The headline on the opinion page of The Wall Street Journal: “Why Do Women Shun STEM? It’s Complicated.” In the article Barbara Oakley, PhD, Professor of Engineering at Oakland University in Michigan, argued that professors “outside scientific fields” degrade STEM careers. They suggest to students that engineering is “not creative,” even “dehumanizing.” Non-STEM professors steer potential STEM students into non-STEM areas of study. As for the STEM workplace, she noted STEM career fields are not the only ones with “jerks” and “bullying.”
 
I understand Dr. Oakley’s arguments. The low number of women in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) is very complicated. In Lean In Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, suggested stereotype threat “is one of the key reasons that so few study computer science.”  Women are more likely to pursue careers seen as more appropriate for women.
 
Often overlooked is that many women come to STEM careers after pursuing something else. For example, Dr. Oakley graduated from university with a degree in Slavic Languages and Literature. Five years later, she pursued her degree in Electrical Engineering. Turner, Bernt, and Pecora (2002) noted that “the field of information technology is a roadway with many on-ramps . . . for many successful women, interest and talent in IT emerged gradually and developed overtime” (p. 16). One survey of 275 women in IT found only a third had an undergraduate degree in IT or computer science. 
 
In 2006 I published a research study conducted with an IT professional, Karen Black, who came to IT after she was in the workplace, and also co-authored by a university colleague, Mary Ann Edwards, DBA, who came to academe after working in industry.  Part of our paper was a literature review of factors affecting STEM decisions for women. In 2013 I blogged about our findings. Here are several highlights:

• For women pursuing undergraduate degrees in IT or computer science, by far the most frequently mentioned influence: fathers. The enthusiasm of fathers for engineering or IT was “infectious.” Parents were highly influential but especially fathers.
• Surveys suggested some educators were discouraging: High school teachers (17%); guidance counselors (12%) –“not a field for girls.” 
• Schools emphasizing mathematics and science produced more women interested in STEM. 
• Positive experiences with mathematics correlated with interest in pursuing in STEM degrees.  
• STEM marketing should embrace the problem-solving, creativity, and variety in these careers.

My take-aways:
 
1. Increasing the percent of women in STEM careers will take time. Early influences are easy to overlook and difficult to affect as a society. The finding about fathers I found surprising so I discussed with a good friend, a woman prominent in IT. She agreed with the finding and suggested the seeds are sown by the 6th grade. It would be interesting to see if this finding is still valid in 2018. 
 
2. I agree with Sheryl Sandberg about stereotyping. I think Barbara Oakley makes a similar point. From media to some educators, there is a message that STEM careers just aren’t for women. To some degree rumors from male-dominated tech cultures may feed that stereotyping. But there are women in key positions in tech companies. Women leaders in tech may be the best to diagnose the problem and seek solutions. 
 
3. There is much interest in getting women into STEM degree programs. I think it is important to remember the many on-ramps. For women whose interest in STEM comes later, institutions of higher education and companies might find ways to provide educational support. 
 
4. I agree that STEM careers have opportunities for problem-solving and creativity. These positive attributes should be built into STEM marketing and media. 

Ballard, J., Scales, K., & Edwards, M. A. (2006). Perceptions of information technology careers among women in career development transition. Information Technology, Learning, and Performance Journal, 24 (2), 1-9.  
 
Oakley, B. (2018, July 14/15). "Why do women shun STEM? It's complicated. The Wall Street Journal. 
 
Image modified from https://pxhere.com/en/photo/693727. Public domain. https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
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© John Ballard, PhD, 2018. All rights reserved.
 _________________________
Decoding the Workplace “deals with principles and practices that are timeless . . . Is this a must-have for managers and would-be managers? Yes.” Ron Riggio, Book Review, Academy of Management Learning & Education, June, 2018. Now also available as an audiobook. 


