A520.3.5.RB - Supportive Communication

Hello leaders! Today’s topic is very pertinent to being a successful leader. We’ll take a look at practicing supportive communication.

In our reading this week, Whetten & Cameron (2011) provided some guidelines that we can review. I’ll discuss opportunities that I see to integrate supportive communication to a greater extent at my organization, too.

Bear in mind that when times are good or the news to deliver is good, most of us are very capable of practicing supportive communication. When it comes to addressing sub-par performance or dealing with personality clashes, maintaining a positive relationship can be a difficult job. The principles are slanted more to the latter situation, but are definitely applicable in the good times, too.

For starters, one must differentiate between coaching and counseling situations.  “In coaching, managers pass along advice and information, or they set standards to help others improve their work skills. In counseling, managers help others recognize and address problems involving their level of understanding, emotions, or personalities. Thus, coaching focuses on abilities, counseling on attitudes.” (Whetten &Cameron, 2011, p. 244)

Being congruent in your communication is a must. I would posit that it is a goal to always strive for, while knowing that complete congruence in communication at work will be nearly unattainable. Be truthful in your message and its delivery. That doesn’t mean be “brutally honest” all the time. People who communicate in that way all the time are generally voted off the island before too long, no matter how “right” they may be.

The next two principles are closely linked. In describing the situation you wish to discuss, use descriptive and problem oriented statements. Said another way, “Get the emotion out of it.” Making an evaluative statement or driving at the attributes of the person will touch emotional nerves and shut down the aural pathways to the other person. They’ll be so busy coming up with retorts they’ll stop listening.

Providing pertinent feedback to indicate that you are paying attention and invested in the conversation is core to a meaningful conversation. Get the cell phone muted, the computer screen blanked, and any other distractions stowed. Provide validation and acknowledgement of the person’s uniqueness and importance. Supportive listening is a skill that also must be practiced. It takes effort to listen to the other person’s entire statement or position without starting to formulate an answer before they are done talking. As soon as you begin formulating an answer, you have stopped listening.

It is incumbent on us, as leaders, to realize we probably do not have all of the information about the situation. Be open to learning during these interactions. Be conscious of how much of the conversation each person is contributing to and strive not to be dominant.

Tied into being descriptive and problem oriented, the need to be specific is mandatory. I think how it would be if the roles were reversed. In fact, I have had managers and teachers who would only say things like, “What you did was incorrect.” That’s all I received for feedback. No hints, clues, or other direction as to what I should work on. Statements like that make for a massively frustrated employee or student. If there is data that can be provided, bring it to the conversation. It may very well be that the other person didn’t know their performance was below par because they have been distracted by something else. Just seeing the data may be enough or it will at least authenticate the need for the conversation.

The discussion should be fluid. Prepare ahead of time (when at all possible) and ensure the topics flow. Jumping around different, seemingly unrelated topics creates barriers to communication. Long pauses while you are trying to put ideas together during the conversation also inhibit good communication. Look like you thought about the issues and are not just unloading on the person and trying to come up with more areas “they could improve” while you have them in front of you.

Take ownership of your statements. You, the manager and leader, want to help your employee. Use the pronoun “I” when stating your observations and reactions. Deferring to “the company” or “we” puts artificial distance between you and your employee.

The last of the principles we read about involves the use of personal management interviews. These are scheduled time periods where the manager and his or her direct reports. The meetings are one-on-one and should serve as opportunities to improve communication. Practicing the other principles during these meetings would be the ultimate goal.

Prior to seeing these principles in print, I was utilizing a majority of them. I am glad to have had the opportunity to review them and to see the various studies that verified the validity of putting them into practice. The principles all require practice to be honed as skills and for understanding where is best utilized.

Given the responsibilities and the privileges of the job I currently have, I need to practice and demonstrate supportive communication every day. I do not believe my team would enjoy the success it does if I had been unsupportive in my communication to date. Are there times when I could do a better job? Of course there have been. I know there will continue to be opportunities to improve in the future, too. The bonus is having had this review to iterate remaining focused on supporting my peoples’ communication.

