Lonnie Pacelli's Blog, page 75

Relax, the Audience is Rooting for You

Excerpted from The Truth about Getting Your Point Across…and Nothing But the Truth
If you're like many people, the thought of speaking in front of a group of people is like bamboo under your nails.  Truth be told, the audience wants to see you succeed and doesn't want to see a crash-and-burn on the stage.  The audience is rooting for you.

Next time you have to take to the podium, keep the following in mind:
Let your passion flow – The audience wants to not only hear about what you have to say, they also want to see your passion and excitement about your topic.  Allowing yourself to get passionate about your presentation will help get your mind off of the audience and more on to the topic you’re presenting. You’ve got something important to say, so get up there and say it with passion. Be the most prepared person in the room – Knowing your content backward and forward can only help your confidence.  The more unsure you are about your material, the greater likelihood of you panicking during your presentation.  Strive to be the most knowledgeable person in the room on your topic.
Have a couple of friendly faces in the audience – If you can, ask a couple of friends or colleagues to be in the audience and ask them to sit where you can easily spot them in different areas of the room.  As you’re presenting, alternate looking at them. It will look like you’re panning the audience, but what you’re doing is just focusing on one face, then the other, and so on. Amazon.com Widgets Canvass the room and get used to the feel, lighting, podium, and layout – Before your presentation, go in the room and stand on the stage or wherever you’ll be presenting.  Get a feel for where you’ll stand, how you’ll operate any equipment, where you’ll walk.  Think about where you’ll want your friendly faces to sit to where you can easily spot them. 

Try to chat with some of the audience before presenting – As people are coming in the room, do some light chatting with audience members.  If you find someone that is particularly friendly, use them as one of your friendly faces that you focus on during your presentation.
Accept that butterflies happen to even the most experienced of presenters – As with Sir Laurence Olivier, butterflies are just going to happen.  Expect that they’re going to come and incorporate the butterflies into your presentation preparation. 

Look for any opportunities to speak – The more you get up in front of a group, the easier it will get and the better you’ll be able to cope with your fears.  Embrace the opportunities; don’t avoid them. 

Take a few cleansing breaths – Just before you take the stage, right when the butterflies are swarming like bees, take a couple of slow and deep breaths.  With each exhale, imagine the butterflies being expelled.  You probably won’t get them all out, but the slowdeep breaths will help to calm you down and save you from starting off your presentation like a racehorse leaving the gates. 

Squashing the Procrastination Demon

We all know a procrastinator . . . the person who does Christmas shopping on December 24th, pulls an all-nighter to get a report done, or avoids making even the simplest decisions.  Many times the procrastinator puts forth a defense of, "Well, I do get it done, don't I?"  Sometimes yes, sometimes no.  Even if things do get done, though, the stress put on the procrastinator (and those around him or her) is greater than it needs to be.  If you know of a procrastinator (or are one yourself), use these tips to help make life a bit easier for not only the procrastinator but for those around him or her as well.
Spend time at the beginning of each week scheduling time to get things done - On Monday mornings take 30 minutes before you start your day to set your calendar for the week and schedule time to finish your to-do's. Need to get a report done by Thursday? Schedule a realistic amount of time in your calendar on Tuesday and Wednesday to get the report done. Being realistic is key here; don't try to schedule 16 hours worth of work into an eight-hour day. Amazon.com Widgets Avoid being distracted by "shiny objects" - The biggest procrastinators I've seen allow for non-urgent disruptions to interrupt their day and divert their attention from working on the important tasks. If something comes up that is truly urgent and needs your immediate attention, then by all means address it. Play that card judiciously, though. Don't let the shiny objects drive your day. Break big tasks down into smaller tasks - One reason for procrastination is feeling overwhelmed with the task at hand, particularly if it is a task that the person doesn't like. If you hate cleaning your house, don't do it all in one day; consider cleaning the bathrooms on one day, vacuuming on the next, and dusting on the third day. It won't seem as daunting a task and will give you more flexibility in your day. Look for ways to simplify the task or eliminate it altogether - Let's take doing your income taxes as an example. Rather than letting receipts pile up in a shoe box for the entire year, set up folders for your major expense categories at the beginning of the year and drop receipts in the appropriate folder throughout the year. You'll spend only a little amount of time setting up the folders at the beginning of the year, but you'll eliminate the larger task of sorting your receipts into categories when year-end comes. Think about the finish line, not the starting line - When you catch yourself procrastinating on a task, don't think about the amount of work ahead. Think about the relief you'll feel at the end of the task and the satisfaction you'll experience by doing a job well done. You'll still have to do the task, but you'll go into it with a more positive attitude by thinking about the finish line.

