Authors Introduce Workshop to Help Leaders Improve Results By Embracing Candid Conversations
Art Petty and Rich Petro introduce Feedback Mastery workshop to help leaders at all levels improve their effectiveness by developing their feedback delivery skills. Research indicates that the timely, focused and candid delivery of feedback is critical for high individual and team performance. Research also indicates that many leaders are uncomfortable conducting candid feedback discussions and as a result, fail to deal with performance issues in a timely manner. The Feedback Mastery workshop is designed to help leaders gain the tools, approaches and confidence needed for conducting candid performance discussions.
Crystal Lake, IL, (PRWEB) October 22, 2007
Art Petty and Rich Petro introduce Feedback Mastery workshop to help leaders at all levels improve their effectiveness by developing their feedback delivery skills.
Research indicates that the timely, focused and candid delivery of feedback is critical for high individual and team performance. Research also indicates that many leaders are uncomfortable conducting candid feedback discussions and as a result, fail to deal with performance issues in a timely manner. The Feedback Mastery workshop is designed to help leaders gain the tools, approaches and confidence needed for conducting candid performance discussions.
On-going research into effective management practices by the authors of Practical Lessons in Leadership--A Guidebook for Aspiring and Experienced Leaders, indicates that delivery of constructive feedback is a big problem for many managers. In a recently concluded survey by Strategy & Management-Innovations, LLC (www. management-innovations. com), 82% of leaders ranging from first-line supervisors to business-unit heads agreed that there is a strong relationship between timely, effective, business-focused feedback and individual and organizational performance.
However, the majority of these same leaders described themselves as either "somewhat" or "very uncomfortable" conducting candid feedback discussions. Few managers report ever being trained on this critical leadership skill and two-thirds of the respondents report not being evaluated on their feedback skills and performance. The challenges leaders experience conducting feedback conversations underscore their self-described most frequent management mistake---acting too slowly on performance problems.
According to author and course designer Rich Petro, "The consistent feedback on feedback is that organizations are ignoring the need to help leaders develop this critical skill and are hurting their own performance in the process. The fact that the leaders in the study admitted that they are uncomfortable conducting the tough discussions on performance issues and that they haven't received training or haven't been evaluated on their command of this skill flies in the face of the drive to create high-performing teams and organizations," added Petro.
"The frustration and discomfort that managers feel over their own feedback skills and the widespread recognition of the power of this essential leadership tool, served as the genesis of our Feedback Mastery workshops," added Art Petty, course co-author. "The participant response from pilot sessions earlier this year indicated that we hit a home-run for a program that combines concepts, skills building exercises and tangible tools to put into practice immediately in the workplace," said Petty.
"We put our management and some of our creative team members through a pilot of Feedback Mastery, and the response was great," said Mike Maddock, Chairman and Founding Partner of Elmhurst, IL based Maddock Douglas ( www. maddockdouglas. com), one of the nation's leading innovation agencies. "Everyone came out of the session excited to put their new feedback tools and skills to work and I can see the new practices taking hold and helping in the organization," added Maddock.
"I came away with a fresh perspective on how powerful feedback is in the workplace and how challenging it is to do it effectively, day in and day out," said Paul Wells, Software Development Manager at a division of Business Objects, Inc. I learned the building blocks of effective feedback and then a simple but powerful process to help develop and deliver it for both constructive and positive situations. The practice sessions, case studies and in-class work that I did on a live feedback issue from my team, allowed me to walk out and put the course contents to work immediately at the office," added Wells.
Petty and Petro offer Feedback Mastery as on-site full-day or 2 half-day sessions or regional open-enrollment events. "The internal sessions are powerful because you end up with a group of leaders working and learning together and challenging each other. By the end of the session, they have become huge advocates of the power and necessity of effective feedback practices and are ready to jump-start the creation of a healthy feedback culture inside their organization," said Petro. "The open enrollment sessions are equally effective, but with a different dynamic. In these events, the participants learn a great deal from individuals with very different workplace environments and leadership challenges," added Petro.
Participants receive detailed supporting materials, tools and forms to use in the workplace, a copy of the book, Practical Lessons in Leadership-A Guidebook for Aspiring and Experienced Leaders, and one-hour of follow-up telephone coaching with a Principal of Strategy & Management-Innovations, LLC.
About the Workshop Creators and Authors:
Art Petty, founder and principal of Strategy & Management Innovations, LLC, a leadership training and management consulting firm and is a marketing and sales leader, strategist and team-builder with over twenty two years of experience directing the growth, global expansion and rise to market leadership of large and small organizations in a variety of industries
Rich Petro, principal and leadership practice lead of Strategy & Management Innovations, LLC, a leadership training and management consulting firm. Rich is an accomplished executive leader with nearly twenty-five years of human resources experience in settings varying from manufacturing to services to software, large and small organizations, and both private and public entities.
Petty and Petro are the authors of Practical Lessons in Leadership-A Guidebook for Aspiring and Experienced Leaders, published in July of 2007.
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