Don’t Forget to Plan to Unplug, When Planning Your Vacation!

A vacation is what you take when you can no longer take what you've been taking. - Earl Wilson

It’s June, school is out, temperatures are rising, and it may be time to plan a relaxing get away. We all know that vacations are a healthy way to recharge our batteries and refresh our spirits. However, with that said, according to an Expedia survey, American workers left approximately 448 million unused vacation days, or close to $68 billion worth of relaxing, re-invigorating, family and fun moments in their cubicles and offices in 2009, and only 38 percent planned to take all of their vacation days last year.  

These findings are understandable in these difficult economic times, but I also anticipate there are other issues influencing vacation decisions:

• the "they can’t do without me" attitude held by workaholics and individuals who see themselves as more valuable than they really may be
• options available to workers to not use vacation days; i.e., trade in for pay
• the strange "happiness" Americans seem to get out of working more so than any other global work group
• co-worker pressure with regard to picking up the slack while someone is gone

Whatever the reason, organizations should encourage workers to look beyond those issues and take some kind of meaningful break from work. It’s important for each individual, and we certainly see the positive results re-energized workers have on improving workplace performance, quality and productivity.

Whether you are planning a vacation or a "staycation" (time off from work to stay at home) this summer, one of the most important elements in your planning for a relaxing time to renew your spirit is to unplug.

This Is Your Brain on Computers
More and more research is being conducted on the impact 24/7 technological stimulations have on rewiring the way our brains function. According to a NY Times article by Matt Richtel, "scientists report that juggling e-mails, phone calls, and other incoming information can change how people think and behave. They say our ability to focus is being undermined by bursts of information which play to a primitive impulse to respond to immediate opportunities and threats. The stimulation provides excitement – a dopamine squirt – that researchers say can be addictive. In its absence, people feel bored."

Consider your attachment to emails, Blackberry, iPhone, IM, Facebook, LinkedIn, iPad, Sykpe, the list goes on….. Depending on your level of need to be connected with these technologies, it’s understandable why an ‘unplugging strategy’ should be a critical part of your vacation planning. Just like any addiction, (that’s what researchers are calling our anxiety and need to check these devices) trying to stop "cold turkey" is difficult, if not impossible. The key to success is in the planning.

Planning To Unplug
Accepting the fact that we all have some degree of addiction to these devices and the stimulation we receive from them justifies the need to include some special considerations in the vacation planning process. Be serious and purposeful about developing an unplugging strategy that will work for you, and provide you with as much isolation from work activities as possible.

CNN recently completed a series addressing this specific issue - No Vacation Nation. In addition to the strategies listed below, check out their articles for tips and techniques that will help you reprogram your behaviors and allow you to improve your abilities to be present where ever your vacation travels take you, and with whom ever you are enjoying them.

• Initiative Dialogues with your boss, team members and stakeholders to engage them in sharing insights and observations about what key issues will need to be addressed during your time away and how they can take care of those issues with no or limited availability from you.  This strategy helps you clarify your intentions as well as what’s hot, while allowing others the opportunity to step up and expand their roles and responsibilities. You may be surprised that they don’t need you as much as you thought they did.
• Ease into your new routine at least a week or so before your departure date. Set up an away message that notifies e-mailers and callers that you will not be checking messages after a certain hour, and that you will get back to them in the morning. It’s appropriate to invite them to contact you or a backup person should there be an emergency.  This strategy allows you to practice not reaching for the Blackberry, laptop, Iphone, iPad, etc. You can begin to wind down the amount of stimuli you are craving and turn your focus to the vacation plans and packing. After all, an important part of the vacation is the anticipation of what you’ll be seeing and doing – don’t miss out on that!  When the time comes, update all away messages providing contact information to the person filling in for you.
• Professional development is an important part of every job. In addition to on-the-job training and mentoring, stepping in while you are on vacation is a great way for a colleague to get the real feel and experience of the job.  Cross-functional training is an important strategy for any organization. Use vacation planning time as a re-enforcement for workers to demonstrate their understanding, expertise and abilities to step in should there be an emergency or advancement opportunity. 
• It’s all about you - create a reasonable plan that you can honor. If it’s too impossible for you to leave the technology behind, create a schedule that’s workable for you and your travel companions. Just like planning your meetings and work projects, plan for those times when you might (if you think of it, or have time) "check in." But show discipline – remember your goal is to be as disconnected as possible.  If you feel you need it, allow yourself a brief opportunity to check in and delegate messages to others. Perhaps a half-hour after lunch and an hour before dinner would do. Whatever the schedule, don’t expand it. Honor what you negotiated with yourself and let that be it.  Doug Gross from CNN shares this strategy, "Before leaving on vacation a radio show caller shared that he gives all his passwords and user names to trusted friends. One person gets e-mail, another Twitter, etc. They’re under orders on the day he leaves to go in and change the passwords; and when he returns, they change them back." If this is what it takes for you – do it.
• Practicing the art of mindfulness can assist with reducing the urge to ‘check-in’. Being in the present moment at all times and not letting your mind wander away with distractions helps people relax and enjoy their vacation. Here’s a great article by Jay Dixit from Psychology Today to get you started on developing your mindfulness skills. 
• Plan for your return. Most researchers find that individuals get anxious the night before returning to work from a vacation, anticipating what will be stacked up and waiting for them. With this in mind, plan for this type of situation, should it occur for you, by allowing a few hours before you go to bed to review and prioritize what needs to be addressed the first morning you are back.  Even before you leave on vacation, plan for your first day back to be a catch-up day and avoid scheduling meetings, calls, appointments or other commitments that will take you away from easing back into your groove. 
• Be conscious about your privacy. Just a side note while we’re talking about unplugging: Don’t post your vacation plans, dates, locations, etc. on Facebook; this is like an open invitation to criminals. If you feel compelled to let the world know the details of your vacation, wait until you return.
• These strategies work for family members as well. More and more research is being published about the addiction children are showing to video games, Facebook, computers, texting, etc. As you plan for and model your self-control over technologies you have a great opportunity to also engage the entire family in the process. There could be some great learning here for everyone.

