by Adam L Stanley | Mar 4, 2016 | Relationships, Technology
Another blog on eMail Etiquette
About a week ago, I had a four-hour flight. I completely cleaned out my inbox before I boarded the plane.
Inbox: 0
For once, I didn’t use the in-flight WiFi to check anything; I just relaxed, read my Kindle on Android, and slept as soundly as I could despite the guy behind me snoring rather loudly. When I landed, I turned on my phone (I swear, American Airlines, it was in airplane mode during the flight), and glanced briefly at my inbox.
Guess how many new e-mails I had? 20? 50?
Nope. I had 100 unread emails. So roughly 25/hour came in as I was 35K feet above — and this wasn’t even during core working hours.
I am not THAT GUY that wants to return to the days of snail mail. Nor am I one that says we must declare “email amnesty” or “war on email”. The fact is, e-mail made work effective, yes — and it allowed people on opposite sides of the globe to collaborate in a much easier fashion — but it’s also a giant hit to productivity. A big, fat, time sinking, eyeball tiring, emotions misreading, productivity drain.
Quick stats: 89 billion business-related e-mails were sent daily in 2014; by 2015, that number was 100 billion, and by the end of 2016, it’s going to be around 116B. That’s the equivalent of everyone on the planet sending 15-20 business e-mails per day (which is even more absurd if you consider that only around 40% of the world population has an internet connection today).
E-mail is a productivity problem because while it’s a way to discuss work and projects, it’s not actually work. Typically, e-mails indicate or reference work that needs to be done — and they do so in a distracting way. An average employee needs 64 seconds to recover their thoughts after reading an e-mail, and they get about 200 e-mails per day. Do that math. By and large, 11.2 hours of a 40-hour work week are spent on e-mails — or slightly over 25 percent.
We can do better. Here are some tips.
1. Stop the Reply All Culture
Watch this video on the e-mail tree. You’ve all lived through this. Reply-alls can be a nightmare, especially because they are deeply tied to hierarchy — as more senior leaders begin to respond, others feel the need to chime in. A reply all culture is awful for productivity.
Resist the temptation to reply all.
- Consider talking directly to the main point person on the project w/any concerns (Skype great for remote colleagues)
- If you must reply all, begin by thinking about your response and then ask a co-worker if you think it has value
The overall goal for e-mail communication should be value. Frankly, all communication should be about value. Think about the last person that trapped you in the break room telling you stories about their dog when you wanted to finish up an important project. No e-mail should be sent that doesn’t advance a project or an idea, encourage new thinking about a project, or communicate on a norm or deadline. If the value isn’t there, the e-mail doesn’t need to be sent.
2. Understand To vs. CC vs. BCC
If there were a Miss Manners for email etiquette, I believe she would suggest this:
- The “To” field is for the main person the e-mail is directed at, or the person with an immediate deliverable from it
- The “CC” field is for people who should have knowledge of the project, be it tangential team members or senior managers
- BCC should be used sparingly — in the wrong context without explanation, it can fray trust between collaborators; if someone is going to be BCCed, they can probably just be CCed
3. Consider reviewing email only once or twice a day
Being tethered to e-mail throughout the day is bad for productivity, as seen above. Try doing one sweep in the morning — but limit it to 20-30 minutes, as focusing on e-mail tasks first thing in the morning is a waste of a good energy period for most people — and then one in the afternoon. During the day, focus on deep work and perhaps (gasp) actually talking to people.
If you think to yourself you would be out of the loop only checking e-mail twice a day, well consider that going and talking to co-workers is another form of being in the loop that worked quite well before e-mail ever existed for business.
4. Think then write
This can be hard for some people because work projects do become emotional at times, even when we want them to be logical and process-driven — but please think before you write e-mails, as a major general rule. Virtually any e-mail sent can come back on you in a negative way (hardly an ideal situation), and you don’t want to be seen as a co-worker that clogs up people’s productive time.
There are dozens and dozens of potential rules for e-mailing, but above all, try to follow the same rule you should follow with conversations and meetings: add value and respect the time of others we work with. If you start from there, the rest should fall into place with practice. As always, I would love to hear your thoughts.
Be well. Lead On.
Adam
Related Posts:
Put down your smartphones, people!
Five Core Skills every CIO must continuously improve
Khalil Gibran on Leadership
Adam L. Stanley Connections Blog
Technology. Leadership. Food. Life.
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by Adam L Stanley | Feb 2, 2016 | Leadership, Relationships, Teamwork
Allies on a tour of duty.
