tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37750282867560442602024-03-19T01:48:21.847-07:00INNOVATIONS - a resource for managers and leadersInnovations is the blog of Innovative Management Group, a Las Vegas-based training and consulting firm that helps companies define their strategic focus, align their internal effort, and gain the commitment of their workforce to achieve long-term profitability and growth. If you would like more information about how we can help your company succeed, please contact us at 702-258-8334, e-mail to mac@imglv.com, or visit us on the web at www.imglv.com.Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.comBlogger92125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-52982085078666481132012-06-16T06:19:00.000-07:002012-06-16T06:19:55.162-07:00My Blog is MovingStarting today I will be posting all new blog posts on my new blog on my business website -- www.imglv.com. I also will be moving my old posts from this blog to that blog site. Please read new articles and follow me on my new blog.<br />
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Thanks.Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-51125514240497369982012-04-26T13:39:00.001-07:002012-04-26T13:39:39.691-07:00How to Get Your Employees to “Get It”<span style="font-size: small;"><i>There are several "its" employees need to get if they wish to succeed in the workplace. And every manager wishes his or her employees would not only get "it", but also do "it." This article helps you figure "it" out so you can be successful at work.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>A</b></span>lmost everyone who knows me knows I have been involved with the Boy Scouts of America for many years. When I was a Scoutmaster I had charge of almost thirty 12-13-year-old boys. I was tasked with nurturing and molding their young minds to help them become better human beings. I took my role very seriously and tried to magnify my calling to the best of my ability.<br />
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One night, while we were sitting around the campfire at one of our monthly campouts, I asked my boys this open-ended question: “<i>At what age do people typically tend to get it?</i>” I didn’t explain what I meant by “it.” I wanted to see if they, themselves, got it.<br />
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Wisely, the boys said there is no specific age when people get it. Some people, they concluded, never get it. They also suggested that some people get it at an early age, while others only catch on late in their life. They rightly surmised that some people may only get it after a life changing or significant emotional experience caused caused them to reflect upon their life.<br />
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I then asked: “<i>Who do you feel are the happiest people in this life – those who get it, or those who don’t?</i>” They all agreed that people who get it are better off than those who don’t get it. Those who don't get it, they said, typically struggle in life.<br />
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Finally, I asked these highly astute young men to tell me what the “its” are in life that people need to get if they want to be happy.<br />
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After a very interesting philosophical discussion they concluded there is an “it” in every element of life. There is an “it” in school; and those students who figure it out do better scholastically than those who struggle or rebel against “it.”
They said there is an “it” at home and in the family; and those families who know it and do it have a happy home and loving family, while those who struggle or rebel against the “it” of healthy family relationships have problems in their home. They also assumed there must be an “it” at work that, when understood and adhered to, leads to a happy and successful career.
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<b>YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO HELP EMPLOYEES TO GET IT</b><br />
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As a manager, you’re in an excellent position to help your employees to “get it.” The main purpose of identifying what you want from your employees is to help them to get the major “it” at work – the reason why they exist as an employee. The sooner an employee gets it, the better off he or she will be. Those workers who get it go far in their career – and in life – while those who don’t get it generally struggle until they figure it out.<br />
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There are several key things every employee needs to understand if they want to get ahead in the work world. These things collectively comprise the “it” that every manager hopes his or her employees will get, because once an employee does get it the manager doesn’t have to manage that employee as closely as those workers who don’t get it.
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<b>THE PRIMARY "IT" IN BUSINESS</b> <br />
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The “it” of business comprises what I call the <b><u><i>major premise</i></u></b> of work. If an employee doesn’t get the major premise, she will have an even harder time grasping the subtle nuances at work. If, however, she grasps the big picture and understands why she exists as an employee, she is more likely to successfully fulfill her role and win at work.<br />
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Many employees struggle because they are confused about why they exist as an employee. They believe they were hired to serve the customer, produce a product, accomplish goals, or perform the duties of the job. Some less dedicated employees falsely believe they are only at work to earn a paycheck.<br />
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But every employee was hired for two primary reasons: Employees exist to <u><b><i>increase revenue</i></b></u> and/or to <b><u><i>reduce costs</i></u></b> in order to maximize the profitability of their employer. Everything else that an employee does is a means to these two ends. Every employee exists to either drive greater revenue or to control or eliminate costs in order to improve the company’s bottom-line. This is the major premise!<br />
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Once an employee accepts that he was hired to increase revenue or reduce costs, he can focus his energy and effort toward that end. He can prioritize his work and channel his performance toward maximizing profits, rather than merely accomplishing tasks. All job duties and responsibilities that don’t result in either generating revenue or controlling costs should be revised or eliminated. Everything that matters in the workplace either drives revenue or reduces costs. Everything else is an appendage to these two things.<br />
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Employees who successfully deliver this “it” of increasing revenue or reducing costs greatly increase <i>their</i> value to the organization. This is another major premise: <u><i><b>Valuable employees usually reap the rewards of their value</b></i></u>. Good employees seldom lose their job. During depressed economic times, when cost-cutting layoffs occur, employees and departments with the least perceived value are usually the first to be let go. Consequently, it always is in the best interest of an employee to understand and commit to the major premise of their organization by doing all they can to increase revenue, reduce costs, and deliver on the implied promises inherent in their job classification.<br />
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<b>GETTING EMPLOYEES TO DO IT</b> <br />
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Another important premise for you to understand is <u><i><b>people won't change their behavior until it is imperative for them to do so</b></i></u>. Employees will give you what you want when it is imperative that they do. Your job as a manager is to find the right imperative that will instill the internal desire within your employees to accomplish what you want.<br />
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Sometimes a perceived <i>business imperative</i> is all employees need in order to perform well. For example, knowing that a company might go out of business if the employees don’t improve the quality of the products they produce can often motivate employees to improve their results in order to save their jobs. Seeing the impact a new competitor is having in taking away business from your company can have a motivating effect on a sales force to generate more business. Understanding the fatal impact a production flaw might have in killing a customer can help employees concentrate on job safety. Consequently, finding the right business imperative that the employees can latch onto is critical to gaining their commitment to do what it is you want.<br />
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By far the best imperatives, however, are those that are specific to the interests and needs of the individual employee. Most <b><i><u>people will not change their behavior until the consequences are such that they want to</u></i></b>. Although negative consequences can cause people to move in the direction you want, the best consequences are those that provide an employee with a positive imperative to perform well. For example, delivery truck drivers who are allowed to go home as soon as all of their deliveries are made are less inclined to dally as they go about their work. Salespeople who get a commission on every sell usually stay focused on selling, rather than loitering around the sales floor. Teachers who are held accountable for student test scores are more inclined to teach rather than babysit. And employees who are paid for performance tend to be more productive than employees who are paid merely for being at work. <br />
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<b>SUPPORTING THOSE EMPLOYEES WHO GET IT</b> <br />
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The strongest imperative in the workplace is your support as a manager. There will come a day when every employee will want your support. There will come a day when an employee will want a day off, a special favor, a promotion or a pay raise. When that day comes you will probably be more inclined to support those employees who are worthy of your backing because of how they performed and acted at work.<br />
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In other words, <u><b>it is imperative for your employees to perform and act the way you want them to because there will come a day when it will be in their best interest to do so</b></u>. The reason why employees need to perform well <i>today</i> is because there will come a day in their<i> future</i> when they will want to be rewarded for their actions. <br />
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Those employees who “get it,” realize their performance today determines the support they will receive in the future. This is why I tell my employees not to perform well for <i>me</i>, or for the <i>company</i>, or for the <i>customers</i>; but, rather, to do a good job for <i>themselves</i>, because there will come a day when they will want my support as their manager. I make it clear that I only support those employees who have supported me in the past by performing as I expect. This is the “it” I want them to get.<br />
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When your employees understand the <i>major premise</i> of your business and see the<i> imperative </i>for their work, they generally do what you want them to do. The more clearly you can define and articulate the major premises and personal imperatives, the less you will have to manage your people. When your employees keep the major premise and personal imperatives uppermost in their minds, they usually hold themselves accountable and manage their own performance in order to get the support they will want in the future.<br />
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Let me give you an example of this by discussing another area of our lives where there are major premises and personal imperatives – at home.
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<b>THE MAJOR PREMISE AT HOME</b> <br />
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If you are like most parents, you may experience the occasional tiff or tussle with your children, particularly if they are teenagers. This struggle often occurs because there is great disparity between what parents perceive their role to be and how teenagers view the parents’ role. Parents believe they exist to teach, nurture and protect their children. Teenagers seem to think parents exist to either make their lives miserable or to give them money whenever they want it so they can to do whatever they want. This difference in perceptions causes conflict in the relationship between parents and children.<br />
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When my wife and I were having difficulty with our teenage son we found it helpful to clarify for him what we felt was the major premise of why we exist as parents. We wrote the premise down and then talked to him about it so he would know that everything we do as parents is governed by one over-arching purpose. Here is what we told him is the reason why we exist as parents. We call it <b><i><u>The Parental Major Premise</u></i></b>:<br />
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<i>We love you.</i></div>
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<i>We would never do anything to purposely harm you.</i></div>
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<i>We want you to have a <u>happy</u>, <u>successful</u>, <u>independent</u> and <u>self-sustaining life</u>. </i></div>
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<i>Everything we do as parents is designed toward that end, </i></div>
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<i>So don’t fight against us; we are on your side. </i></div>
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Literally everything we do as parents is governed by our desire for our son to have a happy, successful, independent and self-sustaining life. It took a while for our son to fully grasp and accept this, but now our son knows when we tell him he cannot do something that the reason is tied to the parental major premise. Our yes or no is based on whether the activity will make our son happy, successful, independent or self-sustaining.<br />
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In reality, we don’t want to say no to our son; we want to say yes. We’re not ogres. But there are some things that are not in the best interest of our son’s future happiness, even though he may think otherwise. So we tell him we’re restricting him from doing an unwise thing today because we are not interested in his momentary pleasure; we are only interested in his long-term happiness. We’ve found with our son that once he accepts the parental major premise that we love him and are interested in his future success; it makes the short-term pain of today’s disappointments much easier to bear.<br />
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Because our son knows our parental major premise is in his own best interest, it is imperative for him to comply with our wishes if he wants to have a happy, successful, independent and self-sustaining life. He knows everything we do and say as parents is designed toward that end. He also knows our support is tied to his acceptance of and compliance with the parental major premise. Consequently, rather than arguing with us or fighting against our expectations, he usually does what we want when we want because he knows we are on his side.
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Our son also knows our parental support -- to allow him to do what he wants to do -- is based on his support of us regarding our rules, values, principles, beliefs, philosophies, etc. For example, our son knew that if he was dishonest at age twelve regarding telling us where he had been and what he'd been doing, <i>there would come a day</i>, at age sixteen, when he would want to borrow our car. He knew we would only support him by letting him use the car if we could trust he would be truthful when we asked him where he was going and what he would be doing in the car. Consequently, it became imperative for our son to do today what we, as parents wanted him to do because he knew he would want our support in the future.<br />
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<b>BEING ON THE SIDE OF YOUR EMPLOYEES</b> <br />
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The “parental major premise” also works in managing employees. <u><i><b>It should be a managerial major premise that you are on the side of the employees</b></i></u>, particularly if you want your employees to accomplish the major premise and imperatives of your business. Your employees will be more inclined to do what you want, when and how you want it, when they know – and believe it and feel it – that you "love" them and would never do anything to purposely harm them. Everything you do as a manager should be designed to help your employees
have a happy, successful, independent and self-sustaining career. When they know you are on their side, they will stop fighting against you.<br />
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Employees are much happier, successful, independent and self-sustaining at work when you clearly identify their goals, roles, expectations, boundaries and authority. They produce more when their is a solid business premise and distinct imperatives to perform at optimal levels. They strive harder when there are clear consequences and measurements of success. They work harder when they know your support is tied to their performance and that <i>there will come a day</i> when you will give them what they want because they gave you what you want.<br />
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Your role as a manager -- the "it" you need to get -- is that <u><i><b>you succeed when your employees succeed</b></i></u>. When you understand your role -- and do it --the chances are higher your employees will understand their role and will do it. The extent to which you, and your employees, get "it" and do "it" is the extent to which you, and they, will be successful at work. §<br />
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<i>Innovative Management Group offers a highly successful management training program that will help you get the "its" of your job. It also shows how you can help your employees to get "it." Our “</i>Accountability Management Workshop<i>” helps focus every employee at every level of your organization on the things that matter most. Call us at 702-258-8334 to learn more about this hard-hitting, results-oriented management training program.
</i>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-56530622519325846562011-12-14T09:22:00.000-08:002011-12-14T09:25:38.435-08:00Get the Process Right to Get the Right Results<span style="font-weight:bold;">Sometimes Super Bowl-type results can be achieved far easier and much faster by not focusing on the goal, but by dealing with the important process issues that are critical to the team’s success.</span><br /><br />-------------------<br /><br />In October of 1995, I attended a fundraising dinner where Steve Young, the former quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, was the guest speaker. Young’s comments were so profound I still remember them today. <br /><br />As almost anyone knows, Steve Young was the quarterback who led the 49ers to a Super Bowl Championship win in January of that year. He also was named Most Valuable Player for the game. At the fundraiser he shared one of his observations about that win.<br /><br />Young said that during the previous year before the Super Bowl win, the 1993-94 season, the 49ers were a much stronger team and played far better than the year they won the championship. In that year they had a 13-2 record, compared to an 11-5 record in the 1994-95 season. But they lost in the playoffs that year.<br /><br />One year later, with a less talented team and a poorer win-loss record, the 49ers won the Super Bowl. Why did this happen?<br /><br />According to Young, in the previous season the team was totally focused on winning the Super Bowl. They thought of nothing else. They kept that goal at the forefront of their minds at all times. Nothing else mattered. Individual games were not important. One win was not a cause for celebration; it was just one step closer to the Super Bowl goal.<br /><br />“We took a corporate view,” Young said. “We stayed focused on the goal. We came to work, accomplished the incremental goal before us, and moved on. We didn’t spend a lot of time talking about it. We just did it.”<br /><br />During that season the team members hardly talked to each other. They came to work, did their job, and went home. It was not fun; it was work.<br /><br />“We were so totally focused on the goal of winning the Super Bowl,” Young explained, “we forgot the importance of the process.”<br /><br />And that is why they lost.<br /><br />After their playoff loss, Jerry Rice, the extraordinary tight end, told the team he never wanted to have another year like they had had that season. It had not been enjoyable. Rice declared, and the team agreed that the next year they would focus on having fun and worry less about the results.<br /><br />Young said the next year the team did have fun. They enjoyed the journey. They developed relationships along the way. They got to know one another and shared special moments. They celebrated after each win and used each loss as a catalyst for moving them closer to the Super Bowl.<br /><br />“We used the losses to vent about relationships rather than abilities. We talked about how we handle pressure. And we made renewed commitments to do better in the next game.”<br /><br />Young said what his team found out was “even if you don’t get to the goal, you see yourself grow as a person. You enjoy the team process and recognize its value. You grow from week to week as a result of the relationships you’ve created.” <br /><br />As a result of having developed a stronger team bond, the team became stronger. They performed better. They became unified and, because of their unity, achieved superior results from a team that everyone assumed was inferior. They won the Super Bowl with a lesser team.<br /><br />Conflicts often arise on work teams between members who are primarily results-driven and those who want to “slow down” to address process issues. Steve Young learned the importance of developing relationships among team members. He also realized the value of confronting process concerns around how team tasks are accomplished. He discovered the value of team unity to accomplishing results.<br /><br />For years Innovative Management Group has facilitated team building sessions to help groups of individuals achieve greater results by working cohesively as a work unit. Occasionally teams have to stop working on their tasks long enough to assess whether or not all members are “stepping forward together” to achieve their common objective. As Steve Young learned from his own experience, sometimes Super Bowl-type results can be achieved far easier and much faster by not focusing on the goal, but by dealing with the important process issues that are critical to the team’s success.Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-26984652526586473102011-12-14T05:21:00.001-08:002011-12-14T05:39:59.813-08:00How to Gain True Consensus on Team Tasks and Decisions<span style="font-style:italic;">If human beings only use ten percent of their brain, then ten people have to be in a meeting to get whole-brain thinking. The problem is getting them all to agree.</span><br /><br />-------------------<br /><br />Someone has postulated that most human beings only use ten percent of their brain. If that is true, then ten people have to be in a meeting to get whole-brain thinking. This explains the value of working in teams. <br /><br />Everyone who has been in one of my management training sessions knows that I define a “team” as a group of individuals who “step forward together” to achieve a common goal. Teamwork requires individuals to pool information and consider different viewpoints to find solutions and make decisions. Seldom do all team members have the same view about an idea or issue. Polarized views, opposing opinions, and stubborn hold outs can often block the progress of a team. The success of a team relies heavily on how quickly the members can come to consensus on both what their goal is and how it will be achieved.<br /><br />A significant portion of a team’s effectiveness and “health” is tied to how well the team members interact and make decisions. Too often the most powerful or outspoken member of a team dominates the team’s discussion and determines the team’s actions. Quieter or less assertive members are not heard, which negates the power of the collective thinking of the team. <br /><br />What happens to the motivation of individuals whose ideas are not considered or whose suggestions are not adopted? How is team commitment impacted when team members are not personally vested? What is the impact when arguments and off-purpose behaviors disrupt the progress of the team?<br /> <br />Coming to true consensus among a group of individuals is hard to do. It takes great facilitative skills and effective process tools among the group to bring everyone to agreement. True consensus requires everyone to remain firmly grounded and completely committed to their consensus decision once the team discussion has ended. <br /><br />Unfortunately, I’ve found that consensus in many companies is only consensus until everyone leaves the room. Once people get back into their work area or start to ponder the team’s decision outside the team room, some members tend to question the team’s decision and their commitment to it. The key, therefore, to achieving consensus is not just getting it, but also making sure it sticks once it is reached.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />DEFINITION OF CONSENSUS</span><br /><br />As I facilitate groups I find there are several misconceptions regarding what constitutes a consensus decision. Some people believe consensus is when everyone in the group is in agreement with an idea or proposal. This, of course, is not consensus. A decision that everyone agrees to is unanimous; which is better than consensus. Team commitment to a decision is seldom questioned when everyone on the team is in unanimous agreement.<br /><br />Other people I’ve encountered have the misconception that consensus is achieved when the team votes on a proposal and the idea that gets the most votes wins. Majority rule is never consensus. Majority rule is where the dominant majority overrules the less convincing minority. <br /><br />The problem with majority rule is the minority. Whenever the majority rules; someone is left out. And those who are left out seldom step forward with the rest of the team. Majority rule is not an effective group decision making method for a team.<br /><br />Still others believe consensus is achieved when members of the team agree to compromise in order to get everyone’s buy-in. Compromise is not consensus either. Members on a team may have to compromise to come to consensus, but consensus does not necessarily require compromise. In fact, sometimes compromised decisions can be the worst possible decisions. Compromise usually means everyone had to lose something in order to win. But a lose-lose situation seldom is a win-win for the team. <br /><br />So what is team consensus?<br /><br />A consensus decision is an idea that results from the full input of all team members. Sometimes one suggestion is universally accepted as best, and sometimes the decision is a combination of the thoughts of several individuals. Consensus does not necessarily mean the decision is everyone's first choice. <br /><br />Consensus is defined as . . .<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">A decision or position reflecting the collective thinking of the team that all members participated in developing, understand fully, believe is workable, can live with, and will actively support.</span><br /><br />To reach consensus, every team member must express themselves and participate fully in the discussion. Each member should listen to and respect the input of others and remain open-minded. Disagreements need to be confronted and explored until every idea is out on the table and an acceptable solution is found. Everyone must feel they were heard and their viewpoint considered when making collective decisions.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">PSEUDO-CONSENSUS</span><br /><br />True consensus cannot be reached until everyone on the team clearly understands what they are agreeing to. Pseudo-consensus – where people agree in the room and then disagree later – occurs when people think of something outside of the team room that was not understood or addressed during the team discussion. Team’s need to take the time during the team meeting to ensure everyone is fully on-board before declaring consensus has been achieved.<br /><br />Team members seldom accept a proposal that they feel is unworkable. Before consenting to an idea or solution people test the proposal in their mind to assess its viability. To achieve true consensus the team must work together to come up with decisions that everyone feels are feasible. If someone feels the proposed idea won’t work, the team should discuss how to make it work or come up with alternative solutions.<br /><br />It is possible, however, to achieve consensus even if someone on the team feels a proposed solution won’t work. This happens when someone – usually a lone holdout – cannot justify their hesitation to consent with valid proof that the proposed decision is wrong. Accepting the possibility that the majority of the group may be right, and they may be wrong, the individual agrees to give their consensus to the group. <br /><br />Please note that this constitutes consensus – and not majority rule – only if the last two elements of the definition of consensus apply. The hesitant individual must be able to live with the decision and actively support it. If they cannot live with it or actively support it, the team discussion must continue until real consensus is achieved.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">TRUE TEST OF CONSENSUS</span><br /><br />These last two elements of consensus are the true tests of the team’s buy-in. Can everyone on the team live with the decision and will they actively support it? If any team member feels they cannot live with the implications and consequences of the team’s decision, the proposal must be addressed until everyone can. Actively supporting a decision means everyone on the team will put their full energy and effort into ensuring the team’s decision is carried out as designed. Half-hearted or disgruntled support is never acceptable on a team. Real consensus requires real commitment.