Tag: manager development

Epic Pursuits – Domestic Travel Before and During Retirement

In the previous post I discussed my epic pursuits before and during retirement.  This discussion covered research/writing, tennis/ pickleball, social networking and overseas travel.  I explained that overseas travel was now beyond me not only because of the rigours and length of overseas flights from Australia but also the fragility of my back (with osteoporosis and multi-level disc degeneration).  Another impediment is food allergy/sensitivity brought on by my MCAS chronic illness.

Domestic travel related to study

While I was born in Victoria, I moved to the warmer climate of Brisbane with my family when I was about 5 years old (owing to four siblings having asthma).  I undertook my schooling in Brisbane and matriculated in 1963.

Residing in Sydney and Melbourne

I joined the Carmelite Order in 1964, residing during this first year in Old Toongabbie, Sydney (later known as Winston Hills).  The dairy-farm based Novitiate provided a range of experiences including study and working on the farm.  The latter included clearing Lantana and building barbed-wire fences to house the cows in paddocks.

Following this first year, I then progressed to the Whitefriars Monastery in Donvale, Victoria where I undertook my studies of philosophy and theology.  During my four full-time years in the seminary I studied extensively and successfully, worked on the dairy farm, maintained the accounts of the seminary and enjoyed a range of sports including tennis, weight-lifting and social Australian Rules (played against local parishes and colleges).

At the end of each year, we would spend 4 weeks at the college’s holiday house at Portsea on the Mornington Peninsula.  While we were there we swam daily in the Bay, played badminton and enjoyed walks to Sorrento.  We were also able to play golf frequently at the stunning Portsea golf course with views over Port Phillip Bay and Bass Strait. 

I was in Portsea in 1967 when Harold Holt, Prime Minster of Australia disappeared from Cheviot beach while swimming in a turbulent inlet surrounded by rocks.  I recall the helicopters and sirens on the day of his disappearance – the quietness and calm of this bayside/seaside location was punctuated by the frantic search for the Prime Minister.

Domestic travel while working for the Australian Taxation Office

After leaving Whitefriars Monastery and the Carmelite Order in 1969, I returned to live in Brisbane where I joined the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) as a base grade clerk, rising to Senior Executive level over the 13 years while I was employed by the organisation.  One of my more memorable work-related, domestic trips was to Leura in the Blue Mountains where I spent 2 weeks participating in a national executive training program organised by the ATO. 

During my work in the ATO, I was heavily involved in computer systems design and implementation, auditing and fraud detection.  My associated travel included  6 weeks at Centrepoint in Sydney,  a week at Scarborough Beach in Perth (national system design workshop) and 3 months working in Canberra.  I would also take monthly trips to Canberra while working on several national projects associated with the design of the Central Taxation System (CTS) and security of the central computer installation.  In the final stages of my involvement in systems design, I travelled to Adelaide to assist with conversion of the South Australian Office of the ATO to the new Central Taxation System (CTS).

Travel associated with my roles in developing action learning and action research

After working in the Australian Taxation Office, I joined Griffith University as a Lecturer in Human Resource Management  and Organisational Behaviour.  Associated with this role was my time as President of the Action Learning and Action Research Association and my international travel as well as occasional trips to Sydney and Hobart.

Domestic travel in a National TAFE role

Following my resignation from Griffith University in 1999, I worked on a consultancy basis for four years (2001-2004) as National Change Manager for the conversion of TAFE (Technical and Further Education Colleges) in Australia to online learning and teaching.  My role entailed assisting 8-10 Senior TAFE managers each year to develop a whole-of-organisation change management plan to enable the design and implementation of online learning and teaching. This work took me to conferences and workshops in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide.

