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Great Managers Admit Their Mistakes…U of M Football in the News

December 28, 2009 By Leave a Comment

One of the toughest things a manager might have to do sometime in his/her career is to admit a mistake. When University of Minnesota Men’s Athletic Director Joel Maturi hired Tim Brewster as the head football coach, I thought it was a mistake to hire a head coach of a NCAA Division I football program who not only had no head coaching experience, but also lacked a track record as an offensive or defensive coordinator. When he was offered the job, Brewster was a tight ends coach with the Denver Broncos – the equivalent of a first line manager in the corporate world. With a 6-18 record in Big Ten play – and dismal late season performances both this year and last, you would think that Maturi would have the courage to acknowledge a mistake was made and send Brewster on his way.

Instead, this morning the StarTribune reported that Maturi is planning on offering head football coach Tim Brewster a contract extension! Here is Maturi’s primary reason:

“We need stability with the coach, with the coaching staff,” Maturi said. “And this should also bode well for the recruiting going on and for the future of Gophers football.”

I supposed you could make a case for a contract extension if there was a glimmer of hope that there would be some improvement in performance. But I’m not buying the stability argument.

The decision to extend this contract rewards less than stellar performance and that is a dangerous practice in any organization. However, the stability argument just does not hold water. Since Brewster took over there have been five different coordinators (3 defensive and 2 offensive) in the three years of his tenure. Having that much turnover in these leadership positions is generally not a good thing – and does not promote consistency or stability in the program.

Of course, the Gophers do play Iowa State in a bowl game on December 31, 2009, and Maturi did fire the previous coach after his team blew a huge lead in a bowl game in December, 2006. So stay tuned…

Filed Under: Observations Tagged With: , , , ,

Gift Ideas: Twelve Lords A’Leaping or Coaching Sessions?

December 20, 2009 By Leave a Comment

I had a wonderful initial coaching session with a new client yesterday morning at 7:30AM. Even though it is really challenging to get out of bed on these dark Minnesota winter mornings, I do enjoy the morning hours and meeting at a local coffee shop (that was the client’s choice) helped jump start the day. Nigel (not his real name) developed four clear and actionable goals and we got off to a great start.

It is not unusual to do a coaching session on a Saturday morning – I always accommodate the client’s schedule as best I can. What is a bit unusual is how this engagement came about. Normally, I’ll get a call from some one in human resources or from a senior leader in an organization to check out my availability to coach usually a senior manager or executive around some specific issue as part of their development. This time I received an email from one of the participants in one of my recent management development workshops. She wanted to know if I would be interested in putting together a “coaching package” for her husband that she could give him as a Christmas present.

As most you know, I’m am a minimalist and when it comes to gift giving, I am always in favor of the gift of an experience in lieu of stuff. So I thought this was a grand idea and told her that moving forward would depend on the fit between what Nigel was seeking as an outcome of the coaching and what I was skilled in providing. Nigel’s goals focused on leadership development, work/life balance, and generally getting better at working and playing well with others. He also had data about himself we could use (MBTI® and StrengthsFinder 2.0). His needs were directly in my area of focus, so I put together a coaching package of three 90 minute sessions and we just had our first one.

So if you are looking for an idea for a Christmas gift, think about giving the gift of an experience – a membership at a museum, tickets for a concert or the theater, and yes, even a series of coaching sessions. If you decide to give a series of sessions with a professional executive/life coach as a gift, here are several things to consider. If the answer to each of these four questions is “yes”, you may have discovered a great gift-giving option!

Is there a specific focus for the coaching?

In this case, Nigel had some very specific goals that he wanted to address as part of his personal and career development.

Is the person for whom you are giving the gift open to this experience?

While I know it is the thought that counts, your potential recipient may say that they’d rather have a root canal then meet with a coach.

Is there a good fit between the person getting the coaching and the coach?

Giving this kind of gift takes a little pre-work such as that initiated by Nigel’s wife. So while it may not be a surprise, it can be very meaningful if there is a good fit between coach and coachee. I was fully prepared to be the one to say that maybe Nigel would be happier with a different coach.

Is the price reasonable?

This is where the sage advice of caveat emptor (buyer beware!) applies. What you are looking for is a three to four session “package”. There are some coaches that will use this opportunity to create a lifelong (and expensive, to you or the person receiving the coaching) relationship. So be clear on what you are purchasing.

So do you still have some Christmas shopping to do?

Filed Under: Jobs and Careers, Management Development Tagged With: , ,

Why Should We Name a Building After You?

December 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

As I drive around Minneapolis running my pre-holiday errands, for some reason, I started thinking about the number of buildings, programs, streets, and events named after people.  And in pretty much every city I’ve either lived in or visited I notice the same thing.  Some of the names are familiar – like those of  presidents – others are known primarily to the residents of the local communities.Your Building?

Nevertheless, communities name buildings after people for some reason.  It usually has something to do with the legacy of the person so honored.  This tradition has been around a long time.

From time to time, I ask myself why “that person” has a building (or airport) named after them and actually resist calling that facility by the “famous” person’s name. (Washington, DC’s airport will always be “Washington National” to me.)

I’m interested in hearing from everyone – but particularly members of Gen X and Gen Y. What do you think will be reasons for decision-makers to name something after members of your generation? Or do you even think that this practice will continue or die?

Filed Under: Commentary, Community Dialogue Tagged With: ,

Thanks for the advice, Mom! And Happy Birthday!

December 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Alice Drozdal circa 1940Today would have been my mother’s 91st birthday – she died ten years ago on December 12, 1999.
In the ten years since her passing, I have thought about her often – even more so in recent days.  I remember the stories she told me about growing up in southern New Jersey just across the Delaware River from Philadelphia as a middle child of Polish immigrant parents. She came of age in the heart of the Great Depression and married my father two months after the Nazis invaded Poland to mark the start of World War II in 1939. And having grown up in a neighborhood of boys, she could hit the hell out of a baseball. I still have a mixture of pride and embarrassment when I think about the summer evening she was playing ball in our back yard with the neighborhood kids and hit a line drive directly into the neighbor’s kitchen window!

I’ve blogged in the past about what I’ve learned from my father about working and playing well with others. I just wanted to share a key lesson from my mother that contributed greatly to my almost twenty year run as a freelance consultant/writer.
I was probably about eight years old.  It was summertime and I was playing Little league baseball. I guess I inherited my mother’s prowess with a bat because I was a pretty comfortable as a hitter right from the start.  And this particular evening I had four base hits and was touting my exploits to the neighbors. My mother overheard my bragging, dragged me into the house, and firmly explained that “tooting your own horn” was not only inappropriate, it could come back to embarrass you.  Her belief was that it is much better to let others talk about your accomplishments rather than doing it yourself.My Mom and me

Today people often ask me if I am an expert in whatever. Having had my mother’s good counsel, I will respond by saying something like, “Well, I do work in that area, however, it is really not for me to say if I’m an expert; that’s for others to say.”

As I look at some blogs, resumes, Facebook pages, and other venues, I wonder how my mother would react today to some of the claims people are making and what they are saying about themselves.

I’m interested in hearing from everyone – particularly Millennials and Gen X readers – regarding the relevance of my mother’s advice in this new age of social media marketing. Thanks!

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Filed Under: Commentary, Mentoring Tagged With: , , ,