Adding More Value

A 2015 Harvey Nash survey shows that HR professionals are increasingly unhappy with their jobs.  Part of that dissatisfaction stems from the way HR is perceived.  It’s perceived as a place of punishment, restriction, secrets, and  control.    The question is:  How can we change this perception to one of performance, strategies, and inclusion.  It takes more than just a title change and new business cards to transform your image from bureaucrat to business partner.   It takes action. Fortunately,  you don’t have to wait for someone to give you permission or approval to change the brand of your department, your team , or just yourself.

Here are some actions to take right away to achieve quick wins.

Read a book and talk about it.  When your stay aware of trends, practices, and news related to your industry, you’re in a better position to be an adviser to your internal clients.  Articles, white papers, and book summaries, are great ways to stay informed as well.

Share a success story.  Sometimes my clients feel like their situation is the worst one ever.   They believe there couldn't possibly be a feasible fix.  I assure them that they are not the only person to deal with a team member who wears PJ's to work; a vendor who tells inappropriate jokes; or an employee who does great work, but can’t play nice with others.   I share success stories of how I've seen these issues resolved.  More importantly, I share with them what course of action it took to reach that happy ending.

Share solution alternatives.  When a client comes to you with an issue, they may already have a solution in mind. Rather than just mindlessly executing what they have requested, partner with them to reach the best solution.  Talk about the proven strategies and alternatives.  Discuss pros and cons of each possibility.  Then make a recommendation based on the resources, time-frames, risks, and benefits involved. 

As an HR professional,  you have the professional expertise and background that sets you apart;  your HR history is an asset and so are you.  Before you know it, peers and leaders throughout your organization will see you as a partner; not because you told them you are, but because you prove it.

WHAT, SO WHAT, NOW WHAT!

It’s another new year – another January.  This is the time of year that is supposed to be pivotal.  It’s when we make potentially life altering, or at least habit changing decisions.  Yes, it’s that time again.   But, research shows that despite our best intentions we end up, in 3 weeks or less, abandoning all those great ideas, hopes, and promises called resolutions.

Let’s think about a different way of approaching resolutions.  In fact, let’s not call them resolutions at all.   Let’s call them life changes.  In order to make effective life changes we really need to think about what we want.  What we desire in our lives.  We have to take stock of some things.  I call it evaluating the What, So What, and Now What.  It’s a three-part process that leads to life changes.

What

Consider what matters most to you.  Think about what you want to accomplish, what you value, or even what your dreams are.  For example, you might desire an advanced degree. The degree would be your What.

So What

After you determine your What, you have to be sure about why it matters.  The significance of the What will keep you driven, motivated and accountable.   For example, So What explains why you desire that advanced degree.  It might be something you need to achieve in order to get promoted, afford a better education for your children, retire early, or simply have more career fulfillment.   These are important results you might be seeking in your life.  So when your What gets tough, you keep pushing on because of the so what.

Now What

This is where you consider how you will achieve what you want.  It’s where you will begin as well as the ongoing steps you will take to accomplish your What.  In order to get from where you are now to where you want to be there will be work, effort, and probably sacrifice as well.  But, you cant get there overnight; it will likely be a journey.  For example, if you want an advance degree (what), in order to get promoted (so what), you first have to identify and apply for schools.  Some research will be in order to determine the different programs available, cost involved, and requirements. 

That's how your What becomes reality.

'Tis the Season To Get Stressed Out!

I'm learning a little something about stress these days.  I recently got married, I  am in the process of building a new home,  I'm negotiating details to move my mother in with us, and we are starting a new family.  Not to mention I'm running a business,  managing real estate investments, teaching fitness classes and staying active with church ministries.  I've learned that busyness can mean stress, even when the busyness is beautiful.

What I've learned through this ever-changing journey could help you:

I don't perform or react ideally when I'm too_____________.
When I'm too tired, too frustrated, too sad etc I'm not at my best. When I feel myself becoming too (insert emotion here), I know its time for a chat with my bestie, a catnap, a walk or a quick game of candy crush saga to get me back on track.