 
 
 
 
 
 
  

Recently I traveled to Wisconsin to attend the memorial service for my friend and colleague, Ben Arbaugh. A much-lauded professor at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Ben was a leader in the Academy of Management (AOM), an international organization of over 20,000 management scholars and practitioners. Among his service over the years was chairing the Management Education and Development Division and being editor of the Academy of Management Learning & Education (AMLE) journal. Ben pioneered online education in business and wrote the definitive Online and Blended Business Education for the 21st Century.
 
There are many who worked more closely with him and knew him far better but for me our relationship was special. I first met Ben in 2002 at an AOM meeting in Denver. When he assumed editorship of AMLE, he invited me to join the editorial board even though I did not work at a major research university. As much as I grew to know Ben over the years, it was not until his memorial service that I learned that he enjoyed line dancing!
 
In Ben’s story I think there are lessons that are useful regardless of where you work or where you are in life. As I have reflected on his story, here are a few of my take-ways. I am sure others could add many more.

• Bring people together. Herbert Shepard is his classic article, "Rules for Change Agents," suggested that when you know people with similar interests who do not know each other, bring them together. Ben knew many people and was expert at bringing people together, often creating synergies for initiatives and research projects.
• Don’t just build networks, build friendships. In his last lecture Ben talked about the joy of working with friends. His manner of interaction made you feel special, appreciated. He was an easy person to like.
• Work hard but seek balance. I know this was a tough one. Ben was prolific in his many undertakings. But he knew his priorities and he stuck to them even when conflicting priorities also offered rewards. He liked the question posted by Clayton Christensen, how will you measure your life?
• Time management is about tradeoffs. Choose wisely.
• Know your metrics, be evidence-based. Let the data speak and try to understand what the data are saying. Decisions based on evidence will usually be superior to those they are not.
• Read. Never stop growing, developing. At Ben’s memorial service there were tables and displays from a life well-lived. I should not have been surprised when I saw that one display was “Favorite Books.”
• Help others, support others. I was deeply moved when I realized that one of his last activities on Twitter was in support of the release of the audio version of my book. Helping others is not just an attitude but involves behaviors. Hang around Ben long enough and you could see that being kind and supportive was in his DNA. 
• Live a life of integrity. Know who you are. Have virtue.

It was my honor and privilege to have called Ben Arbaugh my friend.

Image,"Hawaiian Flowers," © John Ballard.
​
© John Ballard, PhD, 2018. All rights reserved.
 _________________________
Decoding the Workplace “deals with principles and practices that are timeless . . . Is this a must-have for managers and would-be managers? Yes.” Ron Riggio, Book Review, Academy of Management Learning & Education June, 2018

How does the leader, or manager, affect employee well-being? Most leader research has focused on performance, and occasionally job satisfaction. But there is more to well-being than job satisfaction. 
 
Ilke Inceoglu and colleagues (University of Exeter, University of Surrey) reviewed research on leader behavior and well-being in a recent issue of The Leadership Quarterly. They argued that researchers have not paid enough attention to how the leader affects employee well-being. For their qualitative meta-analysis, Inceoglu and her co-authors screened over 5000 leadership studies, then closely examined almost 400, of which they selected the 71 most relevant for in depth analyses.
 
They identified five groupings (mediators) of how leaders affect well-being (all grounded in social and organizational theories). Here are their groupings with associated examples of leader behaviors:

• Social-cognitive: Leaders model attitudes and how to view events; they help shape the context of what is happening in the workplace and the organization; they share and clarify information and help clarify how the immediate work fits the bigger picture.
• Motivational: Leaders affect motivation in many ways, positively  and negatively; leaders can use job redesign principles to make jobs more meaningful; provide opportunities and resources to help employees satisfy workplace needs.
• Affective: The emotions of the leader affect followers; events created by the leader can affect followers emotionally. 
• Relational: The relationship between leader and followers can be crucial; is the leader seen as trustworthy; is the leader someone with whom followers can talk openly. 
• Identification: Through words and actions leaders can foster followers’ identification with the leader, the work group, and the organization.