Hopefully you’ll enjoy the unplugged experience so much you’ll periodically revisit it. Learning to moderate technologies, just like you do your intake of other substances and activities that we know can be harmful to our health, is a healthy strategy for everyone impacted by increasing technological demands.

So What’s Next?
The world continues to spin faster and workers are increasingly seduced by the instanteousness and connectedness of ever-advancing technologies. It appears to me that it’s time for HR and IT to not only ensure we receive training on how to use the new technologies effectively in order to do our jobs more efficiently, but to also teach us the skills and techniques for managing our mental and physical health while using these tools.

Linked with these training responsibilities also comes the importance of establishing a culture that values vacation times, unplugging strategies, and healthy management of technology tools. Robots can work 24/7 – people can not.

I’m not an advocate of disconnecting forever, but I personally can share that I have found giving myself permission to disengage after 6:30p in order to spend time with my husband and provide myself with some "quiet time" has been very helpful in managing workplace stress. As I plan an upcoming vacation, I too will be trying to unplug and have some quality re-energizing time. I know it won’t be easy, but including this component into the planning process will give me a higher probability of success.

What do you think about unplugging for periodic breaks or vacations? What works for you? What role, if any, should HR and IT play in improving our knowledge about the pros and cons of working with technology devices?  Please share your ideas and comments below.

Getting Workaholics to Unplug

Boss or Friend - or Can It Be Both?

I’ve recently observed two situations that surprised me. One was a meeting where the Chairman refused to send late notices to several customers behind in their payments. He stated he didn’t want to do this because he was, in his words, "trying to be kind and compassionate to those customers having problems during these challenging times." In another situation, a senior management leader rationalized why he wasn’t relieving a manager of her duties and replacing her with someone who would actually do the work, because he wasn’t sure "she had enough time to really accomplish the task," (she had had a year so far).

The reason I was surprised (and I too am a compassionate individual) is that neither leader approached the situation from the perspective of being fair to everyone impacted by the situation; they had forgotten to be mindful of not playing favorites. In both situations my perception (similar to others attending each meeting) was that these leaders were making exceptions for their "friends." Somehow they had allowed their relationships to cloud their decision making capabilities to a point where they were guided by two sets of rules – rather than one. Does this biased approach to management and decision making go on in your organization? What are the business consequences of playing favorites?

Managing the Boundaries
Managers and executives are not robots; naturally they have feelings about the people they work with. As a manger working with others I often describe my relationships with words such as: trusting, warm, close, respectful, collaborative, and open. In fact, my OD training encourages me to have relationships that are based on knowing the other person as a person first, in order to create the best working relationship.

However, there is a delicate and fine line between creating and maintaining a professional relationship and being "friends." Many of us have observed how difficult it is for a new supervisor to be successful when promoted out of a group to be made the supervisor of that group. It’s challenging for the individuals in the group to accept the behavioral changes associated with transitioning to a different relationship with the leader, and for the leader to implement the behaviors now associated with a new level of authority and respect that comes with the new position. It’s much easier to move up when it’s over a group that you have no history with.

While it can be a great motivator and team building experience for the team to go out for a meal or drinks, it’s important for the boss to establish and sustain a social and friendly working relationship within a practical boundary. If that doesn’t occur, chances are the boss will lose respect, trust and the commitment of those on the team perceived not to be in the "in crowd." So, how does the boss walk the tightrope between friendly and not-too-friendly?

• The boss should be careful about sharing. NEVER share confidential company information or information about other employees.
• The boss should remember these aren’t your "drinking buddies," "gossip club," or "social network." Lead by example, balancing the appropriate levels of friendliness and respect that align with your position.
• The boss should cultivate and maintain a culture of fairness by treating everyone with the same level of respect and expectations for performance.
• The boss should not participate, encourage or condone conduct which is, or can be interpreted as discriminatory, harassing or sexual by others participating or observing the group. Never forget that you are the boss – not the BFF.
• And what about those office romances? Yes, this could be a separate blog, but I just want to mention it here. At the first signs of romance, the boss and subordinate should step back, make a decision about how important the relationship is, and then make the right decisions about how to go forward in an open and non-compromising manner. This is one of those situations where it is black and white – it is never appropriate for the boss to be romantically involved with a subordinate. I’m all for romance, but not when it impacts the workplace. Enough said.

Leadership mentoring, coaching and training are excellent options for providing assistance to managers on how to navigate the friendship boundaries in the workplace. Depending on the leader’s background, experiences, and work style these lessons may be learned quickly. On the other hand, for someone not so tuned into people issues, or someone new to management, the learning curve may be longer. Coaching and mentoring results can be strengthened by personal insights from feedback provided through assessment tools such as: 360° Feedback, Emotional Intelligence or the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. It’s all about being able to communicate clear expectations, raising awareness to the perceptions of others, and learning how to manage the boundaries.

