Dismantling Dysfunction

Today, leaders complain about employees not being accountable for getting things done. But is it really the employee or is it the issue that leaders don't hold themselves accountable for managing the performance of their direct reports? Our experience is that many leaders don't define tasks in a clear manner, leaving employees lost and confused about their expectations. And they fail to follow up...

Increasingly, leaders today are complaining about employee entitlement and dysfunctional entitled behavior. They fail to realize how their leadership might contribute to this entitlement. Instead, they judge the behavior of their direct reports and make excuses for them instead of dealing with the actual issue.   A few generations of employees have been brought up to believe they'll be rewarded fo...

Ever worked for an organization that had no cross-departmental communication or information sharing between departments? The notion that power struggles simply cannot exist between functional areas of an organization is absurd. The unfortunate truth is, it's human nature for leaders to behave this way, and the longer this counterproductive structure exists in an organization, the harder it is to b...

Leaders today act as though it isn't their job to keep their complex organizations moving in alignment. All too often, leaders let employees do things 'their way' in hopes that this will motivate them or somehow enable them to work more efficiently. The result? Silent chaos in the workplace.   Clearly, there is a lack of understanding of the chaos that this type of leadership thinking creates. Sin...

Do performance management discussions get in the way of the "real work"? (Sorry, it's a trick question.) Leaders who agree with this idea are missing the point. They're holding on to a mindset that keeps them from fully embracing the true responsibility of their roles: to lead people. Leadership demands the use of foreign and uncomfortable relational competencies. And focusing on the "real work" k...

Have you ever worked for a boss who reminded you of your mother or another overly nurturing family member? You know, the boss who always wants you to share what's going on with you personally… The boss who gives unsolicited advice or tells you how to do something that you already know how to do… Leaders like this foster dependence on themselves by using feelings and empathy to lead - instead of ex...

Whether it's because they're simply "too busy" or just nowhere to be found, some leaders never seem to be around when you need them. And on the rare occasion that they can be pinned down, they'll dip, duck, dodge, and dive all your questions, leaving you without an answer to your burning issue. It seems like they're not only avoiding you, but avoiding their responsibility to make decisions as well...

"The last time I gave my direct report a little corrective feedback it didn't go so well… The next thing I knew, they were storming out the door in tears. I'm just going to stick to saying nothing at all and let employees figure things out on their own." So many leaders today are adopting the Permissive Leadership Persona because they don't know how to set their employees up to receive corrective...

Being bossy comes naturally to many people. Consequently, these people are promoted to senior leadership roles because they make things happen using the strength of their personalities. These "bossy" bosses can be very effective at using force and directive language to get things done. They climb the organizational ladder because they excel at delivering results despite their undeveloped people le...

"My boss is a jerk! She expects me to do all the work and takes all the credit for herself." "Yeah? Well, my boss laughed at an idea I brought up in a team meeting. You can be sure that I won't make the mistake of sharing my thoughts in front of everyone ever again." These all-too-common situations are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to dealing with a boss who operates from the Narcissis...

It goes without saying that being a leader demands a lot of responsibility. It's a leader's job to make decisions on vision, strategy, and how to achieve results. Leaders must also ensure resourcing, manage performance, and develop talent. Add to that, the authority that comes with a leadership role for leading people to achieve organizational results, holding people accountable to expectations, b...

Change for the sake of continuous improvement and development should be something that everyone jumps on board with, right…? Especially when it's in everyone's best interest - people are going to love it! That might be true in theory, but in practice it's a totally different story. Just ask anyone who has ever led a change process in an organization, and you'll be met with a resounding "No way. Th...

Most business leaders would agree that all aspects of their organization would benefit from strong leadership at all levels. So, why is there a trend of middle managers being selected based on their functional competence rather than on their ability to engage, nurture, and empower employees and teams? Senior leaders deceive themselves into believing that because they didn't need development to be...

Leaders today spend a lot of time trying to figure out why they can't get the level of engagement and performance from their employees that they require despite their best efforts. Their energy and time also go into trying to "fix" their employees, compensate for unsatisfactory performance, and "rescue" them when they are in emotional distress. So many organizations spend their money and other res...

Let's face it, employee entitlement is on the rise. And while this attitude is most noted in people between the ages of 18 – 35, everyone can operate from their own sense of entitlement. The last couple of generations were indeed raised to believe that they should always win, be rewarded, and recognized without really having to do much for it. As a result, many members of these generational cohort...

There is a type of organizational narcissism that exists because leaders in departments or functional areas are allowed to focus solely on themselves and their own agendas. They create silos as though they have a domain to rule over where employees work in the service of their leader and not the organization. Rather than having shared accountability, leaders and employees alike shout the battle cr...

Cooperative, collaborative, and supportive leaders are the kind of bosses or managers that most employees say they wish for. These idealized leaders seem to know how to provide employees with the type of nurturing environment needed for them to grow and reach their potential. They spend time listening, empathizing, offering advice, and helping direct reports however they can. Don't they sound wond...

Why do leaders believe that giving employees the freedom to do things their own way is so important to employee retention and engagement? Curious, isn't it? And we wonder why employee entitlement is on the rise… So, if it's not helping anyone, why is this destructive belief so appealing to so many leaders? While it may be influenced by the trend in leadership to leave employees alone to figure thi...

Have you noticed the trend in business to let employees off the hook when they fail to meet their commitments on time; refuse to do aspects of their jobs; or insist they do something "their way" despite your directions? As leaders, many of us are trying so hard to be what we believe employees expect us to be, that we allow all kinds of bad behavior and fail to notice when we are being taken advant...

Autocratic Leaders used to be the pinnacle of power in an organization. Now the trend is for leaders to aspire to be submissive, not powerful. In some companies, authority has become a dirty word and leaders who are directive are told to "be nice." Suddenly, leaders have become afraid to hurt employees' feelings. Yikes! What's an autocrat to do? Well, despite the whiplash to permissive leadership...

Narcissistic leaders and how to deal with them is a popular theme these days. There's a tendency to slap a narcissist label on any leader who drives their own agenda, demonstrates confidence in their abilities, or is insistent on things being done in a certain way. However, mistaking a confident, inspiring leader for someone with narcissistic defenses or a personality disorder does a disservice to...

There has never been a time when emotionally intelligent leaders were more important and relevant than right now. The ability to create a sense of belonging, empathize with the employee experience and engage not only the minds, but the hearts and passion of employees is critical – but it's still overlooked in most leadership training. Emotionally intelligent leadership has been proven to correlate...

We are noticing a disturbing trend in organizations where leaders think they are supportive of their employees but in fact, they are actually neglecting their needs and issues. We don't often talk about neglect in the context of organizational life and leadership behavior - but it is so common, with costly results. When leaders don't see themselves as having needs, or neglect themselves, they exte...

There is a disturbing trend in organizations with leaders letting employees off the hook when they fail to meet their commitments on time, refuse to do aspects of their jobs, or when they simply don't show up for meetings as requested. The cold hard truth is that many leaders have abdicated their responsibility for holding employees accountable. And instead, these leaders' efforts are directed tow...

You've probably heard about the Peter Principle, you know, the tendency in most organizational hierarchies for every employee to rise in that hierarchy until they reach a level of respective incompetence. This includes leaders who often ride the wave of the success of their business without doing any real development until they reach a place where they can't take the business any further without a...