HRCleanUp

HR Students vs. The Automobile Industry CEOs

Last week in my HRIS course that I teach at Suffolk University, my students had to present a business case to the senior management of  a fictitious company.  The business case had to present the current state of affairs, the desired state of affairs, the cost of doing nothing, a procurement and a high level implementation plan. 

What does this have to do with the Automotive Industry?

As I was listening to these very sharp students discuss the ROI on HR technology solutions it occurredto me that they were better prepared for class than the CEOs of the Big 3 American Automakers were for their Congressional Hearing.  These executives just showed up.  No plan in hand.  No imagination.  No justification.  Did they just plan to "wing it"?  My students, on the other hand,  had done more preparation and funding justification for their in-class presentations than the heads of the Big 3 American Auto Makers did for a presentation to the Congress of the United States.  And most of my students took the Subway to class vs.  a private jet.

We constantly berate HR professionals for their lack of business acumen and avoidance of all things related to the bottom line of a business; however, if my students are any indication of what is to come in the field, I think that the CEOs of the Big 3 can learn a thing or two from them.

First, be professional.  Second, be prepared.  Third, have a plan of action.  Fourth,  when you are asking for a handout, don't take a private jet.  Perhaps the three of you could carpool.

Employee Disengagement is a Global Challenge

Level of Disengagement by Generation and Region

Country	Baby Boomers (1946-1964)	Generation X (1965-1977)	Generation Y (1978-1990)
Australia and New Zealand	13%	24%	25%
China*	--%	34%	33%
Continental Europe	18%	20%	28%
India	16%	12%	14%
North America	17%	20%	35%
Southeast Asia	16%	20%	35%
United Kingdom and Ireland	18%	22%	30%

*There were too few survey responses for Baby Boomers in China to include

There are some interesting observations that you can draw from the information above.  First, disengagement isn't a problem only in the United States...it is a global problem.  Second, the problem crosses generations. So, those boomers who preach "younger workers didn't have to pay the same dues as I did" are not totally preaching the truth but the numbers do show that younger workers are more disengaged.

What programs are you putting in place to improve engagement from all of your workers?  My company, Profiles International can help.  We focus on employee engagement, pre-hire selection, and leadership development.  We frequently start, however, with engagement.

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. 

Potential?

Have you ever been told, or told someone that they have "potential"?  As an HR professional, have you ever taken part of a talent review where you determine who in your organization has "potential"?  These types of talent reviews are a critical component of an solid succession planning or leadership development activity.  

As we look at our high potential people in our organizations, I challenge you to figure out how you measure success in your identified folks.  In other words, if someone is identified as "high potential" how do you monitor and measure their success year over year?  It is critical that you have some methodology to loop back with current supervisors, staff, and peers.  Often, a good 360 assessment program will go a long way in helping your talent pipeline identify gaps and then, a year later, seeing what progress your "high potential" person has made.

People don't want to just see your potential--they eventually want to see results.

October 19th Marks the First Day of the Mortgage Banking Association’s Annual Convention

Wouldn’t you like to attend that event?  I can think of nothing more depressing that spending days on end talking about what is going on in the mortgage industry.  Between layoffs, home foreclosures, and the millions of possible foreclosures there is going to be a dark cloud over the event.

So why do we get together?  Because we’re an optimistic society and misery loves company.  At our heart-of-hearts, we know it is going to get better.  It always does.

If I was going, I’d be sure to sign up for the session “Coping, Controlling, Capitalizing”—which promises to tell attendees how to survive and thrive in what organizers have chosen to call a “constantly changing environment” or might just pass on this year’s convention.  Hey, times are tight.

What is HRs role in all this?  How do we keep employees motivated to stay with us especially when they are in commissioned sales?  I think that there are three things we must keep in mind:

1. Communicate frequently and honestly
2. Celebrate what is going well and individual successes
3. Continue to invest in people--this economy will rebound and if we play our cards right, we'll still have good employees working for us

Jeans and Flip Flops

We often lament that the Millennial’s that are coming into the office today are pushing the envelope in many ways.  We don’t like they way they want to work when they want to work.  We don’t like that they feel like they can just “chat-up” the C.E.O.  We don’t like their self expression—tattoos and piercings.  There is a lot we don’t like.

But, consider this for a moment:   There may be incredible talent in your organization That Doesn’t Look Like You.

It is our job in HR to figure out how to harness and utilize that talent.  It may be Millennials is may be someone who thinks differently, or someone who speaks a different language 10,000 miles away.   Organizational leadership must break out of the traditional mode of thinking and start opening up to new possibilities.

The old adage, “do the same thing over and over gets you the same thing over and over” holds true to a point, however, it may change to “do the same thing over and over and you’ll go out of business because someone else will come along and do it better, cheaper, and more creatively".

As business leaders, we’ve got to constantly scan our internal talent for leadership.  We must identify them early and develop them.  We need to take some risk and we’ve got to make some investment.  In the 1980’s most organizations dismantled their job rotation programs, their executive leadership programs, and any sort of true talent development.  What we have now is a dearth of leaders prepared to lead. 

We’ve got to catch up quickly.  Generation X is ready to go.  Let’s give them a crash-course in the tools and skills that they need to truly lead organizations into this new world.  As for the Millennials, let’s rest assured that they don’t look or act like us.  And that is O.K.  We just need to identify them, develop them, and embrace them for they are our future—and I think it is going to be a lot more fun.

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.

