Mentorship - Your Leadership Imperative?

Mentor - A wise and trusted counselor; a teacher; an adviser; a master; a guide. 

As I contemplated this blog entry, these were some of the terms that popped up.  There were certainly some images that came to my mind as well.  Some of those images relate to personal experiences in my career and people who I knew then, or appreciate now, as being mentors to me.  There are also of course some more fantastical representations of mentors that my geek mentality can relate to. 

Like Yoda.

The image of Yoda being carried by Luke Skywalker definitely conveys particular aspects of mentorship.  Someone looking over your shoulder, acting as a guide, pushing you forward and beyond your self-imposed limits and limiting beliefs.  At times Yoda's perspective could be quite demanding - "No!  Try not. Do, or do not.  There is no try."  A seemingly harsh perspective, but this approach did move his mentee to a new level of performance. 

I've become much more interested in mentorship in the past couple of years as I've continued the transition out of a senior leadership position into the role of coach and management consultant.  Perhaps this should come as no surprise when one considers this is the biggest career transition I've made to date.  But there's more to the story.  The transition made me realize the lack of mentoring I had experienced over the last many years of my own executive career.  It's not that I was unaware of that lack of support.  I felt the absence of a mentor and took a conscious step to enlist one outside of my own organization.  However, it has only been as I've started a new phase of my life that I've more fully appreciated the value that a mentor can bring to my career and life - even for someone who has been in the working world for the past 30+ years.

Right now, I count myself particularly fortunate to have had two senior level professionals who have stepped up to the plate to guide me through this transition.  In both cases, there was no formal mentorship kick-off meeting, no mutually agreed-upon goal setting process, no established timeline or agreement on frequency of meetings.  I've known these senior level professionals for different periods of time - one for over 15 years, the other for only five.  They have very different backgrounds and experiences.  They are different in a multitude of ways. I don't believe they have ever met or even heard of each other.  They do, however, share at least one thing in common - they both appear to have an interest in my success and development.

So, I'm going to start at that point in describing what I think makes a successful mentoring relationship.  First, from my personal perspective, I really believe that it is my professional obligation to be a mentor to others.  But it's more than just meeting credentialing requirements for my professional associations that I'm talking about.  I believe that I have a personal and professional obligation to help others if I can.  And I believe that this is the same perspective that my two current mentors hold towards me.  They have a passion for advising, coaching and guiding others and they certainly don't do it because of a credentialing requirement, for any public accolades, nor for the money.  I believe this illustrates that a truly successful mentoring relationship comes from a personal investment in that relationship.  Sounds cliche, but I believe they care about my situation and my success.  Unfortunately,  I've seen too many other scenarios play out where the motivations, particularly on the part of the mentor, are less altruistic.  Ultimately, these relationships die off rather quickly with other obligations getting in the way of a mentor/mentee connection.  The outcome is a mentee feeling rather disillusioned by the experience and the mentor breathing a sigh of relief that this particular activity dropped off their already busy calendar.

First step then, make sure there is a commitment and interest on the part of both parties to mentorship.  Closely related to this factor is the requirement that there actually be some chemistry in the relationship.  It's not necessarily about liking one another - although that certainly helps - but you'll both probably know within a few encounters whether there is some type of connection or basis upon which to build a respectful and productive learning relationship.  Do you look forward with excitement or expectation about an upcoming opportunity to interact or do your feelings tend towards anxiety, trepidation and dread?  Listen to your gut on this and don't be afraid to pull the plug.  Hopefully that is a mutual conclusion you reach and if so I would suggest your next step as a mentor is to help your mentee find a better fit with someone else.

As can be seen from my example, mentorship also does not need to be, nor should it be, an exclusive one-on-one scenario.  In fact, it's unrealistic to expect that one mentor will have all the "answers" and there is going to be far more benefit to a mentee in seeking and cultivating a network of mentors.  A mentor must also recognize their own limitations.  As a mentor you won't have all the answers.  You don't need to.  You're not omnipotent.  That should take some of the pressure off.  It's not that you can't still be of assistance to the mentee, but that assistance might now come from helping them to connect with others in your network who might be more able to address a particular situation or circumstance. 