Glass Half-Full or Half-Empty

Perceptions are a funny thing. Very early in my career my supervisor told me that "perception was reality." Armed with that wisdom he said my job was going to be much easier. I just needed to remember that what really mattered was how my employees perceived the situation, not what I was communicating. My job was to match my communications and their perceptions. Easier said than done! But you get the point. We’ve all seen the example of the Old Woman and the Young Girl (1888 German postcard illustration). They’re both there, but we all don’t see the same one. (Which one do you see?) It’s the same thing with our employees.

Most Management and HR 101 training programs advise leaders new to management careers to be careful not to become "friends" with employees. They encourage managers to be social, develop good interpersonal skills, demonstrate compassion and concern, but to not cross the thin line between boss and friend. The reason: the distance is necessary in order to be perceived as fair and equitable when making decisions that impact team members. Bosses need to be perceived as unbiased when a decision needs to be made such as: promotions, key projects, raises, layoffs, and cubicle vs. office. All these decisions are dissected by team members.

The number of psychologists available to help us with relationships is a demonstration of how difficult personal and professional relationships can be. Managing workplace relationships has its own set of challenges, and is compounded by the fact that we spend at least 25% of our lives at work! Naturally we want to have meaningful connections with the people around us, and therein lies the challenge – getting to meaningful without creating inappropriate perceptions.

I can just hear some of you questioning why it’s a bad idea for a manager and employee to be "friends." You may even be thinking there would be greater productivity and commitment if everyone was friends, but consider these points:

• History has demonstrated that being friends with subordinates does eventually create a negative perception and a work culture of favoritism. Even if the boss thinks he/she is being 100% fair and unbiased, second guessing will be taking place.
• The boss may not realize it, but other employees and managers will give more slack to the "friends," thinking that the boss will step in to side with the "friend" or protect them when a disagreement occurs.
• If the boss gets emotionally attached, those emotions will consciously or unconsciously influence employment decisions.
• If the boss sees an employee as a "friend," the boss will more than likely have expectations for performance that are unrealistic or inappropriate – "Gee, a friend would never do that…"
• If employees see the boss as a "friend," they may have unrealistic expectations about the company information, confidential or not, that will be shared with them to give them advance notice or a leg-up on an opportunity.
• Employees with the perception that the boss is playing favorites will consciously or unconsciously sour morale, negatively impact productivity, and increase personnel issues for the boss to manage.
• Of course, there’s always the chance that the boss and the company may be sued if employees perceive they are being discriminated against based on their perception that another employee is getting special treatment.

So What's Next?
As our workplaces become more flexible, and our technologies allow us to be connected 24/7, it’s important for organizations to help bosses manage the boundaries. Organizations need to:

• Discuss the pros and cons of being "connected friends" (i.e., Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.) with employees.
• Educate managers on the legal ramifications (personal and enterprise) when there are perceptions of workplace discrimination.
• Provide appropriate protocol guidelines for meetings that are conducted outside the workplace, such as in someone’s home, especially since we’re moving towards more teleworking arrangements.
• Provide a culture and avenue for employees to discuss perceptions or concerns about unfair treatment in order to quickly correct situations going in the wrong direction and to minimize the surprise of lawsuits brought on because there was no other course for discussion.
• Provide coaches to assist managers in creating and sustaining a healthy and productive workplace.
• Provide a watchful eye over workplace flexibility options, layoffs, promotions, raises, etc. being granted and ensure that a fair and equitable review and approval process is being followed.
• Encourage and train new managers, those promoted from within a team to lead the team, to facilitate an open and honest discussion with team members to acknowledge changing roles and the impact these changes will have on their interactions and expectations. It’s best to be clear as soon as possible about the reality – the promotion has an upside (more money and opportunities) and a downside (no longer friends with subordinates) and both need to be respected.

The list of reasons to revisit and educate managers on the importance of balancing the boss/employee relationship is growing. What do you think? Is it ever OK for a manager to be a friend with employees? I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

Bob Sutton, Management Expert

Wanted: Global Managers

Do you remember the 1964 World’s Fair Disney exhibit, "It’s a Small World"? (It debuted the song you can’t get out of your head as soon as you hear it.) Well fast forward to the 21st century and we’re there – "it’s a small, small world." The notion of a global marketplace is no longer a prediction; it’s here, and its impact is far reaching. 

Globalization not only impacts companies that import and export products. It influences the operations of all types of industries that have facilities in the U.S. and overseas, as well as totally U.S.-based enterprises that have competitors in foreign countries. Today, companies with an Internet presence and a few employees can, and do, compete effectively in the global marketplace. Globalization - the movement toward economic, financial, trade, and communications integration - is impacting all types of businesses, regardless of size.

We’ve grown beyond just large corporations like Coca-Cola and Sony needing to pay attention to how international business is driving changes to our education systems, leadership development programs, customer service approaches, technologies and financial decisions. Business investments in products, services, workforces, facilities, technologies, and communities all have to consider what’s occurring in the global marketplace. Is your organization considering these influences? Is your leadership team designing strategic initiatives for competing and winning in a smaller world?

A "World-Wise" Road Map
The 2010 IBM Global Chief Human Resource Officer Study, titled Working Beyond Borders, found that "while organizations continue to develop and deploy talent in diverse areas around the globe at an accelerated rate, the rationale behind workforce investment is changing." The study findings indicate that:

• expansion requires workforce redirection to locations providing the greatest opportunity, not just lower costs
• management strategies to reflect an increasingly dynamic workforce must be re-imagined
• competitive success will depend on leadership talent to assimilate information and share insights among a diverse group of employees living and working around the globe
• social networking and collaboration "soft" skills also have a beneficial bottom-line consequence

Supporting the IBM Global Study findings, the May issue of HR Magazine, (available to SHRM members), includes an interesting article by Kathryn Tyler entitled, Global Ease.

