Feedback, Anchors and Leadership Hacks: January At C-Level
January At C-Level


Happy New Year!

I don't know about you, but I feel like I've been shot out of a cannon in 2017!

I know we're all playing catch-up after the holidays, but be careful not to confuse busyness with business. That's important, because most of you in leadership positions aren't graded on what you do, but on how well the people who work for you perform or produce.

With that in mind, how do you know if your leadership contributed to your team's 2016 accomplishments? Simple... ask.

I know, let's make 2017 the Year of Effective Feedback. Corny, yes, but I didn't think you'd get on board with the Year of the Kevins

Anyway, way too many managers and leaders can dish it out, but they can't take it. Feedback, that is. We like to think we're receptive to feedback from peers and subordinates (we have to take it from our boss), but chances are good that we're not.


Have you asked anyone how you performed as a leader in 2016... like those you lead? If not, now's the perfect time. And I don't mean just "hey, Jane, how am I doing as a leader?" Strangely enough, that might not actually elicit a meaningful response.

Nor do I mean some über-elaborate 360-degree feedback effort that has everyone wishing they were never born. I'm talking about just using something simple, like Start, Stop, Continue.


Sit down, one on one, with those you lead directly. Tell them you want - need - their feedback to improve, and to make their jobs better (and likely easier). Then ask...
  • What should I Start doing that I'm not doing now?
  • What should I Stop doing that doesn't seem to help you or others?
  • What should I Continue doing that you feel is positive?
Consider giving them this worksheet in advance so they can put some real thought into it.

Ask the questions, then shut up while they answer. No defensive drilling down, no "but what about...?" comments, nothing but "thank you for that input."


It can be harder than you think. But the best leaders make asking for feedback a regular part of their conversations.

Survey Says...


In case you missed it last month, the results are in for our 2016 Survey of Senior Leadership. A summary of those results is available for download at the link below.

Here's the Cliff Notes to the summary (for those with varsity-level ADD): You and your organization are challenged with both revenue/earnings and profitability. That's #1 with a bullet. After that, it gets pretty people centric real quick, with emphasis on effective communications, manager performance and employee engagement/productivity. Nearly half of you will be increasing overall headcount in 2017. If you have questions, comments or inputs, reach out to us and let's discuss. We'll provide more detail throughout 2017. Interesting reading, and you can 
download it here


Featured Articles
25 Leadership Tips & Hacks

by D. Kevin Berchelmann

I was just doing some thinking on a plane ride recently (not much else to do). Often, we are our own worst enemy, sabotaging our efforts with our own behavior. Though added resources (people, money, etc.) seem to be an answer to many of our challenges, the reality is that Leadership, first and foremost, is what will cause us to succeed or fail.

And leadership is free.

... what's dragging your team down?

by Kevin Ross

Last week, I had a great conversation with an old boss (and friend) of mine who's known me for 3+ decades. As I was standing in the lobby of his building, I read the press release about his being named as CEO of the Year by the local business journal.

In the interview for the article, he was asked "What's the biggest mistake you've made in business, and what can we learn from it?" His answer, "My biggest mistakes have been not to get rid of a few sub-standard employees fast enough - those who have a corrosive or detrimental effect on good employees," got me to thinking about some of my clients who just can't seem to bring themselves to let people go.

Leaders & Laggards
In this section, we take a look at recent news and events, and make a gut-reaction determination for three categories:
Leadership
Leader

Demonstrating Clear, Personal Leadership
Leadership Milquetoast
Mediocrity in Leadership
Usually an Opportunity Not Taken, or Similar
Leadership
Laggard

Leadership Has Its Idiots, We Show You Who They Are
"Ultimately, leaders are judged by what they leave behind." - Muhtar Kent. As he prepares to step down as CEO of Coca Cola, Kent leaves behind a strong people-oriented leadership culture that delivers results and a world-class leadership development program. We judge him to be a Leadership Leader. 

 Read More...

Another "apology that isn't" from Steve Ells? How many times do we have to listen to him say he's sorry? We get it that he's sorry - shoot, I'm sorry all those people got sick, too - but he still hasn't acknowledged his accountability. His latest excuse for poor financial performance? The guacamole is too expensive


In announcing the layoff of 10,000 Macy's employees, CEO Terry Lundgren showed the world just what kind of leader he is when he said "I'm sorry, there's nothing I could do about it." HA! What he should have said was "Oops, I didn't do anything about it. Who knew the retail industry was changing? Apparently, everyone but Terry.

Read More...


Personality Trait Assessment
Who are you, really?

We can help you answer that question. Take a complimentary (yes, free) assessment yourself, or use it to find out more about candidates. Create a benchmark for skills in your organization, or use it as a template for coaching efforts. Click here to take the assessment and receive a complimentary Personality Profile report.
Triangle in the News
5 Lessons Learned--with a leadership twist!

Pulse article by Kevin Berchelmann published on LinkedIn.


Read the Article...
Oil + Gas Monitor 

Kevin Berchelmann's article Oil & Gas Executives, Talent and $30 Problems 

Read the Article...
Nearshore Americas

Kevin Berchelmann was interviewed by Nearshore Americas for their article on Successful Supervisory Development in Contact Centers.


 Read the Article...
Leadership Presence... when Being Trumps Doing

Kevin Berchelmann is a webinar guest talking about the "so what" of Leadership Presence.

View the Recording...
Our Thoughts