High Yield Training Checklist

High Yield Training Checklist
Before Training
What Are The Specific, Immediate & Important Competencies You Seek? (What Must You Know & Be Able To Do That Warrant The Training Investment?)
Is A Training Session The Best Way To Develop The Needed Competencies? (Consider A Book, Coaching, Mentoring, A Video On The Subject, etc.)
Does Your Boss Agree With The Need For The Targeted Competencies & Is She Willing To Help You Follow Thru? (Will She Prioritize & Hold You Accountable For Each New Competency?)
Can You Identify A Training Program With Training Objectives That Match Your Learning Objectives?
Will The Content And Activities Described In The Program Agenda Clearly & Convincingly Produce The Targeted Learning Objectives?
Is There Assigned Or Recommended Pre-Work To Improve Program Effectiveness Or Efficiency?
Have You Prepared Need-Specific Work Situations To Work On In Class?
During Training
Did You Arrive Early Enough To Meet The Instructor And Discuss Your Learning Expectations?
Did You Review The Program Book Before The Class Began To Identify Key Training Areas In Advance?
Did You Write Your Notes, Ideas And Comments In Your Program Book To Avoid Loss & Make Later Access Easy?
Did You Ask Questions Whenever Key Point Clarification Was Needed Or You Wanted To Know How A Particular Skill Could Be Applied To Your Situation?
Did You Stretch Out Of Your Comfort Zone When Practicing New Skills During Group Role Plays?
Did You Maximize Practice & Feedback By Volunteering For Whole Class Demonstrations?
Did You Enthusiastically Participate During Large & Small Group Activities?
Did You Provide Thoughtful Feedback To Other Small Group Participants?
Did You Develop A Realistic Follow Through Plan Before Leaving?
After Training
Did You Meet With Your Boss As Soon As Possible To Review The Program Experience & Follow Thru Plan?
Did You Solicit Coaching Help From A Boss Or Mentor To Help You Stay On Track With Your Follow Thru Plan?
Did You Schedule Competency-Building Activities Into Your Daily Planner?
Did You Offer To/Actually Lead A Brown Bag Overview Of The Training Program High Points For Co-Workers?
Did You Review Your Levels Of Competency-Specific Improvement At Two, Four And Six Months-After?
Did You Provide The Company, Your Supervisor And/Or The Trainer With A Review Of The Program's Productivity- Enhancing Impact?
Download a pdf version of the High Yield Training Checklist by clicking on any word in this sentence.

Team Excellence Checklist
Playbook For Coordination
What Is The Specific Outcome Or Activity That The Team Is Responsible For? (Are They Solving A Problem (Solution), Resolving An Issue (Agreement), Or Testing A New Method (Preferable?)
Who Is The Team Sponsor & What Are The Performance/Outcome Standards?
Does The Team Possess Or Have Access To Sufficient Resources? (What New Equipment, Capital, Support, Etc. Will Or Might Be Required?)
Is The Team Made Up Of The Right Players? (Are Team Mates Skillful, Knowledgeable And Innovative Enough To Produce The Desired Outcome?)
Do All Team Mates Have A Roster That Is Dedicated Solely To Names, Numbers & Addresses Of The Team?
Has A Plan Been Prepared That Clearly Communicates Expected Team Actions, Handoffs And Outcomes?
Does Everyone On The Team Use A Planner To Schedule & Follow Through On Team Actions?
Fundamentals For Execution
Have All Team Mates Made Overt Commitments To Do Their Individual Best & To Work For Team Excellence?
Do Bosses To Whom Team Mates Report Adjust Workloads & Priorities To Allow For Team Participation?
Do Team Mates Look For Improvement Opportunities & Bring Them To The Team For Consideration?
Do Team Meetings Include Only Those People Who Are Required In Order To Accomplish The Meeting Objective?
Does The Team Leader Prepare & Distribute Team Meeting Summaries To The Entire Team & Others Who Need To Know?
Does The Team Practice Consensus When Considering Issues, Opportunities Or Problems? (Everyone's Opinions & Options Are Voiced & The Best Team Action Is Synthesized By The Leader.)
Do Team Mates Take Note Of & Comment On The Unique Contributions Of Others?
Do Team Mates Ask For Help Only When It Is Absolutely Essential?
Leadership For Direction
Does The Leader Establish & Maintain A Strong Relationship With The Team Sponsor?
Does The Leader Schedule & Protect Enough Time To Do All Of The Necessary Activities?
Does The Leader Make Team Decisions When Necessary & Delegate Decisions When Appropriate?
Does The Leader Use Plans & Performance Information To Anticipate & Pre-empt Problems Or Shortfalls?
Does The Leader Support, Encourage & Have Fun With Team Mates?
Does The Leader Identify & Remedy Conflicts Between Team Mates, Team Mates & Their Bosses & Others Who Might Impact Team Success?
Download a pdf version of the Team Excellence Checklist by clicking on any word in this sentence.

