Future Leadership
Developing executive talent is necessary to remain competitive.

By Marshall Goldsmith

The need for executive education is apparent. Key questions include: how can we learn from today’s best practitioners to understand the trends and challenges that will become the norm in the future? Are there "best" ways to develop current and future leaders? How will we pick our leaders? What process will transform managers into leaders ready for strategic action? Who will design, manage, and deliver world-class leadership programs? (read more...)

Jerk: Don't be One
Talented People Won't Work for a Jerk

By Bev Kaye

Talented people will leave any organization if they don’t like their boss—even if they’re well-paid, get recognized for their work, and have a chance to learn and grow. In fact, “disliking the boss” is one of the top reasons for talent loss. (read more...)

Rewarding Yourself

By Bob Nelson

I find the best managers today tend to be employee-focused, looking to help others succeed in their jobs. They know the power of positive reinforcement in working with others and recognizing and rewarding them for their efforts and results. (read more...)

Future Leadership (^ top)
Developing executive talent is necessary to remain competitive.

By Marshall Goldsmith

Leadership development is becoming closely aligned with and used to support corporate strategy. Issues such as globalization, decentralization, and the rapid pace of today’s marketplace have forced companies to evaluate the way they operate. Paradigms that have worked for years are no longer effective when an organization’s largest customer is thousands of miles away. Determining exactly how to turn these challenges into opportunities keeps many CEOs awake at night. Bold strategic initiatives are under way to revamp the way organizations do business while re-creating the workforce undertaking these efforts.

Best-practice organizations view the leadership development process as an increasing source of competitive advantage. If the leadership development process is to be an effective piece of the change process, it must be aligned with all strategic objectives. Leadership development initiatives have gone to great lengths to implement corporate strategy. Only by aligning their efforts will new leaders meet business challenges and global marketing constraints.

• Focus on core issues. Corporate leadership development will focus more leadership skills and on core issues such as values and strategic change vital to the entire organization, while business units focus on management skills and challenges specific to their operations.
• Focus on human resources development and business experience. Excellence in leadership development will involve teams that emphasize the importance of both human resources (HR) and business experience. At Arthur Andersen, Johnson & Johnson, and Shell International, the heads of the leadership development process have senior-level business experience. The presence of business leaders in these functions helps ensure buy-in from businesses and the practicality of programs.
• Focus on internal and external factors. Leadership development efforts should be internally focused and externally aware. New business demands dictate the need for change but do not provide a framework for how to create the change. Whether started by the CEO, or bubbling up, the focus on building the skills of current and future leaders surfaces as a potential enabler of change. Creating a process to build leadership skills, abilities, and techniques has pushed leaders to look internally and externally for answers.

For the leadership development process to enable change, it must fit the culture. Those designing the leadership process can ensure this linkage by soliciting the input of customers.   LE

Robert M. Fulmer is a professor of Business Administration, College of William and Mary.

Marshall Goldsmith is the founding director of the Alliance for Strategic Leadership, and authority on helping leaders achieve positive change. marshall@gcnet.com. www.marshallgoldsmith.com.

Jerk: Don't be One (^ top)
Talented People Won't Work for a Jerk

By Bev Kaye

Talented people will leave any organization if they don’t like their boss—even if they’re well-paid, get recognized for their work, and have a chance to learn and grow. In fact, “disliking the boss” is one of the top reasons for talent loss.

It is dangerous to label some people as jerks and let others off the hook. The truth is most of us occasionally exhibit jerk-like behaviors. The key is to assess which behaviors you exhibit and how often and then try to change for the better. Why? To keep your talented people, for starters.

 Who’s a Jerk?

We asked dozens of people, “What do jerks act like or look like?” Then, we created a checklist. Do you dare to score yourself? If so, use a 0-to-5 scale for the behaviors listed below. Zero means you never act this way and five means you often act this way.

