HRCleanUp

Mike Smith's Job Hunt

I thought I might help MIke out, through my blog, and see if I get him on the road to a new job.  We all know how hard job searching is especially when we're good at a lot of things and not quite sure what we want to do next.  I'm a huge advocate of exploration--God knows I've done my fair share--but there are some methodologies that seem to work better than others.

First, our friend Mike isn't really interested in EVERY job out there.  There are bound to be some that he knows he isn't going to want to do.  Let's create this list so we don't waste any time in those areas.  Second, is relocation an option?  If not, let's not bother.  No intention of moving to Nebraska no matter how good the job is--then don't even consider Nebraska. Third, are there some general interest areas?  If so, let's start exploring them.

I worked with a job seeker who thought he wanted to do programming within the Microsoft Sharepoint platform.  He was very determined and convinced that was his future.  Then I asked two key questions:

1. Have you ever spoken to a Sharepoint developer?
2. Have you ever researched what type of education you need to be a Sharepoint developer?

The answer to both questions was "no".  And now we have a starting spot.

So, Mike, start talking to people, in person, and find out about interesting jobs at interesting companies.  You'll be buying a lot of coffee so fill up your Starbucks card.  Ask people about their jobs and let them talk.  Most people love to talk about themselves and rarely have the opportunity to tell you about their work.  When there is passion, you'll know it.  When the work, company, or the person gets you going on the inside you'll start to narrow your list even further.

Strategic Communication

I just got an email from the Senior Vice President of Coffee at Starbucks inviting me to try the Christmas Blend. 

I want that job.

God knows I've had enough practice.

HRCleanUp Author Quoted in Friday's Boston Business Journal

I had a great interview with Lisa Van Der Pool at the Boston Business Journal.  She was writing an article about how to do a layoff the right way.  And there firmly is a right way and a wrong way.  Download BBJ Dec 5 2008 Tact Timing Critical When Layoffs Loom and read the article!

Workplace Stress

I just saw on the news that an employee showed up at his former company's San Jose headquarters with a gun and shot several people including the CEO.  He was laid off the day before.  If you want to read the story, click here.

Most of you who read my blog regularly  know that I've done some work in the Outplacement world.  I've been a part of a notifier team and also on the service delivery side of the action.  The notifier part is always hard but the service delivery can be very rewarding.  It is interesting to think that there is a whole industry associated with helping companies lay people off.  How an organization manages layoff's is critical--if it is done right, with the right support, both the survivors and the impacted will be ok. 

In my opinion, the Outplacement component is critical.  Having people in place to "catch" the impacted is critical.  I'm guessing that person in San Jose had no support.  He left work, after being laid off, and felt that he had nothing.  Having Outplacment in place helps both the impacted and the workpiece survivors.  Most survivors are clearly worried about their former co-workers and knowing that they are going to be well taken care of can go a long way in getting the workplace back to "normal". 

So what should you do with this information?

If you are planning a workplace "action" keep in mind:

• Both the impacted and the survivors are going to need support.  Support both groups through outplacement. 
• Communicate to survivors that their former colleagues will be well taken care of--let them know about Outplacement and that it has been provided for all of them.
• Don't pretend that it didn't happen--denial never helped anyone.
• Never allow layoff's be become routine.  Layoffs should be hard on everyone.  You are playing with people's livelihoods.
• Don't expect either group to recover in 24 hours.  It takes time for both group to recover.

Our down economy isn't much fun.  Let's mitigate the stress and pain of RIFs as much as we can by supporting both of our impacted groups.

Cap-ability

What are you doing to develop capability within your team?  Within your department?  Within your organization?   It sounds like an daunting task but it is so important for the long term success of you as a manager and your company as a whole.  

What is the formula for developing capability?  I'll share it with you:

Knowledge + Skills x Talent = Capability

Here is what you must do if you are going to develop capability?

• Assignments that exercise talents
• Share your knowledge 
• Train for skills 
• Target critical experiences 
• Have an annual plan 
• Implement quarterly check steps  

In our current marketplace, you may be thinking that you can't afford to develop people right now--just the opposite is true.  You need all of your people operating to their fullest potential.  You can't afford to have anyone who is just along for the ride. 

October 16th is National Boss’ Day!

Looking back over 50 years, of National Boss’ Day, workers everywhere may notice that one thing has remained constant: The big money is concentrated a the top, and the bigs are mostly men. As for the talent? Well, we have nothing controversial to say. After all, we’re up for promotion. Right, boss? --from Clay Dillow, Fast Company, October 2008

Here are some fun facts to go along with National Boss’ Day:

• More than 11 million people are employed in management occupations. 40% are women but of the Fortune 500, only 12 companies have female CEOs
• Women hold 15% of all board seats at Fortune 500 firms
• Of the 6,000 plue NYSE and Nasdag-listed U.S. companies, 98 were run by CEOs under the age of forty—however, just one, Julie Smolyansky, the CEO of Lifeway Foods, is a woman
• Companies with at least three women on their board averaged a 16.7% return—45% better than the typical company
• 11% of the CEOs at S&) 500s hold Ivy League undergrad degrees. The most common alma maters? Harvard, Princeton, and the University of Wisconsin—each of which produced 12 chief executives
• Hallmark increased its line of National Boss’ Day cards by 90% is 2007

43% of American’s Don’t Like Their Managers Management Style!

That statistic came from a Yahoo 2008 survey of American workers. What does that mean for us—well, it means that those of us on the people side of things have a lot of work to do. The question is so broad…what don’t you like? How the delegate? How they don’t delegate? Do they “micromanage” you? Do they not trust you to get the job done? The reasons are endless but you can do something about it.

The reason why most American’s don’t like their Boss’ management style is that they don’t know their boss and conversely the boss doesn’t really know them. And, as an front-line HR manager knows, getting the two to talk is like pulling proverbial teeth. However, my company, Profiles International, has a simple tool that helps managers and employees start the conversation. It is called The Workforce Compatibility Survey and it requires both the manger and the employee to take a 45 minute assessment that examines thinking style and behavioral traits.  The tool than does an instant analysis and examines both sides of the story and produces a report is the output that shows where the employee scored v. where the manager scored and it gives both sides suggestions for working together.

Imagine having a guidebook to work with your manager? Or, as a manger, understanding why your direct report does the things she does.

Retreat? What a treat!

As a manager of people, I have always been a big advocate of the off-site retreat. I would always hear other manager’s (and a few participants) bemoan the off-site retreat. I, however, always found it to be a valuable experience. In this month’s Fast Company Letter from the Editor, Robert Sofian discussed the power of the “off-site” as a tool for innovation.

…we were taken “out of our every0day routines because he wanted to encourage open discussion. As Emory University professor Gregory Berns writes in “Rewiring the Creative Mind”, on page 51, our brains are biologically engineered to engage in repetitive thinking. To generate new ideas, we need to force our synapses to behave differently. Unplanned encounters and new environments are the best way s to jolt our neurons into finding novel pathways”.

Well said…and a good argument for the off-site.

What makes for a good off-site? Well, for one, it doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Some of the most effective off-sites are conducted in someone’s living room or outdoor deck if the weather is nice. One of the most effective off-site meetings I ever attended occurred on my co-worker Anna’s back deck at her home in Palo Alto. It didn’t’ hurt that Anna is an amazing cook and we ate well but it was, truly, one of the most productive days I ever had professionally. The opportunity to get out of the pressure cooker that was our Internet start-up was fuel for the creative brain and a bit of rest from the transactional work of the routine.

I am often amazed at how rarely the off-site is conducted. Think about what the collective brain power of your staff could achieve if only given some time, creative space, and permission to think and talk and dream. Yes, dream. Let them imagine a better way to work. A better way to interact. A better way to balance.

Take your staff on a retreat. If your budget is $0.00 and everyone is local then invite them to your living room and make homemade soup and sandwiches. They will love you for it. And who knows what will happen or transpire and who might be inspired. If your team is distributed, then the off-site becomes a bit more of a logistical challenge but, in my opinion, even a more critical event. Having face-to-face time vs. ear-to-phone time is an important part of relationship building and a part of creating a solid team. It is hard to rely solely on a voice. It is much better if you’ve seen the voice and know a bit about its personal life. Retreats and off-site meetings can go a long way in building collaborative climates.

