Tag Archives: better work culture

How to Manage your Former Peers After a Promotion?

  By hmteam • August 5, 2016 , ,

Being promoted to a new leadership role is a definitely a good reason to celebrate. But it is also a transition that requires adapting to a new behaviour along with other changes, especially with your former peers. It is possible that a former peer may resent you for getting the promotion that he or she wanted so badly. It is also likely that these colleagues will feel some amount of frustration and animosity as they report to you. So how do you deal with the situation without stressing yourself out? Here are some tips. • Monitor your behaviour: It’s never too early to establish credibility with your colleagues at every corporate level, including your immediate peers. That will save you lots of trouble later on because people will know what to expect from you in terms of planning, decision-making, and communication. So rather than attempting a rapid change, focus on building a character of integrity and authenticity as soon as possible. Be consistent with your work ethics and management style. For instance, don’t believe that your ex-peers will ever forget a habit of long coffee breaks or nasty gossip sessions. • Establish authority carefully: While you certainly need to specify your new role to the peers who will now be reporting to you, be careful about how you convey the information. Your tone of voice, facial expression, and body language shouldn’t portray the ‘I’m cooler than you now’ attitude. Just let them know that things have changed and that they will now be reporting to you. If it is possible, ask your company corporate communications team or a relevant senior to make an official announcement on your behalf. That could make things smoother. • Redefine relationships with friends: Some people you work with may have become close friends whom you like to spend time with outside office hours too. To handle the delicate situation, have a one-on-one chat with him or her. Be honest about how the relationship will be changing. Talk about your new responsibilities, but let the friend share his or her thoughts on it too. For example, you could ask them what kind of changes they foresee in the way they work now. Make it clear that you are there to provide support and loyalty and hope for reciprocation. Most importantly, mention that you don’t believe in giving friends special treatment at work. • Learn to detach from the old: Earlier, your daily life in the office must have been different. Other people, having regular conversations of a particular nature, and more personal with these peers, surrounded you. In fact, you may have even spoken negatively about your boss whom you will work with more closely after the promotion. Don’t be rude. Don’t ignore them. Be there for them when they need you, in case of family emergencies or illness or the like, but keep it to important things and waste less time on small talk. It’ll be hard but necessary to help you fit into your new role. • Get to know your new peers: It’s time to get better acquainted with your new peer group. Go for a lunch or coffee. Ask intelligent, pertinent questions about the department and projects. If something is completely new to you, like end of year performance reviews, ask about those. Still, keep the tone casual and include light personal conversation too such as favourite sports or hobbies. Fortunately, top business schools recognise the need to highlight these leadership role changes in their curriculum. The Nanyang Fellows MBA offers a course on Transformative Leadership that teaches you to deal with obstacles in leadership roles such as this. Check out the full list of courses here: http://www.nanyangfellows.com/about-nanyang-fellows/programme-structure/ So look at the big picture and enjoy the transition – it’s a learning process!

Being promoted to a new leadership role is a definitely a good reason to celebrate. But it is also a transition that requires adapting to a new behaviour along with other changes, especially with your former peers. It is possible that a former peer may resent you for getting the promotion that he or she wanted so badly. It is also likely that these colleagues will feel some amount of frustration and animosity as they report to you. So how do you deal with the situation without stressing yourself out?

Here are some tips.

  • Monitor your behaviour:

It’s never too early to establish credibility with your colleagues at every corporate level, including your immediate peers. That will save you lots of trouble later on because people will know what to expect from you in terms of planning, decision-making, and communication. So rather than attempting a rapid change, focus on building a character of integrity and authenticity as soon as possible. Be consistent with your work ethics and management style. For instance, don’t believe that your ex-peers will ever forget a habit of long coffee breaks or nasty gossip sessions.

  • Establish authority carefully:

While you certainly need to specify your new role to the peers who will now be reporting to you, be careful about how you convey the information. Your tone of voice, facial expression, and body language shouldn’t portray the ‘I’m cooler than you now’ attitude. Just let them know that things have changed and that they will now be reporting to you. If it is possible, ask your company corporate communications team or a relevant senior to make an official announcement on your behalf. That could make things smoother.

  • Redefine relationships with friends:

Some people you work with may have become close friends whom you like to spend time with outside office hours too. To handle the delicate situation, have a one-on-one chat with him or her. Be honest about how the relationship will be changing. Talk about your new responsibilities, but let the friend share his or her thoughts on it too. For example, you could ask them what kind of changes they foresee in the way they work now. Make it clear that you are there to provide support and loyalty and hope for reciprocation. Most importantly, mention that you don’t believe in giving friends special treatment at work.

