Fourth Quarter 2011- Issue 6
Note from Coach Mario- At the End of the Day- “Trust- Creating and Sustaining A Favorable Leadership Culture”
Trust permeates every fabric of our being and significantly impacts the culture we operate or live in. When trust exists over a sustained period of time, a culture is enriched with self-efficacy, open and honest dialogue and relationships that lead to amazing levels of performance. When trust does not exist, a much more guarded mindset and actions are front and center. Just think about some of your favorite products that you have come to trust and the time saved knowing that you do not have to read the fine print on their label. Now think of the people in your organization that you trust and enjoy working with and whom you do not have to read the fine print or read between the lines of their character or competence. The trust is high and the productivity is at sustained high levels. Now think back on the products where they may look like your favorite products but something is not the same about them. Maybe it is the different label or maybe a word used in the product identification that causes you to have to read the fine print. You might ask more questions or spend more time looking or inspecting because you are somewhat guarded about their contents. Over time you may develop that trust, but it requires more in time, energy and/or in resources. So it is with people that you may not have a trusting relationship with.
In his book, “The Speed of Trust,” Stephen M. R. Covey discusses the principle of credibility or believability that allows us to establish and sustain trust at all levels. At the epicenter of credibility is our character and competence along with four cores, Integrity, Intent, Capabilities and Results. When evaluating your trust in others or your own trustworthiness, picture a “trust matrix” where you would or would not put a check mark under each credibility core. Are the people (i.e. boss, direct reports and peers) in your “trust matrix” of good character, good intentions, with impeccable expertise, knowledge and skill and a good track record? How about your own trustworthiness? Is it based on your good character, good intentions, excellent knowledge and skill and a record of producing sustained results?
As a leader, your responsibility includes creating and sustaining a favorable leadership culture. A culture that houses trust as a cornerstone has the best chance of sustaining a favorable leadership climate when substantiated by the four cores of credibility, Integrity, Intent, Capabilities and Results. A culture without trust is like exploring a dark cave without the proper lighting. The footing can be treacherous and costly.
– Mario Flores
Mario Flores. All Rights Reserved. No part of these materials may be reproduced in any form without written permission.
Third Quarter 2011- Issue 5
Note from Coach Mario-At the End of the Day-”Accountability”
Throughout the year, I am sure you have encountered many instances where individuals have taken the initiative to be personally accountable for their actions that have resulted in excellent results. As leaders, one should always be on the look-out for these situations and recognize these individuals for a job well done. As the business leader, holding individuals and organizations accountable requires seeing accountability as a cornerstone or pillar of effective leadership. Holding accountability requires:
- Setting and communicating expectations.
- Following up to ensure clarity of the expected results.
- Periodically planned results review meetings that compare actual to planned expectations.
- Appropriate actions from significant deviations of expectations.
- Having a multiple stakeholder perspective.
Accountability is the preface to achieving great results. Without accountability, accomplishments will often go unrecognized or will be seriously jeopardized. Individuals who understand purposeful expectations and have a sense of accountability are highly motivated to undertake the challenge and often go beyond expectations. Being held accountable allows individuals to feel empowered and lead either themselves or others to great achievements. Being held accountable also spurs innovation and creativity inside individuals. When one has personal accountability they ask more of themselves and “dig deeper” thereby accomplishing beyond what was envisioned. Accountability is a key element of being an effective leader and people want to be held accountable.
As leaders you should evaluate the accountability models you have in place, including the tools such as balanced scorecards that include planned expectations. With good accountability models and clear expectations communicated and received, people will feel empowered to achieve the expectations and you will be more effective in your leadership role without micromanaging. However, without effective or any accountability models, the predictability of the results is at the mercy of simply what happens, which may or may not align with your expectations.
-Mario Flores
Mario Flores. All Rights Reserved. No part of these materials may be reproduced in any form without written permission.
Second Quarter 2011-Issue 4
Note from Coach Mario- At the End of the Day- “Great Leaders Ask Great Questions”
As one moves up the organization and away from their technical area of expertise, it becomes vital that behavioral competencies grow to replace the technical competencies. While it is important to have the perspective that technical competencies serve one well as a “baseline” foundation, they are no longer sufficient competencies. As one becomes the business leader, greater focus is on the leader’s behavior and leadership style and financial and nonfinancial results achieved.
A critical technique to use in the leader’s evolution from technical to behavioral competencies is asking great questions. As traditional subject matter experts, one becomes used to knowing the answer and truly believing the most value is added only when one has the answer. While being technically competent is important, as one moves up the organization and has responsibility and accountability for a broader segment or the overall business, the leader is not expected to know all answers to all problems but must instead rely on others for critical input, particularly when in a decision-making mode. Therefore, the leader needs to be able to synthesize and be more discerning of the input. This is where increasing the aptitude for asking great questions become integral to problem-solving and/or understanding others. In general, ask questions that:
- Reflect active listening and an understanding of other’s perspective.
- Evoke discovery, insight, commitment or action (e.g. those that challenge assumptions).
- Are open-ended that create greater clarity, possibility or new learning.
- Move others towards what they desire, not questions that ask for them to justify or look backwards.
