The effects of this are becoming more obvious. According to recent research from Josh Bersin (November 2023), only 17% of companies have a solid leadership succession plan, and just 15% are addressing leader burnout. 

These facts are much too low!!!

Understandably, CEOs and CHROs have been focused on more immediate challenges, from sustaining the business, labor shortages, employee burnout and building efficient hybrid work models. In doing so, they’ve let leadership development dry up, creating a void at the top with no leadership bench strength to fill the gaps. 

This leadership drought is having a ripple effect. Without strong leadership, companies are struggling to attract, retain, and nurture talent. Companies without a pipeline of well-prepared leaders face challenges in:

• Developing a clear strategic direction
• Ensuring sustainable growth
• Fostering a thriving company culture
• Enhancing employee engagement
• Driving innovation

As we navigate this post-pandemic landscape, organizations must recognize the importance of investing in leadership development. This isn’t just about preparing future executives—it’s about creating a culture of learning, resilience, and adaptability. By doing so, companies can turn this leadership desert into an oasis of innovation, growth, and future success.

The desert we’re in may seem vast, but with the Keep It Real Leadership Program, your organization will cultivate leadership that drives sustainable growth. Contact us today so we can talk leadership and get your organization set up for success!

Till the next time, keep it real.

Karen

The post Navigating the Leadership Desert: Why Development Can’t Wait! appeared first on PeopleThink.

Encouraging creativity and innovation is not just a nice-to-have but a must-have for leaders who want to retain top talent and drive sustainable growth. Creativity isn’t just about coming up with new ideas; it’s about developing those ideas into actionable strategies that can propel an organization forward. 

Here’s why it’s essential for leaders to prioritize and nurture these qualities in their teams:

• Retaining Top Talent — When learning and development take a back seat, top talent is often the first to exit. High-performing employees are naturally curious and eager to grow. They thrive in environments that challenge them to think differently and innovate.
• Driving Business Growth — Innovation is the engine of growth. Organizations that encourage creativity are more likely to develop new products, enter new markets, and find smarter solutions.
• Preparing for Future Needs — The business world is changing rapidly, and the skills needed today may not be the same as those required tomorrow. According to the World Economic Forum, skills like analytical thinking, creativity, and innovation will be among the top in demand. Leaders should develop their teams not just for today’s challenges but for future opportunities.
• Leveraging Hidden Talents — Every employee has unique skills and talents that might not be fully utilized in their current role. By encouraging creativity and innovation, leaders can tap into these hidden strengths, allowing employees to contribute in ways they might not have imagined.
• Continuous Improvement — Innovation is not a one-time event; it’s a continuous process. Leaders should create an environment where continuous improvement is the norm, not the exception.

Creativity and innovation are one of the pillars of any thriving organization. Leaders who prioritize these qualities in their teams are not only setting their organizations up for success but are also ensuring that their employees remain engaged, challenged, and eager to contribute.

Want to learn more about encouraging creativity and innovation in the workplace? Check out my Keep It Real Leadership program!

Till the next time, keep it real.

Karen

The post Sparking Innovation and Creativity appeared first on PeopleThink.

But how do you create that special magic that results in not just an effective team but a high-performing team?

Here are six proven strategies to build and foster a strong team:

• Establish a clear purpose and specific goals: A high-performing team is defined by individuals who not only comprehend the shared purpose and milestones but also collaboratively contribute to defining the means to reach those goals. Clear communication of team goals, objectives, and expectations ensures alignment among members, fostering a deeper commitment to the common purpose and enhancing overall performance.
• Create a sense of mutual accountability: Be sure everyone clearly understands expectations. Challenge your team to higher performance goals and establish an environment where they hold themselves – and each other – accountable for results. Include regular progress reports, open sharing of mistakes made and lessons learned, and team discussions on moving through roadblocks.
• Encourage open communication and constructive feedback: The key to building a high-performing team lies in continuous communication. Foster a culture of open communication, encouraging team members to share ideas, concerns, and feedback while actively listening and promoting collaborative discussions.
• Build Trust: Trust is the foundation of any successful team. Be transparent, honest, and reliable in your interactions. Trust is earned through consistent actions, so demonstrate your commitment to the team’s success.
• Promote Team Bonding:Organize team-building activities or events to help team members get to know each other personally. This can improve communication, understanding, and collaboration among team members.
• Recognize and Celebrate Achievements: Acknowledge and celebrate both individual and team achievements. Recognition boosts morale and motivates team members to continue working hard. It also reinforces a positive and supportive team culture.

