I’ve shared a few blog posts on the importance recognizing your employees. I’ve talked about the positive affect recognition has on your team. In another post, I listed how and when to recognize employees, The Top Ten Times to Recognize Employees. You’d think I’d run out of things to say about recognition, wouldn’t you? I thought [...]

How much is the cost of poor recruiting? Incompetent recruiting adversely affects an organization on many levels, only one of which is turnover. While poor recruiting isn’t the only cause of employee turnover, it may be the single largest contributor. The absence of a hiring system, not providing training to those who do the hiring, [...]

I've conducted thousands of meetings and every one of them began as an outline. By creating an outline, you’ll have a better idea of what you want to discuss, how long it will take, and who will be involved. Keep in mind, content is what matters — not pretty notes. Here's how to plan an [...]

So, are you micro-managing your team? Sometimes it's challenging to identify our own weaknesses. As for micro-managers, this can be a tough one. The obsessive control of micro-management interferes with performance, it’s counterproductive, hinders team building, and eventually chases people off. Micro-managers believe no one can do what they do. They may even justify their [...]

This is the first in a series of posts regarding training. I’ll cover how to train, types of training, pitfalls to avoid, and share a few training outlines. But first, I want to start with how not to train people. Training is defined as the continual process of raising the competency of individuals and teams [...]

Are you ready? It’s pretty simple. The secret to leadership is … it’s not about you. Never. Ever. It’s about those you lead. Think about it. To be a leader, you need followers. Followers are more likely to follow you if it’s in their best interest. Self-serving is a surefire way to NOT attract followers. [...]

I recently presented a teamwork seminar to a group who already work well together as a team. Why in the world would management invite me to discuss improving team work with a team that works? Because that’s how championship teams are built. The morale at your establishment may be extraordinary; folks may be waiting in [...]

I was recently asked to conduct a management candidate interview for an executive position at a large construction company. Two of the three business owners joined me in the interview. I asked the majority of the questions and facilitated the conversation. We used the Management Candidate Interview Questionnaire below, but before you look at it [...]

So, do you want to get ahead? Who doesn't? However, sometimes you have to create the path because if you sit and wait for it to come to you, you may be waiting a long time. During an employment interview, a candidate will occasionally disclose they're considering a position as only a "stepping stone." For [...]

When identifying a management candidate, do you use tenure, skill, character, relationship to the owner (so…she’s your brother’s daughter?), or all of the above? Where should you begin?First, identify team members who truly want the job, not, “I’ll try to do it” or, “if you want me to,” candidates, but someone who has expressed interest [...]