Matt Cartwright, consulting, coaching, facilitation - Professional Facilitator - Matt Cartwright

SHIFT HAPPENS...JOB CUTS and More...

29/8/2012

SHIFT HAPPENS

“If we don’t shift our intention, direction and action we will end up where we are headed”

SHIFT HAPPENS. So… start accepting it. Let go of trying to stop the change or slow it down. There are likely to be 7 billion other similar stories just like yours, they just have different characters and plots but the same underlying message. Everyone you talk to is sick of change. One approach is to be more effective rather than be affected by it.

Are you working in a stuck or non-stuck environment? If not….get yourself into a Teflon Team. Stop sticking to old habits, old processes, old teams, old whining and shift. There is a lot of bad press around the economy, job cuts, poverty, famine and war. It is serious, so get serious and SHIFT into gear.

Use all the gears to leverage your mindset and workplace to where it needs to shift.

In many facilitation exercises we talk about the current and future state, the important bits are in the middle…”the action state”…or the “shifting state.” The shifting state delivers targeted action, lots of it and regularly. Guess what? SHIFT happens. Most if it starts within the mind then shifts into behaviour.

“SHIFTING” is what I coined some time ago. It’s a deliberate process of shifting thoughts, behaviours, attitudes to develop a more adaptable, resilient and optimistic view in a shifting world. It’s a holistic process that deals with complex systems and aims to understand and respond to them with more agility and sustainability.

STRAINING…..Have you noticed how workplaces over-process, over-engineer, over-produce, over-change and over strain? It’s time to get over it…don’t you think?

UNDERSTANDING YOUR SHIFT

Whenever we change one type of behaviour or situation, we are losing as well as gaining something. In order to sustain real and lasting change in the workplace we need to change ourselves first. Everyone can shift. Shifting is challenging and requires effort but not straining. The juggling act is “knowing,” that is, knowing not to get caught up in everyone’s emergency, urgency or dramas. Of course we must balance what’s important and necessary. How you view or feel about a situation is always your choice.

So…SHIFT YOURSELF to think and do what matters most. Be more effective, be lateral, be creative, be a SHIFTER. Don’t get caught up in the change, we have limited influence and control over what people decide to change in the workplace but we can shift our focus.

Journey well,
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

Partnerships, Get Less Pain and More Pleasure

29/2/2012

Partnerships, Get Less Pain and More Pleasure

As you probably already know, the wrong partnership whether it is professional or personal can be far worse than no partnership at all.

There are a few important points to consider when starting a partnership. Firstly, you must decide if it is right for you, your business or project.

If the members of a partnership essentially do the same thing, it's almost inevitable that one will be hard-working and have more commitment than the other. Often, that party becomes resentful for the additional time they put in. I know this because I have experienced it for over two decades. It becomes a push/pull relationship and unfortunately this results in tensions.

The key is that the partnership must be something that you both need and couldn’t be done by yourself.

As we operate in the Brave New World paradigm, partnerships will need to be built on solid foundations to withstand the changing values in our workforce and global economics,

Our projects, our business and production will be outsourced to more competitive players eager to take on the big companies. Remember all big companies start out small. The smaller ones have fewer overheads, less risk, have lower to fall and are more flexible in structure.

Consider your real partnerships in your business. Consider the stakeholder partnerships, customer partnerships, supplier partnerships, training and industry partnerships.

Are these partnerships operating based on common values, principles, vision and goals?

Are they developed on the mutually beneficial relationships, is your success their success?

Healthy partnerships work hard to help the other party succeed. They give without hidden agendas.

In the project management space it’s challenging. New start up teams, tight scope, schedule, high risk, low cost and performance driven leaders expect on time, faster, better, cheaper.

Be warned this may work, but the wisdom to lead a project to build partnerships will increase your future sustainability and ability sustain outcomes. There is a big difference between output and outcome.

It’s simple, think of compounding interest, that’s what your projects should be like. Build them into projects where the outcomes of the partnership are long term, not short term.

