Thursday, May 6, 2010
The Book....It's Free!
Friday, April 30, 2010
When one of my clients told me recently that she was the only remaining member of the company’s twenty person training department, I was at first shocked. Then I asked, “How could I help?” She asked that we prepare a list of things she needs to consider as she picks up the pieces. Below are the results that I sent her from Eagle’s Flight. Of course we at Eagle’s Flight are here to provide guidance on all these points, including providing content, but my hope is that you can utilize this information as a guide to help you.
1) Vision: Have a clear and stated line of sight between the intent of every course and delivery on the company’s plans/objectives.
2) Content: Concentrate more on participants being able to leave knowing exactly how to apply what’s taught rather than covering a lot of theoretical content.
3) Teach Less: Learn More: In each course cover off less material, and put more time into practice. This ensures participants truly understand what’s expected.
4) Inspire Accountability: Require participants to have a prior discussion with their line manager regarding an expectation of improved performance as a result of the course.
5) Build Relevance: Establish an “advisory council” of line managers as a preliminary screening group who’ll review courses for relevance and practicality before they are given.
6) Experiential Approach: Wherever possible have learning be experiential and discovery rather than “lecture and workbook.”
7) Engage Senior Leaders: Use senior managers throughout the course content, either live or on video, to provide company specific relevance.
8) Training Transfer: Build pre and post course work into all content to ensure the learning does not fade and has on the job practical relevance.
9) Integrate: Link all learning and development to other HR/OD functions such as: performance management, succession planning, career planning and high potential programs.
10) Results: Have as a test for the training functions, the following question: “Are we committed to delivering training programs or to delivering the results possible through training?”
Email me anytime with questions!
Todd
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Three Lessons from the Trail to your Work
“Three lessons from the trail to your work.”
By Todd Mitchem
Buffalo, Wyoming is possibly one of the last places in America where you can still taste the simple life. When my father and I arrive, we always feel as though we have shed the deadlines and cares of the business world and become part of the Wild West; we become cowboys! Life on this working cattle ranch seems simple to an outsider, but to the ranchers who work here every day, life is a never-ending work in progress. After about twelve hours in the saddle we also remember that, while we may be paying for our one week work vacation on the trail, we have a job to do. The fifteen hundred head of cattle must be moved from the low lying ranch to the mountain pasture before the week is over. The only method of moving this many animals this far on this challenging terrain is by horseback. This is a fun time, but work to be certain.
Every year when we visit, we expect to enjoy ourselves beyond imagination, because each cattle drive is different than the last. We always expect to work with the same great people, eat the same great food and enjoy the feel of the saddle beneath us as we drive the cattle across the mountain. This time, however, I saw parallels in ranching and in life that I never expected to learn.
Lesson #1 – Flexibility - the key to your overall success
Waking up in the morning on the trail, you know that the day ahead will be a hot fast day of cattle rustling so there is a feeling of anticipation and excitement in the air. Today, your success may be determined by the way you handle your horse when a bull breaks from the herd. Your success may rest in the way you follow John’s directions; as the trail boss, he will have the final say. Things change and if you come to the Ranch with a preconceived notion or assumption of how the trip will go, you will be disappointed, but more importantly you become a liability to the crew. Everyone must be flexible if the entire crew is to reach that mountain. There is no time for your petty egoic inflexible nature. You must bend and mold to the mission at hand. These are animals after all and they have no care for your agenda. In your work the same is true. One of the classic challenges teams of people face is the lack of flexibility. How many times have you been so rigid in your “win” mentality that your judgment was clouded?
Flexibility is the key to success in the business world. As the business changes or your customers change their interests, you too must adapt. Flexibility is the key to your success!
Lesson #2 – Work smart.
“Don’t ride out ahead of the herd or you might turn them back”
This lesson was one that one of the other guest workers learned the hard way. After only a few minutes of riding, this guest was restless and decided to ride up to the front of the herd. This herd stretches over a mile and at many different points John has asked certain people to hold the line in a specific area. Your role then is to ride along on that side and make sure that cattle do not break off into the thick woods. Instead, this particular guest became restless and rode to the front yelling at the cattle the entire way. As he galloped about 20 feet ahead of the first few heifers in the front, they became nervous and promptly turned around. In an instant, hundreds of cattle were facing the opposite direction and running into the back half of the herd. Many of us, led by John, quickly rode into the middle to stop the disaster. It took some time but we finally turned them all back.
Often I see business leaders who operate this same way. They get out ahead of the customer or the company. This can intimidate the clients or colleagues which leads to the entire project or situation turning the other way. Stay focused on the Big Picture of your company and your team. Getting to know your customers or your colleagues begins with paying attention to them all of the time, even when you get restless. After all, they know the mountain better than you do and if you help them stay on the trail, you will all make it to the top of the mountain together. If you reach the top without them, you have failed.
Lesson #3 – Leadership from the middle:
“Keep your eye on the whole herd.”
As we approach the top of the trail and our final destination, I ride in the middle of the herd so that I can keep the center strong and push the front if needed. From that perspective, I am able to see the entire herd stretched out across the mountain top. As I watch John moving from the back to the front, I notice that he is strongly leading from the middle. He leads from all over because this gives him the most balanced perspective. Because of this style of leadership, he knows where the problems are going to happen before they do. When there is an issue, he is quick to respond.