Leading That Virtual Team

It's happening more and more; managers are being asked to manage virtual teams of people that may or may not have a direct reporting relationship to the manager.  Some find it easy to do, but many others find it difficult to garner the respect from team members who don't have to follow the manager.  Get a few helpful tips to help you next time you're asked to manage a virtual team.
What are the challenges for such managers?
Getting others to follow you when they don't have to - Virtual teams at times mean that team members don't report up into the manager. Because there is no "hard line" relationship, team members can opt out of following a leader if they don't believe in the leader. Truly managing to deliverables - Leaders who manage virtual teams need to be comfortable with managing to deliverables; being very clear about what work needs to be done, what the deliverable needs to look like, when it has to be done, and who has to do it. Micro-managers who manage to activity versus deliverable will be very frustrated managing virtual teams because they typically can't control activities. Amazon.com Widgets Keeping everyone on the same page - Managing virtual teams means the leader has to rely on very concise, timely, regular, and relevant communication on activities, risks, and issues. When you don't provide this type of communication, the team in Seattle may be just fine but the lone employee in London may be completely out of sync with what is going on.

How can effective working relationships be developed across time zones, cultures and languages?
Take the first step in developing the relationship - Take some time to get to know the virtual team member by initiating periodic phone calls or visits. Take a few minutes to find out about a person's family or interests. Also take some time to understand a person's unique challenges in his location. Things that may be taken for granted in your location may be impossible in another location.
Go to them - Yes I know that businesses are cutting back big time on travel.  Sometimes, though doing things face to face is the best way to build relationships. Don't be afraid to get on a plane once in a while to visit the team member in his work environment. Take time to know his team members, facility, and daily job. Also don't forget to have dinner with him. Some of my most lasting and effective relationships were built over drinking sake, eating wiener schnitzel, or experiencing pickled fish stomach.
Share the inconvenience - Don't make them the ones that get up extra early or stay late for conference calls. Share the inconvenience workload and do your share of the off-hours calls. Your actions of fairness and teaming will speak volumes to your team members.
Watch the slang with those who don't share your language - When working with someone who doesn't share your primary native tongue, use simple words that convey basic meaning. Flowery, colorful language is great for an English Literature class; not so good for communicating with a team member who must work to translate your language.
What about decision making and problem solving?
Dont' forget about the virtual team member - It's easy to make decisions with those around you and later on "inform" the virtual team members of your decision. Keep focus on making them part of the decision making and problem solving process where relevant. Use email - I've done many problem solving exercises with my teams using email as the means for documenting the problem, articulating alternatives, and providing resolution. It not only ensures everyone is included, but helps those who don't share your native tongue by putting things in written format and permitting more time for translation. Get on the phone - Sometimes you've just got to get on the phone to resolve a problem if it's too unwieldy or sensitive for email, or if the email approach isn't working. Get the pertinent team members together at a time that is least inconvenient for everyone and hash it out. Keep a written audit trail of decisions - This is just good practice regardless of whether the team is virtual or not. Keep a spreadsheet or database of the decisions made or the resolution to problems so team members can ensure it reflects their understanding of the issue. It also helps avoid re-hashing issues already decided upon.

We Found a Rock Star! Hiring the Best of the Best

Colleagues, I feel your pain on this issue.

Scenario #1: You’ve got a critical position that needs to be filled by a qualified candidate, and quick. For every day the position doesn’t get filled, your in-box fills up a bit more with work to be done because your unfilled position hasn’t been staffed. You see tons of resumes and have interviewed scores of candidates, but the rock star you’re looking for isn’t emerging. You refuse to “settle” for a mediocre candidate, but the work is piling up and you’ve got to do something. 
Scenario #2: Three months ago you thought you had the perfect candidate for a job and decided to hire him. You negotiate a compensation package, relocate the candidate, and do some internal public relations work with the team. Two months after the candidate hit the job, you realize that your candidate was a PURE (previously undetected recruiting error); the candidate had a major issue with responding to pressure and would become rude and angry with peers, employees, and customers whenever the heat was turned up. You’re now faced with either making a massive investment in the person or making a job change. Not a pretty picture. 
Amazon.com Widgets Finding the right candidate for a job can be highly frustrating for both managers and recruiters. If you wait too long, the work will keep piling up and your management may start thinking you can get along without the position. Pull the trigger too soon and you risk hiring a candidate that is a PURE. There are legitimate situations where it just takes a long time to find a suitable candidate. You need to minimize the situations where you either hire the wrong candidate or take forever to find the right one. Here are some simple techniques to help you find that rock star for your organization: 

Know what you are looking for - Sounds pretty basic, but I have been amazed at how frequently managers dust off a job description that hasn’t been changed in years to use as the basis for hiring a new employee. Hiring to an out-dated job description can lead to ineffective resume screening and poor-fit candidates. Give the job description a good working over and ensure the skills documented in the job description accurately reflect what you’re looking for. 