Don't be surprised as well by the two-way flow of mentorship.  Typically, the more senior or experienced individual is giving the more junior or inexperienced individual the benefit of their knowledge.  But I've rarely experienced a situation where I haven't also received some "insight" from my mentee.  Each of us has life and career experiences that are relatively unique and can be used to inform and educate others.  In addition, mentees often have a way of posing questions and challenging established conventions that we seasoned professionals no longer have the freshness to see.

I believe a successful mentorship relationship does not have to be an onerous, calendar-driven obligation.  I have started more than a few of my roles as mentor in that way as part of formal mentoring programs - complete and review profiles, have written objectives for the mentoring opportunity, set up regular meetings, and so forth.  However, I've been able to sustain (and build new) relationships on a much more informal basis beyond the initial formal framework.  In fact, that's what I think has made them successful and sustainable.  It still requires commitment which comes in the form of being available when called upon.  And that doesn't mean having a formal meeting in the mentor's office - for me it's been as simple as a phone call, an e-mail or a conversation over a cup of coffee.  In this way I believe I've been able to successfully maintain a number of mentoring relationships - about a dozen on the go right now.  The intensity of each mentoring relationship is different.  Some connections happen on a regular basis - every 2 to 4 weeks - while others have become annual events.  But all of mentees still feel comfortable touching base when the need is there.

A good mentor also just doesn't wait for a call or an e-mail from a mentee to become or remain engaged.  Rather, they have developed an understanding of their colleague, their goals and objectives, their strengths, and the areas in which they can benefit from further learning opportunities.  Again, this is because a good mentor is invested in their mentee.  And rather than waiting for that next call, a good mentor is scanning the environment for opportunities that will support the mentee's development.

It really does bring us back to the image of Yoda and Luke Skywalker.  Ultimately Yoda and Luke succeed together in their mutual endeavor.  That success comes from time spent together, undertaking difficult tasks, developing trust in each other, coming to understand that together they could do great things, and a willingness to take that leap of faith and being willing to learn.  There needs to be that same joint commitment in a mentoring relationship, one that not only develops the leadership potential of the mentee but hones the leadership skill of the mentor. 

After all, it is all about leadership.

_________________________________________________________

Greg Hadubiak, MHSA, FACHE, CEC, PCC

President & Founder - BreakPoint Solutions

gregh@breakpoint.solutions 

www.breakpoint.solutions 

780-250-2543

Helping leaders realize their strengths and enabling organizations to achieve their potential through the application of my leadership experience and coaching skills. I act as a point of leverage for my clients. I AM their Force Multiplier.

Hope is not a Strategy - But it's Still Critical!

Over seven years ago I started down a new path of coaching and consulting.  At that point I was taken under the wing of a seasoned consultant and, along with other colleagues, it was often emphasized that "...hope is not a strategy...".  The assumption or premise behind that admonition was really that hope, or perhaps blind hope, wasn't at all an effective substitute for objective planning and effective action.  If one was going to succeed as a coach/consultant you had better be clear about where you were going and thrust yourself purposefully into the jungle - you eat what you kill!

I've taken that mantra to heart over the past several years and I credit that advice (and a reasonable amount of motivational fear!) with the success I have enjoyed as a coach and consultant - and entrepreneur - to date.  I truly couldn't have imagined how successful the transition from employment to business person was going to be.  And its not to say that there haven't been a whole host of sleepless nights along that path. There definitely have been, particularly in those first couple of years.
What sustained me even when, or particularly when, I didn't know what the next steps should be or what might be around the next corner?  How did I maintain momentum and traction?  Was it hope?  Was it optimism?  How "real" or tangible is this concept of hope as a tool or mechanism to support success?  After all, hope is not a strategy.

The reason that this resonates so strongly as a topic for me builds off a meeting I went to recently.  Essentially it was a meeting for those grieving the loss of a loved one.  I went to the meeting as a trial or as an experiment.  I wasn't sure what to expect of the meeting at the time but as the meeting concluded I realized that what I was looking for more than anything was hope.  Hope that things would get better.  Hope that others going through or having gone through similar experiences would be able to impart some wisdom, tools or techniques that might help me (positively) forward on my journey. Unfortunately I was woefully disappointed.  Instead of hope I heard despair and resignation to one's fate.  It was hardly an uplifting experience.

