Posts Tagged ‘managing’
Strategic Planning is the Easy Part
Working with organizations across the country, I see a familiar process when doing their strategic planning. A typical process I’ve observed is loosely following these steps: Once a year a strategic planning event is scheduled with the Board and a few key executives The event starts with a “state of the industry today” presentation, typically…
Read MorePay for Performance and Reputation Risk
An increasing trend in the financial services sector is “pay for performance.” This practice shows up in several formats: Commission – rep is paid a percentage of balances acquired Incentive – rep is paid per closed referral Bonus – rep is paid based on goal performance over a set period (per month, quarter, bi-annually, annually)…
Read MoreLeadership: Don’t leave it to Amateurs
If you were to describe your leadership style, what would you say? If you were to define the leadership style of your credit union, what adjectives would you use? Like it or not, we all have a leadership style, and if your credit union has not defined their preferred leadership style, you have many varieties,…
Read MoreThe Basics of a Successful Career
We enter the business world with the expectation that we are starting up a trajectory that will always climb to the next promotion, a continual progression of responsibility and authority. This belief is a myth. Rarely is a career path a constant climb up the ladder? A career path is a “hero’s journey,” one beset…
Read MoreLeadership Stories we Tell Ourselves and Teach Others
Often we’ve written a script in our heads that may or may not be accurate. But this script can be limiting us from attaining our full potential. In this linked post (Is Your “Story” Holding You Back? Six Ways to Rewrite It—and Supercharge Your Power by Nancy D. O’Reilly, PsyD), we discover ways our stories are limiting…
Read MoreLeading from the Back is an Art
We often see a leader as the point person, but the reality is leaders very seldom take the point, and when all goes well, maybe they shouldn’t. Leadership doesn’t take courage; it takes owning the responsibilities of their decisions but then must also inspire the courage of others to act on those decisions. Taking responsibility…
Read MoreTough Conversations of Leadership
Leadership requires mutual trust but also the courage to talk the truth. I am surprised when I learn a “leader” is hesitant to have tough conversations about attitude or performance. It is even more shocking when I discover they keep performance files on direct reports discussed at annual or semi-annual performance reviews. Employees have expectations…
Read MoreTrigger Points = Leadership Fails
Trigger points are those moments when our brain turns off, and our actions and reactions become “instinctive.” You know them, and you have them. Something happens that “sets you off.” It is a response that comes from deep inside, and it happens without you even thinking about what is happening. It is very visceral. Your…
Read MoreLeaders Don’t Listen? Really?
Condoleezza Rice once said, “When you’re in a position of authority, you need truth-tellers around you.” Did she hit the mark? You bet.First, let us agree that one element of leadership is the authority. To be a leader, you must have some authority. This authority isn’t determined by power but by your ability to motivate,…
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