Author: Bob Bannister

Six Managerial Mindsets that Matter: Unlock Your Potential as a Super Manager

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

Ever feel like you’re just winging it as a manager? Don’t worry, we’ve all been there. But what separates the truly exceptional managers from the mediocre ones boils down to their mindsets. Having the right mental attitude and approach is half the battle. 

Today, we’re going to dive into the managerial mindsets that can propel you from so-so to superhero status. Get ready to shift your perspective and unlock a world of leadership mastery!

1.  The Growth Mindset: Embrace the Learning Curve

Let’s kick things off with a mindset straight out of the brilliant mind of Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck. I’m talking about the growth mindset – the belief that abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work.

Why is this so crucial for managers? Because the alternative – a fixed mindset where you think your talents are set in stone – is the antithesis of learning and development. As a manager, you need to be committed to constant improvement, for yourself and your team.

Adopting a growth mindset means:

• Embracing challenges as opportunities to stretch yourself

• Persisting through obstacles and setbacks 

• Seeking out feedback to identify areas for growth

• Having a passion for learning new skills

To cultivate this mindset, start by paying attention to your self-talk. Are you beating yourself up over failures or treating them as building blocks? Reframe struggles as chances to develop grit and resilience.

2.  The Coaching Mindset: Bring Out the Best in Others  

Legendary managers like Sir Alex Ferguson weren’t just strategic geniuses – they were world-class coaches committed to bringing out the best in their players. You need to approach your team the same way.

With a coaching mindset, you see your role as helping others unlock their potential through guidance, support, and opportunities for development. It’s about building people up rather than beating them down with harsh criticism.

To instil this mindset:

1) Get curious about your team’s motivations, strengths, and goals. The more you understand them, the better you can tailor your coaching approach.

2) Ask guiding questions more than you give directives. Help them find their own solutions.

3) Offer frequent feedback focused on progress and growth, not just results.

The coaching mindset takes work, but the payoff is a more engaged, motivated, and high-performing team.

3.  The Systematic Mindset: Work Smarter, Not Harder

Let’s be real – you can’t achieve managerial greatness through sheer hustle and chaos alone. You need a systematic mindset, an approach focused on efficiency, processes, and working smarter.

Start by analysing your current workflows and identifying pain points, redundancies, or areas of inefficiency. Maybe you’re having too many meetings, micromanaging instead of delegating, or dropping balls due to disorganisation.

Once you identify the gaps, it’s time to get systematic with solutions like:

• Implementing productivity tools and apps to streamline processes 

• Practicing prioritisation methods to focus on high-impact work

• Holding office hours instead of infinite meetings

• Documenting standard operating procedures 

• Using Kanban boards to visualise workloads

The goal? Eradicating chaos and working in a calm, focused, productive state as much as possible. It’s the path to 10x’d results with less burnout.

With these three transformative mindsets – growth, coaching, and systematic – you’ll be well on your way to management mastery. But we’re not done yet! Let’s look at some final mindset shifts to round out your superhero powers.

4.  The Servant Leadership Mindset 

Despite the “leader” in your title, servant leadership is the mindset where it’s at. Instead of being a self-serving authoritarian, you exist to serve and support your team.

Practice humility, empathy and putting your team’s needs first. This mindset builds astronomical levels of trust and loyalty. People will go to battle for a leader like you.

5.  The Abundant Mindset  

Too many managers approach their role from a scarcity mindset – the belief that there’s only so much success, money, or opportunity to go around. This breeds territoriality and an inability to celebrate others’ wins.

Shift to an abundant mindset where you realise that your team’s success is your success. Their growth doesn’t diminish you – it expands the whole pie for everyone to enjoy a bigger slice.

6.  The Perpetual Learner Mindset

The day you stop being a perpetual learner is the day you become a decaying manager. Commit to always staying curious, adapting to changes, taking risks to experiment with new approaches. 

Read books, listen to podcasts, take courses – always be filling your managerial toolbox with new instruments to draw from.

By combining all of these mental modes, you’ll not only elevate your own game, but create unstoppable teams and incredible organisational success.

Remember, mindset shifts don’t happen overnight. It takes commitment, discipline, and tons of self-awareness. But master these mindsets and you’ll be operating from such a powerful place of perspective, potential, and passion.

Are you ready to start your transformation from mere manager to expert leader? The hardest step is taking that first leap to change your mindset. Do that, and no mountain will be too high to summit.

The Exception-Handling Playbook: Building Your Team’s Escalation Instincts

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

In our previous posts on Management by Exception (MBE), we covered the core philosophy of empowering teams while maintaining strategic oversight, as well as best practices for effectively handling escalations when they do occur. But there’s a crucial third element that makes this leadership approach truly sustainable: developing your team’s escalation instincts.

Even with clear criteria, open communication channels, and your skilled handling of exceptions, MBE can start to break down if team members aren’t skilled at recognising situations that genuinely warrant escalation in the first place. Miss too many of those cues and you end up dropping crucial balls; escalate too many minor issues and you’ve defeated the purpose of autonomy.

Mastering MBE long-term requires building what former U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower called “the blank mind.” The ability to instantly sort daily events and issues into two categories: the ordinary to be handled through routine processes, and the truly exceptional situations requiring your involvement. Just as elite athletes and first responders develop razor-sharp split-second decision instincts through experience and training, so too must your team hone its escalation instincts.

The good news is, this recognition ability can absolutely be cultivated through intentional practices. Here’s a playbook of techniques to build those instincts:

Share “Trigger” Lists 

While your escalation criteria provide guardrails, it helps to go deeper with specific, contextual trigger examples tailored to your team’s domain. Collaboratively brainstorm detailed, concrete scenarios that should set off mental alarm bells as escalation-worthy exceptions.

These can span areas like budgeting (“Any marketing expense over £25k, or any expense coded to the wrong department”), quality (“A bug that leads to account security breaches”), stakeholder relations (“An upset from one of our top 3 clients”), organisational impact (“A project that affects hiring across multiple teams”), workplace policy (“Issues related to harassment or discrimination”), and so on.

