Behavioral EQ:  Putting Emotional Intelligence to Work Thursday January 26 -- 2:00 p.m. eastern, 11:00 a.m. pacific Register Now Emotional intelligence has been explored for nearly three decades, and organizations worldwide have implemented EQ programs with impressive productivity benefits. This webinar looks at several EQ initiatives and identifies the key factors for achieving success. The webinar will discuss: The business case for EQ EQ success studies The intersection of EQ and successful behavior Harnessing the power of EQ 3G

“EQ has moved from a new concept in the 1980s to a topic of interest among business leaders over the last 20 years,” said Casey Mulqueen, Ph.D., director of research & product development at TRACOM. “We’re now seeing the 3^rd generation of EQ efforts that focus on the specific behaviors that each person can practice to increase their EQ and positively impact their individual and organizational performance.” 

Dr. Mulqueen and other TRACOM executives will provide specific advice for people and businesses looking to increase EQ for near-term results including:

• How the behavioral aspects of EQ can quickly make a difference in the workplace
• How EQ initiatives have created improved managerial performance sales results and recruiting efforts
• How to apply Behavioral EQ to improve their own and their organization’s performance

All webinar participants will receive a copy of TRACOM’s Behavioral EQ Concepts Guide and the new whitepaper, "Putting Emotional Intelligence to Work."

Register Now

The GROW Coaching Model is based upon a deceptively simple insight -- breakthrough performance comes more often, not from acquiring additional knowledge, but from removing interference that allows a person to better act on what they already know.  GROW is an acronym for a four-step process of Goal, Reality, Options and Way Forward.  It provides a framework for coaches to draw solutions from the "inside out".  By following this structured yet flexible process, coaches become more comfortable having coaching discussions and empowering others in their professional development. TRACOM's newest SOCIAL STYLE Connections Whitepaper looks at how Style and interpersonal skills support the GROW process.  It was jointly developed by TRACOM and Inside Out Development, the creator of the GROW Model.

This new downloadable whitepaper discusses how each step of the GROW process can be tailored to reflect  the behavioral preferences of each SOCIAL STYLE.  It includes a look at the SOCIAL STYLE of both coach and coachee, with specific advice for successful coaching interactions throughout the GROW process. 

SOCIAL STYLE and GROW is the latest in the SOCIAL STYLE Connections Series which looks at how SOCIAL STYLE complements and supports popular workplace programs including Situational Leadership, Crucial Conversations, SPIN Selling, The Extraordinary Leader and The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.  All of the Connections Whitepapers are available for immediate free download.

In order to avoid another Enron, WorldCom, or Tyco meltdown, company directors should assume a bold and independent role in the boardroom, monitoring the actions and day-to-day operations of the CEO. This dramatic shift creates a new dynamic, one that requires careful negotiation from both parties to get the job done. This is the advice of William M. Klepper, a professor at Columbia Business School.  Klepper's latest book is "The CEO's Boss:  Tough Love in the Boardroom."  The book discusses giving directors, executives, investors, and stakeholders the tools to make their complicated relationships work.  Klepper describes the best techniques for building a productive partnership and establishing a plan of action for a variety of businesses and settings.  He details the eight practices of successful executives, such as facilitating innovation, motivating change, and developing leadership skills, and he explains what directors need to evaluate, such as working style, social behavior, and the handling of stress, before they commit to hiring a CEO.

Klepper says the most critical element is the social contract, in which directors and their CEOs agree to be transparent, continually reassess their company's risk, maintain core company values, and make a commitment to their stakeholders. These include employees, shareholders, customers, and the community. In this essential volume, Klepper encourages directors to embrace their independence, and he teaches executives to value tough love.

You can read chapter 2:  Tough Love in the Boardroom here or learn more about the book here. 

William Klepper is a member of the Columbia Business School faculty within the Management Division. He teaches the Executive MBA course on Executive Leadership and is a regular guest professor in the MBA course on High Performance Leadership. He has found SOCIAL STYLE an important element of effective leadership. Visit his LinkedIn Profile. 

