Final Blog

In my first post for this course, I wrote about how excited I was to learn about leadership.  I remember being very enthusiastic when reviewing the course syllabus since all of the assignments seemed worth my time and effort.  This course was very different from some of my other courses and I am enjoying the variety of subject matter the program has to offer.  For example, in accounting, I really enjoyed writing a paper about the Federal Reserve because it helped me learn all about how the banking system in America works.  In this course, the concepts and leadership principles that I learned about were so relevant and applicable to both my personal and professional life.  I really enjoy learning about new subjects but especially enjoyed this course because I have a plan outlined for how to actually improve my own leadership skills.  I also think asking people to be your mentor can be a really challenging feat.  I have so many coworkers that I have really good relationships with at work, but I never really formally engaged with any one individual and asked them to work with me.  This course helped open up that door and encouraged me to pursue a more formal mentorship relationship with my current boss, and one of my former bosses.  I also miss my relationship with my former boss from when I was an intern and love that I will work with him again on developing each other’s leadership skills.  When I reached out to him, I also learned that he recently took a new position at the company and is working with an entirely new team.  So, I think a familiar friend and face was actually something that he would benefit from too.  We already started discussing some of the challenges he has been experiencing in his transition into the new position.  For example, just three weeks after he started, his manager was laid off.  There have been a lot of layoffs over the past couple years at the company, and so the employee moral can be a little low.  We have been discussing ways to show leadership skills at a time of loss because the way you handle situations can ultimately make or break you in the organization.  There is a significant difference between Gen X, Y, and Z which can cause both friction and opportunity when they all need to work together in a corporate environment (Getty, 2015).  They have different education and grew up in different times which also will naturally impact how they process information (Getty, 2015). “Seasoned executives (40s and over) can use mentorships to help acclimate these younger employees in an unfamiliar corporate environment. Likewise, these same executives can benefit from exposure to new talent, and the innovation Gen Y and Z bring to the workforce” (Getty, 2015).  Surviving in corporate America isn’t easy, and especially now with the ever-changing, dynamic nature of social media and technology.  Having a strong support system who can be honest and help you become a stronger team player and leader is a good idea.  Those are the relationships I want to invest my time and energy into throughout my career.  My expectations for this course were met and I learned a lot of valuable information about how to behave and act like a leader.  One of my main takeaways is the importance of self awareness and that you will be judged based on the way you are perceived.  You might be a great leader but if other’s don’t perceive you as one, you likely won’t be successful at what you set out to accomplish. 

Reference

Getty, K. (2015, May 27). Why young workers make the best mentors. Retrieved March 03, 2017, from http://fortune.com/2015/05/26/kim-getty-importance-of-a-mentor/

Week 6 Blog - Workplace Transformation

This week we were focused on skills and attributes that can build collaborative teams.  I think this week was especially relevant to my current role and I can definitely apply these concepts to my job.  Being able to recognize both positive and negative behaviors in your teammates is critical to building a strong team.  For example, I discussed how my co workers might have very different reactions to the building redesign for our corporate office.  In my discussion I mainly focused on the challenges employees will face when transitioning to one way of working (cubicles) to something entirely different (open space). 

I think it’s important to be extremely mindful of what I say about the new working environment.  A lot of my co workers make negative comments, poke fun at the idea of collaborating, and say how much they are dreading it.  Even if I am not very fond of the newly redesigned building myself, I don’t want to go around telling people because I might be perceived as someone who doesn’t want to collaborate and is resistant to change.  I don’t think people realize how critical what you say and how you act in times of significant change is.  I think a lot of what we have learned in this course reinforces the importance of self awareness.  Your words and actions can influence the people around you, and can also shape their perceptions of you.   This is really just human nature and I don’t want to be put into the bucket of people who are associated with being negative at work.    I can definitely think of five-ten people who causally said they think it’s a horrible idea, unproductive, and an invasion of privacy.  

