It’s almost 30 years since “Coaching for Performance” by Sir John Whitmore catapulted coaching into the leadership psyche. Before that, coaches were found in the sports arena, not the Boardroom. It’s a good book and its impact endures – there’s
New Year’s Resolutions That Will Really Pay Off
I guess we start this year with optimism and yet less certainty than we would normally do. I know most of my friends are much more likely to say ‘If I can…’ rather than ‘I intend to…’ when it comes
Getting ready for APRs? Some self-assessment questions to ask yourself first
It’s Annual Performance Review time of year again for many organisations. APRs are amongst those conversations that everyone involved should welcome because of the value they bring. Instead, far too often people dread them. In fact, according to a 2019
Why leaders find giving feedback difficult and what to do about it

CommsMasters Insights The prospect of ‘giving feedback’ can make even the most confident of leaders stumble over their words or struggle to articulate what needs to be said. A recent Gallup poll found that 69% of senior managers have difficulty
3 Ways to Convince Managers to Carry Out Performance Reviews

It’s that dreaded time of year again – performance review time. Otherwise known as the yearly (or half-yearly) point at which the HR team and line managers do battle. HR want managers to get all their performance reviews completed on
5 Ways to Enable Effective Performance Management Conversations

Mercer’s 2013 Global Performance Management Survey reports that only 7% of managers were felt to be “highly skilled at having candid dialogue with their direct reports about performance”. The same survey found that approximately one in three organisations worldwide said
Do Your Leaders Ignore Poor Performance?

Do leaders in your organisation ignore poor performance for too long – or indeed completely? Chronic failure to tackle underperformance is potentially the biggest waste of resource in business today. And it’s a problem that is recognised and talked about