podcast Archives

LME038 – Who Should You Promote?

Today we’re tackling one of the most critical decisions you’ll face as a leader or entrepreneur: who to promote into a leadership role.

This isn’t just about rewarding high performers—it’s about shaping the future of your team and of your business.

Why Promotions Are More Than Just a Title

Who should You Promote?

If you are a business owner and your business is growing, you’ve likely felt the pressure: more customers, more responsibilities, and, unfortunately, more chaos. You may have hired new employees to lighten your load, but somehow, you’re still trapped in the day-to-day grind, managing tasks and firefighting problems. Sound familiar?

Here’s the thing: growth demands structure. Once you have more than seven direct reports, it’s time to rethink your organization. You need leaders to take responsibility for specific areas—not just tasks—so you can focus on steering the business, not managing every detail.

But here’s the million-dollar question: who should you promote?

Three Questions to Define the Role

Before you choose the right person, you need to clarify the role. Start by answering these three critical questions:

What will this leader be responsible for?
Be specific. For example, if you’re hiring a marketing leader, will they oversee social media strategy? Content creation? Team management? Define their scope clearly.Example: Suppose you’re hiring a team leader for your marketing department. Will they oversee just social media, or will they also manage email campaigns and SEO? Clarify their exact scope.
What decisions can they make independently?
Leadership comes with autonomy. Decide which decisions this leader can make alone and when they need to consult you. For instance, can they approve campaign budgets? Adjust team schedules?Example: Can this leader approve campaign budgets on their own, or must they get approval from you? Deciding on autonomy levels upfront avoids confusion later.
How will you measure their success?
Reaching goals is obvious, but consider behavior too. Does the candidate inspire their team? Are they collaborative with peers? Success isn’t just about hitting numbers—it’s about embodying your company’s values.Example: It’s not enough to say, “Hit marketing targets.” Will success also mean fostering collaboration across departments? Maintaining high team morale? Be specific.

Take time to write down your answers. These will serve as a foundation for your expectations and help you evaluate candidates objectively.

Internal Promotion vs. External Hire

Once you’ve defined the role, the next step is deciding whether to promote from within or hire externally. Promoting an existing employee often makes sense—they know your business, your culture, and your challenges. But how do you decide if someone is ready?

Let’s dive into 10 key traits you should look for in potential leaders.

The 10 Traits of a Strong Leader

1. Trustworthiness

Only promote someone you trust. This isn’t about their technical skills—it’s about their integrity. Will they act in the company’s best interests, even when no one is watching?You wouldn’t promote an employee who bent company rules to their advantage. Instead, look for someone who has consistently acted with integrity.

Example like Sarah, who ensured compliance even when it meant pushing back on client demands.

2. Loyalty

A leader must have your back, especially in tough situations. They can disagree with you privately, but once a decision is made, they should fully support it. Loyalty is non-negotiable.

Example: Imagine promoting someone like Alex, who always defends company decisions to clients and colleagues, even when he personally disagrees. Contrast that with someone who undermines leadership in private—such behavior is a red flag.

3. Track Record

Look for employees who consistently meet or exceed expectations in their current role. But beware: the best technical expert isn’t always the best leader. Leadership requires a completely different skill set.

Example: Jane, your top salesperson, meets her quotas every month but prefers working independently. Meanwhile, Michael, a mid-level performer, often mentors junior staff and collaborates across teams. Michael might be the better leadership candidate because leadership requires teamwork, not solo success.

4. Willingness to Learn

Leadership is a journey, not a destination. Your ideal candidate should embrace feedback, admit mistakes, and actively seek opportunities to grow.

Example: Consider Anna, who eagerly took additional courses to upskill, versus Jack, who avoids feedback. Anna’s growth mindset signals readiness for leadership.

5. Team-Oriented Mindset

Great leaders are team players. They motivate others, build strong relationships, and foster collaboration. Avoid promoting lone wolves—they’ll struggle to manage and inspire a team.

Example: Rachel, who regularly volunteers to organize team-building activities, demonstrates a collaborative spirit. Contrast that with Mike, who prefers to work in isolation—he’s likely not leadership material.

6. Conflict Management Skills

Conflicts are inevitable. A leader must address issues early and constructively, not avoid them. Someone who is conflict-averse can create bigger problems down the line.

Example: When two team members disagreed over project responsibilities, Dave stepped in, facilitated a conversation, and found a solution both sides accepted. This ability to address conflict constructively is vital for a leader.

7. Problem-Solving Ability

Leaders don’t just identify problems—they propose solutions. If an employee only brings you issues without ideas for solving them, they might not be ready for leadership.

Example: During a product launch delay, Emma identified the bottleneck, proposed two solutions, and implemented the best one. Leaders need this kind of initiative.

8. Self-Discipline

Leaders must manage themselves before they can manage others. This includes setting priorities, staying organized, and taking responsibility for their actions.

Example: Look for employees like Tom, who consistently meets deadlines and manages their workload efficiently. If someone struggles with time management, they may not be ready for leadership.

9. Experience Leading

While not mandatory, prior leadership experience—whether in a project, a volunteer role, or even a sports team—can be a strong indicator of readiness.

Example: Kate successfully led a cross-functional project team last year, even though it wasn’t part of her formal role. This shows she can step into leadership naturally.

10. Decision-Making Capability

Leaders must make decisions, even under pressure. Look for someone who doesn’t shy away from tough calls and is willing to stand by their choices.

