ITLP Tuesday Readings

Last week my attention was drawn to a 2007 article by Harry M. Jansen Kraemer, Jr. "What is this thing called CEO leadership?". Kraemer is clinical professor of management at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and an executive partner with Madison Dearborn, a private equity firm based in Chicago. He is also the former chair and CEO of Baxter International, Inc., a global healthcare company.

When I first looked at the piece, my eyes fixated on the "CEO" in the title wondering how CEO leadership was really different than "leadership." After reading the article through, I concluded that Kraemer's ten leadership characteristics were just as applicable for all leaders as they were for CEOs. Here they are:

1. Does the leader have "true self-confidence"? Kraemer asserts that true self-confidence enables you to accept yourself as you are, recognizing your strengths and your weaknesses, and focusing on your continuous improvement.

2. Does the leader demonstrate "genuine humility"? Is the leader approachable and caring about the staff as individuals? Does the leader balance the demands of the multiple constituencies that are in play at any one time?

3. Does the leader possess solid values and set an example of those values?

4. How well does the leader manage the "people process"? Are the right people in the right jobs?

5. Is the leader capable of setting clear direction for the team? Using Einstein's words, does he or she "Make it simple without being simplistic."

6. Is the leader an effective communicator?

7. Does the leader motivate and empower the team?

8. Is the leader capable of "making it happen"?

9. Does the leader have the courage to deal with constant change, controversy, and crisis?

10. Is the leader socially responsible? Does the leader see, and act, on the big picture beyond the team?

These are all characteristics that you have heard before. Perhaps you would profit from taking an inventory of where you are today and picking one of these characteristics for a tune-up or an overhaul.

Have a great week. . . . jim

Posted by Jim Hall at 2:49 PM | Permalink

"We are continually faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems." ~ Author Unknown

Ask yourself: What opportunities are present in the face of this problem? Is there anything I can do to move things forward or make them better?

Am I being a part of the solution or part of the problem? Am I making good use of my energy? (Remember negative or positive, energy is contagious!)

Posted by Jim Hall at 3:50 PM | Permalink

On March 15, 2011 Harvard Business Review's Management Tip of the Day was "Live Your Mission, Don't State It". Two sentences - "A mission statement is an abstraction. An organization on a mission is inspiring." - caught my eye in this summary of Dan Pallotta's HBR blog entry "Do You Have a Mission Statement, or Are You on a Mission?".

Pallotta's point is that too often a mission statement is "nothing less than careful jargon. Slap the title 'Mission Statement' on any of those [example statements] and you've really communicated a sense of missionless." I suspect that two often we in IT are guilty of doing just this. We are too often focused on completeness, not being too assertive, being correct, etc. that we end up with a statement that is, well, void of clarity and not being actionable.

So, my question for you is what mission are you on? Are you communicating it to your team, and your clients, in a language that is actionable? Are your behavior's supporting it?

You may want to give this some of your critical thinking time today.

Have a great week! . . . . jim

Posted by Jim Hall at 10:49 AM | Permalink

"It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be." ~ Isaac Asimov

Do you continue to do things as they've always been done and expect that to always work? Do you look up from your task to see where you might be going? Where might that be?

Do you criticize the unknown or do you take an active role in creating your future? What can you do now to make things better tomorrow?

Posted by Jim Hall at 4:28 PM | Permalink

Last Saturday, Erik Lundberg, ITLP alum from the University of Washington, found at interesting piece - "Google's Quest to Build a Better Boss" - in the New York Times and sent it to me. Erik noted that "By analyzing data from within its own ranks, Google proves what management practitioners already preach. But then implements it in a way that resonates with technical/engineering types."

In 2009 Google initiated a project, "Project Oxygen," to analyze internal performance reviews, feedback surveys, nominations for top-manager awards, etc. for what might be called the practices of highly effective Google managers. The team gathered something like 10,000 observations across 100 variables and then looked for patterns and formed hypotheses. After interviews with managers to test these preliminary hypotheses, eight practices were identified.

Technical expertise ranked dead last in their list. "What employees valued most were even-keeled bosses who made time for one-on-one meetings, who helped people puzzle through questions by asking questions, not dictating answers, and who took an interest in employees' lives and careers." The entire Google list, in order of importance, is:

1. Be a good coach.

2. Empower your team and don't micromanage.

3. Express interest in team members' success and personal well-being.

4. Don't be a sissy: Be productive and results-oriented.

5. Be a good communicator and listen to your team.

6. Help your employees with career development.

7. Have a clear vision and strategy for the team.

8. Have key technical skills so you can help advise the team.

The report also lists Three Pitfalls of Managers:

1. Have trouble making a transition to the team.

2. Lack a consistent approach to performance management and career development.

3. Spend too little time managing an communicating.

(This list of Google's rules along with explanatory text for the rules can be found on the Solution Focused Change blog.)

