Mountain State University LeaderTalk

April's Theme: A Leader Builds Connections and Teams

This year at the LeaderTalk blog, we have been using a theme each month to tie together the posts. This month, our theme is: A Leader Builds Connections and Teams.

Leaders know the importance of building connections and relationships. When we work within strong teams, we get more done. This month, we will explore what leaders do to foster strong team relationships. 

We will end the month on April 28th with a round-up of posts on this month's theme from around the blogosphere. If you would like to contribute, please email me a link to your post no later than Monday, April 26th. Since this is a broad topic, you may have lots of great posts that relate to it. Your post does not have to be recent. Dig into your archives and send me your best post about building connections and teams. I look forward to providing these round-ups as an excellent resource for our readers.

Here is a disclaimer: not every post this month will relate to the theme.

I plan to post this month about my experiences as an adjunct faculty member inMountain State's Bachelor of Science/Organizational Leadership program.

Later this month, I will have some information to share about Mountain State's 2nd Annual Leadership Conference, Leader Link. I plan to be at the conference, May 12th - 15th in Beckley, WV. Have you ever been to West Virginia in the spring? It's wonderful, and I can't wait to get there. I would be thrilled if some of you chose to join me.

Also, we have some celebrating to do. LeaderTalk will pass the one year mark this month. It has been a great year and we hope to continue providing great leadership content here for years to come.

March Round-Up: A Leader Embraces Diversity and Bridges Differences

Each month, I want to provide links from around the internet to other resources about our theme.

In his post "Research Lessons: Diversity May (or May Not) Improve Performance," Wally Bock gives a great overview of the sometimes conflicting conclusions people may draw from studies about the effects of diversity in the workplace. Wally's conclusions are helpful for any managers who wants to help their teams work together successfully.

Roberta Hill's post "Encouraging Differences Starts At Home," offers wonderful insight about how we learn about differences from an early age and how leaders can help others in appreciating diversity.

Miki Saxon thinks about diversity beyond the obvious in this post, focusing on encouraging diversity of thought and skills in her post"Ducks in a Row: More on Creating a Culture of Innovation."

Michael McKinney's post "We Hire For Difference and Fire Because They're Not the Same"  gives tips about creating true diversity in the workplace, drawn from Laura Liswood's book The Loudest Duck.

Jennifer V. Miller shares the story of one leader and the skills he has that will make him an effective leader of a global virtual team in her post, "The Diverse Leader."

In another real life example, Jim Stroup talks about the importance of listening to dissenting opinions and being open to diversity.

Valuing others is challenging at times, especially if we perceive them to be different from us. Monica Diaz encourages us to adopt a non-prejudiced view of others.

Tanveer Naseer urges us to "Create a World Without Labels," in this post which includes compelling video about experiences of people with mental illness.

Mike Myatt's views are sure to get you thinking. Don't miss this post: "Diversity."

Join the conversation by sharing links to related articles in the comments section of this post.  

DEL Students in the Spotlight | Terrell Gray

I recently talked to Terrell Gray on the phone.

Terrell is a part of the new cohort of students in Mountain State University's Doctor of Executive Leadership program. In the weeks since the residency for the program at our main campus in Beckley, WV, Terrell has traveled to Taiwan and Korea. He's been finding time for study and reflection wherever he is: at home or on the job in the San Fransisco Bay area of California, on flights across the Pacific, or in hotel rooms throughout Asia in between business meetings.

Terrell works for MKS Instruments, Inc. as Global Product Manager, where his responsibilities include providing matrix leadership to cross-functional teams and promoting MKS service offerings globally. In his various roles, Terrell has learned the importance of working well with diverse teams and team members.

In his experience, the greatest challenge for working across cultures is communication. Even when his colleagues overseas can speak English well, communication can be difficult. At times, he uses translators when he's presenting proposals or finalizing sales contracts. As a leader, he realizes the importance of making sure that his message is understood as he intends it. Written communication, including email correspondence, needs to be precise and clear.

Local customs can be confusing, also, and create opportunities for misunderstanding. 

On one of his first trips to Asia, Terrell noticed a strange reaction when he put his Asian colleagues' business card away as soon as he received it. He later learned that in some Asian cultures, receiving a business card with both hands and then displaying it throughout the meeting is a sign of respect. From then on, Terrell took care to present his business cards with two hands and to receive cards from others in the same way. He now waits until a meeting is over to put the card away, and he never writes on the card (a sign of disrespect.)

