Poll – Page 8 – thoughtLEADERS, LLC: Leadership Training for the Real World

How well do you manage stakeholders across your organization?

August 22, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How well do you manage stakeholders across your organization?

Very well: I communicate very effectively with them and build strong relationships 28.69%
Well: I communicate with them frequently and have decent relationships 54.10%
Not well: I struggle to communicate with them and have weak relationships 10.66%
Poorly: I barely know who my key stakeholders are 6.55%

Stakeholders get things done. 82% of you report having good relationships with your stakeholders across your organization. That’s how things get done. These relationships take time and effort to build. For those of you in the 18% who are struggling to build them, recognize you need to make a concerted effort to spend time with them. This might feel like “unproductive” time if you’re not discussing specific projects or initiatives but investing in the relationship itself will make future project and initiative conversations move more quickly. You’ll also find these relationships can improve your career trajectory and your levels of workplace satisfaction because of increased connectedness within the organization. Get to work now. Reach out to those stakeholders and have a call, a coffee, or a conversation. These are long-term investments that definitely pay off.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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How often do you make significant investments in your own professional development?

August 15, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How often do you make significant investments in your own professional development?

At least once a month 29.39%
Once per quarter 16.12%
A couple of times a year 27.96%
Once a year 11.84%
Almost never 14.69%

Making time for yourself. There’s always an excuse not to invest in your own professional development. You might say you’re too busy, don’t have the resources, can’t find any offerings that help you grow, or can’t afford to take the time away from work. In all these situations, you’re prioritizing your employer’s needs over your own. If you’re not investing in yourself, you’re falling behind all the other professionals who are making those investments. A full 27% of you fall in the camp of not investing in yourself enough to even stay on par with your peers. Carve out the time for your development. It can come in many forms – reading, going to training, taking an eLearning course, or working with a coach or mentor are all viable ways to keep your skills sharp. Plus, your improved skills benefit your employer in the form of you being a more effective leader and employee. You have to prioritize yourself because, left to its own devices, your employer will likely prioritize short-term deliverables that benefit the company over long-term professional growth for you.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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How would you describe your team members’ expectations on getting promoted?

August 8, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How would you describe your team members’ expectations on getting promoted?

They are frustrated they haven’t been promoted already 23.93%
They believe they’re ready to be promoted now 20.86%
They believe they’ll be ready for promotion in a year or less 9.82%
They think they’re more than a year away from a promotion 7.37%
They have no idea when or how they’ll get promoted 24.53%
They expect they’ll never get promoted 13.49%

Providing clarity on promotions. 63% of you report that you’re in a dangerous situation. 24% have people who think they should have already been promoted. They’re a flight risk because they’ll seek a promotion at another company. 25% have no idea when they’ll get promoted. They’re both a flight risk where they’ll go to a situation where there’s more promotion clarity or they’ll lose motivation because they feel like they’re not advancing their careers. 14% believe their job is a dead end. Eventually they’ll leave for somewhere where they can continue to grow. Your job as their leader is to communicate frequently and realistically about promotion paths and probabilities. Don’t sugar-coat it and give them false expectations because that will be even more disheartening when the promotion doesn’t happen. Be explicit about the performance you need to see as well as when opportunities will open up. You owe them that candor and it will help you manage expectations appropriately.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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How well do your team members understand how other parts of your organization work?

August 1, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How well do your team members understand how other parts of your organization work?

Extremely well – everyone understands all other company functions 6.29%
Very well – they understand most of the other critical functions 23.68%
Well – they understand functions close to them but not most others 48.30%
Not very well – they lack a basic understanding of other functional team roles 17.39%
Not at all – I’m lucky they understand what our function does 4.34%

Provide a broader understanding. It’s great to see that 80% of you report that your team members understand the important parts of your organization outside their own team or function. That obviously improves coordination, helps them appreciate knock-on effects of their work, and makes them better prepared to take on larger or different roles as their careers progress. For those of you reporting that your teams aren’t familiar with other functions, put together a plan for how you can build their knowledge. Are there cross-functional projects you can put them on? Are there online courses they can take to understand other functions? Can you create mentorship opportunities with leaders from other areas? The better your team members understand what the rest of the organization does, the more their own roles make sense to them and the better positioned they are to grow in their careers.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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Which of the following behaviors do you find to be the most frustrating to experience from a subordinate?

