To quote Peter Drucker, “The stepladder has gone, and there’s not even an implied structure of an industry rope ladder; it’s more like vines, and you bring your own machete!”

Today work environment has changed beyond all recognition, and the journey towards promotion is changing inexorably within business circles. How can you improve your chances of being seen and heard in the promotion stakes?

It’s not enough these days to just be excellent at your job. All that does is make yourself stand out in your current position. You need to discuss with the right personnel exactly what skills and talents are required for the promotable position. Try to become more visible by mixing with those decision-makers who you need to impress. But do it to support the business, not to show off your skills.

The most important skills you can develop to make yourself promotable revolve around great interpersonal skills. Most senior positions demand a higher level of political sensitivity because relationships go beyond the organisational setting and are more likely to have an impact on the long-term viability of the business.

You need to prove that you are able to meet the business objectives the new role will demand. Show your abilities by volunteering for an important project, chair a committee or support a specific interest group. This will show your passion and support for the whole business and you’re more likely to be seen as someone who can add value at a more senior level. If you act like someone who occupies the type of role you are aiming for, you are more likely to be seen by others who make those promotion decisions.

One skill you will need in a senior position is the ability to build and lead teams. Without co-operative networks, the business is less likely to succeed, so you need to be seeking out opportunities to grow team spirit and business acumen. Communicating clear objectives, understanding motivations and personal values of team members are critical knowledge centres for you.

Your ability to manage transition and change will be carefully scrutinised. Remaining flexible and actively seeking ways to progress, keeping people motivated through change and learning from new experiences will highlight the abilities that top management are looking for from their promotable candidates.

Identify role models that exhibit the style and expertise that you know will get you noticed. Look for a potential coach, either in person or through reading and DVD/CD materials, who will help and encourage you through the transition period. The best people will be internal within your organisation, and if you approach them with the attitude of wanting to learn and not show off your potential, you will be in strong position to benefit from their knowledge and experience.

So, being promotable depends more on your ambassadorial qualities as you want to represent your company from a higher level. It demands you demonstrate an active interest in the strategic issues you will face, and ability to reach targets and build value, a genuinely confident communication style and the ability to build good long-term relationships with your teams, colleagues and clients. Remember…making a success of your current role is the best foundation for success in your future roles!

Thanks again

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Course

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”

Once the holiday season is over you’ll likely see an increase in work as everyone who put major projects aside until after the holiday rush attempts to get back into the full swing of things again. As a result, you may or may not need to evaluate whether it’s necessary to add additional employees to your team.

We’ve covered some of the job skills and personal values you should be looking for in new employees before, but today I’d like to add a few more essential traits to the list.

Adaptability

Are your employees and prospects capable of adapting to the changing workplace? They need to be flexible and have the skills necessary to multi-task when there are multiple priorities. Can they look at a list of tasks and determine which ones are more important?

Interpersonal Skills

It’s wonderful to have a team of employees that can effectively communicate with their clients, but even better to have a team of employees that can communicate with each other. Make sure your prospective team members spend some time with your current team members so that you can gauge how well they’d interact.

Teamwork

Most employees must work not only with members of their own team, but with members of other teams as well. For example, your customer service team may have to deal with the IT department or accounting group. They must have strong relationships or work that would otherwise be done quickly may suffer as a result of tension or conflict.

Loyalty

Loyalty is a tricky subject, but in short you want to know that your employees are dedicated to their work even when times are tough. In some instances the company will have to take a stand that sides more with a client than an employee. A loyal employee can look past a professional business decision and remain dedicated to his work despite a disagreement.

Do you and your current team portray these traits? If not, is there anything you can do to change the situation?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

So you’re interviewing a potential new employee and you’ve gone down the list of standard resume questions. You know what their strengths and weaknesses are, you’ve reviewed the resume, and you may have even checked out their references. Here’s a question, though:

Did you evaluate their personal values?

This is difficult to do, but there are personal values that every individual has that are going to impact the way he views his work. Here are a few to consider:

Honesty & Integrity

Is the person you are looking to hire an honest person with strong moral values, or will he or she be easily swayed to change his ideals once he becomes part of a group?

Work Ethic & Dedication

Does the person you are interviewing really love his job or is he simply looking for a way to bring home a paycheck? Those who love what they do are more likely to do a wonderful job and are more likely to patiently work through challenges.

Dependability & Responsibility

Will this person be where he says when he says, with the completed project in hand? Will he take responsibility for his own actions or attempt to place the blame on others? His level of personal responsibility will provide huge insight when it comes to predicting his level of ethics in the workplace as well.

Positive Attitude

Does the person you are interviewing possess a high level of energy and a genuinely positive attitude? Even the toughest problems don’t seem quite as bad when faced with motivation, passion, and determination.

Professionalism

Despite his or her high level of energy and positive attitude, does the person you are reviewing act professionally and in a mature manner? It’s possible to have fun in the workplace without being immature and irresponsible. Being able to look at life in a positive light while at the same time acting professionally and harboring excellent client relationships is a huge plus.

Think about the positive personal values you’d like to see in an employee – and take a few minutes to assess whether or not you see those values in your current employees. Often times these values can be shifted by the way a person feels about his job or organisation. Do you need to make changes?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training

Click below for a:
Free email course “Improve your Management Skills”

I’ve been asked several times exactly what skills I’m talking about when we discuss the importance of technical skills, communication skills, or any of the other myriad of skills you need to succeed. While technical skills very from job to job, don’t get stuck in a rut by telling yourself that you only need “technical” skills if you’re working in an information technology environment. This simply isn’t true.

When it comes to functionality, there are quite a number of skill sets that can fall under the umbrella of essential job skills. Here’s a short list of essential job skills you should be looking for not only in yourself, but in your teammates and potential new employees as well.

• Communication skills – Alright, I know communication stands alone in a category of its own, but if you can’t communicate effectively (either verbally, in writing, or through listening) you won’t be able to share information about any of the functions necessary for success within your organisation.

• Research skills – The ability to analyze a problem is essential. You must be able to look at not only business systems and software in order to identify problems and solutions, but at your employees and their tasks as well.

• Computer literacy – As a manager you should know a little more about your computer than how to turn it on, check your email, and surf the web. You’ll need at least a small amount of program-specific skill when it comes to client management databases, word processing software, etc. You may not expect new hires to know about your specific database program, but they should know a bit about the more universal programs that are out there.

• Organisational skills – I once went on a job interview where I was handed an empty file folder and a pile of papers. I was told to review the documents and organise them before placing them in the folder. This was a simple test designed to judge my analytical skills (what on earth was I looking at!) and my organisational skills (how to put these strange documents in a useful order). You’ll find that organised employees are more productive and make fewer mistakes than those who lack this skill.

We’ll take a closer look at some more essential job skills in the future. Take some time to really think about these skills, though. Are yours as strong as they could be – and are you paying attention to whether or not your employees or potential new hires have these skills?

Thanks again,
Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Management Training

Click below for a:
FREE email course “Improve Your Management Skills”