Aside from my desire to put this particular experience behind me it also rekindled some form of determination to find a better way to cope with my current challenges.  As I said to others after this particular event, I couldn't just see myself giving up or being resigned to some fate that others might suggest might be preordained for me (e.g., destiny).  In this moment and at this time while hope was not a strategy I felt I needed it more than ever.

What strategies and techniques am I drawing upon to build and sustain hope right now?

Clarifying and Affirming What's Most Important to Me - back to basics or square one.  Reconnect with my positive vision of a preferred future.  Where did I plan to be at the end of 2020 and what are the steps have I already laid out for achieving those goals. What's most important?  What still resonates?  What's core?  Simplify and prioritize.  Document the affirmed plan.

Set (realistic) milestones and take action - I know that one of THE keys to sustaining success is realistic milestones that are measurable and allow you to evaluate your actions.  Rome wasn't built in a day.  I have to set realistic milestones that help me progress towards my ultimate goal, allow me to take bite-sized steps and actions, provide the opportunity to enjoy and celebrate success, understand setbacks as small bumps along the path - reset and repeat.  Keep coming back to the power of the preferred vision.

Own my strengths and abilities - I've experienced both success and failure before.  It's likely I will again.  But I am still standing and there are strengths and abilities I have or have developed that have allowed me to move forward.  What hasn't killed me has in fact made me stronger.  Remind yourself of your own strengths and abilities.  They are real!  Don't be unduly modest.  If you are struggling to identify your strengths get input from others.  Document your strengths.  Do some positive self reminding as needed.

Stay connected - one of the easiest ways to despair is to self-isolate or to allow yourself to be isolated.  Success - and maintaining hope - really is the job of a "village".  We all need friends at work or home.  We all need a place to process what is going on for us, to better allow us to see things for what they are and a way forward as necessary.  Or perhaps we just need a place vent from time-to-time.  Our mind is a dangerous neighborhood to go into alone.  Bring a friend, find a friend.  Talk it through.

Anticipate setbacks - history tells all of us that it is rare, if ever a reality, that success comes easy.  There are going to be bumps along the way.  Prepare for those bumps.  This is not about catastrophizing.  We can all be great at thinking at worst case scenarios and then being paralyzed by the dark shadows we make up.  Rather objectively consider what might happen, how significant the impacts might be AND develop tactics in advance to manage the impact on your plans.  

Celebrate - Celebrate the small victories along with the way.  Take time on a daily or weekly basis to give yourself some credit for even the small steps on our personal journey.  It’s hard to sustain energy and effort without some regular boost to your morale.  Be your own cheerleader!  You deserve it!  

Be appropriately selfish - To be our best self we have to take care of our self.  You can’t think clearly or truly be of service to anyone else – family, friends, work – if you are drained.  As you set your goals think about what you need to do for your own mental, physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.  You DO control your agenda, your time, your day.  Prioritize yourself first.  If you fail to “sharpen your own knife” it won’t be much use to anyone including yourself.
_________________________________________________________

Greg Hadubiak, MHSA, FACHE, CEC, PCC

President & Founder - BreakPoint Solutions

gregh@breakpoint.solutions 

www.breakpoint.solutions 

780-250-2543

Helping leaders realize their strengths and enabling organizations to achieve their potential through the application of my leadership experience and coaching skills. I act as a point of leverage for my clients. I AM their Force Multiplier.

Deming's 14 Points Stand the Test of Time

I've been on a personal leadership journey for 30+ years now and I've definitely hit some bumps along the way.  And I have much yet to learn as the journey continues!  That learning comes more from the bumps than it has from successes I've enjoyed - and I've had the privilege of working with a few great teams in my career.  Those teams have taught me a lot about leadership and basic human values over the years and I owe them a great debt of gratitude.

One of the things that I have come to believe is that you cannot discover leadership lessons if you lack humility, a commitment to ongoing learning, and a sincere willingness to always being open to hearing what others have to say about our leadership capabilities.  An unwillingness to be that open or honest can at best reflect naivety and at worst pure arrogance.  We must be prepared as leaders to objectively and critically assess our areas for personal improvement on an ongoing basis. 

