Author Archives: Tom Foster

About Tom Foster

Tom Foster spends most of his time talking with managers and business owners. The conversations are about business lives and personal lives, goals, objectives and measuring performance. In short, transforming groups of people into teams working together. Sometimes we make great strides understanding this management stuff, other times it’s measured in very short inches. But in all of this conversation, there are things that we learn. This blog is that part of the conversation I can share. Often, the names are changed to protect the guilty, but this is real life inside of real companies.

Strata and Levels

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:

What is Strata I and Strata II?

Response:

Looking at most company’s organizational charts, you can see the different levels of work. Jim Collins, in his book Good to Great describes them this way:

Level V – Level 5 executive work

Level IV – Effective leader

Level III – Competent manager

Level II – Contributing team member

Level I – Highly capable individual

It’s curious that while Collins wrote his book in 2001, there is a much clearer description of these roles written by Elliott Jaques, dating back to 1963.

Strata V – Business Unit President (Strategic Vision)

Strata IV – Manager (Integrator – Multiple Parallel Systems)

Strata III – Manager (Single Serial Systems)

Strata II – Supervisor (makes sure the work gets done)

Strata I – Team member (does the work)

Elliott used the word Strata as opposed to Level, in part because the word Level connotes the superiority of one level over another. Strata, in any geologic formation, require all layers to be robust and strong, none better that any other, all serving a requisite purpose.

I find Elliott Jaques research and writing much more detailed and helpful in building efficient organizational structure. To learn more about different Strata, you can visit www.managementblog.org and follow the Category link on Time Horizon.

Note: I have talked with several people who did not realize that we have more than 400 articles on our site all catalogued and indexed according to subject matter. Happy exploring.

Tour de France Update

Monday was a rest day. Tuesday is the last flat stage before we hit the Pyrenees. While preparing for the challenges ahead, why not unwind with some slot online gacor for a fun and exciting break before the next adventure begins?

Twisting in the Wind

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From the Ask Tom mailbox:

Question:

How do you teach Strata II to a new manager? I have a problem at work because a peer who is also a manager is failing miserably in his new role and our boss will not help him or train him in any way, shape, or form.

I tell him things when he comes to me for advice for a particular situation but since I am trying to manage my department and people, I cannot spend the time and I do not have the authority to step in and diagnose all the problems and restructure and re-organize since I am a peer. I have instructed him to go to our boss and that did not help a bit.

The morale is getting worse & worse and the boss is ignoring it!

How do you teach Strata II?

Thank you very much for your guidance!

Response:

Your new Strata II manager is in a tough spot. It is not unusual, but it is still a tough spot.

He has been promoted to being in charge of a small number of people. He has a new completely different role that requires a brand new set of tools. Without any baseline experience as a supervisor, his self-confidence will be unstable.

Worse yet, your company will let him twist in the wind without direction. It’s not malicious. Most companies do not know how to work with brand new supervisors to make them successful.

You say you don’t have the time or the authority, but you appear to be willing to help as long as it doesn’t cost you the farm. If you are up for it, we can create a game plan. This is precisely the skill set we teach in our Working Management program (next session – July 24).

Step One is to specifically define the role. Remember, Strata I does the work. Strata II makes sure the work gets done. The core skills are scheduling people, coordinating materials, supplies and equipment, breaking down larger goals into daily work targets, monitoring work progress, checking for accuracy and completeness.

I don’t know what that means in your company, but that is where I would start. The written description to those questions should fit on one page.

The biggest tool for the Strata II manager is the weekly schedule, kept two weeks in advance. The two other important tools are checklists and short meetings (daily and weekly huddle meetings).

Get started on these items and brief us back here with an email.

If you (the rest of you) have a helpful suggestion related to our new Strata II manager, please post a comment below.

Tour de France Update

Stage Seven. Saturday’s Time Trial, as expected, broke the field wide open. The duo of Tom Boonen (BEL-QSI) and Robbie McEwan (AUS-DVL), who dominated the first week of racing predictably fell to 41st and 109th in the stage. Serhiy Gonchar (UKR-TMO) grinding it out in a heavy gear set a blistering pace and never faded, capturing a stage win and the yellow jersey. Team T-Mobile is doing quite well without Jan Ullrich who was scratched from the Tour 24 hours before the start.

