Managing Organisational Performance

There cannot be a CEO or a Divisional Manager anywhere who doesn’t believe that the performance of their organisation could not be enhanced, if only their employees displayed a greater sense of teamwork and motivation.

Yet having accepted that it is they who need to take the initiative to bring this about, any initial enthusiasm quickly wanes, as they grapple with other issues and the management of the business itself. Developing greater teamwork is perceived as a ‘nice to have’ issue not a ‘must have’.

Most managers regard teamwork and its development as a separate issue to business management. They do this because when they think of teamwork, the things that come most immediately to mind are the interpersonal factors that characterise teams and team members – high levels of motivation, respect for and trust in one another, constructive conflict, innovation etc. And so the logic goes, that to develop such characteristics requires a separate program to be run in parallel with the ‘normal’ program of running the business. Consultants are hired, programs are devised, large sums of money are spent – but with what result?

At best, such team building programs lead to the establishment of pseudo teams – workgroups that display the appearance of teams but not the substance. And in the final analysis, it’s the substance – improved organisational performance – that is the only worthwhile result.

The fundamental flaw in the management logic is that teams and teamwork can be created and once established, uplift in organisational performance will result. This is not the case.

The three things that lead to the development of teamwork and the establishment of real teams have nothing directly to do with the team characteristics referred to above – but everything to do with the achievement of the organisational objectives.

For workgroups to develop into teams, they need a:

• Common purpose
• Common goal
• Common approach

Let’s take each of these factors in turn.

The workgroup’s common purpose should be expressed not only in the context of the workgroup but also in the context of the organisation as a whole.

The above common purpose is an activity and as such cannot be measured. Therefore, the common purpose has to be expressed in terms of a common goal. The common goal should be specific, measurable, achievable, a result and time related (SMART).

Note that achievement of the common goal involves every member of the workgroup, is related to the common purpose of the workgroup and of the company as a whole, and is a goal to which workgroup members may relate and over which they have control.

The workgroup’s common approach covers such issues as who does what, meeting schedules and agreeing on subsidiary objectives or milestones.

Since the purpose, goal and approach is one shared by all members of the workgroup, mutual accountability is a rational consequence and mutual accountability leads naturally to the development of trust, motivation and commitment – those characteristics that turn workgroups into real teams of substance.

Adopting this strategy over the more traditional approach that treats the development of teams and teamwork as a discrete program has enormous advantages.

• Management’s focus remains on the management of the business. Managers are not being asked to do anything extra – they are being asked to work smarter by realising the potential of their staff.
• By developing a common purpose and a common goal for each workgroup in the manner suggested above, organisational alignment will be much improved.
• Insisting that each workgroup have a common purpose, goal and approach will lead to a very significant rise in workgroup effectiveness.
• United by the above three factors, there is a much greater likelihood that workgroup members will develop teamwork, and display the characteristics of real teams.
• Resources are not diverted to a separate program of ‘team development‘.

There is just one missing component to the above and that’s the need to measure. You cannot manage what you cannot measure.

There is a fair degree of cynicism surrounding the traditional ‘team/teamwork development program’, which is justified. Such programs are expensive, time-consuming to administer, based on false logic and ineffective in the long term. Yet no one would disagree that a small group of people working together can accomplish more than a similar number working as individuals.

So the message is simple. Successful organisations and successful workgroups have an enduring focus on performance and, in the process of setting and achieving performance goals, teamwork develops as a consequence. But like so many management concepts, it’s the implementation that’s complex.

Guest Author

Graham Haines is principal consultant of Plans To Reality. Graham has a Joint Honours Degree in Law and Economics from Durham University and a Grad. Dip. Ed from Melbourne University. He is both a Certified Management Consultant and a Certified Practicing Marketer. In addition to his consulting activities, Graham has taught marketing and management at a tertiary level and written over 150 articles for specialist press and his own web site. He can be contacted via Email: ghaines@planstoreality.com.au or Visit: http://www.planstoreality.com.au

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Recognising The Traits Of Outstanding Employees

Great employees are reliable, dependable, proactive, diligent, great leaders and great followers … they possess a wide range of easily-defined – but hard to find – qualities. A few hit the next level and are remarkable, possessing qualities that may not appear on performance appraisals, but nonetheless make a major impact on performance. Forget good to great – what makes a great employee, remarkable?

