Everyone wants feedback — my utility company after a service call, the airlines, hotels, Amazon, and Apple. They all are looking for insights on how they can serve me better and looking for any missteps or flaws in their delivery of products and services.
The same is true with your employees. I can’t tell you how often my executive coaching clients tell me, “I wish I knew where I stood with my supervisor.” Why should this be such a mystery? And, why is it so difficult for employers to give feedback to their staff? [Read more…]
Successful leaders give much time and thought to the creation and sustainability of their workplace culture. They generally focus on what organizational experts call the cognitive culture — the how we think, our integrity, behavior. 
Self-evaluations and performance appraisals — everyone hates writing them and few enjoy being the receiver. Is all the angst and consternation really worth the time and energy invested? Are we kidding ourselves in thinking they really impact performance or retain good people? I question it, as do a good number of business leaders — companies such as Deloitte, Adobe, Microsoft, and Accenture, who have eliminated the annual process, aiming towards a more frequent, less formulaic, feedback program. 
Helen Russell was “living the life” by many people’s standards — successful in her career as an editor, happily married, and living in a dynamic city — London. She was happy at work and happy at home.
I recently 
I have recently been coaching pairs. Not romantic couples but people who either work together as colleagues, supervisors and direct reports, or equals who have different responsibilities in their organization and need to collaborate.
Too many emails, no face-to-face, limited phone, words for the sake of words rather than content, no feedback, too much feedback. These are but a few of the communication problems hindering our ability to interact with one another and share and disseminate information effectively. 
As most of you know, I focus most of my executive coaching on workplace issues. Granted, many of the so called “issues” are problems many people wish they had — how to get to the next level, enhancing your branding and delivery of self, and transforming yourself from a manger to a leader.