Management Craft

Total Compensation

Many people focus on base salary or salary and bonus potential when looking for a job. It's natural, we all want money and money can make life more comfortable.

Challenge: Small organizations don't pay market, or many don't anyway. They can't - the economy of scale does not always work. And to be fair, the jobs are often different. In a Fortune 100 company, a call center manager might manage 100s of people and a budget of 10s of millions. In a tiny company, the call center is three or four people.

But here's the rub - the total work experience is often better in small companies. You can have a lot of impact, blur job description boundaries, and be a part of tight and caring teams. Sure, you might experience this in a larger company, but probably more so in small companies.

The benefits at small companies are generally less. This is just the facts. You should still expect health care coverage and basic vacation pay benefits, but not much more. Small companies often can't offer a lot of upward mobility or fancy training programs. That said, outstanding performers might find that they get promoted more quickly if there are openings (small companies are more willing to roll the dice on high potentials and not get hung up on things like years of experience and degrees or certifications).

Here's the rub #2 - the intangible benefits are higher in small companies. Small companies are often more flexible, personal, and colorful.

What if the most amazing job experience you could encounter this year comes with a pay and benefits package lower than what you think you deserve? Would you consider a role that offers 1/3 less in compensation and 50% more in satisfaction and enjoyment?

Food for thought as we reflect on 2007 and plan for a great 2008.

People Acumen

Here is an article written by Ram Charan - an excerpt from his book, Leaders at all Levels. Great concept and much needed, I think.

People Acumen by Ram Charan

Leadership is predicated on the ability to mobilize others to accomplish a vision, a goal, or a task. Leaders can't do everything; they get other people to do things through managing. They increase their capacity -- the ability to get more done -- through delegation combined with a methodology for ensuring follow-through. They set expectations, get the best people to do what needs to be done, and oversee the relationships among them to ensure that destructive or self-interested behaviors don't subvert the group's common purpose.

You know you've discovered a leader with people acumen when you see evidence that the person selects the right people and motivates them, gets them working well as a team, and is able to diagnose and fix problems in coordination and social relationships among groups of people.

Real leaders, I have found, exhibit an enthusiasm for selecting people who are better than they are -- whether or not they have worked with them before -- and then using those subordinates to lift the organization and themselves to new levels of accomplishment. They motivate their people and develop them as conditions change, retaining those who advance the business and having the courage to deselect with dignity those who don't. Such leaders show a repeated pattern of accurately identifying other leaders' talents, helping them flourish, or easing them into other jobs where their talents fit better. You can often identify a true leader because the people working under that person are of high caliber, are energized, and have a natural affinity for the leader and want to see him or her succeed.

Leaders with people acumen get the most out of their people by setting clear goals, then giving feedback and coaching judiciously to help achieve them. Most use some kind of performance indicators (the term I use is key performance indicators, or KPIs) that not only measure progress in quantitative terms but also influence behaviors. A KPI may be as simple as the percentage of customer calls answered in the first minute or may be as broad as corporate profitability measured against competitors. They watch for problems that might get in the way of achieving the KPIs and don't hesitate to give people unvarnished feedback. They are keen judges of when someone is not up to the task and don't back off from making the hard decision to replace him. Many people who think they're leaders are terribly uncomfortable and indecisive in the realm of personalities, even when they have the insight into who and what needs coaching. Some have a deep-rooted need to be liked that compromises their judgments of people.

Anyone can improve his or her ability to select and develop people's talents, but other aspects of people acumen are hard to teach. Leaders with people acumen have good instincts to anticipate problems among individuals who must work together and to get them resolved. They size up the group dynamics and pinpoint simmering conflicts, then draw them to the surface to unblock the group's progress. They intervene when they detect behavior that disrupts the working of the group. These leaders are fearless where many people are unconsciously concerned that if they try to change the group dynamics, they'll be cut apart or ignored and lose face.

Social acumen also manifests itself in network building. Leaders who possess it are not loners or bookworms. They have an innate desire to work with diverse people and naturally cultivate a broad range of social networks that permeate the company, including subordinates, peers, and superiors. As these leaders develop their social acumen, their networks often extend beyond the business to include customers, suppliers, regulators, politicians, and various interest groups. The relationships tend to be durable because they are built on trust, and that trust allows information to flow both ways, exposing the leader to new ideas and different ways to see things. The social networks also allow him or her to energize and synchronize people's energy and actions and to do a better job managing a crisis than would otherwise be the case.

