Poll – Page 2 – thoughtLEADERS, LLC: Leadership Training for the Real World

When is the last time you went out of your way to thank a team member for their contributions?

August 24, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: When is the last time you went out of your way to thank a team member for their contributions?

Within the last couple of days: 79.55%
Within the last month: 17.73%
Sometime this quarter: 0.91%
Sometime this year: 1.36%
I don’t go out of my way to thank them: 0.45%

The High ROI of a “Thank You” – Taking time to say “thank you” so someone on your team or in your organization is a simple investment to make and the vast majority of you have done so recently (97% have done so within the last month with 80% of those doing it in the last few days). It’s the right thing to do, it’s appreciated, and it makes people feel seen and valued. If it’s not part of your regular habits, start by adding a reminder to your calendar to drop someone a note. Saying “thank you” in person or on the phone is best because it personalizes it and shows them you’re making a point of seeing them. While emails can suffice for expressing gratitude, a handwritten note can be seen as exponentially more valuable. If you’re in the minority that doesn’t thank people for their contributions very often, give it a try and see how rewarding it can be for both of you. That might create a positive reinforcement loop that gets you saying thank you more frequently.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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What is your opinion of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts at your company?

August 17, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: What is your opinion of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts at your company?

They’re great! Everyone needs to feel respected, fairly treated and included 41.78%
They’re okay. I get the principle but sometimes it doesn’t work as intended 34.23%
They’re a distraction. We have more important issues to deal with 8.00%
They detract from our work environment and aren’t helpful 8.88%
They’re really bad and don’t have a place in our work environment 7.11%

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Matter. 75% of you feel DEI efforts are important in the workplace. Getting the most out of people requires understanding and accepting them for who they are. DEI efforts are often a way to build awareness of the importance of these dynamics. For those who feel negatively toward these types of efforts, ask yourself if it’s a question of how these efforts are being executed at your company or if it’s because of personal views you have toward the importance of DEI in the workplace. If it’s how the efforts are being carried out, get involved. Offer your thoughts on how these programs could be more effective. If it’s because you don’t see the value in diversity, equity, and inclusion, I encourage you to spend some time with your colleagues who feel otherwise and understand why they see it as being so important. The better we understand one another’s perspectives, the more effectively we’ll all work as teams.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

Which of the following best describes your organization’s approach to promoting people?

August 10, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: Which of the following best describes your organization’s approach to promoting people?

Promote them when they demonstrate 70-80% of the ability required at the next level 39.85%
Promote them when they demonstrate 100% of what’s required at the next level 10.16%
Promote them once they’ve been serving as an “interim” at the next level for a while 13.29%
Promise promotion but don’t be clear on what it takes to achieve it 23.43%
Promise promotion, set clear standards, and then move the standards when they get close 4.68%
We never promote anyone 8.59%

Take the risk or lose them. While a sizeable portion (40%) of you report your organization promotes someone when they’re almost ready for the role, 24% are more conservative and wait for the person to be in an interim role at the next level or fully-functioning at the next level. While this mitigates some risk, it also reduces motivation and increases frustration. You’re basically telling the person “we don’t believe you can get to that level of performance so you have to prove to us that you can before we take the risk and promote you.” Not a very motivating message or vote of confidence in their ability to grow. For those who promise promotion but aren’t clear or who change the standards before the promotion is due, you’re going to lose those people eventually. People have career goals and don’t take kindly to being toyed with. Move the standard too often or never articulate what it takes to get promoted and you might find your people moving on and getting promoted somewhere else. The cost to replace someone is drastically higher than promoting from within. Take the risk and develop them. After all – that’s what being a leader is all about.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

How clearly is your organization’s culture articulated and disseminated through the company?

August 3, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How clearly is your organization’s culture articulated and disseminated through the company?

Very: we have clear statements of our culture and everyone knows and understands it 38.59%
Somewhat: people generally know what our culture is but there is some lack of clarity 34.65%
Not very: we have conflicting views of culture and no one can really articulate it 20.47%
Not at all: what’s culture? 6.29%

Culture drives execution. Culture is the sum of your daily actions. If your desired culture isn’t clearly defined and disseminated, you’re leaving it up to people’s discretion and judgment as to how they should act. Absent guidance, they’ll do the best they can but their choices might not be consistent with the culture you’re trying to build. Invest the time in defining that culture. Be clear about what behaviors are or are not acceptable. Help people understand what the aspiration is for how your organization will function. Be sure you’re routinely disseminating and reinforcing that culture. Sharing it once isn’t enough. Those cultural messages need to be projected as often as possible. Remember – you have new hires all the time and people get busy which makes it easy to forget a “culture meeting” you had a month ago. Celebrate when people take actions exemplifying your culture – share those stories so people feel rewarded and others can see what “good” looks like. It will take a while at first to start shifting the culture but eventually the flywheel starts spinning because people see others around them behaving in a culturally-consistent way.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

How effectively does your leadership team function?