Kathryn’s article focuses on the strategies necessary to help organizations build "culturally competent" Chief Human Resource Officers (CHRO). I saw the value of these strategies carrying over to any manager responsible for leading international work teams; not just HR. So I’m offering them for your consideration.

Ms. Tyler suggests that organizations and individuals can independently and collaboratively incorporate career learning opportunities, such as the following, to boost global leadership development:

Travel - A long term assignment may not be practical for everyone; but with a slight modification, perhaps taking an 18-month assignment with two-week trips back to the states every three months, it may be a workable option. Work and travel should be focused on countries and cultures that are important to the organization whether the location is dedicated to operations, labor or customer markets.

International degrees and workshops - Not all professionals need an international degree. Enrolling in global courses can be very educational and rewarding. Schools such as the Thunderbird School of Global Management offer courses on various topics related to globalization. However, for managers who have the time for and interest in an international degree, the experience can be valuable and allow for establishing a strong business network with executives from other countries.

Read globally - Keeping up on world news through country specific newspapers and resources such as The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, The Economist, Fortune and Harvard Business Review is a must. Incorporating discussions about current international events into management meetings can also lead to innovation and creativity.

International projects - Managers should be encouraged to study a new language, assisted by resources such as Rosetta Stone; and to volunteer for project assignments as they are identified. An organization can build a competitive advantage by locating managers in emerging markets for a year or two in order to gain an understanding of the way work and business relationships are accomplished.

Multicultural network - Leaders should be encouraged to network with other managers and executives who have international backgrounds and responsibilities, even if their role is not the same. Managers can also be matched with mentors outside the U.S. and should be offered access to opportunities where they could join in on international team projects.

So What’s Next?
The writing is more than on the wall: Globalization is here to stay, and leaders need to be taking the right steps to embrace it. Just by virtue of the word, globalization means business not usual. Therefore, it requires new thinking and new ways of doing things.

As I wrote about last week, planning and implementing organizational change isn’t a strong suit for American businesses; as demonstrated by a 70% failure rate. It takes time and commitment to successfully initiate change and to have it embraced by employees. But it can be done with the right leadership and change management approach.

According to Peyman Dayyani, VP of Organizational Development and Human Capital for Mobile Communication Company of Iran, who was quoted in Tyler’s article, "acquiring global skills should include a 70-20-10 learning approach: 70% learned by doing, 20% from being mentored by individuals with a global mind-set, and 10% by reading and attending classes." This formula can provide a good yardstick for developing the mixture of global learning experiences suited for specific organizational needs.

Not only do organizations need to consider the impact of globalization in their approach to strategic expansion, they also have to re-imagine their orientation, leadership development and human resource programs that support workforce analysis, succession planning, engagement, job rotations and more. Leadership development, especially to grow global cultural competencies, still seems to be elusive to many organizations. According to IBM’s Study, companies are struggling to both find and nurture effective future leaders.

Cultural competencies necessary for the success of global leaders according to Kathryn Tyler include self-awareness and the knowledge of how you are perceived by others; language acquisition, which not only provides a means for communication, but also allows for insights into the culture; and societal sensitivities, which allow leaders to be open to different solutions and adaptable to different cultures and work style norms. Leadership development programs focused on integrating these competencies along with the traditional leadership skill sets would go far in helping executives prepare for managing an international workforce.

The experts have gathered data, analyzed it and are laying out road maps for tuned-in organizations to follow in their quest to motivate and prepare leaders for the changing requirements of global management. What advice would you add to aid companies trying to strategize about how to prepare for success in a global market?

Professor Andrew Kakabadse

Coaching Adaptive Change

Thinking is easy, acting is difficult, and to put one's thoughts into action is the most difficult thing in the world. - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

This quote was posted today by Kathleen Friesen in her blog Ideas for Reflection. What perfect timing, as I was beginning my blog on integrating a coaching strategy into an organization’s approach to change, because "putting one’s thoughts into action is difficult," especially when you’re trying to do it alone.

For at least 15 years I’ve been writing about various concepts and techniques for successful change management. When I started, human resource/change management gurus like Wayne Cascio were quoting that "70% of all change initiatives taken on by businesses fail." Today, Harvard Business Review is still quoting that same rate. Why is it that after all this time, we haven’t improved our capabilities to be successful with change? Perhaps the answer lies in our unrealistic expectations about how change works.

Technical vs. Adaptive ChangeOne reason we continue to see a steady stream of unsuccessful change initiatives is that most organizations treat all change in the same manner. This causes problems, because not all change is alike. As more research is being conducted on our change management efforts, we’ve seen evidence that there are two types of change:

Technical change - when the solution is known and can be provided. This type of change is usually straightforward and relatively easy to implement; i.e. our assembly line needs to be updated to the latest technologies. The impact is installation of the new equipment, training on the new equipment and processes, and perhaps updates to operational policies and procedures.

Adaptive change - the solution is not cut and dry; it requires experimentation, growth, new discoveries, and adjustments to various functions throughout an organization. The ultimate solution is the product of the journey.

Adaptive Change Model, Carol Mase, Shift Magazine, Spring 2009
Used with permission.

Carol Mase, author of an interesting article, The Adaptive Organization provides a great illustration of the work and focus required for change to occur when the outcome isn’t as straightforward as a technical solution. Reading her work, I immediately wanted to layer it with the concepts Jeanie Daniel Duck writes about in her book The Change Monster.  Carol’s work is a terrific integration of the people and system realities of change.