Whetten, D. A., & Cameron, K. S. (2011). Developing Management Skills (E. Svendsen Ed. 8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

A520.3.1.RB_DavisCarl - Decision Making Styles

Hello readers! This week we are looking at solving problems analytically and creatively, as well as building relationships by communicating supportively. Today’s blog entry is about my decision making style.

We were asked to view a video that provided us with a list of descriptors, each supplied in pairs that were antonyms of each other. The words described decision making styles and we were to pick the word out of each pair that we believed was closest to our style.

Here’s the list: Cautious or risk-taking, intuitive or logical, self-motivated or influenced by others, rational or feeling/emotional, active or passive, and quiet or assertive. County (2012)

I chose cautious, intuitive, self-motivated, rational, active, and quiet. For clarity, the opposites of my choices would be risk-taking, logical, influenced by others, feeling/emotional, passive, and assertive.

Would there be any benefits to making decisions using the opposite approach to what I think I do, or of some level in-between the ends of the spectrum? I believe there is and that each of us does so regularly. I do not carry a checklist of these styles that I pull out when facing a decision. The choices I made above are more of the way I lean when the situation presents itself and it’s apparent I am to be the sole decision maker. Doesn’t happen often, but it does happen.

The business I am in can have serious, even fatal, consequences. As a colleague likes to say, “It’s not dangerous, but it can be.” That leads me to be cautious. I’ve been in aviation for over twenty years, which allows me to follow my intuition. I do tend to err on the rational side of the situation, again, due to the consequences that I often face. I am not a big believer in assertiveness, preferring to lead by example. However, there are times when I have to be direct and assertive, and will do so.

Given the opportunity to do so, I look for inputs from other members of the group, and I expect I will be influenced by some. I often ask how people feel about a situation, not just what they know, too. Our intuition and feelings can provide valid insights.

Overall, it is rare that one stays all the way to one end or the other of something as complicated as decision making. As part of our reading this week, I learned more about looking at the opposite side of a problem or solution to break down mental blocks to idea conception. Janusian thinking (Whetten & Cameron, 2011, p.198) and brainstorming for opposite terms (Swinton, 2015) are tools I am trying to use at work, and have noticed some of my colleagues doing so as they go through the day. I like the idea of intentionally reversing the polarity of the situation to see what it looks like. I may not find what I am looking for, but if I can define its opposite, maybe the answer will be easier to identify.

See you next time!

County, S. M. (Producer). (2012, August 25, 2015). Exercise: Decision Making Styles. [documentary] Retrieved from http://digital.films.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/play/7A2UTV

Swinton, L. (2015). 3 Creative Brainstorming Activities, Games and Exercises for Effective Group Problem Solving.   Retrieved from http://www.mftrou.com/creative-brainstorming-activities.html

Whetten, D. A., & Cameron, K. S. (2011). Developing Management Skills (E. Svendsen Ed. 8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

A520.2.3.RB Conflict Resolution

Week two in Management Skills for Leaders continues as we look at conflict resolution.

This is a very important topic since managers are faced with differing levels of conflict on a recurring basis. The ability to handle issue while they are small is a career/team/lifesaving skill that is a management requirement. There will be plenty of full-blown forest fires to deal with in your career as a manager. Being able to handle small fires, thereby not allowing them to become forest fires, is a skill to practice and get proficient at doing. The bad news is that no two fires will look the same.

I have a team of over 30 very confident, very capable, very smart people. Some have been executives at major airlines. Some have been senior managers at major airlines. All have, and continue to hold, positions of high responsibility. The personalities all lean “Type-A”. Whetten and Cameron (2011) p. 140

As such, I have utilized what I would call a “Three Musketeers” Dumas (1844) approach to how I handle the group. I talk at length with the group about having a “one for all, and all for one” mentality.  A vast majority has bought in to that ideal and they really enjoy the camaraderie. There are a few that struggle being part of a team and not a group leader. That is where a recent conflict occurred.

