Emotional intelligence is about decision-making. Each person’s IQ is not an indicator of success. However, developing awareness and EQ will help build more prosperous relationships and robust goal execution. The first level of emotional intelligence is overcoming our initial reactions and shifting them into intentional responses. 

What it can look like

The significance of emotional intelligence (EQ) compared to intelligence quotient (IQ) is the ability to develop EQ. Each person’s IQ is set as they approach adulthood. Often, people might describe EQ as “street smarts” or common cents. People relate these skills to awareness and responses from developed emotional intelligence. 

A top performer comes to work daily ready to create win-win experiences for their customers. This team member has been on the team for over three years and has been the reigning top team member for most of their tenure. This team member knows they have a knowledge brand and is often asked to help mentor new team members. This team member makes it a point to talk in the team meetings and share best practices each week. Despite all these efforts, the team member cannot seem to get promoted into a leadership role, something they have been working towards for over 18 months. 

The unpromotoable top performer is a common scenario within almost all organizations. There is a break in the feedback and coaching process. What is not shared is that the team member struggles with change, especially if it impacts their performance. When sharing best practices, the team member often comes across as if their best practice is the only one. Over-talking and being unable to settle on a decision once made is also par for the course. These challenges create an opportunity for stronger awareness from several people within the scenario. 

Awareness creates safety within a team

Developing emotional literacy and awareness is a key to personal development and happiness. EQ is about establishing safety through the highest EQ level, and this level is organizational predictability in an organization. To get there, team members must understand how to speak through emotions in a way that uses them as information to better teamwork and results. 

The ideas around reaction versus response help to understand safety. From day one, each person starts to develop their fight or flight. As we get older, the fight is displayed in many ways. Some undesirable ways are lashing out, lack of ownership, selfishness, and poor crisis management. The contrast is a response. A response is intentional and designed to be productive, move an effort forward, or bring closure to a situation. At its foundation, a response should be reassuring and tailored to the individual’s needs.

Developing safety requires understanding that emotions are information and should be used to help team members understand each other better. It requires taking advantage of coaching moments to help people observe their emotions and determine if it is getting them desired results. Often, those results may be a reaction or response from another team member. When leaders miss setting clear expectations or providing feedback around reactions and responses, they fail to manage safety within their team. 

The holes it creates in an organization

The example of the team member above is not just about missed feedback or the leader’s failure to do so. The result carries over to each team member who watches it happen repeatedly. When EQ is not developed, each team member has different standards based on their reactions. The repeated actions with poor EQ literacy become questionable ethics and challenges within organizational justice. 

Strategies develop intention

Personal development happens once a goal and strategy is established. Often, the desire to change takes from a hard look in the mirror and asking tough questions, a form of dissatisfaction. Developing behaviors that support working towards a goal will create EQ literacy, intention, and overall internal joy. 

Developing strategies to support awareness is vital for EQ growth. Strategies examples are listening more than talking or noticing social queues. Another example of strategy might be keeping a journal that focuses on affirming or positive moments. To change behavior based on awareness is challenging and must be done with intention. 

Execution and follow-through are the most difficult parts of change. Setting goals and getting feedback throughout the process can help to stay on track and support self-accountability. When developing EQ, a mentor or a partner is recommended to help with accountability. Choose someone who can have a challenging conversation and is good at asking questions. 

Back to decision-making

Decision-making is an essential competency within any team or company. The foundation of acumen is about quick decision-making. Team members who are highly developed in decision-making understand how to manage stress and risk to stay focused on priorities and people. Using intention and focus to set goals and respond in a way that supports those goals leads to mastery, a top level of self-management. 

Want more on Emotional Intelligence? Are you looking to attend a workshop or take an assessment to start your EQ journey?

Website: https://idaleadershiplab.com/classes/registration/

Want more details on EQ and the EQ-i: https://idaleadershiplab.com/courses/eq/

Email: dbarker@idaleadershiplab.com

Dan Barker 09/13/2023

So often, when I approach a company representative and share that my experience was less than par, that protection and defense are always the first response. The service and the response often do not meet the values or commitment the company has placed on the wall. The opportunity stems from not teaching all employees how to see the big picture. Focusing on knowledge and calling it acumen takes away from assessing effective decision-making. The outcomes must align with the big picture. 

Let’s start with a recent experience

My escape is starting the day with a workout and finishing it up with 15-20 minutes in the steam room. A week or so ago, I was wrapping up a fantastic leg workout with 20 minutes on the stair stepper. I still had an incredible high going as I went downstairs, thinking how great it would be to loosen up and relax in the steam room. I turned the corner to find the steam room door propped open and a closed sign. It was not even lunch yet. Even worse, the sauna was closed as well. I now would have to sit and wait in my sweaty clothes for my wife for the next 20 minutes as she relaxed in the women’s steam room, or should I say stew in my dissatisfaction with how my whole experience had just changed. 

I eventually found a team member and mentioned that this happens often. I shared that your front desk handed me the towel, not knowing what I would see when I turned the corner. It makes no sense, and the lasting experience is terrible. Instead of empathy, I got a list of questions about what I saw and what items in the locker room were still open. The team member mentioned that she would look into it and was going to leave it at that. I just shared I thought you may have some concern and stepped away from their desk in the central area to wait for my wife, but still in her view. 

Of course, she was not going to sit while I stood there. However, I was not there for action. I had assumed nothing could be done now for my experience and was willing to sit and wait for my wife. The team member went and found another service team member. I heard them state I was a “very upset” customer, and she needed answers on what was happening. After a few minutes, she returned and instructed a desk member to make me a smoothie. I told them I was not looking for a smoothie. I’m on a meal plan. The follow-up I got was that they were addressing it. Both should not be shut down. It was not the first time I had this experience, and it likely will not be the last. Be careful when you sign up under an agreement. I’m locked into this Groundhog Day!  

