The early approaches to studying leadership focused on identifying patterns of leadership behavior that resulted in superior performance. Such behavioral studies placed leaders' behaviors on a spectrum ranging from job-centered to employee-centered behavior.

In job-centered leader behavior, a leader focuses on the actual work of subordinates (e.g., explaining specific tasks and monitoring output), and her primary concern is the subordinates' performance. On the other end of the spectrum, employee-centered leader behavior seeks to elicit superior performance from subordinates by focusing primarily on the human aspects of the group (e.g., motivation, job satisfaction) rather than the subordinates' tasks.

Ángel Hernández is the International Business Director of Fetch Robotics, where he manages partners across twelve countries, builds relationships with Fortune 500 companies, delivers product and technical presentations, and more. He has an extensive background in technology, engineering, robotics, and industrial automation, including numerous roles as a robotics advisor and robotics engineer.

Are you a digital marketing professional looking to advance your career? The Online Marketing Certified Professional (OMCP) certification is a premier, industry-recognized credential that reflects your mastery of online marketing concepts and best practices. 

There are three steps for earning your OMCP certification:

Even with the rise of social media and text messaging, good old-fashioned email remains one of the most effective marketing tools used in the for-profit world—and it continues to play a significant role in nonprofit fundraising, as well. Why? There are many reasons, but arguably the most compelling is cost. In general, it is estimated that it costs about 80 percent less to send a cultivated prospect an email than a printed direct mail package.

For nonprofit organizations, donor acquisition is the necessary foundation for every fundraising program. Two of the most common ways to identify new donors and also to re-engage existing contributors are direct mail and telemarketing.

Perhaps the most effective way to acquire a large number of first-time donors is to solicit their support by mail. Nonprofits use mail solicitation most frequently for annual campaigns. Using direct mail successfully, however, is not easy.

Marc Trudeau is an Agile Coach and Scrum Master with over 30 years of experience in Scrum/Agile/Lean deployments, program management, employee development, and more. He has numerous certifications, including Professional Scrum Master II, ICP-ACC, and OLN-OSA1. He has advised chairpersons and CEOs ranging from small startups to Fortune 500 companies.

Have you ever purchased a product based on the recommendation of a friend, family member, or colleague? It's an accepted principle of marketing that consumers tend to trust and follow personal recommendations—usually from family and friends—more than they trust traditional advertising messages. And, in the digital age, a growing number of consumers are also following advice and recommendations from people they don't know but still trust: influencers.

This week, Skye Learning is excited to spotlight Justin Kates, a subject matter expert for the AEM^®/CEM^® Prep Course (U.S. version). This new course was created in partnership with the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM), who offer the nationally recognized Associate Emergency Manager and Certified Emergency Manager certifications.

Kates is a Certified Emergency Manager and Master Continuity Practitioner. He is Director of Emergency Management for the City of Nashua, NH and Region 1 Vice President for IAEM. What’s more, Kates is an advisor for Decision Aid, an emergency management and business continuity consulting firm; an adjunct faculty member at Rivier University; a board member and Vice Chair of Volunteer NH; and more.

Organizations have always faced the need to change, but—with the current rate of technological change, intense competitive pressures, shift to a knowledge-based economy, and globalization—change has become more common and even more crucial to success. As such, leading change is an important skill for managers.

While many management experts have estimated that some 70 percent of change initiatives fail, more recent research suggests that finding valid and reliable empirical evidence of such a failure rate is problematic.

This week, Skye Learning is spotlighting Ann Connolly, a retired management consultant with a specialty in business strategy. Connolly is a subject matter expert for the Certificate in Leadership for Women in Business. Throughout this certificate, she discusses networking, communication, management, negotiation, and other leadership skills, especially as they relate to women.

Connolly has more than 30 years of experience within the financial services industry. During her career, she specialized in retirement, asset management, banking, and insurance.