Manager development consultancy

After working fulltime in our own Human Resource Consulting business based in Brisbane (2005-2006), I joined Julie Cork on a Consulting basis.  During our extensive collaboration over 17 years (2007-2023), we co-facilitated action learning-based, longitudinal (3-6 months), manager development programs for managers in the Queensland Public Service and the Not-For-Profit Sector.  These workshops took us from Roma (far West) to Cairns (far North).  Our travels throughout Queensland included conducting programs in Toowoomba, Ipswich, Marburg, Caboolture, Mooloolaba, Gold Coast, Gladstone, Rockhampton, Mackay, Bundaberg, Emerald and Townsville.

Freelance academic

In 1985, I had also joined the Gibran Management Centre (later the Australian Institute of Business – AIB) as an adjunct academic/Professor.  This entailed roles in course design, and student assessments, Academic Board member, supervisor and examiner of postgraduate theses, supporting ongoing accreditation under the Australian Qualifications Framework and Chair of the Research and Higher Degrees Committee.  This varied work in an adjunct capacity (undertaken over 32 years) involved multiple trips each year to Adelaide and resulted in the award of Emeritus Professor following my resignation in 2017. 

Over several years, I worked as an Associate Professor (in an adjunct capacity) for the International Management Center (UK), conducting action learning based programs in Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Port Moresby (New Guinea).  I also had a role as an Associate Professor with the Southern Cross University which took me to Lismore, new South Wales on several occasions. 

Non-work based domestic travel

For the purposes of ease of discussion here I have included New Zealand travel as domestic travel (flight time from Brisbane to Auckland is 3 hours, 15 minutes; whereas flight time to Perth is 5 hours, 20 minutes).  My family and I have travelled to New Zealand on two occasions taking in Auckland, Rotorua, Queenstown, Kaikoura, and the Bay of Islands (where we enjoyed a stunning kayak adventure).

Over the forty years of our marriage, my wife and I have managed multiple trips to Sydney and Melbourne and over the last few years visited Perth and the Margaret River region,  the Blue Mountains (Katoomba), Canberra, Tasmania (Hobart, Bruny Island, Launceston and Freycinet National Park – incorporating Wineglass Bay).

My travel goals during retirement are now focused on the following:

Reflection

While I miss the opportunity to travel overseas, I can reflect very positively on my numerous travel experiences within Australia, on both a work and non-work basis.  I was very fortunate to have these opportunities and the support that they involved.  I look back now and appreciate what I have been able to achieve and look forward to further domestic travel in my retirement years.

As I grow in mindfulness through several mindfulness practices I undertake,  I have a strong sense of gratitude and clearer insight into what has helped me to achieve my goals in life.  Mindfulness practices like Tai Chi can not only provide clarity and understanding but also build the physical strength and resilience to continue my travel and pickleball pursuits.

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Image by Julian Hacker from Pixabay

By Ron Passfield – Copyright (Creative Commons license, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives)

Disclosure: If you purchase a product through this site, I may earn a commission which will help to pay for the site, the associated Meetup group, and the resources to support the blog.

Gratitude – a Reflection

In my last post I wrote about simple gratitude exercises.  There was one in particular that resonated with me – reflecting on your day.  As a result, I reflected on a specific event that occurred the day before.  It was a cafe meeting I had with two of my colleagues.  Reflecting on this event brought home to me how much I take for granted in my life.  I will share my reflections about my gratitude for this interaction in the following post.

Gratitude for colleague 1 – occasional colleague

I last worked with this colleague about six months ago.  Despite this elapsed time, I found we virtually took up the conversation “where we left off”.  I often marvel at how this occurs – when you are with real friends, you seem to be able to resume “where you left off” even after 6 months, a year or even many years – it’s almost as if you communicate in the ether over time, even when you are going your separate ways.

Underlying this ease of conversation, is a common value system and belief about the inherent goodness of people.  In our case, it also relates to an approach to organisational consulting which sets a lot of value on respecting people and seeking to create positive, productive and mentally healthy organisations.  It is a rich source of support when you have a colleague, however occasional, that you can relate to so easily and share a common paradigm about people and organisations.  I am very grateful for this rich relationship, developed more than three years ago, which has provided me with such professional support.

