Illustrated Agile
I have been blessed with many great mentors throughout my career, especially recently. Some of these were formal mentors, while others were informal mentors such as colleagues, bosses or friends. Either way, it is great to have someone you can trust and share your craziest ideas and biggest fears with. After you’ve spoken with a […]
This weekend is the start of the 100th running of the Tour de France. I have always been a fan of the race partly because of the beautiful course locations but mostly because of the incredible physical test the cyclists must endure over three grueling weeks. Last year before the Tour de France I wrote […]
The words we use with our people will leave a lasting impact. This will always be true for leaders and there is no way around it. When we use critical, demeaning, or harsh words we leave “scar tissue” and it may never go away. This scar tissue often takes the shape of guilt, fear, or […]
The need for visionary, transformational leaders becomes more prevalent every day as our workforce continues to evolve, our businesses adapt to change, and workplace culture becomes more important to our people. People deserve leaders who care and who desire to leave a positive leadership legacy. If you are looking for a couple of additions to […]
Take a minute and think back on the times in your life when you felt really appreciated. What did people tell you? When did they tell it to you? Was it public or in a private conversation? How did it make you feel? While being the recipient of genuine appreciation is an amazing feeling, being […]
In an earlier post, I discussed two phrases leaders should genuinely say to their people as often as possible. In addition to saying those two phrases, there are a couple of things an effective and transformational leader should also be. The role of leaders and managers is evolving – and it must. Future generations of […]
Leadership during and after an Agile transformation will require a very different kind of leader. The days of command-and-control are being replaced by, as Steve Denning states in an article in Forbes, a new leadership “paradigm shift.” In my previous post, I talked about 5 questions a leader should ask themselves before undertaking a journey […]
So your organization is making the move to Agile. It may have started with a “I’ve heard about this Agile stuff and we are going to do it!” from someone in leadership. Maybe its the staff who will go to leadership and say ” We want to do Agile!” Or it starts as a grass-roots […]
I recently received an incredibly cool email of encouragement from a colleague. I’m sure the email took no more than 2 or 3 minutes to write but the impact was tangible and lasting. It validated my effort. It motivated me. It was unexpected. I smiled when I read it. I decided then and there to […]
As leaders, we are often caught up in the whirlwind of responsibility as our focus and attention will naturally shift to strategic endeavors or the issue of the day. While leading a team, department, or organization can consume your day, taking the time to perform small, low energy gestures can make a meaningful difference with […]
The typical corporate performance review…a fascinating and at times, polarizing topic. Some think there are benefits and others, not so much. Regardless of where you land on the subject of formal mid-year or end-of-year performance reviews, most agree there is room for improvement. So, for the past year I have tried new ideas around performance management […]
We have all been given feedback while at work. Most likely from a manager or leader but also on occasion, from our peers. How we receive, process, and act on this feedback is directly related to how it was delivered. If you have feedback you would like to share (as a manager or a team member), […]