Winning at Working: Herd mentality
Booths featuring products and services related to employee engagement, mobile learning, global performance, and results measurement were overflowing with conference attendees as I walked the trade show at a national conference where I was speaking. Just a few years ago the magnets were initiatives like total quality management, six sigma, diversity, work-life-balance, and customer driven.
Every few years there are band wagons of “solutions” for the ills troubling companies, with contingents of experts ready to sell the latest “fix” to eager herd-minded buyers. Reinforced by trade and business magazines featuring successful company examples of this “new” thinking, they’re gobbled up like chocolate chip cookies in a kindergarten. It’s interesting that started-but-failed initiatives aren’t highlighted, or the long-term impact of unintended consequences scrutinized for what these flavor-of-the year programs elicit.
If generational differences are the headlines now filling business magazines, then you’d better start addressing them, right? If work-balance is unbalanced and hijacking your employees’ morale, it’s time to hire a consultant, right? Maybe. But what if “balance” is as illusive a concept as happiness, needing to be defined and managed by the individual not some company entity? Or it’s a buzz-word for deeper issues undermining effectiveness in the workplace? What then?
The solution to these and other organizational issues is not herd thinking. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not one to dismiss ideas or thought leaders who shift our collective perspective. Nor am I quick to ignore technological changes that make innovative communication more productive and efficient for businesses and individuals. And I’m certainly not suggesting that well-founded and sustained initiatives are not important for businesses or industries or bottom-line results. They are.
But the tag-along herd approach of throwing the latest program or consultant or technology at a problem, or cloning the practices of “best companies” for your department or organization can do more damage than good if these same initiatives are the wrong fit, or sit dormant after launch collecting dust on a shelf in management offices, only to be replaced with the latest, hottest, next thing that ignites a “gotta have it – gotta do it – this is the answer” mentality.
Herd-following fails when the behavior accountability for what is introduced is not linked to bottom line results, or integrated into workplace practices with rampant, sustained, patient focus.
The answers to complex problems that plague your business are usually not band wagon solutions. More often than not, people problems result when what leaders say and what they do are not in alignment.
If you introduce a new program as an important company initiative, but relegate it to HR or training or customer support to champion, instead of making it an accountable strategic objective, don’t be surprised when it’s as successful as those motivational posters hanging on bulletin boards.
If budget tightening happens when sales plummet, but you award yourself a bonus before freezing the salary of your staff, don’t be surprised when discretionary efforts and innovative ideas get frozen, too. When you treat employees as one-size-fits-all interchangeable parts, don’t be surprised when they treat customers that way. And when scathing emails from top leaders feel like parental tirades, don’t be surprised if they’re answered with sandbox antics.
You see, you can buy the latest social-networking interface for collaborative staff work, or the best learning programs for staff growth and development, or even the most innovative gadgets for staying connected, and you can even provide a stellar menu-driven employee benefit plan, but if you’re missing the foundational pieces of credibility, trust, and respect with your staff, you’re missing the ingredients needed for any sustainable and successful initiative. Want a winning organization? Start there.
Award winning author of Hitting Your Stride: Your Work, Your Way. Nationally syndicated radio host of “Work Matters with Nan Russell.” Nan Russell has spent over twenty years in management, including as a Vice President with QVC. Today she is the founder and president of MountainWorks Communications, as well as an author, speaker and consultant.
Nan Russell: It’s personal
Off to dinner the night before I was the keynote speaker at a regional conference, I wanted something good, but casual; calming but moderately swift. So, my husband and I selected an interesting looking place within walking distant of our hotel.
By every want I originally articulated, the restaurant exceeded expectations. Yet at the end of our meal, I was less vitalized than when I’d walked in, and our waiter was the reason. Don’t get me wrong, he was a good waiter, from a service standpoint. But his self-focused lens tainted the encounter.
When we didn’t order the white wine pairing he suggested, but a favorite red instead, he was visibly annoyed. When I passed on his favorite entree, he acted as if I offended him. And when my husband chose a dessert different from the one he recommended, his cold-shoulder rebuff was memorable.
