Issue 29 [ISSN 1712-4670]

So much of what we call management consists of making it difficult for people to work.

Peter Drucker,
Management Guru 
1909–2005


Register now:
September 18-20, 2008 in
Vancouver, BC

TESTIMONIALS

I have worked with many tools and systems and find the suite of CRG tools an outstanding foundation for any individual.  They will facilitate growth and continuous development.  The Train the Trainer program is phenomenal in its organization and the results in self-awareness, understanding of tools use, opportunity, and networking.

Julie Wayman
National Director of Training
Alliance Royale

I came in thinking I would learn some added features about PSI. I came out with the entire foundation from which to build my coaching practice! High quality, impeccable presentation and driven from the heart.

Marilyn Lawrie
Teen Titans

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Secrets of Sucess Journal
This 40-page PDF outlines and provides a summary of most of our 100+ resources. It also provides valuable articles that you can re-purpose or forward to others.

My Source Experience - Journal

My Source
EXPERIENCE Journal

Online Personal Style Indicator

Online Job Style
Indicator



Online Entrepreneurial Style and Success Indicator

Online Values
Preference Indicator

Online Stress Indicator and Health Planner

Online Self-Worth Inventory

Online Leadership Skills-Self Inventory

Online Sales Style Indicator

Online Instructional Style Indicator

Online Learning Style Indicator

CRG´s Licensed
Associate Program

 

This is YOUR newsletter! If you are using our tools and have a unique story, idea, or suggestion to share, let us know: submissions@crgleader.com

We look forward to hearing from you! Please direct your questions and correspondence through our Website.
Contact us.

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Leading the Way is a free ezine published by Consulting Resource Group International, Inc, Copyright 2008.

 

Focus on Professional Development

High-Performance Management: A Five-Step Process for Winning

Would you like to increase the performance of your teams? 

Desire alone does not create high-performance management or organizations. 
The following five steps are part of the copyrighted Management System that we install in organizations to maximize business performance. 

As with most process systems, to create consistency and accomplishment you must be prepared and organized. 

The Expectation Management Model ™

Step One: Written Expectations

You cannot effectively have, hold, and even consider high-performance results without first writing down your expectations. For the purposes of this Management Model, anything that is not in writing does not exist!

The written requisites go beyond traditional job descriptions. Expectations must clearly outline seven items.

  1. List traditional roles and responsibilities.

  2. List primary tasks and activities. ISO requires this as part of their protocol; it ensures consistency.

  3. List acceptable and unacceptable staff behaviors. 

  4. Give authority with responsibility.

  5. List specific desired results and outcomes—not just activities.

  6. List the positive and negative consequences of certain related actions.

  7. Get agreement and signatures.

Step One should include a Personal Style and Job Style Compatibility process. Our experience has shown that when the style nature of the person does not reflect the style requirements of the position, there is little you can do to increase or even maintain performance. This strategy reduces the chance of the square-peg-in-the-round-hole syndrome.

Step Two: Work Readiness

  1. Organizational Support
    One client required that the phones be answered within 3 rings. With three staff people and two phones, that was quite a challenge. The business was not supporting the staff with the necessary resources to achieve the expectation that management had set. 

    Another company wanted to expedite the cashier process, but was unwilling to add another phone line to separate the fax from the Visa-authorization line. When a fax was being received or sent, Visas could not be processed. The choice? Support the staff or remove the expectations.
  2. Ability 
    Suppose you require brain surgery. Because we here at CRG are very motivated and like to try new things, we offer to perform your operation. 
    Note: No matter how enthusiastic we are, we simply do not have the training or the ability to do that job. 

    A quick way to determine if a person has the ability to fulfill certain tasks/responsibilities is to ask yourself one question: in the past, has this individual demonstrated the skills and abilities necessary to fulfill this responsibility? If the answer is No, why expect miracles now?
  3. Desire
    When a person is not motivated to do a specific work task, find out why. (That's more useful than simply criticizing the individual.) It is the responsibility of the manager to determine what is affecting the performance of the individual, because performance links to the company’s Expectation Management Model. The manager must become involved to help resolve the unproductive situation.

    If a person is in any role of supervision or leadership, you can confirm his or her abilities (skills) and desire (attitude) to lead others by using the Leadership Skills Inventory – Self. The LSI–Self will outline 60 critical leadership skills and establish benchmarks for a leadership development plan for each person.

