10 Key Skills Today’s Leaders Need To Succeed In 2013

Below is an article by Jill Geisler.  Jill talks about 10 key skills.  Other recent examples of "10's":

10 big rules of leadership

10 ways to market your business with foursquare

10 quotes of managers in my network

10 quotes that can change your life

10 tips for a successful phone interview

And this is only from my LinkedIn network in the last day.  While in most cases it takes a lot more than ten steps to ensure success, often it takes a lot less, if you have the right skills and people around you.  I discussed “The three elements of a great leader” after an article by Hiroshi Mitikani (http://leanimprovement.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/the-three-elements-of-great-leader.html), and “Inside the mind of a great manager” after an article by David Di Salvo (http://leanimprovement.blogspot.com.au/2012/11/inside-mind-of-great-manager.html)

The key for me in leadership is to, just as Jill says, create a strong strategy and vision, and live it.  Build a team around me with the necessary skills of implementing the strategy, but also to challenge the ways in which the strategy is implemented or even go as far as to highlight possible improvements and opportunities in the strategy.

A leader is generally in charge of a team, department, branch or whole company.  In any case it is most likely that the leader will have responsibilities and KPI’s that can only be met if the team meets theirs, no matter how skilled, intelligent and hard working the leader is.

There are many skills the leader needs to have to understand the people in the team, notice issues and act quickly.  One of which is decision making.  Someone has to be the one to decide which path to take, and if the leader hesitates, it will most likely create a feeling that there is uncertainty in the direction.

I like that Jill states emotional intelligence.  If you read my earlier post “Leadership and the three levels of intelligence”, you will know what my thoughts are in regards to EQ (Emotional Quotient), CQ (Change Quotient) & SQ (Social Quotient). (http://leanimprovement.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/leadership-and-three-levels-of.html). 

What do all the above come down to?  Communication; again Jill hits the nail on the head with this one.  If you are a poor communicator, you will struggle as a leader.  If you cannot listen and are not willing to take advise from your team, you set yourself up for failure.

Motivation is certainly another key element, and I have gone into much detail, referring to a book by Daniel Pink called “Drive” in a previous post entitled “Motivation and Rewards”:  http://leanimprovement.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/motivation-and-rewards-discussion-as.html

All in all Jill’s ten points further emphasise key criteria of successful leaders, and it’s well worth hanging on to remind ourselves from time to time on what is onvolved.

by Jill Geisler Published Dec. 6, 2012 6:53 am Updated Dec. 6, 2012 7:00 am

What sets the most successful managers apart from others? You might be an expert in your field, even the smartest person in the room — but that’s no guarantee of success. You need an array of skills that are particularly well-suited to times of change and challenge. Here are 10 I recommend.

1. Strategic Thinking
Don’t just immerse yourself in today’s tasks. Think big picture. Step back from the dance floor from time to time and take the balcony view (Hat tip for that great metaphor to the book, “Leadership on the Line.”) Review systems. Set priorities aligned with major goals. Learn new and scary things. Encourage innovation by backing good people who take smart risks.

2. Collaboration
Overcome the four barriers to collaboration I’ve written about before.

·         Distance: Stay on the radar with people you don’t see regularly.

·         Dominance: Change assumptions about the importance/subservience of certain roles in your organization.

·         Discomfort: Educate yourself and your staff about the work of others.

·         Dissonance: Check your demands and systems to make certain they aren’t undercutting collaboration.

Be a role model for effectively networking by showing the value of spanning old boundaries and busting old silos.

3. Emotional Intelligence
Your IQ alone can’t fuel the group’s success. Emotional intelligence is critical. Build your self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and relationship management. Recognize that as a leader, you are contagious. Be a source of energy, empathy and earned trust, proving optimism and realism can co-exist. Understand that resilience is key to leadership, especially in stressful times. One of my favorites reads of the past year, “The Emotional Life of Your Brain,” lays out the neuroscience of resilience and underscores that we can consciously build our capacity.