LinkedIn CEO Reid Hoffman and fellow entrepreneur Ben Casnocha wrote a book called The Alliance in which they argue that investing in your employees is good for both parties in the relationship. I could not agree more and have strived to live this principle throughout most of my career. Sadly, I have not seen consistency in the level of personal support for me. I suspect that many managers still do not consider it a critical endeavor to invest in talent beyond “today.”
Hoffman and Casnocha actually refer to providing opportunities for development as an obligation. Their suggestion for solving the problem employers face with wanting high output from employees who do not have a guaranteed long-term company commitment? Stop thinking of employees as family or free agents, and start thinking of them as allies on a tour of duty. LOVE IT!
Those who have worked with me the past several years tend to hear certain things over and over again. I hope they don’t get annoyed with repetition but I truly, truly, truly feel that talent is not everything: It is the only thing. Therefore, it is key to effectively empower employees to do their jobs, trust one another to be honest and upfront about success and failure, and to hold people accountable. These are the best ways to build a respectful organization that drives value. The Alliance framework reminds us that, even with the best intentions, companies must make changes. For instance, in each of my last three companies, we have had significant reductions in force that were not driven by weak talent as much as they were by financial constraints.
In environments of rapid change, employees must feel that there is benefit to their hard work. That there is benefit to the sometimes long hours. That the uncertainty and the added challenges that come with events like acquisitions and divestitures, when appropriately focused, can be tremendous improvements to their resume, their experience, and ultimately their futures.
Ok, so this is one of my favorite slideshares. Hope you get it as well.
Talent Matters!
Click here for the slide show – The Alliance: A Visual Summary from Reid Hoffman
What do you think?
Do you agree with the concept of a joint partnership on a tour of duty? Do you feel, as Hoffman and Casnocha, that it is critical to train and develop an employee, regardless of whether the training is good for your organization today or simply for the employee’s long-term value? As always, I would love to hear your thoughts.
Be well. Lead On.
Adam
Related Posts:
Who Am I?
Expectations of Leaders at all Levels
Khalil Gibran on Leadership
Lessons from Henry V
Adam Stanley
Adam L. Stanley Connections Blog
Technology. Leadership. Food. Life.
AdamLStanley.com
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by Adam L Stanley | Dec 31, 2015 | Leadership, Life, Quotes and Inspiration, Relationships
I Don’t DO New Year’s Resolutions
My friends and colleagues that know me well know that I don’t believe in New Year’s Resolutions. Sure, I want to be healthier, work out more, make more phone calls, blah, blah, and blah. But why tell everyone that each January when life changes too frequently for those kind of commitments. Last year, I drafted a list of five simple things people could resolve to do instead of their normal lists. And I stand to that. I would love to hear whether you tried any of them. (See here if you did not read that post.)
This year, instead of a resolution, I decided to document something much more important.
My Personal Ten Commandments
I got this idea from a book of ideas I received from a professional organization I have just joined. And I think it is brilliant. Your life will change. Your job will change. Your circle of friends will evolve. But your core values and principles should be consistent. And while you may compromise on compensation, title, which restaurant to dine at or movie to see, there should be certain things about which you refuse to compromise. Here are my personal 10 Commandments. I would love to see yours!
I. I will put life before money
Money is helpful in life but it is not life. I enjoy the fruits of my career, but do not be deceived as I would rather have nothing than sellout my core values. I will not devote my life to the pursuit of money, popularity, prestige, or social status. I will not envy someone else’s worldly goods, personal or professional reputation, achievements or any temporary success.
II. I will be my authentic self.
Regardless of how successful someone might seem, trying to emulate that person will not make me equally successful. Yes, that jerk has made it to a high point in his career. But I am not a jerk. I do not want to be a jerk. And if being a jerk is required to get to that next step, I will accept my ceiling happily.
III. I will never use religion to justify intolerance
I am unashamedly and apologetically a Christian. My beliefs influence how I act and how I make decisions. However, my beliefs are personal and should never be used for hate or harm. I expect the same from others but sadly this has not been the case, especially of late.
IV. I will never lose sight of the big picture.
Details are important, but too often relationships are hurt, jobs killed, and wars lost because people lost sight of what really mattered. I will endeavor to always see the forest AND the trees.
V. In all that I do, I will strive for high quality
I must continually look to improve on old models and practices, working to dedicate myself to being the best that I can be, everyday, in whatever activity or cause to which I find myself attached.
VI. I will love, honor, and cherish those that nurtured me
The purpose of life is to gather the wisdom of the ages, add your individuality and change the world. Try to make it a better or at least a more interesting place. H Wexler
My mom and dad, my sister and my best friends. My mentors Ken P, Louis R, Mike E, Jack W, Adam S, Dan K, and on an on. You mean so much to me and have taught me so much. I learned from you and for that I thank you. I hope to provide similar nurturing to future leaders.
