Dave's Library

Discover how political tension impacts the workforce and learn effective leadership strategies to support employees while safeguarding organizational performance.

Study pinpoints two measures that predict good managers

Sticky notes in meetings, co-workers’ input and AI evaluations will keep workers constantly informed of their performance.

On #thursdaythoughts, we are focusing in on the most important habit of a great manager. Drum roll please…this habit is having one meaningful conversation per…

Organizations have long seen middle management as ripe for cutting whenever times get tight, and the current moment is no exception. The authors believe that this is a costly mistake. Human capital, they say, is at least as important as financial capital, and middle managers, who recruit and develop an organization’s employees, are the most important asset of all—essential to navigating rapid, complex change. They can make work more meaningful, interesting, and productive, and they’re crucial for true organizational transformation. But if managers are to fulfill this promise, leaders must reimagine their roles, push to more fully understand their value, and train, coach, and inspire them to realize their potential as organizational linchpins.

They’re essential. The house begins to stink if we don’t take out the garbage.

Few organizations provide strong guidance or training for managers on meeting individually with their employees, but the author’s research shows that managers who don’t hold these meetings frequently enough or who manage them poorly risk leaving their team members disconnected, both functionally and emotionally. When the meetings are done well, they can make a team’s day-to-day activities more efficient and better, build trust and psychological safety, and improve employees’ experience, motivation, and engagement at work. The author has found that although there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to one-on-ones, they are most successful when the meeting is dominated by topics of importance to the direct report rather than issues that are top of mind for the manager. Managers should focus on making sure the meetings take place, creating space for genuine conversation, asking good questions, offering support, and helping team members get what they need to thrive in both their short-term performance and their long-term growth.

Learn the 5 steps to have have more productive, human conversations at work. Short video mino course. Free access to your team. Improve communcations.

Being a perfectionist does not mean that you are doomed as a manager. Organizational research on perfectionism is starting to provide new insights and practical evidence-based steps for managers and their network to breaking free from their perfectionistic compulsions. Fortunately, perfectionists are likely to be goal-focused and action-oriented and these strategies are aimed at helping them recalibrate their expectations.

Your primary task as a leader is to build capability below you — but for new managers, this can be especially challenging. You want to be liked. That’s natural. But remember: Placing performance pressure on your team isn’t cruel. A leader who stretches their people risks the possibility of not being liked in order to give others the opportunity to grow. This means the next time you are tempted to solve a problem for your team member, stop yourself. Turn it into a learning opportunity instead. Don’t play the game — keep the score. As a new manager you may feel like a team captain striving to be the best player on the field. But remember: You’re not the captain, you’re the coach. Your job is to set clear expectations, communicate who is accountable for them, and give them the tools they need to succeed. Ask the right questions. When someone comes to you with a problem, ask searching questions. What do you think is at the core of this issue? Have you thought about alternative approaches? What can we sacrifice without detracting from the overall value of the project? Think about your future. Your goal shouldn’t be to make yourself indispensable to your team, it should be to make yourself redundant. Build a team that can function without you, and then go to the next level and build another one. This is what will ultimately set you apart as a leader, not just a doer.

There are a million ways to conduct one-on-one meetings with direct reports. How you run yours will reflect your personal style. This month’s coaching conversation focuses on specific best practices that will enhance your one-on-ones no matter what your style.

11 Promises from a Manager: a 🧵1. We’ll have a weekly 1:1. I’ll never cancel this meeting, but you can cancel it whenever you like. It’s your time.— Matthew Rechs (@MrEchs) April 18, 2022

Why they’re plausible and how they can lead you astray.

Those in positions of authority can be oblivious to the outsize impact that seemingly innocuous statements and behavior can have on others.

A forensic interviewer explains that micromanagers are often leaders who fear they’ve lost control of their workers, so they double down.

Here’s a fundamental truth: Abrasive leadership is tolerated - even rewarded – almost everywhere. And chances are that in the course of your career as a senior leader (or HR professional supporting senior leaders), you too may have allowed it to happen on your watch.

The challenges organizations face today call for a new kind of leadership.

Ruth Bader Ginsberg

Jordan berated teammates, who called him a jerk. But “The Last Dance” offers new clues to what was behind the bullying.

Five research-based tips.

A psychiatrist who’s also a professor of organizational behavior observes that times of crisis usually evoke familiar images of generals or endurance athletes. Instead, he argues, “a public health crisis is not a war or a race.” Here’s what it will take.

Molly Graham helped forge a work culture at Facebook that's withstood huge amounts of growth. Today, she's something of a rapid scaling expert. Here's the key to doing it right, she says.

Show them you’re on the same side.

Kim Scott

Disney CEO Bob Iger’s new book shows how the longtime CEO thinks about management differently than traditional corporate culture.

You may have heard of the book I’m OK — You’re OK. It was all the rage in the late 60s and is still popular today. It’s about Eric Berne’s theory of Transactional Analysis and his concept of g…

Well before the glass ceiling, women run into obstacles to advancement. Evening the odds early in their careers would have a huge impact.