Have you recently stepped into a Management role, or are you planning to in the near future?  Management is both a very rewarding and challenging job all, if it is done right.  You must be a leader, coach, and motivator for your team. Ultimately, you work for your employees.  You are the person who removes obstacles for them, helps them succeed, you are their representative to the company, ensure they get needed company information, get them needed training and feedback, lead them by example, show them how to reach the vision through defining expectations and goals.  Basically, your job is to help them reach the finish line.  Whew!  And all of this has to happen while doing other job tasks for your company. So how do you know if you are doing all of that successfully?  Here are the 6 keys to successfully managing a team of employees: Lay a Clear Foundation – No one wants to do a bad job. But employees often fail because they have a misunderstanding of what doing a good job looks like.  It is important as a manager to lay  very clear groundwork for what is expected of employees to be successful.  This will help keep your team on track toward the same purpose and results. Create Accountability Systems – If you don’t create an accountability system for your employees, then YOU will have to be that system, meaning you will always have to micro-manage all of their tasks to see if they are completing them. Instead, create an accountability system where they report their progress to you, therefore holding themselves accountable and managing themselves at task level.  This will give them the responsibility of meeting their goals, with less headache for you, and generate a more collaborative and engaged work environment. Engage in Active Listening and Empathy – You have to care about your employees as individuals and you have to let them know you do, if you want to have a high level of respect and trust within your team. Two important ways to do this are to engage in active listening when interacting with them, as well as demonstrating empathy.  It is also important to find ways to foster this practice among team members as well. Pro-Active, Candid, and Ongoing Coaching – Good coaches coach before, during, and after the game. So make sure you are always finding opportunities to coach your employees, on good as well as not so good behaviors.  The moment we stop developing our employees (even our best of the bunch) is the moment we are telling them we don’t care about them. Develop a Team Culture – Team cohesion and strength doesn’t just happen on its own. It takes some fostering on your part, as a manager.  You need to find opportunities for your team members to work together on projects, as well as to learn who each of their team mates are as individuals outside of what they just do as a work role. Ask Questions – Too often as managers, we can fall into the “fix-it” role, where we are always in problem solving mode. Although it is true that we need to be there for our teams to help solve issues, we can be better at it if we learn to stop and ask questions first, before we jump in.  If we jump in to solve issues right away, we become part of the chaos.  Instead, it’s important to always be in analysis mode first, and gather as much information as possible before we offer solutions or opinions.  Better yet, guide your employees down the path of solving issues themselves, by engaging them in discussions around solutions, by asking questions rather than providing answers. Want to learn how to incorporate each of these keys into your management style?  AETC’s Management 101 class will give you all these tools and more to get you on your way to having a productive and engaged team of employees.

Ah, spring. The winter chill is leaving and being replaced by the smell of flowers. The days are growing longer, and the sun is inspiring us to shake off the feeling of hibernation and embrace the fresh and the new. Get out the mops and brooms and put a shine on your world! In terms of your career, Spring Cleaning can mean that it is time to evaluate your skills, and whether or not they are still advancing your professional goals.  Perhaps you are finding that your Microsoft Office skills are a bit out of date, with today’s versions of the application. On the other hand, maybe you feel like you are stagnating in your current position, and would like to move into management.  Or, possibly, you just need to sweep away some of the clutter in your working life, to get better organized and use better time management. Or maybe you want to find new ways to energize yourself with a course on how to Keep Yourself Motivated. It could even be that you want to fine tune your social interaction skills to be more emotionally intelligent and learn to more effectively communicate with your coworkers. Whatever you feel you need to hone your skills for the next season of your career, AdvantEdge Training & Consulting has you covered. Whether it is learning a new computer application, or stepping forward with professional development skills, AETC has the training that can shake you out of the winter doldrums, and let you embrace the full potential of this new season. Check our website and full schedule of training center classes to see all that we have to offer. Register online, or contact our sales office for more information, including private group training, at (303) 900-8963, or [email protected].

