II.
MANAGER MINDSET
As managers we are challenged daily by new knowledge and new guidelines for work. This requires flexibility and the ability to adapt to nonstop change. Your effectiveness as a manager depends on understanding your own style and preferences. There are many areas you may want to investigate and consider to raise your awareness of your own individual strengths and weaknesses. Self- awareness can assist you in managing your approach and strategies to increase and maximize your effectiveness and probability of success.
A. Management Philosophy
Philosophy is defined as the study of truth, systematic view, theory, reasoned doctrine, metaphysics, logical concept, theory of knowledge, critical study, logic, fundamental principle, basis, theory, conception, axiom, truth, law, postulate, precept, outlook, view, belief, opinion, attitude, conviction, viewpoint, Weltanschauung (outlook), and approach.
The philosophy of the Oklahoma supported employment program is to increase the quality of life for people with significant disabilities. We believe in using ethical means to achieve long term outcomes. We believe in using compassionate, effective ways to motivate our staff to assist in achieving job satisfaction for the consumer.
There are many elements that must be coordinated to
provide the information, opportunities, supports and options needed to assist
the consumer to become as independent and self-determinate as possible. Supported employment staff work within the
structure of milestone outcome payment program to allow individuals with
significant disabilities to get real work for real pay. The vocational
rehabilitation counselor uses an Individual Plan for Employment (IPE) to
authorize supported employment and other services related to employment of
individuals with a significant disability.
The state Developmental Disability Services Unit uses an Individual Plan
(IP) to authorize home and community based services (such as supported
employment and supported living).
Schools, Vocational Rehabilitation, and the Developmental Disabilities
Unit of the Department of Human Services, and other agencies work together to
provide individualized services for those who can not easily utilize services
available to people without disabilities.
We have fine-tuned our image of empowerment,
insisting on inclusion and personal choice. We have learned to provide
opportunities and supports never before available for people who have severe
disabilities, some of whom are now able to work and live in the community for
the first time.
B. Manager Roles
To succeed as a supported employment program
manager, many different job roles must be mastered. Each supported employment program has its own specific features
and needs. Supported employment
services are provided by many different types of service providers: sheltered
workshops, for profit businesses, vocational technical schools, universities,
mental health facilities, etc. The
supported employment program manager will need to balance many roles requiring
a variety of skills and talents.
* The “lawyer” considers how legal issues affect supported employment, such as program liability and consumer and staff personal safety.
* The
“public relations manager” or “advocate” makes others aware of positive
outcomes, to the outside world as well as to the agency within, building
program support and recognition.
* The
“teacher” examines the workplace, using it for teaching certain objectives to
staff and consumers.
* The “team
coach” knows when to create or resolve tension for peak motivation and effect,
providing information and an atmosphere that supports teamwork.
*The “financial manager” embraces an administrative
viewpoint focusing on expenditures and fiscal management. Programs must support themselves financially
to continue being viable.
* The “human
resource manager” centers on staffing issues, recruiting and training
appropriate staff to produce quality program outcomes. Poor staff selection and management not only
can produce stress for everyone involved, it can result in the loss of
thousands of dollars in program service and adversely affect service quality,
staff and consumer training time, mishandled business and customer contacts.
C.
Management Style
A recent national 25-year study of successful
managers has shown that great managers do not have much in common. They come in
different ages, sexes, races and
management styles. What they do
have in common is a willingness to treat issues and people individually.
Gifted and successful managers set clear expectations, are understanding, trustworthy, and invest in individuals. A study (based on common payoffs) called “100 Best Companies to Work For” lists payoffs such as employer provided vacation time, profit sharing, training for employees, and on-site day care facilities.
Some of the new payoffs used by great managers are not easy to provide. New payoffs are much more demanding for managers, calling for discipline, focus, trust, and perhaps most important, a willingness to meet individual needs. Your job is to bring together an understanding of needs with the ability to produce outcomes through the effective use of your style and personality type.