<br /><br />Consensus decision-making often requires more time and skilled facilitation to discuss the ideas and issues fully. Teams should not expect quick consensus on every issue. Failure to achieve true consensus usually can be traced back to the team’s failure around one or more of the consensus definition elements. For example, the team may have ignored the introverted or quiet members of the group and failed to solicit the collective thinking of the entire team. Or the team may not have explored the ideas fully enough for everyone to clearly understand what was being proposed. Maybe the team ran roughshod over someone who felt the idea was not workable. Perhaps someone on the team placated, giving in rather than fighting for what they believed was a better solution. Many factors contribute to a team’s failure to achieve true consensus. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">CONSENSUS ISN'T ALWAYS NECESSARY</span><br /><br />During the early stages of a team’s development the team should decide where consensus support is absolutely essential to the team’s success. On less important issues it’s often possible for the entire group to step forward together with a much simpler and faster decision making process than consensus. However, consensus decision making should always be used on team decisions regarding the team’s charter, ground rules, project plans, completion dates and other critical elements impacting the success of the team’s mission.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">AVOIDING GROUP THINK</span><br /><br />As a team strives to achieve consensus there will be times when it is difficult to get everyone on board. Invariably there may be one obstinate, hard-headed holdout who refuses to consent to what others on the team agree to. Sometimes this individual is a true roadblock, but often the person is merely trying to keep the team from falling into group think. <br /><br />Group think occurs when the team cannot come up with alternatives to their ideas or solutions. Group think is particularly prevalent when a solution or decision seems obvious. Devil’s advocate dissidence among the team may be the very thing the team needs to keep the group from falling into the trap of collective blindness.<br /><br />A perfect example of this is Galileo Galilei, the father of modern observational astronomy. Galileo's championing of Copernicanism – the view that the earth revolves around the sun – was controversial within his lifetime. The geocentric view that the sun revolved around the earth had been dominant since the time of Aristotle. The controversy engendered by Galileo's opposition to this view resulted in the Catholic Church's prohibiting his advocacy of heliocentrism. Galileo was brought before the Inquisition because of his views where he was forced to recant what he knew to be true. He spent the last years of his life under house arrest.<br /><br />Like many lone voices on a team, Galileo was right. But more powerful voices in the group – in Galileo’s case, that of the ecclesiastical leaders – can dominate the team so strongly that anyone who actually agrees with the dissenting person quickly changes their position to avoid the “inquisition.” Group think often occurs when someone on the team is in a “power position” within the organization. Those on the team, not wishing to jeopardize their careers align themselves with the person who wields power over them. Sadly, consensus by decree or covert coercion is not real consensus. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">THE DISSENTER MAY BE RIGHT</span><br /><br />This is why a team must take great care to ensure all voices are heard. Sometimes one person can sway the views of many. I saw this happen when I was facilitating a team of 27 scientists. As you might guess, trying to get 27 scientists to agree on anything is extremely difficult. There were many knock-down drag-out fights among the team before the group accomplished its mission.<br /><br />During one of those fights 26 scientists were in agreement on a particular issue. Only one team member disagreed. No matter what everyone else on the team said to try to sway the one holdout to the position of the group, he refused to budge. He believed he was right. He stood his ground and fought for his idea. And, eventually, many hours later, he convinced the entire team to change their vote and consent to his idea. In the end his solution proved to be the right choice. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">HOW TO REACH CONSENSUS</span><br /><br />In that case the dissenting voice was correct. But sometimes there are dissenters within the team who are wrong and refuse to give in. They keep the team from moving forward because they stubbornly stand their ground. The nineteen techniques described below show the progressive steps to gaining consensus on a team. The steps start out easy and become increasingly adamant as obstinate team members refuse to consent. <br /> <br />1. The first step to gaining consensus is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">make sure everyone understands the idea or issue fully</span>. As stated above, the primary reason why people cannot agree is because they don’t fully understand what is being discussed. A dissenting opinion can often be easily swayed with more information about the proposed action. Ask the dissenting team member what they don’t understand and then address each of their concerns. <br /> <br />2. To solidify the team’s agreement you should “call for consensus” on the issue being discussed. This means you ask the team members to signify their consent. The fastest and easiest way to do this is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask if anyone disagrees</span>. If no one disagrees, the team is in consensus. However, this step only works if the team has established a ground rule stating that if anyone disagrees they must speak up. Otherwise someone could quietly disagree, but be too afraid or introverted to voice their descent. Passive aggressive individuals often use silence as a way of showing their disapproval. Therefore, if you use this technique, great care must be taken to ensure everyone on the team truly does agree.<br /> <br />3. If there is concern that someone might be silently disagreeing without speaking up, you should <span style="font-weight:bold;">visualize the team members’ positions</span>. Call for a visual vote to see where people stand. I’ve found the best way to do this is with thumbs. If a person agrees with the idea or proposal they should indicate their sanction with a thumb up signal. If a person disagrees with the idea being presented they should give it the thumbs down. And if a person is not sure whether they agree or disagree they should indicate their waffling with a sideways thumb. Now you can see where everyone stands.<br /><br />4. Once everyone’s position has been identified, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask the minority if they can live with the decision of the majority</span>. The purpose of this step is not majority rules but, rather, to speed up the process if dissenting members can actually live with the majority’s decision and will actively support it. It’s amazing how many people can easily accept the opinions of others when merely asked if they can do so. Minority members need to decide whether the proposal is significant enough to adamantly oppose it, or whether they can easily “live with” and “actively support” it so the team can move forward.<br /><br />5. If any member with an opposing or waffling view cannot live with the majority’s position, <span style="font-weight:bold;">always start with the majority first</span> when opening up the issue for discussion. There is a strong possibility that the majority is right. If this is true, then a few additional explanations from the majority may easily sway the minority opinion and get opposing members to consent. <br /><br />6. After allowing a few comments from the majority, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask if any of the dissenters have been swayed</span>. If everyone’s thumb is now up, you now have the consensus of the group. If not, continue the discussion while continuing to ask if anyone has been swayed throughout the discussion.<br /><br />7. If anyone on the team has not been swayed by the majority’s explanation, <span style="font-weight:bold;">get the opposing opinion </span>(those whose thumb was down) before hearing from the wafflers. Wafflers usually are swayed either by the thumbs up or thumbs down arguments. Allow the team to discuss the issue in a point and counter point fashion. Wafflers should also participate in the discussion if they have points to add to either side of the discussion. <br /><br />8. Ask the team members to <span style="font-weight:bold;">indicate when they have been swayed</span> by showing the changed position of their thumb when they are swayed. When all thumbs are either up or down, you have consensus. Always keep in mind that consensus is when everyone on the team can live with the decision and will actively support it. They do not have to agree. <br /><br />9. If someone on the team is having a hard time agreeing to something that everyone else seems to willingly accept, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask if they conceptually agree</span> with the proposal. Sometimes a person may agree with the concept, but not with the particulars of an idea. In such cases they may appear to be in complete disagreement when, in reality, they are only stuck on a few minor points. Consequently, by getting them to agree conceptually (or in theory) first, you then can work out the kinks of the minor sticking points.<br /><br />10. Another technique similar to the one above is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">determine how close the person is to agreement</span>. Ask the dissenter to state in a percentage how close they are to agreeing to the proposal. Someone who is “90% there” will be a lot easier to sway than someone who is “not even close – maybe 10%.” Usually the person who is close to agreement can be easily swayed by merely asking them what they need in order to give their 100% support. On the other hand, it may take a great deal of discussion or a revamping of the proposal to sway the person who is far from giving their consensus.<br /><br />11. Another way to sway dissenters is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">agree on the separate parts of the proposal</span>. This is what I call “chunking down the issue.” The purpose of this technique is to separate out the various parts of the proposal to see which pieces a dissenter agrees with and which pieces they oppose. Quite often a team member appears to be in disagreement with an entire proposal when they really are only in disagreement with a specific part of it. For example, they may agree with points A, B, D and E; but be in complete disagreement with point C. In this case they actually are “80% there, yet seem to be in complete disagreement because no one chunked down the issue.<br /><br />12. Sometimes a consensus discussion bogs down because people disagree with a step that comes much later in the process. Fearing a future roadblock, they feel the need to oppose the idea now. For example, they argue against a proposal because they feel it will be hard to implement. Rather than agreeing that the proposal is the right thing to do, they worry about how hard it will be to implement the decision even though its right, therefore they try to kill what is right because of their assumption of the difficult road ahead. In cases where there is a sequential step-by-step roadmap to follow, <span style="font-weight:bold;">discuss and agree on the steps of the proposal in order</span>. Only allow discussion about one step at a time and get consensus at each step. Don’t worry about step three until you get to step two. Don’t let the team take a detour on the right road just because they feel there may be bumps ahead.<br /><br />13. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Make the right decision first</span>. Sometimes team members know a decision is right, but they fear the consequences of the decision. Once when I was facilitating a team discussing a significant reorganization within the company, it became obvious during the discussion that consensus on the proposal being discussed would require everyone in the room to relocate to a different state. Not wanting to uproot their families, some members on the team vehemently argued against the proposal. But it soon became obvious that their dissent was for personal reasons, not because they thought the decision was wrong for the business. Consequently, I had to get them to set aside their personal objections and make the right decision first. Afterwards we would discuss how to minimize the impact that decision would have on them personally. <br /><br />14. If, after using all of the techniques listed above, the team cannot come to agreement, you may need to <span style="font-weight:bold;">table the decision temporarily</span>. This gives people time to think about the proposal and weigh out the points and counter-points in their minds in a less heated setting. However, be sure to come back to the issue at the first opportunity, typically the very next time the team meets together.<br /><br />15. If someone continues to hold out with a dissenting view after everyone else on the team is fully convinced a proposal is right, there are only two reasons why they cannot give their consensus. They either have a <span style="font-weight:bold;">valid or personal</span> reason for not agreeing with the majority decision. <br /><br />A “valid” reason is any explanation that validates the person’s opposition in the minds of the rest of the members of the team so they, too, agree with the dissenter’s point of view. The purpose of this technique is to allow the dissenter to sway the rest of the team over to their position by presenting reasonable and rational arguments regarding their opposition until the other members see the validity of that position. If they cannot sway the rest of the team with their arguments, then the dissenter’s view is not “valid.” The validity of the team member’s viewpoint is determined by the other members of the group. They decide what is valid and what isn’t by whether or not they have been swayed by the argument.<br /><br />When the dissenter lacks a valid reason for their opposition, there resistance is for “personal” reasons. Invariably they are arguing against the proposal because of how it will impact them personally. In most cases, personal reasons are not valid, and therefore should not keep the team from making the right decision. Personal dissenters should set their personal feelings aside and make the right decision for the team. <br /><br />There are times, however, when someone’s personal reasons could be valid if they revealed them to the group. Unfortunately, many team members hide their personal reasons (hidden agenda) because they fear the team’s reaction if their personal concerns were made known. A perfect example of this is a team member who has been given implicit instructions by their boss to oppose the team’s idea and directs the employee not to disclose it to the team. The employee now has a personal (career) reason not to agree with the team, but fears exposing that reason to the team and incurring the wrath of his or her boss for violating confidentiality. The best approach to this situation is to be honest with the team, make the right decision, and then use the team to help determine how best to handle the boss.<br /><br />16. If a member continues to be a lone holdout, <span style="font-weight:bold;">have the team leader or team sponsor meet with the member</span>. The team leader should meet with the team member to discuss his or her opposition. Sometimes things come out in a one-on-one discussion that won’t come out in the group setting. If the team leader cannot get through to the member, then the person who formed the team (the team sponsor) should meet with the member to try to remove the roadblock.<br /><br />17. If a person continues to resist and offers no valid reason for doing so, <span style="font-weight:bold;">demand their consensus</span>. Tell them they must agree with the consensus of the team and actively support it. If they have no valid reason for their opposition they must agree with the team if they want to be a member of the team. <br /><br />18. If they refuse to give their consensus, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask them to withdraw from the team</span>. The team cannot be held back from accomplishing their mission by one stubborn member. That person must leave the team if he or she can neither sway the team nor be swayed by the team.<br /><br />19. Finally, if an obstinate member refuses to withdraw from the team,<span style="font-weight:bold;"> ask the team Sponsor to remove a non-valid dissenter from the team</span>. The person who formed the team is the only person who can remove a member from the team. Unfortunately, sometimes the only way to get a team back on track is to remove the resisting member who is holding the team back.<br /><br /><br />Each of the steps outlined above are designed to get the team to true consensus. Once the team has come to agreement, I like to anchor the consensus by declaring: “So let it be written; so let it be done.” This signifies that, unless something in the world dramatically changes to alter the team’s decision, the team should stay true to its consensus and carry out their decision exactly as planned.§<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group is renowned for our team facilitation skills. We know how to drive groups to consensus decisions on tough issues. We also know how to resolve conflict among struggling teams. We offer several results-oriented team building workshops that help teams stay focused on accomplishing their assigned tasks.<br /> </span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-86353792960665469412011-11-09T17:15:00.000-08:002011-11-09T17:21:27.944-08:00Believing in Oneself and in One's Employees is the Key to Delegation<span style="font-style:italic;">Delegation requires a manager’s trust, confidence and belief in the abilities of an employee to carry out a task to its successful completion. A multitude of beliefs come into play before a manager will let go of an assigned task.</span><br />----------------------<br /><br />I’ve been a consultant for almost 38 years. During that time I’ve noticed a vast majority of managers have a hard time properly delegating tasks to subordinates, particularly those tasks that are of high importance or entail great risk to the manager or company. <br /><br />Delegation requires a manager’s trust, confidence and belief in the abilities of an employee to carry out a task to its successful completion. A multitude of beliefs come into play before a manager will let go of an assigned task. <br /><br />The manager must believe the employee delegated to is fully capable of performing the task (competence) and that the task will actually be done (predictability). Managers often don’t delegate a task to someone else because they lack the confidence the task will be done as well as they could do it themselves.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Beliefs within the Manager</span><br /><br />To delegate a task to another person, a manager must consciously understand the unconscious elements that play into every delegation. Before the manager can “let go” of an assignment one must harbor certain “beliefs” about the person to whom one is delegating.<br /><br />The first element is a <span style="font-weight:bold;">Competence Belief</span>. A manager must believe the person is capable of performing the task as directed at the level expected. This includes the assurance that the individual has the skills, knowledge and ability to perform the expected result.<br /><br />Having the skills to do a task and having a willingness to do it are two different things. Consequently, the manager also must have a <span style="font-weight:bold;">Disposition Belief</span> that the employee is not only able to perform the task, but disposed to perform as expected. The employee must be eager and willing to take on the responsibilities. If the employee is in any way hesitant or reluctant, the manager will be less inclined to believe the task will be completed properly. The employee’s eagerness to accept the assigned task influences the manager’s willingness to delegate the task.<br /><br />Hence, the manager also needs a <span style="font-weight:bold;">Fulfillment Belief</span> – a sense the worker will carry out the action by actually doing it. To fulfill a responsibility an employee must have the ability, disposition, time, and resources to complete the task as expected. Delegation is not merely assigning a task to another person; it also is giving that person the information, tools, resources, incentive and training necessary to perform the work successfully.<br /><br />Additionally, the manager must believe the employee will persevere until the task is completed. This <span style="font-weight:bold;">Persistence Belief</span> gives the manager the added sense that the employee will stick to the task and do whatever is necessary to get it done in a timely manner. This belief also entails the manager’s assumption that the employee has the ability to successfully circumvent any obstacles that may be placed in their way while performing the work.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Beliefs within the Employee</span><br /> <br />There are three additional beliefs that the employee must harbor in order to accept the delegated responsibility. Managers should consider these additional beliefs when delegating to an employee.<br /><br />First, the employee must have a <span style="font-weight:bold;">Confidence Belief</span> in his own abilities to perform the task as expected. He must confidently know, or believe, he can do it.<br /><br />Second, there must be a <span style="font-weight:bold;">Benefit Belief</span> regarding the delegated task. The employee must perceive there is a personal benefit from her performing the assigned action. Some type of personal payoff must be predicated upon the satisfactory completion of the task and have significant enough appeal to the employee to generate her commitment to the task.<br /><br />Finally, the employee must consciously or unconsciously possess a <span style="font-weight:bold;">No-Harm Belief</span>. He must feel the task is within his scope of responsibility and that no harm will come to him, his boss, or his company if, for some reason, he fails in the successful completion of the task. Risk aversion is one of the primary reasons why employees fail to take on greater responsibility. Managers who can tolerate failure on the road to success have a greater propensity to delegate effectively.<br /><br />True delegation might be better understood by using the term reliance in place of delegation. To delegate effectively a manager must be able to rely on another individual to perform the task as expected. A manager can only delegate to an employee when she feels the employee is reliable enough to do it right. §<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group teaches managers how to delegate effectively. We offer two- and four-hour training sessions that take managers through an introspective process where they confront their delegation hesitancies and learn how to let go and delegate effectively to achieve productive results. </span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-65467619248960875172011-11-01T14:54:00.000-07:002011-11-09T17:14:34.687-08:00How to Help Your Employees to Get "It”<span style="font-style:italic;">There are several key things that every employee needs to understand if they want to get ahead in the work world. These things collectively comprise the “it” that every manager hopes his or her employees will get.</span><br /><br />--------------------<br /><br />People who know me know I have been involved with the Boy Scouts of America for many years. When I was a Scoutmaster I had charge over twenty-nine 12-13-year-old boys. I was tasked with nurturing and molding their young minds to help them become better human beings. I took my role very seriously and tried to magnify my calling to the best of my ability.<br /><br />One night, at one of our monthly campouts, as we were all sitting around the campfire, I asked my boys an open-ended question: “At what age do people typically tend to get it?” I didn’t explain what I meant by “it.” I wanted to see if they, themselves, got it.<br /><br />Wisely, the boys said there is no specific age when people get it. Some people, they concluded, never get it. They also suggested that people get it at an early age and others only catch on late in their life. They surmised that there are those who only get it only after a life changing or significant emotional experience that caused the person to reflect upon their life.<br /><br />I then asked: “Who do you feel are the happiest in this life – those who get it, or those who don’t?” They all agreed people who get it are better off than those who don’t get it and end up struggling in life.<br /><br />Finally, I asked these highly astute young men to tell me what the “its” are in life that people need to get if they want to be happy. <br /><br />After a very interesting philosophical discussion they concluded there is an “it” in every element of life. There is an “it” in school; and those who figure it out do better scholastically than those who struggle or rebel against “it.” <br /><br />They said there is an “it” at home and in the family; and those who know it and do it have a happy home and loving family, while those who struggle or rebel against the “it” of healthy family relationships have a difficult home life. They also assumed there must be an “it” at work that, when understood and adhered to, leads to a happy and successful career.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Your Responsibility to Help Employees to Get It</span><br /><br />As a manager, you’re in an excellent position to help your employees to “get it.” The main purpose of identifying what you want from your employees is to help them to get the “it” of work – the reason why they exist as an employee. The sooner an employee gets it, the better off they will be. Those who get it go far in their career – and in life – while those who don’t get it generally struggle until they figure it out.<br /><br />There are several key things every employee needs to understand if they want to get ahead in the work world. These things collectively comprise the “it” that every manager hopes his or her employees will get, because once an employee does get it the manager doesn’t have to manage that employee as closely as those workers who don’t get it.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The "It" in Business</span><br /><br />The “it” of business comprises what I call the major premise of work. If an employee doesn’t get the major premise, she will have an even harder time grasping the subtle nuances at work. If, however, she grasps the big picture and understands why she exists as an employee, she is more likely to successfully fulfill her role and win at work.<br /><br />Many employees struggle because they are confused about why they exist as an employee. They believe they were hired to serve the customer, produce a product, accomplish tasks, or do their job. Some less dedicated employees falsely believe they are only at work to earn a paycheck.<br /><br />But every employee was hired for two primary reasons: Employees exist to increase revenue and reduce costs in order to maximize the profitability of their employer. Everything else that an employee does is a means to these two ends. All employees exist to either drive revenue or control costs in order to improve the company’s bottom-line. This is the major premise!<br /><br />When an employee accepts that he was hired to increase revenue or reduce costs, he then can focus his energy and effort toward that end. He can prioritize his work and channel his performance toward maximizing profits, rather than merely accomplishing tasks. All job duties and responsibilities that don’t result in either generating revenue or controlling costs should be revised or eliminated. Everything that matters in the workplace either drives revenue or reduces costs. Everything else is an appendage to these two things. <br /><br />Employees who successfully deliver this “it” enhance their value to the organization. This is another major premise. Valuable employees generally reap the rewards of their value. Good employees seldom lose their job. During depressed economic times, when cost-cutting layoffs occur, employees and departments with the least perceived value are usually the first to go. Consequently, it’s always in the best interest of an employee to understand and commit to the major premise of their organization by doing all they can to increase revenue, reduce costs, and deliver on the implied promises inherent in their job classification.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Getting Employees to Do It</span><br /><br />Another important premise for you to remember is the knowledge that employees will only give you what you want when it is imperative for them to do so. When you find the right imperative you focus the effort of your employees by instilling an internal desire to accomplish what you want. <br /><br />Sometimes the business imperative of is all employees need in order to perform well. For example, knowing that a company might go out of business if the employees don’t improve the quality of the products they produce can often motivate employees to improve their results. Seeing the impact a new competitor is having in taking away business from your organization can have a motivating effect on a sales force to generate more business. Understanding the fatal impact a production flaw might have in killing a customer can help employees concentrate on job safety. Consequently, finding the right business imperative that the employees can latch onto is critical to gaining their commitment to do it. <br /><br />The best imperatives, however, are those that are specific to the interests and needs of the individual employee. Most people will not change their behavior until the consequences are such that they want to. Although negative consequences can cause people to move in the direction you want, the best consequences are those that provide an employee with a positive imperative to perform well. For example, delivery truck drivers who are allowed to go home as soon as all of their deliveries are made are less inclined to dally as they go about their work. Salespeople who get a commission on every sell usually stay focused on selling, rather than loitering around the sales floor. Teachers who are held accountable for student test scores are more inclined to teach rather than babysit.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Supporting Those Who Get It</span><br /><br />The strongest imperative in the workplace is your support as a manager. There will come a day when every employee will need your support. There will come a day when they want a day off, a special favor, a promotion or a pay raise. When that day comes you will probably be more inclined to support those employees who are worthy of your backing because of how they performed and acted at work. <br /><br />In other words, it is imperative for your employees to perform and act the way you want them to because there will come a day when it will be in their best interest to do so. The reason why employees need to perform well today is because there will come a day in their future when they will want to be rewarded for their actions. <br />Those employees who “get it,” realize their performance today determines the support they receive in the future. This is why I tell my employees not to perform well for me, or for the company, or for the customers; but, rather, to do a good job for themselves, because there will come a day when they will want my support. And I only support those in the future who have supported me in the past by doing what I expect. This is the “it” I want them to get.<br /><br />When your employees understand the major premise of your business and see the imperative for their work, they generally do what you want them to do. The more clearly you can define and articulate the major premises and personal imperatives, the less you will have to manage your people. When your employees keep the major premise and personal imperatives uppermost in their minds, they hold themselves accountable and manage their own performance.<br /><br />Let me give you an example of this by discussing another area of our lives where there are major premises and personal imperatives – at home.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Major Premise at Home</span><br /><br />If you are like most parents, you may experience the occasional tiff or tussle with your children, particularly if they are teenagers. This struggle often occurs because there is great disparity between what parents perceive their role to be and how teenagers view the parents’ role. Parents believe they exist to teach, nurture and protect their children. Teenagers seem to think parents exist to either make their lives miserable or to give them money whenever they want so they can to do whatever they want. <br /><br />When we were having difficulties with our son we found it helpful to clarify for him what we felt was the major premise of why we exist as parents. We wrote the premise down and then talked to him about it so he would know that everything we do as parents is governed by one over-arching purpose. We told him the following is why we exist as parents:<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">We love you.<br />We would never do anything to purposely harm you.<br />We want you to have a happy, successful, independent and self-sustaining life.<br />Everything we do as parents is designed toward that end, <br />So don’t fight against us; we are on your side.</span><br /><br />Literally everything we do as parents is governed by our desire for our son to have a happy, successful, independent and self-sustaining life. Although it is sometimes difficult for our son to accept it when we tell him he cannot do something, he at least understands our reasoning when we can show our decision is tied to the major premise. <br /><br />Obviously we don’t want to say no to our son; we want to say yes. We’re not ogres. But there are some things that are not in the best interest of our son’s future happiness, even though he may think otherwise. So we tell him we’re restricting him from doing an unwise thing today because we are not interested in his momentary pleasure; we are only interested in his long-term happiness. We’ve found when a teenager accepts the major premise that you love him and are interested in his future success; it makes the short-term pain of today’s disappointments much easier to bear.<br /><br />Because our son knows our parental major premise is in his own best interest, it is imperative for him to comply with our wishes if he wants to have a happy, successful, independent and self-sustaining life. He knows everything we do and say as parents is designed toward that end. He also knows our support is tied to his acceptance of and compliance with the parental major premise. Consequently, rather than arguing with us or fighting against our expectations, he usually does what we want when we want because he knows we are on his side.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Being on the Side of Your Employees</span><br /><br />The “parental major premise” also works in managing employees. When your employees understand and accept the major premise and imperatives in the workplace they tend to be less resistant to your expectations. If you truly “love” your employees and would never do anything to purposely harm them – and they believe it and feel it – they will be more inclined to do what you ask. <br /><br />Everything you do as a manager should be designed to help your employees have a happy, successful, independent and self-sustaining career. This is why you must identify what you want, communicate what you want, hire and train your employees so they can give you what you want, and do everything within your power as a manager to help your employee succeed. When your employees sense that you are sincerely interested in their success, they will not fight against you because they will know you are on their side. §<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group’s <span style="font-weight:bold;">“Accountability Management Workshop</span>” teaches managers how to help their employees to get the “its” at work by first helping the managers to get it. We focus every employee at every level of your organization on the things that matter most. Call us to learn more about this hard-hitting, results-oriented management training program.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-71247755025352382182011-10-14T07:32:00.000-07:002011-10-14T07:39:24.439-07:00Positioning Your Company for Success in a Yo-Yo Economy<span style="font-style:italic;">Today’s economy is like a yo-yo. We have been dangling on a string in a “sleeper” recession for quite some time. The world economy continues to spin at the bottom. Everyone has been wondering how long the spin can continue at the abyss before experiencing a collapse of the market. Thriving in the new economy requires a business model that matches the values and spending habits of customers today. It could entail a complete change in the way you do business.</span><br /><br />--------------------<br /><br />When I was a young boy I liked to play with my yo-yo. I became fairly proficient at performing fancy tricks with interesting names like “rock the baby,” “walk the dog” and “skin the cat.” <br /><br />I also could do a yo-yo trick called “the sleeper.” This motion entailed throwing the yo-yo down without bringing it back up immediately. If the string tension was correct, the yo-yo would spin for several seconds at the bottom of the string. The difficulty of the trick was knowing when to pull the yo-yo back up before the spin petered out. If I left it down too long the yo-yo would collapse and die at the end of the string. <br /><br />Today’s economy is like my yo-yo. We have been dangling on a string in a “sleeper” recession for quite some time. The world economy continues to spin at the bottom. Everyone has been wondering how long the spin can continue at the abyss before experiencing a collapse of the market. It’s hard to tell whether the economy is improving or not because the economic indicators keep yo-yoing between signs of improvement and signs of continued economic decline. The recent combative legislative debate over the debt ceiling just added to the economic confusion. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Survival Requires a New Business Model</span><br /><br />Sadly, too many companies have been sleeping too long. At the beginning of the Great Recession some businesses refused to accept the notion that things could get this bad. They responded slowly to the crisis, hoping the downturn would be brief. A significant number of these companies no longer exist because they refused to take the necessary actions to save their enterprise. <br /><br />Some companies did respond to the crash – typically by lowering prices to continue to attract customers – but they never changed their actual business model. Perhaps they thought the spin at the bottom would be short, and they could pull their prices back up when it looked like the sleeping economy was nearing an end. <br /><br />Fortunately, a few insightful companies realized early on that the economic downturn was going to last a long time. They wisely learned the trick of keeping their company spinning strongly so there would be enough strength in their business after the long spin to pull the business back up. They changed their business model to survive in a sleeping economy. They adjusted what they do to match the conditions of the new world. And they realized that when the economic spin does come to an end, the world will be much different that it was before. Consequently, they repositioned their products and services to appeal to customer needs and expectations in this new market reality. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Changing Priorities of Customers</span><br /><br />The world has changed and any company who refuses to change their business model to match the new world is in danger of petering out. Customer behaviors have changed forever and they will not return to where they were before the recession – at least not in this generation. <br /><br />The majority of customers have changed their spending habits. They now perceive their discretionary money in a different light. They have a completely different view of the value they expect for the money they spend. Customers are putting a lot more thought into their purchases to make sure what they buy is the best possible value for the price. They are less impulsive and more cautious about how they spend their money. They want to be assured that they are spending their money wisely. <br />If your company wishes to survive in the new world you must change your focus to align with the changing priorities of your customers. <br /><br />For the most part, companies in the past focused on providing tangible and intangible products that appealed to the excessive and indulgent nature of their customers. Manufacturing companies produced cell phones, computers and other electronic gadgets with more bells and whistles than a person could possibly use. Casinos built massive, opulent resorts with every amenity imaginable to immerse guests in a sensory experience that appealed to their base desires. Restaurants sold the sizzle instead of the steak, emphasizing presentation and ambiance over the quality of the food. Customers spent thousands of dollars for an “experience” or access to products that would make them feel hip or cool. People paid far too much for far too little and flashed their materialistic possessions as indicators of their social or economic status. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What Customers Want Today</span><br /><br />Today’s value-conscious customers want more than window dressing. They want <span style="font-weight:bold;">ASSURANCE</span> that what they are buying is worth the expense. They must feel confident that the investment of their hard-earned money will provide something of significant value. They need justification – or an excuse – for spending their discretionary money at a time when saving their money may seem like a more prudent action. <br /><br />No longer are name-brand products or the “premier resort destination” the automatic purchase choice of many customers. People are evaluating their options and scrutinizing which choice gives them the biggest bang for their buck. They’re reviewing previous customer comments for assurance they are making the right purchasing choice. They are seeking to connect on an emotional level with products and services that match their current values. <br /><br />Customers also want assurance of the <span style="font-weight:bold;">RELIABILITY</span> of your products and services. They want to buy products that work. They want whatever they buy to perform at the level promised. And, as the old throw-away attitude diminishes, customers are looking for products that last longer and won’t have to be replaced in a few months with a new generation product. <br /><br />Customers want service companies to actually deliver quality service. They expect your employees to be friendly, efficient, knowledgeable, attentive and helpful. They want their hot food hot and their cold food cold. In many cases customers expect even higher levels of service during tough times because they expect you to truly compete for their business. <br /><br />They expect you to stand behind your products and services and guarantee you will deliver what you promise. And if, for some reason, there is a problem with your delivery, today’s customers expect <span style="font-weight:bold;">RESPONSIVENESS</span> from your employees who quickly address their concerns and to fix the problem. <br /><br />In tough times customers expect you to have <span style="font-weight:bold;">EMPATHY</span> and understand what they are going through. Very few people in this country have been untouched by the tough economy. Many people have lost their jobs, their home and even their possessions. They’ve downsized their lifestyle significantly. They’ve postponed their retirement. Those who are still employed may be underemployed, having had their hours or their wages cut. Some families may have more than one wage earner who has been affected by the downturn. <br /><br />Consequently, when these customers do spend their money on a vacation, at a restaurant, bar or theater, they expect your employees to show <span style="font-weight:bold;">APPRECIATION</span> for the investment the customer is making. Stressed out customers expect your employees to understand their need for escape, relaxation, rejuvenation and a life free from the hassles of their daily grind. If they purchase a product from you, they want that product to be easy to use and not add any additional burden to their life. If they have to interact with your employees, customers want the experience to be pleasant and problem-free. They expect your employees to be totally focused on ensuring they have a good experience patronizing your business. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Aligning Your Business Model to New Customer Demands</span><br /><br />It’s time to pull the yoyo back up and regain control of your company’s economic future. Innovative Management Group can help position your company for success in the new economy based on the realities of the market conditions you can expect over the next 3-5 years. We will help you: <br /><br />• Define your strategic focus and outline your strategic intentions <br /><br />• Reclaim your brand identity or redefine a new one based on the new market realities <br /><br />• Identify your value premise and unique product differentiation <br /><br />• Determine which of your current products and services match current customer needs <br /><br />• Identify new products and services needed to create customer demand <br /><br />• Align your marketing strategies and tactics with the new world <br /><br />• Ensure consistent product and service delivery to create customer loyalty <br /><br />• Engage your employees in making the changes necessary to succeed in today’s competitive world <br /><br />• Ensure the commitment of your executives, managers and employees to focus on the things that matter most <br /><br />During difficult times your company needs to stay focused, or refocus if your current strategies and tactics are ineffective or no longer appropriate. Now is the time to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Tough times require clear, creative thinking to minimize the weaknesses and threats and take advantage of the strengths and opportunities in order to drive value to your business. It is a time to rediscover the fundamentals of the business — the critical success factors that will keep your organization spinning successfully for many years to come. <br /><br />Good leaders make good decisions in tough times. Call Innovative Management Group today to help you maintain or regain a strong competitive position in a weak economy.§Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-89270895843533460362011-10-13T16:42:00.000-07:002011-10-13T16:53:50.951-07:00Three Ways to Evaluate Employee Performance<span style="font-style:italic;">The best way to monitor performance is by solid, objective measurement. Measurement is the one performance monitoring technique that works.</span><br /><br />--------------------<br /><br />There are three primary ways to evaluate the performance of your employees. The first two methods listed below usually are less effective than the third. Yet these two methods are the more prevalently used by most managers.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">OBSERVATION</span><br /><br />Many managers believe the best way to assess the effectiveness of their employees is through Observation. They feel by observing an employee’s performance and behavior they can assess whether or not the employee is effectively and efficiently fulfilling one’s assigned duties and responsibilities. However, there are some problems associated with using observation as a performance monitoring tool.<br /><br />First, <span style="font-weight:bold;">observations can often be inaccurate</span>. Most observations only provide a brief snap-shot of an employee’s performance at a specific point in time. That brief look may not provide a clear picture of the employee’s true performance. Unless you spend a great deal of time observing the employee in a variety of situations over a lengthy period of time, you may draw some false conclusions about the employee’s performance. <br /><br />For example, I once witnessed four kitchen workers flipping towels at each other. I became irritated because I thought they were dangerously messing around when they should have been working. <br /><br />The “snapshot” I saw was of the employees flipping towels. I did not observe what immediately preceded the towel flipping incident. Had I been there to observe what happened right before what I considered to be inappropriate, off-purpose behavior, I would have realized the kitchen staff had just successfully put out the highest volume of meals they had ever cooked in one shift at that restaurant. The towel flipping was them celebrating their accomplishment. Had I responded as my observations led me to believe, I would have chastised the employees for their celebratory behavior, instead of praising them; which possibly could have destroyed their desire to work so hard.<br /><br />Another time I observed a security officer at a casino hiding behind a bush in the convention area of the property reading the newspaper. I was sure he was slacking off at work. When I saw him in the exact same location at the exact same time the following day I knew I needed to rectify the situation. I called his manager to report the infraction. <br /><br />When the manager saw who the employee was he turned to me and patiently told me that the employee’s shift didn’t start for another hour. He said the employee always came into work an hour early so he could relax and read the paper before starting his work day. Once again my observations had been wrong.<br /><br />The second pitfall of observations is that <span style="font-weight:bold;">observations may not be relevant to the situation</span>. As previously noted, your observations usually represent just a few frames of the overall picture. Just like a movie preview can often lead to disappointment when the actual movie is not as good as it appeared in the theater trailer, so also your observations of an employee’s performance can give you a false read regarding one’s proficiency. Observations are like judging a book by its cover. What you see may not be exactly what you get.<br /><br />Managers sometimes wrongly believe that certain observable behaviors lead to specific performance results. One might feel, for example, that a salesperson must get out in the field and physically visit potential customers in order to make sales. But this extroverted behavior may not be necessary. An introvert may be just as successful, or even more so, by contacting customers through less gregarious means.<br /><br />Third, observation is a difficult way to measure and monitor performance because you often <span style="font-weight:bold;">don’t know what to observe</span>. Since there is so much about your employees’ behavior and performance that you could observe; it is often hard to know what you should observe.<br /><br />Observation entails taking in superfluous information that has no bearing on whether or not an employee is performing well. When an employee sits with his feet up on his desk it is impossible to tell whether he is neglecting his duties or formulating a creative idea in a moment of silent reflection. When a Card Dealer in a casino is not smiling, it may be because she was asked to stop doing so by an unlucky customer who was not in the mood for such cheerfulness.<br /><br />Conversely, an employee who is feverishly working may be spinning his wheels and not be productive at all. Just because an employee looks like he is working doesn’t mean he is.<br /><br />Finally, <span style="font-weight:bold;">observations are generally negative</span>. Typically, it is much harder for you to “catch people doing things right” than to see what people are doing wrong. It is much easier to see the dirty spot on the carpet than notice where the carpet is clean. It is easier to see the exceptions to the rule and the discrepancies than it is to see exemplary performance. Most managers expect their employees to perform well. Therefore they usually look for examples of where an employee is deficient, not where she is proficient. Errors are easy to spot; competency is not.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">JUDGMENT</span><br /><br />The second way to evaluate performance is by using one’s Judgment to determine whether or not an employee is performing satisfactorily. Unfortunately, there also are flaws in using your judgment as a monitoring and measuring tool.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Judgments are typically based upon one’s personal values</span>. Some managers believe employees who come to work early and stay late are dedicated workers. This, of course, may not be the case. A worker who has to work long hours may just be inefficient. Or he could be a “brown-noser.”<br /><br />You need to be very careful when you identify your expectations of your employees. Sometimes your personal biases can cloud your judgment about what is good or bad, helpful or not helpful, or effective or ineffective at work. Some insecure managers feel their employees are being insubordinate when they question the manager’s orders. Some managers question the loyalty of their workers when they put family obligations ahead of work responsibilities. Some managers feel employees must keep their nose to the grind stone, while others believe they need to provide a fun atmosphere to maintain employee morale. Neither philosophy is necessarily true or right. <br /><br />Since judgments are values-based, <span style="font-weight:bold;">judgments usually remain static and unchangeable</span>. <br /><br />When one believes as they believe, it is often hard to change those beliefs. A manager who believes an employee is untrustworthy, for example, may find it very difficult to ever trust the employee even when evidence suggests the employee is trustworthy. An employee who commits a serious infraction may find it hard to change the judgment of a manager who refuses to forgive or forget the indiscretion. Black-balled employees seldom return from their banishment. Once judged as incompetent, it is often hard to prove one’s competence.<br /><br />Finally, <span style="font-weight:bold;">judgments can lead to prejudice and blindness</span>. <br /><br />Many judgments are actually a result of a pre-judgment. Some managers come to quick conclusions about what they see, hear or feel. Their judgments are based upon long-held beliefs. <br /><br />To pre-judge before gaining solid evidence or proof is prejudicial. Prejudices, by their very nature, entail some elements of blindness. Having judged quickly, it is often difficult to change a person’s preconceived notions without significant evidence or personal involvement to override the prejudice.<br /><br />I once consulted with a telemarketing firm in the Midwest. As I was walking among the work stations I noticed an employee with a huge butterfly tattoo on his forehead. The wings of the butterfly wrapped around his bald head. I was absolutely amazed. I have an opinion about people who have butterfly tattoos on their foreheads. They are not at the top of my list of ideal employees. Yet, when I suspended my judgment, I realized the customers of the telemarketing firm had no way of knowing what this phone solicitor looked like. Nor did they care. For all I knew the butterfly guy could have been the top performer at the company. Judgment is a poor indicator of whether or not an employee is performing well.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">MEASUREMENT</span><br /><br />The best way to monitor performance is by solid, objective Measurement. Measurement is the one performance monitoring technique that works.<br /><br />Actual performance measurement is a more effective way to evaluate performance because <span style="font-weight:bold;">measurement is relevant to the situation or process</span>. When you measure performance you look at a specific situation or step in a process and assess your employee’s progress accordingly. <br /><br />Measurement assesses an employee’s performance now, in this situation, under these conditions. It does not matter how well a basketball team performed last week when they are facing a new rival this week. How employees perform at another company may or may not be relevant to how your employees perform at your company. Your performance measurements must be uniquely tied to the distinct conditions of your work areas and they must be designed around the specific conditions of your business.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Measurements are conducted in exact terms and real numbers</span>. Stating that you want to increase production by 200 units per day is much more effective than saying you want to increase production by 20% per day. People have difficulty grasping abstract information. The more specific and succinct your measurement criteria, the more likely your employees will succeed at achieving the results you desire. Measurements that are easily counted count more than obscure indicators.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Performance measurements focus on results, not behaviors</span>. Sometimes managers get caught up in how their employees perform rather that what they produce. Too much focus on how work gets done, rather than what gets done, can often lead to an emphasis on work processes rather than work results. In most cases how an employee performs doesn’t matter. The issue is whether or not they achieved the desired outcome.<br /><br />In many cases you actually should ignore the behavior of employees because it has very little bearing on actual performance. Behavior is difficult to measure because much of it is covert. How “hard” employees work, for example, may have no relevance on the results they achieve. Some students get straight A’s with very little effort while others studiously pour over their textbooks and still get a C-grade on the exam. A soldier may hold his rifle “wrong” and still hit the target accurately. Likewise, as mentioned earlier, some employees can appear to be working hard when they really are not. Behavior is only relevant when results are not being achieved; and even then behavior may not matter.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Measurement provides a way to win</span>. The measurement indicator tells the employee exactly how to score. It tells her what really counts. Specific measurements show specific accomplishments. When you measure performance it is very clear what is achieved and who achieved it. <br /><br />Measurement criteria should be set around the goals, objectives and expectations you’ve established for the employee. In another article I wrote, entitled <span style="font-style:italic;">“How to Establish Clear, Specific, Measurable Performance Goals”</span>, I outline nine measurement categories you can use to measure every element of an employee’s performance. You should constantly monitor the employee to ensure she is performing as expected and achieving the results you want. And, of course, you monitor the employee’s performance by evaluating her results against the measurement criteria you’ve established, not by observing or judging her behavior. §<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group offers a variety of executive, manager and supervisor training programs on performance management issues. Please contact us for a list of the customized training courses we offer.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-83888796989657322342011-10-13T16:34:00.000-07:002011-10-13T16:39:19.578-07:00Criteria of Effective Goal Setting<span style="font-style:italic;">Focus the performance of your employees by following some basic guidelines of effective goal setting. </span><br /><br />--------------------<br /><br />The first competency of management is the ability to identify and set specific performance goals for your employees. You need to establish realistic and valuable performance goals that focus your employees on achieving the results that matter most for the organization. <br /><br />Effective goal setting is a management science, not an art. There are no mysteries or hidden secrets to establishing employee performance goals. Focusing the performance of your employees through clearly defined goals is as simple as following ten basic guidelines of effective goal setting:<br /><br /><br />1. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must be written</span>. Goals that are not written are merely wishes. The mere act of writing goals down and reviewing them regularly makes them real. Winning teams do not make up their plays during the game. They write their plans down and regularly review their performance against the plan. Games are won and results achieved when plans are followed and goals achieved. <br /><br />2. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must be your OWN and "owned"</span>. The greatest performance successes are a result of individual commitment to personal success. Goal setting and goal striving are most effective when team and company goals become the same as personal goals. Results are achieved when performance goals become "my goal" for "my company". <br /><br /><br />3. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must be positive</span>. The goal is not to avoid a loss; the goal is to win. Winning corporations focus on achieving increased market share, not on protecting their current advantage. Goals need to be visualized and the only way the goal can be visual is if it is positive. The mind rejects negative goals. Give people a positive benchmark for which to strive.<br /><br />4. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must be measurable and specific</span>. Specific goals produce specific results. Clear goals produce clear results. Indefinite goals produce no results at all. Goals must answer how much, how many, by when, and by whom. <br /><br />5. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals are best stated in inflation-proof terms</span>. In football a touchdown is always six points and a golf stroke always counts as a stroke. Goals are best stated in units of measure that do not change. For example, “units sold” is a non-inflationary number, while “revenue generated” changes with the economy. “Pieces produced per employee” provides a clearer measurement of production than “total number of units produced,” since staffing levels may fluctuate. “Revenue generated per number of table covers” in a restaurant provides a clearer picture of actual production than mere “total revenue.”<br /><br />6. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must be stated in the most visible terms available</span>. When goals are measured in real, countable things, everybody knows the score. Goals must be measured in something you can see. Percentages are too vague. Instead, identify in real numbers what a 10% increase in production means in terms of units produced. In the heat of competition, communication has to be direct and simple, like a football team calling an audible at the line of scrimmage. Goals should not have to be translated by the manager in order to make sense to the employees. <br /><br />7. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must contain a deadline</span>. If there is no deadline, there is no goal. Deadlines are the foundation of commitment. Deadlines are adrenalin boosters and the instigators of achievement. Deadlines provide the pressure necessary to push people to attain the goals. Goals without deadlines are mere philosophical statements. <br /><br />8. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must allow for change</span>. People and situations evolve. Goals must allow for flexibility and adjustment in strategy throughout the game. Winning teams know how to alter their game-plan while the clock is still running. Don’t make goals so rigid that people cannot adjust their tactics when conditions change.<br /><br />9. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must contain a statement of benefit</span>. Goals and benefits go together. Goals need to tell performers what's in it for them. A benefit statement explains the WHY to people and provides motivational value. When there is a tangible reward, reaching a goal becomes a "want to' instead of a "have to" experience. <br /><br />10. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Goals must be realistic and attainable</span>. Big results are achieved by incremental goals, not by quantum leaps and unrealistic expectations. Achievement of small goals provides the motivation to strive for bigger results. Success breeds success. <br /><br /> <br />Employees are more productive when they have clearly defined performance goals to achieve. One of your primary roles as a manager is to define the production you want from your employees. When performance goals are defined based upon the ten guidelines outlined above, your employees know exactly what is expected and they become more focused – and more motivated – to achieve what you want. §<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />Innovative Management Group offers several executive, management and supervisory training programs on effective performance management, including how to set clear, specific, measurable performance goals. Please contact us for more information about our custom-designed courses.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-54940593657216080282011-10-13T11:03:00.000-07:002011-10-13T11:08:04.624-07:00Strengthen Your Interpersonal and Working Relationships by Pitching In, Helping Out<span style="font-style:italic;">Imagine how wonderful it would be to work in an organization where people willingly help out and serve one another without being asked. Think how the employees would feel about their colleagues if everyone willingly pitched in to accomplish the work. </span><br /><br />--------------------<br /><br />In November my wife and I will celebrate our 38th wedding anniversary. Our love and commitment to each other grows stronger every day. I attribute the success of our marriage, in part, to our mutual willingness to unselfishly help out and serve one another without hesitation or reserve.<br /><br />In the first few months of our marriage I formulated a philosophy that has guided the way I act toward my wife. It has helped me to refocus in moments when selfishness or lazy notions enter my head.<br /><br />Whenever I see work that needs to be done around the house, a question consciously enters my mind that I placed there many years ago. As I see dishes that need to be washed or items that need to be picked up, I ask myself who’s going to do it by saying: “If not me; who?”<br /><br />If the answer to that question is my wife’s name, rather than my own, I then ask: “If her; why?” <br /><br />Is it because she’s a woman? No, that would be chauvinistic of me and wrong. <br /><br />Is it because she’s a homemaker and it’s part of her “job”? Yes, that may be true. But why is it only her job? In real partnerships there are no his or her roles. There is no “mine” or “yours”. In a partnership, whoever sees that something needs to be done should just do it. And they should do it without having to be asked or told.<br /><br />Consequently, when I ask myself why someone else should do the work instead of me, the only real answer I can contrive is because I’m too lazy (or too tired)to do it myself. But that is not an acceptable answer — not to me or anyone else.<br />Finally, when I’ve resolved that I’m the only one who should do the task, I commit myself to doing it by asking: “If not now; when?” The only acceptable answers to that question are either immediately or very soon. <br /><br />Imagine how wonderful it would be to work in an organization where people willingly help out and serve one another without being asked. Think how the employees would feel about their colleagues if everyone willingly pitched in to accomplish the work. <br /><br />Far too frequently people respond to requests for assistance with excuses as to why they can’t help. Comments such as, “It’s not my job”, “Find someone else”, “I’m too busy”, “I’m in the middle of something”, or ‘I can’t right now” permeate our language. Saying no seems to be the natural inclination and normal response rather than stepping forward to volunteer.<br /><br />We need a new language for today’s workforce. Listed below are some phrases I feel we all need to infuse into our daily work conversations. I’m sure they would make our bosses and colleagues very happy.<br /><br />Here are some phrases that should become a normal part of your vocabulary at work:<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">When Someone Asks For Help</span><br /> <br />• “Sure. I can do that.”<br />• “Thanks. I’d love to help out.”<br />• “I’d be glad to do that for you.”<br />• “No problem. I’ll get right on it.”<br />• “You bet. I’ll be right there.”<br />• “I appreciate your asking.”<br />• “I don’t mind. I enjoy doing it.”<br />• “You can count on me.”<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Better Yet, Before Someone Asks </span><br /><br />• “Let me do that.”<br />• “I volunteer to do it.”<br />• “Let me help you with that.”<br />• “I want to help.”<br />• “Do you mind if I work along with you?”<br />• “I have a minute. I’ll do it.”<br />• “I can take care of that.”<br />• “Let’s do it together.”<br />• “I can stay late and do it.”<br />• “How can I help you?”<br />• “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”<br />• “Why don’t you go ahead and go home. I’ll finish up.”<br />• “What else can I do for you?”<br />• “I resolved it.”<br />• “It’s already done.”<br /> <br /><br />We need people in the workplace who say to themselves: “If not me; who? If not now; when?” We need workers who see what needs to be done, and then do it. We need people who step up to the plate and pitch in without being asked. <br /><br />I’m one of those people who like to whistle or sing while I work. One song, in particular, seems apropos while I’m laboring:<br /> <br /><span style="font-style:italic;">"The world has need of willing men<br />Who (share) the worker’s (zeal).<br />Come help the good work move along<br />Put your shoulder to the wheel. <br />Put your shoulder to the wheel;<br />Push along.<br />Do your duty with a heart full of song.<br />We all have work; let no one shirk.<br />Put your shoulder to the wheel."</span><br /> <br />What could contribute more to building strong working relationships than unselfish service toward one’s coworkers?<br /><br />Two things happen when you willingly help others. First, you make the person you serve happy. My wife tells me all the time how appreciative she is of the things I do around the house. She thanks me for helping and tells me how good it makes her feel. <br /><br />The greatest benefit from serving others, however, is the second thing that happens from that service. Although I love my wife and want her to feel good as a result of my helping, I’m not just doing it for her. I’m really doing it for me; because when I help out, it makes me feel good. §Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-20633946936622775532011-10-10T13:41:00.000-07:002011-10-10T13:46:41.918-07:00How to Maintain Employee Motivation and Commitment after a Layoff<span style="font-style:italic;">Downsizing the business is a fast and effective way to reduce expenses, maintain profitability, and ensure the continuation of the business. But how you lay people off will a have long-lasting effect on those who remain with your company. Poorly handled decisions today can impact productivity and morale now and for a long time in the future.</span><br /><br />--------------------<br /><br />More and more companies are forced to lay off employees as the world economy continues to tumble. <br /><br />Downsizing the business is a fast and effective way to reduce expenses, maintain profitability, and ensure the continuation of the business. But how you lay people off will a have long-lasting effect on those who remain with your company. Poorly handled decisions today can impact productivity and morale now and for a long time in the future.<br /><br />Employees who stay with your company after a layoff often have confused emotions as they wrestle with the changes brought about by the reorganization. A paradox of conflicting loyalties stirs within them. Feelings of concern for former colleagues are juxtaposed with feelings for oneself. Previous feelings of loyalty to the company now conflict with loyalty to oneself. Employees question their previous work effort as they worry about whether they have a future with your enterprise. <br /><br />While employees are going through these internal emotional struggles several other factors impact their future motivation and commitment. <br /><br />Invariably surviving employees are expected to take on more work. Normally they are asked to do more work for the same pay or, worse yet, for less pay because of the company’s declining financial position. Since most layoffs are undertaken to cut costs, the downsizing often results in salary freezes for those who stay with the company. Moreover, some former motivators may also have been eliminated, such as company cars, travel and entertainment budgets, or professional development expenses. Finally, there may be less career advancement opportunities after a downsizing, making one’s future with the organization less certain. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Importance of Communication</span> <br /><br />The most important thing you can do to maintain morale and commitment after a layoff is to openly communicate with your employees. <br /><br />Many managers are hesitant to share information with employees after a reorganization, particularly if the information is of a negative nature. However, your workers expect you to bring up all relevant issues in a straightforward manner, especially any negatives that might impact them directly. Avoiding these issues sends a message that either the issues are not important or, worse yet, the employees themselves are not important enough for you to share information with them. <br /><br />The absolute worst thing you can do after a layoff is to send a message to remaining employees that they are not important. The more information you share with your employees during difficult economic times, the more they will feel you are concerned about their future. Likewise, the more employees feel you are concerned about their future, the more they will be concerned about the future of the business.<br /><br />One critical thing to remember during a reorganization is that when people lack real data, they make up their own. Usually what people make up is far worse than reality. You can stop the rumor-mills that typically run rampant during a downsizing by being up front with the employees.<br /><br />There are three crucial objectives you should have for your communication with employees during a reorganization.<br /><br />First, you should do everything you can to mitigate the usual fears employees have when an organization is in transition. <br /><br />Second, you should view every employee contact as an opportunity to build rapport with your workers.<br /><br />Finally, your message should be formulated and presented so well that it focuses the energy and effort of the employees where you want it – on the customers – rather than on the company. What you say must eliminate from the employees all doubt, worry, gossip, wondering, and hesitancy. <br /><br />At the conclusion of your message you want the workers worrying about their work, not worrying about their jobs or their employer. To do this you must understand the psyche of the employees and address the concerns they worry about the most during a layoff.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What Employees Want to Know</span><br /><br />Invariably there are five predictable questions employees will have during a company downsizing. Although the specific verbiage of the questions highlighted here may not be exactly how the employees would articulate their concerns, the answers to these questions will address most of the issues employees will be wondering about. When you know these questions in advance you can target your communication to address the employees’ concerns before they come up. This in turn shows the workers you are empathetic to their needs, thereby building rapport between you and them.<br /><br />Your answers to five critical questions will determine whether surviving employees will remain motivated and loyal to a company after a layoff. <br /><br />The questions are: 1) Was the downsizing integral to the business’ overall strategy to survive?; 2) What does the future look like for the company?; 3) Is there still a place for me in the company with continued opportunities for advancement?; 4) Will those employees who are let go be treated fairly?; and 5) What is expected of the employees who remain at the company after a downsizing? <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Integral to Business Survival </span><br /><br />Employees want to know that the reorganization is not random or whimsical. Remaining employees have to be assured that the layoffs were necessary and not just done arbitrarily. A clear business need for the change must be supported by facts and figures. Employees need to know and understand the business reasons for the layoff and what the consequences would have been had the layoffs not occurred. The layoffs must be logically tied to the future business needs of the company and should have only affected those departments that were non-productive or no longer essential to the business.<br /><br />At the same time employees must perceive there is a clearly identified and well-thought-out strategy to return the company to stability and long-term profitability. They need assurance that by downsizing and taking hits now the company will be much better off in the future. Perceptions of unnecessary or illogical reductions in staff cause employees to lose confidence in your ability to protect the future viability of the company. Fears of future layoffs persist when employees see no clear linkage between the reduction in staff and management’s plan to return the company to profitability.<br /><br />You must be adept at understanding and explaining the business imperative for the change. Employees can buy-in to a reduction in staff, even the elimination of their own positions, given a reasonable business need for doing so. Managers who want to motivate surviving employees must take workers into their confidence and clearly outline the logic behind the downsizing decision. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Outlook for the Future </span><br /><br />In a down economy when layoffs are necessary the future is often unknown. People generally are afraid of the unknown. To alleviate their own fears, the remaining employees will latch on to any information they can get about the company’s future plans to return the business to profitability. This is why rumors run rampant during a reorganization. It is the natural human need for information – any information – even if it is false. Surviving employees will remain fearful about the future until they have information that will assuage their fears.<br /><br />Before addressing the employees you should have a clear vision of where you want to take the company in the future. Leaders who possess and can communicate a confident view of the future can infuse confidence within surviving employees by sharing their vision. Employees are more apt to follow leaders who have a clear view of what the future entails.<br /><br />Although you may not have a clear view of the future when economic conditions have not yet stabilized, you must share what you know, assume or hope for the future. You must help employees to see the future themselves. Let employees know what they can expect to see and experience in the months ahead. Explain what changes or non-changes the company anticipates over the next one, three, six or twelve months. Share your plans. Be as open, specific and precise as possible. Any hesitancy or waffling from you will damage the confidence and commitment you will receive from your employees.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Future Opportunities for Advancement</span><br /><br />Surviving employees want to know what their future prospects are with the newly reorganized company. Since traditional career paths may have been eliminated, new opportunities for “advancement” must be created. These typically entail such things as compensation for performance rather than position, greater autonomy and decision making authority, or opportunities to improve one’s “employability” through exposure to more aspects of the business. Employees in the new organization will want to work on projects that develop their skills while achieving company goals. <br /><br />You need to identify the advancement opportunities that will be in play after the reorganization prior to implementation of the change. Nothing demotivates employees faster than to have career options for which one has been striving to attain suddenly become unavailable because of elimination of positions or layers within the company.<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Treatment of Downsized Employees</span><br /><br />Surviving employees are greatly influenced by how downsized employees were treated when they were let go. Surviving employees want to be assured, should it happen to them, that laid off employees were “cared for” through severance pay, outplacement services, ample advanced notice, and fair and consistent treatment throughout the reorganization. Employees predict how they will be treated in the future based upon how the company treated displaced employees in the past. You will be wise to remember that employees have a long memory when it comes to company reorganizations. They recall exactly what was said back when and who did what to whom. Be very careful when making decisions about how to treat downsized employees. <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Expectations of Remaining Employees</span><br /><br />Finally, although employees may not know they have this last need, and therefore generally may never articulate it, workers who stay with the company have an inherent desire to know: What is my charge? <br /><br />Once employees have decided they want to stay with the company after a reorganization, they need clarity on what the company expects of them. What do you want them to do? Should they carry on as they have been doing in the past, or should they do something different? What are their new marching orders? <br /><br />If you expect employees to change, you must tell them so. If you expect employees to continue doing what they have been doing in the past, you must tell them this also. Never assume that the employees will conclude what you want them to conclude. You must tell them. <br /><br />After you have gone through a downsizing you must give the surviving employees their charge. You should share with your employees the things that matter most in the new business model. Tell them: <br /><br />• What it takes to win in the new company<br /><br />• What they can do to contribute to the success of the company, as well as to their own success<br /><br />• What is in it for them if they do contribute to the future success of the company<br /><br />People need hope in the future. Employees need to know that their future will once again be bright as they work to return the downsized company to profitability. Everything you do during a reorganization must be designed to build hope, not destroy it. When you answer point-by-point every question outlined in this article, you mitigate the fears of the employees, you build tremendous rapport with them, and you refocus their energy and effort on the future success of the business. You get people focused on the customers instead of focused on themselves. §<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group is adept at bringing about successful organizational change, particularly on how to maintain employee commitment after a downsizing. We know how to engage your employees at every level of your company and get them to commit to the new organizational conditions. Please call us to learn how we can help focus your employees on the things that matter most.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-88453461293547807072011-10-04T08:15:00.000-07:002011-10-04T08:22:48.629-07:00How to Avoid Wasting Your Time in Unproductive Meetings<span style="font-style:italic;">Managers across the nation report they spend between 60 to 90 percent of their time in group meetings. Yet much of this time is wasted or inefficient.</span><br /><br />------------------<br /><br />Do you ever feel like you waste a lot of your time sitting in unproductive meetings? <br /><br />Managers across the nation report they spend between 60 to 90 percent of their time in group meetings. Yet much of this time is wasted or inefficient. Many managers have a misconception that employees need to meet often in order to ensure effective communication and coordination. Yet, in reality, much of what is done in meetings can be achieved through less time consuming methods.<br /><br />Innovative Management Group offers a one-day training course entitled “<span style="font-style:italic;">Effective Meeting Management</span>” that helps managers realize that effective teams don’t have to meet together as often as one might think. During the workshop participants learn how to produce quality results without having to spend a lot of time in meetings. They recognize that production occurs on the shop floor, not in a conference room. Consequently, they find ways to share important information and solve group problems without attending long meetings.<br /><br />The first thing participants learn in the <span style="font-style:italic;">Effective Meeting Management</span> workshop is how to determine whether or not to hold a meeting in the first place. Several innovative and inexpensive techniques for communicating without meeting are explored during the course.<br /><br />Once it has been decided that a meeting is necessary, there are several things a meeting leader can do to make the meeting more productive and less time consuming. <br /> <br />First, there needs to be <span style="font-weight:bold;">a specific goal or desired outcome</span> for the meeting. The topics to be addressed during the meeting should be designed to achieve the goals for which the meeting was called. Topics that do not move the group toward the goal should be eliminated from the agenda.<br /><br />Meetings are more effective when the <span style="font-weight:bold;">participants come prepared</span>. Advance notice of the meeting’s purpose and the topics of discussion should be given to those who will be attending the meeting. The meeting leader should <span style="font-weight:bold;">send out the agenda in advance</span>. When the goals of the meeting and topics to be addressed are published in advance both the meeting leader and the participants will be able to <span style="font-weight:bold;">ensure that the right people attend the meeting</span>. There is nothing more wasteful and frustrating than not being able to make a needed decision during a meeting because the right people were not in attendance.<br /><br />Attendees at IMG’s <span style="font-style:italic;">Effective Meeting Management</span> course learn how to accelerate their meetings by sending out pre-meeting announcements that fully prepare the members to participate in the meeting. The information also ensures the meeting members stay focused during the meeting. <br /><br />Another skill taught at the workshop is how to quickly move through the agenda by <span style="font-weight:bold;">sequencing the agenda items to accomplish the best possible results</span>. They also explore ways to <span style="font-weight:bold;">create an open environment</span> of trust and respect during the meeting so attendees feel comfortable participating in the meeting.<br /><br />One of the greatest complaints about meetings is that they either start late or go longer than scheduled. This frustrates those who try to plan their day or manage their busy calendars. Attendees in the <span style="font-style:italic;">Effective Meeting Management</span> course learn the value of <span style="font-weight:bold;">time control</span> and are given specific tools for focusing and controlling the discussion during meetings.<br /><br />One method of controlling off-purpose discussions during a meeting is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">manage the expectations of the participants</span> during the meeting. Too often meeting attendees turn minor agenda items into major points of debate. Typically this occurs because the meeting members had an expectation that every topic was open for discussion. Conversely, sometimes meeting attendees are silent when advice or open discussion is warranted.<br /><br />This problem can be rectified by letting people know in advance the <span style="font-weight:bold;">type of agenda item being addressed</span>. Normally there are four types of agenda items in a typical meeting.<br /><br />“Informational” agenda items are not open for discussion. These items usually entail merely sharing information for clarification only. During informational agenda items participants should listen quietly or ask questions for clarification. No other discussion of the agenda item should take place. <br /><br />During “advisory” agenda items the leader is soliciting input from the members. The group’s role is to give advice. They should not expect to make the decision or to argue or debate after the advice is given and the decision is made. <br /><br />“Problem solving” agenda items are placed on the agenda when the group is needed to discuss the item and make the decision during the meeting. Obviously, problem solving issues are the most time consuming items on the meeting agenda, while informational agenda items should be brief. Long meetings result when attendees try to turn informational or advisory agenda items into problem solving issues.<br /><br />The fourth type of agenda item is “Solicitation for Help.” This is an item that is not open for discussion during the meeting, but brought up by an individual who would like help from someone inside the meeting later outside the meeting. Too often in meetings people bring up these type of issues and people end up providing the help inside the meeting when the item should have been addressed outside the room.<br /><br />During the <span style="font-style:italic;">Effective Meeting Management</span> workshop meeting leaders are provided with tools to manage the meeting to achieve productive outcomes. They learn how to control off-purpose behaviors that may arise in meetings. They also receive techniques to ensure action items are assigned, followed-up on, and completed. <br /><br />Someone once said, “When the outcome of a meeting is to hold another meeting, it has been a lousy meeting.” Attendees leave the Effective Meeting Management workshop with everything they need so they won’t have to attend another lousy meeting. §Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-5051966327884250492011-09-26T14:18:00.000-07:002011-09-26T14:20:34.479-07:00Customers Will Pay a Premium Price for Exceptional Service<span style="font-style:italic;">It doesn’t take much to wow your customers. You merely have to notice them. Notice who they are and what they like. Just pay attention and do a few minor things that make a difference. It’s the little things that create loyal customers.</span><br /><br />------------------------------------<br /><br />Anyone who knows me knows I am a cheapskate. I have a real hard time spending money on myself. I’m one of those people who will look for the lowest price and buy that item even if the quality isn’t quite what I want.<br /><br />At least that’s what I’ve always thought. Then something happened to open my eyes to reality.<br /><br />Since I travel so much I use a laundry service to wash and press my shirts, pants and suits. Fortunately there is a cleaner just around the corner from my home. Each time I return from a trip I take my dirty clothes to this cleaner the next morning.