Remember that effective team building is an ongoing process that requires continuous attention and effort. By investing time and energy into these strategies, you can create a positive and cohesive team that thrives and achieves its goals.

To learn more about effective team building, check out our Keep It Real Leadership program! Keep It Real Leadership is a human-centered program that nurtures leaders to embrace their strengths and deliver on their goals. Together, we can take you and your team to the next level!

Till the next time, keep it real.

Karen

The post 6 Strategies to Build and Foster Strong Teams appeared first on PeopleThink.

While this approach can test and build resilience, it is generally not considered an effective or responsible method for leadership development.

The “sink or swim” approach can lead to high levels of stress, anxiety, and burnout, and it may not be suitable for everyone. This is both unfair to the new leader and detrimental to the organization.

True leadership development focuses on nurturing and empowering individuals to become effective leaders by helping them acquire the skills, knowledge, and experiences needed to excel in their roles while providing appropriate guidance and support along the way.

Here is what a good leadership development program should include:

• Structure. Effective leadership development programs typically involve a more structured and supportive approach. They provide individuals with the necessary knowledge, skills, and tools to succeed in leadership roles. This may include mentorship, coaching, training, feedback, and opportunities for growth and development.
• Lessons on “soft skills.” Soft skills include emotional intelligence, self-awareness, problem-solving, and good communication. While some of these skills might be inherent in a new leader, being able to apply them effectively while adapting to leading people requires coaching and support.
• Opportunities to receive feedback. Feedback is an opportunity for growth. Research shows that people who seek feedback have higher performance ratings and are happier overall.
• Ongoing support. Leadership development is an ongoing process. As companies change or team conflicts arise, it might be tricky to adapt. Having the right mentor or coach to support you along the way will allow you to become the best leader you can be.

New leader training must be a key component of every organization’s learning and development plan. It should not be just a one-day event around policies, performance reviews, and disciplinary actions. It needs to be structured in a way that gives participants time to apply their learning, receive feedback, and get the ongoing support necessary (mentoring, coaching) to grow into the next line of senior leaders and executives.

Remember, sink or swim is NOT leadership training! Invest in the right leadership development program, so you and your team can succeed.

Till the next time, keep it real.

Karen

The post Say Goodbye to the “Sink or Swim” Leadership Approach appeared first on PeopleThink.

Many researchers have identified a correlation between an employee’s personal and professional development, and an organization’s growth as a whole.

Increased job satisfaction, higher employee engagement, improved retention, enhanced productivity, and a more skilled and adaptable workforce are some of the benefits of employee development.

Companies that invest in their employees’ development demonstrate a commitment to their growth, which can lead to a positive organizational culture and a competitive edge in the market.

If you want to keep your people and grow your business, you must provide opportunities for your team to learn and grow. The best way to do that is by creating and implementing effective employee development programs.

Here’s How.

Ensure roles and responsibilities are well-defined.
Roles often morph over time as responsibilities expand or business needs change. This can be frustrating to the individual in the role – and detrimental to the team/organization – if training around new skill requirements and responsibilities isn’t included with the change. It’s also difficult to hire for, train for or promote someone into that role if you haven’t updated the current skills and responsibilities for the role.

Create career path outlines.
Employees want to know what growth opportunities are available in the organization. Create career path outlines for each job family to help employees build personal development plans.

Make performance management an ongoing process.
The annual performance review – dreaded by managers and hated by employees – typically focuses on weaknesses and rarely includes a development component. How inspiring is that? Effective performance management is a continuous process (not an event) and consists of a development component that builds on strengths and develops areas that are not strengths.

Develop for future needs.
Development plans should consider organizational goals and the skills and behaviors employees will need to contribute to achieving those goals. They should also take into account the skills and behaviors employees will need in the future to succeed (yes, even if it’s not in your organization). Make a list of top skills required and design training programs to help them acquire those skills.

Consider employee goals and interests.
It’s also essential that individual employee career goals and personal interests be considered. All too often, employees have skills and talents that are under-utilized. Take the time to identify, develop, and leverage those hidden talents and unspoken interests. Employees want to use their strengths and feel that they’re contributing to the organization in a meaningful way.

Implementing and supporting leadership development and training programs for your employees will help them grow and develop their style and prepare them to lead their teams in the future.

Till the next time, keep it real.

Karen

The post Employee Development: Building a CULTURE of Learning! appeared first on PeopleThink.

