Kathleen | Friesen Group

Mar 14

Building a better boss

The New York Times reported on Google’s efforts to improve the way their managers lead. Quantitative research by Google identified the top eight good behaviors of a good boss:

• Be a good communicator and listen to your team
• Be a good coach
• Empower your team and don’t micromanage
• Express interest in team members’ success and personal well-being
• Be productive and results-oriented
• Help your employees with team development
• Have a clear vision and strategy for the team
• Have key technical skills to help advise the team

None of these are a surprise. But, of interest from the Organization Development perspective, Google has demonstrated that effective, executive coaching can improve individual manager’s abilities in each of the eight areas. Read the entire article here.

Mar 1

3 Comments

Avoiding questions

Do you avoid asking questions? People avoid questions for many reasons. We don’t want to make other uncomfortable. We might disrupt the meeting agenda. We worry that it’s a stupid question. Or ask ourself, “What if no one knows the answer?”

One strategy for handling these question stoppers is to begin the question with a phrase that lets everyone know that you’re aware of the situation, but are still going to ask.

Some examples of introductory phrases:

• I might not be wording this well, but …
• This may need a separate conversation, but …
• I know we may not have all the answers yet, but …
• I’m wondering about …
• I’m not clear about …

Whether you’re in a meeting or answering an email, if you find yourself hesitating to ask a question, don’t wait for the perfect moment or the perfect question, consider adding an introductory phrase and ask the question.

Needed: More data or the right question
Creating a space for critical thinking

Feb 24

2 Comments

Like: Glass-half-empty

“Kathleen, what happened to liking the glass-half-full?! Aren’t you and your team focused on using Appreciative Inquiry and other positive organization development approaches?”

Yes. We are. But – I’m going to challenge you to consider the power of the glass-half-empty. Often when we consider emptiness we often think of empty nest, empty wallet, loneliness, and even despair. The glass-half-empty has become the symbol of the pessimist, of “if only….”

So, where is the power of the glass-half-empty? An empty screen box awaits a new blog post or Facebook entry. An empty schedule presents the opportunity for doing whatever we choose. An empty office offers opportunities for a new business or organization to create itself in that space. The power of a glass-half-emtpy is its emptiness. That emptiness can represent the power of possibilities, imagining what might be.

What are the possibilities you or your organization have overlooked by focusing only on the half of the glass that’s full?

Idea for reflection – 21

Feb 22

Lead the way

The writers over at the Southwest Airlines magazine delivered a great, one-page summary of Bob Sutton’s newest book, Good Boss, Bad Boss. Read their summary here: Lead the Way

Quick points for Good Boss behavior:
• Protect your people
• Throw out the bad apples
• Mind the spotlight
• Get out of the way
• Fight fair

Feb 16

1 Comment

Do what I say – not what I do

If you’re not modeling what you’re teaching,
then you’re teaching something else.
– Roger Schwarz, The Skilled Facilitator

Idea for reflection – 29

Feb 15

Resource: Design Thinking Process

The Stanford d.school updated the Bootcamp Bootleg, a working document that outlines some of the methods from their “Design Thinking Bootcamp” course. “The guide outlines each mode of a human-centered design process and describes a number of methods which may support your design thinking throughout the process.”

d.school Bootcamp Bootleg

Feb 15

Communication that clicks

People sit next to each other in a room. If someone says the word “cat”, everyone’s brain circuits dedicated to the knowledge of cats activate – even though there is no cat in the room.

We know that speaking and listening is a mutual activity. Research in Interpersonal Neurobiology has been demonstrating these connections for a decade. But what do we know about more everyday conversations, ones that we might have in a meeting, the break room, or at the dinner table?

We know when we are “clicking” with a person or an audience. And we know when things are falling flat. How can we increase the chances of connecting effectively?

You are invited to read our new short article: “Communication that Clicks“

Feb 14

3 Comments

Finding a way forward

During military maneuvers in Switzerland, the young lieutenant of a small Hungarian detachment in the Alps sent a reconnaissance unit into the icy wilderness. It began to snow immediately, snowed for two days, and the unit did not return. The lieutenant suffered, fearing that he had dispatched his own people to death.

But the third day the unit came back. Where had they been? How have they made their way? Yes, they said, we considered ourselves lost and waited for the end. And then one of us found a map in his pocket. That calmed us down. We pitched camp, lasted out the snowstorm, and then with the map we discovered our bearings. And here we are. The lieutenant borrowed this remarkable map and had a good look at it. He discovered to his astonishment that it was not a map of the Alps, but a map of the Pyrenees.

Karl Weick tells this story in Making Sense of the Organization (p.345-346). His conclusion is that organizations find their way not because they have the perfect strategy or an accurate map, but because they “begin to act, they generate tangible outcomes in some context, and this helps them discover what is occurring, what needs to be explained, and what should be done next.”

How is your organization chosing to act now – even in the midst of uncertainty? Who is finding and offering a temporary map to begin the journey forward?

Sustaining change