Example: When your team was stuck on a critical issue, Matt made a decisive call and owned the outcome. Leaders need the courage to make tough decisions.

What If No One Fits the Bill?

You might be thinking, “None of my employees meet all 10 criteria.” That’s okay—no one is perfect.

Focus on these must-haves: trustworthiness, loyalty, a solid track record, and a willingness to learn. The rest can often be developed over time with training and mentorship.

How to Set New Leaders Up for Success

Promoting someone is just the beginning. Here’s how to ensure their success:

Define Clear Expectations:
Share the three questions you answered earlier. Make sure they understand their responsibilities, decision-making scope, and success metrics.
For example, if you expect your new marketing leader to double website traffic, make that explicit.
Provide Training:
Leadership skills can be learned. Consider enrolling them in a leadership development program, such as my upcoming Leadership Crash Course.
Offer Ongoing Support:
Regular one-on-one meetings, feedback sessions, and mentorship can make a huge difference in their growth.
Be Patient:
Remember, leadership is a skill that takes time to master. Give them room to learn and grow.

A Final Thought

Promotions aren’t just about filling a role—they’re about building the future of your organization. Choose wisely, invest in your people, and watch your business thrive.

Download my Checklist

Today I shared with you my framework for identifying the right leaders for your team.

Now, to make things even easier, I’ve put together a free checklist of the 10 Traits of a Strong Leader.

This checklist will help you evaluate your team members systematically and ensure you make the best promotion decisions.

Just click the link here to download your copy.

It’s quick, it’s free, and it’s a great tool to have on hand as you plan your next leadership promotion.

Remember, great leaders aren’t just found—they’re developed. Start today by using this checklist to spot potential in your team and nurture the next generation of leaders in your business.

LME037 – My Experience with AI So Far

Today, I want to share a personal story and my current thoughts on artificial intelligence (AI).

A Surprising AI Conversation

A couple of weeks ago, I was on a long drive, listening to an audiobook about OKRs—Objectives and Key Results – a popular framework for setting and tracking goals.

While the book offered great insights, it felt overly optimistic, glossing over some potential challenges with OKRs.

As I was pondering these issues, I thought,

“Who can I discuss this with right now?”

Instead of calling someone, I decided to open ChatGPT. But this time, I didn’t just type; I talked.

Yes, I had a full voice conversation with ChatGPT using its text-to-speech capabilities.

I spoke to ChatGPT as if it were a friend—casually, openly, and without overthinking. And it replied in a natural, conversational way.

To my surprise, this wasn’t just a Q&A. It felt like a real discussion. I even caught myself gesturing as if I were talking to another person. At that moment, I was fascinated—and a bit unsettled.

AI in Leadership and Beyond

This experience got me thinking: How can AI like ChatGPT be used in a professional context?

Could it become a “virtual team member” during strategy meetings? Could two AI models debate with each other to generate fresh perspectives? And what impact will this have on how we work and interact?

AI is no longer a futuristic concept. It’s here, reshaping how we live and work.

For example, AI excels at dynamic, complex tasks like autonomous driving, predictive modeling, and chatbots. In contrast, automation focuses on repetitive, rule-based tasks to increase efficiency and reduce errors.

The real power lies in combining the two—what experts call “intelligent automation.”

Challenges and Limitations

While AI is powerful, it’s not without flaws. Let me share an example.

I recently experimented with creating a customized AI chatbot, “Ask Bernd.”

I trained it using my own leadership materials, including podcasts and video scripts. The goal was to make “Ask Bernd” answer leadership questions as I would.

While the responses were often insightful, they occasionally contained fabricated details. For instance, it would refer to specific videos in my course that didn’t exist.

This issue, known as AI “hallucination,” highlights a critical limitation: AI can produce convincing but factually incorrect answers.

For businesses, this is a serious concern. Imagine using AI to create an internal knowledge base, only to find it spreading misinformation.

Trusting AI blindly can lead to costly mistakes.

Why You Should Engage with AI Now

Despite its limitations, AI is a game-changer. Ignoring it isn’t an option.

Remember the early 2000s, when some dismissed the internet as a passing fad? We all know how that turned out.

As a leader, you need to experiment with AI tools—whether it’s ChatGPT, Google Gemini, or others. Encourage your team to do the same.

Right now, no one has decades of experience with AI because the field is evolving so quickly. This is your chance to learn, adapt, and stay ahead.

Practical Tips for Leaders

Here are a few ways to start:

Experiment Freely: Try tools like ChatGPT for drafting emails, creating job descriptions, or preparing interview questions.
Empower Your Team: Show your employees how AI can make their work easier and more efficient.
Continuous Learning: Attend webinars, take courses, and follow AI experts to stay updated.

Remember, AI is not a replacement but a tool.

Those who learn to leverage it will thrive, while those who don’t risk being left behind.

AI is not just a buzzword; it’s a transformative technology shaping our future. As leaders, it’s up to us to guide our teams in embracing this change and using AI as a strategic advantage.

LME036 – My Remote Work Experience – Lessons Learned

Today, I want to dive into a topic that’s more relevant than ever: remote work.

I’ll share my personal experiences leading a fully remote team, explore who remote work is suited for, and discuss why some companies are still hesitant to embrace it.

Embracing Remote Work

When I started building my team, I made a deliberate decision: we’d work fully remote. That decision shaped everything—from hiring to how we communicate and collaborate.