Let’s start with the basics

No one with dissatisfaction wants the first response to be an interrogation. The first response should always assure the customer that you understand their feedback. It is best to quickly follow it up with an ownership statement, like, I’m going to look into this and see if we can find a resolution. Permission is an excellent way to stay on the right side of the conversation. Permission is the common pleasantry that helps keep the conversation moving, but nothing too formal. A great next question could be, would you mind if I asked some questions to understand better what you experienced? The response will differ greatly from “Tell me what is exactly closed.” I had provided an acceptable resolution in my initial complaint with the team member. Why not a schedule or some notification system ahead of time? When it comes to customer experience, don’t be afraid to inquire about what might be an acceptable resolution. Don’t assume everyone wants something for free. In this case, I’m a reminding customer who wants you to live up to your promise on the wall. 

It’s not the customer’s fault expectations are missed

Either expectations are not set, or they are not managed well. Expectations are not a nice to have. The big picture is that expectations protect the brand and the promise on the wall. Expectations should guide all day-to-day duties and tasks. There is a significant difference in cleaning the steam room three times a day versus using and executing an interval schedule. Expectations should be used to support the essential details of cleanliness, health, and cadence. 

When expectations are not set, the routine of management is to find themselves in a cycle of resetting expectations. An important factor with expectations is that they can be achieved consistently. Whether the work is based on schedule or some process or decision tree, expectations ensure critical outcomes are reached. Often, expectations support the foundation of a company’s product and customers. Consistency is essential for effectiveness and should help set the standard. 

Standards are not just for the wall and the tour

Let’s say that expectations have been set. The assumption is that the “machine” is now doing what it does. It is this mentality that breaks the chain of experience. It is vital to call out that when standards are not managed well, it impacts employees and customers negatively. You cannot put experience on your wall and not consider it when feedback is provided. An employee who does not have clear expectations is doomed to create an inconsistent experience. Effectiveness should be based on consistent execution of what works and reducing the things that don’t. Expectations should set the standard, and the standards management should also have clear expectations and follow through. This is how an organization is steadfastly committed to achieving excellent customer experience. 

“A company cannot level up or differentiate experience without expectations and standards to create the foundation towards customer success.”

Dan Barker

Instead of a “really upset” customer, you have an inconsistent experience

Be focused on resolution with every interaction. A permanent solution is supported through expectations and standards. Organizations focusing on being right or solving problems one-off in a silo are not helping the standards on the wall. If there was no expectation of when to clean or communicate it, the service team member only works on the knowledge of “I need to clean it.” Instead, this is a driving experience, and my subsequent decision may create an inconsistent experience. Improved decision-making will create a more substantial alignment to the big picture, translating experience into customer success. Create consistent experiences by setting expectations and standards that help align decision-making. Place focus on where it goes wrong and employee and customer feedback on how to improve it. 

Creating performance is a skill. It needs to be done with intention. Leaders need to understand the process used to deliver on performance. Performance Practitioner is a level above acumen. A new leader may understand the driving performance concept but often need help to dissect it well. (They struggle to identify all the critical pieces/tactics needed to replicate results.) A true Performance Practitioner understands all the steps necessary to achieve their performance goals. Achieving performance allows for innovation and improved outcomes that bring on the next level beyond acumen. 

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Consistency:

In this case, performance is defined as an ability to behave in the same way. This includes actions and other tangible’s that can be viewed through outcomes—understanding what is repeatable and the consequence of the repeated measure. The consequence’s impact will help determine if it is positive for performance.

Consistency should be something that all leaders can view in all aspects of their business. Consistency aligns with being intentional. What is done with intention can be repeated. If it can be repeated, then there is an opportunity to collect data, evaluate, and compare results. These results can be viewed as consequences, more importantly, outcomes. 

Observing consistency can be a challenge. It is essential to understand that it needs to be tangible in some way. This means observing consistency needs to be through action or behavior. Another example could be through specific touch points like meetings or business reviews. 

Note: Actions and behaviors need to be clear expectations. They must be clarified if they can be defined or described in multiple ways. 

Understanding what is repeatable can be difficult. However, the rule of consistency applies right back to measurement. Evaluation is critical to identifying what is working or the latter for performance. Early evaluation stages should help identify the consistent actions on each side of performance. Evaluation over time should evolve to the specifics needed to achieve performance. What is being evaluated needs to be consistent. Measuring what consistently appears or is missing in performance takes intent and planning. 

Example: If observing a customer sales interaction and the identified action offers three different times, that is the measuring stick. If someone offers two times, then it would not count. It is not about almost. Evaluation should consistently establish an understanding of what brings the best outcome. This is based on an analysis that proved to offer three times led to the most favorable results. 

Leaders can use what they discover about consistency to compare results. Comparing results over time or among teams and peers can present a more substantial context to what works and what does not. It can help to show where intention and repetition make a difference. It is like thinking about how consistency is classified as practice until it becomes mastery. 

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Evaluation and Comparison

Evaluation and comparison are where judgment takes place within data collection. There must be a process that can help to establish the validity and reliability of the assessment completed. Evaluation requires following through and observing the business. The comparison allows for context and helps to show what is relative in the data. Comparison will also provide additional views into what works and does not. 

Developing the skill of evaluating will help in establishing more robust business acumen. The skill of evaluation reinforces leveraging collected data to assess impact. This gives the leader the insights needed to make a judgment or a decision to support the business. 

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Performance versus proficiency 

Performance management, in this case, is the art of building performance by increasing efficiency or productivity in some way. Before leaders dive into managing performance, they must first establish proficiency. In many organizations, leaders need to take the time to understand their team members’ proficiency in new skills and tools. It is why there is high turnover when employees transition from training to production. Effectiveness and repetition are essential factors to consider in measuring proficiency and performance. 

Repetition

It supports consistency and is critical in the process of development and proficiency. There is a rule around how many hours it takes to master a new skill or task. Of course, this would be with something that is not familiar at all. Many skills are built from the foundation of other skills. 