I need to be heard.  
Sometimes I need to vent.   When I'm overwhelmed, I can't always see the forest for the trees. I might also need help talking through decisions and problem solving.

Encouragement drives me. 
I'm a self motivated person. I don't usual need help getting and staying motivated.   But there are days (like yesterday, for example) when I get locked out of my car, sprain my wrist, have a disagreement with my partner  and I'm running late to my meeting when I just need an extra push. ..or better yet a hug.  I need someone to remind me that I can do it and tell me everything will be OK.

The key is knowing myself.
It's imperatives that I successfully analyze and access what I need.  Then I have to know what source to seek out in order to get the appropriate direction and support.  It's no different than the principles I teach in leadership development workshops.   Know what you need;  know who can give it to you; and ask for it.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS
www.site.yourenhance.com

Stress Is Tearing Down Organizational Performance

I was recently introduced to The Chair.  It is no ordinary chair, of course. It has headphones that play relaxing sounds, dark glasses to bring the hemispheres of the brain into balance & numerous rotating and gyrating elements to provide a soothing massage. By reducing stress it is said to improve staff performance.  As a result, a growing numbers of organizations are investing in them and making them available for use on site.

This reminded me of a company where I used to work where there was a billiards table in the conference room. It also brings to mind a manufacturing client of mine where, every time I visit, I find a foursome is playing ping-pong in the gym.   Were the employees happier, more productive, more engaged?  Some research says yes.

It’s easy to discount and dismiss this topic or push it to back burner to address more pressing matters. But according to the American Institute of Stress at ‘Job Pressure’ is the biggest single cause of stress in the US. The annual cost to employers in stress-related health care and missed work, they suggest, is a massive $300 Billion – and it’s getting worse.   So if your company is looking for ways to reduce costs and increase profitability, stress reduction could be the way.

According to Towers Watson’s Global Benefits Attitudes survey, workplace disengagement increases significantly when stress is high, and so do levels of sick leave.  Also stress employees tend to ‘retire on the job’ – that’s the practice of showing up to work & consistently being under-productive.

Should HR and Talent Development professionals be paying more attention to finding solutions to stress? Or should they focus on areas that are easier to measure?

What works best to de-stress and motivate in your organization?

And what stressful issues are you dealing with presently?

So you think you can multitask? Not a chance!

If you're a parent,  a supervisor, a coach, or a grade school teacher, I bet you think you multitask all the time.  

Sure you can do multiple things simultaneously.  However, the idea of multitasking implies that you are successfully and effectively focusing on two (or more) different activities at the same time.  The operative word here in FOCUSING.  You might be able to effectively perform two tasks at once as long as only one of them requires your attention.  It's why you tell your teenagers not to text and drive.  It's why you don't let them watch TV while doing their homework.  

TASK SWITCHING
When we think we're multitasking, we are really task switching.  That's what author, Dave Crenshaw, calls it in his book The Myth of Multitasking.  We focus on one task for a few seconds, then switch our focus to the other task for a few seconds.  Both tasks don't have our full focus continuously.  For example:  You read your email during that conference call but you only tune into the call when you hear your name mentioned. You are talking to your sister on the phone while folding laundry. You're listening to her complain about her job until you find an busted ink pen in your jean's pocket. Then you're no longer listening to sis as you check all your clothes for ink spots. You park your car at the grocery store and don't remember where the car is because you were busy dealing with rambunctious kids while you were parking.  

Still not convinced?  Watch this video and see if you notice everything going on.

Distractions and Interruptions
Distractions and interruptions are the reason we cannot effectively multitask. A London based study revealed that when a person attempts to multitask, his concentration is diminished to the same degree as if that person were medically sedated.   Other things, people and priorities catch our attention and take us on a tangent.  And, we become "sedated" - unresponsive, lacking focused, not clear headed. 

Striving to be un-sedated
The next time you attempt to multitask, think about what you're focused on and what you should be focusing on.  Think about your top priority at that moment.  Be aware of your own reactions and interactions.  Notice how often you ask others to repeat themselves or don't remember the content of a conversation or communication.  In 2015, my goal is to be "unsedated" while I spend time with my family and friends, as well as my clients.  I don't want to miss any precious moments or important information. 