Approximately three years ago, I had asked eight of my pilots to act as a council looking at the way our group provided instruction to customers. The practice is common and is utilized to maintain a “standard” or common way of teaching. They are known as the “standards group” (SG) and are structured to be overseen by one of my two assistant managers.

About twelve months ago, I asked a group of six pilots, reporting up to my other assistant manager to create a training plan to ensure our pilots teaching skills were maintained at a high level. This group’s work would be complimentary to the standards group. The new group was called the “training group” (TG). To ensure commonality, two members of the standards group were invited to join the training group.

Yesterday, the training group presented me with a project they had been working on to codify lesson plans to increase and standardize a class for improving the way our instructors deliver training to our customers. I can report that it was an outstanding job and the product looks excellent. We will be implementing the class within the next 60 days.

The rub came from some members of the SG that felt “left out” of the project.

To begin the conflict resolution, I employed the techniques set forth in our textbook. Whetten and Cameron (2011) I initially played the role of responder but ended up as mediator, as the issue was focused near me, but not on me.

I established a climate for joint problem solving by providing the representative who brought the conflict forward the chance to state their issue and listening intently. I asked probing questions when I needed clarification.

I signaled my willingness to make changes by being open to the presenter’s ideas and agreeing that there was a definite opportunity for conflict and that it needed to be addressed. I asked for solutions, and was presented with the answer that the SG felt “lied to” and was mad.

Further inquiry and discussion iterated the fact that some standards team members had participated in the project, and therefore there was oversight from the other team. The feeling of being deceived stemmed from the perception that the TG had “promised” to let the SG make comments on the project as it developed. Whether a member of the TG actually agreed to this, I could not confirm. However, that was the perception.

I stepped into the mediator role to look for a solution. I had already acknowledged that a problem existed and I maintained my neutrality. I stated that the overarching goal needed to be the understanding and resolution of the issue so as to further the continued success of our organization.

The answer to why the feelings were hurt finally came to the surface: someone felt intentionally left out. The solution became apparent to me. I acknowledged the opportunity to feel left out had occurred. I apologized or that. I talked with the initiator about the personalities of the people involved and how they could be better managed. I got the initiator to acknowledge that the end result, the project, was a very good product that would benefit all of us.

As an after action report, my take-aways are:

In the future, I will set better expectations and communicate “rules of engagement” for project teams and all members of my team.

I must be mindful of the perception of being isolated or removed from a team. Neuroscience tells us the feeling of being left out of a group is one of the most powerful in the human psyche.

Communicate, communicate, communicate.

I have discussed these findings with one of my assistant managers and will do so with the other this week.

Wrapping this up, I wish I could say this was a “one-off” or something rare at an organization. It is not. As a manager, we are faced with issues like this all the time. Arm yourself with tools to face the situations and look at each one as an opportunity to help your people, your company, and yourself.

Dumas, A. (1844). The Three Musketeers R. L. John P. Roberts III, Scott David Gray, Sue Asscher, Anita Martin, David Muller and David Widger (Ed.)   Retrieved from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1257/1257-h/1257-h.htm 

Whetten, D. A., & Cameron, K. S. (2011). Developing Management Skills (E. Svendsen Ed. 8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

A520.2.6.RB Time Management

Welcome to week two of Management Skills for Leaders class!

One topic this week is that of time management and ways to use it to reduce stress. Given the often hectic nature of our world, especially with the advent of “constant connectivity”, there are opportunities to help ourselves.

Looking at my time management skills, I believe I do a passable job. My work life is driven by my Outlook ® calendar. In fact, I have a person at work that monitors my calendar and keeps it “under control”, as it were. Otherwise, I would have six hours of meetings scheduled per day. Contrary to popular opinion, very little really gets accomplished in meetings. My calendar guardian keeps an eye on people who are trying to get on my schedule and gets my approval to add them. As we have worked together for over a year now, she has learned what meetings and people are more likely to get on the calendar and who she can suggest other ways of meeting with me, like an e-mail.

I block out time each week to allow for pop-up issues and to deal with work that I actually need to accomplish. As a senior manager, there is plenty to do just keeping my team running smoothly. When I get to wear my Chief Pilot hat, there are decisions to be made, direction to be given, and personal study to get done, too!

