Diary Of A People Manager

Rosemary Nelson joins the panel to discuss a situation she encountered with her supervisor. As a clinical social worker, her work requires delivering firm communication in extremely delicate circumstances. She shares a story where her supervisor interfered with a case where her input was not required; threatening her relationship with the client.  Leadership Behavior Communicate with your employees when you will become an active participant in a situation and when you will be observing them for their development.    Employee Behavior When you have been undermined by your manager follow these steps: 1. Explain to them what behavior you were expecting from them 2. Discuss what surprised you about their interaction or delivery 3. Make a plan for future interactions - what will each of you do differently if this happens again. 

The panel discusses Romy's story as an undocumented worker. She worked at a check cashing place where the manager refused to pay undocumented workers overtime. Listen in as the panel candidly discusses what you should do as an employee if you find yourself in this situation. We also discuss what you should do as a leader to cultivate your culture.   Share Your Story

Leadership is about uncovering and unleashing the potential of your people. In this Diary Entry, Jennifer Mejia shares how her favorite leader helped her achieve her goals. Leadership Skill 1. Ask, "What do you want to improve on?" 2. Find opportunities for your employees to challenge themselves in the areas they want to improve.   Employee Skill 1. Own your development - ask what you need to improve. 2. Internalize the feedback that is given to you.   Share Your Story

An employee works with a leader who is constantly jumping in and taking over her tasks and her customers. As a dedicated, high-performing employee she is having a hard time working with a leader who is constantly undermining her. Chris Harper and Jen Dirk join the panel to candidly discuss what you should do as a leader and an employee if you find yourself working for a micro-manager. Share Your Story Leadership Recommendations 1. Find Common Ground with your Employees-Every leader should have "go-to" stories: A struggle story, A learning from change story and A success story. 2. Hire good people and then get out of their way. If you feel the need to jump into every interaction and be involved in EVERY decision - realize you are part of the problem. Trusting the people around you and being there to support them is your role as a leader.  Employee Recommendation 1. Address the problem before it becomes a bigger issue. Ask the question, "Is there something I should be doing differently?" Book Recommendation The

An employee finally gets their own store is ready to prove himself as a General Manager when he is approached by his leader accusing him of taking a three-hour lunch. The leader in this case study call the employee and accuses him of this over the phone. He is then accused of making excuses and eventually fired from the job. Emery Winward joins Chauncy and Jessica to discuss the leadership missteps and dissect what should have been done differently. Share Your Story Leadership Recommendation 1. Explain your expectations regarding excuses. You must articulate to your employees how you want excuses handled. Most people feel like they are giving a rational reason for poor performance, in reality, they are focusing on what they cannot control and give excuses in the process. If you want solutions-oriented employees, teach them what this needs to look like. 2. Teach your employees how to focus on what they can control vs what they cannot.  Stephen Covey's principle of the circle of control, the circle of influence

Are you a Coach, a Cheerleader or a Referee type leader. Listen in as Jessica explains the difference and shares example of these types of leaders at work.  What kind of leader are you?  Click the link below and read the article to learn more.  Are You a Referee, a Coach, or a Cheerleader?    

An employee gets hired into a new industry and receives no training from her manager. She is chastised for her work, openly criticized and leaves when she is told her manager made a comment about her "big fat ass." Jen Dirk, Director of Operations at Meridian Restaurants Unlimited L.C., joins Chris Harper, Chief Operating Officer at Meridian Restaurants Unlimited L.C., to discuss the break down in leadership.   Leadership Recommendation 1. Explain the Why. If you find yourself constantly reminding your team to accomplish tasks - they do not know why it is important. 2. Ask for feedback and be prepared to take it in. Listen to the previous episode,  The One Where Chris Harper Explains Feedback 3. Complete the Expectation Exercise. Write down what you expect from your team and what you think they expect from you. Have them do the same thing.   Employee Recommendation 1. Training is 50/50. You must ask questions to understand what is expected of you. 2. Leave a situation you are not comfortable with.    Recommen

An employee gets scheduled on a day they had requested off. They bring the issue up with their manager and the manager makes them find someone to cover the shift. The panel introduces a new leader, Emery Winward to the audience. Emery has over 15 years of leadership experience. He has worked in the restaurant industry and has a unique understanding of why scheduling is so important to our employees. Leadership Recommendation 1. Over-communicate scheduling expectations. Find out the employees ideal schedule and make a commitment to bring it to life. "I value your time and want to make sure your schedule is as close to perfect as I can make it, let's review our business needs and when you can work." 2. Get permission. If a change in scheduling needs to happen, get permission from the employee to first. "Hey! There are a couple of changes that need to be made to the schedule, can we sit down and see how we can accommodate these changes?" Employee Recommendation 1. Negative Emotions are meant to be discussed, not

Chris Harper, COO of Meridian Restaurants Unlimited is back by popular demand to share his best practice around feedback. His 4-Step feedback approach is easy to execute and incredibly conversational.  Each Diary Entry is centered around a specific leadership behavior that will help you engage in work relationships. The leaders breakdown the behavior into steps and explain why each step is important. We then role-play the behavior so you can learn how to apply it. Follow Chris Harper by clicking here.    