Use multiple interviewers who can focus on different skills - Based on the job description, your candidate may need a combination of functional, technical, leadership, and people skills. A candidate who may be a technical wiz may also have the people skills of a head of lettuce. Use trusted interviewers who have expertise in each area of focus and ask them to drill the candidate for their respective area to ensure the total skills package is there. 

Look beyond the obvious - One of my best hires several years back didn’t meet the stereotypical requirements of the job, but had some outstanding core skills that were easily translatable to the new job. Had I stuck with my mental image of what I was looking for, I would have rejected the candidate during the resume screening process. If your job for a procurement analyst requires strong analytical skills, consider looking at candidates from other functional disciplines, i.e. finance, to fill the role. I’ve continually been amazed the number of times “out-of-the-box” candidates have become rock stars. Don’t limit yourself to candidates with stereotypical requirements.

Get a glimpse into critical thinking skills – OK, so you’ve probably heard about the “why are manhole-covers round” type of questions and may be chuckling at the prospect of asking a candidate such an off-the-wall question. The truth is, critical-thinking questions are a great way to understand how a candidate thinks through problems, how they respond to pressure, and how quick-on-their-feet they can be. I’ve changed my hiring decision (both ways) based upon the critical question I asked during the interview. A great approach to this is to think about your own business and create some hypothetical questions, i.e. if you’re an automobile manufacturer ask the candidate how they would design a car that gets 200 miles per gallon. Think about the “tough questions” you can ask and observe your candidate as they wrestle with their response. 


Get a hundred-day plan from the candidate – Wondering what a candidate would do when they land on your doorstep? Ask them! During your final selection process, ask each of your candidates to put together a hundred-day plan of what they are going to get accomplished during their first hundred days on the job. This technique is very effective in assessing how a candidate will take the ideals discussed during the interview process and put them to action if they were to be hired. 

Give peers and candidate’s prospective employees a voice – A key aspect of a candidate’s fit potential is how they will get along with peers and, if the candidate will be managing people, his or her prospective employees. You may have a functional and technical maestro but if he doesn’t have the teaming or collaboration skills you might be creating a mess for yourself and the team. Just be cautious to get a cross-section of opinions; you don’t want to base team chemistry decisions on just one person’s viewpoint. 

The rock stars are out there and can be delivering value in your organization; just make sure you keep focus on some of these basic hiring strategies and you’ll get the best of the best driving results for you.

Execute...or Be Executed

Talk about your character-building experience...

I was a young hot-shot project manager on an engagement that I had sold to a client.  I had it all planned out and had delusions of completely delighting my client with an issue-free project.  It all seemed so simple, then the project started...and never finished.

I'll spare you the gory details of my harrowing experience but what I can tell you is that I put more focus on selling and planning the project than I did on its execution.  I took a naive attitude of the project being able to pretty much run itself with some junior analysts running the day-to-day aspects of the work.  It blew up in my face and I got booted from the client never to return again.  It was my inaugural visit to the project management guillotine. 
Any project manager who has been around the block a few times has experienced a visit to the project management guillotine.  Perhaps it was with a sponsor, management, or a customer.  The project either had a massive schedule slip, cost overrun, or scope slash (or sometimes all three...now that's a party!)  and the project manager was first in line at the guillotine.  Some of my most uncomfortable situations in my 20+ years as a professional have involved me getting my head handed to me on a silver platter because I bungled a project. 
Amazon.com Widgets Visiting the guillotine was very uncomfortable but at the same time was a great learning experience.  It taught me that I not only needed to be good at planning a project, I also needed to excel in its delivery.  It wasn't enough to be only peripherally involved in a project or to be its administrator.  I had to know what was happening, be on the lookout for problems, and squash the problems before they had a chance to spin out of control.  It taught me that I needed to avoid the guillotine by being able to execute.  It was that simple:  Execute or be executed. 