4. Critical Thinking
Critical thinkers question conventional wisdom. They are vigilant about identifying and challenging assumptions that underlie actions or inaction. They are automatically wary of generalizations, inferences and unproven theories. Among their favorite questions is: “How do we know that?” They strive to independent thinkers, careful to check how their own biases might color their decisions. They do this automatically to speed up good decision-making, not to cause “paralysis by analysis.”

5. Communication
This one seems so simple, yet it comes up continually in my seminars as a deficit in organizations — and it’s managers who point out the problem! Bosses who don’t communicate effectively get in the way of their team’s effectiveness. Make it your goal to master every form of interpersonal communication and make it powerful: one-to-one, small group, full staff, email, social media, and of course, listening.

Become an expert on framing, storytelling and finding the master narrative in a situation. If you don’t, others will — and the others may be your internal critics or your external competitors.

6. Motivation
Telling people “You are lucky to have a job” in no way qualifies as motivation. Nor does fear, unless it is fear of letting a great boss down. Nor, interestingly, does throwing money at people. Pay them fairly, of course, but don’t stop there.Understand the key intrinsic motivators: competence, autonomy, purpose and growth. Determine the prescription for each of your employees.

7. Feedback
Commit to wearing what I call “feedback glasses” — new lenses through which you look at people and their work. Through these lenses, you are always on the alert for opportunities to deliver specific, helpful information to people about their performance and their value to the organization. Upgrade the quality of all of your interactions by using them as opportunities for customized, effective feedback. In my new book, “Work Happy: What Great Bosses Know,” I devote a chapter to feedback as the key to performance management, with a complete tool kit of options.

8. Tough Conversations
Don’t avoid tough talks. Learn to do them deftly, avoiding the many pitfalls they can present. Become an expert at addressing challenges and problems early and often. Don’t let problems fester or bullies prevail. Build trust as a leader so people recognize your good intentions even in the midst or wake of challenging conversations.

9. Coaching
Are you among the legions of managers who habitually fix the work of others? Are you the non-stop answer machine for people who are overly reliant on you for decisions? And at the end of the day, do you wonder why you’re frustrated and exhausted and employees aren’t getting better on your watch? You need to learn to coach their growth.

Coaching is an entirely different skill from fixing. It helps people learn to improve their work and make decisions for themselves. Don’t just take my word for it; a2012 study from the National Bureau of Economic Research says the most important tasks of effective managers are teaching skills that endure and fueling the motivation of employees.

10. Making Values Visible and Viral
Let people know what you stand for. Make those conversations a part of your daily work. Lose your fear of coming off as corny or holier than thou. Tap into the great reservoir of commitment and care that people bring to their work lives, but often fail to talk about unless they’re at some professional seminar (like ours), where it pours out. Why?  Because we make it safe to talk about values like integrity, diversity, community, and service. All we have to do is start those conversations, and they always take off organically. It should happen in the workplace, too. If you don’t inspire, who will?

Each of these is a skill you can learn. I know, because I teach them! And there’s nothing more rewarding than seeing careers improve as people grow from being okay managers to being great bosses who understand the key skills of leadership.

Original post:  http://www.poynter.org/how-tos/leadership-management/what-great-bosses-know/196814/10-key-skills-todays-leaders-need-to-succeed-in-2013/

Organisational Behaviour

I have recently completed my first module for my MBA in Leadership and Sustainability through Robert Kennedy College and the University of Cumbria.  It was an interesting start to this journey, enhanced by the multi-cultural and multi-business background of the participants in the course.  The individual views of individuals in the course widely varied depending on their cultural background and geographical location.

The discussions often included individual’s examples and their personal experiences, bringing a different perspective to the subject matter.  The course material was interesting and there was plenty of it.  More material was introduced as the course progressed.  The structure that lead from leadership and general organisational behaviour, through communication and teams, while looking at human capital and the motivation and management styles encountered in organisations did not only make sense, it was practical and allowed an in depth analysis on the way about one’s own present and past businesses.

