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leadership development

The Leadership Challenge: Why Aren’t There More Women In Leadership?

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The Point: According to the Pew Research Center, there are few differences between men and women on key leadership traits such as intelligence, capacity for innovation, being compassionate, and organization. Today women represent only five percent (5%) of CEOs for Fortune 500 companies. So if that’s the case, why are the pipelines to C-Suite opportunities appearing to widen? In this post, we’ll look at four (4) critical lessons women in leadership can undertake to break-through the glass ceiling… Enjoy!

The Point: According to the Pew Research Center, there are few differences between men and women on key leadership traits such as intelligence, capacity for innovation, being compassionate, and organization. Today women represent only five percent (5%) of CEOs for Fortune 500 companies. So if that’s the case, why are the pipelines to C-Suite opportunities appearing to widen? In this post, we’ll look at four (4) critical lessons women in leadership can undertake to break-through the glass ceiling… Enjoy! There Aren’t Opportunities Here for Women Susie was a team leader for one of the organizations that I worked with on an executive coaching/leadership development engagement a few years back. I remember her, because sitting on the high potential selection committee allowed me to see that she was an exceptional candidate on paper, as well as in person. She was not only smart, but extremely extroverted and ready to take on any/all challenges on her desired path to the top of the organization. So it was surprising for me to learn in a follow-up call that she was going to leave the organization that five years earlier she described as her “dream” company. What could have possibly happened? In our brief conversation I learned that while opportunities were talked of a lot, they rarely materialized in reality. In fact, Susie described the log-jam of women that were doing great things in the organization, but seemed to be bumping their heads against the proverbial glass ceiling. As such… She was moving on. 4 Critical Lessons for Women in Leadership At the 9th annual “Women Who Lead” conference lessons are shared regarding leadership from high profile women. Here are four (4) critical lessons presented: Lesson #1: You Control Your Self Image Let’s face it, we live in an image-centric world! Constant reminders can be seen on television of “that” family that really doesn’t do anything, yet we’re somehow attempting to keep up with them… It makes no sense! While it’s an easy trap to fall into, avoid looking at others and attempting to alter who you are by the way you look. While the experts suggested that you determine what your image is, what people not only treat you like, but what they call you. Lesson #2: We All Must Get Along Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, men and women both have to get along and work together. The advantages are numerous, but let me summarize them by saying that after every leadership development program I’ve identified that the perspectives each bring to the table are in fact different. Perhaps not as different as Mars or Venus, but different perspectives will bring about different methodologies that enhance the operation. Lesson #3: Your Mindset = Your Success If you have the right mindset, anything is possible. If you don’t have the right mindset, hardly anything is possible! Ensuring that you conduct the proper “check-up from the neck-up” is crucial if you want to continuously drive for success. I typically have a conversation with executive coaching clients about goals, and ensuing targets along the way towards those goals. Most leaders, female and male alike, can typically rattle off these moments. It shouldn’t surprise you then to hear that when I ask them what their mindset will need to be like in order to accomplish those same goals that most get a confused look on their face… Almost like their mindset is an afterthought, or an outcome of accomplishing goals. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Lesson #4: Become Risk Verse What do you value as a leader? In executive coaching sessions I typically hear that most female leaders value a healthy balance of work and life. In the work-life, they value having alignment with the organization. Alignment within an organization specifically along goal, values, and culture components. But what if you don’t have such alignment? What if you play it safe all the time? Remember, the spoils in life rarely ever go to the losers (and argue with me all you want, business is about winning!) Furthermore, spoils even more rarely go to those that play things safe (Read that as playing within your comfort zone!) SUMMARY In this post we took a brief look at four (4) lessons that women can review in order to consider when pursuing leadership positions. Controlling your self image, working together with men/women, your mindset adjustment (if necessary), and accepting risk are all part of the equation. Think of these as mere “starting line” considerations, as the race to attain/sustain leadership positions can be a long one. Equipping yourself with the right foundational strategies for leadership success will ensure that you move in the right direction. Sam Palazzolo 

There Aren’t Opportunities Here for Women

Susie was a team leader for one of the organizations that I worked with on an executive coaching/leadership development engagement a few years back. I remember her, because sitting on the high potential selection committee allowed me to see that she was an exceptional candidate on paper, as well as in person. She was not only smart, but extremely extroverted and ready to take on any/all challenges on her desired path to the top of the organization.