Avoid a trip to the project management guillotine by keeping some of these simple tips in mind:
Break large projects down into mini projects that are three months in duration - I've rarely seen a project manager who is running a long-duration project raise a schedule issue early on in the project.  Most times, schedule issues get raised during the last third of the project.  Is that because the last third of the project is usually the most complex in nature?  Hardly.  It typically means that the project manager either wasn't aware of earlier problems or just slipped tasks without raising any alarm bells that the overall project was slipping.  Break larger projects down to short-duration three month mini projects which have a clearly defined deliverable associated with the project's completion.  Running mini projects not only keep everyone on their toes with the completion date just around the corner but can be an fantastic motivator for project team members to git-er-done. 
Communicate the facts regularly - Regardless of whether the news is good or bad, the project manager absolutely has to establish and maintain a steady rhythm of communication about how the project is going.  I personally like doing a pointed weekly status which focuses on cost, schedule, risks and issues.  If there is good news to share, do it.  If there is bad news to share, do it and tell what you're doing about it.  Don't suppress communication waiting for a "Hail Mary" to save the project.  It likely won't happen.
Avoid "whine and cheese parties" when raising issues - Yes, issues are going to happen, and yes, some of them can cause your project to fail.  This isn't the time to show panic or to get on your soap box about how tough the project is.  As the project manager, your job is to raise the big issues, articulate what needs to happen to resolve the issues, put a name next to each issue for resolution, then hold those people accountable for resolution.  Keep a cool head and stay focused on resolution, don't use the platform as a means to say "I told you so."
Maximize the value of your trips back to the well - So okay, sometimes you can't keep it all together without revising either cost, schedule or scope.  When faced with the situation of having to go back to the sponsor (or the person writing the checks) I've found a couple of things to be very helpful: 
Give the sponsor alternatives which allow him or her to choose between relaxing scope, schedule, and/or cost.  Too many times I've seen project managers pre-assume what needs to happen and not present alternatives to the sponsor.  Allow the sponsor to be part of the decision making process.
Minimize the number of times you have to go back to the well.  It is very frustrating for a sponsor to agree to a scope/schedule/cost variance in one month, only to have the project manager come back the next month looking for an additional variance.  Understand the implications of the variance and present reality to your sponsor.
Ask for help, don't abdicate responsibility or tough it out yourself - I learned this lesson very early on in my project management career.  As a young buck I saw it as a sign of weakness to ask someone for help if I got in trouble.  Asking for help meant I wasn't cut out for the job and management would view me as incompetent.  Through the years I've refined my attitude about asking for help pretty significantly.  It's not about raising the flag any time the smallest issue crops up; it's about knowing what issues are within my domain to fix and knowing what issues can best be addressed by someone else.   There's not a good reason to try to tough it out yourself; ask for help when you're in trouble.  On the other end of the spectrum is the PM who leaves the helm.  Rather than trying to fix a project problem, I've seen the project manager run for the exits or try to get assigned on another project to get out from under the mess.  As the PM you can't run for the exits; you've got to stay with the ship and work through the tough problems.  Just don't swing the pendulum too far the other way and forget to ask for help. 

Am I Meant to Mentor? Five Attributes of Best-in-Class Mentors

As a young consultant I really thought I had it all together.  I was getting great ratings, great raises, and wonderful accolades from clients.  Because I (in my own mind) thought I was such hot stuff, I was not active in seeking out advice from more experienced colleagues.  After all, what could they teach me?

As I matured from an inexperienced hot-shot to an experienced manager, I developed a much stronger appreciation for the wisdom my more experienced colleagues could impart.  This appreciation didn’t happen naturally; I had to get my butt chewed off a bunch of times to realize that a wiser and more experienced colleague could help me get through the tough times and learn from my mistakes.  I also needed a wiser colleague to hold a mirror up to my face to help me see my weaknesses.  I needed (and still need) a mentor to help me be more effective as a leader.