What’s Your
Personality Type?
How do you start to gather information on
personality type? Know yourself first.
The Keirsey Character Sorter by Dr. David Keirsey is one way to help you get
started. On the Internet, go to
http://keirsey.com/cgi-bin/keirsey/kcs.cgi. This site will give you an
opportunity to test your personality type preferences, giving you a profile of
your type. The personality type preference will mirror only the facts you give
on the test. For best result, answer
the questions according to what you like instead of what you think you need to
do. When you take the test, kick back,
relax, and be yourself. There are no
“right” or “wrong” answers. Your test
will give one of 16 four-letter types such as “ESTJ”.
How Do Your Personality Type Preferences Sway Your Perceptions?
People are not alike. Every human being is an unmatched blend of inherited
characteristics, surroundings, and history.
We try to understand our experiences by analyzing the information we
have available.
We receive sensations directly. Before sensations
become perceptions they are filtered by such things as DNA, birth order,
dominant culture/subculture, social economic status, mental health/physical
health, friends/family values, educational level of family,
schools/institutions and church/community involvement. (For example, health is heavily influenced
by DNA, such as Downs Syndrome or other genetic variations.) Dominant culture and subcultures influence
perceptions. Every decision made, to some degree, will be shaped by current and
past perceptions.
Not all senses are equal. Not all senses may be available.
A person who is totally deaf is denied auditory input; a person is
totally blind can not receive visual input. People receive perceptions from the
sensations available to them.
People with different personality type preferences
sort perceptions in different ways. When “I”ntroverts take in perceptions,
generally they think before talking about it.
“E”xtraverts talk as a part of their thinking process.
The I”N”tutitive seeks to first understand the
overall picture first, focusing on the
forest rather than the tree. (The iNtutive is depicted with an “N” since an “I”
is used for Introvert.) The “Sensor” focuses on individual pieces to construct
the whole, the tree rather than the forest.
“F”eelers make decisions based on how it affects
people, and therefore their productivity.
“T”hinkers make decisions based on the tasks needed to reach the bottom
line.
After passing through the filters of Introvert,
Extravert, iNtutive or Sensor, Feeler or Thinker, it is time to decide how the
perceptions are going to be acted upon.
Judgers want to resolve an issue as soon as possible. Perceivers favor
exploring all choices before making a decision. Combinations of these four personality types give the possibility
of 16 different categories of personality type preferences.
The personality type preferences are just a tool to
give the supported employment program manager another way to help understand
his/her self, supervisors, customers, and staff. It is hoped that the supported employment program manager can get
ideas on successfully communicating with personality type preference styles
different than his/her own style.
Within your own program the funding source
administrators, the agency supervisors, the staff, and consumers all have
different mixtures of personality type preferences. The different personality
type preferences make handling difficult.
The way a program manager uses this information depends on their own
personality type preferences, facility regulations, funding agencies’
requirements, and the needs of staff.
Personality type preferences can determine:
a)
how
personal energy or motivation is created;
b)
how
information is received;
c)
how
decisions are made; and,
d)
how
decisions are acted on.
Our American culture values
self
(taking care of #1),
preparation
for tomorrow,
time
efficiency (use every minute),
youth
(rich, young, beautiful)
completion
of task,
being
aggressive,
speaking
up,
taking
and saving
conquering
nature,
being
skeptical and logical,
self
attention (ego) seeking, and
religion
as a part of life.
Compare the American community values with the
traditional values of the Native American Indian community:
grouping
(taking care of the people),
today is a good
day!,
a right time and a
right place,
age (knowledge,
wisdom),
cooperation,
being patient,
listen and you will
learn,
giving and sharing,
living in harmony
with all things,
great mystery and
being intuitive,
humility, and
having a spiritual
life.
Although Native Americans are a part of American culture, differences in
values (such as whether to value age or youth) can create potential areas of
disagreement or confusion. The more an individual’s personality and preferences
match those of the others with which
they work, the easier and more rewarding it is for them to accomplish
things in our society. Supporting a cause not accepted by others can produce
major difficulties that may be more effectively overcome by being able to
identify and address those differences effectively.