Copyright © 2007 Ram Charan from the book Leaders at All Levels (Printed with permission)

Partner Better with Peers - Here are Eight Ways

Here is a section from High Impact Middle Management on partnering techniques. Why not print this out and bring it to your next meeting with peers as a conversation starter?

High impact middle managers have learned what it takes to be a great partner. They know that the benefits of effective collaboration far outweigh the time and effort expended in creating the partnership. High impact middle managers also know that good partnerships do not simply happen. There are practices that they must put into place and cultivated to increase the benefits of peer-to-peer collaboration.

Technique #1: Resist the need to control.
If you have a constant need to control situations, people, or conversations it will undermine effective collaboration with your peer group. Partnering is a give-and-take process in which no one gets to play boss. Listen and watch for verbal and nonverbal clues that suggest other people are feeling pressured or pushed. One of the best ways to give up control in a conversation is to ask more open-ended questions and make fewer opinionated statements.

Technique #2: Spend time with peers.
Management is a social act. The more time that middle managers spend working with one another, the easier and more natural the partnering process will feel. In addition, peers that get together often feel more comfortable asking for input, help, and participation than do those who avoid each other. Middle managers who engage peers only when needed will receive a cooler and less helpful response. Great middle managers, both extroverts and introverts, know the value of cultivating and building relationships.

Technique #3: Resolve any past partnership failures.
Old conflicts and arguments affect the way in which people relate to one another in the present and future. You need to take initiative to resolve any prior relationship issues in order to pave the way for better and more productive collaboration in the future. The benefits of working through and getting past prior problems with other managers will more than make up for the initial discomfort of broaching the topic with them. Managers who resolve their differences will also feel less work-related stress.

If you are faced with a peer who does not seem willing to improve the relationship, you can do one of three things. First, you might try a different approach. Can you look at the situation from their perspective? Have you isolated the key issues or problems? It may be that what you thought was the problem is not what is actually bothering this person. Second, you are the only person you can control. Even if your peer is hanging onto a grudge, make sure that you continue to act and relate in a manner that is professional and collaborative. If you continue to take the high road he or she might come around in time Your third option, and the most dramatic, is to work with others whenever possible. You may still need to conduct business with this person, but when given the choice, it is most productive to work with those who reciprocate.

Technique #4: Communicate on behalf of your peers.
Effective communication is one of the most reliable predictors of a healthy partnership. Managers who keep one another in the loop and represent one another well in meetings and other conversations are generally great partners. Communicating with peers should be regular part of your day. In addition to communicating well with each other, it is important for peers to communicate well on each other’s behalf. High impact middle managers are willing and able to represent their peer’s interests and needs when that person is not present in staff meetings, brainstorming sessions, and informal conversations. You may need to defend a peer’s budget choices, or remind others of their projects that will require resources, or more commonly, represent their opinions and concerns. Great partners do this even when they do not agree with their peer’s point of view. When represent your peer middle managers in a positive light, you communicate that respect and care for colleagues is a key organizational value.

Technique #5: If you cannot say anything nice, do not say anything at all.
Never badmouth peers in front of others. It never pays to talk badly about peers, and it will burns bridges that you will need later on. Speak respectfully about other managers, even if you think ill of them. Managers who talk about other people behind their backs end up looking bad themselves. It is immature, unprofessional, and destructive to badmouth peers. The saying “What goes around, comes around” certainly applies to workplace relationships. This is not to say that disagreements with peers should be ignored. The best way to deal with a difference of opinion or disagreement is to directly communicate it, in a productive way, to the person involved.

(comment from the peanut gallery - Lisa learned this lesson the hard way :-( )

Technique #6: Take ownership of problems and challenges.
Don’t pass the buck. Few situations can put a damper on a partnership faster than being hung out to dry by a peer. Catherine learned this the hard way. Harry blamed her for problems that were rooted in his organization. When the president confronted Catherine about this, she was unfairly put on the defensive. Harry’s choice to pass blame and abdicate his own involvement in the problem hurt the level of partnership that he and Catherine would have in the future. High impact middle managers own problems and concerns and do not shift the blame onto other managers. If you have a complaint about how another manager is handling a situation, speak to that manager directly before taking it to the next level of management or that individual’s boss. You could burn bridges not only with your peer but upper management as well. If you do need to communicate an issue with another manager, then present a fair and balanced view of the problem, including the part of it that you own.