Whether for personal or professional reasons, having a mentor to turn to for advice and counsel is a very effective means of transforming knowledge into wisdom.  Before I go any further, let’s get a definition of wisdom in place:
Knowledge + Experience = Wisdom
In a mentoring relationship, a mentoree, or person being mentored, typically brings a lot of knowledge to the table.  The mentoree has learned the fundamentals of how to do his or her job and can probably do the basics well.  The mentor, or the person doing the mentoring, provides experience.  The mentor provides perspective on what to do when things aren’t optimal or when difficult situations crop up.  When the experience from the mentor is transferred to the mentoree, it accelerates the wisdom building process because the mentoree now doesn’t have to learn solely through his or her own mistakes.   The mentoree is able to learn from a combination of his own mistakes and the mentor’s advice. 
Amazon.com Widgets For mentoring relationships to work well, I’ve found several items to be very important:
The mentor should not have a direct reporting relationship with the mentoree.   The mentoree can feel free to speak about issues which may be plaguing him without fear of retribution from a boss.
The mentor must want to be a mentor.  Mentoring is an incredibly important responsibility that is likely over and above any other existing responsibilities.  If the leader doesn’t want to be a mentor, she is going to view the time spent mentoring as a nuisance.
The mentoree should have a desire for a mentor.  The mentoree needs to see the value in the relationship and have a desire to benefit from the relationship, otherwise both parties will just go through the motions until their time is over. 

Be a best-in-class mentor by zeroing in on these five attributes:   
Be available for your mentoree - You need to define how much time you are able to spend in a mentoring relationship and commit the time to do it.  If you’re just too busy to mentor, don’t do it. 
Make listening a priority - A mentor who listens will understand the struggles and issues a mentoree experiences and can better help him with a solution.  The best listening mentor assumes little when talking with the mentoree; she lets the mentoree communicate his struggles and issues, then targets what is most important.  Just as important, a listening mentor builds trust with the mentoree. 
Keep confidences - Any particulars about the mentoring relationship are between the mentor and the mentoree, period.  As a mentor, assume that everything about the relationship is off limits for others and ensure that if anything about the relationship is found out it is because the mentoree has divulged it, not you as the mentor. 
Tell it straight – Mentoring relationships where the mentor and mentoree can have direct and constructive discussions are highly beneficial to the mentoree’s growth.  Telling it straight means discussions are constructive, respectful, and specific.  Just remember to build trust in the relationship first by being a good listener and keeping confidences.
Have the courage to stop if the relationship isn’t working – If you’re having a difficult time connecting on common interests, if meetings with the mentoree feel like more of an obligation versus something you look forward to, or if mentorees don’t pursue meeting, it may be time to call it quits.  Some relationships just aren’t meant to be, so accept it and move on.  Do look at the reasons the relationship didn’t work out and look for patterns you as a mentor should address that maybe you can work on with your mentor.

Put these five attributes into action to help you be a best-in-class mentor.  Do this well and you give something priceless to your mentoree:  wisdom. 

PR Perspective: Get Your Point Across With Your Client...From a Client's Perspective

After I wrote my first book I decided to work with a PR firm to help publicize both my book and me. A friend of mine hooked me up with a firm which I worked with for a year. The people there were very nice and they got me a lot of interviews, including a few in some very prominent publications. I also wrote articles which were published in a number of magazines. I got along great with the folks at the PR firm and genuinely enjoyed them on both a personal and professional level. While so many things were going well, and I to this day respect the folks there, I decided to part ways because after a year I didn't see the financial results I had hoped to see.
A relationship between a PR professional and the client can be a value-added experience for both the client and the PR professional. When done well, the client can see tangible results from the relationship which justifies the PR professional's fees. When done poorly, the client has difficulty understanding why he or she has to do yet another fruitless interview for a target market that doesn't match who the client is trying to reach. The end result can be a disillusioned client who is exasperated with writing yet another check for PR fees which don't provide the value he or she is expecting.
Amazon.com Widgets Keep the following things in mind as you're working with your clients to help get the relationship off on the right foot and help you provide continued value to the relationship:
Understand what success means from the client's viewpoint - Take time when you start working with your client to understand what success means to him or her. Maybe it's number of interviews, maybe it's placement in prominent print, radio, or TV outlets. Maybe it's the number of speaking engagements your client gets as result of your work. Whatever the measure, take time to understand it and realign expectations with your client if necessary.
Ensure your client understands what his or her responsibility is in the relationship - To make the relationship work, be crystal clear with your client as to what you expect him or her to do to maximize the results. Maybe your client needs to provide you with an in-depth bio to help you better understand his or her capabilities. Perhaps your client needs to keep a watch for current events for which he or she can provide perspective. Clearly articulate the responsibilities you expect from your client and ensure he or she lives up to those responsibilities.
Focus on quality, not quantity - So you may be able to round up a lot of interviews for publications which either have low circulation or do not focus on the client's target market. Having interviews is fun and an ego boost for the client, but if your client's exposure isn't hitting his or her target market then you're just wasting his or her time and money. Make sure any work done on behalf of your client will help him or her better attract those in his or her target market and not fall on the wrong ears.
Get out of the box - Think hard about what your client needs then dig deep into your toolkit for what services you might be able to provide to meet those needs. Maybe your clients are looking for expertise in presentation development, web development, PR kit assembly, speech writing, speaking engagements, or some other area which you may or may not currently consider your scope of work. It is important for you as a PR professional to keep your service offerings fresh and relevant which may mean you having to reinvent yourself at times.
Stay on top of what is happening with the internet - The internet opens up a world of opportunity for everyone and allows for the average person sitting in his or her living room to reach millions of people. The internet can also spell doom for those who don't understand how to leverage it and embed it into their business. This is particularly germane to PR professionals. There are incredible ways the internet can help increase a client's presence, not only through articles and interviews but through things like search engine optimization, keyword density analysis, auto-responders, and link back strategies. Also, tools like PROFNET are available for anyone's use, not just for PR firms. The internet can either be a wonderful tool for you to leverage or can irreparably harm your business. Keep up with the internet and figure out how it can reap value for your client. Don't go the way of the typewriter salesman.
Meet with your client regularly to discuss the relationship and how it could improve - Keep an open dialogue with your client to discuss how things are going from both viewpoints. Look at the success criteria that were developed at the beginning of the relationship and see how well you and the client are working toward meeting those criteria. Review the responsibilities you have both agreed to and determine how well you are both meeting them. For any areas where things aren't going well, determine what you and your client are going to do to fix them.