Alliancing is another matter especially on large scale multibillion dollar projects. Whilst facilitating an alliance between a number of multinational construction companies it was clear that the fundamentals were not addressed at start up. However, the Program Manager did have the foresight to get me into address some of the issues. The reality is, when the tender is won, the work gets started. Then I'm hired because the fundamentals were not addressed correctly.

If however you do decide to form a partnership or alliance, give me a call and we can meet to discuss what might best work for your project or business.

One of the keys is to have a neutral party facilitate the partnership. Let's face it..... It is more risky when you don’t have someone helping you to get it right.

A major risk if you don’t partner, you will lose your staff quickly to your competitor, (your customers…your profit).

People jump ship due to pleasure or pain, I know which one I prefer in a partnership….

Give away time of the week!!! Generosity is one of my business virtues so here I go…

Free consultation questions I’m giving you. I only ask that your give me credit for my blogs and refer people back to it. Or just go hire me……learn what your competitors are finding out.

1.      What is it that motivates our business to partner?

2.      Whose benefit is it really for?

3.      What is the problem that needs to be addressed?

4.      What is the opportunity that can be harnessed?

5.      What can we offer them?

6.      What can they offer us?

7.      What are the foundations or cornerstone of a mutually beneficial partnership?

8.      What are the shared values, principles, goals and responsibilities?

9.      How will we define, monitor and measure our partnership success?

10.   What do we stand to lose if a partnership is not developed?

So if you need help thinking through a partnership, an alliance, a collaborative or a network, please contact me.

Journey well….partner,
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

Self-Awareness and Leadership: Have a look in the Mirror

23/2/2012

Self Awareness and Leadership: Have a look in the Mirror

I was with a long term client today. We had just finished a quick lunch. He was being head hunted by another firm which was what we were hoping would happen. His current company was sealing his potential.

I was thinking how fortunate he had been to be potentially moving to another more prestigious organization. He was keen to leave due to the CIO poor people skills.

A man got in the lift at the 25th floor. There I was confronted by a gruff man. It was the very person my client was talking about. One thing that struck me was the man had no idea what vibes he was giving off.

Whilst on his mobile phone, he was aggressive, using expletives and then went on criticizing his PA for his appointment scheduling. He finished the call, looked at my client (his colleague) and said, “God I work with some idiots in this place” enough said. Spooky…. I guess we had just spoken about him at lunch.

My observation was he had no idea what reactions he was giving off, nor did he seem to care.

So this is an easy blog today, because what I know about many leaders especially the ones that go and have 360 degree assessment, is that their drive, direction and self-belief is high, but their self-awareness is often low.

You guessed it. Many suffer from a lack of self-awareness. If this is you or you’re not sure, go start looking in the mirror more often. Go to the bathroom really look hard at yourself, and say “is the organistional leader that people aspire to, or even want to follow?”

Okay the narcissist or psychopath will always say “yes." So here is a gentle reminder if you or someone needs a top up.

Here it is for this week.

This task goes for anyone who has power or influence over people at work.

Self-awareness

If you're self-aware, you always know how you feel. As a result you know how you’re emotions, and your actions, and how they can affect the people around you. Being self-aware means having a clear picture of your strengths and weaknesses. And it means having humility.

So, what can you do to improve your self-awareness?

Keep a mental journal spend just a five minutes each day reviewing your thoughts about the day’s events, behaviour and attitude. Good chance, this will move you to a higher degree of self-awareness. Challenge do it repeatedly for 2 weeks 6 days week. Guaranteed harder than you think.

If you succeed do it for a month, then 3 months. By then you should start doing this habitually.

Slow down – ahhh what….. did you say? Yes, I know, I’m trying to as well. So much to do, so little time and so many opportunities. When you experience anger or other strong emotions, slow down to examine why. Remember, no matter what the situation, you can always choose how you react to it. Your emotions, your reactions, your leadership.

