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Practice Philosophy
Management
psychology, in its best form, addresses human
performance and leadership holistically: Consultations
begin with an in-depth assessment of the
situation and needs. Attention is
given to the practical challenges of the
operating environment. Human dynamics
are assessed at the individual, group and
organizational levels of impact. Performance
requirements are addressed from the standpoint
of effectiveness (business results) and
appropriateness (cultural norms). |
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Selection and integration of new hires |
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Why engage a
management psychologist? |
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Research
indicates that 4 of 10 executive hires fail
within 12-18 months |
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The most
frequent “derailers” pertain to behavioral not
technical attributes |
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The cost of
failure is high: search expenses ($500K or
more), outplacement and legal fees, lost time on key business priorities,
adverse effects on morale, and loss of
confidence in judgment of management |
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Management
psychologists can help mitigate these risks by
identifying potential derailers and by helping
the new hires establish their leadership more
quickly and effectively |
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How does the
management psychologist help? |
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Specification
of both the “hard” and “soft” success factors
(see Figure 1) |
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Design of an
interview process to objectively assess for
these success factors |
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Provide an
in-depth, expert assessment of candidates’ fit
for the role |
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Facilitate a
selection panel, bringing all interviewer
insights to bear on the candidates' relevant
strengths, vulnerabilities, and potential "watch
points" in order to make a sound selection
decision and plan a successful start-up |
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Executive coaching |
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Why engage an
executive coach? |
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In the course
of any executive’s career there are “inflection
points” that call upon the person to learn, grow, and
adapt in the face of new challenges (see Figure
2) |
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More and more
organizations are anticipating the needs to
support executives at such points with an
outside expert in executive development |
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Absent such
support, these needs
may manifest in hesitation, strained
relationships, disappointing
performance, or simply as a
shaken sense of confidence |
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The coach can
help executives gain perspective;
assess their situation, their needs for
learning, growth, and development; and thereby regain a sense of
personal mastery |
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How does coaching
work? |
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It begins by
building a
developmental alliance between the coach, the “coachee,”
and the sponsor, who is usually the person's
supervisor |
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Coachees
obtain a realistic sense of their strengths and
vulnerabilities, and
how they help or hinder their effectiveness as a
leader in the current situation |
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The coach gathers
objective stakeholder feedback
to help executives appraise their impact on others and
to identify specific needs to adjust their
leadership style |
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Executives,
with help from their coach, and in collaboration
with their sponsor, formulate behaviorally
specific and business relevant action plans and
strategies that guide their ongoing
learning and development |
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The coach
supports the executives' efforts to practice and
master new leadership skills by being a sounding
board, offering feedback and advice, joint
problem solving, and by facilitating follow-up alignment sessions with
executives and their sponsors |
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^ Top of page |
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Team development |
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What are the
indications of need for team development? |
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Team leader is
frequently intervening as a third party to
settle disputes, or unit leaders seem to wait
for the team leader to coordinate work across
units |
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Legacy culture
has reinforced “silos” while future business
needs require cross-cutting avenues of
communication and collaboration |
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Interaction between members are characterized by
passive resistance, passive aggression, or
“pocket vetoes” rather than transparency,
constructive conflict, and shared accountability
for results |
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Organizational
change has resulted in the reassignment or
regrouping of managers and/or disciplines who had
not previously worked closely together |
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How does a
management psychologist help a team? |
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Helps the team
leader understand his role as sponsor and
“model” |
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Assesses
current team dynamics and performance against a
model of effectiveness and facilitates
discussion of the results and implications for
development (see
Figure 3) |
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Provides
real-time, in-the-moment observations and
feedback on the dynamics of behavior that are
currently operating and how they help or hinder
team performance |
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Helps the team
formulate developmental goals, practical
strategies for achieving their goals, and helps
them
periodically self-appraise their progress |
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Helps team
members apply their insights and learnings in
their own teams in order to promote
effectiveness (performance results) and
appropriateness (cultural norms) of leadership
the next levels down in the organization |
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^ Top of page |
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Organizational alignment |
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When and how do
needs for
alignment or realignment arise? |
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Rapid growth
and the addition of new leaders raise questions
about how to preserve the best of legacy culture
and managerial practices while adapting to
meet new challenges |
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An external
business process consultancy recommended, and
you accepted, a new design, but it is not
getting implemented satisfactorily or soon
enough |
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Significant
changes have occurred in your strategy,
organization structure, or management practices
that require timely implementation, and you do
not have a history of navigating such change
well |
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A merger or
acquisition requires that two organizations
become one in respect to all or some of their
operating practices and/or organizational
culture |
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How does a
management psychologist help with alignment
issues? |
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Helps
management gain consensus on its goals for
change, the “gap” issues that must be addressed,
and the role of leadership in times of change |
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Employs
organizational assessment techniques that
measure the “right” things, and helps leadership
interpret and use these assessment data to
address the vital few priorities for change |
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Provides
senior management with strategies and tools for
leading change and engaging managers throughout the organization in the effort |
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Coaches
senior leaders on how and when to intervene in
order to ensure effective communication and
coordination, and to reinforce or correct
patterns of behavior |
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Talent management |
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What might
indicate a need to review your management
practices? |
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Top
management lacks a consensus view on the key jobs
and critical roles that will most explain your
future success |
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You
have not specified what it takes to be successful in
these roles, and you do not have adequate succession
plans, bench strength, and recruiting plans |
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Senior
leaders do not play a direct or sufficiently
active role in developing the top
tiers of talent in your company |
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Senior
leaders do not demonstrate a shared ownership of your
talent pool, and perhaps horde talent in "silos"
rather than developing talent for the
enterprise |
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How does the
management psychologist help? |
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Conducts an
audit of your talent management needs and
practices, and recommends where to invest your
effort for the best payoff |
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Designs
practical processes and tools that match your
style of leadership and your organizational
culture |
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Guides you
through the piloting of new practices and enables
you and your people to achieve mastery and become
self-sufficient |
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Designs
hi-potential development programs using action
learning strategies, which embed leadership
development in real-world team projects |
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^ Top of page |
