by Chris Hunter | Mar 10, 2020 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews, General - Human Resources
When giving feedback, either positive or constructively critical, there are only two reasons for doing so: to change or reinforce behavior in order to achieve a desired result. With those purposes in mind, here are 15 tips for providing feedback. Click here to read...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
by Chris Hunter | Mar 31, 2016 | Coaching & Soft Skills, General - Human Resources, Leadership
Running a business isn’t something you can usually do by yourself. One way or another, other people make their contributions to your enterprise. They could be members of your team, suppliers, co-directors or even family members who support you and they all deserve...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
Every firm has its ups and downs, and that can have a major effect on morale. If times get tough or the firm has to drastically cut expenditures there’s often a negative emotion that grows until it pervades the enterprise. We’ve all seen places like that — the team...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
Description: At the core of your company, there is a group of people who seem to call the shots–or, rather, all the shots seem to be called for their benefit. This core group can’t be found on any organization chart. It exists in people’s hearts and minds. It...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
Description: Executive consultant Marshall Goldsmith tells his CEO clients that he’s not the real coach; the people around them are. To change your behavior, he says, quit whining about the past and start asking your colleagues how you can do better. You’re not done...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
As long as there has been a need for improvement there have been coaches to provide it. Two thousand years ago the Roman army had coaches to develop skills in such critical areas as fighting battles, defending a fortress, setting up an encampment and how to manage...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
The contemporary business environment offers few places to hide. Even large corporations and government departments that once allowed mediocrity to coexist with performance are weeding out the unfit. So where are tomorrow’s top performers going to come from?...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
The term “coaching” is used a lot these days. We hear about “personal coaching” and “business coaching” as often as we hear about coaching in the field of sports, but are we really talking about such different things? Leaving aside arguments over the quality of some...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews
Description: In an ideal world, a subordinate would accept critical feedback from a manager with an open mind. He or she would ask a few clarifying questions, promise to work on certain performance areas, and show signs of improvement over time. But things don’t...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
Executive coaching develops the abilities and effectiveness of business leaders. It is a three way process that links the organization, the executive and the coach with defined goals for the organization and the executive to be achieved as outcomes of the process....
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews
Description: Nobody likes performance reviews. Subordinates are terrified they’ll hear nothing but criticism. Bosses, for their part, think their direct reports will respond to even the mildest criticism with stonewalling, anger, or tears. The result? Everyone keeps...
by Chris Hunter | Nov 6, 2019 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews, General - Personal Growth & Leadership, Human Resources, Leadership
This tip is adapted from “Are You Sugarcoating Your Feedback Without Realizing It?,” by Michael Schaerer and Roderick Swaab Many managers sugarcoat tough feedback, either to avoid retaliation or to protect employees’ feelings. But research shows that managers tend to...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
BOOK REVIEW: Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul and John Christensen. Hyperion Press, 2000 “When we choose to love the work we do, we can catch our limit of happiness, meaning, and fulfilment every day.” This is the core message of Fish! – the tale of Mary Jane, an...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
by Chris Hunter | Jan 2, 2016 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Training Programs
Managers always have high expectations for the people they hire. But new team members don’t always fit right into the organization, perform their jobs without fault and obey directions without questioning them. We’re only human and that means that our performance at...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
Managers always have high expectations for the people they hire. But new team members don’t always fit right into the organization, perform their jobs without fault and obey directions without questioning them. We’re only human and that means that our performance at...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews
by Chris Hunter | Jan 1, 2016 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Interviews & Onboarding, Retention
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews
by Chris Hunter | Apr 5, 2023 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews, Human Resources, Retention
Click here to view the article. Great read from the Ken Blanchard Companies.
by Chris Hunter | Mar 27, 2016 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Employee Recognition & Rewards, General - Human Resources, Leadership, Performance Management, Retention
Everyone who’s ever worked in a business has thought about how to make it better. It’s usually with the goal of making their own job a bit easier or more rewarding, but that’s natural and highlights the sincerity of suggestions that originate from outside the owner’s...
by Chris Hunter | Nov 25, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Management & Motivation
Management is always an interesting topic in the world of business. It’s something that some of us do better than others, and it requires a diverse set of skills that it never hurts to update or refresh. Unfortunately, it’s also an area that’s targeted by one fad...
by Chris Hunter | Mar 31, 2016 | Coaching & Soft Skills, General - Human Resources, Leadership
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews
by Chris Hunter | Dec 30, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, General - Human Resources
As the world economy slumps and unemployment rises, more and more managers face the task of laying off workers. There are a host of negative emotions to be managed at this time and the aftermath of layoffs could present great problems. Workforce ‘survivors’ will be...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
It’s becoming increasingly difficult to function as a CEO in today’s high pressure business environment, but the rewards can be immense. Many CEOs make more in a year than their employees will make in a lifetime. The average CEO of a major U.S. corporation earns in...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 30, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews, Ethics, Leadership, Legal Issues
Business owners and managers simply can’t afford to ignore problems with team members. To do so is to risk exposure to expensive lawsuits that few SMEs can afford. Problems with individuals can also lead to lower team morale, a loss of productivity and the departure...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
by Chris Hunter | Mar 31, 2016 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
Business coaching is a field that’s experiencing rapid growth. One of its primary functions is to create the circumstances under which performance improvement can happen, and when the client is a team, coaching has been proven to be highly effective. Team coaching...
by Chris Hunter | Jan 14, 2016 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Interviews & Onboarding, Selling Skills, Selling Skills
Carefully planned and executed, the business lunch can be a valuable tool for acquiring new business, gathering market intelligence, or increasing business from existing customers. It’s also a way of smoothing over little hiccups that occur from time to time in the...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
It has been demonstrated across a number of industries that team performance can be enhanced through the application of external coaching. The members of a team will collectively “lift their game” and productivity increases are the norm. However, the degree of...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Communications & Performance Reviews
by Chris Hunter | Feb 2, 2016 | Coaching & Soft Skills, General - Marketing, Selling Skills, Selling Skills, Web Sites & E-Marketing - Part 2
by Chris Hunter | Aug 29, 2019 | Coaching & Soft Skills, General - Personal Growth & Leadership, Leadership
You’ve probably heard this meeting advice before: Set an agenda and send it out ahead of time. But if the purpose of your meeting is to tackle a complicated problem, it’s better to have the group decide on the agenda together. Plan to spend 10%–15% of your meeting...
by Chris Hunter | Dec 26, 2015 | Coaching & Soft Skills, Leadership
Chris’ combination of academic credentials, career experience and temperament ideally suit his calling as a business development advisor. Clients say he has a mind for business and a heart for service.