Are you Ready to Rebound? ~ Seven questions to ask by Donald Sull

March 5th, 2010

The recession of 2007 has leaders realizing that they must set a broad strategic direction while remaining open to unexpected opportunities that appear along the way. History has proven that volatile markets do produce opportunities. You see shifting regulations generate unexpected sources of funding; changing consumer preferences create demand for new products or services; and distressed competitors selling off assets cheaply.
More than ever, companies need the capability to consistently spot and execute on unexpected opportunities before competitors do. Donald Sull conducted research over the last 10 years, studying firms hat excelled at execution in some of the world’s fastest-changing markets, and most unforgiving industries. Through his research he identified common obstacles that undermine an organization’s ability to execute on their established strategies and take advantage of unexpected opportunities. According to Sull, by asking themselves seven questions, manager can quickly assess their companies’ readiness to rebound.

• Do you miss opportunities that others spot?
o To continually identify gaps in the market, firms need real-time data and the ability to share it widely throughout the organization.

• Are your hydraulics broken?
o Organizational hydraulics are the processes to set strategic priorities, cascade objectives, and measure employee progress in achieving goals. In many organizations, execution stalls when executives deluge the organization with multiple—and often conflicting—priorities.

• Do you reward mediocrity and call it teamwork?
o Executives often socialize bonuses in the name of teamwork, arguing that differential payouts could stifle cooperation and long-term thinking. Sull believes this is a mistake. To ensure execution, organizations should recognize and reward individuals who do what they say they will with large bonuses. Paying for performance also attracts and retains ambitious employees and encourages them to execute on current priorities.

• Are your core values a joke?
o Companies that execute on their strategies ensure they have the right culture, people and leadership for execution. According to Sull, the most agile organizations share a core set of values: achievement that recognizes and rewards employees for setting and achieving ambitious goals; ownership to take personal responsibility for results; teamwork to foster coordination; creativity to challenge the status quo and integrity to offset the temptation to cut corners that can arise when employees strive to hit ambitious performance targets.
• Are you talking about the wrong things?
o Managers spend approximately three-quarters of their time in discussions—hallway encounters, formal meetings, phone calls and email exchanges. An organization’s execution depends on how well managers are able to set up and lead discussions for action.

• Have your Vikings become farmers?
o As a business matures, early entrepreneurs may leave for new adventures or settle into safe routines. New employees join the company for its perceived stability, not for adventure. Firms need farmers of course, but companies with too few Vikings on the payroll struggle to execute with sufficient urgency.

• Do you rely on heroic leadership?
o Executives who dash from crisis to crisis are a sign of organizational weakness, not leadership strength.
Donald Sull is a professor and faculty director of executive education at London Business School. His most recent book is The Upside of Turbulence from which some of the ideas in this article were adapted. To read more, check out Donald’s article in the March 2010 edition of HBR http://hbr.org/2010/03/are-you-ready-to-rebound/ar/1

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An Overwhelming Number of Indian Leaders Take HR Seriously

February 28th, 2010

I read a great article in the March 2010 Harvard Business Review. According to their research, twice as many Indian leaders as U.S. leaders think that human capital drives business success. Among the Indian firms they studied, 81% of the heads of HR reported that employee training and development was essential to building competitive organizational capabilities, whereas according to a survey by the American Society for Training and Development, only 4% of U.S. Chief Learning Officers head that view of their own operations.
Their research demonstrates that they place an intentional focus on employee motivation by:

• Creating a sense of mission;
• Engaging through transparency and accountability;
• Empowering through communication; and
• Investing in training.

According to its authors, creating a real sense of social mission, whereby employees can feel that their work has impact, is a harder but achievable goal as is becoming a role model for employees. They believe Western leaders would do well to understand the managerial approaches that have fueled the rise of India’s largest companies, and mindfully adapt to them. To read the article in its entirety, click here

~Kathy Albarado

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Listen to Kathy Albarado on Executive Leaders Radio

February 17th, 2010

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Preventing the Snow from Wrecking Havoc on your Business