The consideration of culture and conflict management as part of the organisational structure, as well as the tools discussed like balanced scoreboard, SWOT analysis and McKinsey’s 7s analysis allowed for a detailed analysis of an organisation, leading to clearly defined solutions relevant to our daily business lives.

The Professor was knowledgeable and easily approachable both through the public forums and through private communication.

I would recommend this course to anyone who wants to become a leader, or a more effective leader.  The investment of both time and money is minimal compared to the outcomes gained from the experience.  Below is a summary of this particular course (as taken from the Robert Kennedy College online campus).  Should you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Best regards

Roland

COURSE OBJECTIVES 

-- To focus on increasing the effectiveness of organisations and thus, of their members. 

-- To understand why people and groups in organisations feel and behave as they do. 

-- To identify principles that can improve the behaviour and attitudes of organisational members. 

-- To develop and enhance your skills as an organisational member and a manager. 

COURSE OVERVIEW 

The course involves learning from a variety of sources - audio clips, slide presentations, textbook, lecture notes, case studies, and interaction with peers and faculty in the forums. 

The course aims to be an examination of research and theory on the forces underlying the way that the members of an organisation behave. Topics covered include the behaviour of work groups and supervisors, inter-group relations, employees’ goals and attitudes, problems in communication, the circumstances of change in an organisation, and the goals and design of an organisation. 

READINGS 

Please read the articles provided under the resource tab of this course to get a brief idea about the focus. Students can also avail of our e-library facilities to surf, and research for material. The faculty will also provide some online links for selected reading as and when required. 

ON-LINE PARTICIPATION 

All students are expected to participate regularly in the discussions taking place in the forums. A wide range of discussion is usually desired in these discussion forums. These areas are an interesting and informative way of interacting with peers and faculty. They also allow you to apply concepts learned in isolation to real life or personal experiences. 

Motivation and Rewards

In this article I am heavily referencing a book called “Drive” by Daniel H. Pink, “The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us”.  Pink, D., (2009), Drive, New York USA: Penguin Group; I would strongly recommend reading it.

In the next few paragraphs, I would like to look at individuals and their motivation as they need to be linked to the individual, the unique workplace and other workers within it, and the geographical location of the business as well as the individual’s cultural background. Hence, one size does not fit all.

If we go back centuries and even thousands of years, human behaviour and motivation was very much based on survival.  Over time humans have learnt to live in the more complex societies and to harness this purely biological drive.  We can look at the early modern way of motivation through award and punishment, however the basic pillars of ancient times still remain.

Many of today’s leaders and employees are being put through psych evaluations before commencing new roles.  A key area of these is to look how the individual is motivated.  Are they purely extrinsically (i.e. pay, working conditions and job security) motivated or are they more intrinsically (achievement, personal growth or even just enjoying work itself). 

I believe different cultures embrace these differently.  My understanding is that Japan embraced intrinsic motivation a long time ago, while the US at that point was very much extrinsically motivated through large bonuses and incentive schemes, and I don’t see that much has changed. 

As our company specialises in Lean Six Sigma business improvement, cultural change is on the forefront of increasing productivity and efficiency, and the culture is very much influenced by how the organisation rewards and retains their staff. 

I don’t think there is one solution that fits all, as some may work on occasions, others at other times, however, the key is to understanding and determining which parts to discard and which parts to keep.

When leaders design a program to achieve certain results they need to be very careful that these do not have the opposite effect (also known as the Sawyer Effect: practices than can either turn play into work or turn work into play) which can often be the case. Understanding the organisation, its values, vision and mission go a long way to establishing the basics, and may have to be re-visted to ensure we are not losing focus and what is important.

