Question

Journal Entry 6 - Encourage the Heart: After you complete the assigned readings, below are some questions that you can use to stimulate your journal entry. 1. How are goals, expectations, and standards connected with one another? How are they connected to Encourage the Heart? Think of a time that you or a leader you know Encouraged the Heart. Describe what happened. What are common obstacles to Encouraging the Heart? Which kinds of obstacles are valid and which can be overcome? Give examples. 2. What does the advice to leaders to “be personally involved” mean? Why is being personally involved important? What are some ways in which a leader can get personally involved and show that he or she cares? 3. What is the most meaningful recognition you have ever received? Be specific about the way in which you were recognized. What made this recognition meaningfully? What are some creative and imaginative ways in which you can recognize the contribution of an individual? Celebrate the accomplishments of a group? 4. What’s the purpose of feedback? Why is it important for leaders to focus on clear standards and provide feedback? Give examples from your own experiences.

Practice 5: Chapters 11 & 12 in The Leadership Challenge 6th Edition - Kouzes & Posner.

Kindly answer all the parts!

Thanks

Answer 1

1.Goals, expectations and standards are of high importance in any organization. If an organization doesn’t have goals then, employees would not be result orientated. The outcomes will not be seen. They are often the elementary unit of success. As we saw in Pygmalion Effect, having expectations from others, believing in them and making it clear what is expected of them would indeed have a positive effect in them resulting in positive outcomes.

Standards are things used as a measure, norm or models in comparative evaluations.

Setting goals for one’s performance and coming up with ways to achieve these goals is generally an adaptive strategy and can help goal fulfilment. After the goals have been set, it should be clearly communicated with the employees along with what is expected of them and how they can work in order to achieve the goals that has been set.

An example of a goal can be an organization providing its sales staff to meet the sales target of hundred thousand per month. With regard to the employee, the following target is considered as a goal. The employee can also have his/her personal goals. Expectations are related to a case of uncertainty. It is something that is most likely to happen among several different outcomes possible. An example of this can be an organization expecting the organizational website getting 20% more visitors every single year. Standards, on the other hand, is related to established norms. An example of this can be in an organization to recruit an individual, the organization has a certain standard to follow. It includes of publication of the vacancy, panel formulation, initial HR screening, panel meeting to shortlist candidate, skype interview, writing test, face-to-face interview, reference check, recommendation of the top candidate, final approval of the top candidate and reimmunitation by teh director, informing the top candidate and sending out regret letters to unsuccessful candaidates.

Structure is the working design in an organization or a project. A democratic leader has a more open structure. For example an advertisement firm or an innovation project tends to have a more open and flexible structure where the leadership is shared rather than being in a hierarchy. As explained by Kouzes and Posner, “Projects are how we tend to organize work these days. Projects create the context for our goals, determine with whom we work, and set our schedules.

All three aspects are interrelated. Higher goal setting creates higher expectation of the leader from the followers. These goal and expectation can only function and be nurtured in a well performing structure inside a project.

Appreciation is important because being a leader is not an easy job. People’s expectation change and with so many opportunity in the market they may leave if they feel their expectations are not being met or the organization structure is not friendly. Appreciation for the success must be shown by the leader making the employee feel special. This genuine encouragement of the heart psychologically enforces other to strive for recognitions as well. This encourages people to continue working towards the common goal.According to Kouzes & Posner , “To Encourage the Heart, you recognize contributions by showing appreciation for individual excellence, and you celebrate the values and the victories by creating a spirit of community.

Encouraging the heart is one of the five exemplary practices of leadership given by Kouzes and Posner that deals with the soft side of leadership. Good leaders encourage the heart by recognizing contributions and celebrating values and victories. In order to be a good leader, the contribution should recognized by showing appreciation for individual excellance and values and victoriess need to be celebrated by creating a spirit of community. The practices of encouraging the heart includes setting clear standards, expecting the best, paying attention, personalizing recognition, telling stories, celebrating together and setting the examples. It helps in sustaining the team spirit. When the employees are clear about the goals of the organization and they find some degree of alignment with their personal goals, they will be encouraged to perform their best. Setting clear standards helps in reducing confusion that will enhance the performance of the employees. Similarly expecting the best out of the employees will make them perform better as explained in the pygmalion effect. So setting clear goals and standards provide employees with the idea of their expected performance that will motivate them to give their cent percent for the attainent of the goals.

