Most supervisors don’t actually spend the majority of their time developing their people. Instead, they’re often stuck in meetings -- which are sometimes about their people -- or handling paperwork, computer problems, and whatever other... Continue reading
A surprising number of companies no longer expect their senior managers to develop their people: They turn management development over to outsourced coaching firms instead. I’m a strong proponent of “coaching” for behavior change and... Continue reading
I was lucky to be a young manager at a time when it was still typical to be directed, trained, mentored, and generally developed by your senior managers. There were enough senior managers around that... Continue reading
One of the kinds of leaders who can drive employees crazy is the “Brainstormy” Boss, who creates a work environment that’s as changeable as the weather. It’s Raining Ideas! When brainstorming is used appropriately -- as... Continue reading
What can you do if it's clear that your boss thinks your job is a lot easier to do than it really is? You can think of her as the “Have You Gotten Any Better... Continue reading
Here’s an example of how to use emotional data to help individuals work more effectively. A frontline manager in a service company was known to have an emotional hair trigger. When Charisse didn’t care for... Continue reading
No matter how important it is to take everyone’s feelings into account, it’s still not reasonable to expect tears, shouts, or clenched jaws in the workplace every day. Excessive or poorly directed emotions get in... Continue reading
Anyone who says feelings have no place in the workday might as well say that breathing has no place in the workday. A human without either one is a corpse. The ability to use emotions... Continue reading
Every once in a while someone tells me a story of dysfunctional, disruptive, unprofessional, plain old odd boss behavior. Here’s an example, along with some suggestions for how to normalize things with a crazy-making boss... Continue reading
To improve the service experience for both customers and reps, start by targeting the key elements of service infrastructure that consistently create negative outcomes. After that, there are some deeply human aspects of service that... Continue reading
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