Archive for category Trust
“My Performance Sucked”: Leadership at the NFL Playoffs
Posted by Kristina Marzullo in Leadership, Trust, Performance, Teams, Motivation, Feedback on January 25, 2012
Empowerment is what leaders give to their people.
Today’s blog post was written by guest blogger, Doug Trainor, Consulting Associate with The Ken Blanchard Companies and Co-founder of Leadership Vanguard.
I know that many of you reading this might be Baltimore Ravens fans. For those folks, I’m sorry about the playoff loss on Sunday. I hope you will bear with me despite the fact that the leadership I am writing about comes from Tom Brady, quarterback for the Patriots. After the Patriots win in the AFC Championship game Sunday, Brady was being interviewed and the reporter mentioned how great Brady played, leading his team to a fifth Superbowl while he was quarterback—and tying a record doing so. To which Brady responded, “I sucked today—fortunately the team did better than I did.”
Is that leadership? Yes! I think we need more of that type of leading in organizations across America—both public and private sector. So please tell someone you were a poor performer today! It may sound a bit funny but there is something to it. A lot to it, actually. The first thing is candor. We need candor to make our agencies and departments better. Leaders address reality—even when it is tough to do and with upcoming budget pressures and the sometimes extreme political dialogues we hear on TV—candor will serve you well with those you lead.
The next quality Brady displayed with his comment was accountability. He took personal accountability for his performance and he did it publicly. When leaders do this it builds credibility with those they lead and with the customers they serve. It can be a powerful way to increase the trust in your organization. A side benefit is that makes it easier to give difficult feedback to people around you when you admit your own failings. Something that makes feedback easier? Who couldn’t use some of that?
Last, but not least… it promotes humility. Humility is a leadership quality that will serve you well in every way. Not thinking poorly of yourself; but realistically. And realizing our teams are the reason we succeed in our leadership roles and giving credit where it is due.
Are You Happy With Your Job?
Posted by Kristina Marzullo in Government, Leadership, Motivation, Performance, Productivity, Relationships, Roles, The Ken Blanchard Companies, Trust on September 14, 2011
They say that if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. This statement is true for some but unfortunately, there are several federal government employees that are less than satisfied with the work they do on a daily basis. A study released by the Partnership for Public Service and Deloitte focusing on job satisfaction of federal employees reported that those who have been on the job for three years or more are less satisfied with their jobs versus those that have been in their role for less than three years. In addition, effective leadership and employee relationship and interaction with their supervisors had a major impact on the individual’s level of satisfaction. Pay, training, and opportunity for advancement also played a significant role in on-the-job fulfillment.
Fifty-nine percent of individuals indicated they had left an organization due to trust issues.
Trust is a key influencer of job satisfaction. When employees lack trust with their immediate supervisor, motivation and productivity decline and performance falters. So how can leaders improve trust with their direct reports? The Ken Blanchard Companies has researched how trust impacts work relationships and has designed the TrustWorks! ABCD Trust Model. The model is comprised of four elements of trust that leaders should take into account when working with the people they lead. The Trust model can assist leaders with increasing the level of trust or repair relationships where trust has been lost.
The four elements are Able, Believable, Connected, and Dependable.
- Able is about demonstrating competence.
- Believable means acting with integrity.
- Connected is about demonstrating care and concern for other people.
- Dependable is about reliably following through on what the leaders say that they are going to do.
Do you fully trust your supervisor? How can your leader improve your level of trust?
Here are 8 ways your agency can enhance the trust between you and your leaders and coworkers.
The Future of Flexible Work Schedules
Posted by Kristina Marzullo in Commitment, Leadership, Telework, Trust on October 7, 2010
The work environment that most Americans are familiar with is one that requires them to be at the office for a set amount of time each day, regardless of whether they get their work done or not. Sure, some of us have a well defined flex schedule and can work from home if necessary but how would you like to work on your terms? How would your life change if you had the opportunity to work when you want, how you want, and where you want? That is exactly the type of work environment that Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson are piloting with the Office of Personnel Management.
The way, when, where, and how we work is changing.
Ressler and Thompson created a work environment called Results-Only work Environment (ROWE). ROWE is a management strategy that focuses strictly on the results that employees produce, not the presence they have at the office. This allows employees to create a sought after work/life balance.