Turn these trigger lists into easy-access documentation or checklist-style resources that everyone can quickly reference, sharpening their exception radar. Review and update them quarterly as new situations arise.

Download a “Second Brain”

Certain complex or niche areas require deep reserves of specialised knowledge to truly recognise the exceptions. Your team may simply lack the context and experience in these “blind spot” domains to know when something is veering into uncharted waters.

But you or others in your organisation likely possess that accumulated wisdom. Facilitate downloading those seasoned “second brains” into your team through:

  • Targeted training sessions where experts share crucial context and examples
  • Shoutouts on your company’s knowledge sharing channels or forums
  • Curated reading material from industry publications and expert sources 
  • Shadowing opportunities where team members can observe firsthand
  • Help them recognise crucial subtleties, patterns, and implications that might easily get overlooked. Use anecdotes, case studies, and interactive exercises to make the lessons stick.

Celebrate “Near Misses”

Escalation instincts aren’t just about escalating the right things; it’s also about resisting the urge to escalate issues that your team does have the capability and authority to handle themselves. Both are important skills to hone.

So when a team member navigates a tricky situation through sound judgment and problem-solving without unnecessarily escalating it to you, make sure to commend them. Celebrate these “near misses” and have them share their thought process: How did they assess the situation wasn’t an escalation-worthy exception? What hints or contextual cues helped them make that wise determination?

Not only does this reinforce good escalation instincts, it also cross-pollinates valuable example scenarios for others to learn from.

Apply Technology as a Force Multiplier

Developing escalation instincts will always be a “human-in-the-loop” capability, but new technologies can enhance that human judgment through augmented intelligence. Explore solutions that:  

  • Use natural language processing to automatically flag communications that hit defined linguistic risk triggers meriting escalation
  • Apply machine learning against your historical issue data to classify new situations into escalation/non-escalation categories with increasing accuracy
  • Employ intelligent workflow and case routing to bubble up exceptions to the right responders based on context
  • Employ data visualisation and advanced monitoring that highlights true anomalies against normal patterns

Treat these as supplemental tools to augment, not replace, the escalation instincts you’re embedding into your team. Their intelligence accelerates issue identification and triage but your staff remains the crucial final decision authority on actual escalation.

Build a Legacy of Veteran Instincts

As you progress through these practices, closely study which team members demonstrate the sharpest escalation instincts. They aren’t just operationally excellent, they have a keen contextual sense for separating routine issues from substantive exceptions. Leverage this instinct “muscle memory” by:

  • Having them mentor more junior teammates
  • Inviting them to help train and onboard new staff
  • Tasking them with writing or recording their own detailed case studies to share
  • Involving them in tweaking your escalation policies and trigger lists
  • Grooming them as escalation point-person resources their peers can tap

These veterans become your “instinct whisperers” who can pass down this crucial gut wisdom to future generations of the team. Don’t let their hard-earned knowledge walk out the door.

Master MBE for the Long Haul

Management by Exception only succeeds when both sides uphold their respective responsibilities.

As a leader, you must build a system of trust, establish clear criteria, respond skillfully to escalations, and model the appropriate behaviours. But equally critical is developing a team instilled with the wisdom to actually recognise those exceptions in their daily flow of work. 

Cultivate that instinct muscle through contextual examples, expert knowledge transfers, learning celebrations, gamification, and amplifying technologies. Turn escalation recognition from an arbitrary guessing game into an ingrained “sixth sense” reflex.

With your steady hand and their sharpened instincts working in concert, you’ll strike a sustainable equilibrium: empowered autonomy on the routine; your guidance on the exceptions that matter most. Master that equilibrium and you master the art of Management by Exception.

Creating a Culture of Continuous Learning: A Roadmap for L&D Leaders

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, the ability to continuously learn and adapt is no longer a luxury but a necessity. Organisations that cultivate a culture of continuous learning are better equipped to stay ahead of the curve, foster innovation, and thrive in an ever-changing environment. As leaders in learning and development (L&D), it is our responsibility to champion this mindset and create an environment that encourages and supports ongoing professional growth.

Building a culture of continuous learning requires a holistic approach that permeates every aspect of the organisation. It’s not of course, just about offering training programs or facilitating workshops; it’s about instilling a deep-rooted belief in the value of lifelong learning and creating a supportive ecosystem that empowers employees to embrace this mindset.

Here are some tangible strategies and ideas that L&D leaders can implement to foster a culture of continuous learning within their organisations:

1. Lead by Example: As L&D leaders, we must embody the values we preach. Continuously invest in your own professional development, share your learning experiences with your team, and be open about the challenges and triumphs you encounter along the way. This not only demonstrates your commitment to continuous learning but also serves as a powerful source of inspiration for others.

2. Embed Learning into the Organisational Culture: Learning should not be viewed as a separate activity or a one-time event; it should be woven into the fabric of your organisation’s culture. Encourage cross-functional collaboration, knowledge sharing, and mentorship programs that facilitate the exchange of ideas and best practices. Celebrate and recognise employees who actively pursue learning opportunities and share their newfound knowledge with others.

3. Leverage Technology and On-Demand Learning: In today’s fast-paced world, traditional classroom-based learning may not always be practical or convenient. Embrace modern technologies and platforms that enable on-demand, self-paced learning. Provide employees with access to online courses, webinars, podcasts, and other digital resources that allow them to learn at their own pace and in a format that suits their preferences.

4. Encourage Exploration and Experimentation: Cultivate an environment where employees feel empowered to step outside their comfort zones, explore new ideas, and experiment without fear of failure. Celebrate both successes and failures, as long as valuable lessons are learned in the process. Encourage employees to attend conferences, participate in industry events, and engage with thought leaders to broaden their perspectives.

5. Offer Personalised Learning Paths: Recognise that every employee has unique learning needs, preferences, and career aspirations. Provide personalised learning paths that align with individual goals and allow employees to tailor their learning experiences accordingly. Leverage assessments, mentoring, and coaching to identify skill gaps and create customised development plans.

