One in four managers 'don't know how bad they are'

It has been reported in todays Telegraph, that millions of managers fail to realise “how bad they are at managing”, which is undermining company efforts to boost productivity and growth.

One in four of the UK’s line managers – almost 2m people – have an inflated opinion of their ability to lead teams, the study by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has claimed.

Ben Willmott, head of public policy at the CIPD, said: “Management capability continues to be an Achilles heel for UK plc, despite mounting evidence that these are ‘skills for growth’.

“Too many employees are promoted into people management roles because they have good technical skills, then receive inadequate training and have little idea of how their behaviour impacts on others.”

If you are 1 in 4 managers who spends more time dealing with stressed staff, absence or conflict, rather than providing high-quality feedback to their teams, or if you have been promoted to management, and do not want to become a "bad manager", then come to our free Inspirational Leadership seminar, or contact us for further information on our Leadership Training for Managers, where we can ensure that you become more than a "good leader", but a "great" inspiration.

Stephanie Fletcher

To read more on this article visit: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/jobs/9241249/One-in-four-managers-dont-know-how-bad-they-are.html

Leadership Development Increases Performance.....FACT!

It has been reported that the Government should make leadership development a key part of its "skills for growth" strategy in order to improve the UK's competitiveness and boost economic growth, a report has recommended.

According to the "Business benefits of management and leadership development" report, produced by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) and HR consultancy Penna, 34% of individuals across all levels of management consider their line managers to be ineffective.
The report, which surveyed 4,500 managers, found that companies that invested in the development of leaders saw increases of up to 32% in people performance and 23% in organisational performance.

In addition, organisations that performed well spent, on average, 36% more on leadership development per manager per year than those with low performance levels.
The report's findings suggest that simply spending more on managers' development is not necessarily the answer - employers are, in general, investing in a range of leadership development activities, but the types of training being used are not always the most effective.

Short courses on management and leadership were used by 43% of organisations but were rated as one of the most effective tools to train leaders by only 34% of respondents.
To continue to read this report please visit http://www.personneltoday.com/articles/2012/02/28/58366/leadership-development-must-be-part-of-skills-for-growth-strategy-says-report.html

Find out how Dale Carnegie can improve your leadership development and help increase your people and organisational performance visit our web site, or contact us for more information on 0207 379 4323

Stephanie Fletcher

Overcoming Self Built Barriers

I am sitting in a room full of professionals, all experienced in their fields and all investing in the development of fundamental interpersonal skills. It is the first session of the Dale Carnegie Course and our coach Charlotte is encouraging us all to mingle, meet and greet. During these few minutes, I ask people what are their expectations of the course and the response is mixed. Some are anticipative, some are rather nervous and of course there are a few skeptics.

Once we had all sat down, Charlotte ran through the introduction of today’s session and out of nowhere, picked on me first! This didn’t surprise me, being the only one sitting on a front row of eight seats. I casually took the few steps needed to stand at the front and face my newly found class mates when tunnel vision set in. This is what happens to me when I am asked to present in front of a group. This is a real bug bearer for me as I am a confident girl and I know that even the worst outcome of this situation is not really one I need worry about, it’s hardly life or death. As it turns out all I had to do was introduce myself to the group and whilst doing so, emphasize both my first and last name. This I did with ease, still feeling a little red faced but already starting to feel more comfortable. I watched everyone else do the same and we were then asked to note down the first and last names of our class mates. When asked to see how many we could remember, I shamefully could only rattle off four names.

After a little more coaching on memory techniques, we were given another challenge. I was now feeling way out of my comfort zone as it was different and definitely unusual challenge.

‘Tell us your name through imagery, using your physical body to create these images, and then present this as expressively as you can to your class mates.’

Ok, let’s throw myself into this I thought, this is a great opportunity, it would be a shame if I played shy and didn’t push myself. The challenge was hilarious; the class was divided into groups of fours so we could help each other and feedback the effectiveness of ideas. When presenting our name, I was first after the lovely Charlotte. Tunnel vision set in once again, but this time the ‘silliness’ of the situation evoked so much laughter from everyone that I instantly felt more comfortable. By the end of my turn, tunnel vision had left me and I was absolutely chuffed with this mini break through. After all had presented their names using that technique, we were asked how many we remembered. I remembered everyone’s.

For the first time ever, I had presented my ideas to a group of people I believed were all more experienced than me, and when finished, I had a smile on my face and my palms were perspiration free.

Session 1- My classmates and I learnt to have an open mind with regards to the effectiveness of less conventional activities, and not to be afraid to be creative.

Michaela Foden

The story so far……

Having come through the second full day of training in the last month to be a Dale Carnegie Coach I am currently experiencing an array of emotions. I am really fired up and enthusiastic but also nervous at the prospect of another session at the end of March and the crucial assessment event taking place over four consecutive days at the back end of April.

My journey started back in September 2010 and I am getting closer to crunch time. I have realized in the last 30 days that becoming a coach is challenging and becoming an excellent coach requires passion, drive, determination, tenacity and an unbelievable amount of effort.

To have the ability to help people improve in their key development areas, coaching in real-time to redirect from ineffectual habits and provide feedback relevant to the learning objectives and the individual’s goals requires practice, practice and more practice.

Needless to say I have a new found respect for my colleagues that consistently and effectively support others to reach their visions.

I have been in the business for 15 months and despite seeing the results of the coaching, I never realised until now the process and effort involved of getting people from where they are to where they need to be, faster and with less anxiety.

Our seminars and previews are designed to give people at least a couple of new ideas that they can implement in their business or private life to improve the results they are getting.

Please visit our website to see a list of our complimentary events you can attend in the coming weeks.

I look forward to supporting you in the near future to achieve your goals.