By Richard S. Lewine Corporate culture is not born in a test tube. And while you may not have spent much time thinking about it, your organization has one. Organizational cultures begin as soon as there are two people working together and they establish a method for communicating the day-to-day and long term needs of their enterprise. Most often, this culture is driven by the personality of the founder/president and bought into by other members of the organization as they come aboard. This intangible element of an organization is the cause of more firings and resignations than performance, theft, and other stated causes combined. As entrepreneurs/managers/leaders, we either support or undermine culture. Entering a high energy shop, one will find people scurrying around constantly “busy” at some task. There is a high probability that the leader of this group is a high energy individual. Conversely, the laid back company is most likely led by a calm, highly tolerant individual who doesn’t easily get his or her feathers ruffled.

Other dimensions or elements that demonstrate the culture/climate of an organization are the levels of customer service, the timeliness of deliveries, the interpersonal relationships among coworkers, the effectiveness of lateral and vertical communications, the mutual support demonstrated by peers, and myriad other factors which impact the overall effectiveness of the organization’s efforts.

As an organization grows and develops, the culture determines in great measure the kinds of people that will be attracted to and remain with this enterprise for the long haul. As leaders, we often wonder why we do or don’t have significant turnover, why there is or isn’t a great deal of gossip or rumor spreading, and why our people do or don’t bring us the good and the bad news.

Perhaps the most destructive and confusing message we send as leaders is inconsistent behavior. If we have a Mission Statement that truly reflects the values and philosophies in which we believe, we are obligated to behave accordingly. Most often, organizations pay someone to write a Mission Statement, or a half-hearted attempt is made by the executive group to put one together. Sometimes it gets disseminated throughout the organization; other times it does not. If this statement does not truly reflect the values and philosophy of this top level group, then they are better off not disseminating it.

If the statement does reflect these values then the people in the organization will benefit, as will the organization itself if, in fact, they are given the opportunity to understand the Mission and buy into it. When they do, they also become obligated to behave in accordance with this Mission which ideally reflects and helps to solidify the culture.

Inconsistent behavior on the part of management at all levels confuses the rest of the people because they don’t know whether to believe what the manager says or what the manager does. It puts them in the untenable position of being “damned if they do and damned if they don’t”. The manager who demands performance from his people but does not, in turn, perform up to the expectation of his or her manager, is sending a mixed message. The people ask, “if it’s okay for my boss to be late with a report, why isn’t it okay for me?”.   The employee who is chronically late or absent and whose manager ignores this despite a clear policy to the contrary, is getting favored treatment if others are disciplined according to policy. 

The commitment of top management to its stated philosophies carries the most weight in this constant effort to maintain and enhance our culture. This group is the most visible and has the most impact on the rest of the organization and its effectiveness. The consequences of inconsistent behavior in this arena are far reaching with respect to the organizational integrity of the enterprise and its long term viability.

Whatever its nature, this culture/climate sets informal performance standards by which everyone in the organization measures his or her behavior. The current volatility and turbulence in the marketplace demand consistent adherence to valued norms within our organizational structures. Without consistency, we will assuredly fall victim to our own foibles and someone else will fill the void we leave.

Richard Lewine is a president of RSL Consulting.  He works with CEOs on leadership issues and is an adjunct faculty at Delaware Valley College.  He is a TRACOM Associate. Visit his LinkedIn profile here.

by Rob Biesenbach, author of ACT LIKE YOU MEAN BUSINESS In 25 years I’ve heard every excuse there is for not making communication a priority in an organization. And I’ve heard them from every source: indifferent leaders, risk-averse lawyers, sluggish communication departments – you name it. Here are some of the most common excuses. You've probably come across these in your own organization. Maybe you've even used them yourself a time or two. Here's why they don't hold water and how you can overcome them. 1. We Can Make It Better Do documents and publications in your company routinely get caught in a perpetual churn cycle, where people offer endless edits that add little in the way of real value? That may be the sign of a dysfunctional organization. After all, if people are fussing over every detail of a speech or web page for weeks or even months, how are they handling the really big decisions?

These so-called perfectionists mistake changes for improvements and activity for action. It’s a terrible waste of resources.