6. Foster a Growth Mindset: A culture of continuous learning thrives when individuals embrace a growth mindset – the belief that abilities and intelligence can be developed through dedication and effort. Encourage employees to set challenging yet achievable goals, celebrate small wins, and provide constructive feedback to support their growth and development.

7. Allocate Time and Resources: Continuous learning cannot be treated as an afterthought or a luxury. Allocate dedicated time and resources for employees to engage in learning activities. This could include setting aside a specific number of hours per week or month for self-directed learning, providing access to learning resources (e.g., books, online subscriptions), or offering tuition reimbursement programs for relevant courses or certifications.

8. Measure and Evaluate Impact: Continuously assess the effectiveness of your learning initiatives and their impact on organisational performance. Collect data, analyse metrics, and solicit feedback from employees to identify areas for improvement and refine your approach. Celebrate successes and share stories of how continuous learning has positively impacted individuals, teams, and the organisation as a whole.

Building a culture of continuous learning is an ongoing journey that requires commitment, dedication, and a willingness to adapt and evolve. As L&D leaders, we have the opportunity to shape the future of our organisations by empowering our workforce with the knowledge, skills, and mindset necessary to thrive in an ever-changing world.

Embrace this challenge with enthusiasm, lead by example, and create an environment where curiosity is celebrated, growth is nurtured, and continuous learning becomes an integral part of your organisation’s DNA.

The Elite Manager’s Code: Handling Escalations Like a Ninja

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

My blog post on Management by Exception (MBE) seems to have struck a chord with readers hungry for a balanced leadership approach. Many saw the benefits of empowering their teams while still maintaining strategic control. However, we also received comments and questions about a crucial aspect of MBE: how to properly manage the escalations or “exceptions” when they do occur.

After all, the entire premise of MBE hinges on your ability to effectively handle those situations that get kicked upstairs. If you fumble the escalations, you risk negating the very autonomy you tried to create. But escalating issues well is an art of its own. Here’s a deeper dive into mastering the exceptions:

Be Selective About What You Escalate

Not every uncertainty or minor hiccup merits your attention. You’ll need to be judicious about what rises to the level of an “exception” requiring escalation. Issues that meet criteria like:

  • High-stakes outcomes (financial, repetational, legal risks).
  • Decisions with major strategic implications.
  • Substantial complexity or cross-functional impacts.
  • Something outside the team’s sphere of knowledge.
  • A persistent obstacle they can’t resolve independently.

As a general rule, focus your engagement on problems that could severely hinder progress or put the business in jeopardy if not handled well. For smaller stuff, encourage your team to work through challenges themselves—it’s a crucial learning experience.

Make Yourself Consistently Available (Within Bounds)

For MBE to work, your team needs confidence you’ll be there when an exception arises. They shouldn’t hesitate to escalate something significant. At the same time, you can’t be a 24/7 on-call resource; that quickly negates the benefits of autonomy.

The solution is to set clear availability windows. Maybe it’s a daily 60-90 minute block when your team knows you’ll be fully present. Or weekly office hours. Or an always-open messaging channel for urgent items.

Coupled with this, have a protocol for true emergencies when things can’t wait for your pre-scheduled availability. Parameters like “For crises only, call me any time” provide a pressure relief valve.

Ask Catalytic Questions

When an issue is escalated to you, resist the urge to immediately take over and start barking orders. Your goal should be to ask thought-provoking questions that catalyse your team’s own problem-solving skills.

Some great catalytic questions:

  • “What solutions have you considered so far?”
  • “What information or resources are you missing?”
  • “What’s the ideal outcome you’re hoping for?”
  • “What would you do if you had to decide right now?”
  • “What precedents or past examples relate to this situation?”

By putting the onus back on them to start exploring solutions, you demonstrate trust in their abilities and foster an environment of psychological safety—where they can engage in candid thinking without fear of rebuke.

At the same time, these questions help you quickly get up to speed on the nuances of the issue so your own guidance has better context.

Provide a Methodology, Not Just an Answer

As a subject matter expert and experienced leader, your team will naturally look to you for clear-cut answers in many of these escalated situations. However, if you simply impose your solution, that’s a missed opportunity. You’ll have resolved one dilemma but failed to equip them for similar challenges down the road.

Instead, aim to provide frameworks, heuristics, and methodologies they can apply themselves now and adapt going forward. Analogies to other circumstances they’re familiar with. Best practices and time-tested principles. Ways to break down complexity into manageable elements.

If you do suggest a specific solution, be overt about explaining your underlying reasoning and decision-making process. Not only does this breed transparency, it also helps transfer valuable knowledge.

Set a collaborative tone by saying things like “Here’s one way I’d approach this…” or “Let’s think through these different options and scenarios together.” Positioning it as a joint sense-making exercise engages them in the methodology and increases their buy-in.

Review and Refine Your Escalation Criteria

Not every escalation will be clear-cut or align perfectly with your pre-defined criteria. Some issues might be grey areas, leaving the team unsure whether they qualify as exceptions. Others may expose gaps or ambiguities in those criteria.

After any significant escalation, take time in your next one-on-one or team meeting to review what happened:

  • Was this situation truly an exception, or could the team have resolved it on their own?
  • What made it confusing to assess whether this met the criteria?
  • Did any new factors emerge that our guidelines don’t cover?
  • How did our process work? What could be improved?

Then refine and re-communicate your criteria based on this feedback loop, continually calibrating everyone’s understanding. This helps reduce excessive escalations that waste time, while still accounting for subtle nuances.

Inevitably, there will be times the criteria still leave some ambiguity. When in doubt, err on the side of empowering your team to make the call themselves. You can always reinforce the right decision thresholds after the fact.

Model Leadership Escalation Yourself

It’s rarely a good look when leaders preach certain behaviours they don’t themselves exemplify. The same goes for escalation.

Your team takes cues from how you, their direct manager, handle decisions that are outside your personal purview. Do you brazenly make unilateral calls without looping in your own boss? Then they’ll think that’s okay. Do you involve others appropriately? Then they’re likely to follow suit.