For example: A company has the goal to increase the production by 25%. For this, it needs to set certain standard that will help to make the process more efficient and meet desired level of producion. But setting goals and standards alone is not sufficient as the employees are the ones who are responsible for making the desired outcome possible. So the company should clearly communicate the standards and goals to the employees along with the organization’s expectation from them in order to inspire them to work more effectively and efficiently.

Therefore there are two main ways that leaders can Encourage the Heart:

• Recognizing team members for going the extra mile: Employees who go above and beyond are doing so because they are passionate and committed; they won’t continue to do so for long if they don’t believe that doing so is appreciated and recognized.
• Celebrating victories and values: Creating a shared sense of accomplishment for employees helps each understand their part in the team’s greater achievements and reinforces the values the organization says are important.

Obstacles to encouraging the heart are:-

1.Some bosses might say simply paying their employees is enough. Managers may wonder why they need to go beyond routine pats on the back. Even using the word "heart" could turn off some supervisors who may think business is not about the warm-and-fuzzy stuff.

2.Encouraging the heart principle is practical and not theoretical in nature.It needs to be shown and felt.Have you ever heard someone say,"You know, you really could stop motivating me so much." Zig Ziglar once said, "Motivation is like bathing. That's why it's recommended daily." Encouraging the heart is a leadership practice and behavior with multiple benefits that ripple beyond a single act of kindness.

2.Leadership

The activity of driving individuals in an organization towards accomplishing objectives is called leadership. Leadership does this by affecting worker practices in a few different ways. A leader sets a clear vision for the association, motivates his followers, guides workers through the work procedure, and inspire team spirit.

Personal involvement

In leadership, personal involvement means the leader engaging personally with his employees or followers. In this process, the leader makes a particular relation and close connection with his followers. Through this, the leader makes an understanding connection, which results in that the leader has a better influence on them and can control them easily. It develops a trust in his followers, which helps in motivating them. In this process, the leader makes a strong relationship with his followers so that the objective can be achieved.

There are various ways to show their followers that he really cares by personally involving. One of the ways is to have a deep conversation with them about their feeling, about their work life and their feedback about the business environment. Celebrating personal events and festivals in the organization also helps in personal involvement.

The ways in which a leader can be personally involved are:-

1.Manage by walking around- A leader can manage from his/her desk, or can walk around and see what’s going on. It’s not exercise; it is to engage with the people, to understand not only their work environment and challenges but them as a person.

Walking around presents opportunities that one cannot envision simply by sitting at ourdesk, from picking up things andlooking, seeing and talking to people who may be frustrated about a particular issue and providing them with advice.The interpersonal relationships that the leader makes are invaluable.

2.Show that you care - how that you’re willing to do anything to get the job done, whatever it takes to show that we’re all in this together as opposed to a simple hierarchal structure. Building those relationships shows that you care about the individual and not just the worker.

3.Develop a vision, form relationships and execute - Make sure there’s a shared vision among the group, that you’ve identified the goals you are trying to accomplish and how the group will benefit from achieving those.Work on your relationships so you can have honest, open and candid discussion about each other’s roles.

4.Communicate constantly - Communicating a vision is not a onetime event; it is something you weave into everything. Make sure that when ideas come up,you’re relating those ideas back to the vision and goals, to make
sure that those activities, if successful, drive you closer toward your goal.

Have monthly plan and review sessions, where you review the plan and plan for the next period. If you’re not converting the vision into a concrete plan that you are reviewing periodically, you run the risk of mission drift.

