Effective Communication (Page 2)

In: Culture, Effective Communication, Leadership, Resilience, Values

Synopsis of an article in HBR by Michael Beer, Published 22nd June 2020 Michael explains that most organisations today are dealing with massive strategic challenges that require a redefinition of purpose, identity, strategy, business model and even structure. Many if not most of these will fail and not because the strategy if flawed but rather the organisation does not have the ability to execute. He explains that he has seen six common interrelated reason for failures, referred to as ‘hidden barriers’ which make organisations ineffective. Hidden barrier #1: Unclear values and conflicting priorities Often, the underlying problem is not this or that strategy, but rather the process by which the strategy was formed — or the lack of any such process. In these cases, strategy is often developed by the leader along with the chief strategy or marketing executive and only then communicated to the rest of the senior teamContinue Reading

Tough Leadership

In: Change, Culture, Effective Communication, Resilience, Virtual Teams, Working From Home

Synopsis of an article from McKinsey By Homayoun Hatami, Pal Erik Sjatil, and Kevin Sneader Published 28th May 2020 CEOs (and all leaders) need to take care of themselvesWith so much to focus on right now, focusing on yourself might not be top of mind, but if you are tired you lose your ability to be effective, you stop processing information as well and your moods may suffer. The authors suggest tips on ways to avoid burnout and tap into new sources of energy. – Call a friend or colleague you like for an early afternoon chat– Take a walk outside, exercise is a tested way to restore energy– Stop Friday afternoon meetings– Consider getting an early night on Thursday to go into the weekend fresh Break out of your isolationGetting unfiltered information and contradictory viewpoints requires finding sources of objective, trustworthy and quality information. Making contact directly with individuals and teams toContinue Reading

In: Culture, Effective Communication, Human Capital, Leadership

Article from LinkedIn by Natalie MacDonald, Published 21st May 2020 On this episode of the LinkedIn Video Together In Business, Insurtech founder Ben Webster, Inspiring Rare Birds CEO Jo Burston and COSBOA chief Peter Strong join Natalie to talk about managing and supporting teams during the crisis. Together they covered: Tools for maintaining and building culture How to approach letting people go The benefits of honest and transparent communication, and making teams feel like part of the conversation How to talk to workers about heading back to the office Skip straight to watching the video on the link below. https://www.linkedin.com/video/embed/live/urn:li:activity:6669054004816818176 Originally published here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/food-thought-leadership-crisis-times-natalie-macdonald/Continue Reading

In: Culture, Effective Communication, Resilience, Working From Home

Article from Inc. By Suzanne Lucas. Published 12th May 2020 “Working from home can cause a different kind of burnout. One where you don’t know when work begins and ends, and where you never really have any time off. You’re always at the office, so therefore you are always working.” This article provides some practical advice for managers on how to be supportive. It’s almost never an emergency, so don’t play that card unless it really is. Maintain an office like schedule – make it clear what expectations are and that employees are not expected to respond to messages at all hours day and night. Communicate frequently to keep everyone up to date – its much less stressful to know what is going on than to sit and wonder what is coming next. Read the whole article here: https://www.inc.com/suzanne-lucas/your-work-from-home-employees-are-burning-out-you-can-help.htmlContinue Reading

In: Change, Collaboration Technology, Effective Communication, Virtual Teams, Working From Home

Article from HBR by Mark Mortensen & Constance Noonan Hadley, Published May 22, 2020 Before CoVID-19 there was no playbook on how to transition a team to 100% virtual (in a matter of days), no one has ever done anything like this before. Yet this year its been done by companies all over the world and some found their Business Continuity Planning (BCP) had some gaps, some teams and individuals have found the transition easy and successful other found it extremely hard. This article points out that Teamwork has Gotten Harder – having a sense of the connectedness across teams is crucial. “Teams that have unclear missions, inconsistent social norms, low common identity, unclear roles and unstable membership – are recipe for team disasters.” The result a lack of productivity, low levels of engagement and frustration. Mark & Constance offer some guidance. Start with Triage – identify the critical teamContinue Reading

In: Culture, Effective Communication

Michael Hyatt writes about the problem with poor communicators and how it impacts teams. He puts forward five key learnings that are easy to apply Firstly – Determine to be the solution: Make sure that you are championing clear communication in your workplace. Secondly – Externalise your thinking: Often we communicate enough, we assume that others know what we are thinking and what we know, be aware of the gap between your understanding and the team’s. Third – Push for clarity: Are you sure your message is clear, have you checked how others might receive the message and considered the appropriate wording to best land your message. Fourth – Confirm understanding: You have not communicated until you know that the other person has understood what you were saying, use follow up questions to be sure that you have a shared understanding. Fifth – Over communicate: People forget what you haveContinue Reading