If you are looking for work, you need to be sure about the kind of job you want. This is key to success. The clearer you are about what you really want; the more chance you have of making a good decision. Follow the link for ideas to help you make the right choice http://www.lifecoach-directory.org.uk/lifecoach-articles/looking-for-work-some-things-to-consider
Sadly, there seem to be a good number of managers who have problems talking to their staff. I don’t mean the exchange of every day courtesies like Good Morning and Good Night. Although, there seem to be some who have problems uttering those simple phrases on a regular basis. What I want to talk about here is the manager who doesn’t tell you what she really thinks about your work.
If the manager says nothing, it can be very frustrating. It increases pressure and can lead to stress. You think you are doing OK, but you have no real way of knowing whether your manager agrees.
The “boss” may be pleasant. She comes in everyday and wishes you good morning. She might even ask how you are doing. But there is no real engagement. She doesn’t encourage you to give anything but the most perfunctory of answers. And she certainly doesn’t comment on the quality of your performance. Meanwhile, you are desperate to know what she really thinks and you’ve begun to suspect the worst.
This situation can feel totally demoralising. So, what can you do?
Well, you have to grasp the nettle and ask for the feedback that isn’t being volunteered.
Here is how to go about it.
First, gather your own evidence about your performance, for example, samples of your work, feedback from customers and statistics about results. Then, think about the questions you want to ask and how you are going to ask them; you don’t want to alienate your boss, if you can avoid it.
Now, ask for some time to talk. Choose your moment carefully – avoid times when your boss is likely to be under pressure or, for example, about to go to an important meeting. Make sure you get the appointment into the boss’s diary and that there is enough time for a proper discussion. Ideally, you need at least 30 minutes but not before, or immediately after, an event on which your boss needs to concentrate.
At the meeting, make sure you emphasize that it is your boss’s interests, as well as your own, that you care about. You want to make sure that you are doing the job the boss needs you to do. Avoid getting into arguments or being confrontational. Use the evidence you have collected; particularly, if you face any criticism you consider unjustified.
You are likely to pleasantly surprised; your boss is probably very happy with what you’re doing. But, if she isn’t, you need to be told that so that you can begin to put things right. Whatever the real situation, there is nothing to be gained by not knowing. Grasp that nettle and help your boss to help you succeed.
Wendy Smith is a personal coach and writer at Wisewolf Coaching. She is a qualified coach and a member of the Association for Coaching as well as being a member of the Institute of Consulting and a graduate of the Common Purpose leadership programme. Wendy is author of “The WiseWolf Job Search Pocket Book: How to Win Jobs and Influence Recruiters” as well as two novels and a number of articles on management and well-being. Her latest publication is a little eBook; “How to Get on With the Boss.” You can contact Wendy at wendy@wisewolfcoaching.com
Absences from work happen. There will always be times when staff are unable to attend work due to illness. You will never be able to stop absences from happening but it is possible to help minimise the negative effects that can lead to, cause and sustain staff absences that can stop an employee from returning to work at all.
According to research by AXA PPP healthcare, 23% of employees say they won’t tell their line manager the real reason for their absence when calling in sick because they’re afraid of being judged, with a further 15% saying they’re afraid they won’t be believed.
The way you deal with and respond to staff sickness as a manager can make a difference to how employees feel about work. As these statistics from the Office of National Statistics show, the number of absences is decreasing steadily over time – from 178 million days lost in 1993 to 131 million days lost in 2013 which could signal that the approaches to staff absences are improving.
When there is a negative approach to absences in the workplace, this can often lead to extended future absences. As a manager, it is wise to be supportive and considerate of an employee’s absence while ensuring you have the information you need to keep things running. For example, find out the reason for the absence and how long they’re likely to be off and finally find out what work will need to be picked up while they are absent. Listening and demonstrating understanding is key here.
Numerous short term absences can be disruptive to the day to day running of the workplace. Statistics collected by the Confederation of British Industry show that employees take on average 4-6 sick days a year. Logging absences will help you as a manager to spot problems and put the proper support in place and there a number of software packages available to help you do this. Absences like this can indicate serious issues with an individual or wider problems within your business. If you recognise a pattern it is important to raise this with the staff member. A conversation is often enough to alert the staff member to any cause for concern you have about their behaviour.
