Archive for the ‘Morale’ Category

People claim to hate change, but if that’s true, why do they enjoy going on vacation, finding a new favorite restaurant, or getting a tax rebate check in the mail?
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Change Through WSPs

If your staffers don’t like change, then you’re doing something wrong. People resist workplace changes, because these changes tend to be perceived as unexpected, disruptive, and negative. But you can do something to improve all that…

The Power of Wildly Successful Projects™ (WSPs)

Leaders who build a track record of Wildly Successful Projects reach organizational goals that earn them the trust of their staffers and make gaining buy in and cooperation on future projects a breeze.  Here’s what every leader and manager needs to know.

First, whenever you introduce a change such as an initiative or project, a software program, a standard procedure, etc. take proper action to avoid making two common mistakes:

1. Think through the new change completely, from strategy to tactics and execution, before you introduce it. Too often, leaders introduce ideas that lack substance or a plan for their completion, and as a result, those ideas fade into the ether. People waste time trying to figure out what to do with your ideas, and when enough of those unfulfilled ideas go unrealized, staffers lose confidence in what you have to say.
2. Finish one initiative before beginning another. Studies show that the number of projects that people can work on successfully at any given time is two projects; more than that overwhelms labor and maxes-out resources. Don’t confuse a task with a project. Striking a balance for you and your employees ensures that projects are completed and that your crew enjoys success on the job.

Contrast these two types of managers. Manager 1, Kate, attends a conference, returns to the office excited to share a list of new initiatives with her staff, but the staff already have several unfinished projects on their plates. She drops the ideas on employees’ laps and leaves it up to others to figure out the details.

Manager 2, Kyle, returns from the same conference, but instead of rushing to share all his ideas immediately, he does some research over the course of the next week to be sure that he introduces a single best idea that will positively impact his staff. He explains that the ROI on the project will earn the firm $200,000 over the next year, and that end-of-year bonuses will come from this initiative. Already, even before he has laid out the tactical plan, you can already surmise that this idea has greater potential than Kate’s idea to become a WSP.

Mimic Kyle’s approach to change and watch how workplace resistance to change is replaced with an eagerness for future changes. When you develop a reputation for introducing WSPs, people will love change.

Trust is the foundation of any good business relationship or alliance. Typically, parties enter into these relationships with high hopes and with a level of trust and respect for the other party. However, trust can easily be lost if you don’t hold up your end of the bargain or if you become difficult to work with.

I realize that I’m mentioning an obvious point, here. After all, of course you build better relationships when there’s trust. But just because something is obvious doesn’t mean that it is a standard. Take this case in point.

Two allies are working together on a 2-year project that is already 1 year past due. The reason for the blown deadline is that one party won’t listen to the other and works independently without consulting with their ally. As a result, pieces of the project are completed incorrectly, and the work has to be undone, redone, and resubmitted.

The party that is responsible for the delays sends an email to the other ally, stating that they need the other ally to trust them. Huh? How is it that one would expect to be trusted just simply by asking for it. They lost the trust over the course of the project by not fulfilling their obligation to do the job they agreed to from the start.

Seriously, trust isn’t something you can ask for; it’s something you have to earn. Good effort and rationalizing mistakes won’t gain trust, either. You have to hold up your end of a deal, fulfill your commitments, meet deadlines, pay up as you promise and so forth in order to earn, gain, or keep trust.

When you think you’re pushed the limits when it comes to empowerment and motivation, think again.  Human behavior is easily swayed if the surroundings help them achieve their own personal desires.  In the case of these videos, to be entertained, to be challenged, to explore, to learn be surprised. Can you think of one change you could make this week in your own workspace that could create such remarkable shifts?

• Turning a meeting into an experience.
• Converting a customer facing time into a fun situation.
• Making a routine job interesting
• Modifying a traditional product or packaging into an additional benefit
• You get the point….

Think about it.  Some great videos at www.thefuntheory.com
www.davidgoldsmith.com

Did you notice the videos were all supported by…

volkswagon

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volkswagon

volkswagon

So often human nature takes the stance that in order to improve, one’s abilities must be 10 times better or a hundred times better to make a difference. It’s just not the case.

My journeys, both in business and life, have taught me that often the little changes make the most significant impact, while big growth spurts are a rarity.

Take the experience I had at the David Leadbetter Golf Clinic in Florida. While working at a convention, I had the opportunity to sign up for some extra activities, if my plans permitted. I could not create the time to take the 140 MPH NASCAR drive with an experienced driver, so I opted for the David Leadbetter golf lessons that were right outside the Omni Hotel in Orlando.