In recent years, long working hours and isolation have led to burnout and as a result, an increase in depression and anxiety. According to the World Health Organization, in the U.S. there has been a loss of $1 trillion dollars in productivity.

Post-pandemic, a majority of companies still have hybrid work conditions and employees are continuing to feel stressed. The American Institute of Stress found that:

• 55% of Americans are stressed during the day
• 63% of employees want to leave their job to avoid stress
• 76% said their workplace stress is affecting their personal relationships
• 35% of employees said their bosses are the main source of stress
• And 39% report their workload causes them stress

It’s no wonder that droves of employees are heading toward the door and making a decision to leave their current employment.

Here are some suggestions on how Leaders can address workplace stress:

• Hold a workshop to identify common stressors and brainstorm possible solutions for managers and employees.
• Align company policies with best practices for preventing stress and burnout.
• Educate employees about available stress management and mental health resources, including your EAP (Employee Assistance Program) and health plan.
• Offer activities like meditation and yoga, mindfulness programs or apps, or resilience training.
• Continue asking for feedback and improving so that stress management becomes integral to your culture.

It’s also important for employees to feel empowered and to know when to say “when.”

Here are some tips for employees:

1) It’s okay not to be okay. There’s no shame in admitting you’re overwhelmed or overworked or simply burned out. We saw some great examples of this in the recent Olympics when several athletes prioritized their mental health over others’ expectations and accolades.

2) Take frequent breaks during the day. Breaks are even more important in a remote and hybrid world, according to Dr. Mary Donohue, Founder of Digital Wellness. “In the digital age, information is overwhelming and can lead to a constant state of panic. You need to make a quiet space in your day to allow your brain to distill the constant flow of information.”

3) Talk to your leader. Explain what’s going on and work together to co-create a solution and learn about resources for help. Some time off, a flexible schedule, taking advantage of the EAP program, for example.

4) Make time to feed your soul. Whatever makes you happy, makes you laugh, calms you down, just do it. On a regular basis.

5) Use your vacation time. And TOTALLY disconnect.

Remember, if you don’t take care of yourself, you’re not going to be good for anyone or anything!

Find even more stress busters in my Stress for Success podcast series.

Till the next time, keep it real.

Karen

The post Workplace Stress: How Can Leaders & Employees Avoid Burnout? appeared first on PeopleThink.

The truth is that Organizations and leaders have been forced to pivot on many fronts over the past 2.5 years. As a result, new business models like hybrid workplaces and creative delivery platforms have sprung up. What hasn’t kept pace is our thinking around employee engagement and retention.

Working with companies of varied sizes and industries, I’ve identified four key strategies that can help you retain and grow your team:

1) Help your employees feel valued by communicating how their goals align with team and organizational goals. Provide them with opportunities to build on their strengths, learn new skills and prepare for the future needs of the company. Development can happen in many different forms: on-the-job training, personal development, cross-functional projects, coach and/or mentor, special projects… The important thing is that it is available and encouraged.

2) Help them feel connected by communicating with them clearly and consistently. When leaders communicate regularly and build a sense of connectedness with their employees, those employees are happier and more productive.

3) Do you have career roadmaps and succession plans in place? If not, what are you waiting for? Help your employees feel challenged by communicating the next level in their career path and what they need to do to get there. Give them temporary assignments that will stretch their skills and comfort level.

4) In the leaner work environment today, most employees are feeling the brunt of doing more with less. Recognize their efforts by saying “thank you” early and often. Don’t wait until review time to tell them what a good job they’re doing. And be specific – what was the situation, what did they do, and what was the impact? Applaud the behavior you want to see repeated and emulated.

Don’t take your employees for granted. As a leader, you can help them believe that what they are doing has purpose and meaning. You can show them that their leader cares about them as a person and is equally invested in their growth.

And most of all, keep in mind that new and emerging leaders need the right training to succeed in the new role. Join my free webinar, Leadership Power Hour to learn how engaging with your team can set you up for success.

Till the next time, keep it real.

Karen

The post Strategies to Retain Your Employees appeared first on PeopleThink.

A recent Forbes article explains how high-trust work environments enable team members to feel valued, heard, and capable of doing their best work.

Here are my tips for establishing trust:

Be willing to put in the work. Know that trust takes time to build and must be earned. Don’t expect people to trust you just because you are now their leader. Be sure that your actions align with your words and that you tell the truth. Always. Remember that trust can be easily broken and is very difficult to repair.