Effectiveness

The crucial factor that is used in proficiency and performance is effectiveness. However, no leader is so good that they can introduce a skill and get performance without proficiency. Evaluation of the progression through repetition, while comparing results to benchmarks, will help to identify which phase a team member is in. 

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Life-cycle

A great way to think of life-cycle in the development process is like practice. Having benchmarks is great, but the rate also needs to be considered. What is observable? How is the skill used? Break it down into practice swings and work to decide how many it will take to achieve proficiency and master it. 

Example: Imagine a world where a hammer is a new tool, and you have never used one. After being walked through the best way to hold the hammer and a nail, along with how to set and strike -how many practice swings would it take to get proficient and then excellent at it?  

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Not meeting, meeting, exceeding – measure through consistency

The ratings we see so often should only be used if consistency is well understood. Often ratings are not just about a moment or a single task. Instead, it is about the trends and actions observed as part of the routine influencing results. The rater must ask themselves, “Is this occurring consistently through this lens?” Do the activities and actions reflect results that consistently do not meet expectations? Not utilizing this method leads to conversations and development that do not focus on the correct outcomes. 

All new leaders will go through a proving ground of credibility. Credibility will produce the flash to ignite momentum but lacks the stamina to convert into fire. Validity is a different skill than credibility; great leaders effectively use validity to perform consistently. Without it, nothing seems to get done. 

New leaders do not often think of their efforts in these terms, nor do they connect the work back to it. Over the years of observing most operational managers, forward-thinking or introspection is a state of utopia. Most days are spent hopping from one meeting to the next, and free time is used to address personnel issues or get in a quick heart-stopping cheeseburger. 

Let’s break it down

Credibility must be established for all leaders. People will only be inspired to work with a credible leader. Credibility can be identified through the trust given by the people that work for them. When leaders develop the right culture, then there is a belief that everyone is working towards similar goals. Team members understand that working with each person and increasing sustainability will only create opportunities for everyone involved. 

Credibility can be established in several different ways. Having a title of leadership alone may be enough. Others want to know if their leader has a similar understanding or expertise for their work. People use several tactics of influence to help to establish credibility. It is essential to call out that efforts should remain genuine and authentic. There are dangers to be aware of with credibility and why it cannot be relied on for consistent performance. Loyalty can quickly blind the tangibles of credibility -when not managed, blind faith will take root removing all accountability placed on the leader. In this stage of lost accountability, we bring in our trusted skill of validity. 

What it looks like?

To be clear, all leaders need a certain level of credibility. When leaders lack validity and supporting skills, they will find themselves stuck over-indexing on credibility. Similar ways to view the trust of credibility are convincing and believable. However, those words do not ring as true towards being authentic or genuine. These leaders can achieve day-to-day tasks but need more discipline and intention for consistent performance. 

Have you ever worked for those leaders where everything seems to come back around? They share ideas, but very few go anywhere, and they likely use words like discipline and rigor often when talking about what is missing to achieve performance. Other challenges quickly start to seem to appear. They might look like poor follow-through or the talk track is more focused on using powerful words than sharing precise details and facts. Often these leaders can accomplish staying under the radar because they create comfort for the people reporting to them. The longer and deeper it goes, the more it will deteriorate the ability to maintain culture or create a high-performing team. These signs should not be hard to call and review for any organization. 

What is validity?

Validity at its foundation is about facts and logic. However, a leader should consider a large part of validity is about being able to do what you say you can do. A leader must have a certain presence and level of engagement in their business to know and understand their business. High levels of credibility may allow for good communication, even inspirational, but these leaders will struggle to convert it to tactical or execution. A large part of validity is missing without accurate knowledge of the business, its details, and the people. 

How to observe validity?

Validity should be observable through tangible skills. These leaders deeply understand the systems involved, including workarounds that may present roadblocks. When asked, these leaders can quickly point out the broken processes or dead ends that impact the overall experience. Often these leaders do not like sitting in conference rooms or small chat. They have a specific focus on their work and people. Ultimately they often are consistently top performers. 

Note: Traditionally, these leaders are very good at setting standards. However, they often are challenged in consistently managing expectations around their standards. 

How can it be developed?

As hard as it might be to believe, the high leaders climb up the ladder, the higher the risk they are a leader over-indexing on credibility. 

First thing is first:

• How are skills inventoried, and which are critical for driving the business in each role? 
• What process is used to observe and assess, and who inspects and oversees it?

Reviewing what in the business is accomplished proactively versus what is addressed reactively is an excellent activity for executives and above. Where are leaders effective in driving results in their business, and more importantly, what proficiency of skill with systems and processes? Why does the QA process stop at the front line, and what measures the effectiveness of acumen? 

Basics are fundamental

•  All levels need observation and feedback and should be able to trend to show the progression or lack thereof. 
• Skills need to be attached to specific activities, and the raters/observers need to have the skill to be calibrated/aligned. 

Scorecards and KPIs are overused and again dilute the ability to develop these validity skills and, when managed poorly, create an environment ripe for too much credibility. Adopt a measurement that can look at the work more than the result. Being overly focused on the result and not the supporting activities only teaches leaders to fear the day performance gets questioned -they won’t know why or how to fix it. 

Measure lead activities that make the results.

• Productivity is foundational. The rate of work or how much of it is getting completed will never fail as a measurement. Get creative in assessing proficiency and performance. 
• Trend how the work is getting completed versus the results to manage skills development. There needs to be a cadence to drive progression versus an approach that seems like leadership completing a task. 

Note: Develop measurement and skill-building attached to executing and accomplishing the day-to-day work. It should not be an extra task. Often shoulder to shoulder is the best way to make this happen. 

Credibility is needed but must be used to leverage validity, and this is where leaders should focus on their own development and how they tell their career journey. 