Be overt about showing examples of when you escalate things: “This is a decision that requires sign-off from our VP, so I’m going to run it up the chain before finalising anything.” Describe your rationale and escalation processes.

Not only does this reinforce the importance and normality of escalation, it breeds transparency and trust between you and your team. They see you’re not hypocritically hoarding all decision-making authority.

Ultimately, Management by Exception is a partnership where you and your team uphold parallel responsibilities. You create the space for them to spread their wings through empowerment and autonomy. They take that opportunity seriously, keeping you informed and escalating things that rightly require your expertise and guidance.

By establishing clear escalation guidelines and demonstrating masterful handling of exceptions, you’ll maintain a balanced control system where no one feels rudderless nor micromanaged. Your team charts their own course confidently, knowing you’re there to keep them safely on track.

Title: Management by Exception: Empowering Your Team While Keeping Control

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

In today’s fast-paced business world, managers are constantly torn between two competing demands: the need to empower their teams to make quick, independent decisions, and the need to maintain control to ensure those decisions align with organisational goals. Too much control leads to micromanagement, stifling creativity and slowing down processes. Too little control can result in costly mistakes or misaligned efforts. Is there a middle ground? Absolutely, and it’s called “Management by Exception” (MBE).

What is Management by Exception?

Management by Exception is a leadership model that strikes a delicate balance between autonomy and oversight. The core principle is simple yet powerful: employees are empowered to make decisions and take actions independently within their roles, but they are expected to involve their manager when they encounter exceptions—situations that fall outside their normal duties, authority, or expertise.

Think of it as setting up a series of traffic lights in your organisation. Green lights represent areas where employees have full autonomy. They can drive ahead without stopping to ask for permission. Yellow lights are the “exceptions”—situations that require caution and possibly a stop to consult with management. Red lights are clear no-go zones, where decisions must always be escalated.

In practice, this means that your team handles day-to-day tasks, makes routine decisions, and even tackles some challenges on their own. However, when they face a situation that’s unusual, high-risk, or beyond their expertise, they know to bring it to you. This approach keeps you out of the weeds of daily operations while ensuring you’re involved when it really matters.

Key Components of Management by Exception

1. Empowerment: Trust is the cornerstone of MBE. You must genuinely believe in your team’s abilities and demonstrate that belief by giving them substantial autonomy. This isn’t just delegating tasks; it’s delegating authority.

2. Clear Boundaries: For MBE to work, everyone needs to understand what’s “normal” versus what’s an “exception.” This requires well-defined roles, responsibilities, and decision-making parameters. A marketing manager might have full autonomy on campaign messaging but need to involve you if the campaign budget exceeds a certain threshold.

3. Escalation Protocol: When an exception arises, what should your team do? Have a clear, well-communicated process. This could be as simple as “If it’s urgent, call me anytime; if not, let’s discuss at our next one-on-one.” The key is that everyone knows the when, how, and to whom of escalation.

4. Focus on Deviations: In MBE, your primary role as a manager shifts. Instead of overseeing every decision, you focus on deviations from the norm. These could be missed targets, quality issues, unusual customer requests, or novel market trends. Your expertise is reserved for these non-standard situations.

5. Risk Management: Not all decisions are created equal. Some have minor consequences if they go wrong; others could significantly impact the business. MBE helps ensure that high-stakes decisions get appropriate oversight, effectively managing organisational risk.

6. Resource Allocation: As a manager, your time and attention are precious resources. MBE helps you allocate these resources more effectively. Rather than spreading yourself thin across all tasks, you focus deeply on the exceptions that truly need your skills.

Why Management by Exception Works

The appeal of MBE isn’t just theoretical; it’s grounded in the realities of modern work:

1. Knowledge-Worker Era: Today’s employees, particularly in fields like technology, finance, and creative industries, are highly skilled professionals. They’ve been trained to handle complex tasks and often know their specific domain better than their managers. MBE respects this expertise.

2. Need for Speed: In our digital age, markets move fast. Waiting for managerial approval on every decision can mean missing opportunities. MBE allows for quick, on-the-ground decisions while maintaining a safety net.

3. Generational Preferences: Millennials and Gen Z, who now make up a majority of the workforce, strongly value autonomy. They want to be trusted to do their jobs without constant oversight. MBE aligns perfectly with this desire.

4. Complex Organisations: As companies grow, managers’ spans of control widen. It’s not uncommon for a manager to oversee 10, 15, or even 20 direct reports. Trying to be hands-on with each one is a recipe for burnout. MBE makes such structures manageable.

5. Motivational Impact: According to Daniel Pink’s influential book “Drive,” the three factors that motivate knowledge workers are autonomy, mastery, and purpose. MBE directly supports autonomy by trusting employees with decisions. It also fosters mastery, as employees learn from handling varied situations.

6. Error as Teacher: In a Harvard Business Review article, Amy C. Edmondson argues for the importance of “intelligent failures”—mistakes that provide valuable lessons. MBE allows team members to make smaller errors, learning from them without risking major failures.

Implementing Management by Exception

Transitioning to MBE isn’t just flipping a switch; it requires thoughtful implementation:

1. Start with a Skills Audit: Not every team member may be ready for high autonomy. Assess each person’s skills, experience, and judgment. You might need to start some employees with a narrower band of autonomy.

2. Define the Exceptions: Work with your team to clearly list what constitutes an exception. This could include financial thresholds, repetutional risks, legal issues, or strategic pivots. Document these and make them easily accessible.

3. Train and Coach: Many employees are conditioned to seek approval for everything. You’ll need to retrain this instinct, coaching them on how to evaluate situations and make independent decisions.

4. Encourage Escalation: Some team members may hesitate to bring you exceptions, fearing it will be seen as a failure. Actively encourage escalation. Share stories of when you escalated issues in your career, normalising the practice.

5. Regular Check-Ins: While MBE reduces your day-to-day involvement, it doesn’t eliminate the need for regular one-on-ones. Use these meetings to discuss recent decisions, offer feedback, and recalibrate what qualifies as an exception.

6. Celebrate Autonomy: When a team member handles a tricky situation well without your input, make a big deal of it. This positive reinforcement encourages more independent decision-making.

