Reflections on International Women’s Day 2019

By Bernadette Uzelac FIML

 

Last week I participated in IML ANZ’s Great Debate in Melbourne – one of many events held throughout Australia to mark International Women’s Day. The topic was “Her aspiration needs his cooperation.” I was on the affirmative team and our underlying position was that we need all people on the journey if we are to achieve equality.

 

Cooperation, not permission

But ‘cooperation’ doesn’t mean women need the ‘permission’ of men to be successful. Rather, our team’s message was that we need to empower, educate and support men and boys to become agents of change. To challenge gender stereotypes and societal norms that typecast people from a very young age to conform to roles and behaviours that ultimately set the scene for gender bias and discrimination – counter to the notion of equality.

Initiatives like Male Agents for Change and White Ribbon are great examples of men driving positive change and being part of the solution. The United Nations and the European Institute for Gender Equality both support and recommend education and awareness programs for men and boys to combat stereotypic attitudes relating to women’s and men’s roles and responsibilities within the family and society at large. They also agree that we can only succeed in achieving equality through the participation of both women and men.

 

There’s no ‘merit-based’ silver bullet

A central ideology in the conversation is around the issue of merit-based recruitment and career advancement. The proposition that decisions should be based on merit and the best person for the job, regardless of gender and other perceived barriers, sounds fair and reasonable. Indeed, many fair-minded people have pushed for merit-based approaches for decades as a means to counter nepotism, prejudice and bias. Surely, if all organisations based their decisions on merit alone, then barriers based around gender and other biases will simply cease to exist? On the surface, the merit concept seems to be a far more equitable philosophy.

The facts, however, tell a different story.

Meritocracy has not proven to be successful in creating a diverse and culturally rich workforce. Women hold less than 30% of company directorships and a staggering 35% of boards and governing bodies have no female directors. In Australia today the C-Suite is a very male dominated environment. A mere 17.1% of CEOs are female and only around 30% of key management positions are held by women. Full time average weekly earnings of women are 14.1% less than men, and women retire with around 42% less superannuation than men.

 

Why meritocracy can’t stand alone

The reason that merit-based approaches haven’t worked is because underlying barriers like bias, prejudice and discrimination still exist – they’re just not necessarily talked about openly. If you’re not from the right socio-economic background, race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age group, you have disability or have needs that challenge an organisation’s cultural ‘fit’ you may struggle. And whilst merit-based appointments continue to equate merit with experience, the end goal of achieving gender balance and diversity will remain elusive. People who are capable to do the job, but who may not have the preferred experience, may not always get to first base to even be considered due to barriers such as disadvantage or unconscious bias and prejudice.

The notion of the ‘best person for the job’ will continue to be a myth whilst we have highly capable people on the margin who may not have had the same opportunity, luck or favourable networks of support as others may have had. Consideration needs to be given to building more equity into the process and encouraging greater self-awareness of deep-seated personal biases and prejudices that may be unconsciously influencing decision making.

 

Education, awareness and support

A local expert in diversity and inclusion recently said, “Change is grounded in education and awareness. The issues of equality between genders are deep and complex. We don’t know what we don’t know… it doesn’t matter which gender you are. We need to encourage curiosity so that people… seek further understanding, increasing awareness so that we know why we need to continue to drive change!”

Women are successfully raising the bar and driving change, however, change won’t come quick enough unless everyone is on board and actively contributing. Whilst there is a strong argument for quotas in some circumstances to fast track change and bring greater balance to workplaces, we do still have a long way to go. When the term ‘gender equality’ is no longer a part of our daily lexicon we will know that we have arrived. The force for change is in us all.

Bernadette Uzelac is a former CEO, is a fellow of IML ANZ, company director and small business advocate. Follow her on twitter @Bern_Uzelac

Career Doctor: How can I build a high performance team?

By Peter Cullen FIML

I was extremely fortunate and very grateful to have been a member of a really great team on one occasion in my career. There were seven of us with a very close bond that was forged over time. People from outside the company wanted to join our team. They could not, because no-one left. Our team exemplified five fundamental foundations that most great teams share: leadership, purpose, values alignment, accountability and communication. Here are some ideas to help embed these five foundations in your own team.

1. LEADERSHIP

As a leader remember: it is not about you, it is about what you do. You need to consistently role model the behaviours you seek in the team because your attitudes and behaviours are contagious.

Trust sits at the heart of any high performing team. Displaying genuine vulnerability is an essential ingredient in establishing trust and it must start with you. This should be encouraged within the team as people flourish in an environment where they feel safe. You need to be open and honest about your mistakes as well as your achievements.

Give your time to your team and people. And have courage! Be the advocate of your team and their protector.