Gratitude for colleague 2 – weekly collaborator

Over more than a decade now, I have worked weekly with a colleague with whom I collaborate on manager/executive development and organisational reviews and development.  While we may not be working specifically with a manager or organisation all the time, we are regularly sharing resources, planning workshops or interventions, reflecting on our activities and following up with clients.

We have in common a shared set of values which among other things encompasses working continuously to develop mentally healthy organisations.  We do this through the Confident People Management Program (CPM), a longitudinal, action learning program we conduct with managers and executives in Government agencies throughout the State.  In all, we have worked with over 2,000 managers in the past decade or so.

Additionally, we have undertaken organisational interventions at the request of clients who want to increase leadership effectiveness, undertake collaborative strategic planning, develop a positive and productive culture, heal divisions or act on aspects of organisational life identified by managers and/or staff as unsatisfactory.

My colleague has the contacts, the persistence and energy to generate this work – and I regularly express appreciation for this collaborative work and the rich experience and learning that this provides (not to mention the revenue involved also).

I appreciate her courageous commitment to her values and willingness to challenge others when their words and actions do not align with their stated values.  Associated with this is the readiness to question her own words and actions through ongoing reflection.   This personal commitment to continuous improvement in herself and others is foundational to the success we experience in engaging managers and organisations.  It is underpinned by her absolute commitment to meet the needs of our clients, whether they are individuals, groups or organisations as a whole.

There is also an underlying courage and willingness to “have a go” and try something different which is both refreshing and encouraging and has taken us into consulting realms and activities that I thought would not eventuate.  This is the inherent developmental aspect of our professional relationship, as we stretch our boundaries to meet the needs of our clients – managers and organisations.

I appreciate too that my colleague does not have “ego” investment in any of the processes we plan for our manager development or organisational intervention activities.  This makes it so much easier to plan, explore alternative options, experiment and change course mid-action.   It also facilitates the ability for collaborative reflection on action as well as in-action.

I am grateful that our relationship has been built on complementary skills – with my colleague contributing a unique depth of understanding of our public sector clients and their history as well as endless contacts.  My contribution focuses on process design and our collaboration has developed my process design skills and provided the support/opportunity to explore new processes and embed different processes into our manager development activities and organisational interventions.  We also share a common understanding of group and organisational dynamics and a commitment to action learning and the values that underpin this approach to manager and organisational development.

Underlying all this however, is a common set of values around respecting and valuing people and seeking to facilitate the development of mentally healthy organisations where executives, managers and staff can develop themselves and their organisations.  We often describe our work as “enabling organisational participants/groups to have the conversations they should be having”- whether that is managing upwards, sharing values, planning together, resolving conflicts or building each other’s capacity and capability.

I have worked with many colleagues over more than forty years of educating and consulting, and it is rare indeed to have a colleague who brings so much to a professional relationship, who values the relationship above self-interest and is willing to collaborate in the very real sense of the word.  My reflection on this cafe meeting brought home to me how much I value this ongoing professional relationship and all that it has enabled me to undertake and achieve.   For this, I am very grateful, but I realise how much of this richness I take for granted.  Reflecting on various professional experiences with my colleague is a catalyst for this expression of gratitude.

As we grow in mindfulness, we learn to take less for granted and grow in appreciation for the many people and things that enrich our lives.  Reflection really aids the development of this sense of gratitude.  Through reflection we come to see what others have contributed to our wellness, growth, mental health, sense of accomplishment and happiness.   In relationships we can become who we are capable of being.  Ongoing reflection helps relationships, professional and otherwise, to develop and grow richer.  There is so much about reflection that underpins gratitude.  Being mindful helps us to reflect, just as reflection contributes to our development of mindfulness and the associated internal and external awareness.

 

By Ron Passfield – Copyright (Creative Commons license, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives)

Image source: courtesy of johnhain on Pixabay

Disclosure: If you purchase a product through this site, I may earn a commission which will help to pay for the site, the associated Meetup group and the resources to support the blog.

