Blog
Want to Institutionalize Career Development? Look for (or Cultivate) these Cultural Markers
Global field research over the past decade consistently leads to the same conclusion: The simple human act of helping people grow has become very complicated. Processes overshadow people. Deadlines trump genuine development. And a checklist mentality competes with...
Log On to Listen
The changing nature of communication is a popular topic in professional journals and water-cooler conversations. The use of electronic media -- e-mail, texts, instant messaging, discussion boards, social media and more -- is applauded or vilified. But everyone agrees...
“Not My Decision”: Constructive Responses to Workplace Decisions You Wouldn’t Have Made
Last week, many Americans had a profound experience of what employees encounter routinely on the job: responding to a decision they don’t support but must still live with. In organizations worldwide, strategies are set, markets are selected, tactics are identified…and...
Which Comes First?
In preparation for an upcoming executive education session, I conducted a quick pulse survey earlier this month. I wanted to understand whether the leaders attending my training believe that there is a difference in the importance of career development to their...
Redefine Results by Redefining Career Development
Given repeated rounds of downsizing, reorganizing, right sizing, and all of the other ‘zings’ that have befallen organizations, it’s easy to scan the landscape and come to the conclusion that career development options have shrunk... that they are few and far between...
Management by Talking Around
In the 1980s, MBWA was the rage. It involved the radical notion that leaders could drive better results by stepping out of their offices and engaging with employees and the work flow in a less formal, more impromptu fashion. "Management by walking around" changed the...
Leadership Advice…for the Ages (ALL Ages)
What is it about the human experience that draws us to focus on our differences rather than our similarities? Does it come from our need to simplify the complexities of the world around us? Or is it a survival-based carryover from times when unfamiliar forces were...
Give ‘Em Some Space (For Possibilities)
A significant dimension of leadership is coaching… engaging in conversations that help others make the leap from where they are to where they want (or need) to be. Whether the focus is on correcting a performance problem, expanding capacity, improving relationships,...
No Fair!
Nothing is fair in this world. You might as well get that straight right now. – Sue Monk Kidd, The Secret Life of Bees Babies as young as 15 months grasp fairness, according to Jennifer Welsh in Live Science. So does every employee in your organization. (And...