Claudia's two cents

Leading a team that you may not have picked yourself can be tough.

This weeks questions:

How do I best start leading a team where I have not been involved in choosing the team members?

Summary on some of the ideas covered in the podcast:

• Have a kick off where you cover the usual stuff like the what, why and when as well as the ways of working but then 
• Add some storytelling - to allow the team to share their views and  
• Make it personal - to help people feel safe and connected
• Make time - to build trusting relationships

My boss is very controlling and does not really trust the team, he manages with a do as I say or you know where the door is style -in short he behaves like a major d..k!

How do I influence things?

Summary:

• Get the full story - as in all the facts not just a part truth and your own assumptions 
• Understand the boss and find out what the drivers are 
• Examine my own drivers, try to improve the relationship
• Generate other possibilities or options in writing 
• Speak to the boss - be empathetic and control the emotions
• No matter what the decision thank the boss and ask for feedback 

As always I look forward to your comments and if you have a question please email it to claudia@makeworkmeaningful.co.uk

www.makeworkmeaningful.co.uk

One of the comments on my last podcasts was
"You're well known for always showing sincere gratitude.
How do you spot the things to say thank you for?" So that's the question I am answering this week.

In summary

• There is no framework or tick list
• Work on how a good set up so that you are in  a positive frame of mind
• Don’t be afraid to be emotional 
• Watch out for the little things (if you need help at first ask others to point out occasions that call for a thank you)
• If in doubt - Just do it - say "Thank you" and make it a habit.
• And remember please please please be genuine, put it into context and make it personal.

I hope it's useful!
As usual please ping me any comments or other new questions to claudia@makeworkmeaningful.co.uk

This weeks questions is
How do we continue to connect our people to maximise their feeling of belonging to the team?

Just as with onboarding and learning on the job in the hybrid work model this seems to come up in most of my recent conversations with any kind of leader so I feel that it deserves a spot on my 2 cents …

I share how I would get my team to figure out what is right for us

And talk about some ideas that we use already in a bit more detail.

• Showing gratitude
• Non-work related team chats
• Non - work related team activities or events
• And finally get-togethers in person in the same space - these might be work related

How do you make sure on the job learning is just as effective in a hybrid work model? 

In  a lot of recent discussions everyone seemed to agree that learning on the job or shadowing people deserves to be on the top of the list  when it comes to designing a deliberate experience in the hybrid work model.

Sharing my 2 cents around three ideas to cover learning moments / learning on the job in the hybrid world.

1. Co locate people to collaborate and work together in person for specific sessions
2. “Learning on the job time”
3. "Scenario based" on the job learning 

This weeks question is

How do I make sure I still create a sense of belonging for new joiners when they go through a hybrid induction.

For me there are a few key moments where meeting in person helps the new starter to feel part of the team and wanted and in short they are:

1. Meeting a business leader to understand the story and values of the company 
2. Meeting their coach or manager in one or multiple smaller sessions which focus on the new joiner and and their career aspirations 
3. Meeting a buddy - as a person that they are be able to trust to ask the stupid questions 
4. And finally building enough of a starter network with people they will be working or interacting with

How can we prepare for a hybrid work model?

Working out with your team on how they want to handle the hybrid work model is one thing - in this episode I am tackling what I would not compromise on when it comes to working together in a hybrid work model.

Find out my point of view on  

• Onboarding 
• Team Bonding activities
• Learning on the job (shadowing /observing)

when it comes to hybrid work model.

This episodes questions is 

How do you get people to feel excited to take on more responsibility?

And it comes from Marc Wallentin https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcwallentin/

Here is the quick summary:

Think about their motivation, which is helped by autonomy, mastery and purpose 

• Make time to talk it though
• Explain the bigger picture and why that work is important
• Set expectations and agree the outcomes 
• Give them accountability to work on their own and don’t interfere
• Make it easy to learn new stuff - offer coaching, mentoring or training 
• Make it safe to fail 
• Celebrate success and make sure they get recognition 
• Stick to your part of the bargain
• Be human, listen and be empathetic

This weeks question comes from John Fitzpatrick linkedin.com/in/johnfitzp

How do you deal with succession planning as a company is expanding from a start-up through the next Phase?

The takeaways for me would be:

• Don’t underestimate the difference between stepping away to exit properly and being succeeded in parts of your initial roles. This could be due to different factors size, time or skills, where someone is brought in to lead that part of the business instead of you - but where you are still around.
• The latter is harder for the founder but also for the successor and my advice would be to have as many dialogues as possible with all the people involved.
• When you finally step away as a founder apart from handing over an actual role you will leave a hole that can not be covered by a job spec or accountability list.
  Find the dialogue with your people and explain why you do what you do and challenge them to step up.
• You can not change someone’s personality or values but it might open their eyes to how they could contribute in their own way.

Explaining how we did it at Clarasys made this weeks episode slightly longer but I feel quite practical to replicate in your own firm.

This weeks question comes from Agnes Kuffel 

linkedin.com/in/agnes-kuffel-6259b814

In summary:

• Most importantly involve the people that are affected day to day to make it real - don’t come up with it just on your own.
• Use the outside in approach to consider a wide range of views and get people’s imagination flowing
• Create the roadmap of your people journey and then use your outside in ideas to tell the people story 
• Articulate the draft vision and ask for input from others to ensure it resonates - make changes if necessary
• Use your people story and your people vision to guide you on everything PEOPLE

Summary of the session

• Figure out your style when asking for help - what brings out the best results for you. 
• Share your preferences between the people you work with.
• Agree on the best way forward so that you can achieve the best outcomes. 
• Look out for people that actually feel afraid to ask for help - and ask them for help to help others make them feel safe.

Todays questions comes from Chris Hamilton and it is:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/hamiltoncw/

As (team) lead, how do I drive innovation? 

