Organizational Change and Executive Communication

Most organizations these days are in the throes of change which means their leaders are charged with driving it. Successful change leadership starts with the ability of senior leaders to broadly communicate with clarity, conciseness and compassion. It’s this last component, compassion, that too often falls short in executive communication about change. And when I refer to compassion, I am talking about a balanced message that doesn’t just focus on the needs of the organization but equally takes into account the impact on the individual employee. Many leaders can artfully communicate the change requirement from the company point of view. Too often these leaders miss the opportunity to make this message personal to the receiver of the information. When they do this, a great opportunity to make a connection that will drive change missed.

A friend just sent me a memo from his company’s new CEO. (This is the actual memo with some changes made to keep things anonymous). It was the CEO’s first opportunity to address the global employee workforce. His ability to create a ‘personal needs’ connection could well be the difference between success and failure, both for him, the company and its employees.

On a scale of 1-10, how well do you think he did in addressing change in relation to the company’s needs? Conversely, how well did he do in addressing change and the impact on the employee needs?

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I Never Felt Like A Failure

Below is an excerpt from a blog post I wrote for my company from my research project on our best bosses:

One of the more powerful themes about great bosses is their tolerance for mistakes. As one respondent put it, “I never felt like a failure when I worked for my best boss.” Just think about that statement for a moment. I never felt like a failure. What a powerful and positive statement. How can you learn, grow, develop and build confidence if you are afraid to make a mistake? To be successful, to push the bar and accomplish great things, one has to take risks. But you won’t take a risk if you fear reprisal for a mistake. It’s much easier to play it safe. The respondent went on to say, “(My best boss) always had my back, but if I made a mistake, he would come to me and discuss ‘other options’. Mistakes were seen as part of the growth process in a person’s professional life.

Let me share one of my favorite stories on this topic from our survey responses.

“I asked my boss to join me on a sales call to a Fortune 500 company, which was a major opportunity for me. When we got to the lobby, I realized that I forgot to bring the firm’s brochure and panicked because I thought he would be disappointed. Instead, to my surprise, he said…” a good sales person doesn’t need any stinking brochures”, which made us both laugh. It was such a funny comment and made me feel OK. He told me that I was a good sales person and that I should just rely on my sales skills and ability to build relationships. He told me not rely on brochures as they just become a crutch. It was a huge learning experience for me”.

What a cool reaction by the boss as well as a dramatic learning moment for the individual. It’s something that she never forgot when, years later, she herself became a leader.

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Yahoo: More On The Work From Home Controversy

One of the more annoying aspects of life in America is our short attention span. One day, an issue is screaming in the headlines and bantered across all media channels. The next day it disappears, replaced by the next big issue or Lindsay Lohan’s latest indiscretion.

Given this, I was surprised to hear an opinion piece on the radio yesterday, revisiting the Yahoo CEO’s decision to end all remote working arrangements in their company. While I didn’t agree with the opinion (a snarky toned commentary by an older white male who clearly doesn’t see organizations, leadership and career’s the same way I do), I was happy that this issue was still on the front burner.

That brings us to this guest post from Kevin Sheridan, author of the NY Times best seller “Building A Magnetic Culture”. Kevin is also the former CEO of HR Solutions, an employee survey firm. He has a very interesting take on this topic, with stats to back it up. I hope you take a minute to give it a read.

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Yahoo Telecommuting: A Different Take On Marissa Mayer’s C’Mon Man Leadership Moment

When I heard about Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer’s decision to end telecommuting (http://lat.ms/WnWs6), I had a similar reaction as most. Here is another entitled, workaholic, control freak CEO behaving badly. She even had a nursery built next to her office so she could spend more time at her office. Really? Ah, nothing like sweet irony. I will bet that most working moms at Yahoo would spend more time at the office if they had such a luxury.

But I will leave the public effigy hangings to others because I want to take a look at this story from another angle.

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37 Years Working And Not A Good Boss In The Bunch

During my travels, I ask a lot of people to describe their best boss experience. The stories and reflections I hear are very positive and powerful (click on the Your Favorite Boss category for some of the great personal stories I have heard over the past couple of years).  Unfortunately about 15-20 % of the people I query tell me that they have never experienced a great boss, including this response from Laurie, a health care professional:

“I would love to tell you about a favorite boss but after working for 37 years there is no one who fits that category. When you are looking for bad or irritating bosses let me know, I have plenty of stories.”

That’s sad, on many levels. I have noticed that certain areas, such as teaching, public sector administration and health care, to name a few, rarely have great leadership stories.  But they have plenty of bad examples. Have you noticed the same thing? Why do you think this is the case?

 

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Right Results … Wrong Way … He Gone

I heard a great story at lunch today. If not great, it provided me some hope for the future.

My lunch partner was the former VP HR for a mid size firm here in the Windy City.  She asked me if I had heard about “Bill”.  While I knew Bill, who was an exec at her former firm, all I really remembered about him was that he was a lousy leader. No one wanted to work for Bill because, well, Bill only cared about Bill. That didn’t stop his company from promoting him all the way to the Executive Leadership Team. Why? Because Billy boy got results despite the bodies he left piled along the highway.