At home, the “live off the electronic calendar” technique is used to a lesser extent. I have a calendar on my smartphone that I keep big events on, like birthdays, anniversaries, travel, etc. My wife uses hers to track more of the commitments and projects we have as a family and forwards the items I need visibility on to me. She, too, is a senior manager at her company and lives off her Outlook ® calendar there.

When I know I have important commitments or a dead-line at home, I utilize written checklists. Analyzing the times I use them, I would say my propensity for doing so goes up in direct relation to the number of people affected by the required actions or the gravity of the situation. “Pick up new razor blades for me” may not warrant a checklist or note, whereas “mail party invitations”, or “file tax return” probably would get the added attention. In a way, this is a prioritization technique.

Looking back at my belief that my actions weigh heavily in my chances for success (internal locus of control), having a say in what goes on my calendar and the picture of my day that it provides me seems appropriate. Admittedly, there are times that parts of my schedule are impacted by items outside my control. However, having as many of my commitments as I can accounted for and allotted gives me a stable platform from which to deal with life’s uncertainties.

As there is room for time management improvement that could assist in lowering stress in my life, let’s take a look at three other areas I may be able to employ in that regard!

Rule 16 of effective time management, Whetten and Cameron (2011) p. 126, is to reach closure on at least one thing every day. I will be striving to follow this rule. There have been days in the past years where I have arrived home and felt like my entire day was for naught. The feeling of doubt and frustration is very dismaying. Being in a class does help the cause, here. I enjoy making progress on an assignment!

Rule 12 of efficient time management for managers, Whetten and Cameron (2011) p. 127, is to go to subordinates offices for brief meetings. Since reading this technique last week, I have been using it at work. I like it and will continue to do so. I appreciate that it offers me the ability to control the time spent. Conversely, I know I need to work on Rule 11, meet visitors in the doorway. (2011) p. 127

My employees and co-workers are very much in the habit of walking in and sitting down for a chat. These types of meetings are called “drive-by meetings” where I work. While the information garnered from such interactions is sometimes quite helpful, the distraction to other work I need to do is damaging. I will be working on this situation and expect to see a rise in productivity.

My plan of action will be to note a closed or completed item each day. Additionally, I will track the number of people I can meet at my door for meetings and how many times I have meetings in my assistant manager’s offices.

I expect positive results to my stress level as these techniques are enacted further.

Whetten, D. A., & Cameron, K. S. (2011). Developing Management Skills (E. Svendsen Ed. 8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

A520.1.6.RB_DavisCarl Self-Awareness Blog

It’s the end of week one and time to reflect upon the change in self-awareness that we can note.

Heading into the class, I felt fairly confident that my level of self-awareness was high. Interestingly, I am not sure what scale I was comparing my level against. Upon reflection, I have come to realize that I was using my co-workers and friends as my barometer. Against that scale, I still feel that my self-awareness was above average before class began.

Once I took the assessments at the beginning of the week, my opinion was tempered a bit. The scores substantiated my belief in some areas. My goal in those areas is to maintain my awareness and to continue apply those capabilities in my work and home life. Specifically, maintain my self-confidence, my openness to new ideas, and my flexibility in dealing with ambiguous situations or data.

The first assessment we took was an overall examination of our self-awareness. There were two steps to the test. That was the first, and the second was to re-take the assessment after reading the first chapter. My score went from a 55 to a 59 over the course of the week. That would indicate, to me at least, that my understanding of self-awareness and the multiple facets involved has grown.

My biggest learning moment of the week involved the area of personal values. As it said in our reading, until people encounter a contradiction or a threat to their basic values, they seldom articulate their values or seek to clarify them. Whetten & Cameron (2011) pg. 65  

That statement jumped out at me, as I appear to have been lucky enough (or maybe unlucky enough), to not have faced a time when I have been forced to answer that question. My mind has been occupied with defining my values a number of hours per day, since. So far, I know I value professionalism, commitment, dedication, and trust-worthiness. Incidentally, these are some of the same leadership values my company grades me on twice a year. I wonder where these values would rank if I had not had as much focus on them over the last 10 years, in particular. Probably near the same level, but would they have jumped to mind as readily? As the course, and life, goes on I will take more time to focus on defining my values.

