Episodes

  • How To Go On Vacation - Part 1 - HOF 2025

    How To Go On Vacation - Part 1 - HOF 2025
    Jul 7 2025
    Our Hall of Fame guidance on how to plan for and take an effective vacation.
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    Less than 1 minute
  • 20th Anniversary Cast

    20th Anniversary Cast
    Jun 30 2025
    Welcome to a special episode of Manager Tools. Today, you're listening to the live recording of our 20th anniversary podcast, captured in front of a fantastic audience of managers and leaders just like you.
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    Less than 1 minute
  • Building Your Bench - Chapter 1 - Part 2

    Building Your Bench - Chapter 1 - Part 2
    Jun 23 2025
    Too many managers rely on HR to bring them candidates for their hiring needs. HR is a necessary part of sourcing candidates, and it's important to work with them. But there is often a disconnect, because they don't know your work or needs as well as you do. Effective managers build a bench of possible candidates, and hire from their own bench whenever they can.
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    Less than 1 minute
  • Building Your Bench - Chapter 1 - Part 1

    Building Your Bench - Chapter 1 - Part 1
    Jun 16 2025
    Too many managers rely on HR to bring them candidates for their hiring needs. HR is a necessary part of sourcing candidates, and it's important to work with them. But there is often a disconnect, because they don't know your work or needs as well as you do. Effective managers build a bench of possible candidates, and hire from their own bench whenever they can.
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    Less than 1 minute
  • HR May Not Be Your Friend - Part 2

    HR May Not Be Your Friend - Part 2
    Jun 9 2025
    Effective managers need a good relationship with HR. But HR may be the hardest staff organization to have a good relationship with, because their incentives are often misaligned with everyday managers. Even if you have an "HR Business Partner," they work for someone else, and probably support other managers. This isn't inherently bad, but a smart manager knows to work with them, while understanding the challenges.
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    Less than 1 minute
  • HR May Not Be Your Friend - Part 1

    HR May Not Be Your Friend - Part 1
    Jun 2 2025
    Effective managers need a good relationship with HR. But HR may be the hardest staff organization to have a good relationship with, because their incentives are often misaligned with everyday managers. Even if you have an "HR Business Partner," they work for someone else, and probably support other managers. This isn't inherently bad, but a smart manager knows to work with them, while understanding the challenges.
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    Less than 1 minute
  • The World's Best Feedback Organization

    The World's Best Feedback Organization
    May 26 2025
    If feedback is so important to high performance - and it is - it makes sense to study if and when and how the very best athletes get feedback about their performance. While there are 500 CEOs of Fortune 500 companies - truly rarified air - there are only 32 starting players at each position on each NFL team. There are more than 10 times more of the very best CEOs in the entire world than the very best starting quarterbacks, middle linebackers, centers, and defensive ends.. Even if you count all 11 starting players on offense or defense, there are still more Fortune 500 CEOs than starting offensive or defensive players. It is harder to become a starting NFL player than it is to become a Fortune 500 CEO. And they get more feedback than the CEOs do. There’s a connection.
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    Less than 1 minute
  • Everybody Has Too Much Work To Do! - Part 2

    Everybody Has Too Much Work To Do! - Part 2
    May 19 2025
    Everyone is always complaining that they have too much work to do. Too many tasks, too many projects, too many meetings. Theree's not enough time in the day to get everything done. What no one realizes is this is the way it's supposed to be.
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    Less than 1 minute