Terrell has learned to eat and drink many new foods during his travels. On a recent trip to Kumamoto, Japan, he tasted basashi — raw horse meat — in an effort to honor his hosts. He understands the importance of adapting to various cultural expectations. By doing so, he bridges the differences between himself and others and creates the possibility for strong business relationships.

Terrell offers this advice to leaders working with diverse team members:

You need to understand the value of and use the differences of every person of the team. Diversity empowers people. If you are embracing the differences of the people on the team, people team members will feel accepted by the leader and want to contribute their strengths. Be sure to accept people for who they are. If you don't, the group may not be able to effectively work together. A leader needs to foster acceptance.

Join the conversation!

What cultural customs have you experienced when working with colleagues from other countries?

How do you effectively bridge differences when working with others?

How Diverse is Your Neighborhood?

When I lived in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago, I experienced the sights, sounds, and smells of the world at my doorstep.

Snippets of conversations in several languages during an afternoon at the playground.

Corner grocery stores, each unique in its ethnic offerings, within a five minute drive of home.

Ethiopian, Mediterranean, Jamaican, Greek, Italian, Indian, Chinese, Middle Eastern restaurants, all authentic, all within walking distance.

One of the most diverse neighborhoods in America with people speaking more than 80 different languages make their home there, nearly 70,000 people in one and a half square miles: living, working, playing.

When we left the city, I lamented the fact that my daughters would miss out on such a rich, diverse environment. During our time in the city, we made friends with a wonderful girl named Maria and her mother, who moved to Chicago when Maria was still an infant. Yelena, Maria's mother, spoke very little English. She walked everywhere. We would run into them at the beach or the library and they always invited us to their apartment, to share meals. They welcomed us into their home for birthdays and on summer afternoons.

We met other friends with interesting backgrounds and experiences, but most of our friends — and certainly our closest ones — were mostly just like us.

Overall, we didn't take advantage of living in such a culturally diverse neighborhood. We most often ate at Panera Bread or Noodles and Company. I shopped at Sam's Club. I stuck to the familiar and the comfortable. And I missed out.

Our new neighborhood is decidely less diverse. I have seen a scattering of ethnic restaurants but so far everyone I've encountered speaks English. My daughters classmates are, outwardly at least, mostly homogeneous.

You may live in a very diverse place, or you may live somewhere where everyone looks a lot like you.What's important is being open... open to new experiences, new people. Open to relating to people who are different from you, learning from peoples' different perspectives, and enjoying diversity.

If you do live in a diverse place, don't miss out. Soak it in, enjoy it, savor it. Above all, look for opportunities to learn.

If you live in a place that doesn't seem diverse (outwardly), look beneath the surface to discover, uncover, and celebrate difference.

Join the conversation!

How diverse is your community?

What do you do to celebrate and savor difference?

Convocation

Today marks an important beginning for the 13 members of Mountain State University's Bachelor of Science/Organizational Leadership Web Cohort 44. The students of Web Cohort 44 will meet this evening for their convocation: an introduction to our program, and discussion of expectations for their study together.

I have posted about the start of new cohorts before, as we celebrated the launch of our Doctor of Executive Leadership program. It has been exciting to see these students lay a foundation for future scholars in the discipline of leadership. Without a doubt, we want to publicize the hard work of our doctoral students.

Yet Mountain State University launches several new cohorts of bachelor and masters level students each year, both online and in-seat. Their beginnings are no less important or significant for the students involved.

I wanted to highlight the beginning of this cohort because this one holds special significance for me as well. I will be working with this cohort as an instructor and facilitator as I begin my position as adjunct faculty member with Mountain State University.

I will share part of that journey here, incorporating some of the lessons from our virtual classroom into posts as appropriate. I hope that members of my cohort will get involved in the conversation here at LeaderTalk, and I look forward to introducing them to all the great wisdom and writing about leadership around the web.

I have a list of names of my students, and I am excited to meet them tonight. Here's what I know about them:

They are brave. Returning to school as an adult and balancing work and family life along with studies is a formidable task.

They want to make a difference. Leaders choose to make a positive difference in their organizations, their communities, and their families. These individuals are showing their desire to make a difference by enrolling in a program that is designed to make them more effective as leaders.

They can do this! Completing a degree is hard work, but these students have what it takes. When they need help, Mountain State University provides plenty of support: technical support, for help with using online learning technology; educational support through tutoring as needed; and caring faculty who are available and eager to help... like me!

Join the conversation!

What words of encouragement do you have for my new cohort?

Making Strangers Into Friends

Yesterday, I enjoyed a lovely lunch. 65 degrees and sunny. My friend, my daughters, and I ate outside to soak up the sun.