<br /><br />Several months ago I noticed this particular cleaner is fairly expensive. My wife told me I could get my shirts cleaned for almost 25% less than what I am paying. But I refuse to change, regardless of the cost savings. At first I thought my hesitancy to switch was out of convenience. Another cleaner is several blocks away while this cleaner is just around the corner. But the other day when I went to my current cleaner it dawned on me why I am willing to pay more and stick with the cleaner I’m using.<br /><br />As I walked toward the shop the owner had already pulled my ticket and had the conveyor belt spinning as she looked for my clean clothes. As I entered she smiled broadly and said: “Good morning, Mr. Mac.” She also had a new ticket ready for my dirty load of clothes and had written my name on the top of the ticket. She did all of this after recognizing my car as I pulled into the parking lot.<br /><br />As I walked out of the cleaner I had a big smile on my face. I realized the way I was feeling at that moment was the reason why I’m willing to pay more at my cleaner. I like the way they make me feel. They know me. They make me feel special. They act as if I’m an important customer and they want my business. I don’t know if they treat every customer like that (I like to think that it’s just me), but I certainly notice it and am willing to pay a premium price because of it.<br /><br />It doesn’t take much to wow your customers. You just have to notice them. Notice who they are and what they like. Just pay attention and do a few minor things that make a difference. It’s the little things that create loyal customers.<br /><br />The other day, while on a business trip back East, I was in a restaurant waiting for my dinner. I normally order room service but the hotel where I was staying did not have this service. I hate eating alone in a restaurant because it’s boring sitting and staring at the empty table. <br /><br />On this occasion another waiter (not my own) noticed that I was alone and that I had been waiting for some time for my food. He came over and, in a concerned voice, said: “One of our cooks called in sick today so our service is slower than usual. Can I get you a newspaper to read while you wait?” <br /><br />Needless to say, I was impressed. I gave him a tip when he came back with the paper.<br /><br />Several years ago I read a survey where people were asked to identify the one thing that would cause them to take their business elsewhere. The results were surprising. Only 20% of the respondents said they would take their business elsewhere if they were treated “rudely.” But 86% of those surveyed said they would stop doing business with a company if they were treated “indifferently” — as if their patronage was not important.<br /><br />Most customers are more than willing to pay a premium price for service providers who simply notice them and then proactively respond to their needs without prompting. My cleaner has convinced me of this. §<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group has helped companies create loyal customers for over twenty years. We know how to align the performance of your employees to the priorities of your customers. Our patented Consistent Service Model® shows how to create consistent service deliver within every department and from every employee at every level of your organization. We know how to ensure you stay focused on the things that matter most to your customers. </span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-20190097531829607612011-09-23T10:34:00.000-07:002011-09-23T10:39:36.648-07:00How to Maintain Employee Motivation and Commitment after a LayoffMore and more companies are forced to lay off employees as the world economy continues to tumble. <br /><br />Downsizing the business is a fast and effective way to reduce expenses, maintain profitability, and ensure the continuation of the business. But how you lay people off will a have long-lasting effect on those who remain with your company. Poorly handled decisions today can impact productivity and morale now and for a long time in the future.<br /><br />Employees who stay with your company after a layoff often have confused emotions as they wrestle with the changes brought about by the reorganization. A paradox of conflicting loyalties stirs within them. Feelings of concern for former colleagues are juxtaposed with feelings for oneself. Previous feelings of loyalty to the company now conflict with loyalty to oneself. Employees question their previous work effort as they worry about whether they have a future with your enterprise. <br /><br />While employees are going through these internal emotional struggles several other factors impact their future motivation and commitment. <br /><br />Invariably surviving employees are expected to take on more work. Normally they are asked to do more work for the same pay or, worse yet, for less pay because of the company’s declining financial position. Since most layoffs are undertaken to cut costs, the downsizing often results in salary freezes for those who stay with the company. Moreover, some former motivators may also have been eliminated, such as company cars, travel and entertainment budgets, or professional development expenses. Finally, there may be less career advancement opportunities after a downsizing, making one’s future with the organization less certain. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Importance of Open Communication </span><br /><br />The most important thing you can do to maintain morale and commitment after a layoff is to openly communicate with your employees. <br /><br />Many managers are hesitant to share information with employees after a reorganization, particularly if the information is of a negative nature. However, your workers expect you to bring up all relevant issues in a straightforward manner, especially any negatives that might impact them directly. Avoiding these issues sends a message that either the issues are not important or, worse yet, the employees themselves are not important enough for you to share information with them. <br /><br />The absolute worst thing you can do after a layoff is to send a message to remaining employees that they are not important. The more information you share with your employees during difficult economic times, the more they will feel you are concerned about their future. Likewise, the more employees feel you are concerned about their future, the more they will be concerned about the future of the business.<br /><br />One critical thing to remember during a reorganization is that when people lack real data, they make up their own. Usually what people make up is far worse than reality. You can stop the rumor-mills that typically run rampant during a downsizing by being up front with the employees.<br /><br />There are three crucial objectives you should have for your communication with employees during a reorganization.<br /><br />First, you should do everything you can to mitigate the usual fears employees have when an organization is in transition. <br /><br />Second, you should view every employee contact as an opportunity to build rapport with your workers.<br /><br />Finally, your message should be formulated and presented so well that it focuses the energy and effort of the employees where you want it – on the customers – rather than on the company. What you say must eliminate from the employees all doubt, worry, gossip, wondering, and hesitancy. <br /><br />At the conclusion of your message you want the workers worrying about their work, not worrying about their jobs or their employer. To do this you must understand the psyche of the employees and address the concerns they worry about the most during a layoff.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What Employees Want to Know</span><br /><br />Invariably there are five predictable questions employees will have during a company downsizing. Although the specific verbiage of the questions highlighted here may not be exactly how the employees would articulate their concerns, the answers to these questions will address most of the issues employees will be wondering about. When you know these questions in advance you can target your communication to address the employees’ concerns before they come up. This in turn shows the workers you are empathetic to their needs, thereby building rapport between you and them.<br /><br />Your answers to five critical questions will determine whether surviving employees will remain motivated and loyal to a company after a layoff. <br /><br />The questions are: 1) Was the downsizing integral to the business’ overall strategy to survive?; 2) What does the future look like for the company?; 3) Is there still a place for me in the company with continued opportunities for advancement?; 4) Will those employees who are let go be treated fairly?; and 5) What is expected of the employees who remain at the company after a downsizing? <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Integral to Business Survival </span><br /><br />Employees want to know that the reorganization is not random or whimsical. Remaining employees have to be assured that the layoffs were necessary and not just done arbitrarily. A clear business need for the change must be supported by facts and figures. Employees need to know and understand the business reasons for the layoff and what the consequences would have been had the layoffs not occurred. The layoffs must be logically tied to the future business needs of the company and should have only affected those departments that were non-productive or no longer essential to the business.<br /><br />At the same time employees must perceive there is a clearly identified and well-thought-out strategy to return the company to stability and long-term profitability. They need assurance that by downsizing and taking hits now the company will be much better off in the future. Perceptions of unnecessary or illogical reductions in staff cause employees to lose confidence in your ability to protect the future viability of the company. Fears of future layoffs persist when employees see no clear linkage between the reduction in staff and management’s plan to return the company to profitability.<br /><br />You must be adept at understanding and explaining the business imperative for the change. Employees can buy-in to a reduction in staff, even the elimination of their own positions, given a reasonable business need for doing so. Managers who want to motivate surviving employees must take workers into their confidence and clearly outline the logic behind the downsizing decision. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Outlook for the Future </span><br /><br />In a down economy when layoffs are necessary the future is often unknown. People generally are afraid of the unknown. To alleviate their own fears, the remaining employees will latch on to any information they can get about the company’s future plans to return the business to profitability. This is why rumors run rampant during a reorganization. It is the natural human need for information – any information – even if it is false. Surviving employees will remain fearful about the future until they have information that will assuage their fears.<br /><br />Before addressing the employees you should have a clear vision of where you want to take the company in the future. Leaders who possess and can communicate a confident view of the future can infuse confidence within surviving employees by sharing their vision. Employees are more apt to follow leaders who have a clear view of what the future entails.<br /><br />Although you may not have a clear view of the future when economic conditions have not yet stabilized, you must share what you know, assume or hope for the future. You must help employees to see the future themselves. Let employees know what they can expect to see and experience in the months ahead. Explain what changes or non-changes the company anticipates over the next one, three, six or twelve months. Share your plans. Be as open, specific and precise as possible. Any hesitancy or waffling from you will damage the confidence and commitment you will receive from your employees.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Opportunities for Advancement</span><br /><br />Surviving employees want to know what their future prospects are with the newly reorganized company. Since traditional career paths may have been eliminated, new opportunities for “advancement” must be created. These typically entail such things as compensation for performance rather than position, greater autonomy and decision making authority, or opportunities to improve one’s “employability” through exposure to more aspects of the business. Employees in the new organization will want to work on projects that develop their skills while achieving company goals. <br /><br />You need to identify the advancement opportunities that will be in play after the reorganization prior to implementation of the change. Nothing demotivates employees faster than to have career options for which one has been striving to attain suddenly become unavailable because of elimination of positions or layers within the company.<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Treatment of Downsized Employees</span><br /><br />Surviving employees are greatly influenced by how downsized employees were treated when they were let go. Surviving employees want to be assured, should it happen to them, that laid off employees were “cared for” through severance pay, outplacement services, ample advanced notice, and fair and consistent treatment throughout the reorganization. Employees predict how they will be treated in the future based upon how the company treated displaced employees in the past. You will be wise to remember that employees have a long memory when it comes to company reorganizations. They recall exactly what was said back when and who did what to whom. Be very careful when making decisions about how to treat downsized employees. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Expectations of Remaining Employees</span><br /><br />Finally, although employees may not know they have this last need, and therefore generally may never articulate it, workers who stay with the company have an inherent desire to know: What is my charge? <br /><br />Once employees have decided they want to stay with the company after a reorganization, they need clarity on what the company expects of them. What do you want them to do? Should they carry on as they have been doing in the past, or should they do something different? What are their new marching orders? <br /><br />If you expect employees to change, you must tell them so. If you expect employees to continue doing what they have been doing in the past, you must tell them this also. Never assume that the employees will conclude what you want them to conclude. You must tell them. <br /><br />After you have gone through a downsizing you must give the surviving employees their charge. You should share with your employees the things that matter most in the new business model. Tell them: <br /><br />• What it takes to win in the new company<br /><br />• What they can do to contribute to the success of the company, as well as to their own success<br /><br />• What is in it for them if they do contribute to the future success of the company<br /><br />People need hope in the future. Employees need to know that their future will once again be bright as they work to return the downsized company to profitability. Everything you do during a reorganization must be designed to build hope, not destroy it. When you answer point-by-point every question outlined in this article, you mitigate the fears of the employees, you build tremendous rapport with them, and you refocus their energy and effort on the future success of the business. You get people focused on the customers instead of focused on themselves. §<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group is adept at bringing about successful organizational change, particularly on how to maintain employee commitment after a downsizing. We know how to engage your employees at every level of your company and get them to commit to the new organizational conditions. Please call us to learn how we can help focus your employees on the things that matter most.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-46181252592981552432011-09-20T15:57:00.000-07:002011-09-20T16:05:36.603-07:00Why Employees are Not Motivated<span style="font-style:italic;">In motivating employees managers need to match the goal and the rewards based on the employees’ needs. They need to find out why employees are not motivated and remove the inhibiting factor.</span><br /><br />-------------<br /><br />Several years ago a Harvard Business Review study identified eight reasons why workers may not be motivated to work.<br /><br />First, <span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-style:italic;">the goal is too distant</span></span>. It’s difficult for people to be enthused about something that is too far in the future. Long-term goals should be broken into smaller, more immediate actions. Immediate goals with immediate payoff have the greatest odds of motivating employees.<br /><br />Second, <span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-style:italic;">the payoff is too small</span></span>. The reward is not worth the energy and effort required to perform the task. If employees feel the task is huge and the payoff is small, they will be reluctant to take on the responsibility.<br /><br />Third, <span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-style:italic;">the path to the goal is too difficult</span></span>. If it will take a Herculean effort to perform the work many employees will pass on the task. Again, it’s not worth the effort when one sees the hoops that must be jumped through to achieve the end result.<br /><br />Fourth, <span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-style:italic;">the goal satisfies no personal need</span></span>. There’s no clear benefit to the individual for accomplishing the task. Before starting a task, employees invariably want to know what is in it for them. Employees tune in closely to station WII-FM (what’s in it for me). If the accomplishment of the task does not fulfill a personal need, the employee may be less inclined to do it.<br /><br />Fifth, <span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-style:italic;">the individual’s personal need can be satisfied by a different goal</span></span>. For example, an employee who enjoys the recognition he or she receives while visiting excessively with colleagues in the break-room may not be motivated by supervisory recognition for staying on task.<br /><br />Sixth, <span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-style:italic;">the employee denies the goal satisfies a personal need</span></span>. Managers often use increased responsibility or greater company exposure as motivational tactics, only to discover the gesture had the opposite effective. Some employees fear the accountability that comes with new responsibilities. Others may be nervous in the presence of upper management. Although the employees may wish to advance, they decline a promotion because of these fears. <br /><br />Seventh, <span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-style:italic;">the employee is focused on a lower level need</span></span>. It’s often difficult to get excited about a new title or office if the anticipated pay raise does not come with it.<br /><br />Finally, <span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="font-style:italic;">the employee lacks the skill to perform the task</span></span>. If the employees do not feel confident performing the work, no amount of persuasion can get them to do it. People who do not have the skills to do the job cannot do them even if a gun were pointed at their heads.<br /><br />In motivating employees managers need to match the goal and the rewards based on the employees’ needs. They need to find out why employees are not motivated and remove the inhibiting factor.<br /><br />---------------<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group offers a variety of executive, manager and supervisor training programs on performance management issues. Please contact us for a list of our customized training courses.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-35444596345867536432011-09-20T11:27:00.000-07:002011-09-20T11:43:15.970-07:00Positioning Your Company for Success in a Yo-Yo Economy<span style="font-style:italic;">Today’s economy is like a yo-yo. We have been dangling on a string in a “sleeper” recession for quite some time. The world economy continues to spin at the bottom. Everyone has been wondering how long the spin can continue at the abyss before experiencing a collapse of the market. Thriving in the new economy requires a business model that matches the values and spending habits of customers today. It could entail a complete change in the way you do business.</span><br /><br />------------------------------------<br /><br />When I was a young boy I liked to play with my yo-yo. I became fairly proficient at performing fancy tricks with interesting names like “rock the baby,” “walk the dog” and “skin the cat.” <br /><br />I also could do a yo-yo trick called “the sleeper.” This motion entailed throwing the yo-yo down without bringing it back up immediately. If the string tension was correct, the yo-yo would spin for several seconds at the bottom of the string. The difficulty of the trick was knowing when to pull the yo-yo back up before the spin petered out. If I left it down too long the yo-yo would collapse and die at the end of the string. <br /><br />Today’s economy is like my yo-yo. We have been dangling on a string in a “sleeper” recession for quite some time. The world economy continues to spin at the bottom. Everyone has been wondering how long the spin can continue at the abyss before experiencing a collapse of the market. It’s hard to tell whether the economy is improving or not because the economic indicators keep yo-yoing between signs of improvement and signs of continued economic decline. The recent combative legislative debate over the debt ceiling just added to the economic confusion. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Survival Requires a New Business Model</span><br /><br />Sadly, too many companies have been sleeping too long. At the beginning of the Great Recession some businesses refused to accept the notion that things could get this bad. They responded slowly to the crisis, hoping the downturn would be brief. A significant number of these companies no longer exist because they refused to take the necessary actions to save their enterprise. <br /><br />Some companies did respond to the crash – typically by lowering prices to continue to attract customers – but they never changed their actual business model. Perhaps they thought the spin at the bottom would be short, and they could pull their prices back up when it looked like the sleeping economy was nearing an end. <br /><br />Fortunately, a few insightful companies realized early on that the economic downturn was going to last a long time. They wisely learned the trick of keeping their company spinning strongly so there would be enough strength in their business after the long spin to pull the business back up. They changed their business model to survive in a sleeping economy. They adjusted what they do to match the conditions of the new world. And they realized that when the economic spin does come to an end, the world will be much different that it was before. Consequently, they repositioned their products and services to appeal to customer needs and expectations in this new market reality. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Changing Priorities of Customers</span><br /><br />The world has changed and any company who refuses to change their business model to match the new world is in danger of petering out. Customer behaviors have changed forever and they will not return to where they were before the recession – at least not in this generation. <br /><br />The majority of customers have changed their spending habits. They now perceive their discretionary money in a different light. They have a completely different view of the value they expect for the money they spend. Customers are putting a lot more thought into their purchases to make sure what they buy is the best possible value for the price. They are less impulsive and more cautious about how they spend their money. They want to be assured that they are spending their money wisely. <br />If your company wishes to survive in the new world you must change your focus to align with the changing priorities of your customers. <br /><br />For the most part, companies in the past focused on providing tangible and intangible products that appealed to the excessive and indulgent nature of their customers. Manufacturing companies produced cell phones, computers and other electronic gadgets with more bells and whistles than a person could possibly use. Casinos built massive, opulent resorts with every amenity imaginable to immerse guests in a sensory experience that appealed to their base desires. Restaurants sold the sizzle instead of the steak, emphasizing presentation and ambiance over the quality of the food. Customers spent thousands of dollars for an “experience” or access to products that would make them feel hip or cool. People paid far too much for far too little and flashed their materialistic possessions as indicators of their social or economic status. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What Customers Want Today</span><br /><br />Today’s value-conscious customers want more than window dressing. They want <span style="font-weight:bold;">ASSURANCE</span> that what they are buying is worth the expense. They must feel confident that the investment of their hard-earned money will provide something of significant value. They need justification – or an excuse – for spending their discretionary money at a time when saving their money may seem like a more prudent action. <br /><br />No longer are name-brand products or the “premier resort destination” the automatic purchase choice of many customers. People are evaluating their options and scrutinizing which choice gives them the biggest bang for their buck. They’re reviewing previous customer comments for assurance they are making the right purchasing choice. They are seeking to connect on an emotional level with products and services that match their current values. <br /><br />Customers also want assurance of the <span style="font-weight:bold;">RELIABILITY</span> of your products and services. They want to buy products that work. They want whatever they buy to perform at the level promised. And, as the old throw-away attitude diminishes, customers are looking for products that last longer and won’t have to be replaced in a few months with a new generation product. <br /><br />Customers want service companies to actually deliver quality service. They expect your employees to be friendly, efficient, knowledgeable, attentive and helpful. They want their hot food hot and their cold food cold. In many cases customers expect even higher levels of service during tough times because they expect you to truly compete for their business. <br /><br />They expect you to stand behind your products and services and <span style="font-style:italic;">guarantee</span> you will deliver what you promise. And if, for some reason, there is a problem with your delivery, today’s customers expect <span style="font-weight:bold;">RESPONSIVENESS</span> from your employees who quickly address their concerns and to fix the problem. <br /><br />In tough times customers expect you to have <span style="font-weight:bold;">EMPATHY</span> and understand what they are going through. Very few people in this country have been untouched by the tough economy. Many people have lost their jobs, their home and even their possessions. They’ve downsized their lifestyle significantly. They’ve postponed their retirement. Those who are still employed may be underemployed, having had their hours or their wages cut. Some families may have more than one wage earner who has been affected by the downturn. <br /><br />Consequently, when these customers do spend their money on a vacation, at a restaurant, bar or theater, they expect your employees to show <span style="font-weight:bold;">APPRECIATION</span> for the investment the customer is making. Stressed out customers expect your employees to understand their need for escape, relaxation, rejuvenation and a life free from the hassles of their daily grind. If they purchase a product from you, they want that product to be easy to use and not add any additional burden to their life. If they have to interact with your employees, customers want the experience to be pleasant and problem-free. They expect your employees to be totally focused on ensuring they have a good experience patronizing your business. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Aligning Your Business Model to New Customer Demands</span><br /><br />It’s time to pull the yoyo back up and regain control of your company’s economic future. Innovative Management Group can help position your company for success in the new economy based on the realities of the market conditions you can expect over the next 3-5 years. We will help you: <br /><br />• <span style="font-weight:bold;">Define your strategic focus and outline your strategic intentions <br /><br />• Reclaim your brand identity or redefine a new one based on the new market realities <br /><br />• Identify your value premise and unique product differentiation <br /><br />• Determine which of your current products and services match current customer needs <br /><br />• Identify new products and services needed to create customer demand <br /><br />• Align your marketing strategies and tactics with the new world <br /><br />• Ensure consistent product and service delivery to create customer loyalty <br /><br />• Engage your employees in making the changes necessary to succeed in today’s competitive world <br /><br />• Ensure the commitment of your executives, managers and employees to focus on the things that matter most </span><br /><br />During difficult times your company needs to stay focused, or refocus if your current strategies and tactics are ineffective or no longer appropriate. Now is the time to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Tough times require clear, creative thinking to minimize the weaknesses and threats and take advantage of the strengths and opportunities in order to drive value to your business. It is a time to rediscover the fundamentals of the business — the critical success factors that will keep your organization spinning successfully for many years to come. <br /><br />Good leaders make good decisions in tough times. Call <span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group</span> today to help you maintain or regain a strong competitive position in a weak economy. §Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-60473495117437995682011-09-20T11:15:00.000-07:002011-09-20T11:25:44.625-07:00Satisfying Customers is Cheap and Easy<span style="font-style:italic;">If you satisfied your dissatisfied customers when they are “Neutral”, you won’t have to atone for your errors when they are “Annoyed” or feel “Victimized.”