Here are eight qualities of remarkable employees:

1. They ignore job descriptions – The smaller the company, the more important it is that employees can think on their feet, adapt quickly to shifting priorities, and do whatever it takes, regardless of role or position, to get things done.When a key customer’s project is in jeopardy, remarkable employees know without being told there’s a problem and jump in without being asked – even if it’s not their job.
2. They’re eccentric – The best employees are often a little different: quirky, sometimes irreverent, even delighted to be unusual. They seem slightly odd, but in a really good way. Unusual personalities shake things up, make work more fun, and transform a plain-vanilla group into a team with flair and flavour. People who aren’t afraid to be different naturally stretch boundaries and challenge the status quo, and they often come up with the best ideas.
3. But they know when to dial it back – An unusual personality is a lot of fun … until it isn’t. When a major challenge pops up or a situation gets stressful, the best employees stop expressing their individuality and fit seamlessly into the team. Remarkable employees know when to play and when to be serious; when to be irreverent and when to conform; and when to challenge and when to back off. It’s a tough balance to strike, but a rare few can walk that fine line with ease.
4. They publicly praise – Praise from a boss feels good. Praise from a peer feels awesome, especially when you look up to that person. Remarkable employees recognise the contributions of others, especially in group settings where the impact of their words is even greater.
5. And they complain privately – We all want employees to bring issues forward, but some problems are better handled in private. Great employees often get more latitude to bring up controversial subjects in a group setting because their performance allows greater freedom.Remarkable employees come to you before or after a meeting to discuss a sensitive issue, knowing that bringing it up in a group setting could set off a firestorm.
6. They speak when others won’t – Some employees are hesitant to speak up in meetings. Some are even hesitant to speak up privately.An employee once asked me a question about potential layoffs. After the meeting I said to him, “Why did you ask about that? You already know what’s going on”. He said, “I do, but a lot of other people don’t, and they’re afraid to ask. I thought it would help if they heard the answer from you”. Remarkable employees have an innate feel for the issues and concerns of those around them, and step up to ask questions or raise important issues when others hesitate.
7. They like to prove others wrong – Self-motivation often springs from a desire to show that doubters are wrong. The kid without a college degree or the woman who was told she didn’t have leadership potential often possess a burning desire to prove other people wrong.Education, intelligence, talent, and skill are important – but drive is critical. Remarkable employees are driven by something deeper and more personal than just the desire to do a good job.
8. They’re always fiddling – Some people are rarely satisfied (I mean that in a good way) and are constantly tinkering with something: Reworking a timeline, adjusting a process, tweaking a workflow.Great employees follow processes. Remarkable employees find ways to make those processes even better, not only because they are expected to … but because they just can’t help it.

Guest Author

Jeff Haden learned much of what he knows about business and technology as he worked his way up in the manufacturing industry. Everything else he picks up from ghostwriting books for some of the smartest leaders he knows in business. Visit http://www.blackbirdinc.com

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com/subscribe/

How To Avoid Sending Mixed Messages

As leaders, we know to be sensitive about mixing our messages. When our staff receive mixed messages, the negative emotion naturally dominates, and becomes – in the minds of our staff – associated with the memory of the event. Discover how to avoid sending mixed signals to communicate more effectively.

We humans make sense of our world by classifying our experiences, conversations and other people. Our classifications are binary in nature; they are an either/or category. The most common is good or bad. Other common classifications are them and us, like me or not like me, happy or sad. We make our classifying decisions based on the emotion we experience – our feelings – at that moment.

Confusing or mixing messages occurs when the receiver of the message thought that the message was going one way (“good”) but it turns out that it was going down the other way (“bad”) or vice versa. Emotions are conflicted.

Examples of mixed messages

By allowing your emotional detectors to guide you, you’ll become more aware of any mixing of your own messages, and can also learn by observing others. Here are some common examples:

1. A CEO is hosting an end-of-year celebration event to thank the staff for a successful year. In his speech the CEO thanks the troops and then can’t help himself – he preaches that “we need to maintain our focus in the year ahead to maintain sales”.

   Mixed message received

   The message is now mixed and the staff wonder if it was really a “thank you” event or a “kick off” event for next year. It alters their feelings associated with the event.

2. A manager calls one of their staff who works in another location. The manager’s intention when calling was just to say hello and to check if the person needs anything (a good thing to do). During the call however, the manager remembers a task that they need to talk to the person about. They raise the task.

   Mixed message received

   Suddenly the receiver who had categorised the call as a “nice check-in” thinks, “Oh, my boss really wanted to get me to do something”.

3. A manager calls a candidate for a job to let them know that they have been unsuccessful. Rather than just let the person know they were unsuccessful and explain why, the manager gushes about what a good candidate they were and how well they interviewed.

   Mixed message received

   The person categorises the call as “insincere”, given that they missed out on the job.

4. A manager recently appointed to the leadership role meets with their new direct reports in individual meetings (a good thing). But the manager confuses the purpose of the meeting by not making it just a get-to-know-you meeting, by also raising their performance expectations.

   Mixed message received

   The staff member, who thought that it was an introductory meeting suddenly feels like they’re put on the spot.

5. A manager gives a staff member negative feedback, but confuses the message by starting with praise (as per the unhelpful “feedback sandwich” approach).

   Mixed message received

   The receiver initially thought they were being acknowledged for their good work, to suddenly find the big BUT shifting the conversation to what they are doing wrong.

Mixing emotions

When we mix our messages, we are confusing the emotional response – the feelings – we trigger in the receiver. In the first part of our message we are leading the person down the path of either good or bad, for example, and then we confuse the message – the person’s emotional detectors – by diverting them down the other path.

Given our hardwired instinct for loss aversion, when we mix our messages, the negative one dominates. The negative emotion becomes the memory of the event.