All that ended last month.

Apparently Bill was informed by his boss that 2013 would bring a strong focus on people development. Bill’s response? “I am not interested in spending time developing people”. Bill was fired two weeks later. And Bill was replaced with someone universally viewed as an outstanding people leader.

I think this is the beginning of a movement!

Maybe Bill’s boss has been reading 3 Connections …

 

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Intuitive Soft Skills … The Great Leader Differentiator?

A friend just sent me this Business Insider article by Brian Evje entitled, ‘Why Executives Are So Bad At The Behavior Side of Management” http://read.bi/SIsVoq. In the article, Mr. Evje states:

Hard skills can get the job done. Soft skills make the difference between a job  that gets done and a job that gets done exceedingly well. Leadership requires a  sophisticated approach to both. That’s even harder.

The article concludes that executives must understand the importance of soft skills and how to balance these skills with hard skills. In my Best Boss research and conversations, I have noticed that many great leaders understand this importance intuitively and strive to build on these strengths. They don’t need to be ‘taught’ the importance of soft skills.

Any thoughts?

 

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Companies Addiction To Misguided Mergers And Our Career Turbulence

Last week I wrote a blog post about how we need to be ever vigilant as we manage our career. I quoted a friend who recently said, “even if you are employed, you are always in job search.” Truer words were never spoken.

I was thinking about this as I read the December 17 Time magazine article by Rana Foroohar (“The Curious Capitalist) that focused on Hewlett-Packard as a poster child example for corporate merger mania gone wrong. She stated that “HP’s problem, and one that troubles the rest of corporate America, is an addiction to buying short-term growth at the expense of long-term innovation which not only reduces profit but job creation.

It wasn’t hard for me to also draw a straight line connection between this ‘addiction’ and the career turbulence that we all now experience. It has also engendered significant employee distrust.  As Ms Foroohar notes, Hewlett-Packard is again exposed as an example by Dr. Kimberly Elsbach, a professor at the University of California-Davis who co-authored a paper entitled: ” The Building of Employee Distrust: A Case Study of HP from 1995-2010″.

The lessons for fans of 3 Connections?  Here are some thoughts:

• Work for companies that truly value innovation
• Stay proactive in managing your career
• Pay attention to your internal “trust-o-meter”

 

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Sometimes It Was Only 15 Minutes, But It Was All Mine

A senior exec was telling me about his ‘best boss’ experience last week. The thing he remembers most is that his boss would always give him his full attention when they met.  Because his boss was extremely busy they sometimes would only be able to meet for 15 minutes.  But, as my friend Jim told me, “that 15 minutes was all mine with no interruptions or distractions. It showed he really cared about what I needed”. I hear that a lot when people describe what they need from a leader. Just a few minutes of their undivided attention.  Often times it makes all the difference in the world.

It doesn’t seem so hard, does it?

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Divine Leadership

Yesterday, a  friend of mine asked someone if  he had a best boss during his career. The person said yes. It was God. That pretty much ended the conversation.

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The Gift Of Potential, Realized

Last week I wrote a Vantage Leadership Consulting blog post on one of the most important ‘ best bosses’ traits … the ability to see and help bring out potential in those who can’t quite see it in themselves.  Did you have a best boss who did this for you? http://bit.ly/SBnDMy

 

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Year End Leadership Checklist … and our Vantage Leadership Linked In page

I just posted this interesting article from Inc. magazine about the importance of assessing your leadership performance for the year - http://www.inc.com/les-mckeown/the-great-leaders-year-end-checklist.html

I also posted the article on my company’s Linked In (Vantage Leadership Consulting) page which I encourage you to visit.  We post a daily thought and / or link on leadership that hopefully will invigorate thought, insight and debate.

 

 

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Are You Living In The Career Vision Or In The Career Circumstances?

There is a really inspirational story developing involving the Indianapolis Colts football team this year.  Their new coach, Chuck Pagano, was recently diagnosed with leukemia and had to take a leave of absence.  While the departure of the coach was emotional, it wasn’t expected to impact the performance of the team because the Colts were the worst team in the league last year. Add that to the fact that they have a rookie QB, Andrew Luck, and all expected it be ’better luck next year’ time in Indy.

Rather than a downward spiral, however, the situation has inspired the team. Indy won in dramatic fashion yesterday to up their record to 5-3, 3 more wins than all of 2011.  Coach Pagano was on hand after the game and gave an emotional speech to the team. He told the team that they were successful because they were living in the vision rather than living in the circumstances.  He then drew a comparison to his own person situation, indicating that he had chosen to ”live in the vision of how his life will be after he beats cancer rather than living in the circumstances of today”.  Powerful stuff.

I couldn’t help but draw a comparison to people and their careers. So often I see individuals living in the circumstances of their career rather than creating a career vision within which they aspire to work.

Individually, what can you do to live within your career vision? If you are a leader, how can you help your employees live in their career vision?