Interestingly, there aren't any surprises on the list. The Times piece calls them "forehead-slappingly obvious." And, we've touched all of these pratices in the Leaders Program. What's hard is developing consistent practices.

So, my challenge to you today is to reflect on the list, choose something that you need to work on, and begin to consistently practice that skill. Your team will welcome your efforts.

Have a great week. . . . jim

Posted by Jim Hall at 9:09 AM | Permalink

"Most people who fail in their dreams fail not from lack of ability but from lack of commitment." ~ Zig Ziglar

Do you always do what you say will do, or say you want to do? Some excuses I've heard: "It's too hard." "I'm not very good at it." "I don't have time."

What keeps you from taking action and fulfilling your desires? Make a list of your dreams and promises. Prioritize and make action steps.

Be persistent in the face of adversity...that's commitment.

Posted by Jim Hall at 6:29 PM | Permalink

Today's reading focuses on building a practice to increase your daily personal effectiveness. The IT Leaders Program emphasizes being intentional and planful with the use of your time. Specifically, we've suggested identifying and formally setting aside regular times to plan your week/day. For example, you might schedule time Sunday evening or on Monday morning to review the coming week to make sure you have reserved time to address your priorities. Another option would be to schedule time at the start of each day to review that day and make any adjustments to the day necessitated by events unknown to you when you planned the day. And, of course you could do both weekly and daily planning and review.

In our reading for today - "A 90-Minute Plan for Personal Effectiveness" - Tony Schwartz, president and CEO of the Energy Project, argues that you should set aside 90 minutes near the beginning of each day to address the most challenging task you need to work on that day. He notes that many of the tasks he works on are ones that are "important but not urgent." As Schwartz notes, these are just the tasks we most likely postpone, deciding to do those tasks appear more urgent, easier, and provide more gratification.

Swartz says that his success in doing this depends upon starting at a specific time, working for 90 minutes, turning off email and messaging, not answering the phone, and closing all windows open on his computer not associated with the task at hand. I think the examples of what Swartz was able to accomplish are compelling.

So, why don't you give this a try. For a number of years when I was CIO, I reserved 9-12 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for such work. I'd block off the time -- defensive calendaring, so to speak -- so that there would always be time for me to work on the longer projects that were all too easy to put off because there wasn't time available. I've gotten out of the habit and am working to get back to it being a practice again. Won't you join me!

. . . . . jim

Posted by Jim Hall at 9:10 AM | Permalink

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands but seeing with new eyes." ~ Marcel Proust

Do you believe that your answer is the "right" answer? How did you come to that conclusion? Have you seen two people who share one experience story it in a completely different way? Which is true?

Do you limit yourself to your knowledge and experience? How will you grow? What can you do to expand your vision?

Posted by Jim Hall at 5:57 PM | Permalink

We've all experienced it. Everyone -- maybe your peers, your team, your manager -- agrees with a course of action, specific action steps. Then, you find out a few days later that someone who had committed to the course of action has gone off and done his/her own thing. This is what's known as passive-aggressive behavior. According to the National Institutes of Health, a passive-aggressive condition is one in which a person seems to actively comply with he desires and needs of others, but actually passively resists them. The person may even appear to comply and may demonstrate enthusiasm for the agreed upon course of action, but will tend to perform the requested action too late to be helpful or in a way that is useless or outright sabotages the action.

In today's Tuesday Reading, "How to Deal With a Passive-Aggressive Peer" Amy Jen Su and Muriel Maignan Wilkins make four suggestions that may reduce the disruption that the passive-aggressive person causes:

1. Give feedback. Explain to the individual what you observe. Describe the impact of the behavior on you and the work and provide suggestions as to how he/she might change.

2. Focus on the problem, NOT the person. Don't focus on the personality and everything that bothers you about it. You are not going to be able to force the individual to change. Focus, instead, on how to achieve the actual work in spite of the individual's style. Hoping that the individual will change is not a strategy for getting improvement. Instead, explore the specific issue: What is needed to bring the individual back to the agreed upon course of action? What's the specific road-bock to the individual doing the agreed upon work?

3. Don't take it personally. It's not about you. More than likely, this is a characteristic that the individual displays to everyone he/she engages with. Observe the individual in action and you will see how his/her behavior plays out more generally.

4. Ask for a commitment. Ask everyone involved in the agreed upon course of action for a commitment -- what did each agree to do and by when. Record and publish these agreements. Peer pressure will often keep even the most passive-aggressive individual on task

So, this week when you experience passive-aggressive behavior, use these steps. They may not always completely remedy the problem but they should reduce the disruptions.

Have a great week. . . . jim

Posted by Jim Hall at 9:30 AM | Permalink