A software update, 30-minutes of training and an outdated resource is the perfect recipe for disaster. What should you do if you find yourself in need of a resource, but your leader does not want you to ask any questions because it is, "stressing them out?"  The employee joins the panel live to discuss her experience. Her story will leave you wanting to employ her for loyalty and gain a better of understanding of why employees stay in environments where they were once treated well.   Share Your Story

As a salesman, Ernesto prides himself on his ability to read his clients and offer them an appropriate solution. He is put in a situation where he feels forced to follow direction to close a bigger sale or do what is best for his client. Join the panel of leaders Jennifer (representing the employee voice), Katherin, Chauncy, and Jessica to discuss what should have been done differently from the employee and manager perspective. Have a story you'd like the panel to discuss? Share it! Share Your Story Leadership Recommendation 1. Overcommunicate your expectations. If you find yourself over-managing your team, realize your vision is not clear. Simply say, "Let's review the vision of good in this situation." 2. Acknowledge your effect. If you upset an employee, following these steps. One: Name the emotion Two: Genuinely apologize for your role in how they are feeling. I notice you are frustrated, let's discuss how I could have handled this situation better. Employee Recommendation Recommended Reading Speed of Tru

Jennifer Mejia,Talent Acquisition Specialist and overall rockstar shares a tool that has helped her be successful in her career.  As an introverted personality, it has been difficult for her to find her voice. She describes the importance of owning your power and understanding if you are sitting at the table, you have earned a right to be there. What can you apply today? 1. Replace the phrase, "Let me talk to my boss" in email or in person with, "Let me get back to you."  This simple technique makes YOU the source of information. This will teach others to trust you, instead of feeling like you are a buffer between the person they should be talking to. The fact that you need to talk to your boss to get information is not relevant. 2. Don't C.C. your boss on emails.  The message your sending is small, but impactful. Your leader being cc'd on an email begins to train your recipient that this message only carries weight because their name is attached to it. You give away your power.  Share Your Story

What should you do if you find yourself working for a leader who humiliates you in front of other employees? What should you do if you are the kind of leader who has a tendency to react emotionally in the moment? The panel welcomes Jennifer Mejia, a Talent Acquisition Specialist as the voice of the employee. The panel of leaders discuss ways to deal with these kind of manager and coping skills for leaders who find themselves in this situation. Leadership Recommendation 1. Find your trigger. What behavior, when done by others, makes you react emotionally. 2. Learn to apologize. The most powerful word in the English language is I'm sorry. If you made a mistake that affected your team. Apologize, they will thank you for it.  3. Learn to ask for feedback. How was your day? How did that interaction go? What could I do better for you? Employee Recommendation Feedback is a two way street, you must teach people how to treat you and it begins with asking questions. What could I be doing better? Can I give you some fee

The transition from individual contributor to leader or manager can be a very difficult one. This Dairy Entry describes an easy technique you can use to help define your new role.  Share Your Story

Jessica challenges leaders and employees to roleplay a behavior they have found effective in creating better relationships with their teams. Learn how and why these behaviors can help you become a better leader. Chris Harper, Chief Operating Officer of Meridian Restaurants Unlimited joins us for our first Diary Entry episode. Chris introduces us to the Coaching In & Out Concept. This straightforward approach to engaging in the employee experience is easy to execute and very effective. Share Your Story

An employee has to deal with a previous employer from her past. This previous employer contacts her current employer to let them know what kind of person she is and to not hire her.  The panel of leaders discusses the importance of learning from failures and dealing with difficult people from your past.  Leadership Recommendation Your role, as a leader, is to have a short-term memory as it relates to mistakes your employees make. This allows them to room to grow without fear of "failure-branding". Employee Recommendation A huge component of bravery is confronting your failures. Our recommendation would be to thank the individuals for the experience they provided you and apologize for your role in the ending of the relationship. Then - move on! Share Your Story!

An employee returns from maternity leave and receives a poor performance review on her first day back. What was the leader thinking and what should you do if you find yourself in this situation? The panel discusses the in and outs of performance reviews, timely coaching and what an employee should do if they find themselves on the other end of a bad review. Leadership Recommendation 1. Your role in the relationship is to deliver consistent, timely feedback.  2. Be on purpose about delivering constructive and positive feedback. Employee Recommendation 1. Keep a log of your accomplishments, use this to track your wins and bring it into performance reviews. Book Recommendations Good Authority - Jonathan Raymond The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen Covey   Share Your Story

Andrea receives a well-earned promotion but does not receive the compensation she was expecting. She knows her male counterpart was paid significantly more to do the same job. She discusses the issue with her manager and receives an interesting response. Join in as the panel candidly discusses what you should do as a leader and an employee if you find yourself in a similar situation. Share Your Story! Recommended Reading: 5 Second Rule by Mel Robbins (see attached book summary - found at Paul Minors website) What Got You Here Won't Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith Leader recommendation: 1. Be prepared for conversations, using phrases like, "This conversation is important and I want to be prepared for it, would you mind if we had it (insert date and time).  2. Provide a career path for your team. If you cannot give the employee the rate they desire at that moment, show them how it is possible and what they need to do to achieve the next milestone. Find great career path conversations in the recommended read

Erica notices her direct supervisor committing time clock fraud. She brings her observations to the General Manager's attention and is asked to keep tabs on her supervisor.  Learn how to use these leadership moments to establish trust and protect your culture. Share Your Story!  

A manager openly confronts an employee about having an affair. How should this be handled? Chauncy Moyer and Katherin Nelson join the panel to discuss. With over 20 years of leadership experience between them, they offer a comedic look into a unique situation.  Please send in your stories! Follow the link or email us at diaryofapeoplemanager@gmail.com Share Your Story