Meeting Master Checklist
Before The Meeting
Is A Meeting The Best Way To Handle Your Communication Need? (Consider A Memo, Conference Call, E - mail, Video Conference, Presentation, etc.)
What Must You Leave The Meeting With (A Decision, Commitment, Ideas, Consensus, etc.) In Order For It To Be A Success? (After You Answer This, Revisit The Question Above)
What Is The Sequence Of Topics That Must Be Addressed In Order To Accomplish Your Meeting Objective?
In What Ways (Discussion, Brainstorming, Planning, etc.) Must You Address Each Topic And For How Long?
Who Must Be Present At Your Meeting For You To Accomplish Your Objective?
Where Should The Meeting Be Held In Order To Increase Comfort And Reduce Influence? (i.e.. You Influence More In Your Office)
When Should You Meet And For How Long?
Have You Prepared And Sent A Detailed Agenda To All Participants?
During The Meeting
Did You Arrive Early Enough To Prep The Meeting Room And Yourself?
Did You Start The Meeting On Time?
Did You Confirm That Everyone Received And Understood The Agenda And Is Prepared To Work?
Did You Introduce The First Agenda Topic And Indicate The Preferred Way Of Addressing It e.g. "Generating Ideas Is The Approach I'd Like To Suggest With Our First Item, Sales Initiatives.")
Did You Encourage The Less Talkative And Ride Herd On Monopolizers?
Did You Alert The Meeting Members When Agenda Items Were Within 2 to 5 Minutes Of Their Allotted Time? (e.g.. "We've Got Five Minutes Left With This Item, So . . .")
Did You Use A Concerns Flipchart To Capture Unfinished Business?
Did You Summarize & Confirm Conclusions And Commitments?
Did You Thank Participants?
Did You Take Notes?
After The Meeting
Did You Complete A Short, Clear Summary Of The Meeting, With Emphasis On Decisions And Commitments That Were Made?
Did You Distribute The Meeting Summary To Every Participant And Anyone Else With A Need To Know Within 36 Hours Of The Meeting?
Did You Begin And/Or Complete Any And All Of The Actions That You Committed To During The Meeting?
Did You Follow Up With any Meeting Participant Who Made A Commitment?
Did You Express Thanks To Any Participants Who Added Superior Levels Of Value To Your Meeting?
Did You Probe Any Participants Who Were Unusually Quiet Or Who Expressed Reservations With Topics Or Outcomes?

leadership

Many people today are seeking to understand -- and many people are writing about -- the concept and practices of leadership. There are a great many reasons for the popularity of the topic, including that organizations are faced with changes like never before. The concept of leadership is relevant to any aspect of ensuring effectiveness in organizations and in managing change. This topic in the Library helps you to fully understand the concept and practices of leadership.

There has been an explosion of literature about leadership lately. Leading is a very human activity -- we're all human -- so there are many people who consider themselves experts on leadership. Unfortunately, many people make strong assertions about leadership without ever really understanding a great deal about leadership. Understanding the concept of leadership requires more than reading a few articles or fantasizing about what great leaders should be.

There are things that leaders do that make them successful. Leadership actions are different from styles in that actions are individual and specific, whilst styles are overall approaches. Both are based on a combination of their beliefs, values and preferences, as well as the organizational culture and norms which will encourage some styles and discourage others.

Boyatzis' management competencies


Disciplines > Leadership > Leadership actions > Boyatzis' management competencies





This is a set of competencies identified by Boyatzis (1982). through critical incident research.

Efficiency orientation
Focusing on objectives, tasks and achievements. Setting challenging goals and supporting appropriate planning. Facilitating overcoming of obstacles. Encouraging people to act in this way.

Concern with impact
Demonstrating a significant interest in power and its symbols. Use of power-oriented behavior such as using various methods of influence, seeking positions of power, etc.

Proactivity
Showing a strong belief in individual self-control and self-driven action. Acting without waiting for full agreement or authorization. Taking responsibility for actions. Acting to dissuade defensive and risk-averse behavior.

Self-confidence
Showing belief in self, values and ideas. Able to talk decisively and take confident and decisive action. Communicating this self-confidence to others and hence instilling confidence in them.

Oral presentation skill
Able to speak well, using effective language, modes of speech and body language. Uses effective symbolism and metaphor in words and actions. Appropriate use of visual aids.

Conceptualization
Uses inductive reasoning to identify patterns and relationships. Able to create models and symbols to communicate these concepts. Uses synthetic and creative thinking to develop further ideas and solutions.

Diagnostic use of concepts
Able to use deductive reasoning to convert models and ideas into specific instances and possibilities. Concepts are turned into practical and useful tools.

Use of socialized power
Developing networks and hierarchies of people and mobilizing them to to achieve specific ends. Acts as a person in the middle to resolve conflicts and bring people together.

Managing group processes
Building the identity of groups and people in them. Building common goals and objectives. Developing group roles. Creating ways of working together and facilitating teamwork.

Essential skills for your excellent career!
Management, leadership & career training.



