The Cranky Middle Manager Show #311 Serial Innovators Claudio Feser
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #266 Childishness at Work Nick McCormick
Posted on 28. Dec, 2010 by Wayne in General, Podcast
Ever feel like you’re dealing with a bunch of children at work? Welcome to middle management,baby.Get used to it. Wayne Turmel discusses how childish behavior brings everyone down with Nick McCormick. We’ll talk about his new book, “Acting Up Brings Everyone Down- The Impacts of Childish Behavior in the Workplace”. We’ll also talk Chinese child rearing and English cynicism. A laid back way to end the year. God bless (or help!) us every one.
Don’t forget two great workshops this month!
How to Create and Manage Remote Teams on January 28
Web Presentation Basics January 24
Show Notes
0:00 Welcome to the last show of 2010. We’re talking childishness and so we salute the Chinese philosopher Liu Xiang, not to be confused with the hurdler of the same name. Raising children is tough, but the parallels in the workplace are many and disturbing.
2:55 The quote of the week is from George Bernard Shaw. Are you a role model or a warning. Really? Try again.
4:27 Welcome Nick McCormick back to the show. He’s been with us before. His new book is all about childish behavior in the workplace. Why do grownups act like kids at work and what’s a manager to do?
9:00 One childish behavior you see all the time can best be described as “lalalallala I’m not listening to you”. Why is listening so difficult?
12:54 The thing that drives me crazy is outright lying. You’ve heard people say “I didn’t know….” It makes me CRAZY. You need to probe without calling them a liar.
17:00 When this goes on for a long time it’s hard to address. You need to get proactive and not put up with it from the start.
19:38 Nick and I share our most childish behaviors. I’m a bragger, Nick tends to want to win at all costs. What’s yours?
22:38 Sometimes childish behavior is a sign of a real problem. There’s also a difference between childish and child-like.
The Carnival of Leadership is a rotating blog roundup of the best stuff out there. You have to Google to find the latest, though.
Wally Bock’s 3 Start Leadership
The Cranky Middle Manager Show#265 Louder Than Words Bob Kelleher
Posted on 19. Dec, 2010 by Wayne in General, Podcast
Today we talk about employee engagement. Tons of books have been written, but is it all that complicated? Bob Kelleher doesn’t think so. He’s the author of Louder Than Words,10 Practical Employee Engagement Steps That Drive Results. We also talk about Gideon and his hiring methods, Benjamin Franklin’s take on passion and anything else we darn well feel like.
Don’t forget two great workshops this month!
How to Create and Manage Remote Teams on January 28
Web Presentation Basics January 24
Show Notes
0:00 Welcome back for the 265th time. Today we talk employee engagement, a topic the world never seems to tire of (if occasionally I do). We dedicate this episode to someone who understood that a small group of dedicated, passionate folks beats a big army of slackers. We’re talking about Gideon. Forget the fleece, it’s the engagement piece I find interesting. And putting dew on the fleece is not a euphemism for anything dirty… although it sure could be.
3:18 Yes, engagement comes from the heart but you have to let the brain drive. Our quote of the week is from Benjamin Franklin.
4:15 Welcome Bob Kelleher to the show. I like practical tips and getting results is what this is all about so this is a bit different than a lot of what’s out there. Bob doesn’t care if the employees are satisfied if they’re under performing. Engagement is not necessary to success.. .It’s a mutual agreement. There’s a quid pro quo. If you take someone’s money, you owe them something in return and vice versa.
7:15 Here’s a definition of engagement you haven’t heard before: the unlocking of your employees’ potential to drive results. You need engaged people AND results for everyone to win.
9:34 The step that’s perhaps most important to Bob is to communicate the vision. That means make sure the employees understand not only what they’ll do but the expectations of the employee. It’s all about creating “line of sight” between the employee and the goals of the company. If you can’t see how what you do impacts the company, why should you care?
14:04 According to Bob, good managers engage through the use of the acronym BEST: Behavior, Education, Skills, Traits. Behaviors are what you want them to DO. Traits are the internal components that make it likely they’ll do it. He shares a good example from Timberland.
19:55 90% of the time, engagement and performance depend less on skill than on motivation. You can train for skills, you can’t teach caring.
22:45 Step 6 is to create a motivational culture. Your job is not to motivate….it’s the culture’s job. One of the keys is the three circles: what are you really good at? What do you really love to do? What really needs to get done. If there’s overlap, you’ll have an engaged employee. If you don’t, people want to do something they’re not doing or they’re doing something that doesn’t help the company.