Tips for leaders

The remedy to avoid mixing messages is simple – stick to one emotion associated with each event. When there are two objectives to cover, it becomes necessary to separate the events, so that the emotions attached to each don’t mix.

Using the examples above:

1. The CEO who is driven by anxieties about next year’s results should celebrate this year’s results and find another occasion to talk about the new year.
2. The manager who is calling for the purpose of checking-in, and who suddenly remembers a task item, should generally leave the task for another call, perhaps the next day.
3. Calling an unsuccessful candidate means letting them know they have been unsuccessful – without the sugar coating that will likely be received as insincere.
4. The manager who is meeting people for the first time should decide if the purpose of this meeting is to be a relaxed and “positive” one and leave the performance target discussion to a second meeting. It doesn’t all have to be covered the first time.
5. Giving negative feedback means covering the topic and generally leaving any praise for another time.

Our guide is the receiver’s emotional detector. If our message is intended to be “positive”, then make that the message and don’t confuse the issue by mixing with a “negative” one. Leaders should avoid trying to squeeze too much into any one interaction, and thereby will achieve greater clarity in their communications with staff.

Guest Author:

Andrew O’Keeffe, Hardwired Humans. Hardwired Humans assists business leaders design and implement people strategies based on human instincts. Through understanding human instincts leaders can predict what will work and can avoid the predictable mistakes if instincts are ignored.

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com/subscribe/

Generation Y: Are They Even Worth The Hassle?

“That’s it. I’m only going to hire Baby Boomers from now on… Gen Y are just too much hard work”.

It seems that many managers and business owners have reached breaking point with Gen Y. This younger generation, after all, rarely hangs around in a job for long enough to warrant the financial and time investment of training. What’s more, they have a sense of entitlement and a brash self-confidence that is less than endearing to many older managers.

Gen Y: they have been the topic of countless articles, research papers and books in recent years. Workplaces and employers in every sector are finding this group a great challenge to recruit, motivate and retain. This younger generation seems to operate by a different set of rules. Their concept of patience, respect and work ethic can seem bewildering at best and insulting at worst. Is it any wonder then that many managers are asking if Gen Y are really worth the hassle?

Sure Gen Y may pose some challenges to work with. Sure they may have an approach to the real world that can sometimes seem less than realistic. And yet, this group is a generation of confident, well-educated natural networkers. They are innovative, flexible, tech-savvy and most important of all, at home in the modern era. It is, after all, the only era they have ever known.

Clever managers are recognising that Gen Y are indeed an excellent source of creativity, innovation and a competitive edge. Rather than seeing this group as a challenge or a source of frustration, these managers are seeing the potential of engaging a generation who have a fresh perspective, boundless energy and a keen desire to get runs on the board as quickly as possible.

If you are keen to join the ranks of those that are engaging rather than estranging Gen Y, the following three keys should help:

1. Put relationship before role

   Gen Y are a connected generation. Community, relationships and a sense of belonging are at the core of both their online and offline identities. They have typified the old phrase ‘I don’t care how much you know, till I know how much you care’. Managers that can build a strong relationship and genuine rapport with their Gen Y staff will find that this will indeed be the key to gaining commitment and loyalty from this group. They will not be loyal to companies or corporate mission statements, but they are loyal to people and relationships. A far cry from the power and control days of management, those in authority can no longer rely on creating a separation between themselves and those they lead. If you want to build rapport with Gen Y, two tips; be authentic, and be interested. They don’t want you to be like them, they want you to be you. Walk your talk, be transparent, have some fun at your own expense and Gen Y will love you for it.

2. Focus on outcomes not process

   If outcomes are all about why we do what we do, then perhaps process could best be described as how we do what we do. Of course, while both the why and the how are necessary for organisational performance, many organisations fall into the trap of focussing on process over outcomes. They become so obsessed with structure, lines of authority, rules, policies, benchmarks and KPIs, that they lose sight of the reason these processes were put there in the first place. Process itself is not the enemy, but process that seems disconnected to outcomes is. The biggest turn-offs at work for Gen Y are unnecessary structure, excessive bureaucracy and suffocating red tape.

3. Give regular positive feedback

   Recognition is that all powerful motivator. It’s the one thing that babies will cry for, grown men will die for… and Gen Y will work for. Positive reinforcement is the best and perhaps the only way to bring out the best in the people we lead. Look for and ‘catch’ employees doing the right thing and then reward it, rather than ‘catching’ people doing the wrong thing and then punishing it. This principle is certainly a key to engaging Gen Y.Use positive affirmation, recognition and encouragement with this younger generation and watch them thrive. Two quick tips when doing this; recognise them in person (don’t just send an email), and recognise them in public (they love to be singled out in front of their peers and colleagues).

Engaging Gen Y employees may seem like a lot of hard work. It will certainly require an investment of time and energy and a willingness to change and adapt. However, those managers that can embrace the challenges of working with this group will reap the benefits of a younger workforce that is energetic, switched on and hungry to get ahead.

