Lead or Fail: Successful Leadership in Turbulent Times

Guest post written by Scott Span, MSOD for Linked2Leadership on June 8th, 2010

Leadership isn’t what it used to be. The corner offices are slowly disappearing. The days of barking orders and expecting people to blindly follow are over. 

Accountability, responsibility and transparency are on the rise – though someone should tell that to BP CEO. Workforce demographics and diversity are changing. The days of leading like Franklin M. Hart Jr. are over.

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It Ain’t Easy

This is not to say that being a leader was, or is, ever easy; or that earlier fundamentals should be tossed aside. However, in tough times, remaining a great leader can be even harder.

So what makes a successful leader in turbulent times? First and foremost, the ability to adapt your leadership style to changing environmental influences is key to being a successful leader. Jim Clifton, Chairman and CEO of Gallup says that “in the new normal,” old ways of doing business won’t work anymore.

“The men and women who will conquer this new world will be the ones who best understand their constituencies’ state of mind.” ~Jim Clifton


By state of mind, Clifton is referring to new revelations being uncovered by behavioral economists — starting with the discovery that human decision-making is more emotional than rational. As a leader, Clifton shares a similar mindset to many behavioral scientists and organizational development practitioners.

His view is that one of the most fundamental states of mind that leaders need to understand is the needs and desires of their employees: “…their will to work, their will to live, their will to revolt, their will to follow you.

Another element of state of mind is emotional affect: “how much stress your constituency feels about money, about trying to get to work, about their relationship with their boss.” Clifton believes that to be a successful leader you have to firmly understand states of mind.

In his view, everything important; everything human comes down to states of mind. The leader who is the best at understanding, relating to and communicating states of mind will be the one who wins.

Not that leadership is about winning or losing, however it sure is about winning over those you lead. As an organizational development practitioner and behavioral scientist, I share Clifton’s views; understanding and exhibiting certain human behaviors help to shape great leaders and great organizations.

“Leadership is best viewed through the eyes of the follower.” ~Tom Schulte

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Behave Yourself!

Here are some behaviors of great leaders during turbulent times:

Transparency

People can usually tell when “something is up.” So before the rumors begin flying and productivity is impacted, leadership should tell employees. When making strategic decisions, determining organizational changes or facing issues that impact employees, successful leaders need to be transparent with their workforce about how these matters arose, their thought process for dealing with them, and how their solutions may directly impact those they lead.

Communication

Being in a leadership position can sometimes be a solitary role. Often leaders make decisions in a vacuum and rely on managers or supervisors to communicate important information downward. Successful leaders lead through two-way communication. Much of it is nonverbal. For instance, when leaders “set the example,” that communicates to their people that they would not ask them to do anything that they would not be willing to do themselves, this only helps to make leaders seem more human to employees. Particularly in turbulent times, people value direct interaction and communication from leaders. This not only helps to show that leaders are remaining committed to the people in organization, but also offers an opportunity for them to step out of the “tower” and build relationships with employees.

Trust

Trust is a fundamental behavior for any relationship, both personal and professional. According to a study by the Hay Group, a global management consultancy, there are 75 key components of employee satisfaction (Lamb & McKee, 2009). They found that: Trust and confidence in top leadership was the single most reliable predictor of employee satisfaction in an organization. Trust must be earned. Leaders can earn employee trust by helping employees understand the company’s overall business strategy, informing them how they contribute to achieving key business goals and sharing information with employees on both how the company is doing and how an employee’s own division is doing relative to organizational objectives.

It is much easier for employees to trust a leader that shows an interest in them.

Compassion

The basis of good leadership is honorable character and selfless service to the organization; compassion for employees and both their professional and personal situations. His Holiness the 14th Dali Lama says, “I call compassion the global staple…for all people in every endeavor.” In employees’ eyes, what leadership does affects the organization’s objectives and their well-being. When a person is deciding if they respect a leader, they don’t think about attributes, rather they see what leaders do. Observations can often tell an employee if a leader is an honorable and trusted person or a self-serving person, one who misuses authority to look good and get promoted. Self-serving leaders are not as effective because their employees only obey them, not follow them. When leaders show compassion and understanding for employees and their situations, it becomes easier for them to notice that their leaders are interested and concerned, and not as self-serving as possibly thought.