We have all had those “Aha” moments, when the blinders are removed, the light bulb goes on, and things become clear. These revolutionary learning experiences can radically change our entire approach to our jobs, or even life. Here we look at one revolutionary shift managers can make to be truly exceptional. The Adversarial Manager Many people view the role of management as a one of power, one in which the manager exerts control over their team. This adversarial approach to management is rife with problems that can negatively impact the success of an entire team. Consider, for a moment, Brian, a manager of a sales team. Brian believes that his position as manager means that he has been elevated above his employees, that they must serve him, and that his position demands that they respect him. In meetings, he tends to berate his employees for missing deadlines and quotas. Any attempt at discussing issues the team is facing, he interprets as whining or making excuses. In general, Brian does not respect the ideas of his team members, and instead expects them to do as he says, in the way he wants, with little guidance or discussion. He has been known to complain about how much time it takes to “deal with” his team; they know their job; they should just do it.  As a result, Brian’s employees tend to avoid talking to him. In meetings, they tend to keep their heads down and their mouths shut, anything to not draw Brian’s ire. Creative thinking is not encouraged. Collaboration between team members is rarely seen. When obstacles arise, or mistakes are made, each employee tries to handle the situation himself or herself, so that Brian never has to know about it. Or they point fingers at each other so they are not the one to fall under his wrath.  This often means a small issue turns into a crisis. Brian’s assumption is that his employees are trying to do as little work as possible, to get away with as much “goofing off” as they can get away with. In such an environment, strong team members tend to exit as quickly as their abilities will allow them to find a better situation, one in which they can grow, advance, and thrive. Those employees who remain tend to not be very invested in their own success, let alone that of the team. Brian definitely controls his team, but he does so through fear, not respect or compassion, and the team’s success is definitely limited. What would Brian’s team look like if he approached them not as his underlings or adversaries, but instead viewed them as competent team members who were invested in their success? Management with Compassion Successful managers reject the idea that their relationship with their team is adversarial in nature.  Managing from a place of compassion means that a manager understands that their respect has to be earned, not demanded.  This respect is built, not by controlling team members, not by yelling at them, but instead by showing them compassion, by understanding that each employee is doing the best that they can with what they have to work with. If an employee is missing the mark, it is the manager’s job to work with them to find what they need to rise to the challenges. A manager’s true role is to serve their team. This is the concept of Servant Leadership. This means that the manager knows his job is to find what it takes to help his team reach the finish line, to be successful. Instead of demanding and controlling, a compassionate manager nurtures their employees, helping them to find their strengths, and to overcome any obstacles with creative problem solving and as a team. A manager who serves his team helps them thrive. The Elements of Compassion What are important elements of managing from a place of compassion? Empathy – Employees want to be heard and understood. If an employee has an issue, a compassionate manager listens, acknowledges the problem, then works with that employee to find a solution that accommodates the employee’s situation, as well as reaches the team’s objectives. An employee who feels their needs have been addressed will, in turn, double-down on their investment in their team’s success. Loyalty – Employees want to know their manager has their back. Your job is to facilitate between your team and your organization’s administration and/or between your team and your clients. Yes, there are always certain parameters that guide those relationships, but team members need to know that you are facilitating their success, not selling them out. Think, “My team is making sure that the report is as thorough and accurate as possible, before giving you the final version,” versus “You know how my team is, always late. Heads will roll.” Time – Some managers do complain, like Brian, that their employees take up a great deal of their time. Employees will go to a manager with HR issues, successes, obstacles, progress reports, requests, questions, etc. Instead of viewing this as a time consuming activity, understand that this is, in fact, the heart of the job. The manager is the information hub of the entire team. Fulfilling that role simply takes time and the willingness to listen Patience – Employees are human. They make mistakes. They have lives outside of work. They have emotions and preferences, and a whole host of other messy things. Yelling at them, or demanding that they be nothing but a work-oriented automaton does not get the job done. Working with them to find solutions for on-going issues takes compassion, time, and listening. For example, an employee regularly misses a deadline for a mid-project status report. An adversarial manager would likely just yell at the employee every time the deadline is missed. A compassionate manager, instead, discusses the problem to find out what is really going on. Are other team members not getting information on their status to her in a timely manner? Is