Midway through our lunch, a woman dining alone sat down at the table next to us. We continued our conversation for awhile, and then she joined in to add her thoughts.

Apparently, as we talked, she found herself identifying with every topic we discussed. Finally, she decided to join our fun.

On both the surface level topics of our conversation (furniture shopping, flea markets) and the deeper stuff of life (relationships, spirituality), we found common interests and values. I left the table with the phone number of this new stranger-turned-friend.

Here's the lunch lesson: It's always possible to find common ground with others.

In the last post, I wrote about our tendency to want to stay in groups of people we perceive to be like us. The truth is, we all have more in common than we think.

If we are willing to take the time to get to know others, we may soon find ways to relate to others. We can start by finding common interests or values. As our common interests draw us together, our difference may seem less important.

First, discover and concentrate on common interests. If you are working with a diverse team, take time to get to know your team members as individuals. You obviously have one common interest and goal already: whatever work project has brought you together. Beyond that, look for other connecting points. Share some of your interests and values and ask good questions to get to know the unique hobbies, likes, and dislikes of your team members.

Next, recognize differences and look for ways to use them to strengthen your team. I'm an extrovert. You gain energy from time spent alone. I am forgetful and big picture oriented. You keep meticulous and detailed notes and refer to them frequently to stay on top of deadlines. Instead of labeling differences as right or wrong, appreciate people for who they are and find ways to maximize their strengths.

Consider finding similarities with others an intellectual challenge. Think of a colleague or team member who is superficially most unlike you. Choose a person that you know or assume is different from you in other ways as well. Take some time to get to know that individual. As you do, see how many similar attitudes, values, or interests you share. Make a list. This exercise will be good practice for finding common ground with others. 

Remember the lunch lesson, and you may soon find that you can work much more effectively — or even make friends —with those colleagues you assumed were strangers.

Join the conversation!

What other ideas do you have about finding common ground with others?

Do you agree with me that we have more in common than we think?

Did you try my intellectual experiment? If so, what did you discover?

Are Homogeneous Groups Better?

During graduate school, I learned about the Homogeneous Unit Principle. Simply put, the theory states that people are most comfortable in groups of people like them. Robert Putnam's book, Bowling Alone, reinforces the idea of the Homogeneous Unit Principle. His extensive study and research found that people are increasingly isolated within our communities largely in part to increased diversity and multiculturalism. People withdraw from interacting with others because they are uncomfortable relating to people they perceive as "different."

Michael Jonas, writing in the Boston Globe calls this "the downside of diversity." Citing Putnam's research, he writes that "in the most diverse communities, neighbors trust one another about half as much as they do in the most homogenous settings."

Diversity can be a hindrance to working together, when people allow their discomfort with "others" stand in the way of collaboration and community.

We may use politically correct language; we may say the right buzz words about the importance of embracing diversity. At the end of the day, though, Putnam's research shows that even though we may not admit it, many of us strongly prefer to live, work, and interact with people who are just like us.

Leaders who work to bridge differences do so against enormous resistance at times, both from within and from without. Yet collaborating in diverse groups unleashes energy, insight, and creative solutions. Jonas states: "Culture clashes can produce a dynamic give-and-take, generating a solution that may have eluded a group of people with more similar backgrounds and approaches."

While it may be comfortable and easy to stay in homogeneous groups, we will accomplish far more when we work in more heterogeneous groups.

Joion the conversation!

What can you do as a leader to help people overcome their resistance to working in heterogeneous groups?

What success have you found working with people from different backgrounds or perspectives from your own?

What Makes a Great Training Session

If you are a leader, you probably end up presenting training sessions or leading seminars from time to time, even if it is not a part of your formal job description.

Last Wednesday, I drove to East Lansing, MI to attend part of Choices 2010. Mary Jo Asmus, an executive coach with extensive experience working at a Fortune 100 company,  presented the session I attended, "Coaching for Breakthrough Performance." I learned a lot from her, both from the content she presented and from the way she interacted with the participants.  

Here are some lessons I learned that may help you make your presentations more memorable, helpful, and practical.

