I consider myself a pretty optimistic, positive person. I intuitively get the importance of positivity for my own personal sanity and happiness, and I know that a positive leader has more influence with her team.
There are so many products out there enticing you with minimalistic interfaces, promises of increased productivity and better employee engagement, but what’s the best productivity app for your organization? Before you decide, ask a different question: what do my employees really need? Will another digital tool actually help solve my company’s productivity or engagement challenges?
Five years ago, I was invited to join Borshoff’s ownership group. While I had managed teams and been a “boss” before this point, becoming an owner caused a major shift in my responsibility. Each year I was less involved in “doing the work” and more involved in leading the teams that do the work. As I struggled to focus more on people, one of the best books I could have read was Radical Candor by Kim Scott. Scott taught me what good feedback looks like and how to deliver it effectively. But the real gift is that she taught me what being a boss is really all about.
Many companies won’t hesitate to invest in websites with predictive content recommendations and integrated chatbots to drive sales, but do they put as much thought into the user experience they’re creating for their employees, who may spend as many as 11 hours a day interacting with technology? Are the internal systems they’re using daily the same as they were five, ten or twenty years ago? If so, it’s probably time for an update.
It’s hard to recover from a bad first impression. Online daters know this. Job applicants do, too. So why don’t employers?