Fostering Relationships while Maintaining Productivity

One of the constant challenges leaders face is building relationships while staying on top of all of the other daily demands. It's a delicate balance because both are equally important, yet achieving both often feels like walking on a tightrope.



In the early days of my leadership journey, I erred on the side of productivity. As an emerging leader, I was too focused on the numbers, which made my leaders happy, but my direct reports were not. It took several years for me to balance people and productivity, and the primary change was prioritizing people by:
  • Keeping scheduled one-on-one meetings
  • Utilizing one-on-one to get to know the person--not the professional
  • Sharing more about my personal life
  • Maintaining a DRM (direct report management)
Like CRM, DRM systems helped me improve the relationships. I noted whatever was important to them and was intentional in inquiring during our meetings. 

The four commitments enabled me to achieve the balance that I needed, and the bonus was that productivity increased. I was managing a contact center, and our overall scores improved in call duration and customer satisfaction. 

Priorizing People IMPROVED Productivity!

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