So it was surprising for me to learn in a follow-up call that she was going to leave the organization that five years earlier she described as her “dream” company. What could have possibly happened? In our brief conversation I learned that while opportunities were talked of a lot, they rarely materialized in reality. In fact, Susie described the log-jam of women that were doing great things in the organization, but seemed to be bumping their heads against the proverbial glass ceiling. As such… She was moving on.

4 Critical Lessons for Women in Leadership

At the 9th annual “Women Who Lead” conference lessons are shared regarding leadership from high profile women. Here are four (4) critical lessons presented:

Lesson #1: You Control Your Self Image

Let’s face it, we live in an image-centric world! Constant reminders can be seen on television of “that” family that really doesn’t do anything, yet we’re somehow attempting to keep up with them… It makes no sense!

While it’s an easy trap to fall into, avoid looking at others and attempting to alter who you are by the way you look. While the experts suggested that you determine what your image is, what people not only treat you like, but what they call you.

Lesson #2: We All Must Get Along

Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, men and women both have to get along and work together. The advantages are numerous, but let me summarize them by saying that after every leadership development program I’ve identified that the perspectives each bring to the table are in fact different. Perhaps not as different as Mars or Venus, but different perspectives will bring about different methodologies that enhance the operation.

Lesson #3: Your Mindset = Your Success

If you have the right mindset, anything is possible. If you don’t have the right mindset, hardly anything is possible! Ensuring that you conduct the proper “check-up from the neck-up” is crucial if you want to continuously drive for success.

I typically have a conversation with executive coaching clients about goals, and ensuing targets along the way towards those goals. Most leaders, female and male alike, can typically rattle off these moments. It shouldn’t surprise you then to hear that when I ask them what their mindset will need to be like in order to accomplish those same goals that most get a confused look on their face… Almost like their mindset is an afterthought, or an outcome of accomplishing goals. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Lesson #4: Become Risk Verse

What do you value as a leader? In executive coaching sessions I typically hear that most female leaders value a healthy balance of work and life. In the work-life, they value having alignment with the organization. Alignment within an organization specifically along goal, values, and culture components.

But what if you don’t have such alignment? What if you play it safe all the time? Remember, the spoils in life rarely ever go to the losers (and argue with me all you want, business is about winning!) Furthermore, spoils even more rarely go to those that play things safe (Read that as playing within your comfort zone!)

SUMMARY

In this post we took a brief look at four (4) lessons that women can review in order to consider when pursuing leadership positions. Controlling your self image, working together with men/women, your mindset adjustment (if necessary), and accepting risk are all part of the equation. Think of these as mere “starting line” considerations, as the race to attain/sustain leadership positions can be a long one. Equipping yourself with the right foundational strategies for leadership success will ensure that you move in the right direction.

 

Sam Palazzolo

The Leadership Challenge: Developing Leaders at No/Low Cost – 5 Options

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The Point: Leadership Development can be an expensive proposition. With most options starting at $50k, what’s an organization to do that is looking to generate tomorrow’s leaders today, or for the up and comer who’s organization doesn’t offer any type of development program? (Hint: If you’re at an organization that doesn’t offer leadership development and it’s important to you, you’re probably at the wrong place!) In this post we take a look at five (5) no or low cost options for organizations or individuals that are searching for leadership development options… Enjoy!

The Leadership Challenge Developing Leaders at No Low Cost

We Develop Our Leaders (Don’t We?)

Jim’s organization was a lot like most fairly new ones that successfully had gone through the “startup” moment of ideation, creation, launch pad through lift off. While they were currently in year five (5) of their initiative, annual revenue was now approaching $100M and along with revenue growth personnel increased as well. He was at the point in their organizational growth where they wanted to continue to live in the “startup” moment, but insure that tomorrow’s leaders were being recruited/cultivated/developed today.