Your relationship with your client can be mutually beneficial and one that your client willingly justifies your fees because of the value he or she gets in return. Keep the above things in mind as you craft your client relationship and drive the value both you and your client deserve.

Doesn't Accountability Count Anymore?

Begin rant.

Recently I've noticed a trend which frankly really ticks me off.  My observation is that more and more project managers are becoming hyper risk-averse and demonstrating an unwillingness to accept accountability for the projects they manage.  One tell-tale sign which I've noticed is the usage of "matrixed" organization charts.  In matrixed organization charts, the project team is depicted using different types of team leads shown vertically and horizontally on the organization chart.  With a matrixed organization, team members may have a "solid line" reporting relationship to one manager and a "dotted line" reporting relationship to one or more managers.  Now, I fundamentally don't have a problem with the collaboration aspect that a matrixed organization enables; where I do have a problem is when the matrixed organization makes it difficult to pinpoint who has accountability for the project. 
I recently reviewed a project plan and saw one of these matrixed organization charts.  After looking at it for a while to try to understand what was going on, I asked the following:  "Who gets the bullet if the project fails?"  The answer I got back was "The team gets the bullet."  Now, some of you may think I was less than tactful in asking this question, but after studying this organization chart I honestly couldn't tell who was steering the ship.  Then when I heard that it was "The team" that was accountable I got my answer:  No one was accountable.  If something went wrong on the project this structure allowed for those in leadership positions to point fingers at each other because the leadership team was a team of equals.  Sheesh.
Amazon.com Widgets In every single successful project I've ever been associated with there was a project structure which ultimately put responsibility and accountability for the project on a single project manager.  Depending on the size of the project the project manager may have a number of project managers working with her on a project but at the end of the day there was one person ultimately accountable for delivery.  Strip away singular accountability and you've now reduced your likelihood of success on a project.

Ok, so by now you've gotten my point that I am manic when it comes to accountability.  Hopefully a bit of my manic-ness will rub off on my readers.   Consider these tips to better ensure project success through clear lines of accountability:
Ensure there is a published organization chart with a singular project manager ultimately accountable for the project.  it's ok for things to be matrixed below the project manager but at the end of the day the top dog has final say. Avoid "two-in-a-box" project managers.  As soon as you introduce a second person into the leadership mix you've now introduced the potential for finger-pointing and confusion.  Ensure that the project manager understands his or her role as being ultimately accountable for the success of a project.  As hard as this may be to believe, there are many project managers who see themselves as administrators and don't see themselves as being accountable for delivery.  Engage in a discussion with the project managers in your organization about the concept of accountability and do some level-setting where necessary. Ensure the project sponsor enforces the accountability chain with the project manager.  If the project sponsor is wishy-washy about accountability then the project manager is less likely to view himself as being accountable.
Don't allow for your project managers to skirt accountability and muddy the waters through confusing organization charts or unclear reporting relationships.  Accountability drives success, and success drives results.

End rant.

The Seven Deadly Sins of Leadership

Pride. Envy. Gluttony. Lust. Anger. Greed. Sloth. You either recognize these as the seven deadly sins or as themes for prime-time television. Nonetheless, you were probably taught as a child that these are bad and you shouldn’t do them. For purposes of this article, do as you were taught and think bad when you commit these similar sins in the workplace. 

As leaders, we are continually being introduced to new techniques and theories. Hammer & Champy’s Business Process Re-engineering Model, McKinsey’s 7-S Framework, and Kenichi Ohmae’s 3C’s Strategic Triangle are all examples of strategic models designed to help leaders think about their business in different and innovative ways. What sits on top of all of the models and frameworks, though, are a series of foundational attributes that every leader should possess if he or she is going to have demonstrated, sustained success as a leader. 
In my career as a leader, I’ve been fortunate enough to experience a broad array of leadership situations where sometimes I enjoyed fantastic success, and at other times experienced dismal failure. In looking back at my failures, many of them had nothing to do with a theory, framework, or technology that was utilized. The failures had to do with cracks in my own foundational attributes which left me vulnerable as a leader. I’ve boiled these down to seven key sins which this article will focus on to help you become a more effective leader. 
Amazon.com Widgets Sin #1 - Arrogance 
Ever known a manager that consistently claimed to know more than the rest of the team? How about one that was unwilling to listen to opposing views? Isn’t this just a sign of confidence? What’s wrong with that?

Confidence as a manager is crucial as people will look to you, particularly when things get tough. When it runs amok and turns to arrogance, the manager disrespects the team. Show respect and have confidence and you’ll do fine. Subtract out respect and you’re just an arrogant doofus. 

Sin #2 – Indecisiveness 
So you have a meeting on Monday and the management agrees on a course of action. On Tuesday, the manager decides to take a completely different course of action. Thursday the manager goes back to Monday’s course of action. The following Monday you’re back re-hashing through the same problem from last Monday. Blech.

Decisiveness means the manager listens to those around him or her and then makes the best decision for the project that the rest of the team can understand, and sticks to it. While team members may not agree with the decision, they should be able to see the rationale. Decisions without rationale or without listening will ultimately frustrate the team and put a target on your back. 

Sin #3 – Disorganization 
We’ve all known the manager that asks for the same information multiple times, keeps the plan in their head versus writing things down, or is so frantic that they’re on the verge of spontaneously combusting. Their disorganization creates unneeded stress and frustration for the project team. 

The manager needs to have a clear pathway paved for the staff to get from start to completion, and make sure the ball moves forward every day of the project. Disorganization leads to frustration, which leads to either empathy or anarchy. 

Sin #4 – Stubbornness 
On one of my early project management jobs I was a month behind schedule on a three-month project. I refused to alter the project schedule insisting that I could “make up schedule” by cutting corners and eliminating tasks. Despite the entire project team telling me we were in deep yogurt, I stubbornly forged ahead. I ended up never seeing the end of the project because my stubbornness got me removed as the project manager. Talk about your 2x4 across the head.

The manager may believe his or her view of reality is the right way to go, but it’s imperative that he or she balances their own perspective with that of the rest of the project team. Decisiveness without listening to the team leads to stubbornness. 

Sin #5 – Negativism 
Years back, one of my peer managers, in their zeal to “manage expectations” would consistently discuss the project in a negative light. Either the focus was on what work didn’t get done, what the new issue of the week was, who wasn’t doing their job. Their negative attitude about the work, people, and purpose of the project sapped the energy, enthusiasm, and passion out of the work. It was a self-fulfilling prophecy; the project failed because the project manager willed it to fail. 

This one’s simple; a glass-is-half-empty project manager is going to be a horrible motivator and will sap the energy from a team. This doesn’t mean that you have to be a shiny-happy person all the time; but that the project manager has to truly believe in what he or she is doing and needs to positively motivate the team to get there. 


Sin #6 – Cowardice 
Imagine this: the manager who, when pressed on a budget or schedule over-run, will blame team members, stakeholders, or anyone else that could possibly have contributed to their non-performance. Much easier to play the blame game and implicate others because everything didn’t go perfectly as planned. What a weenie. 

It’s perfectly OK to be self-critical and aware of your own weaknesses and mistakes. For a leader to truly continue to grow in their leadership capabilities they need to be the first to admit their mistakes and learn from them as opposed to being the last one to admit their mistakes.

Sin #7 – Untrustworthiness 
Simply put, managers that don’t display necessary skills, show wisdom in their decisions, or demonstrate integrity aren’t going to be trusted. For the team to truly have trust in their leader, they need to believe that the manager has the skills to manage the project, the wisdom to make sound business decisions, and the integrity to put the team’s interests ahead of their own. Take any one of these attributes away, and it’s just a matter of time before the manager gets voted off the island.

