David Marshall
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Managing Workplace Conflict Effectively Without Damaging Relationships
- December 11, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Management
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I’ve seen my fair share of workplace conflicts, from an argument in the executive suite to disagreements among team members to fights on the factory floor, including one that nearly became a knife fight. But conflict doesn’t have to be a four-letter word, and it doesn’t have to end up with blood spraying the walls.
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How Emotional Intelligence Can Improve Leadership Effectiveness
- December 4, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Management
Emotional intelligence (EI) can make or break your effectiveness as a leader. Technical skills alone won’t cut it. In fact, according to the Peter Principle — that’s where you’re promoted to your level of incompetence — there is a very good chance you won’t be effective as a leader. That’s because most corporations don’t train
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How to Lead Through Uncertainty and Ambiguity
- November 25, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Management
In business, it’s a rare stretch of days or weeks where everything is running perfectly according to plan. There are so many variables and other details happening because you have people working for you, people supplying your raw materials, people buying from you. And let’s not forget the push and pull of political and economic
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How Leaders Can Foster Innovation in a Stagnant Organization
- November 18, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Management
Being a leader can be rather frustrating. You want a building full of motivated all-stars who are driven by personal pride and the pursuit of success. People who are bold and won’t keep their mouths shut because they’re so full of good ideas. If you’re worried that you are dealing with a stagnant organization that
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The Power of Transparent Leadership in Building Trust
- November 11, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Business, Leadership, Management
Too many leaders have fragile egos that make them think they’re the smartest person in the room. Or believe they have to be the smartest person in the room, and they’re afraid of being found out. But if you want to build trust as a leader, it starts with admitting you’re not the smartest person
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Watch Out for Seasonal Silliness Around the Holiday
- November 4, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Manufacturing
Down in Texas, just like everywhere else in the United States, there are quite a few holidays that bring the silliness out in people — reasons to drink, celebrate with friends, set off fireworks, and generally get a little rowdy and obnoxious. While Christmas may be called the “silly season,” every manager knows he or
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Leadership Tips: Recognition and Praise Can Supplement Salaries
- November 3, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Management
It’s a big mistake to think that your company’s associates are only there for the salary. Oh, sure, many of them are, but not all of them. And if you think what you’re paying them is enough to ensure your loyalty, you’re sorely mistaken. Just like we leaders decry the fact that there’s no loyalty
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How Managers Can Keep Unions on Their Side
- September 25, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Management, Safety
When I was the president of Robroy, I worked very hard to keep the union on my side. In fact, having them on my side made managing the associates a whole lot easier. It also made them more likely to agree with my decisions when other managers might have faced a lot of pushback and
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Five BAD Leadership Habits to Stop Doing Immediately
- September 18, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Leadership, Management
There are plenty of articles out there on what good leaders should do, but I don’t see as many articles on bad leadership. Because there are plenty of bad leaders who, at the very least, are ineffective and make no impact. But at worst, they drag their organization down into the toilet because they lack
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Building a Winning Team by Hiring for Skills, Not Education
- September 11, 2024
- Posted by: David Marshall
- Category: Business, Manufacturing
When you’re building a winning team, it’s important that you hire people for their knowledge and smarts, not their education and degrees. Too often, businesses require certain educational experiences that either don’t make any sense or mean you miss out on some prime candidates. If I had to choose between hiring a 22-year-old with a