Inceoglu and her co-authors then discussed the studies they reviewed, classifying by type of leadership (change, task, relational, passive, other), the type(s) of mediators, and type(s) of well-being (hedonic, e.g., job satisfaction; eudaimonic, e.g., work engagement; negative, e.g., burnout; physical, e.g., sleep quality). They concluded employee well-being deserves much more research. 
 
This is an important, sophisticated review deserving the attention of management and organizational behavior scholars. Of great benefit to future researchers will be Appendix A: a table of all 71 studies reviewed with methods and results of each. 
 
My take-aways:
 
1. I can think of many examples, both positive and negative, from my career that fit easily into these five categories. I know how they affected individual well-being and morale. My guess is you can also. 
 
2. So what questions might this research pose to the leader concerned about the well-being of followers:

• What attitudes do you project? How do you come across to employees?
• Do you put work assignments in context or do you just task people to do things with no explanation as to why? 
• Do you keep your employees informed?
• Do you look for ways to grow your employees?
• Do you know what opportunities and resources your employees need?
• Do you keep your emotions appropriate to what is needed, not explosive or exhausting to others, showing enthusiasm where warranted?
• Are you trustworthy?
• Are you a good listener, that is, an active listener?
• Are you a role model, someone with whom others identify positively?
• Do you speak positively about your organization as appropriate?

3.  For my management and organizational psychology colleagues, I highly recommend this study. Inceoglu and her co-authors have provided a framework for years of meaningful research that could enrich our workplaces. 
 
Inceoglu, I., Thomas, G., Chu, C., Plans, D., & Gerbasi, A. (2018). Leadership behavior and employee well-being: An integrated review and a future research agenda. The Leadership Quarterly, 29(1), 179-202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2017.12.006
 
Image,"Well Being" by Nick Youngson. Obtained from Alpha Stock Images. http://www.thebluediamondgallery.com/handwriting/w/well-being.html
Use with permission: Creative Commons 3 - CC BY-SA 3.0
​
© John Ballard, PhD, 2018. All rights reserved.
 
Author of Decoding the Workplace, BEST CAREER BOOK Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2016.
 _________________________
Decoding the Workplace “deals with principles and practices that are timeless . . . Is this a must-have for managers and would-be managers? Yes.” Ron Riggio, Book Review, Academy of Management Learning & Education, in-press.

How is the manager as coach viewed in your organization? Does your organization have a training program to help managers develop or improve their coaching skills? If so, how effective is it? Is coaching done formally or informally?  The consultant and practitioner literature is replete with ideas to enhance the manager as coach. One idea that management scholars have rarely studied is "coachable moments."
 
In 2015 Christina Turner (Queensland University of Technology) and Grace McCarthy (University of Wollongong) published a study examining “coachable moments.” They defined a coachable moment as “an informal, usually unplanned or unexpected opportunity for a manager to have a conversation with an employee aimed at facilitating the employee to problem solve or learn from a work experience” (p. 5). They wanted to determine what factors determined whether or not managers took advantage of coaching moments in the daily business of the workplace. To that end, they interviewed ten managers in depth. This is a small sample but it is twice as large as Mintzberg’s study of CEOs that gave us interpersonal, informational, and decisional managerial roles. 
 
Their review of previous research found:

• most managers do not coach much
• managers often don’t have the skills to be effective coaching employees
• some managers see coaching as micro-managing
• some managers prefer traditional controlling and directing
• benefits of coaching: “learning, self-awareness, cost savings, and enhanced commitment” (p.2)
• characteristics of coachable moments: impromptu, short, timely, spontaneous, quick, focused

​
From their interviews Turner and McCarthy identified six themes (In italics are comments from managers):

1. Coach’s awareness: Managers have to size up a situation as a coaching opportunity and then assess the risk. Decisions to coach are “conscious and deliberate”. “It’s triage – critical decision-making about whether to coach.”
2. Type of employee:  Managers don’t see all employees as being coachable. “Some employees just don’t want to be coached – they just want direction.”
3. Relationship: To be effective, there has to be a relationship of “mutual trust and respect.” “If there’s no rapport, it won’t work.”
4. The situation presenting: Just not enough time. Too busy. Benefits not offset by time lost.
5. Physical environment or location: Most coachable moments were informal, not in the workplace per se, e.g., having coffee, sharing ride. “The office reminds you of status.”
6. Coach’s skills: Managers varied in how competent they felt coaching. “There are some issues and people I just don’t feel competent enough to tackle by coaching.”