So tighten the review circle, identify the bottlenecks and cut them out of the process. Enlist a high-level ally if necessary. Enforce quick deadlines, demand fast turnaround on approvals and use the old, “If we don’t hear from you by [x date/time], we’ll assume it’s okay to go forward.”

2. We Don’t Have All the Information

When do we ever enjoy the luxury of having all the necessary facts at hand? Even in an age where the information spigot is wide open and always gushing data, it’s a rarity.

So don’t bother waiting. Come to terms with the fact that just about anything you communicate these days is out-of-date the instant you say it, send it or post it anyway. The best you can do is tell people what you know when you know it and promise to get them the rest of the information as soon as you get it.

Silence is not a good alternative. Like nature, gossip abhors a vacuum.

3. The Lawyers Won’t Let Us

Let me share a secret: a lawyer’s words are an opinion. It may be a well-informed opinion. Or not. Either way, it’s that one lawyer’s view based on his or her interpretation of the facts and the law. And his or her personal tolerance for risk.

Some lawyers are more conservative than others. Some have been burned badly by loose-lipped people. Some are just too busy to deal with it. Some are absolutely correct.

But you’ll never know unless you push them a little. Sit down and negotiate. Start from the perspective of “what can we say” instead of “what can’t we say.” Don’t accept “no comment” for an answer.

4. They’ll Ask a Question We Can’t Answer

So? Get over the fear of being labeled uninformed or out of the loop just because you can’t answer a question. Nobody is expected to know everything, and those who try create nothing but aggravation for themselves and those around them.

Here’s a simple answer for any situation where you’re unsure: “I don’t know.” Deliver it without apology or shame and people will admire your self-confidence. And what a delightful contrast to those who regularly demonstrate that they, too, don’t know – only with 20 times the words.

Of course, “I don’t know” should be followed quickly by, “But I’ll find out and get back to you.” (Which should then be followed by actually getting back to them!)

5. They’ve Already Been Told

Have they really? How and by whom? And if they have been told, do they understand? Don’t assume.

Everybody knows that a message requires lots of impressions before it sticks, but many leaders need to be reminded of this fact. They often have a blind spot when it comes to their own communications. They can’t bear the thought that people aren’t hanging on their every word.

So one email or presentation or web posting won’t cut it. It has to come through multiple channels and sources. Worried about sounding repetitive or people getting bored? Honestly, we should be so lucky to get that level of attention!

It's important to over-communicate, because people tend to under-listen.

6. We Don’t Have Time

Lack of time, of course, is the mother of all excuses, and certainly not exclusive to communications. The fact is, we make time for the things that are important. If someone isn’t taking the time to communicate, they don’t consider it a priority.

Or as Lao Tzu, the ancient father of Taoism, put it, “Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time,' is like saying, 'I don't want to.' "

Make the time to communicate. And don’t let fears, assumptions – or lawyers – get in the way.

Rob Biesenbach is a Chicago-based communications consultant, actor and author of the book ACT LIKE YOU MEAN BUSINESS: Essential Communication Lessons from Stage and Screen, published by Brigantine Media. A version of this article originally ran in Ragan’s PR Daily.
 

Are great leaders born or are they made?  In their book The Extraordinary Leader, Jack Zenger and Joe Folkman look at research on leadership and show not only that leadership can be developed, but that essential leadership skills are relatively few in number. Further, virtually no leaders possess all of these skills, nor do they have the same patterns of skills.  The researchers found that there are different styles of leadership, but they can all be great.  SOCIAL STYLE and the Extraordinary Leader is a new whitepaper from The TRACOM Group and Zenger Folkman.  It looks at how these two popular workplace models can be used in conjunction to help leaders succeed.

The whitepaper includes:

• An overivew of The Extraordinary Leader Model
• A discussion of how SOCIAL STYLE & Versatility contribute to Extraordinary Leadership
• Discussion of "Leader's Style" and "Follower's Style" issues
• Research on interpersonal skills and leadership performance.

This is the newest paper in the SOCIAL STYLE Connections Series loking at how SOCIAL STYLE complements and supports other popular workplace programs.  Others in this series look at The Five Dysfunctions of Teams, Situational Leadership, Crucial Conversations, SPIN Selling, Strengths Based Leadership and Emotional Intelligence.  