Effective teams, however, usually are comprised of a
blend of communication styles, creating a blend of approaches and a balance of
strengths and weaknesses.
A capable and effective program manager demands
abilities to understand self in combination with the personalities and needs of
others.
D.
Workplace Battles
Which battles have the biggest potential for
threatening your supported employment program? Which battles need to be
prioritized? There will always
be opportunities to fight battles; however, when those battles are fought can
make all the difference. Considering
the amount and importance of damage control needed in a situation can be one
way to prioritize your efforts.
Obviously, safety issues must come first.
There is a
difference in being reactive or proactive as a manager. The reactive manager is swamped with
emergencies, pressing problems, deadline-drive projects, meetings, and
preparations. The proactive manager
will also have significant issues that are demanding, however, the proactive
manager will deal mostly with significant issues before they become
demanding. Look at the overall
situation and prioritize the order of what needs to be handled based on the information
you have. Stephen Covey in “The 7
Habits of Highly Effective People” suggests handling important issues while
they are not urgent. See the Activity
Matrix below.
|
|
URGENT
|
NOT URGENT
|
IMPORTANT |
I
§
Crisis §
Pressing Problems §
Deadline-driven projects,
meetings, preparations |
II
§
Preparation §
Prevention §
Values clarification §
Planning §
Relationship building §
True re-creation §
Empowerment |
NOT IMPORTANT |
§
Interruptions, some phone
calls §
Some mail, same reports §
Some meetings §
Many proximate, pressing
matters §
Many popular activities III |
§
Trivia, busywork §
Junk mail §
Some phone calls §
Time wasters §
“Escape” activities
IV
|
Stephen Covey’s Activity Matrix
Over the years in working
with clients around the globe, I have had the pleasure of observing many
managers who were and are extremely successful in their chosen
professions. Despite their very
different disciplines, industries and even cultures, the most interesting thing
that I've observed is not their dissimilarities, but what they all seem to have
in common. I have been amazed by the
consistent pattern of behaviors that successful managers all seem to share in
their approach to managing others.
However they discovered
these secrets, intuitively, through instruction or example, here are seven
secrets that I believe all successful managers have in common:
1. They are a transparent
example. The most successful managers wear both their
personal values and the values of their organization on their sleeves. They are both knowledgeable and
skillful and in constant pursuit of
mastery of both. By doing this, they
set an example for their people both on the job and off. Whether it's a dedication to customer
service, a commitment to quality or anything else, they themselves embody and
practice the value and constantly strive to master and improve it. Because they always look at their own
behavior before looking at others, they are believable role models and command
respect.
2. They demand the same from
others. They are able to visualize the skills,
knowledge and culture necessary for the organization and individuals in it to
succeed, and they begin to sell others on the need for change. They are
impatient regarding their goal but extremely patient in helping people buy into
that goal. Once they have achieved a critical mass of people committed to
change, they demand and expect full adherence to the new organizational
culture. Their mission is not to create
a group of mirror images of themselves, but rather to help everyone achieve
their full potential. In order to do that, they must set high standards and
expectations for success.
3. They coach others. For successful managers every interpersonal encounter represents
a coaching opportunity. Some are
planned and highly structured individual or group coaching sessions. The vast majority, however, are "in the
moment" opportunities. Coaching
involves a range of behaviors, educating, encouraging, demonstrating,
counseling, and more, but the focus of all of these actions is to help other
people succeed. These managers are
constantly and actively involved in performance improvement and helping their
people become more talented and capable.
4. They track performance. They have definable, measurable standards of performance against
which everything is measured. They
clearly articulate success points or critical success factors for everyone in
their organization. These standards
reflect individual development plans and are therefore customized to each
member of the organization. They give responsibility
but expect accountability.
