How can you tell your team is really motivated? What are the signs that say so? Do they show enthusiasm for their work, their colleagues and the wider organisation? Is there discretionary effort – going above and beyond what’s expected (as opposed to demanded)? Are they energised and engaged? Or are they quietly doing… Read more
1. Good delegation develops people who can then step up, making the whole team stronger and more effective. 2. The more frequently you delegate, the more you’ll be developing a key management skill. 3. Delegation demonstrates trust in people to take on a task and get it done. Being entrusted is motivating, as people can… Read more
Right now, many employers are working hard to recruit more people. So I thought this post from the vault might be useful for readers who are interviewing candidates. One of my clients took an interesting approach to their six-pack of bite-sized workshops: they repeated the same topic, ‘How to interview potential recruits’, six times. This… Read more
For the purpose of this post, let’s assume that the whole team is being formed for the first time. So your employer is taking on a new project, or has won a significant contract, or is setting up a new venture. If you’ve been selected to lead this team, chances are you’ve been involved in… Read more
A question I sometimes hear from participants in Zoomly’s workshops is ‘How can I convince someone to step up?’ When we explore this it’s often the case that the person in question seems to lack confidence – even though their manager sees them as very capable. For example, they: Seek approval for every step of… Read more
A major variable in whether or not training sticks is the role of the participant’s manager. Some would say the manager is the biggest ROI variable, so great is their influence on the participant’s state of mind as they embark on training and afterwards attempt to apply what they’re learned. Newstrom (1986) identified three significant… Read more
So you’ve noticed that one of your team is turning out to be a star performer. First of all, congratulations – lucky you for having a high performer on your team. Second of all, well done for noticing – all too often, great performance is barely acknowledged, with a grudging, “Well it IS their job… Read more
After Action Reviews (sometimes referred to as AARs) have their origins in the United States military. Tools and techniques that improve team performance often have a military provenance. An advantage of techniques with military origins is that they’ve been tried and tested when the stakes were very high. The idea is that after… Read more
It’s not unusual for teams to experience conflict: in team sports it can get physical, in rock bands it can end in smashed guitars and in the workplace, conflict can lead to poor performance. Ultimately, conflict within teams can see some members shown the exit. Not all conflict is A Bad Thing – it… Read more
We can tangle ourselves in knots when it comes to giving feedback (whether positive or developmental). Particularly us awkward Brits. We dress it up. Put frills and a bow on it. Ahhh – don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. Or we feed people sandwiches. Then we get vexed when the recipient of this cat’s cradle… Read more
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