The reality is that these people have to change and get on board or they will be forced out of the organization.  Or even worse, if they stay in the organization, they will be perceived as unhappy and that they don’t do well with change.  This will continue to negatively impact their reputation as an employee at the company.  That might result in them not getting a promotion down the roadm or not chosen to work on a specific project because of their percieved attitude.  Being open to change, new ideas and ways of working is very important.  I think that during this time of transition, I can point out some of the positives of the workplace transformation and really show my leadership skills.  “Success at work starts with positive perceptions” (Garfinkle, 2011).  By maintaining a positive attitude during the transition, it can also influence others to either keep their opinions to themselves, or better yet also begin to see some positives.  In order to build an effective team, I need to focus on motivating others to want to work in this new environment and being open to the benefits it can bring.  We know that the transformation is underway and isn’t going to stop, and so preparing for it now will hopefully ease the transition when it hits my team specifically. 

References:

Garfinkle, J. A. (n.d.). Transforming Perceptions: 10 Steps to Managing the Way You Are Perceived at Work. Retrieved February 17, 2017, from              http://www.greatleadershipbydan.com/2011/10/transforming-perceptions-10-steps-to.html

Week 4

Week 4 blog

In week four’s work, we learned about leadership in the context of a company’s business.  I enjoyed thinking about this especially because the concepts can be applied to both big and small businesses.  Since I work for such a large organization like Verizon, it was interesting to consider smaller brands in my discussion for the week like Warby Parker.  I like to compare and contrast the similarities and differences between the brands.  Verizon is a brand that has been successful for so long, but more recently has been struggling to stay ahead of competition and grow its market share.  With the smaller carriers like T-mobile and Spring really starting to gain momentum with building their customer bases since they have built out their 4G LTE networks.  A few years ago, Verizon has a clear differentiation with its superior, faster, larger network and therefore had the competitive advantage.  Marketing is becoming more and more important as we start to see very aggressive marketing plots on television.  For example, Sprint has a great commercial out that really stresses price as the differentiator and asks consumers to consider why pay twice as much for a one percent network difference.  It’s a really good strategy and is creating a lot of internal pressure at Verizon to improve.  This is where leadership comes in and this week we learned about the critical success factors for aligning a company’s business plan to its vision. 

Newer companies, like Warby Parker have the opportunity to build a vision that is relevant to what consumers care about today.  An inexpensive, eco-friendly option and also has a great customer experience.  For Verizon, it is a much harder challenge to sort of recreate and rework the company’s vision for where they want to be in the future.  All of the recent attention is being emphasized on the customer experience and improving customer service.  Verizon is not known for having great customer experience, which therefore will require some significant change, new skills and new leaders that can help transform the business.  Furthermore, the new leaders not only have to create the vision and business plans to get there, but also have to sell it in to all the employees that work there and get them to get on board.  This is not an easy task, especially for a company who is so used to doing things a certain way and being successful for so many years.  Over the past three years, my company has been changing dramatically and this is in large part due to the new leadership team.  We have a new chief marketing officer who has a put forward a new vision for Verizon.  The transition has not been easy for many employees.  Personally, it has been fine for me because I am new to the organization myself and so am not as vested to the way things used to be.  Just this past week, for the first time Verizon employees were notified that their bonuses for the year will not be at the target.  This was a big surprise and maybe the first indication that things really need to be done differently.  This was a wakeup call for many employees that they need to get on board with the changes or they will be left behind.  The company has been working very hard at updating its core purpose and operating principles to be more relevant in today’s digital world.  I do believe that it is staying true to its original core values.  For example, the internal credo was not changed and will continue to help guide the company as it continues to evolve.  “We believe integrity is the core of who we are” (Verizon Credo, 2017).  I believe this holds true and that the senior leaders at the company keep this in mind when making big decisions that will impact our employees, customers, and shareholders. 