Now, a few weeks later, I realize that waiter did what many of us do in our workplaces: he took his work personally, instead of making it “personal.” He viewed our choices that were away from his suggestions through an about-him perspective. He wasn’t considering that while we found his suggestions interesting, they weren’t what we wanted that night for dinner. And it was our dinner, after all.
He’s not alone. Too many of us take work situations personally. We believe we aren’t being heard when our boss doesn’t implemented our suggestions; we think our co-workers are ignoring us when they don’t follow our recommended approaches; or we perceive our staff as stubborn when they want to do a project their way.
But people who are winning at working shift perspectives. They don’t take it personally when you don’t select their idea, use their computer short-cuts, or follow their approaches. They realize it’s often simply personal and individual preferences. What works for you reflects your style, needs, wants, and desired results. Theirs does too.
Still, people who are winning at working know it’s not enough to recognize that we have different likes and dislikes, make different choices, support different approaches, or decide different things. It’s not enough to understand that it’s all personal.
The bigger understanding needed in the workplace is this: it’s not about you. If that waiter had perceived dinner as about us, the guest, he wouldn’t have taken our choices personally. If his service had been personal (i.e. about us) our decisions would never have been taken personally (i.e. about him).
People who are winning at working orient toward others. They view their job as making your job easier, or being of service, or meeting your needs. So, if they’re a job seeker, they’ll make that interview about you: how they can help, support, or solve your problem. If they’re a software engineer, they’ll look for the best way to make it simpler for you, their user. And if they’re a boss or coworker they’ll help provide the support, recognition, and interesting work that you thrive on so you can do your best work.
You see, people who are winning at working realize work and workplaces have changed. Today it’s all about the personal. This age of the individual is punctuated by custom t-shirts shipped in twenty-four hours, have-it-my-way phone apps, menu-driven computer software, my-music play lists, personal YouTube channels, work-from-anywhere telecommuters, and billions of comments from bloggers, tweeters, and 500 million Facebook users.
What that means is this: we will create the best results, products, solutions, and service when we take ourselves out of the equation and focus on others, as individuals, and what they want at any given time. Bottom line? If you want to be winning at working in this age of the individual remember this: when it’s all personal, you definitely can’t take it personally.
Column by Nan Russell. Read more from Nan at www.nanrussell.com.
Nan Russell: You don’t need an expert
You don’t need an employee engagement expert to confirm what you already know and Gallup polling substantiates: the majority of employees are disengaged at work. You don’t need an employee survey to tell you why discretionary efforts are tamed, passions for work are fleeting, and ideas are tethered. And you don’t need a consultant to explain why cynicism is up, enthusiasm is down, and trust is the new workplace currency.
All you need is to reread the children’s story, “The Goose that Laid the Golden Egg.” Remember that story about the greedy farmer who wanted more than one golden egg each day? By the story’s end, he had killed the golden goose and was left with no golden eggs at all.
Every day company leaders unintentionally kill enthusiasm, ideas, and initiative. They eliminate resources while still expecting immediate results. They shut out dialogue and limit open communication, while still requesting candid feedback. They pocket stock options and bonuses, while reducing staff salary and benefits. They reward unfavorable behaviors, while operating with myopic interests and escalating bureaucracy. And then they wonder why those they are striving to engage are alienated, distrustful, and fed-up.
You don’t need an expert to tell your organization that while basic productivity and job presence can be bought, staff ideas and discretionary efforts must be earned. In this era where intellectual property (the golden egg) is the competitive edge for most enterprises, organizational survival is contingent upon natural followership. So, a 20th century mindset that sees employees as interchangeable pieces won’t fuel innovative products and services, or enhance customer impressions in this now 21st century.
You don’t need an expert to tell you that out-of-touch leaders operating like medieval warlords with refrains like: “just make it happen;” “there’s no budget;” “I don’t care what it takes;” or “they should be thankful they have a job” fuel employee mind-sets akin to a scene in the movie, Stone Cold.
In that movie, Tom Selleck plays a small community police chief at odds with the town council who is telling him how an investigation should be handled. “We can fire you,” the council tells him.” “Yeah,” he responds, “but you can’t tell me what to do.”
