Leadership Qualities

Get Your Foot in the Door

By Brandon W. Jones on November 12, 2014 0

In today’s economic climate, many people are asking how to get your foot in the door. This is more of a challenge now than it ever has been because the workforce is very qualified and under employed. For every leader, however, it is important to get your foot in the door.

Today’s economy is as bad as it has ever been in my lifetime and there are so many people that are fighting to get a job. That being said, there are many opportunities for employment out there for those willing to work hard. I regularly see jobs posted on job boards looking for qualified candidates. One major challenge to getting the job is how to get your foot in the door. How can you get your foot in the door when there is so much competition? How can you stand out amongst all the other very qualified people also applying?

Get Your Foot In The Door

Whether you are in college, underemployed, unemployed, or just looking for a new position, there is a lot you can do to stand out. Understanding how difficult it is to get your foot in the door, I have four suggestions to stand out.

How To Make Technology A Smart Investment

By Brandon W. Jones on November 11, 2014 2

Have you gotten the latest iPad, tablet, or smartphone? Have you upgraded to the newest operating system yet? What technology do you use at your company? Technology is a very valuable tool when used properly and at the right time. On the flip side, however, when technology is not used at the right time it can be destructive for any company or organization. The key is making technology a smart investment.

Making Technology a Smart Investment

All new investments start and end with leadership. As leaders, you must invest wisely in technology so your company is successful and maintains stability. I would like to suggest three factors to consider when investing in technology so that you make technology a smart investment.

1. How does it effect productivity?

First and foremost, leaders must look at the productivity of a particular piece of technology. How much will the technology increase productivity? Will it eliminate the need for other resources? If the technology will increase the productivity of the group than it may be worth the investment. As part of productivity, sometimes it is important to invest in technology just to s

2. Is it costly to implement?

If the increase in productivity is significant, then you must look at the cost of implementation. Will the cost prohibit the implementation? Are there going to be recurring costs associated with the technology? Are there high upfront costs with limited to no maintenance costs in the future? How long will you have to use the technology to recover your return on investment?

Technology can be a very significant investment, so you must carefully review all associated costs. Adopting a new technology cannot be something done in haste because it could cost you for many years. You must be very careful when investing in technology because if you make a wrong choice, it could put your company out of business.

3. Is the implementation timely?

When determining the timeline for the implementation of a new technology, you must look at the market and where other companies are going. If many other companies are investing in a particular type of technology, you may need to invest in it just to stay on pace with the competition. At the same time, if you are the very first company to invest there is a great risk. If the technology becomes big you will be able to capitalize on the fresh new market, but if it does not go big you may end up spending a lot of money on a failed product.

Each of these factors has a major bearing on the success of a new technology within a company, organization, or business. If you don’t think about productivity, cost, and timeliness of the implementation you could make a major mistake. You could end up getting into a situation that leads to failure.

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Leaders, Are You Aware Or Involved?

By Brandon W. Jones on November 10, 2014 0

Recently, I’ve been thinking about the difference between leaders being aware or involved. For leaders there is a big difference between aware or involved when they lead.

The Aware Leader

The aware leader wants to be up to speed on everything that is going on, but they don’t have to be the one making decisions their employees can make. Once they are up to speed, they trust their employees to make the right decisions. They give their employees the ability to make things happen because they take themselves out of the decision making process where they don’t need to be included.

Some of the positives of this type of leader are that they let people work with less interruptions. They do want to know what is going on so they request email updates on a regular basis. [Read more…] about Leaders, Are You Aware Or Involved?

Help People Understand Change

By Brandon W. Jones on November 9, 2014 0

Have you ever recommended a change you felt was VERY important and valuable, but got rejected? Or, recommended a change that could dramatically improve your business or drastically improve the lives of others and people didn’t listen? So why did they not listen to you or implement the change? Did they not like you? Was your idea weird and too far out there for people to accept?

People Don’t Understand Change

In most cases it probably wasn’t a personality conflict, personal dislikes, or even that the idea was too far out. They probably declined your change request with no idea of the significant positive difference it would make.

They probably didn’t understand change or what change meant. When it came down to it, they probably didn’t want the change because they lacked understanding.

Leaders often try to implement change without helping people understand what the change means. They don’t fully explain it enough for people to understand the change and accept it.

When people are asked to change without understanding, they often fight the change. They fear the change will hurt them, their standing with the company, or cause some other negative effect in their lives. [Read more…] about Help People Understand Change

How to Climb the Corporate Ladder

By Brandon W. Jones on November 5, 2014 0

Recently, I had a lunch meeting with a friend that is an executive in a large organization. During the meeting we talked a lot about what it takes to climb the corporate ladder. He is very successful in his organization and has gained success through many years of hard work. Because of his success, I really wanted to learn how to climb the corporate ladder from him and his experience.

Climb the Corporate Ladder

In the corporate environment, one of the biggest challenges is figuring out how to be noticed by upper management. Many people think that upper management is on a level that is unattainable. Even though they are on a very high level within the organization, most of them started out at or close to an entry level position. That was the case with my friend.

In the remainder of the post, I will explain the top two points he explained as the important for him to climb the corporate ladder.

Feedback

Feedback is a key to climb the corporate ladder. You must regularly find your blind spots that keep you from being successful. Getting feedback helps you learn your weaknesses and improve. I dedicated a whole blog to feedback, so I won’t spend as much time on it in this post. Bottom line; know that feedback is a key to climb the corporate ladder. [Read more…] about How to Climb the Corporate Ladder

Do You Ask For Constructive Feedback?

By Brandon W. Jones on November 4, 2014 4

About two years ago I had the unique opportunity of going to lunch with one of the vice presidents of my corporation. She was very successful, and earned her success very quickly. She was in her mid 30’s and most other VP’s are in their late 40’s to early 50’s. I was very curious to know how she was so successful so quickly. When I asked her what the key to her success was, she said it was constructive feedback.

So what is feedback? The definition of feedback on dictionary.com is, “evaluative information derived from such a reaction or response.” When I think of constructive feedback, I think of the critiques I have received from those around me. I have had experiences where people have told me what I was doing wrong so that I could improve. I have also had experiences where I was told that the things I did worked, and I should continue to do the same.

So in the corporate world, who should you ask for constructive feedback? I would recommend you obtain the following four types of constructive feedback.

Constructive Feedback from those you lead

Those you lead see you differently than everyone else. They see your flaws and strengths as a leader from a follower perspective. In many cases, you are not the first leader they have had and you probably won’t be the last leader they will have. They have seen how the previous leader handled situations, and they now see how you lead. They can recognize the good and the bad of how you lead. [Read more…] about Do You Ask For Constructive Feedback?