Having only about 1 hour to spare, I left the conference “war room” and walked up the hill to the facilities were by now over 100 people were getting lessons. These people were intent on improving their game.

I, on the other hand, am an infrequent player. To me, I can easily play 9 holes of golf at a resort while traveling, however, when you take me on the back nine, I start to feel like I should be playing POLO IN MY GOLF CART versus continuing on. I just get bored.

So to me, one hour was good enough, and it also forced the school to give me the best type of lesson I would need as they had 3 groups. The putt, the short ball, and the drive. They put me in the drive section, exactly where I wanted to be.

I picked up a club, pulled a pile of balls off the perfectly-stacked pyramid of about 72 balls stacked for this space, and started to hit.

My first ball slid right pretty far into the next groups area, so I unbuttoned my business shirt, removed my tie, and rolled up my sleeves. This would make all the difference. I no longer sliced to my far right. An improvement.

My next swing was similar, but my slight change of grip pulled it on target a little more. I assumed that my shoes and pants were causing my inability to “grab the ground.”

For the next 20 minutes, I hit ball after ball trying to control its direction by taking back the club slower. By twisting my grip. By keeping my head down. Things started to become consistent. I even tried to listen in to the other lessons hoping that I would pick up a tip or two before it was my turn.

My turn. The instructor asked, “Tell me about your game.” I replied, “I don’t have one. I play about once or twice a year.” I almost felt as if he was disgusted with my response, like I’d punched him in the stomach.

Maybe that’s because The David Leadbetter Schools are some of the best in the world. Experts fly in by helicopter just to take lessons with these instructors and many are coached to become top in the field.  Two are the Greg Norman designed courses and ChampionsGate; both have been listed as Golf Magazine’s “10 Most Distinctive Places to Play.” This is real golf country.

Maybe I should have said that I don’t get enough time to play or something a little less harsh.

He then asked me to take a swing without the ball followed by another. Then again, with a ball. I tried with all my powers to make this one go exactly straight down the fairway. It didn’t exactly go as planned.

He asked for one more. Again, the same.

He then gave me my first piece of advice. Take my right thumb on my grip and move it counter clockwise so that the thumb pointed to my shoulder. Realize we are talking a half an inch. What I learned that in doing so, the head of my club rotates so that the head comes around flat after the swing.

The first ball went much straighter than the first two. We practiced this for about 10 balls.

Then the second piece of advice. After I hit continue on so that my right knee twists inward almost touching my left knee without lifting up the heal. Again we practiced with a few balls and as you might have guessed, it worked.

It worked not because he gave me this life-changing sermon or that he altered my entire way of playing golf. It worked because of minute changes. Simple things that make huge differences.

Granted, the guy’s an expert, and if you saw him drive a ball, you’d know it. His expert advice opened up a new perspective and approach to my golf game.

The same holds true in the work environment. Taking the time to work with your employees is one thing. Taking the time to “improve their swing” is another. It means:

1. You’ve got to be an expert in the first place. Too often, managers feel as if they are experts and teach the wrong people the wrong skills or they do what they do intuitively and don’t really know how to transfer these skills.

You’ve met the incredible sales person that can’t manage.

2. Taking the time to make small changes first if possible. Don’t always look for the Big Bertha. Sometime it’s the smaller changes that have largest and most remembered impact.

3. Understand the need for time. Once a skill is taught, it must be practiced. Seeing someone do something is one thing; doing it themselves is another.

4. Reserve massive overhauls for when you truly have the time to make sure the lessons are done right. The failure to take this time insures two things. One, that you will be frustrated later on, and two, your employee will also.

In the end, my one hour of instruction will change the way I play golf. Will I spend the day doing it? That’s going to need the massive overhaul of my personality.

Keep giving those pointers.

If you fly, you know that if an aircraft is late, there’s a good chance that you’re going to miss your connection or be late for something else in your day.  It’s the reason the government and outside companies monitor the on-time arrival of airlines.

Here’s a simple solution. You might apply this thinking to your own business.

Let me give you the background first.  During each college semester, I make 4 to 5 trips to NYC to teach two courses at NYU.  In each case, I couldn’t tell you if the plane left the actual gate early or late.    But I can tell you that on all 5 flights, the plane arrived before the scheduled time.  I felt, and I believe others did, too, that we got a bonus of time by reaching our destination early.  Although it’s a mental game, it’s mentally real.