Stage Eight. It is rare that a breakaway succeeds, but when it does, it becomes the isolated exception that keeps riders trying to break the rule. The peleton tried to organize for the catch, but it was too late with too much distance. It was an early break at 47km that held to the end (181km). The last three riders in the escape Sylvain Calzati (FRA-A2R), Kjell Carlstrom (FIN-LIQ) and Patrice HALGAND (FRA-C.A) held together until 148km when Calzati make a dash that neither Carlstrom nor Halgand could respond to. With 25km to go, Calzati was 30 seconds ahead. By the end, he had extended his lead to 2:05. It was his first career stage win.

The Tour takes a break on Monday with a relatively flat stage on Tuesday. Look for the sprinters to be back in force. Then we go to the mountains. Floyd Landis (USA-PHO), a former Armstrong teammate now racing for Team Phonak, seems poised to take advantage of his lead.

Overall Standings after Stage Eight

1-HONCHAR, Serhiy -UKR-TMO -34hrs 38min 53sec

2-LANDIS, Floyd -USA-PHO –+1min

3-ROGERS, Michael -AUS-TMO –+1min 8sec

4-SINKEWITZ, Patrik -GER-TMO –+1min 45sec

5-FOTHEN, Marcus -GER-GST –+1min 50sec

6-KLÖDEN, Andréas -GER-TMO –+1min 50sec

7-KARPETS, Vladimir -RUS-CEI –+1min 52sec

8-EVANS, Cadel -AUS-DVL –+1min 52 sec

9-ZABRISKIE, David -USA-CSC –+1min 53sec

10-MENCHOV, Denis -RUS-RAB –+2min

11-KESSLER, Matthias -GER-TMO –+2min 3sec

12-MOREAU, Christophe -FRA-A2R –+2min 7sec

13-SAVOLDELLI, Paolo -ITA-DSC –+2min 10sec

14-MAZZOLENI, Eddy -ITA-TMO –+2min 14sec

15-LANG, Sebastian -GER-GST –+2min 22sec

16-SASTRE, Carlos -ESP-CSC –+2min 27sec

17-HINCAPIE, George -USA-DSC –+2mim 30sec

18-PEREIRO SIO, Oscar -ESP-CEI –+2min 57sec

19-LÖVKVIST, Thomas -SWE-FDJ –+3min 1sec

20-ROUS, Didier -FRA-BTL –+3min 15sec

TDF-Breaking Away

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:

Every day that we watch the Tour de France, a small group always breaks ahead of the big pack, but they always get caught. Why do they do that, if they always get caught? And why do they always get caught?

Response:

In spite of the almost certainty the breakaway group will be hunted down and swept away, they earn valuable points through designated sprint zones. While most of us watch the race focused on the yellow jersey, there are other competitions inside the race.

And the breakaway group doesn’t always get caught. On rare occasions, the escape group manages to hold the lead, hoping for a miscalculation on the part of the peleton (the big pack).

The peleton, on the other hand, attempts to manage the pace of the race to eventually catch the escape. The swarm of riders in the big group creates an enormous wind tunnel, so riders are able to conserve more of their energy while traveling at greater speed than the breakaway group. The breakaway group, usually five to seven riders, creates a smaller slipstream, with each rider required to take a turn on the front, breaking the wind for the riders behind. Riding single file, constantly switching the lead, the escapees consume more energy, ultimately tiring and getting caught. Near the end, the escape group may lose its members one by one as they exhaust themselves.

The veteran sprinters will almost never be involved in a breakaway, knowing the peleton will manage the race tempo. These vets will conserve their energy for the final sprint to the finish.

Stage Five. What we thought would be another sprinter’s battle between Boonen (BEL-QSI) and McEwan (AUS-DVL) was spoiled by Oscar Freire (ESP-RAB) from Team Rabobank. As the sprinters accelerated from the pack Freire moved quietly up the right side without attracting attention and slipped by frontrunners, beating them to the finish.

In the overall standings, Hincapie (USA-DSC) dropped behind Freire on points, now 17 seconds behind the lead. All this will change, however, when we get to the time trial on Saturday, July 8 (Stage 7). It’s a long time trial, 52km, favoring the GC (General Classification) contenders.