Self Awareness

Successful leaders have a heightened level of self-awareness, they have an understanding of themselves, their behaviors and actions, and how those behaviors and actions are interpreted by, and directly impact, employees. A good example of leadership self-awareness is exhibited in the U.S. Army’s leadership philosophy of “be, know, do.” Be proficient and competent, know yourself and your strengths and weaknesses, and do take responsibility and lead by example. Always be open to further growth and learning. Professional coaching is also a great well to help further develop leader self-awareness.


A colleague shared a speech with me given last year by Marillyn Hewson, President of Systems Integration-Owego, Lockheed Martin Corporation on the subject of leadership in turbulent times. To Marillyn, leadership is a set of personal behaviors that set the course and create an environment that energizes people to meet a goal.

Marillyn says “…it’s easy to be a leader when everything is going great. The challenge is how you act when things go wrong. In times of great change… or tremendous challenge… that’s when the leadership fundamentals matter most.”

Most competitive and sustainable organizations have great leaders at the top, and in the ranks!

Do you think you are one of those great leaders? Do you exhibit the best behaviors in the ares of transparency, communication, trust, compassion, and self-awareness? If not, what are your points of struggle? What are you doing to better your daily behaviors to become a person with even greater influence? I ‘d love to hear your story!

Guest Post: Setting and Maintaining Boundaries with Others by Mark Sachs

The ability for us to set boundaries and limits with others effectively has a huge impact on our ability to do our best work.  Examples of setting boundaries are telling people “no” when it is appropriate and telling others what is acceptable to you.  Effectively setting and maintaining boundaries helps you take better care of yourself, maintain self-respect, and increase your ability to control your work and your life.

The inability to set and maintain boundaries effectively with others often results in projects not being completed to plan, on time and on budget; people allowing others to take advantage of them, and miscommunication.

To help organizations prevent these pitfalls to productivity I have developed the highly interactive and experiential workshop, Getting What You Want:  Setting and Maintaining Boundaries with Others. Participants in this workshop will learn:

• What a boundary is 
• Examples of setting effective boundaries  
• Why it is often difficult for us to set and maintain boundaries 
• What you can do to help set and maintain boundaries, and five simple, essential steps to doing it effectively 

The workshop also provides participants with a 10-page boundaries handbook.

Time is provided for the opportunity to discuss with others, in a confidential setting, any boundary issues you are facing and to receive feedback from the facilitator and others about how you may best work through these situations.

The workshop also provides an opportunity for you to start to take action on setting or enforcing a boundary. 

People who are interested in making changes to set and maintain boundaries often require encouragement beyond the initial workshop.  In addition to the half or full-day workshop, at no additional cost, participants can take advantage of individual telephone consultations with the facilitator for two weeks following the training.  These consultations can include celebrating any successes or receiving coaching about any difficulties in setting a specific boundary.     

The workshop has been presented to both private and public sector organizations including NASA, FEMA, FDA, IRS, and Department of Agriculture. 

See what others had to say about this highly interactive and valuable workshop:

• The interaction and openness was great.  Mark let the conversation flow while not diverging from the core topic.  Very well done.
• I liked how we worked in small groups and we talked about real issues we were dealing with.
• It was helpful to see movie clips of boundaries issues and discuss them. 
• The boundaries handbook we were given had lots of helpful information.  I also liked the boundaries affirmations card he gave to us.  

If you or your organization is interested in learning more about setting and maintaining boundaries then this insightful and informative workshop is a great way to start!

About the Facilitator:

Mark Sachs is an organization consultant and executive coach. His areas of specialization include increasing communication among staff, developing effective teams, assessing organizational effectiveness, and managing change.  He has an MS in Organization Development from the American University/NTL Institute, and BA and MA degrees in Sociology from Rutgers University.  He is also a graduate of Coach University.  

Mark may be reached at ma.sachs@verizon.net, 301-588-3858, and www.markasachs.com

Guest Post for Heather Huhman: 5 things Recent Grads Need to Know About Entering the Workforce!

Note: Written as a guest post for Heather Huhman as seen on her blog   5/24/10.