 
Coachable moments involve managers assessing risk: 

• risk that the employee will react negatively
• risk that the employee will not like feedback
• risk that coaching will lead to conflict
• risk that the relationship will be damaged

 
My take-aways:
 
1.  In my managerial positions, I found coachable moments contributed greatly to building my work force. The conversations were usually in the workplace, private and off-the-cuff. They complemented formal workplace training programs. I saw large individual differences, from the employee who just wanted all the coaching I could provide to the employee who wanted none. 
 
2. I think some managers are capable of little more than an occasional coaching moment, at best. It’s just not their personalities. This does not mean that cannot be effective managers and leaders. This is just not a skill in their tool kit and they probably wouldn't use it if it were. On the other hand, some of us could benefit by training, especially training that includes practice in effective coaching. 
 
3. Turner and McCarthy’s study identified risk assessment as a major factor affecting the use of coachable moments. In many situations the manager’s assessment of risks is probably a key factor – along with just not enough time. Identifying the importance of managerial risk assessment in coachable moments is a major contribution of this study. 
 
4. We need more qualitative studies like Turner and McCarthy’s. There is a richness of ideas in good depth interviews. These ideas can enrich qualitative and quantitative studies that further our understanding of coachable moments -- and how to use coachable moments in the workplace.
 
Previous blogs on coaching:
A Leader and Managerial Skill: The Importance of Coaching
The Manager as Coach
Manager as Coach: Aptitude, Trust, Time

Mintzberg, H. (1975). The manager’s job: Folklore and fact. Harvard Business Review, March-April, 49-61.

Turner, C., & McCarthy, G. (2015). Coachable moments: Identifying factors that influence managers to take advantage of coachable moments in day-to-day management. International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring, 13(1): 1-13. 
 
Untitled image. Obtained from https://pixabay.com/en/discussion-restaurant-business-2822066/
Public domain. https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
​
© John Ballard, PhD, 2018. All rights reserved.
 
Author of Decoding the Workplace, BEST CAREER BOOK Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2016.
 _________________________
Decoding the Workplace “deals with principles and practices that are timeless – how to relate to others in the workplace, the psychology of groups and teams, the use (and abuse) of power and influence, and how to manage stress. Is this a must-have for managers and would-be managers? Yes.” Ron Riggio, Book Review, Academy of Management Learning & Education, in-press.

What does it mean to be a manager who coaches? In my last blog I reviewed Patricia Buhler’s perspective and listed activities indicative of the manager as coach. So what does it take to be a manager-coach?
 
Richard Ladyshewsky of Curtin University (Perth) reviewed this literature in an article in the Leadership and Organization Development Journal in 2010. He concluded “coaching in the workplace, between a manager and a subordinate, is part of an overall organizational development and performance management philosophy” and a core management skill. Here are some highlights I gleaned from his review:

• “No consensus on a definition of coaching” but it may be considered “a short-term developmental interaction focused on performance . . .”
• A major challenge is “finding the time to coach” and this becomes more challenging as the span of control (number of direct reports) increases.
• Managers “differ in their inclination to coach subordinates.”
• Managers differ in the communication skills needed to coach.
• Managers with more self-awareness, higher emotional intelligence are more likely to be successful in the manager as coach role.
• In a coaching culture, performance appraisal (e.g., with emphasis on accountability) takes a backseat to performance management (with emphasis on improved performance).
• “Coaching should be developmental and not corrective or remedial action.”

Ladyshewsky emphasized the importance of trust:

• Trust may be cognitive (rational) or affective (based on emotional bonds).