7. Learn from Exceptions: When issues are escalated to you, treat them as learning opportunities—not just for the individual, but for the whole team. What made this an exception? How can we better prepare for similar situations?

8. Lead by Example: As a manager, you report to someone too. Apply MBE upward, clearly showing your team when and how you escalate issues to your own boss.

Variations on the Theme

Management by Exception isn’t the only model that balances empowerment and control:

– Management by Objectives (MBO): Popularized by Peter Drucker, MBO focuses on setting clear, measurable objectives. Employees have freedom in how they achieve these goals, but if the objectives aren’t being met, that’s an “exception” requiring managerial intervention.

– Situational Leadership: Developed by Hersey and Blanchard, this model adapts your management style to each employee’s competence and commitment. A highly skilled, highly motivated employee gets an MBE-like approach, while a novice or disengaged employee receives more direction.

– OKRs (Objectives and Key Results): Used by tech giants like Google, OKRs are a modern twist on MBO. They set ambitious goals and key results that indicate progress. Like in MBE, day-to-day tactics are up to the team, but missing key results triggers managerial involvement.

When MBE Might Not Fit

While Management by Exception offers compelling benefits, it’s not a universal solution:

– Crisis Situations: During a PR disaster, financial turmoil, or other crisis, you may need to temporarily centralise control.

– High-Risk Industries: In fields like nuclear energy or healthcare, where a small error can have catastrophic consequences, you might need tighter oversight.

– New Teams: If you’re working with a newly formed team that hasn’t gelled yet, more hands-on management may be needed initially.

– Cultural Mismatch: Some organisational or national cultures place high value on hierarchy and expect close managerial guidance. MBE could be jarring in such settings.

The Future of Management

As we look ahead, the trends driving MBE’s relevance are only intensifying. Remote work, accelerated by the pandemic, further necessitates trust-based management. The gig economy and project-based teams mean managers increasingly work with autonomous professionals they can’t—and shouldn’t try to—closely control.

Moreover, as AI and automation take over routine tasks, human work is becoming more complex, creative, and ambiguous. These are precisely the kinds of tasks where empowered decision-making shines. A McKinsey report suggests that by 2030, demand for higher cognitive skills like creativity and critical thinking will rise by 14%. These skills flourish in environments of trust and autonomy.

Management by Exception isn’t just a tactic; it’s a mindset. It’s a belief that your role as a manager isn’t to make every decision but to build a system where good decisions can happen without you. It’s about creating a culture where asking for help is seen not as weakness but as wisdom. Most importantly, it’s a way to keep pace with a business world that’s only getting faster, more complex, and more talent-driven.

So, as you navigate the daily whirlwind of management, consider adopting Management by Exception. Empower your team to drive independently, but make sure they know it’s not just okay, but expected, to pull over when they hit those yellow lights. In doing so, you’ll foster a team that’s agile, confident, and growth-oriented—all while ensuring you’re there to guide them through the truly tough turns.

The Great Course Length Debate: When to Bite-Size and When to Supersize Your Training

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

In the world of Learning and Development, we’re always chasing that perfect training formula—the one that sticks, the one that transforms, the one that genuinely up-skills our workforce. But here’s the million-dollar question: does size matter? When it comes to course length, it’s a debate that’s been simmering in L&D circles for years. Should we serve up bite-sized, snackable learning morsels, or is it time to roll out the full, multi-day training banquet? Let’s dive in and unpack this tasty dilemma.

The Rise of Bite-Sized Learning

In our fast-paced, always-on world, attention spans are shrinking faster than a wool sweater in hot water. Enter bite-sized learning—compact, focused training modules typically lasting 5-15 minutes. These micro-learning nuggets are designed to deliver one key concept or skill, making them perfect for today’s busy professionals.

Pros:

1. Flexibility: Learners can squeeze in a module between meetings or during their commute.

2. Focus: Each bite tackles one topic, reducing cognitive overload.

3. Just-in-Time: Need to learn a skill right now? There’s a bite for that.

4. Better Retention: Short bursts align with our brain’s natural learning patterns.

5. Mobile-Friendly: Bites fit neatly on smartphone screens.

Cons:

1. Lack of Depth: Complex topics need more than a 5-minute overview.

2. Fragmentation: Without careful curation, bites can feel disjointed.

3. Less Interaction: Short modules offer limited peer-to-peer learning.

4. Oversimplification: Some subjects resist being boiled down.

The Case for Multi-Day Events

On the flip side, we have the traditional multi-day training events. These are the heavy hitters—immersive experiences where learners step away from their day-to-day to focus entirely on learning.

Pros:

1. Deep Dives: Complex topics get the space they deserve.

2. Skill Practice: More time for role-plays, simulations, and feedback.

3. Networking: Build relationships that outlast the event.

4. Mindset Shifts: Longer courses can change perspectives.

5. Escape from Distractions: No emails, no calls—just learning.

Cons:

1. Time Away: Days out of office can be a tough sell.

2. Cost: Venue, travel, facilitators—it adds up.

3. Information Overload: Too much, too fast can overwhelm.

4. One-Size-Fits-All: Not everyone learns at the same pace.

5. Post-Event Dip: Without follow-up, skills can fade fast.

So, When to Bite-Size?

1. For Tech Skills: Need to learn a new software feature? A quick tutorial will do.

2. Compliance Training: Legal updates or policy changes are perfect for bites.

3. Sales Tips: Brief, actionable advice can be applied immediately.

4. Refresher Content: Already know the basics? A short module keeps you sharp.

5. Diverse Teams: When schedules and time zones make gathering tough.

And When to Supersize?

1. Leadership Development: Building emotional intelligence takes time.

2. Culture Change: Shifting mindsets isn’t a quick fix.

3. Complex Problem-Solving: Think Six Sigma or strategic planning.

4. New Manager Training: Role transitions need space for reflection.

5. Team Building: When relationships are as important as the content.

The Balanced Diet Approach

Here’s the thing—it’s not really an either/or situation. The smartest L&D professionals are crafting blended learning journeys that mix bite-sized modules with more substantial fare. Think of it as a balanced diet:

– Appetizers (Pre-Work): Short, engaging bites to spark interest.

