Cortex Leadership Consulting

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How much of being perceived as a bad boss by an employee is your fault?

It might not just be in your head.  According to research, how your leadership actions are being perceived are likely based on an employees perception of whether you are a “good” boss or a “bad” one.  Check out the image on the left to see how the same action can be perceived very differently by someone who works for you.

Cortex Leadership One of the best articles I have read on this topic is from MIT Sloan and it’s entitled “Setting You Up To Fail”.  To get the full article there is a fee.  I think it’s worth the $6.50 because it lays out the conditions that lead to a boss being undermined by their subordinates so that you can recognize them and do what you can to avoid them. 
I agree with the fact that most of the focus in leadership and management advice is derived from a perception that it is the leader’s fault if things don’t work out.  They state in the research article that many times it’s the boss that has a “set-up-to-fail-syndrome” for their new employee by doing things like labeling the employee to soon in the onboarding process, over monitoring them, or looking for ways that the employee is under-performing.

Also to consider is what you have control over and what you don’t.  We tend to focus on what you can do differently because you have control over your responses and setting up effective processes to give your employees the best chances of being successful.  That being said, being aware of experiences that you did or did not control that led to biases can be helpful in overcoming them or avoiding them altogether.  

Ways that you could get mislabeled are that your team had preconceptions of you based on your reputation at your previous position or what they have “heard” about you.  They could even be based on the boss you are replacing and how that person performed or acted.  Let’s face it, based on your employee’s past experiences, you could also be dealing with some over sensitivity on their part – justified or not.  Whatever the reason, if you’re in the situation where you believe that there is bias against you that is creating mislabeling you can try a few things that might help the situation:

– Understand them better by asking more questions and actively listening (try to focus on listening for information, not confirmation)
– Know them better (learn what matters most to them)
-Establish a rapport.  Try these tips.

Here are 4 habits to break to be a better boss

Employees aren’t always blameless and they aren’t helpless victims.  Coaching them on how to better recognize biases they may be holding towards you, your customers or one another can help them learn to spot them early and more often.  Also, improving their ability to communicate effectively about their perspectives and become more skilled at conflict resolution can lead to a more improved work environment.  Teaching them the basics of a problem orientation mindset that leads to drama versus one that creates more empowerment is vital to healthy work relationships.
Kathlynn Stone, anchor for Good Day Virginia on WFXR news, discussed this topic with me on their Virginia at Work segment.

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What People Said Would Make Work Fun Again

The Cortex Survey Results are in about what will make work fun again – the results may surprise you

The Cortex Survey Results are in for the question:  What types of conditions make work fun for you?
We asked our Lynda’s Launch List readers that question a few weeks ago and here are some of the answers we received from those leaders, executives, and professionals.  The results we collected were complete anonymity. Thank you to everyone who participated!

We posed this question because we are on a mission to provide team training that makes work fun again and the only way to be sure we are on track is to find out from our clients, readers, and followers what they think.

There are tons of gold nuggets in the feedback we received in the survey results for CEO’s, VPs, frontline managers and anyone who is in a position of authority for their team or even if you are leading or managing people through a project.  We didn’t have one answer that even mentioned receiving more money for what they currently do at work (although I am sure none of them would turn that away if offered to them).

The basic theme of the answers.
The conditions that make work fun are clear and defined outcomes that don’t frequently change in the middle of an assignment or task.  We have fun when we work hard to solve problems as a team, get time to play together, laugh, celebrate our wins, and feel appreciated, all while making our customers happy.

If you are familiar with DISC, it’s fun to read the list and see which types may find what fun at work.  Some are pretty easy preferences to spot.