• It takes time for the subordinate to build a relationship of trust with a manager.
• Trust develops more rapidly where the manager and employee share common values and common interests.
• Well-adjusted people build trust faster.
• “When the stakes are very high, trust decreases to ensure security.”
• Managers who are not “competent in the eyes of their subordinates will not be able to build trust.”
• The organizational culture affects ability to build trust, as does the economic viability of the organization.

 
My take-aways:
 
1.  Ladyshewsky makes an excellent point that managers may simply be too busy to coach. If so, then the question must be asked, how important is it to your success as a manager, to the organization, that you grow your people? Time is about priorities and decisions. As a manager, I can recall struggling to carve out time to work with employees developmentally. Fortunately my boss and I talked, he listened, and we got enough adjustments to deadlines to find the time. I understand not everyone has an understanding boss. In my case I had credibility far enough up my chain-of-command to pull this off. Why? Because my employees were growing in their capabilities and it showed in results. 
 
2.  But what if manager as coach is not who you are? You may not be inclined in that direction. It may not be your personality. Can some skills be learned? Perhaps, but it is still not who you are. You may be a technical whiz-kid and respected by your subordinates but just have no talent for developing others. If the organization wants managers to be coaches, then this may suggest better attention to promotion-to-management processes. It may also suggest a look at talent acquisition.

3. My guess is that most managers know whether or not coaching is part of what they want to do, irrespective of finding time. If it is something you want to do, then you can probably develop coaching skills. And organizations should decide if this is a managerial expectation, and if so, support this objective with effective training (one-on-one or group). 
 
Ladyshewsky, R. (2010). The manager as coach as a driver of organizational development. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 31(4), 292-306. 
 
Untitled image. Obtained from https://pxhere.com/ro/photo/480543
Public domain. https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
​
© John Ballard, PhD, 2018. All rights reserved.
 
Author of Decoding the Workplace, BEST CAREER BOOK Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2016.
 _________________________
"Decoding the Workplace: 50 Keys to Understanding People in Organizations is as informed and informative a read as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking. . . Decoding the Workplace should be considered critically important reading for anyone working in a corporate environment." —Midwest Book Review

20 years ago Patricia Buhler argued for a new role for managers, the manager as coach. Now professor of management at Goldey-Beacom College in Delaware, she suggested in a 1998 issue of the journal Supervision that “the command and control manager is a dinosaur.” Lately I've been thinking about employee engagement and what role effective coaching might play in increasing engagement and productivity. In an earlier blog I quoted David Antonioni (2000) whose research suggested coaching was “like a foreign concept in the workplace.” This is the first of several blogs in which I will address the manager as coach.
 
Today there is a plethora of books, literature, and courses on the manager as coach. Even so, that does not mean every manager can move to the manager-as-coach model. In her article Buhler laid out several basic ideas -- the manager as coach:

• “Advises and assists employees” rather than being “controlling and issuing commands”
• “Provides guidance”
• “Focuses on the developmental needs of employees”
• “Helps employees tap into their full potential”
• “Empowers employees”, “sets employees up to manage themselves”
• “Listens”
• “Uses participative decision making”
• “Shares information, “Hoarding information has no place in coaching.”

So how can a manager succeed as a coach?

• Be “sincere and open”
• “Create a climate of trust and mutual respect”
• Allow employees to “take risks without fear”

My take-aways:
 
1. My favorites from the list above are helping employees by (1) focusing on developmental needs and (2) tapping into potentials. Both are hard but both get at what I consider a key to leadership: helping those with whom you work develop and grow. In my opinion, grow your employees and you grow success.
 
2. Organizational culture is an important variable here. Without a strong culture that is supportive of employee development or the coaching aspects of leading, individual success as a manager-coach is more problematic. Probably the most important aspect of that culture is trust. Where trust is embedded in the culture, constructive feedback will find more fertile ground. Growth should be greater.  
 
3. Buhler was not the first to suggest the manager-as-coach model. For example, she quoted Dennis Kinlaw, “coaching is eye-ball-to-eyeball management.”  However she identified clearly that “astute managers” were incorporating coaching into their managerial behaviors. That remains true 20 years later.
  