A results-only work environment promises the following benefits:
- Allows you to set your own work schedule
- Puts you responsible for results
- Promotes a healthier, less stressful lifestyle
- Autonomy and accountability
- Environmentally friendly – no commuting
- Increases productivity and efficiency
- Retain and attract top talent
OPM’s John Berry was so impressed with this new workforce flexibility program that he announced that he was implementing a pilot program with 400 of the agency’s employees. If the pilot is a success, OPM will expand it within the agency and encourage other Federal agencies to execute the program government-wide. The program’s intent is to increase employee performance and morale and empower them to get the job done.
The Ken Blanchard Companies defines empowerment as the creation of an organizational climate that releases the knowledge, experience, and motivation that reside in people. It is what leaders give to their people. Self leadership is what people do to make empowerment work. The ROWE program does just that by giving managers a new way to lead their direct reports and entrust them to take full responsibility to get their work done on their own time.
But is this new flex schedule right for everyone? The creators of ROWE have reported an average increase in productivity of 35%, and a 90% decrease in voluntary turnover rates. The pilot being tested at OPM is being evaluated by Deloitte. A full report on their findings is scheduled to be published in February 2011.
What advantages/disadvantages would you expect if your organization implemented a ROWE work environment?
You can click here to learn more about how to create a motivating and empowering workplace.
Hey Boss, I’ll be working from home today.
Posted by Kristina Marzullo in Government, Ken Blanchard, Leadership, Management, Morale, Productivity, Relationships, Telework, The Ken Blanchard Companies, Trust, Virtual on August 26, 2010
The benefits of telework have been proved in the public and private sectors.
The Telework Improvement Act 2010 was approved by both the House and Senate. This is great news for eligible federal government workers who wish to work from home, unless their managers don’t fully feel comfortable with the idea. According to the 2009 Telework Report, one of the biggest hurdles in fully implementing the Telework Act is management’s resistance.
What is causing this resistance among managers?
Managers aren’t necessarily opposed to the actual Telework Act. The issues that are keeping them on the fence are making sure their employees are getting the work done, that they are accessible, and that they are adhering to the telework policies. These are common concerns of managers who have never led virtually before. What they don’t realize is that these issues are expressed behaviorally to their direct reports as “lack of trust.” Low levels of trust have the direct economic impact of high turnover, absenteeism, low morale, stifled innovation, challenged decisions, inefficiency, and often damaged customer relationships.
How can leaders quiet their fears about telework and build morale and trust with their employees? One way is by learning some important principles about leading virtually.
Ken Blanchard encourages managers to adhere to these three disciplines of leading virtually.
- Discipline I: Focus Attentiveness— Attentiveness means knowing the goals, motivation, needs, and experiences of team members and recognizing when changes occur. Since working effectively in a virtual environment requires high levels of independence, leaders must consistently communicate their desire to connect with the personality and experiences of those with whom they work.
- Discipline II: Foster Community—Most of us are unaware of how much we connect to an organization and a team by being on-site. We pick up cultural clues and norms by observing behavior, dress, language, behavioral norms, and communication patterns. Effective virtual leaders work diligently to connect team members to the larger organization by actively facilitating collaboration, creating the team culture, and helping virtual workers unite to build community spirit.
- Discipline III: Accelerate Development—It is too easy to lose track of the development needs of people who work virtually. Virtual leaders need to stay focused on team members’ career and personal goals and find ways for them to develop. This increases satisfaction, builds loyalty, and creates a more valuable employee.
How are you keeping the lines of communication open and building trust with your manger or direct report when you’re working from home?
Change is A’Coming to Rocket City
Posted by Kristina Marzullo in Leadership, Collaboration, The Ken Blanchard Companies, Trust, Conflict, Change, Direction, Communication, Government, Ken Blanchard, Training on August 19, 2010
An article in Government Executive magazine announced that Huntsville, Alabama is becoming the next stomping grounds for several government agencies. This transition kicked-off with the expansion of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) in 2005 when the Missile Defense Agency learned that they would be relocating their agency from a Washington suburb to Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville. Since that announcement, several agencies have followed in the MDA’s footsteps. A few of the MDA’s neighbors now include:
- 1700 positions from the AMC and USASAC
- 180 positions from SDMC
- 400 positions from the Aviation Technical List Center & Rotary Wing Platform
- 113 positions from the 2nd Recruiting Brigade
When the BRAC transitions are completed in September 2011, approximately 4700 positions will be relocated to Redstone.