Today, my team consists of four people: Alex, Simone, Ersin, and myself. And yes, we’re thriving in a remote setup.

But here’s the thing: remote work isn’t for everyone.

It demands self-discipline, responsibility, and excellent self-management. If these qualities aren’t present, remote work can quickly fall apart.

The Rise of Remote Work

In the U.S., remote work skyrocketed during the pandemic, forcing many businesses to adapt overnight.

Employees loved the flexibility and saved commute time, and many never looked back. Today, hybrid work has become the norm in many industries.

However, tech giants like Apple and Meta are leading a counter-movement, calling employees back to the office.

Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, famously said,

“There’s no substitute for face-to-face collaboration.”

While he’s not wrong, I believe face-to-face interactions don’t necessarily mean daily office attendance.

Instead, they can be achieved through periodic in-person team meetups, which is exactly what my team does.

Remote Work Challenges – And How to Overcome Them

Managing a remote team isn’t without its challenges. Communication, team spirit, and alignment can become tricky without the right processes in place.

But here’s a hard truth: remote work doesn’t create leadership issues—it reveals them.

If your team isn’t self-managing or struggles with accountability, that’s likely a leadership issue, not a remote work issue.

As I always say, after two years, every leader has the team they deserve. So, if your remote team is failing, it’s time to take a hard look at your leadership practices.

Keys to Remote Work Success

Over the years, I’ve identified five principles that have helped my team succeed remotely:

Clear Communication Channels
We use Zoom for meetings and quick check-ins, and emails for longer messages. Everyone is expected to respond within a business day—but immediate responses aren’t required.
Defined Responsibilities
Each team member owns their domain. For example, Alex handles marketing and video production, Simone manages community and events, and Ersin focuses on leadership coaching. Ownership fosters creativity and expertise.
Regular In-Person Meetups
Every 4–6 weeks, we meet in person—whether for a strategy session, a conference, or just team-building. For example, we attended a marketing conference in Frankfurt last fall and have a team retreat planned in Hamburg next week.
Continuous Learning
Professional development is a priority. From conferences like VidSummit in Los Angeles to sales training programs, we invest in learning as a team.
Quarterly Strategy Meetings
Every quarter, we reflect on our achievements and set goals for the next quarter. This ensures alignment and keeps us moving forward.

Who is Remote Work For?

Remote work isn’t one-size-fits-all.

It’s ideal for knowledge workers who value flexibility and autonomy but less so for roles requiring hands-on tasks or constant supervision.

For companies hesitant to adopt remote or hybrid models, here’s a reality check: in today’s job market, offering flexibility is often non-negotiable for attracting and retaining top talent.

Remote work isn’t a passing trend; it’s a fundamental shift in how we work.

As leaders, we must adapt and find ways to make it work for our teams and businesses. That means investing in your people, refining your processes, and embracing change.

LME035 – Leadership in 2025: A Fresh Start After the Break

Its been quite a while since our last episode – in fact, over three years.

A big thank-you to all of you who have stayed connected, kept listening to past episodes, and even joined our email list during this time. Your support and interest mean the world to me.

So, where have I been?

Well, I‘ve spent the past few years focusing on my work in Germany, helping leaders and especially business owners build stronger teams and lead with confidence.

But I‘ve always known I would return to this podcast, because leadership challenges are universal, and this is where we can tackle them together.

Over the last years I build a small but mighty team. Everyone in my team is an expert in their field. In one of the next episodes I will introduce them to you.

Working with such a great team was a game changer for me. And that is now why I finally have the time to focus on this podcast again.

Why Leadership is More Important Than Ever

As we step into 2025, the landscape for leaders continues to evolve. Whether you are leading a small team or managing a growing business, the challenges are real – From hybrid work environments to the integration of AI and technology, to retaining great talent in a competitive market.

But let me tell you: leadership remains the single most important factor in a business success.

In todays episode, I want to share three key trends that I believe every leader should focus on in 2025:

Empowering Hybrid Teams: Many of us are still adapting to managing people both in-person and remotely. All my team members are working remotely. I‘ll share my experience how this works in detail and I’ll give you my tips on how to create trust and accountability in such a team.
Leveraging AI Without Losing the Human Touch: AI is a powerful tool for efficiency, but the best leaders know how to balance data-driven decisions with emotional intelligence.
Over the last 12 months I played around with AI for my business and I interviewed several experts on this matter. Some results are fascinating, others are rather sobering. So I’ll keep you updated on my AI Journey in this podcast.
Building Leadership at Every Level: In 2025, the best teams won‘t rely on a single leader. In one of the neyxt episodes of this podcast I‘ll share my ideas on how to identify and develop future leaders within your team.

Each of these trends represents a unique challenge, but also an incredible opportunity. And in the coming weeks, we‘ll dive deeper into each of these topics.

The Podcast Relaunch and What to Expect

Now that I am back, let me tell you what you can expect from ‘Leadership Made Easy.’

First, we will stick to our core mission: to give you simple, actionable advice to become the leader your team needs.

Leadership doesn‘t have to be overwhelming, and this podcast will continue to help you break it down into easy, manageable steps.

I am also excited to announce that we will be exploring some new formats this year:

Interviews: I will bring in expert guests to share their leadership stories and strategies espeically for small and medium sized business.
Q&A Episodes: You‘ll have the chance to send me your burning questions about leadership, and I‘ll answer them on the show.
Success Stories: I‘ll highlight real-life examples of leaders who have transformed their teams using practical strategies.