1. Start by listening. Before Mary Jo did anything else, she asked the people attending the seminar what they expected to gain from the afternoon together. Maybe you already do this, but I am betting Mary Jo took it one step farther. She really listened — not just to the words they spoke, but also to the emotion behind the words — so she could pick up on hesitation or hindrances to learning. Later, Mary Jo stressed the importance of listening in coaching and leading others. Since she had already modeled this important skill, her words resonated more deeply.
2. Ask Good Questions Throughout the session, Mary Jo asked great questions to get people thinking and interacting with the material. Her questions were open-ended. She asked "what" questions, allowing people the freedom to find answers for themselves.
3. Be Encouraging and Positive. Mary Jo exuded confidence in the seminar participants. Throughout the afternoon, she said things like "You can do this!" Even though some of the people may have been unsure of their ability to implement the material, Mary Jo provided what they needed to get past their inhibitions. Mary Jo told them they could do it, through her encouraging words. Then she showed them they could do it by allowing them to practice.
4. Give People the Opportunity to Practice Course Material. Throughout the afternoon, Mary Jo invited people to partner with others to practice their coaching skills and to receive feedback about their coaching. Many of the people in the session had never been exposed to the coaching process before. It gave them, and those of us more familiar with coaching, a chance to immediately apply the information Mary Jo shared with us.

Join the conversation!

What other ideas do you have about how to make presentations memorable?

Marion Chapsal writes a great blog about how to make presentations outstanding. If you have never checked out her blog, I encourage you to do so today.

Leadership Principles Series | Leading Others and Connecting Through Communication: A Leader Values and Engages Others

Note: From time to time, we will post a "flashback" to a previous month's theme, to review and recall what we've been learning. This post is a review of January's theme.

A leader values and engages others.

One of the competencies that is most violated by leaders is valuing and engaging others. Too often we take our employees for granted. We see them only as someone to complete a task or check off a box. Valuing others begins with viewing others as whole people and treating them with consideration and respect. Effective leaders recognize that people are complex and multi-dimensional.

Valuing and engaging others starts when a leader gets to know people beyond job titles and responsibilities. They understand their strengths and weaknesses. They recognize what motivates their people. They say thank you!

As leaders get to know others, they express through daily interaction their belief that people have unlimited potential and inherent value. Leaders treat others in ways that recognize and affirm the uniqueness and possibility of each person. In other words, leaders appreciate and celebrate individual differences.

To engage employees or followers, leaders frame challenges in ways that enable others to act. Leaders give people room to use their gifts and express themselves freely, even if sometimes this means allowing them to fail. In this way, leaders influence and mobilize all members of the organization or group to action. As people take ownership, they immerse themselves in tasks and relationships that interest them and become engaged and invested in their work.

Leaders are most effective when they connect in genuine relationships with others. As they create a sense of belonging and teamwork in their followers, they foster commitment for shared goals. Beyond being committed to shared goals, engaged people value being members of organizations or groups whose purpose and values align with their own. Team members feel a sense of accomplishment and personal satisfaction as they work together to accomplish the goals of the group and fulfill the purpose of the organization.

Hidden Bias

Last night I participated in and and observed a live chat in one of Mountain State University's Bachelor of Science Organizational Leadership courses. It's an exciting next step for me as I prepare to become one of MSU's newest adjunct faculty members. After reading and writing about Mountain State's leadership programs for more than a year, and getting to know students and graduates through interviews, I am excited to experience our programs first-hand, to interact with students and to learn and grow with them.

I can already see many ways that teaching will sharpen my own leadership knowledge and skills. My plan is to blog, when appropriate, about topics from class.

A section from the textbook for tonight's chat coincides perfectly with this month's theme about diversity.

The textbook reprints, with permission, an article from Harvard Business Review on the topic of decision making and bias.

As leaders strive to embrace diversity among people — race, age, gender, thought, beliefs, and values — we need to recognize our own vulnerability to hidden biases. These could be biases that we hide from others, when we outwardly claim to be open to diversity while harboring secret prejudices. Or, more often, we could be hiding biases, even from ourselves, subconsciously.

What can we do about hidden biases?

1. Be honest. Take a hard look at yourself and any prejudices or assumptions that might be influencing your interactions with others. Taking an inventory like the one found at implicit.harvard.edu might reveal some unconscious beliefs you hold.

2. Be aware of the cost of your subconsious beliefs. Banaji, Bazerman, and Chugh (Harvard Business Review, Dec. 2003), write that people tend to act on subconscious beliefs despite their best intentions to remain unbiased. When they do, their ability to make good decisions is compromised. This takes a toll, both on interpersonal relationships and on the bottom line.

3. Be Vigilant. Leaders need vigilance —"continual awareness of the forces that can cause decision making to veer from its intended course and continual adjustments to counteract them." (Banaji, Bazerman, and Cugh, 2003). If we are vigilant, we can take time to process decisions while examining our motives to ensure that we aren't allowing biases to affect our ability to choose wisely.

Join the conversation!

How do you counteract hidden biases in yourself or your organization?

Have you ever experienced the cost of hidden biases first-hand? Share your stories here!