“We will all learn together. I want to learn from you as well as you learn from me.” This, from a new CHRO who sits on the executive committee for a global organization. She is at the table with a…
Leadership
For the Good of the Organization You Need to Be a Little Machiavellian
In our workplaces, as in society at large, we try hard to create open, transparent, meritocratic structures. Our increasing success can blind us to some nagging obstacles. We can persuade ourselves that we are creating new utopias: workplaces in which…
Are You the Leader They’ll Thank On Your Last Day?
“This is when you know that you have achieved something important by creating an amazing team and they thank you like this on your last day.” That was a lead-in quote from a video of the GM of the Address…
Top Organizations Do Pay Differently From Everyone Else
In the latest “Compensation Best Practices Report,” which gathered responses from 7,100 respondents on their pay practices, PayScale – the company where I work – took a look at what really sets top performers apart. In this report, top-performing organizations were…
Why a Compensation Strategy Is a Must
How many of you reading this article have a piece of paper that you can lay your hands on, one with the title, “Compensation Strategy”? Do you know if such a document exists in your organization? The common response at…
3 Conversations to Help Your Team Get Through a Reorg
A while ago, I was counseling a senior executive of a government bureau who was two years into shaping his agency to be more customer and results-centered. He rebuilt his 200-person group, propelled key actions, coached his staff on changing…
Will Anyone Contribute Toward Your Gift?
“No one wanted to contribute to her holiday gift.” The assistant manager told me that during the holidays, it is customary of all employees of the retail store to chip in to buy gifts for the store manager and the…
6 Ways Real Leaders Turn Insincerity Into Inspiration
The biggest barrier between leaders and followers is distrust. And the window dressing for distrust is insincerity. People put up with a lot of quirks in their leaders and coworkers just to keep the peace, but insincerity particularly grates on…
Don’t Let Succession Planning Be Just a C-Suite Thing
“Apple Inc. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook told shareholders at the company’s annual meeting to expect higher dividends and stressed that succession planning is a priority,” Bloomberg reported last month. “Cook also made some of his most explicit comments on succession…
That Seat at the Table Is In the Library
“I spend so much time reading now. As I am finally a member of the executive team, there are so many areas that I needed to brush up on as the organization is in such a growth spurt.” This discussion…
Decision-Making Doesn’t Always Require Collaboration
Collaboration is in vogue today. It’s a favorite theme for how to be a great leader and in how to solve most business problems. I’ve always tried to be collaborative and inclusive – even in situations when it probably wasn’t…
What to Do About Leaders Who Think They Are Better Than They Are
With fewer peers and more power, it’s easy for leaders to lose touch with those they lead. A study by Hay Group’s McClelland Center finds that senior leaders in an organization often gain power at the expense of self-knowledge, and are…
Hired to Clean Up the Mess? Here Are 3 Ways to Be a Success
Uber’s CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, has had his work cut out for him — and it doesn’t look like his load will lighten anytime soon. After everything the company went through in 2017, including the departure of former CEO, Travis Kalanick,…
7 Tips to Focus On The People Side Of Change
Change is hard. Some of you may be saying “duh!” Yet many people underestimate how challenging change can be. Anyone who tells themselves change is easy has never lived through it or is choosing to pull the wool over their…
Zooming: A Way to Change Focus to Gain New Insights
As human resources professionals have embraced the business partner role and become more involved with helping managers leverage the talents of their group, leadership has risen as a focus of their work. This may take the form of group or…
Will They Contribute to Your Gift?
“No one wanted to contribute to her holiday gift.” The assistant manager told me that during the holidays, it is customary for all employees of her retail store to chip in to buy the store manager as well as the…
Are You Doing Analytics Or Just Reporting Data?
Many HR software packages include built-in analytics. This is a good thing, some data is better than no data. However, as HR gets more sophisticated, we need to move beyond accepting a vendor’s claim about built-in analytics and understand exactly…
Make Your Team More Effective By Getting Them Out of the Office
“In order to understand the world, one has to turn away from it on occasion.”― Albert Camus Now that we’ve wrapped up another year, and are already well into 2018, the magic of the holiday season has evaporated. Your team is confronting…
Purpose, People and Process: The 3 P’s of Effective Performance Management
As a vendor of performance management software for the last 14 years, we speak to dozens of HR pros every day to discuss their performance review pains and challenges. No matter how it’s worded, we have found that ALL headaches…
The Formula for Effective Leadership Has Only Three Parts
Each month I receive an email with a preview of the latest leadership books. There are always five or six new entrants in this already crowded field. Meanwhile, my Twitter feed overflows with three steps, five tips, and seven ways…