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Too Many Thank You’s … Another C’Mon Man Leadership Moment

Story told to me this morning …

The new owners (private equity, for what it’s worth) of an employee engagement survey firm were unhappy with the amount of what they termed ‘unproductive’ emails that were cluttering up everyone’s inbox. Of particular irritation was the amount of internal ’thank you’ emails being exchanged between co-workers and colleagues. The solution?  A an all employee communication requesting that people refrain from sending emails of thanks to their co-workers.

According to this firm’s data, do you want to guess the number one reason for high employee engagement?  Recognition. Lots of irony in this story.

I am guessing the new owners won’t be in this business very long.

Remember, I couldn’t make this stuff up …

C’MON MAN!!!

 

 

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Vantage Leadership Blog

As many of my friends know, I recently started a new job with Vantage Leadership Consulting.  In addition to the fact that I work with incredibly talented, collaborative and supportive colleagues, I love our philosophy on leadership.  We share this philosophy and other contemporary leadership insights on our blog. I invite you to check it out and let me know what you think.

http://vantageleadership.wordpress.com

FYI, I will be adding it to the 3 Connections blog roll shortly. Let me know what you think.

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Have A Bad Boss? Chances Are This Will Cause You To Quit … Or Worse

Check out this article from the USA Today, “6 Challenges Affecting Today’s Workers” (http://usat.ly/Xzk7Tw),   One of the biggest challenges?  Yep, having a bad boss. While 55% of respondents to a recent survey say they put up with a bad boss, 38 % tell their boss (and company) to shove it. And with the economy on the rebound, that’s not a good sign for companies who tolerate bad bosses. And for you 55% who tolerate a lousy leader, your health is at risk. 75 % of American workers admit that their boss produces the most stress during the day. And, a Swedish study of bad bosses reported that people who have bad bosses are 30% more likely to have a heart attack than those with good bosses.

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Everything Flows From Trust … More Best Boss Lessons

As regular readers of this blog know, I love to ask people about their best boss experiences.  Here is blog post from HBR (http://bit.ly/OKR2QU) that shares experiences  from a woman who was lucky enough to have three great bosses during  her career.  Her insights easily fit into my definition of a great people leader. That is, that great leaders inspire, teach and get out-of-the-way. 

My favorite quote from the post would make my friend Aneil Mishra smile:

“Trust trumps everything. And everything flows from trust — learning, credibility, accountability, a sense of purpose and a mission that makes “work” bigger than oneself”

 

 

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One Person Doing The Work Of Three

I read an interesting article a couple of weeks ago in the Chicago Tribune (http://bit.ly/Si9bsm) entitled: “Rough Economy Means No Vacation”.  It cited a recent survey by Kelton Research that said 32% of us didn’t take time off because of workload. Another 15% were fearful that taking time off would make them vulnerable in an unstable job market.  This is more evidence of an ever-growing disconnected workforce in America. When people feel so threatened or overworked, can they really do their best? And, as the article infers, once the economy rebounds people will be looking for a company with leadership that understands the need for more balance.  Do you agree?

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Time: A Leaders Greatest Challenge To Being Great?

I had a doctor’s appointment last week and on the way home I was feeling frustrated. Not about the long time spent in the waiting room (okay, I wasn’t too happy about that) or about meeting with a health professional with less than adequate interpersonal skills. Actually my doctor is a pretty nice guy. The frustration was because we rushed. As always he was too busy with many patients to see and it felt like the time I spent with him was rushed.  And because of this the quality of my care was probably diminished.

I think people in leadership roles face the same problem. Leaders are too rushed, have too many priorities and simply don’t have enough time to spend with the people who work for them. And because of this the quality of their relationship with their boss, and really their overall connection with their company, is diminished.

Perhaps the most important theme I hear from people about their “best bosses”  is that these leaders would always find time to spend with them. In this crazy, fast paced, technologically driven world, is it unrealistic to expect leaders to make this a top priority?

What do you think?

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Leadership: Another C’Mon Man Moment

Story told to me today.

Jim, Senior Director for a mid-size company, was recently asked to meet with his VP.

VP – “Jim, we are letting you go today”

Jim – “Why?”

VP – “Because I don’t have confidence in you anymore.”

Jim – “Would you care to elaborate?”

VP – “No”

Ah, nothing like respect in the workplace. Another great C’Mon Man! Leadership Moment brought to you by 3 Connections.

 

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Great Recession Call To Arms: The 21st Century Job Insecurity Disease

A few months ago I showed up for a customer meeting and was directed to the 10^th floor of a large downtown Chicago office building. As I left the elevator and headed to the meeting conference room I went by rows and rows of empty cubicles. Just beyond this space were cubes populated with employees, diligently doing their job. Imagine going to work every day and passing this scorched earth image of the corporate wars. 