2. PURPOSE

Do you and your team members know their purpose and that of the team? It is a great idea to develop this with the team so everyone has clarity, buy-in, ownership and responsibility for their purpose.

Provide time for team members to consider the who, what, when, where and how of their work. Plan a team meeting to brainstorm and consolidate all this information into a concise paragraph that is relevant and easily relatable.

3. VALUES ALIGNMENT

Knowing, understanding and living your personal values provides personal satisfaction, contentment and a sense of quiet confidence. Values form the basis for your attitudes, beliefs and perception of the world and how you fit in it.

People whose personal values are aligned with team and company values usually perform at a higher level because they are generally happier and want to contribute. They want to support each other and the team. Help yourself and your colleagues by providing a personal values assessment then ask the team to create some jointly agreed team member behaviours.

4. ACCOUNTABILITY

Knowing what team members need to be accountable for – and then consistently following up – has a big influence on how a team performs. KPIs are normally front of mind when we think about accountability. Remember that these need to be realistic, achievable and agreed by both you and the person who reports to you. It is beneficial for a team to create and develop some targets collectively and they should feel comfortable to hold each other accountable for them. When working in an environment of trust, team members will appropriately and respectfully call each other on it.

5. COMMUNICATION

It is essential to be open, honest and transparent with the team and your people while being appropriately respectful. Two important motivators for people are recognition and acknowledgement. These can be delivered by providing regular feedback which should always be affirmative and supporting, never blaming, criticising or judgmental.

Depending on how many direct reports you have, consider weekly 20-minute catch-ups and weekly structured team meetings. To ensure you all get the most from every meeting, ask what worked well and why and what can be improved and how.

Be present! Ensure you ‘walk the floor’ and chat with people to see how they are going and whether they have any concerns you can help them with.

Keep people informed on the progress and developments of the company. Remember, we are all human and as such we will make mistakes and we will have wins. Use each mistake or win as an opportunity to build self-awareness through self-reflection.

If you can establish these five foundations with your team then you will be a formidable force together. And you will be the leader your team needs you to be.

Peter Cullen is an education and training facilitator. Each of his three-day programs engages participants in developing and implementing their capabilities as managers and leaders.

Avoiding ethical issues in mentoring relationships

Our time is marked not just by advancements in technology but also by societal expectations in the way we show respect, acceptance and dignity to others. It’s now so important that we display the highest level of ethics, especially when it comes to mentoring relationships.

Mentoring is a vital part of development. That’s because it allows participants to apply their learning into the workplace, change their behaviours and have a sounding board for organisational changes. In fact, this is why IML ANZ includes mentoring as a core element in leadership programs.

To aid the trustworthiness of any mentoring program, leaders and organisations must ensure that reliable structures are in place. This includes the following three components:

 

Robust screening process

Do your program participants undergo an application and screening process before they are matched with a mentor or mentee?

It’s also important to screen for the motivators of both parties. Are they genuinely seeking professional development? Of course, if the mentoring program is kept restricted to members of a professional body, such as IML ANZ’s program, it reduces the risk that ill-motivated people will join.

 

Clear parameters and expectations

Do you provide guidance around acceptable subject matters and realistic timeframes for the formal mentoring relationship? A well-structured program leaves little room for discussing inappropriate topics or showing disrespect for each participant’s time and resources.

Again, all of this has to come from a genuine desire to benefit both in the mentoring relationship

 

Third-party available for feedback or complaints

While no one wishes to hear of any incidents where inappropriate or unethical behaviour is displayed, it’s important to be ready to respond should it arise. An impartial party should be available to receive feedback and complaints. It’s never good if any participant feels they are helpless or won’t be heard if they complain.

Merits of reverse mentoring

When someone says mentoring we immediately picture the experienced and mature mentor alongside the eager and younger mentee. However, some companies have found that reverse mentoring, or putting the younger member of the pair in charge, has merits including fresh insights, better collaboration and breaking age-based barriers.

Traditional mentoring definitely has its benefits. It is a proven way to strengthen professional development and drive leadership success. For both the mentor an mentee, they gain a valuable contact within their professional network because the mentoring relationship, more often than not, continues well beyond the conclusion of the formal program.

Today, more of the younger generation move about from job to job and organisation to organisation. As they seek their next step up, if they see no personal connection between their aspirations and the goals of the organisation, they’ll move on. What that means is possibly valuable insights may be walking out the door, never truly fulfilling their potential within the context of your organisation.

That’s why reverse mentoring could be an effective tool in making your younger workforce feel a closer connection between their career and your organisation’s goals. Beyond retention, here are three additional merits of reverse mentoring:

 

Fresh insights

A different perspective can be invaluable for senior leaders. In a similar way to rotating a puzzle and seeing a different possible solution, so too can reversing mentoring roles provide a fresh look at existing challenges.