February 10th, 2010

Yet another day of blizzard conditions. That was a word that was barely uttered in the Washington area in previous winters, yet now it appears to be commonplace. So what actions should one take to proactively combat what there is no denying mother nature? I came across this blog post from Joe Mechlinski, of EntreQuest, a colleague and trusted advisor and I encourage you all to read it. Good, good stuff packed in here (yes, pun intended)…Let us know how you are creating opportunity out of this weather!  Click Here

~Kathy Albarado

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Onboarding and Assimilation: The First Step in Retention and Productivity

January 31st, 2010

An employee will remember their first day of work at a new job. They will remember if their new manager and team were eagerly awaiting their arrival with warm smiles. They will remember if their workspace was ready with an internet connection and ready phone line and even more so a welcome package on their desk; not just with typical HR paperwork, but maybe a company logo t-shirt, set of pens or coffee mug. The first day will set the tone for their new job. And the level of effort put forth by the employer to welcome their newest hire over the months to follow could possibly determine the length of their stay and their level of productivity. The area’s top employers recognize the trends associated with new hire orientation and employee retention and are adopting robust assimilation programs. These programs are targeted toward:
• Decreasing time for employees to become productive.
• Promoting behaviors aligned with organizational goals, values, and culture.
• Building loyalty by demonstrating commitment, which sets the foundation for employee retention.
• Help to further the impression that the new hire chose the right organization.
The first day should be the beginning of employee engagement and retention initiatives and helping the employee to develop a sense of belonging. Here are a few best practices in building a successful onboarding and assimilation program:

1. Help the new hire further the belief that he/she chose the right organization: Many pieces of a “robust” orientation program will help to ensure that this happens. However, simply mapping out the new hire’s first week and ensuring that the “small things” are taken care of go a long way in reinforcing the new hire’s decision. Examples include: making sure their e-mail and phone are setup, cleaning their work space, having business cards ready, etc.

2. Be Proactive with Pre-Orientation Initiatives: New hires who haven‘t yet reported to work and may be weeks away from their start date can use the organization’s intranet to learn about the organization‘s culture, policies and benefits. Some organizations have developed web portals where they will be able to fill out forms online so they wouldn‘t have to get an employee paper packet sent to them by mail. Technology or packet – either one will help to ensure that the new hire’s first day is not filled with too much paper pushing – concentrate on assimilation.

3. Be Prepared: Have an Agenda or Slide Show Presentation: Slide show presentations help to ensure that all agenda items are covered with all new hires. The presentation should include organization history, products, services, direction, goals, vision, strategy, culture, policies, development opportunities, benefits, communication mechanisms, and the performance management system. Always provide employees with useful materials including but not limited to a list of contacts, an employee handbook, professional development information, and internet, email, and voicemail instructions. “Compliance” should be minimized as much as possible in order to focus on onboarding and assimilation.

4. Clearly Define Roles and Responsibilities: Ensure that everyone understands their roles and the schedule in which their responsibilities are completed. While every organization is unique in how the onboarding responsibilities are shared throughout the organization, here are some general guidelines for splitting up onboarding duties:
- HR department. Employee paperwork (forms, benefits, etc.); work hours; history and background of the organization; review of the organizational chart; tour of the facility.
-Training department. Delivery of the onboarding program elements; lectures and discussions about organizational culture, goals and objectives; review of company videos.
- Supervisor. Duties and responsibilities; work behaviors, standards and expectations; introductions to fellow team members and other members of the organization; tour of the department; review of other roles and relationships within the department.
- Co-workers. How the group works as a team; how to get things done; how to find/requisition tools and equipment.
- Executive team. Mission, vision and values; strategic goals and objectives of the organization; high-level review of roles and responsibilities; description of organizational culture.
- Mentor/buddy. Introductions to fellow team members and others within the organization; review of informal rules and policies; answers to day-to-day questions.

5. Get Senior Management Involved: Senior management interaction shows employees that the company cares and that the decision makers are not unknown entities throwing down orders from Mount Olympus. A member of Sr. Mgmt should also present the first part of the orientation slides focusing on the history, direction, goals, vision, strategy, etc….. This Sr. Mgr should be enthusiastic and a firm believer in the organization’s mission (Create a Shared Vision) – this will help the new hire buy into the organization’s mission/direction/strategy and become excited and engaged from the first day.