One impact to my values has been my work and study in the field of cultural diversity and inclusion. To a great extent, what values I had built were modified as I learned about other cultures and the values they espouse and practice.

Seeking knowledge of the self, therefore, seems to be an enigma. It is a prerequisite for and a motivator of growth and improvement, but it may inhibit growth and improvement. It may lead to stagnation because of fear of knowing more. Whetten & Cameron (2011) pg. 58

I was talking with my confidant about the stress of having to push through the painful parts of self-discovery. While I have grown and feel very good about the experiences I have had doing so in the past, there is still a sense of sitting outside the doctor’s office on inoculation day. We agreed that the benefit far outweighs the aches and pains. We also agreed that the gains will be lifelong assets.

I will press through the fear. The fruits to be had are excellent and will provide me the ability to be an even better husband, father, leader, and manager.

Whetten, D. A., & Cameron, K. S. (2011). Developing Management Skills (E. Svendsen Ed. 8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

A520.1.2.RB_DavisCarl Diagnostic Surveys for Self Awareness

Hello, again, readers!

The overarching topic of week one was self-awareness. As a way of exploring that topic, one of our assignments was to complete a number of assessments that would help identify some of our personality characteristics.

As a leader, self-awareness is extremely important. As quoted in our text on page 57, Messenger reminded us; "He that would govern others must first master himself." Whetten and Cameron (2011)

Before one can be a master of himself or herself, one must garner an understanding of their own values, emotional intelligence, cognitive style, attitudes toward change, and core self-evaluation. The assessments we took were aimed at providing a baseline of information for us to build a learning plan.

The assessment topics were:

Self-awareness                                                                          Score: 55

Emotional Intelligence                                                              Score: 85

Defining Issues (opinions about controversial social issues)   Score: Varied

Cognitive Style                                                                         Score: 3.3

Locus of Control                                                                       Score: 3

Tolerance of Ambiguity                                                            Score: 48

And a Core Self-evaluation                                                       Score: 4.6

I could understand the results and believe them to be accurate. What I noticed initially was that I fall in the mid-range of a number of the assessments: Self-awareness and emotional intelligence, in particular. I also noticed I was at the edge, or off, on some of the assessments: Cognitive style, tolerance of ambiguity, and core self-evaluation.

I was surprised by the emotional intelligence score. I, apparently incorrectly, felt I was quite the emotional intelligence guru. Instead, more energy will be directed toward expanding my knowledge and application of emotional intelligence.  The self-awareness score was also unexpected. After years as a senior manager, receiving feedback of all types in a very dynamic environment, my expectation was of a higher score. The good news is that this information is excellent motivation to improve my skill-set.

The locus of control score was expected, as was the tolerance for ambiguity. That I am in control of my life and future is one of my core beliefs. The jobs I have held for the last six years provide little in the way of certainty and unambiguity. As a result, I have become fairly comfortable with having to divine information and make decisions based upon limited data. The core self-evaluation score was not much of a surprise. The statements all felt like they were aimed at self-confidence. I am very confident, and the score reflects that fact.

Where I work, people are fond of saying, “What gets measured gets changed.” I am happy to have had the opportunity to get some measurement of these parts of my personality. By seeing the information I can focus on refining and polishing areas that could impede future success as a leader.

I will work to expand my knowledge on emotional intelligence and on defining my values more clearly. Of all the topics this week, the values questions evoked the most personal inquisition. If I can’t quickly define my values, how can I expect to be a leader in which followers can have faith?

This is an excellent start to the class. There should be questions. There should be some easy answers. To grow, there will be stress and discomfort. I’m glad for the opportunity!

Whetten, D. A., & Cameron, K. S. (2011). Developing Management Skills (E. Svendsen Ed. 8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.