Mindfulness -

Mindfulness is a form of self-awareness training adapted from Buddhist mindfulness meditation. This is an area with a vast following because of its proven benefits. I try do it most mornings before I start my work. It has been described as a state of being in the present, accepting things for what they are. It was originally developed to assist with mood regulation and relapse prevention in depression and has been found to have considerable health benefits. I have been fortunate to be a mental health practitioner for over decade and personally meditated with Buddhist monks and nuns. This stuff is very powerful and gives greater insights into yourself, others and processes. You gain enormous clarity. Innovation compounds and problems are lessened.

With a good understanding of how we relate to others, we can adjust our behaviour so that we deal with issues positively. By understanding our weaknesses, we can learn how to manage them, and reach our goals despite them.

However, it's difficult to be objective when we think about ourselves. How others actually see us can be quite different from what we think they see. There are ways in which people can develop self-awareness on their own. However, coaching can be a better way of viewing your own actions and reactions objectively. I definitely give feedback on what I observe with my clients… firm but fair. After all, I aim to get superior performance from my clients.

Challenge:

Ask your team these questions:

How is my leadership/management style getting people onboard with their work?
How is my leadership/management style getting people offside?
What do I need to change about myself?

I know when I first did this exercise, it was strange, on the flip side, it was incredibly liberating.

Nothing like a good dose of feedback to make a few personal changes.

By the way, my client, sacked his boss, that is....resigned that afternoon. He took the promotion.

Journey well,
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

Team Management Work Preferences Profile in Brief

22/2/2012

Team Management Work Preferences Profile in Brief- Get you and your team assessed.

I just wanted to mention that I use and recommend the Team Managements Systems Preference Profile as a robust and accurate instrument to measure work preferences and ways of relating with others, how decisions are made, how things are organised and how pepole like to receive give and receive information.

The personal Team Management Profile (TMP) highlights an individual's major and two related areas of work preferences on the Margerison-McCann Team Management Wheel.

Here is an outline

Reporter-Adviser- Supporter, helper, tolerant; A collector of information; Dislikes being rushed; Knowledgeable; Flexible
Creator-Innovator - Imaginative; Future-oriented; Enjoys complexity; Creative; Likes research work
Explorer-Promoter - Persuader, "seller"; Likes varied, exciting, stimulating work; Easily bored; Influential and outgoing
Assessor-Developer - Analytical and objective; Developer of ideas; Enjoys prototype or project work; Experimenter
Thruster-Organizer - Organizes and implements; Quick to decide; Results-oriented; Sets up systems; Analytical
Concluder-Producer - Practical; Production-oriented; Likes schedules and plans; Pride in reproducing goods and services; Values effectiveness and efficiency
Controller-Inspector - Strong on control; Detail-oriented; Low need for people contact; An inspector of standards and procedures
Upholder-Maintainer - Conservative, loyal, supportive; Personal values important; Strong sense of right and wrong; Work motivation based on purpose

This tool is not like a Belbin, DISC, MBTI or an IQ test

The assessment only takes about 20-30 minutes and is done online.

It is a proven fast and accurate way of assessing and predicting work preferences. It benefits you by understanding your preferences, or lack of, to choose more suitable types of work, modify your own expectations or by sharing results across a team to get a better fit. People, perform better at what they prefer. The data can be used to get a group dialogue occurring and to make team changes.

TMS is used by over a million people in leading organisations (ANZ, Sony, Mobil Oil, American Express, BHP Billiton to name a few), Benefits include:

Translated into 20 languages
Applied by people from over 160 countries worldwide
Extensively researched, and research and translation programs are ongoing
A simple, practical and research-based system to:
Improve the productivity of any team
Identify and manage critical tasks
Generate engagement and harness the talent of the team
Create a common language that can cut through inherent differences

RELEVANT Developed with and for leaders and their teams
FOCUSED Helps individuals and teams to maximise their potential
PROVEN Twenty years ongoing validated research into what makes high-performing
teams
IMMEDIATE Can be understood and used by everyone straight away
MEMORABLE Sophisticated information presented in simple visual models
POSITIVE Non-threatening: all about strengths, mutual respect and constructive
relationships
FLEXIBLE For individuals, teams and organisations

After completing the assessment online, the client receives a 5000 word report outling preferences and areas that assist them to be more aware of their own communication styles and that of others. It often becomes the way of breaking down barriers and deepening emotional intelligence in a team.