In the end of the day we want to achieve high performance from our staff and leaders.  We want them to remain creative while sticking to “good behaviour” such as honesty and integrity.  There are plenty of examples in recent times where major corporates have collapsed.  We often hear about the extravagant amounts of money the executives were paid, the lavish lifestyles etc.  And while they all seem to have set out trying to achieve high performance, the latter part of this paragraph was forgotten.  

Unethical behaviour crept into their every-day work life and it was as if they were getting addicted to the rewards.  Their thinking became short term, ignoring any long term consequences.

Earlier in our course (and this blog) I/we discussed whether leaders were born or made, and I remember some interesting comments from many of the other students.  

It seems to be a fact that in the long term, intrinsically motivated people will often outperform extrinsically motivated people. While in the short term extrinsically motivated people can often delivery better results faster, the trouble seems to be that this approach is difficult to sustain, which leads to the addictive problems discussed earlier. 

If you remember my earlier post (http://leanimprovement.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/leadership-and-three-levels-of.html) which discussed EQ’s, CQ’s and SQ’s, I also mentioned that I felt it was important to include mind and body.  Intrinsically motivated people have been shown in many studies to generally lead healthier lifestyles, with greater physical and mental well-being.

In summary, every person is different, so is every workplace.  There will always be some people who are motivated in other ways than their co-workers.  A good leader needs to assess the situation and try and master the distribution of rewards based on the individuals.  Some of it will be by trial and error, but as long as the basics are adhered to with integrity (values, vision, mission), the outcome should be sustainable.

As for politics, whether we like it or not, they are part of every work place.  The aim is to minimise them and to lead with autonomy.  Warm and fuzzy does not work for me, it is as it is.  Although it may not always be appreciated, people know where they stand with me and hopefully respect the honesty.  Therefore I do agree with the statement by Prof. Lusk “No, there are a lot of places where no matter how hard you work, if you don’t play the politics, you lose! “, I am just glad that I work for a company where this is not the case, and in the end this is everyone’s choice to make!

Below are a couple more extracts from a presentation (Unit 1.1 - Motivation & Rewards, University of Cumbria & Robert Kennedy College, Prof. Lusk) which are interesting and fitting:

Defining Motivation

Motivation

The processes that account for an individual’s intensity, direction, and persistence of effort toward attaining a goal.

Key Elements

1.  Intensity: how hard a person tries

2.  Direction: toward beneficial goal

3.  Persistence: how long a person tries

 Why is motivation so important to Employers?

•  Between 50% of our employees are not motivated

•  Employers want to improve efficiency and increase productivity.

•  Benefits and Rewards packages need to be designed to be motivators

Comparison of Satisfiers and Dissatisfiers

Source: Reprinted by permission of Harvard Business Review. An exhibit from One More Time: How Do You Motivate Employees? by Frederick Herzberg, September–October 1987. Copyright © 1987 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College: All rights reserved.

Harnessing Employee Engagement

An interview with Toyota Motor Corporation`s former Senior Managing Director, Mr. Yasuhito Yamauchi

Angela Corriero of Chase Performance had the opportunity to sit down with Mr. Yasuhito Yamauchi to discuss his views on  sustaining continuous improvement and harnessing internal know and innovation.

Managing Success

“Effective TQM and improvement implementation starts with the thorough implementation of the job`s basic work standards. After a work standard has been decided, it has to be practiced exactly. 

In order to practice the standards perfectly, staff must know the true meaning and value of each standard – not only in theory. They must have the skill and knowledge to put it into practice. Then, it is the supervisor`s duty to check and confirm the standards have been put into practice exactly.

The role of the supervisor is a very important one. Education and training to supervisors is essential.

We create standards based on the supervisor`s skill and knowledge; with the benefits for the company in mind. 

Supervisors are the link between the front line staff and upper management.

When is it time for improvement?

Sometimes, implementation of the work standards is not enough.  The operators may carry out the work sequence and standards but feel some uneasiness – this is the time for them to suggest improvement.