College graduates faced a tough job market in 2009, but will 2010 graduates face similar challenges? Although layoffs have slowed down, unemployment is at a 26-year high. The National Association of College Employers (NACE) 2009 Student Survey shows that just 19.7 percent of 2009 graduates who applied for a job actually have one. And, according to NACE’s Job Outlook 2010 Fall Preview, employers expect to hire 7 percent fewer graduates from the college Class of 2010 than they hired from the Class of 2009.

Competition is fierce. If you are lucky enough to land a job right of college, what should you do to improve your chances of easing the transition and keeping employment? For starters, understand a few things first:

You’re not the best thing sliced bread! It’s ok to express new ideas, to request new challenges, and to want to gain a promotion; however, respect the politics, culture and communication practices of your organization. Understand opportunities may present themselves – but you won’t be the CEO overnight.

If you have needs, communicate them. Don’t get frustrated if your organization doesn’t do everything the way you think is most beneficial to success. Don’t assume those around you are mind readers. Much like in a college lecture hall when you raised your hand to ask a question, speak up and communicate your concerns as well as ideas for positive changes. Ask questions to help better understand your roles and responsibilities and organizational culture, and do so in a manner appropriate to your organization.

You can’t do it all alone. The use of technology and drive for quick success can often impede the capacity to forge relationships. Some people from other generations may place more value on face-to-face communication as a way to build lasting relationships over time. Some day you will have your bosses’ job; however, not yet. Instead of focusing on what you will do when you get their job, focus on building relationships with them now. You’ll need support and mentoring as you progress in your career.

Pay attention to the culture. You’ll never find an organization that offers everything on your “work-life balance” list. Decide what’s most important to you. Two of the biggest complaints employers have of recent graduates is that they demand too much too fast, and they often leave the company within just a few years. If you understand the organizational culture, you can determine if it matches your needs; it then becomes much easier to avoid these types of obstacles.

Learn when to shut up. Open communication is a valued trait; however, that doesn’t mean say everything that is on your mind. This doesn’t mean don’t be yourself. However, sometimes it’s best to keep certain religious, political and social views out of the workplace. Be cautious to not over criticize those you work with, particularly in public. When utilizing forms of social media, be careful what you say about your organization and those who work there. Don’t just utilize social media to complain, if you like where you work share that with your friends; you may even get a referral bonus if they join your organization.

So what is the moral of the story? Recent graduates are still a fast-growing group within the workforce. Transitioning from college to “reality” can be a tough adjustment. As you make the transition, try and keep an open mind and maintain a level of understanding and communication with those at your new workplace. Remember, your boss isn’t your college professor; you can’t negotiate for your paycheck the way you may have been able to negotiate for you grades. For additional advice, read #ENTRYLEVELtweet: Taking Your Career from Classroom to Cubicle.

As seen on the Ellen DeGeneres Show May 21, 2010, “Laugh, Dance, Graduate” and then be prepared for what lies ahead!

Guest Post for Selena Rezvani: 5 things Gen Y Needs to Know but no one is Telling Them

Guest blog written for Selena Rezvani as seen on her blog nextgenwomen

You’re not the best thing sliced bread!: It’s ok to express new ideas, to request new challenges, and to want to gain a promotion; however, respect the politics, culture and communication practices of your organization. Understand opportunities may present themselves - but you won’t be the CEO overnight.

If you have needs, communicate them: Don’t get frustrated if your organization doesn’t do everything the way you think is most beneficial to success. Don’t assume those around you are mind readers. Speak up and communicate your ideas for positive changes, and do so in a manner appropriate for your organization.

You can’t do it all alone: Gen Y’s attachment to technology and drive for quick success often impedes the capacity to forge relationships with other generations. Some people from other generations may place more value on face to face communication as a way to build lasting relationships over time. Some day you will have your bosses’ job; however, not yet. Instead of focusing on what you will do when you get their job, focus on building relationships with them now. You’ll need support and mentoring as you progress in your career.

Pay attention to the culture: You’ll never find an organization that offers everything on your “work life balance” list. Decide what’s most important to you. Two of the biggest complaints employers have of Gen Y is that they demand too much too fast, and they often leave the company within a few years. If you understand the organizational culture, you can determine if it matches your needs; it then becomes much easier to avoid these and other obstacles.

