The Right Approach To Increase Women In Leadership
Lori McNeill, HR.com, May 2020
It is impossible to open a magazine, turn on the news, or browse the internet without coming across multiple headlines about the need for more women in positions of leadership. There are numerous conferences around the globe touting female empowerment and rallies for gender equality in the workplace. Yet the disparity continues as women make exceedingly slow progress to gain positions of leadership. Women only account for 5.8% of CEO positions in S&P 500 companies, according to a 2020 survey by Catalyst. Since 2015 corporate America has made almost no progress on improving women’s representation. From the outset, fewer women than men are hired at the entry-level. And at every subsequent step, the representation of women further declines, according to a Women in the Workplace report in 2018.
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Are You Too Busy to Recognize the Talent That’s In Front of You?
By Lori McNeill
It is all too common for managers to have busy schedules to the point of having back-to-back meetings all day long. Deadlines have to be met. Unexpected issues arise that need to be addressed. Does this sound like an average day or week for you?
When over-packed days become the norm, leaders may not take time to develop the talents of their employees or even recognize the potential of individuals when it is right in front of them.
What’s at stake if this occurs? Great ideas may not be heard. Employees may not feel valued and may become disengaged. Talent is wasted because employees are not coached to reach their full potential.
The Washington Post did a social experiment a few years back by asking Joshua Bell, one of the world’s most talented violinists, to play in the D.C. Metro Station. He was dressed in regular clothes and the performance was unannounced. Anyone passing by may have thought he was just some guy off the street trying to make a quick buck but consider this: he was playing a violin valued at $10-$15 million, and the music he played was some of the most complex arrangements composed for violin. In fact, he was scheduled to perform those exact songs just days later to a sold-out crowd.
6 Steps to a Strategy that Works
By Lori McNeill
I recently worked with a client regarding their strategy for the upcoming year. I started by asking them to share their current year’s strategy, goals and outcomes. We reviewed the data and although there had been progress, they had faced challenges along the way and struggled to accomplish all that they originally set out to do. After a bit of probing, we were able to identify what went wrong in the process, and discovered a number of mistakes that could have been avoided. The CEO and executive team members said that if they would have utilized the six-step framework outlined below, they would have progressed even further and could have avoided some of those mistakes that cost them time, money and wasted resources.
The ability to develop a winning strategy is a critical success factor for all organizations. First, let’s define what a “winning” strategy is and is not. Strategy does not equal goals. It is very important to make that distinction. Goals are what a leader wants to achieve and strategy is how the leader plans to accomplish those goals.
How to Define Success Daily
By Lori McNeill
How often do we go throughout our days without truly thinking about how we can create success that day? Many of us simply live our lives day-by-day, going through the motions, without really considering what we want to accomplish. It’s easy to do this, especially in a world that is moving nonstop. You may get to the end of the week, only to look back and think, “How is it Friday already?” with no clear idea of what you accomplished—or if you succeeded. It’s easy to get in the habit of being busy and not taking time to reflect.
Why is it that many of us simply shuffle through life? It’s almost as though we get into a routine and don’t consider that there’s any other way. I have a client whose calendar is absolutely packed with back-to-back meetings. He attends so many meetings that he has little time to manage his team, think strategically, or manage his own task list. Many busy professionals can relate. Often I hear leaders say they never have time to eat lunch or get any kind of break in their day. Read More
After the Decision Is Made: Communicating Change
Host Dale Dixon interviews special guest, Lori McNeill, a sought-after speaker and leadership advisor who specializes in helping companies navigate through change. Lori shares the importance of communicating the “why” of a decision, and how to determine who will need to be included in the conversation. She gives some tactical ways to foster buy-in, and ideas to help people understand the bigger picture when it comes to organizational change.
Accountability Begins with You
By Lori McNeill
What comes to mind when I raise the topic of “accountability”?
Often, when we think about accountability, we don’t necessarily think about it in regards to ourselves. Instead, we start thinking about it in terms of everyone else and why the people around us aren’t as accountable as we think they should be. There is some irony to that, don’t you think?
Accountability should begin with you—even when you are attempting to manage your team or communicating to colleagues regarding your expectations for their involvement on initiatives. In any situation, and definitely during one that isn’t going as we planned, we should always begin by looking at ourselves.
Read MoreApproaching Change Holistically
In this short video, Executive Advisor and Organizational Excellence Coach Lori McNeill discusses how to approach change from a holistic perspective.
The Power of DISC Language
Improving Communication During High-stress Situations and Making Performance Evaluations More Meaningful
Debbie Cronin is an administrative manager responsible for directing a busy 30-person department at St. Peter’s Health, where she works with a diverse team of professionals from a variety of practices. When Debbie is on the floor, she wears many hats, acting as is the admin of the day, the house supervisor, the wound and ostomy nurse manager, and the float department manager. Not only is she accountable for the floor, but she also has to contend with a multitude of personalities, work behaviors and communications styles throughout her day. All of this, coupled with a non-stop stressful work environment, can be a challenge to say the least. Read More
Common Change Management Mistakes
In this short video, Executive Advisor and Organizational Excellence Coach Lori McNeill discusses the importance of focusing on a change management strategy and why it can be challenging for companies.
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