LEADERSHIP RESOURCES BLOG

Guidance on leadership development & strategic planning.

From crisis to opportunity: investing in your people in uncertain times

By Leadership Resources 05/24/2023
From Crisis to Opportunity, Investing in Your People in Uncertain Times, Leadership Resources

During times of economic uncertainty, businesses often face the challenge of maintaining profitability while managing costs. In such situations, many companies focus on reducing expenses and limiting investments, including employee training and development. However, research has shown that investing in leadership development during economic uncertainty can have significant long-term benefits for the organization. This blog discusses the reasons why times of economic uncertainty offer a great opportunity to invest in developing your employee’s leadership skills.

The importance of leadership development

Effective leadership is crucial to the success of any organization, regardless of its size or industry. Leaders provide direction, inspire employees, and drive innovation and growth. In today’s fast-paced business environment, leaders need to be adaptable and able to respond to changing market conditions quickly. Therefore, investing in leadership development can help organizations build a strong foundation to help catapult their future growth.

Leadership development programs can help employees develop the skills and knowledge needed to become effective leaders. These programs typically include curriculum, peer groups, coaching, and mentoring. Through these programs, employees can learn how to communicate effectively, better manage their time, increase accountability, make sound decisions, manage teams, and develop strategic plans. As employees develop these skills, they become better equipped to lead their teams and help the organization achieve its goals.

the benefits of investing in leadership development during economic uncertainty

During times of economic uncertainty, businesses often face a variety of challenges, including reduced revenue, increased competition, and limited resources. However, investing in leadership development during these times can have several benefits for organizations.

1. Improved Employee Morale and Retention

Investing in leadership development sends a strong message to employees that the organization values their growth and development. When employees feel supported and invested in, they are more likely to feel engaged and motivated at work. This can lead to improved morale, increased productivity, and lower turnover rates.

2. Increased Innovation and Creativity

Effective leaders are often the catalyst for innovation and creativity within an organization. By investing in leadership development, businesses can cultivate a culture of innovation and creativity. Leaders who are well-trained in critical thinking and problem-solving can encourage employees to think outside the box and develop new solutions to business challenges.

3. Better Decision Making

Effective leaders are skilled at making sound decisions based on data and analysis. By investing in leadership development, organizations can help their leaders develop these critical decision-making skills. This can lead to better business outcomes, as leaders are better equipped to make informed decisions that support the organization’s goals.

4. Improved Adaptability and Resilience

Leaders who are adaptable and resilient are better equipped to respond to change and uncertainty. By investing in leadership development, organizations can help their leaders develop these critical skills. This can help businesses navigate economic uncertainty more effectively and remain competitive in the marketplace.

5. Increased Customer Satisfaction

Leaders who are well-trained in customer service can help businesses improve customer satisfaction. By investing in leadership development, organizations can help their leaders develop the skills needed to provide excellent customer service. This can lead to increased customer loyalty, repeat business, and positive word-of-mouth advertising.

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Strategies for investing in leadership development during economic uncertainty

Investing in leadership development during economic uncertainty requires careful planning and consideration. Here are some strategies that businesses can use to invest in leadership development during these times:

1. Focus on Leadership Essentials

During times of economic uncertainty, businesses may not have the resources to invest in extensive leadership development programs. Therefore, it is essential to focus on the essentials. Businesses should identify the key skills and knowledge that their leaders need to be effective and invest in programs that focus on those areas.

2. Use Technology to Deliver Training

For internal training, technology can be a cost-effective way to deliver leadership training during economic uncertainty. Online training programs and webinars can provide employees with the knowledge and skills they need to develop their skills. These technologies also offer a more flexible and judgment-free environment, allowing employees to complete training at their own pace and on their own schedule.

3. Partner with Experts

Partnering with experts in leadership development can provide businesses with access to the latest research and best practices. These experts can provide state-of-the-art systems and proven curriculum while offering facilitated peer groups access to ideas from other companies. Programs also often include specific, targeted, one-on-one leadership coaching for your team. These partners are able to help businesses tailor their leadership development initiatives to meet their specific needs.

At Leadership Resources, we specialize in transforming promising achievers into high-performing leaders through our comprehensive leadership development programs. Our tailored plans empower individuals to reach their full leadership potential, driving organizational success. We are a dedicated partner that is always ready to support you with your people strategy.