Guest Author:
Michael McQueen is a leading authority and sought-after presenter on the topic of Understanding & Engaging Generation Y.

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com/subscribe/

Determining Your Pay DNA

More and more, employers are redefining and allocating their mix of rewards based on individual needs – like a stock portfolio of investments – and finding trends amongst workers as they begin to look at work-life balance, flex-time and other original ways to keep people happy and productive.

There’s much talk today circling diversity in the workplace, both in the make-up of workers and the delivery of rewards. Smart companies have also discovered that contributions of this new “multi” workforce – multi-cultural, multi-generational and multi-otherwise – positively impact the competitive advantage of the organisation.

However, companies will not benefit unless they keep these widely-varied groups happily rewarded and retained. This presents a totally new compensation challenge: When designing total rewards packages that work for each employee, regardless of segment, it is now necessary to understand multiple needs and desires from different workers, and then compensate them accordingly.

When it comes to packaging pay, employers today are clearly challenged. In the average company, there are as many different vehicles to reward employees as there are diverse segments within the employee population.

To get a clearer idea of how to assess what is important to your top talent, let’s take a look at the four distinct employee population segments and what each group values in the work experience – ground zero for understanding what drives their rewards needs.

1. Traditionalists (1909-1945), or Veterans, are part of the old school, command and control, brick and mortar chain of authority. And while they may be the “old guard” of a company, they are traditional in the best sense: They know that people, face-to-face communication and ideas are what make businesses run.They are willing to change and see new points of view, but it may not be easy. Hardworking and hierarchical, they have seen business change for decades – and adapted. They are “company” men and women.
2. Baby Boomers (1946-1964) traditionally have been motivated by money and career advancement. Yet ironically, as Boomers age, yet remain in the workforce, flexibility and work/life balance have become much more important than the need to make senior partner – a goal that may have driven them two decades earlier.Today, many Boomers’ complex lifestyles have shifted to include caring for both their children and aging parents, sometimes in the same household. They have already made a significant mark in the business world, and while they may not be quite ready to relinquish life at the top, they have come to understand the value of balance and life beyond the board room.
3. Among the most popular rewards requested today for the Generation X (1965-1978) crowd include better benefits: wellness, work-from-home arrangements, education reimbursements and, in some cases, child care in the office. For this independent group, it is critically important to set goals and then step away, letting them find their own solutions rather than “how things have always been done”.They are often unconcerned with long-term loyalty and have experienced significant downsizing during the dot.com bust, fostering a spirit of self-preservation, rather than survival of the company. They build strong relationships and serve as a bridge between older and younger groups.
4. On the other side of the coin, Millennials (1979-2000), or Generation Y, are looking for a high level of engagement on a team and employment-based rewards, a concept they hold as near and dear as their 80 GB iPods. They like instant gratification over long term investments of time and effort and want to contribute to society and have full and balanced lives.They want responsibility, the ability to make a direct impact and be rewarded accordingly. And they continually redefine their commitment to the workplace with the knowledge that they are able to “move around” significantly until they find the best employment fit – and they will.

Given the variety of priorities across these four groups, it is nearly impossible for a company to be all things to all people. Therefore, an important first step toward developing a competitive package is to examine organisational demographics.

Understanding what people in your organisation value will help guide decisions on setting compensation opportunities and benefit options. However, in looking at demographics, you must consider expectations and timing of future shifts of the makeup of your workforce. Planning for these shifts can help retain high-performers, as well as attract new talent.

In addition to demographic analysis, collecting information that can add an essential qualitative aspect to a rewards strategy is important, sourced from:

• employee opinion surveys,
• exit interviews,
• focus groups, and
• recruiting feedback.

Armed with this knowledge, competitive compensation and benefits packages should be designed to reflect the values held by employees.

Increasingly, professional and office employees are willing to put pay at risk for the opportunity of being rewarded for superior performance. Team-based awards and project-based bonuses are becoming more prevalent and attractive to lower level employees.

The difference in values across generations can be addressed by varying opportunities at different levels in the organisation. Comfortable base salaries can be offered at the executive level, whereas individual recognition through significant merit awards and variable pay may be more appropriate for middle managers. Similarly, deferred compensation or supplemental retirement contributions will help to keep key leaders engaged and satisfied up through their retirement years.

Individualising rewards

There is no longer a “one-size-fits-all” approach to total rewards. It is time to shift your view on how you promote and reward employees. The system presently utilised in most organisations often promotes and rewards seniority, rather than results.

If you look at most companies today, you find the executive leadership tends to come from the older group and more of the entry positions are filled by the youngest. This approach needs to be exploded and rebuilt, to allow for a more collaborative team ethic that taps into the collective wisdom that all four generations bring to the table.

Younger employees are not going to be patient and follow the path that Baby Boomers set of working up rungs of the corporate ladder. If they are not engaged quickly, they will simply move on. Gone is competitive advantage, and succession plans crumble.

Perhaps the most important considerations employers can incorporate into how they pay today, include a strict performance management assessment process, that is based on individual goals and metrics, unrelated to seniority and utilising the “3-F” appeal to each job: balancing;

1. family,
2. fun, and
3. flexibility.