  • Learn to detach from the old:

Earlier, your daily life in the office must have been different. Other people, having regular conversations of a particular nature, and more personal with these peers, surrounded you. In fact, you may have even spoken negatively about your boss whom you will work with more closely after the promotion. Don’t be rude. Don’t ignore them. Be there for them when they need you, in case of family emergencies or illness or the like, but keep it to important things and waste less time on small talk. It’ll be hard but necessary to help you fit into your new role.

  • Get to know your new peers:

It’s time to get better acquainted with your new peer group. Go for a lunch or coffee. Ask intelligent, pertinent questions about the department and projects. If something is completely new to you, like end of year performance reviews, ask about those. Still, keep the tone casual and include light personal conversation too such as favourite sports or hobbies.

Fortunately, top business schools recognise the need to highlight these leadership role changes in their curriculum. The Nanyang Fellows MBA offers a course on Transformative Leadership that teaches you to deal with obstacles in leadership roles such as this.

Check out the full list of courses here: http://www.nanyangfellows.com/about-nanyang-fellows/programme-structure/

So look at the big picture and enjoy the transition – it’s a learning process!

From the Functional to the Managerial: Make the Transition

  By hmteam • August 3, 2016 , ,

From the Functional to the Managerial: Make the Transition

Contrary to the general assumption, making the shift from a technical or functional role to a general management role can be smooth with the right approach. While an MBA for experienced professionals like yourself can help prepare you for the transition, your success also depends on how you adapt to the leadership role.

Here are some pointers:

  • Create a positive culture of trust:

When you were in a functional area, your decisions affected your work and your immediate team usually. But in a managerial role, what you decide may not always appear to be in the best interest of each functional area in your organisation. This is because you’ll be considering the big picture. So, keep things fair and work on building a climate of trust with your employees. Let them know that you are ready to listen to inputs and constructive feedback and make sure you practice it too. On the other hand, if you notice that a worker is trying to ruin the work culture by creating conflicts in the team, take action before things get difficult.

  • Get out of your comfort zone:

Being in a managerial role requires you to prioritise every area of the business that you are looking after. You need to adapt quickly and be open to developing new perspectives – even if it is in the functional area earned you the promotion. That means that you cannot let your expertise cloud over reason and new trends. Don’t make assumptions based on your past. Go with the flow every time you get an opportunity to learn in your new position.

  • Redefine what value means to you:

Revenue is important for the business. Making an impact with each project or task used to be at the top of your priority list. Now, the correct approach is to look at the long term too. Pay attention to the long-term effects of your actions on the entire business. You need to emphasise on long-term success factors such as integrity, good work habits, and client relationship. Once your employees understand that, you are focused on the organisation-wide impact of everything that you and they do, they will be a lot more cooperative, and in turn, team efficiency will significantly improve.

Think about your customers:

During any decision-making, remember that business doesn’t exist without its customers. Competitive advantage is the key to surviving in your space, so you should address a customer-driven, efficiency-oriented strategy as you aim to gain and retain that competitive advantage. Revenue and customers go hand-in-hand.

  • Build and reinforce the team:

Even in the top ranks of a company, teamwork cannot be overlooked. As a manager, you are expected to promote an environment of mutual respect, ethics, and common goals. Are your employees communicating as well as you’d like them to? You need to be observant. A team that functions well is productive and is essential for the organisation’s success. Experts suggest holding team-building activities regularly – such as joint visits to charitable institutions or group sports.

So be willing to lead, open to new experiences and dedicated to value creation. Be ready to understand employees, while facilitating a healthy environment to achieve long-term goals. It is challenging but not impossible once you are armed with an elite MBA degree and all the skills and experiences that come with it.

See the entire list of benefits that you can expect if you attend the Nanyang Fellows MBA programme.

Investing in Your Employees

  By hmteam • May 16, 2016

Times have changed. Typical employee benefits no longer set apart organisations as they used to. Smart managers have realised that they need to invest more wisely to retain their employees. Continually interviewing and hiring and losing well-trained employees is not a sustainable process.

Here are some ways to keep your employees loyal and motivated.

  • Help Build Their Brands:

Every employee offers something unique to the company. As they work with your clients and build their credibility, they become more valuable. You can do your bit and educate them on using social media sites like LinkedIn and Twitter effectively. Guide them on increasing their web presence. Encouraging them to invest in their personal brands is as important as investing in the organisation. If customers know and respect each employee, they will develop a relationship of trust with them and hence, the company.

  • Allot Personal Time:

Time is money. So you need to devote a sufficient amount of it to your employees if you want success for your company. A big reason why employees quit their jobs is a lack of career progression. You need to ensure that they know that it won’t be a problem with you. Take them out for casual lunches where you can get to know more about how things are going at work and what could be changed to align their roles with their goals. Keep an eye out for career development opportunities for every employee that you manage. Invest in business trips and conferences that relate to their area of work so that they can pick up new contacts and the latest information. The idea is to keep a focus on the big picture while keeping every employee’s career development needs in mind.

