the expected outcomes are and the boundaries and then lets the employees take ownership over how they achieve the outcomes. A manager may think that assigning job tasks is enough to create accountability. If the manager assigns a task and dictates how it must be done, then the accountability remains with the manager. If instead the manager describes the desired outcome and then gives employees the freedom to achieve the outcome using their own talents, the employee can be held accountable for results.

Accountability requires measurement, follow-up and consequences

Scorekeeping is a powerful way to have employees show one another and their manager whether they are achieving objectives. The scoreboard must be simple enough and visual enough that everyone can tell at a glance whether they are winning or losing. Public scorekeeping also taps into peer pressure. Most people do not want to let others down. Having peers able to see the performance of others gives each person the motivation to succeed and be part of the team.

Steps to Creating Greater Accountability

1. Be clear about the end results – customer satisfaction, elimination of wasted effort, safety, housekeeping and expense control.
2. Ask each employee on your team what they can do to help improve and positively impact the end results.
3. Avoid diluting the accountability – do not take back ownership of the task when the employee finds it difficult. Let them grow through the experience.
4. Track progress and allow the team to take credit for achieving the results.
5. Identify, correct and potentially weed out the team members who are not capable or motivated to achieve results.

Do you or the leaders in your organization need help creating a positive, accountable work climate? Check out the solutions at www.UniqueDevelopment.com

Have you experienced the situation where you think you have been clear in communicating what you want and need, only to be disappointed and frustrated when others do not buy in enthusiastically? Even the most thought-out, logical arguments might create unexpected resistance. 

That’s exactly why Dr. Peter DeShane and I collaborated to create a brand new 8 CD and one DVD self-study program called Persuasive and Influential Leadership. Based on the successful live workshop, this self-paced program covers the advanced communication skills you need to get others to do what you need to get done, willingly. 

The program is based on the science of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) which studies the link between how you think and how you communicate.
 
Key Benefits 

• Achieve greater results in less time with less resistance.- Help others adapt to change more easily.
• Get ready for promotion because you are able to get things done through others.
• Reduce conflict by positioning your information to be acceptable to everyone.

 

What the Program Covers: 

• The influence of existing habits both for you and the people around you.
• How to build instant rapport with almost anyone, including people who you don’t naturally click with.
• The science of resistance – why people resist even when they acknowledge the need to change. How to position information so that people think of it as their idea and are more committed.
• Why logic often fails to persuade and how to position information in a way that others can accept both logically and emotionally.
• Why people are naturally programmed to resist change because it causes a disruption to habits – and how to get them to buy in more readily.
• Three main ways people process information and how to identify and adapt to their dominant processing style.
• How to adapt to people who speak much faster than you do, or who speak much slower than you do.
• The power of stories – how to craft your key messages into powerful stories that help people relate to your message on a personal level.
• Using email more effectively to build rapport electronically.
• Using specific words that are proven to create greater commitment by others to do what you want.
• How to overcome obstacles that keep people from moving ahead.
• and much more.

Edutainment 

The program is delivered in an entertaining and engaging way. You will enjoy the conversational style that Greg and Peter use. It will be as if they are sitting with you one on one. You will want to listen to the content again and again to master the skills of influence. 

What is Included 

1. Four audio CD’s covering the core course concepts.
2. A comprehensive workbook that reinforces the key course concepts.
3. An application CD on How to Deal with Difficult People
4. An application CD on how technical roles can communicate with non-technical people.
5. An application CD on Sales. How to get customer buy in more quickly and easily.
6. An application CD for Human Resource Professionals to keep the organization moving forward with positive employee relations practices.
7. A one-hour DVD that demonstrates the course material visually so you can grasp and use the program more easily.

