Leading from the Middle and Managing Up

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Leading from the Middle and Managing Up
10/10/07 Janet Bickel Career Development and
Executive Coach
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Top

• Middle

Bottom
Patients and Students
Patients and Students
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POLI - TICS
(many) (blood sucking parasites)
But Everything Gets Done through People
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Leading from the Middle

• Requires
• conflict management skills
• team building skills
• communication skills
• emotional intelligence
• integrity
• service orientation

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POLI - TICS
(many) (blood sucking parasites)
But Everything Gets Done through People
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Are you Uncomfortable withOrganizational
Politics?

• When someone disagrees with me, I either assume
  theyre wrong or I back down.
• Id rather work alone than depend on others.
• Im careful not to step on anybodys toes.
• If someones angry with me, I cant stop thinking
  about it.
• I assume Ill get what I deserve.
• I dont understand how a lot of important
  decisions get made.

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• Organizational Iceberg
• Events (visible)
• Behavior patterns
• Structures
• Mindsets (stories)
• Organizations are
• goal-directed
• boundary-maintaining
• socially constructed

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Source Kathleen Kelley Reardon, The Secret
Handshake Mastering the Politics of the Business
Inner Circle, NY Doubleday, 2000.
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Increasing your Political Savvy

• Be curious about the systems you work in and how
  value is created
• Recognize when youre relying on snap
  judgments--ask more questions
• Focus on what you can do something about
• Do not internalize negative politics
• Let others know about your work and what you
  care about
• Anticipate conflicts and make constructive use
  of them

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Common Conflict Situations

• Disputes about sharing data, personnel, lab
  equipment, space
• A colleague with a similar idea wont collaborate
• Getting credit
• Boss favoring an in group
• Disagreement with powerful senior person
• ??

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CONFLICT MANAGEMENT STYLES
R E L A T I O N A L C O N C E R N
Collaborate
Accommodate
Compromise
Avoid
Compete
Concern for self-interest
Source Thomas-Kilman Conflict Mode Instrument
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Effective Collaboration
depends on communication skills and individual
commitment to group effort builds understanding
of complex issues leverages differences increa
ses probability of sustainable change
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Communication

• Debate
• Intent on making your point, you argue individual
  perspective and prevent learning
• Dialogue
• Listening with fascination and curiosity eg Tell
  me more about that
• Asking questions instead of relying on
  assumptions
• Valuing differences and disagreements as an oppy
  to learn

ONE MOUTH
TWO EARS
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• Skillful Advocacy ..

• Explain the structure of your thinking ie your
  reasoning and intent This is how I arrived at
  this idea
• Ask for help in understanding your own thinking
  I appreciate that I may be missing something
  here. Do you have any insights?
• Test assumptions and inferences Can you walk me
  through how you came to that conclusion?
• Use and ask for specific examples
• Discuss the undiscussable I need to raise what
  might be a difficult issuehow do others see
  this?

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• PEARLS Relationship-building affirmations
• Partnership I really want to work on this
  with you.
• Empathy It sounds like that was hard for you.
• Acknowledgment You put a lot of work into that.
• Respect I value your commitment.
• Legitimization This would be hard for anyone.
• Support I want to see you succeed.

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IN BUZZ GROUPS

• What political and communication skills do you
  need to work on?
• How will you develop these skills?
• What can you do differently?

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Managing Up

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• How do you relate to
• authority figures?
• resent?
• over-depend?
• defer to?
• avoid?
• compete with?
• effectively partner?
• other?

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• Managing Up means
• developing a pattern of interaction with your
  boss that produces the best results.
• Seek to understand her
• Big picture ie, goals, priorities, pressures
• Limitations and blindspots
• Preferences re communications
• NB You dont need to like your boss

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• From your bosss point of view
• Do you communicate effectively?
• How do you show respect?
• Do you keep the boss informed?
• Use bosss time well?
• Do you express appreciation?
• Solicit and use feedback?
• Bring solutions to problems?
• How do you handle disagreements?

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• Disagreements with your Boss
• Did conflict or tension arise primarily from
• Different measures of performance?
• Different values or sets of stakeholders?
• Lack of respect for you?
• Your failure to produce?
• Your failure to negotiate?

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Managing Up includes
building trust communicating effectively
addressing bosss priorities anticipating
other points of view agreeing to disagree when
necessary standing up to a bully
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Dont assume your work speaks for itself

• Timidity is like waiting to be asked on a date
• Keep your boss updated
• Recognition attracts new opportunities
• Use every opportunity to spread the credit and
  strengthen alliances
• Articulate how your productivity and success
  benefit your institution and profession

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Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

• --To be aware of understand my own others
  emotions
• --To use my awareness to effectively manage
  myself in relationship
• In many performance areas, EQ matters TWICE as
  much as technical expertise or IQ
• The more complex the work, dependent on others to
  get the job done, and degree of stress, the more
  EQ matters

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• Underdeveloped EQ
• Relationships are often unsatisfying
• Easily disconnects from others or stays in
  unhealthy relationships
• Highly reactive
• Low capacity for chaos
• Rigid under stress
• Relationship healing is slow
• Low trust in self others LSLO

• Highly developed EQ
• Relationships are enjoyable
• Flexible
• Relationships are easily repaired
• Wide tolerance for differences
• Takes responsibility for Self
• Good listener
• High trust of self others HSO

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• IN BUZZ GROUPS
• How can you more effectively partner with your
  boss? need to work on?
• What can you do to increase your EQ?
• From whom can you seek feedback?

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