Posts Tagged ‘respect’

How’s the Morale on Your Team?

Posted: October 15, 2012 in Brilliant Manoeuvres, Business, Enterprise Robustness, Leadership, Leadership Principles, Military Lessons, Personal Development
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Two essential skills of highly effective leaders are the ability to assess the morale and mood of their team, and the ability to maintain morale in the face of difficulties and obstacles. This is something I talk about extensively in my new book, Brilliant Manoeuvres: How to Use Military Wisdom to Win Business Battles.

Morale is the willingness of an individual, team or organization to win and to succeed. Many people confuse true morale with superficialities such as mood. They take good humour and happy, peaceful feelings as signs of good morale when they are nothing but an adjunct to morale, and a peripheral one at that.

In other words, just because people complain, it doesn’t mean that morale isn’t good. Strong morale is built upon unity of purpose and action, determination to succeed and cohesion in the face of opposition, disruptions, uncertainty, friction and obstacles.

How is the morale in your team?

  • Do you sense that people in your team have hope? Is the language they use optimistic and hopeful, or pessimistic and despairing?
  • Are people making plans for the future with themselves in the plans, or are they instead making plans to abandon ship?
  • Do people have a lot of idle time, or are they working on ways to continually improve the organization and its performance?

How is the mood in your organization?

  • Are people happy to be working together? Do they joke around or are they morose?
  • Do people complain a lot in your organization? What do they complain about? Do they complain about superficial things and minor creature comforts, or are they more focused on substantial issues?
  • Do people feel free to approach management with issues, or do they let them fester and lead to grievances?
  • Are people making suggestions to improve things as a whole, so the team can achieve its mission and goals, or are they focused on their own issues to the exclusion of the team’s?
  • Is there a major discrepancy in perks and privileges between management and the rank and file of the organization? Large differences in this regard can breed resentment and anger in employees and lower level managers.

© 2012 Richard Martin

Family Ties that Bind

Posted: April 16, 2012 in Business, Entrepreneurship, Exploiting Change, Leadership, Management, Personal Development, Small Business, Succession planning
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Tolstoy’s novel Anna Karenina starts with one of the most famous lines in all of modern literature: “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” In the case of family businesses though, we can safely assert that most of the unhappy ones tend also to be unhappy in the same way. It usually boils down to who gets how much and who is in charge of what.

When the founder of a company brings family members into the business, this can increase the potential for internal conflict by a significant factor. One of the most common manifestations of this phenomenon occurs when the owner—usually, but not always, the father—offers management positions to some or all of his children. When the children are also part owners of the business, the problems compound. And when the company transitions to new leadership, as when the founder retires and selects one of the siblings to run the company, the potential for conflict goes through the roof.

Here is a case in point from my own consulting practice. A younger sibling was appointed as general manager of a small company while an older sibling continued in a subordinate managerial position within the structure. The older sibling was somewhat miffed at not being considered for a higher position, especially that of general manager. The older sibling was starting to take out that frustration on the younger sibling. Conversely, the younger one was starting to act in a dictatorial manner in order to make clear to everyone “who the boss is.” A rivalry that had been seething beneath the surface for years now had the potential to erupt into a volcano of disruption that the company could ill afford.

The younger sibling had the foresight to get my advice about managing the working relationship. My advice was simple: “You are the boss, so act like it. That doesn’t mean to be insensitive or harsh, but you are the one who has to answer to ownership for the company’s results, not your sibling. We need to talk together to ensure that you both know where you stand and the dynamics of your personal relationship don’t hinder the dynamics of your business relationship.” Is that a tall order? Perhaps, but what are the alternatives?

The key method I advocate for dealing with these issues is what I call ‘The Outsider Test of Behavior.’ Simply put, if a family member is behaving or performing in a manner that would be deemed unacceptable for an employee or manager that doesn’t have a familial relationship with the company’s ownership or senior leadership, then that behavior or performance is probably unacceptable, even though that person is one of the family.

Therefore, if family members have an ownership stake or occupy various management positions within the company hierarchy, they still have to let whoever is in management do their job, whether those people are family members or not. They can’t just decide to change things because they happen to have a familial relationship. Nor can they question the authority of other executives and managers, reverse decisions unilaterally, or otherwise disrupt the good functioning of the company, all simply because they happen to have the ‘right’ DNA.

The company has a fiduciary responsibility to employees, clients, suppliers, and financial backers (e.g. the bank and outside investors), and family members have to work within that reality. If they are part of ownership, they can exercise their responsibilities as shareholders through the board of directors (if they are a member) or at the annual meeting, just like any other shareholder. If they are part of management, they have to exercise their managerial functions and carry out their responsibilities in the same manner as any other manager in the company, all the while respecting proper rules of authority, responsibility, and decorum. They should also be held accountable for performance and behavior just like any other member of the company.

Of course, all this assumes that the family member who is in a managerial position within a family business is actually capable of exercising the functions of that position. If not, then the CEO or senior manager overseeing that person must work with the rest of the management team, ownership, and possibly the board, to ensure that that person is either removed from a position of authority, or removed completely from the company.

All of this can be very hard on the family member who has the ultimate leadership responsibilities, whether it is still the founding family member or the one who has succeeded the founder. It can also be hard on family members who are in positions or who have ownership stakes that they feel are unjust given their status within the family or self-perceived capabilities. But like I said above, what is the alternative, run the company into the ground?