– Main Course (Workshop): A hearty, multi-day event for deep learning.

– Side Dishes (Support Tools): Quick reference guides and checklists.

– Dessert (Follow-Ups): Sweet, bite-sized reminders to reinforce key points.

This approach caters to different learning styles and needs. It also creates a rhythm—build anticipation with bites, deliver impact with the main event, then sustain learning with ongoing nudges.

The Tech Factor

Let’s not forget how technology is reshaping this debate. Learning Experience Platforms (LXPs) now offer Netflix-style interfaces where learners can binge short modules or commit to a learning “series.” AI and machine learning are personalising these journeys, suggesting the right bites at the right time based on individual needs.

Meanwhile, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are making multi-day events more engaging and accessible. Imagine a three-day leadership course where you’re not just discussing challenges but experiencing them in a simulated environment—all from your home office.

The Verdict

So, does size matter in L&D? Yes, but not in isolation. The most effective course length depends on your content, your audience, and your desired outcomes. Bite-sized learning is a game-changer for just-in-time needs and busy schedules. But for deep skill development and transformative learning, there’s still immense value in longer, immersive experiences.

The key is to stop seeing it as a battle and start seeing it as a buffet. Offer your learners a spread of options—some quick and easy, others rich and fulfilling. Because in the end, the goal isn’t to win a debate about course length. It’s to foster a culture where learning happens every day, in every way, tailored to each individual’s appetite for growth.

The Seismic Shifts Facing Managers In The Next Decade – Are You Ready?

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

The landscape for managers is shifting dramatically as we move into the next decade. Technological disruption, changing workforce dynamics, and evolving social expectations are creating a perfect storm of challenges. Thriving in this new reality will require a fundamentally different management mindset and skillset. 

At iManage, we’ve been closely tracking these seismic shifts. Based on our research and work with top organisations, here are the biggest obstacles managers must prepare to overcome:

1. Leading a Multigenerational Workforce

For the first time, we have up to five generations in the workplace – from Baby Boomers to Gen Z. Each group has distinct values, communication styles, and expectations around work. 

Adapting to this reality will require developing advanced emotional intelligence to connect with diverse people. It means mastering situational leadership – flexing your style based on individual motivations and needs. And it demands rethinking traditional career paths to create personalised growth journeys.

2. Navigating Technological Disruption  

AI, automation, and digitalisation are transforming how work gets done. Instead of being replaced by technology, managers must become expert human-technology orchestrators.

You’ll need to up-skill your team constantly in new digital capabilities. Identify opportunities to augment human effort through intelligent technologies. And cultivate a mindset of experimentation to pilot new tech solutions rapidly.

3. Building Agile, Adaptive Teams

In today’s turbulent environment, the ability to adapt and pivot is non-negotiable. Rigid hierarchies, command-and-control leadership, and fixed processes are doomed to fail.

Instead, managers must create an agile culture of shared accountability. Use enablers like design thinking, scrum principles, and rapid iteration cycles. Facilitate self-organising teams focused on customer value creation versus just task completion.

4. Fostering Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

A wealth of research proves that diverse teams significantly outperform homogenous ones. But diversity without true inclusion is lip service. 

You must go beyond representation to cultivating psychological safety where all voices are heard. Become aware of unconscious biases and social inequities to counteract them. Most importantly, create forums for open dialogue to harvest the full creative potential of your diverse talent.

5. Managing Remote/Hybrid Teams 

Remote and hybrid models are rapidly becoming the norm. But many managers struggle to maintain engagement, alignment, and productivity across distributed teams.

Virtual collaboration competencies like clear communication, digital facilitation, and video presence will be paramount. You’ll also need to establish new rituals and touch points that foster trust and relatedness in the absence of casual office interactions.

6. Prioritising Well-Being & Mental Health

The costs of employee burnout, stress, and mental health issues are staggering – over $1 trillion annually in the U.S. alone. Pushing people to their limits is unsustainable.

Truly caring about team well-being must be table stakes. This includes training to recognise burnout signs, creating safe spaces to discuss mental health, and destigmatising this often taboo topic. It also means role modelling work-life balance and offering benefits like therapy, meditation apps, and mental health days.

7. Attracting & Retaining Top Talent

The talent wars are only intensifying as skilled labor shortages grow. Simply offering a paycheque is no longer enough – people want purpose, growth, and holistic value.

Companies able to create compelling, human-centric experiences will win this war. As managers, you must craft roles that provide autonomy, learning opportunities, and chances to have real impact. A strong focus on internal mobility, stretch assignments, and continuous development is critical.

8. Driving Sustainability & Social Impact  

Consumers and employees alike – especially younger generations – are demanding that companies serve a greater societal purpose beyond profits.

Integrating social and environmental sustainability into your core operations is non-negotiable. But beyond that, you need to actively engage your team in co-creating solutions to these existential challenges. Tie work to positive societal impact to boost motivation and fulfilment.

The Bottom Line:

Addressing these tectonic shifts will require profound changes in how we think about and enact management. It’s an opportunity to shed archaic, dehumanising practices and evolve into a more purposeful, human-centred profession.  

We have been working at tailoring our training solutions to equip managers with the competencies to thrive amidst these new realities. Offering learning journeys targeting the modern skills of emotional intelligence, agility, inclusive leadership, virtual collaboration, well-being, and more.

But there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. Today’s challenges demand continuous lifelong growth – both for managers and their teams. The status quo is obsolete. Those who proactively up-skill and embrace this new mindset will be the leaders that drive unstoppable organisational success.

The path won’t be easy, but the rewards have never been greater. Are you ready to embrace this new era of management?  The future is waiting – but only for those daring enough to evolve.

“Navigating Conflict: A Manager’s Roadmap to Effective Dispute Resolution”

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

Conflicts are an inevitable part of any workplace setting. Whether it’s a clash of personalities, differing opinions, or competing interests, disputes can quickly escalate and negatively impact team dynamics, productivity, and overall morale. As a manager, it’s crucial to have a solid understanding of conflict resolution strategies and techniques to address and defuse tense situations proactively.