Not Another Ice-Breaker! Team Building with a Purpose

“We just don’t work as a team!” Janet, a group manager for a large insurance company, was complaining to Larry, her human resources consultant. “Everyone just seems to do their own thing, they don’t share information, don’t try to help each other, and don’t seem to care about anyone else’s problems. What we need is a team building offsite!” Janet and Larry decided to put together a two-day offsite for the team at a resort about two hours away from work. Janet wanted immediate focus on the problem so Larry worked double-time to put together the event to be held later in the month. Larry put together an agenda full of trust-building exercises, ice-breakers, and brainstorming sessions on how the team could work better together.
On the first day of the offsite only about half of Janet’s team had shown up; the other half were working on a hot project that needed to be completed later in the week. The remaining team members politely participated in the team building exercises, but didn’t seem very interested in the activities as they felt too “squishy.” Because Janet wanted to focus the offsite on team building, there was no clearly stated business purpose for the event. The brainstorming sessions were good, but no tangible actions were taken down for the team to follow up on. In short, the offsite was met with a resounding thud from the team and was a dismal failure. 
Amazon.com Widgets To some, this may be a gross exaggeration; but to others, this closely resembles an offsite they attended or were responsible for planning. Offsites are a very effective means to getting the team focused on solving a business problem, defining a strategy, or creating a revolutionary way of doing things. A very key by-product of offsites, though, is the team-building that occurs while addressing business issue at hand. Done well, an offsite not only puts great minds together to address a business issue but it also builds better teams that work more effectively together and get more things done. Done poorly, an offsite will be viewed as a huge waste of time and will poorly reflect on you as a leader. 

How can you ensure your offsites are successful at building teams and getting things done at the same time? Consider the following simple tips:

Have a clear purpose for the offsite – Define some clear business reason for having the offsite. Consider things such as developing strategic goals for the upcoming fiscal year, account planning for strategic customers, or generating solution alternatives for a key business problem. If you make the goal of the offsite “Team Building” then your team is likely to look at the offsite as a waste of time that will have no real business benefit. Do your team building under the guise of solving a problem or defining the future. 

Balance work with play – All work and the offsite becomes too fatiguing. All play and it becomes a boondoggle. Balance your agenda with a combination of work sessions with some fun team-building events sprinkled in. Make sure the “play” events you define are something everyone can participate in and go beyond the overused catch-me-as-I-fall-backwards event. Better still, ask the team what types of things they’d like to do during playtime. 

Provide plenty of time for networking – Give ample time during the day and evening for the team to have snacks, enjoy beverages, and just talk about whatever strikes them. Team building starts with building relationships, and building relationships starts with getting to know each other. Allow for networking time to be free and unscripted and let the team enjoy some casual conversation with each other. 

Don’t hold the offsite during a crunch period – When you do hold your offsite, you don’t want your team members to be checking email every five minutes or constantly leaving to make important calls. Do your best to hold an offsite during a “slow” time in your business. As with most businesses, there will probably never be an optimal time to hold an offsite but do your best to avoid times when team members are already burning the midnight oil. 

Make it an overnight event – Some of the best offsites I’ve held were those where the team ate dinner together, enjoyed a couple of drinks, and stayed up late discussing major business problems or brainstorming on a radically new strategy. These late night sessions were valuable in that team members put their heads together to address some problem or opportunity. More importantly, team members built relationships which provided an outstanding foundation for strong teams. 

Don’t make the team work overtime to “make up” the time spent at the offsite – If you’re going to have an offsite, allow the team to move some of their other commitments out a few days so they don’t feel the pressure of needing to get their work done while at the offsite. The last thing you want is your team thinking about working late because of wasted time at a dumb offsite. Relax some of the deliverables and let the team focus on the offsite, not on what work isn’t getting done. 

Put together a follow-up plan to continue the work from the offsite – One of the most frustrating things I’ve experienced with offsites was the lack of a follow-up plan to implement some of the great ideas which came out of the offsite. Put together an actionable follow-up plan with tasks, dates, and owners and you’ll keep the excitement going out of the offsite and will get some of the great ideas implemented. Neglect putting together a follow-up plan and you’ll have an offsite that the team sees as a waste of time. 


Offsites can be a very effective means of getting things done and building outstanding teams at the same time. Just make sure to follow these simple steps and you’ll better ensure your next offsite is a huge success.