In fact, an HR executive for one of the world’s largest Internet information portals recently revealed an experimental program for top employees to work in a “few months on, few months off” schedule, an extreme – and workable, in this case – solution to keep a talented team member happy.

Despite differences, all employees want some of the same elements when it comes to the work experience:

• the ability to be satisfied,
• valued,
• have clear objectives, and
• most importantly, directly report to a superior who empathises with a strong degree of work/life balance.

Using the same rewards vehicles – cash, equity, flex-time, incentives – employers can invest differently depending upon the needs of the individual.

Guest Author:

Jonamay Lambert and Adam Steinbrunner, Capital H Group.

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com/subscribe/

Poor Performance – It’s Time To Bury The Walking Dead!

You can receive varying levels of service. The service at one company I dealt with recently was exemplary, whilst the other could best be described as zombie like. A large percentage had ‘died’ many years ago, the problem was no one told them to go home and ‘get buried!’. Zombie like service exists everywhere, maybe even in your organisation. Take charge, grab your shovel and bury them now!

What can you do about it?

I believe in organisations today there are four categories of people:

1. New Recruits
2. The Battle Scarred
3. Walking Zombies
4. Engaged Employees

Understanding where your people fit will enable you to support and encourage them, or maybe just get on with it and ‘bury’ them.

New Recruits

New Recruits are simply that, new people to your organisation, who are usually young or fresh to the workplace. They are keen to learn and be part of the team, they want to contribute to the success of their team and the organisation.

Not only that, they are keen to better themselves and look for opportunities to shine and stand out in the crowd. They do this by going the extra mile in service or productivity and generally are willing to tackle any challenge presented to them in the workplace.

These people are easy to nurture and with little effort, will maintain this happy and productive demeanour for as long as you support them in their role. Over time, these people will progress across to the Engaged Employee category.

The Battle Scarred

The Battle Scarred are people who have been attacked or hurt in some way, either by their boss or colleague(s) at work. Like someone in a battle, they will call out in their pain and will tell anyone who stops by to listen, to all their trouble and woes. Deep down these people still like their job and the organisation, it’s just that they have been attacked by someone and come off second best.

A typical example is when someone is overlooked for a promotion or a plum project role within the organisation. Sometimes their hurt is the result of their own action or inactions in the workplace.

These people can recover and be helped into the Engaged Employee sector by some recognition of their hurt or anger. A caring manager will take the time to listen to this person and coach them back to either New Recruit or Engaged Employee status. The Battle Scarred can recover quickly, if identified, and can be saved.

Walking Zombies

Walking Zombies are people who have been battle scarred and never recovered. Often they have been hurt and when they cry out for help and get no response, they get bitter. They employ “work to rule” campaigns, the problem being they make their own rules as part of this campaign. These people not only have a poor attitude, they do their best to share that attitude with others and even recruit others in the team to their cause.

They are like a viral infection, hard to cure yet often hang around for a long time before you can shake them off. These people continue to turn up for work even though they loath the experience. Amazingly, if these people are moved on, they often return with a new lease of life and report that they should have left the organisation ages ago.

Engaged Employees

Engaged Employees are the people who wake up on Monday mornings and say “I’m going to work today” and have a smile on their face. They find their job or career fulfilling, challenging and fun.

The reason these people love their work is because they usually have a worthwhile contribution to make and they are appreciated for their contribution. Their team leader or manager listens and hears their suggestions and takes the time to encourage and compliment them for their efforts.

Moving from Battled Scarred or Zombie to Engaged Employee

So you have some Battle Scarred or Walking Zombies in your team, what can you do with them? If they are Battle Scarred there is a good chance you can quickly resurrect them to New Recruit or even Engaged Employee status.

Take some time to catch them doing something good and praise them extensively for it. Sit down with them and talk about the vision for the team and reinforce where they fit in to the team and how their contribution is essential to the success of the team. Review their performance agreement and focus on achieving simple goals together.

Is it possible to change a Walking Zombie to an Engaged Employee? In my experience, the best treatment for these people is to ‘put them out of their misery’. Termination is always a good option for these people. You will be doing them a favour and may even give them a new lease of life to begin again in a new organisation.

I can hear some of you groaning already, “but it’s so hard to sack someone!”. Of course it takes some effort, but think about the effort and the cost of having a Walking Zombie on the team, spreading the virus of discontent and lethargy.

Guest Author:

Lindsay Adams, Teamocracy. There are many organisations that provide training, but Teamocracy is fully committed to providing more than just training. We are willing to consult with you to clarify what you are trying to achieve.

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com/subscribe/

Incentive Compensation During Challenging Times – Boom Or Bust?

Some good news: During times like these, we have the unique opportunity to really determine – with a huge degree of certainty – the viability and efficacy of our incentive compensation plans.

Bottom-line (no pun intended), if you are seeing poor earnings or results today, but still paying out boatloads of money, then …

You’re doing it wrong!