Communicate honestly. Communicate clearly and regularly. Share as much as you can, especially about business information that may impact the team or their work. Listen. Ask for feedback, ideas, solutions. Model open, honest and respectful communication so the team will mirror that among themselves.

Be accountable. Do what you say you are going to do. Be sure everyone clearly understands expectations and the impact of not meeting those expectations. Challenge your team to higher performance goals and establish an environment where they hold themselves – and each other – accountable for results.  Include regular progress reports, open sharing of mistakes and lessons learned, and team discussions on how to move through roadblocks.

Be consistent. Don’t keep changing the rules or make rules apply to some and not to others. When something changes, explain why and encourage a dialogue around it. Oh, and did I say, “listen”?

Model the behavior. To earn trust, you must show trust. Set clear goals and expectations and then trust your team to do what they were hired to do.  When something goes wrong, get all the facts before drawing a conclusion. Respond in a constructive, consistent way.

Be truthful. Always. Trust is the key ingredient to all successful relationships. Tell the truth. As my dad used to say, “One lie leads to another, and before you know it, you’ve forgotten the first lie you told.”

“Contrary to what most people believe, trust is not some soft, illusive quality that you either have or you don’t; rather, trust is a pragmatic, tangible, actionable asset that you can create.” – Stephen Covey

Till next time, keep it real.

Karen

The post Trust in the Workplace  appeared first on PeopleThink.

Warren Bennis, organizational consultant and author of Learning to Lead, with Joan Goldsmith, said, “Managers are people who do things right. Leaders are people who do the right thing.”

As you consider the following, think about how you approach your team, individual employees and expected results.

Managers seek stability and continuity and achieve power based on their position of authority. They work toward an outcome of employee compliance. Leaders, on the other hand, seek change and uncertainty. They focus on innovation and base their power on personal influence. Leaders work toward an outcome of employee commitment.

Management skills focus on planning and organizing, and controlling through standard operating procedures. Leadership skills include developing a shared vision, creating strategy and providing motivation. The management approach to performance evaluations comprises rewards and discipline. The leadership approach includes support and development. The management communication style is transactional with an exchange of facts and data. The leadership communication style is persuasive and transformational, focused on committing people to action.

Managers define success as efficiency and maintenance of quality. Leaders define success as effectiveness and mutual trust. Managers strive to avoid anarchy, employee disorientation and surprise. Leaders want to avoid inertia, lack of motivation or boredom.

So are you managing or leading?

“If there is a clear distinction between the processes of managing and the process of leading it is between getting others to do – managing – and getting others to want to do – leading.”    – James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, The Leadership Challenge.

Till next time, keep it real.

Karen

P.S. Check out PeopleThink’s new service offering: Keep it Real Leadership. Be the Leader only YOU can be!

The post Are You Managing or Leading? appeared first on PeopleThink.

I often talk about how important it is for leaders to continue to grow and develop. And…it’s also important to grow your people. Both are essential if you want to prepare your organization to succeed today and into the future.

Employees need to feel valued, connected, challenged and recognized.  Providing them with opportunities to build on their strengths, learn new skills and prepare for the future needs of the company demonstrates in a very real way that they are integral to the organization and its success. And when employees feel that kind of connection they will be more engaged and loyal.

Employee development can happen in many different forms: on-the-job training, personal development, cross-functional projects, coach and/or mentor, special projects, stretch assignments, training courses, reading and personal study, online courses, peer coaching, job shadowing, etc. The important thing is that it is available and encouraged.

Too often development opportunities are limited to “fixing” an employee’s weaknesses rather than leveraging and developing their strengths. Yet, according to Gallup, organizations that focus on employee strengths have higher engagement, less turnover and a better bottom line.

Create development plans that take into consideration organization goals and the skills and behaviors employees will need to contribute to achieving those goals. It’s also essential that individual employee career goals and personal interests be taken into account in development plans. All too often employees have skills and talents that are under-utilized. In fact, 74% of employees feel that they are not reaching their full potential. (The Learning Wave)

Also consider the skills and behaviors employees will need in the future to succeed (yes, even if it’s not in your organization).  According to a report from the World Economic Forum, the top 10 skills in 2020 will be:

-Complex problem solving

-Critical thinking

-Creativity

-People management

-Coordinating with others

-Emotional intelligence

-Judgment and decision making

-Service orientation

-Negotiation

-Cognitive flexibility

Creating, implementing and supporting development plans for your employees will not only help keep them loyal and engaged, it will ensure that your organization is ready for the challenges and opportunities of the future.

