Keynote topic

The talent shortage – and 4 tips for what you can do today

Is there a talent shortage? Yes. The numbers all point to a tightening labor market. When I do an occassional project in this space here is what I see. Remember, the goal of a good search is to look more attractive as an employer than the other companies that are looking. Here are some tips . . .

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Becoming Adaptable

Are you adaptable? Success in business and in life means understanding and managing the changes that approach. Transitions as leaders, parents, spouses, friends are full of moments where the current way of doing things/reacting will not work, and we have to ask ourselves – Are we willing to change? Here are 262 words to process this a little . . .

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Why I Hate Job Descriptions, and 3 Things to Fix Them

Job descriptions are one of the problems with employee engagement. Here are three of my top frustrations and three fixes that will help any leader do a better job defining the work. Talent management is about great conversations, and using the new job description form is a big step towards having a great conversation. These are free templates for leaders looking to do talent management more effectively and build a stronger culture in their business.

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Ignorant vs Stupid vs Agile

We try to avoid labeling people, and yet words have definitions that help us clearly state something we are seeing. In the world of talent management, there is a fine line between being ignorant and stupid. Effectively managing talent means knowing their attitudes towards learning and how agile their are. Talent management is about great conversations, and here are some tips for leaders to have them with themselves and their people.

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Inviting the Voice of Ownership

Talent management is about having great conversations. Having a great conversation starts with an invitation, and too often leaders get focused on who does not participate vs focusing on who does. Here are 2 tips for leaders who are starting the process of one-on-ones, team meetings, or monthly strategy sessions as a way of generating more purposeful conversations with their people.

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Relationships: Building vs Maintaining

Relationships are tricky. They start at random places – soccer games, first days of a new job, school functions, board meetings. They only actually become a relationship, a thing that we can point to or hold up as something that has been created if we continue to deal with each other or are connected in some way. Leaders need to be good at this. Talent management requires this. Great conversations happen when we are focused on this.

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Just Add Joy – Just ask Rich Sheridan

Building a culture and developing leaders are two big conversations. A new book by Rich Sheridan does a great job telling one story and helping people understand where they should start. Great conversations start with a question – and the best conversations are honest, lead to thoughful actions, and ultimately improve performance. Rich Sheridan has a great story and I recommend it to leaders who want to build a better culture.

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Just Add Fear – Is this a line in your Leadership Recipe?

Fear is to an organization as water is to a house. It always finds a way in, and only does damage if it stays around for a while. Leadership by fear is a choice, and often it is not about intentionally doing it, but by ignoring the habits that replace fear with love. Here are some leadership tips about having great conversations that allow fear a voice, and create a conversation that makes it hard for fear to stay around.

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4 Words That Frame the Succession Conversation, 2 Tips to Reframe it

Succession planning is an important conversation, and a difficult one. Here are two tips for making it easier, and some feedback from a recent keynote topic I did on the topic. Talent management is about having great conversations. Great is about having honest conversations, leading to thoughtful actions, and improved performance.

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3 Tips for Doing One-on-Ones: Skill #1 Approachability

We cannot lead without input from others. That input comes from having great conversations, and one conversation that will give you the best information to lead is the One-on-One. Here are 3 Tips for being more Approachable, a key skill for being an effective leader. Leadership development often starts with having the right habits, then working on the skills within those habits that will make you more effective.

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Listen Well

I respect and listen to Seth Godin. I also believe that at the core of talent management is Honest Conversations, leading to Thoughtful Actions, that result in Improved Performance. A big part of that is listening well, and know that performance in the end is about actions. Here are some thoughts on Listening well.

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Training is up . . . is ROI?

Talent management is about great conversations. Training can help develop your people, but the question is What can I do to improve the ROI on my training? Here are two tips for making your training dollars have a greater impact on your relationships with your people and with the performance of your organization.

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