Despite extensive attempts to redesign performance systems to ensure they are ongoing, are driven by the employees, foster conversations between managers and employees, too many have become a cover-up for poor leadership.
Author Archives: Devonbrn
Building OKR Compatible Performance Management Systems
OKRs are a powerful goal-setting and leadership tool for communicating strategic priorities and the milestones you’ll need accomplish. When smartly paired with performance management systems, this can be a powerful alignment tool. Yet there are some critical mistakes that are too often ignored.
3 Essential Questions for Leaders in New Roles
How often have you struggled or watched someone struggle while transitioning into a new leadership role? Top performance in one role does not inherently mean excellent performance in a future role with greater responsibility and scope. Success as an individual contributor, manager, functional leader or executive, does not imply success at leading individuals in thoseContinue reading “3 Essential Questions for Leaders in New Roles”
5 Ways To Change Behavior Through High Impact Learning
Learning and development is a booming industry with $83 billion spent annually in the US and nearly $360 billion globally. Yet these efforts are not consistent with performance. A recent study shows both the need for learning and development as well as the failure of current efforts: 70% of employees claim they don’t have masteryContinue reading “5 Ways To Change Behavior Through High Impact Learning”
This, Not That: Team Effectiveness and the Myth of Accountability
Not long ago, I was working with the leader of a team at a mid-size company, coaching him and his two direct reports. They were plagued by performance issues like missed deadlines, inaccurate reporting, and complex interpersonal challenges. They desperately needed to establish some common building blocks for success—quickly. As I interviewed the team—which includedContinue reading “This, Not That: Team Effectiveness and the Myth of Accountability”
Do you want to spend your time doing $10,000 an hour thinking or $10 an hour tasks?
Last week my teenage son was at a ski competition at Taos Ski Valley and he brought home a ski hat with “Janitor” across the front. While the hat was nice, I was really curious about why it said “Janitor.” My son shared that the founder of Taos Ski Valley, Ernie Blake, used to wearContinue reading “Do you want to spend your time doing $10,000 an hour thinking or $10 an hour tasks?”
End of Year Questions and Intentions
3 Critical Leadership Questions… and some other reflections As the new year comes along, most of our budgets for the next year have been finalized and approved, and we begin (if we haven’t started already) to plan out how we will achieve these goals. For most, this focus is on tangible milestones—projects, tasks and initiativesContinue reading “End of Year Questions and Intentions”
Crafting Your Leadership Story: A How-to Guide
This is an interesting article developed by some of my colleagues at Linkage: Crafting Your Leadership Story: A How-to Guide This is some really excellent work around developing and crafting your leadership story. The link to a PDF features a 3-part exercise that encourages self-reflection and storytelling to create a compelling leadership vision. Let meContinue reading “Crafting Your Leadership Story: A How-to Guide”
Your Leadership Role as a Coach
I’m a big fan of the leadership definition: “While the job of a manager is to get work done through people, the job of a leader is to develop people through work.” What this means is that as a leader, one of the most critical roles you have is to coach and develop your talent.Continue reading “Your Leadership Role as a Coach”
If you come to me with a problem, make sure you’ve thought of a solution!
Leaders often struggle with feeling of being overwhelmed by day-to-day issues and “getting stuck in the weeds.” In particular, front-line supervisors or managers often find themselves spending more time than they’d like solving problems that they believe others should be able to solve. The problem is that this dynamic takes time away from planning, beingContinue reading “If you come to me with a problem, make sure you’ve thought of a solution!”
Inciting Leaders 