Technique #7: Graciously share credit.
Partners know that successes come from collaboration and that all players should share the credit. While it may be true that that one person’s idea was the catalyst for the breakthrough, the overall success was a product of the joint effort. Middle managers who ensure that everyone feels a part of success will enjoy a positive momentum going into the next project or initiative.

Technique #8: Know the needs and concerns of peers, managers, customers, and employees.
Middle managers will find it is easier to be good partners when they understand the needs and motivations of those with whom they regularly work. Then they are in a position to anticipate needs, warn of emerging problems, and share ideas with peers if they know what is important to others. As a middle manager, you should be able to answer the following questions regarding your employees and other managers you work with on a daily basis:

• What are their needs? What are their goals? What is their purpose in the organization?
• What are their interests? What are their motivations? (These are often different from their needs.)
• What are their strengths and weaknesses? What unique skills and talents do they bring to the organization?
• What are their hot buttons? What frustrates them most?
• How do they react to changes?
• What do I expect from them? What do they expect from me and my department?

Case Study
John and Barry were Vice Presidents reporting to the division president. They were both very talented and opinionated. When they were together in meetings, their demeanor toward one another was either cool and aloof, or confrontational. The real problem, however, came when they were not together. Both John and Barry took cheap shots at each other’s expense in front of others. They also did not involve each other in decisions as often as they should have, preferring to avoid one another when possible. Barry was particularly critical and cynical of John and many of his group members. Neither were inexperienced middle managers; they should have known better than to relate in this dysfunctional way. However, even managers with decades of experience let their opinions and emotions get the best of them. The managers who reported to John and Barry were beginning to emulate the dysfunction between the groups. It took having a manager who worked for John and closely with Barry to call their attention to what was going on. To their credit, once they saw the impact their poor relationship had on their results and their teams, they were able to become effective partners. In just a couple months, the improvement was significant and both were realizing benefits in terms of productivity and work satisfaction.

Middle managers who practice the eight partnering techniques will see immediate and long-term benefits. When peers become advocates and coaches, they add value to each your quest for results and efficiency. Being a good partner will also reflect well on you and improve your promotability and value within the organization.

Effective partnerships are valuable assets for managers. Developing and maintaining productive relationships with peers, managers, and team members allows high impact middle managers to extend their reach into the organization and improve their effectiveness. Great partners share ownership projects and collectively work together to enjoy success and recover from failure. Power Partnership techniques, such as spending more time with peers, resolving relationship issues, and representing others well can help middle managers improve peer relationships.

Wild Spirit Wolf Sancturaty Holiday Cards

The wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary in New Mexico is one of my favorite nonprofit organizations. They have a nice lineup of holiday cards featuring a few of their wolf residents. They are always looking for support, so check them out. If you celebrate Christmas, "Sunbear" is a nice one.

Be More Green - This is the Time to Give and Conserve

Here are a few links I came across while looking for a place to donate excess office supplies:

The junk mail "do not mail registry"

A few places to donate books:

Books for Africa

Books for Soldiers

Donate books and CDs to Eco Encore

For fellow Seattleites, here's where we can donate books to the Friends of the Library

Donate and recycle computers.

And then here is a cool place where Bill and I decided to get our old wedding rings (plus a couple other gold rings we don't wear) melted into to new ones (Bill recently lost a lot of weight and his ring is too big and can't be resized). It's called greenKarat. The process takes about 2 1/2 months, so plan ahead. We are using this as our 8th wedding anniversary gift to each other (this coming May). You can also donate your jewelery here.

Oddly enough, I did not find a good place to donate the office supplies.... Most sites say to take them to a school.

And how about this for your next company car?

Organization tools for your organization tools?

I have to laugh at myself sometimes. I am a bit behind on a few things and need to get organized so I know just what's what. My first reaction was to head down to my local Staples to pick up a couple organization tools. But if I look at my desks, I can see that they (I have two desks) are packed with organization tools. Folder holders, wire shelve thingys, and three tiered in-boxes are crammed full of stuff. Plastic stacking drawers are my favorite because they hold a lot.

I don't need more organization tools, I need more organization and perhaps a wee cleaning session.

I have stamps in a dozen weird denominations from 1 cent to 80 cents.
Pictures.
Cards.
Receipts I will need come January tax time.
Fliers for this and that.
File folders that ought to be filed.
At least 10 different kinds of paper - from filler paper to lovingly bound journals.
Magazines I keep thinking I will look at - one is from January 2007, probably not getting to that one.
One page models that don't have a folder - I hate to make a folder for one piece of paper.
Assorted gadget pieces.
Expired coupons.