Click here to download other SOCIAL STYLE Connections whitepapers.

 by Ann Yaggie

The Harvard Business Review recently published an article titled “The Case for Executive Assistants” that shed some light on the way that business structure has shifted with regard to executive assistants. The days of secretaries-a-plenty are gone. Today, as a result of cost-cutting and modern communication tools, executive assistants are “typically reserved for senior management.” However, it is a mistake to adopt the impression that assistants no longer have a role in the structure of modern business. Modern business has not eradicated the need for executive support. What’s changed is simply the way that the two parties interact. It is crucial that we shift our focus to improving the way that the assistant and execute interact in order to make the partnership as fruitful as possible

Why the Assistant/Executive Relationship Matters
According to the Harvard Business Review, an executive assistant, at very senior levels, need only “make the executive 8% more productive than he or she would be working solo.” This quantifies to roughly five hours of saved time in a 60-hour workweek. I think it goes without saying that most assistants undoubtedly save their execs much more time than this as they aid in coordination, preparation, and implementation during their day-to-day work.
 
How to Improve the Partnership
How do you make the most of this collaborative partnership? In the end, it all comes down to collaboration, communication, and reciprocal faith and flexibility. An executive must be willing to delegate part of their workload to their assistant. This requires ample consideration as to the parts of an executive’s project that can be completed by their assistant. This action also requires that the executive recognize their assistant’s strengths and have faith in their assistant’s competency.
 
The second key factor in strengthening the relationship between exec and assistant is the assistant’s willingness to take on new and unfamiliar tasks that may cause them to stretch and learn. In order to aid in the productivity of an executive, an assistant must be prepared to learn new skills, try new things, and ask questions. For this relationship to work, communication must be open and mutually supportive.  When the right balance is discovered, the result is a less stressful, more productive, and shorter work week.
 
SOCIAL STYLE and the Executive/Assistant Relationship
Most of us would agree that there is always room for improvement. And the room for improvement in your SOCIAL STYLE is found in the “growth action” of each style. The growth action is what each style “tends to overlook, ignore, or avoid in his or her interactions with others.”
 
Imagine a work situation where the Executive has a Driving style and the Assistant has an Amiable style. The growth action for the Driving style is to listen. The growth action for the Amiable style is to initiate. Can you see that these two Styles are polar opposites?
 
Tips for a Driving-style Executive working with an Amiable-style Assistant:

• Remember that personal security is important to your Amiable Assistant and that the relationship with you could be just as important to this person as the task.
• Slow down your pace.
• Allow for some level of informality in the interaction.
• Allow this person to share their feelings.

Tips for an Amiable-style Assistant working with a Driving-style Executive:

• Pick up the pace when interacting with your Executive.
• Be task-oriented.
• De-emphasize feelings.
• Be clear about goals and plans.
• Use less small talk and get to the point.

Ann Yaggie is the president of DRAY Consulting, a TRACOM Authorized reseller and certified professional coach.  This article is taken with permission from her Home by 5 blog and from TRACOM's Improving Personal Effectiveness Guide.  Visit http://home-by-5.com for more information or to reach Ann.

New research from Mercer shows that employee engagement among US workers is lower than five years ago and says that one in three workers are seriously considering leaving his or her organization.  Another 20 percent of survey respondents were described as "apathetic", not committing to staying or leaving and were considered the least satisfied of all. Mercer cites two factors in the declining engagement levels:  an evolving employment deal that employees have viewed as a series of takeaways; plus further actions taken in response to the economic downturn, such as cuts in pay, benefits, training, etc.  Mercer says that "from the employee viewpoint, not only has the deal been redefined, in many cases, the new deal is not being delivered as promised."

You can download the full Mercer research here.  This data started a discussion about what forward-thinking organizations are doing to improve employee engagement.  We decided to ask members of the TRACOM SOCIAL STYLE Group on LinkedIn for their thoughts on engagement.  Below are a selection of comments posted to the group along with links to the profiles of the contributor.