I believe that objectivity - and sometimes distance from a leadership experience - is crucial in drawing the right conclusions from our current and past positions.  In addition, if we can have the courage to build relationships with some strong confidantes who will help us assess our experience so much the better.  I recall now with more than a little trepidation my first leadership role at the outset of my career.  That first role was very challenging to my ego as I learned the on-the-job realities of leadership.  Most importantly I experienced a key aspect of leadership - the experience of working with people and managing relationships.

The first and most immediate lessons I took away from that experience were the wrong ones.  Of course, they were discovered immediately on the heels of leaving the role and were arrived at without benefit of external validation.  At the end of this first role, I truly believed that in order to be as successful as I thought my peers were I would have to adopt a tougher, more unyielding leadership style.  Maybe that's not what my more experienced peers thought they were modeling to me but that's what I initially took away from my formative experience - be tough, demand performance, get respect through fear, be distant from your staff, be above your staff.

I am very grateful that immediately following this experience that I had an opportunity for reflection in the course of my master's degree, including an internship in another organization.  It gave me time, distance and other people to learn from before I set myself down the wrong path of leadership.  Through my studies and internship - an opportunity to learn from two organizations implementing total quality management - I became exposed to the work of Dr. W. E. Deming.  I further explored his teachings through my master's thesis on total quality management.  It was eye-opening and his principles really struck a chord with me at the time.  Over the succeeding years I have come back to his basic principles more than once.  I have learned from other leadership guru's as well, but Deming's perspective has had continued value for me.  I want to touch on only a few of his 14 Points with the belief that these have much to inspire those in leadership positions - or those looking for good leadership.

Point Seven - Institute Leadership. 

Dr. Deming calls upon management to lead rather than manage.  Simple statement but what does it really mean for us as leaders?  Well I'm pretty confident that if you were to talk to many of frontline staff and management personnel outside of the executive suite they would provide you with countless examples of where they felt they were being "managed", not "led".  This bias towards "management" is without doubt enhanced by the pressure on businesses to perform and achieve better results.  A typical management response is to exercise greater control and oversight to make sure results get better.  More often than not efforts of this nature only seem to put more barriers in the way of getting good work done - more reports to generate, more signatures to get, more unreasonable timelines to meet, multiple and conflicting demands, and failure to hear and act upon input and recommendations from staff. 

Point Eight - Drive Out Fear.

I've already made my confession in regards to violating this particular principle, at least insofar as thinking that fear might be an effective tool of leadership.  And maybe it can be in the short-term but not if you are trying to create a high-performing organization for the long-term.  With fear in an organization there cannot be open communication, innovation, and teamwork - and these are all required for an organization to achieve the full measure of its potential.  Leadership of any organization - and at all levels of the organization - must actively model open communication, encourage appropriate risk taking and innovation, and promote teamwork from the executive suite through to the front lines of operations.  With fear in place an organization shall continue to squander the full potential of its people and the organization to the detriment of the people it purports to serve.

Point Ten - Eliminate Slogans, Exhortations and Targets for the Workforce.

Everybody needs to measure performance.  Deming did not intend, nor do I suggest, that system performance not be evaluated on an ongoing basis.  Rather, what Point Ten addresses is the notion of trying to assess an individual's performance without reference to understanding of the system in which that individual works.  If an individual is prevented from achieving higher levels of performance by a system (that management has created or allowed to be created) then performance managing an employee, setting new targets for them to achieve, and giving them "motivational" speeches will have little impact on performance.  It is far more likely that such efforts will actually cause frustration, demoralization and reduced performance.  

Deming's red bead experiment is a great illustration of this principle - given an equal number of red and white beads, an employee is tasked with collecting only white beads with an employer-provided scoop or paddle.  Inevitably, the employee collects some red beads in their assigned task.  As a result of "failing" in their assigned task, the employee may be given further direction by their supervisor, there may be encouragement to do better, they may be applauded if their red bead count has gone down, or they may be chastised if their red bead count goes up.  Regardless, their individual effort and various interventions at the personal level will have no impact on actual outcome.  It's like expecting employee engagement scores in an organization to go up simply by saying that the target is 10 out of 10 on the next engagement survey.  Only by changing the system and the organizational environment will better, more consistent results be achieved.  I see a strong correlation between Point Ten and the need to Drive Out Fear from an organization as noted earlier.  In fact, I believe that what leaders often create by exhortations to do better is an environment in which results and information are hidden through fear rather than discovered.  And only by discovery can we improve.