If you have specific topics you‘d like me to cover, send me an email at podcast@berndgeropp.com. This is a community, and I‘m here to help you succeed.

Announcement

Finally, I‘ve got something big coming in April 2025: a brand-new video course called ‘Leadership Crash Course’. It‘s designed to help you become a confident, effective leader in just 30 days. Stay tuned for more details in the weeks ahead. My team and me are intensively working on it and we are very excited to share more details with you soon.

LME034 – Tips for first-time managers – Interview with Mike Ashie

Today I have a guest on my podcast: Mike Ashie from Canada. We talk about tips for first-time managers.

Mike Ashie

Mike Ashie has a great channel on YouTube, called Leadership with Mike. Coming from the transportation and hospitality industry he has years of experience being a manager.

If you haven’t watched his videos, check them out on YouTube. He has lots of great tips and as he is saying:

“I help managers to become leaders and I am doing that with no nonsense sense – if that makes sense.”

Becoming a manager can be overwhelming, especially if it comes to delegating tasks and responsibility. Therefore, check out his delegation course here.

Tips for first-time-managers

In the interview with Mike on his tips for first-time managers I asked him the following questions:

What is the difference between a manager and a leader?
What is most important for leaders in their first manager role?
How can they lead with authority, but without beeing a jerk?
What should a new leader do in the first 30 days in his or her new job?
What are typical misconceptions first-time managers have about their new position?
What are the 3 typical mistakes first-time leaders should avoid when starting their new position?

Listen to the podcast here:

LME033 – How I Learned to delegate

How I learned to delegate!

I co-founded my first company – it was a high-tech start-up – in 1995. That’s more than 25 years ago.

In that time I had a completely wrong idea of entrepreneurship and leadership. That’s why I made a lot of mistakes in the beginning and only learned over the years what really matters in leadership as well as in entrepreneurship.

The time problem!

My biggest challenge back then was time. Finding time for the important things. I was almost exclusively on the operational side. The day-to-day operations really took me over.

I had the feeling that I always had to keep all the things in the company together, I worked around the clock – often even on weekends.

Everything revolved around the company.

Also at home. Taking a week off, taking a vacation and really switching off – I didn´t really manage to do that. I felt overwhelmed and overworked.

With my first company we had 20 employees, but I always had the feeling that they were working on the wrong things or that they were not doing it correctly, meaning the way I would do it.

I wanted to change this situation but I didn’t know how. I couldn’t even find time to think in silence and focus for example on important strategy issues.

My experience with other managers

In the last few years I worked as a leadership coach for executives and entrepreneurs and I have seen many of them who are in a very similar situation like I was: They work and work all the time, but they are trapped in their operational hamster wheel – sometimes 70-80 hours a week and still find no time for the important things.

Most of them – and I felt the same way – have great difficulty delegating tasks to their employees. It is immediately obvious that this would give them more time but delegating just doesn’t work.

I felt the same way. If I delegated something to my co-workers, it wasn’t done right – not the way I would like it to be. I always had to control and correct them.

Instructing and controling everything

I had the impression that I always had to instruct everything down to the last detail. It was frustrating – and time consuming. But delegating was supposed to buy me time.

Let me describe the situation in which I found myself in these days. Our start-up was all about analysing vibrations of machines.

Similar to how a doctor checks a person’s heartbeat with a stethoscope, we used sensors to analyze the vibrations of machines in order to identify flaws and damage on these machines at an early stage. We developed and sold systems for this, but also performed diagnostics as a service for our customers on site.

Since I worked intensively on this vibration analysis – it was part of my PHD research project years before we founded our company – I was usually the one who carried out these diagnoses for our customers. I was the expert at that time.

I had to delegate.

As our company grew, I had to choose to delegate these diagnostic tasks. After all, it was no longer my job as managing director to stand knee-deep in oil and use sensors to diagnose machines on site. Although I enjoyed it. It was fun. But I had to change from being a technical expert to being a manager. And that was difficult for me. It was difficult to change.

In my opinion in this time: None of my employees seemed good enough to do the analysis as I did.

Only then when I simply didn´t have time anymore to do it, I had to delegate these tasks – whether I wanted to or not.

Because at that time I built up our international sales structure and was therefore traveling abroad a lot. Most of the time I was somewhere in the world, so I couldn’t control everything and everyone anymore.

The changed situation

Now something interesting happened: I wasn’t there – I was somewhere else. I couldn’t give instructions and constantly check-up on my employees.

So, what happened? Sure, in the beginning a lot went wrong. My co-workers did a lot of things differently compared to how I would have done it. They made mistakes which, as I believed at the time, would not have happened to me – but then – after a while, the results got better and better. Two employees even stood out. Their diagnostic results were not only as good but even better than mine. After about a year and a half, they carried out significantly better diagnoses than I did.

That was fascinating.

And through this experience, it has become much easier for me to delegate tasks to others. I know it will likely get worse at first and take longer – but then I have a good chance that the task will not only be done as well as I would do it, but even better.

Starting to delegate is an investment in employee training – it costs time and energy. But it’s worth it.

When you delegate a task to your employee, you put it in their hands. You trust that they will get it done by the agreed date.

Here it is important: If you delegated a task, avoid asking your employee about the progress of their work before the agreed date.

Do not check up on them all the time, but only check the agreed result.

