February 18, 2014

The Difference Between an Individual Contributor & a Leader

Take this self-assessment & push yourself toward leadership.

You may carry the title of a Senior Manager and yet struggle to truly get work done through others in a way that propels the team forward.    You may have the experience and authority to get compliance and yet fail to earn true commitment from the people on your team.    If you haven’t quite reached the rung of leadership in your ascent to your position, it may be because you are clinging to old, familiar behaviors that have served you well in the past. This is a common career...Continue reading

By Deb CalvertPosted in Leadership & Teambuilding on February 18, 2014

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February 14, 2014

Five Leadership Capabilities of Abraham Lincoln

How do you and your leadership team measure up in these capabilities?

As February annually asks us to reflect on our Presidents, it too allows us to reflect on our own leadership and leaders in our organizations. I cannot help but reflect on the leadership capabilities of our 16th President.  As we lament the divisiveness of our current national political dialogue and the uncertainty and ambiguity it creates geopolitically for business, political, military and global leaders, I am reminded that our nation has suffered greater challenges and pulled through them. ...Continue reading

By Karen KuhlaPosted in Leadership & Teambuilding on February 14, 2014

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February 10, 2014

Building & Leading High-Performance Teams-7 Questions Leaders Ask

What’s good for the general is also good for the corporate leader!

Effective leaders ask many questions – and listen to the answers they receive.  Great leaders act on what they hear. A right of passage for first year cadets (plebes) at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (USMA) requires the memorization of a wide range of information and the accurate recitation of the details when requested by upperclassmen.  The objective of the exercise, according to the guidebook of the time, was to develop memory retention skills and the ability to perform...Continue reading

By Karen KuhlaPosted in Leadership & Teambuilding on February 10, 2014

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February 7, 2014

Employee Conflict & the Manager’s Role: How to Facilitate Resolution

13 questions that get employees to work things out & move forward.

It is easy to learn how to conduct meetings, find your motivational leadership style and seek ways to engage employees.  However, learning to resolve conflict takes a bit of know-how and a bit of practice for most people.  Even after the know-how, most people do not relish the chance to resolve a conflict within their team.     As a first time manager or supervisor, what do you do when faced with an employee conflict that is now your job to help resolve?     First, take a...Continue reading

By Emilie ShoopPosted in Management on February 7, 2014

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February 5, 2014

5 Tips for Helping Agile Teams Avoid “Squirrel Moments”

Here’s some great advice for any team trying to maintain focus.

The “squirrel moment” arrives unexpectedly.  The instant message pops up with a question about functionality in a recently deployed release.  A new production support ticket arrives from the customer service team.  The product owner stops by for an ad hoc brainstorming session about a new feature that might be added to the backlog.   And the entire team stops what they are doing in order to meet the squirrel.  The squirrel provides welcome relief from the drudgery...Continue reading

By Ron MontgomeryPosted in Project & Process Management on February 5, 2014

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February 3, 2014

3 Communication Practices That Will Enrich Your Life

These few skills are the ones that we should practice everyday.

Just as high quality ingredients make every recipe more nutritious and delicious, a specific set of healthy communication practices can make every relationship more nourishing and life affirming. Read on to learn more about foundational communication practices that will enrich your life.   “Assertiveness for Women.” “Powerful Speech.” “Being Charismatic!” The list of self-help communication titles is endless. And it is true that to be a very competent...Continue reading

By Claire LaughlinPosted in Communication Skills on February 3, 2014

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January 29, 2014

Three Effective Online Job Search Strategies

Make that time you spend online count.

In last month’s article we talked about 4 job search strategies to get you started. The strategies are designed to help get you out of the online centric “spray and pray” approach to job searching.    Those 4 strategies that will get you started are:    Set your goal. Develop your self-marketing profile.  Target companies and organizations you’d like to work for.  Begin reaching out to your network.    This month...Continue reading

By Lea McLeodPosted in Career Change, Job Search on January 29, 2014

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January 27, 2014

7 Ways to Engage Your Team

Improve Employee Engagement & Reduce Turnover

According to the 2014 Conference Board CEO Challenge, “Building a culture that supports engagement, employee training, leadership development, and high performance is something companies can control, and can mean the difference between growing market share and simply surviving in 2014.” But that lofty statement includes more than just the CEO’s effort. That means managers – at every level – have got to build some intention around how to better stimulate and engage...Continue reading

By Lea McLeodPosted in Management on January 27, 2014

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January 22, 2014

Leading With Integrity-From West Point to Chairman of the Board

Executive Insight from William Murdy, Chairman, Comfort Systems USA, & Thayer Leader Development Group

Recently I had the pleasure of interviewing a fellow West Point graduate, William F. (Bill) Murdy, Chairman of Comfort Systems USA  (Houston) (NYSE: FIX), a $1.3 billion company providing heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC) installation and services in the commercial/industrial/institutional sector. In addition to his extensive experience and knowledge in the corporate world, his recent venture into executive training through the creation of The Thayer Leader Development Group brings a...Continue reading

By Dan WoodsPosted in Leadership & Teambuilding on January 22, 2014

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January 21, 2014

Are Sales Enablers Disabling You?

Sales people should be selling…so why overload them with other tasks?

On average, salespeople spend less than 35% of their time actually selling.    This finding, reported in Clearslide’s "4 Reasons Why It’s Time to Reboot Technology,” is not a big surprise to most sales professionals. But it certainly gets the attention of sales managers and senior sales leaders.     No one wants it to be this way. Everyone knows that more time spent selling adds up to more goods and services being sold. More revenue. More profit. So why is this the...Continue reading

By Deb CalvertPosted in Sales & Business Development on January 21, 2014

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