In summary:

• Let people know that it is safe to ‘give it a go’ and try something new or different
• Create spaces where people feel safe to be innovative and curious
• Lead by example and be part of it all
• Reward the attempt rather than just a successful outcome.
• Most of all make sure you and your team have fun!

Todays question comes from a discussion between Tim and I as we realised that our teams avoid healthy conflict? Actually also that I sometimes avoid healthy conflict too..

Quick summary:
If I have a good relationship with the other person and I feel safe I have no problem to indulge in healthy conflict as I know that me and the other person will be ok afterwards. If I am unsure or feel unsafe its much harder. 

Some things I try do to get better in every situation ...

• Agree how to disagree with those I find it difficult to have conflict with - it's ok to not have everyone's consensus
• I stop trying to present a united front if we made a decision where not everyone was in agreement. I share the disagreement and the reason why we arrived at the actual outcome.
• I am prepared to disagree in front of others but I make I keep it to a civil debate and approach it respectfully.
• Using different channels to be part of the discussion - some channels work better for me (or others) than others.
• Allow everyone to prepare properly - To avoid the nerves it might be better to write stuff down before hand. It also allows me (others) to be more specific.
• I practice debates about things that aren’t directly work related to get me and other people used to conflict
• I need to learn to let it go after and if it happened to others help them to make peace

Miriam Malik Cheung's question is: 
As a leader, how do I know if my team trusts me, or if they're scared of the power I have.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/miriammalik/

Quick summary:

Not hearing what people think is not a sign that they agree …

What I do before during and after meetings to help make the power I have doesn't prevent people speaking up

• Try to give people more time to comment on stuff in their own time (use either use padlet or miro or silent meeting)
• Allow people time to formulate their response in advance. maybe even plant controversial views in the document or agenda
• Pay extra attention to who has not said anything
• State your assumptions rather than have an opinion
• If appropriate leave the room for a bit
• Try the hat or role method that encourages people to speak up. People can speak more boldly because of a hat they are wearing or role they playing - e.g. a devil's advocate.
• Encourage people to talk off-line in an informal setting where they feel more relaxed

How I present myself as a leader to let people know how to read me

• Work on your behaviours that enable transparent, open and honest way so that people feel safe and able to trust you
• Share a About me with everyone in the team and business. (share the good but also negative habits, behaviours and tendencies  and how to get the best out of you)
• Pay even more attention to the people in your team -especially the ones that don’t naturally open up - so you can gauge if something is off or if they are not their usual self. 
• Actively listen and try to see and feel what is not actually said. 

What else do I do when the above does not work?

• Involve a 3rd party  - someone that the team member actually trusts to 
• 1st. Get feedback through the 3rd person to potentially find out if there is anything you can do differently to help the other person to feel more relaxed.
• 2nd. Set up a meeting for the 3 of you to talk together - to allow the 3rd party to help overcome the situation.
• Get coaching on that particular situation to open up your thinking and find a way that helps you both feel comfortable to speak up honestly.

Todays question comes from Bernd Susen
https://www.hotel-rheinischer-hof.de/

Bernd’s question is:
What can I do to get my people to deliver the same consistent customer experience even when I am not physically there.

Quick summary:

Work together as one team 

Agree as a team what makes a great customer experience
Give everyone the necessary information to understand the business - as well as any tools, training & capabilities needed
Then
Trust your team to decide how to deal with each customer experience situation 
Finally have regular review meetings so that together you can improve and provide an even better experience.

Today’s question comes from Michelle Tackie-Obende 

How can I make my team feel comfortable to make more decisions themselves?
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mtackie/

Short version:
If you are serious about distributing decisions to your team then agree together:
What decisions need to be made
and which one’s can be delegated initially to allow people to test the water or built their confidence.
If you delegate a decision try not to interfere unless you are asked for help - but do let your team there you are there to help if needed. 
Enable an ongoing dialogue with your people around what they are happy with or what works for them 
and encourage them to ask questions around why and how you make your decisions.
Share your lesson learnt and failures with the team - be as open and honest and as transparent as you can be. 

Question from Luke Mitchell

What can we do to ensure that people remain connected and motivated while working from their own house/virtually

https://www.linkedin.com/in/luke-mitchell-3a94252/

My two cents worth:

Everyone is different and therefore has different needs - find out what works for your people by regularly talking to them and actively listening to what they have to say.

I don't thing that the same interactions will work as if you are all in the office together - ask your team and try out their ideas.

https://www.makeworkmeaningful.co.uk/

Question from Martin Beuse

While working remotely - how can leaders develop and nurture their firm’s culture and ensure an employees’ wellbeing and continued motivation.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/martin-b-06825247/

My two cents worth:

It's all about beliefs and values because they drive our behaviours. And our behaviours drive work culture and climate and a good climate fosters healthy and motivated people.

https://www.makeworkmeaningful.co.uk/

Question by Luke Mitchell

In a virtual world, how do you make the accidental encounters over coffee or at the water cooler happen? 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/luke-mitchell-3a94252/

My two cents worth, make a  special effort to re-create these  accidental encounters into something deliberate.

https://www.makeworkmeaningful.co.uk/

Question by Al Lakhani

How to communicate during adversity?

https://www.linkedin.com/in/getidee/

In summary ...my two cents on communicating during adversity

Treat your people like adults.
Share your plan and what needs to happen - be as transparent and honest as possible, then trust your people to do what it takes and come up with the how to bits..
Remind them that it's ok to try something new, have their back or be there if they need help or support.
Deliver the plan together and keep up the constant dialogue.

It definitely worked for us and we came out of that Clarasys recession wiser and stronger and always trust our people to do the right thing. 

https://www.makeworkmeaningful.co.uk/