6. Socialize and Integrate with the Team: Managers are generally busy but it is imperative that they make themselves available during the new hire’s first week. Also provide new hires the opportunity to meet their peers – this will help new hires feel comfortable and welcomed more quickly by becoming part of the team on their first day/week. This can be accomplished by team lunches, cross-departmental meetings and a mentor/buddy program.

7. Tailor Onboarding to Different Audiences: The process may be modified to meet the differing needs of various groups of employees. For example, all supervisory and management employees will need a review of not only the employee handbook and company policies and programs, but also information on how to administer or lead these various programs and policies.

8. Create a Formal Follow-Up System: Set up follow-up interviews by asking the employee about their experiences so they understand that they can make a difference AND so you gain invaluable feedback from new hires who can still see over the corporate fence. This may be connected to an onboarding survey or questions about the management team, organizational communication, etc. Continuous informal manager feedback and direction are also critical. The manager should ensure there are no roadblocks impeding the employee’s success. A more formal performance discussion should be held after 3-6 months and the employee should be encouraged to discuss problems and find ways to provide support. Also, these discussions provide critical opportunities to coach for improvement and ensure the employee feels his or her work is interesting.

9. Evaluate the Program’s Effectiveness: HR professionals will want to evaluate their organization’s onboarding strategies using a variety of metrics.
- Turnover/retention rates. Examine the turnover/retention rates for different “graduating classes” (for example, those who began their employment in 2007) and track the different rates of those classes.
- Retention threshold. Track the point at which most new employees tend to exit the organization (for example, 50 percent of employees tend to quit the organization within the first 90 days of employment). If the organization tends to lose many employees during the first 90 days of employment. For example, the organization might want to conduct in-depth exit interviews to determine the cause (e.g., promises made but not kept, lack of thorough understanding of any negative working conditions).
- Performance measures. For example, compare the performance of a group provided with only one week of onboarding experiences with that of a similar group provided a full month’s worth.
- Formal/Informal feedback. Especially in smaller organizations, HR professionals may want to gather small focus groups consisting of recent new hires (or conduct this research one-on-one) and ask open-ended questions to determine their satisfaction not only with the onboarding process but with the organization as a whole.

10. Be Open to Change: Robust orientation requires a large amount of organizational resources and a sincere leadership commitment. However, helping employees to become productive quicker and aligned with organizational goals also requires constant assessment, reevaluation and adaptability. Flexibility and the ability to make changes will allow your organization to provide your employees with a “best place to work” environment.

What is your company doing to show their employees that it is the best place to work? ~ Holly Davis, Manager of BD, Helios HR

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Hiring for ‘Fit’

January 15th, 2010

According to Monster.com, reports show that the Washington D.C. labor market is expected to return to positive job growth in 2010. 46% of recruiters surveyed in the Mid-Southeast stated more than half their openings are difficult to fill. The current economic environment has created additional challenges for employers and recruiters when searching for potential candidates and making hiring decisions.

Hiring the right fit is critical to an organization’s survival. One bad hiring decision is an enormous cost to the organization and goes beyond the initial salary and benefits investment. The true cost of a bad hire includes recruiting costs, training, salary, benefits, reduced team productivity, missed opportunities, and the negative impact on top performers. Dealing with underperforming employees is a psychological drain for the manager, and a frustration for top performers.   Organizations that are slow to address a bad hire experience negative impact on employee productivity and increased risk of turnover of the high performers. Studies show the true cost of a bad hire is anywhere from one to five times the employee’s first year salary.

Finding the right fit goes beyond identifying a strong skills match. It is important to ensure you have a cultural match as well. For example if you have a creative laid-back culture without a lot of structure, potential employees should be motivated self-starters who can operate well without a great deal of process.  Applicants from a large company environment who are accustomed to detailed process and resources, may struggle in an emerging organization that has yet to implement its process. In a start-up organization, it is important to find people that are flexible, thrive in a fast paced environment and enjoy wearing multiple hats. When making your next hire, we suggest you:

· Evaluate your organizational culture and solicit feedback from your team. Keep in mind your perception may not always be reality, so feedback is important.

· Talk to your high performing employees.  Determine traits they have in common and why they enjoy working for you.