VII. No one is better than me and I am no better than anyone else
Do not treat the lives of other people as less valuable than your own. Ever. No matter how right you may feel. Start with the premise of equality and then try to find the perspective of the other side. I am saddened by the hatred in the world today largely caused by people forgetting the one rule that exists in all major world religions. Treat others as you want to be treated. Do not be prejudiced. I will always try to get to know the individual and not judge him or her by a race, religion, or other characteristic.
VIII. I will allow individuals to drive their destiny and take responsibility for their decisions
I blogged on this recently with a focus on senior leaders. But the principle applies to everyone. If you allow people to make as many decisions about their own lives and circles, they will be better equipped than you. And, they can learn from their successes and failures.
IX. I will be honest and fair
A white lie is a lie. Misleading people is like telling a white lie. Hiding key elements of a complete story is misleading people. I will strive to be as honest and true as possible, managing truth that could hurt people effectively but never hiding the truth to avoid difficult conversations. I will not cheat or exploit people. I will not always be polite or politically correct, but I will be respectful.
X. I will laugh at every opportunity, and with as many people as I can.
Laughter gives us distance. It allows us to step back from an event, deal with it and then move on. –Bob Newhart
So, that’s my list. What’s yours? Have a wonderful, relaxing as you want it to be, fun as you’d like it to be, New Year. And thank you for your continued connection.
Be well. Lead On.
Adam
Related Posts:
Who Am I?
Expectations of Leaders at all Levels
Khalil Gibran on Leadership
Lessons from Henry V
Also check out:
“To Be Happier, Write Your Own Set of Personal Commandments” by @gretchenrubin on @LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20131129204900-6526187-to-be-happier-write-your-own-set-of-personal-commandments
Adam L. Stanley Connections Blog
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by Adam L Stanley | Dec 14, 2015 | Leadership, Relationships, Teamwork
You are the leaders of this organization and hold the keys to success.
At the heart of any mission is talent. Whether building the new rocketship to take us to Mars, raising money for a charity, designing a new service online, or working to be the best manufacturer of the latest series of widgets, talent matters. Which is why it is part of so many of my blogs and why I want to quickly share some thoughts for leaders. This one is targeted to leaders that are at the director/senior manager level, typically CEO – 3 layers. In my org, this would mean people that report to my direct reports. Beyond that, I think they could really be considered for any leaders of teams.
The crux of the message is this: You are the leaders of this organization and hold the keys to success. When given a role as a leader, you must immediately transform yourself from an individual contributor that must manage up, to a leader that must manage up, down, and sideways. And, from time to time, you will need to transform again as peers and managers change significantly, or you go to a new company. In many ways, the global leadership team (my directs) need to serve in the capacity of “Chairman and CEO” of the company we are building. They need to be the ones setting the strategy, selling the vision, and building the dream. But if the next layer down is not willing and ready to be the “President and COO” of our company, the dream can never be achieved.
People may think that I want the directs of my directs to be “empowered”, “trusted”, and held “accountable” because that is the right thing to do for team engagement. Bullocks. Yes, its good for the teams to be treated with respect in this way. However, it is not purely altruistic that I form teams in this manner. The fact of the matter is, our mission DEPENDS on this. We simply cannot be successful if leaders at all levels do not step up to the challenge they have been given to drive change independently. The directs of my directs, I call them the XLT, run our business. That means we expect a lot of them and, likewise, they should expect more from us. So, I wanted to share some thoughts on leadership and my expectations. I am sharing these with my team as well as with my friends here in the online world.
What we expect from you as a manager
- Ownership of transitions Remember back when you were in grade school? Don’t worry, I don’t remember much either. However, I do remember that each new year was a new adventure pretty much directed by my teachers. They showed me how my last year’s learning tied to the new year. They led exercises to introduce me to my new classmates, courses, and books. But in the corporate world, on our mission, we do not always have that luxury. And, frankly, the higher up you go, the less assistance you will get with transitions. Things move faster and are not always as structured as grade school. That means you are in some cases you will be leaving behind responsibilities to take on new ones before fully completing your prior responsibilities. As leaders, you are expected to manage transitions, ensuring that your responsibilities are not only well in hand but all key stakeholders are informed of the change. This is a critical mission success factor.