All new leaders will go through a proving ground of credibility. Credibility will produce the flash to ignite momentum but lacks the stamina to convert into fire. Validity is a different skill than credibility; great leaders effectively use validity to perform consistently. Without it, nothing seems to get done. 

New leaders do not often think of their efforts in these terms, nor do they connect the work back to it. Over the years of observing most operational managers, forward-thinking or introspection is a state of utopia. Most days are spent hopping from one meeting to the next, and free time is used to address personnel issues or get in a quick heart-stopping cheeseburger. 

Let’s break it down

Credibility must be established for all leaders. People will only be inspired to work with a credible leader. Credibility can be identified through the trust given by the people that work for them. When leaders develop the right culture, then there is a belief that everyone is working towards similar goals. Team members understand that working with each person and increasing sustainability will only create opportunities for everyone involved. Credibility can be established in several different ways. Having a title of leadership alone may be enough. Others want to know if their leader has a similar understanding or expertise for their work. People use several tactics of influence to help to establish credibility. It is essential to call out that efforts should remain genuine and authentic. There are dangers to be aware of with credibility and why it cannot be relied on for consistent performance. Loyalty can quickly blind the tangibles of credibility -when not managed, blind faith will take root removing all accountability placed on the leader. In this stage of lost accountability, we bring in our trusted skill of validity. 

What it looks like?

To be clear, all leaders need a certain level of credibility. When leaders lack validity and supporting skills, they will find themselves stuck over-indexing on credibility. Similar ways to view the trust of credibility are convincing and believable. However, those words do not ring as true towards being authentic or genuine. These leaders can achieve day-to-day tasks but need more discipline and intention for consistent performance. Have you ever worked for those leaders where everything seems to come back around? They share ideas, but very few go anywhere, and they likely use words like discipline and rigor often when talking about what is missing to achieve performance. Other challenges quickly start to seem to appear. They might look like poor follow-through or the talk track is more focused on using powerful words than sharing precise details and facts. Often these leaders can accomplish staying under the radar because they create comfort for the people reporting to them. The longer and deeper it goes, the more it will deteriorate the ability to maintain culture or create a high-performing team. These signs should not be hard to call and review for any organization. 

What is validity?

Validity at its foundation is about facts and logic. However, a leader should consider a large part of validity is about being able to do what you say you can do. A leader must have a certain presence and level of engagement in their business to know and understand their business. High levels of credibility may allow for good communication, even inspirational, but these leaders will struggle to convert it to tactical or execution. A large part of validity is missing without accurate knowledge of the business, its details, and the people. 

How to observe validity?

Validity should be observable through tangible skills. These leaders deeply understand the systems involved, including workarounds that may present roadblocks. When asked, these leaders can quickly point out the broken processes or dead ends that impact the overall experience. Often these leaders do not like sitting in conference rooms or small chat. They have a specific focus on their work and people. Ultimately they often are consistently top performers. Note: Traditionally, these leaders are very good at setting standards. However, they often are challenged in consistently managing expectations around their standards. 

How can it be developed?

As hard as it might be to believe, the high leaders climb up the ladder, the higher the risk they are a leader over-indexing on credibility. 

First thing is first:

• How are skills inventoried, and which are critical for driving the business in each role? What process is used to observe and assess, and who inspects and oversees it?

Reviewing what in the business is accomplished proactively versus what is addressed reactively is an excellent activity for executives and above. Where are leaders effective in driving results in their business, and more importantly, what proficiency of skill with systems and processes? Why does the QA process stop at the front line, and what measures the effectiveness of acumen? 

Basics are fundamental

•  All levels need observation and feedback and should be able to trend to show the progression or lack thereof. Skills need to be attached to specific activities, and the raters/observers need to have the skill to be calibrated/aligned. 

Scorecards and KPIs are overused and again dilute the ability to develop these validity skills and, when managed poorly, create an environment ripe for too much credibility. Adopt a measurement that can look at the work more than the result. Being overly focused on the result and not the supporting activities only teaches leaders to fear the day performance gets questioned -they won’t know why or how to fix it. 

Measure lead activities that make the results.

• Productivity is foundational. The rate of work or how much of it is getting completed will never fail as a measurement. Get creative in assessing proficiency and performance. Trend how the work is getting completed versus the results to manage skills development. There needs to be a cadence to drive progression versus an approach that seems like leadership completing a task. 

Note: Develop measurement and skill-building attached to executing and accomplishing the day-to-day work. It should not be an extra task. Often shoulder to shoulder is the best way to make this happen. 

Credibility is needed but must be used to leverage validity, and this is where leaders should focus on their own development and how they tell their career journey. 

There are two traditional approaches to job hunting. The first is taking a long strategic approach, using the time to try and set up each step. The other is finding yourself without a job, often past the time you initially assumed it would take to find a new job. So many articles only offer one side or a phase of the process. In a competitive job market, having the cradle-to-grave approach, as they say, in achieving a desired position protects income and should clearly set up the next step.  

Of course, the resume is step one

The first thing any job consultant will ask for is your resume. Resumes have evolved so much over the past ten years. It helps them understand experience and skills. It also allows the consultant to review how the potential candidate is marketing themselves. Developing a compelling resume is not just about marketing. It helps get a candidate to the front of the line in a posting. Don’t let someone with an outdated approach or not updating a resume be the failure holding you back from achieving a desired role. 

“The increasingly competitive job market now makes it critical to have a resume tailored to the role you are applying forThis signals to the hiring manager in the 6-10 seconds they use to review a resume that you have the experience and are a great match for the roles and responsibilities of the position. I strongly recommend taking the time to look through the job description and answer how you help the organization solve its challenges.”

Dustin beasley
Resume Writer and Owner of 417 Resume Renovators

Investing in yourself is critical when preparing to enter the job

market. This investment is true regardless of the timing of the situation. A significant first step is engaging a professional in branding and marketing yourself -these individuals understand how to develop a resume and profile that will create differentiation and help move candidates up in a posting. Another consideration is purchasing the premium on job networking sites like LinkedIn to help with job searches and marketing yourself. 