5.Give and receive feedback - You not only have to be able to give feedback but receive it. One of the ways of developing a level of comfort and sharing honest and open criticism is how you manage and respond to the constructive criticism you receive.

Give criticism constructively, and be honest. Most people will understand that you’re sharing an honest assessment, and if your assessment is based on a faulty premise, you’ve got to be willing to recognize that your assessment may need to be adjusted. Lead by example.

6.Know your people - It’s one thing to look at statistics, numbers and reports, but understanding your people is equally important. Understand their skill set, competencies, fears and level of comfort around certain areas.Give people the opportunity to stretch beyond their comfort zone within an area that can be reachable by them.

You only know where to match their skill set and who to stretch and when by understanding your people beyon their statistics.If you understand their personal goals and objectives, or try to understand them, it also allows you to match their skill sets and goals with a particular area that requires execution.

3.Employee recognition is a key driver of motivation and employee satisfaction in the workplace. Recognition of staff for special accomplishments, career service, retirement or other special circumstances can also enhance staff member relations and reinforce desired behaviors.

Consistent, timely, and meaningful rewards and recognition do not need to be costly or time consuming, but they should be a priority, as employee recognition is one of the leading factors contributing to employee satisfaction and motivation.

The most meaningful recognition that I have received is :-

Crush it Call

Each Friday afternoon, our entire team comes together to recognize another team member's hard work during that week. We go around the room stating who we want to "Crush," and also one thing we're grateful for.

I think this tradition has been especially important as our team has grown. When your company is only about 30 people, you usually know what everyone else in the company is working on. But once you start approaching 100 people, the overall interdepartmental interaction goes down a lot.

So the "Crush It Call" has been an important way for people to learn about all the amazing work people from other departments are up to.

The creative and imaginative ways in which we can recognize the contribution of an individual or a team is:-

Provide Team Recognition

• Arrange for a healthy breakfast or afternoon snacks to say thanks, we appreciate you.
• Hold a special meeting or awards ceremony to celebrate those people in a group with talent.
• Host an off-site team-building exercise.
• Take your team out to lunch and tell them why they are appreciated.
• Organize a social outing after work hours.
• Arrange for professional, career and personal development workshops or lunch sessions.
• Schedule regular 5-15 minute break times for all staff members, the break can be used to take a quick group walk around the office or to do some stretches.
• Pick a theme for each month and do an activity with your staff that relates to it.

Show Individual Expressions of Appreciation

• Present the gifts at a one-on-one meeting and tell each individual why you appreciate them.
• Take one person to lunch each day in a month or throughout the year and talk about their goals.
• Send an e-card or hand-written card with a special message about appreciation for that individual.
• Send a letter of commendation to a person who made a difference and copy their boss.
• Ask your staff member what motivates them and then customize your recognition to match.
• Keep thank you and birthday cards handy to give out to staff members when appropriate.

Welcome and Recognize New Employees

• Put up a welcome banner or sign.
• Make sure they have office supplies ready at their desk before they get there.
• Give them a small welcome gift, like a coffee mug.
• Ask about the employee's lunch plans for that week, and make arrangements for them to go out with co-workers.
• Take the employee on a tour of their office building.

4.The term ‘feedback’ is used to describe the helpful information or criticism about prior action or behavior from an individual, communicated to another individual (or a group) who can use that information to adjust and improve current and future actions and behaviors.

Feedback occurs when an environment reacts to an action or behavior. For example, ‘customer feedback’ is the buyers’ reaction to a company’s products, services, or policies; and ’employee performance feedback’ is the employees’ reaction to feedback from their manager – the exchange of information involves both performance expected and performance exhibited.