I was reminded of this picture recently after reading an online article at Truth Out (truthout.org) entitled “Job Security: It’s The Disease Of The 21^st Century and It’s Killing us” (http://bit.ly/PvGetM). I invite you to read the article. On the surface it is a sobering account of corporate life in the 21^st century, as evidenced by this quote:

Job insecurity is nothing new for those on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. Since the ’70s and ’80s, a shifting labor market and anti-worker policies have been fraying the ties between employers and employees, fueling the perception that a job is a temporary affair. Globalization, outsourcing, contracting, downsizing, and recession have conspired to make confidence in a stable, long-term job a privilege that few can enjoy. But the global recession has blown the numbers experiencing persistent job insecurity through the roof. In the U.S., the stress of three years of unemployment over 8 percent – the longest stretch at that level since the Great Depression – has rocketed our anxieties to new heights, even among traditionally secure workers. In Europe, where employees have enjoyed more protections, workers are feeling increasingly stressed, often trapped in low-wage and temporary employment with few benefits. Even in Germany, this trend of part-time “mini-jobs” is wiping away the old image of Europe as a worker-friendly land of happy, full-time employment.

After I reflected on the article, I actually fount it inspirational:

It’s a wakeup call to organizations that need to rebuild their relationship with employees.

It’s a reminder to leaders to lead with compassion, courage and respect.

Most importantly it’s a push to all of us to proactively build a job and career that no one can take away from you.

Please let me know your reactions and thoughts.

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Michigan Governor Rick Snyder: I Met A Leader!

A few weeks ago I received a surprise invitation to join 20 other Chicago area leaders with Michigan roots to have dinner with Governor Rick Snyder of Michigan. The goal of the dinner was for the Governor and a few other Michigan business leaders to talk about the progress that Michigan is making in re-inventing itself. 

I went to the dinner expecting to meet a politician.  I left inspired because I met a leader instead.

Mr. Snyder was genuine (“he greeted me at the door and spent a few minutes talking individually with me about my Michigan memories”), humble (“I won’t go on the Sunday talk shows unless I can talk about results”), had a vision (“we are here to re-invent Michigan, not fix it”), had a mission (“the goal of government is to serve its customers – the citizens and the businesses that do business in the state”), had a plan (Michigan has an actual strategic plan with initiatives, goals, metrics and accountability) and has a goal to take on Michigan’s problems with a collaborative approach (“I am not here to bash President Obama, I am not anti union … I simply want to solve problems together to help the customer”). 

I am an independent politically.  And I am a moderate / slightly liberal when it comes to the social issues of the day. So the thought of meeting an industrial state Republican governor didn’t hold much appeal after following the shenanigans that have been going on in Wisconsin.  I was wrong.

I was inspired until someone in the group asked Governor Snyder if he would move to Illinois and I was jolted back to reality, reminded of the disaster that is Illinois’ political system. 

Maybe it’s time to move back to Michigan. I need a great leader…

 

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Great Leaders Aren’t Doctors

Great leaders “check in” with their employees and leave the “check ups” to the doctors (and the lousy leaders).

Check out this article from the Harvard Business Review’s HR blog.  http://bit.ly/Kuk5Xo

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Inc Magazine: Extraordinary Bosses Deserve Extraordinary Employees

I post a lot of stuff about the importance of great bosses. But the magic of a great boss can only be realized if the employee picks up the baton and runs with it.  If your boss gives you the chance to stretch and learn, seize the opportunity and don’t shy away. If your boss gives you respectful constructive criticism, heed his or her advice and seek to improve yourself.  If your boss trusts you, be true to your word. 

This Inc. article, “8 Things Great Bosses Demand From Employees” (http://bit.ly/IPfU7b), is a follow-up to last weeks ”8 Core Beliefs of Extraordinary Bosses” and serves as a nice reminder that there is reciprocity in working for a great boss.

 

 

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Inc Magazine: 8 Core Beliefs of Extraordinary Bosses

Check out this article on the 8 Core Leadership Beliefs of some of the most successful CEO’s in the world (http://bit.ly/IregYK) . It compares average bosses (really, these are people who should not anywhere near a leadership position) and extraordinary bosses.  All insights are excellent but my favorite one is this:

My employees are my peers, not my children

Average bosses see employees as inferior, immature beings who simply can’t be trusted if not overseen by a patriarchal management.

Extraordinary bosses treat every employee as if he or she were the most important person in the firm.

What do you think?

 

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Chicago Tribune: Can You Be An Engaged Workaholic?

I read an article a week ago in the Chicago Tribune about ‘Workaholism’ ( http://lat.ms/Ih7yVJ). We always think that workaholism is a bad thing, that working too much endangers health, psyche and personal life by being too wedded to work. But, is there such a thing as an ‘engaged’ workaholic? 

Turns out you can be, at least according Dr Wilmar Schaufeli, a professor in the Netherlands. He theorizes that engaged workaholics actually like their work, that they are “pushed” to their work rather while classic workaholics are “pulled”.

 One of the key ingredients for engaged workaholics turns out to be how you are treated at work and how much control you have over what you do. This ties directly to the type of leader you work for, don’t you think?

To find out what kind of workaholic you are , take the following quiz.

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Career Crossroad: Challenge Yourself or Be Comfortable And Underutilized?

