Blog
Help! I Need an Employee to Go the Extra Mile
A lot of managers ask me, “What about the employee who does just enough work and does it just well enough and nothing else? How do you motivate that person to go the extra mile?” The first question managers should ask is: why does it matter? After all, if an employee is performing well enough…
Make Your Management Concrete: Turn Company Values into Actions Employees Can Take
Building a strong culture, one that attracts and retains the best talent, is a huge undertaking for any organization. Undoubtedly the most difficult part is aligning the entire company on whatever values—old or new—constitute the core of the culture. Managers play a pivotal role in creating that alignment. Of course, it’s not easy. There is…
Stick to the Basics: The Leadership Wisdom of Dave Christiansen
If asked to describe his leadership philosophy, Dave Christiansen may offer you this quote from Walter Lippmann: “The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind him in other men the conviction and the will to carry on. The genius of a good leader is to leave behind him a situation which common…
Employee Burnout? That Could Be a Sign of Undermanagement
Burnout has officially been recognized as more than just a cultural phenomenon. The condition is now recognized by the WHO, probably to some relief from the HR departments who have been trying to combat increasing levels of burnout for years now. According to some research, burnout is responsible for nearly 50% of workforce turnover. Anyone…
Four Ways to Tap into the Short-Term Transactional Mindset in Order to Improve Retention
Attracting, hiring, and retaining the best employees is a lot more complex than it used to be. It’s no longer enough for employers to offer the same basic benefits or rely on long-term rewards to keep employees loyal. People today are savvy enough to know that in an uncertain business environment, no long-term reward is…
The Hard Realities of Managing People
It is our mission to fight the undermanagement epidemic and spread the word about highly engaged management. So many leaders, managers, and supervisors are held back by the belief that a strong, hands-on approach to management is wrong. Many participants in my seminars tell me, “I feel like you are giving me permission to manage,…
The Employee Reward Philosophy That Equals Higher Retention
Congratulations! That great new person has been hired to your team – and they are eager to start adding a ton of value. As a highly-engaged leader, you understand how to create an upward spiral of performance very well: define performance standards, spell out expectations, collaborate on next steps and benchmarks, follow up and adjust….
A Guide to Great 1:1 Meetings
More and more leaders are getting the message: in order to be effective, you must have regular 1:1 meetings with each of your direct reports. Managers and employees rely on those 1:1 meetings to stay on top of the details of every ongoing project, spot small problems before they turn into bigger ones, and create…
Seven Ways to Prepare to Reboot Your Management Style
So many leaders get the message: in order to be effective and get results, you must provide ongoing guidance, direction, and support. But the problem is they feel held back from making a change in their management style: “If I do this, how can I get my employees to take me seriously? I’ve been hands-off…
You’re Struggling to Retain the Best Talent – Is Undermanagement the Cause?
Attracting, recruiting, and retaining the best talent is one of the biggest challenges facing organizations today. For employers of all sizes, in every industry, it is getting harder to get the great candidates they need to come in the door. The people they do manage to hire are less likely to stick around for very…