Establish Accountability - Did I balance efficient and effective with an understanding of people?
We all have more work than we can possibly accomplish right? In fact, I have worked for a CFO who believed that twenty percent of the work you had on the books was not worth doing, so he staffed us at eighty percent capacity. His believe was that the bottom twenty percent of work would fall off, and no one would really notice if you did not have the staff to perform the work. It certainly kept people focused, and was a conservative way to run the business. In such IT environments, we are looking for efficient and effective ways to get things done, but as we drive towards our targets and goals, are we going too fast to understand our people? I have been fortunate enough in recent years to run an internship program for software developers, and to meet a lot of very talented future graduates along the way. One such intern needed to be able to turn up at my office doorway whenever I was actually in my office. (Had laptop, would travel!) Now, if I did not stop what I was doing whenever I could to pay attention to her, she would just hover until I gave her my full attention. If all she got was my divided attention, she would reappear moments later with another crazy question. I needed to find out what worked for her, and two minutes of discussion on a problem or how their day was going would negate thirty minutes of distraction they were bound to cause me otherwise. So work out what works for your people.
Related to the importance of simply being there, ask people how they are doing at the start of each email you send. It may sound like a crazy waste of time, but it helps build bonds. On a Monday morning, ask how the weekend was. Every morning ask how your team is doing. Did they have a good night? Make it fundamentally clear to them that you care, not just about their performance in whatever role they fill for you, but as an individual. Sure, you will be giving up fifteen valuable morning minutes, but trust me, that investment will pay back - big time. Don’t believe me? Try it for one week. Just stop by your team’s desks, say Hi, and ask them how they are doing. If they are coffee drinkers, take them for a cup; if they are gamers, ask them about their virtual world. Let them know you see them as more than a task on a Gant chart! Once you have mastered it internally, try it with an external customer.
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