Let Them Learn Right Where They Are.

More and more often my clients are looking for ways to get just-in-time learning to new leaders regardless of location, job functions, and work hours.   They are facing the fact that everyone won’t and can’t physically gather in a room at headquarters for each training initiative.  So, I’ve been doing my research on leadership training and mobile learning.  Here are a few facts I uncovered recently.

·         The average age of managers when they get leadership training is 42. Yet the average age when they become managers is 33, according to an ATD study.

·         Less than 10 percent of employees under the age of 30 get the opportunity to participate in leadership development, according to a Ken Blanchard Companies study.

·         More people have mobile telephones around the world than have access to indoor plumbing, according to the United Nations.

Investing in current managers and future leaders today, rather than a decade too late might finally be a feasible possibility with mobile learning solutions.

When ATD published Mobile Learning: Learning in the Palm of Your Hand in 2011, the report mentioned a not-yet-common term called the app.  It also questioned whether recently introduced tablets would soon dominate the world of mobile devices. That year, 57 percent of surveyed learning and business leaders predicted that they would be using mobile learning in the next three years.  In 2013,  a similar study found that only 15% of the surveyed organizations were designing and/or utilizing mobile learning.  This year’s (2014) survey revealed a growth spurt: 28 percent of respondents confirmed that their organizations made internal learning content available via mobile devices.   Mobile learning adoption continues to be grow, albeit, slowly. 

What I learned from the ATD study is there are a couple of factors influencing organizations’ ability to adapt and adopt mobile learning applications. 

The decision to build it or buy it is one factor.   Organizations have four basic options: 1. 1. OEM learning apps  2. Enterprise wide solutions vendors   3.Outside consulting services; and/or   4. Internal development.  The ATD Study analysis shows better performance and learning effectiveness for those organizations that opted for internal development of their mobile programs.

The other factor compromises several element, all of which are obstacles to adopting mobile learning solutions.  The top drawbacks can be summarized succinctly as lack of money, fear of the unknown, and technology problems.  Organization leaders are asking whether or not they have the time, human capital and technical support to embark on such initiatives. 

If you’re organization has or will soon add mobile learning, share you thoughts, lessons learned, best practices and questions with us on social media.

What You Say Says Alot About You.

Noted author and human behavior specialist, Marshall Goldsmith, conducted a survey of 200 employees recently.  The results reveals one resounding truth:  We bash our bosses.

Many of us take jabs at our boss at work when we’re talking to co-workers. We bad-mouth our bosses after work to anyone who will listen.  And we even talk trash about our bosses on weekends when we’re with our most captive audience – our family. Astoundingly, workers spend about fifteen hours a month doing this.

A little bit of boss bashing is understandable. Its how many people vent their frustrations and release stress.  But, the potential therapeutic gains are often outweighed by the negative impacts.

What do you accomplish when you critique a person who isn't even in the room? They can’t respond to what you’re saying.  They can’t explain (or defend) themselves.  Certainly, no corrective action or improvements can be expected.  It’s a completely unproductive exercise.

In fact, the only thing you may succeed in changing is your reputation.  Your colleagues’ opinion of you could be tarnished when they discover you tend to gossip about and slander teammates.  Your remarks may come across as petty or even belittling.  Sound business teachings tell us to be respectful of people when they are absent; don’t talk about them behind their backs. In the book Speed of Trust, Stephen Covey calls it ‘showing loyalty’. 

The reality is this:  Boss bashing doesn't build better bosses. Imagine what you could accomplish if you dedicated fifteen hours to something substantive like going back to school or spending quality time with your spouse.  The next time you start to bash your boss, think about what you may be doing to yourself and those around you. If you have a legitimate issue that needs to be addressed, put on your brave face and talk to your boss about it.  The book, Crucial Conversations, gives some great pointers on this.  If you feel you can’t talk to leadership, consider whether or not you really have (or want) a future at that organization.  You have options; it’s up to you.