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4. Create a Culture of Continuous Learning

No matter what, you must understand that investing in leadership development is not a one-time event but an ongoing process. To create a culture of continuous learning, businesses should encourage employees to take ownership of their professional development. Leaders should be encouraged to seek out new learning opportunities and to share their knowledge and skills with their teams.

5. Measure the Impact

Measuring the impact of leadership development programs is essential to ensuring their effectiveness. Businesses should establish clear metrics for success and regularly evaluate the results of their training programs. This will help businesses identify areas for improvement and ensure that their investment in leadership development is delivering the expected returns.

Invest in your people for sustainable success

Investing in leadership development during times of economic uncertainty can have significant long-term benefits for organizations. By providing employees with the skills and knowledge needed to become effective leaders, businesses can improve employee morale, increase innovation and creativity, and better respond to changing market conditions. To achieve these benefits, businesses must carefully plan their leadership development initiatives and focus on the essential skills and knowledge needed for success. With a strategic approach, businesses can invest in their employees’ leadership development, even during times of economic uncertainty, and build a strong foundation for future growth and success.

Are you ready to invest in your people and navigate uncertain times with strong leadership? Contact us today to explore how our leadership development programs can drive your organization’s success. Let’s embark on a transformative journey together, investing in your people for a resilient future!

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How to Find Key Employees When Growing Your Business

By Leadership Resources 11/30/2021
Team putting together a puzzle

The expansion of your business is both an exciting and daunting prospect. If this growth occurs too quickly or lacks direction, your business can soon find itself facing hardships. One of the best ways to keep your business growth from ballooning into chaos is to put the right people in the right positions. Of course, finding key employees during a period of growth is often easier said than done, and keeping them around is another challenge in its own right. With a steady and strategic approach, however, you can find key employees and get the most of their abilities when growing your business — here’s how.

How to Find the Right Employees

Clarify Your Business Goals and Roles

Your first order of business should be to determine what you wish to accomplish and which positions will aid in achieving these goals — these details will become your map and compass when seeking key employees. Without this map, you’ll have a hard time knowing where to look and what to do once you arrive. Clarifying your business growth goals involves re-examining your mission and vision and calibrating it for this new chapter (these changes might be minute or more ambitious). Once you’ve got a grip on your ideal direction, you can narrow your employee search, create better screening criteria, pose more focused interview questions, and more, saving you time and energy in the search and placement process.

Don’t Be Afraid to Search Outside the Box

Even if you have a strong idea of where your business is headed and how you wish to get there, business growth always includes some unknown factors. As uncomfortable as these unknowns might make you, note that the unexpected also holds the greatest potential for innovation. In other words, you might find key employees in places you wouldn’t have guessed. This isn’t to say you should just hire anyone on the spot — rather, don’t strictly limit yourself to potential candidates who fit a particular mold for the sake of easier employee management. Leave the door open for candidates with diverse ideas and unique energy. By stepping outside the box, you just might find someone who sparks further growth in your company.

Keep the Long-Term in Mind

No matter how rapidly your business grows at certain intervals, sustainable growth spans long stretches of time. Therefore, it’s imperative to seek employees who mesh with your current workplace culture and who won’t likely leave the second they get another offer. As we’ve discussed in previous blogs, onboarding the most talented employees is a double-edged sword since your competitors might try to pull them away from your organization. If you want to keep these key employees around and have them grow with your business, you must be prepared to negotiate terms and continue offering them development opportunities. It’s also worth asking candidates during the interview process if they see themselves sticking with your company for the long haul.

Consider Promoting Employees Within Your Organization

Sometimes the right person is already in your organization. Depending on how your business is growing and how quickly, it might make more sense to promote current employees rather than hire externally. One of the main reasons to invest in leadership development programs for your people is to prepare them to take on more responsibilities and enter new roles over time — this is also the essence of succession planning. Indeed, the more you invest in your employees, the easier it will become to identify key positions for succession planning and fill said roles with confidence.

Unlocking the Key to Your Business’ Growth

As your business grows, so too must its people — whether this means finding new employees or promoting current employees to fill new roles, Leadership Resources can help your business, and its people unlock their full potential.

At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease obstacles and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most.