Overall Standings after Stage Five

1-BOONEN, Tom -BEL-QSI -25hrs 10min 51sec

2-ROGERS, Michael -AUS-TMO –+13sec

3-FREIRE, Oscar -ESP-RAB –+17sec

4-HINCAPIE, George -USA-DSC –+17sec

5-HUSHOVD, Thor -NOR-C.A –+19sec

6-MC EWEN, Robbie -AUS-DVL –+24sec

7-SAVOLDELLI, Paolo -ITA-DSC –+27sec

8-LANDIS, Floyd -USA-PHO –+28sec

9-KARPETS, Vladimir -RUS-CEI –+29sec

10-HONCHAR, Serhiy -UKR-TMO –+29sec

TDF-Application of Talent

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Stage Four clearly demonstrates the application of talent for a specific requirement. It has been a predictable sportfest for the sprinters. Why? Those consistently at the finish in these early rounds of the Tour have a talent for holding 25mph for 5 hours, then drawing deep into a burst of acceleration. It takes conditioned fast twitch muscles and a reserve of the right blood chemistry to fuel that last sustained sprint. It’s a talent, a special gift that they have. It is not, however, the talent required to win the Tour.

Robbie McEwan (AUS-DVL) takes his second stage win of the Tour, but we won’t see him in the yellow jersey at the end. His talents are focused on the sprint. Though he moved to 6th place overall, only 12 seconds out of the lead, he will lose major ground in the mountains.

We saw a bit of strategy by Team Discovery (USA) today as Egoi Martinez (ESP-DSC) was instructed to breakaway early. Not the first attack of the day, but 18km into the race, he bolted. Four followed as he sustained an escape that lasted until the last 2km mark. Though he was swarmed at the end, he picked up :16 seconds on points throughout the race, and moved into 5th place overall.

For Discovery (USA), Hincapie (USA-DSC) is still comfortably in third place, with teammates Savoldelli (ITA-DSC) and Martinez (ESP-DSC) among the top seven riders.

Overall Standings After Stage Four

1-BOONEN, Tom -BEL-QSI -19 hrs 52min 13 sec

2-ROGERS, Michael -AUS-TMO –+1 sec

3-HINCAPIE, George -USA-DSC –+5 sec

4-HUSHOVD, Thor -NOR-C.A –+7 sec

5-MARTINEZ, Egoi -ESP-DSC –+10 sec

6-MC EWEN, Robbie -AUS-DVL –+12 sec

7-SAVOLDELLI, Paolo -ITA-DSC –+15 sec

8-BENNATI, Daniele -ITA-LAM –+15 sec

9-LANDIS, Floyd -USA-PHO –+16 sec

10-KARPETS, Vladimir -RUS-CEI –+17 sec

TDF – The High Ground

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Your top performer has just been discovered below the line. It’s your highest volume salesperson caught in a kickback, your most productive line worker taking a quality shortcut. In every manager’s life, a decision will emerge. Do you look the other way? Do you rewrite the standards? Obtain a vigorous denial and a promise never to do it again?

Jan Ullrich was on the team bus when the news was delivered. Ivan Basso was out on a training ride when he got word. The top two contenders in the Tour de France would not start. Should the evidence prove them innocent, then a great injustice has been done. Should the evidence prove them participants in blood doping, then they earned the penalty.

I have seen this scenario over and over. Managers hesitate because they fear the loss in productivity should they scratch their shining star. They put up with ethical dilemmas, anti-social behavior and intimidation, compromising their own value system. Many cannot make the hard decision.

The debate was most likely vigorous, but the decision, swift and unanimous. Every team manager agreed that any rider listed in the investigation would be withdrawn from the team roster. At this late date, Tour rules are specific. No rider withdrawn would be allowed a replacement.

And yet, for managers who make the tough decision to stand the high ground, they find their fears are unfounded. They find a stable of young players ready to fill the gaps. They find that many co-workers were aware of the ethical foul play and wondered what took the manager so long to take action.

And so this year’s Tour kicks off unpredictably fearsome. The field for the yellow jersey is wide open.

Update through Stage 3

The Prologue (individual time trial) separated the fastest by short seconds with Thor Hushovd (Team Credit Agricole-C.A) taking the first yellow by a margin of only one second over George Hincapie (Team Discovery-DSC). Though there has been no official designation of team leader for Discovery, Hincapie may emerge the leader without the designation.

