Full disclosure regarding the potential downside of what lies ahead exposes everyone to the truth about the difficulties they’re about to face. More importantly, it triggers the search for new tools and new ways to make change happen. Lastly, it generates critical questions like: Are we missing something? What current resources are available? Whose help […]

It’s not your imagination; people are becoming more disingenuous and disrespectful in their person-to-person transactions. Common courtesy and civil behavior are being replaced by an in-your-face attitude that not only breeds contempt among peers, but also dampens their collaborative spirit. Working with disgruntled and disagreeable people is not easy, but it can be done if you use the following […]

Our capacity to listen is greater than our ability to speak. So why is it, then, that we yearn to be great speakers rather than good listeners? To know that you’ve been heard is one of the most confirming feelings you’ll ever have. Sadly though, paying full attention while someone else is speaking requires more […]

Joe was a machine operator in a high-tech manufacturing company. His story is a good example of how the learning process applies in a competitive enterprise. As a loyal employee, Joe had been running the cutting machine for years with no complaints. Things began to change when the production quota was raised and Joe’s rejection […]

Typically, non-performers have little interest in learning without some external stimulation. Understanding how learning takes place progressively in four stages could be very useful to anyone in a leadership position. Armed with this knowledge you can put on your motivator hat and light a fire under some of your least productive followers. Stage 1 – […]

Doers have something special working in their favor: the innate desire to do a good job that triggers a willingness to acknowledge their own incompetence. Doers are also willing to put up with a certain amount of discomfort during the learning process in order to experience the end result—recognition of a job well done. The […]

Even Doers sometimes lack the motivation to consistently perform at higher levels. Under adverse or antagonistic conditions, they may need reminding that the purpose of their job is to continuously upgrade what goes out the door—be it products or services. There are times, however, when the desire to improve is just not there. What are […]

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 […]

Managers in today’s complex organizations are discovering that getting staff 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 employees from coming […]

Organizations with multiple work sites typically set up an automated system of digital charts so that project leaders can assemble a virtual team without ever having the members meet in person. Instead, they gather on-line in chat rooms to discuss tasks, seek consultation, and keep each other informed. This virtual, exacting style is useful in […]