However Jim and the organization had the leadership challenge of the century… They had no clear Human Resources department nor any type of leadership development program. With this in mind, Jim and his leadership team setout to develop the following five (5) no/low cost leadership development options.

Option #1: Individual Development Plans with a Leadership Component

Typically, and Jim’s organization isn’t different from most, an organization will establish Individual Development Plans (IDPs) on an annual basis. These IDPs typically consist of the individual’s goals in reference to those of their team’s, department’s and organization’s. Think of it as an “If we need to get there, we need you to do ___” coordination moment.

Where Jim’s organizational IDPs took a hard-left turn was in the implementation of leadership development components therein. In other words, if you want to grow leaders, you need to be able to provide goals to do so that are akin to the goals that you typically establish. More important, these IDPs should be reviewed on a monthly basis so as to avoid the once a year “surprise” that one typically experiences.

Option #2: Free Online Courseware

Isn’t the internet wonderful? As a leader, you probably have some differing thoughts on just how “wonderful” it is. Jim for example was often frustrated by his employees and their ability to engage in non-productive work on sites like Facebook and games like Angry Birds. Recognizing that there still could be some good that comes from the internet and its ability to aid in leadership development moments, we implemented a series of “Leadership Development” courses from sites like Coursera (www.coursera.org). These courses typically are free, and some offer a low fee option to receive certification.

Option #3: Free Executive Coaching

The International Coach Federation – ICF (www.coachfederation.org) offers something akin to the ability for you to get a free haircut at a barber college. The ICF offers a “Coach Referral Source” wherein you can specify the type of coaching you’re interested in (Business Coaching, Executive Coaching, etc.) and begin receiving proposals from coaches across the globe! Sometimes you can secure a free coaching relationship, but just like that haircut from the barber college, sometimes you get what you pay for (Remember, hair will grow back… Your career might not!)

Option #4: Leader as Mentor

Sometimes the best leaders are at your company. If that’s the case, and who wants to admit that you don’t have the best leaders, holding leadership responsible for mentoring a finite quantity of individuals may be just what your organization is looking for.

Keep in mind that most organizations that offer mentoring programs do so in a very ineffective “organic” or “unstructured” capacity. If you’re going to offer a mentoring program, important to keep in mind that this needs to be more than just lunch every once in awhile. Structuring the mentor program around goals/objectives/learning moments is crucial.

Option #5: MasterMind Group

What if leadership development program participants (or leaders for that matter) were able to gather around the table (either real or virtual) to discuss their biggest problems and receive perspective on potential solutions? If the meetings are held in a confidential environment and open/honest feedback is provided, and members held other members accountable for taking action based on what they heard nothing!

From my time at Vistage (www.vistage.com), both as a member and working at their world headquarters in San Diego, I saw firsthand the benefits of such gatherings. At Tip of the Spear, we’re piloting a program next quarter called The Leadership Advisory Board (or “LAB” for short) that has many of the same features, and a few new/unique ones (If you’re interested in finding out more and/or participating, use the CONTACT US page of this website to inquire).

SUMMARY

So you might not have $50k to spend on each leadership development candidate in your organization. I hope in this post I’ve identified five no/low cost alternatives for you to pursue. Remember, your business is no different from the others inasmuch the people will make the difference. Investing in your people today will continue to drive business results tomorrow, but those investments don’t always need to be costly.

 

Sam Palazzolo

 

PS – You may also enjoy some of the other recent posts I wrote:

The Leadership Challenge: Office Backstabbing – 5 Leadership Lies to Avoid

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The Point: In the art of a knife fight, two individuals each equipped with a knife circle each other thrusting their weapons at one another. It’s a rudimentary form of face-to-face-combat. And given your odds as a leader, nine times out of ten you’d bet on yourself to be victorious (we’ll give one out of ten to your combatant!) But what if (1) you don’t have a knife, (2) you’re not expecting a fight, and (3) you aren’t facing your competitor… Now the odds have swung completely around and not only are you favored, but defeat is all around you. Sound like your typical office backstabbing incident? In this post, we’ll take a look at how you as a leader can not only fight this unfair fight, but come out victorious in the end in knowing/using to your advantage the five lies of office backstabbing… Enjoy!