5. They leverage their
coaching. They recognize that for some within the
group, the future holds greater responsibilities. They prepare future managers by coaching them to coach others. They give these people opportunities to
stretch and expand their own skills by developing skills in others.
6. They implement a mastery
program. Many within the group are happy with their
current level of responsibilities. Successful managers do not allow this to be
an excuse for not growing. They
constantly raise the bar and invent new ways for people to continue to grow and
improve in their current positions.
They recognize continued growth
and improvement is a life long journey rather than a destination, and the
programs they implement reflect this.
7. They repeat, repeat, repeat. Successful people in any endeavor know that there is no such
thing as overnight success. Good managers achieve their level of success
through consistency and discipline, and they help others succeed through
repeated coaching and example. They
know the only way to maintain a high level of success is through repetition and
discipline. In fact, without repetition
and discipline, the previous six secrets are only good intentions rather than
successful management practices. With
them, they become the habits that form the basis of continuing success.
As with many secrets to
success, these may seem like common sense.
They are in fact easy to understand, but they are very difficult to
execute. And it is in the execution
that those at the top of their game, the truly successful managers,
differentiate themselves from those who are only in the game.
Patrick
Malone, CSE, is a Senior Partner with The PAR Group, a training and performance
consulting company based in Atlanta.
G. MANAGING CHANGE
As competition among businesses or agencies increases it becomes more important for companies to work harder to improve service quality and program flexibility. All staff must take an active role in meeting the challenge of “revitalization” or “transformation”. It is difficult to create an atmosphere that allows change, a shift in strategy, process, and corporate culture; a change in organizational capability “so thorough that the employees feel they are working for a different company, a leap in a company’s ability to meet or exceed industry benchmarks, a jump in bottom-line results.”
Change
is not easy. Most advice and
suggestions are too conceptual and/or impractical or too inspirational and
vague or too situation specific to apply effectively. Three factors have been identified that produce sustainable
revitalization:
·
incorporating
employees fully into the process of dealing with business challenges
Incorporating
employees means engaging employees as meaningful contributors in the challenges
facing the business. There must be an
atmosphere of encouraging constructive conflict and “thinking out of the box”
without penalty. The employees must be
given a new sense of identity with the enterprise as a whole, the opportunity
for open and productive conflict, and a new appetite for learning.
·
leading
from a different place to sharpen and maintain employee involvement and
constructive stress
Leaders
must be able to operate outside their comfort zone and be able to accept
ambiguity and adversity as necessary for the shift from a mindset of
traditional control and authority. They
must be able to establish focus and urgency, maintain healthy levels of stress,
and not run to the rescue with answers.
Solutions must come from the ranks.
·
instilling
mental disciplines that will make people behave differently and then help them
sustain their new behavior
All
employees must understand the big picture and be able to set aside hierarchy,
exercise self-criticism and work as a team.
Seven
disciplines are relevant in sustaining new business approaches.
1.
Build
an intricate understanding of the business.
The gap between overall strategy and individual performance must be
bridged. This will enable employees to
perform to high standards and understand how they each contribute to company
success.
2.
Encourage
uncompromising straight talk. This will
not occur if deference to superiors or fear of hurting someone’s feelings gets
in the way. There must be an atmosphere
for healthy give-and-take and a safe environment for candor to occur.
3.
Manage
from the future. Keep creating new
benchmarks of excellence. There must be
goals to reach for to keep the company from experiencing drift and loss of
vitality.
4.
Harness
setbacks. This is a matter of
rethinking the concept of failure, treating breakdowns as break-through, seeing
defeat as opportunity. People usually
act adversely to mistakes by blaming themselves, others, or bad luck. Setbacks need to be viewed as windows to
learning.
5.
Promote
inventive accountability. Single out
and reward creative acts that strike the proper balance between improvisation
and accountability.
6.
Understand
the quid pro quo. It takes more than
financial rewards and job security to produce commitment and enthusiasm from
employees. It also takes a sense of
meaning in the work strong enough to generate satisfaction. Employees must understand where the
enterprise is going and have some say in its destiny.