 

Four Application CD’s 

Recognizing that different professions and situations can require different approaches we have recorded four application CD’s that take the core program concepts and focus them on these areas: 

1. Dealing With Difficult People – Once you learn why people are difficult you can alter your approach to get them to buy in more easily. Imagine taking a person who always is oppositional and turning them into your biggest supporter! Less resistance means less stress on you plus the ability to get more done.
2. Technical Professions – Information technology, engineers and other technical roles can struggle with communicating complex information to other areas of the organization. In this application CD we present a systematic approach to presenting technical solutions in a framework that others can support with enthusiasm. Greater buy-in will move projects along faster and get necessary support to new projects.
3. Sales – Sales professionals and others who deal with customers as part of their role will benefit from this application CD that specifically addresses how to get customers to buy into your proposal and how to really determine the level of interest your customer has in your solution. Get customer buy in more easily in order to grow sales.
4. HR – HR professionals often face two challenges. First they need to convince other managers to treat employees with respect and secondly they often have to mediate employee requests and concerns while reinforcing company policy. This application CD gives HR professionals the skills they need to get buy-in more quickly and help the organization achieve success.

 

A DVD shows you how: 

A one hour DVD provides a visual demonstration of the key concepts which will help you grasp the information more quickly and easily. The DVD was produced into a one-hour cable television special and has earned top reviews. 

The investment: 

The entire program is US$339.95. FREE SHIPPING  

Guarantee: We are acredited with the Better Business Bureau so you can rest easy that we will fully refund your purchase price if you are unhappy with the program for any reason within six months of purchase. Simply return it to us and your refund will be processed immediately. 

Order the Program today: 

One time payment of US$339.95 plus Goods and Services Tax 5%.

Call us toll free at 1-866-700-9043 or email info@uniquedevelopment.com 

If you missed our live seminar and webinar, now is your opportunity to purchase the recorded version of the one-hour webinar. Watch it personally or get your team together and watch as a group.

Click here to preview the program video and purchase it now.

This presentation covers the following information designed to help you boost your sales in a difficult economic environment:

After many months of discussion and pleading from my daughter, our family decided to adopt a dog from an animal rescue. Dundee is a cross between a shih tzo and a poodle (a.k.a. a ‘mutt’) and in the past three weeks he has captured our hearts and settled into our family.

Not having owned a dog before, we did some research and discovered an excellent book by John Ross and Barbara McKinney called Adoptable Dog: Teaching Your Adopted Pet To Obey, Trust and Love You. As a leadership trainer and coach, I am called on to teach managers and supervisors how to shift their leadership style to achieve greater success. Often the individuals being trained have been in the position for a while and have some bad leadership habits that need to be replaced with constructive techniques. In reading Ross and McKinney’s book I couldn’t help but notice some similarities between managing the behavior of a dog and managing employee behavior.

What Leaders Can Learn From Dog Behavior

1. Communicate So They Understand: Ross and McKinney say that it’s easier to get your dog to do what you want when you learn to speak dog. That means a deep growl to show displeasure and a high friendly pitch to show pleasure. We’re not suggesting that leaders growl to show displeasure, although I have met a few aggressive managers who have come close! We want to communicate with words and tone that gets the message across clearly to employees. Get rid of the corporate speak mumbo jumbo and talk in plain language.
2. Correction and Praise Needs to Come Immediately: Conventional dog training would say if you come home to discover that Rover left you a present on your carpet, you should bring him over and rub his nose in it so he knows not to do it again. Unfortunately Rover doesn’t link the punishment with the crime. Instead Ross and McKinney say to offer immediate feedback (and they mean immediate) so the dog understands the difference between right and wrong. Similarly some managers and supervisors wait too long to express their displeasure with employees who are not performing; the behavior continues, the manager gets more frustrated and often the employee is oblivious. Similarly immediate praise for a job well done helps increase the probability of repeating the success. Even though Dundee was 18 months old when we brought him home, he was not housebroken. By watching him closely and catching him before the act, we got him outside and gave lots of praise when he “did his business”. There have been no accidents since his fourth day in our home.
3. Structure and Routine is Important: As pack animals, dogs like structure and discipline. Employees also appreciate knowing what’s expected and enjoy a degree of predictability. Even in a rapidly changing environment, create structure to allow employees to perform to expectations.
4. Learning Through Repetition: Breaking an 18-month old dog of bad habits can take as long as he’s been alive. We were lucky to solve the housebreaking issue so quickly. Teaching the basics of sit, stay, lie down and come are more challenging with an older dog than a puppy. Using a combination of compelling the behaviour, and inducing the behavior is the best strategy for success. For “sit” that means lifting the collar at the same time as pushing down the back side, and using a treat as a reward. Similarly employees need to be trained to do what you want (likely more than once) and they need to be praised for doing a good job.
5. Fitting In Is Important: Dogs are pack animals and they will jockey for position within the family just as they do with their litter mates as puppies. In our home Dundee finds it easy to dominate my 11-year-old daughter with her higher pitched voice, but he is leery of my 15 year old son (perhaps the shaggy hair throws him off!). Showing the dog who’s boss means making sure he knows that he is not the pack leader. One of the prime motivators for employees is the desire to be part of the team. Employees tend to establish their position on the team including the troublemakers who decide their role is to aggravate the boss and humor co-workers. Help employees feel part of the team by keeping them informed, not playing favorites and not talking behind people’s backs. Help troublemakers find a constructive role in the team by building on their strengths.