Point Twelve - Remove Barriers to Pride of Workmanship.

In this Point, Deming was referring to unclear expectations, lack of timely feedback (or any feedback), lack of training and support, and systems that focused on short-term results rather than long-term goals.  Staff and front-line managers are often frustrated by multiple tasks or changing priorities (see Point Seven) as leaders change focus or react to external stimuli without, it seems, due regard to long-term objectives or stated core values.  And unfortunately, more than one of us can relate to the fear that the performance evaluation process creates in us - either as provider or receiver of the experience.  Too often this is because we establish the evaluation process as a one-time event, not as a continual process of discussion, engagement and opportunity.  There is a need too to ensure that the evaluation process becomes an opportunity for leaders and staff alike to identify and invest in skills and intellect.  It is also a great opportunity for leaders to model desired behaviours and reinforce common goals.  On this latter point, I firmly believe that there must be a high degree of visibility and sincere engagement with internal audiences on par with leadership visibility and engagement with external audiences.  Without the kind of internal alignment that comes from such effort the ability to deliver on commitments to external audiences and customers stands on shaky ground.

There certainly is more gold in Deming than I have covered here.  In addition, what this hopefully reinforces, is that we don't need to go looking for "new ideas" on leadership.  There already exists a lot of knowledge - and common sense - upon which to enhance our leadership.  Make it so!

_________________________________________________________

Greg Hadubiak, MHSA, FACHE, CEC, PCC

President & Founder - BreakPoint Solutions

gregh@breakpoint.solutions 

www.breakpoint.solutions 

780-250-2543

Helping leaders realize their strengths and enabling organizations to achieve their potential through the application of my leadership experience and coaching skills. I act as a point of leverage for my clients. I AM their Force Multiplier.

Lies, Damn Lies and Assessments?

Despite the title of this post, I believe that assessments can and do play a valuable role in many aspects of organizational life from leadership self-assessment, recruitment and selection decisions, developmental activities, and team-building support to name but a few.  However, a couple of recent experiences that I've had an opportunity to be involved with also point out the perils of improper positioning and utilization of these very same assessments.  The consequences of such can lead to hiring the wrong candidate for a role, reinforcing poor leadership or team behaviors, demotivating (rather than motivating) performance, and impacting the credibility of organizational effectiveness and development efforts for the organization overall.

There are a number of factors to consider and methods to utilize to get the best out of the vast array of assessments available to you as an individual and as an organization.

One.  Understand your organizational context.  Nothing exists in a vacuum and you may up against past (poor) history of how assessments have been used before.  There may also be current cultural circumstances getting in the way of the validity and credibility of the assessment results.  This came home to me recently when I was informed - perhaps from one person's perspective - that many raters might have "fudged" their input to a 360 assessment.  This was ostensibly done out of concerns of confidentiality, anonymity and fear of retribution.  What organizational leadership - and I - underestimated was the degree to which a culture of fear and distrust was operative in the environment.  The clear outcome was far less useful and impactful data for the person receiving feedback.  This then directly impacted on the quality of a leadership development plan.

Solution:  Honestly evaluate the climate your are introducing an assessment process into.  This may even lead you to conclude that an assessment process should not be initiated. Be clear about the limitations you are working under at the beginning of the process.  Proceed cautiously.

The bigger solution:  In this case, there was clearly more work required to develop a climate of safety, trust and open communication in the organization.  In this case, we would have been better off to do some larger and heavier lifting before proceeding with an assessment.

Two.  Understand (clearly) what you are trying to get out of an assessment.  Too frequently organizations, HR departments, or leaders become enamoured of a particular assessment and fail to understand its limitations.  Assessments - and there are a multitude out there - are designed with specific ends (and foundational philosophies) in mind.  Be cautious of your own biased experience with them.  One size does not fit all.  Ensure that all stakeholders are clear about why and how the assessment results will be used.  Keep aligned with that agreed upon focus.  In the past, I have been particularly disturbed to have seen an assessment instrument initiated within a framework of professional/personal development later used as part of a performance evaluation process!