7.
Create
relentless discomfort with the status quo.
Individuals can improve on everything they do. Acceptable performance levels are insufficient for sustained
vitality.
“Done
properly, these interventions will
create a landmark shift in an organization’s operating state or culture by
significantly altering the way people experience their own power and identity
and the way they deal with conflict and learning.”
Studying Sears, Roebuck & Company, Royal Dutch Shell, and the United States Army suggests four indicators of the quality of system performance. (These organizations, although large and thoroughly established, have been able to maintain the vigor of start-up organizations. Employees are able to avoid resignation in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles, turfdom, and the safety of following entrenched procedures, regardless of effectiveness, and conflict resolution that could lead to change.)
·
Power
– do employees believe they can affect organizational performance?
·
Identity
– do individuals have a narrow identification with their professions, work
teams or units, or identify with the organization as a whole?
·
Conflict
- how do employees handle conflict - by glossing over the problem, or through
confrontation and resolution?
·
Learning
– how does the organization learn and deal with new ideas? Is trial and error the norm?
Reference: Changing the Way We Change
By
Pascale, Millemann, and Gioja
Harvard
Business Review
November-December
1997
H. MANAGEMENT TIPS FROM CRSU
·
Use
proactive management rather than crisis management. Crisis management takes more time and effort and is not practical
for an on-going basis.
·
Learn
from others’ experiences. Network with
other providers to see what works and what do not. It’s more difficult, if not impossible, to work in a vacuum.
·
Plan
your management. Your program must have
direction, goals and objectives. (This
is the purpose of the monthly progress report, end of year report, and next
year’s plan.) Make continual course
corrections.
·
Manage
your staff. Have regular staff
meetings. Discuss their monthly goals
and activities. Address their training
needs. Just as vocational staff must
manage their caseloads, you must manage your staff and program.
Make sure there is a probationary period for new
hires. Give new staff 3 to 6 months to
be productive. Providing they have been
given appropriate training and support, non-productive staff need to be
terminated. Managers not being able to
decide which staff to retain and which to let go have jeopardized many
programs.
·
Use
the skills of your technical assistant and program administration. It is
important to build a trust relationship with them. Keep them updated on program
strengths and areas that may need watching and/or help. This will get them invested in problem
solving and being part of the solution.
It is easier to solve a small problem than one that has gotten out of
control, proactive rather than crisis management. If you are hesitant to discuss particular problems or situations
with your technical assistant or administration consider (a) is it an ethical
and/or quality control problem; or, (b) is it really a larger problem than you
first thought. Your technical assistant
does have a dual role in working with each individual program, one concerns
problem solving, the other, quality and financial monitoring. Technical assistants would much rather
assist you in solving a problem(s) than terminate the program.
·
Financial
issues:
Be aware of the total cost of your program. Know your budget items and what areas have
flexibility. Know where the program is
financially at all times. Pay attention
to the bottom line.
A healthy financial base includes more than one
funding source. 30% from a different
funding source is recommended.
Make sure that clients are placed in a program based on the appropriate services needed for client success, not on the cheapest price the counselor can negotiate. Setting guidelines for acceptance into each of your programs can help the counselor understand what is offered and why. You can refuse to serve a client if you don’t believe the correct program has been selected.
Salary costs include benefits. (Usually 25 to 30% of salary) Salaries must be supported by
productivity. Make staff aware of this and
their billing responsibility.
Since staff productivity is critical, base raises on
productivity, if at all possible.
§
Milestone
numbers may be different for each contract. Services vary according to the
disability population served and can also vary by what is specified in
different invitations to bid. To avoid confusion, use the name of the milestone
rather than the number when at all
possible.
§
Always
get authorization on paper from the counselor before providing service. If you
do not have authorization you have no guarantee of payment.
§
Counselors
cannot postdate services.
§
Your
contract specifies completion of “Determination of Needs” within 45 days of the
consumer entering your program.