In this blog post, we’ll explore a comprehensive approach to navigating workplace conflicts, drawing from academic models and real-world examples. By adopting these strategies, you’ll be better equipped to address disputes with confidence, foster a positive work environment, and maintain a high-performing team.

Understanding the Nature of Conflict

Before delving into resolution strategies, it’s essential to understand the underlying causes and dynamics of conflict. The Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) provides a useful framework for analysing different conflict-handling modes, ranging from avoidance to compromise and collaboration.

According to the TKI model, conflicts often arise from competing interests, differing values, and miscommunication. By recognising the root causes, managers can tailor their approach and choose the most appropriate resolution strategy.

Step 1: Establish Open Communication

The first step in resolving any conflict is to create an environment of open and respectful communication. This involves actively listening to all parties involved, acknowledging their perspectives, and encouraging them to express their concerns without fear of judgment or retaliation.

Active listening is a crucial skill that managers must cultivate. It involves giving undivided attention, asking clarifying questions, and summarising the key points to ensure a shared understanding. By fostering open communication, you can gain valuable insights into the underlying issues and pave the way for effective problem-solving.

Step 2: Identify the Core Issues

Once you have established open communication, the next step is to identify the core issues driving the conflict. This process often involves peeling back layers of surface-level disagreements to uncover the deeper, underlying concerns or values that are at stake.

One helpful model for identifying core issues is the “Interests, Rights, and Power” framework proposed by conflict resolution experts William Ury and Roger Fisher. This model suggests that conflicts often revolve around perceived threats to one or more of the following:

– Interests: Substantive needs, desires, or concerns

– Rights: Entitlements or principles that parties believe should be upheld

– Power: The ability to influence or control the situation

By understanding which of these factors are at play, you can better frame the conflict and develop strategies to address the underlying concerns.

Step 3: Explore Collaborative Solutions

With a clear understanding of the core issues, the next step is to explore collaborative solutions that address the interests and concerns of all parties involved. This stage involves brainstorming creative options, considering different perspectives, and seeking win-win solutions.

One effective approach is the “Circle of Conflict” model, developed by conflict resolution expert Michelle LeBaron. This model encourages parties to move beyond a binary “either/or” mindset and explore creative solutions that incorporate elements from various perspectives.

Encourage your team members to approach the conflict with an open mind and a willingness to compromise. Facilitate discussions where all parties feel heard and valued, and work together to identify solutions that meet as many interests as possible.

Step 4: Implement and Monitor the Solution

Once a mutually agreeable solution has been identified, it’s time to implement and monitor its effectiveness. This step involves clearly defining roles, responsibilities, and timelines, as well as establishing mechanisms for follow-up and accountability.

It’s essential to approach implementation with a spirit of collaboration and support. Provide resources and guidance to ensure that the agreed-upon solution is executed smoothly and consistently. Additionally, schedule regular check-ins to assess progress, address any emerging issues, and make necessary adjustments.

Step 5: Reflect and Learn

After the conflict has been resolved, take the opportunity to reflect on the process and identify areas for improvement. Encourage open feedback from all parties involved, and use these insights to refine your conflict resolution skills and strategies.

Consider conducting a post-mortem analysis to identify what worked well, what could have been done differently, and what lessons can be applied to future conflicts. This continuous learning and improvement process will strengthen your ability to navigate conflicts more effectively over time.

Conclusion

Navigating conflicts in the workplace is a critical responsibility for managers. By embracing open communication, identifying core issues, exploring collaborative solutions, implementing and monitoring agreed-upon strategies, and reflecting on the process, you can successfully resolve disputes and foster a positive, productive work environment.

Remember, unresolved conflicts can fester and escalate, leading to diminished team morale, decreased productivity, and potential employee turnover. By proactively addressing conflicts through effective resolution strategies, you demonstrate strong leadership, build trust among team members, and contribute to the overall success of your organisation.

So, don’t shy away from conflicts – embrace them as opportunities for growth, learning, and strengthening team dynamics. With the right mindset and tools, you can navigate even the most challenging disputes and emerge as a more effective and respected manager.

The “Happy Sheet” Humbug: Why Your Post-Course Evaluation Might Be Failing You

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

Admit it – when you hand out those post-course evaluation forms (or as some like to call them, “happy sheets”), are you really just going through the motions? Sure, you might get a few polite comments about the coffee being nice and warm, but those happy sheets are about as useful as a chocolate teapot when it comes to genuinely measuring the effectiveness of your training.

It’s time to ditch the shabby happy sheet and start taking a more intelligent approach to post-course assessment. But before we get to the good stuff, let’s have a laugh at some of the most ridiculous questions people still insist on asking on those tired old forms.

The “Too Long or Too Short?” Two-Step

Asking delegates whether a course was too long or too short is about as pointless as asking a centipede which foot it favours. You’re bound to get a whole range of conflicting answers based on personal preferences and learning styles.

For instance, an Activist learner (as defined by the brilliant Honey and Mumford model) is likely to find even a half-day course dragging on too long, as they crave variety and can’t stand hanging about once they’ve got the gist of something. On the other hand, a Reflector will probably want to mull things over at length, soaking up every last detail like a sponge in a bucket.

So, by asking this question, you’re essentially setting yourself up for a lose-lose scenario – no matter what you do, you’ll end up frustrating at least a portion of your learners. Smart move!

The “Facilities Faff”

Unless you’re running courses in a dilapidated shed with no heating and a leaky roof, questions about the quality of the training facilities are largely irrelevant. We’re not talking about assessing the suitability of the British Grand Prix venue here – even a basic meeting room should provide an adequate environment for learning if the content and delivery are up to scratch.

The “Trainer Trap”

Asking learners to rate the trainer’s performance is only going to give you a superficial, subjective view that tells you very little about the true impact and effectiveness of the training itself.