The Leadership Challenge: Office Backstabbing

Knife Fighting Fantasy

Here’s an interesting leadership challenge to ponder: To say that all is fair in love and war is one thing, but is all fair in the office while at war (Business is war, right?) If business is in fact war, there are two rules you need to keep in mind right from the start when it comes to office backstabbing:

  1. Whatever you do, you must live to fight another day, inevitably to fight against the next backstabbing episode.
  2. If you are successful to live to fight another day, you’ll want to insure that you don’t compromise your ethics/end up on the wrong side of the battle in the eyes of Human Resources (HR) or the law.

Remember, being a leader is tough work. You “give blood” every day at work, and it’s your career on the line and personal lifestyle that could be sacrificed if unsuccessful. Don’t let anyone tell you that don’t have the right to defend yourself, fight back, or take action. Here then are the 5 lies to watch out for:

Lie #5: You’ll Have Plenty of Time To See Them Coming

In all the executive coaching conversations that I’ve had with clients over the years where the topic of backstabbing was brought up (I’ve worked with 500+ leaders to date), only one of them ever said that he saw it coming. This leader was no less aware of his surroundings, the stakeholders actions that he worked with, nor out of touch with the business at hand. Yet, time after time I heard how they felt completely blindsided by the attack.

Backstabbing Avoidance Tip: Watch your back at all times, and get stakeholders (think of them as the trusted “inner circle”) to watch your back as well!

Lie #4: There’s Going to be a Backstabbing at High Noon

The majority of the executive coaching conversations I heard excuse after excuse regarding backstabbing avoidance being taught in leadership development programs. The problem is that in leadership development programs the scenarios presented were never real. Instead, the backstabbing scenes were like something out of an old Western movie instead of the stealth business streets pounded daily by these leaders.

Backstabbing Avoidance Tip: Your backstabber isn’t watching old Westerns nor are they participating in leadership development scenarios. They are moving like a terrorist and as such act with a high level of randomness.

Lie #3: But How Can I Avoid the Fight?

Most leaders believe that they can get out of any situation that they are put into… Good situations… Bad situations… Either way, the leader believes that they will come out the other end victorious. This is plain stupid and wrong! This lie can usually be heard by leaders when they start the rebuttal with “But…” In all the cases I’ve heard, of the millions of possible options the leader could have taken they always seem to focus on staying and fighting. Remember Dale Carnegie’s advice on winning an argument: The only way to win an argument is to never get into an argument in the first place.

Backstabbing Avoidance Tip: Think back to Rule I above… You need to live to fight another day. Staying and fighting will accomplish little. Running away is your leadership ego perception at work… Think of it instead of taking the high road!

Lie #2: They’re Going to Backstab You in a Certain Way

Think of the typical leadership development office backstabbing case that you’ve explored (You have explored the topic in your leadership development program, right?) What did it consist of? Typically, let’s think of the scenario of a disgruntled worker. Perhaps they’ve been passed over for a promotion, or better yet they don’t want in on the latest program of the month (Change isn’t their thing, you know?) Now you probably know how to handle this type of case with tact and polish… This backstabbing is pretty easy!

However, what if the associate is going stealth? They’re publishing information online about you, the company, and what a joke the whole scenario is. You didn’t cover that one in leadership development did you?

Backstabbing Avoidance Tip: Just as you’d brainstorm solutions to a problem, attempt to brainstorm problems and what your solutions will be. Think of it as a contingency planning exercise.

Lie #1: They’re Going to Listen to Your Logic and Admit They Were Wrong

The leadership fantasy that you’re going to overcome a backstabbing by hearing your assailant out, confirming that you correctly heard what they said, and then attempting to educate them from your perspective will get you nowhere. Avoiding a backstabbing shouldn’t rely purely on opportunity and chance.