</span><br /><br />---------<br /><br />Have you ever received such horrible service you just wanted to scream at the top of your lungs?<br /><br />Have you ever wished you could tell the whole world how poorly you were treated so no one would ever patronize that business again?<br /><br />I recently took my relatively new car back to my “friendly Chevrolet dealer” to fix a horrible squeak in my front-end suspension. I was not looking forward to the experience. The last ordeal I had with this dealer was very unpleasant. I tend to become irritable when I sit in the dealer’s “customer courtesy lounge” for several hours on three separate occasions only to be told after the wait that they ordered the wrong part.<br /><br />After my last blow-up I had with the service rep, service manager, and the general manager of the dealership, you’d think they would have flagged me as a difficult customer. You’d think they would have placed a statement in their computer saying, “Next time this guy comes in, whatever you do, don’t upset him. Fix his car right, and get him out of here.”<br /><br />Apparently there were no red flags in their computer because they really out-did themselves this time in providing horrible service.<br /><br />When the service manager asked me what was wrong with my car I pressed down on the hood of the vehicle so he could hear the squeak. His immediate response was, “You need a new fan belt.” That was an amazing diagnosis since the car wasn’t even running.<br /><br />When I told him that I thought the problem was in the suspension and also mentioned that the car pulled strongly to the right, he told me they would give me an alignment too.<br /><br />I begged him to please take a look at the suspension. He just shrugged and said, “No problem.”<br /><br />I was told it would take several hours to fix my car, so I took their “courtesy van” home. At least the bus was there this time. Last time the courtesy van, that “leaves every 30 minutes,” didn’t leave for three hours.<br /><br />They also told me they would call me to let me know what was wrong with my car prior to doing any work on it. But instead, I had to call them five times to see when my car would be done. Twice I was told it was “being lubed,” even though the car did not require this service. The third time they said, “Our service manager is test driving your car right now to check it out.”<br /><br />Several hours later, on the fifth call, the service manager told me he had just driven my car and it now was ready. The squeak was fixed. After each of the four previous calls they told me they would call me when my car was ready. I guess my fifth call came just as it was finished.<br /><br />I bet you can guess what happened when I went to pick up my car! When I opened the door and sat down in the driver’s seat I heard the horrible squeak. It was just as loud as before. They hadn’t fixed it. But they did replace my fan belt and align my car for $153.<br /><br />This time I complained with gusto! You should have seen them jump. I had six service people around my car in seconds. Unfortunately it was quitting time. They wanted me to bring my car back in the morning. I refused and suggested they give me a loaner car instead. You would think I had just extracted teeth from the service manager’s mouth, but he did give me a car.<br /><br />The next day they actually delivered my car to my home. They had washed and hand-waxed the exterior, put ArmorAll on the tires, shampooed the carpets and filled my gas tank with gas. I was almost sorry I had caused such a big fuss. That is until I got in the car and heard the squeak!!!<br /><br />--------<br /><br />When customers receive poor service they usually react in one of three ways.<br /><br />The typical response to poor customer service is <span style="font-weight:bold;">NEUTRAL</span> the first time it happens. Although the service may not have been as good as the customer expects, the poor service doesn’t really bother a person who responds neutrally. Neutral customers seldom complain. However, when they do complain, they typically follow their complaint by saying something like, “It’s alright. Don’t worry about it.”<br /><br />Some customers become <span style="font-weight:bold;">ANNOYED</span> when they receive shoddy service. This normally occurs when service is particularly bad. <span style="font-style:italic;">Neutral</span> customers can become <span style="font-style:italic;">annoyed</span> when several service errors occur or when a problem is not fixed in a reasonable amount of time.<br /><br />Finally, customers with severe service problems feel <span style="font-weight:bold;">VICTIMIZED</span>. They feel entrapped in a nightmare of poor service. Victimized customers get the impression the service provider is deliberately doing things to irritate them. At this point the service is so bad or flagrant the customer feels personally affronted by it.<br /><br />Although most <span style="font-style:italic;">neutral</span> customers seldom tell anyone about the poor service they received, people who are <span style="font-style:italic;">annoyed</span> typically tell ten others. Those who are <span style="font-style:italic;">victimized</span> tell everyone they can. They would shout it from the rooftops if they could.<br /><br />The amazing thing is <span style="font-style:italic;">neutral</span> customers can easily be satisfied just by an expression of surprise that the poor service occurred, the offering of a sincere apology, and a fast resolution of the problem.<br /><br />With <span style="font-style:italic;">annoyed</span> customers you need to show greater concern for the customer’s problem. You should display a sense of urgency, enlist the customer’s help to find an acceptable solution to the problem, and offer a value-added symbol of your regret.<br /><br />To satisfy <span style="font-style:italic;">victimized</span> customers you need to pull out all of the stops. The customer will expect to receive an apology from the highest levels of your organization. Get ready to grovel and pay for your transgression.<br /><br />With victimized customers you need to express your understanding of and empathy for their situation. Allow the customer to vent for as long as it takes. Fully acknowledge their concerns. Listen actively. Address every issue and fix every problem. <br /><br />Then you must atone for your error with a significant value-added symbol of your regret.<br /><br />Finally, you must follow-up afterwards with a personal contact to ensure you have resolved the problem completely to the customer’s satisfaction.<br /><br />--------<br /> <br />My car has now been fixed. But I haven’t been. <br /><br />The car dealer could have saved a lot of time and money merely by telling the truth, delivering what they promised, keeping me informed, and apologizing for their mistakes. They could have satisfied me with words. <br /><br />Instead, the dealer has spent thousands of dollars and countless man-hours to finally fix my car. And, even though my car is fixed, I’m still irritated! So irritated in fact that I am writing an article about it, publishing it in my newsletter that goes out to thousands of businesses, and telling my story to everyone I meet. <br /><br />I really don’t think you want to irritate me if I’m one of your customers! §<br /><br />---------------<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group offers two-, four-, and eight-hour customer service training programs for executives, managers and employees. Please contact us for a list of our customized training programs.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-76052950366043616412011-09-16T08:43:00.000-07:002011-09-16T08:50:09.814-07:0070 Ways to Create Spare Time<span style="font-style:italic;">It seems there’s never enough time in the day to get everything done. If only there was more time. Here are 70 ideas for creating more spare time in your life. </span> <br /><br />------------------<br /><br />Wouldn’t it be nice if there was more time in the day so you could accomplish everything you want to get done?<br /><br />Here are 70 suggestions of things you can do to create more spare time in your life.<br /><br />1. Find a new technique every day to help you cut down the amount of time it takes you to do something. <br /> <br /> 2. Plan your schedule the first thing in the morning and set priorities for the day. Make a list and tick off the important items first. <br /> <br /> 3. Have a light lunch so you don't get sleepy in the afternoon. <br /> <br /> 4. Save up trivial matters for a short session once a week. <br /> <br /> 5. Consult your list of goals and priorities once a week (or month) and revise them as necessary. Identify activities that you can do each day that will accomplish your goals. <br /> <br /> 6. Carry blank 3x5 cards with you in order to jot down notes and ideas so you don’t have to take time to remember them later. <br /> <br /> 7. Delegate everything where you do not need to be personally involved. Use specialists to help with special problems. <br /> <br /> 8. Generate as little paperwork as possible. Throw away non essential papers as soon as you read them. <br /> <br /> 9. Avoid working on weekends or late at night. This time tends to be less productive because of fatigue or distractions. <br /> <br />10. Give yourself time off as a special reward when you've accomplished important tasks. <br /> <br />11. Concentrate your efforts on only one thing at a time. Eliminate distractions that may cause you to jump around.<br /> <br />12. Start off by working on the most important parts, or high pay off items, of a project first. <br /> <br />13. Focus on projects that provide the greatest long term benefits. <br /> <br />14. Try to handle each piece of paper only once. <br /> <br />15. Skim books quickly when looking for ideas. <br /> <br />16. Examine old habits for possible streamlining. Eliminate unnecessary ruts.<br /><br />17. Put "waiting time" to good use relax, read, organize your work, do something you normally would not have done.<br /> <br />18. Don't waste time regretting failures or feeling guilty about what you didn't get done. <br /><br />19. Remember: There is always enough time for the important things. People find time to do what they want to do.<br /><br />20. Identify your prime time and then use it for the most difficult or most unrewarding tasks. <br /> <br />21. Rearrange your time to fit the task. There may be times of the day that are more appropriate to the task. For example, do tiring tasks first and "no brainers" when you have no energy. <br /> <br />22. Use normal periods of down time to attend to other people's needs. Use this time for appointments and meetings. <br /> <br />23. Set goals and objectives, with prioritized strategies to achieve them. <br /> <br />24. Audit how you spend your time each day in order to discover patterns that can be re-worked. <br /> <br />25. Tackle a task the first time an opportunity presents itself. Do not waste time thinking and rethinking about how to handle it. <br /> <br />26. Let subordinates handle and monitor the routine, unexceptional matters and make recurring decisions that do not require your input. <br /> <br />27. Respect the time of your subordinates. This includes saving your own time by not frequently checking up on subordinates. <br /><br />28. Learn how to end conversations and discussions once the subject has been sufficiently covered. <br /> <br />29. Start meetings on time and end on time even if it means using an automatic timer. <br /> <br />30. Discourage unnecessary meetings. Eliminate unproductive meetings.<br /> <br />31. When calling others begin the conversation by telling them how much time the phone call will take; then take only that amount of time. When others call you give them a timeframe in which to control their conversation. <br /> <br />32. Work ahead when you're on a roll so you can ease back when you're feeling less efficient. <br /><br />33. Break big jobs down into smaller increments, then perform some of these tasks each day so the project moves consistently forward. <br /> <br />34. Don't carry details in your head use calendars, lists, and reminders to get them off your mind. <br /> <br />35. End each day by outlining the priorities for the next day. <br /> <br />36. Find productive or pleasurable ways to use idle time. Carry reading material, a tape recorder, stationary, etc. <br /><br />37. Set aside a specific day or evening each week for personal business. <br /> <br />38. Assign routine tasks to a regular daily or weekly time slot. <br /><br />39. Spend the first hour of the day doing whatever will move the day's business forward phone calls, letters, meetings, scheduling, etc. <br /> <br />40. Do first what you dread the most. <br /> <br />41. Determine the end to your conversations in your opening remarks. For example: "I just need a couple of quick answers to a short question." <br /> <br />42. To keep visits in your office brief, tell the person early in the conversation how much time they have, meet the visitor in the doorway, put books and papers on your chairs so the visitor cannot sit down, continue standing after greeting the visitor, etc. <br /> <br />43. In order to keep from being distracted by people who pass by your office, place your desk so you sit with your back toward the door or so you are perpendicular to the door. <br /> <br />44. Keep your office and desk as clean as possible to keep your mind from being distracted. <br /> <br />45. There are four basic causes of procrastination: fear, being in awe of the immensity of the task, disliking the task, or boredom. Understanding the root of your procrastination can help you to determine how to overcome it. <br /> <br />46. When procrastination hits, <span style="font-weight:bold;">do anything</span> -- sharpen a pencil, dial the first digit of the number, write "Dear Sir", or anything related to completing the task. Once you have begun your momentum will build up and you will more than likely continue working. <br /> <br />47. When procrastination hits, <span style="font-weight:bold;">do nothing</span>. Physically remove your-self from the task and ask yourself a series of questions about the job you are procrastinating and what techniques you can use to begin the task. When you return to your desk you will very likely begin the item having once put it off. Typically, in the past you may have reached for some less important task to do just to feel busy. In this case, however, you confront your procrastination and behaviorally manipulate your-self into positive action. <br /> <br />48. When procrastination hits, <span style="font-weight:bold;">create a deadline</span>. No task has a sense of urgency unless it has a deadline. Put the deadline in writing and force yourself to become accountable to the deadline by publicly committing to it. <br /> <br />49. Create a game out of tasks that usually are boring. If it’s a repetitive task you're tired of doing, challenge yourself to break a speed record or focus on improving the quality of your efforts. <br /> <br />50. Set a definite "quiet time" for yourself. Let everyone know that you are not to be disturbed during this time. Use this time for planning and creative thinking. <br /> <br />51. If you do not make contact on the phone, leave a detailed message telling the other person what you want. This gives them time to gather the information you need or to leave a message for you with the answer to your question. <br /> <br />52. Group similar activities together for more efficient action. <br /><br />53. Determine the value of what you do. Maybe it is not worth doing. <br /><br />54. Eliminate any unnecessary activities or valueless tasks. <br /> <br />55. Use a desk and pocket calendar and plan your activities. <br /> <br />54. Prepare your discussion when using the phone or conducting meetings. <br /> <br />55. Handle all paperwork as soon as you get it at least to determine the priority it warrants. <br /> <br />56. Go someplace where you can get away from interruptions, but don't make it too comfortable. For some people, working at home is not a time saver. <br /> <br />57. Use small note pads to keep track of tasks. <br /> <br />58. Don't write a memo when a post it will do. Don’t schedule a meeting when an email will do.<br /> <br />59. Put all meetings and appointments on your calendar, both work and personal. <br /> <br />60. Go to work early in order to get organized and settled. <br /> <br />61. Group related items, such as telephone calls, errands, meetings, visits, etc.<br /><br />62. Learn to determine between job-related socialization and personal socialization. Greatly reduce any personal socialization on the job.<br /><br />63. Although planning your time takes time, in the long run it will save you time. Slowdown in order to speed up. Plan ahead, map out your approach, determine your objectives, etc. so you know exactly where you are going and how you will get there.<br /><br />64. Turn recurring crises and fire-fighting into routine responses by developing a set procedure for how to respond to these type of situations.<br /><br />65. Every now and then do the unexpected. If you plan to work on the weekend, relax instead. Sometimes a change of pace can energize you so you can get more done later.<br /><br />66. Set a realistic schedule for your day. Don’t schedule for a perfect day without interruptions.<br /><br />67. Find out other people’s time patterns. Know when they are normally in their office, in meetings, at home, etc.<br /><br />68. Determine the consequences for not doing something. Stop doing those things that have no negative consequences.<br /><br />69. Clean out your drawers and closets to make it easier and faster to find things.<br /><br />70. Throw out everything you don’t need in order to eliminate distractions.<br /><br />And now a bonus hint – <span style="font-weight:bold;">SAY NO</span>. Say it often, and mean it. You don’t have to do everything. Not everything is important. Some things don’t matter. Let it go by saying no. <br /><br />And here’s the super bonus hint. If you don’t manage your time wisely by implementing some of these hints you’ve just wasted your time reading this article. §<br /> <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Innovative Management Group offers several management and employee training programs on time management techniques. Please contact us for more information about these productive courses.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-5893682173498471312011-09-14T16:02:00.000-07:002011-09-14T16:26:18.971-07:00How to Gain True Consensus on Team Tasks and Decisions<span style="font-style:italic;">If human beings only use ten percent of their brain, then ten people have to be in a meeting to get whole-brain thinking. The problem is getting them all to agree.</span><br /><br />------------------<br /><br />Someone has postulated that most human beings only use ten percent of their brain. If that is true, then ten people have to be in a meeting to get whole-brain thinking. This explains the value of working in teams. <br /><br />Everyone who has been in one of my management training sessions knows that I define a “team” as a group of individuals who “step forward together” to achieve a common goal. Teamwork requires individuals to pool information and consider different viewpoints to find solutions and make decisions. Seldom do all team members have the same view about an idea or issue. Polarized views, opposing opinions, and stubborn hold outs can often block the progress of a team. The success of a team relies heavily on how quickly the members can come to consensus on both what their goal is and how it will be achieved.<br /><br />A significant portion of a team’s effectiveness and “health” is tied to how well the team members interact and make decisions. Too often the most powerful or outspoken member of a team dominates the team’s discussion and determines the team’s actions. Quieter or less assertive members are not heard, which negates the power of the collective thinking of the team. <br /><br />What happens to the motivation of individuals whose ideas are not considered or whose suggestions are not adopted? How is team commitment impacted when team members are not personally vested? What is the impact when arguments and off-purpose behaviors disrupt the progress of the team?<br /> <br />Coming to true consensus among a group of individuals is hard to do. It takes great facilitative skills and effective process tools among the group to bring everyone to agreement. True consensus requires everyone to remain firmly grounded and completely committed to their consensus decision once the team discussion has ended. <br /><br />Unfortunately, I’ve found that consensus in many companies is only consensus until everyone leaves the room. Once people get back into their work area or start to ponder the team’s decision outside the team room, some members tend to question the team’s decision and their commitment to it. The key, therefore, to achieving consensus is not just getting it, but also making sure it sticks once it is reached.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">DEFINITION OF CONSENSUS</span><br /><br />As I facilitate groups I find there are several misconceptions regarding what constitutes a consensus decision. Some people believe consensus is when everyone in the group is in agreement with an idea or proposal. This, of course, is not consensus. A decision that everyone agrees to is unanimous; which is better than consensus. Team commitment to a decision is seldom questioned when everyone on the team is in unanimous agreement.<br /><br />Other people I’ve encountered have the misconception that consensus is achieved when the team votes on a proposal and the idea that gets the most votes wins. Majority rule is never consensus. Majority rule is where the dominant majority overrules the less convincing minority. <br /><br />The problem with majority rule is the minority. Whenever the majority rules; someone is left out. And those who are left out seldom step forward with the rest of the team. Majority rule is not an effective group decision making method for a team.<br /><br />Still others believe consensus is achieved when members of the team agree to compromise in order to get everyone’s buy-in. Compromise is not consensus either. Members on a team may have to compromise to come to consensus, but consensus does not necessarily require compromise. In fact, sometimes compromised decisions can be the worst possible decisions. Compromise usually means everyone had to lose something in order to win. But a lose-lose situation seldom is a win-win for the team. <br /><br />So what is team consensus?<br /><br />A consensus decision is an idea that results from the full input of all team members. Sometimes one suggestion is universally accepted as best, and sometimes the decision is a combination of the thoughts of several individuals. Consensus does not necessarily mean the decision is everyone's first choice. <br /><br />Consensus is defined as . . .<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-weight:bold;">A decision or position reflecting the collective thinking of the team that all members participated in developing, understand fully, believe is workable, can live with, and will actively support</span>.</span><br /><br />To reach consensus, every team member must express themselves and participate fully in the discussion. Each member should listen to and respect the input of others and remain open-minded. Disagreements need to be confronted and explored until every idea is out on the table and an acceptable solution is found. Everyone must feel they were heard and their viewpoint considered when making collective decisions.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />PSEUDO-CONSENSUS</span><br /><br />True consensus cannot be reached until everyone on the team clearly understands what they are agreeing to. Pseudo-consensus – where people agree in the room and then disagree later – occurs when people think of something outside of the team room that was not understood or addressed during the team discussion. Team’s need to take the time during the team meeting to ensure everyone is fully on board before declaring consensus has been achieved.<br /><br />Team members seldom accept a proposal that they feel is unworkable. Before consenting to an idea or solution people test the proposal in their mind to assess its viability. To achieve true consensus the team must work together to come up with decisions that everyone feels are feasible. If someone feels the proposed idea won’t work, the team should discuss how to make it work or come up with alternative solutions.<br /><br />It is possible, however, to achieve consensus even if someone on the team feels a proposed solution won’t work. This happens when someone – usually a lone holdout – cannot justify their hesitation to consent with valid proof that the proposed decision is wrong. Accepting the possibility that the majority of the group may be right, and they may be wrong, the individual agrees to give their consensus to the group. <br /><br />Please note that this constitutes consensus – and not majority rule – only if the last two elements of the definition of consensus apply. The hesitant individual must be able to live with the decision and actively support it. If they cannot live with it or actively support it, the team discussion must continue until real consensus is achieved.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">TRUE TEST OF CONSENSUS</span><br /><br />These last two elements of consensus are the true tests of the team’s buy-in. Can everyone on the team live with the decision and will they actively support it? If any team member feels they cannot live with the implications and consequences of the team’s decision, the proposal must be addressed until everyone can. Actively supporting a decision means everyone on the team will put their full energy and effort into ensuring the team’s decision is carried out as designed. Half-hearted or disgruntled support is never acceptable on a team. Real consensus requires real commitment.<br /><br />Consensus decision-making often requires more time and skilled facilitation to discuss the ideas and issues fully. Teams should not expect quick consensus on every issue. Failure to achieve true consensus usually can be traced back to the team’s failure around one or more of the consensus definition elements. For example, the team may have ignored the introverted or quiet members of the group and failed to solicit the collective thinking of the entire team. Or the team may not have explored the ideas fully enough for everyone to clearly understand what was being proposed. Maybe the team ran roughshod over someone who felt the idea was not workable. Perhaps someone on the team placated, giving in rather than fighting for what they believed was a better solution. Many factors contribute to a team’s failure to achieve true consensus. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">CONSENSUS ISN'T ALWAYS NECESSARY</span><br /><br />During the early stages of a team’s development the team should decide where consensus support is absolutely essential to the team’s success. On less important issues it’s often possible for the entire group to step forward together with a much simpler and faster decision making process than consensus. However, consensus decision making should always be used on team decisions regarding the team’s charter, ground rules, project plans, completion dates and other critical elements impacting the success of the team’s mission.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />AVOIDING GROUP THINK</span><br /><br />As a team strives to achieve consensus there will be times when it is difficult to get everyone on board. Invariably there may be one obstinate, hard-headed holdout who refuses to consent to what others on the team agree to. Sometimes this individual is a true roadblock, but often the person is merely trying to keep the team from falling into group think. <br /><br />Group think occurs when the team cannot come up with alternatives to their ideas or solutions. Group think is particularly prevalent when a solution or decision seems obvious. Devil’s advocate dissidence among the team may be the very thing the team needs to keep the group from falling into the trap of collective blindness.<br /><br />A perfect example of this is Galileo Galilei, the father of modern observational astronomy. Galileo's championing of Copernicanism – the view that the earth revolves around the sun – was controversial within his lifetime. The geocentric view that the sun revolved around the earth had been dominant since the time of Aristotle. The controversy engendered by Galileo's opposition to this view resulted in the Catholic Church's prohibiting his advocacy of heliocentrism. Galileo was brought before the Inquisition because of his views where he was forced to recant what he knew to be true. He spent the last years of his life under house arrest.<br /><br />Like many lone voices on a team, Galileo was right. But more powerful voices in the group – in Galileo’s case, that of the ecclesiastical leaders – can dominate the team so strongly that anyone who actually agrees with the dissenting person quickly changes their position to avoid the “inquisition.” Group think often occurs when someone on the team is in a “power position” within the organization. Those on the team, not wishing to jeopardize their careers align themselves with the person who wields power over them. Sadly, consensus by decree or covert coercion is not real consensus. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">THE DISSENTER MAY BE RIGHT</span><br /><br />This is why a team must take great care to ensure all voices are heard. Sometimes one person can sway the views of many. I saw this happen when I was facilitating a team of 27 scientists. As you might guess, trying to get 27 scientists to agree on anything is extremely difficult. There were many knock-down drag-out fights among the team before the group accomplished its mission.<br /><br />During one of those fights 26 scientists were in agreement on a particular issue. Only one team member disagreed. No matter what everyone else on the team said to try to sway the one holdout to the position of the group, he refused to budge. He believed he was right. He stood his ground and fought for his idea. And, eventually, many hours later, he convinced the entire team to change their vote and consent to his idea. In the end his solution proved to be the right choice. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">HOW TO REACH CONSENSUS</span><br /><br />In that case the dissenting voice was correct. But sometimes there are dissenters within the team who are wrong and refuse to give in. They keep the team from moving forward because they stubbornly stand their ground. The nineteen techniques described below show the progressive steps to gaining consensus on a team. The steps start out easy and become increasingly adamant as obstinate team members refuse to consent. <br /> <br />1. The first step to gaining consensus is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">make sure everyone understands the idea or issue fully</span>. As stated above, the primary reason why people cannot agree is because they don’t fully understand what is being discussed. A dissenting opinion can often be easily swayed with more information about the proposed action. Ask the dissenting team member what they don’t understand and then address each of their concerns. <br /> <br />2. To solidify the team’s agreement you should “call for consensus” on the issue being discussed. This means you ask the team members to signify their consent. The fastest and easiest way to do this is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask if anyone <span style="font-style:italic;">disagrees</span></span>. If no one disagrees, the team is in consensus. However, this step only works if the team has established a ground rule stating that if anyone disagrees they must speak up. Otherwise someone could quietly disagree, but be too afraid or introverted to voice their descent. Passive aggressive individuals often use silence as a way of showing their disapproval. Therefore, if you use this technique, great care must be taken to ensure everyone on the team truly does agree.<br /> <br />3. If there is concern that someone might be silently disagreeing without speaking up, you should <span style="font-weight:bold;">visualize the team members’ positions</span>. Call for a visual vote to see where people stand. I’ve found the best way to do this is with thumbs. If a person agrees with the idea or proposal they should indicate their sanction with a thumb up signal. If a person disagrees with the idea being presented they should give it the thumbs down. And if a person is not sure whether they agree or disagree they should indicate their waffling with a sideways thumb. Now you can see where everyone stands.<br /><br />4. Once everyone’s position has been identified, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask the minority if they can live with the decision of the majority</span>. The purpose of this step is not majority rules but, rather, to speed up the process if dissenting members can actually live with the majority’s decision and will actively support it. It’s amazing how many people can easily accept the opinions of others when merely asked if they can do so. Minority members need to decide whether the proposal is significant enough to adamantly oppose it, or whether they can easily “live with” and “actively support” it so the team can move forward.<br /><br />5. If any member with an opposing or waffling view cannot live with the majority’s position, <span style="font-weight:bold;">always start with the <span style="font-style:italic;">majority</span> first</span> when opening up the issue for discussion. There is a strong possibility that the majority is right. If this is true, then a few additional explanations from the majority may easily sway the minority opinion and get opposing members to consent. <br /><br />6. After allowing a few comments from the majority, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask if any of the dissenters have been swayed</span>. If everyone’s thumb is now up, you now have the consensus of the group. If not, continue the discussion while continuing to ask if anyone has been swayed throughout the discussion.<br /><br />7. If anyone on the team has not been swayed by the majority’s explanation, <span style="font-weight:bold;">get the opposing opinion</span> (those whose thumb was down) before hearing from the wafflers. Wafflers usually are swayed either by the thumbs up or thumbs down arguments. Allow the team to discuss the issue in a point and counter point fashion. Wafflers should also participate in the discussion if they have points to add to either side of the discussion. <br /><br />8. Ask the team members to <span style="font-weight:bold;">indicate when they have been swayed</span> by showing the changed position of their thumb when they are swayed. When all thumbs are either up or down, you have consensus. Always keep in mind that consensus is when everyone on the team can live with the decision and will actively support it. They do not have to agree. <br /><br />9. If someone on the team is having a hard time agreeing to something that everyone else seems to willingly accept, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask if they conceptually agree</span> with the proposal. Sometimes a person may agree with the concept, but not with the particulars of an idea. In such cases they may appear to be in complete disagreement when, in reality, they are only stuck on a few minor points. Consequently, by getting them to agree conceptually (or in theory) first, you then can work out the kinks of the minor sticking points.<br /><br />10. Another technique similar to the one above is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">determine how close the person is to agreement</span>. Ask the dissenter to state in a percentage how close they are to agreeing to the proposal. Someone who is “90% there” will be a lot easier to sway than someone who is “not even close – maybe 10%.” Usually the person who is close to agreement can be easily swayed by merely asking them what they need in order to give their 100% support. On the other hand, it may take a great deal of discussion or a revamping of the proposal to sway the person who is far from giving their consensus.<br /><br />11. Another way to sway dissenters is to <span style="font-weight:bold;">agree on the separate parts of the proposal</span>. This is what I call “chunking down the issue.” The purpose of this technique is to separate out the various parts of the proposal to see which pieces a dissenter agrees with and which pieces they oppose. Quite often a team member appears to be in disagreement with an entire proposal when they really are only in disagreement with a specific part of it. For example, they may agree with points A, B, D and E; but be in complete disagreement with point C. In this case they actually are “80% there, yet seem to be in complete disagreement because no one chunked down the issue.<br /><br />12. Sometimes a consensus discussion bogs down because people disagree with a step that comes much later in the process. Fearing a future roadblock, they feel the need to oppose the idea now. For example, they argue against a proposal because they feel it will be hard to implement. Rather than agreeing that the proposal is the right thing to do, they worry about how hard it will be to implement the decision even though its right, therefore they try to kill what is right because of their assumption of the difficult road ahead. In cases where there is a sequential step-by-step roadmap to follow, <span style="font-weight:bold;">discuss and agree on the steps of the proposal <span style="font-style:italic;">in order</span></span>. Only allow discussion about one step at a time and get consensus at each step. Don’t worry about step three until you get to step two. Don’t let the team take a detour on the right road just because they feel there may be bumps ahead.<br /><br />13. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Make the right decision first</span>. Sometimes team members know a decision is right, but they fear the consequences of the decision. Once when I was facilitating a team discussing a significant reorganization within the company, it became obvious during the discussion that consensus on the proposal being discussed would require everyone in the room to relocate to a different state. Not wanting to uproot their families, some members on the team vehemently argued against the proposal. But it soon became obvious that their dissent was for personal reasons, not because they thought the decision was wrong for the business. Consequently, I had to get them to set aside their personal objections and make the right decision first. Afterwards we would discuss how to minimize the impact that decision would have on them personally. <br /><br />14. If, after using all of the techniques listed above, the team cannot come to agreement, you may need to <span style="font-weight:bold;">table the decision temporarily</span>. This gives people time to think about the proposal and weigh out the points and counter-points in their minds in a less heated setting. However, be sure to come back to the issue at the first opportunity, typically the very next time the team meets together.<br /><br />15. If someone continues to hold out with a dissenting view after everyone else on the team is fully convinced a proposal is right, there are only two reasons why they cannot give their consensus. They either have a <span style="font-weight:bold;">valid or personal</span> reason for not agreeing with the majority decision. <br /><br />A “valid” reason is any explanation that validates the person’s opposition in the minds of the rest of the members of the team so they, too, agree with the dissenter’s point of view. The purpose of this technique is to allow the dissenter to sway the rest of the team over to their position by presenting reasonable and rational arguments regarding their opposition until the other members see the validity of that position. If they cannot sway the rest of the team with their arguments, then the dissenter’s view is not “valid.” The validity of the team member’s viewpoint is determined by the other members of the group. They decide what is valid and what isn’t by whether or not they have been swayed by the argument.<br /><br />When the dissenter lacks a valid reason for their opposition, there resistance is for “personal” reasons. Invariably they are arguing against the proposal because of how it will impact them personally. In most cases, personal reasons are not valid, and therefore should not keep the team from making the right decision. Personal dissenters should set their personal feelings aside and make the right decision for the team. <br /><br />There are times, however, when someone’s personal reasons could be valid if they revealed them to the group. Unfortunately, many team members hide their personal reasons (hidden agenda) because they fear the team’s reaction if their personal concerns were made known. A perfect example of this is a team member who has been given implicit instructions by their boss to oppose the team’s idea and directs the employee not to disclose it to the team. The employee now has a personal (career) reason not to agree with the team, but fears exposing that reason to the team and incurring the wrath of his or her boss for violating confidentiality. The best approach to this situation is to be honest with the team, make the right decision, and then use the team to help determine how best to handle the boss.<br /><br />16. If a member continues to be a lone holdout, <span style="font-weight:bold;">have the team leader or team sponsor meet with the member</span>. The team leader should meet with the team member to discuss his or her opposition. Sometimes things come out in a one-on-one discussion that won’t come out in the group setting. If the team leader cannot get through to the member, then the person who formed the team (the team sponsor) should meet with the member to try to remove the roadblock.<br /><br />17. If a person continues to resist and offers no valid reason for doing so, <span style="font-weight:bold;">demand their consensus</span>. Tell them they must agree with the consensus of the team and actively support it. If they have no valid reason for their opposition they must agree with the team if they want to be a member of the team. <br /><br />18. If they refuse to give their consensus, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask them to withdraw from the team</span>. The team cannot be held back from accomplishing their mission by one stubborn member. That person must leave the team if he or she can neither sway the team nor be swayed by the team.<br /><br />19. Finally, if an obstinate member refuses to withdraw from the team, <span style="font-weight:bold;">ask the team Sponsor to remove a non-valid dissenter from the team</span>. The person who formed the team is the only person who can remove a member from the team. Unfortunately, sometimes the only way to get a team back on track is to remove the resisting member who is holding the team back.<br /><br /><br />Each of the steps outlined above are designed to get the team to true consensus. Once the team has come to agreement, I like to anchor the consensus by declaring: “So let it be written; so let it be done.” This signifies that, unless something in the world dramatically changes to alter the team’s decision, the team should stay true to its consensus and carry out their decision exactly as planned. §<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />Innovative Management Group</span> is renowned for our team facilitation skills. We know how to drive groups to consensus decisions on tough issues. We also know how to resolve conflict among struggling teams. We offer several results-oriented team building workshops that help teams stay focused on accomplishing their assigned tasks.Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-91582661740183649152011-04-22T07:14:00.000-07:002011-04-22T08:23:45.638-07:00Four Approaches to Diversity in the WorkplaceThe United States has been a melting pot of diverse people since its founding. Yet it has only been within the past few decades that companies have realized the value of a diverse workforce. Now thousands of companies throughout the country have implemented diversity programs within their organization in an attempt to capitalize on the strengths of multifaceted employees. At least that is what companies say they are doing. <br /><br />There are various approaches to diversity appreciation in corporate America. Some act as if diversity is a passing fad, where one jumps on the bandwagon and then jumps off when the interest wanes. Others see diversity as merely a numbers game, where diversity is achieved my promoting the right number of minority workers into key positions in management. Some companies have created a culture that truly values its diverse workforce and removes barriers that arbitrarily restricts people within the organization. And there are a few companies who have learned how to get 100% from 100% of their employees because they know how to glean the full potential of their workforce regardless of the diversity of their employees. <br /><br />Outlined below are four typical approaches to diversity management in the workplace. They are listed in ascending order of what I believe diversity management should entail. By reading through the descriptors you can identify at what level your company truly values diversity in the workplace. <br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">BRAND IMAGE</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Desired Outcome</span>: <span style="font-weight:bold;">The purpose of this approach is to create a brand image of being a company that values the diversity of its employees</span>. The focus is on getting name recognition and awards for the company’s diversity programs. <span style="font-weight:bold;">The primary goal of this approach is to be viewed as a benchmark company when it comes to diversity programs</span>. Under this scenario it is only necessary to achieve a perception that the company is a diverse company. If customers, employees, vendors, suppliers, shareholders, and general public believe the company is diversity champions, and hold the organization in high regard because of it, the diversity program can be considered a success.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Indicators of Success</span>: With this approach the key is getting the company’s name in the media, obtaining industry awards, and being at the top of mind regarding all diverse issues. The focus is on getting the company's name out as much as possible so people accept the message that the organization is a diverse company.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Achieving the Desired End Result</span>: If a message is repeated loud enough and often enough, people begin to believe it. This approach requires a strong marketing and public relations component to make sure the company’s name is at the top of mind in all of the important venues of interest regarding diversity. The key to success is having anecdotal stories that show the company is diverse. The more examples one can give of where the company has provided opportunity and growth for diverse construction companies, vendors and employees, the better off the company brand image will be. Consequently, all one has to do is find a few powerful success stories of diversity, share those stories loudly and often, and the organization will be successful in creating the desired brand image.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">AFFIRMATIVE ACTION</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Desired Outcome</span>: <span style="font-weight:bold;">The goal of this approach is to create a company that truly does provide equal opportunity for people of diverse backgrounds</span> and characteristics to be paid fairly, promoted, obtain supplier and vendor contracts, and/or to win construction projects. It entails more than just consideration for such things, but rather an affirmative and aggressive desire to achieve diversity in the managerial, supplier, vendor and construction company ranks. <span style="font-weight:bold;">The goal of this approach is to have a representative number of people in key positions throughout the company that match the diverse demographics of the community</span>. Vendor, supplier and construction contracts must also be awarded to a representative diverse group.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Indicators of Success</span>: The key to this approach is the typical EEO issue of making sure the company has numbers that confirm it is affirmatively providing opportunities for people of diversity regarding pay, promotions, supplier contracts, and/or construction projects. Success is achieved when the company has the right numbers and percentages that indicate it is a diverse company.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Achieving the Desired Results</span>: This is a relatively simple approach to diversity. All it requires is identifying viable employee, supplier, and construction company candidates who can be hired or developed into qualified individuals for key management positions, supplier contracts, and/or construction projects. All that must be done is to search for candidates in the obvious places where they might be found (e.g.: black colleges, suppliers from minority communities, etc.). Or, even simpler, just identify the right diversity mix the company wants and hire it, regardless of qualifications.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">CULTURE OF ACCEPTANCE</span><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />Desired Outcome</span>: <span style="font-weight:bold;">This approach seeks to create a company that truly does value and appreciate the diverse nature of its workforce</span>. It recognizes diverse people have different needs, different values, different characteristics, different styles and different desires in the workplace; and it seeks acceptance and tolerance for these differences in order to create a healthy and productive workplace. <span style="font-weight:bold;">The key to this approach is getting everyone to be aware of and accept these differences in order to reduce conflict, maximize performance, and allow people to reach their full potential</span> by removing diversity barriers in the workplace.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Indicators of Success</span>: The key to this approach is helping everyone within the company to become more diversity conscious; to become aware of their personal believes, biases, and actions regarding people of diverse backgrounds; and to alter their actions in order to provide equal opportunity and a work culture that meets the needs of every employee in the company. It also includes removing the barriers that limit growth opportunities for certain people because of diversity issues.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Achieving the Desired Results</span>: This approach requires people at all levels of the company to become introspective and aware of their belief-systems and actions regarding diversity issues. It requires specific policies, procedures, processes, practices and systems that create a culture that accepts and assertively values the diversity of its employees. This acceptance must also lead to opportunities for diverse people to raise their potential, be promoted, and take on different roles and responsibilities that previously may not have been available to them in a less diverse-sensitive company.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />MAXIMIZE PERFORMANCE OF ALL EMPLOYEES</span> (regardless of individual differences)<br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />Desired Outcome</span>: <span style="font-weight:bold;">The purpose of this approach is to maximize the performance of each employee</span> by removing barriers that limit their potential, regardless of whether those barriers are diversity issues (e.g.: race, culture, gender, etc.) or other barriers that hinder one’s progress (e.g.: language skills, education, work ethic, off-purpose work behaviors, social skills, etc.). <span style="font-weight:bold;">The goal is to raise the productive output of each individual by understanding their unique differences and over-riding whatever keeps a person from reaching his or her fullest potential</span>. Likewise, this approach seeks suppliers, vendors and construction companies who can produce the desired quality products on time, on budget, and within scope.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Indicators of Success</span>: The success of this approach is witnessed when each individual within the company has achieved the highest level of performance of which he or she is capable. It is also seen when barriers are removed and people go beyond what anyone had previously believed was possible because of preconceived insurmountable diversity issues. Success entails helping diversity suppliers, vendors and construction companies raise their productive output to a level where they are capable of winning company contracts and successfully delivering their goods and services as specified in the contracts without the company lowering the requirements of the contracts. In other words, success of this approach is not in raising people up, but in raising their performance up so they are viable candidates for future promotions and contracts regardless of their diversity.<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Achieving the Desired Result</span>: This approach entails a mature and sophisticated approach to managing the business using proper management techniques. It entails an acceptance that diversity is a normal practice of good management wherein managers are charged with increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of <span style="font-style:italic;">all</span> of their employees so they can produce more. This approach requires good management systems that create a productive work environment where all employees feel comfortable, confident, proud and included. It requires managers to deal with employees as individuals (rather than ethnic groups, genders, etc.) and to implement individual development plans so every employee can overcome barriers that inhibit the achievement of their highest potential. It also requires working with diverse vendors, suppliers and construction companies who currently do not qualify as acceptable resources to help them raise their performance capabilities so they can qualify for contracts with the company.<br /><br /><br />There seems to be one final, higher level of diversity management that a company can attain. Perhaps it is too idealistic or Utopian to believe it may ever become a reality, but I dream of the day when people within the workplace no longer see different skin tones, hear different languages, perceive different cultures or feel any separation in the workforce because we focus on the <span style="font-style:italic;">similarities</span> of people at work instead of our differences. <br /><br /><br />- - - - - - - - -<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Mac McIntire is the president of Innovative Management Group, a Las Vegas-based training and consulting firm that helps companies define their strategic focus, align their internal effort, and gain the commitment of their workforce to achieve long-term profitability and growth. If you would like more information about how we can help your company, please contact us at 702-258-8334, e-mail to mac@imglv.com, or visit us on the web at www.imglv.com.<br /></span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-3642772646326025282011-04-04T10:05:00.000-07:002011-04-04T10:12:56.798-07:00Ten Things Every Employee Should Know: How to Increase One’s Personal Value at Work<span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Employees can make themselves more valuable and promotable by understanding ten key things</span></span><br /><br />———<br /> <br /> <br />We continue to live in very difficult economic times. Companies across the country have laid off employees in droves. Businesses have clos-ed. The ranks of the unemployed are high. Employees are still fearful for their jobs.<br /><br />As I walk the floors of client companies I hear concerned employees stressing about their future. Most feel helpless, believing their destiny is in someone else’s hands. They think there is nothing they can do to protect themselves from being laid off.<br /><br />This may be true in some cases where poor management decisions have left companies with no option other than massive downsizing. But in most cases, management makes a decision of who stays and who leaves during bad economic times based upon some value judgment of the worth and contribution of the individual employee. <br /><br />Therefore, every employee needs to fully grasp this simple concept: in most situations, <span style="font-weight:bold;">the future of an employee’s job security rest squarely on the shoulders of the <span style="font-style:italic;">employee</span>, not the manager</span>. The key to maintaining one’s employment is to ensure one is <span style="font-style:italic;">employable</span>. This applies to both one’s current job and one’s future position, should an employee find oneself out of work during tough economic times.<br /><br />Employable employees will always have a job. Wise employees realize this. Astute employees know there are very specific things they can do to guarantee they remain employed and employable. Sadly, most employees never learn these basic precepts. They are seldom, if ever, taught in public schools or business management courses. Some people may be lucky enough to learn about them from a mentor. But most people either learn these principles the hard way — through experience — or they never learn them at all.<br /><br />Listed below are ten important axioms I believe every employee must fully understand and internalize in order to better position oneself for success in the business world. These ten principles come from my more than 37 years of observations as a business executive and management consultant. They are ten unspoken axioms that apply in any organization. They are ten keys to an employee’s current and future success.<br /><br /><br />Axiom #1: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Your work is a commodity</span>. What you do as an employee only has value if someone is willing to pay for it. If you want people to value what you do, you need to deliver on the “implied promises” that are inherent in your job description. It’s implied that you will be honest. It’s implied that you will be on time to work. It’s implied that you will work hard and provide an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay. It’s implied that you will do exactly what is expected of you by your boss. It’s implied that you will never exhibit inappropriate or off-purpose behaviors or act contrary to the good of your employer. <br /><br />The better you are at delivering on the implied promises, the greater your value will be as an employee. And the greater your value is as an employee, the higher the odds are that you will always be employed.<br /><br />Axiom #2: <span style="font-weight:bold;">The value of your work is determined by others, not by you</span>. As an employee you cannot tell others how valuable you are. You cannot declare how hard you work. You cannot determine the worth of what you do based upon your own perceptions of worth. Your boss – and more particularly, your customers – determines the worth of what you do as an employee.<br /><br />You need to find out what others expect from you in the workplace. Focus on your “customers” and what they want. Ask your subordinates, peers and superiors what their expectations are of you. Learn their definition of success for you so you can work toward it. Don’t assume you know what it takes to succeed. Solicit the input of others and then match your performance and behaviors to the feedback you receive. In the workplace other people determine the criteria for your success, not you. You will succeed when you deliver what others expect from you.<br /><br />Axiom#3: <span style="font-weight:bold;">You get out of life what you give</span>. Make sure you give your honest best effort at work. Show more interest in meeting the needs of the business, rather than your own needs. When you do all that you can at work to achieve the company’s objectives – while suspending your personal agenda – you will find that your personal needs, more than likely, will also be met. When you watch out for others, they usually watch out for you.<br /><br />Axiom #4: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Be supportive of your boss</span>. Do everything within your power and ability to make your boss a hero. Discern his or her needs and objectives. Do your part (and more) to meet those needs and achieve the boss’ objectives. Be responsive to the directives and commands of your boss. Express appreciation and show your support of your boss whenever possible. Very seldom in the business world can one succeed without the support of one’s boss. The more supportive you are of your boss, the more support you can expect in return, particularly in tough economic times.<br /><br />Axiom #5: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Be supportive of your teammates</span>. Help out whenever possible. Chip in when work needs to be done. Never engage in gossip, back-biting, or criticism of the members of your work team. Talk positively about your colleagues. Offer encouragement and support to your coworkers at every opportunity. Recognize the accomplishments of others and praise them liberally. Be a team player in all of your actions, words and deeds. <br /><br />Axiom #6: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Recognize where and how others have contributed to your success</span>. Few great achievements were ever accomplished individually. Someone helped you get to where you are. People around you are contributing to your success. Give credit to those who support you directly or indirectly. Take only a small piece of the credit for team accomplishments. Don’t toot your own horn too loudly. When you recognize and praise others for what they have done for you, more than likely they will sound your praises in return.