Otherwise you will prevent your employee to take real responsibility for the taks. I know, you probably don’t mean to do so, but this is what happens. Because what you are doing is micromanaging.

For example: If you ask your employee before the agree deadline: “So, how is it going? Will you be ready on time?”

If you delegated the task the right way and you ask this question you show her that you don’t trust her. You don’t trust that she will be finished on time. But wait: She promised you to meet the deadline when you delegated the task, right? S, why do you ask her before the deadline is due?

Don’t get me wrong!

It can be hard to hold back. But this is crucial if you want to build trust in your employees and if you want to help your employees to improve.

By the way: Make sure that you always delegate the tasks depending on the skills of your employees. You can assign a large project to an experienced employee and after 2 months you only control the result. That is ok.

But with someone who is not so experienced, you have to break the project down. You can arrange weekly appointments, so called milestones to monitor the progress of the project. But be careful: Only check at the agreed time, not in between.

The rule for delegation is: Check previously agreed results at the agreed time, but not the process!

Avoid Reverse delegation!

Let me give you another important tip:

Perhaps you´re familiar with the following situation:

Yesterday you delegated an important task to your employee John. He should prepare a project report by next week. Today you are quite stressed and on your way to the next meeting when John approaches you in passing:

“Boss, it’s good to see you. I have a problem. I’m supposed to write the project report. I’ve put something together, but somehow I’m not getting anywhere. You know a lot about XYZ. Could you take a quick look at what I wrote and maybe add a couple of keywords?”

So? How do you react? Mentally you are actually already at that meeting. Yes, you are the expert on Project XYZ, but actually you have neither the time for it nor can you think about that in the moment. You are just thinking:

“How can I get rid of John as quickly as possible?”

So you say:

“OK, give me your notes. I’ll take care of it later. “

And whoosh – just like that there´s one more task on your desk – a task that you actually delegated to your employee, right?

That is called a reverse delegation or upward delegation. If you, as the boss, take on the delegated tasks, you are doing the work that your employees should actually be doing. This is fatal because then you have no time for your actual tasks.

Many bosses suffer from upward delegation.

The question is why? – The answer is:Because they let their employees do this.

So what’s the best way to avoid that? You could just block the conversation by saying:

„John, am I supposed to do your job?“

But that’s not constructive. That’s frustrating and only makes your employees feel like they are not getting any support from you. You definitely want to support your employees if it is necessary.

The solution

You make an appointment with your employee to discuss the problem without hurries:

“Sorry John, now is not a good time but we can discuss this in my office in half an hour.”

So what`s happening here? You kill two birds with one stone: On the one hand: You are not controlled by someone else. That is very important. On the other hand, you give your employee enough time to think about his or her problem again. Maybe he or she will come up with the solution without your help. Great!

And if not, you can help your employee during your arranged meeting.

Listen to the podcast episode

LME032 – Why I quit my job as a highly paid manager!

20 years ago I started working as a manager in a large company. It was a well paid job and I enjoyed it.

My goal was to build up a technical service division from scratch. That was a challenge. But Top Management gave me the resources to hire the right people and to build service teams all over the world.

Leading my team

In that time I learned a lot about how to manage people. And I really enjoyed leading and working with my team. My team connected with my strategy and with my service vision. They also had great ideas and so we got more and more business. Our division was profitable. After a few years my team grew to 350 service employees worldwide.

In that time I traveled a lot in order to support my team. I liked traveling but especially I loved working with my team.

The problem

The problem was something else: I got more and more frustrated strange decisions of my superiors and with burocracy: You Know typical corporate rules, hidden agendas and political games: I hated it!

Decisions I needed from top management took longer and longer. It was tenacious.

Change of strategy

Then Top management shifted focus. They changed the company strategy. In their new strategy services were not that important any longer. Of course, I was convinced that this was wrong.

And I didn’t hold back to talk and complain about this mistake. I was annoyed. I remember that I even told the board that I not just don’t agree but that I think this is a totally stupid decision. Yep. I was not very diplomatic.

First lesson here: If you bluntly tell some board members what you think about their stupid decision: That can feel very good. Yesss. – But it only lasts shortly.

From a long term perspective it is not a good idea to behave like this. Don’t do it. Just don’t! You will not achieve what you want.

“You cannot convince someone by making him an idiot.”

Also I was sure some of these board members … but let’s better stop here.

Loosing focus

Let’s put it like this: I got more and more into conflict with some board members. I spend more time on company politics than on growing our service business. That’s why I became frustrated and sometimes even grumpy.

I had regular one-on-one meetings with my direct reports. In one of these one-on-ones my operations manager told me:

„Bernd, it seems that you lost your vision as a leader.“

That hit me hard. It hurt because I was proud of my team and I was proud to lead this team. And now I got the feedback from one of my valued team members that I lost my vision. That was difficult to swallow.

Working with a business coach

Fortunatly, in that time Human Resources offered me to work with a business coach. It seemed that Top Management still wanted me to stay in the company. They didn’t want me to quit. But they wanted me to become a better corporate manager and to play by the rules.

I liked the idea to work with a business coach: Someone who is independent and has no stake in the company: That can be helpful, right?

And that’s what happened. Working with this business coach helped me to better understand my role as a manager. He made it clear that decisions taken by top management weren‘t my responsibility. In my role it was expected that I either accept it or that I have to quit and leave the company.

But I couldn’t accept the strategy change because it would have a negative impact on the services my team and me built up over the years.