Have a great weekend.

Amar

Can a lack of communication be the difference between life and death?

I was shocked about the news this week regarding the Costa Concordia crashing into rocks off Giglio Porto and subsequently sinking. This has resulted in the death of at least 11 people with another 24 still missing. A sad loss of life’s that simply should have been avoided.

In the aftermath, Captain Francesco Schettino has been arrested on suspicion of multiple manslaughter with some reports suggested that he was amongst the first to leave the ship after the crash.

As some of this is unsubstantiated at this moment in time I will refrain from passing my own judgment on the man.

However, recently video footage has been released in which a female crew member is urging passengers to return to their cabins. Passengers were also told that the problem was electrical and confined to the ships generator. Apparently, the footage comes from the period after the ship hit the reef. In another audio tape aired yesterday a crew member is heard describing the situation to a port authority official as a blackout.

Wherever the truth lies regarding what actually happened in the time before and after the crash, I can clearly tell that there was a distinct lack of communication from the crew to the passengers as well as to the port officials.

I work for an organisation that appreciates the importance of communication, whether that is internal to your peers and bosses or external to other stakeholders and clients. We have spent the best part of a century coaching and training people in this area, who are looking to gain credibility, increase team member engagement or simply to develop their own careers.

I love the work I do, so much so that I about to undergo my training to become a trainer / coach for the company and so will be dedicating my life to improving the communication skills (amongst other key soft skill areas) of individuals, teams and companies in the years to come.

I understand that in the current tough economic climate a lack of communication has a massive impact on the ability of an organisation to thrive or survive.

However, after reflecting on the aforementioned events it really saddens me to think that many innocent lives were snatched away under these circumstances.

My thoughts are with everyone that lost their life, the people still missing and all their respective friends and family.

A lack of communication can really be the difference between life and death.

Amar Garcha

Happy New Year

Happy New Year!

I know it is the time of year where promises and resolutions have been made. In fact, it's probably around that these resolutions start to break for most of us. Traditionally, the resolutions that people make are things like eating more healthily, to exercise more, cut down on alcohol consumption and to quit smoking.

However, we need to also consider our own personal development. The first step is to reflect back on 2010. Take a moment to ask yourself the following questions, what went well in 2010? What could be improved?

I am a big football fan and this is also the time of year that many managers get the sack (Roy Keane of Ipswich is the latest to get the chop at the time of writing). This is nothing new or surprising. What surprises me is the lack of flexibility in a large number of the managers that work in the sport, even at the very highest echelons. To give you one example, Carlo Ancelotti
of Chelsea won the double last year and they started this season as they finished the last. However, over the last two months Chelsea have managed just a solitary win in the league and now find themselves nine points adrift of Manchester United.

In this troubled spell Carlo has stuck to the same formation, tactics and has refrained from making changes in the team. A wise man once said that the definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results. This unwillingness to change may end up costing him his job.

But I digress..........

Now is the time for you to identify key areas of development that will improve your performance at work. It makes no difference whether you own your own business, work part time or anything in between.

Dale Carnegie Training supports individuals, teams and organisations to perform better. If you would like a complimentary needs analysis assessment to help you establish these key areas then get in touch with one of our performance consultants on 0207 379 4323. You can also come along (for free) to our Effective Communications and Human Relations preview on 11th January. This is our flagship program based on the books How to Win Friends and Influence People, How to Stop Worrying and Start Living and The Quick and Easy Guide to Effective Speaking, written by our founder.

You have many options; don't just do the same thing over and over. do everything you can to make sure 2011 is better than 2010.

Amar Garcha

Performance Consultant
Dale Carnegie Training

www.london.dalecarnegie.com

The few who do are the envy of the many who only watch

What a week in the world of football. As a Manchester United fan and like many of the Red Devils, I was shell shocked by the revelations made by the club regarding the imminent departure of Wayne Rooney. There have been many stories plastered in the papers, uploaded on to websites as well as the extensive coverage on television and radio whilst this saga unfolds.

However, I would like to shift focus altogether on to Sir Alex Ferguson. Arguably the greatest manager in English football history. I believe he has achieved his success not only because of his managerial and coaching ability but also through the use of key principles.

Many players have left United in the past, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and countless others and not once in all of Sir Alex's reign has he criticized, condemned or complained. Even when the Glazers took over the club and placed a huge debt over its head, he simply got on with his job. Sir Alex has also developed raw potential into world class talent and achieved this through honest and sincere appreciation of his players. Many of his players have talked of his continual support and how they see him as a father figure. He has the ability to create a winning team, but more importantly has been able to keep them hungry for more by arousing an eager want for success within his team. He always makes other people (namely his players) feel important.

With Rooney, Sir Alex has shared that he is a special player and the door is always open to him. Rooney has since closed the door and thankfully for United fans he will stay at the Theatre of Dreams after agreeing a new contract with the club.

These are just some of the fundamentals Sir Alex has applied in order to become and then remain successful. These principles are inherent in highly successful people. Just take a moment and think about what has been achieved by Richard Branson and Warren Buffet. Now, consider other high achievers you know; friends, a teacher, colleagues or your local businessmen and women, who have gained phenomenal success and you will see they also apply these simple and effective principles. These qualities are not reserved for the gifted few. Anyone can gain the same success, by applying the proven techniques described by Dale Carnegie in his book How to Win Friends and Influence People.

If you aspire to the successes of people such as Warren Buffet then follow his lead and enrol on the Effective Communications and Human Relations programme which is based on the aforementioned book.

Not convinced?

Then come along to the free preview of the programme on November 4th and see for yourself. Click here to register

Amar Garcha
Sales Consultant

www.London.dalecarnegie.com