Just because someone can spin a few jokes and looks pretty slick it doesn’t necessarily make them an exemplary trainer. Likewise, you could have the dullest, most monotone presenter in the world, but if they’re imparting knowledge that truly sticks and drives meaningful behaviour change, then who cares about their lack of razzle-dazzle?

The “Content Conundrum”

Simply asking if people found the course content useful or relevant is about as insightful as asking if they’d like a nice cup of tea. Of course, they’re going to say yes – why else would they have signed up in the first place?

A much better way to gauge the true value and impact of your learning content is to put it in a real-world context that actually matters to your learners’ roles and responsibilities.

So, there you have it – a few classic examples of post-course evaluation questions that really ought to be confined to the dustbin of history. But it’s not all doom and gloom – there are much more effective ways to analyse the impact and success of your training initiatives.

Enter the Learning Delta Model

We’ve been working at this topic for nearly 25 years, and (of course) we think we might have the answer!  It’s a simple solution that we call the learning delta analysis.  This is how it works:

After the training intervention we ask each candidate to evaluate their learning based on a ten point range.  For each topic covered we ask attendees to assess their pre and post training knowledge and application, subtract one from the other and arrive at a something we call the ‘learning delta score’ for that topic. 

For example we may have covered ‘the four levels of delegation’ in the course; so an attendee may have indicated that before the course they would have scored a 3 for knowledge and application, and after the training a 7, that leaves us with a learning delta of 4 (7-3=4).  

Collected anonymously this allows us to analysis data such as:

  1. The number of improvement points of learning for the whole programme. 
  2. The individual ranges from the lowest to the highest learners.
  3. The average delta learning points per individual. 
  4. The most impactful topics, down to the least impactful.  

Some times it is easier to have look at an example of this, so if you are interested please contact me and I can give you more insights.  Effectively though, this is way more useful than traditional happy sheet outputs.  

So, here’s my challenge – ditch the happy sheet humbug and start evaluating your training initiatives in a way that genuinely matters. Your learners, your business, and (most importantly) your own professional credibility will thank you for it.

Love to hear your thoughts…

Bob Bannister

The Struggle is Real: Breaking Bad Management Habits

Bob Bannister
by Bob Bannister on

We’ve all been there – that manager who calls you at 8PM to thoroughly explain a task you’ll be working on…tomorrow. Or the one who agrees with every decision in the moment only to berate you later about it. Bad management habits run amok in offices everywhere. 

Even the most well-intentioned managers can fall into counterproductive patterns. But being an effective leader means recognising those habits and putting in the work to break them. After all, employees don’t leave jobs, they leave bad managers.

So let’s take a hard look at some of the worst management behaviour out there, and more importantly, how to fix it:

Bad Habit #1: Micromanaging

While some managers think this shows their dedication, it really just disempowers employees and kills motivation. Break it by learning to trust your team, provide clear instructions upfront, then get out of the way and let them work.

Bad Habit #2: Avoiding Difficult Conversations  

“I’ll give them another chance to improve on their own”… famous last words. Ducking confrontation might avoid awkwardness now, but issues inevitably worsen over time. Rip off the band-aid – have those tough discussions early and often. Frame it as an opportunity to improve, not criticise. You’ll both grow from it.

Bad Habit #3: Disorganisation and Missed Deadlines

It’s the professional equivalent of the student waiting until the last minute to start that big term paper. Missed deadlines, scrambling, and excessive multi-tasking become the norm. Stop the insanity and get organised with tools like calendars, to-do lists, and blocking out periods for focused work. Model the behaviour you want to see.

Bad Habit #4: Favoritism  

Having special treatment for that teacher’s pet employee on the team? It’s obvious, it breeds resentment, and it’s just plain unethical. You’re not in high school anymore. Break this by setting consistent expectations for everyone and recognising accomplishments objectively. Hold everyone to the same high standards – no more sucking up.

Bad Habit #5: Failing to Appreciate Employees

Cue the former employees airing their grievances: “I never got any recognition!” “My work went unnoticed!” A simple “thank you” goes a long way. Dole out well-deserved praise publicly and give kudos for hard work and innovative ideas. They’ll be motivated to keep it up.

Bad Habit #6: Ineffective Delegation

Delegating allows you to multiply your team’s efforts and leverage their diverse skills. Break this habit by taking the time upfront to train employees on new tasks, provide needed resources, and establish clear roles. They’ll take ownership and you’ll free up bandwidth. It’s a win-win.

Bad Habit #7: Decision Paralysis  

Gather input, consider options, re-gather input, reconsider…and next thing you know, six months have flown by without a decision being made. At some point, you have to get off the fence and make the best decision you can with the current information. Practice being decisive while still weighing pros and cons.

Bad Habit #8: Poor Listening  

We’ve all zoned out during meetings only to be caught saying “Sorry, can you repeat that?” Guilty as charged. But truly listening – not just waiting to respond – is crucial for understanding employee perspectives and needs. Break this habit by staying present, asking questions, and rephrasing what you heard to confirm.

Bad Habit #9: Setting Unrealistic Expectations

“I need you to solve world hunger by Friday.” Okay, maybe that’s extreme, but unrealistic deadlines and goals undermine trust while setting employees up to fail. Get better about estimating workloads and provide ample time and support. Under-promise and over-deliver.

Bad Habit #10: Panicked Leadership

Staying unflappable in the face of a crisis is one of the toughest challenges for managers. But if you get frazzled, it trickles down to the entire team. Break this habit by having procedures in place, keeping communication clear during stressful periods, and actively mitigating panic with calm leaders.

We all have bad workplace habits to break. The key is developing self-awareness to recognise when we slip up, and consciously adjusting our behaviour. Sure, it takes effort, but being a great leader is worth it. Time to roll up those sleeves and get working on ourselves!

Contact us today to learn more

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I'm Bob Bannister, owner, and trainer at iManage Performance, the specialists in training for remote workers and managers with over 20 years of experience in this sector.

As the UK has rapidly shifted towards working from home, this challenges the norms in which we work and manage We can help to fast track your remote management or team skills. Speak to us about our training options today.

call today +44 (0)1444 474247

email bob.bannister@imanageperformance.com