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How to Coach Your Sales Team to Optimize Performance

By Leadership Resources 10/27/2021
Sales team in a meeting

No one said managing a sales team was easy. With so much money at stake and so many egos involved, managers may often feel tempted to play things by the book and simply hope things will work out — the only problem is that there is no “playbook,” so to speak, that works for every enterprise, team, or salesperson. Just because people used to do things a certain way doesn’t mean they should have in every case, or that those methods apply to the modern workplace. So, while there are many coaching skills for leaders to develop, honing in on antiquated methods will keep you and your business stuck in the past.

Here are some tips for coaching your sales team to optimize performance without resorting to outdated, counterintuitive tactics.

How to Coach a Sales Team

Direct, Don’t Dictate

If you have the final word on every single matter, your employees will soon feel stifled in their decision-making, and their ability to garner interest and close deals will suffer as a result. Remember that you hired every team member in your purview for a reason — they’re intelligent, capable people. Rather than constantly micromanaging their actions, act as a director, guiding their attention, honing their strengths, and checking their weaknesses. Your team members will learn much more with this brand of strong leadership communication than they will simply being told what to do all the time.

Measure Results, Not Face-Time

The workplace is changing fast, which means our conception of the traditional office no longer holds the weight it once did. With the increase in at-home work and virtual office spaces, less emphasis should be placed on one’s physical presence (i.e., hours spent “clocked in”), and more should be placed on actual performance. Different businesses will approach these changes in different ways, of course. When it comes to sales team management, consider whether it’s necessary to have your team together in the same physical space at all times — if your people can perform just as well from home, allow them the flexibility to get their job done wherever they’re most productive. The important thing is setting clear expectations and boundaries so your team is always aware of how and where they should conduct business and how to remain accountable regardless.

Incentivize with More than Money

Raises and bonuses have long been the high benchmark for encouraging continuous improvement and retaining team members. And while no one would deny that money is a strong motivator, it’s not the only means for boosting sales numbers or bolstering company culture, nor is it always the most efficient. In our previous blog, “It’s Not the Money: Why Compensation Models Have Limits in Motivating Workers,” we discussed the diminishing returns of finance-based incentives and explored the importance of inspiring meaning in one’s work. Optimal employee management and motivation require more than the mere promise of money — they also require positive feedback, appropriate placement (i.e., putting the right people in the right positions), continual education and development, healthy work-life balance, and more.

Putting the “Win” Back in Your Sales

If there was a single, foolproof way to manage a sales team (or any business, for that matter), there’d be no need for sales team management training or improvement, more broadly. As times change, everyone must be more willing to adapt in order to uncover the maximum potential of themselves, their peers, and their workers. The old ways simply won’t do — not without some adjustment, at least.


At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most.

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How to Properly Promote Employees With Leadership Qualities

By Leadership Resources 09/28/2021
Boss shaking hands with promoted employee

Leaders aren’t born — they’re made. If you’re fortunate enough to have team members with leadership potential in your midst, you’ll want to keep them around and help them grow. Retaining the top talent in your organization can be difficult if you don’t provide the proper incentives — your best employees won’t stick around if they don’t feel like they can grow with your company. That said, employee promotion comes with its own set of challenges. Leadership skills don’t necessarily equate to preparedness for a specific role, after all. And you don’t want to overlook your other employees when serving promotions, either.

With all that in mind, here’s some advice for properly promoting employees with leadership qualities in your organization.

How to Promote Good Employees

Hone Employees’ Existing Leadership Skills

Raw talent can open many doors, but even your most talented hires need ongoing training and education to refine their skills. Providing leadership training for employees is a great way to both create new leaders and strengthen existing leaders in your company. With access to the proper resources, employees can transform their abilities into reinforced skillsets that can be applied in a variety of contexts. Ultimately, this scaffolding will help prepare your leaders for different types of promotions.

Provide New Challenges and Opportunities

This tip takes more of a real-world approach. Training is undoubtedly useful for leadership development, but there’s no replacement for actual on-the-job experience. If you want to put your people to the test, give them opportunities to take on new roles and responsibilities, even if only for short periods of time. These trial runs will help those with leadership potential discover their interests, strengths, and weaknesses while also providing you with important information on their candidacy for specific promotions.