  • Be Flexible:

Good companies recognise the need to be flexible – especially during major life events such as pregnancy or a family crisis. Being flexible with your employees builds employee trust and commitment and helps you attract and retain talent.

  • Look After Their Well-being:

An employee who is not in a good physical or mental health will not function properly at work. How about investing in a gym or reimbursing them for their gym memberships? Allow work breaks since research has shown that most humans can concentrate for periods of 20 to 90 minutes only. If you don’t like the idea of breaks, your employees will probably take them anyway by doing things like checking their personal emails or texting. It’ll be more conducive to their health to let them walk around, stretch and have a quick chat with colleagues. Some companies even invest in group initiatives such as marathons and feel-good activities like visits to a local charity in order to boost the team spirit. And stay alert on mental health issues because anxiety, depression and other illnesses can affect performance and harm people in the long run. A lot of companies invest in counselling services. Plus, if you think somebody genuinely needs a break, give it to them.

  • Support Their Educational Goals:

Once you know your employees’ goals, you can help them get there. Sponsoring or subsidising graduate school expenses or a certification programme can result in employee happiness and more skills on your team. You’ll already be investing a lot in on-site training but educational goals can be met simultaneously if you can work out a schedule. Another perk of sponsoring employee education is that they’ll remember the favour and add new value to your business.

Did you know that the Nanyang Fellows MBA programme has an entire course dedicated to talent management? Check out details here: http://www.nanyangfellows.com/about-nanyang-fellows/programme-structure/#talent_mn

So invest well. Avoid emotional and financial damage by retaining good employees. Give them the responsibility and be there for them.

Building A Better Work Culture

  By hmteam • November 24, 2015 ,

A great work culture is the secret to a successful organisation. And that culture depends on how happy and productive your employees are. Your management skills are key to making employees relish the thought of showing up for work that they enjoy on most days. Armed with your Nanyang Fellows MBA experience, you’ll know how to make things even better than they already are at work.

03_Better_Work_Culture

Here are some pointers.

  • Get Rid of Toxic People:

Every person you hire will be a part of your work environment. That means that they can either add to it positively or bring in negatives that ruin it. So you can’t let the bad seeds spoil your team. Daily performance is correlated with good attitudes in the workplace. If you find somebody putting others down or not contributing to teamwork, you need to act. It’s hard to tell people that they are about to be unemployed, but there is too much at stake to ignore the matter. Hire well. Make sure that you and the other interviewers know exactly what you want from the candidate and what you don’t want. Still, sometimes people will surprise you.

  • Create a Comfortable Work Space:

Cleanliness shouldn’t be limited to your home. A workspace is conducive to productivity if it is clean, well lit, organised and comfortable. Take a look at the furniture; is it somewhere you’d like to sit all day? Or will it give the user a backache to nurse? Invest in your team or employees’ well being. For example, bad light can lead to eyestrain and headaches. That, in turn, can bring down productivity levels. Also, consider dedicating a space for employees to take a break. It could be a small room with beanbags for quick naps or maybe a ping-pong table for a de-stressing game between meetings. Just ensure that those working at that time aren’t disturbed and trust everybody to use their time well.

  • Foster Relationship Building:

Cubicles or cabins or an open structure shouldn’t affect collaboration between your employees. Introducing regular events like Pizza Night or an Evening at the Bar is sure to give folks an opportunity for conversation. You could even throw in a short, informative speech to update everybody about the things happening at work. Even then, don’t try to control the entire event and let them talk because that is how they’ll loosen up and let their ideas flow. There are way too many situations of colleagues being so formal with each other that they are too scared of criticism to share their ideas and feedback openly.

  • Connect One-on-one:

It’s easy to communicate by office email and phones. But don’t forget to spend some quality one-on-one time with your team. Just as they need your feedback about how they are doing, you need their inputs as well. Taking both sides into account is how your work culture ends up making everybody happy. So talk and listen. Never forget to say thank you when recognition is deserved as appreciation creates enthusiasm. Once individuals are enthusiastic about their work, they’ll work harder and strive to create an impact – which helps the company progress.

  • Set Clear Roles and Expectations:

A good manager communicates clearly. Employees always know what is expected of them and have their roles clearly defined. You need to explain each team member’s role and the responsibilities that come with it. Connect that to other team member’s roles and the company goals and objectives and strategy. If there seems to be a problem, sit down and explain so that all aspects of the role can be realigned or understood better. For instance, is A focusing too much on meeting his own sales target and ignoring the big picture?

As every company grows older, communication forms the backbone of running a business productively. Imagine trying to get every employee to agree with every decision when you’re double in number or size. You certainly can’t create a process for everything from scratch. That’s where an effective work culture comes in. When it’s good, new entrants will learn how things are done, by just being a part of the team.