As Albert Einstein said, “If I had an hour to solve a problem and my life depended on the solution, I would spend the first 55 minutes determining the proper question to ask, for once I know the proper question, I could solve the problem in less than five minutes.” Asking great questions can reveal information needed for maximum benefit.
Practice asking the proper questions and develop a leadership style that energizes and empowers others in this intellectually stimulating approach to understanding different perspectives and/or problem solving.
–Mario Flores
Mario Flores. All Rights Reserved. No part of these materials may be reproduced in any form without written permission.
First Quarter 2011- Issue 3
Note from Coach Mario- “The Most Important Part of the Day Are The People”
As a leader, one of the pillars we stand on is Creating a Motivating and Developing Environment. Oh, yes, having a compelling vision and articulating it effectively is very important. However to be truly inspirational, you as the leader must connect with the people as a person who understands, values and cares about them. Through the years, I have come to realize that the most important part of the day is not the work we do, but the people we do the work with. I am not diminishing the importance of the work itself, but when the time has come and gone and we look back and see all those eyes and memories, I have a question for you, “Will you have realized what all those people you work with mean to you?” For me, one of the things I cherish the most are the words said to me by people that I have touched in one way or another. Some of the appreciative words and phrases said to me in emails or other written forms are:
–I learned a lot from you
–Your words of encouragement
–Your guidance
–The most engaged leader
–Thanks for the sympathetic words after the loss of mother
–Your dedication and loyalty
–Your leadership guided us to stay focused on what really mattered
So when you answer the question, “Will you have realized what all those people you work with mean to you?”, you can say yes by not waiting to realize it until you look back and see all those eyes and memories. By recognizing now that the most important part of the day are the people you work with, connect with them and start today making the memories that you too will recall and cherish for a lifetime.
–Mario Flores
Mario Flores. All Rights reserved. No part of these materials may be reproduced in any form without written permission.
Fourth Quarter 2010-Issue 2
Note From Coach Mario-At the End of the Day-”Principle-Based Empowerment”
As I listen and observe, it is not always clear that people really feel empowered to get the job done. I find that much of that uncertainty comes from people not understanding each other’s boundaries and expectations. In the daily quest for innovation and idea generation, the guidance given or not given by the leader sets the tone for the environment. If clear boundaries and expectations are identified, the work of innovation and idea generation can be executed with the necessary conviction (motivation) to progress…every day, even if it is in baby steps. Baby steps often lead to giant leaps. It does, however, take a leader to create an environment where people are truly empowered and feel and become motivated. This is where principle-based empowerment comes into the picture.
In addition to establishing for people clear boundaries and expectations, the other important component of creating an empowering environment is principle-based leadership at all levels in the organization. The principles along with clear boundaries and expectations are foundational in creating an environment that encourages people to “give that little extra.” Quite often, it is that “little extra” that makes the difference between good and sustained great. Shown below are the guiding principles and their associated boundaries and expectations that the leader proactively practices to create an empowering environment that people embrace that lead to innovation and idea generation:
PRINCIPLE — BOUNDARY and EXPECTATION
* Integrity/Honesty– Behave ethically adhering to company policy, rules of conduct, financial policies and legal rules and regulations.
* Respect– Be open and willing to listen to another individual.
* Openness/Communication– Allow for dialogue in a manner where discussion flows freely and does not include a hidden agenda.
* Diverse Viewpoints– Recognize that ideas or inputs to an idea can come from very different points of view that have roots in varied experiences and cultures.
* Optimism– Look at the glass as “half full” rather than “half empty.”
* Teamwork– Recognize that “no one wins alone” and that people need each other in the spirit of support and cooperation.
* Trust– Count on each other to fulfill agreed-upon obligations.
* Commitment– Retain accountability for the idea or innovation.
Once these principles, boundaries and expectations are understood, accepted and practiced consistently, an empowering environment is developed where people are inspired, motivate themselves and act with confidence. Through principle-based empowerment, the daily practice of innovation and idea generation can occur at all levels of the organization. –Mario Flores
Mario Flores. All Rights Reserved. No part of these materials may be reproduced in any form or by any means without written permission.
Note from Coach Mario-At the End of the Day- “The Art of Subtraction”
While one often gets caught up in seemingly adding more activities to ones already overflowing plate, it is even more important that you actively subtract from your plate activities, projects, steps in a process etc., commonly referred to as “things,” that are not adding value. The art of subtraction allows one the opportunity to do more with less because we focus on those “things” that are not important now, although they most likely were at one time. To do this, it takes a “wait a minute, why are we doing it this way” mindset and more importantly, it takes the discipline to stop and ask why are we doing it this way or why are we doing it at all.
You are most likely engaged in daily activities that are part of your organization’s plan. Things that are not supportive of these are candidates for subtraction and should be reviewed to see if they still need to be done or done the same way. One may need to put their “pride of authorship” aside if a candidate for subtraction is one you may have “developed.” This should not be taken personal as I am sure at one time it was important to be done or to be done that way. One should always address a candidate for subtraction with respect for others.
Effective leaders and organizations are as skilled in subtracting, doing away with things that do not add value, as they are in doing things that add value. Make sure you are actively practicing the “art of subtraction” effectively in your actions and within your organizations.
–Mario Flores
Mario.Flores. All Rights Reserved. No part of these materials may be reproduced in any form or by any means without written permission.
|
|