Unless your backstabber is a simpleton, the odds of you successfully absorbing the backstabbing, confirming why you’re being stabbed, and then pulling yourself together to have a legitimate debate is very, very slim. The reality is that you cannot safely control the situation. While there may be actions you can take to momentarily delay the backstabbing, unfortunately I typically hear of horror stories where there was simply too much bludgeoning absorbed by the leader to adequately mount a counter offensive.

Backstabbing Avoidance Tip: Throw logic out the window, and think fight or flight… with heavy emphasis on the flight!

SUMMARY

In this post we’ve taken a look at two rules to keep in mind when experiencing office politics. We’ve also reviewed five lies that leaders typically have in mind when countering backstabbing. Remember the two rules and you should be able to live to lead another day!

 

Sam Palazzolo

PS – You may also enjoy some of the other recent posts I wrote:

 

The Leadership Challenge: Should You Stay OR Should You Go? 5 Criteria

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The Point: Perhaps you’ve been pushed to the brink… Maybe you eye a greener pasture in the next meadow… Regardless, it’s often a difficult career decision for a leader to determine if they should stay with their current organization or defect to a new one. There are countless criteria that you can weigh to justify staying or going, so in this post we compile five (5) criteria to consider in your leadership career management moment… Enjoy!

The Leadership Challenge: Should You Stay OR Should You Go? 5 Criteria

The Clash Had It Right

The English punk band “The Clash” of the 1980’s might have been on to something for a leader considering transitioning from one organization to another. Here are the vocals lead singer Mick Jones belted out (as well as accompanying backup vocals in Ecuadorian Spanish):

Should I stay or should I go now? (Yo! ¿Me frío o lo soplo?)

If I go there will be trouble (Si me voy, va a haber peligro)

And if I stay it will be double (Si me quedo, es doble)

So you gotta let me know (Pero que tienes que decir)

Should I cool it or should I blow? (¿Me frío o lo soplo?)

Should I stay or should I go now? (¿Me frío o lo soplo?)

So the questions posed in the song are at the heart of the leadership transition moment… Should you stay OR should you go? There are a lot of reasons to stay at your current organization, but there also might be some pretty compelling reasons to depart. For example, you already know the “devil” you dance with day-in/day-out in the current company you keep. On the other hand, at a new organization there might be a better leadership team. Here then are five (5) criteria assembled to allow you, the leader, to assess this often tumultuous time.

Criteria 5: Are You “Taken Care Of” as a Leader?

Often times I hear from leaders during executive coaching horror stories of how they are not taken care of. They typically have low/no response when asked “Where’s the love?” Organizations not ripe culturally with respect, proper compensation, trust, innovation, and leadership development growth opportunities take note.

Criteria 4: Lack of Empowerment

There’s been a lot of headlines in the leadership development space regarding employee engagement recently, but not so much on the topic of empowerment. Unfortunately, empowerment lies at the heart of the engagement moment for most leaders and their organizations. Think of the concept of “Intrapreneur” and you get this criteria.

Criteria 3: Politics

Don’t think for a minute that there is an organization out there that is absent of politics! While it’s an idealistic moment, and one that many an executive recruiter will share with you to entice the recruiting effort, the reality is that every organization has politics. But are there less politics taking place, or perhaps those that drive in a more positive direction (That’s possible, right?)

Criteria 2: Trustworthy Leaders

Remember in these consideration moments that your ability to interview stakeholders at the potential organization should provide you with an accurate assessment of them, and no criteria to judge should weigh heavier than the trust the leaders in the organization have. I think Stephen M.R. Covey said it best that with trust, anything is possible… without it, well that’s another story!

Criteria 1: Recognition

When was the last time you received recognition in your current organization and was it appropriate? Real time feedback for example is a great barometer to judge not only if an organization provides accountability measurements to their stakeholders, but provides insight into how.