Examining Mase’s Adaptive Change Model we see it merges two important aspects of change, once the transitional change aspect has been initiated. The process allows for the psychological trajectory of transformational change (blue line) as well as the structural journey (red line) of transactional change. Where we run into problems is trying to deal with the destabilizing events (both internal and external) that occur during change initiatives which generate "adaptive strain" and confusion. Following the red line you can see the emotional trauma brought on by change for many individuals, and can visualize where those Change Monsters are hiding, ready to jump out at every twist and turn to foil your progress.

Mase suggests that adaptive challenges require leaders that are comfortable and prepared to grow into a solution as they motivate the hearts and minds of others to embrace the new vision and perform differently. Looking at change holistically allows growth and expansion for the organization as it achieves a higher performance level and behavioral changes that are sustainable.

I found The Adaptive Organization to also be a great roadmap for how executive coaches can aid managers experiencing and/or driving change in their organizations. A coach can be a valuable partner assisting the manager in finding the courage to stay in the "Cauldron of Change" through the difficult personal work that must be done, processing changes to mind-sets and behaviors associated with Endings, Neutral Zone, and New Beginnings (William Bridges) A coach provides reassurances, as appropriate, that it’s ok to "feel your way" to the next course of action when you can’t see clearly what’s supposed to come next; supports and tempers those feelings of urgency to have all the answers before the questions are asked; and offers encouragement when personal doubt surfaces.

Tool Kit: Adaptive Change Skills and a Coach

Adaptive Change Model, Carol Mase, Shift Magazine, Spring 2009
Used with permission.

We all know the value of accountability in changing behaviors. Look at the success of the Weight Watchers program, marathon and Olympic trainers, or college study groups. If you want to change behavior, and in doing so the culture of the organization, you are more likely to have success if you are accountable on a consistent basis. That’s the job of the coach. The coach also guides the journey with assessments, honest dialogue, tough questions and a professional commitment that honors ethics and confidentiality.

Ms. Mase summarized her research by noting the key leverage points required to successfully facilitate adaptive change:

• "Implement collective conversations to produce clear, compelling and shared visions for the future.
• Ensure leadership has the abilities to tap the collective intelligence of the system while using its diversity, imagination and creativity to resolve the adaptive strain.
• Nurture leaders that builds relationships of trust, commitment and collaboration."

What would your organization be like if your managers had the support they needed to deal with the chaos of the "Cauldron of Change" and stay the course until creativity and innovation emerged?

When leaders are not properly skilled to manage themselves, as well as their organizations during times of uncertainty, organizations tend to resist the change, deny there is a need for it, and return to the status quo; aborting the change initiative and proving, "If you just wait long enough, everything will go back to the way we used to do it." Another failed change initiative!

So What’s Next?

Research indicates that organizational success is strengthened by:

• Leaders identifying and building their adaptive change skills and competencies
• Employers understanding employees will alter their mind-sets only if they see the point of the change – building trust, opening communications and soliciting collaboration are critical skills for managers to possess to motivate engagement of change
• Modifying policies, procedures, and reward and recognition systems to encourage the behaviors, culture and performance goals envisioned for the future
• Ensuring employees are building the required future skill sets to achieve the vision
• Leadership modeling new behaviors and performance expectations on a consistent basis

I’ve seen the remarkable changes coaching can inspire in individuals, as well as teams, when confronted with significant workplace change. There certainly is a place for each of the diverse training methods available today (i.e., classroom, workshops, webinars) when aligned to accommodate the appropriate transfer of knowledge, skills and abilities. The coaching experience is yet another developmental strategy providing for personalized and unique dialogues, guided discoveries, and a safe environment to practice realigning attitudes, values, and behaviors with the needs of the new organization.

We’re all dealing with change. If you haven’t taken a moment yet to read Carol Mase’s article, please do. I think you’ll enjoy it and it will help to expand your thoughts about managing change and the importance of being skilled to deal with adaptive, as well as technical change.

As you’re considering what I’ve written today, I’m curious to hear about your experiences with change: Can you see a way the Adaptive Change Model could help you facilitate change? Thank you for sharing your lessons-learned, comments and thoughts.

 Dan Heath

Crisis Management - A Must in Today's Business Environment

We’re all aware of the dramatic news reports and instant images sent around the world when there is a disaster. Certainly no one can forget the images of September 11, or the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina and the massive destruction resulting from the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

The business community, as well as communities at large, is constantly being reminded of the vulnerable nature of our world and the extreme cost of these types of disasters. Certainly some are the result of Mother Nature’s work, but other events can be just as devastating, such as financial failures from poor business management, cybercrime, computer viruses, violence in the workplace, and union strikes. Is your business ready to handle these types of crises? Do your employees know what to do in the case of an emergency?

FEMA Director Craig Fugate spoke at the National Hurricane Conference in Atlanta last week and stressed how important it is for public officials, as well as communities to be prepared to fill in the gaps in support when a disaster occurs. His message is a call to action for business leaders to ensure that each organization is prepared, that employees are aware of and preparing for disasters in their homes - mirroring what they see being demonstrated at work - and that clients and customers know how to connect to ensure continuity with on-going orders and projects. So what is your business doing to answer this call?

Crisis Management Planning
No one wants to think like a terrorist or imagine the worst case weather disasters, but that’s what needs to happen in order to be prepared; we have to imagine what types of disasters could come our way. Developing a plan using the available resources and ideas of what others are doing is best approached as a team effort. Preparedness is important naturally for an organization’s human responsibilities, and also for the financial and economic impacts disaster can bring. Establishing and implementing a practical plan to address disasters can help minimize disruption, down time, and operational chaos.