Time to leave my job?

So, I thought I needed to leave. That’s why I applied for manager jobs in other companies. And I got some exciting and even higher paid job offers. And to be honest my existing salary was already quite high.

But I didn’t took any of the job offers.

Why?

I remember one situation vividly: I applied for an interesting new job and I got invited for an interview with the CEO. When I arrived at the building of this company I looked around. It was a nice office compley similar to the one where my office was.

And in this moment it struck me:

Even if I changed my job and even if I started somewhere else as an employed manager, it would be the same. After some time it would become the same corporate rat race. Someone would take a decision I can’t accept,and then I would be in the same situation. And in that moment I felt that this is not what I want.

It was not my employer who was wrong nor the – in my view – stupid board managers. It were even not the burocratic corporate structures. The problem was that I didn‘t fit into corporate systems any longer.

Leaving corporate

It still took some months for me to take the decision and to quit my job. I mean it was hard for me to quit my job because I quit working with the team I lead over 9 years. And of course it is also not easy to become self employed and to start your own business.

But it’s worse to stay in a job you don’t like and which makes you miserable.

Dave Ramsey is spot on:

“When your spirit leaves, take your body with it!“

You have to live by your values!

And I learned that my most important values are freedom and self determination. That’s why I started my own business. A corporate job is not bad. It was good for me for a certain time, but it wasn’t the right job for me any longer.

Today I work as a leadership and business coach,helping others to become the leader they always wanted to be. In that job I can live by my values and it’s exactly what I want to do.

Watch the video:

Listen to the podcast episode:

The inspiring quote

“When your spirit leaves, take your body with it!“
Dave Ramsey

LME031 – One-on-one meetings: Why to to do them and what questions to ask

As a boss, you should have regular one-on-one meetings with your direct reports. But what do you actually talk about? How often should you meet?

My experience with one-on-one meetings

During my time as managing director and employed manager, I conducted a large number of meetings with employees.

As a boss, you can screw up a lot – and that’s what I did. Over time, however, I learned how it works ,I improved and, above all, I understood how important and meaningful it is to have regular one-on-one meetings.

The big misconception

Many bosses only associate the term “one-on-one meeting” with an annual face to face meeting. After all, that’s what HR requires every year.

“That is not correct. I talk to my employees all the time, for example during coffee breaks, or between team meetings.”

Yes, that may be right. But most of these conversations are mostly about day-to-day business, things that are urgent. There is deadline pressure. Something is burning and a decision has to be made quickly.

You also talk about upcoming problems during a jour fixe meeting. Here too, it’s mostly about day-to-day operations.

However, there are certainly occasions and matters for an arranged one-on-one meeting regarding employee issues.

For instance, I suppose you have a meeting if there is escalating conflict or you need to talk with your employee about a salary increase.

When do you talk about personal stuff with your employee?

The problem is that conversations dealing with employee issues are too rare. So, when do you talk about personnel development, the mental state, questions about major goals, your business vision, the strategic direction of the department or the company? When do you do these talks with your employee?

“We do that during the annual meeting. And otherwise there is also the meeting of the workforce every quarter. We have a lot to do here. I can’t constantly talk to everyone about their feelings. ”

That´s too short-term focused.

Many bosses underestimate the so-called one-on-ones. This one-on-one meetings serve to build trust: the boss’s trust in the employee and vice versa.

A one-one-one meeting is not about day-to-day business.

It’s all about building trust

It is about building trust, it is about orientation, it is about essential decisions, often also about personal matters. One-on-one talks are about important things that are not necessarily urgent.

One-on-One talks are also about information exchange and the exchange of expectations. What does the boss expect from the employee and vice versa.

Trust between employees and managers only builds up over time. Both parties need to speak to each other to get to know each other.

“OK, but what do I talk about during one-on-ones, if it is not about daily work?”

What to talk to in one-on-one meetings

Well, ask questions outside the day-to-day work. Encourage your employees.

For example try to get answers to:

What are your employee’s current challenges?
Does your employee know your expectations?
What does your employee expect from you?
Does he or she know your actual goals, the goals of your company? What’s about your company vision and strategy? How does your employee think and feel about it?
What goals and visions does your employee have?
Do you know what is important to you and what is important to your employee?
What challenges does your employee face? At work as well as in private.
What kind of support does your employee need from you?
What kind of support can you offer?

There are a lot of things you can and you should talk about.

This intensive exchange between you and your employee rarely happens during day-to-day business, right? It is therefore important to arrange regular one-on-one meetings with your employees.

How often should you meet one-on-one?

My recommendation: Do it once a week for 30 min with each of your direct reports, i.e. the employees who report directly to you. You may say:

“What? With each of my 7 employees? That would be 7 x 30 min = 210 min, i.e. 3.5 hours per week. Are you out of your mind? I don’t have time for that. “

Please keep in mind: if you work 40 hours a week – and I know as a boss you will probably work even longer – but even at 40 hours a week it does not even amount to 10% of your working hours.

You’re a leader, aren’t you? You lead people. Therefore, your employees should be worth 10% of your time, right?

One-on-ones have a huge ROI

In the long term, these talks will bring an incredible return on investment. They save you massive amounts of time and money. It is an investment with a great ROI.

If you do it right, you will get motivated, thoughtful employees who will pull in the same direction along with you. You will be able to tell much better as to how your employee is doing.

