Every manager has to deal with uncomfortable situations from time to time.

From giving constructive feedback to letting people go, difficult conversations are part of life.

If you’re not sitting down with a troublesome member of your team, and dealing with the stuff that’s so troubling, then you’re not managing — you’re ignoring/avoiding/ evading/bailing/hiding/running-away-from and not living up to your responsibilities.

Some of the most difficult conversations involve key players who aren’t living up to their responsibilities or your expectations; worse still if the problem is a fellow founder.

• Deal with problems early — don’t wait for a mythical right time. Give feedback (good and bad) as near to the source as possible. Immediate and direct is better than delayed and fudged.
• Use direct language — “you’re not pulling your weight” isn’t very helpful; “I’m really frustrated that each new feature takes much longer than your original estimate,” is.
• Write it down — the more difficult the conversation or the more likely you are to chew over your words, the better it is to use notes. I make sure I can stay on track by looking at my crib sheet and saying “Let me make sure we’ve dealt with everything. Oh yes, …”

No amount of experience or preparation ever makes these situations easy, but leadership means entering the discomfort and dealing with the issue.

One final point — don’t tell them how difficult it is to say this stuff. You may think it helps to get them on your side. It doesn’t. If it’s hard for you to say, it’s even harder to hear – so stop thinking about yourself and try to empathise; this conversation is not about you.

Neatly filed under Leading,Managing on September 23, 2009

Image copyright: Corscri-Daje tutti! via Flickr

Inside any kind of organisation bigger than the land of Me & My Mate, you’re probably surrounded by people who do a job that’s completely different to yours.

What do all those people do?

I’ve been thinking about the doing part of that question lately, rather than the people part. The way I see it, no matter what the job title or department, the doing falls in to one of only five categories:

Making Promises – easiest to think of as all the things that happen in sales or marketing, some customer services and board functions. Anything that makes any kind of commitment on behalf of the company is a making promises action.

Keeping Promises – everything that even vaguely fits into operations: all the tasks that make the product, perform the service, look after customers, pick up, package or deliver the thing.

Measure and control – all the things involving numbers or making sure nothing gets out of hand.

Support – what gets done in order to make everything else function; what normally happens under the headings of IT or HR for instance.

Leadership and innovation – without getting bogged down in book style definitions, leadership is about direction setting and steering to the compass whilst innovation is all the processes that aim to improve things.

These are not departments, they’re functions, and whilst every person spends most of their time in one kind of role, they probably undertake processes in others, if not all. For example, a production worker is mainly employed to keep promises, but they probably also try to innovate to improve things, keep an eye on production rates and quality, put their arm around colleagues when they need it, and continually make commitments within and for their department.

Ok. So what? Is this anything other than yet another way of thinking about organisational structure?

If every process is about making, keeping, ensuring and supporting promises, or improving the way the whole thing gets done, then every job is about the customer.

So what do all those people do? Let’s hope they’re not wasting any time discussing, deciding or doing anything that doesn’t draw a straight line to improving the life of the customer.

Neatly filed under Innovating,Keeping Promises,Leading,Making Promises,Managing on June 3, 2009

There are no rules.

Running a business, moving a new product along the birth canal, change, getting things done – there are as many ways to do stuff as there are people who answer to ‘you.’ Thankfully. That means my way, or your way, are both fine. You’re good. Go for it.

But if you’re in a place where other people are just, you know, hanging around waiting to contribute, why not give them a shot? Running a meeting isn’t like driving or typing or looking in the mirror, it’s not a table for one. The point is to share, to bring along, to hear, to understand, to convince, to check, to develop, to decide.

To communicate, to converse. Two way.

And here’s the thing.

Everybody is talented, original and has something important to say, if only given the chance. Of course, some people have to be invited, “what do you think John?”, whilst others should be invited to allow them space, “that’s fantastic James, thank you. Now let’s hear what someone else has to say. How about you Jane, what are you thinking?”

Everybody is talented, original and has something important to say, if only given encouragement. Creative and independent thought is in everyone, but it is sensitive and easily scared off. Make it feel welcome. Facilitators’ guide books are a hundred ideas on encouraging, they all boil down to, “feel free, be bold.”

Everybody is talented, original and has something important to say, if only given permission. Talking shops and rubber stamping happens when people are afraid to speak truthfully. Push for candour, especially when it’s hard to take – better hear it in this room today than in the market tomorrow.

I have no idea why you called the meeting, but I know for sure it will be better if everyone speaks, and speaks the truth.

There are no rules, but if there were, this would be one of them.

Picture credit: From an excellent series by lou, via Flickr

Neatly filed under Leading,Managing on May 18, 2009

Start big things by doing small things

The main thing is to begin – do it now

Write down your commitments

Don’t commit to what you can’t do

Finish what you start – follow through

Leading others starts with leading yourself

Neatly filed under Leading on May 15, 2009

A or B?

It’s a simple enough question, should we go with option A or B?

I think B.

What’s that you say?

Oh, maybe A would be better because of C, or D. So you think A then, right?

No?

Yes I see, there’s the chance that E will happen and then B would’ve been better after all. Hmmm.

Let’s just wait until the next meeting and then not make a decision then either. Cool.

Hear that noise? It’s the sound of the entire organisation spinning it’s wheels whilst you make up your mind.

The greatest gift a leader can have is the ability to decide.

I can’t find a direct quotation but I believe this comes from George C Marshall, 1880-1959, Nobel laureat 1953, Chief of Staff US Government 1939-1945 and originator of the “Marshall Plan”.

Neatly filed under Leading on May 13, 2009