The planning phase should be led by a credible senior leader, often the Human Resources Manager. The role of this leader is to collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to systematically examine and plan for what is required based on the results of strategic and analytical discussions focused on:

1. Considering the entire universe of things that can go wrong, i.e., terrorism, pandemics, epidemics, floods, tornadoes, earthquakes, etc.
2. Analyzing each event and assigning a likelihood that it will actually happen
3. Addressing those situations with the highest likelihood of occurring and considering both contingencies: your work sites are operational, and your work sites are closed or capacity is reduced

The Internet offers a broad range of information about various specific types of crisis management planning which may be helpful to your team. FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security offer information on how to plan for continuity and disaster management in the workplace, as well as provide resources for individuals to utilize when planning for managing disasters with their families at home. In addition, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) offers some excellent articles, templates, and tips to assist both planning processes. HR should be evaluating catastrophes through three distinct lenses:

1. Employees severely impacted by the disaster (loss of family members, homes, etc.)
2. Employees impacted by the disaster (energy or transportation losses)
3. Employees not directly impacted

Get a Kit. Make a Plan. Stay Informed.
The American Red Cross program for disaster preparedness works under the mantra Get a Kit. Make a Plan. Be informed. It’s easy to remember and work with, and similar to the one utilized by the Department of Homeland Security. Working with the information available at websites such as the one provided by the Red Cross your Planning Team can gather helpful advice on how to integrate this information at work, as well as how to design and communicate tips to share with employees for preparing at home.

The Kit should contain at least the basic supplies, and someone should be identified as responsible for rotating the food and water items based on shelf-life.

The Plan should contain at least two places for employees to meet, one outside the building for sudden emergencies, and the other outside the immediate area should employees not be able to return to work in the case of an evacuation. In addition, create a Communications Plan so everyone knows who and how to contact (depending on what lines of communication are open) in the case of a disaster or evacuation. That emergency contact information, perhaps a toll free number, should be provided in writing and each employee should be requested to program the information into their mobile phones.

It’s important for the Business Continuity and Disaster Plan as well as the Communications Plan to be in writing but they also must be integrated into day-to-day business strategies. A roll out campaign with employees will be necessary initially to share the information. It should then be reviewed in on-boarding sessions with new hires, as well as periodically for updating. In addition, periodic practice sessions should be designed and conducted, just as you currently do with building fire drills.

There are a few things the HR Manager or Planning Team can do to implement the Be Informed step:

• Research what types of disasters or emergencies may occur in your area; what are other businesses planning for?
• Build relationships with local emergency preparedness officials and ensure you are staying up to date on information relative to health-related or terrorist events.
• Identify how local authorities will notify you during a disaster – radio, TV NOAA Weather Radio, etc. Identify someone responsible for making sure this equipment remains in working order.
• Know the difference between different weather alerts and educate your employees to be mindful of these distinctions, especially in parts of the country where conditions can change quickly.
• Educate employees who travel about possible disasters and emergencies that may occur in those locations and what to do in the event of such a disaster.
• When a disaster occurs, the workplace can change immediately. If there are injuries, emergency response is likely to be delayed. Make sure a representative number of employees are trained in first aid and CPR; and if an automated external defibrillator (AED) is available, that someone knows how to use it.
• Provide all employees and their families with Emergency Contact Cards, available through the Red Cross.

So What’s Next?
We are more vulnerable at work than we’ve ever been, making developing, implementing and sustaining a realistic Crisis Management Plan no longer a luxury. It needs to be a critical element of your strategic business plan, aligning with your HR, operations and financial strategies.

The Weather Channel recently reported the confirmation of 292 tornadoes as of April 19, 2011, beating the previous April record of 267 in 1974. According to the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, OK, the average for April is only 116. You may not live and work in a part of the country that is prone to tornadoes, but look at the devastation caused by the tornado in St. Louis last Friday - and they haven’t had a tornado this strong in 44 years. The time to plan is before disaster happens, not after.

I know raising awareness to possible risks and threats isn’t the best motivator for driving business leaders to take action. I’m hoping that by writing this blog on this important topic that we can start a dialogue of sharing ideas that will spark others into action. Regardless of what industry we work in, what part of the country our employees live in, or what size organization we support, a plan for what to do in the case of a disaster is good business sense for everyone. We need to keep employees as safe as we can while putting strategies in place to allow us to continue running the business and servicing our customers.

So my wish is that you’ll share a little something about what steps your organization is taking towards emergency planning, and what helpful things are you are doing to engage employees to be prepared for a disaster at work, as well as at home. Thank you for participating in this dialogue. I look forward to reading your comments.

Feel free to share this blog so we can expand the discussion, as well as information about available resources.

Business Continuity & Disaster Planning

Good Supervisors Make a Difference

In his book Rethinking Retention, author Dick Finnegan suggests that turnover has such a significant impact on profits that making senior managers accountable for hanging on to "high potential" talent will put the focus where it needs to be -- keeping the right people and reducing sourcing, recruiting, hiring, relocation, training and orientation costs.  He further suggests that a shared-responsibility model for retention can work just as it does for other business functions such as sales, quality, and safety. For this model to be successful, it’s imperative that good supervisors are actively engaged forming the foundation for a solid approach to retention. Would this work for your organization? How would you rate the level of competency of your supervisors?

Finnegan quotes a number of studies that tally the price of turnover in a number of ways. The bottom line: it’s an expensive activity, costing businesses approximately $25 billion annually. To fix the problem, it’s important to understand that turnover impacts every aspect of the organization because we’re dealing with people – and no matter what business you are in, you are first in the business of people. According to Mr. Finnegan, "People answer phones, make sales calls, move products, and make hundreds of decisions every day that impact your customers. No amount of technology will replace the impact of the people you hire, train and then lose or retain." Yes, he’s also talking about the impact of the employee you retain even when they are not good performers.