Learn when to shut up: Open communication is a valued Gen Y trait; however, that doesn’t mean say everything that is on your mind. This doesn’t mean don’t be yourself. However, sometimes it’s best to keep certain religious, political and social views out of the workplace. Be cautious to not over criticize those you work with, particularly in public. When utilizing forms of social media, be careful what you say about your organization and those who work there.

So what is the moral of the story? Gen Y is a fast growing group within the workforce. They are an innovative, talented, and ambitious generation. Gen Y can be a positive asset if properly understood. Understanding comes from communication. Gen Y needs to take some responsibility for increasing cross generational communication and understanding, and a first step in doing this is to acknowledge that they too still have much to learn.

Guest Post: Organization Re-Alignment: A Chat with Scott Span of Tolero Solutions Organizational Development & Change Consulting

By Tony Deblauwe

Workbabble.com

Organization Re-Alignment: A Chat with Scott Span of Tolero Solutions Organizational Development & Change Consulting

An increasing amount of attention is being placed on how organizations perform business and deliver results. Though there are still plenty of uncertainties, as organizations transition from pure survival mode to competitive growth, many have begun evaluating their current state and how connected and engaged their people are to the organization. After some time, organizations have begun re-evaluating their business structures and strategies, and re-aligning their people to adapt to renewed growth in the economy.

As President of Tolero Solutions - Organizational Development & Change Consulting, Scott Span, MSOD has plenty of experience navigating leaders and organizations through change in turbulent times to a place of long term sustainability. The term “tolero” means to endure and sustain, and this philosophy lies at the heart of Tolero’s strategy. With all the change and buzz about the importance of employee engagement in the air, Span points to several areas where companies need to communicate what their doing to employees (and communicate it fast). Span offers three ways organizations can re-connect and re-engage their workforce:

Communicate & Align Strategic Direction: According to Span, companies’ have the wait-and-see mode of operation that has plagued many businesses over the last year, and it’s time to snap out of it. Specifically they have to become more competitive and prepared for new opportunities. The trick is – you can’t do that until you’ve defined your strategic direction and reconnected with your people. If your people have lost touch with what you’re trying to accomplish, you won’t go very far toward remaining competitive. Span suggests leaders and managers review what has happened, what’s changed and why, and connect their people to any new changes, new visions and tactics which arise as a result. This communication and involvement during any transition will help remind people what the core needs of the organization are and where they fit in, putting temporary setbacks in perspective.

Don’t Neglect Individuals: Tied directly into communicating, a renewed strategic direction is how leaders and managers reach out and drive a resurgence in team spirit and employee engagement. In particular, Span notes that if people have kept their heads down just to get by, they may have started to feel like a cog in the machine – not being noticed for say - doing the job of the three people who were let go or couldn’t be hired because budgets were tight. Public recognition for a job well done and non monetary benefits or spot financial bonuses as revenues increase are useful ways to show appreciation. Simple recognition is often a quick and easy way to increase engagement and retention.

Training and Development: Often in tough times training and education budgets are slashed. Span believes with increased engagement comes a need to reinvigorate training and development opportunities and up-level skills. Where possible, offering employees targeted and strategic decisions on training and education opportunities is vital to sustainability. Providing employees room to grow competencies either through classroom training or attending industry leading trend seminars is key to successful realignment.

Span also sees a heightened interest in organizational assessments. As many organizations are just beginning to reinvigorate and realign, organizational assessments are a fairly quick and easy way to provide data on current and future state. This is right in line with the concept of engagement and realigning priorities and people. Determine where you are before you decide where you want to be. Span also sees executive coaching increasing. Leaders and managers are realizing that they may need to change style and approach to attract, engage, and retain current and new talent. Span also sees an interesting shift occurring now, as workface demographics are changing, is an increased focus on generational diversity programs.

Companies realize that Gen Y employees have different needs than Baby Boomer employees, and Gen Y represents a key part of their recruitment strategy and future bench strength. Companies want to understand the view points and communication styles of the various generations so that employees can have a basis of understanding and flex to each other’s unique point of view and approach.

Span sees slowed continued growth for the months to come. He believes that organizations that realign and refocus on people now will remain competitive and sustainable; and be able to survive the inevitable bumps in the road that will continue to occur until relative long term stability returns.

