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Have
You Got What it Takes to be an "Over the Top" Hotel Leader?
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News for the Hospitality Executive |
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Have
You Got What it Takes to be an "Over the Top" Hotel Leader?
| By Jim Hartigan April 5, 2011 If your DVD/Blu-Ray collection is anything like mine, it’s so massive that it needs its own classification system. And, if your classification system is anything like mine, it borrows from the time-tested Dewey Decimal Classification system used in libraries that begins with the 100 series of Philosophy & Psychology through the 900 series of Geography & History. My system needs only two categories: The 100 series and the 200 series - it’s quite simple, really. Here’s what it looks like: Hartigan
DVD/Blu-Ray
Collection Classification System
100 Series: Sylvester Stallone Films 200 Series: Everything Else (mostly Mrs. Hartigan’s stuff) Similarly, if your thoughts on workplace mentoring are anything like mine, you often wonder why folks spend so much time and money trying to perfect their mentoring skills when all they need to do is pick any Sly Stallone film to learn everything they’ll ever need to know about the topic. It’s pretty much a scientific fact. I know, you are thinking, “Here it comes—another one of his wild connections—like trying your coaching skills with your dog, or building Christmas toys with the wrong tools, or founding fathers texting, or making that dubious link between the Venus Fly Trap and employee retention.” Okay, do you want me to prove it? Fine. I’m going to randomly select one movie from my Stallone Index App on my phone and show you exactly what I’m talking about. Okay, I have randomly selected the 1987 Stallone tour de force Over the Top. But before we begin our critical analysis of the film, let’s lay the foundation for our discussion about mentoring, starting with how it differs from coaching. While even the fine folks at Merriam-Webster.com list “coach” as a synonym for mentor, there are distinct differences. By definition, MENTORSHIP is a relationship-based, operations-focused development process by which a more experienced person (mentor) helps a high-performing, high-potential team member (protégé) learn the skills needed to systematically identify and solve operational problems. While coaching and mentoring are very similar, there are some important distinctions to note. Through our work in this area, I have discovered many of the differences fit quite succinctly into this table:
Why not take a few minutes to determine your personal leadership style? Click Leadership Style Assessment to launch our online Leadership Flexibility assessment. If you include your name and e-mail on the assessment, we’ll score and return a summary report explaining your results and mapping you on a two-dimensional plot with descriptions of various leadership styles. In order for a Mentor to be successful, they must demonstrate three (3) essential skills: They must (1) analyze, (2) challenge, and (3) focus. Now, as I proposed earlier, one simply need watch any Sylvester Stallone movie to see an example of any or all of these mentoring skills in action. Let’s take a closer look at Over the Top for proof. 1. ANALYZE The successful mentor must analyze by listening and observing. This means:
2. CHALLENGE The successful mentor must spend the majority of their time questioning and probing. This is where the learning occurs and where the mentor differs from a coach (who directs and tells as opposed to questions and probes). The mentor must ask:
3. FOCUS Finally, the mentor provides value to the protégé by distilling and deciding. This involves helping the protégé find the final solution on their own by asking (more questioning as opposed to telling!) questions such as,
At the end of the day, a mentor analyzes, challenges, and focuses the protégé to teach them faster than they can learn on their own. By probing, listening, and leading the protégé through the discovery process, a mentor shares their understanding of the world, helping the protégé learn before experiencing. Finally, a major difference from coaching is that a mentor provides emotional support and reassurance throughout the process as somebody who has "been there, done that and has the t-shirt." Mentoring relationships are important. And the best coaches know how to shift their perspective to serve as mentors to their high potential team members. Phil Jackson did it with Michael Jordon. Bill Walsh mentored Joe Montana. And, John Wooden served Bill Walton in that sense as well. When you are ready to dive into the wonderful world of mentoring, you can’t go wrong by referring to the Stallone Index for a little inspiration. Until next time, remember to take care of your customers, take care of each other, and take care of yourself!  About the Author: Jim Hartigan, Chief Business Development Officer and Partner joined OrgWide Services, a Training/e-Learning, Communications, Surveys and Consulting firm in April 2010 after nearly 30 years experience in the hospitality industry, including the last 18 as a senior executive with Hilton Worldwide. Jim’s last position was that of Senior Vice President – Global Brand Services where he provided strategic leadership and business development and support to the $22B enterprise of 10 brands and more than 3,400 hotels in 80 countries around the world. His team was responsible for ensuring excellence in system product quality, customer satisfaction, market research, brand management, media planning, and sustainability. |
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| Contact: Jim Hartigan Chief Business Development Officer & Partner OrgWide Services 165 N. Main Street, Suite 202 Collierville, TN 38017 office: 901.850.8190 Ext. 230 mobile: 901.628.6586 [email protected] www.orgwide.com |