Note: Some local communities have their own exclusive job posting and networking. 

Job hunting requires getting out of the truck

Idaho hunters understand this term right away. Most of the wildlife worth tracking down stays away from the road, and good hunters must hike it out and put in the work. Job hunting will not be successful if done passively. Jobs are posted in many places and many ways. Yes, there is such a thing as ghost-posting. Without some understanding and an aggressive strategic approach, it can be easily diluted in the waters of so many candidates. 

The social side of networking is great, but nothing beats being face-to-face with someone. This should be part of any strategy. Communities have so many networks; all are opportunities to share your brand and get in front of others with a job that may come open. Win someone over in the right way, and maybe they create the role to fit the value they see in you. True networking should help to hone in on skills and opportunities not used for riding coattails and hoping for table scraps. Job hunting is about being in control and intentional. 

Start with the local Chamber of Commerce, and many a young professionals network in your community. Look at other community networks, such as HR groups, city clubs, rotary clubs, toastmasters, or even the local small business administration office. Ask these groups about resources for job hunting, skill building, or job coaching. If you find yourself in an unexpected situation, email their leaders introducing yourself and explaining your situation, experience, and resume. Of course, these can be the people that know people and find ways to expand your reach through these new relationships. 

Note: create a business card that has your contact info and possibly details to your digital profile like LinkedIn – make sure to be managing your social brand well while in the job market (don’t be controversial)

Job postings that are fake or are not currently open are known as ghost job postings. There are all kinds of reasons for these postings. Companies could be working to develop a pipeline for later, a significant shift in the business. Sometimes, there could even be an attempt to scam or fraud a company or person. There are so many reasons, and investigating them has no consequence. It is not part of the strategy, and if a candidate finds themselves caught up in such postings, it is only a sign of going about it all wrong. 

The old days of posting from the classifieds are passive and ineffective. The same is true with any job posting site. Know this fact, recruiters are looking to be engaged and are paid to find the best talent possible -this should be you! Job postings serve the purpose of notification and provide a job description. Candidates should carefully study the job description to consider any potential adjustments needed to the resume and strategically approach the postings recruiters. Not all job postings will have this information directly available. Use networking and social media to track the appropriate people. The important part is to do your research upfront and be ready. Do not approach any posting lackadaisically or like you don’t want it. No one goes for a job to be turned down, do not misrepresent your efforts, confidence, or self-assurance.

Preparation and intention are the keys to success

In any performance model knowing the business is fundamental. Leaning on skills and experience alone can be a foolish approach in the interview process. Consider the steps that would be added in if the process was more intentional. Research the company before getting involved. Look through their leadership teams and see what experience they have. Look for what is relevant or where you can connect to the knowledge and skill set in your resume. The preparation is not just about a cover letter. Think of questions that could be productive on either side of the interview. Going in as a candidate, go in knowing more about them than they know about you. If there is an unknown or mystery, then expecting success would be luck, pushing through a part of the process without intention. 

There are a couple of ways to effectively become informed about the company where you are seeking employment. Start by visiting the company website and clicking the ‘About’ section. Search the company through social networking or Google news to see what might be recent or relevant to your resume. 

With this knowledge, gain decide how to be strategic. What questions will add clarity to the company or the role? Great insights to have is to understand the flow of work or communication within the organization and how decisions are made. What happens when team members are successful? How does the company recognize success? How does the company support things like diversity or career growth? When selecting a new employer or role, it should be more about the fit for the candidate applying than the company when making an effort from this perspective. 

Note: Perhaps look for past employees and see if they would be willing to share their experiences. Why did they leave?

Great tip: Look at this video from the University of Chicago | Excelling in the Interview Process

Develop your confidence and self-assurance 

Being methodical and intentional does not just offer a roadmap to getting an interview or knowing the company you are interested in. The preparation of looking within yourself and then looking at the company is about establishing further credibility. The process should lock in your validity and reliability. As a candidate prepares for the interview process, their hard work should have created a strong foundation. This built foundation can be used to show how they have been reliable in their work and achieving goals, along with the validity that would be needed from executing skills and other tangibles in previous experiences. Preparing is also about looking at yourself in the mirror and saying I am ready. I’ve got this! The outward impression will be all about your ownership and accountability, exuding a level of confidence that any fiduciary would want as a part of their business, a true investment. 

Let the great debate begin

Go in ready to give a clinic on interviewing. There are several observations a candidate should be prepared to make during the interview. There is a process to follow to provide complete answers to the questions. Knowing the critical pieces that must be completed before closing the conversation is vital. Have a cadence for follow-up that is long-lasting and memorable. 

A conversation is excellent, but it is essential to manage the follow-up questions. A process for answering questions can make a difference in the impression made throughout the interview. Use the TAP method to help hit the main point of any answer. It starts with tactical steps that had to be completed. Next, make sure to talk about the actions that you specifically took or contributed to. Last, share the progression and results from the execution. Instead of practicing scenarios and trying to remember all the situations you have been through, practice answering questions using this model. Develop the muscle memory of answering using the TAP method. 

There are some questions or themes to be mindful of, and consider the types of answers that will be the most strategic based on what you know about the company and interviewers. 

The details will matter

• Change will undoubtedly come up. Consider this, is change regular in this org or a large undertaking? Is it accuracy or pace that is important? 
• Conflict is something that everyone will have to manage if people are present. It’s a large part of understanding how someone makes decisions. Consider how to view conflict in a non-emotional way. An example could be the importance of effective negotiation -a combination of being knowledgeable and relaxed. 
• Communication can be a big topic. Communication often holds up all organizations from achieving deadlines or completing projects. The “why” of reviewing communication is understanding how people get things done. Another area to consider is how adapting to culture is the most challenging part of any new role, and communication is in this sphere. 
• Development can show focus and vision. A candidate should consider what skill development most benefits the company and career growth. Display a growth mindset in these questions; it is not just about self-focus. 