What if the airlines added a buffer, say 10 minutes to every aircraft’s ETA.  A 9AM arrival time is now stated as 9:10AM.  The airline publishes the times and the passengers and travelers work around the numbers.

Now here’s what’s going to happen.

The plane leaves on time, or late, no one cares unless it screws up their next step.  With the buffer the aircraft then either arrives early….WOW or on time.

Consider the implications.  I travel a lot and very infrequently do I make a call to my ground transportation about a flight based upon 10 minutes either way.  I don’t spend that much time on the length of time compared to the price and the route.  I hate getting stuck in certain airports.  Here the buyer is more interested in on-time arrivals for the purposes of their next meeting (personal or business) than they are for actual flight time.

Then travel agencies could give options differently.  “You can take the 6 AM through DC into Miami arriving at 11:20 or the 7:40 AM arriving at 2.”  With an overall edit to the system, everyone would be on par with similar flight systems and layovers.

Airline management, their unions, and the technology being used today have made limited progress in improving the system.  They still load bags onto planes by hand.  And it appears there is nothing coming down the pipe line that would radically improve the situation, so why not try a simpler fix.  Besides the airlines have cut back on routes so modeling of new traffic patterns most likely would not be a terrific challenge.

I know someone who spent a good deal of his summer lounging by a pool, vacationing with friends, and overall just kicking back and enjoying life.  Oh yeah, he was a manager, too.  How did he have time to manage his employees and amass so much leisure time, too, you may ask.  He didn’t.  He chose hanging out over working hard, but he had a good reason.

As he explained to his superior, a regional manager for the firm, the “economy” was bad in the area.  He was even generous enough with his time to take the regional manager, who was unfamiliar with the ins and outs of this particular city, on a joy ride through its worst slum…boarded up windows and gang-sign graffiti offered “proof” that the man with a tan couldn’t be blamed for his office’s poor sales.

The vast majority of the beautiful city was running quite smoothly, but the regional manager didn’t get that tour.  He was shuffled straight to the airport before he got a sniff of the truth that his local subordinate opted to darken his tan rather than increase his office’s sales.

Yes, I realize the economy has hit most of us in one way or another.  Some of us have gotten pummeled worse than others, too.  And while sales have taken a hit in many industries, I hope that you’re able to separate reality from perception.

Be careful not to discount your ability to perform on the job because the economy is suffering. There have always been and will always be those who bend with the times and create opportunity.

Also, be fair with yourself. The same assets you brought to your job are those that can help you now.  Don’t forget that you have those strengths and you might just need to change your perception of reality to begin to utilize those strengths today.

Companies like ebay and Amazon.com have to adjust to the economy and the current market conditions to continue to realize healthy profits; and adjust is what they do.  So where are you adjusting what you do to continue to thrive in today’s business environment?

It’s not just about persistence it’s about changing tactics to bring in new business.

On the program Hell’s Kitchen, the restaurant undergoing a business makeover gave away food as a way to announce the reopening of the restaurant. Their marketing tactic was successful, and the next day the restaurant was full.

If you suspect that the economy has become your crutch, toss it aside and take responsibility to walk on your own two feet again.  Adjust strategy and tactics, get creative with marketing and sales, and find ways to revive assets that have been nearly dormant since the downturn started.

Someone’s always doing well…it might as well be you.

Don’t assume your company has super powers, too?

If you’ve ever done any weightlifting, you know that the typical progression flows like this…your endurance and strength improves as you continue to lift more and more weight week after week. Your first week’s 10-pound weights are replaced by your second week’s 15-pounders, and by week five, you’re pumping 25 pounds or more. If the progression continued, you’d eventually lift 700 pounds, but of course, that doesn’t happen. At some point, your ability to increase the pounds you lift maxes out.

If your goal is to get in shape and improve health, that’s no problem. But if you’re working out hoping to transport appliances or tow vehicles, you realize pretty darn quickly that you’re going to need some outside assistance, such as a lever, lift, crane or hydraulics, if you’re going to achieve substantial gains.

The same holds true in business and organizations.

Before you get all gung ho about  new initiatives, run a common sense assessment of your organization’s assets to see if everyone has what they need to reach those lofty goals.

Arm your staff with the tools employees need to be successful.

Groups often make the mistake of believing that just by working together (and especially if they have a successful track record of having worked together in the past), they can solve challenges, take advantage of opportunities, and achieve success. However, just as the well-intentioned and disciplined weight lifter eventually hits a ceiling, your team might need some fresh supplies to soar to new heights.