With so many job seekers in the marketplace, employers who are preparing for the upswing are more selective in their hiring, looking for the very best. Unfortunately, the best may still be working for you and ripe for picking. So what’s your defense? Better supervisors to engage with your employees, especially those you do not want to lose.

The Rethinking Retention Model and Strategies
There are three basic principles to Finnegan’s Model:
Point #1 – Employees quit jobs because they can.
Point #2 – Employees stay for things they get uniquely from you.
Point #3 - Supervisors build unique relationships that drive retention … or turnover.

Finnegan suggests that implementing the following strategies based on these principles will lead to reduced turnover and a new way for the organization to view retention:

• Hold supervisors accountable for achieving retention goals.
• Develop supervisors to build trust with their teams.
• Narrow the front door to close the back door.
• Script employees’ first 90 days.
• Challenge policies to ensure they drive retention.
• Calculate turnover’s cost to galvanize retention as a business issue.
• Drive retention from the top, because executives have the greatest impact on achieving retention goals.

The Supervisor’s Toolkit
In far too many situations technical superstars become supervisors regardless of their abilities to be a good supervisor. That strategy has become obsolete and needs to be replaced. Today a better model connects succession planning and professional development strategies in preparing great contributors to move up the management ladder by ensuring their interpersonal and communications skills, as well as their work styles align with the organization’s values and goals, including goals set for employee retention.

Start by identifying potential supervisors and begin to provide them, as well as your existing staff of supervisors, with training and development experiences to build, modify and strengthen their expectations of the performance success factors involved with supervision. For example, if your organization’s culture values an open, transparent and collaborative approach to projects and you promote an employee with a supervisory style based on a mindset developed while in the military (hierarchical, top down), the result will probably be a direct conflict with what employees are expecting from a supervisor in your organization. I’m not suggesting you not promote this employee, I’m just suggesting that before being granted the promotion he has the chance to understand his current style and the impact he has on others, learn about other management styles and demonstrate his style alignment with your culture, values, and operating standards.

Supervisory training can take many forms: formal classroom, self-study, topic workshops, mentor programs and leadership one-on-one coaching. Individuals already in supervisory roles and those being considered for the transition to supervisor should receive, at a minimum, assistance in understanding the following issues as they relate to the goals and culture of your organization:

1. What is supervision? Usually supervisors are responsible for the functions of: basic management activities (making decisions, solving problems, etc.), hiring, training and development, and ensuring compliance with policies and procedures. Taking on these responsibilities without understanding the dynamics of how they relate to and impact performance, relationships, and profitability can result in a great deal of discontentment in the workplace.
2. Do I have to manage all of this adminis-trivia? Most likely coming from an operational/technical background this can be overwhelming. Supervisors need to know what resources are available to assist them. They also need to understand the legal and strategic reasons administrative functions are important.
3. Why do I need to achieve open and honest communications – isn’t it enough that I said do it? Understanding what his/her communication style is and how that style impacts others is priceless. Most of the problems we see in organizations can be traced back to a lack of communication or poor communication choices.
4. Isn’t HR responsible for finding and keeping good people in this organization? It’s very important for supervisors to realize the significance of the supervisor/employee relationship and the critical role this factor plays in an employee’s decision to terminate. Understanding the shared-responsibility for linking development, relationships, motivation, and performance feedback is important. In addition, just as important is knowing what to do when an employee’s skills and interest are not in alignment with the job requirements.
5. Isn’t there a one-size-fits-all motivation to satisfy everyone’s needs? Learning what motivates each employee and being able to offer positive reinforcement options in recognizing good work is critical.
6. What does my department have to do with Customer Service? Content employees usually deliver better services to their customers. Creating alignment with employee and customer satisfaction could be a meaningful metric.
7. I’m ready to step up from supervisor to manager. At some point in the supervisor’s career there may be interest in moving on to a management position. Start raising the curtain on management challenges and opportunities through a mentoring process to provide a realistic demonstration of what’s expected of managers and to share techniques, tools, and knowledge that will be appropriate as the supervisor assesses his/her preferred leadership style and readiness for advancement

So What’s Next?
It appears a few elements are aligning that may quicken the beat of voluntary terminations:

• Employees continue to report they are "ready to jump" as soon as the right opportunity comes along, mainly because they haven’t seen any growth in their organization in the last year or so and they feel stagnant.
• Employers are beginning to search for "superstars" to lead key initiatives as they prepare to bounce back from the recession. Most often this is being accomplished through headhunters calling on successful prospects who are currently working for the competition.
• Customers are beginning to spend a little more now that they too are feeling more confident about the future; which will result in a greater demand for goods and services in the supply chain.

So what’s next? I’m suggesting that if you haven’t already identified the top talent you want to hang on to that you do it now. Armed with that list and working with upper management and key supervisors, begin dialogues and design motivational strategies to strengthen relationships and commitments to the organization’s goals. Help these employees understand how and why they are a valuable part of the organization’s future, where their talents fit in the ‘big picture’, and what’s in it for them to stay on and grow with the organization. Taking these key steps will help to improve the probability that they’ll recommit and stay to help build the future.

Now is also a good time to begin working with supervisors, all the way to the front-lines, to build their knowledge and skill sets to help you retain the workers you have already hired and trained. Don’t give your employees an excuse to leave.

What suggestions do you have for how to improve talent retention and reduce turnover costs? What’s a strategy that you’re finding helpful? Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts on this important topic.

