Posted: March 30, 2016 | Categories: Management, Team Building

If you own a small to medium-size business and are looking to retire in a few years, you could soon be facing a big problem:  When you leave, the value of your company will be greatly diminished because you have not trained your people to do what you do.  You say you already have?  Good for you.  You can read this sitting in the bleachers.  For the rest of you, it is time to get on the field of play and do some problem solving. Read More…

Posted: March 28, 2016 | Categories: Leadership, Management

A few months ago, I was working with a client as he was putting together a new team.  His name was Clay, and he had a goal of building a self-directed team that could be counted on to get the job done even when he was on vacation.  He mentioned that he wanted to be able to go on vacation with his family and come back to order and harmony rather than chaos.  Brilliantly, he shared this vision with his team.  The next step was to build a team strong enough to meet this challenge.  With this vision in mind, he began to build the team.Read More…

Posted: December 4, 2015 | Categories: Leadership, Management

Have you ever worked for a boss where you felt you couldn’t do anything right?  Then there is the other extreme:  The boss who never says anything.  You don’t know if what you are doing is right or wrong.Read More…

Posted: November 25, 2015 | Categories: Management, Team Building

Have you ever worked in a culture where there was constant whining, finger-pointing, and excuse making?  If you have, you know how such behavior affects team performance.

A few years ago I had someone in my management class who was struggling with a negative team environment.  People would continually come up to him and complain about other people not doing their job.  They often had a complaint, but seldom proposed a solution.

As we discussed this challenge, I introduced him to the 4 problem solving questions I have spoken of before.  These were developed by Leon Shimkin nearly 100 years ago, and have stood the test of time:Read More…

Posted: November 16, 2015 | Categories: Management

As I was concluding a team-building meeting today, one of the participants ask about “Confrontational Leadership”.  I ask him to explain.  He defined it as the habit of clearly defining roles and expectations paired with consistent reinforcement and re-direction.

If the most important aspect of leadership is trust, the backbone of management skills seems to be clarity supported by ownership and accountability.  As team members, we like to know where we stand with the boss.  A good boss is in there with us and is providing constant feedback.Read More…