As you get to know your employees better and better during these one-on-ones over time, you will be able to delegate tasks much better and get your time back.

If you take the time for the one-on-ones, you will show appreciation to your employees. That creates trust.

And if you have a trusting relationship, your employee will tell you, for example, if he has problems or if she is dissatisfied with the job.

That’s a surprise…

I keep meeting executives and managers who are taken completely by surprise when one of their best employees suddenly quits and then they say:

“I didn’t see that coming.”

Well, too bad. Almost always there are many red flags beforehand indicating that an employee is going to quit.

You will only notice these signals, if you spend time you’re your employee and if you exchange ideas with your employees in one-on-one meetings on a regular basis.

Click here for more info on one-on-one meetings

Listen to the podcast episode:

The inspiring quote

“When you put yourself in the other person’s shoes, you can see that the person critiquing you is merely trying to help.”
Fran Hauser

LME030 – New as a manager – 5 important tips

You just got promoted? You are new in your manager role? Congratulations!
Especially at the beginning in your new position, you surely don’t want to make any unnecessary mistakes, right? You want to become a good manager.

New as a manager

Yesterday an administrative worker and today you are a team leader or a group leader. That’s great.

But now you think: what do you have to do to be accepted and respected in your new role by your team members as well as by your boss right from the start?

What‘s important especially during the first weeks? What makes the difference? What do you need to keep in mind?

5 most important tips when becoming manager

Here are my five tips for you as a newly appointed manager.

1. Know your bosses expectations!

How good you are in your job, and whether or not you perform well, that’s something not you or your team members assess, but only your boss.

Therefore, make sure to understand what is expected of you in your new role. Only if you truly know the expectations, you will be able to adopt and live up to them.

For that reason, ask your manager to meet with you. Ask him what his goals are, what is important to him, and how can you help him. What does your boss think what your priorities should be in the coming weeks? What should you keep in mind while working together and what kind of communication does he want?

Get to know your boss, how he thinks, how he works. Which decisions can you make on your own and on which ones does he want to be involved?

„My new team manager is driving me crazy. He sends me a copy of almost all his emails, as my inbox isn’t overflowing already. What a hell do I need all this information for?!“

How exactly wants your boss to be kept in the loop? Does he just want a short email once a week or does he want to be informed about everyone and everything at all times and expects a detailed report every other day – perhaps even including a 5-pages Excel-Sheet every day? Try to find out!

And, to make it clear again: it‘s not you who decide whether you’re doing a good job or not – it’s your boss. And his assessment is based on whether or not you meet his expectations. Sorry, but that’s how it works!

2. Don’t rely only on facts, data and figures!

Take your time for a conversation with your employee and colleague. If you are a manager it is not just about asking for reports, numbers, dates and facts.

It’s about people: About understanding the people that work in your organisation. What drives them? Why are they doing what they do? Listen to their earlier successes and difficulties. Keep asking, so you can truly understand, and – most importantly – don’t judge or evaluate; at least not during the first days.

During the first weeks you try to get a glimpse. Get a picture of how the organisation ticks and how it functions. When are the decisions made? How, by whom and why? Try to get a feel for it.

How people and departments or teams really work is nothing you can see in spreadsheets and organisation charts, but you rather need to know or get a feeling for unwritten rules and hidden agendas. Only then, you can avoid dropping a brick accidentally.

3. Avoid actionism!

The first 4 to 6 weeks as a new leader are your orientation phase. What matters during this time is for you to understand your environment, your team members and colleagues and to find your role.

At this point you shouldn’t make any changes – even if your employees would like you to change things up. Why? Because in the beginning you are not familiar with hidden and unwritten rules and customs in the organisation. You can’t see the full extend of the existing power relations yet. But you need this information to make a good assessment.

Some rules and principles that may seem pointless to you in the beginning might start to make sense once you understand how and why they actually came into place. Try first to comprehend and understand.

Only make far-reaching decisions if you can really assess what impact they will have.

4. Don’t speak badly about your predecessor!

„Well, ladies and gentlemen, as you know: from today on I’m the new head of department here and I had a good look at everything. And, to be honest, I’m not surprised that we are not leading the market. There is a lot that needs to be changed. The way that you as a team performed in the past years was – to put it mildly – not ideal. Your work leaves a lot to be desired. There’s much room for improvement.“

Don’t do that!

Be appreciative towards the organisations past and towards the employees, team members and colleagues and their earlier successes. Even if it wasn’t all that good and even if you already know that some things need to change. Hold back on your assessment.

„What my predecessor has left me with here is nothing short of an absolute mess. It seems like, apart from going on business trips he hasn’t done much at all.“

And, did I mention: don‘t speak ill about your predecessor – not in your introductory speech, and not later. Never!

5. Don’t aim to be popular!

As a leader you are not longer just one of many in the team. As the the team leader you are the boss, not a buddy from work anymore. You have to re-consider your previous communication and behaviour. Most likely you need to make adjustments in one domain or another to adapt to your new role.

The real issues that a leader or manager has to deal with are almost never specialist or technical subjects but it‘s the interpersonal relationships.

As a leader you need to find the right balance between closeness and distance to your employees.

Of course, it is a great feeling to know that you are liked by your team members, but it‘s not the goal of successful leadership to be popular. What is paramount is that you are respected – and not because of your position, but because of your behaviour.

Being a leader is about establishing trust. You don’t need to be or try to become best friends with your employee.