Not that we cannot ever pay for effort versus results; sometimes we do just that, but at lower levels of the organisation, where “line of sight” to profitability is less than clear.

But folks, if you’re paying big (or even “any”) bonuses or incentives to managers, leaders or executives, and your company’s performance is in the tank – “Stop it!”

First, some definitions. I use specific words in compensation to mean specific things, and the two that are key to this article are Bonus and Incentive.

• Bonus – A Bonus is just that. Something more than expected. Something provided on top of that which I felt deserved or was entitled to. If I buy a single-scoop ice cream cone, and the young lass gives me two scoops, that’s a bonus. Not sure what I did to get it, not sure how to get it again, but plenty pleased that I received it now.

  Same thing with a Bonus in compensation. Happy to get it, certainly grateful, but no clue exactly why, or what I can do to ensure its payment again next time.

• Incentive – An Incentive, on the other hand, is the payment for an “if-then” statement. If you do this, then I’ll pay you that. If you exceed production by 10%, then I’ll pay you 5% of your annual salary. I know what I did to get it, and presumably know what to do to get it again.

  And Incentives are expected. We had an agreement, and I expect you to honour it with payment.

So, if we want to encourage behaviour with compensation, it’s clearly going to be through incentives. But we must use caution; it’s easy for the “law of unintended consequences” to creep into incentive efforts. So, what makes an appropriate, effective Incentive Plan?

First, it must reward correctly. In the compensation world, it’s not what you want, wish for, hope for, or manage to; it’s what you pay for. Many an incentive plan short-circuited when it was discovered it promoted behaviour we did not want, just to get to results we did.

Pay attention there.

Next, it must influence behaviour. By that I mean a couple of things:

1. It must be understandable, that is, I must realise what I can do to reach the incentive, and

2. It must be sufficient to warrant a behaviour change. Make it chump change if you want, but don’t expect your best and brightest to get on board. Realise that, if you get it right, it doesn’t really matter anyway, does it?

Finally, it must, must, must be kept simple. Complicated plans create two significant issues:

1. They become too onerous for people to comprehend. No understanding, no change in behaviour.

2. Employees believe that complicated plans are simply corporate subterfuge. And I agree. Plans do not need to be tomes like War and Peace. A page or two tops is all they should take. More than that, and you are clearly talking about why we won’t pay the incentive, instead of why we will.

Incentives can work. They can provide the behaviour changes you need in your employees today to drive results in the face of almost any economic conditions.

Done well, and you’re paying incentives from a bucket of money that you wouldn’t have had anyway, so it’s great! Done poorly, and you’re paying out money after losing money.

Let’s avoid that last one, shall we?

Guest Author:

Kevin Berchelmann, Triangle Performance. Described as a Human Capital Expert by The Harvard Business Press, Kevin Berchelmann helps new managers at private equity, Fortune 500 and small to medium sized businesses become top leaders that deliver results.

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com.au/subscribe/

Building On The Strengths Of Your Team

Outstanding managers spend more time developing the strengths of individual team members than they do in correcting weaknesses. They encourage team members to continue to learn and grow rather than just settle for mediocrity. So how can you build on the strengths in your team?

Firstly, consider how you can give them variety in their work. The longer people keep doing the same thing, the less satisfied and engaged they become at work. But here it is important to give them new experiences that they want to experience.

Most people will respond well to new experiences that are consistent with their strengths and interests. Look out for strengths in your team members and ask them about what parts of their work they most enjoy or would like to develop. Sure, with some problem staff, you may need to look very hard to find their strengths, but I assure you they are there. It is just that their strengths are being used in an evil way.

Some people also respond well to challenge, where they are stretching themselves. The research says that about 40% of people generally would like more challenge in their work, but it needs to be challenges they want to take on. How do you find out? You simply ask them. Great managers regularly have discussions with their staff about how they are going at work, strengths and interests they would like to develop, and challenges they would like.

Mentoring is also a great way to help team members to develop. In every team, there are star performers and experienced staff who would be more than happy to mentor others. This not only gives them the feel-goods in helping others but also variety in their work. There are also some advantages to using mentors outside your workplace.

Training programs can also help to build on the strengths in your team. Team members will always benefit more from training in areas they themselves have identified as a need. So consider asking your team what they would like to learn or what challenges they are having that could be addressed in a training program.

So that’s it. Start talking with your team members – offer them variety, encourage their strengths and interests, give them a challenge, and offer mentoring and training opportunities.

Ultimately, your team is only as good as the time and investment you put into them.

Guest Author:

Ken Warren is Australia’s leading speaker on Dealing with Demanding, Aggressive and Unmotivated People. With his engaging, interactive and positive approach, Ken has shown thousands how to turn difficult people around and bring out their best.

 

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com.au/subscribe/

Finders Keepers – Losers Weepers

How to attract, retain and develop your talent. A must read for all leaders and managers – if you want to keep your best people away from the head-hunters and weekend papers!