· Be clear on the skills and character traits needed for success in the position.

· Identify what success will look like in the position a year from now and seek candidates who will meet be successful now, and in the future.

We’d love to hear your stories of how ensuring you hire for fit has worked well for your organization!

~ Bridget Pulivarti, Senior HR Business Partner, Helios HR

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Harnessing the Power of Effective Networking

January 8th, 2010

Please note that this blog isn’t meant to discuss the power of social networking…that’s a topic in itself!

I once read that “the best networkers do not even know that they are networking - they are simply being good conversationalists; adept at becoming visible; talking and responding, and getting to know people.” So, does this mean that the best networkers are also successful in driving new business from their networking efforts? Not necessarily.

It can be said that the growth of any business is directly correlated to the number of people who know about it. Therefore, networking (giving your company a “face,” connecting with others and learning about what’s happening in your industry) is crucial to business growth. But networking is far more than shaking hands and being seen; it’s about effectively making connections that bring shared successes. Here are a few simple tips on how to harness the power of effective networking:

Learn to Communicate – Big and Small: When people ask you what you do, make sure you have a strong and clearly defined answer. It is important to articulate the purpose of your business in an easily understandable and memorable way. But keep in mind that to be a good networker, you sometimes need to put the “elevator speech” aside and make small talk. Listen when others are speaking, get interested in what others are offering and contribute to conversations in a personal way. People do business with people they “know, like and trust” and that comes from making a personal connection as well as a business one.

Set Goals: When you attend an event, have a pre-set goal of how many new contacts you would like to make. Be sure to introduce yourself to people you don’t know. You will defeat the purpose of networking if you continuously stick with familiar faces. If you are already well connected, ask people to make introductions for you. Be sure to do the same for your contacts by asking them who they are interested in meeting or getting connected with.

Be Strategic: A key to successful networking is to participate deeply in an organization or professional group that offers opportunities for you to meet PROSPECTS. List all the networking groups you currently participate in and then define which groups are truly putting you in front of potential clients. Know the difference between the events you need to attend and the ones you want to attend and prioritize them as such.

Follow-Up: If you are successfully making new contacts, be sure to follow-up on anything mentioned in your conversation. If you have trouble remembering all of the details, make notes on people’s business cards directly following the event. You may have passed the “know and like” phase but you still have to gain trust; this likely comes from doing exactly what you say you will in a timely fashion.

What strategies are you currently using to effectively network and build new and successful relationships?

- Written by Holly Davis, Manager of Business Development for Helios HR

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Goal Alignment: Is it Working?

January 7th, 2010

Ask each of your employees to name their New Year’s resolutions and you’ll likely hear a wide variety of responses, reflecting the breadth, depth and interests of the talent you employ. But if you ask them where your company is headed in 2010, and what the organization’s top goals are for the coming 12 months, will you also get varied responses across your workforce, or will you hear one consistent reply?

Most importantly, if you ask each of them how their job and responsibilities tie in to the organization’s 2010 goals, can they respond without hesitation? Do they know how their contributions impact the company’s success? If so, you’ve likely done a great job of communicating clearly and consistently, and the new year is the time to reinforce key messages with renewed clarity and purpose.

However, if employees are not clear on where your organization is headed in 2010, and how they each play a part reaching the company’s goals, the new year brings with it the opportunity to re-align the contributions of each employee toward the same end goal; to ensure that everyone is rowing together, in the same direction, and toward the same destination.

Every person you employ has a distinct and important role to play in achieving the organization’s overall success. Their ability to do so relies in part on ensuring they have accurate and clear information to ensure their efforts are most effectively aligned with the company’s as a whole.

Senior leadership can restate and reinforce key organizational plans, goals, objectives and challenges in the year ahead so that every employee knows the answers to: where are we now, and where do we plan to be in 12 months from now? What is our focus for 2010, i.e. grow revenues? Maximize profits? Increase market share? Ensure superior client support and service delivery?

Next, managers’ roles are critical: to help each of their direct reports translate the organization’s goals into their individual jobs. Managers can help ensure that each employee is able to answer, “How does what I do today impact the bottom line, and the organization’s success?” by working together with employees to carefully set – or revisit – individual goals aligned to these outcomes. This means combining the familiar, tried and true “SMART” goals formula – Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-bound – with the often ignored but critical TOPS – Tied to Organizational Priorities and Success.