For more information please email me. See the resources page.

Journey well.
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

Enlarge your leadership to a higher level…..

16/2/2012

Enlarge your leadership to a higher level…..

Leadership…..so much is written about it, so much is reported about it, so many courses offered about it, so many types of 360 degree assessments, so many training courses, so many leaders and still a lack of workplace followers. Well leaders keep us in and out business, but that is not the point. We are all learners and leaders in our own right. We are not perfect and we make mistakes, some learn better from them.

Ask yourself this. Is the leader of your organisation, the leader you love to follow?
or,
If you are the Leader. Is your organisation following your vision passionately?

This week is a reminder, don’t be complacent in your leadership development, we never stop learning to be better leaders. This week it’s about the enlarging leader.

Just a few thoughts....one of my best leaders that come to mind was a very quiet woman who was psychologist by background. She never really managed me, she let me manage myself, it frustrated the hell out of me big time…until I got used to it. My career blossomed and I thank her for that. She was a catalyst in reversing my leadership thinking.

My mother, another great leader, used to work in a bookshop and found this tiny little book, it has many pearls of wisdom in it. Here are just a few nuggets from John C. Maxwell Book, Equipping 101, What every Leader Needs to Know.

How to become an Enlarger

Believe in others first before they believe in you
Serve others before they serve you
Add value to others before they add value to you.

Enlarge your Leadership behaviours, attitudes and skills by

Valuing the team members
Valuing what team members value
Adding value to the team members
Making yourself more valuable

Our company provides a range services to leaders, new leaders and emerging leaders. See our website for more information. Or, you could start by having me coach you. Find out how through the resources link or contact page.

Journey well,
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

Secrets and 10 Tips for Managing Team Resistance

16/2/2012

10 Secrets and Tips for Managing Team Resistance

“If we do not change direction, we are liable to end up where we are headed” (Whitmore, 2006)

In my experience I’ve seen resistance, I’ve been resistant…….it always manifests with two forces at play, pain and pleasure and not much in between, except all the collisions between getting on board and getting off the boat.

We all know that resistance may be a sign of a loss, not enough information, lack readiness for change, therefore allow more time.

Two reasons for employee resistance, well there are more than 2, but they can be summarised here.

A lack of awareness about the change
Comfort with the ways things are and fear of the unknown.

Change is difficult…. Whenever we change one type of behaviour or situation to another we are losing something as well as gaining.

My research shows this loss can be difficult to cope with, no matter how unhelpful or productive the behaviour we are leaving behind. In order to sustain real and lasting change in the workplace we need to change our thoughts, feelings and behaviour. That is the challenge and resistance may be a symptom of it. Good news…there is a treatment for most anyway.

12 Reasons why employees resist change, in case you forgot

Past experience of change management failure
Lack of leadership
The individual's personal predisposition to change
Surprise and fear of the unknown
Climate of mistrust
Fear of failure
Loss of status and/or job security
Peer pressure
Disruption of cultural traditions and/or group relationships.
Personality conflicts
Lack of tact and/or poor timing
Not seeing the benefits

10 Tips to Manage Resistance
I’ll get to the point, as I know that you are eager to know the secret to managing team resistance.

Do change management right the first time
Expect it and plan for it
Address it formally and informally
Identify the root causes and remove, transfer or accept them
Engage the “right” resistance managers
Accept and understand it's about information, do not make it personal
Engage on matters of importance and significance to them and you
Make a change management plan, don’t make it up as you go
Engage the right leaders
Understand and prepare that people go through phases of change and resistance

BIG POINT, don’t label people resistant, you may not have provided them with enough information…..

