No More Monkey Business: Getting Work Done Through Others
Audience: Entry-level to mid-level managers
Overview: Based on the classic HBR article, Management Time: Who’s Got the Monkey? by William Oncken, Jr. and Donald L. Wass, this workshop explores how managers can maximize their own effectiveness by better managing their people through development and delegation.
Most people became a manager to assume more authority and responsibility. And do they ever get it! However, sustaining a frenetic pace and constantly feeling overwhelmed limits a manager’s effectiveness. Surprisingly, some of this additional stress is due to the exact people who should be helping the manager – their direct reports. There’s often a tendency for managers to take problems off their direct report’s back (i.e., the monkey) and put the monkey on their own back. These monkeys keep the manager from being their most productive.
By the end of this 1-day workshop, learners will be able to…
- Explain the differences between being responsible for people as opposed to being responsible for tasks
- Set clear expectations with direct reports
- Quickly assess performance problems
- Collaboratively action plan with direct reports
- Apply situational leadership techniques to their management style
- Provide the right amount of project direction, sponsorship and support
- Fend off tasks that should be addressed by their subordinates
- Employ new habits to focus on what’s most important to them
This course doesn’t just change participants’ skills. It changes their attitudes. We explore what it means be a people manager.
Blix Consulting provides learners with a variety of tools, including a diagnostic matrix that helps managers quickly diagnose the performance problem their direct report is wrestling with. They practice how to conduct constructive discussions with direct reports so that the situation can be alleviated in a timely manner. They learn how to incorporate development opportunities into their direct report’s day-to-day activities as well as how to delegate to others and trust in a positive outcome.