Guest Post: 4 Strategies for Retaining Gen Y Women by Selena Rezvani

One of Tolero Solutions philosophies is that of collaboration. With that philosophy in mind, we are honored to share with you our newest guest post from our colleague and expert on women in the workplace, Selena Rezvani. Selena's goal is to propel more women into the top echelons of businesses — an objective she achieves through her writing, coaching, and speaking engagements. Selena wrote her debut book, The Next Generation of Women Leaders: What You Need to Lead but Won’t Learn in Business School (Praeger, 2009) while pursuing her MBA at Johns Hopkins University, where she graduated first in her class. Selena also has an MSW from New York University. For more on Selena, visit: www.nextgenwomen.com.

In this post, Selena shares the four strategies for retaining Gen Y, an ever growing part of the current workforce. Valuable and informative advice!

4 Strategies for Retaining Gen Y Women! 

Gen Y women present one of the most viable pipelines of talent, and yet many companies are missing the boat in engaging this group.  Gen Y women are better educated than any cohort that have come before them, are graduating with the majority of advanced and bachelors degrees, and according to a Families and Work Institute survey, have a hunger for jobs with responsibility.   

If being well-credentialed and ambitious aren’t enough, companies have another reason to care about this group.  They are likely to have children when they hit the age range of 25-30 years old, off-ramping from the work world and taking their institutional knowledge with them. 

A well known fact, work flexibility is more important to Gen Y than any other generation.  And for new mothers, a little flexibility on the part of the employer can engender loyalty and translate to less turnover.  Consider Aetna’s story.  When the company increased the length of its maternity leave, retention of new mothers increased from 77% to 91%, according to a report by The Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR).

Not everyone’s listening though.  An example of a field that’s doing a poor job of engaging young women is law.  Here’s a world where face time and billable hours are valued more than results, a concept that Gen Yers find ridiculous.  Career paths in law are extremely limited, and there is only one brass ring to aspire to: partner.  What’s more, according to a Rutgers study, the number one reason that women lawyers surveyed left firms was an “unsupportive work environment.”  Many firms that do extend work/life offerings to employees haven’t managed to make it part of the culture, so people still feel a stigma attached to using such benefits.  The data says it all: according to Catalyst, while 1 in 8 women lawyers work part-time, only 1 in 50 men lawyers do.

What can companies do to ward against losing young female talent? 

Implement Rotational Leadership Programs

Numerous employers of choice have long promoted leadership programs that involve intensive rotation.  Many look for high-potential employees who can fill leadership roles in the future.  Implementing a rotational program gives young women exposure to the company, its different functions, and most important, a broad array of people.  Given that most girls and young women don’t learn about leadership topics, the exposure to so many functional areas can only serve to strengthen a young woman's career.  Companies that offer diverse experiences not only guard against employee boredom, they show a commitment and investment to their new employees right off the bat.

Value Results, not Hours

Within many companies, you can’t have a challenging role that also allows you to have a personal life.  A critical imperative for companies who want to hold on to Gen Y is to deliver engaging work while allowing a woman to have boundaries.  Since Gen Y believes strongly in an anytime/anywhere work model (as long as I meet my targets), many companies can take a page from Best Buy’s book.  The electronics leader has implemented a Results Only Work Environment (ROWE) where output is measured rather than hours and facetime.  This is particularly important for working mothers, who simply cannot compete with the amount of facetime men can put in on the job.

Teach Them to Say No
Many of us forget that we can say no to projects.  Encourage Gen Y women to look for value-adding activities and say no to others.  Value-adding activities allow them to be visible across the organization, have a strong tie to the organization’s strategy or bottom line, and allow young women to partner with those in other departments.  Encouraging a culture where you’re allowed to have preferences, and act on those preferences, goes a long way with Gen Y women.   

Mix Up Work Formats
The current corporate business model sends the message that “you need to conform to us, we won’t conform to you.”  And yet, a major motivator for Gen Y is to have cafeteria-style choices in terms of work format and benefits.  Rather than thinking only in black and white, consider the gray area.  When offering mothers maternity leave, allow for fade-in reentry programs that allow women to slowly build back up to their original hours. When offering healthcare benefits, encourage Gen Yers to choose where their dollars are spent.  This generation has grown up with incredible levels of customization and naturally expects choice at work. 

Regardless of generation, we know that a one size fits all approach doesn’t work.  Retention and engagement aren’t about requiring that people fit a mold, they’re about meeting people where they are.