- Setting expectations I was the News Editor of my college newspaper, Student Life, at Washington University. At the beginning of each editorial cycle, I worked out a set schedule of articles our reporters were expected to write, with dates they were due and no leeway for being late. For a newspaper that came out twice a week, there was only so much flexibility. But the MAJORITY of corporate decisions are not actually this tightly time constrained. So, leaders must help manage expectations. You know your workload, skillsets and available tools better than anyone else. And you are a leader. If you get a request to drive something, you must set expectations. When should I hear from you and how often will you provide updates? Where does this fall within your priority list? Are you not the right person for the job? If you do not set expectations appropriately, the best possible outcome is that you unwittingly meet expectations set by someone else. The worst case is that the expectations that were set were completely unrealistic and you will fail.
- Communication to your teams and peers – Every day, I think about what I want to wear to the office. That is perhaps the only decision I make each day that does not require input from others. Even that one is influenced by others based on conversations I have had about a particular type of shoes (“Adam is the only c-suite exec here that has a pair of Blue shoes”) or my choice of casual or formal business attire (“still wearing a tie, eh, Adam?”). But in a fast-changing, active decision environment, communication is critical. Especially during times of change and transition, our colleagues need to hear from us much more. Decisions are being made that impact lives, impact our clients, impact the markets and how our competitors react to us. We can get into a trap of having so many meetings and conference calls that we forget the basics. Pick up the phone. Reach out to someone for coffee. Write a personal thank you note.
- Driving independently In order for any organization to deliver effectively the massive change programs underway in a competitive environment, we must hold our leaders accountable for driving independently. We must empower them to make decisions without funneling every action through hierarchies. We must trust them to get done their component of the work. And we must hold them accountable for delivering and punish/reward them based on agreed expectations. I blogged on this a while back (See Blog and a poster with these three words in on most of my team’s desks. We must expect XLT leaders to deliver on change programs with less direct intervention. Clear objectives set up front, guidance and support when needed, and recognition/credit when complete. The mission depends on this, as every hour spent by me working on a component of the mission is an hour I cannot sell the dream, build the vision.
What you should expect from your manager
It is easy for senior level executives to set expectations on their subordinate leaders. However, we must recognize that relationships go two ways. If I truly want my leaders to act a certain way, managing transitions, communicating to their teams, and driving independently, my leaders must be able to expect certain things from me.
- Support for this process, including patience and understanding as they build plans, outside assistance if justified, and help identifying the right person to whom you should transition if needed.
- Leading by example when it comes to communication and team engagement.
- Unless you lead them to conclude otherwise, your manager should trust your judgment and be reasonably accepting of the expectations you set.
What are some expectations you have of your leaders and how have you seen them help your mission? Is your manager providing effective space for you to grow as a leader?
Be well. Lead On.
Adam
Related Posts:
Investing in talent for the long-term
Expectations of Leaders at all Levels
Khalil Gibran on Leadership
Lessons from Henry V
Adam Stanley
Adam L. Stanley Connections Blog
Technology. Leadership. Food. Life.
AdamLStanley.com
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by Adam L Stanley | Nov 16, 2015 | Leadership, Technology
“So you think you can dance?”
Recently, I had a conversation with a former colleague who is about to embark on a new journey in his second role as a CIO. I had a separate conversation with someone who is contemplating making the rise towards the role. I realize that overtime I’ve had lots and lots of conversations and I’ve also met some stellar leaders and some not so stellar. I am still a work in progress and enjoying the journey of everyday trying to become a better leader, better business executive, and a better CIO. I wanted to post a quick list on what I think are some of the critical skills for a CIO.
Five core skills every CIO must continually improve
Of course, there are dozens of items I could include. However, here are the top five in my opinion:
1) RELATIONSHIPS – You have to be able to deal with and be accepted by people in various groups. Expect that in a typical week, you might have a meeting with a peer about a failing project, with vendors to negotiate a contact, with your CFO to review budget, to an external sales call with a client, to a strategic conversation with your CEO, to handling a sensitive issue with an employee. Each relationship is different and requires an ability to adjust your style while remaining authentic.
(See my prior posts on relationships. )
2) FINANCIAL ACUMEN – Master your budget. Know where you’re on target and where you have options to better manage. Don’t depend solely on the Finance function. They may provide you the numbers and the insight, but you get fired or rewarded for results. The temptation of mini technology liters is to spend a lot of time with their infrastructure team and their developers but then to forsake time with the finance leadership. That is a fatal mistake.
3) BUSINESS ACUMEN – you must know the business almost as much as the business development and sales teams. The risk of not working hard to know the businss is being left out of important calls. Or worse, you get invited to “the table”, but only acknowkedged when discussing specific technology issues. If not careful, you will get relegated to corporate stuff and controls.