"Employees want to know that their personal vision is as important as their employer's vision, and they want to know that they matter. With the Millenial generation, the message must be clear, consistent and expressed frequently. To the extent employees feel in control of their priorities (able to keep up) and that their efforts are being recognized as critical to achieving corporate goals, they feel engaged. All too often the most important person in the organization to them (their manager) is too busy to win their engagement. Engagement needs to be a strategic initiative and a key performance indicator for leaders and managers at every level."
Posted by Bob Heavers

"Of course there are many factors creating low engagement today. The one I have focused on recently is the opportunity to grow and develop. I sincerely believe that if leaders put in place simple strategies for helping their team members to learn and to grow as a professional and individual, we could start bringing those poor engagement numbers down."
Posted by rita graziano

"I've read some literature on and seen/observed how the greatest learning comes from peers (vs. managers) -- so shadowing, shared road days, encouraging peer coaching and creating forums for sharing best practices - I believe, contribute to both high engagement and loyalty. (And particularly well-received by Expressives/Amiables.)"
Posted by David Marsi

Over the years I've talked to many people who aren't performing or aren't happy with their job. Helping them to be clear what they bring to their (ideal) role and what they want from it seems to get them back on track or gives them clarity that it's time to move on. The Style clues people give out are a great check for consistency and prompt questions if something seems to be missing."
Posted by Jim Wigg

What is your perspective on employee engagement?  Share your comments here on the TRACOM Performance Blog or join the TRACOM SOCIAL STYLE group on LinkedIn.   

The Strengths Based Model has been developed and refined over the years by the Gallup® organization. Gallup’s early research led to the development of the StrengthsFinder® assessment. This self-assessment provides individuals with a profile of their top five strengths, from a list of 34 possible strength themes.  Gallup’s recent research has focused on leadership. Through statistical analysis, they discovered that the 34 strength themes cluster into four leadership dimensions: Executing, Influencing, Relationship Building, and Strategic Thinking. This whitepaper summarizes the Strengths Based Model and how the SOCIAL STYLE Model contributes to its effectiveness.  Download the Whitepaper.

SOCIAL STYLE is the world’s most effective interpersonal skills model. The Connections Whitepaper Series looks at how SOCIAL STYLE complements and supports other popular workplace programs including Situational Leadership, Emotional Intelligence, Crucial Conversations and The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.  See all available Connections Whitepapers.

You’re all familiar with the old adage that nice guys finish last. Like many common sayings that automatically roll off our tongues, it is not true. Nice people do just fine, thank you. However, as new research shows, it isn’t all good news for the considerate and honest people of the world either. In fact, we might be able to edit the proverb to read, “At the last, nice guys are finished.” An article by Jonah Lehrer in the Wall Street Journal (August 14-15, 2010) discusses what psychologists call the paradox of power. The same traits and characteristics that help leaders rise to power all but disappear once they’ve achieved positions of authority. Many people are surprised to learn that the vast majority of those who attain leadership roles are, in fact, not ruthless subscribers to Machiavellianism. Instead, far and above it is the people who are perceived as most considerate and sociable who become respected leaders. This makes intuitive sense, and as TRACOM knows from our own research, people give respect and support to leaders who practice high Versatility. The problem is, once these people become leaders, their good traits often fly out the corner office window.

Recent research conducted at the University of California, Berkeley, indicates that when people are given power, their behavior begins to mimic individuals with neurological damage. In particular, they act like patients who have damage to the specific brain area that is important for empathy and decision-making. Researchers point out that one of the main problems with authority is that it makes people less sympathetic to the concerns and emotions of others. For example, studies have found that people in positions of authority are more likely to rely on stereotypes and generalizations when judging others, and they spend significantly less time making direct eye contact with people who are in less powerful positions than themselves.

Of course, power doesn’t turn everyone into merciless jerks. Some leaders are able to maintain and even enhance the good qualities that brought them authority. Extensive research on leadership would indicate that self-awareness and self-monitoring are key ingredients to remaining one of the good guys. Leaders who know themselves and the impacts they have on others, and who actively, on a daily basis, pay attention to their own behavior and control themselves, are much less likely to lose their good qualities.