    Note: If you are interested, there is also an LSI–Others version, to collect 360º feedback from work colleagues

Step Three: Accountability

There can be no fair accountability unless expectations have been documented—in writing—and agreed. Team members can be blindsided by a manager who is upset by lack of performance; staff may be quite unaware of the manager’s unwritten expectation—or at least confused about what he wants from them.

Consequence and accountability protocols must be determined in advance; otherwise, inconsistencies will be rampant. One of the fastest ways to lower team performance is to let something go one day—with no consequences—then lower the hammer the next day for the same behavior. 

Either you have an accountability process in your business or you don't. Everyone must be held equally accountable. Being easy on one person and tough on another for the same carelessness is folly for morale. That's showing favoritism. If you are willing to tolerate poor behavior from one person, you must also accept it from others. If you want to make an exception, you must build an "exception" into the written expectations so that everyone can act the same way.

Step Four: Feedback 

Two forms of feedback fail: criticism and silence.

Having employees "live in fear of verbal attack" has never been a successful part of long-term high-performance management. We do not believe in "constructive criticism."

Silence can be worse than abusive criticism. In the long term, silence leads to the reduced performance of your team members. They do not have a measure for the success their work and may start to second-guess themselves—or even become paranoid.

Correct feedback has three components.

  1. Praise
    Affirm that the conduct of the individual was/is equal to, or greater than, your expectations.
  2. Advise
    Make it behavior-specific. "Good job, well done," is not feedback. Advice is clear—and linked to the written expectations.
  3. Coach
    Model the behavior you want others to exhibit and lead the team through the process. " Show me—don’t talk about it." Performance research indicates that the most effective way to improve, correct, or change behaviors is through on-the-job, real-life immediate feedback, as soon as possible after the event and as respectfully as you can.

Step Five: Rewards and Recognition 

A few months ago, we wrote about creating high-performance pay plans. Rewards are for above-average performance. Typically, monetary or prize-based rewards must be linked to your written expectations and to above-average performance. We have seen reward systems produce behaviors that are totally opposite to the anticipated response. 

Not everyone is motivated by cash. Because some team members will be motivated by other rewards, make various rewards part of the mix. 

Your organization should predetermine your Rewards and Recognition processes well in advance, so that staff members know exactly where the goalposts are. 

Recognition is different from feedback or rewards. Recognition is the emotional side of the workplace; it tends to be more public. These are all recognition items: employee of the month, special parking spot, invitation to the president's home BBQ, picture in the paper, etc. People need recognition to maximize their performance.

The high-performance Expectation Management Model™ establishes steps to help you create your high-performance team. 

Other resources we have implemented to improve the performance of individuals, teams, and management are the Self-Worth Inventory, Values Preference Indicator, Stress Indicator and Health Planner, Learning Style Indicator, and My Source Experience Journal.

TRAIN-THE-TRAINER

Do you wish to develop personally and professionally—while helping others? If so, plan to attend CRG’s next 3-Day Train-The-Trainer program.

CRG’s 3-Day Train-The-Trainer Intensive is designed for all professionals who want to make a difference in other people’s lives.

This program is packed with so much value and content, we created the CRG TTT Alumni program for attendees to come back as many times as they wish, for a significant discount. 

Even if you attended the TTT program just 3 years ago, you’ll find the program has changed significantly! Many of our Associates attend TTT on an annual basis, to keep up with the progress and exciting developments at CRG.

Fantastic volume of quality content delivered dynamically by Ken Keis in a great learning environment.  This program is the gateway to helping so many more people in their lives both personally and professionally

Patrick Von Pander
Big Picture Coach

Register now for our event in Vancouver, BC on Sept 21, 22, 23, 2006.



What started out as a simple 2-day assessment-orientation program 15 years ago has grown into a 3-day Intensive Personal and Professional Development Experience.
Over the past 3 years, we have re-tooled and re-branded the CRG organization and revisited the entire Train-The-Trainer program. The 3-Day TTT session is designed for all professionals—whether you are new to CRG or you have been using our resources for years.

Our goal is to ground and serve YOU so you can better assist your customers.

Recently, when one of our long-term clients attended the program, he thought he was going to learn about CRG. He did not anticipate he was also going to learn about himself.

In the program debriefing, he found himself raw with emotions because of his new levels of self-understanding. Not only is he living his life more on purpose, his new-found passion has helped him triple his CRG business in less than 12 months.