Even though human beings are higher-order mammals, we share many behavioral traits with our canine cousins. Leaders who consistently apply fundamental leadership principles will enjoy success.

We’re noticing that during the recession, many companies and their leaders are in a funk. Business isn’t as fun as it was in the early days and results aren’t what they were in the good times. So we’ve designed a new workshop and there is the potential for 100% government funding (more on that at the end of this article).

Innovative companies can lose their edge, especially after successfully commercializing their technology. Perhaps the owners and those involved in the start-up have lost the energy and enthusiasm they had in the exciting start-up phase.

It is time to break out of your complacency and regain the mojo that made your organization successful. To help you out, we have created a brand new training program that can be delivered first to your management team and then rolled out to other departments in your company to get the whole organization thinking about innovation.

In this session, your managers will be able to:

• Identify high probability growth areas in the business based on new and existing technologies;
• Identify and eliminate the barriers that prevent the organization from being more innovative;
• Develop a new vision that can carry the organization forward towards a higher level of success;
• Develop a skill set to tap into the creativity and possibility that exists within the company;
• Communicate the new direction clearly and repetitively to create buy in;
• Set up a system to green-light new ideas and maintain momentum.

Key Workshop Elements

1. Innovation inventory: A look back at what made the company successful in its earlier innovative days. How innovation was fostered so that the company grew.
2. Innovation roadblocks: Identifying some of the obstacles and barriers that have prevented further innovation in the company; including organizational systems, silos, negative thinking, and more. Strategize to eliminate or minimize the obstacles to let ideas and opportunities flow.
3. Innovation opportunities: Where the greatest opportunities exist to grow the business based on extensions of existing opportunities or the application of basic technology.
4. Customer consultation: How to identify customer problems that need to be solved and have a high value perception to the customer.
5. Employee involvement: How to cultivate ideas and opportunities from the staff who service customers.
6. Competitive activity: Analyzing competitor behaviour to uncover opportunities for growth.
7. Reinvigorating the Innovation Culture: Ensuring that the company systems and processes support the generation and implementation of business growth:
   - Employee development – Succession Planning
   - Reward and recognition
   - Recruitment and selection
   - Communication
   - Leadership
8. Setting the Action Plan: Creating a plan of action to implement the innovation process within the organization.

Potential for 100% Government Funding up to $50,000

The Province of Ontario, Canada has created a new program to help companies regain their innovative edge. The Yves Landry Foundation in conjunction with the Province of Ontario will pay up to $50,000 to cover the direct and indirect costs of training to give your company a competitive edge. Like most government programs, this is a first come, first served – when the money is all gone you are out of luck. Up to 100% of direct costs (trainer fees, workbooks, meeting room) and 50% of indirect costs (wages of attendees) can be covered. Get more information at http://www.yveslandryfoundation.com/ Chances are a similar program may exist in your state or province.

We invite you to call or email about how to get your organization’s innovation mojo back. We can help you tap into potential government funding.