Sometimes leaders can get used to arguing up the food chain. With reverse mentoring, they are required to think of things differently, use different tactics in completing tasks and understand how to address a different audience.

 

Better collaboration

A new way of looking at things can prove to be useful when it comes to gaining a sense of cooperation too.

This generation of workers appreciate opportunities to participate beyond their role’s scope. What’s more, this generation of workers is all about gaining the opinions and ideas of their colleagues. So, access to the thoughts of one usually means gaining an idea of what those in that age-group think and feel.

 

Breaking barriers

Companies, such as PwC, have used reverse mentoring programs to support diversity and inclusion. This, in turn, promoted an environment where all employees feel their ideas are valued, not just those of the senior-level executives.

The result is a truly inclusive culture, where age isn’t a barrier for ideas to be heard and acknowledged.

It’s true, no matter what stage of your career you’re in, mentoring can support your development. Don’t shy away from reverse mentoring because everyone – no matter your age, experience or expertise, has something valuable to give and has room to improve.

Leading sales and marketing from the middle

By Gunnar Habitz CMgr FIML, Channel Sales Manager at software vendor Noggin.

Amid a fundamental change for the sales profession we enter the age of the well-informed buyer. So, how can sales and marketing navigate across their buying journeys instead of sticking to old sales cycles? How can you operate effectively in the sandwich between top management and your teams while delivering KPIs and developing people?

The typical dilemma of a sales and marketing leader is leading from the middle. Delivering KPIs for top leadership, coaching and mentoring teams toward achieving those KPIs, and serving customers by escalation support. All of this while fighting the internal, often political battles that could knock the balance of company culture. If the requested KPIs are purely based on revenue, more sustainable elements are coming short. Leading from the middle is often a reality of many losses with few wins.

Although many companies continue to operate their sales and marketing structure as they have at the start of this decade, buying behaviour has changed drastically. Informed buyers reach out to potential providers only in the last mile of the buying journeys. The Corporate Executive Board (CEB) defined this moment at 57 per cent of the time between acknowledging a problem and implementing a new solution. That was mentioned in the 2011 book, The Challenger Sale, and today the trend is going towards 80 per cent. Aligning sales processes accordingly starts at the middle level with later validation by top management.

For both small companies and large organisations, middle level management becomes more complex with branch offices and overseas locations. When regional management positions, such as Asia Pacific out of Singapore or even Australian cities like Sydney or Melbourne, operate between country and regional interests they are often perceived to be too far away from reality.

On top of that, those leading both sales and marketing live and breathe another tension field where marketing often falls short. With two separate managers, both areas often compete against each other. As marketing talks to an audience and sales to individuals, only a holistic view and aligned KPIs embrace the rarely known ‘SMARKETING’. This approach combines those two flavours from lead generation to closing.

To be successful in the middle, certain skills and experience are required to motivate the teams wisely toward common goals while playing an integral part in developing the culture.

After spending several years overseeing international sales management in the European region, here are my picks for the top ten qualities middle leaders need:

  1. Communicating: Sitting in between all stakeholders, great communication skills are a must for to active listening and influencing. Be an active filter in between top leadership and your teams to ensure only relevant content is communicated down the line. That way, teams in the field can concentrate on doing their client-focused work. Conversely, a translation from market reality to corporate politics upwards is also needed.
  2. Curious: The best way to survive in the middle with success is to be curious. Like a spider on a web, the middle leader enjoys the right distance towards other internal roles, top management as well as customers and partners. Genuine curiosity into those mentioned roles paired with empathy and a lifelong learning mentality are the winning ingredients to further encourage the team members.
  3. Connecting: The old Nokia slogan “connecting people” is important to middle management. Leading sales and marketing teams requires building long lasting relationships with various internal and external stakeholders. Adopting personality profiling right at the first encounter from Myer-Briggs to DISC helps to truly connect to the other side and to refer further within the enhanced network applying a “givers gain” mentality.
  4. Contributing: The top leadership level and the teams at the bottom often see middle managers purely as messengers for their material towards the other side. On the contrary, I see the role as contributing their own views and content. Especially when the KPIs are set in a different way between those teams, it is critical to answer “what’s in it for me” for each level and then align them together as close as possible.
  5. Challenging: Given the changes on the sales side, it is the duty of the sales leader to challenge old processes and adopt to the new reality. Managing marketing and sales separately leads to an exclusive “us against them” approach. Keeping sales reps solely measured on revenue excludes modern KPIs such as Net Promoter Score which has the end customer satisfaction in mind. The sales leader must challenge that!
  6. Coaching and Mentoring: The sales and marketing manager develops the team using a situational choice of coaching and mentoring activities. When I moved up from an individual sales position to a sales manager, I realised the variety of needs to bring the organisation forward. Given the geographical distance, I needed to develop my own virtual leadership styles without regular face to face meetings or formal mentoring programs in place.
  7. Change agents: Nothing is so consistent in sales and marketing as change – and that doesn’t come in circles to return to an earlier experienced pattern. In his book The Future of the Sales Profession, Graham Hawkins says, “When buyers change how they buy, sellers must change how they sell”. The sales and marketing leader in the middle is the first to adopt as an active change agent with endurance towards all directions.
  8. Creativity: Most international organisations prescribe how their country teams have to execute strategies top down. Creativity paired with clever communication skills are the only way to adopt a central idea into a country reality. As an example, Australian customers immediately recognise strategies developed for the US and are often reluctant to follow them. Middle managers won’t be successful without being creative in their sandwich level.
  9. Cultural interest: A genuine way to drive this middle leadership section is applying an honest interest into the cultural background of team members with the attempt to include all members into a fruitful outcome. While the trend towards globalisation might turn into similar behaviours, in reality an appreciation of the cultural diversity towards common team values provides better outcomes.
  10. Client focus: What I learned from Carly Fiorina at the beginning of my career at HP is still valid, “The customer defines a job well done”, she said. Especially given the mentioned changes on the buying side, it is important to apply all the qualities above in the interaction with prospects and clients. It is the role of the middle leaders in sales and marketing to ensure the offered services suit the needs of prospects and existing customers.