Stage One. It is not certain strategy that George Hincapie (DSC) jump to the front in yellow, but he takes the stage nonetheless edging Thor Hushovd (C.A) by two seconds. It is too early to take the yellow and continue its defense. More likely that Team Discovery will let it go by Stage Two.

Stage Two. Matthias Kessler (Team T-Mobile-TMO) led a break away from the pack that almost succeeded, breaking down in the last 50 meters. It was nail-biting to watch him spin out his lungs as the sprinters in the peleton swept him away. Robby McEwan from Australia (Team Davitamon-Lotto-DVL) moved ahead to take the stage. Predictably, George Hincapie (DSC) let the yellow jersey go back to Thor Hushovd (C.A) who arrived in third place for Stage Two. Hincapie stayed tucked safely in the pack, but only trails in the overall standings by a margin of ten seconds.

Stage Three. Matthias Kessler (TMO) may have something to prove with his team leader Jan Ullrich ejected from the race prior to the Prologue. Once again, he broke away from the Peleton, but today, he succeeded. The sprinters, behind, waited too long, thinking they would repeat yesterday’s sweep, but Kessler kept a five second separation that lasted through the finish. Robbie McEwan (DVL) who spoiled it for Kessler yesterday did not finish in the top 10 today. In the overall standings, George Hincapie (DSC) gained ground over Thor Hushovd (C.A) moving into third place overall only five seconds off the pace. It is likely Discovery will keep him protected near the front, but we may not see much of George until the mountains. Of great interest is also the name of Paolo Savoldelli (DSC), in fifth place overall. That’s two Discovery (USA) riders in the top five. Sadly, Alejandro Valverde (Team Caisse D’Epargne-Illes Balears), a podium contender, suffered a broken collarbone in a crash, so this year’s Tour is over for him.

1 – BOONEN, Tom – BEL – QSI – 14 hrs 52 min 23 sec

2 – ROGERS, Michael – AUS – TMO +1 sec

3 – HINCAPIE, George – USA – DSC +5 sec

4 – HUSHOVD, Thor – NOR – C.A +7 sec

5 – SAVOLDELLI, Paolo – ITA – DSC +15 sec

6 – BENNATI, Daniele – ITA – LAM +15 sec

7 – LANDIS, Floyd – USA – PHO +16 sec

8 – KARPETS, Vladimir – RUS – CEI +17 sec

9 – HONCHAR, Serhiy – UKR – TMO +17 sec

10 – KESSLER, Matthias – GER – TMO +17 sec

Who?

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It’s not a what, but a who. Most management issues appear to be all about “What do we do about this or that.” But the resolution is seldom a what, it’s almost always a who.

The players (who) on your team will dictate the team’s success. You can build teamwork, define best practices, provide the finest resources, but if you don’t have the right who(s), your team will under perform.

So, that is the question this year at the Tour. Lance has retired. Who will take his place? Indeed, all the speculation is about who?

As the prologue is set for Saturday, with the first full stage on Sunday, here are some of the who(s) to watch. These are the names that will become familiar over the next few weeks.

Ivan Basso, riding for Team CSC (DEN). Ivan placed third in 2004 and second in 2005. He is riding with a tight team coached by former tour winner Bjarne Riis.

Jan Ullrich, riding for Team T-Mobile (GER). Jan won the Tour in 1997, prior to the Armstrong reign. He stood on the podium in 2005, in third place behind Basso.

George Hincapie riding for Team Discovery (USA). Former domestique (nine Tours) for Armstrong, George pulled a stage win in the mountains last year. He is not the heir apparent, but one of several who could be anointed new leader of Team Discovery.

The Tour, this year, is wide open. Many contenders could break away, scoring precious points. The tactics will be completely different without Armstrong and his protection.

Let the race begin.

Management Skills Blog will take short holiday coinciding with the extended US 4th of July holiday. We will see you back here on Wednesday, July 5. -TF

The Tour Begins on Saturday

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He will not be there.

There comes a time when every team loses its star player. On your teams, it happens. In your company it happens.

I know the lump in the throat when, from across your desk, your star player tells you she is leaving. Moving to Iowa. Retiring. Changing careers.

We cannot stop her, in fact, we wish her well. But, our hearts tell us life will never be the same.

Still, life goes on. Veteran managers know the clouds will go away, the birds will sing and the sun will shine again. Life goes on.