High Performance Empowerment, Part 2 of 2

By Guest Blogger Bobby Pruitt

An essential element of leadership success within High Performing Organizations is empowered employees. Empowered employees spring from empowered leaders. Empowering leaders act from positive beliefs about people and situations. Some of the principles here include sharing information widely; letting people know about problems and challenges; having employees participate in substantial decisions, and considering expanding employees' job scope.

Before we get too far into successful leadership behaviors or principles, let's dispel a myth: leadership is a learned skill. Don't feel bad if you were not born with the inherent ability to convince otherwise sane people to charge a hill with bayonets bared. Except for a very few charismatic leaders mentioned in every history book, leadership is a learned skill. And more good news É & it can be taught!

Leadership principles - all of them - have been in use for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. The theory is not new. Some of the applications may change over time, but the theory is not new. Consultants occasionally need to sell a book, so they'll take a tried management concept, give it a new name and an interesting "spin," and off we go É fad of the month. And we sometimes get too wrapped up in this whole leadership versus management issue.

Let me offer a compromising look at leadership, since I believe it to be folly to consider an ineffective manager capable of being a successful leader. Leadership is the successful application of sound management practices, effective motivation, and personal credibility. All must exist to be a successful leader.

Another favorite myth is that leading by example is something you should do. Newsflash - you lead by example whether you want to, try to, or not!! Now, are you a positive example? That may be another story. People in your charge, and others around you, will emulate you, good or bad. You always lead by example.

The principles of High Performing Organizations aren't a magical list to tick off, or a series of tables and charts to compare. They can really be summed up as a combination of empowered employees alongside successful empowering leaders. If we can teach both employee and manager to lead É well, we're almost there.

Want to talk to Bobby directly?  Email him here.

High Performance Empowerment, Part 1 of 2

Meet Guest Blogger Bobby Pruitt

How many of us drink Starbucks coffee? How do you drink it? Venti Mocha double-shot? Fat-free Tazo Chi Latte? We all have our own, special way of having our coffee; what happens if you get it and it isn't exactly what you ordered? Not hot enough? Tastes "off," for some reason?

How long does it take for your Barista (server) to coordinate that "do-over" decision with the various levels of supervisory management? How about "instantaneously??" Those employees have the training to know what to do, the knowledge to be able to recognize it, and the authority to do what's right. In short, they are empowered. Yes, that "E" word. It's overused today, but don't let the fad of the word overcome value in the process. Empowered employees make their companies money.

Starbucks probably doesn't know it's exemplifying high performance; the company may not realize it is a shining example of effective principles to run a service retail business. They just know it's good business, and frankly, common sense.

The Principles of High Performance Leadership are just that - principles. Basic truths or assumptions. They are the essential qualities that determine characteristic behaviors. It's not rocket science. They can help guide your organization toward desired behaviors and business outcomes.

What are we today, then, if not High Performing? Let's take a look at "traditional" organizations. In 1903, a man named Frederich Taylor coined the phrase scientific management. He and other big thinkers of his time believed that standardization and control were necessary for organizations to be successful. For brevity's sake, we won't list each component of scientific management here; suffice to say it was most everything we have come to resent in a typical workplace.

In the industrial era, Traditional Organizations, and Scientific Management, worked. New manufacturing processes were being developed, mass production was introduced, quantity was the name and manufacturing was the game.

In recent years, we've seen employers readily embrace a High Performance way of thinking - a need to better use employees, their talents and abilities, and creativity. We needed flexibility, integration, synergy. And we needed a common purpose. Enter the High Performing Leader. The basic principles - and remember, they are merely principles - include things like a shared purpose, a holistic view, structure that fits the organization, continuous learning, employee empowerment, and managers play a more developmental or facilitation role.

The real key to High Performing Organizations is, of course, leadership. How much impact does leadership have? Does it help if you realize that the average multi-billion dollar company has a lifespan of 17 years? How about the fact that a third of the companies on the 1970 Fortune 500 were not on that list in 1983? And 35 percent of those in 1983 are not on the list today. Why? Typical answers include the influx of competitors, not understanding customer requirements, under-capitalization, and lack of business strategy and/or goals. Clearly, today's senior managers can no longer do it alone; they need help and resources from the entire organization, including our workforce. 

Let's look at some facts about the American workforce from Center for Organizational Development in Denver, Colorado: Fewer than one worker in four work at their full potential; one-half only work hard enough to keep their jobs; three out of four say they could be more productive and do more. Yet often, they do not. Why?

Never Fear, Underdog is Here!

Have you ever worked with someone who creates chaos and disaster every time they walk into the room or join the conference call?  Has this same person somehow spun said chaos and disaster into a situation where they came in and take all credit for solving the problem or, have you ever worked with someone who is constantly putting herself in a "Here I Come to Save the Day!" position?

A few weeks back, the Wall Street Journal ran an article called "Munchausen at Work" (for those of you who don't know Munchausen--and that included me--it refers to  a German storyteller who told preposterous tales about his adventures as a soldier and hunter; his name is now associated with any telling of exaggerated stories or winning lies (1720-1797)) .  The article discussed employees who made errors and then told the boss about they swooped in and saved the day. 

I know people who thrive on this behavior.  Think about your IT department.  They love to tell how they saved the day when they caused the problem!  People who work with clients also love to swoop in and take credit for saving the client relationship when in fact the person who worked the relationship long before you came along was doing  just fine thank you very much.

The Journal had some good tips on how to create a culture that doesn't encourage or support this behavior:

1. Stress teamwork over individual problem-solving
2. Be way of creating office "heroes"
3. Watch out for information hording
4. Ensure bosses are attentive to employees' needs