Solution:  Use the right assessment for the right reason, ensure clarity of purpose on the part of all stakeholders, and stay focused.

Three:  Recognize the limitations of any particular assessment.  However, impactful any one of us may find the insights of an assessment it is only data not answers.  It is only one piece of data.  For the very same reason that best practice would never suggest an interview panel of one or simply relying on the quality of a cover letter to select the next leader, I would similarly recommend holding up the assessment results up to thorough scrutiny and balancing that data against other information you may have. 

Solution:  Don't rely on a singular source of data to draw conclusions - about others or yourself.  Proceed with caution.  Seek corroborating data.  

Another solution:  Aside from looking at past performance and related data you could consider use of more than one assessment.  Depending on your need, you may find that two or more assessments together provide a better complementary mix of information for your purpose.  People are complex machines and may need a variety of lens from which appropriate conclusions can be drawn.

Four:  Guard against your biases.  Much like reading the daily horoscope - if you are into that - we all run the risk of looking at assessment results without understanding our own filters and biases.  The result - we look for what we want to see and find it.  So as the person being assessed if you already strongly believe something about yourself, whether positive or negative, it will be there.  Likewise for HR personnel or leaders critically evaluating potential leadership candidates, new hires or team members.  

Solution:  Be prepared to challenge yourself and your preconceptions.  Whether you like or dislike the results of an assessment consider the opportunity/challenge.  Watch your biases.  Be aware of your filters.  

Five:  Get a proper debrief of the assessment results.  Far too frequently I see individuals and organizations that fail to get/provide a proper - or sometimes ANY - debrief on an assessment that they have put good time and money into.  Sometimes this is driven from a cost perspective.  Other times it comes from a misplaced sense of our own intellectual capacity to critically and objectively evaluate the assessment results.

Solution:  Work with a professional that is both certified and experienced in the particular assessments you are using.  Just like any "job interview", critically assess their qualifications and experience.  Get references and testimonials.  Even test-drive them if you can.  Qualified professionals can be a great assist to you in properly using assessments - they can just as easily cause significant damage if not qualified or otherwise suited to your organizational culture. 

Six:  Be prepared to develop and commit to an action plan.  Flipping back to the daily horoscope comparison, and perhaps the shiny-object syndrome, one of the worst things that can come out of an assessment process is NOTHING!  The effort that may have been put forward in both in cost and time of participants, which is even higher when considering 360 assessments, should warrant and demand some sort of constructive action plan.  If not, then any lessons or insights drawn from the effort run the risk of having to be relearned later or casting aspersions on any future assessment and development activity.

Solution:  Commit to a solid purpose and action plan once the assessment(s) are due to be completed.  Create supporting structures that will help with action.  This may include creating a template for a personal development plan.  This may be creating milestone reporting dates for updates to be had with the individual receiving the assessment results.  Ideally, you or the organization commit to making the assessment far more than a one-off event.  It should fit with the bigger picture of what the organization or you are trying to accomplish.  Structure, Structure, Structure.  Action, Action, Action.

Seven.  Prepare the ground.  This could certainly tie into Number One above but as you or the organization prepare to initiate an assessment process do all you can to communicate the purpose and process for the assessment.  Address as many questions as you can.  Fill any information vacuum that might exist.  Make any and all stakeholders true partners in the process.  Alleviate fears.  Build confidence.  Build validity and credibility for your assessment process. 

The list above may start to give you a lot of pause as you consider current and future assessments.  And maybe that's a good thing.  If you become more aware and purposeful in this regard that might in fact be the best outcome.  Without that perspective you likely run the risk of fulfilling the fear of the title of this blog post - your results will be far less than they could have been OR they might be far more damaging than you ever imagined.  

Creating and sustaining highly functioning leaders and teams is a challenging business.  Assessments have their place if used appropriately and effectively.  Use them with your eyes and minds wide open.

_________________________________________________________

Greg Hadubiak, MHSA, FACHE, CEC, PCC

President & Founder - BreakPoint Solutions

gregh@breakpoint.solutions 

www.breakpoint.solutions 

780-250-2543

Helping leaders realize their strengths and enabling organizations to achieve their potential through the application of my leadership experience and coaching skills. I act as a point of leverage for my clients. I AM their Force Multiplier.