A buddy of mine (let’s call him Mike) got a call last week from one of the big exec recruiting firms. It seems they were interested in him for a high-profile, senior exec position with an industry competitor.  I never in a million years could imagine Mike moving on from his company, where he had worked for the past 30 years.  His identity and the company’s were almost inseparable. Yet, he decided to pursue the opportunity despite the fact  that he had a nice job where he was well-respected, had a reasonable amount of influence and a decent comp package.

Why?

He felt underutilized. He knew that he could have more of an impact if he was allowed, but he wasn’t, so now he was considering leaving.

What a shame.

Not for my friend as much as the company he may leave. So many organizations make people feel this way later in their careers. Just when their skills, competencies, experiences and perspectives merge together have the maximum impact, a ceiling is placed on their ability to contribute.

Or worse, they are asked to leave.

What do you think?

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Leadership and Talent Management Trends For A Rebounding Economy

Now that the economic downturn seems to be on the wane, I see some new and not so new Leadership and Talent Management trends emerging.  I will devote a post to each of these over the  next couple of months.

1. The War For Top Talent – While the war for top talent never went away during the economic downturn, now that things are getting better the war is really going to heat up.
2. Changing Demographics - Baby boomers are going to move on, replaced by younger generations who have different drivers, motivations and needs. There will be more minorities and women in the workforce. How you lead and manage the workforce is going to be different.
3.  Balanced Leadership - As the business world continues to ‘twitch’, the demands on leaders will never more intense. How do you balance strategy with execution with  development with engagement?
4. Collaborate / Innovate / Engage - In a global, fast paced and ever-changing world, these are the three most critical core organizational competencies for 2012 and beyond.  How you lead and how you build and develop talent will need to focus on all three of these competencies.
5. The Loyalty Reset – A new career model has been developing over  the past 20 years.  Loyalty is a thing of the past, both for companies and individuals.
6. The Leadership Connection – as loyalty gets re-set, people still want a connection to where they work. Companies will need people to feel a connection to perform. Leaders provide this connection.
7. How Do You Spell Team? - Teams are now virtual, teams are now global, teams now include consultants, contractors and part-time employees.  The role of leadership must adapt.
8. Does Your CEO Lead? -  Aligning strategy, building a culture, focusing on talent, the leadership capability of the CEO has never been more vital. 
9. Leading Globally – Talent management and leadership is different in Shanghai and New Delhi than it is in Omaha.
10. What Page Are We On? – With so much churn, change and uncertainty, lack of clarity and unity on executive leadership teams about strategy, direction and alignment has never been more disconnected.  And if there is not consensus on this team, how can there be in the rest of the organization?

What do you think?

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Have We Outsourced Empathy?

I was on site with a company last week, meeting with an employee who had just been told that her job was eliminated. She was unceremoniously terminated after 22 years and today was her last day at work.  Through her anger and tears she told me that she had been planning to retire soon and was hoping to leave on her own terms. That hope ended when she was asked to meet her supervisor in a sterile conference room located near the building exit.  

As we continued to talk, she told me about a company that had changed dramatically over the past few years. It used to be good place to work, a place where people knew each other and cared about each other. But recently, things started to change. The global marketplace had shaken a business that produced a commodity product. Margins were thin and the Chinese could make the product cheaper. Two years ago private equity stepped in. The old world officially spun off its axis and was replaced by a not so kinder and gentler approach to business.

By now most people understand the challenges of running a successful, profitable organization in today’s twitchy corporate world.  One of the products of these challenges is a reliance on outsourcing to gain efficiencies … technology, customer service human resources and accounting processes (and people) have all felt the sting. 

And, as I watched this sad woman leave her place of employment for the last time, I wondered if we haven’t also started to outsource empathy.

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As Recession Flies, Work/ Life Balance Dies

Check out this article, if you dare, from an HR Executive Online survey regarding corporate leadership views of Work / Life balance now that we are in the throws of a significant economic recession (http://bit.ly/wspCPu).  Some of my favorite article quotes are listed below, with pithy comments in bold from yours truly:

“The recession revealed a less-trusting business environment,” Heckman says. “Among leaders, people are not expecting a company will remain financially stable or depend on work/life programs as much as pre-recession.” Really, you think the less trusting envirnoment was just revealed? Where were you during merger mania in the ’90′s when this all really started??  Probably working at a private equity firm.

“Interestingly, productivity and earnings have increased, but payrolls have not increased,” he says. “Employers are doing more with less, so leaders are no doubt subordinating some work/life balance.”  Do C Level bonuses get included in payroll??? I didn’t think so. 

For more on this, read a companion post I wrote last year entitled  The Top Guys Do Well, The Middle Guys Have No Life and The Bottom Guys Are Expendable(http://bit.ly/yx3dR1)

“Management feels work/life issues have become less important during tough economic times”. Translation … Go ahead, quit if you don’t like it, I dare you. I double dog dare you.

Want more?? Read on …

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Managing Costs Versus Managing Talent?

I read a tweet yesterday that posed the question “Why Do Organizations Worry So Much More About Wasted Cost Than Wasted Talent?”. 