Your goal should be to become trustworthy and to be fair and honest in everything you do.

Listen to the podcast version

The inspiring quote

“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.”
John F. Kennedy

LME029 – How to set goals with your employees

Goal setting with employees is not easy. How can you be successful with it? On what exactly do you have to pay attention to?

It is not easy to agree on goals with employees in such a way that they are actually implemented and achieved. During my time as managing director, I also had to learn that the hard way.

Listen to the podcast version

How most companies set goals with employees

Top-Management develops a strategy based on the company’s vision. Then goals are derived from the strategy: strategic, tactical and operational goals.

These goals are then broken down into divisions and departments. Then the managers of these divisions and departmens set these goals for their employees or – which is much better – agree on goals with their employees.

The idea behind

Goals help the company to ensure that everyone – the employees as well as the bosses – go in the same direction.

So talking about goals helps to clarify on where to go. However, they must be the right goals and it is also important how everyone deals with the goals.

Why?

Before defining goals, we need to know “why”. Therefore: It all starts with the corporate vision and corporate strategy.

If the “why” is not clear, if the corporate strategy is missing, then the goal is nothing you can grasp.

“Our goal for next year is to increase sales by 30%.”
“OK and why? Why is it 30%? “
“What do you mean “why”? Because I say so! “

Why should sales be increased by 30%? Or: Why should a new product be developed? The boss should be able to answer these questions before breaking down goals.

Goals bring focus, but…

Goals bring focus, but they must not restrict the big picture and flexibility too much. This is of course a balancing act.

I believe that if the achievement of a major goal is far ahead in the future, the goal should be formulated vaguely.

“John, how much money can we make with our biggest customer, Siemens AG in 5 years and especially with which product groups?”
“Uh, I don’t know, boss!”
“But I need the numbers. How else am I supposed to draw up a solid plan and budget for the next 5 years?”

Set goals with employees correctly

How detailled should the goal be?

That is nonsense! Why should anyone describe the exact achievement of goals in detail, which will arise sometime in 5 years. Until then, a lot can happen.

However, this does not mean that goals and measures should be formulated vaguely in principle. But on the contrary. The shorter the deadline for a goal, the clearer the goal must be formulated.

I really like the approach used for agile project management. This is characterized by adaptive planning.

So instead of making a comprehensive, detailed plan at the beginning of the project, regular planning meetings take place at short intervals. In this way, you can react flexibly to unforeseen or unpredictable changes.

So we need definitely a big goal, but it is not specified in detail. But the short-term goals and measures for the next 2-4 weeks: They should be clear, described in detail and agreed upon.

Similarly, you can deal with goals in a very volatile environment – even outside of project management.

Example for adaptive planning

You have defined an annual goal, e.g. the sales or net income of the company. Based on this you have roughly defined sub-goals and measures.

Once a month, you can discuss the sub-goals and measures for the next 30 days with your employees. This means: for 29 days, the boss and employees focus on short-term achievement of goals and on the measures to be implemented.

And one day a month, you take the time to talk extensively about setting and agreeing on goals. Have you and your team achieved your short-term goals?

If not – what was the problem? Did new things come up? Do the goals need to be adjusted? This one day is used to stay flexible, adjust the strategy, share a bird´s-eye view and to adjust the planning to achieve your big goal.

A monthly rhythm may not be the right time frame for a large car company, but for a small, medium-sized company for example in mechanical engineering it can make sense.

In this way, you have regular conversations with your employees, you can adjust goals together. You focus on short-term implementations, but you do not neglect new ideas, impressions and necessary goal adjustments.

Unfortunately, only very few companies do this. Many really think that it is enough to formulate the goals once a year and then check what you have achieved at the end of the year. In a volatile environment, this is not the way to go.

My 5 tips for how to set goals with employees

Here are my 5 most important tips for your goal setting with employees.

1. Goals must be agreed upon!

If you as the boss just simply set the goals for your team, is not a good idea. You wouldn’t get any commitment from your employees. Nothing will be gained from this. There will be no motivation to reach the goal.

M;uch better is: If you want to have actively thinking, independent employees, you have to discuss and get your team to agree on goals. You have to ask, discuss and convince, not just set goals.

2. Set verifiable goals

A goal always has a deadline. That’s a must. It is also beneficial if the goal is measurable. Then it’s easy. But often goals are not measurable. Nevertheless, the goal should be formulated in such a way that it is crystal clear for everyone involved whether the goal has been reached by the deadline or not.

3. Goals need space!

Those who lead with goals must not micromanage. Anyone who agrees on a goal with his or her team agrees on who and what and when, but not on how.

Well defined goals describe a desired outcome, but leave open how it can best be achieved. The employee decides which measures must be taken to achieve the goal. It should be their creative freedom.

4. Focus only on a few goals!

There is no point in agreeing on 20 goals with your employee. You get bogged down. Managers and employees should consider a maximum of three goals and agree on them.

5. Document goals and check them regularly!

If you have agreed on goals with your employee, document them and check them along with your employee regularly – for example, once a month or once a week. Goals only make sense if you check their achievement regularly.

How to deal with a demanding boss when goal setting

If you’d like to know how to deal with a demanding boss when agreeing on goals, watch this video or read the following post:
How to deal with a demanding boss

The inspiring quote

“You have to set goals that are almost out of reach. If you set a goal that is attainable without much work or thought, you are stuck with something below your true talent and potential.”
Steve Garvey