“The only thing worse than training your employees and having them leave is not training them and having them stay.” – Henry Ford

Till next time,

Karen

The post The Best Leaders Grow Their People appeared first on PeopleThink.

It amazes me that despite this research, organizations (and individuals) still tend to focus on developing hard skills. In 2010, employers spent $171.5 billion on employee training and only 27.6% of those training dollars went toward soft skills, according to the Association for Talent Development (ATD).

It’s time to put more of our dollars and development efforts where they really count. In our increasingly global, dynamic and service-oriented way of working, organizations need leaders, teams and individual contributors who have the personal behaviors and interpersonal skills that will help them grow and thrive.

So what are those skills?  In my work with organizations to create leadership and employee development initiatives, these are the 10 soft skills/behaviors (in alpha order) that leaders most often tell me they need in their people.

Collaboration – the ability to meld ideas and share credit with others.

Creativity – initiating new approaches to projects, solving problems, etc.

Effective communication – clear and concise speaking and writing paired with active listening.

Emotional intelligence – self-aware and sensitive to others, empathetic.

Flexibility – adaptable to change.

Growth mindset – recognizing they don’t know it all. Being willing to learn.

Leadership – the ability to lead, even without the title.

Reliability – do what you say you’re going to do by when you say you’re going to do it.

Resilience – the ability to continue pursuing the goal despite roadblocks and challenges.

Teamwork – sharing the work and supporting others toward a common goal.

Organizations who want to remain competitive and individuals who want to increase their marketability would do well to put more emphasis on identifying gaps in these skills and then creating a comprehensive development plan to close those gaps.

One of the best ways to identify gaps is through a behavioral assessment. The one I use with leaders, teams and individuals is Lumina Spark.  Lumina Spark is a state-of-the-art psychometric assessment that provides a framework to help people achieve better self-awareness and learn how to improve their working relationships with others.

Check out the Lumina Spark fact sheet and then contact me to learn how PeopleThink can help your organization build its people capability.

Till next time,

Karen

The post Soft Skills Win in the Race for Job Success! appeared first on PeopleThink.

Yet here’s the thing. Only 5% have actually implemented leadership development at all levels. In fact, the biggest chunk of money spent on leadership development goes toward senior leaders and executives, instead of to those who need it most – first time, frontline leaders. All too often these new leaders are put in a “sink or swim” situation, thrown into the deep end of leading a team and left to figure out for themselves how to stay afloat.

This is both unfair to the new leader and detrimental to the organization.

Most people are promoted into their first leadership role as a result of their high performance as an individual contributor and/or because of their technical skills. Yet what helped them succeed as an individual will not necessarily contribute to their success as a people leader – where the challenges and responsibilities require a different set of skills. Without some sort of leadership development early on in their transition from individual performer to leader, new leaders may simply mimic the behaviors of a leader they’ve had in the past, and not necessarily a good one. And those behaviors, once ingrained, are difficult to change.

A survey of HR leaders and practitioners conducted by the Human Capital Institute (HCI) found that “the sink or swim mindset toward new managers is ubiquitous.” In that survey, respondents were asked to rank the must-have skills for frontline managers in order of importance. Technical expertise was ranked 7th, preceded by:

Ethics and integrity

Communicates effectively

Drives for results/motivation to succeed

Flexibility/adaptability

Develops effective teams

Maintains relationships with internal stakeholders

While some of these skills might be inherent in a new leader, being able to apply them effectively while adapting to leading people requires coaching and support.  People leaders need to learn how to identify individual strengths, motivators, skill gaps, personalities and how individuals work together as a team. They need to be accountable not just for their work but for the work of others. And they need support with the challenge that many internally promoted leaders face – transitioning from peer to leader.

New leader training needs to be a key component of every organization’s learning and development plan. And it should not be just a one-day event around policies, performance reviews and disciplinary actions.  It needs to be structured in a way that gives participants time to apply their learning, receive feedback, and get the ongoing support necessary (mentoring, coaching) to grow into the next line of senior leaders and executives.

Managers account for at least 70% of the variance in employee engagement. Gallup estimates that actively disengaged employees cost the U.S. $483 billion to $605 billion each year in lost productivity.

One last startling factoid for you from that Brandon Hall Report:  More money is spent on leadership development than any other area of corporate training, yet 71% of organizations do not feel their leaders are able to lead their organization into the future.

Doesn’t it make sense to take the time to effectively develop leaders from the very beginning?

Till next time,

Karen

The post Sink or Swim is NOT Leadership Development! appeared first on PeopleThink.