July 27, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How effectively does your leadership team function?

Extremely — they are a high-performing team 14.60%
Very — they generally work well together 35.77%
Somewhat — they function but have their issues 30.66%
Not very — they struggle to work well together 12.41%
Not at all — they’re a dysfunctional team 6.56%

Functional versus dysfunctional leadership teams. It’s about 50/50 that leadership teams are functioning well or poorly. Usually their level of performance directly affects the performance of their broader teams. The real question is why are some teams high-functioning and others aren’t. This is usually a matter of trust. That trust is based on how well the team members know one another, can predict each other’s behaviors, and have team/individual goals that are aligned with organizational goals. How well do your leadership team members really know one another? This is more than happy hour superficial knowledge. It’s about understanding each other’s values, goals, and perspectives. Having a deeper understanding of the individual makes their behaviors more understandable and predictable. That predictability is the basis of trust. If you don’t have this depth of understanding on your leadership team, start building it. Spend time in candid conversations on values, goals, and beliefs. The sooner you improve trust on the team, the sooner you’ll see improved performance.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

Which do you find more challenging: speaking in front of a large group or having a difficult one-on-one conversation?

July 20, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: Which do you find more challenging: speaking in front of a large group or having a difficult one-on-one conversation?

Speaking in front of a large group 40.00%
Having a difficult one-on-one conversation 60.00%

Having uncomfortable conversations. A significant percentage of you report that the challenging one-on-one conversation is more difficult than speaking in front of a large group. This is most likely because there’s less of an emotional connection with the large group and in the one-on-one discussion, it may feel like you’re hurting someone you care about. To make those one-on-one conversations easier, focus on the facts. Make it about the behaviors, not about the person. Be clear on observable behaviors that are undesirable. Imagine you had a recording of the behavior and you were explaining the video recap of it. Once you’ve established those facts, offer your suggestions on how you want the behavior to change. Emphasize that this isn’t about them as a person. Instead it’s about changing actions to get a better result. Hopefully that approach will make those challenging conversations easier to have.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

How well-compensated do your team members feel?

July 13, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How well-compensated do your team members feel?

They feel like they’re very well-compensated 6.96%
They feel like they’re fairly compensated 46.96%
They feel like they’re not competitively compensated 33.91%
They feel like they’re poorly compensated 12.17%

Are they going to leave you? 46% of you report that your people don’t feel fairly compensated. While some companies are economically challenged and can’t afford higher compensation, others have to be careful with the message they send about record profits or strong economic performance with wages that aren’t catching up. In a tight labor market, you’ll find yourself without the staff you need. Employees will grow resentful especially as inflation erodes their purchasing power while they see their executives rake in massive amounts of compensation based on their employees’ efforts. The next time you’re hesitant to give someone a raise because you feel it’s “too expensive,” ask yourself how much it would cost to lose that person and try to replace them. The math clearly tells you to focus on retaining them even if it costs you a little bit of money.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

What are the biggest challenges your team faces when it comes to managing their time?

July 6, 2023/1 Comment/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: What are the biggest challenges your team faces when it comes to managing their time?

Too many meetings 23.69%
Too much email 11.85%
Lack of clear priorities 18.42%
Too much work to do 26.31%
Failure to delegate effectively 6.14%
Inability to say “no” 7.45%
Something else 6.14%

It’s your job to prioritize. As the leader of your team, some of your team’s time management challenges are controlled by you. 18% lack clear priorities. Setting priorities is your job. Too much work to do is because you don’t have enough resources, and it’s your job to try to secure them, and/or you’re not telling them to hold off on performing low-priority work. Prioritization means saying “no” or at least “not yet” to tasks you don’t have the resources for. Too many meetings can be improved too. Look at your own standing meetings. Are you managing by exception? Do you need to meet as frequently or for as long of a duration as you have them set up? Are your team members going to meetings for low-priority work but they don’t feel like they can say “no” to attending? See if you can cut some time from the calendar by removing or reducing recurring meetings. Tell people holding other meetings that your team members can only attend when they have critical input – stand up for their time. Many of your team’s time management challenges can be abated with some focused effort on your part.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

How do you feel about your team members or colleagues having “side gigs”?