Creating a Mentally Healthy Workplace

If you revisit the previous post and listen to Goldie Hawn’s statement about the tools and skills that children are given in MindUP™ , you come to realise that she is creating the foundations for mentally healthy workplaces . As Goldie pointed out, she set about creating a new culture, conducive to world peace, by developing children as future leaders with dignity and humanity.

In their guide, Mental Health at Work, produced by Portner Press, the authors discuss the need to create a workplace culture that is conducive to developing and maintaining mental health in the workplace. What they identify as the elements that go into making a mentally healthy workplace culture align very well with Goldie’s focus and goals.

They also align very closely with the manager development work I have been doing over more than a decade with my colleague, Julie Cork.  The Confident People Management Program that we have been facilitating for over 2,000 managers is a longitudinal, action learning program of four to six months focused on people management skills.

To create a culture that is conducive to mental health in the workplace, requires, fundamentally, an awareness of, and willingness to address, the basic needs of staff.  Staff have three basic needs, (1) tell me what is expected of me, (2) give me honest feedback about how I am doing, and (3) provide me with the resources to meet the expectations of the job.

Job expectations

Clarity around job expectations is particularly critical for creating a workplace environment that is conducive to mental health. Much stress, conflict and mental illness is caused by unclear job expectations which are manifested in role confusion, role ambiguity and/or role overlap.

Communication of expectations should cover both performance expectations and behavioural expectations. Performance expectations, in terms of the quantity and quality of work to be done, have to be reasonable and not excessive. It is okay to establish high expectations as long as you enable negotiation of those expectations and provide the requisite level of support to achieve the desired outcomes.

The other aspect of job expectations is behavioural standards. It is one thing to communicate workplace values, e.g. professionalism, it is another thing to explain these values in behavioural terms so that staff understand what is required of them behaviourally. So for a value like professionalism, a manager would need to ask, “What does professionalism look like behaviourally in our workplace context?” (or, alternatively, “what would be considered unprofessional behaviour in our context?”).

Clarity around job expectations, both performance and behavioural, is a critical first step for a mentally healthy workplace.

Feedback

An essential component for a workplace culture that is conducive to mental health is regular feedback about performance and behaviour. This involves both positive and corrective feedback.

Positive feedback builds a person’s self-esteem and sense of self-efficacy. It respects and values their contribution and encourages positivity in the workplace.

Corrective feedback is designed to correct performance/ behaviour so that the staff member can meet the job expectations. If it is provided in a professional manner it can be generate respect – the focus being on the performance/ behaviour, not the person or their personality.

In both forms of feedback, it is important that the feedback is timely, specific, accurate and sincere.

Resources

It is unreasonable and damaging to mental health to provide staff with resources that are inadequate to enable them to meet job expectations – this includes the provision of training in both performance and behavioural requirements. In terms of assisting people who have mental health issues, it is important to provide access to independent, external health professionals to give adequate support for the individual involved. What is often overlooked is the need to train managers in how to deal with mental health issues in the workplace – resulting in managers experiencing undue stress and, potentially, burnout.

Listening for understanding

If a manager is to genuinely meet the needs of staff, they have to have skills in active listening. One component of this is empathetic listening skills – the ability to understand the emotions involved for the other person, to empathise with them and to work with them to help alleviate the associated pain where possible.

Being present

Underpinning the above elements of a healthy workplace culture is the capacity of a manager to be really present to their staff.  Listening for understanding, communicating expectations and providing feedback (both positive and corrective), require the manager to be in-the-moment and really present to their staff.

As managers grow in mindfulness, they are better able to create workplace environments conducive to mental health. Kindness and gratitude form part of the emergent skill-set and these, in turn, contribute mental health and happiness, not only for staff but also for the manager.

By Ron Passfield – Copyright (Creative Commons license, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives)

Image source:  Courtesy of johnhain on Pixabay