Reference

Verizon Credo. (n.d.). Retrieved February 4, 2017, from https://www.verizon.com/about/sites/default/files/Verizon-Credo.pdf

Week 2 blog reflection

This week, we learned about the differences between management and leadership.  Throughout the readings I also considered my own personal strengths and weaknesses regarding both management skills and leadership skills.  In one of the articles I read, it talked about how management usually comes before leadership.  When you read about these concepts, it does sound like it would be more logical for management to come first and leadership would eventually follow.  Through my own personal experience, I have had a lot less experience with management and more experience with leadership.   For example, when I was a student at Rutgers University, I joined a student organization called RU for Troops.  This organization was designed to help veterans transition back to an academic life at Rutgers.  The objective was to aid their process in getting accustomed to everyday life as a student and also helping them with their course work.  I got very involved in the club and attended every weekly meeting.  When the time came to elect a new president I was ready for the challenge and was voted into the position.  This was a great opportunity to grow my leadership skills.  I gained experience in recruiting others to join a club with a shared vision of giving back to those who scarified for our country. 

I also had the chance to bring new ideas and concepts to the club and so started partnering with other student organizations to help drive awareness and gain new members.  I got us involved with campus blood drives, fundraising events, and strategic partnerships.  We grew club activity and involvement and I was so happy to be leading a group of students in supporting our troops and veterans.  I also helped recruit students to expand the subjects we tutored in, as the program was entirely voluntary and so it was important to share our vision and objective in order to get people on board.  By the end of my term we had over 50 members and were tutoring in over 7 academic subjects.  This experience was very helpful in developing leadership skills.  I feel like I can expand my management skills and am looking forward to learning more about ways you can gain management skills both in and outside of work.  

Week 1 Blog Reflection

After reviewing the course description, outcomes and assignments, I am very excited to be taking the leadership course as part of Centenary’s MBA program.  In looking at all of the courses within the overall program, I believe this is a course that will directly tie to anything I do both in and outside of my job.  As a consultant at Verizon, it is very important for me to strengthen my leadership skills.  Even after just the first week’s discussion post I can see that there will be a lot of interesting discussions for the class.  I enjoyed writing about what it takes to be a leader, and also seeing the overall discussions posted.  Topics like these are broad and sort of open ended and therefore make for some really different thinking and engagement. 

                I actually have used blogger.com once before in the past, and also for a similar exercise.  I took a class in undergrad at Rutgers University where we also were asked to keep a blog so that we could reflect on our experiences throughout the duration of class.  It made sense for that course, especially because the class was all about writing for game design, which was an entirely new concept to most people taking the course.  It was a great opportunity to reflect on the course challenges, as it wasn't an easy task to both create and design a card game and board game.  I remember that being one of the most difficult classes I took and I really enjoyed it because it challenged me to think differently and creativity.  I also like the idea of keeping of a blog for courses because it offers a record of what you found interesting, difficult or entertaining.  As example, I was able to look back at the blog I had already published on blogger.com.  I had completely forgot I had even done the blog, as it was several years ago, but I was so pleased to be able to review my writing and refresh my mind with that course. 

                In this course, I expect to learn about what it means to be a leader.  Already in the first week we learned that there are many different meanings to being a leader and also how someone can become a leader.  I hope to learn more about my own leadership capabilities and better understand my own habits and leadership style so that I can use that to strengthen my own skills both in and outside of work.  One of course objectives is evolve as a reflective leader through self-reflection and practice.  I think having the tools and forums to explore your own leadership style is so important as people who are more self-aware also tend to be more successful.  Currently, I am not in a leadership role at work, as I am newer to the position and younger in my career.  However, I believe this course will encourage me to take on other kinds of leadership roles such as in organizations.  I recently learned about a program at work that encourages women to connect.  There is also an entire leadership board for that program as well.  I think by taking this course, students can become more open minded about what is means to be a leader and identify new opportunities to lead.  Leadership is an important skill and I think having more leaders in the world can make everyone more successful.  I also think creating a development plan will be a useful component of this course.  We try and create development plans at work, but often not enough time is spent on them as the primary focus is put on the performance agreement and review.  I think this course will help reinforce the importance of having a plan for development, and using it to grow and sharpen leadership capabilities.