The Good Boss

Insights for a Healthy and Productive Workplace in Challenging Economic Times

by Jim & Matt Finkelstein

The question often looms: Why do we work? Perhaps it doesn’t really matter why – we all have to work to some degree or another. Some people work to live and others live to work. Some find a balance between the two where one flows naturally and seamlessly into another. We spend every day doing stuff and it turns out, oddly and intuitively enough, that the people we encounter and work with influence our experience at work as well. Our colleagues, clients, peers and bosses, all of those we cross paths with at work bear some weight on our satisfaction, productivity, creativity and diligence for the little niches we may find or cultivate.

Let’s look at how one of these groups affects each and every one of us. Most of us have all had a boss at some point and many of us may be a boss or have been a boss in the past. In this case, we’ll consider a “boss” as any position managerial, supervisory, or executive – really any time someone leads other people. Bosses are important for this reason, that they lead others through experience, vision, and honored time.

Not all bosses are created equal, however, and there are certain trends that make for better bosses. Forty years of combined experience – one of us with 35 as a professional management consultant and the other with 5 as a fresh and reflective worker – have uncovered prime examples of good bosses. To enlighten the modern workplace and workforce, here are five examples of good bosses (and they are not mutually exclusive):

1) The Listener – a boss who will listen to and appreciates different points of view. This boss hears and honors their employees’ thoughts and considerations respectfully but with a caveat being they may or may not put these ideas into action. The Listener listens to their employees because they were hired for a reason. As such, they trust their employees and value their input. Sometimes, they are even dependent upon it. The Listener is a good boss because they have insight beyond their own experience and vision, insight that is influenced by many angles, and because if their employees are allowed to voice their own opinions and ideas, they are inspired and engaged.

2) The Empowerer – a boss that lets employees run their own show and lets them learn by making some mistakes. To a degree of trust and support, this boss cultivates leadership in their team. Working together, they identify tasks and create a plan, but let the employees decide the nuts & bolts of how it actually gets done. The Empowerer doesn’t delegate aimlessly, creating a sense of subordination in their team, but rather engages their employees from the ground up in a focused manner. Employees are inspired to take on leadership roles and collaborate both with their boss and with others. The Empowerer is a good boss because they can simultaneously ignite productivity, personal development, and satisfaction among their employees.

3) The Mentor – a boss that teaches, coaches and guides. This boss doesn’t necessarily need to be older, but a tad wiser or simply just willing to share. They seek to understand their employees’ experiences and identify which ones need or want mentoring. The relationship with their employees is constructive, meaning both criticism and praise are offered with the intentions of growing the employees set of skills. An offer to mentor is either explicitly offered or subtly developed over time. The goal is both in current interest and looking towards the future, always geared to enhance the employees’ skills. The Mentor is a good boss because they ensure a future for the employee and the company while inspiring immediate productivity and engagement.

4) The Cool Dude (or Dudette) – a boss that has fun and lets their employees have fun. This boss maintains a certain aura of authority while creating a likeable and lively atmosphere. They let their employees enjoy their time at work and find time for small diversions, within the confines that the job still gets done…and done well. At those instances, this boss rewards their employees with time off or special workplace events within the realm of a respectable workplace culture. The Cool Dude or Dudette is a good boss because they understand that all employees are people, that all people need some kind of fun, and that happy employees are healthy, productive, and engaged.

5) The Creator – a boss who inspires invention and creativity. This boss pushes the limits of their employees to ignite innovation. They challenge intellect and question the status quo, so that new products and ideas are developed from within. The Creator embodies the spirit of imagination and is never overly demanding. Creativity and invention come from a unique mindset, so this boss correctly identifies those in their team that are keen to this way of thinking. As such, The Creator is a good boss because they are motivational and collaborative.

These five bosses, or rather their respective characteristics, exemplify what makes for healthy leadership within organizations. Many bosses may embody many or all of these characteristics. The best bosses are able to reflect upon their own natural inclinations and experiences, leveraging their assets and developing areas of weakness. Common trends amongst these five good bosses make for a great boss as well – collaborative, communicative, engaging, and inspirational. Our new cogenerational world is crying out for leaders – of all ages and generations -- and hopefully many of us will realize that great leaders can exist in the smallest, biggest, nearest and furthest of places.

Making 2012 More Boom than Bust

Four Tips for Bringing in Business in 2012

by Doug and Polly White

All kidding aside, things have been tough for businesses, especially small businesses during the past several years. Funding is tight―okay, really tight. Government at all levels seems to be staying up at night thinking of new ways to make “doing business” more difficult, and consumers are more reluctant than ever to spend. This is the toughest economic environment that most of us have seen in our working lifetimes.

Adventure is just bad planning – Have you had enough of the rollercoaster, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants method? Try planning instead―there is a simple three-step process. First, you have to set written goals. What do you want to achieve in 2012? It seems like such a simple question, but many business people go year after year without ever deciding exactly what they want to achieve. Amazingly, these business owners are often surprised when results are disappointing. What are your revenue goals? What profit percentages do you want and need to make? Do you want to expand operations or launch a new product line? Commit your specific goals to writing.

Second, develop a plan to achieve your business objectives. What do you need to do differently in 2012 to meet these goals? Map out a step-by-step process that will result in achieving the goals you set. The plan should consist of a clear set of action items, completion dates and the name of the one person responsible for each action step. When more than one person is responsible, no one is accountable. Resist the temptation to assign more than one person to any single action step.

Finally, execute your plan and review progress periodically. These reviews must be scheduled and they must be a priority. Executing your plan and holding people accountable for results is very important, but it may not be considered urgent. Without discipline, the urgent will always overtake the important. Don’t fall into this trap.

Start with good people – It has become a cliché to say that our people are our greatest asset. While perhaps cliché, it is also true. You need good people with great skills to serve your customers and/or make your products. One hurdle we see small business people struggle with is acting on difficult employee issues. These can include underperformance, poor attitudes and mismatched skills. It is especially difficult when a loyal employee can no longer perform well because the job has outgrown his or her abilities. We have seen entrepreneurs reluctant to remove or layer a long-term employee, or worse, a family member or friend who is struggling to perform in a job to which they are not well suited. The situation is bad for all concerned. The employer, the employee and customers suffer.

In 2012, first review your goals and action steps. Next, imagine the roles, skills sets, behaviors and cognitive capabilities you will need to achieve your goals successfully. Finally, take a hard look at the individuals on your team. Be brutally honest when you consider whether they have or could reasonably acquire the skills and other attributes necessary to help you complete your plan. If not, you will need to make some difficult decisions.

Don’t delay. We have never heard anyone say, “I think I fired Mary too soon. I should have given her several more chances.” On the other hand, we have often heard small business people lament, “I wasted so much time giving Mary chance after chance. Why did I wait so long to make that change?” You need good people to execute your plan. You must help your folks develop the skills they need or get folks that already have them.

Don’t fall into the insanity trap – You have probably heard the quote that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. The truth is that poor processes breed poor results and the results won’t change until the processes are improved. If you want to do things faster, at a lower cost, and with better quality in 2012 you will need to develop better processes.