Long-term sickness can affect your business in a different way to short term absences. It can be a difficult time for the staff member affected, not to mention you as their manager. In this instance it is important that you maintain a connection between the staff member and the organisation. Obviously, it is imperative that their duties are picked up to avoid any detrimental effect to the on-going productivity of the workplace, while also preparing for the staff members eventual return to work.
In the case of a long term absence from the workplace ensure the employee has given you a sick note from their doctor explaining their absence and the length of time they’re likely to be off. This should be logged with your payroll department so that the sickness can be monitored and budgets adjusted correctly.
When the staff member is ready to return to work it is important to make reasonable adjustments and provide them with the equipment to make sure they’re still able to do their job to the best of their ability. A phased return may also be an option whereby their return to work is a more gradual process. In this instance, it is best to meet with the employee before their return and plan on how best to approach their return to ensure both parties are happy with the arrangements.
Overall, there are simple ways to help prevent absences in the workplace. The most basic principle is to create a culture of openness and engagement. Lead by example, and ensure you establish clear goals and expectations for your team, so you are all working towards the same purpose. Making your staff feel valued and involved in your business will provide them with satisfaction and security in their jobs, and hopefully will persuade them away from taking numerous and unnecessary absences.
If everybody were the same, life would become dull pretty quickly. However, there are plenty of managers out there who wish they could pick and choose staff from a standardised ‘worker’ box. Barring complete automation of the workforce, this just isn’t going to happen.
Managers need to be able to handle all manner of people in order to get the results they, and their company, require. So, what do you do with those awkward souls who are supremely talented but see management as an authority to kick back against? You use the following five tips, that’s what! Let’s get started:
Seeing things from the other party’s perspective may give you an insight into why they are so difficult to manage. Firstly, examine whether or not they have always acted in this way. Is it something that has started recently or have they always found authority difficult?
If it is a recent thing there may be an external factor causing the difficulties – it may even be your own management style! You need to be open and honest in order to work out what is happening here; it may not be the employee who needs to change.
Now this doesn’t mean you need to enjoy getting into squabbles with your staff, far from it, but you do need to make sure that you are addressing it in the right way. Conflict is inevitable in management; if the thought of it fills you with dread then you are likely in the wrong position.
Handling conflict in the right way means being fair and direct. Do not avoid it and definitely do not steamroller your way through it. Listen to the issues being presented and look for a constructive outcome that will resolve the problem at hand.
In order to remove any ambiguity that could result in a disagreement, it is important to set clear goals and objectives for your staff. Failing to do so leaves things open to misinterpretation and that could result in a member of staff feeling as though they are being poorly treated.
If your goals are clear-cut there is no room for argument, they’ve either been met or they haven’t. Setting proper targets for your staff lets them know where they stand and makes the job of evaluating their performance that much easier.
Computers in Personnel can help with the recruitment process but it takes time to find out exactly how someone operates in the field, as it were. Regardless of their talent, staff still need to be able to listen and heed what they are being told to do. If someone is being overly problematic you will need to evaluate whether or not they are becoming a liability to the business as a whole. It doesn’t take long for discontent to spread in an office environment; so bad apples need to be rooted out as soon as possible.
However, this doesn’t mean behaving like a dictator either. It simply means that if a member of staff has been given a fair crack of the whip and still continues to cause problems, you have to assess their worth to the company.
My final tip is not so much one for handling others as much as it is one for handling oneself. Knowing that management is a tough job will give you a better perspective on the task at hand. Management isn’t easy, but that’s why you are getting paid more than your team. Simply being aware of this fact can lighten the load considerably and free you up to do what you do best, managing people.
I’ve joined a short on-line course from Sheffield University and Future Learn on the literature of the English country house. I’m sure the subject has been chosen with Downton House fans in mind. Simply, I thought it would keep me entertained on lovely, long, summer evenings.
The course started with a refresher on close reading and the lecturer chose a passage from Twelfth Night for us to work on. It’s a play I love and full of ambiguity. The action centres on the twins Viola and Sebastian, who are separated in a shipwreck. Viola (who is disguised as a boy) falls in love with Duke Orsino, who in turn is in love with the Countess Olivia. Upon meeting Viola, Countess Olivia falls in love with her thinking she is a man.
