Thinking Out Loud

There is a lot of talk about transparency in the workplace.  An article I had published in Fast Company (click here) last week looks at this from a new angle.  It’s not about sharing more numbers, the direction of the company, how raises are determined, etc.  My article challenges us to share what we are learning and what we need to learn to do our best work.  The professional development process encourages us to do this, but it’s usually not robust enough.

Professional development conversations often happen at intervals several months apart, are formal, with managers who have very little training.  My approach encourages a teaching/learning model that is integrated into the organization.  The result is a company culture where debriefing (evaluation of processes and outcomes) is happening daily in an environment where teaching and learning are the norm.

For this model to be effective, everyone (most importantly the CEO!) must be involved.  This type of transparency, where everyone knows what you are working to improve and why creates an atmosphere where people are not trying to prove themselves, but improve themselves.

What keeps managers from being kind to those who report directly to them? When asked they might say they were angry or hurt, felt let down or lost trust. Most managers believe it’s perfectly okay to express these feelings, but this belief does not justify being unkind. The reason why we treat people unkindly is fear. So what is the difference between expressing, say, anger and being unkind (we’ll get to the fear part later)?  Read More

On Friday, December 19th, I’ll be attending the monthly meeting of the Association for Consulting expertise, where I am a member.  It’s a terrific organization of seasoned consultants who value collaboration.  Sharing information, bringing in the best qualified people, and creating value are the hallmarks of ACE.

I’ll be conducting a Roundtable program (click here) after the meeting to acquaint members with the a communication tool I use regularly when teaching and coaching leaders. It’s a very versatile tool, helpful when planning communication strategies and diagnosing communication breakdowns.

To learn more about this communication tool, visit a Fast Company article I wrote in May (click here) or the Maine Banker (click here).

The Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce is an organization with a lot of vitality, creativity and vision. Now they are offering Tech Tuesdays throughout the winter months to bring folks together for new learning experiences.  I’ll be leading a few of the programs.  The first will be on December 5th: Building and Maintaining Business Relationships. Businesses tend to focus on the relationship with their customer/clients, and not devote enough resources to employee relationships.  Of course, they are both important. To find out more about the workshop, click here.