The areas I’m talking about are new knowledge. new technologies, fresh sets of eyes, new approaches to strategy and tactics, and reformulated group dynamics. Without them, you can still grow and possibly do quite well. But if you want to make significant jumps or differences, you have to consider some upgrades.

Upgrades are not just for computers. People need upgrades, too.

You’ll find some answers by asking yourself and then your staff questions along these lines:

1. What technological upgrades, such as software programs, do you think would make your job easier, would enable you to make fewer mistakes, would empower you to do your job more independently, and would assist you in providing superior customer service?
2. What common problems seem to continually appear that you think a new system, standard procedure, piece of equipment, etc. would prevent, solve, or eliminate altogether?
3. What relationships–with vendors, customers, complementary businesses/organizations–could be strengthened or developed to make our organization more competitive in the marketplace?

You can also uncover weaknesses that hinder growth and development by surveying the customers you service, the vendors you buy from, the partnerships you’ve developed, and the staff you employ from the top management team to the front line.

Your role is to maximize the potential of your organization’s assets.

When leading your team, be on the lookout for weaknesses and keep filling the gaps in order to maximize potential and enable your people to make significant gains.

A business woman I met named Tiffany told me that her business is doing well despite the economy due to both location and product offering.  The only problem Tiffany has is that  her marketing manager hasn’t for years performed up to expectation.

At one point, Tiffany started looking for a replacement over a year ago when the economy was bustling.  However, she found that hiring some one with the talent she wanted would mean paying anywhere from $80,000 to $120,000 more than she could afford.

Now that the economy has changed, her marketing manager stands out like a sore thumb and Tiffany’s patience has run thin.  Her challenge is how does she make the change without spooking the employee or even others within her organization?

Here’s an approach you might use.

Set up a phone line directly to your home or to a separate cell phone number where you can receive calls without anyone in the organization knowing what you’re doing.  Then set up an email account that’s not connected with the company.  This could be a gmail, yahoo, or earthlink account. Then start marketing in online sites. In 2009, you can expect people of high caliber to be searching all sources for a job.

*You also could act like a head hunter and call someone at a competitor since you really don’t know what’s going on in their business and they might be falling on tough times.

In the ad, forward all information to these private contact points so you have a buffer where you can review resume’s or screen calls without announcing it to your staff.  Once the desired talent is found, do a simple phone interview to start to weed out those marketing more than they really possess and schedule an introductory phone interview.  I always love phone interviews as a start, because you’re less limited by looks and can focus first on qualifications.

Next set up a meeting at a restaurant to  discuss what you’re offering.  The distance allows you to see how the individual works in an open setting.  I personally hate when people don’t say please or thank you to restaurant staff. The way one treats their waiter is often a great indicator of how they’ll treat subordinate staff within your organization.  If they’re not respectful during your restaurant meeting,  take their actions seriously into consideration.

Then finally, when you’ve closed in on your decision to hire, you can introduce the prospective employee to your organization.

This is not unlike how a head hunter might work.  They check out prospects, notify someone discretely, arrange a private meeting, and then announce the recruit.

The upside for people who want to hire new talent during this economy is that there are smart, talented people out there who have been displaced and need work.  They’re more willing to work for a reduced pay just to get the paycheck.  Now’s the time to swap out your non produces in this hirers’ market.

Bonuses must have an upside and a downside.  Do a great job and win big enough to make you stay with the firm.  Do a poor job and the bonus and salary structure should reinforce  either changing jobs or rethinking/retooling your career.  Easier said than done.

In the case of publicly-traded firms in the financial sector, all that was created was an upside.  Sell and makes millions, even if what you sell is detrimental to the firm.

When our kids were 4 and 5 years old,  they went through a brief stage where they would argue over whose turn it was to select and watch the program airing on the family-room TV.  Since we limited television time overall, we wanted to come up with a fair solution that took us parents out of the equation and allowed the kids to solve their own problem.  So I created a tool to empower them to do just that.  It was a daily chart reaching out over 6 months at a time.  The chart would work in 30-minute intervals and the kids alternated days.  They used to define who had control over the TV by their half-hour mark.

We also set up a few rules.  Your time is your time.  If you swap your times and you end up with a conflict, we will adhere to the chart to solve the challenge.

The results were amazing.  No more arguments at all.  None.  They managed themselves.  If you’ve got a busy household, systems and structure can rapidly create new time, harmony and balance.

Using charts, schedules, technology, and standard procedures, you can erase conflicts within your organization and provide the tools to empower your staff to work through their own challenges.