Subscribe to the Three Star Leadership Blog

The Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training.

Follow me on Twitter

For weekly tips and resources pointers, check Wally's Three Star Leadership Letter

Find out more about having Wally speak to your company or convention.

Find out more about Wally's coaching services.

Here are five choice articles from the business press to start off your work week. I'm pointing you to articles about Tweeting in traffic, Macy's and its CEO, ways to improve boss-team member relationships, best practices in communication, and business heroes of the Twentieth Century.

From Bloomberg: Venezuelans Tweet in Traffic in BlackBerry Revolution
"Caracas motorists, burning the world’s cheapest gasoline and driving twice as many cars as roads can handle, may be global leaders in using Twitter Inc.’s social networking Web site to outflank traffic. Their 9,598-strong group forum, called Trafico, shows growth of 10 percent a week. Venezuela’s per- capita use of smart phones outpaces Europe’s, according to Research in Motion Ltd., BlackBerry’s manufacturer. "

Wally's Comment: You have to love this story. In the US, we're banning tweeting while driving. In Caracas, someone's making a business out of using Twitter to navigate through traffic. Perhaps they use "designated tweeters."

From Knowledge at Wharton: CEO Terry Lundgren: A Focus on Turning 'My Macy's' into Your Macy's
"When Macy's CEO Terry Lundgren started out in retailing a generation ago as a Los Angeles-based buyer for the Bullock's chain in southern California, he would often get a call from a manager for the chain in nearby Orange County requesting some specific merchandise for one of his stores."I would solve the problem by putting the stuff he needed in my Volkswagen and driving it down there," Lundgren recalled."

Wally's Comment: Terry Lundgren is trying to crack the code that will make Macy's successful in a legendary way. The good news he's learning from his mistakes. You may also want to check this April interview with Lundgren from the NY Times.

From HR Executive: Corner Office, with a Side of Employee Disdain
"With a majority of employees identifying their bosses as dishonest, unfair and impatient, can HR figure out how to change that perception? Initiating a continuous employee-feedback mechanism -- and acting on the results -- may help. "

Wally's Comment: Warning the headline of this piece is misleading and sensationalist and the kindest word that can be used for some of the reporting is "distorted."

Much of the reporting is based on the Adecco American Workplace Insights Survey released in October, 2009. The headline of the news release from Adecco was: "No boss envy in the office." The "dishonest boss" finding is rendered "53% of workers who have a boss sometimes question their boss’ honesty" by Adecco.

Other findings are left out of the HR Executive article, notably the Adecco report that "an impressive majority (65%) would not change anything about their relationship with their bosses.

In the HR Executive piece, Sylvia Ann Hewlett of the Center for Workplace Policy is quoted as saying: "The assumption over the last 18 months during this Great Recession is that you needn't pay attention to your people, your talent." No support is noted for that statement, even though it directly contradicts the Adecco study which said "87% of workers think their boss is just as accessible or more accessible as they were pre-recession."

By now you're wondering, "So why did Wally include this one?" The answer is that the second half of the piece includes some excellent recommendations for things you can do. So skip that first half of the story that's fast and loose with the facts and read the second half for ideas. Check out the recommendations in the Adecco study too.

From Industry Week: Best Practices in Communication
"In tumultuous times, highly effective internal communications programs help engage and retain top talent."

Wally's Comment: Here are a couple of good examples and some good advice about internal communications.

From HBS Working Knowledge: Come Fly with Me: A History of Airline Leadership
"Few industries have had the competitive challenges—the literal ups and downs—experienced by the U.S. airline industry since its formation in the 1920s. Consider that its early pioneers had the unenviable task of selling tickets to people who thought airplanes were inherently dangerous. And until 1978, U.S. airlines were one of the most government-regulated businesses, when suddenly full deregulation changed the competitive landscape once again."

Wally's Comment: This is an in-depth interview with the authors of Entrepreneurs, Managers, and Leaders: What the Airline Industry Can Teach Us about Leadership. You'll get even more out of it if you've read the earlier book, In Their Time: The Greatest Business Leaders of the Twentieth Century by the same authors.

Wally's Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training. Click here to check it out.