Buhler, P. (1998). A new role for managers: the move from directing to coaching. Supervision, 59(8): 17-19.
 
Untitled image. Obtained from https://pxhere.com/en/photo/595817
Public domain. https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
​
© John Ballard, PhD,  2018. All rights reserved.

Author of Decoding the Workplace, BEST CAREER BOOK Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2016.
 _________________________
"Decoding the Workplace: 50 Keys to Understanding People in Organizations is as informed and informative a read as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking. . . Decoding the Workplace should be considered critically important reading for anyone working in a corporate environment." —Midwest Book Review

I walked into the post office and immediately my eyes burned and I had trouble breathing. A scent that most would find pleasant filled the air. I put on a mask to help manage my situation and conducted my business as quickly as possible.
 
I walked into my bank and immediately I had trouble breathing and my head ached. A scent that most would find pleasant filled the air. I put on a mask to help manage my situation and conducted my business as quickly as possible.
 
I could go on and on with other examples. The post office, the bank, and others all used “air fresheners.” The managers were unaware of potential health issues for some of their employees and customers. Percentages in surveys vary but 12-20% of the general population have multiple chemical sensitivities.
 
Dr. Anne Steinemann of the University of Melbourne leads research on and writes about the little known “unintended effects and risks for the indoor environment and human health” from air fresheners. She equates the problem of air fresheners to second-hand smoke. Managers and human resource professionals should become familiar with her work.
 
In a 2017 article in the journal Building and Environment, she poses and answers ten questions about air fresheners. Much of the article details the technical results of chemical analyses. I will share the questions and brief answers here. I recommend the full article for more information and details.
 
1. “What are air fresheners?” 

• “Consumer products that emit a fragrance to provide an aroma to a space, to mask an odor, or both . . . designed to impart an aromatic fragrance or a masking fragrance into the air. . . “
• Includes many forms such as plug-ins, solids, wick diffusers, and even scented candles.

2. “Where are air fresheners used?”

• “Throughout society, by individuals, industries, and institutions.”
• Global market “exceeds US $10 billion."

3. “What do air fresheners emit?”

• “Over 100 different chemicals, including volatile organic compounds.”
• Fragrance mixture more important than delivery method.

4. “How do air fresheners affect the indoor environment?”

• “Contribute to indoor hazardous air pollutants, both through direct emissions and secondary reaction products.”
• Emit high concentrations of odorless chemicals, such as formaldehyde.

5. “How do air fresheners affect human health?”

• “Air freshener exposure, even at low levels, have been associated with a range of adverse health effects, which include migraine headaches, asthma attacks, breathing difficulties, respiratory difficulties” and so forth.
• 20.4% of U.S. population “report health problems when exposed to air fresheners and deodorizers.”
• Specific chemicals “emitted from air fresheners have been associated with adverse effects to the neurological, cardiovascular, respiratory, reproductive, immune, and endocrine systems, and with cancer.”
• Acetaldehyde is “classified as a carcinogenic hazardous air pollutant in US.”

6. “Do air fresheners disclose their ingredients?”

• The industry is not required to “and typically do not.”
• No law “requires disclosure of all ingredients in air fresheners.”
• “Striking differences exist between chemicals listed and chemicals emitted.“
• In one analysis, an air freshener emitted four compounds, not listed, for which the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency states “no safe threshold of exposure.”

7. “Do emissions from ‘green’ air fresheners differ from regular air fresheners?” 

• No regulatory definition of what is a green air freshener.
• In tests, found no significant differences.

8. “What about involuntary exposure to air fresheners within indoor environments?”

• “Individuals may experience adverse effects without their awareness or agreement.”
• People with medically documented adverse chemical sensitivities may request accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
• Surveys indicate majority of populations prefer scent-free environments in public places, workplaces, hotels, airplanes, and such.

9. “What are possible solutions or alternatives?”

