John Manning's Blog, page 40

Adopt the Right Accountability Culture

The right accountability culture is the one in which we all want to work. This is the healthy culture in which a Disciplined Leader uses the right degree and system of accountability to accelerate performance and drive results. It is an environment where the Disciplined Leader challenges employees through that accountability system, measuring performance and taking timely, appropriate action. In this culture, employees get what it takes to “win” and be recognized for their contribution. The r...

Challenge the Country Club Culture

At MAP, we define the “country club culture” as a workplace with little or no accountability. This is the kind of environment in which leaders have a “Que sera, sera” approach, thinking what will be, will be. They fail to set good goals and/or to create consistent habits around measuring performance, so employees don’t really know what’s expected of them. This leads to a self-destructive culture in which high performers tend to leave because these most precious assets aren’t valued for their...

Avoid the “Jail” Culture

Have you ever worked for a company in which you were afraid to make a mistake, fearing you’d get fired? More than likely, you were working in what MAP calls the “jail culture.” The jail culture creates a culture of fear. In this environment, you see red flags such as:

low employee morale high turnover micromanagement on behalf of leadership people being caught making mistakes constant criticism lack of coaching and effective feedback people feeling like they can’t do anything right hopelessn...

Proactively Manage Change

Research has shown that most change initiatives fail because of a lack of proper sponsorship from those who have to manage and drive it. According to a recent MAP survey, 70% of CEOs from throughout the United States felt their strategies were the right ones, but only 10% felt these efforts were being implemented correctly. While lack of execution was identified as being one of the key reasons for why the change initiatives were failing, a close runner up was lack of support for the changes....

Don’t Get Too Comfortable

Have you ever thought you found that “sweet spot” in your business, then somebody or something pulled the rug out from under your feet? At first, you may have felt sideswiped, like something hit you out of nowhere. With business owners, this happens all the time. They’re rolling along, thinking everything is fine the way it is, or that nothing needs to change or get better. But in reality, it’s a dangerous mindset to have, one that can put the business livelihood and leadership at risk. If yo...

Don’t Sweep Problems Under the Rug

Managing problems is an aspect of every leader’s job. But I don’t know many leaders who really enjoy it. And who can blame them? Whether it’s an interpersonal conflict between two co-workers, a bug affecting your company’s computer systems, or an aspect of your products or services that aren’t delivering as expected, problems crop up and can wreak havoc if we let them fester, becoming bigger than they should. So when problems arise that may potentially impact results, don’t ignore them. Inste...

Discover New Truths—About You!

It’s been said that there are several levels of knowledge. Knowing something for certain is the first. The second is thinking you know something. The third is knowing with certainty you do not know something. The fourth is the killer: not knowing that you don’t know something. This last state of knowledge is the most dangerous because if you’re oblivious to what you don’t know, you’re a target for all types of problems. So my question for you today is, what do you not know about yourself that...

Go Beyond You for Good Answers

There’s perhaps nothing more challenging for people than when they’re led by know-it-all, arrogant leaders. That said, bosses and company executives who keep their egos on the shelf and discipline themselves to look outward for answers land on great solutions more often and maintain their people’s respect while doing it. You need only to go back a bit in time to understand some of those leaders who did this effectively. Read books on Gandhi, Nelson Mandela and Dwight D. Eisenhower, and you’ll...

Better Your Engagement

I’m busy. You’re busy. We’re all busy and have demanding lives to lead. But what would happen if you made a commitment to set aside time to become a more engaging leader? By “engaging,” I don’t just mean talking more to others in some sort of charming manner (although that can help). I’m referring to getting involved in others’ lives, such as those team members you may commonly breeze most mornings without pausing to stop, check in, and really find out how work is going—and why. To improve en...

How to Build a Culture of Caring for Customers

Call them “customers.” Call them “clients.” Whatever you call them, like most of us, you’re probably leading a business that caters to some type of end consumer. The question is, how engaged is your organization with this audience of purchasers or patrons, those ultimately voting with their loyalty and their dollars? According to a recent TimeTrade consumer survey, 90% of consumers don’t get the help they need when shopping from retailers. What’s more, when retailers connect promptly with ind...