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By Laton McCartney
Mike Rafferty had a problem. "I was preparing for an annual review with someone who worked for me," he recalls. "This person was not performing quite up to the expected standards, and I had to make sure this was clearly understood while providing some ways to improve and leave the person feeling upbeat and empowered to succeed."
Currently an IT contractor who focuses on application performance and troubleshooting for Northern Trust, the Chicago-headquartered, global asset management firm, Rafferty had earlier began attending meetings sponsored by Toastmaster International, a non-profit organization that assists people in becoming more confident and competent public speakers.
"I had heard about Toastmasters several times during my MBA program at Lake Forest Graduate School of Management," Rafferty says. "When I saw a sign in the lobby of the building where I work advertising a lunchtime meeting, I decided to check it out."
Toastmaster's biggest benefit is overcoming or reducing the fear of speaking in front of a group, Rafferty says. This is vital, as an example, for a CIO, who is making a presentation to senior management, users or peers. "It's given me the confidence to make presentations and extended speeches in front of hundreds of people. I was part of a panel presentation at Interop back many years ago, and it was truly intimidating."
Prior to the preparing for the annual review, Rafferty had been attending Toastmasters regularly for a year. Every time he'd give a speech, another member would give him "a strong constructive evaluation." In turn, Rafferty was required to give similar evaluations to other speakers as well.
That proved a critical skill—one that served Rafferty well when he sought to grade his employee's performance. "I found there were some remarkable overlaps with what I had been doing with Toastmasters evaluations."
And what's the best way CIOs, who suffer from stage fright, to overcome their fears? "With irrational fears like this, your best bet is to simply face them head on, over and over and practice doing it," Rafferty advises. "Reading a book or taking a class won't help nearly as much as writing a speech, getting up there in front of the group and delivering it to thunderous applause."
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