2020 was quite a year and it was certainly reflected in the questions Madeleine received from her readers. Here is a list of the top five most-viewed columns. They tell a story of the year we’ve been through. Madeleine will be back next week with a new year of questions from well-meaning managers—possibly yours? Best wishes…
Presenting the results of our 2021 Blanchard HR / L&D Trends Report in a recent webinar was a surprisingly moving experience for me. More than 1,000 L&D professionals participated in this year’s survey, which included questions about your response to COVID in 2020, the challenges you experienced converting face-to-face designs in a disrupted business environment,…
Dear Madeleine, I just read your column Feeling Overwhelmed in a New Role and I find myself in the exact same position. I recently took a role as manager, and on week one I started getting emails expecting deliverables. I came with enthusiasm wanting to bring positive impact, and of course my seven years of…
If you are a member of the L&D community, undoubtedly you’ve been delivering virtual training this year—and you are probably looking for ways to improve the experience for yourself and your learners. Cindy Huggett’s book Virtual Training Tools and Templates: An Action Guide to Live Online Learning is filled with resources that you can use…
Dear Madeleine, I’ve been managing a couple of teams located around the globe. Recently, our business has exploded, and I find that I am losing control of things. My question is: how do I help my people clarify when they need to include me in big decisions and when they don’t? I’ve never had this…
Dear Madeleine, I work as a senior manager reporting to a new EVP who was brought in from outside the company. She has a lot less experience than I do. She constantly talks about how strategic she is, but all I see is a lack of discipline around execution—and she seems to have no memory. …
Today’s blog covers the promised Part Two from last week’s blog post. If you missed it and want to see the whole letter and the context, click here. Here’s the part of the letter, signed Paralyzed, that I am addressing today: “I asked my manager to tell me what she thought the most critical thing…
Trying to land your first job or find your dream job? #ENTRYLEVELBOSS—part memoir, part playbook—lays out an easy-to-follow plan that will get you on the right path quickly. Based on her personal experience, Alexa Shoen has developed a nine-step process for approaching your job search that will set you apart from all others. Shoen begins…
Dear Madeleine, I am in a high potential program at a large global company and am being considered for fast track promotion. As part of the program, everyone did a battery of assessments. I have learned all kinds of things about myself, my strengths, my preferences, how others see me, etc. It has been enlightening…
Dear Madeleine, I have been on sick leave for the last few months. Before that, I worked as an essential medical worker—administrative, not patient care—in a big city. It was intense. We had big refrigerated morgue trucks in the parking lot, and it felt like no one who was not in medicine understood quite how…