• Fragrance-free policies in the “workplaces, schools, hospitals, and other indoor environments.”
• Once air fresheners are removed, compounds absorbed into room furnishings may be reemitted.
• Question: “Whether perceived benefits are outweighed by the potential costs to personal and public health, and profits.”
• “The use of an air freshener can pose potential liability, if it triggers adverse or potentially disabling health effects in individuals.”

10. “What are research directions needed for science, health, and policy?”

• Here Steinemann lists 10 questions for researchers, such as “What is the public awareness of air freshener emissions?”

 
My take-aways:
 
Steinemann’s research is critically important. There is little awareness of the health implications of air fresheners and fragrances. My guess is fragrance-free workplaces probably have higher productivity, but that is just a hypothesis. Examples of fragrance-free policies can be found online, such as this one suggested by the American Lung Association.
 
Steinemann, A. (2017). Ten questions concerning air fresheners and indoor built environments. Building and Environment, 1(1): 279-284.
 
Image, "Close-up of a yellow rose and other flowers," by Petr Kratochvil. Obtained from http://www.freestockphotos.biz/stockphoto/6122
Public domain. https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
​
© John Ballard, PhD,  2018. All rights reserved.

Author of Decoding the Workplace, BEST CAREER BOOK Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2016.
 _________________________
"Decoding the Workplace: 50 Keys to Understanding People in Organizations is as informed and informative a read as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking. . . Decoding the Workplace should be considered critically important reading for anyone working in a corporate environment." —Midwest Book Review

Commencement speeches are usually quickly forgotten. But not all. Sometimes we remember the speaker. I'll never forget Neil Armstrong giving a speech at my university -- but I don't remember anything he said. On the other hand I do not recall the name of the coroner of Cincinnati who spoke years ago -- but I remember one thing he said: "My daddy always told me growing up that I was not promised another day. I've got news for you. You're not promised another hour." On rare occasions we may remember the person and the message, such as Steve Jobs and his three lessons at Stanford in 2005. 

Admiral William McRaven's commencement speech (10 lessons he learned in Navy Seal training) at the University of Texas in 2014 went viral. Probably the best advice I've heard in speeches at my university was Wendy Lea's address in 2017 --"Stay in a beginner's mind," "Nothing is more magical than sharing," "All jobs are temporary" and more.

In 2017 Sue Desmond-Hellman, CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, spoke at a commencement in Dayton. I read her address in a local newspaper and later found it online. Much was motivational but at the heart of it was a very sound suggestion: “I want to encourage you to lead a meaningful life.” Below I share several key points from this part of her speech: 

• “No job, regardless of the pay or perks, can take the place of a meaningful life."
• “Don’t limit your ambitions to making a living; challenge yourselves to live a meaningful life.”
•  Don’t just “make a dollar” –“make a difference”
• "Don’t just settle for personal happiness” – “fulfill a noble purpose.”
• “Shortcomings, failures, bad luck, heartache” are all part of life.
• “No meaningful life is lived as an unbroken string of successes.”

She advised:
1. “Be genuine.”

• “Show up as your true self.”
• “Revel in your individuality”
• “Embrace your uniqueness.”
• “Know that every new experience will make you feel a bit uncomfortable.”
•  In moments “of discomfort, remember that who you are deep down and what you’ve learned throughout your life to date is what got you to that opportunity.”
• “Never hide what makes you, you.”

2. “Be grateful.”

• “You’ll depend on others throughout your life, and you should welcome that.”
• “Remember to say thank you.”

 
My take-away:

I am reminded of Clayton Christensen's question: "How will you measure your life?" Here I have shared Sue Desmond-Hellman's advice and links to advice from Steve Jobs, Admiral Raven, and Wendy Lea. I find much wisdom in each of these. What is the most important advice? It will vary from individual to individual. Your most important take-away will probably be different from mine. But I think the odds are high that within these four commencement speeches you will find useful nuggets of wisdom.

Image modified from: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Congresswoman_Pelosi_joins_UC_San_Francisco_Chancellor_Susan_Desmond-Hellmann_and_Senator_Dianne_Fienstein_(9938886963).jpg
Used in accordance with https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
​
© John Ballard, PhD,  2018. All rights reserved.

