How much time each week do you spend making decisions? Likely, many of the choices you make are almost automatic, requiring little thought: attend that meeting or not? Stay late to finish the report tonight, or come in early tomorrow? And then, there are more challenging choices, such as whether or not to terminate an […] Continue reading
Do employees really enjoy working in a self-organized structure? Holacracy—sometimes touted as a “leaderless” environment—eliminates traditional management titles and functions. The degree to which employees enjoy this organizational structure depend on many factors. Some people take well to this extreme level of self-organization, others don’t. Even at online retailer Zappos, the most famous of Holacracy […] Continue reading
Do employees really enjoy working in a self-organized structure? Holacracy—sometimes touted as a “leaderless” environment—eliminates traditional management titles and functions. The degree to which employees enjoy this organizational structure depend on many factors. Some people take well to this extreme level of self-organization, others don’t. Even at online retailer Zappos, the most famous of Holacracy […] Continue reading
Do employees really want to be engaged? If you define “employee engagement” as author Kevin Kruse does (“The emotional commitment the employee has to the organization and its goals”), it’s likely that yes, all employees want to feel some level of connectedness to the work they do. Yet, as Kruse, author of Employee Engagement is […] Continue reading
How do you derive energy from the task of leading? Many times, being in a leadership role can be draining, not energizing. As with many other things in life, one needs to actively seek out ways to overcome flagging energy. This month’s Frontline Festival blog carnival, hosted by Let’s Grow Leaders’ Karin Hurt, assembled 23 […] Continue reading
Are you a Plugged-In Leader or an Otherwise Occupied Leader? To find out, go on over to Smartblog on Leadership and read my May post, Are you the wrong type of “engaged” leader? A hint: while researching the meaning of “employee engagement” and “engaged” employees, I discovered an intriguing nuance in the definition of “to […] Continue reading
Are you getting the most out of your 1:1 meetings with your boss? According to a recent study, about 73 percent of employees meet with their team leader at least once a month. That’s not a lot of face time, so be sure you make the most of this important interaction with the following tips: […] Continue reading
In 1984, as a college senior, I was employed by my university as an Assistant Residence Hall Director (AD). It was the first job in which I had a staff that (dotted line) reported to me. During the day, everyone answered to the full time Residence Hall Director. On the evenings and weekends, I rotated […] Continue reading
Note from Jennifer: I’m honored to host this guest post from Ken Blanchard, business consultant and international best-selling author. Ken and his co-author Spencer Johnson have updated their classic management book “The One Minute Manager.” Here is Ken’s outline of the new book and why it’s as relevant as ever. Guest Post by Ken Blanchard On […] Continue reading
What’s the single most effective way for a leader to build trust with his or her employees? It’s to show that you genuinely care about your employees’ career well-being. And one of the simplest ways to do this is to maintain consistent, non-distracted face-to-face (or video chat, or phone conversation) time with those you lead. […] Continue reading
