In almost any company of any size, managers do performance reviews. And, as with anything, some managers are better at it than others. Some have biases that they can’t get away from such as giving better reviews to people they hired, or that they know socially outside of the office. Nevertheless, almost everyone agrees there is a valid place for performance reviews when they’re done fairly and objectively. In this episode we discuss what goes into a good review.

In a previous podcast on one-on-one meetings with your staff, from December 17 of 2024, we discussed how to manage and conduct one-on-one meetings with the members of your staff. Unfortunately, many managers either downplay the importance of one-on-one meetings or focus only on discussing what the staff member needs to do to successfully complete their jobs. In this episode we expand on what outstanding managers do in discussing other areas that are also important to members of their staff.

In addition to the job performance of their staff members, a wise manager is also concerned with the general and emotional wellbeing of their staff. This may require watching for signs of problems that’re outside of just job performance. By being sensitive to general issues of staff wellbeing, a good manager can often head off performance problems down the road. We discuss how in this episode.

Your relationship with your boss is critical, and the first meeting is among the most important you will have. In this encore episode, we will cover how to plan for and behave in this all important meeting.

Usually, when a new manager is hired, the jobs of the current staff are already in place. Nevertheless, it’s the manager’s responsibility to make sure that their staff members’ jobs are structured to fit the abilities of each staff member as well as best fulfill the department’s needs. This may seem easy and straightforward, but it can be complicated. In this episode we’ll discuss some of the challenges that you may face.

All too often, people misjudge the impression they make on others, especially in initial conversations. Frequently, their anxieties and self-critical thoughts lead them to assume the worst. Feeling one has made a bad initial impression on a new colleague can lead to poor outcomes in the workplace. In this episode, we’ll explore ways to avoid this “liking gap”.

The traditional concept of authority is simply exercising control over others because of one’s position in an organization. In today’s world that may not be the best strategy. Indeed. it may not even be an option. A more realistic and, indeed, effective approach on the use of authority is to lead by motivating staff members’ energy and commitment. How to effectively do that is the subject of this episode.

A difficult problem requires a manager, and their team, to take the time to break it down into individual steps, thinking through potential solutions, considering alternatives from all sides of the problem, and providing follow-up. In each step formulating and asking effective questions is critical. In this podcast we’ll suggest ways to successfully do this