Understand an Employee’s Personal Goals and Desires

Communication plays a vital role in proper promotion protocol. For starters, not every employee will want a promotion at a given time, and springing such an opportunity on them when they’re not ready can lead to several issues. Moreover, some emerging leaders will be more inclined to take on certain roles as a way of reaching their personal goals and/or boosting their careers. In every single scenario, the more you know about an employee’s unique goals and desires, the easier it will be to offer the appropriate promotions. So, have regular one-on-one meetings with employees, asking them about what they enjoy doing, how they wish to grow in your organization, what they wish were different, etc.

Determine the Type of Promotion Best Suited for the Situation

Not all promotions are created equal. Dry promotions refer to title upgrades without a pay increase, up-gradations feature increased pay but don’t change anything about an employee’s responsibilities, accretion of duties derive from an increase in workload and come with a relative pay bump — the list goes on. There are also a variety of reasons/methods for promoting an individual, such as merit, seniority, necessity (ad hoc), or some combination of these. The exact type of promotion you dish out must correspond with your company’s needs and goals. You must also keep in mind that some leaders will be more or less receptive to certain types of promotions.

Stay Alert to Potential Openings

Succession planning is all about filling the right roles with the right people, so there’s always a pipeline of strong leadership even when current leaders retire, leave, or can no longer work. The more time you have to plan for such a transition, the better. As such, it’s important to constantly be on the lookout for up-and-coming leaders in your organization that might be able to step into a higher position when the time comes. Once you have some candidates in mind, provide them with the tools, education, and experience necessary for them to take on these new roles in the future.

Make It Known

Lastly, don’t leave your employees in the dark when promotions are available. Even if you have a select group of employees in mind for a given promotion, offering it to anyone interested creates more competition. In this way, creating promotion opportunities serves as a useful employee management tool. It’s also fairer to your current employees to offer the position internally before looking outside the business.

Promoting Better Leadership in Your Workplace

Leaders at every stage need experience, direction, and opportunities to achieve their full potential. Providing these things for your employees will allow you to more easily deliver the right promotions to the right people.


At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most.

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How to Measure Your Developmental Leadership Progress

By Leadership Resources 09/15/2021
Leadership KPIs on a laptop

Strong leadership is necessary for ensuring a company’s ongoing success. Of course, even the best leaders have room for improvement. In any venture, the only way to truly improve, however, is to keep track of your progress and adjust accordingly. Whether you’re trying to cultivate better leaders in your organization or improve your own leadership abilities, here’s how to measure developmental leadership progress.How to Measure Development Progress

How to Measure Development Progress

Identify and Track Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

You can’t measure leadership progression without knowing what to measure in the first place. This is where key performance indicators (KPIs) come into play. As their name suggests, KPIs are specific metrics that can be quantified in some way to track progress. In regards to employee management, for instance, KPIs might include things like revenue earned per hour, absenteeism rate, net promoter score (NPS), etc. To measure development leadership progress, KPIs should focus on factors like communication, employee satisfaction, team retention, and so on. If you’re attempting to track your own leadership progress, you might come up with more personalized KPIs. Equally as important as coming up with these KPIs is knowing how to review performance management data — if you can’t quantify or analyze performance over time, you’ll struggle to realize progress in yourself and others.

Set Specific Goals

Another way to measure personal and organizational leadership development is to set clear-cut, short-term goals. Goals are similar to KPIs in that they reveal a target to aim for, but they’re only aimed for one time (i.e., clearing a finish line) as opposed to over and over again (i.e., clicking a stopwatch to track how long it takes each time). Setting and overcoming well-defined goals allows you to track leadership progress in a more tangible way — the only way to achieve certain goals is to level up your leadership skills, after all. Plus, whether or not a particular goal is met, there’s always a lesson to learn that can further fuel leadership growth.

Conduct Surveys Periodically

Even subjective feedback can be translated into quantitative data that can be used to track leadership progress. Organizational surveys can be useful tools in this regard, giving employees at all levels the opportunity to reflect on their own place in the company, their feelings toward policies and leaders, and more. Not only do these surveys help adjust and enhance company culture — they also reveal areas of improvement for leaders on both the individual and group levels. It’s important to disseminate these surveys on a routine basis and keep them somewhat consistent (i.e., similar questions and rubrics) to get a clearer picture of development leadership progress, employee satisfaction, and more.