Honoring the learner on the journey to living more fully on purpose is what CRG is all about—and professionals acknowledge that in their recommendations. It’s no accident that 80% of professionals switch to CRG resources from other choices. 

In fact, the more experience you have in the HR field, the more important it is for you to attend a CRG session—to understand the uniqueness of CRG’s resources and unlearn some popular false assumptions in the marketplace.

Register now for CRG’s Train-The-Trainer program.
Space is Limited.


CRG’s Upcoming Train-The-Trainer Events in Vancouver, BC

If you have questions about our TTT, please contact Neal Diamond.
neal@crgleader.com
Toll-free in North America: 1-866-852-4347
International clients: 604 852-0566

Download the TTT PDF now!

NEW! Now Available for You and Your Clients!

My Source Experience - Journal

My Source Experience Journal™ 
A Personal Discovery Process for Those Who Want to Lead a Passionate and Fulfilling Life
 

Ken Keis, President of CRG, has completed his new book! It’s now available for you and your clients. This 88-page book is designed as a journal to take you on a path of personal discovery. If you are wondering what you should do in your life, the Source will help you. 

It’s also a great "process" tool to use with clients and others. If you know people struggling to find a clear direction in their life, do them a life-altering favor. Give them a copy of My Source Experience Journal™.

To order your copies now, please click here

CRG IS EXPANDING ITS ONLINE CONTENT. WE INVITE YOU TO PARTICIPATE.

How? We are looking for articles that engage the audience and help them with specific issues. 

Here are our requirements.

  • Length: 600 to 1000 words. Short, punchy text is preferred over length.
  • Focus on the issue(s) you believe are important to this segment (lifelong learning) and add your practical recommendations. Case Studies are welcome, as long as the parties mentioned have signed off. 
  • Your article(s) must mention how a CRG resource has or can be used to resolve the challenges or issues you have outlined in your content. 
  • CRG is free to use your article at our discretion. You will, however, always be acknowledged as the author/content-provider; your basic contact info will be included.

Your article must fall within the following categories/markets.

  • Career Profession/als
  • Training and Speaking Profession/als
  • Small Business and Entrepreneurs
  • HR Profession/als
  • Corporate Applications
  • Education Profession/als
  • Relationships and Dating
  • Parenting/Children
  • Coaching Profession/als
  • Christian/Church Groups
  • Health and Wellness Profession/als
  • Assessments as an overall development strategy
  1. Please indicate the categories/markets to which your submission relates.
  2. If you are not a writer, we encourage you to have a professional editor review your content prior to submission.
  3. At the beginning of the file, indicate the length of your article.
  4. To create the file name, type the title of your article + your name.
  5. We accept MS Word files for PC only.
  6. You may submit up to 5 different articles in this callout.
  7. We reserve the right not to use your submission.
  8. Please forward your article(s) to submissions@crgleader.com.

Finally, to qualify to submit an article, you must be a CRG Associate or Affiliate. If you wish to submit but are not yet a CRG Affiliate, please register at this link—at no charge.

UPCOMING EVENTS

CRG Train-the-Trainer
Where: Vancouver, BC
When: September 23, 24, 25, 2006
To register:  https://www.crgleader.com/trainthetrainer/

International Coaching Federation – Vancouver Chapter:
Assess for Success, with Speaker Ken Keis, President of CRG
Where: Vancouver, BC
The Arbutus Club, 2001 Nanton Avenue
3rd floor meeting room
When: September 28, 2006
Time: 7 PM to 10 PM
To register:  http://www.icfvancouver.org/

International Career Development Conference 2006
Professional Development Session on the CRG Personal Style Indicator and Model, with Speakers Ken Keis, President of CRG, and Richard Knowdell, Executive Director, Career Planning and Adult Development Network
Where: Santa Clara, CA 
When: November 1, 2006 
Time: TBA
To register: http://www.careerccc.com/ 

CRG Train-the-Trainer
Where: Vancouver, BC
When: November 16, 17, 18, 2006
To register: https://www.crgleader.com/trainthetrainer/

UPDATES

  • New Positions Available Immediately at CRG

    Want to work in a dynamic, fun, and entrepreneurial environment? If you qualify, here’s your chance!

    All positions are located at CRG’s Head Office in Abbotsford, BC.
    If you are interested, please send your résumé to sherri@crgleader.com.