So, we practiced our close reading skills. First, we read the piece quickly for a general impression. Then, we read it a second time to confirm our first thoughts. This was followed by zooming in for key words and phrases that gave clues to the layers of meaning. It was an entertaining process, given Shakespeare’s propensity for hidden jokes and references.
I was left wondering about our obsession with speed reading. We prize how quickly we can scan the mass of text we encounter daily, be it in emails, discussion papers or reports. If we couldn’t scan quickly, we wouldn’t be able to cope at work or at home. But, we pay a price. I wonder, for example, how many corporate disasters might have been avoided, if we had the time to close read critical passages in progress reports on major programmes or to pick up the hints “between the lines” in management reports.
Have our senses and our judgment become numb from the volume of material put before us?
We need to be aware of the risk. There is a huge responsibility on authors and curators to flag up what they think are critical passages. But, at the end of the day, it is down to us and may be it is time to practice, practice, practice those close reading skills.
Wendy Smith is a personal coach and writer at Wisewolf Coaching. She is a qualified coach and a member of the Association for Coaching as well as being a member of the Institute of Consulting and a graduate of the Common Purpose leadership programme. Wendy is author of “The WiseWolf Job Search Pocket Book: How to Win Jobs and Influence Recruiters” as well as two novels and a number of articles on management and well-being. Her latest publication is a little eBook; “How to Get on With the Boss.” You can contact Wendy at wendy@wisewolfcoaching.com
The basic tasks of human resources departments are similar in most organizations. Staff have to be recruited, evaluated and paid. Their welfare needs must be met and records need to be kept of both their performance and their development, as well as, for example, their sick absence. Track must be kept of personal histories, skills, capabilities, accomplishments and salary. All of this data needs to be analysed and turned into meaningful information if the organization is going to plan effectively for its workforce needs in the future.
These tasks require some pretty intensive administrative work – records need to be maintained and regularly updated and they have to be accurate. This has made HR a prime target for information technology and the development of human resource management systems
A Human Capital Management Solution, Human Resources Management System (HRMS) or Human Resources Information System (HRIS), integrates HR systems with information technology. What started out as relatively simple payroll systems have developed into sophisticated data management systems capable of vastly reducing the time and expense of HR administration. They have improved the quality of the HR contribution for employers, and for their employees, as well as freeing HR professionals to concentrate on the strategic interests of the organization.
The development of enablers like employee self-service tools from CIPHR allow employees to query HR related data and perform some HR transactions over the system for themselves. This gives them a sense of ownership of the system and improves the quality and accuracy of data. Its appeal to workers can also help reduce the risk of losing corporate knowledge.
In the current global work environment, organisations need to have reliable and up-to-date information about the performance of their employees. They wish to reduce employee turnover and so retain scarce talent and the valuable knowledge held by their workforce. Recruiting new staff has a high cost and most new comers require at least a running in period before they become as effective as the person they replace. An effective HR information system supports the effective management and deployment of the workforce.
Wendy Smith is a personal coach and writer at Wisewolf Coaching. She is a qualified coach and a member of the Association for Coaching as well as being a member of the Institute of Consulting and a graduate of the Common Purpose leadership programme. She is the author of “The WiseWolf Job Search Pocket Book: How to Win Jobs and Influence Recruiters” as well as two novels and a number of articles on management and well-being. Her latest publication is a little eBook; “How to Get on With the Boss.” You can contact Wendy at wendy@wisewolfcoaching.com
“Ambiguity; the quality of being open to more than one interpretation; inexactness.”
Many of us have been educated in environments where what mattered most were the facts. You had to get the facts right. When you needed to make a decision, you gathered the facts and then evaluated them. Great care and attention was given to gathering very precise facts.
In the present world, gathering exact facts should be easier than ever before. The problem is, though, that the world has become a much complex place. It is full of data but not all that data has been processed into good information. Meanwhile decisions usually need to be made quickly.
So, we find ourselves working with incomplete sets of facts, that may conflict and that make you feel they must be unreliable. And often that is just what they might be! But still you have to make that decision. You find yourself having to go with what you have got.