Interpretation Guidelines

(0-20) While you may have a bad day now and then, you are most likely not viewed as a jerk. Watch for those behaviors on which you scored higher than three and ask for feedback from your employees on a regular basis.

(20-60) You are more than likely viewed as a jerk by some, at least in some situations. Commit to working on three to five of the behaviors from this list and move on to others when you’re ready. Hopefully, you’ll keep your best people as you continue to improve.

(60 or more) You are at high risk for losing your best people, if not all your people. Seek feedback from others and consider getting a coach.

If you checked none of the behaviors on the checklist, you’re either a saint or have a few blind spots. In other words, most of us do exhibit jerk-like behaviors, some of the time. The question is how many and how often ? And how are they affecting the people who report to you? Are they thinking of leaving you because of them?Jerk-like behaviors are so damaging that even one or two can negate all of your other strengths as a boss.

TO DO:

•  Get honest feedback -- you need a clear picture of how you look to others – by asking your friends at work to look at the checklist with you. If you don't have any friends, that may be a clue!
• Ask, “So what?” Think about the implications of your behaviors. Are they getting in the way of your effectiveness? Causing good people to leave?
• If you decide to change, seek help from others. Get a coach or counselor, and ask people to monitor your behavior and give you feedback as you attempt to change.

 Bottom Line

If you believe (or find out) that you often exhibit jerk-like behaviors, decide to change. Changing jerk-like behaviors may be the most important action you can take to keep the talent on your team.

Rewarding Yourself(^ top)

By Bob Nelson

I find the best managers today tend to be employee-focused, looking to help others succeed in their jobs. They know the power of positive reinforcement in working with others and recognizing and rewarding them for their efforts and results. They know that by providing a positive consequence they will greatly increase the chances of having the desired behavior repeated or the high performance even further enhanced. They know the greatest management principle in the world is: "You get what you reward."

How often, however, do we take time to reward ourselves? With as busy as most people are, it's easy for any of us to feel overworked and underappreciated and in the process to become a victim at work, being quick to blame others about the lack of recognition we receive. It doesn't have to be that way. You can take control of your own needs and do something to recognize and reward yourself when you finish a project, help a co-worker, or set a personal best level of performance that others may not even be aware of. To relax, acknowledge your success, and give yourself a chance to appreciate and regenerate is essential to keeping fresh and effective whatever your position is.

Taking a break from your routine helps to stimulate your thinking as well. Jack Canfield, co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul advises others to "increase the amount of time you get away from the office so you can increase the high-level thinking required to come up with big ideas. When I come back to work [from vacation], I immediately see the results. I'm more productive and creative. While on vacation, I'll also get incredible ideas that wouldn't happen at home because I'm too busy putting out fires."

What works best to relax and rejuvenate, of course, varies widely from person to person, so it is important to be aware of what things you find most satisfying and rewarding. For some people, it is reading; for others it may be exercise; still others might like to buy something for themselves--during a stressful time, to acknowledge a milestone, or as a way of picking up their spirits when they feel down.

For example, at one company I worked with there was a "gainsharing" program for all employees in which checks are distributed to each employee quarterly when the company exceeds its profitability goals. Gainsharing is a nice benefit to have, but like most financial incentives, it doesn't have much of any "trophy value," that is, a lasting memory of the achievement or event, and often the extra cash just goes to another bill at home and is soon forgotten.

To address that problem, last year this organization created a fun event tied to the distribution of gainsharing checks. After they had distributed checks to all employees, they gave each employee an additional $50 cash on the condition that they leave the company and spend the money on themselves within the next two hours. Employees then had to return to the company to show everyone what they bought and why.

When everyone got back together to share, the variety of purchases was as varied as the employees themselves. One woman got new nails, many people got things for their favorite hobbies, several people purchased electronic organizers, some bought books, and so on. Many employees were heard to say how they "never get anything for myself" because of a lack of time, money and/or energy we all face or the tendency many people have to pamper children and not themselves.

It doesn't take much to reward yourself--take a break and do so when you feel you've deserved it!

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