<br /><br />Axiom #7: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Speak up</span>. Be a contributor. Share your opinion and views. Provide input. Offer your perspective. Don’t be a “yes man” when no is the right answer. Help everyone to succeed by identifying and sharing where improvements can be made. But do so wisely and kindly. Know when, where and how to offer suggestions or provide critical analysis. Have sound, valid reasoning behind your statements and never push your personal agenda. Always offer your suggestions in a kind and respectful manner.<br /><br />Axiom #8: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Be receptive to and a champion of change</span>. Change is inevitable in every job. Work processes continually evolve. Good workers are always looking for ways to accomplish their work easier, faster or cheaper. Never become complacent in your work. Always look for opportunities to improve. Never resist change. When changes come accept them eagerly and adapt to them quickly. Be an early adopter of change and help others to change as well. Show management that you are willing and able to do whatever is necessary to guarantee success in the new business model.<br /><br />Axiom #9: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Tolerate the idiosyncrasies of your organization</span>. Every company has something strange about it. Usually there is some trivial (or significant) thing about the way a company operates that bothers the employees. Good employees are able to look past it; and it is this tolerance that makes them especially good employees. Bad employees whine and let it affect their attitude; and it is their bad attitude that makes them bad employees. The more employees complain or fight against the idiosyncrasies of their organization the less they become a part of it. Good employees seek to build up their organization, while bad employees tear it down. Do all you can to be a non-complaining, non-criticizing employee. <br /><br />Axiom #10: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Be a model of excellence</span>. Produce quality results. Provide exceptional service. Model the appropriate attitude and behaviors. Make it happen. Get it done. Do it right. <br /><br />High value employees are always “go-to” employees. They are the ones who managers know will get the work done on time, on budget, and within scope. Be an employee that can always be counted on. When you are viewed as the highest value employee, you will either be the last on the list for layoffs or off the list completely. But, more important, high value employees can easily transport their high value to any organization for whom they work. There is always a place for high value employees.<br /><br /><br />Employees who consciously remember these ten axioms, and model them daily, will find their value to their company increasing. High value employees are seldom let go. Even during severe economic downturns, most companies will do all they can to retain their highest value workers. <br /><br />I wish to stress that these ten axioms should constitute “normal” behavior for all employees at all times. Clearly they are important during a downturn in business, but, even in the good times, employees who model these principles – for in good times high value employees are the most likely to get promotions and pay raises. Management tends to reward employees who deliver on the implied promises, meet expectations, and focus on business results. Management appreciates those employees who support their boss and their fellow workers. Management prefers employees who speak up and offer suggestions for improvement in a kind and respectful manner. The best candidates for promotion are those who are receptive to change, tolerate the company’s idiosyncrasies, and who model the appropriate performance, attitude and behaviors each and every day at work. <br /><br />Wise employees realize their employment future is within their own hands. To a great extent they control their own destiny in the workplace. They can choose to accept these ten axioms or reject them; and, by so doing, either reap the rewards or suffer the consequences of their choice. <br /> <br /><br />- - - - - - - - - -<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Mac McIntire is the president of Innovative Management Group, a Las Vegas-based training and consulting firm that helps companies define their strategic focus, align their internal effort, and gain the commitment of their work-force to achieve long-term profitability and growth. If you would like more information about how we can help your company, please contact us at 702-258-8334, e-mail to mac@imglv.com, or visit us on the web at www.imglv.com.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-64459639386966948702010-11-19T07:34:00.000-08:002010-11-19T07:35:23.542-08:00The Value of Giving Immediate FeedbackEvery manager knows he or she should give an employee immediate feedback when the worker performs below expectations. But sometimes managers fail to do what they know they should do because they are afraid of the reaction they may get when they confront the employee.<br /><br />Managers who delay giving feedback to their employees do a disfavor to all concerned. They cause more problems by not confronting the employee than they would by confronting the employee immediately.<br /><br />When a rocket goes off course the best time to give it feedback is as soon as the discrepancy occurs. If caught early, the course can be corrected with a short burst of the rocket thrusters. The longer the rocket goes off course the more fuel it will require to get it back on the right trajectory. And, if caught to late, there may not be enough fuel to correct the deviation. When this happens the rocket has to be destroyed.<br /><br />The situation is the same regarding employee performance. When an employee goes off course the best time to give him or her feedback is as soon as the digression occurs. When caught early very little energy is required to make the correction. The longer the employee travels down the wrong path the more energy it will take to change the employee’s performance. Not only will the employee have to do more to change, but the manager also must exert a lot of energy to get the employee to make the course correction.<br /><br />Managers who delay giving feedback to off-target employees cause problems for themselves. When an employee has been doing the wrong thing for an extended time, and then is finally confronted with the error, the worker is more likely to respond poorly to the feedback than they would have had the feedback been given earlier. Belated feedback incites a great deal of resistance. The employee typically retorts with such comments as: “How come you didn’t tell me this earlier”; “This is the way I’ve always done it”; “This is how I was trained to do it”; or “There’s nothing wrong with the way I’ve been doing it.”<br /><br />When feedback is delayed it invariably causes the employee to focus on the path they have been on rather than the corrective path they need to follow. They argue about where they have been rather than accept where they need to go.<br /><br />Late feedback also causes the employee to focus on the manager rather than focus on his or herself. They often accuse the manager of being wrong rather than accepting that their own performance is wrong. Instead of using their energy to make the course correction they waste time and energy fighting the feedback they’re given. Rather than immediately getting back on track they stand their ground and defend the course they are on.<br /><br />Immediate feedback is much easier on both the employee and the manager. The earlier the feedback is given to the employee the easier it is to accept the correction and the less energy it takes to change one’s behavior. <br /><br />The sooner the manager delivers the feedback the less likely the employee will respond negatively to the feedback and use their energy to attack the manager rather than attacking the problem. Immediate feedback gets immediate positive results.Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-9205787771509075722010-08-17T05:18:00.000-07:002010-08-17T05:22:38.174-07:00Customers Will Pay a Premium Price for Great Customer Service<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 10"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 10"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5Cuser%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Century Schoolbook"; panose-1:2 4 6 4 5 5 5 2 3 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:roman; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:647 0 0 0 159 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} h1 {mso-style-next:Normal; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:justify; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; page-break-after:avoid; mso-outline-level:1; tab-stops:.25in .5in .75in; font-size:22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Century Schoolbook"; mso-font-kerning:0pt; layout-grid-mode:line; mso-bidi-font-weight:normal;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} </style> <![endif]--><span style="color: blue;"><o:p></o:p></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 4pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style=""><o:p>
<br /></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><b style=""><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Nothing adds more value to a customer than great customer service<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">———<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";"><span style=""></span></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;" lang="EN"><span style=""></span></span><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN">Anyone who knows me knows I am a cheapskate. I have a real hard time spending money on myself. I’m one of those people who will look for the lowest price and buy that item even if the quality isn’t quite what I want.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>At least that’s what I’ve always thought. Then something happened to open my eyes to reality.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>Since I travel so much I use a laundry service to wash and press my shirts, pants and suits. Fortunately there is a cleaner just around the corner from my home.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>Several months ago I noticed this particular cleaner is fairly expensive. My wife told me I could get my shirts cleaned for almost 50% less than what I am paying. But I refuse to change, regardless of the cost savings. At first I thought my hesitancy to switch was out of convenience. The other cleaner is several blocks away, while this cleaner is just around the corner. But the other day when I went to my current cleaner it dawned on me why I am willing to pay more and stick with the cleaner I’m using.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>As I walked toward the shop the owner had already pulled my ticket and had the conveyor belt spinning as she looked for my clean clothes. As I entered she smiled broadly and said: “Good morning, Mr. Mac.” She also had a new ticket ready for my dirty load of clothes and had written my name on the top of the ticket. She did all of this after recognizing my car as I pulled into the parking lot.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>As I walked out of the cleaner I had a big smile on my face. I realized the way I was feeling at that moment was the reason why I am willing to pay more at <i>my</i> cleaner. I like the way they make me feel. They know me. They make me feel special. They act as if I’m an important customer and they want my business. I don’t know if they treat every customer like that (I like to think that it’s just me), but I certainly notice it and am willing to pay a premium price because of it.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>It doesn’t take much to wow your customers. You just have to notice. Notice who they are and what they like. All you have to do is pay attention and do a few minor things that make a difference. It’s the little things that create loyal customers.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>The other day, while on a business trip back East, I was in a restaurant waiting for my dinner. I normally order room service but the hotel where I was staying did not have this service. I hate eating alone in a restaurant because it’s boring sitting there staring at the empty table. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>On this occasion another waiter (not my own) noticed that I was alone and that I had been waiting for some time for my food. He came over and, in a concerned voice, said: “One of our cooks called in sick today so our service is slower than usual. Can I get you a newspaper to read while you wait?” <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>Needless to say, I was impressed. I gave him a tip when he came back with the paper.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>Several years ago I read a survey where people were asked to identify the one thing <span style=""> </span>that would cause them to take their business elsewhere. The results were surprising. Only 20% of the respondents said they would take their business elsewhere if they were treated “rudely.” But 86% of those surveyed said they would stop doing business with a company if they were treated “indifferently” — as if their patronage was not important.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style="">
<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-right: 7.15pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Century Schoolbook";" lang="EN"><span style=""></span>Most customers are more than willing to pay a premium price for service providers who simply notice them and then proactively respond to their needs without prompting. My cleaner has convinced me of this.<o:p></o:p></span></p> Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-24123026892820126352010-06-09T16:24:00.000-07:002010-06-09T16:54:50.086-07:00Your Company Could Be Driving Your Employees CrazyMany years ago I worked at a mental health center in North Platte, Nebraska. I was a mental health educator and the public relations director for the facility.<br /><br />While working there I spent a lot of time researching mental health issues so I could provide mental health information to the community. One day in my research I came across a model that identified why some people are more likely than others to become mentally or emotionally disturbed. This is the model:<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Organic Factors + Stress</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">_____________________</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Coping + Support + Self-</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Skills Network Esteem </span><br /><br /><br />The model suggests that people who have strong organic factors and excessive stress are more likely to become emotionally or mentally ill than those who have a lesser portion of these two factors.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Organic Factors</span> are such things as a chemical imbalance, a neurological disorder, a psychosis, a history of mental illness in one’s family, or some other similar malady.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Stress</span> is the sum of any combination of things that place a strain on a person’s mental, emotional, physical, social, spiritual, or intellectual well-being.<br /><br />According to the model, if a person has a history of organic problems and a high degree of stress in one’s life, chances are this individual will experience emotional or psychological problems at some point unless that person has developed effective ways to counterbalance the organic factors and stress.<br /><br />The counterbalances to these two elements are: <span style="font-style: italic;">Coping Skills</span>, a strong <span style="font-style: italic;">Support Network</span>, and a healthy <span style="font-style: italic;">Self-Esteem</span>.<br /><br />Individuals who have developed ways to effectively cope with the stressors in their life are less likely to have emotional or psychological problems. People who have supportive relationships with their family, friends or work colleagues are also less likely to become mentally ill. And, as one might expect, individuals who possess a healthy self-esteem are less likely to experience mental or emotional dysfunction.<br /><br />This model was a theory in the mental health field. But, surprisingly, after leaving the mental health world and becoming an organizational development consultant, I realized my mental health background was extremely helpful in diagnosing the ills and dysfunctions that often occur in businesses around the world. I quickly discovered there are significant parallels between crazy people and crazy companies.<br /><br />Crazy companies can be identified by their dysfunctional <span style="font-style: italic;">Organizational Factors</span> and the voluminous amount of <span style="font-style: italic;">Stress</span> with which they burden their employees. The intensity of the organizational factors and stress in “crazy” companies is heightened by an inability internally to <span style="font-style: italic;">Cope</span> with the organizational problems. Likewise, in dysfunctional companies there generally is a complete lack of an internal <span style="font-style: italic;">Support Network </span>where employees can talk through or find successful resolution to their problems. Finally, employees in emotionally unbalanced companies seldom exude pride in their organization and, in fact, usually display all of the characteristics of an organization populated with employees who have low in <span style="font-style: italic;">Self-Esteem</span> when it comes to work.<br /><br />Unfortunately, throughout my 30 years as a consultant I’ve found there are a lot of crazy companies in this world. And inside those companies are a number of formerly sane employees who have become emotionally distraught from the stress of working for a dysfunctional company. The Postal Service is a perfect example of a company that somehow seems to create more than its share of mentally and emotionally disturbed employees.<br /><br />Several years ago I worked with a large health insurance company in Florida. It was one of sickest and craziest places I’ve ever experienced in over 35 years of being a business consultant. The CEO literally had to be insane. His behavior was extremely bizarre and definitely over the edge. He was almost abusive in the way he treated the executives, managers, and employees of the company.<br /><br />The organization itself was structured in a way that guaranteed failure. Every internal process was bureaucratic and cumbersome. The place swarmed with cross-functional “teams” that were supposed to fix things, but instead spent hours in countless meetings pointing fingers, blaming each other, and fighting over turf and trivial issues. Not once, in the whole time the CEO had been in his position, had a problem solving team actually solved the problem the team was chartered to fix. That’s because every time a team got close to resolving an issue the CEO would stir the pot and blow-up the team with some arcane directive. He seemed to derive pleasure from seeing people endlessly struggle in chaos.<br /><br />The stress in this company was so palpable one could almost see a black cloud hanging over every employee. Everyone looked and acted depressed. Managers barricaded themselves in their offices as a way to cope with the stress of their work environment. People smoked and drank coffee like there was no tomorrow. No one talked to anyone. There was nowhere to turn for support. People were actually criticized when they tried to share information or coordinate their efforts with other departments.<br /><br />People hated working at this company. When asked by others where they worked, most employees were too ashamed to admit they were employed at this firm. The company’s reputation in the community was horrible. The negative company identity impacted how individuals perceived their personal identity and self-worth.<br /><br />With no way to cope with the stress at work, nowhere to turn for support, and absolutely no pride in their company, it should be no surprise that many of the employees at this firm had severe emotional, psychological, and mental problems. Work problems went home with the employees and, in some cases, destroyed marriages. Once-confident managers frequently could be seen crying in their offices. Some became almost catatonic, incapable of making decisions. Many workers abused alcohol or other substances. The company and the employees were a mess.<br /><br />I am amazed at how many managers use dysfunctionally crazy tactics in running their organization. I’ve seen executives who purposely pit managers against each other as a means to stimulate “creativity.” In actuality, all it usually creates is hostility, resentment, and ill-will in the workplace. I’ve also witnessed managers who use criticism, cynicism and insults as means to “motivate” their employees to perform better. It just makes them worse. Negative means never make people feel better about themselves, their boss, or their company. Negativity just destroys trust, respect, and confidence. It is impossible to bring about a positive outcome by negative means.<br /><br />Just as one can predict whether or not a person will become mentally ill by using the mathematical equation in the mental health model outlined above, so too can it be determined which companies will drive their employees insane. You can diagnose the “sanity” of your company by asking these simple questions listed below:<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Organizational Factors</span><br /><br /><ul><li>Are there any organizational factors in your company that may be throwing the employees off balance emotionally?</li><li>Is the organization illogical in the way it is structured or run?</li><li>Do your strategies and tactics seem senseless or irrational?</li><li>Are the stated values and the company practices in disharmony with each other?</li><li>When changes occur, are they poorly thought-out and improperly executed?</li><li>Are the policies, procedures, processes and practices within the organization inefficient and ineffective? Do they make life tougher for the employees rather than easier?</li><li>Is the company organized in such a way that management cannot make fast, effective decisions?</li><li>Is there a lack of free-flowing information and correlation of work between departments?</li><li>Are there hierarchical barriers that inhibit a sense of unity and oneness in the organization?</li></ul><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Stress Factors</span><br /><br /><ul><li>Do managers use an autocratic or dictatorial management style?</li></ul><ul><li>Are people confused about their roles and what it takes to succeed in their position?</li><li>Are employees over-burdened with a heavy workload because of insufficient staff?</li><li>Do employees lack the tools and resources necessary to do their jobs well?</li><li>Are there abnormal performance pressures and unrealistic production standards placed upon the employees?</li><li>Are there any other organizational pressures that may cause stress for employees?</li></ul><br /><br />Even if there are organizational issues and significant stressors within your company, it doesn’t necessarily mean your organization is dysfunctional or crazy. There are counterbalances to every organizational problem.<br /><br />Unfortunately, some companies fail to develop the coping skills needed to deal with the stresses of the job. They neglect to foster a support network of cross-functional cooperation and collaboration. They allow employees to become isolated and territorial. Instead of reaching out and assisting one another, people in the organization hunker down, falsely believing, as do many mentally ill patients, that problem avoidance and shunning others will help them maintain their sanity in a stressful world.<br /><br />There was a time when people’s self-esteem was strongly tied to their place of employment. They were proud to work at General Motors, IBM, Caesar’s Palace, or, perhaps, even your company. But many of today’s businesses have lost their positive self-image and strong employee affinity.<br /><br />To truly succeed in today’s competitive markets, companies need to stabilize their enterprise in more than just the financial arena. They need to create a well-balanced, emotionally-healthy organization where employees want to and can commit themselves to being highly productive.<br /><br />Companies can instill a renewed pride in their organization by having a clear vision of their future, by developing effective strategies and tactics to achieve that future, and by providing a secure role for their employees in that envisioned future.<br /><br />Healthy companies create supportive networks within the enterprise by enhancing cross-functional communication, cooperation and collaboration. Managers within these companies do everything they can to make sure people talk to one another. Management is highly visible. They actively seek opportunities to solicit feedback from and “network” with employees.<br /><br />Stable organizations help their employees cope with the pressures of work by properly orienting and training their workers so they don’t flounder in their positions. They make it clear what employees can do to succeed. They provide ongoing communication, support and feedback so employees know exactly where they stand and how they can improve if change is needed.<br /><br />Finally, mature, well-adjusted companies know the importance of positive reinforcement in maintaining the confidence and self-esteem of their employees. They focus on achievement rather than failure. They state the positives rather than negatives. They build up rather than tear down.<br /><br />People can tell when a company is healthy. Profitability is not the only barometer. Customers and employees can sense emotional balance and well-being in an organization. They can see, hear and feel the positive energy. They can see it in the workers appearance and behaviors. They can hear it when employees talk about their work. They can feel it as they walk into the business and interact with their fellow employees.<br /><br />Positive companies produce positive employees, while negative, dysfunctional companies produce distraught and cynical workers. Where your company stands on the sanity-craziness scale is just a question of how it all adds up in the mental health equation.<br /><br /><br />----------<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Mac McIntire, President of Innovative Management Group, a Las Vegas-based training and consulting firm has been creating healthy companies for over 35 years. If you would like more information about how we can help your company, please contact us at 702-258-8334, e-mail to mac@imglv.com, or visit us on the web at www.imglv.com.</span>Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3775028286756044260.post-8282580767676249702010-05-28T14:09:00.000-07:002010-05-28T14:22:15.548-07:00How to Create a Customer-Focused CompanySeveral years ago I had the opportunity to sit around a table in a hotel room discussing customer service with several of the leading service gurus in the country. It was an amazing experience.<br /><br />With me in the room were John Humphrey, chairman and CEO of The Forum Corporation; Don Munson, executive vice president of Lennox Industries; Craig Johnson, president of Frito Lay; Bob Oatley, executive vice president of American Airlines; and P.J. Boatwright, editor of Fortune Magazine.<br /><br />Our five-hour exchange was free-flowing and intense. The discussion revolved around a premise espoused by Peter Drucker, who declared, “There is only one valid definition of a business purpose — to create a customer.”<br /><br />We agreed that those companies that truly are customer focused are those who align their organization and employees in a manner that leads to a predictable positive experience for their customers. Customer focused companies ensure their main objective is to provide their customers with experiences over time that lead customers to view the company as the supplier of choice. Successful companies are those who build customer loyal by consistently delivering on their promise in order to create customer confidence and trust in the company’s products and services.<br /><br />During our discussion we outlined three essential organizational ingredients that should be at the heart of every customer service effort:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Build Relationships Between Your Company and Your Customers</span><br /><br />• Avoid the downward spiral that follows complacency with your current success.<br /><br />• Work at retaining existing customers and developing new ones.<br /><br />• Find numerous ways to “connect” with your customers to receive their feedback.<br /><br />• Pay attention to the “little things” in your service quality.<br /><br />• Focus on “reliability” versus “tangibles” (see my article called <span style="font-style:italic;">Five Things Customers Want</span>)<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Manage Your Employees Well</span><br /><br />• Place a high value on your employees. Recognize them as the best source for new ideas.<br /><br />• Set customer-focused standards of performance. Personalize your service.<br /><br />• Select and train your people well.<br /><br />• Ask for employee feedback. Listen and respond to what they say.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Run Your Company Effectively</span><br /><br />• Gear everything toward customer expectations. <br /><br />• Align the entire company to serve your customers effectively.<br /><br />• Make sure all parts of your organization act in harmony and with consistency of purpose in serving your customers.<br /><br />• Walk the talk. Model the way.<br /><br /><br />Over the years Innovative Management Group has created effective roadmaps, tools, methods and models to help businesses become more customer-focused. We show companies how to create an organizational culture that centers on the four interrelated goals of being customer-focused, market-driven, business-oriented and team-centered. Those companies who unify their workforce behind these four goals create greater customer loyalty and superior brand equity.Mac McIntirehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01265646314482718431noreply@blogger.com0