Long time readers of Management Skills Blog know of my keen interest in cycling. Each year, July turns its attention to the lessons learned in the Tour De France. Some readers may find a new appreciation for the sport. Even without Lance Armstrong.

There will be new names, just like new names in your own company when a star player leaves. Of course, they are not really new, just faces you never paid attention to before.

There will be favorites this year. On the stage with Lance in 2005 were Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich. But there are a host of other players you will meet over the next few weeks.

My interest in this sport is the quiet teamwork required to post a win. It is not entirely visible. You might think the winner would emerge only from individual effort and the tactic would be to just “go fast.” Not the case.

My fascination is in the management lessons. Coaching, teamwork, tactics, communication, support, fitness, self-talk, discipline. We’ll have some fun over the next few weeks. The Prologue starts on Saturday, July 1. -TF

Delegation When the Risk is High

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Janet was not convinced. “But, if I know they will make a mistake, what if I can’t afford the screw-up? Perhaps, I forgot to tell you that we work in a nuclear facility and this delegation has to do with moving a dollop of plutonium from one reactor to the next.”

I smiled, knowing the most hazardous waste in the place was some scrap stainless steel. “You are correct,” I acknowledged. “Picking the right person for a delegation does have everything to do with risk management. If the stakes are too high, then you may have to forego a learning experience to get the job done. But if this dollop of plutonium turns out to be a dollop of vanilla ice cream, then the risk is low. The lower the risk, the more I can allow for mistakes and learning.”

“So, picking the person depends on managing the risk. That makes more sense,” Janet surmised.

“Think about how we allow people to learn to fly commercial aircraft. They have to make mistakes to learn, yet the risk is very high. We can’t have people crashing multi-million dollar aircraft.”

Janet smiled. “Enter the simulator?”

“Exactly. People learn best from their mistakes.” -TF

Learning from Mistakes

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“I was surprised,” said Janet. “Barry is my best guy. I just assigned him a task and he said he was too busy, told me to go find someone else. He always does such a great job. I thought he would be the perfect person.”

“Who else could you delegate to?” I asked.

“Well, there is Simon and Rachel. But what if they screw it up?” Janet scrunched her nose. She didn’t like the idea.

“Janet, what is the purpose for your delegation? Are you looking to save yourself some time or are you looking to develop some of your team members?”

Janet knew it was a loaded question. “Okay, so I am trying to develop some of my team members. I know it’s a learning process.” It was the kind of unenthusiastic, politically correct response I knew I would get.

“Good answer. You must have attended the seminar,” I chided. “Look, Janet, of course they are going to screw it up. Tell me. Do people learn more from doing something perfectly or making a mistake?”

Janet wasn’t sure where I was going with this. “I suppose people learn more from making a mistake.”

“Exactly. If delegation is your most powerful people development tool, then part of delegation is people making mistakes. Count on it. Plan for it. Budget your time for it. But remember that it’s still worth it. That’s what learning is all about.” -TF

The Delegation Trap

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Crystal looked across the table with a grimace on her face. She had a project to delegate and just returned from a circle of the office looking for a candidate.

“As I walked around, everyone looked so busy,” she said.

I smiled. “And you let that fool you?”

“What?”

“The fact that everyone looked so busy was a trap you set for yourself.”

“A trap?” Crystal was curious, but she wasn’t sure she would like the answer.

“As you walked around looking to hand this project out, what was your purpose?”

“Well, it’s a project I have been doing over and over for the past two years. It would save me a couple of hours a week if I could find someone to do it for me,” she replied.

“So, your primary motivation was to save yourself some time?” I didn’t wait for the answer. “So, tell me, what’s the major benefit for the person you would delegate this to?”

Crystal hadn’t thought about this, but she responded quickly. “Well, they would gain a new skill.”

“And what else?” Over the next few minutes, Crystal made a list of 12 benefits to the team member. The list included:

  • A sense of accomplishment.
  • Feeling a greater part of the team.
  • Feeling more valuable to the team.
  • A sense of contribution.

“Crystal, do any of these things have to do with saving you time?” I asked.

“No. Most of these things have to do with challenge and development.”

“So, get out of your time trap. I want you to make the circle again, but this time, think about the person who would see this as a positive step in their professional development.”

Crystal didn’t move. “You know, I don’t have to make the circle. I already know who needs this project. You’re right, she is busy, but this would be important to her.”