Doers often disparage workplace relationships because they “don’t know, don’t like, or don’t trust” the people with whom they work. Applying the tenets of teamwork as defined in the previous two Blogs when building a task-based relationship objectifies rather than personalizes individual performance. This shift in focus attracts Doers because it is now clear to […]

When organizations send upper level leaders to training with the intention of improving over all performance and productivity, they often neglect to raise consciousness among their lower level followers. Those responsible for providing the training fail to see that graduates will be picking up a new language expressed in words and concepts that are potentially […]

Personality clashes, unmet expectations and resistive coworkers are among the primary causes of behavioral-based conflict in the workplace. Without an effective resolution process, no work unit can continue to function effectively. When evaluating the need for a conflict management program, be aware that unresolved conflict is directly related to job satisfaction – as job satisfaction […]

The existence of a rumor mill is an indication that employees don’t trust what they hear from official communication channels. Sadly, in a large organization the rumor mill is sometimes the only source of information available to those at the lower levels. The most effective way to close down the rumor mill is to provide […]

If you ask someone at Alcoholics Anonymous how they are doing, they say, “I’m in recovery;” meaning they know they are not perfect, but they are working on it. That desire to improve is what moves us through life: the potential of being better. The four stages of the Mastery Learning Sequence outlined below provide […]

Mainstream management methods can only bridge the gap between functional and dysfunctional employees, bridging, at best, merely provides a communication link between competing subgroups. In order to close the gap, you need to conduct a purposeful search for a common meaning without creating intra-group opposition. One way to do this is to form a Group […]

Leaders in today’s complex organizations are discovering that getting followers together to develop a common set of goals is not only difficult, but it is frequently divisive and disruptive to the normal work flow. Their challenge is to meld the individual perceptions and expectations into a unified vision. The primary obstacles keeping followers from coming […]

Leaders are running into a growing problem with followers, who will not accept responsibility when a job is done poorly, but instead pile on the excuses and float the whole mess back up the chain of command. This phenomenon is called “upward delegation.” One example is when a follower pesters you with questions about how […]

One of the first things Doers encounter when they enter a new workplace is an intensive effort by other employees to recruit them into a clique. Those who hold a negative view of the organization will pull the Doer aside to warm him or her about whom to trust and whom to watch out for. […]

When your expectations are conveyed clearly those on the receiving end feel good about providing the response you need. Unclear requests typically leave the listener feeling disappointed, discouraged, or disillusioned. Those who hold you responsible for their negative feelings typically walk away and say nothing rather than risk telling you what is really on their […]