Explore these topics in the company’s research, but be mindful of them coming at you in the interview. Candidates should attempt and ask questions upfront that help in using similar definitions, terminology, or buzzwords. Be prepared to note any names, KPIs, or additional details about the role that can be used throughout the interview. Show your interviewers how you stay engaged and can adapt on your feet. It is the prep that supports these activities. 

Go into the interview with 4-5 things that must be known about you and how you will be productive and value proposition. At this time and moment, they will support the company like no other, and these items will be shared at all costs. If the end of the interview arrives, and these priorities have not been shared, use the time you get for questions to share these items, or if asked what else you would like to share. Candidates should remember that the interview is for you to share the talent you would bring to the company. 

Finish your interview with a strong closing. Be able to recap the high points and directly address the needs and parts of their business that have been shared throughout the interview. Have a strategy for follow-up that can be a lasting impression. It might be an email, but a hand-delivered card could be even better. Do not leave some plan or copy of your resume unless asked. A lasting impression is not about party favors that will end up in the trash. 

It is all executed and accomplished with purpose and intention. Interviewing should be about being on the offense and taking the odds away from the house. A great question to ask yourself now is it time for a change. Have you been in your current role long enough to master it? Use this plan to be ready and set yourself apart. 

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RESOURCES

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2022/05/06/how-to-write-a-rsum-that-stands-out-to-recruiters/

How To Prepare for an Interview in 11 Steps | Indeed.com

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140325010439-15454-12-ways-to-get-a-job-interview-and-one-way-not-to?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios&utm_campaign=share_via

How to Actually Get an Interview After Applying For a Job

The ethics of how interviewing is completed has not had a hard look in quite some time. The fundamentals will remain valid, but consider all the changes over the last 20 years. Has interviewing evolved? Are the ethics reshaping through each phase? As organizations get busier and more diverse, leaders must understand their role in the interview process and how to fulfill it ethically while supporting the business’s initiatives.

A growing problem

As a leader for years, the same items have been the focus of ethical interviewing. Are we using interview guides and consistent questions. Are there two people in the interview? Do not interview or hire friends or people where an imbalanced relationship may appear. Often the training for leaders focuses on getting complete answers and, of course, the traditional legal areas of interviewing. Organizations cannot afford to discriminate against candidates from uneducated leaders.

Many organizations have adopted a focus on promoting from within. This effort has helped keep employees focused on their performance, which creates drive in a career track within their current organization. Fiduciaries have benefited from low churn by developing and promoting leaders from within their walls. Leaders start gaming for their team members, and employees are encouraged to reach out and build a “partnership” with the department leader they would like to work. This effort has created problems in other areas and muddied how relationships are accepted. These growing issues have forced organizations to look hard at what networking is in their organization and how it has affected diversity.

In the new workforce landscape, human resource teams are quickly being eliminated to a ticket system where HR teams are centralized and only engaged for a few specific processes. The rest of the responsibilities have been placed on the plate of operational leaders. The removal of HR, unfortunately, has opened the door to all kinds of issues. Some of the worst offenses are how timelines affect hiring and the worst violation of just hand-picking promotions. This approach to interviewing or any of the supporting parts of the HRM process is risky. It essentially comes from a system where organizations are saying the overseer is all based on employees coming forward to report potential offenses.

A stronger awareness of diversity has put all organizations on notice about how they support under-recognized groups, especially when hiring and even more so when it comes to leadership positions. It is important to pause here and recognize the injustice for many groups in how they have been considered for promotions, including the additional problem of balanced pay. The direct effort to correct this is not the dilemma. Depending on how these efforts are executed, the potential dilemma can deplete organizations of critical skills that directly support sustainability. The combination of poor recruiting and relationship issues shared above come together to create all kinds of problems with employee relations and performance in KPIs.

So much focus is placed on things like consistency of questions or getting responses. However, the consistency of each candidate’s experience is rarely considered and seldom reviewed. The lasting experience that is left with each candidate from each posting becomes the internal island of misfit toys. How many interviews are required for each posting? What is the cadence of interviews, and how are they scheduled? How long does each posting go, and how long is each candidate in the posting? These metrics are critical and could offer all kinds of insights. When HR teams are not present or engaged, these quickly become problems that result in losing talent out the back door.

The internal hiring process

The internal hiring process is broken in most organizations, especially if there is no HR partner present in the process. There are solutions; it is one of those situations of “if you could suggest a drastic change, what would it look like?” Well, consider this! Why are your overworked, front-line leaders so heavily involved in hiring their peers and direct reports? The mentioned approach is even more of a question if those direct reports being hired are people leaders themselves. Without several checks and balances, these processes are designed to fail. Of course, failing means failing to hire the best and most talented candidates.

It starts with setting standards, and organizations must not be so concerned about being firm on base or fundamental standards for each role when possible skills should be a part of these standards. These standards protect an organization from losing its competitive edge in sustainability and place some guardrails on how candidates move forward. These steps aid in the leader’s inappropriate influence to help push their favorite through the process. These standards also help in creating transparency along with the ability to develop clear career tracks.

Ok, let me introduce you to your new hiring team. It should start at the senior leadership levels and, when possible cross-functional. If these small teams need additional team members, go up the chain, not down -or seek further cross-functional. The direct supervisor or leader should be involved in the next step or course with their peer group; if possible, someone from the first round should carry over as an observer. This observer is only suggested if available through the entire second round. The third round should only be the top potential candidates.

These final runners-up will be interviewed by an executive member -traditionally a director or above. In some cases, it may only be one person. There is a shift for these directors in these new environments, and more substantial efforts toward qualifying are needed. Instead of experience, focus on skills and how they are evaluated. Understand their relationship with leaders and the candidate’s history or observations. What would happen if the department were reorganized or the job shifted to a new location? There is no need to call out what to watch for. The answers will be evident if there is concern depending on what the role requires today, tomorrow, and possible future.

