The Cranky Middle Manager Show #312 The Future of the MBA Ken Starkey
More on Agile management…. from MI
Posted on 26. Feb, 2009 by Wayne in General
Folks, my conversation with Chris Sims got me thinking about Agile management… the result is my latest Management Issues Article (Read it here)
Agile is great but for those of you working in that environment…how are your managers measured? Is it simply by tasks accomplished or are “management” behaviors like team building and human connections measured as well?
I’m already hearing from ticked of Agile folks…. such a cranky breed…… maybe that’s why I like them.
Don’t forget you can follow me on Twitter @greatwebmeeting
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #181 Managing Remote Teams Terence Brake
Posted on 24. Feb, 2009 by Wayne in General, Podcast
Today Wayne Turmel talks about managing remote teams with author Terence Brake. Middle managers today have to manage people who can be working anywhere in the world and there are tools and techniques available to help. We enlist Terry’s help, talk about a Frenchman who helped bridge the distance and introduce the first Cranky Middle Manager webinar training course on ….managing remote teams.
Terry Brake of TMA World joins us today. He’s the author of “Where in the World is My Team”
Join us for our first Cranky Middle Manager training webinar: “How to Create and Manage Remote Teams” There are sessions for North America/Europe AND Asia/Pacific. Click here to learn more.
Show Notes:
0:00 Welcome to the 181st edition of the show. Today we talk about managing virtual teams and bridging gaps of all kinds with author Terence Brake. We dedicate this episode to the first, but not the last, manager who tried to lose himself in the Hotel’s watering hole: Claude Chappe.
2:45 Big announcement: The first actual training course webinar on creating and managing remote teams. This one will require budget approval but well worth paying attention to. You asked for courses that were available online, were timed for various parts of the planet and were affordable. You speak and my fingers have wings……
5:05 The quote of the week is from another Frenchman, Francois la Rochefoucauld. If people don’t trust you it doesn’t matter if you mean well. How much tougher is it when people are on the other side of the world and can’t see the cute pictures in your cubicle to know you’re a good person.
6:00 We are talking to Terry Brake, author of “Where in the World is My Team-Making a success of Your Virtual Global Workplace” You can buy it here…and probably should. I really enjoyed it.
9:00 Why is managing virtually different than managing on-site? We need to pay attention to the environment we work in. It’s more than just “not being allowed to travel”. There are opportunities here.
The 6 Cs of managing virtual teams:
- Cooperation
- Convergence
- Coordination
- Capability
- Communication
- Cultural Intelligence
14:45 Getting everyone on the same page is critical….what are some of the practical things a manager can do to get everyone heading in the same direction? There is a leadership task here… and things need to be explicit.
17:15 Little things like sharing the pain of time zones can go a long way to building trust and respect. We also need to balance the mix of technologies. The darned French, apparently, don’t care for email.
22:00 What’s the difference between stereotype and observation when working between cultures? Why does it matter? A great story about French and Japanese managers ensues.
26:27 If you are putting together a remote team, what are the things you need to do right away to get off on the right foot? Get to know your team as people. Move slower into tasks AFTER you get to know each other.
Terry’s Resources
Uniting the Virtual Workforce
Don’t let the weasels get you down!
The Cranky Middle Manager Webinar Course: How to Manage and Create Remote Teams
Posted on 24. Feb, 2009 by Wayne in General
Folks this is the biggest announcement in CMM History: We are holding a training webinar on “How to Create and Manage Remote Teams”. this will be available to anyone in the world; no travel, no staying up til 3 in the morning. The cost is $125 US but if you order before March 16th you can register for $99 US.
This is a huge step for both this show and www.greatwebmeetings.com. Please tell your friends, your colleagues and the nice lady in HR who approves your training. Here’s what we’ll learn:
How to Create and Manage Remote Teams
Managers today have direct reports or team members who are located somewhere else- another location or another country. The basics of good team management haven’t changed, but how does a manager or organization maintain peak performance and keep employees engaged when separated by miles, timezones and culture?
Join Wayne Turmel, The Cranky Middle Manager, for this 90 minute interactive workshop which includes assessment tools, worksheets and an action plan.
Course Objectives:
At the end of this program, participants will apply tools and techniques learned in the class to assess their team’s connections in three areas: Team Relationships, Information Flow and Task Performance to reduce rework and barriers to effectiuve performance and team cohesion. You’ll also develop an action plan to use free and low-cost tools into your management arsenal starting tomorrow.
Topics include:
- What makes a great team?
- Why working virtually makes engagement and teamwork harder
- Assessing team relationships and and what to do about it immediately (low-cost tools, action steps)
- Assessing Infomration Flow and what to do about it
- Assessing team task Performance and what to do about it today
- Next Steps
If you are a manager with remote team members, about to become a manager or responsible for leadership development in your organization, don’t miss this program.
Click here to register for the March 30, 2009 11 AM Eastern Time (US/Europe) webinar
Click here for March March 31st, 9:00 AM Bangalore, 2:30 PM Sydney)
All participants will receive a PDF Packet of prework and course worksheets as well as a FREE half-hour coaching conversation, no matter where in the world they are!
Are you a speaker and don’t do webinars?
Posted on 21. Feb, 2009 by Wayne in General
Lots of great speakers avoid doing webinars either because they don’t know HOW to do them or (let’s be honest) it’s not as fun and glamorous as going to a cool resort and getting paid to speak in front of a live crowd. Too bad, folks. The world is changing.
On Tuesday, February 24th I’ll be leading a FREE webinar: “4 Reasons speakers hate webinars- and why they need to get over it”. It will be fun. It’s cosponsored by Caryn Terradas and the fine folks at Youspeakeasy.com.
Don’t forget for your twitter geeks out there, I’m now tweeting at @greatwebmeeting!