Bob’s Resources
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #264 Hacking Work with Bill Jensen
Posted on 13. Dec, 2010 by Wayne in General, Podcast
Today Wayne Turmel is joined by Bill Jensen, author of “Hacking Work- Breaking Stupid Rules for Smart Results” to talk about breaking the rules: when is it okay and when should we just deal with it. We’ll also discuss ballpoint pens and tesla coils for what it’s worth. Something for the whole management family.
Don’t forget two great workshops this month!
How to Create and Manage Remote Teams Dec 17 and again on January 28
Web Presentation Basics Dec 20th and January 24
Show Notes
0:00 Welcome to the show all of you who were once good at something and now get to watch everyone else do it while you’re on conference calls. We dedicate this episode to John Loud and the invention of the ball point pen- a great hack if ever there was one.
3:13 the quote of the week is from Nikola Tesla, a very smart guy. Nothing feels better than coming up with and implementing a great new idea. Well, maybe if you’re a Serbian engineer…..
4:48 Welcome Bill Jensen to the show. I spoke to him for a BNET article that caused all kinds of trouble. What is hacking work? It’s like hacking code or anything else- finding the short cuts in spite of the rules. But are you a white hat hacker or a black hat hacker?
8:49 Believe it or not every rule was created to solve another problem… so how do you know what rules to break and which rules to follow? Here’s the question: is it respectful of your time? Is it as beneficial to you as to the organization?
12:05 Okay, IT people, take a breath. We talk about common hacks to get around the fire wall. Whether you like it or not, people are doing it. How are you going to handle it?
16:16 There are 2 causes of work complexity: infrastructure and poor communication. Information doubles atthe rate of 100% per year….we need to change our beliefs. We also talk about my conversation with The Lazy Project Manager on show 213.
21:49 How do you roll out an idea once you’ve discovered a hack that works. It ain’t always easy but it starts with proof of concept and the ability to point to the end result. Do it underground and post it….anonymously. Some interesting issues here.
26:45 Bill’s favorite hack- a young guy who reworked his own performance review…… this is kinda cool.
Bill’s Resources
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #263 Inside the Mind of a 25 Year Old CEO
Posted on 06. Dec, 2010 by Wayne in General, Podcast
Today I face my daughter’s high school graduation by looking at young leaders. We talk to Aaron Levie, CEO of Box.net. We’ll talk inspiration, youthful exhuberance and Egyptian pharaohs today as well as brag about the new GreatWebMeetings.com site and my upcoming book.
Don’t forget to visit www.GreatWebMeetings.com for free downloadable resources and the best webinar-based training. We offer two workshops How to Create and Manage Remote Teams Dec 17 and Web Presentation Basics on December 20th. Act now and get 2 for 1 registration! Contact us for more details.
Show Notes
0:00 Welcome to the show. My daughter graduates high school in less than 4 weeks, impossible as that seems so today we dedicate this show to young leaders including King Tut. You need to accept advice while having your own vision and THAT brings us to today’s guest, Aaron Levie, CEO of Box.net.
3:29 The quote of the week is from Friedrich Nietszche who warns against teaching young people to idolize conformists. What’s the difference between best practice and the same old stuff? I’m probably too old to ask.
Project Managers: get those precious PDUs by checking out The PDUCast.
4:36 Welcome Aaron Levie to the show. You’ve probably seen Box.net on someone’s LinkedIn page. He tells us about how he manages and how he learned his lessons. We spoke earlier on BNET (read the article here).
6:50 Aaron tells us how he started Box.net and how the company came together. How does a kid develop into a CEO? Starting the company helps. At some point this turns into a real grownup company. How does the hotshot turn into a manager?
9:47 How did he feel about becoming a manager? The hard part is about implementing good systems is realizing you won’t have all the information all the time. What is called bureaucracy is often just layers of information.
13:22 What happens when someone that young has to bring in older workers? How did the employees respond andhow did Aaron address it. In Silicon Valley this is less unusual than it might be in your world. Making it a true meritocracy is the only goal that works there.
15:30 Okay, here’s the question we have to ask: a new generation comes along every 30 years or so but there’s always drama. Are there really that many differences? The biggest difference is expectations around access to information- which is often confused with ADD. Wanting to share information requires an open, electronically connected, speed driven environment.
17:47 My biggest complaint is about appearing not to pay attention, especially in meetings or on the phone. What’s the line between efficiency and rudeness? Assume good intentions until proven otherwise.
20:15 What does Aaron feel are the “best practices” at Box.net? People are not afraid to be critical and the information flows fast and freely. Chaos is not a bad thing. Ask questions til they scream.
22:45 One of the big battles in business is consumer grade software vs. enterprise and big IT? It’s an ongoing battle to enable individuals and groups while having consistency and economies of scale.
Aaron’s Resources
Blogs