Use Modern Tools

If the methods mentioned above seem difficult to manage, don’t fret — modern programs like the Accelerate leadership development program by Leadership Resources remove much of the guesswork and streamline this measurement process with various resources. The Accelerate software allows you to watch leadership development in action, tracking various KPIs so you can see the long-term impact on your organization. This program also allows leaders to develop together, enabling participants to learn from one another and establish greater accountability. Every leader in the program also benefits from monthly one-on-one coaching with leadership professionals who know exactly what to look for when measuring and maintaining progress.


Accountability Is the Key to Measuring and Furthering Leadership Growth. At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most.

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Why Entrepreneurs Should Take the Best Parts from Multiple Operating System Methodologies

By Leadership Resources 08/13/2021
Person holding gears

In our previous article, “How an Operating System Drives Profit & Growth,” we defined what a business operating system is and how the right one can bring your organization to new heights. To sum up, a company operating system is a sturdy yet flexible strategic guidebook for the company’s internal processes. Think of it as the core from which all planning within an organization stem. With the right operating system in place, employees and leaders can collaborate with more clarity and purpose at every stage of the game, resulting in leadership development, long-term growth, and increased profits.

Of course, there’s no such thing as a one-size-fits-all operating system. Every business has a unique company culture and specific needs, after all. So, while there are many ways to approach your company’s operating system, the best approach synthesizes the best parts from multiple methodologies. Let’s explore why this fusion of various operating system components results in the best outcomes for entrepreneurs and businesses.

Why You Should Integrate Operating System Methodologies

Bridge the Gaps Between Different Ideologies

Among the various systems, tools, and philosophies that help a business thrive, each one comes with its share of holes. If you think of each of these different methodologies as a piece of swiss cheese, you can cover these various holes by layering different pieces with differently placed holes on top of one another, creating an impenetrable system that bridges all possible gaps. In other words, one company’s operating system might not work for another company, but the system may feature certain advantageous aspects worth keeping — and the same goes for yet another operating system, and so on. By leveraging the strengths of each of these systems, you can achieve the best of all worlds for your unique operating system. You’ll end up with a customized and optimized playbook for everything from employee management  to succession planning to conflict resolution and more.

Set Yourself up for Success

Your operating system isn’t just about your organization — it’s also about your people (the two go hand in hand, of course). Ultimately, your operating system should enable the talent that already exists within your team and place people in the right positions so everyone in your organization shares the game goals. Cultivating this continuous leadership growth is only possible if you take an integrated approach to crafting your operating system. By addressing your company’s pain points and unique concerns, you can begin to build a systematic process for navigating all hurdles standing in the way of personal and organizational growth. For starters, you’ll want to define what “success” means for your entire company and its team members. From there, you can establish consistent accountability, clear goals, and deliver ongoing coaching to fortify these elements, all at the proper pace for you.

The Benefits of an Optimized Operation System

Before you begin crafting your own company operating system, it helps to know the many advantages that can come from this optimization. These benefits include:

  • Scaling up your leadership and profit margins by getting and keeping the right people in the right seats
  • Optimizing data to hone your business game and make intuitive decisions that benefit your brand and bottom line
  • Managing cash with more clarity and control
  • Meeting and exceeding goals by making the most of tailor-made tools tuned for your organization’s unique needs and ambitions

You might already know which factors drive your company’s growth, but receiving outside help from a provider like Leadership Resources allows you to illuminate where your energy and effort are consistently going. We help companies like yours problem-solve and see trends over time to make a real difference. We meet you where you are and help you achieve your vision, handpicking the best components from a wide array of methodologies to support and enhance our clients in their ability to achieve their vision.

At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most!

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How an Operating System Drives Profit & Growth

By Leadership Resources 07/15/2021
Company operating system icons on blocks

Most of us are familiar with the operating systems (OS) on our phones and computers. Just as these electronic devices require optimized software to handle a variety of important tasks, businesses benefit from a strategic operating system of their own. As it turns out, most businesses already have some sort of operating system at play — the problem is often that 1) it’s become background noise rather than a recipe for success, and 2) it could use a major “firmware update.” Moreover, in many cases, a company has several operating systems competing for dominance, creating chaos that hinders growth, profit, and leadership development.

Let’s define what a company operating system is and how the right one can drive profit and growth in your organization.