June 29, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How do you feel about your team members or colleagues having “side gigs”?

I’m totally fine with it as long as it doesn’t impact their day to day work performance 72.19%
I don’t like it but I’ll tolerate it as long as it doesn’t impact performance 21.80%
I’m strongly against it — all their focus should be on their primary job 6.01%

Focus on core job performance. The vast majority (72%) of leaders don’t have a problem with team members having a side gig with the stipulation that it doesn’t impact performance of their primary job. Seems like a reasonable ask on their part. But recognize that 27% of leaders don’t like team members having side gigs. Most (22%) will tolerate it but have concerns about performance and a small percentage are strongly against it. Recognize that if you work for one of these individuals and want to have a side gig, explicit permission and clear boundaries are strongly recommended (e.g., no side-gig calls during normal working hours, etc.). If you have team members who pursue side gigs, be clear with them about boundaries and expectations. Monitor performance and if it starts to slip or boundaries get crossed, intervene and have that conversation early. It’s an ugly situation if you let issues fester and eventually that person finds that their side gig becomes their primary gig either because you have to end their employment or you frustrate them so much that they decide to leave.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

Have you been burned before by not having a contract with someone and relying on a handshake agreement instead?

June 22, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: Have you been burned before by not having a contract with someone and relying on a handshake agreement instead?

Not yet—all my handshake agreements have gone well and without issue 38.95%
Yes. The handshake agreement was a bad idea and I should have had a contract instead 61.05%

Put it on paper. More than 60% of you report a “handshake agreement” going wrong and that you should have had a contract instead. Contracts in business relationships, even with friends and family, are a good idea. They lay out expectations clearly and specify accountability if things don’t go well. Handshake agreements leave too much to memory and differing interpretations of what the deal is. While someone may feel insulted that you want a contract with them because they’re a friend or family, that small moment of discomfort can help you avoid losing a relationship in the long run. If you’re uncomfortable drafting the contract, ask the other party to put something together in writing so you can react to it. That will give them a feeling of control and comfort in that initial interaction and make it seem less like you’re putting something over on them or don’t trust them.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

What is the most pressing leadership skill development need you personally have?

June 15, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: What is the most pressing leadership skill development need you personally have?

I want to improve my executive presence 22.40%
I want to be a more inspiring leader 19.80%
I want to be more decisive 11.45%
I want to be more strategic in my thinking 20.31%
I want to get better at developing my team members 18.75%
Something else 7.29%

Being an inspiring presence. 42% of you report wanting to improve your presence and ability to inspire your teams. A big part of that is authenticity. The more authentic and comfortable you are with who you are, the easier it is to build trust. Trust, in turn, inspires commitment from your team. When you’re being you and being authentic, it’s easier to communicate because you don’t have to memorize a script or focus on putting on appearances. You can just connect directly with your audience which then demonstrates more compelling executive presence. The next time you have to communicate with team members, try going in unrehearsed, set aside any fears you have, and just speak directly. Pay attention to their reactions. You might be surprised by how quickly you connect with them and how your straightforward message can inspire action.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

How good are you at taking all your vacation time each year?

June 8, 2023/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How good are you at taking all your vacation time each year?

Great! I never let a vacation day go to waste 35.79%
Okay. I take most of my vacation days but a few go unused 24.42%
Not good. I usually have a lot of unused vacation at the end of the year 31.77%
Poor. What’s vacation? 8.02%

Take Your Time Off. 40% of you report that you’re not good at all about taking all the vacation you’re afforded. Think of it this way – you’re giving your employer a discount on your labor (10-20%) by working extra time that you’ve been allocated for vacation. Not to mention the impact of burnout on your performance and your health. You’ve been given vacation for a reason. Take it. There’s always some “good” reason like a meeting or a project that can get you to defer (and eventually not take) your time off. The thing is, the work will be there upon your return. I’m writing this after taking 3 weeks of uninterrupted vacation. That’s the longest consecutive period I’ve ever taken. I was terrified at first but guess what… the work is still here and everything is fine. Not to mention I had a great time getting away. Plan your next vacation now and encourage your team members to do the same!

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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