Author of Decoding the Workplace, BEST CAREER BOOK Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2016.
 _________________________
"Decoding the Workplace: 50 Keys to Understanding People in Organizations is as informed and informative a read as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking. . . Decoding the Workplace should be considered critically important reading for anyone working in a corporate environment." —Midwest Book Review

On January 8, 2018, football teams from the University of Alabama and the University of Georgia competed in the FBS College Playoff National Championship game. I had no favorite. Alabama won in overtime 26-23, giving Alabama coach Nick Saban his sixth national championship (5 at Alabama, 1 at Louisiana). Andy Staples wrote a Sports Illustrated article, “It Takes Tua,” describing the game. Staples’s narrative also offered insights into Saban’s management style. Here are my insights for leaders based on my reading about Nick Saban in Staples’s article.

1. Acquire the best talent that you can. From 2011 to 2017 Saban had the #1 recruiting class, except 2015 when his recruits were #2. This is a theme at the highest achieving organizations.
2. Know your people and their potential. Saban coaches practices on the field, not from a tower above the field. He gets to know his players, strengths, weaknesses, areas to improve. Staples quotes Saban: “You’re there to see the flaws. You’re a part of quality control.”
3. Maximize the value of training. Training is more than preparation. On the practice field Saban sees fine details, makes corrections, and develops insights that help him with the “big picture” and strategies.
4. Adapt quickly to change. To match up better with the new look from high-tempo run-pass-option teams, Saban recruited lighter, quicker defenders. “When the NCAA banned head coaches . . . from visiting high schools to watch practice during the spring evaluation period, Saban became one of the first coaches to use video conferencing to talk to recruits” (p. 37).
5. Work through adverse events not under your control. Alabama had a difficult year with many injuries but managed to win all but one game during the regular season.
6. Try to affect outcomes not under your control. Alabama was not a lock to be in the national championship playoffs. Saban “called in to ESPN” and made the case for his team. Did it make a difference? Perhaps. Perhaps not – but he spoke up on behalf of his people. He tried.
7. Embrace resiliency. After the championship game, Saban told his players, “I hope you take something from this game and the resiliency that you showed in this game helps you be more successful in life” (p. 39).
8. Analyze, be prepared, be decisive. At halftime trailing 13-0, Saban replaced his starting quarterback Jalen Hurts (who had led Alabama to a 25-2 record) with an 18 year-old backup. The decision changed the game and was called “a drastic – or desperate move” by many. But Saban always had this as an option. It wasn’t drastic or desperate. It was calculated, planned for, and always an option. The halftime adjustment was for an offense with more passing. He knew Tua Tagovailoa was the better passer.
9. Grow and support your people. Many of Saban’s assistants have moved on to leadership positions in football. In the championship game Saban faced Kirby Smart who “had helped Saban win four national titles as Alabama’s defensive coordinator” (p.39).
10. Stay hungry for success. “I’m never satisfied. My greatest fear professionally is that we might lose the next game . . . I hate the feeling you have when you lose, but I also hate the feeling that you have when you didn’t do a good job for your players.”

I have often found leadership and life lessons in sports stories and occasionally have made these the subjects of blogs. Here are several: Urban Meyer, Carli Lloyd, Coach K, Gregg Popovich, Steve Kerr, and Champ Bailey.

Staples, A. (2018, January 15). “It takes Tua.” Sports Illustrated, 128(1), 32-39.

Image, modified from "Nick Saban and Terri Sewell", Rep. Terri Sewell. Public Domain. From: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nick_Saban_and_Terri_Sewell.jpg
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© John Ballard, PhD,  2018. All rights reserved.

Author of Decoding the Workplace, BEST CAREER BOOK Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2016.
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"Decoding the Workplace: 50 Keys to Understanding People in Organizations is as informed and informative a read as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking. . . Decoding the Workplace should be considered critically important reading for anyone working in a corporate environment." —Midwest Book Review