Category: Productivity
Are Women and Men Managers Really That Different?
by Paula Lovell on August 3, 2010 | 6 comments
in Organizational Behavior, Productivity, Small Business
By nature and by trade….I am interested in communications.
I had a lot of fun bantering back and forth with Jim Blasingame, well-known Small Business Advocate, on his recent radio show devoted to small business owners. We were discussing male and female managers and, although we were talking in grand generalities and had a lot of laughs, we agreed there are some very basic differences in the way men and women communicate and perform as leaders. It emanates from the fact that, in general, the sexes process information differently.
I was first alerted to the “science” behind those differences when listening to a lecture given by biological anthropologist Dr. Helen Fisher. After much study of the way the sexes think and communicate, Fisher points out some interesting capabilities of most women. In her book, The First Sex, she lists many common characteristics, including:
- a capacity to read postures, gestures, facial expressions and other non verbal cues;
- excellent senses of touch, taste, smell and hearing;
- an ability to do and think several things simultaneously;
- a broad contextual view of any issue (called web thinking);
- an impulse to nurture;
- and a preference for cooperating, reaching consensus and leading via egalitarian teams.
By comparison, and generally speaking, men have their own set of natural talents, that include:
- a superb understanding of spatial relations;
- a talent for solving complex mechanical problems;
- an ability to intensely focus on one thing at a time;
- and a gift for controlling many of their emotions.
According to Fisher and many other experts, these differences play out in the management ranks of the workplace in a number of interesting ways. Women make good strategists because they collect a broad range of information and look at issues or crises from a holistic perspective. They want to gather data, look at all the angles, negotiate consensus, and talk through the options before settling on a position or resolution. Men on the other hand are more reactive, dictatorial and focused on securing a swift and tidy resolution – sometimes with or without “buy-in” from colleagues, employees or associates. Men will occasionally view women as not being focused; women can see men as being narrow-sighted or having “tunnel vision.”
In terms of which style is more effective and will produce better results, I think the answer is: Both. And that is precisely why it is so important for businesses and organizations to have women and men leaders at the top, working on senior strategy, jointly call the shots during challenging times and bringing complementary approaches to the management of business.
What do you think? Is this all malarkey? Have you had an experience where you noticed such a difference between the styles and strategies of men and women leaders?
Reaching Your Audience, Even When It’s Hard
by Jan Morrison on May 4, 2010 | 2 comments
in Event Planning, Nashville, Productivity
I’ve always been an activist – saving animals, conserving natural resources and advocating for the disenfranchised. But recently, I have found myself using my professional communications skills to accomplish my activist goals.
My neighborhood is on the threshold of a significant transformation, but to get there the residents need to work together. So I have decided to rally the troops to form a neighborhood association in my quickly changing, working-class neighborhood. As a whole, the neighborhood has been neglected for some time, but is sitting at the tipping point of a significant transformation. If we combine forces, my neighbors can work together so that tipping point teeters in our favor.
For me, this is a new endeavor and I find myself designing a strategic communications campaign in a whole new environment. It turns out that motivating people around messages and a call to action for a cause bears a strong resemblance to the goals I accomplish for my clients every day.
As I started organizing my thoughts I went back to the basics.
1. Who is my audience?
a. What are the demographics of my audience?
b. What are the psychographics of my audience?
c. What motivates them?
d. What language do they speak?
2. How can I communicate with them?
a. Do they use the internet?
b. Do they engage in social media?
c. Do forms of daily communication do they rely on? (e.g. email, mail, cell phone, etc.)
d. What messages that will strike a chord?
e. Do they feel that their opinions matter and that their voices are being heard?
I wanted to hear that the members of my neighborhood could all be reached via email or social media from the comfort of my chair. Unfortunately, the answers I got sent me in a different strategic direction. Many of my neighbors do not even have computers, much less spend time surfing the web or posting to Facebook. This community still relies on face-to-face contact, phone calls and mail to learn about what is happening in their neighborhood.
This means my work will be a lot harder than I anticipated when I began. But it also means that I am learning to apply my strategic communications skills to accomplish new kinds of goals that have personal meaning for me and my neighbors.