Journey well,
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

Systems Thinking for Business Leaders 101: A Refresh

16/2/2012

Systems Thinking for Business Leaders 101: A Refresh

I admit…. I’m a systems thinker and it gets me into trouble…sometimes. However what you think about is often what you get, so it has its benefits for me.

It helps me plan and deliver better services, better projects and better business. Yes it involves risk, more communication, effort, engagement, politics, power and money, without it my work systems just don’t work. My business needs, other business, and their business is needed by other businesses and so on.

As Einstein observed, "we cannot solve problems using the same level of thinking that created them".

Our "Brave New World" requires a systems approach to solving problems and creating community-wide growth opportunities. Strategic leaders in both private and public sectors must work together to identify interdependencies and the growth levers that will turn the economic doom into an economic zoom.

Our company and other businesses form part of the heartland of the national economy. Other private companies and the people who work for them, pay taxes that fund public service and government agencies. They – both companies and people – also contribute to not-for-profit and community service providers, which help societies in many ways. Without a healthy cash flow in and out, other parts of the national system lose impetus and suffer, or just stop.

Consider this. You are the business supplier to other businesses in the supply chain; if your company slows or fails, your suppliers are negatively affected too. Likewise, a drop in business activity reduces employment and taxes, resulting in less government monies to fund central and local government. It also results in increased unemployment and crime, and places demands on social, educational and health services. All these have their own costs often paying a national debt of social and disease burden.

The reality is that if the main engine room goes down, so do all the other parts of the system (individuals, families and other organisations), creating a downward spiral. While not a light bulb moment, this is often not in our conscious minds as we are often concerned about our immediate turf and the immediate impact…. fair enough, but do take some time out...

Wouldn’t it be good if we had a system of government support to grow small and medium enterprises? What about, minimal taxes during their first five years, help get fledglings off to a good start. In contrast, large budget cuts, staff layoffs and reductions in outsourcing to the private sector by government departments results in the burden being passed to other parts of the community. Suddenly the private sector heartland is under pressure and the whole system goes into an enormous pressure cooker.

Imagine how influential and productive a group of strategic leaders could be if they took a broader perspective of social wellbeing and broadened their vision to consider every level of society: international, national, community, organisational, family and people. Remember, Mandela showed, it only takes one man to change a nation

Here it is….leadership and management expertise are key to a more innovative, dynamic and sustainable economy for the future.

How strategic are your visions for uncertain times?
How is your business putting systems thinking action?
What other systems or groups could you belong to be more influential?

Journey well but not alone,
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

Making Teams Work Together Successfully in 120 seconds.

16/2/2012

Making Teams Work Together Successfully in 120 seconds

Speed for corporate junkies who only have 2 minutes

1.      Get clear in your head, who you are, your personal goals, your strengths and weaknesses

2.      Make clear your business and team goals and make it a common goal

3.      Clarify. document all your team roles and responsibilities

4.      Plan for and mitigate predictable problems

5.      Agree on the rules, guidelines for work performance expectations

6.      Use the team culture to bring about change

7.      GTP, Get to the point and collaborate, collaborate, collaborate

8.      Bring the team ideas to life, enable them to take responsibility

9.      Foster creativity, redesign the processes

10.   Make firm clear decisions and ensure they understand it, clarify it, repeat it

11.   Don’t compromise, it’s your business, your team, your customers, your life

12.   Seek consensus and commitment on new ideas

13.   Immunise against conflict viruses and squash them early

14.   Actively manage differences, show them the process, teach them the process

15.   Trust each other other, people leave managers, mangers let go of staff, it costs money

16.   Reward and recognise each other, regularly, appropriately and genuinely, everyone…

17.   Review the team make up regularly, swap players, buy in new players

18.   Don’t give up, ask for help

19.   Automate redundant functions in the team, people despise mundane activity

20.   Contact Us, outsource the pain

Last tip, put steps 1- 20 into action, otherwise you will have the same problems

More problems means….moving away from where you'd rather be.

