Anthony J. Algmin is the Founder and CEO of Algmin Data Leadership, a company helping business and technology leaders transform their future with data, and author of a new book on data leadership. We asked for his insights on how strong leaders can see their teams, their companies, and their people through this global pandemic (and other crises in the future). The following are his own words:
Managers sometimes forget that the people we lead have lives outside of the office. This is true always but is amplified when a crisis occurs. We need to remember that our job is to serve their teams, to help them be as aligned and productive as possible in the short and long terms.
Crises are exactly when we need to think about what they might be going through, and realize that the partnership we have with our employees is more than a transaction. If we’ve ever asked our people to make sacrifices, like working over a weekend without extra pay, we should be thinking first about how we can support them through the tough times. When we do right by people when they really need it, they will run through walls again for our organizations when things return to normal.
Let them know it’s okay to breathe and talk about it. In a situation like COVID-19 where everything was disrupted and people are adjusting to things like working from home, it is naturally going to be difficult and frustrating.
The best advice is to encourage people to turn off the TV and stop frequently checking the news websites. As fast as news is happening, it will not make a difference in what we can control ourselves. Right now most of us know what our day will look like, and nothing that comes out in the news is going to materially change it. If we avoid the noisy inputs, we’ll be much better able to focus and get our brains to stop spinning on things we can’t control.
And this may be the only time I would advocate for more meetings. If you don’t have at least a daily standup with your team, you should. And encourage everyone to have a video-enabled setup if at all possible. We may not be able to be in the same room, but the sense of engagement with video is much greater than audio-only calls.
We also risk spiraling if we think too much about how our companies are struggling, or if our teams cannot achieve what our organizations need to be successful. It’s like the difference in sports between practice and the big game. Normal times are when leaders game plan, strategize, and work on our fundamentals. Crises are the time to focus and leave it all on the field.
That said, do not fail to observe and note what works well and where you struggle. If you had problems with data quality or inefficient processes before the crisis, you are not fixing them now. Pull out the duct tape and find a way through it. But later, when the crisis subsides, learn from the experience and get better for next time.
Find a hobby. Anything you can do to clear your head and separate work from the other considerations in your life. We may feel like the weight of the world is on our shoulders, and without a pressure release we will not be able to sustain this level of stress and remain as productive as our teams, businesses, and families need us.
Paula Henry
January 8, 2009 at 12:28 pm
Lani – The video was a great laugh – thanks!
Great points – get off the bike and don’t be a jerk! We often make the mistake of assuming people understand our lingo and processes. More and more, I am finding they don’t and truly appreciate someone who will take the time to help them gain an understanding of what we consider simple……..like speaking English 🙂
Jayson
January 8, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Great video…hilarious
You’ve made a great point too – I see a lot of real estate agent blogs that do an incredible job at providing consumers with information they want, but, every once in a while, I’ll stumble across a blog talking to the wrong audience; I’m sure our blog is guilty of the same.
Steve Krzysiak
January 8, 2009 at 4:07 pm
I presume ‘chicago real estate’ was arbitrary here, but we do have a staff site similar to the one you described that I just started using for some SEO ideas :p No gossip on ours though!
Missy Caulk
January 8, 2009 at 9:31 pm
It happens to me quite often, a person will call and say I am looking at your listing on 1234 Main, and I have to pause.
Then I explain we data share with all the companies and if they will hold a sec I will get them the information they are looking for.
I just got the MLS and type in the address and find out what they need to know.
I’m use to it now but at first it did throw me for a loop.
Loren Nason
January 8, 2009 at 10:29 pm
You think that’s bad.
Try doing what I do. Translating non-tech speak into tech speak and then back again.
I will say I am very good at it, but there are times I need to have people show me what they are talking about because they don’t speak tech. Then I figure out the problem and relay the fix back translating from tech back to english.
Beep, orp, beep, beep, screeech
EOL