4) LEADERSHIP – As anyone in the field will know, IT can be thankless. You rarely get calls when things go well, but let the ish hit the fan and your voicemail box is full. Your team needs inspiration and encouragement without pandering or coddling. Tough love that holds them accountable but allows for fast failure and supported recovery. You must have your Henry V moments on St Crispins Day, but also your Harry Potter vs Voldemort one on one battles where you are leading by example. Firm but fair leadership when you are also under pressure can be incredibly tough.
5) HUMILITY – no matter how hard you try, from time to time you will find yourself doing stuff that is “beneath you”. If I had a dollar everytime the entire room looked at me when a PC wasn’t able to connect to the projector, or the CEOs iPhone wasn’t working, I could at least buy a nice dinner or so package. Like it or not, if you have technology in your title, Wharton MBA or otherwise, you will at some point be asked to fix the meeting presentation system in a meeting with the Executive Committee. And you will have to graciously ignore the fact that Joe D. Salesman simply didn’t know how to hit page down to advance his slides.
Being a CIO can be one of the most rewarding, challenging, and exciting opportunities in your corporate career. You will meet amazing people, network amongst technology visionaries as well as business leaders, and drive significant transformation in your company. It can also be highly frustrating and boy will you be tired. A lot. However, continually working on these particular skills will make you and your company more succesful.
What are some expectations you have of your CIO (or, if you are the CIO, of yourself) and does he or she live up to those expectations? What skills would you add to my list?
Be well. Lead On.
Adam
Related Posts:
Who Am I?
Expectations of Leaders at all Levels
Khalil Gibran on Leadership
Lessons from Henry V
Adam Stanley
Adam L. Stanley Connections Blog
Technology. Leadership. Food. Life.
AdamLStanley.com
Follow me on Twitter | Connect with me on Linked In | “Like” me on Facebook
by Adam L Stanley | Oct 14, 2015 | Leadership, Relationships, Teamwork
How do you describe yourself to new colleagues?
Perhaps the most common thing I heard during the first few weeks after my firm joined forces with another firm was this seemingly simple yet incredibly important statement: “I don’t know Adam’s style yet.†That can’t really be rectified with an email, or a blog, and frankly most teams will just have to get to know their new boss as a matter of course. That said, I was curious to know how many people are asked this question and how do you answer it.
Do you talk about your personal life and what matters outside of work to allow them a glimpse of who you are? Do you talk about your operating principles, your values?
I will suggest there are a few things that make me who I am and I am happy to share these things. But I’m not sure if this actually answers the question.
Who am I?
1) I am passionate about diversity in all aspects of the word. Born and raised in Chicago, I have lived in St Louis, New York, Philadelphia, London and Johannesburg for periods of time and have become who I am from a bit of each of those experiences, plus my travel to over 40 countries. Being “global†is to me the greatest way to leverage and learn from different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. Anything that prevents truly gaining this leverage is a problem. In this way, I am a bit stubborn (cue the next bullet)
2) While on the cusp, I am primarily an extrovert in that I get lots of my energy from others. On the Myers Briggs scale, I am an ESTJ (“Executiveâ€) with all the positive and negatives of that personality type. (I do, however, feel that I am an ISFJ in my personal life and as I get closer to a team, I start to lean a bit more in that direction.) I love building and managing teams, organizing them for success, and moving on to the next initiative or program. When I have gotten myself to a certain model, I do struggle at times changing my mind. Yes, I can be stubborn. You can ask my partner or other family members!
3) I believe that leaders emerge from all levels of an organization and have personally seen relatively junior colleagues rise through the ranks with a little nudge and lots of support. Nothing excites me more than witnessing this, even when it means someone that has developed with me outgrows the nest and must go elsewhere. I want to be a part of this journey for colleagues in my current team.
So, how does this work? If you are unable to work with me for several months, to truly get to know my style and values, would these three items give you a clear enough sense of who I am? How would you describe yourself to a new team? As importantly, what would you want to hear from your new boss?
Be well. Lead On.
Adam
Related Posts:
Expectations of Senior Leaders
Expectations of Leaders at all Levels
Khalil Gibran on Leadership
Lessons from Henry V
Adam Stanley
Adam L. Stanley Connections Blog
Technology. Leadership. Food. Life.
AdamLStanley.com
Follow me on Twitter | Connect with me on Linked In | “Like†me on Facebook
1. Stop the Reply All Culture
II. I will be my authentic self. 
Perhaps the most common thing I heard during the first few weeks after my firm joined forces with another firm was this seemingly simple yet incredibly important statement: “I don’t know Adam’s style yet.†That can’t really be rectified with an email, or a blog, and frankly most teams will just have to get to know their new boss as a matter of course. That said, I was curious to know how many people are asked this question and how do you answer it.