• Feedback keeps everyone on track, when done regularly. That’s beneficial for everyone involved in any type of activities: working on a project, preparing for an event, etc.
• Feedback helps your team avoid major mistakes by creating a clear and honest communication flow during any kind of teamwork. It saves you the time of correcting someone’s work, reduces errors caused by miscommunication to a minimum, and prevents regrets of those who feel like they failed.
• You form better relationships with the people on your team by encouraging honest feedback. It often involves criticism, which is something most people aren’t comfortable with. But when given in the right way, it can help them evolve.
• Constructive feedback motivates people and boosts their performance. A friendly approach works well here. You can not only help others see what they might be doing wrong, but allow them to use this as a piece of advice, not judgment. Make them feel like you believe in them and just want to help them reach the project’s goal sooner. That will make them even more motivated to do a good job.
• Feedback promotes personal and professional growth. Feedback is about listening actively, taking the time to analyze, and then thinking of the best possible solution to perform better. It provides positive criticism and allows to see what everyone can change to improve their focus and results. It brings people together and creates a healthy communication flow.

Leaders have a tremendous influence on their direct reports, and one of the most critical areas for leadership success is being able to give honest feedback: praise when it’s deserved and coaching in the moment. To achieve this throughout your organization, a leadership development curriculum needs to equip leaders with these essential skills.One key characteristic of a good leader is that they are able to reach organizational goals by motivating others. Giving constructive feedback helps individuals grow by learning how they can improve and by reinforcing the activities they are doing well. This ultimately helps them achieve both personal and organizational goals.

Although it can initially be challenging, when an employee and supervisor become adept at giving and receiving feedback-it’s a two-way street-it builds a foundation of trust. When done well, the feedback process should not be anxiety-inducing for either party. It should be a mutually beneficial learning experience that helps individuals gain new insights that will help them improve performance.

Importance of feedback for leaders

Credibility

Employee feedback that fosters open dialogue and communication enhances a leader's credibility. Supervisors and managers - particularly those who are newly hired or promoted -benefit from employee feedback to establish their leadership roles and assert their credibility. With frequent and meaningful feedback employees provide, their supervisors and managers learn more about employees' job duties and responsibilities as well as the challenges employees face in their jobs. Leaders then take this feedback and address employees' concerns in a manner that demonstrates their credibility. For example, an employee who is concerned that his sales approach isn't as effective as it should be voices his concerns to his manager. The manager then provides guidance on developing an effective, consultative sales approach. By doing so, the leader improves his credibility by lending his expertise.

Expectations

Supervisors and managers, both of which make up an organization's leadership team, are responsible for sustaining their own job performance and meeting the company's expectations. However, leaders are ultimately responsible for helping their employees meet the company's performance expectations. A key component in any employer-employee relationship is that the employer needs to provide the employee with the tools necessary to meet the company's performance expectations. When leaders and employees exchange feedback, it creates an environment that supports strong job performance. Feedback can be supervisor-to-employee on how to improve a process, or it can be employee-to-supervisor on the type of communication style that works best for that employee.

Appraisals

Employee performance appraisals are feedback especially important for leaders and the employees who report to them. At least an annual performance appraisal provides an opportunity for supervisors and employees to engage in a two-way dialogue about employee strengths and weaknesses, as well as ways the supervisor can train or mentor the employee to improve her job performance or to prepare her for additional responsibilities. Annual feedback also is important to determine how to recognize and reward employees for their performance and efforts. Many employers have compensation practices that are tied to performance feedback -- feedback in this instance is essential to determining by what percentage the leader should raise the employee's salary.

Conflict

Workplace conflict creates a toxic environment that affects productivity, employee morale and engagement and, ultimately, company revenue and profitability. Feedback is critical when in a leadership position because it enables supervisors and managers to identify potential conflict between employees or conflict that leaders have with their employees. Leaders who identify workplace conflict by listening to employee feedback can take proactive measures to diffuse negative workplace situations. In addition, understanding there may be the potential for conflict with an employee opens possibilities for conflict management before the supervisor-employee relationship is destroyed.

Example of feedback

Giving your audience a chance to provide feedback is crucial for maintaining an open communication climate. The manager must create an environment that encourages feedback. For example after explaining the job to the subordinated he must ask them whether they have understood it or not. He should ask questions like “Do you understand?”, “Do you have any doubts?” etc. At the same time he must allow his subordinated to express their views also.