The key: create a working environment where workers can suggest improvements.

Work standards must be followed, but once staff realise that a particular standard is not enough,  it is the time for change.

When there is a need for improvement, supervisors must be able to improve the work sequence or fix the problem.

On workforce management

Upper level (above supervisors) must understand the continuous improvement philosophy.

Actually, it`s front line staff`s ideas and suggestions which must be absorbed into the upper levels of management. Continuous improvement implementation is truly a bottom- up approach to effective management.

In the West, there is a separation between blue collar and white collar workers.  Blue collar workers must follow white collar rules.

This inhibits effective improvement, total participation and employee motivation – This inhibits cost reduction and profit maximization.

Good Communication breeds success.

How success is culminated, one step, one worker at a time.

A company is built up by a culmination of individual efforts. Section to department to Company wide.

This is something we`ve been doing at Toyota from the beginning.  It`s nothing special, just the way of doing business.

Material costs are pre-determined by the market. Therefore, our strategy has long been:

Increase Performance Rates to

Increase Profit.

The Key: recognise waste and minimise it.

When busy, it is very difficult to reduce waste, and implement continuous improvement and 5s consistently.  After the Global Financial Crisis, it became easier to do this as we had lower production demands.  The results have been impressive.                                                                      

Although, we have not reached our Global Financial Crisis production levels, our profit level has been increasing rapidly.

This is the power of the Toyota Production System fundamentals of  standardisation, 5s and continuous improvement.

Motivation is Key!

Unless we have vitalised front line staff, we cannot be successful.  They are the ones who actually produce the product and the profit.

Our job in management, is to make them energised.The corporate culture must be vitalised.

At the factory sites, I tell staff, “you are the people who actually create profit through your skills and wisdom. Material costs are pre-determined by the market.  How do we increase profits? You. Through your skills and performance.”

Unless employees are motivated, we cannot create a good, attractive company.

Managers, directors and supervisors must understand this or their system won`t work.

“As a leader, I have to communicate the corporate vision to all members of the company and must show that we are very concerned about our vision and our future direction.

Whenever I have time, I visit the Gemba of all divisions. I visit people. Because I am in a high position, If I call others to come, it`s no good. No, I go to them.”

Mr. Yamauchi praised Proctor and Gamble`s corporate philosophy, “Proctor and Gamble share the same idea. They pay good attention to employees.  We see things in common among excellent companies throughout the world.”

Motivation in the Workplace

In light of the recent addition to the Chase Performance team, Angela Corriero, and the subsequent connection to Process Improvement Japan (http://www.process-improvement-japan.com/), we have learnt even more about the importance of culture in a company in regards to Lean.  The below article is a direct copy of the information on Process Improvement Japan (http://www.process-improvement-japan.com/motivation-in-the-workplace.html).  For more information please visit the Process Improvement Japan site, the Chase Performancec site (http://www.chaseperformance.com) or contact us at sales@chaseperformance.com.  We would be happy to discuss this further directly with you, and with offices around Australia one of our consultants or coaches is never far ayay.

Motivation in the workplace is key!An exclusive interview with Executive Vice Chairman Yasuhito Yamauuchi, Aisin Seki, Japan.
Aisin Seki is one of the major Toyota Group companies. It is also a fortune 500 company. Mr. Yamauchi, elected Vice Chairman in 2009, served as the President of Aisin Seki from 2005 to 2009. Prior to that, he was Executive Managing Director of The Toyota Motor Corporation from 2001 to 2005. Managing all production plants internationally. 
Photo above: Mr. Yasuhito Yamauchi, Aisin Seki left, Ms. Angela M. Corriero, Process Improvement Japan, right.

Process Improvement Japan had the opportunity to sit down with Mr. Yasuhito Yamauuchi to discuss his views on Total Quality Management and Lean Kaizen implementation. What came out was the link between successful lean management and motivation in the workplace. An understanding, Mr. Yamauuchi says, excellent companies around the world have in common.

