A program director in one of the colleges here at Ohio State is paying the price for not having the appropriate conversations with his boss, the dean of the college. Kevin, as director of programs, is responsible for admissions into the undergraduate and graduate programs in his college. In a recent conversation, he pointed out […]
The students in my MBA class on Leadership in Action are confronting the difference between the reality of leadership and the romance of leadership. By romance, I am referring to the concepts or ideas they have of what it is to be a leader. For example, some of them believe that if they just have […]
One of the myths the students and managers in my leading and managing change classes persist in believing is that people don’t “buy in” to a change is because there is something they don’t understand. They are mistaken. Implicit in this “myth of understanding” is the belief that understanding is the key to agreement, acceptance, […]
Have you ever noticed that people could be much more effective if they would just ask for clarification? A student of mine came up after I had handed back an exam and said “I don’t see why I lost these points (pointing to his score on a question). I didn’t really understand this question, so […]
I recently talked to Jeremy, a staff member whose organization is changing from one type of work structure to another. Prior to the change, each work unit in the organization made recommendations on how the allocation of work in their area, who should do the work, and the timelines that should apply. According to Jeremy, […]
Influencing others – having an impact on their ideas, opinions, and actions – requires using different types of conversations and not recognizing this limits our effectiveness. I recently read an article in which the authors maintain that effective leadership requires influencing others and that leaders can influence those others through five different influence styles. The […]
I took my ideas about an online conversation for “Management is Missing” into several meetings over coffee and lunch in the past 10 days. I had lunch with a man who develops websites: he liked the Performance Circle idea, and we sketched out some thoughts on how to have the kind of interactive discussion I’m […]
My daughter and I recently visited my mother at her home in Kentucky. My mother is 89 (will be 90 early next year) and is concerned about who will “pay her bills” (take care of her) in the remaining years of her life. It was an invitation for an understanding conversation, which my daughter and […]
A manager in my Leading and Managing Change course approached me after class with the following issue: “There are things at work I should be accountable for and I am not. I think I should be accountable because they are in my area, but my boss doesn’t hold me accountable for them. Do you have […]
I led a program recently for project managers and saw their biggest challenge is that most people don’t see the “bigger picture” when they are at work on a project – or any work assignment, for that matter. Most of us tend to focus on what’s in front of us (the desktop, both computer and […]
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