Ultimately, this collaborative process should be owned by both manager and employee, with the employee accountable for achieving the goals, and the manager accountable for ensuring the employee has the tools, resources, and requisite experience, skills and expertise to accomplish them. Both employee and manager alike should be able to easily articulate what success would look like if goals were achieved.

If your company conducts annual performance reviews in January as many organizations do, you already have a mechanism in place to review past performance and goals, clarify organizational priorities, and to set new goals in the year ahead. If your organization conducts performance evaluations on a rolling basis or at a set time in a different point in the year, you can still take advantage of the new year to reinforce clear messages organization-wide, and hold check-in meetings or discussions with each employee. Either way, invest in the time and effort as 2010 begins to ensure that each person’s efforts are in synch and tied to the same end goals you hope to achieve by 2011. ~ Jacqueline Dendievel, Practice Leader, Helios HR

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What Will 2010 Bring?

January 1st, 2010

I don’t pretend to know the future, but I do know that having a goal, stating it, writing it down, and visualizing it, helps you get closer to achieving it.   An early mentor of mine, Bill Walton, CEO of ITC Learning, always told me, “if you can visualize it, you can achieve it.” He was a firm believer in the power of visualization. 

For years I have focused on New Year “Goals” vs Resolutions, as I feel a resolution is too easy to give up on.  A Resolution is almost a proclamation, but does it also include the steps necessary to ensure its successful attainment?

One of my personal goals is to have a more targeted focus on my family.  The steps to accomplish this may include: eating more meals together; having at least one activity night a month and being intentionally ‘present’ when we are together (which means not working/texting/emailing during time that has been designated as family time.)  To make the actions even concrete, they can be made specific and measurable. Having a plan of action helps ensure the goals get achieved. 

A professional goal is to enhance existing relationships with Helios team members, clients and partners.  I have some ideas to do so, and some of them are quite simple, such as calling and meeting more frequently.  Others include an intentional focus in inviting them into our existing community. 

My question to you is “What goals have you intentionally set for 2010?”  They could be both personal and professional.  And if you need others to help ensure their success, how are you communicating your goals?  Achieving success in reaching a goal is often recognized when steps are broken down to accomplish them.  Wishing you much success in 2010.  We’re ready for a phenomenal year ahead!

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Sometimes Slowing Down is Necessary

December 26th, 2009

Recently a colleague and advisor shared a story about the Chinese Bamboo.  For me it was so relevant, not because I am a horticulturist, but because it tells the story of  “paced growth and slowing down.”  There is a book I’ve enjoyed reading by David Kundtz called “Stopping, How do be Still When you Have to Keep Going.”  

Are you in business and focused on the bottom line? Struggling to grow? Anxious to gain a competitive advantage? Then maybe you cringe at the thought of Stopping.” “Why would I Stop? The idea is to Go!” But according to Kundtz,  the Going is getting us into deep trouble. That is, if we are Going without first Stopping.

Kundtz states that for whatever length of time we do it, we need to spend fallow time, still time, quiet time, time with no agenda at all. I believe we’re talking about the difference between merely surviving and really thriving. We must learn again to become peacefully still.

The definition upon which the practice of Stopping is based:

Stopping is doing nothing, as much as possible, for a definite period of time — whether a moment or a month — for the purpose of waking up and remembering who you are.  That with defined periods of ’stopping’, our relationships are deeper and our actions more intentional and focused. 

His point folds nicely with my colleague’s Bamboo story.  Chinese Bamboo must be carefully nurtured for 5 years before its stalk grows at all. Can you imagine many of us having the patience to invest 5 years of our time before we see any return at all?  Ahhh…but when it does sprout, in a six-week period the Chinese bamboo tree grows to ninety feet tall!   It seems incredible that a plant that lies dormant for years can suddenly explode with growth, but it happens without fail with bamboo trees.

Joe Mechlinski at EntreQuest wrote a nice blog post about this principle.  I encourage you to check it out!

http://www.entrequest.com/chinese-bamboo-take-the-time-slow-down/

 

~ Kathy Albarado

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