In management, the more senior you become, the more likely you are to be making decisions with ambiguous information. For many professionals, doing that lies at the very heart of what they do.
Recognising the reality of decision making today, more and more employers and recruiters are looking for candidates with an ability to handle ambiguity. Employees who can manage ambiguity are likely to be welcome in large, complex, organisations that are subject to change or reform. But also they are needed in SMEs, particularly in the digital world.
The ability to handle ambiguity goes with confidence in your own judgment and a willingness to live with risk. If you are used to going through change and have learned how to cope and thrive in a changing environment, you have probably learned to handle ambiguity.
If you are preparing for a job interview, be prepared to be asked about occasions when you had to deal with confusion or uncertainty. When did you have to make a decision without having all the facts? When did you find yourself having to act in an unclear situation? What did you learn? If you feel that you could have coped with a situation you faced better, say so, and explain what you learned. Prepare to be asked how you cope in a crisis. Any crisis is likely to throw up uncertainty. How did you cope and what skills did you use? If you go to an assessment centre that has an in tray exercise, be prepared to adapt your plan of action to cope with new information that lands in your email inbox.
Risk surrounds ambiguity. Make sure you always have a back-up plan and think about how you will handle things if you have got it wrong.
When presented with any problem think through what you need to make a decision and the time available to you. What is the compromise you are prepared to make, if you need to take action quickly? How risky is your plan and how will you know if things are going wrong? How will you handle the fallout and move to your back up plan. Move quickly and with confidence, but always know your risks.
Life has always come with uncertainty. Now, it is time for you to learn to work with ambiguity!
Wendy Smith is a personal coach and writer at Wisewolf Coaching. She is a qualified coach and a member of the Association for Coaching as well as being a member of the Institute of Consulting and a graduate of the Common Purpose leadership programme. She is the author of “The WiseWolf Job Search Pocket Book: How to Win Jobs and Influence Recruiters” as well as two novels and a number of articles on management and well-being. Her latest publication is a little eBook; “How to Get on With the Boss.” You can contact Wendy at wendy@wisewolfcoaching.com
First published on LinkedIn
Are you a good manager? Let us assume you are a confident and competent professional interested in your staff as people. You want to do your very best to help your team succeed in the widest sense. That means not only helping them meet their immediate work goals but developing them beyond so they fulfil their potential. And, if they can, you want your team to feel happy in what they do.
Of course, life is rarely simple. And, certainly, life at work can get very complicated indeed. As the boss, even if you are a very good manager, you find yourself sometimes dealing with conflicted emotions. Suppose you know you have an unreasonable deadline to meet. You have done all you can to change the decision that led to the deadline. Despite that, it is there: it exists! You have to meet it and you know it is going to be hard on the team. You’ve done your best to get extra resources but they are rarely available in the present climate. You doubt there is going to be any kind of financial recognition for the extra effort. You are just going to have to ask your team to do their best, even though it mean lots of stress on them.
What do you do?
Well, first, share the news. As soon as you are clear yourself about what needs to be done, tell them. If you can, tell them why the decision was made. If you want them to stay motivated, you will need to do this with care, if you, yourself, don’t think it is a good decision. Telling them your own manager is crap is not going to inspire them – as their manager that is your problem. Ask for their ideas on how best they want to approach the job.
Be prepared to help. People remember the senior manager who, when necessary, was prepared to labour beside them over a hot photocopier or to stuff envelopes.
Be clever in how you share the work out; remember to be scrupulously fair. Don’t overload your best person. Stay flexible and caring but be realistic. Ask people if they can make special arrangements to allow them to stay on at work, exceptionally.
Don’t take their good will for granted. Say please and thank you when you should, and mean it. Make the environment as pleasant as you can. Be present and engaged with people as they work. Do not be the boss who slopes off site at 6, leaving the team to finish the work. Ship in the doughnuts and ice cream if you can and be prepared to get people lifts home after work, if necessary.
Share the praise when those up the line praise you for getting the job done. Make sure you mention the contribution your team made. Remember a good team reflects well on you as manager.
If you can’t give the team formal recognition for what they have done, then make it informal. May be this is the time to think about planning that evening out that you have all talked about for a while. When review time rolls round remember the contribution people made, when you under pressure and you needed them most. A good memory goes with being a good manager.