Employees know what many leaders haven’t figured out yet. Parental, top-down cultures are as old-school as one-size-fits all print-only marketing approaches. What’s needed to change the direction of suffocating the geese with the golden eggs is a balanced understanding, which includes:
This is Not an HR Problem to Fix: If you’re one of those leaders (or companies) that proclaim employees are your most important asset, then either make that statement true, or stop saying it. What’s wrong in workplaces across America can’t be fixed with HR programs. Better recognition, more communication, or enhanced training isn’t enough to build trust and develop mutual respect.
Recognize We’re In this Together: Yes, there are problems with some leaders. But there are problems with some of the rest of us, too. Finger pointing, blaming, perpetuating an “us vs. them” mentality exacerbates the problem. Bottom line? We need each other to survive and thrive. Disengagement costs jobs and future opportunities.
Own Your Piece: If you’re a leader, take a look in the mirror. Yes, you’re under extreme pressure to meet goals and quarterly numbers, but ask yourself: are you killing the initiative of those around you with terse emails and escalating demands? Are you caught-up in a single-player game? And what about the rest of you? It’s not your company’s responsibility to make you engaged at work. This is your life, your career, your challenge. Ultimately you work for yourself, no matter who signs your check. Own your motivation and your future.
What’s Ahead?
We are approaching an era where the strongest performers, those with the golden eggs of ideas, experience, solutions, and innovation will accept nothing less than workplaces that enable them to do their best work.
These winning cultures will fuel the next generation of exceptional organizations that understand, in the big scheme of things, it’s only when we’re all winning that we truly all win. And no one will need an expert to explain why these are the magnet 21st century companies that thrive.
Column by Nan Russell. Nan is on the web at www.nanrussell.com.
Nan Russell: Beyond your tasks
Column by Nan Russell
www.nanrussell.com
Ever hear the story of the two masons working side by side at a building site? They’re doing the same work under pretty much the same conditions. One day a stranger comes along, approaches one of the men and asks, “What are you doing?”
“I don’t know and I don’t care,” replies the man, his voice brimming with irritation. All I do is slap this crummy mortar on these crummy bricks and pile them up in a crummy line. That’s what I’m doing.”
The stranger returns to the building site the next day. This time he approaches the second man, asking him the same question. “Tell me,” he said, “what are you doing?” Smiling at the stranger, the man proudly replies, “Why, I’m helping to build the new cathedral.” Continue reading “Nan Russell: Beyond your tasks” »
Nan Russell: What basics?
Column by Nan Russell
www.winningatworking.com
The cyclical and now ubiquitously appearing phrase, back to basics, ignites supporters. The reasonableness of returning to previously successful principles, ethics, systems, accountability, approaches, or you-name-it, appears a tantalizing remedy for our individual or collective woes.
Who can argue with the refocusing trend of business to trim waste or reconnect with customers, or an expert’s approach to help income-starved entrepreneurs at a motivational conference, or a pundit’s prescription for Toyota’s headline woes? Like a dieter refocusing his energy on an intake-to-output equation of eat less exercise more, a back to basics approach works. At least for awhile. Continue reading “Nan Russell: What basics?” »
Workplace heists
Column by Nan Russell
www.nanrussell.com
Seated in the courtyard of a sports bar during a playoff game in the home city of one of the teams, it was an energetic crowd that Sunday. While we’d come for a quick bite to eat, we caught a glimpse of a play now and then as home-team enthusiasts roared their approval during the first half.
When a man sat down next to us with two friends, ordered a pitcher of beer and maneuvered around to glimpse the game, we barely noticed. But when he hassled the waitress every few minutes trying to intimidate her into getting him a table closer to the TV where none existed, his rudeness and her apparent discomfort, drew our attention. Continue reading “Workplace heists” »
Maybe Scrooge was right
Column by Nan Russell
www.nanrussell.com
Thirteen percent. That number should make you pause if you manage staff, lead a group, or own a business. It’s a number recently released from an on-line survey reported by Reuters.