Benefits of a Company Operating System

Defining a Company Operating System

Simply put, a company’s operating system serves as a guide for its inner workings, compiling the processes, structure, and systems needed to achieve certain objectives. Unlike a rigid line of code or instruction manual, a company’s OS is a sturdy yet flexible strategic game plan. Leadership and staffers rally around their central OS to solve problems, make decisions, resolve issues, and prepare for future success. In other words, every procedure should stem from the operating system, whether it’s employee management, succession planning, resource/financial management, marketing initiatives, etc. When every action derives from the same source, a shared vision flows through and informs your entire organization.

How the Right Operating System Can Improve and Grow Your Organization

So, a company operating system provides conscious clarity to an organization by establishing a well-defined structure that removes the guesswork. Ultimately, this framework translates to tangible growth and profit. After all, achieving organizational and profit goals depends on a passionate group of people actively working towards a clear purpose. When leaders and team members know what to aim for and why they’re aiming that way, much of the “fat” is easily trimmed away, revealing a streamlined path toward continued success. 

Neglecting your operating system or adopting an OS that doesn’t quite fit your organization will have the opposite effect, preventing growth, diminishing profits, and impairing your company culture as a whole. As leaders struggle to communicate their message clearly, team members will grow more and more frustrated, hindering morale and increasing turnover, which thwarts talent retention and succession planning efforts. The best way to prevent this self-fulfilling cycle from taking hold of your organization is to invest more time and energy into cultivating the optimal operating system.

Establishing an Operating System that Suits Your Goals and Vision

The question remains, then: how can you create and maintain an operating system perfect for your organization? Synthesizing the best aspects of various company OS methodologies is a great place to start. At Leadership Resources, we help our clients leverage the strengths of many ideologies, tools, and systems to bolster their operating system. When it comes to business and leadership growth, we don’t believe in “one-size-fits-all” solutions — we also understand the value of allowing companies to try new things for themselves. As such, our method starts with a deep discovery of an organization’s specific processes, needs, and strategic goals. This research then feeds into our selection process for the tools and strategies that will fit said business like a glove.

When all is said and done, an optimized operating system will help your organization scale up, optimize data, better manage cash, and meet & exceed goals.

Operating Your Business With a Better System

Most organizations know what factors drive their business and their growth. But working with Leadership Resources and building a company operating system creates accountability around these factors. This process illuminates the leading indicators, where an organization’s energy and effort are consistently going. It allows them to problem solve, see trends over time, and make a real difference.

At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most!

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Finding Employees Who Fit Your Culture

By Leadership Resources 06/11/2021
"Culture fit" circled in a job application

Wherever people consistently gather in groups (big or small), a culture is bound to arise. So, while the word “culture” has become a buzzword in the professional sphere, it’s merely a natural consequence of company life. Of course, company cultures can become stagnant, exclusionary, and downright toxic if not properly directed and cultivated at every level — leaders must set positive examples of what the culture should look like, employees should do their best to uphold these values, and new hires should be screened to ensure proper cultural fit. Indeed, finding candidates who fit your existing culture makes team and employee management easier and more productive. The question is: how should your business go about locating these candidates?

Let’s outline some key steps to finding employees that will not only fit your current culture but potentially enhance it as well.

How to Hire a Good Culture Fit

Establish Core Values

Finding the right employees for your company’s culture is an uphill battle (if not an impossibility) if said culture isn’t clearly defined from the outset. You must be able to identify your organization’s values and embed them in your operations. Some businesses might cultivate a  performance culture wherein productivity reigns supreme on the list of priorities; others might prioritize collaboration; some companies gather around a singular purpose (i.e., sustainability); the list goes on. A good test of your culture’s clarity and strength is to try and define it in a simple sentence — essentially a concise mission statement.

Put Your Culture Front and Center

Once your company culture is clearly defined, it’s imperative to get the message out there. In doing so, potential candidates with the right cultural fit will gravitate toward your organization. Your marketing materials (especially those for recruitment) should strongly focus on your business’ values. Make sure your website is outfitted with an “About” page and “Careers” section that both speak to your company’s values. Consider receiving employee testimonials and posting positive images on social media pages as well. Those seeking employment will appreciate getting a glimpse into what it might be like to work for your company directly from current employees.

