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Leadership: Analog Works, Exception Does Not
March At C-Level
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Holy smokes, it's the end of March already??!!
Where did February go? That was the month I was going to settle down after the holiday crazies and focus on getting my goals set for 2017. Wrapping up 2016 was so hectic with all of the changes we were anxious about in 2017, I didn't get a chance to lay out what we hope to accomplish this year.
Sound familiar? If not, good for you. If sorta... hope's not a plan. At least not a good one for your business.
Q1 is nearly gone. If you're not already almost 25% of the way to meeting your targets, you're behind the power curve. That should either energize you, or scare the hell out of you. It's not too late to put your plan into action, but we might advise planning on only 75% of the year to execute it.
Speaking of changes in the new year, I noticed that in nine of the last ten years, the intro to the February At C-Level issue (yes, I know it's March) has been about goals (reviewing, setting and achieving them) and plans (making and executing them). The exception was in 2009, having been written right after the Obama inauguration. It wasn't political by any stretch; it was about change. Thought it was worth a re-read.
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Not wanting to sound like a broken record, but we have a responsibility as leaders to stay positive and help our organization stay focused. It's a leader's job to help people see the way forward, especially when things seem uncertain.
That means we have to stay focused ourselves, and be intentional about our interactions with co-workers. Don't - or let others - get distracted by water cooler chatter, derailed meetings, and the incessant barrage of media to our desktops; you'll have your hands full with March Madness pools as it is.
This is a good month for LBWA. You know, Leadership By Walking Around. Some good ole post holiday / MLK Day / Groundhog Day / Valentine's Day / President's Day / St. Patrick's Day checking in on your folks.
It's your most important role as a leader.
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If you haven't had a chance to see it, our 2016 Survey of Senior Leadership is still available. Interesting reading, and you can download it here.
In summary, you and your organization's #1 challenge is revenue/earnings and profitability. After that, it gets 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. We'd love to hear your comments, questions or inputs for the upcoming 2017 survey. |
Analog Leadership Meets the Digital World
- Faster isn't always better...
by D. Kevin Berchelmann
Analog... "Analog..." Analog... it sounds so, well, old.
Leadership, in its most successful, meaningful form, is not about size, scope, or reach. It's about relationships. Trusting relationships.
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... never mind, I already know.
So many of your employees have these 8-track tapes running in their head that say things like "what's wrong with me?" "I screwed it up, again" and "I'll never get this right." That's because all they ever seem to hear about is what they messed up, what they're doing wrong, and what they're not doing fast enough.
You might hear it fairly often, too, but this isn't about you.
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Leaders & Laggards
In this section, we take a look at recent news and events, and make a gut-reaction determination for three categories:
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Leaders & Laggards
Revisited
Update #1
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Least Improved
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Leadership
Laggard
Leadership Has Its Idiots, We Show You Who They Are
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We've been publishing our Leaders & Laggards coming up on two years now, so we thought it might be time for an update on our top - and bottom - performers. We start this month with some improvement at the United Airlines helm. New CEO Oscar Munoz is on the right track, finally recognizing the value of his employees and making progress in customer satisfaction.
Read More...
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In contrast, Zenefits' leaders don't seem to have learned much in the last year. With its third CEO in 14 months, Zenefits just gave another 45% of their workforce pink slips and blamed the old CEO... who they left on the Board of Directors!! Plenty of rhetoric from new CEO Jay Fulcher: "work smarter and not harder," "right-size and re-distribute" and "operate with integrity." Blah, blah, blah...
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A couple of PwC Partners had their heads in La La Land during the Oscars ceremony last month. I can forgive one of those responsible for handing out winner's envelopes for being star struck by Emma Stone, but once he screwed up, the PwC bigwigs were way too slow in correcting it to prevent pandemonium from breaking out on stage. Indecision kills... oopsie.
Read More...
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Personality Trait Assessment
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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.
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The Simplicity of Leadership
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Sit Down, Shut Up and Color! -Leading the "My" generation...
A podcast where Kevin is interviewed for the Contractor's Secret Weapon.
View the Recording
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Kevin Berchelmann was interviewed by Nearshore Americas for their article on Successful Supervisory Development in Contact Centers.
Read the Article...
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