According to Right Management, a subsidiary of Manpower Inc, only 13 percent of employees surveyed said they “planned to stay in their current positions.” Two-thirds reported they’re looking to change jobs in 2010, and another 21 percent indicated they’re networking now, just in case.
Pent-up frustrations and workplace treatment during the economic downturn were the primary reasons given in the survey. But don’t just blame the recession. Disengaged employees are not new news. Gallup was reporting nearly seventy percent of the U.S. workforce disengaged well before recent economic troubles. Why? Why this level of disengagement? Continue reading “Maybe Scrooge was right” »
Nan Russell | The art of change
From the iron age to nearly the industrial age, blacksmiths prospered. Villagers needed plows, shovels, iron tires for wagons, nails and tools to build their homes, all of which the blacksmiths forged. They needed their horses and oxen shod and their tools repaired. Being a blacksmith was a sound professional choice. Continue reading “Nan Russell | The art of change” »
Nan Russell | Two-sided answers
The room was lovely, the bed inviting, the architecture interesting, and the philosophy appealing. That was my impression as we checked into a newly minted green-hotel in a resort town where we were eager to spend time relaxing.
But when we checked out, lovely wasn’t on my mind. Protective glass on the combined soaking tub/shower looked terrific, but giving a child a bath was impossible; oversized ultra-modern faucets made face-washing without watering the floor an Olympic challenge; and shin-high pointy edges on a platform bed covered by a flowing duvet made room navigation perilous. There were numerous functional issues. Continue reading “Nan Russell | Two-sided answers” »
Nan Russell | Your five acres
It was the third time in as many weeks he’d asked to see me. Once again sitting across the desk, Jeff was expressing distress at something. This time he was upset that Lydia was making more money than he was. Last week he was unhappy with the hours Joe wasn’t putting in, leaving at five when he was often stuck past six. The week before, he registered a complaint about the way work assignments were handed out by his supervisor. As my mother would say, “Same song, thirtieth verse.” Continue reading “Nan Russell | Your five acres” »
Nan Russell: Dueling frames
Posted by afp on July 20, 2011 · Leave a Comment
To my right sits a frame all about “the girls.” Random granddaughter pictures culled from the last four years since my elevation to Nana status: babyhood, crawling, walking, running, holidays, playtime, bedtime, family time. Each image brings a heart connection of smiles and laughs and virtual hugs to my day.
The frame on the left of my desk is a recent edition; a birthday gift from my husband. Clandestinely scanning hundreds of pictures from our life together, and select pictures from our respective families as we were growing up, his gift brings forward memories long housed in my heart of younger times, family times, sad and joyful times.
Filled with images of people we love, places we’ve lived, and times we’ve shared, this kaleidoscope of emotional connection brings reflective pause to my day.
As I write this, “the girls” frame is displaying a picture of my son, holding his then three month old daughter, who is meeting her great-grandmother for the first time. We traveled with my son and his family to California for this precious moment. As time stopped, the picture captures my mother’s joy at the soulful union with this first baby of her third generation.
Competing for attention to my left is a robust picture of my father on Christmas morning, playing on the floor with my then toddler son. The kind zestfulness in his eyes speaks to me through his pre-Alzheimer’s face, evoking loving memories, and giving me a hit of happiness.
It’s funny about my dueling frames. Some days I spend a few seconds of pause to breathe in the memories; other days, I seek them out so I can connect with these filed away memories or joyful recent ones from my ever evolving life. In both cases, being surrounded by loving thoughts offers a meditative, reflective component to my day.
In the scheme of things, whether it’s pictures that prime the pump of memories, or music, or random loving thoughts, I know I need that connection. I think we all do. We need remembrance of our individual journeys and collective happenings to keep us grounded, and offer us perspective.
My dueling frames have taught me this: we forget ordinary moments in life’s tapestry that provide the backdrop to the why behind the what of our lives. We forget where we’ve been, as we hurry to get to the next place we want to go. And we forget what really matters in this illusionary race to be, to get, to have. I, for one, need gentle reminding.
Filed under Blogs · Tagged with nan russell, winning at working, workplace