Family members who are privileged to be involved in a successful business should realize how lucky they are to be in that position. Most people aren’t born on third base, much less second or first, so the situation must be seen for what it is: a great opportunity for individual and collective growth in a win-win dynamic, not a bone of contention within a scarcity mentality.

© 2012 Richard Martin. Reproduction and quotes permitted with full and proper attribution.

Book Review — Suddenly in Charge

Posted: April 3, 2012 in Book Reviews, Business, Leadership, Management, Personal Development
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Suddenly in Charge: Managing Up, Managing Down, Succeeding All Around

by Roberta Matuson

2011, Nicholas Brealey Publishing, 240 pp

Note – the Kindle version of this book is on sale all this month for $1.99.

Suddenly in Charge is billed on the cover as “The New Manager’s All-in-One Guide to Shine from Day One,” and it does not disappoint. First-time author and consultant Roberta Matuson has written the bible for all those employees who get thrust into management positions without all the necessary preparation, and in some cases without much support from their superiors and organizations. In many cases these people have received little or no training or development to do the difficult job of leading others.

I served for over 25 years in the Canadian Army. Before I “got the keys to the car” as a young officer, I had to undergo a grueling yearlong course in leadership, decision-making, planning, and management. After that, during my first leadership opportunity as a 23-year-old platoon commander, I was surrounded by mentors and had the support of my team of NCOs.

Unfortunately, most organizations provide nowhere near the same level of training and support to first-time managers and subordinates. This book, though, goes a long way to providing detailed guidance and advice to new managers. Although the book is subtitled Managing Up, Managing Down, Succeeding All Around, it is really about the nitty-gritty of day-to-day leadership in the organizational trenches.

I was particularly impressed by the author’s organization of the book into two distinct sections. The first part of the book deals with the delicate art of “managing up.” In this section there are chapters on, among other things, adapting to your boss’s management style, navigating the storm-tossed seas of office politics, and dealing with a bad boss. Needless to say, these are topics that are not often covered in books about managing and leading. However, they are a reality in all organizations. With Matuson’s guidance, no new manager need be in the fog when it comes to these arcane matters. There is even detailed advice on asking for (and getting) a raise.

The second part of the book focuses on “managing down.” In other words, this is the fine art of leading one’s own subordinates. The reader will find a well rounded look at the various aspects of managing and leading a team, everything from making a good first impression on acceding to the exalted functions of manager/supervisor, to acquiring talent, conducting performance reviews, and that bane of every manager’s existence, firing.

My two favourite chapters are are the ones respectively on dealing with difficult employees and gaining the respect of subordinates. These two chapters are worth the price of the book, in my opinion. I once had a commanding officer in the Army who told us that the secret to leadership was to be respected, not loved. Matuson fearlessly addresses this issue. In the process, she also shows that the key to getting respect is giving it, though without caving in or doing the work of subordinates or trying to be their friend.

In conclusion, Roberta Matuson has written what I believe will prove to be the classic work on managing and leading for new managers. If you are a new manager, it’s a must-have. If you are appointing or leading or mentoring new managers, it’s also a must-have. And if you are veteran manager, there is also much here that you can use in your day-to-day management and leadership.

© 2012 Richard Martin. Reproduction and quotes permitted with full and proper attribution.

Should a Boss Apologize?

Posted: September 15, 2010 in Business, Ethics, Leadership, Military Lessons, Personal Development
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Bad behaviour needs to be changed, and apologizing is a good place to start.

If we accept that apologizing is necessary in personal relationships and to uphold basic rules of civility, why wouldn’t we expect it in the workplace, especially from a boss? I commanded units in the Canadian Army as an officer and apologized on occasion for losing my temper or for having exercised poor judgment. We’re not talking every week, but it happened a few times in my 26-year career. I also saw it done by others. It can clear the air and set the conditions for a new start if done properly.

Apologizing may be a good way of communicating awareness of a problem and that one intends to do something about it. I’m not talking about “I’ve been unfaithful and sinned” type of apology in front of everyone. But if someone genuinely realizes the negative consequences of their actions and that they have hurt people, then they should make amends. This could involve taking individuals aside or starting the weekly management team meeting with an acknowledgment of his misbehaviour and his intention to change.

To me, apologizing is the obverse of foregiveness. It isn’t the end point, but I also think that apologizing can allow a clean break with the past. It can also lead to actual remorse, as perpetrators must face the people they’ve abused or hurt. That can contribute to meaningful change.

© 2010 Richard Martin. Reproduction and quotes authorized with proper attribution.

Apple Is Getting Arrogant

Posted: June 25, 2010 in Business, Opportunity, Innovation and Adaptation
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Apple’s (and ATT’s) difficult introduction of the iPhone 4 should be seen by the company as warning signals. Instead, Jobs and company seem rather more interested in minimizing problems and taking their customers for granted. Case in point: When faced with reception problems with the new iPhone, Jobs tells people to “hold it different.” Really? That’s the best you can do?

I’m a big Apple fan. I have a Macbook Pro and an iPhone. However, I am seeing behavior that is classic in business. Success breeding arrogance. Maybe we should state it as a new law of nature. Meanwhile, Google is coming on strong with Android, on both phones and tablets, and other manufacturers are not giving up terrain so easily, such as RIM.

This is the perfect opportunity to move in on Apple’s turf. The technical know how and design can be created by others. The advantages that Apple has had are not forever. They have to keep moving forward and, especially, not take their admirers and customers for granted.

© 2010 Richard Martin. Reproduction and quotes permitted with proper attribution.