If your team is new, consider doing some teambuilding exercises. Not the hokey ones that you’ve done a thousand times but something more meaningful. One of my favorites is called “Lifeline”. Each person has 15 minutes to take you from birth to today. Telling about significant (and a few trivial) events that occurred along the way you’ll learn a lot and are bound to have some fun. Other tools, like assessments, can help the team understand each other better and work together with better understanding of the strengths that each person brings to the table.

And, as a manager, if your manager asks you about the documented results from the day, let her know that you don’t know yet. You’ll see what some creative thinking will produce and you’ll get back to her. Or, better yet, invite her to kick back and enjoy the fun and get to know your team better.

You Can Teach an Old Dog New Tricks!

Last week, my friend Gretchen Neels's invited me to attend her Total Image Management seminar.  I was flattered to be invited since Gretchen and I have never had the opportunity to meet in person--although we had become good phone friends.   Plus, it was at the Boston College Club downtown and breakfast was included.  So, I figured that I couldn't lose.   Great views and free breakfast--a winning combination in my book!

I got myself up at the crack of dawn and headed downtown with no expectations whatsoever.  However, the minute I arrived, I knew that I was going to enjoy myself.  The other people in the room were interesting, the view was spectacular, and the coffee--although not Starbucks--was good.  Since I didn't know the total plan for the morning I was pleased when Gretchen went over it and I was excited about the content:

• Your personal image--what you wear says a lot about you
• Your emotional intelligence--how you respond to the people around you
• Your position of power--effective networking

We had three hours to complete the lofty agenda--we could have used another hour there was so much great information.  Here are a few things that I learned and I'll share them with you. 

1. Your clothing from 5 years ago doesn't work today--you should update your wardrobe regularly with good quality clothing from a higher end store.   The old adage, "dress for the job you want" is alive and well in 2008.
2. You can use personal ques from others to guide your behavior.  Take the time to notice what the other person is wearing, how they position themselves in the room, and who they are talking to. 
3. Your personal image is your first impression on others.  When is the last time you thought about it?

Finally, Gretchen shared this quote with us and I'll share it with you.  It is as true today as it was in the 1600's:

Good Clothes Open All Doors

Thomas Fuller, 1608-1661, English Church Historian

Interested in Gretchen's Seminar or in coaching from Gretchen?  Check out Neels & Company

Follow the Leader

GQ Magazine published an article by Cecil Donahue titled "Go to Your Cubicle!" in the June, 2008 edition.  Since  I don't often go to GQ for management advice, I was interested in what the author had to say.  Mr. Donahue (I say Mr. because his first name is Cecil and I don't know any women named Cecil) is lamenting on how his people behave more like children and his job, as manager, is in fact babysitting.  He's upset when, at the end of the day, just prior to his leaving to catch his train home, an employee "plops down in a chair and launches into a long, increasingly emotional monologue" about a personnel decision he mishandled.  Then, Mr. Donahue admits that he too has been maligned the employee but hasn't said anything to anyone that he hasn't already said to the employee.

So, this employee is in your office, upset, and you are more worried about catching your train.  Mr. Donahue then goes on to compare management to parenting.

He then ends his article with the following advice:  Lead by example.  "Most people-children or colleagues-tend to pay far more attention to what you actually do than what you merely say.  Want to dissuade your kids from smoking?  Don't smoke.  Want your staff t start the day earlier?  Arrive first thing every morning.  Part of leading by example involves not pretending to be perfect, acknowledging, your own mistakes, when they occur, and apologizing for them when it's appropriate.  Show enough confidence to behave like a human being and your kids or staff will not only respect you, they may even wind up liking you a little".

I think his last paragraph is great and I really agree.  What I take issue with is his article set-up.  This manager that so rudely made you late for your train was someone what was probably looking for some advice, coaching, a shoulder to cry on.  Why would you be annoyed by that?  Now, if the employee was in your office every day, that's one thing.  But, if someone makes a mistake, you now need to help pick them up and dust them off, and send them back out there.  How else will you ever get them to improve their decision making skills?  If you don't take the time to help them when they are down, they will stop coming to you for help.  Then, you'll have a team, working in silos, and you will have many more late night "surprises" to contend with.

When an employee is in pain, you must stop everything to assist.  It is the only way to build capacity within your organization.