Keep Tabs on Your Workplace Culture

Company cultures should be strong but not so rigid that they snap under pressure. Simply put, cultures evolve over time, and it’s crucial to remain open to changes that will ultimately benefit your organization and everyone in it. If something about your current culture is causing problems for some (or most) of your people, you must get to the bottom of it quickly. Distributing a monthly, quarterly, or annual company culture survey will give you key insights into what is and isn’t working, and which values require more attention or specific adjustment. Taking the time to constantly check and improve your company culture will allow you to keep up with the competition and deliver the most accurate representation of your organization to potential candidates.

Incorporate Your Values in the Interview Process

If you’re zeroing in on a candidate but still aren’t sure about their cultural fit, the best thing to do is simply ask them the right questions during their interview. It’s often best to start with some more casual questions regarding what they do outside of work, such as:

  • What are your hobbies?
  • What’s your average weekend like?
  • What do you value in yourself and others?
  • What’s your most negative personality trait?

From there, ask questions more directly related to company/employee culture, like:

  • Do you enjoy working with others?
  • In what type of setting do you accomplish your best work?
  • Do you see yourself working here for a long time?
  • Can you give an example of a moment in which you demonstrated one of the company’s values?
  • What are your thoughts about the company’s stated values and why?

Questions such as these benefit both you and the candidate as you inch closer to the hiring decision — they will gain an even deeper understanding of what it means to work for your company, and you will better understand how well they might fit into your culture.

Capturing the Right Candidates for Your Culture

Your company’s values and culture serve as the foundation for everything you do and your overall success. When seeking the most qualified candidates for your company, remember to keep culture in the equation — skills and knowledge matter greatly, but cultural fit is the glue that keeps your organization together.

At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most.

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How an Established Leader Can Better Communicate

By Leadership Resources 05/26/2021
Leader communicating with his team

The role of “leader” consists of many parts. Not only must leaders excel in their field and manage multiple tasks at once, but they must also unify their teams around a shared vision in order to propel the enterprise forward. This coalescence can only occur with strong communication. That said, leadership communication skills don’t come easily to everyone, and even those who have a knack for it can always seek improvement. Whether you’re struggling to hold your people together or want to level up your emotional intelligence, here’s how an established leader such as yourself can become a better communicator.

How to Best Communicate With Your Team

Make a Routine of Checking in With Employees

For better or worse, humans are creatures of habit. We can use this feature to our advantage by creating positive routines and adjusting them when necessary. When it comes to bolstering your communication skills as a leader, hosting regular check-ins with individuals and teams is a useful habit to establish. These meetings can vary in frequency and length, so long as it becomes an expected event. Not only will these regular check-ups aid in employee management, but they’ll also make your people feel more comfortable opening up to you. The more you listen to your employees’ ideas and concerns, the easier it will be to discuss these matters honestly with each and every one of them.

Cater Your Message Accordingly

Competent leadership communication is flexible, adapting to the audience in question. By getting to know your people better (as mentioned above), you can figure out the right way to reach them. Put simply, you always want to meet your audience where they are. Otherwise, you risk alienating (or even offending) them. Crafting your communication style carefully is an exercise in empathy — plus, it’s much more effective.

Simplify Complex Ideas

Clarity is key in communication. After all, you can’t get a message across to anyone if they can’t make heads or tails of what you’re saying. In many ways, the biggest hurdle of leadership communication is taking complex ideas and reducing them in such a way that everyone can understand and care about them without sacrificing anything vital. As an expert, you might intrinsically know what a certain data set is saying or how a certain process works, but there’s no guarantee that your employees will share your comprehension. To become a more effective leader and communicator, focus on what’s relevant to your people and build from there; getting into the weeds can wait until you’ve gotten your team on the same page.

Mind Your Body Language

Communication is about more than the words coming from your mouth; it’s also about how you’re delivering the message. Humans are designed to read body language. Indeed, your body language can send a stronger message than your words in some cases. Open arms and smiles tend to be infectious and welcoming, while folded arms and frowns can dampen morale. Ultimately, you want your movements to match and/or elevate what you’re trying to convey (this comes naturally to some but not to everyone). If you’re having a hard time getting your physicality to fit your message, partaking in executive communication coaching courses focused on body language can be a major help.