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New Articles
* Shows articles available in full only to Career Excellence Club members

5 Whys - Getting quickly to the root of a problem

Acrostics - Memory curiosities
Adams' Equity Theory - Balancing employee inputs and outputs
ADL Matrix - How industry position influences your strategy
Affinity Diagrams - Organizing ideas Into common themes
AIDA: Attention-Interest-Desire-Action - Inspiring action with your writing
The Ansoff Matrix - Understanding the different risks of different options

The Balanced Scorecard - Motivating employees to deliver your strategy
Beating Self-Sabotage* - Recognizing and overcoming it
Behavioral Assessments* - How personality affects the way people do their jobs
Belbin's Team Roles - Understanding team roles can improve team performance.
Benne and Sheats' Group Roles - Identifying positive and negative group roles
Blake Mouton Managerial Grid - Balancing task and people-oriented leadership
The Boston Matrix - Focusing effort to get the greatest returns
Bowman's Strategy Clock* - Making sense of eight competitive positions
Burke-Litwin Change Model* - Unraveling the dynamics of organizational change

CATWOE - Understanding the different elements that contribute to a problem
Using the Change Curve* - Accelerating change, and improving project success
Change Management* - Making organization change happen effectively
Congruence Model* - Aligning the drivers of high performance
Core Competence Analysis - Get ahead. Stay ahead.
Crawford's Slip Writing Method* - Gathering ideas from many contributors
Critical Success Factors - Identifying the things that really matter for success
Cross Culture Communication - Collaborative efforts a must!
The Cultural Web - Aligning your organization's culture with strategy
Customer Experience Mapping* - Looking through the eyes of your customers

Decision Making - Are you "cautious" or "courageous"?
Decision Model, The Vroom-Yetton-Jago* - Deciding how to decide
The Delegation Dilemma
The Delphi Technique* - Achieving well thought through consensus among experts

Empathic Listening* - Going beyond active listening

Finding Career Direction - Discover yourself and your purpose
Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing* - Helping new teams perform effectively
Future Proof Your Career - Developing skills for your future as well as for today

Golden Rules of Goal Setting - Five rules to set yourself up for success
Good Manners in the Office* - Realizing there's no excuse for discourtesy
Avoiding GroupThink - Avoiding fatal flaws in group decision making
The GROW Model - Coaching team members to improve performance

Heuristic Methods* - Using rules of thumb
Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions - Understanding values around the World
Hoshin Planning System* - Steering everyone in the right direction
How Good is Your Time Management?* - Discover time management tools that can help you
How to Ask for a Pay Raise* – Objectively evaluating your value to your organization
How to Relax After a Hard Day* - Leaving work at work
Humility - The most beautiful word in the English language, by Bruna Martinuzzi

Inductive Reasoning* - Drawing good generalized conclusions

Job Enrichment - Increasing job satisfaction
Maximizing Job Satisfaction - Getting the most from your job

Kano Model Analysis* - Developing products that delight
The Kepner-Tregoe Matrix* - Making unbiased, risk assessed decisions
Kotter's 8-Step Change Model - Implementing change powerfully and successfully

Locke's Goal Setting Theory - Understanding SMART goal setting
Locus of Control - Finding out who's in charge of your destiny
Logframes, and the Logical Framework Approach - Planning projects robustly

Making the Right Career Move* - Choosing the role that's best for you
Management by Objectives (MBO)* - Aligning people objectives with org goals
McKinsey 7S Framework, The - Ensuring all parts of your org work in harmony

Nominal Group Technique* - Prioritizing issues and projects to achieve consensus

Organizational Design - Aligning organizational structure with business goals
Overcoming Cultural Barriers to Change - Moving to a high performance culture

Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) - Implementing new ideas in a controlled way
Dealing with Office Politics* - Navigating the minefield
Porter's Diamond - Shaping strategy to reflect national strengths and weaknesses
Porter's Generic Strategies - Choosing your route to competitive advantage
Prioritization* - Making best use of your time and resources
The Product Diffusion Curve - Keeping you marketing message fresh
Project Dashboards - Quickly communicating project progress
Project Milestone Reporting* - Keeping projects on track by monitoring check points

The RACI Matrix* - Structuring accountabilities for maximum efficiency and results
Reactive Decision Making* - Making good decisions under pressure
Resolving Team Conflict* - Building stronger teams by facing your differences
Role Playing* - Preparing for difficult conversations and situations

The Sales Funnel* - Keeping control of your sales pipeline
Scenario Analysis* - Exploring different futures
Schein's Career Anchors* - Understanding what inspires you in your career.
Starbursting - Understanding new ideas by brainstorming questions
Stepladder Technique* - Making better group decisions
Succession Planning* - Seamlessly Transferring Key Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
Surviving a Merger* - Taking control and proving your value

Team Charters - Getting your teams off to a great start
Team Management Skills* - The core skills needed to manage your team
Using the TOWS Matrix - Developing strategic options