The old thinking of leading from the front is gone just like the pioneer in the Old West. Your leadership strength in your business, community, family and work comes from your ability to see the entire picture and then execute based on the totality of the information available. How narrow is the view if you are only riding in the front or in the back? As I watched John lead us, I realize that we were being successful because he understood our abilities and placed us in positions where we were strongest. He then was able to let us do our work while observing the big picture. True leaders work the project from all angles.
The Ranch is an experience that changes your perspective. Out there you understand that you cannot dwell on your mistakes or you may lose cattle. The way to success is to stay flexible, lead from the middle while understanding the needs of your customer–the cows. Also remember, if you graze in the same spot for too long you will end up with a mouthful of dirt, so keep trying new things to improve yourself and your business.
By the way, if you don’t fall off the horse sometimes you are just not riding hard enough!
At Eagle’s Flight we practice what we teach. To find out more, call or email today!
This video shows how much FUN it can be to work with, or for Eagle's Flight.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Motivation Through Leadership
By Todd Mitchem VP Business Development and Phil Geldart CEO
What motivates us? Is it money, encouragement or power? In your company what motivates the people who work for you, with you or around you? Leadership often believes that people must “self motivate” but is that truly the best course?
A key component of leadership is the responsibility to motivate others. However, too often the leader assumes that motivation need only be done “when required,” or at previously determined times. Not so. People require frequent motivation to move towards the objective. This motivation needs to be heartfelt and the leader must be held accountable to this motivation.
As leaders provide words of encouragement, coaching or positive guidance, the individual is able to remain focused and clear about the value of their contribution. The nature of motivation is that it sustains momentum; consequently when you anticipate that momentum is lagging, it is a clear sign that motivation is in order. This takes rigor and discipline to accomplish on a daily basis and in the face of daily pressures. The necessary motivation must be at the forefront regardless of these pressures.
Given that it must be done frequently, several approaches are necessary to avoid repetition. There are five specific approaches which you can take to provide this motivation.
1. Repetition: Remind the individual often of the original objective and the important part which they play in it.
2. Celebration: Individual, group or team successes should be celebrated. It is an effective and fun way to recognize milestones and to motivate teams.
3. Compare: Consider how the individual and the team are doing compared to others, not only in your own workplace but in your marketplace and their past performance. When the comparison is made there will be opportunities to learn, grow and discover new ways of doing things.
4. Measurement: As individuals are able to track their progress and see it measured, the results can be highly motivating when success is reflected by these measures. When measurements show a shortfall, a skillful manager will draw lessons from this so that improvements can be made.
5. Validation: When possible, make others aware of the progress of your team or individuals on your team. This way, you have not only served to motivate, but also to educate those around you who depend on the team’s results for their own progress.
A strong part of motivation involves creativity. Sometimes a word or a handshake is sufficient, or occasionally a more elaborate event should be planned. The type of motivation used will vary, but the basic principle behind it remains the same: motivating others requires speaking the truth, speaking passionately and speaking with compassion. The power of motivation should never be underestimated.
Check out the video below on how FIRE kindles FIRE by our CEO Phil Geldart!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
“5 Steps to a more results focused vendor/client partnership”
Power up Partnerships
“5 Steps to a more results focused vendor/client partnership”
Assumptions No More! – Instead discover each other. Most of my first meetings with partner clients are spent in discovery. After all, I need an intimate understanding of the company’s history, team, leadership, needs, and challenges if I am to innovate solutions with you. Often the vendor can feel a little like a doctor with a closet full of remedies if you, the client, would only tell the truth about the company’s medical history. The lesson here for both vendor and client is to ask questions, discover and never assume anything. I don’t want to put your leg in a cast if it’s your head that hurts.
Leap in for Results – Many times people just start talking. On the vendor side it is usually because they want to get their service message across quickly. The vendor then works vehemently toward an information dump. On the client side the response is more about vague concepts designed to feel standard so as to not give away the challenges of that particular organization. (See partnership rule 1) A true, vendor - client partnership is different. In this level of interaction we only respond for results considering all of the other partnership principles, related context and needs. Leaping in for results literally means that you leap in when the time is right with a passion for achieving the desired outcome. If you are on the client side it also means that as you sell your vendor into the organization do so with that same passion. Think about it this way, in every interaction both from vendor and client, you should be working to close to the next phase of the partnership. Clients can learn a great lesson here. For example, one of my clients called to download literally EVERY initiative he had for the year. Then he said, “Tell me where you see Eagle’s Flight helping here.” Now, that is Leaping in for Results based on Transparent Trust!
Engage their Passion – I call this the heart of the partnership. What is it that makes the partner tick? Do they love baseball, food, family, or work itself? Whatever the passion you as a partner must engage that passion. Get to them on their level. One of my partner clients at a multi-billion dollar organization loves to be involved in the process of developing programs. When his company was interested in using Eagle’s Flight for a roll out to all of their ten thousand employees I kept reminding him that he would be involved in the process of developing the custom content. His passion was ignited to say the least thus creating a joyous experience working with him on the project. We could all feel his passion coming out in the work. Dare I say, it made the project even more enjoyable?
By Todd Mitchem
Eagle’s Flight
Todd Mitchem BIO
Eagle’s Flight
Eagle’s Flight has been an innovative leader in “experiential” learning for more than twenty years. These cleverly masked business simulations have allowed clients to engage both the head and the heart of their employees. In order for these experiences to be effective, Eagle’s Flight works diligently to understand your business needs and to apply relevance to the participant learning.