27 Challenges Managers Face, The

Management expert Bruce Tulgan’s latest book, “Talk About the Work,” is based on a simple but powerful insight: The best way to deal with 99% of difficult challenges facing managers is NOT by gearing up to face down one of those so-called “fierce conversations,” but rather by committing to a steady diet of somewhat mundane conversations. Communicating with your employee should not be an event. It should be a process. Do you want to stop agonizing about your employees’ performance? Do you want to master difficult management relationships? Build a culture of ongoing structured one-on-one dialogues–providing guidance, direction, feedback, troubleshooting, and coaching–with every single employee you manage: One person at a time, one day at a time.

When managers consistently practice this simple but shockingly effective technique, they get results: they increase employee performance and morale, increase retention of high performers and turnover among low performers, and achieve significant measurable improvements in business-outcomes. But when it comes to engaging in meaningful dialogue with employees, there’s a culture of complacency and self-deception among managers. Most managers will tell you that they already talk to their direct-reports every day. The problem is that it is precisely the ad hoc manner in which most managers talk to their direct-reports every day that actually makes inevitable the most difficult employee situations that tend to vex managers.You are the new leader of an existing team Resources are tight Employees need to speed up (productivity)Employees need to slow down (quality)Employees’ personal issues are affecting their work Employees need to get organized Employees need to be on time Employees need to behave differently in meetings Employees need to communicate more effectively Employees have an attitude problem Star employees are thinking about leaving…and more.

In “Talk About the Work,” Tulgan shows readers the problem with these ad hoc approaches and offers a streamlined step-by-step guide to building a structured one-on-one dialogue that actually works. Tulgan identifies the most common management challenges and offers advice on how to “talk about the work” when:

In “Talk About the Work,” Tulgan returns to his roots to write about and share with his core audience–the tens of thousands of managers who have participated in his intensive back-to-basic management seminars over the years–how to become the best manager they can be…by simply talking about the work.

Author:Bruce Tulgan

ISBN:9781118725597