In today's competitive environment, companies realize that a good boss is one who can identify and build on the talents of the staff and knows how to retain top performing employees. Take this quiz and see if you are a good boss.

Use the following scale to respond to the questions:
Strongly disagree--1; disagree--2; uncertain--3; agree--4; strongly agree--5.

1. My employees understand the connection between their team or department's actions and the success of the company.
2. Each employee had clearly-defined work goals and the resources necessary to achieve them.
3. I usually assign the right tasks and amount of work to others.
4. People tell me that I am a good listener.
5. I have created an environment where people get along and work is fun.
6. I know my employees' career goals.
7. I regularly coach my employees in developing their skills.

Scoring:

26-35: You know your employees' needs and strengths and use this knowledge to get the results you want.
11-25: Invest some more time in defining your goals and in getting to know your employees, and achieving results will get much easier.
0-11: Are your employees "results challenged?" Get your act together.

Interpreting the results:

• The first three questions assess the ability to make a connection between organizational objectives and an individual employees contribution.

• The rest of the quiz assesses people skills the ability to get employees to care about the company's goals by giving them room to grow and making the work environment a people-friendly place.

• Pay careful attention to any item with a rating of three or less. Are you too focused on results to take time to build relationships, or are you spending too much time building rapport and net getting anything done?

Marcia Zidle

Marcia Zidle, M.S. N.C.C., the ?people smarts? coach, works with business, government and community leaders to quickly solve their people management headaches so they can concentrate on their #1 job ? to grow and increase profits. Her services include:

• What Really Works Handbooks ? resources for managers and supervisors on the front line
• Power-by-the-Hour Programs ? fast, convenient, real life, affordable courses for leadership and staff development
• Your Strategic Partner ? support to leaders who are in positions of high expectations, high visibility and high payoff.

Marcia is founder of Leadership Hooks, a business coaching company, which helps executive teams, operations managers, business owners and agency directors to move their organizations from seat-of-the-pants to feet-on-the-ground leadership.

She brings over 20 years experience from a wide variety of workplace settings, countries, and industries including: health care, financial services, professional practices, automotive and light manufacturing, energy, pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, event management, education, non-profits, local and state government.

Finally, Marcia's ?claim to fame? is experiencing expatriate living with her family in Scandinavia and Australia. She has traveled in over 30 countries throughout Europe, the Middle East, Far East, and South Pacific. She welcomes invitations to speak internationally so that she can add to her growing list of interesting places to explore.