Managing Success

“Effective Total Quality Management and Lean Kaizen implementation starts with the thorough implementation of the job`s basic work standards. After standardization has been decided, it has to be practiced exactly. In order to practice the standards perfectly, workers must know the true meaning and value of each standard – not only in theory. They must have the skill and knowledge to put it into practice. Then, it is the supervisor`s duty to check and confirm the standards have been put into practice exactly. The role of the supervisor is a very important one. Education and training to supervisors is essential. We create standardization based on the supervisor`s skill and knowledge; with the benefits for the company in mind. Supervisors are the link between the front line workers and upper management.To become a supervisor at Toyota Motor Corporation or Aisin Seki, takes a lot of experience.

Where Gemba kaizen comes inSometimes, implementation of work standards is not enough. The operators may carry out the work sequence and standards but feel some uneasiness – this is the time for them to suggest kaizen.
The key is to create a working environment where workers can suggest improvements.
Work standards must be followed, but once workers realize that a particular standard is not enough, it is the time for kaizen. When there is a need for Kaizen, supervisors must be able to improve the work sequence or fix the abnormality. Motivation in the workplace creates momentum for effective gemba kaizen implementation
Photo above: A worker explains his gemba kazien suggestion.

For details on kaizen and lean manufacturing principles, click here.

On workforce management

Upper level (above supervisors) must understand the Kaizen philosophy and the importance of motivation in the workplace. Actually, it`s front line workers` ideas and suggestions which must be absorbed into the upper levels of management. Kaizen implementation is truly a bottom- up approach to effective management. In the West, there is a separation between blue collar and white collar workers. If blue collar workers must follow white collar rules, it inhibits effective Kaizen, employee engagement and employee motivation – This inhibits cost reduction and profit maximization.

How success is culminated, one step, one worker at a time:
A company is built up by a culmination of individual efforts. Section to department to Company wide. This is something we`ve been doing at Toytota from the beginning. It`s nothing special, just the way of doing business.Material costs are pre-determined by the market. Therefore, our strategy has long been:

Increase Performance Rates to increase Profit.

Key in The Toyota Production System: The Elimination of Waste
When busy, it is very difficult to reduce waste, implement continuous kaizen and lean 5s consistently. After the Lehman shock, it became easier to do this as we had lower production demands. The results have been impressive. 
Although, we have not reached our pre-Lehman production levels, our profit level has been increasing rapidly.
This is the power of the Toyota Production System fundamentals of Standardization, Just-In-Time manufacturing, lean 5s and continuous kaizen.

For more details on The Toyota Production System`s view on profit and the elimination of waste, click here.

Motivation in the Workplace is Essential

Unless we have vitalized front line workers, we cannot be successful. They are the ones who actually produce the product and the profit. Our job in management, is to make them energized. The corporate culture must be vitalized. At the factory sites, I tell workers, `you are the people who actually create profit through your skills and wisdom. Material costs are pre-determined by the market. How do we increase profits? You. Through your skills and performance.`
Unless employees are motivated, we cannot create a good attractive company.

Managers, directors and supervisors must understand this or their system won`t work. Leadership Styles are important.
As a leader, I have to communicate the corporate vision to all members of the company and must show that we are very concerned about our vision and our future direction. Whenever I have time, I visit the Gemba of all divisions. I visit people. Because I am in a high position, If I call others to come, it`s no good. No, I go to them.”

CASE STUDY: Motivation Theory & Employee Engagement, click here.

How to motivate employees, click here.

Mr. Yamauuchi praised Proctor and Gamble`s corporate philosophy, “Proctor and Gamble share the same idea. They pay good attention to employees. We see things in common among excellent companies throughout the world.”

For Mr. Yamauchi`s view on employee engagement, click here.