The Inside Coach Blog

Onboarding Tips and Best Practice Techniques

The Inside Coach — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 19:50:32 +0000

Did you know that within the first 6 months 89% ofall new hires will decide whether or not they plan to stay with the company? This makes the first 90 days on the job vital to the employee’s productivity and retention. To set both parties up for success, considerthe following when onboarding a new employee:

1) Begin establishing a strong relationship with thehiring manager from the day of employee acceptance.

2) Review a clear 30/60/90-day plan with the new hire.

3) Create and execute a socialization plan to connectthe new hire to co-workers.

A good on-boarding plan will not only enhance the experience of the new hire, it will shorten the time to full productivity

2012 Goal Setting

The Inside Coach — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 18:34:01 +0000

It’s the beginning of a new year and with it comes the need for new direction and new clarity. If you didn’t have time last month, this is the week to talk to your team about the goals for this year. For an even deeper commitment and higher engagement, make sure that each of your direct reports have their own individual goals that align with department goals. Remember, surveys show that team performance dramatically increases when team members have clear, realistic and time-specific goals to achieve.

Wish you all the best in 2012.

Holiday Communication Tips

The Inside Coach — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 01:13:19 +0000

For many of us the holidays can be a stressful time. The added pressure of our busy schedules can often challenge us to maintain our professional presence and to stay at our best when communicating with others.

To manage our communications and to avoid being triggered by the anxious behaviors of managers and co-workers, consider the following to keep your cool and perhaps help them resume theirs:

Stay aware of how you are communicating.
Listen for content instead of delivery. We never really know the pressures people are facing in their lives that could be underlying their tone or delivery.
Don’t react to their reactions. Take a moment to truly assess the situation to find out what would be an appropriate response.
Keep your cool. Speaking in a clear and calm voice that mirrors back the person’s sense of urgency can often bring a calming influence to an over-reaction.

For more information and tools to help you develop your management skills, check out our website at The Inside Coach.

Have a good weekend!

Developing Direct Reports

The Inside Coach — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 17:43:10 +0000

Developing direct reports is a key component to a manager’s success. Yet so often we don’t take the time to focus our human resources and develop team capacity. As the New Year approaches, consider establishing the following with your direct reports:

Mutually agreed upon performance expectations

A development plan for 2012

Actionable Q1 goals

Before you begin the process, make sure to review what tasks and responsibilities you can delegate. Your employees will greatly appreciate the clarity, and you will quickly benefit from their focus and development.

For more information and tools to help you develop your direct reports, check out our January 18th workshop, Manager as Coach.

Tip of the Week: Managing the Holidays

The Inside Coach — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 04:24:33 +0000

The holiday season is here and with it comes more demands on our time and energy. Our schedules are now booking up with year-end projects, parties and gift-buying, and it doesn’t take long until we realize that our reserves are running out. How can we best manage this time of year? By adopting a few simple practices:

Plan what truly needs to get done and what can be pushed to the first of the year.
Do the most important things first and the less important things during your low energy hours.
Don’t over commit to projects, to parties, or to please others. They will be okay, even if you have to say no.

For more information, go to The Inside Coach and learn about our performance-enhancing solutions.

Performance Appraisals

The Inside Coach — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 01:50:29 +0000

It’s that time of year again, and for many of you, performance reviews are just around the corner. Although many of us dread preparing for these meetings, the time and energy is well worth the investment. When performance reviews are timely, fair, and focused on development, employees report higher levels of:

morale and satisfaction

direction and focus

commitment and engagement

Show your employees you care about their performance and schedule your reviews as soon as it’s appropriate. Then make sure to keep the appointment to emphasize that the review is important to you.

For more information, join this week’s FREE webinar on Thursday Nov. 17th: Performance Appraisals: How to hold an effective review

In this webinar you will learn how to:

• Plan for an effective review
• Offer balanced and constructive feedback
• Avoid review pitfalls
• Manage employee emotions and reactions
• Create results oriented development plan

Register today if you are a manager, supervisor, team leader, HR manager, or if you simply want to conduct an effective performance review to motivate and empower others.

Networking

The Inside Coach — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 22:40:08 +0000

Networking is about developing relationships over time.

Have you ever been told you need to network more? Did the entire idea make you break out in a sweat?

Like many people, you may think business networking is about meeting and greeting, selling yourself, working a room, and passing out business cards while engaging in small talk. But networking isn’t about that at all. It’s about developing your relationships and professional presence over time. It’s about quality relationships, not quantity, and that type of networking takes a plan and a little bit of discipline.

Pick a few key events or association meetings to attend and each month meet two new people who have the potential of being a quality business contact. In a short time, you will quickly build a network of friends and colleagues that will benefit you and your company in ways you may never have imaged.

For more information on how to build a successful network, go to The Inside Coach, take our online course and begin planning your networking strategy today.

3 Questions Employees Want to be Asked

The Inside Coach — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 23:44:23 +0000

Employees report higher levels of motivation and satisfaction when they feel their managers truly care about their growth and development. To help communicate this level of interest, which gains higher levels of engagement in return, try asking your employees these 3 key questions:

1. What are your career goals and long term aspirations?

2. In what areas would you like to be trained or developed?

3. What is the best way to manage you to help you do your best work?

Keep in mind that your employees, not you, are in charge of their own careers. Yet the fact that you ask, and are willing to help if you can, sends a valuable message that you are interested in their growth and care about them as people.

For more information, go to The Inside Coach and learn about our performance-enhancing solutions.

Expect the Unexpected

The Inside Coach — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 16:49:19 +0000

Have you made time for the unexpected? Chances are something is going to come up this week that you didn’t anticipate. While this is a common occurrence, it doesn’t have to wreak havoc on your schedule. Research shows that highly effective people have learned how to expect the unexpected, and make it a habit to…

Leave open time each day on the calendar to handle unforeseen matters
Do the most important things first before something else comes up.
Re-prioritize twice a day to adjust for changing demands

Planning for the unexpected is a great way to stay on schedule and reduce everyday stress.

For more information, go to The Inside Coach and learn about our performance-enhancing solutions.

Enjoy your weekend!

Effective Delegation

The Inside Coach — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 17:05:25 +0000

If you are doing something somebody else can do, it is keeping you from doing the things only you can do.

Delegation helps develop employees, build team capacity, and free managers to work on key corporate initiatives. Yet many of us still choose to hold on to work that others can do. This week, take a look at your calendar, your to-do list, and your project plans. See if there are items you can delegate to others with:

a clear objective
a deadline for the completion of the delegation
training to do the task or project (if necessary)

As you review your list for work you can delegate, keep this in mind: If you are doing something somebody else can do, it is keeping you from doing the things only you can do.

For more information, go to The Inside Coach and review our online courses, training programs, Build-a-Plan on demand, or visit our bookstore of leading-edge authors.