EGOS & EGGSHELLS --- MANAGING FOR SUCCESS
IN TODAY'S WORKPLACE by Margot Robinson. Stanton& Harper Books, 1993
INTRODUCTION --- As a supervisor, you probably feel caught in a squeeze between upper management's demands and subordinate employees' needs. Your boss pressures you to meet your organization's objectives. Your employees demand to be heard. In short, you walk among tender egos that need stroking, and strong egos that need channeling.
You also probably tred among eggshells! The "Humpty Dumpty" of the nursery rhyme was an egg, and the work place is full of Humpty Dumptys --- ideas and procedures that have fallen from organizational walls, shattering their shells and littering the road to achievement.
You have to decide whether to attempt the delicate task of putting them together again, or t sweep them aside and make way for new approaches.
The irony of the situation is that you don't necessarily have the vested power to get results --- either for the managers pressing down on you or for the meployees expecting you to answer their needs.
However, you are not powerless! You can develop "real power," versus "vested power." Vested power accompanies a title.
But "real power" is the ability to inspire --- rather than demand --- "peak performance" in your employees and to motivate them to produce! (p7-22)
[1] Supervisors face a tougher job than ever (p3-5)
1) The new supervisor --- Redefining the role(p7-22)
[2] Opportunity lurks within challenge (p5-6)
[3] Open the door to opportunity (p6)
[1] Understanding the factors reshaping the role of supervisor (p8-13)
(1) Factor 1 --- The rapid pace of change (p9-10)
[2] What will it take to meet these demands? (p13-14)
(2) Factor 2 --- The financial squeeze (p10-11)
(3) Factor 3 --- A new work ethic (p11-13)
[3] Leading versus managing (p14-19)
2) All the king's men --- Leading your team to achievement (p23-40)
(1) Scenario #1(p14-16)
[4] The second dimension of supervising (p20-21)
(2) Scenario #2 (p16-19)
[5] Key points (p21-22)
[6] Self-development steps (p 22)
3) The responsible ego --- Getting power through empowerment (p41-54)
4) Ham radios and smoke signals --- Communicating clearly (p55-82)
5) Colonels and captains --- Empowering your employees through delegation (p83-104)
6) Humpty Dumpty: putting all the pieces together again ---
Building teamwork into your team (p105-120)
7) Eggshells on a role --- Motivating your team to achieve peak performance (p121-140)
8) Roses and thornes: telling it the way it is --- Evaluating employee performance (p141-164)
[1] Benefit #1 --- The process of effectively evaluating employees forces you to focus on your workers as individuals (p142-143)
9) As the hour glass trickles --- Filling your time with meaning (p165-182)
[2] Benefit #2 --- Formal appraisal interviews give supervisors and their employees an opportunity to discuss important issues in depth (p143-144)
[3] Benefit #3 --- By conducting effective evaluations, you communicate your commitment to developing your employees to their fullest potential (p144-145)
[4] Benefit #4 --- Formal evaluations provide objective records necessary for making critical personnel decisions (p145-146)
[5] Evaluating for growth (p147-148)
[6] Educate your employees on your evaluation system (p148-149)
[7] How to conduct an effective appraisal interview (p149-155)
(1) Pointer #1 --- Emphasize the positive (p150-151)
[9] Key points (p162-164)
(2) Pointer #2 --- Focus on objectives (p151)
(3) Pointer #3 --- Be honest and candid (p151-152)
(4) Pointer #4 --- Professional and mature interviews (p152-153)
(5) Pointer #5 --- Invite and facilitate a two-way exchange (p153-154)
(6) Pointer #6 --- Action plans (p154-155)
[8] Handlng personnel problems by using the constructive
approach of "performance counseling" (p155-162)
(1) Tip #1 --- Have all the facts (p156-157)
(2) Tip #2 --- Make sure your employees have all the facts (p157-158)
(3) Tip #3 --- Discuss problems when you notice them (p158-159)
(4) Tip #4 --- Be frank and open (p159)
(5) Tip #5 --- Focus on the behavior or issue, not the employee (p159-160)
(6) Tip #6 --- Be consistent (p160)
(7) Tip #7 --- Keep your superior informed (p160)
(8) Tip #8 --- Handle special employee problems with care (p160-161)
(9) Tip #9 --- Know your rights (p161-162)
[10] Self-development steps (p164)
10) Keeping Humpty Dumpty together ---
Managing the stress of supervisory leadership ---
this should be part of a supervisor's job description (p183-203)
[1] Understanding the dynamics of stress (p185-188)
[2] How to manage effectively the stress in your life --- on and off the job (p188-198)
(1) Technique #1 --- Develop realistic expectations (p189-190)
INDEX (p204-209)
(2) Technique #2 --- Stay in touch with yourself (p190-191)
(3) Technique #3 --- Take time to meditate (p191)
(4) Technique #4 --- Cultivate self-discipline and self-control (p191-192)
(5) Technique #5 --- Follow your own judgment (p193)
(7) Technique #6 --- Cultivate a sense of humor (p193)
(8) Technique #7 --- Maintain a positive mental attitude (p194)
(9) Technique #8 --- Match t asks to energy levels (p194)
(10) Technique #9 --- Don't be a perfectionist (p195)
(11) Technique #10 --- Accept when you have no control (p195-196)
(12) Technique #11 --- Maintain good physical condition (p196)
(13) Technique #12 --- Celebrate your successes (p197)
(14) Technique #13 --- Learn to relax (p197-198)
[3] Key points (p198-199)
[4] Self-development section (p199)
(1) Identify and list the main stressors in your life and put a check by any "stressors" that are self-inflicted (p199)
(2) Using the list from the above exercise, develop a strategy for eliminating the unnecessary s tressors in your life. (p199)