How does your organization, or even your office, handle employee development and training? Is there an annual or ongoing plan, complete with schedule and a variety of courses? Or is it handled on a case by case basis? The most efficient and effective path is to have a master plan that takes into account individual growth needs, as well as the overall direction of the company. But how do you put something like that together? Where do you even start? The Right Training Plan That’s where AdvantEdge Training & Consulting comes in. We work with you to determine what the training needs are across the board, as well as for each person. From there, a training schedule is developed, often with a combination of on-site,  group classes, and classes at our training centers. We even have online assessments available to help determine where the needs are, to help with scheduling the right classes for the right people. Depending on the overall plan, AETC can even help you market your annual training schedule to your employees, so they know what is available to them and how to sign up. After all, no one wants to throw a party and have no one show up! In addition to assessing needs, developing an ongoing training schedule, and advertising classes to your team, AdvantEdge Training & Consulting can even tailor courses to fit your specific situation, needs, and goals. Because we develop our own course content and materials, we are able to customize existing courses to best fit, or even create new content for your organization from the ground up. If you already have a master training plan in place, we’re happy to work with you to fulfill it. If you would like to create a curriculum tailor-fit for your organization, but aren’t sure how to get started, the first step is to give us a call. And for those who are handling employee training on an as-needed basis, that’s alright too. We’ve got plenty of classes available for each individual. Want to learn more about what we have to offer? Contact our sales office, at (303) 900-8963, or [email protected]

Did you know AdvantEdge Training & Consulting offers prepaid training vouchers for all of our training center class seats? Training vouchers can be redeemed toward class registrations, and are good for a full year. Discounts are available for purchasing multiple vouchers, starting with as few as five! We offer vouchers for all of our training center class formats and locations, including half-day and full-day classes, multi-day, and boot camps. Buy before the end of the year and get 2022 classes at 2021 prices! Contact our sales office for more information at (303) 900-8963, or [email protected].

  Are you struggling with employees who attend training, and then do not feel as though it was worth their time out of the office?   At AdvantEdge Training & Consulting, we believe in delivering Training that is relevant to your job – We teach you the stuff you can actually use. Training doesn’t have to be a one size fits all solution. Too often training classes can be long, tedious, and cover information that is not relevant to a majority of the group.  We focus on training that is relevant to your organization’s needs.  Our software classes always focus on a business scenario, to both help students better retain the information and understand how they can apply it to their own work situations. If you want to make it even more specific to your needs, we can create customized courses for a group of your employees, delivered at your company location.  We can offer basic customization where you pick the topics from our standard content that you would like covered.  Because we write most of our own content, it gives you more flexibility, to design the specific course you would like.  Or, you can go even further, and have us develop an even more highly customized courses using your own company data and scenarios. For example, if you want to learn about Excel charts and lookup formulas, we can combine those topics from two of our standard classes, into one specialized class for your group.  Or if you have specific issues with your team as far as motivation, attitude, or peer conflicts, we can create a course to address those specific needs by pulling focused topics from our Communications, Emotional Intelligence, and Conflict Management courses. Some examples of custom courses we have created include: Ethics for IT How to Excel as an Administrator (including Communications and EQ topics) Managing in an IT Environment Presenting with PowerPoint Emotional Intelligence for Managers Being an Effective Member of a Team Automation Techniques in Excel   Add a workshop.  To add even more retention and relevance to your training package, we recommend adding a workshop.  It’s like adult study hall that allows employees to come and get instructor assistance, directly applying what they learned to their specific work projects. Our goal is to give you twice the knowledge in half the time, and provide relevant training that sticks, so you can Learn More, Retain More, and Use More. Call us at (303) 900-8963, to see how we can create the perfect course for your company.

What makes a good manager? We are all familiar with the beast, a micromanaging control freak who rules their team by fear instead of empowerment and motivation. Most employees not only fail to give their best to such a manager, they are often quickly looking for the exit door. If you are just stepping into a management position, or looking to improve your skills in order to move up the corporate ladder, AdvantEdge Training & Consulting’s Management 101 course will give you what you need to effectively manage your team and get the best results out of them. This course gives you strong leadership skills, tools to motivate and track employee performance, and techniques for handling issues within your team. We will even give you the knowledge needed to build the strongest team to reach your desired results.  Management 101 can turn you into the manager for which you always wished you had worked. Further develop your management skills with other courses from our Management Training series, or advance your career with other Professional Development courses from AdvantEdge Training & Consulting. Register online, or contact our sales office for more information, including private group training, at (303) 900-8963 or [email protected] For our full calendar of classes, please visit our website.