Build your teams thoughtfully. As opportunities open up to add new staff, carefully consider both your team’s and organizational needs then staff accordingly. Don’t simply replace “like for like”, but rather focus on both current needs as well as your future strategic direction you are planning to take. Each member of your team has a role to play and is …
Change is inevitable, embrace it
Change is generally a beautiful thing when it means progress, advancement, improvement and growth. If we look at our history of advancements, education and improvements (and focus on the positive aspects) each passing generation has produced value to those yet to come. With this in mind, please continuously seek improvements by dedicating time and attention to improving everything you and …
Customer service 101: Listen and engage your clients on social media
In today’s world, customer service is of great importance in everything we do, and as such, it should be approached and handled carefully. Client support and services in person and online matter and should be tailored to the needs of your clients. When starting the initial engagement we may use templates, but they should not be our guide in every …
People want to be heard and appreciated
People have an innate desire to be respected, heard, understood and appreciated. Once they reach out to those of us in customer service (READ: we are all in customer service) they want to feel that their concerns and problems are important to us, that we will take them seriously and be of assistance to them. Even when we are not …
Excuses don’t matter, your work does
Excuses are frequently irrelevant, cheap and everyone has at least a few. While it is important to learn from previous decisions and actions, it is equally as important not to spend too much time stuck in the past. Learn from the past, assess your current state, communicate present outcomes, but spend all of your time, effort and energy on moving …
No bad apples allowed
One bad apple can spoil the rest so please remove them from the basket. As a leader you must establish, promote and support an inviting, comfortable and respectful working environment and as such you can’t allow any single individual to jeopardize your workplace. No matter how good and valuable they may be from a functional perspective if they can’t cooperate …
Don’t chase perfection, chase progress
Perfection is elusive and frequently unattainable. This is why it is important to focus on making daily incremental advancements towards the ultimate goal. Rome wasn’t built over night and neither will most of your projects or strategic and operational services. Collaborate, communicate and work together with your colleagues to advance your current state into what you all believe it can …
Support people’s dreams
Leaders support and empower others, they don’t bring them down. This also applies when people are leaving your team and moving onto new opportunities and at times even completely different careers. Good people and good employees should always be supported, even when their immediate departure will impose certain limitations and challenges to your operations. Help them during the transition phase …
Why avoiding conflict can hurt you and others
Avoiding conflicts is generally a solid advice to follow. However, at times, disagreements (perhaps a better term) are unavoidable. By this I refer to those moments when someone needs to speak up in support of others and with collaboration and progress in mind. However, even during these disagreements one needs to remain professional, respectful and polite, but the points of …
Focusing on success and managing project expectations
Project management is an acquired skill, one that doesn’t come over night and is certainly not for everyone. As you are joining new project teams it is essential to do so with an open mind without any prejudices or preconceived notions. Listen to all ideas, think about them and consider them seriously. Learn from past collective experience, but leave any …