I have been asked by the Missouri Society of Professional Surveyors to put together a Lunch and Learn presentation that they will begin to role out next year for their 2021 continuing education campaign. The topic is completely up to me and I can do more than one.
The first topic I would like to discuss (for only one hour) would be leadership and mentoring, titled "Leading from the Field"
Like many, I too feel that the profession has really struggled to maintain the necessary mentorship with the implementation of robotics, scanners, etc. and customary 1-man crews.?ÿ
Two texts I have been reading through are:?ÿ
?ÿ ?ÿ ?ÿ ?ÿ ?ÿBe, Know and Do: Leadership the Army way
?ÿ ?ÿ ?ÿ ?ÿ ?ÿArmy Leadership and the Profession, ADP 6-22
Now, before some get their panties in a wad about the Army, I do think there is a tremendous amount of information that can be taken from their experiences in leadership. In particular, the Army has a lot of experience in leading young folks though rigors, that take place in the field, teach decisions that are based on terrain analysis, outcome and overall planning and the lack thereof. So, yes there is a lot one can gleam from their publications.?ÿ
So my questions to you...What do you do to promote leadership to your field staff? Do you lead from the field? Do you know how to use the equipment? Do you know how to process and complete every task necessary? And can you do it all?
If you have one-man crews working alone, technicians that don't work side by side with you or never go to the field to see how the data is collected, if you are not in the field showing them what needs to happen are you truly being a leader that can Be, Know and Do?
Thoughts? Suggestions? Or abandon ship and pick another topic?
I recently instructed my PLS managers to set up a system where every senior office tech go out at least once a week with a crew to mentor them.?ÿ ?ÿ
To adapt an example from this book I recently read, I told them "If you have problems with field work, you're never going to find the answers in the office"
EDIT - to the military question, if you were to search online for the archives from the old Professional Surveyor Magazine you can find a column I wrote about training lessons from the military based on an article I readback in 2010 in the Harvard Business Review.?ÿ The staff at West Point's Department of Behavioral Sciences & Leadership is always guest lecturing at top MBA programs.?ÿ?ÿ
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07ZH31LS9/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1
abandon ship and pick another topic?
Do not do that. ?ÿStay on this course.
If you have one-man crews working alone, technicians that don't work side by side with you or never go to the field to see how the data is collected, if you are not in the field showing them what needs to happen are you truly being a leader that can Be, Know and Do?
Thoughts? Suggestions? Or abandon ship and pick another topic?
Stay that course!
When I was first hired to Land survey( geophysics etc aside) my first question when I saw the massive schism between the field and office people was " Do you ever take the office people out for a lunch and learn? Or vice versa?
The disconnect is real, and needs to be reeled back in so there's continuity from field to finish, and not that everyone needs to be FTF trained but at the very least exposed to the facets of it so when mistakes or 'weird" stuff pops up, know when to start asking questions instead of drafting ahead head buried in the computer creating million dollar mistakes.....
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wish I could attend!
@jitterboogie You will be able to, I'm sure it will be open to the public.
"Lunch and Learn"?
In person or virtual?
A good one hour topic, which you can learn from the military is Logistics. That is having what you need, where you need it and when you need it. Mostly that means the right people at the right time and place with the right equipment. Basically it is impossible to have every employee, know everything and carry every piece of equipment. If you are a one man show it is possible but can be a heavy load to carry everywhere you go.
Paul in PA
...and that the military has an unlimited source of funding, so be cognizant that all the mistakes that were made getting to that level of perceived efficiency comes at a staggering cost too.?ÿ Discussions like this are good to weed out the concepts we cant spend the billions on bringing them into the general scope we operate within.
A key element is that while you are leading in the field you also need to be open to learning new things for yourself at the same time.
Whenever I get picked to lead or train people i start off by acknowledging that my goal is to teach you anything I know, and I will be learning things from you along the way too,that I know i don't know yet.?ÿ Know what you don't know. Its powerful.
Sounds like an interesting project and a great topic.
I would recommend reading Joseph Rost's book "Leadership for the Twenty-First Century".?ÿ Has some very interesting historical perspectives on leadership and discusses how management and leadership differ.
From that book:
Management is an authority relationship between at least one manager and one subordinate who coordinate their activities to produce and sell particular goods and/or services.
Leadership is an influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes that reflect their mutual purposes.
?ÿ
While some of each process (management/leadership) is needed to achieve, I wonder how many companies spend a great deal of effort managing process and techniques without any concern of if majority of employees are on the same page as far as the big scope reason the company is there.?ÿ What drives the company??ÿ Money (of course), professionallism, short term quick money growth or long term be here 100 years from now growth, community, etc...
One simplified example that has come up on the board before might be something along these lines -
Survey manager decides appearance of crews needs to be consistent and orders uniforms or shirts he/she likes, then requires them to be worn in the field.?ÿ There are not liked by several crew member and it is noted that office personnel wear whatever they want.
Or, survey manager realizes uniform requirement might make issues with either field or office personnel so seeks input from everyone about ways to enhance company image and get the company name out there more.?ÿ Employees suggestions include logo shirts.?ÿ From that the manager is able to develop a plan that gets buy in from most of the company on the matter.?ÿ This might include shirt options.
The military stresses knowing the job of the individuals both above and below you, so that you are able to assume the duties of someone in your chain of command who gets removed (in battle; or perhaps in our world, taken off a project) from the mission at hand.
Of course, the military is funded a lot better than we are and is able to implement cross-training up and down the chain of command much more easily. Versatility (and its natural endpoint field-to-finish surveying) is a tough thing to promote in our field. The military also has the benefit of cultural drivers that are not typical in the private sector. Esprit de corps is a powerful motivator that takes (at a minimum) the equivalent of basic training to develop. We don't get to do that.
But we still need motivation. Whenever I do training or support, I always remember WIIFM. If you can't answer the question "What's In It For Me?" (as asked by staff you are training), then you're not going to get anywhere with them. To successfully implement changes, or build skill sets, you need buy-in from the team.
It can be as simple as "Want to keep the office folks off your back while you are trying to work? I can show you how to take a photo with the data collector and tie it to the point you're observing so you won't get calls asking about what that 'Unknown Vault' you observed looks like."
Or "This new GNSS receiver will allow you to take observations in places you can't with your current gear, so you don't have to traverse as much as you are now. To do that, there are a few things we need to do to ensure we are getting good results. Let's practice this together with the new gear, and here's a laminated card with a checklist to keep in your field vest. If you tick all the boxes when measuring in canopy, we won't have to go back to sites as often and your schedules will be much less chaotic."
Throw 'em something, anything that will help them out, then support them as they learn and ask questions. The ultimate goal, in my mind, is to end up with employees that will take the next step themselves, branch out and learn new skills, and become mentors to others. Mentorship is self-sustaining if done correctly, and supported by management.
?ÿ
This does require an organization to start with high standards and keep them there, because not everyone is willing or able to take on that role. If you want high-quality employees and an organization that will run itself, don't just settle for a warm body to help you get through the backlog. Either hire the right people, or don't hire anyone. Maybe that's a topic for another L&L, but it does impact the effectiveness of a mentorship program.
Jocko Willink has some great material on leadership that you may be able to include in your presentation.?ÿ?ÿ
This is a big topic, either you will have to give a broad view, an outline, or you should pare it down to some topic within the subject matter that is very focused.?ÿ
This is like the PLSS, much too broad a topic for a lunch meeting, so you might focus in on proration, or monument accessories.?ÿ
I would hesitate bringing in military ideas, again too broad a subject and the authority structure is too different. I can't throw an employee in the brig when they disobey.?ÿ