Hmm, that got me thinking.

It would be interesting to measure the ratio between time invested managing costs versus managing talent. It might say alot about employee engagement and company performance.

What do you suppose the ratio is in your company?

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Building A Magnetic Culture

Kevin Sheridan, one of my good friends and the CEO of HR Solutions, has written a new book entitled “Building a Magnetic Culture”.  In this book Kevin shares the great insights he has learned about employee engagement from his firms’ extensive engagement and exit survey work with hundreds of organizations.   I have listed Kevin’s book in my ‘Great Reads’ section. Click on this link – http://www.hrsolutionsinc.com/building-a-magnetic-culture.cfm - or on the book image for more info on the book and HR Solutions. Great job Kevin!

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Working Here Isn’t F***ing Mandatory!

The title to this post might be deceiving … it not another C’mon Moment installment.  Instead it is a short, rather funny story from my corporate past that causes me to reflect about where I work each time I think about it.  

In the early days of my career, I worked for a crusty ex-marine and Senior HR Director named Bill. Over time Bill has become one of my closest friends. But when I first starting working for him he scared the hell out of me.  He still sported the Semper Fi crew cut, chewed a cigar and grunted more than he spoke. He had been employed at  the company for over 20 years when I joined his staff as a young ‘up and comer’.  After being on the job for just a couple of weeks, I ambled over to his office to ask Bill a newbie question. When I arrived I noticed he had someone in his office and I couldn’t help but listen to the conversation.

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Culture vs Strategy. And the winner is…

Culture wins, every time.  How many exquisite corporate strategies have you seen that have been unsuccessful because they failed to build a cultural foundation for success? And at the center of that cultural foundation are connected employees and great leadership.  THIS IS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE!!!

Read some of the stories I have provided throughout my blog that share real life examples of great leadership along with some not so great leadership stories (you can find these posts in the Category drop down boxes – Leadership, Your Favorite Boss and C’Mon Man Moments – on the right side of the blog) - it will be easy to figure out which ones have successfully executed their strategy.  

Also check out this great post from Fast Company entitled “Culture Eats Strategy For Lunch” http://www.fastcompany.com/1810674/culture-eats-strategy-for-lunch.

And, as always, feel free to share your personal stories from great and not so great cultures that you have worked in.

 

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Chicago’s Top Workplaces … The Headlines Say It All!

I was just browsing through a special Chicago Tribune magazine that focused on Chicago’s top 2011 workplaces (http://bit.ly/vM8Qj6) and the individual article headlines really say all you need to know:

• “Keep up the good work – recognition, respect viewed as vital to workplace satisfaction”
• “ Engagement is the key – retailer puts money behind keeping employees motivated“
• ” A passionate pack that combines a fast pace with supportive leaders“
• ” It’s all in the spirit of fun“

Recognition, respect, motivation, passion, supportive leaders, fun … sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?  

My favorite quote was freom the Co-President of the top company on the list, Abt Electronics. “With a more than 1,000 employees, that’s a big family. But a policy of trust and respect has the served the company well.  In 75 years it has never had a layoff!

This quote highlights the common denominator for all of these top workplace companies … they are all successful. 

Great culture and financial success … conincidence?? I think not.

Do you work in a great place?  If so, please comment on why it’s so great.

If not, what are you still doing there??

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It’s Sad That Articles Like “Top Ten Reasons That Companies Lose Their Top Talent’ Are Still So Relevant.

The year was 1998 and I was in my HR leadeship position with Amoco Corporation. I was invited to attend a presentation by McKinsey Consulting on ‘The War For Talent’.   Fast forward 13 years to an article in the December 2011 edition of Forbes entitled “Top Ten Reasons Why Large Companies Fail to Keep Their Top Talent” (http://onforb.es/sCzkZO) . Basically the Forbes article was a rehash of the of the McKinsey presentatin I attended.  Thirteen years later and the song remains the same. Why can’t organizations figure this stuff out?  

Here are a few commonalities between the Forbes article and the McKinsey presentation:

• Failure  to find projects that ignite the passion of their talent
• Poor annual performance reviews
• No discussions around careers
• Allowing whims to change strategic priorities
• Lack of accountability
• The missing ‘vision’ thing

These are more symptoms of lousy leadership, especially at the top of the house.  And this extends beyond large companies. It’s pervasive across Corprate Amercia. As the  job market heats up, the demographics continue their shifts and the global business world continues on it’s frantic pace, the companies that don’t figure this out are going to be in trouble.  And they don’t have  another 13 years to act.

What are your thoughts?

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Introducing a foolproof leadership assessment model…

During my corporate HR leadership days I spent countless hours in meetings dissecting leadership performance, aligning leadership competencies, discussing high potentials, overseeing replacement and succession planning processes… on and on it went. Unfortunately, at every stop in my career, we never seemed to make much progress in building a stable of great leaders.

One day, during a staff meeting with my HR team, we came up with a leadership assessment model that really seemed to make sense. Rather than focus on all of the technicalities of leadership we decided that there were only two simple factors that really mattered in determining who were or had the potential to be great leaders.