Wendy Smith is a personal coach and writer at Wisewolf Coaching. She is a qualified coach and a member of the Association for Coaching as well as being a member of the Institute of Consulting and a graduate of the Common Purpose leadership programme. She is the author of “The WiseWolf Job Search Pocket Book: How to Win Jobs and Influence Recruiters” as well as two novels and a number of articles on management and well-being. Her latest publication is a little eBook; “How to Get on With the Boss.” You can contact Wendy at wendy@wisewolfcoaching.com
A quality that marks out many successful people is their resilience. They seem to have an outstanding ability to bounce back.
Psychological resilience is about how well you deal with stress, resolve problems and handle misfortune. No one goes through life without set-backs. Issues that test your ability to bounce back can emerge at work or outside. Health problems and financial pressures may require great resilience to handle. With resilience you can usually bounce back from misfortune.
Some people seem born with this natural ability to bounce back. But, if you are not so lucky, resilience is a skill that can be learned by virtually anyone. It is strengthened by an optimistic outlook and a positive approach to life. Resilience is about coming out of a deeply stressful situation strengthened and having learned from the experience.
Resilience is best understood as a process. This includes;
People who look for the best in any situation, are prepared to be flexible in their approach and focused on solving problems, seem most resilient. A sense of humour in the face of adversity always helps; humour seems to improve the immune system. People with perseverance and passion for their long-term goals often manage to overcome huge obstacles on the way.
The American Psychological Association suggests “10 Ways to Build Resilience.” These are:
Unfortunately, there can be many circumstances in life which militate against the development of all these characteristics in early life. Luckily you can take steps to develop your resilience at any time. It is never too early or too late to start learning to bounce.
Wendy Smith is a personal coach and writer at Wisewolf Coaching. She is a qualified coach and a member of the Association for Coaching as well as being a member of the Institute of Consulting and a graduate of the Common Purpose leadership programme. She is the author of “The WiseWolf Job Search Pocket Book: How to Win Jobs and Influence Recruiters” as well as two novels and a number of articles on management and well-being. Her new latest publication is a little eBook; “How to Get on With the Boss,” You can contact Wendy at wendy@wisewolfcoaching.com
How well do you get on with your manager? Easy question really, isn’t it? You would be surprised how many people are not clear about the answer. They don’t know what the manager/team leader/supervisor really thinks about them, or the work they do. Sometimes, this is because they, themselves, lack the communication skills necessary to understand the message the manager is sending. Sometimes, it is because the manager doesn’t communicate well with the rest of the team.
Getting on well with the boss matters hugely in terms of your career success. Plus, the stress caused when things go wrong can have a negative effect on your health and well-being. Stress can lead to anxiety and depression which in turn affect life at home as well as at work.
You can find out how you’re doing by listening and watching how the person in charge behaves. You need to observe not only how they behave with you, but also how they behave with other people. It is easier, of course, if you have frequent contact with your manager. But, even if you do not, you can try to learn as much as possible about them and how they behave from others. Ask your questions with care, though, you don’t want it to get back that you think you may have a problem.
Here is a mini-health-check based on one in my little eBook; “How to Get on With Boss.” It will help you get clearer about the relationship climate in your workplace.
If most of these things are happening for you, all is well and you are getting on well with our manager. Celebrate because, unfortunately, I suspect you are one of the happy few.
Signs like this mean that all is not well. Neither you, nor the other members of the team, are getting on with the person in charge. You need to take action to ensure your toxic manager doesn’t damage you, your career, your health or your happiness. You can find out more about my little eBook at this link.
Wendy Smith is a personal coach and writer at Wisewolf Coaching. She is a qualified coach and a member of the Association for Coaching as well as being a member of the Institute of Consulting and a graduate of the Common Purpose leadership programme. Wendy holds an advanced diploma in life coaching and a graduate certificate in confidence coaching. She is the author of “The WiseWolf Job Search Pocket Book: How to Win Jobs and Influence Recruiters” and her new eBook; “How to Get on With the Boss,” as well as two novels and a number of articles on management and well-being. You can contact Wendy at wendy@wisewolfcoaching.com
Wisewolf Talking - Leadership and Change 