By Horst Simon, The Risk Culture Builder

PEOPLE DEVELOPMENT

Ground Rule 1: A healthy environment permits people to work effectively, develop themselves and achieve their aspirations. A good manager does not try to make everybody happy but fosters a work environment that has these characteristics:

• Absolute honesty and integrity in what everyone else says and does.
• A genuine interest in getting problems out in the open and correcting them rather than worrying about pinpointing blame.
• Superiors sincerely willing to listen to other people and willing to admit to being wrong when the facts and logic show that is the case.
• General satisfaction of accomplishment of hard work.

Ground Rule 2: Put a limit on tolerance of marginal or poor performers. Most managers kid themselves into thinking that by allowing these individuals to continue, they are being fair and the somehow time will correct the situation. A capable manager is a tough-minded performance evaluator. Fairness and compassion are also necessary; the manager must help the person preserve both dignity and employability.

Ground Rule 3: No individual should be damned for being “too ambitious”, “too aggressive”’ “too impatient “or “too demanding”- as long as he or she is a good thinker, fair and straightforward in dealings with others. People who are too easy-going, too willing to compromise principle to avoid conflict, and more interested in being liked than in getting things done, should come under fire.

Ground Rule 4: Ensure that all people in the organisation know exactly where they stand and what their career outlooks are at all times- even if it hurts. There is nothing kind about glossing over weaknesses or deluding someone into thinking, he or she is doing well or has greater opportunities than is actually the case. No manager has the right to do that and if the manager cannot get up to the nerve to talk straight, that manager should not remain a manager.

Ground Rule 5: Personal characteristics have nothing to do with individual effectiveness. A manager should not even notice a person’s nationality, race, gender, political inclination or whatever. Not to “notice” often takes effort, but it is part of the manager’s job. Rather the manager must concentrate on what really counts:

• Who faces the problems squarely? Who has the guts to tell it like it is? Who commands the respect and commitment of the others?
• Who is a contributing team member? Who is not?
• Who articulates good ideas? Who does not?
• Who produces results? Who meets commitments? Who does not?

Managers who are hung up on personal characteristics, and do not give sufficient consideration to the things that really count, are going to lose. Competition and the whole world will pass them by. Led by people who have a broader gauge on what it takes to produce results.