Here is an article written by Kellye Whitney for Talent Management magazine. Control, engagement and useful information are rare commodities for those in leadership. Develop skills accordingly. To read the complete article, check out all the resources, and sign up for a free subscription to the TM and/or Chief Learning Officer magazines published by MedfiaTec, please click here.
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According to Joel Trammell, there are three leadership challenges to watch for in 2015.
Trammel should know. His leadership as a CEO has produced successful, nine-figure acquisitions for two Fortune 500 companies. Here’s what the author of “The CEO Tightrope” and current CEO of Khorus, a business management software company, said to keep an eye on if you support those in the top spot.
1. Lack of control and influence. The challenge for CEOs is to have employees do exactly what the CEO would do in any given situation. It’s difficult for CEOs to influence everyone directly once companies reach more than about 25 people. Many struggle with this lack of control, either by micromanaging or taking a hands-off management approach.
2. Lack of engaged employees. Employees, especially knowledge workers, who see no direct tie between corporate goals and their day-to-day activities will quickly disengage. Further, they may seem busy all the time, but they likely aren’t doing work that benefits the company.
3. Lack of useful information to address problems. If employees are disengaged, they are probably not sending timely or relevant information up the chain of command. Division heads and others often send the CEO historical reports. While this data helps show what they have accomplished, it does not help the CEO understand where to take action. Any future plans departments share are often tactical and not tied to business goals.
It’s all common sense stuff, but common sense isn’t always that common. These are areas learning leaders can address by working with human resources partners to create strategic and programmatic interventions targeted to managerial and general employee populations.
This blog post originally appeared in Talent Management‘s sister publication, Chief Learning Officer.
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Kellye Whitney is Talent Management’s associate editorial director. Comment below or email editor@talentmgt.com. Follow Kellye on Twitter at @kellyewhit. You can also follow her on Google Plus.