Finding talented people isn’t all that hard. Throw a ‘Start Up’ bonus on top of the attractive salary package and they probably won’t say no. Keeping them… now there’s the challenge. And if you thought the ‘War on Talent’ has already occurred, think again. The job market is hot, and the battle lines have been re-drawn. And as far as your organisation is concerned, the fight is on to retain staff who make up those talented individuals who conservatively add at least 20% to the bottom line.

What makes the difference between employee engagement and disengagement?

Make sure your leaders are serving up ample quantities of ‘The Seven Universal Life Requirements©’. They are a recipe for creating employee fulfillment. These seven requirements underpin our ‘value’ system, and leaders are notoriously bad at making sure their talented people’s ‘emotional bank accounts’ are topped up regularly in these areas. Let me explain.

Success leaves clues, and there are patterns in people’s behaviour. Whilst we are all unique and individual, we are all human beings and therefore instinctively similar. You can basically take all the things people value, desire, need, are motivated by, or driven to achieve, and distill them down into seven universal requirements we need satisfied in order to feel fulfilled as a human being.

The seven universal requirements

1. Belonging
   A sense of belonging is a primal urge and requirement. We all long to feel connected to a family, work group, or to belong to a cause. And, of course, we all require love and affection. As one senior leader of a client organisation put it: “The team needs a bit of a cuddle occasionally!”
2. Importance
   As human beings, we all have a need to feel special and significant to someone. To know that we make a difference and we are ‘worth’ something. This is one of the deepest needs humans experience, and the absence of it causes significant issues for many.
3. Absolutes
   We require some absolutes in our life. We need to be certain we can feed ourselves, pay the mortgage or the rent each month, or know with absolute certainty that our partner loves us. Children love us unconditionally – we absolutely know we make a difference in someone’s life.
4. Diversity
   In an apparently cruel paradox, our creator has decided that whilst we need some things to be absolutes, we will also want some variety. We all have experienced the feeling of boredom if life does not serve up some variety and diversity. Variety is, after all, the spice of life.
5. Personal development
   We all have a fundamental requirement to grow. Some people lose sight of this and then wonder why they don’t feel fulfilled. We were designed to expand, grow, and evolve in terms of our capabilities, knowledge and skills.
   Let’s look at people who have started a new career or job. They will tell you they left the old job because they were not growing anymore, and now they feel excited and outside their comfort zone. In essence, their need for diversity is now being fulfilled again and they are growing personally or professionally.
6. Altruism
   This is about making a contribution. We feel more satisfied and fulfilled when we are contributing to someone or something else. We are giving back – a deep instinctive response overlooked by many. A true leader is always contributing to the growth and well-being of their team and therefore making sure that this requirement is met.
7. Faith
   Faith is defined as confidence or trust in something or someone, a belief which is not based on proof. We are not necessarily referring to religion here. For some, this is simply a belief and faith in something bigger. Read any article about why people leave companies and change jobs, and you will frequently hear the feedback “I lost faith in my one-up leader, or the direction the company was moving”.

Note:

• The first four are Fundamental requirements: We will do anything to have them satisfied. We will compromise a value in order to get a ‘Universal Requirement’ met.
• The last three are deeper Spiritual requirements: They are often missing. People can have the first four met, but without the last three they feel a sense of un-fulfillment, and yet often can’t put their finger on why they feel what they feel.

Rules of thumb in any relationship:

• If 2 are met  – Connection occurs
• If 3 are met – Rapport occurs. They like you.
• If 4 are met – They become addicted/they care.
• If 6 are met – They forgive mistakes.
• If all 7 are met – LOYALTY; The chances of leaving are slim.

Some initiatives to keep your talented people engaged – and saying ‘no’ to the recruitment head-hunters:

1. Create a career map or pathway – Document a clear career pathway for your people. Include the skills and competencies they will need to develop along the journey. Design some positive consequences in respect to managing the overinflated expectations of Gen Y.
2. Structured induction training program – Too many companies inadvertently make ‘new starts’ feel like a nuisance. In this time-poor world, many outwardly positive staff send the wrong sub-conscious message: “I have better things to be doing than training you!”. A well structured induction training process is a fast track way to ensure potential talent feels a sense of belonging, connectedness, and of value.
3. Coaching and mentoring program – Implement a structured ‘coaching and mentoring’ program for your emerging talent. This strategy will build a nice retaining wall around your talented people – despite market offers from your competitors.
4. Training and development – Implement a targeted training and development program to up-skill the workforce. It will make your staff think: “Thank you for investing in me. I feel like this company values me. I’m growing personally and professionally.”
5. “Open door” return policy: Promote an ‘open door’ return policy to the valued talent who has succumbed and left the company for greener pastures. Drive from senior levels and have the CEO personally thank them for their contribution to the organisation and inform them of the ‘open door’ return policy.
   Based on the ‘Don’t burn your bridges’ motto, the aim here is to make it easy to re-enter the company, if indeed the grass was tougher to chew! Surprise, surprise. Some good people were welcomed home.

Remember the rules of thumb above – serve up all seven requirements and people get addicted and staff loyalty increases to the extent that it will take something rather significant to move them. If all seven needs are being met, why would you ever leave?