 

Cortex Survey Results

  • When we are selling business regularly and the team is excited about how to deliver it to wow our clients.
  • Working together as a team, attaining goals, supporting each other, staying busy, profitable.
  • Challenges but not micro-management to get them accomplished; challenges that DO NOT WASTE MY TIME – I dread the question that starts with, “Wouldn’t it be nice if…” because it usually generates something that will waste most people’s time; free-wheeling discussions where no idea is wasted; keeping my time my time
  • Collaborative/Communicative Work Environment
    The ability to share best practices
    Teamwork: Sales Summits
    Fun/Energetic Environment
    Team Spirit/Winning Attitude
    Everyone Wins
    Recognition
  • Opportunities to collectively problem-solve.
  • Getting to focus on a task and not getting changed halfway. Doing it successfully and celebrating success after.
  • I am very appreciative of a work environment with a staff that wants to win. I’ve found that regular staff get-togethers or very loose staff meetings, as well as communication, are the keys to a happy, fun work environment. When the staff is happy, we win.
  • A team that is excited to work. Our department is different from any other because we personalize items. Everything is different; everything is unique. When we have a team that everyone is involved in making it go timely and best quality we can do it is fun to plan it out and watch it take place. A team that likes a little healthy competition makes it fun, too.
  • Energetic staff. A buzz within the office of good energy. Engaging in meaningful tasks and activities.
  • When we function as a team, the more ideas the better, and the more ideas the better opportunity in the planning stage.
  • Being able to smile and have a pleasant conversation with co-workers without fear of reprisal.
  • Being human and interacting with people on a more personal level and not so rushed to continuously not waste time by asking co-workers if they are ok.
  • Group collaborations. Outside community activities.
  • It’s pizza for breakfast day! Underlying well-baked crust of mutual respect, openness, curiosity and optimism (optimism is the yeast). Variety of toppings: humor, time flexibility, inspiration, deadlines and new problems to solve. Cheese (always): Rhythm (keeps things in a loose but continuous order so we can innovate within the structure of our vision). Bake it in the light of people we love – clients, friends, advisors and family. Shake a little profit and continuous learning over the whole thing. Delicious!
  • Responsible, Intelligent, Cooperative and Kind (RICK) individuals that systematically completes work in the most efficient process which allows more personal network and teambuilding time to Make Work Fun Again (MWFA). I often think of work as a machine that is designed, run and maintained to perform a desired outcome with precision and efficiency. Such a machine can be fun by having a pleasant or interesting appearance.
    Work is a four letter word, along with Dumb. One of the definitions of dumb is to “have no power of speech; mute. ” The problem, as I see it, is the fact that many organizations do not allow a constructive two-way conversation leading towards an inefficient workplace along with employees not suitable for their assigned tasks. The organization that is wise and forward thinking and within a profit motivated platform will always outpace the “plodders, those companies that the employees just show up to get a paycheck”. Where is the fun in that?
    Fun at work is having the ability to make wise and efficient choices and just enjoy the day.
  • Honest collaboration. A willingness to suspend roles to seek equality of input from all. The ability to see how the jobs that we do positively affect others. Time to interact informally.
  • Flexible work schedule
    Small breaks or activities (corn hole game or table tennis)
    Set clear goals
    Incentives, rewards & recognition
  • The Environment- conducive to work and enjoy my time here. Get to work within my passion and inspire others around me. We work hard, but carve out time for fun events.
  • I like a relaxed but detail focused environment. One in which we have a balance of sharing details and new ideas, but once we decide on the plan, we stay on track with minimal distractions and execute.
  • Clear procedures with room to do it your own way. Happy coworkers. Nice clients. good smells. Lunch together.
  • Being part of a team that works hard and plays hard all while being committed to making daily progress toward the BHAG that we have all agreed upon.
  • Having a good sense of humor. Kindness. Celebrating milestones, like birthday’s and work anniversary’s. Good communication among team members. An attitude of servitude towards team members.
  • 1. The atmosphere of the job. Meaning how the higher management makes the worker place feel on a daily bases once the employees walk into the building. Example: Relaxed atmosphere not a tense or walking on egg shell filling.
    2. Have different at work function for the employees to keep up the morale in the job place and to let the employees know they are appreciated. Which by the way, our organization, has been doing really great with showing us we are appreciated.
    3. Just having your supervisor and manager talk to you as a person and not just as an employee. Makes any workplace conditions a little fun. Knowing you can joke and laugh and still get the job done and not cross the line of whose over who.
  • Conditions or an atmosphere with a positive environment. Also, although not always possible, if one has a natural interest in what they are doing it usually lends itself to being fun. Along the lines of  “do what you love and you will never have to work a day in your life.”