Organizational change is a fact of life in the workplace.
All of this change has led to increased stress levels on the organizations and people involved. The transition has required employees to wear multiple hats while leaders have been implementing several training efforts to get others up to speed.
Leading people through change is an ongoing challenge in any agency. So how do BRAC or other leaders maximize high levels of productivity and morale and ensure a successful transition?
A U.S. Department of Education project originally conducted by Gene Hall and his colleagues at the University of Texas suggests that people are faced with change express 6 predictable and sequential concerns.
- Information concerns
- Personal concerns
- Implementation concerns
- Impact concerns
- Collaboration concerns
- Refinement concerns
Resolving concerns throughout the change process builds trust in the leadership team, puts challenges on the table, gives people an opportunity to influence the changes process, and allows people to refocus their energy on the change.
At the Ken Blanchard Companies, new work by Pat Zigarmi, Judd Hoekstra, and Ken Blanchard on the Situational Leadership II and Leading People Through Change programs provides guidance for diagnosing concerns and then using the appropriate change leadership strategy to address those concerns.
Watch this video of Ken Blanchard discussing the reality of change.
Building Trust Between Employees and Management
Posted by Dominic Giammarinaro in Leadership, Management, Performance, The Ken Blanchard Companies, Trust on May 27, 2010
A recent article in The Public Manager discusses the issue of employee-management relations in the federal workplace. They talk about how building trust between these two groups can lead to greater workplace flexibility and increased performance.
On May 20, The Ken Blanchard Companies conducted a webinar entitiled, Trust: The Critical Link to a High Energy Workplace. During this webinar, Blanchard conducted a poll and asked the audience how many of them had left a previous job because of trust issues. Surprisingly, 59% of the people said they had!
Trust expert Cindy Olmstead recommends thinking about four core elements represented in the ABCD Trust Model™ that people can use to evaluate whether someone is trustworthy or not. How would the people in your agency rate their leaders in these four areas?
Able—demonstrates competence, expertise, experience, and capability in getting the desired results accomplished
Believable—walks the talk of a core set of values, demonstrates honesty, and uses fair, equitable practices
Connected—interacts with staff, communicates and shares relevant information, provides praise, and gives recognition
Dependable—is accountable, takes responsibility for own actions, and consistently follows up
Once employees and management assume the best of each other, it creates a more trusting atmosphere and ultimately greater performance and satisfaction at work.
Follow this link to learn more about Trust: The Critical Link to a High Energy Workforce.
Working Virtually—Challenges and Benefits
Posted by Dominic Giammarinaro in Communication, Government, Ken Blanchard, Leadership, Leadership Development, Performance, Productivity, Teams, Technology, Telework, Trust, Virtual on April 22, 2010
By Ruth Anne Randolph
With the blizzard that hit the Washington DC area earlier this year, estimates of the cost of lost productivity among federal government agencies totaled $550,000,000 for one lost week. When people cannot physically get to their offices, current technology offers multiple options to allow staff to continue to work from home. Recently, I talked with a client who wasn’t in her office because of the blizzard, then a personal illness, for three weeks in February. Yet, she was productive because her agency was set up for teleworking.
Why is teleworking not more wide-spread in the federal government? It is beginning, but government is not leading the way. If teleworking were more established, this loss of productivity would definitely be mitigated.
What holds government agencies back? Lack of trust and accountability are big hang-ups, our clients tell me. Can we address these hurdles? Absolutely. The virtual work world has to be structured with more intentional support and clear direction because people do not have the safety net of informal communications. Expectations must be crystal clear, with milestones and check-ups more defined.
As Ken Blanchard says, “As a manager, the important thing is not what happens when you are there, but what happens when you are not there.”
What ideas do you have on building trust and ensuring accountability? How can government agencies maintain productivity while staff telework?
Can we look at the blizzard of 2010 as an opportunity to open the door to new approaches to improve performance and worker satisfaction even when it is 70 degrees?
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