SUMMARY

I hope these five (5) criteria provide you with perspective on perhaps one of the more challenging dilemmas a leader can face in managing their career. In executive coaching sessions I’ve reviewed leadership issues ranging from being taken care of, empowerment, politics, trust, and recognition. These are just a few of the criteria you should weigh in determining if you should stay or go. So what will you do? Will you stay, or will you go? Remember The Clash inasmuch, if you go there will be trouble. But, if you stay there could be double!

Sam Palazzolo

PS – You may also enjoy some of the other recent posts I wrote:

The Leadership Challenge: Succession Planning

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The Point: There is a growing leadership void left behind by retiring baby boomer leaders. Human Resource Executives are finding it difficult to identify/locate replacements. Part of the difficulty lies in defining leadership, developing leaders, and ability to deliver such development opportunities effectively. What’s a poor leader to do if they can’t identify/create a succession plan? Perhaps they could delay/refuse to retire? Seriously though, read on for details on the problems, as well as solutions to create successful succession plans… Enjoy!

The Leadership Challenge: Succession Planning

Succession Planning is More Difficult in Today’s Economy

Nearly two out of every three Human Resource (HR) Executives that participated in a recent poll claim that succession planning is more difficult in today’s economy (The actual number was 59%). Their comments were captured in The Global Workforce Leadership Survey conducted by SABA (A large HR software service provider). With approximately four (4) million baby boomers retiring each/every year, there simply isn’t enough quality candidates to fill this void.

The findings of the survey show that the biggest obstacles for powering future business growth are threefold: (1) Differences in perspective surrounding leadership, (2) Leadership development, and (3) Accessibility to online tools for that leadership development.

Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are – The Leader Within That Is!

Human Resource Executives report difficulties in identifying leadership in current employees nearly half the time (46%). Part of this difficulty lies in employees that rarely list leadership skills (only 36% do).

But this begs the question, and lies at the heart of this fundamental problem… What are Human Resources Executives doing if they (1) don’t cultivate a leadership development environment and (2) how do they not know their own employees?

Technical Skills Aren’t Enough

Marshall Goldsmith, one of my mentors in Stakeholder Centered Coaching, is famous for his line regarding “What got you here, won’t get you there.” In other words, according to Marshall your technical skills will get you your first leadership position, but it’s your non-technical skills that will get you your second. What exactly are these non-technical skills though?

Non-technical skills are often considered “soft” skills. They have nothing to do with the specifics of your job (Engineering, Finance, Marketing, etc.) However, they have everything to do with the performance/quality/results of your job. Think of these non-technical skills as consistent qualities that leaders posses regardless of function and you get the idea (Time management, project management, communication skills for leaders, etc.)

So Where Are All The Future Leaders?

I shared The Global Workforce Leadership Survey results with a client of mine, and her response was a classic! “Sam, what were you expecting? Have you ever tried to complete a job application on a SABA run software system?” In less than an instant I knew exactly what she was saying. The truth of the matter is that I have in fact completed a job application online using a SABA run system and found the process to be brain damage! I know that career moves are supposed to be taken seriously, and time to complete an application should not be a consideration. However, I seriously doubt that a Millenial generation (or any other generation for that matter) is willing to put themselves through this long, tedious, and laborious process. I doubt any of the other job applicant software packages are any easier though.

So if you, your organization are like the Human Resource Executives that participated in this survey, you probably are having a difficult time locating employees that want to step into leadership positions (or worse yet, are choosing incorrectly from your talent pool!) Here’s a thought… Why not ask current baby boomer leadership who should/shouldn’t be considered prior to their departure?

SUMMARY

So in this post, we’ve taken a look at how succession planning is more difficult in today’s economy, how part of the problem might just be human resource executives reliance on brain damaging software systems for applicant tracking, if you are relying on your technical expertise to carry you up the leadership ladder you’re kidding yourself, and a potential solution regarding how you can/should/might locate future leadership for your organization.

Sincerely yours,

 

Sam Palazzolo

PS – You may also enjoy some of the other recent posts I wrote:

Sam Palazzolo is the Managing Director at Tip of the Spear Ventures, an agile Venture Capital and Business Advisory Services firm specializing in Executive Coaching, Leadership Development, and Communication Skills Training for Leaders.