1. Is the leader high or low maintenance?

2. Does the leader ‘get it’ or not?

So we adjourned the meeting, headed to a local tavern, and decided to put our hypothesis to the test. 

The results, aided by a significant amount of libations, were stunning.  The leaders that the organization struggled with were clearly ‘High Maintenance, Don’t Get It’ types. The opposite was true for people who were widely accepted by the organization as great leaders.

Unfortunately that’s where it ended.

Why?  Because my boss, the President of the company, didn’t fare well in our new assessment model.

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“Tell Me Why I Have To Worry About This Engagement Thing” … another ‘C’Mon Man leadership moment

Before the holidays I met with a HR VP who works at a mid-size, privately owned company. We were discussing the cultural and leadership challenges the company was facing.  He had suggested to the CEO that there were signifcant issues emerging around employee retention and engagement. Leadership comptency was in large part to blame. He suggested that an employee survey would be a good place to start analyzing the problems.  The CEO balked because his leaders were fine and there wasn’t a retention issue. He said he didn’t need to ”worry about ‘this engagement thing”. 

How did this CEO find himself in sucn a senior leadership role?  Well, first he works for a privately owned, family run firm (STRIKE ONE). Second, the firm has never invested much in leadership development (STRIKE TWO). Third, in his previous role the CEO was a ‘deal guy, a M&A expert’ and he got results (STRIKE THREE) so that means he is a natural leader, right? 

Leaders like this get results. For a while.  But over time the company won’t achieve their performance potential becuase the employees never fully commit themselves to this type of leader. Never.

‘C’Mon Man’!

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Two Departures, Two Companies … and Two Leadership Philosophies

Great companies have great leaders who treat people great, even as they are leaving.  And then you have the not so great… 

An individual worked for two companies in the same industry, leaving both organizations voluntarily.  On her final day with Company A the CEO stopped by her office to wish her well and thank her for her contributions. On her final day with Company B her boss asked her to finish a project which took her well into the evening on her last day of work. She left with no fanfare, good bye or even a thanks.

The CEO of Company A was described by a friend of mine as the best person she has ever worked for; in fact, she said she would run through a wall for him.   As for Company B, well I am guessing that they have a culture that doesn’t inspire greatness. Or engagement.

Where would you rather work?

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It’s The Most Wonderful Time of The Year… (a C’Mon Man reflection)

The signs of the impending holidays are upon us. From Thanksgiving turkey and Black Friday sales to never ending Lexus commercials, there are all kinds of signs that the end of the year is approaching. There are corporate signs as well, including the year end downsizing.   It’s not unusual for an organization to do some December ”people adjustments” and, according to my companies outplacement practice, this year is no exception.  While I understand the  drivers for these decisions it always seems to be incongruent with an organizations espoused people values.      

My favorite example of this happened a few years ago. A large Chicago based organization made a decision to eliminate many positions before year end.  Company leadership decided to make the announcement on December 12 … exactly one day after the annual company holiday party.   That made for one happy group of impacted employees. One day, holiday cheer. The next, holiday sneer.

True Story.  Remember, I don’t make this stuff up.

C’Mon Man!!!

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Characteristics of a Great Boss

I like this blog post from Toolbox.com on great bosses. It describes what a great boss looks like (could have been ripped from the headlines of 3 Connections!) and how important it is to develop these kind of leaders.  

Check it out at – http://bit.ly/uUdkyk

 

 

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Do you distrust your leader? If so, it could make you sick … or make you quit… or both.

Dr. Aneil Mishra, author of the book ‘Trust Is Everything, Become the Leader That Others Will Follow’, recently posted some interesting information on the relationship between trust, leadership, employee retention and individual well being. He cites research done by the High Performance Institute of Kenexa, a global business and HR consulting firm. Konexa’s research reflects that employees who distrust their leaders are seven times more likely to report they are mentally and physically unwell and almost half of employees who distrust their leaders are seriously considering leaving their employer.

If you want to find out more, take a poll on trust and leadership or just check out Aneil’s excellent blog “Total Trust”, click here – http://bit.ly/uElshW

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The Right Guy To Break The Cubs Curse? Theo Epstein on Managing and Leadership

Tuesday was Theo Epstein day in Chicago.

For those of you outside Chicago or who are not a sports fans (or both), Epstein is the new president of the loveable but hapless baseball franchise, the Chicago Cubs. They haven’t won a championship in over 100 years. Their loyal fans blame the Cubs futility on everything from a goat and a black cat to ‘day’ baseball and a young fan who interfered with a player catching a foul ball. They have been looking for a savior for as long as I have lived in Chicago.  They may have found one in Epstein.

Why am I so high on Epstein?  It’s not because I am a blindly faithful Cubs fan (truth is, the Detroit Tigers and arch rival White Sox are my teams) nor am I solely influenced by his past success.  It’s one word. Leadership.