An on and on. Take a look at your bins of organization - are they too full to do their jobs?

Middle Managers and Innovation

A reader tipped me off to this post at Innovation Playground called, What is the Role of Mid-Level Managers in Innovation? Here is a snippet:

Change heroes don’t sit in the executive suite and they’re not on the margins, either. They’re consummate insiders who get things done by working through other people. They are the people who will make or break your organization’s innovation initiatives.

I also believe that those who had a deep understanding of the various parts of a system (the organization and its processes and norms) are in a great position to innovate. Middle managers are in the thick of things.

Black Friday - Online - Much Easier!

Do you get up early to shop on Black Friday? Not me, I hate shopping real stores at all times, especially when it's crazy busy. I much prefer the online frenzy. Here's a link to Amazon's site where they allow you to vote for what goes on sale. If you vote, you can get in on the price of the winning item (if you don't vote, you can't get the deal). Clever on their part, I think. I voted for electronics and diamonds (girl's best friend, right?). Who knows if I will actually buy anything, probably not.

For the last three years we have done donations to Heifer in the names of both of our families with a holiday letter. Both our families are blessed with all the stuff they need, so this is a good route for us. This year we selected goats and bees. They use the goats for milk and the bees for honey. This cute pic is from the Heifer website.

Values Important for Coaching

I was working on the design for an upcoming coaching class and came across this from Coaching Basics:

Values that will help coaches improve their effectiveness:

Acceptance: Coaches should not try to change the clients’ goals or otherwise manipulate the conversation. To be a great coach, you need to accept the clients’ goals, intentions, and desires as being worthy and valid.

Adventure: Coaching can be very adventurous when your mind is open and willing to explore diverse avenues and perspectives. Having an adventurous spirit will help your clients move beyond their comfort zones.

Authenticity: Open and authentic communication between coaches and clients is critical to the quality of business solutions and relationships. Systems that promote and reinforce authenticity enable quick problem identification and resolution.

Courage: Sometimes a coach needs to have the courage to ask a difficult question or share a tough observation. Your client deserves open and candid dialogue presented in a caring manner.
Detachment: A coach is a partner, but is also separate from the client and the goals. A certain amount of detachment is positive and appropriate. Coaches who get too involved or wrapped up in what their clients are doing will find it more difficult to be objective and helpful.

Fostering Learning: A learning environment improves self-discovery and awareness. Employees and teams ought to be able to discuss strengths and weaknesses and feel support while developing new skills.

Effective: Great coaches value being effective by helping their clients move their goals forward.

Partnership: Building strong and trusting partnerships is critical in the coaching relationship. Coaching requires trust and open dialogue.

Respect: Each member of the organization adds to its value, including coaches. Work and decisions should demonstrate respect and appreciation for individuals and teams.

Service Oriented: Coaching is a service-oriented activity. The more service oriented you are when coaching, the more likely you are to notice the small details and nuances that will make a difference for your client.

Share: Although coaching is focused on your clients’ goals and intentions, you will also want to share helpful examples and be accessible and open.

Read This - Good Management Stuff

If you have a treehugger on your holiday gift giviing list, Hip and Zen Pen offers these ideas.

I love this post from the Slacker Manager called There is No Such Thing and Positive or Negative Feedback. Here is a snippet:

Our motives in giving feedback may be more important than the actual things we say. If we desire to help the other person learn and grow it will make a huge difference than if we are venting our own frustrations or trying to put another person in their place.

Here are 11 guidelines to unleash effective feedback in the workplace:

The HR Capitalist offers tips for dealing with pay inequities (and you are the victim/underpaid person). The post is targeted to HR professionals, but the advice fits any manager. Here is a snippet:

You're a young manager new  to your role, and after 2-3 months, you finally get some payroll data on your team.  You're scrolling through the detail and BAAAAAAM!!!  Sally (your direct report) is making 5K more than you.  How the #$*# does that happen?

Pay problems are a problem because as this post says, it is almost always more complicated than it seems. Sometimes people are paid more because of a crazy agreement with a VP who is no longer here and who made a promise he or she could not have. If this happens is the right thing to adjust everyone else's pay? This might not be responsible. The problem, I think, is that we make it mean too much when we find out someone equal to or below (on the org chart) makes more money. Most of the time it does not mean what we think at all. Focus on your pay, your work.