Situational Leadership

How Do You React to Change?

Respond to this question using a scale of 1-5, with 1 being a response of ‘Avoid at all Costs – I like routine’ and 5 being ‘Energized By Change – I seek out opportunities to do something different.’

There is evidence that change and the frequency with which we must deal with it will continue to increase in our professional and personal lives. This fast-paced diet of change is going to require a stronger and stronger demonstration of skills such as adaptability and flexibility. These capabilities will be necessary in our home lives as well as in response to expectations from our employers when it comes to managing our careers. If that’s the writing on the wall, what are you doing about strengthening your skills to be ready to respond in a healthy and productive manner to the changes the world is unleashing?

Requirements of an Innovative World
In a recent article written for FedEx entitled Adjusting to a Rapidly Evolving Economy,  Catherine Bolgar, former editor of the Wall Street Journal, suggests that the traditional approach - get an education and then go get a job - may be becoming obsolete. Combining her notion with what business leaders say about the way they will fill jobs five years from now ("We haven’t developed those job requirements or titles yet") and it becomes clear that continuous learning and building a capacity to embrace and quickly react to change are skills we all need for the future. The fog isn’t completely lifted on how education and innovation will transition together, but as John Howkins, author of the book, The Creative Economy says, "When somebody stops learning now, it’s like they’ve stopped thinking, or at least being creative." Certainly you don’t want that description to apply to you, and you also don’t want any colleagues on your team who have given up their passion for learning and development. So what can you do?

Naturally our basic curriculum will remain relevant. We still need to learn math, science, and the ABC’s; but technology has changed what we do with the information we’re learning. We no longer have to memorize the answers – they are just a click away. But what’s important now is knowing how to understand and use the unlimited data available, analyze what it means through the filter of the big picture, and make recommendations of what steps are best to consider for moving forward. These are fast becoming critical skills for 21st century workers. 

I wrote a blog a few weeks ago about my experience judging at the SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) Student Conference.  In the past the SHRM student conference competitions were based on a Jeopardy! style of questioning, requiring students to memorize employment regulations, definitions, laws, etc. This year the format changed to one where students prepared a two page executive summary of a case study, including issues, possible solutions and recommendations. In addition, they gave a 30 minute presentation of the case, demonstrating analysis and problem solving logic. This format change was initiated as a result of what SHRM is hearing business leaders need from new employees coming into the workplace. Key among those abilities to be successful are the following:

• Adaptability
• Problem-solving
• Analysis and recommendations
• Collaboration
• Mentoring
• Entrepreneurship

Technology – a Big Driver of ChangeI was recently in the grocery store with a friend who was visibly upset and appalled that I had selected the "self-checkout" option. "Don’t you realize that you are taking someone’s job away by using this lane?" he demanded. My response, as heartless as it may have sounded was, "They’ve already lost that job, and it’s not coming back!" As technology helps businesses improve efficiencies and cost-savings, jobs will change. That’s how it’s always been – it just hasn’t been this fast.

I looked over at the other four check-out lanes that were still being managed by real people, and hoped they, as well as their employer, have their eyes open to the future. The ‘checkout’ position is going to become obsolete and they need to be learning a new skill to help them move on to the next job in their career. We’re already reading about the research and development of shopping carts with scanners on them; you’ll be "checking out" as you are shopping. How quick and easy will that be? There isn’t anything we can do to stop the march of technological progress. What we can manage is how we prepare and handle the on-going changes technology and globalization will bring.

So What’s Next?Individuals, as well as the business and academic communities have a responsibility to address these new skill sets. For individuals who do not like change, it’s important to take the necessary steps to get comfortable with it. Try new things to relax your preference for control and structure. Set up situations where you don’t know all the answers before the questions are asked. Put yourself in elements that you are not familiar with to strengthen your confidence that you can deal with whatever happens.

Employers can also help employees build these necessary skills. Through a variety of assessments employees can become familiar with their work style preferences and use that knowledge to modify them and grow capacity to deal with change. An assessment like the Myers Briggs Type Indicator for example, opens opportunities for dialog and discovery about how individuals deal with information, decisions and structure. What we know about preferences is that they are just that -- "preferences."  Just because someone has a strong tendency preferring a lot of structure and routine, doesn’t mean they can’t learn to embrace and deal with changing situations and less predictable work relationships in a healthy and positive manner. It just takes time to help them understand their preferences and assist them in shifting their immediate reactions. Self discovery work like this does require patience, commitment and possibly the accountability of working with a manager or external business coach to stay the course. However, the results can be very rewarding for both the individual and the company.

Establishing a mentoring relationship also has the benefit of sharing knowledge and building collaboration skills while dealing with real-time problems and situations. For mentors and mentees these relationships can lead to life long friendships, career development and often spotlight leadership potential that may not have been realized to date.

We may not know all the requirements for those jobs without titles and job descriptions that we’ll be filling four or five years from now, but we do already know some of the success factors that the employees in those positions will be measured by.

What are you doing to make sure you aren’t viewed as "behind the times" when it comes time for your next promotion or career change? What are you helping to facilitate in your organization to better align your workforce readiness preparation with the skill sets of the 21st century? 

Large and small organizations- public, private and non-profit - see the need to change their business strategies. Don’t forget the importance of aligning the people-management functions along with those business changes.

I’ve written this blog to start a conversation about skills required for the future and what we can do to develop them. What’s your advice about ways to improve flexibility and "soft skills"? What steps do you suggest to improve understanding and alignment with the changing relationship of education and business skill set needs?

I look forward to your answers to those two questions. Please click below and share.

Innovation and Creativity at Work

How do you react to change?