In summary, it seems the ‘War on Talent’ will not be won in the trenches, but driven by a well thought out action plan to retain and engage your talent.

Re-examine how well your organisation scores!

Guest Author:

Ian Stephens. Ian is a sales specialist and peak performance coach. He has a passion for the practical, coupled with an ability to inspire and equip people with simple everyday tools they can apply immediately to make more sales and profit.

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com.au/subscribe/

How Good Managers Can Be Great At Retaining Staff

There are two main areas of influence it is essential to get right to retain employees and keep them engaged and happy.

Employees will stay with you because of two major influences:

1. Policies of the organisation: learning and development, remuneration, performance management and reviews, promotions, and so on
2. What their manager does and doesn’t do, says and doesn’t say … every day

So while businesses will often focus on this first area – and it is essential to spend the time getting it right – policy is only half the story. It cannot work without its twin, which comes from real-life experience, what actually happens in reality with their manager.

And by manager, we’re not looking at hierarchy. We’re talking about people managers – anyone who manages someone else.

Without a doubt, the manager has the single greatest influence over the employee’s decision to perform, to stay, or in fact … to quit. In a nutshell, managers make people stay – and manager’s make people leave.

Good managers who want to be great managers and truly engage their team may feel they need to learn more and reach for a large ‘how-to’ book on being a great manager. They read up, they study. However, there is no article or book in the world which is going to tell you how to retain your specific team of individual people.

The solution is so much easier – you simply need to ask the people who work for you.

Spend time with your people and find out what they need more of, less of, what gets them up in the morning, what really motivates them, what they want from you as a manager. If you ask in the right way, they’ll tell you. Then it’s up to you to follow through. That is the way to be the best manager you can be – for each individual on your team.

As a starting point, here are eight manager secrets when aiming for greatness:

1. Be approachable – visible, friendly and helpful
2. Communicate effectively, regularly and use many channels. Remember sometimes we need to hear the message more than once to absorb it
3. Meet as a team regularly
4. Allow employees to make mistakes and learn
5. Look for opportunities to recognise effort and results
6. Be flexible about work/life demands
7. Give credit where credit is due
8. Be knowledgeable – and share your knowledge

If you have concerns about employee retention, getting the policy side of things right is essential. But don’t leave it at that. Spend as much time on your people managers and what they are saying and doing with their people as you can. Train them with staff retention skills. Encourage them to create engagement plans and have engagement discussions with their team. Give them support and systems to be the best manager they can be.

Creative ideas to practice

Managers can contribute to their teams in so many ways – mentoring, finding opportunities to introduce variety, instilling and encouraging passion, giving enough space, giving enough support … just to name a few.

Here are some practical ideas for managers to start doing today. These small things can make a big impact.

Five creative ideas for reward and recognition which helps managers 

Look for opportunities to recognise effort and results.

1. Personalise your pay slips 

   If geography permits, consider asking managers to hand out/email a personal note with the pay slips, so managers can say ‘thank you’ or recognise a contribution in that time period.

2. Wall of fame 

   If you are in a service environment and an email or letter of thanks comes in from a client, frame it and put it on the wall. This often means a lot to the person or team more so than anything else. Plus, visitors love to read the letters too.

3. Get out of the chair 

   Every day remember to give thanks and recognition to your team. Get up out of your chair and spend time with someone on your team, even just for a few minutes. Phone them if they are in a different location. Ask them about their day, if they need additional help, what they are working on.

4. Encourage bright ideas 

   Try giving out a lightbulb filled with candy to anyone who comes up with a bright idea. It generates excitement and encourages ideas to keep coming in. You could also do something like Karma currency instead – where the organisation makes a donation but the person chooses which charity to support.

5. Treasure box 

   Have a small treasure chest of goodies, such as movie tickets, gift vouchers, book vouchers, etc. Choose someone to recognise every fortnight or so and let them choose something out of the treasure box. May seem a little contrived, but you’d be surprised how well it works.

Four creative ideas for work/life balance

Help managers ‘be flexible about work/life demands’

1. Set the example

   Model balance and share with your team what you do to achieve balance in your life. Do not support workaholism.

2. Put it on the agenda 

   Hold a ‘balance’ discussion at a team meeting, or one-to-one with each team member. Don’t discuss anything else except balance, so they know it is important to you.

3. Ask them 

   Ask your team members what else they have going on in their lives and what matters most to them. Get to know their non-work interests.

4. Show your support 

   Support your employees in achieving balance. Some examples: encourage them to go to their child’s school plays or for a golf lesson or encourage the organisation to support a charity drive for their cause.

Guest Author:

 

Lisa Halloran is the Director of Retention Partners. Lisa’s background includes 4 years in political market research and 14 years experience in HR management and consulting roles in television, maritime, retail, manufacturing and insurance.

 

Republished from CEO Online – your online business resource – www.ceoonline.com. Get valuable business tips and easy-to-read articles delivered direct to your inbox every week. Register NOW for your copy of CEO Online’s FREE e-newsletter: http://www.ceoonline.com.au/subscribe/