Counselors vary on how strict they are about this timeline. Check with
the counselor if you have a question about this.
§
Counselor
caseloads are audited for compliance with federal and state regulations. They
have timelines they have to meet for timely provision of services.
§
Your
documentation can be used in the counselor’s case narrative. Work with
individual counselors to see what is most helpful to them.
§
When
counselors ask questions they may be trying to clarify to more clearly document
the case or to assure that the needs of that specific client have been addressed.
§
Counselors
have large caseloads. It is not always possible for them to be able to give you
immediate resolution to your problem; but, you can expect a timely response.
§
Emergencies
happen; but, try to be part of the solution rather than the source of the
problem.
By Jack D. Deal
I recently received this e-mail: “I work for City Government and the City
Council has been throwing the word “Micromanage” around in the Council
meetings. Since there is an election coming up, they all seem to have their own
idea of what the word “Micromanage” means.
(Of which some are way off base.)
What is micromanaging and what is not?
Micromanaging has become a hot buzzword. I use it, my clients use it, and now
government is beginning to use it. As
stated above the term can be misused. Perhaps it is time to better define the
concept.
Micromanaging is usually synonymous with the “old
way of doing things”. “Dinosaur”
managers use the micromanagement approach.
The term essentially means to supervise every small step in the workflow
process – hence the “Micro”. This
method worked fairly well in the “old” production days when assemble line
workers were uneducated and unskilled.
These workers normally did one routine step and that was it. They made few or no decisions. They had a
minimum production quota. Their breaks were monitored, their lunches were
monitored and of course the time clock was the tracker. Time was viewed as what was “bought” by the
company. Close supervision or micromanaging ensured that production levels were
met. Management literally had to tell
employees what to do and watch them to make sure they did it.
This system worked well when workflow was simple. As
the business world became more complex, micromanaging became less effective.
Time was not what the company bought and the worker sold. Productivity became
the key. As processes became more complex, workers were required to gain
greater skills. Skilled workers became
more in demand and could go elsewhere if they were not treated properly.
Skilled workers eventually found micromanagers offensive and crude.
As we approached the 80’s and 90’s companies became
more results oriented. As time became even less of a factor in the results
equation, motivation and innovation began to be understood as real forces in
production results. Workers became employees and then associates or team
members. Employees began to be viewed as assets and not just expenses. Employers began to understand that employees
could provide the greatest competitive advantage as well as the number one
management headache. In short,
employees could make or break the company.
Managers began to understand that good management
meant maximizing employee productivity. This could no longer be accomplished by
micromanaging. Managers began to
understand that knowing their people and helping them do their best was the
best way to reach superior production levels.
Instead of being an obstacle, managers began to understand it was their
job to remove obstacles. Time constraints have been one of the last obstacles
to fall.
Today’s managers understand they must constantly
assess and improve their workplace processes and mechanisms. They understand
that accountability is much more than putting in time and punching the clock.
They no longer insist on telling their employees how to do something because
often the employee knows more about what they are doing than the manager. Also
they have learned that employees can not only solve workplace problems but also
can create and innovate. The employee that creates and innovates does not
appreciate being treated like the assembly line worker of the past. Skilled
employees feel micromanagers do not appreciate their contributions.
Micromanaging was a process that worked reasonably
well when the work was simple. The bottom line was there. As work became more
complex micromanaging lost its effectiveness.
In today’s workplace, micromanaging is responsible for many bad bottom
lines, poor performances and bankruptcies.
Unfortunately we are creatures of habit and
precedent. Because we often dislike change, business and social evolution are
slow to change.
In today’s fast-paced, highly competitive business
environment micromanagers are faced with fewer options. And even though
micromanagers work harder and harder the brutal market place will continue to
erode their bottom lines.
Jack D. Deal is owner of Deal Consulting in Santa
Cruz, CA (831) 457-8806. Related
articles may be found at www.dealconsulting.comm.