Ask Your Teams for Feedback

No matter how hard you work on improving your communication skills, you won’t know how well you’re doing unless you receive honest feedback from your people. Asking your employees for their thoughts on your performance is a great way to build trust and cultivate a more transparent company culture. Moreover, taking this feedback to heart will help you grow as a leader and communicator, so long as you make adjustments based on responses you receive.

Establishing Stronger Communication

Even the most seasoned leaders have room to grow. Sharpening your communication skills will only improve your culture and allow your company to reach new heights.At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most.

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How a Leader Can Properly Influence a Younger Generation Without Judgement

By Leadership Resources 05/11/2021
Woman mentoring a younger employee

Generational gaps are inevitable in businesses that stick around long enough. These age-related rifts can be both beneficial and detrimental. On the one hand, people who grew up in different eras will have unique perspectives on current dilemmas, which can be synthesized into optimal solutions. Unfortunately, these varying perspectives can also create roadblocks, conflicts, and even feelings of resentment — a younger employee might feel like their ideas aren’t being taken seriously, while an older employee might feel undermined by an up and coming workforce that deems their ideas antiquated.

In many instances, leaders within a company tend to have more experience under their belts, which means they’re responsible for overseeing several employees who are younger than them. If such a leader isn’t tactful in their approach to employee management, they can end up pushing this younger generation away. This is a lose-lose situation, as both parties stand to miss out on key insights provided by the other. With that in mind, here are some ways a leader can properly influence a younger generation without judgment or major conflict.

How to Influence Younger Employees

Listen to Your Employees

We often think of a leader’s role as merely giving orders and overseeing projects. While delegation and oversight are key components of leadership, nothing is more important than communication. Leaders should listen just as much as they speak (if not more). Indeed, if you want to steer your younger employees in a positive direction, you must let go of your ego and truly take their ideas into account. You might have more experience, but this doesn’t mean you have all the answers. And if you dismiss your employees, they’ll begin to dismiss you as well. Communication is a two-way street, and if you want your wisdom to reach your younger employees, you must open yourself to their wisdom, too.

Appreciate and Utilize the Younger Generation’s Strengths

As you learn from the younger generation, you’ll quickly figure out that they’re adept at certain things you might not be, such as social media usage, coding, multitasking, etc. Rather than balk at these skills or deem them unimportant, use them to your company’s advantage. Allowing your people to play to their strengths will boost morale and benefit your business in multiple ways. You can then insert your expertise where it counts most.

Understand What Younger Workers Care About and Open Yourself to Change

One of the negative stereotypes younger workers often place on their older counterparts is that they’re stuck in the past and unwilling to adjust their point of view or methodology. Some leaders certainly fall into this category, and it’s natural to resist change no matter our age. If your goal is to reach your younger employees in a meaningful way, however, you must make an effort to understand their view of the workplace and adapt accordingly. Things were undoubtedly different when you were their age, after all. Today, most young people don’t want their work to be their entire life. This isn’t to say that younger people aren’t able or willing to work hard, but rather that they seek a healthy work/life balance. As such, millennials value companies that offer flexible scheduling, remote work options, an easygoing company culture, and so on. Whether or not you share these opinions, cultivating a workplace with more modern appeal will allow you to hire and retain top talent and create a stronger impression on your people.

Establish Common Values

Generational gaps are primarily fueled by perceived differences in values. When you dig a bit deeper, though, it often becomes clear that one generation shares most of the foundational values of the other. People of different eras might have different conceptions of what these values mean or look like, but just about everyone agrees that responsibility, respect, integrity, kindness, family, etc., are fundamental across the board. Simply discussing these values can bring people of all backgrounds together. You might be surprised at how much common ground there is between you and younger generations.

Cultivate Leadership Growth

Time doesn’t stop for anyone, and a new generation will always be there to take the place of the previous one. This can be difficult to accept, but coming to grips with this reality is key for proper succession planning. Simply put, if you want your company to have a lasting legacy, you need to cultivate new leaders and prepare them for more significant roles. In this way, investing in ongoing leadership development for the younger generation is essential to ensuring your business’ ongoing success. Additionally, investing in your people is a display of respect and encouragement. People of all generations like to learn and be recognized for their accomplishments.

At Leadership Resources, our purpose is to make the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Contact us here to learn more about what we do and how it can help your business succeed and grow at times like these when you need it most.

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