Mindset blog

mindset blog

It's Tough at the Top

Mindset Group - Friday, April 17, 2009

Leonardo Di Vinci once said "the biggest deception a man can suffer is from his own opinion”. Your own Mindset as the leaders of your organisations during these challenging times its critical. What you do and say has the greatest impact on the psyche of your organisation.

Adapting to rapid change may not be easy for you and it certainly isn’t for the great majority of your staff. Any change management guru will tell you that a “burning platform” or a “sense of urgency” is often a prerequisite for any large scale change. Whilst I think with the GFC there can be no doubt that for some, things will never be the same, knee jerk reactions will come back to bite many people when things turn around. In an interview with the US Financial Times, Jack Welch stated, "On the face of it, shareholder value is the dumbest idea in the world. Shareholder value is a result, not a strategy ... your main constituencies are your employees, your customers and your products."

Far too many of companies, with good people and good motives, obsess about pleasing share-market and taking actions that may well reduce their stock's value two to three years out. This quarterly reporting obsession is having a detrimental effect on the long term planning and competency building that builds sustainable results into a business. They have slashed budgets on many longer-term strategies, such as research and development, talent retention and development, even preventive maintenance on their equipment.

All of it with the noble aim of improving margins and getting a short-term increase in share value. And then something like the GFC comes along and share prices have plummeted drastically leaving many to think, “ what on earth we were thinking”. Instead of spending so much time worrying about the analysts, why not spend that time talking to your other key stakeholders, your employees and customers.

You might just find out that your cost-cutting measures have led to employee disengagement and a loss in brand equity. This is the main reason behind offering our staff engagement survey for Free. It has never been so important that leaders really understand what is going on with the Mindset of their people.

Comments (1) | Trackbacks (0) | Permalink |

Subscribe to RSS feed

Become a Communication Ninja

Mindset Group - Friday, February 27, 2009

Great leaders understand the need to change their communication styles to ensure their message remains consistent, fair and effective.

Mindset have developed model that ensures communication is effective and at the same time improves relationships and enhances the manager’s leadership position.

Too often we hear from employees that their managers are inconsistent, that they are ‘either hot or cold’, and that the employees ‘never know where they stand’. Managers complain that their employees don’t listen, or that they just go on doing what they’ve always done.

Mindset's four-level model encourages managers to pitch their message at exactly the right level to ensure that the person receiving the message clearly and consistently understands the manager's intent. It also helps the manager communicate the urgency or level of importance of the message and leaves the recipient in no doubt where he or she stands.

The Right Way

The right way to build trust in communication is to carefully adapt your communication style to the message, the situation, and the person with whom you are communicating.

Level 1 - ‘Let’s do this together...’

Good leaders know that the easy way to get people to do what you want them to is to spend lots of time at Level 1 - ‘let’s do this together’. Effective leaders work co-operatively with their employees, encouraging, leading by example and clarifying expectations when necessary.

Level 2 - ‘I need you to...’

But leaders know that there are also times when they need to be more directive - when time is short, for example, or when it’s important to be very specific. An example might be ‘I need you to get back to this client now...’

Level 3: ‘I told you to...’

And what happens when things go wrong? Leaders need to ensure clarity and mustn’t be afraid to be completely candid when communicating with their employees. It’s no good beating around the bush, when things don’t work out the way you expected you need to look the employee in the eye and say ‘I told you to...’.

Level 4: ‘If you don’t...’

And if the employee simply doesn’t want to do what you ask? Then it’s time to go to Level 4 - ‘If you don’t...’ makes it very clear that you have reached the end of the line. Make sure this isn’t an empty threat, however, by never threatening anything that you are not prepared to do (or capable of doing). And when you do get the result you want always remember to reward the employee by going straight back to Level 1!

Follow the Levels - Back to Level 1

The key here is to understand that there are four distinct levels - the employee needs to be given time to comply at each level before the leader ‘escalates’ to the next level.

And at the first opportunity the leader has to go straight back to Level 1 - no nagging and no grudges!

The employee needs to learn that the leader’s preferred way of working is ‘let’s do this together...’ but he’s not afraid to go to Level 4 ‘if you don’t...’ if necessary.

As soon as the leaders gets the result (a change in behaviour or attitude) that he’s looking for it’s time to go straight back to level 1. Until the next time he needs to go to Level 2.

Isn’t This inconsistent?

The secret is to apply each level consistently - so the employee learns that a consistent level of ‘incorrect’ behaviour will attract a consistent level of communication from the leader, and that the leader want’s to consistently communicate at Level 1.

Another secret is to spend progressively less time at the higher levels, as the diagram shows. Don’t be afraid to go to Level 4, but when you do, communicate your point, get the change in behaviour you need and then drop straight back to Level 1.

The Wrong Way

There are lots of wrong ways to communicate, as this model helps to illustrate:

The screecher: have you worked with a manager who spent all of his time at Level 4? They only way these people seem to know how to communicate is with threats and bluster - ‘if you don’t...’.

When they do drop in to Level 1 it comes across as so cheesy and insincere their employees are relieved when they go back to Level 4!

Bi-Polar Bill: these are the people who jump straight from Level 1 to Level 4 to Level 1 to Level 4 to...

Their employees don’t know where they stand from day to day - and sometimes from hour to hour. These leaders are often very unsure of themselves and how to communicate to ‘get the job done’. One minute they’re your best mate - ‘let’s do this together...’ - and the next they’re frantic - ‘if you don’t...’

Practice Your Communication Ninja Skills

Like most skills effective communication needs practice. Reflect on the way you relate to the people around you. Look for feedback cues that show you how people perceive your communication. Practice communicating at Level 1 for as much time as you can, slowly escalating only when necessary, and when you do escalate your communication style, be consistent in your approach and return to Level 1 as soon as you can.

Your View?

Have you worked for a manager with great communication skills? Or one who fit our alternative models? Can you see how using this model could improve your own communication and relationships with your employees?

We’d like to hear about your experience. Let us know using the Comments link below.

Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Permalink |

Subscribe to RSS feed