Place greater responsibility on your executive hiring team. They can be that final check that ensures the process supports the organizational culture and promise. This effort includes meeting strategic objectives and ensuring that all hiring is ethical. Adopting clear interview teams and steps should allow for a typical cadence to be set and followed when scheduling each interview round. Do not create an experience where one candidate gets interviewed with a massive time gap, and another is forced to rush through a process. Feedback should never be from one person, or one round, direct leaders need to be involved, and clear steps for individual development plans need to be identified in calibration prior to the meeting and providing feedback. They seem like basic housekeeping or table stakes, but the effects are long-lasting when missed.

The interview guide

The old and reliable interview guide has become the tired and outdated. These guides are holding your interview team back from genuine and authentic conversations. Everyone is in the same discussion, and taking notes on several guides with the same question is a colossal waste of effort and talent. It often stifles the ability of the candidate to paint a clear picture of the unique value proposition, and interviewers will even check out throughout the process. Instead, focus on teaching leaders to be curious and make good decisions.

For the sake of sticking with the theme in this article, let’s flip this process around as well. Instead of prescribing how the conversation goes, focus on calibration guides rooted in the skills and specifics of the job description. The job description should be something that can follow an employee throughout their tenure in the role, and it starts in the interview. Teach your interviewer to have a conversation that draws out the specifics and helps to show where candidates are differentiated. Focusing on a calibration guide places the focus on the decision, not the interview.

KEY TIP: For best results, measure 120-day attrition as effectiveness for this team in an external hiring situation

Diversity is important, and so is the execution

Stakeholders need to understand the challenges present in diversity, along with an organization’s strategic approach. The strategy is not all or nothing. If not executed well, it starts to create issues with employee relations. A large part of the solution relies on better recruiting. Organizations must establish clear ownership in reviewing and executing these efforts.

In many settings, legality is still the first thing that comes up. In a review of the law, both the Supreme Court and EEOC have shared how an effort to right-size a long-standing problem cannot be corrected if held back by the law. The assumption is that an employer cannot overlook a talented, more qualified person over a candidate matching up with an under-recognized group. For the right reasons, this is not true. However, it opens the door to all kinds of potential problems.

When the strategy is approached as all or nothing, the true talent will begin to jump ship. An example of poor execution is when hiring to right-size an under-recognized group is done without trying to fill the role with talent, skills, and experience. Hiring should not have several side agendas except for serving the direct function of the position. If the talent pipeline is inadequate where poor decisions seem like the only approach, remember that recruiting must be the solution.

If HR is not present, then the executive team must step up to review adherence and compliance with hiring and the company strategy. There should be a post-mortem from all hiring that helps create awareness for executives. When HR is not present other reporting teams must be engaged to support these areas of the business. When executives do not proactively address areas like this, fiduciaries should take a hard look at the acumen and focus of their executive team. No business needs executive leaders that must be pointed towards all their work.

Wrapping it all together

A large part of the problem comes from the lack of HR engagement. In today’s environment, HR teams are just not as present or available as they have been in the past. Another significant part of the solution comes from how the reporting that often supported the decisions around people returns to the business. People planning and development should be included in supporting the overarching strategy around diversity. Executives should work with senior leaders to model the development of these plans and how to execute them effectively. The executive team becomes the holder of the keys and ensures that guardrails perform as they should.

Have you ever met one of the good ole boys? Of course, we are not talking about one of the Duke brothers from Hazzard. Instead, a member of a shallow professional network known as the good ole boy network (GOB). These group members ride on the advantageous side of some relationship imbalance within the power dynamics within the organization.

The definition of a good ole boy network almost sounds innocent. The definition shares a group of people with similar social and educational, used to benefit each other in business matters. It is essential to call out that, most often, the group is men. For many, it is an old trend, or something observed early in a person’s career. Posing the question, do GOBs still exist?

Nothing is more impactful to careers within an organization than a GOB. The people who fall under these organizations constantly fight against an inconsistent measuring stick with goals that consistently move up and down. Like all things business, the GOB has evolved. The evolution is in identifying the GOB and the outcomes from these changes. Unfortunately, these shallow networks still go unnoticed.

Why Shallow network?

It is the lack of depth that is consistent within all GOB. The lack of diversity is one of the first signs. It is not just the diversity that team members see but everything underlying. The like-mindedness weakens the ability to view all sides of problems properly and dilutes the culture. Experience and skills become less tangible and less valuable. As leaders promote lacking tangible skills, so does their ability to teach them. It is hard for leaders to appreciate a skill they need help understanding. Last to go is usually education. As decisions become completely imbalanced, credibility is low on the list when decisions are made. Everyone knows the saying, “it’s not about what you know, but who you know.”

Identifying the GOB

It is more than the traditional old-school social group, the fellas that all went to school or church together. Most organizations have grown past their senior leadership teams full of men who all look alike. Fiduciaries must understand how to identify these shallow networks based on their evolution. When formed and unaddressed, they will slowly dissolve the culture from within.

The shallow network of over-index has become one of the most common in today’s workforce. More specifically, a team that is built based on previous performance standards. The old performer’s group may be leaders that achieved top performance in a role prior but still need to work on delivering similar results in their new role. When stakeholders make hiring decisions and lack experience and tangible skills, their go-to is looking for similar traits. Those similar traits may be past performance. It is important to remember that previous performance is only sometimes an indicator of future success.

Look out for the shallow group coming together from an outside company or previous long-standing organization. Loyalty within these groups is often priority number one. The group traditionally focuses more on strange power dynamics and is easily swayed by priorities. The team is often hard to join as it is full of insiders. The leaders of these groups will focus more on protecting their team members than offering them feedback that would make them more productive team members. Be careful how rehearsed this team can be and how well they tuck skeletons away.

