Fostering Leadership

What about one-on-one coaching conversations? Do you have those with your leaders? And if so, what has worked the best? And what has not worked so well?

No, absolutely. This is a big part of my job. I tell people all the time, one of the biggest parts of my job is to help people be the best leaders they can be. What I try to do as much as possible, is catch people doing things right. That positive reinforcement goes a long way. It’s amazing how people just feel, and it can make their day to have the CEO say, “Man, you nailed that, that is exactly what I’m looking for. Just keep that going, you know, can’t thank you enough.” People really respond to that. And then they say, “Oh, I want to do that again, so I’m going to repeat what I did that got that positive reinforcement.” And you can do that publicly so that other people see.
Also, when I’m trying to give constructive criticism, I do try to put it in a context. You know, there’s this notion of a positive sandwich. You start out with, “Hey, you’re doing really well. I like these things that you’re stepping up on. Here’s a place I think I’d like you to concentrate and improve. I think it’s going to make you an even better leader. Here’s why. Here’s a concrete example of what I experienced. Here’s some ways that it might be helpful for you to think about going forward. We’re going to keep working on this together. And oh, by the way, just remember, you’re doing a great job.”
So I think if you can start and end positively and put that in context, you’re going to get…What you don’t want to do is just crush people, make them feel like they’re, you know, they have a hard time hearing the feedback when they feel like there’s an existential professional crisis going on in the middle of the conversation, and you don’t want them feeling that.