July 25, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: Which of the following behaviors do you find to be the most frustrating to experience from a subordinate?

They’re disrespectful to you 14.18%
They’re ungrateful for what you do for them 7.09%
They’re argumentative about the work you ask for 11.02%
They’re passive-aggressive and don’t do their work 27.82%
They lie to you 39.89%

Don’t Lie and Do Your Job. The top frustrations noted are lying (40%) and not doing assigned work (39%) either by overtly opposing it or passive-aggressively not complying with instructions. The question for you leaders is why are your people lying to you or not complying with doing the work you’re assigning them? Are they afraid to tell the truth and deal with consequences? Are they avoiding rules or standards that hinder them doing their job well? Are they not well enough trained or equipped to do the work? Are your instructions unclear? Do they lack the context for why their work is important? It’s easy to look at your subordinates and highlight which of their behaviors frustrate you. It’s harder to take a step back and ask how you might be doing things that contribute to them demonstrating those behaviors. Take a moment and have an open conversation with them to understand what’s driving these dynamics. You might be surprised to find that their behavior is being driven by yours.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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How do you spend the majority of your weekends?

July 18, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How do you spend the majority of your weekends?

Relaxing with family/friends 34.64%
Pursuing individual activities 25.91%
Resting and catching your breath 18.98%
Working and catching up 13.25%
Some other activity 7.22%

Most are relaxing on weekends. It’s encouraging to see that 80% of you are spending time with family, friends, pursuing activities on your own, or just taking a break from work (and I’ll assume the other 7% are doing non-work things). For the 13% who spend their weekends/free time working, consider the cost and the impacts. You’ll never get that time back and you may be neglecting your own self-care and contributing to burnout. Work during free time also takes a toll on personal relationships which can contribute to isolation, depression, and further burnout. It’s unlikely your employer is paying you for those extra hours too so basically you’re decreasing your pay by 15-30% by giving away that free labor. Find time for you. You deserve it and you need it. The work will still be there on Monday morning when you get paid to do it.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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Have you ever called someone out publicly for their bad behavior?

June 20, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: Have you ever called someone out publicly for their bad behavior?

I do it all the time 6.76%
I’ve done it, but only after trying to resolve it between just the two of us 38.40%
I’ve never done it but have considered it 29.54%
I would never do that 8.01%
I would never do that, and I think it’s inappropriate for anyone to do so 17.29%

Public “call outs” are controversial. 25% of respondents said they’ve never considered calling someone out publicly for bad behavior (and most of that group thinks it’s inappropriate to do so). Another 30% of you have considered doing it but haven’t taken the step but a full 45% of respondents said they do it after trying to resolve the issue one-on-one. Obviously taking that step toward making a public call-out is a big one. For those who say they’d never do so, how would you handle it if the other party simply refuses to rectify the bad behavior? Do you just accept that they’re not going to change and let them continue acting that way? Their failure to address the bad behavior can be a passive-aggressive stall in the hopes that you’ll give up trying to correct the behavior. In doing so, you’ve let them know they can continue behaving badly without consequence and you’ll get more of the same. While taking a grievance public can feel like you’re escalating things too much, consider your alternatives if you don’t do something drastic to change their behavior.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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When you find yourself in a heated conversation, how do you usually handle it?

June 13, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: When you find yourself in a heated conversation, how do you usually handle it?

I keep arguing until the other person capitulates 3.92%
I push the argument too far but take a break before it’s irreparable 12.61%
I catch myself and suggest a break in the discussion to calm down 34.34%
I stop as soon as things start getting heated and seek to understand 49.13%

Pause, then discuss. The majority of you (84%) recognize when a discussion is getting heated and insert a pause to calm things down and continue the conversation when it can be productive. Having this self-awareness is critical – especially for leaders. It’s easy to let our emotions get the better of us. If you know there are people, topics, or situations that create the risk of you getting heated, go into those discussions prepared to hit the pause button. Carrying that awareness into the interaction will help you slow things down and arrest the discussion before it spirals out of control. A pause – whether it be for a minute or a few days – can save a relationship and result in a much better outcome for all involved.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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How do you deal with bureaucratic red tape that slows you down?

