GUEST AUTHOR BLOG: Manage by Walking Around by John Kuhn and Mark Mullins co-authors of "Street Smart Disciplines of Successful People: 7 Indispensable Disciplines for Breakout Business Success."
To truly maximize productivity, you have to know what's going on with your team.
Be people-centric.
Don't insulate yourself; get out of your office and have more interaction with your people.
They may be telegraphing frustrations that you're missing.
Only through face-to-face engagement will you know what is really going on. Always have your finger on the pulse of the people that you're working with, including subordinates, employees, partners, and the management team. Check in with as many people as you can at least once a month.
We call these Dynamic Immersion Sessions. After a bit of small talk ask, "How are you feeling about everything? What do you think about…? Do you have any issues or concerns? What are the biggest hurdles you're facing right now, and how can we help? Is there anything management can do to help you do a better job?"
Create what we call luminosity.