Epstein was being interviewed all over the Chicago radio dial on Tuesday, his first day in the Windy City. Clearly, this is a smart, organizationally savvy guy with a plan. I was most intrigued when I heard him describe the criteria he will use to select the next Cubs manager.  The first thing he looks for in a manager is someone with natural leadership qualities. My favorite comment from Epstein on managerial leadership was this:

“A manager needs to have ‘inherent’ authority. He shouldn’t scream and pound tables to get respect. He should expect respect from his players and they should expect the same in return”.

For more of Theo Epsteins views on managing a baseball and leadership , continue on …

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“Don’t Let That Leadership Stuff Make You Soft”

I was having lunch today with a company president. He was talking about the enthusiasm he had for his CEO and his push to build great leaders in their organization. Only one problem. The person in between the president and CEO wasn’t quite on board with the program. His advice?  “You have always been focused on results so don’t let that ’leadership stuff’ make you soft”.

Remember, I don’t make this stuff up …

C’MON MAN!!!

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Tales From the Disconnected

Below are excerpts from an email I received recently from a good friend .  People share these kind of real life corporate experiences with me all the time.  My friend is smart, experienced with exceptionally strong personal values.  Any company would be crazy not to want her as an employee. And now, someone this valuable is disconnected from her work, company and career.  Everyone is going to lose. 

Read on… 

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When strengths become too strong

Years ago I was the HR leader for a big business unit.  A couple of months into my new job the President, Dave, asked for me to stop by his office.  He wanted to discuss his leadership style and, in particular, one of his strengths – an orientation to detail.  Dave said that this strength served him well but occasionally become, in his words, ’too strong’.  As a leader he had learned how to control his impulse for details. However when he was under stress, this penchant for detail was almost uncontrollable and his strength would become debilitating.  Do you know any leaders who have strengths that turn ugly in times of stress?  How about you?

If so, you might want to check out this article I read today on the ‘daily good’ website. It’s entitled ‘The Flip Side of Your Signature Strength’. http://bit.ly/ofvETK

By the way, Dave also told me that it would be my responsibility to tell him to ‘knock it off’ when the flip side of his signature strength appeared. He warned me that it would probably tick him off but that he would be more ticked off if I didn’t intervene. And, sure enough, the time did come for me step in. And, predictably, he got ticked off.  But a few hours later he thanked me.

Dave was one of the best people I have ever worked for.

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“What Would Dave Do?”

I was chatting with Rick on Friday and he was telling me about Dave, the best boss he has ever had. Dave had many of the same traits that most really great bosses have - he was a teacher and mentor, respectful, caring and created an automous space for Rick to both make decisions and learn from his mistakes. Dave continues to be a powerful force in Rick’s life as a leader, even though the two men have not seen each other for nearly 15 years.

How? 

Well, when Rick finds himself in a leadership dilemna and not sure of his next move he asks himself a simple question, ” What Would Dave Do?”  Can there be any more praise for a leader than that?

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“I Have Been Here For 40 Years And It’s A Wonderful Place To Work”

My current job takes me to all kinds of corporate business locations. One of my favorite things to do during these visits is to arrive a bit early and wait in the reception area. You can get a real feel for a company and its culture by just sitting and observing. What’s the decor of the office?  How are people behaving?  How are they dressed? Are they smiling and cordial or harried and rushed. How friendly is the receptionist? Or, is there even a receptionist? 

Today I had a meeting at Illinois Tool Works (ITW) corporate headquarters to discuss leadership with a HR exec.  If you don’t know ITW, they are one of the largest and most successful companies in Chicago. And one of the oldest.  They have been in business for over 100 years.

As usual, I arrived a bit early (partly by plan, but partly because you can never trust the unpredictable nature of Chicago area traffic).   While I was sitting in my car I observed a lot of activity in the parking lot.  As people began to exit their vehicles, I couldn’t help but notice a parade of older individuals (all right, I know that some of you smart alecks in my life might call me ‘older’, but these are people that I call ‘older’ … lots of gray hair, receding hairlines. canes … the early bird special crowd) heading towards the entrance to the building. And then I realized what was happening.

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Christmas Tree Leadership

Last week I met with a friend, catching up over coffee, when she told me about recently leaving her role as VP HR for a $90 million dollar privately owned firm. During our conversation she shared some real ‘C’Mon Man’ leadership gems, courtesy of her former CEO (who was also the reason she moved on to a new job).  Here’s her CEO’s take on leadership. He calls it Christmas Tree Leadership:  

“Leadership Development is like a Christmas Tree. There are a couple of bright stars at the top of the tree and the rest of the tree is just a bunch of bulbs that are replaceable”.

And, remember, I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried.

C’MON MAN!!!

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Purity Of Intent

A few weeks ago I met with the top HR leaders at Kone Elevator Company. You may not know of Kone but after you read this you may want to work there. Kone is a Finnish company and it’s North American HQ in suburban Chicago.  They have been on a remarkable leadership journey, driven by their CEO, over the past couple of years. The goal of this journey is organizational performance. But the CEO is convinced that the way to superior performance is to create company culture driven by a clear vision, a strong belief system and great leadership. 

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