Newsletter: 2005 June Issue

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Newsletter

June 2005

Spotlight: Mind the Gap!
Weiss and Molinaro on how to free your inner leader

Based on his 20 years of research and first-hand experience, Queen's IRC faculty member and consultant Dr. David Weiss has concluded that Canadian organizations are suffering from a severe lack of “leadership capacity.” In this excerpt from his new book, The Leadership Gap, David and co-author Dr. Vince Molinaro share practical strategies for senior managers and HR leaders to bridge the leadership gap in their organizations by unleashing their “capable” leadership potential. ...more

This Issue: Partnership Power: Relationships for OD Practitioners shows you how to help your clients define and develop key organizational partnerships—and prepare them for the fast-forwarding of their business strategy ...more Employee Engagement: Harnessing hearts drives optimal performance. But managers must use their influence wisely to foster a humming workforce ...more Taking Home the Tools: Here's who won a copy of The Conflict Resolution Toolbox in our last newsletter contest ...more Free Download: Check out this discussion paper on workplace spirituality and the next wave for attracting and retaining employees ...more

Upcoming Programs All - Toronto- Regina - Halifax Sept. 21 - 26, Kingston Industrial Relations Register Sept. 22 - 25, Kingston Building Smart Teams Register Sept. 23 - 26, Toronto Change Management Register Sept. 30 - Oct. 03, Regina Dispute Resolution Register Oct. 07, Toronto Performance Management Essentials and Strategy Register Oct. 07 - 08, Toronto Compensation Clinics (Performance+Group Benefits Programs) Register Oct. 08, Toronto Employee Group Benefits Register Oct. 15 - 17, Toronto Business Strategy Register Oct. 19 - 24, Kingston Negotiation Skills Register Oct. 21 - 24, Regina Building Smart Teams Register

Partnership Power

This November, join us for the launch of Relationships for OD Practitioners, the latest in the IRC's pioneering OD series of programs. Learn how to help your clients work through the huge organizational challenges inherent in defining and developing key relationships — and how connecting the right people ignites business strategy.

• Acquire diagnostic tools to identify high-leverage linkages such as shared know-how and resources; pooled negotiating power; and new business creation
• Facilitate an intervention for identifying and mediating conflict between two or more work units, and develop partnering protocols
• Apply a step-by-step roadmap to structuring and developing effective partnerships, internally or externally.

Date: November 15 to 17, 2005

Go to: http://www.industrialrelationscentre.com/partnership-development/

Employee Engagement: Harnessing Hearts for Optimal Performance

One of the best measures of an employee's potential contribution to the workforce is engagement. But according to a recent Towers Perrin web-based survey of 40,000 North American employees — including 4,600 Canadians — the majority are moderately engaged (63%); only one in five (20%) is highly engaged; and nearly as many are disengaged (17%).

This has a huge impact on companies trying to optimize performance. Employees who are highly engaged are likely to contribute more — and are far less likely to leave their company. Equally significant, the disengaged tend to contribute less, and stay lodged where they are.

The results of the Towers Perrin survey were discussed at a recent Queen's Masters of Industrial Relations (MIR) 20th anniversary reunion. The survey found that:

• Moving employees from a state of moderate engagement makes them almost twice as likely to want to stay with their company and invest their discretionary effort.

• 51% of the disengaged have no plans to leave (9%) or are not actively looking to leave (42%) their company.

When it comes to engagement, it is not about pay and benefits, but things that enable employees to make a difference. Here are the top five drivers for engaging employees:

1. Senior management interest in employee well-being
2. Challenging work
3. Overall work environment
4. Input in decision-making
5. Career advancement opportunities

The study also found that managers and leaders are not as effective as they could be in engaging employees' energy and passion. Behaviours that have the most significant impact are:

• Inspiring enthusiasm for work
• Encouraging/empowering people to take initiative in their work
• Helping employees understand how they contribute to the financial success of company
• Ensuring employees have access to a variety of learning opportunities
• Providing clear goals and direction needed to do my job
• Helping people understand how they can earn rewards based on their performance
• Building teams with diverse skills/backgrounds
• Acting with honesty and integrity
• Making thoughtful decisions on important matters

Free Download "Spirit at Work"

Click here to download a discussion paper on how workplace spirituality may be the next wave for attracting and retaining employees. The paper was prepared by Val Kinjerski, Kaizen Solutions for Human Services.

Prized Subscriber

Congratulations to Karen MacKenzie, who won a copy of The Conflict Resolution Toolbox: Models for Analyzing, Diagnosing and Resolving Conflict from the contest in our previous e-newsletter issue.

Spotlight: Unleashing Your Inner Leader
An Excerpt from "The Leadership Gap" by David Weiss and Vince Molinaro

Queen's IRC faculty member and consultant Dr. David Weiss has concluded in his research and practice over 20 years that there is a crisis in leadership capacity. In the following excerpt, David and co-author Dr. Vince Molinaro share practical strategies for senior managers and HR leaders to bridge the leadership gap in their organizations. Learn how to unleash your “capable” leadership potential to rise to the top — and about perilous personal factors that could prevent your ascent.

Capable personal leadership is based on the ability of leaders to lead in a more reflective and conscious manner. Capable leadership means slowing down and becoming more deliberate in the practice of leadership. When capable personal leadership is done well, leaders are better able to focus and integrate the other essential elements of holistic leadership (customer leadership, business strategy, culture and values, organizational leadership, team leadership).  

The seven letters of the acronym “CAPABLE” represent actions that characterize effective—or “capable” —personal leadership. Here is a list of questions to assess the extent to which you (the reader) are a CAPABLE leader.

• Do You Cultivate Personal Credibility?
• Do You Achieve Results?
• Do You Practice Humility?
• Do You Acquire a Broad Perspective?
• Do You Build Others Into Leaders?
• Do You Leverage Employee Conversations?
• Do You Exercise Work-Life Balance?  

Cultivate Credibility

CAPABLE leaders cultivate credibility. They are believable and are believed by their peers and followers. Belief is an important variable in leadership.

Leaders need to be mindful of their personal credibility and understand the importance it plays in their ability to influence employees, stakeholders, customers, shareholders and the general business community.

Below are several tactics for cultivating one's personal credibility.

1. Be congruent between what you say and what you do.
2. Speak truthfully.
3. Accept failure and apologize when mistakes are made.
4. Behave ethically.

Achieve Results

CAPABLE leaders are committed to and achieve results. They understand that a key leadership accountability is to drive results for the organization, its customers, employees and shareholders.

Below we describe tactics that CAPABLE leaders use to achieve results.

• Provide direction.
• Reinforce the values.
• Eliminate distraction.
• Define what is not important.

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