So I hit the pavement. For the past several weeks I have been on the phone and walking the neighborhood and talking to my neighbors. And so far, the results have been wonderful. People are learning about our little organization and we are on the brink of big things.
And the bonus prize for all of this effort is that our neighborhood is becoming more of a community. We aren’t just neighbors…now we are friends.
It’s all about Strategy!
by Jan Morrison on January 19, 2010 | 1 comment
in Media Relations, Productivity, The Media
Thanks to Netflix and my avoidance of winter weather, I’ve been working my way through the list of nominees for 2009 Academy Awards. After spending an evening watching Frost/Nixon about British journalist David Frost’s exclusive interviews with Richard Nixon more than two years after Watergate, I am convinced it must be required “watching” for all media professionals.
To provide a little background, David Frost was considered more of a “TV personality” than journalist until he landed an exclusive interview with Nixon by paying for the opportunity. Nixon accepted the request, presumably because of the money and his overconfidence that Frost would soft-pedal through a fluff piece that would improve his public image after the Watergate scandal.
Much to Frost’s credit he did not let the opportunity to conduct some serious journalism slip past him. Granted, he was a little distracted at first, but you’ll find out more about that when you watch the movie. Ultimately, he and his team of assistants researched, investigated, planned and, most importantly, strategized, about the opportunity.
His team didn’t just refresh their memories about the Watergate scandal, they learned enough about the situation and the parties involved to pin Nixon into a quasi admission of guilt. They never would have gotten the opportunity if they had not strategized about the opportunity first.
As professional strategists, we are charged with thinking through all of the possible scenarios of a situation before acting on them. When we work with members of the media, we strategize first to make sure we accomplish our goals and, equally important, that the reporter gets what he/she needs. We start by asking some of these questions:
- What information is important for the reporter to know even if he/she doesn’t ask?
- How do I provide that information to a reporter?
- Who is the best person to represent or personalize this topic?
- Who will benefit from this interaction?
- Are there topics I cannot discuss, and how do I respond if asked?
Now that you’ve added Frost/Nixon to your Netflix list, tell us how you strategize when contacting media or responding to media queries.
An After-Action Review for PR Pros
by Jeremy Roe on March 11, 2009 | 1 comment
in Productivity, Social Media
PR people are experts at getting things done. We move quickly to diagnose communication problems and develop solutions. Amid unprecedented media consolidation and the proliferation of social media outlets, communications and PR campaigns are shrinking from months to days. Evaluation and assessment periods are brief and often perfunctory. But this ever-shortening cycle can corrupt even the best laid plans without making time for a regular mini review of lessons learned and applying minor course corrections. The military has a great system for this, conducting an after-action review, or AAR.
For civilians, there’s the weekly review.
Popularized by the book, “Getting Things Done,” by productivity guru David Allen, the weekly review is a regular appointment you make with yourself. For an hour each week, the weekly review encourages you to take stock and think about what you’re doing. This is the 30,000-foot view of your projects, tasks and goals. The weekly review provides space in your life to go beyond getting things done, and explore the question: “Are we getting the right things done?”
The weekly review doesn’t have to be complicated, or take a long time.
There are a number of excellent resources on the web for people who want to break the tactical execution cycle and learn to think critically and strategically. Here are some of my favorites:
- “The Importance of the Weekly Review” by Michael Hyatt
- “How to do a Weekly Review in Under an Hour” by Leo Babauta
- “Getting into the Weekly Review Habit” by Gina Trapani
A Google search for Weekly Review will yield more results than you can shake a stick at. Whatever you do, I recommend making space in your life to step back, and evaluate where you’re going and how you’re getting there. You can apply this principle at a personal level, a project level, or a team level. Leaders and senior management can explore this at an organizational level and incorporate it into strategic planning.
For those individuals new to their career, the weekly review is a healthy habit that can reinforce critical thinking skills. For seasoned professionals, the weekly review can put a refreshing new wind in your sails. Whatever your name for them, the benefits of a weekly review create a stable foundation for a resilient, innovative organization that’s oriented toward growth.