Session 85 OF, The Manager's Toolkit Moderator/Presenter: Raymond E. DiDonna, FSA
The Manager s Toolkit Raymond E. DiDonna, FSA Chief Executive Officer, LOGiQ 3 SOA Meeting May 2015
SESSION DESCRIPTION Beyond technical skills, actuaries who are interested in playing critical roles within their organizations and advancing their careers to higher levels must master the art of managing others. Early career development for actuaries is focused on building a strong technical and industry foundation. Once this foundation is in place, however, an actuary must quickly pivot from being a technical expert to being a manager and a leader someone who others rely on to guide, motivate, decide, and deliver results. Managing a team is not (only) about being the go to technical expert, it s about producing superior results through the work of others. It s often easier to do it yourself, but it s more beneficial to you professionally, and to your organization, to bring out the best in others. This open forum is intended to educate young actuarial professionals on key management skills that will be beneficial in the near term as well as throughout their careers. At the conclusion of this session, attendees will: understand how to build a high-performance team, be able to motivate team members by communicating constructive feedback in a clear, compelling way, understand different decision-making strategies to empower their teams, and be able to use metrics to deliver superior results. 2
AGENDA 1. Background 2. Creating a Vision 3. Coaching & Mentoring 4. Managing with Metrics 5. Rewards & Recognition 6. Decision-Making Styles 3
BACKGROUND 4
BACKGROUND So why are we here today? Why did you come here? Because your technical foundation is ONLY ONE determinant (or pillar) of future success. Because your technical foundation is NOT the most important determination of future success. Because developing management and leadership skills is EVEN TOUGHER than passing actuarial exams. Because you WANT to succeed. 80% of life is just showing up Woody Allen 5
BACKGROUND What s the difference between Managing and Leading?? We re here to discuss managing, but don t stop there Aspire to Lead!! Leaders produce superior results through the efforts of others. Jack Welch s 4 E s of Leadership Energy Energize Execution (Results or Reasons) Edge (The company is paying you to lead) Today s Focus: Building High-Performance Teams 6
CREATING A VISION 7
LEADERSHIP = INFLUENCE Leadership is influence nothing more, nothing less. leadership is about influencing people to follow To move people in a new direction, you need to influence. You re a leader only if you have followers, and that always requires the development of relationships John C. Maxwell The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership (1998 and 2007) 8
CREATING A VISION Leaders are Storytellers Paint a picture of the ideal state for the team Make sure they can envision it (really see it) Energize them around the steps needed to get there Make the path as clear as you can Once the vision is in place, it s easier to manage with metrics and easier to provide critical feedback 9
COACHING & MENTORING 10
COACHING & MENTORING Remember Leaders produce superior results through the efforts of others. You may still have your own work to do, but Spend time with your team members (in groups & individually) in person Spend more time with your best people, not your lower performers (who tend to want and need more time) Listen and be responsive: You are there to serve them so they deliver for the team Your team should be more important than almost everything else 11
COACHING & MENTORING Constructive feedback The 3 musts: it must be timely, it must be clear, and it must be candid Treat them how you want to be treated No tough conversation ever got easier by waiting longer to have it Jack Welch Performance Evaluations: Summary of all the positive & constructive feedback you provided throughout the year so there are no surprises (if you didn t provide any, you re the problem) Include memorable phrases so they can re-read and understand the points you were making Take enough time people like to talk (and hear) about themselves, and they deserve it 12
MANAGING WITH METRICS 13
MANAGING WITH METRICS Top down measurements (from Vision to Strategy to Tactics) Measure the team, measure the individuals your team determines your future (their results are your results) Be transparent to build trust Share your goals so the team knows your success depends on them Only hold back what you must (e.g., cost cutting targets) Find a way to measure as much as possible Don t let people convince you otherwise What gets measured, gets fixed Individuals Makes performance conversations much easier Team Easier to motivate everyone to deliver 14
REWARDS & RECOGNITION 15
REWARDS & RECOGNITION Compensation & Equity Reviews Feedback must be objective, thorough, and provide clarity Understand strengths and development needs Make sure employees are treated fairly and there is appropriate equity Make sure results and ratings match up Work toward a reasonable distribution (e.g., 30-60-10) Force Rank, top-to-bottom, employees in similar roles Forces managers to make important choices Simplifies decisions on rewards Identify and Significantly Reward the Highest Performers 16
REWARDS & RECOGNITION Stretch Your Talent Give them stretch assignments when they deserve them Let them go when they should you should be developing other talent too Don t forget your successor (if you want to move up) Let them take accountability see decision-making styles 17
DECISION-MAKING STYLES 18
DECISION-MAKING STYLES You ve got this one Delegate Collaborative Let s work together Autocratic Consultative Here s what we re doing Thanks for the feedback Know When to Use Each Style *Adapted from the Vroom- Yetton-Jago Model 19
WRAP UP Focus tons of energy on Building a High-Performance Team Provide timely, clear, candid feedback Use metrics to provide clarity and transparency Reward outstanding performance Deal with low performers quickly Stretch your team; especially your high performers Employ a variety of decision-making styles 20
Questions?? 21