performance management

June 12, 2024

What is situational leadership and how best to use it?

One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to leadership. It requires adaptability and a keen understanding of the individuals being led. One approach to this complexity is situational leadership, a model designed by Blanchard and Hersey to help leaders tailor their approach based on the developmental level of their team members. And this approach really does work. A study examined the impact of situational leadership on job satisfaction and employee performance within small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The findings revealed that this leadership style has a significant positive effect, […]

May 13, 2024

What is the difference between training, coaching and mentoring?

When it comes to personal and professional growth, you’ll often hear the terms training, coaching, and mentoring banded around. While they all aim to help people develop and improve, it’s essential to grasp their differences to use them effectively. Let’s take a closer look at what sets them apart and when to use each one. Training: The foundation of upskilling Training typically involves imparting knowledge or teaching specific skills. It’s like providing a roadmap for navigating an unfamiliar environment. During training sessions, instructors take a directive approach, offering instructions, advice, […]

April 12, 2024

How to get the managerial balance right

Navigating the complexities of effective management is a constant balancing act. Whether you’ve recently stepped into a managerial role, are adjusting to new dynamics with peers, or dealing with challenging team members, diplomacy is key. If you’ve ever wondered how to tackle a friend’s underperformance at work or questioned the role of personal likability in professional success, you’re not alone. These are common challenges faced by managers. In this blog, we’ll explore the balance leaders must maintain – the sweet spot between keeping professional distance and building meaningful connections with […]

March 2, 2023

Prioritising your workload for personal effectiveness

With our fast-paced lives, prioritising your workload can help you be more efficient and achieve your goals faster. We often find ourselves juggling multiple tasks and wasting precious time on meetings that could have been an email. So how do you make more time for creativity and ultimately become more productive? Understanding the urgency and importance of tasks coming your way is the first step. Stephen Covey’s ‘Four Quadrants’ is a useful time management tool to help prioritise work tasks and identify those pesky timewasters. A matrix to prioritise tasks […]

April 18, 2022

Conflict is Good

Conflict: how can it be a good thing? In May 2021, workplace expert Acas published a report which showed nearly half a million employees resign every year as a result of workplace conflict. It also revealed the potential for increased conflict as organisations try to adapt to changes after COVID-19. There’s a clear benefit to handling conflict early. Not least avoiding stress and impact on team morale. But unpick the problem, and you might find it’s productive and leads to positive change. Here’s why. How can conflict be a positive thing? Many […]

March 18, 2022

Difficult Conversations

How to handle difficult conversations Throughout our careers, we all experience those moments when we’re not happy with someone’s behaviour or performance. It’s easy to put off a difficult conversation. You could be worried about the other person’s reaction and how you might handle it. Or worse, you might convince yourself that ignoring it will mean the matter goes away. But if they aren’t nipped in the bud, issues can escalate, impacting others in the team or customers. How you have a difficult conversation can affect the outcome. So how […]

February 19, 2022

Feeding Back Effectively: tips to help keep feedback helpful and constructive

In the last blog, we discussed how facilitating good feedback should be a priority for leaders. It’s critical for improving the performance of your team. But what is best practice when it comes to delivering that feedback? To be truly effective, feedback needs to fulfil these criteria: Timely If you had to pick one vital component to make feedback effective, it’s timing. Feedback conversations – whether positive or negative in nature – are most effective when they’re held as soon as possible after the event. Relevance wanes after a while – […]

January 19, 2022

Performance Management – how to make it work for everyone

Hybrid working arrangements are fast becoming the norm for a great many businesses which would normally have people working in an office. But a blend of people home-working alongside dedicated time in the office can throw up as many issues for leaders as it solves – including that of performance management. How can leaders effectively manage their team’s performance in a post-pandemic world? Performance management might traditionally be framed as a formal meeting between leadership and team member, blocked out in the diary a couple of times a year. But […]

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