Generational dilution is a widespread shallow group within organizations. This is especially true for large organizations that have gone through a lot of change over a short period. This group occurs in two different ways. The first appears as a leader’s experience, skills, and education diminish due to poor standards and compliance. The other is when people are inserted into promoted roles without using a hiring process, making it easy for things to slip through. Often these leaders are quickly inherited due to change, the new leader none the wiser. Teams may find themselves reacting slowly and having to work through previous challenges.

Mindful markers in organizational leadership

An important consideration is that not all of these networks and groups are formed maliciously or with direct intent. However, it will not change their negative influence and often inability to perform consistently. It is not just about calling out the potential outcomes; there are markers and additional evidence of a shallow network. A foundational part of the shallow network is the need for more experience and tangible skills. Many organizations need consistent ways to establish and measure the effectiveness of essential skills.

Performance has slowly declined or needs to improve. Shallow networks struggle to work beyond the previous leaders’ worn-out tactics or established routines. Often these tactics are heavily focused on high-energy schtick incentives, and the pace can be challenging to maintain. As the business changes and shallow team members face new performance problems, the solution will often sound the same, as will the lack of execution and improvement. No plan ever seems to work, and often it is because no strategy can stick. Leaders need the ability to transition past setting expectations.

Unfortunately, leadership will fail to inspire, teach, and consistently inspect. Authentic engagement in the business will not extend beyond whatever hit list is currently used to check in with leaders, and these leaders are working to check things off the list in hopes it will cover their tails. Another classic sign is the leaders who constantly lean on the authority of the leaders above them to justify their decision-making; this is incredibly dangerous as it is often used to cover ethical issues. It also can allow for the most ridiculous of behavior, and an example would be a leader coaching employees on parking in spots perceived for those with more prominent titles. The odd fealty is probably one of the easiest ways to observe the shallowness of the network.

The shallow network erodes culture

There can never be a true identity to a shallow network. It will lack the reliability and validity needed to drive execution. The GOB runs heavily on charisma. They have to “be fired up.” Skill recognition in an organization is critical. A leader cannot lack technical ability and understanding, along with organizational skills, and run a department that requires it, even if the leader is one of your most tenured and loyal. Leaders need to understand the value of skills and take inventory of what is required versus what they have. When these steps are overlooked for too long, skills quickly become misaligned, and the work surrounding them becomes chaos.

Culture is defined as a collective way of acting as a group. This calls out the importance of the example that is set. Shallow networks traditionally create what they present, meaning sub shallow networks throughout the organization. When unchecked, this behavior can carry on generations of leaders in one location. The chain effect is because it becomes the way for team members to become safe and have some hope for career growth.

One of the most surefire ways to create this environment is by installing leaders bypassing traditional processes. This behavior is damaging from all sides of the decision. The installed leader will always struggle with credibility and imposter syndrome, and likely with the day-to-day role itself. The team members on deck for this role will struggle with the decision, all efforts to convince them of fair career opportunities will fall on deaf ears, and it would be unfair to expect less. Is it loyalty you want? That topic was covered above.

Focus in

Selection: Take selection in the organization very seriously. Consider the potential circles and what level it would take to have true objectivity. Don’t let that last interview with the VP be another checkmark on the list. Have questions, and make sure an objective HR partner is present. Extreme caution on hiring senior leaders from within the ranks they will take over. It has a high potential for skill erosion and creates divides within mid-management. These senior leaders also often feel they must have loyalty to the leader who promoted them above all else. Development programs and other opportunities should be another consideration. It is essential to have a robust set of objective measures. The more subjective, the more likely it will support an activity that leads to a shallow network.

Note: Be sure to review recognition programs. What is being recognized, and can it be replicated to build on the business? If a nomination process, how many times are the least nominations selected, is the process rigged?

Evaluation: Most organizations utilize some form of performance management. Often some tools can help leaders with observation and inspection. A critical step to support evaluation is the skip level. Leaders must hear it themselves and make this a non-negotiable within their process and cycle. It’s the cycle that is important, and do all employees go through the process -what would be the strong case that someone is beyond a fair evaluation and a plan to continue to be an asset to an organization. Organizations need to adopt better ways to understand and inventory skills so that they can be associated with roles. Evaluating and developing will support what is foundational for success.

Note: Who is doing the work? Business moves fast, and leaders develop their own networks as they move around. Some leaders have a whole team supporting them. However, organizations must be mindful of who is doing the actual work. Sometimes the innovation is credited to the wrong person. It reinforces the importance of some skill dichotomy within the organization.

Communication: How does communication happen within the organization? There should be a communication plan and owner; priorities must be managed. Cadence is necessary to support the execution of what is being communicated. To ensure alignment, senior leaders should ask employees what has been communicated, goals, and priorities. When communication is delayed or does not arrive to all parties, it is a sign of a breakdown. Leaders’ time is often focused within their shallow network and not on the team they are responsible for.

Note: Narrative becomes a large part of what drives the culture. As many of the above injustices occur, the narrative becomes toxic and unproductive. It’s not about expelling but correcting -it may take time.

Checklist items

• Which employees have followed a leader or been promoted by the same leader multiple times.
  • Have the skills evolved?
  • What is the reason this person seems to follow this particular leader?
  • Does this leader afford this experience to everyone that has reported to them?

• Flip it: who has been turned down for a role the most times? What was the feedback they last received? Is someone supporting and mentoring them now?

• Is education a priority within your organization. When looking into anyone’s location, are leaders working towards secondary education?

• What daily goal-setting methodology is being utilized? Is the approach consistent? A tenet of performance is consistency.

• What does the environment say? Observe where leaders congregate or polarize around? Is it the top performer? Which leaders seem to be Outcasts, and why?

• How has recognition been determined? What do the nominations look like?

• How do the leaders in your organization identify with acumen? Can they define it?

• Who is next in line for leadership roles, why, or what criteria do they meet.

• What does people planning within your organization look like, how is it represented, what are the tangible goals, and how do they support sustainability?