Journey well,
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

Empowerment in group decision making

16/2/2012

Empowerment in Group Decision Making

Empowerment… sounds a bit all new age, feel good, tree hugging stuff, or a tokenistic gesture of business profiteers of the new millennia. Maybe, maybe not. Anyway, I am a fan of the concept, It makes good business sense.

My thought is it’s here to stay, people are your power in the business. Give them appropriate power, along they go and along you go. Empowerment in groups needs better understanding.

When I am working with new clients I seek out what level of empowerment are we talking about, what does this mean, how will it be communicated and how will we know it?

Nothing causes greater mistrust than lack of clarity about empowerment levels. It’s very common for groups to assume they have final say in making a decision while management is merely asking for their opinion as input to a decision that managers be making later. Ever felt like that, ever seen it happen, ever heard people tell you something like this???

I experienced this confusion first hand just 2 weeks ago, when a high level group thought they had power to make decisions over a project….. uh uh, the CEO did. Sorry team, no project, 6 months of planning work squashed. The mood was doom and gloom and there were a few other strong adjectives shared around.

Here it is…..It’s essential that you clarify the level of empowerment at which a decision is being made and communicate that explicitly to the group at the start of any decision-making discussion. Yes it takes courage and you might cop a spray, but be warned, if you don’t, the backlash will be far worse. Ingrid Bens discusses 4 empowerment levels in her facilitation practice.

4 Empowerment Levels

Directive: Level 1 - this refers to decisions made by management without input from employees. Employees are informed of the decision and expected to comply.

Consultative: Level 2 -this is a decision made by management after seeking input from employees. Employees are consulted but have no actual say in the final decision and are expected to comply. An employee focus group is an example of this decision.

Participative: Level 3 - this type of decision involves employees discussing and recommending a course of action, but unable to act without gaining final approval. Problem-solving workshops are often set up as level III activities.

Delegative: Level 4 - in this type of decision the group has been given full authority to make a decision and implement action plans without having to seek further approvals.

Tip 1, ensure you and the group know what level they are empowered.
Tip 2, let go of people control, empower others, empower yourself

Journey well,
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008 -12

50 Ways to Build Workplace Trust

15/2/2012

Inspiring Trust Behaviours, 50 Agreements from Team Facilitation's

Be accountable
Be responsible
Be congruent
Be adaptable
Be responsive
Be competent
Be honest
Be ethical
Be compassionate
Be open
Be on time
Keep relevant
Examine your motives
Talk straight
Demonstrate respect
Create transparency
Right wrongs
Show loyalty
Deliver results
Get better
Confront reality
Clarify expectations
Practise accountability
Listen first
Keep commitments
Extend trust
Create a trust action plan
Treating all others with respect, courtesy and appropriate confidence
Value each other’s background, experience and diversity
Keep each other informed, passing along information accurately, openly and consistently
Speak well of others, avoid gossip and behaviours which may harm others
Respect organisational values, goals, structure and roles
Speak openly and positively about their work, the organisation, and the future rather than negatively or with cynicism
Focus on the main issues and goals, not getting sidetracked by differences in details
Raise concerns, criticisms, and conflicts openly, and discussing them respectfully
Do what you say you are going to do and build credibility by doing so
Talk in terms of “we” instead of creating “us and them” culture
Recognise others when they have done something positive or different
Take responsibility for your actions/behaviour rather than making excuses or blaming others
Take care when providing feedback; do so in an appropriate time and place
Collaborate on important issues by seeking out others’ opinions and expertise
Show your human side and do not hide mistakes
Show respect to others by understanding that they have a stake in the organisation’s future and success
Listen to others and ask questions if you do not understand or agree; appreciate and value others opinions and say so
Own your area of responsibility and make efforts to improve the environment to make it function successfully
Avoid withholding information
Speak truth not UNtruth
Role model trustworthiness
Say sorry
Forgiveness I trust this helps you....

Journey well.
Matt Cartwright
Inspiring People, Inspiring Business, Inspiring Results
© Copyright 2008-12