June 6, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How do you deal with bureaucratic red tape that slows you down?

I respect the process and work through it. The process exists for a reason 17.19%
I try working through the process but escalate the issue if I’m struggling 61.72%
I try the process, but as soon as I hit a roadblock, I work outside the process 17.19%
I don’t even bother with the process. I work around it to get things done 3.90%

Are your processes slowing your organization down? While 17% of your people report respecting and working through processes, others will escalate issues or work around the process entirely when they hit roadblocks. Processes matter but make sure the ones you have balance the tradeoffs of compliance, safety, and rigor with the need to get things done. If your people are working around your bureaucracy and process anyway, the process isn’t having the desired effect. Sit down with your team and understand the roadblocks they’re facing. Review your processes to see which steps can be changed to make things more efficient. There needs to be a balance of process and operational effectiveness for the two to live in harmony.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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When members of your team have conflict with each other, how do you handle it?

May 30, 2024/1 Comment/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: When members of your team have conflict with each other, how do you handle it?

I ignore it and hope they figure it out 6.40%
I tell them to go resolve it 14.16%
I offer to mediate if they’d like me to 49.32%
I jump in and actively mediate 27.39%
I reassign their work so they don’t have to interact 2.73%

Mediating conflict. Most of you (80%) either offer to mediate conflict between team members if they want you to (49%) while another 27% of you jump in to mediate without asking. If you’re one of those who jumps in, recognize you’re depriving them of a skill-building opportunity. The better they learn to mediate conflict on their own, the less of it you’ll deal with and the less of it you’ll have. Try taking a step back and pause before jumping in. Perhaps offer “it seems like there’s some conflict between you two. If you’d like my help in resolving it, let me know and I’m happy to engage.” Leave it up to them to see if they can resolve it on their own or if they want assistance. While having conflict on a team isn’t fun, having a team that can’t resolve it on their own is an even bigger headache.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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How much stress do you experience related to your personal finances?

May 23, 2024/0 Comments/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: How much stress do you experience related to your personal finances?

None. I have absolutely no worries 17.73%
Some. Occasionally there are financial concerns 55.96%
A lot. Financial issues regularly stress me out 16.34%
Constantly. It’s an ever-present source of stress 9.97%

How financially stressed are your people? 25% of you expressed having significant amounts of stress related to your personal finances. More likely than not, you make more money than the members of your team. If that many of you are facing financial challenges, how do you think your lower-paid team members are doing? If they’re doing great work, be sure they’re getting paid appropriately for it. Fight for raises they deserve. Give them spot bonuses. Create promotion opportunities. Put them in touch with financial resources like counselors you may have available to your associates. If you can remove some of their financial stress, they’ll be healthier, happier, and loyal. Take care of the things that are on their mind so they can focus on more important things like their work, their families, and their health.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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Have you ever been involved in a company acquisition (either being bought or buying another company)?

May 16, 2024/1 Comment/in Business Toolkit, Career, Leadership, Poll /by Trevor Jones

Our reader poll today asks: Have you ever been involved in a company acquisition (either being bought or buying another company)?

Yes, and it went great 12.25%
Yes, and it went okay 43.54%
Yes, and it went terrible 20.75%
Nope, never happened to me 23.46%

Mergers can work, but they take work. It’s good to see that 55% of you have had decent (or better) experiences with mergers and acquisitions. And in this case, that’s 73% of you who have been through an acquisition when excluding those who haven’t had to deal with this particular challenge. Acquisitions can create a lot of turmoil and they require a significant amount of effort to make them work. This includes substantial integration preparation well in advance of the deal being completed. As a leader, the most important thing you can do during an acquisition is communicate with your team. Do not commit to being transparent because that’s not a promise you’ll be able to keep. Much of the work of an acquisition needs to remain confidential until specific points in time. Instead, commit to being candid and sharing what you know as soon as you’re able to share it. The more you can alleviate people’s fears during the acquisition process, the more they can focus on their work of making the acquisition a success.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

Did you enjoy this post? If so, I highly encourage you to take about 30 seconds to become a regular subscriber to this blog. It’s free, fun, practical, and only a few emails a week (I promise!). SIGN UP HERE to get the thoughtLEADERS blog conveniently delivered right to your inbox!