![]() Gen Z can take criticism, but if you deliver it the wrong way, they might leave to find a workplace that connects with them better. Gen Z, the generation born between 1997 and 2012, is not composed of the sensitive “snowflakes” some say it is. Writing in The Washington Post, technology reporter Danielle April says, “Your youngest colleagues may be the newest to the workplace, but they have clear expectations about how they would like to receive feedback: It should be timely, collaborative, empathetic and balanced.” Experts who study the multigenerational workforce say things go awry when managers critique younger workers in ways that unintentionally alienate or discourage them. For example, it is often counterproductive to focus solely on what went wrong, fix their mistakes without a conversation, or deny them a chance to explain. Used to getting information with the speed of a click, a critique without explanation is likely to create self-doubt and engender the kind of burnout that increases turnover. Gen Zers who spoke to The Washington Post said they view work differently from other generations. They want to be themselves at work, feel that their voice matters, and that their managers are empathetic and will invest in relationships with them. Gen Z is only going to become a larger part of the workforce — they’re expected to comprise more than 32 percent by 2032, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. And they’re asking employers to respect them. Have you noticed a difference in the attitudes and preferences of Gen Z workers, and how do you approach them to raise sensitive issues? To join the conversation, click "comments" below. Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022.
0 Comments
![]() The “real world” doesn’t care about your college GPA, and success is really based on three essential qualities. In a commencement speech at Kean University this May, Neil deGrasse Tyson, esteemed scientist, author, and educator, argued that five years into the future no one would give a thought to college grades, and he exhorted graduates to focus instead on three essential qualities:
What qualities do you think really matter most in one’s life and career? To join the conversation, click "comments" below because we would really like to get your feedback! Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() “Big things happen during small talk,” says Matt Abrahams, Stanford instructor and host of the popular podcast, Think Fast, Talk Smart. He says "Small talk gets a bad rap", but it is actually an incredibly effective communications tool. He often challenges people to think about how many of their close friendships started with small talk – and the answer is, generally, quite a few. “A lot of us put tremendous pressure on ourselves to be interesting," Abrahams explains. "We want to say exciting, valuable, relevant stuff, and it's the wrong mindset.” The trick, he maintains, is to lead with curiosity. He advises we think of an initial, casual conversation as akin to Hacky Sack. You serve to the other person and then they serve back to you. Good conversation is, by definition, collaboration. Some quick small talk tips:
Of course, if you're at a professional gathering, there's a chance you have a specific agenda in mind when starting a conversation, for example, looking for customers, investments, new hires, or useful information. In such cases, Abrahams says, “find hooks and ways of bridging to the topic you want to discuss so that it could become a natural part of the conversation.” Can you recall a significant business or personal relationship that began with small talk? To join the conversation, click "comments" below. We'd love to hear about your experiences! Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() “Growth mindset” has become a buzzword in many organizations, but many people have a limited understanding of what that really means. People who believe their talents can be developed through hard work, strategic thinking, and input from others have a growth mindset. Those who believe their talents are innate gifts have a fixed mindset and are limited by their worry that the effort and hard work it takes to learn something is a sign of not being inherently smart. A growth mindset achieves more, by putting much more effort into learning. Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Carol Dweck, the Lewis & Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University, points out three common misconceptions about a growth mindset:
Organizations that embody a growth mindset encourage appropriate risk-taking, while knowing some risks won’t work out. They reward employees for important lessons learned, even if a project doesn’t meet its original goals. They support collaboration across organizational boundaries rather than competition among employees or teams. They are committed to the growth of every member, not just in words, but also in deeds such as making development and advancement broadly available. When is the last time you deliberately attempted to learn a new skill? Did your employer encourage that? To join the conversation, click "comments" above. We would love to hear about your experiences! Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() What’s the secret to solving unexpected challenges, seizing new opportunities, and building strong cultures? Ask powerful questions! Leaders who assume they have all the answers are either clueless or lying. So writes John Hagel III, in the Harvard Business Review). He describes how leaders who know how to ask great questions build a reservoir of trust and team performance. Here are some effective research-based tips:
Check out our Collaborative Problem Solving Model as a vehicle for bringing teams together to solve meaningful, creative questions central to the team’s work. What is the last big question you asked your team? To join the conversation, click on "comments" above -- we would love to hear about your experiences! Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() While disagreeing may be uncomfortable, research tells us that diverse thinking is far more likely to lead to progress, innovations and breakthroughs than “nice” conversations where people hide what they really think. But how do you foster productive debate on your team? Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Shane Snow, author of Dream Teams: Working Together Without Falling Apart, offers four tips:
How do you keep a debate on track when it seems to be veering? To join the conversation, click "comments" above -- we'd love to hear from you! Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() By now most of us are aware that employees become more motivated and engaged when their leaders express gratitude. Expressing gratitude can be more motivating to employees than money. But it's how you thank that matters. A mere “drive by” recognition can have the opposite effect, according to Vidyard CEO Michael Litt. “They start to come off like cheap motivational techniques," he says. "On the flip side, they also run the risk of conditioning teams to expect constant positive reinforcement for meeting the basic requirements of their jobs.” So, what to do? Fast Company editor Lydia Dishman offers these 3 opportunities:
How has someone shown you gratitude in a significant way? To join the conversation, click on "comments" above. We'd love to hear from you! To find out how to create a habit around masterful communication, sign up for our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() Moving from managing a team to leading an enterprise is tough. It's different at the top, but how? Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Michael D. Watkins, co-founder of Genesis Advisers and author of The First Ninety Days, offers a breakdown of the key mindset transitions new leaders face:
Have you transitioned from manager to leader? What was the trickiest part to navigate? To join the conversation, click "comments" above. Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() Disagreements don’t have to be destructive. In fact, they often present hidden gems for you to innovate and grow. Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Francesca Gino and Hanne K Collins of the Harvard School of Business, and Charles Dorison of Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, offer several evidence-based strategies to make disagreements productive:
Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() The best leaders motivate and inspire people. Writing in Inc., contributing editor Marcel Schwantes characterizes four simple, accessible behaviors that consistently create impact and drive performance:
Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() Without quality leadership, employee engagement and retention are endangered. Turnover hurts the bottom line, since hiring a new employee to replace an old one can cost anywhere from an additional 50 – 200 percent of the role’s salary. A far better solution, according to Katy Tynan, a principal analyst at Forrester, a global research and consulting firm, is to invest in leadership training. According to a survey of more than 700 HR leaders conducted by Forrester and HR Executive Magazine, 65 percent of businesses spend up to $2500 per employee annually on such trainings. Consider that if five managers making $100,000 annually quit, a company might need to spend $500,000 replacing them. Of course, leadership development isn’t something you can simply throw money at, and there is no guarantee that one course will transform a person’s leadership ability. Tynan’s advice for retaining the best talent is to reinforce workshops and virtual learning programs with immediate opportunities for practice. For example, after a workshop on giving feedback, HR leaders could match attendees with learning partners to practice in simulated real situations. Time, of course, has its own cost, but creating a learning community of practice can have deep and lasting benefits. How much does your organization spend on leadership training, and how much time does it allocate for follow-up? To join the conversation, click "comments" above. Learn more about creating a habit around masterful communication with our online learning courses awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() If you're struggling with turnover, or looking to solidify what's currently working in your organization, you've likely been thinking about employee engagement plans. With the media continually talking about attrition and “quiet quitting,” this seems an urgent topic to address. Organizations need engagement plans that resonate with employees, writes executive coach Robin Camarote. Yet too often such plans are a hodge-podge of initiatives. “Engagement is separate from compensation policies, rewards, and appreciation efforts, like parties and gifts,” says Camarote. "We work best," concludes the author, "when we are invited to participate in arriving at solutions to our day-to-day struggles." The most effective employee engagement programs consist of a series of conversations among leaders and staff that address four essential pillars of engagement: Purpose, Communication, Workplace Environment, and Relationships. These four engagement pillars can include as much or as little formality as desired. For a more simple approach, consider hosting a series of open-ended discussions focusing on one pillar at a time. To learn more about structuring employee engagement conversations, check out our Hardwiring Teamwork curriculum. What is your organization doing to enhance employee engagement? To join the conversation, click "comments" above. Create lifetime communication mastery online, with our virtual programs, awarded International Gold for Best Hybrid Learning of 2022. ![]() As the pandemic lingers and economic insecurity looms, stress and uncertainly are pervasive in the workforce. Since uncertain environments make people more likely to engage in uncivil, and disrespectful communication—rudeness is on the rise, and so are its repercussions According to Shannon G. Taylor and Lauren R. Locklear, writing in the Sloan Management Review, “Employees who experience incivility at work perform worse in their jobs, are less helpful to colleagues, and are more likely to steal from their employer. Rudeness also hurts employee retention and the bottom line. According to one estimate, handling a single incident of rudeness can cost an organization more than $25,000.” So what should managers be doing to keep rudeness from begetting more rudeness in a vicious cycle?
![]() Brent Gleeson, a Forbes contributor, first learned about effective leadership in chaotic environments as a Navy SEAL. “Many, if not all, of those basic principles apply in business and life in general,” he says. Among the most widely applicable lessons he cites: They know the difference between “activity” and “results”: SEAL teams say, “find work.” If you find yourself at the end of your To Do list, that’s not when your contribution to the team ends. Make a new list of priorities and execute -- not busy work, but activities that align with team goals.
![]() In most organizations, compensation is not made public, but what if you stumble on information that alerts you that a peer is making more than you in a similar position? Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Rebecca Knight, a senior correspondent at Insider and former Wesleyan University lecturer, suggests what to do — and not do — in this situation. Do:
As for the don’ts: Don't be rash or rude. Don't mention your higher-paid coworker by name (focus on you). And don't stay in a job any longer than you must if your company refuses to pay you market value for your role. Have you ever had to address a salary discrepancy? How did the situation resolve? To join the conversation, click "comments" above. We would love to get your feedback. |
Archives
July 2024
Categories
All
|