Leading from the middle is a true challenge. But it can be very rewarding when you lead the organisation forward and influence teams towards future success. Leaders should develop all mentioned qualities and be careful not to be “eaten” in this sandwich level.

Take Two: When like-minds meet

Although she was an experienced professional in her chosen field, Julie Fallon MIML felt she needed some mentoring input when she moved into a new role. She reached out to IML ANZ’s Member Exchange program and was paired with Melbourne-based leadership coach Ross Montalti FIML.

By Lachlan Colquhoun

Why did you join the Member Exchange program?

 Julie Fallon:   “I originally joined the program to offer my services as a mentor having been a mentor for others as part of my consultancy business. However, on opening my own medical practice to provide consulting rooms and administrative services to specialists, I felt I required assistance with strategy and focus to help  sort out the plethora of ideas I have going around in my head.”

Ross Montalti:   “I have been formally mentoring for more than 10 years, initially at the Melbourne University Business and Economics Faculty and then with Australian Management and Education Services. My corporate experience provided me with heaps of related learnings and I wanted to share that with those who might value it, as well as help me keep up-to-date in management and leadership theories and practices, especially as they relate to new workplace incumbents, such as millennials.”

What did you get out of the experience?

 JF:  “I received confirmation that my self-doubts were no different to anyone else in business, and confidence that I was achieving, and heading in the right direction. I also had understanding from someone like minded who could see me without me having to try so hard to get across what I needed. I had an objective perspective from someone outside looking in, who was able to see through my mass of information and bring me to a level where I could focus on what was important and begin to strategise on that basis. Most of all I got a willing, experienced businessperson to help me long term wherever they can assist, even if it is just as a sounding board. Hopefully I got a lifelong friend who understands my business and me.”

 RM:   “So far, it has been an interesting journey. My discussions with my mentee are helping me appreciate that not much has changed since I was in a managerial/leadership role. I am learning that managers and leaders these days have the same set of workplace priorities, and perhaps these priorities are not as well dealt with in the case of people, resulting in ‘people issues’ seeming to take a back seat. The business side of things is still the same: set measurable and achievable goals; set priorities; surround yourself with people you trust, appreciate and can work with; get help if/when you need it; and review business results until you get the desired outcomes. Do this collaboratively, keeping your team informed and with a customer perspective in mind, and sustainable positive business results will be institutionalised.”

What did you learn from each other?

 JF:   “I learned that there are other people out there who just want to help you be the best you can be, with no judgement or criticism. I learned about who Ross is as a person, his personal insight, and experience as a businessman. I think I actually learned more about myself than Ross through this process. It really made me sit back and analyse both my business, my goals in business and life, what I actually want to achieve, and why. Ross helped me help myself, while providing amazing support, which is what it is all about.

 RM:   “I’m still learning, but so far I have learned more about the medical ‘business’ side of things from my mentee than I would have imagined. I have learned that I need to keep asking questions, not only to help me understand but hopefully also assist my mentee to get to the bottom of any issue, and move forward with a clear focus, and achievable and realistic result in mind.”

Would you recommend the program to others?

 JF:   “Yes!”

 RM:   “Yes. It’s a way of staying in touch with business realities, checking out whether what we did in the past actually worked, and helping Australian businesses – and more importantly, managers and leaders – grow and achieve their business outcomes, and personal aspirations.”