JDA

Making the Six Month Review a Priority this Year

By Stephen Giordano

I know that many managers, myself included, can create a multitude of excuses why not to hold six month reviews with our staff members--the time it takes to prepare and reflect on the past six months, the time it takes to hold the discussions, the myriad of other activities that populate our to-do lists, the clients that need our attention, the projects that we have due.  The list goes on.  At the heart of it though is the critical question - Are our people worth our time? - and the answer is unequivocally yes. 

How can financial advisors overcome increasing skepticism–especially in a down economy?

By Jeff Dorman

Some of our clients are among the biggest names on Wall Street, so it’s been something of a rollercoaster ride for them over the past year. Yet more than ever, especially considering the downturn in the economy, there is a need for top financial advisors (who are among the key populations we work with) to differentiate themselves from their competition.

We see three elements consistently in the top financial advisors (FAs):
a.    Having the consultative mindset of a trusted advisor
b.    Having a client meeting process
c.    Being a highly skilled communicator

This post, I’ll focus on the mindset.  We’ll cover the next two points in future posts.

The Susan Boyles of the world are why I coach

By Joan T. Cook

Susan Boyle, for those who may have recently returned from another planet, became an overnight YouTube sensation singing “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Miserables for Simon Cowell on the TV show “Britain’s Got Talent” just recently. 

A forty-something “spinster” (as she was described by The New York Times) who lives alone with her cat in a London suburb, Ms. Boyle certainly doesn’t look like a potential pop star.  She could be described as homely, and until recently, unheralded. 

But what a talent.

Drop and give me 20…then deliver your keynote

By Stephen Giordano

In a recent episode of NBC's hit show 30 Rock, network executive Jack Donaghy, played by Alec Baldwin, prepares to deliver a keynote address to a waiting audience of high potential GE wunderkinds.  It’s his "pre-game" ritual, which consists of him shouting rapid-fire, passionate, positive affirmations to his own reflection in the mirror of the echoing men's room just outside the auditorium.  

"You are an icon, Jack. No one is better than you. You'll knock them over with your brilliance!"   He continues in this vein for more than couple of minutes and when he's done, he pauses, fixes the already perfect Windsor knot on his power tie, locks eye contact with himself once again and whispers, "Go get 'em, tiger."

Why is empowering managers a great place to start in helping an organization perform more effectively?

By Jeff Dorman

I thought I’d take a slightly different tack than my colleagues by posting and answering a couple of key questions:

Q. 1:  Why is empowering managers a great place to start in helping an organization perform more effectively?

I get questioned all the time about improving organizational effectiveness, and my answer is often that empowering managers is key for organizational success.  Why?  Because the #1 reason people feel demotivated or voluntarily leave an organization is their manager – not lack of opportunity, not compensation, not any of the reasons we might ordinarily default to when we ask ourselves why we lose people.

A question for 2009 (... OK, so a little late)

By Joan T. Cook

“What are your Challenges, Plans and Predictions for 2009?” was a question posted at Learning Circuits earlier this year.In response, Bill Brantley from Design of Knowledge posted this: “My answer is both a challenge, plan, and prediction: To help make training an evidence-based profession so that there is no question about its value in making a difference to people and organizations.”

Funny how all these years into “corporate training” we still don’t have a lot of solid, empirical evidence that proves its effectiveness.  Anecdotal evidence, yes; “smile sheet” evidence, yes.  But what evidence do we have that points unequivocally to training as a contributor to positive organizational change, better productivity, increased bottom line results, whatever measure floats your boat (and certainly that last is one that we as training professionals would love to be able to draw a direct line to)?  Precious little, if any.  I sometimes wonder if: