Do you respect your employees’ needs and wants the way you respect your customers’ needs and wants? If not, why not? Are your employees chattel or business partners with whom you maintain a win/win relationship? Respecting needs and wants doesn’t mean satisfying each and every one, whether customer, employee, or supplier. But if you respect and understand the wants and needs of others, you can develop more productive, mutually beneficial, and sustainable relationships. You will serve your customer better, you will get better service from your suppliers, and you will get better service from your employees. Unfortunately some don’t understand this. They think employees owe them and should be thankful to have a job.
Are CEOs, senior executives, business owners, and managers of all stripes seeking consensus too often? The demise of top down, arrogant, autocratic management is cause for celebration. Many executives and managers have seen the light and now treat their employees with more respect. They have come to realize that employees with differing expertise, experience, and positions within the company can provide valuable and varied input and ideas that facilitate problem solving, improve decisions, lead to more sustainable improvements, and save time. Furthermore, they now belief involving employees in the organization’s challenges doesn’t just enhance that one particular situation, it also energizes employees, stimulates good ideas, improves employee judgment, and saves time throughout the organization on a daily basis. They also realize there is no shame in not having all the answers themselves and real danger in making important decisions without getting critical input from others. While some old school managers still adhere to the old top down practices, despite fleeing employees, many executives are now proud of having evolved to being consensus driven and they now do everything by consensus. And that is where the problem lies. The pendulum has swung too far in many companies.
I am a consultant so you may think this posting is all about how to hire me. You’d be wrong. I only want you to hire me if the fit is right. As a matter of fact, I will not even encourage you to hire me unless: I believe I understand your objectives I believe I can help you achieve your objectives I believe you are serious about taking action and investing in your future Your objectives are all-important. And they should be business objectives – outcomes that positively impact your business. They should not be touchy-feely ideas. For example, “improved teamwork” is not a business objective. However, fewer decisions landing on your desk so you can focus on other matters, is a business outcome. Reduced attrition is also a business outcome. Without a focus on results, something like teamwork is just a nice idea.
Most New Year’s Resolutions are bad! Which is, at least in part, why most are not successful. Consider the following common resolutions: Spend More Time with Friends and Family Improve Your Fitness Lose Weight Quit Smoking Quit Drinking Enjoy Life More Get out of Debt Learn Something New Help Others Get Organized What a sorry set of vague and distant wishes! No wonder people fail to follow through!!!
The urge to tackle low hanging fruit is strong. People like to see quick results and quick results usually fuel subsequent results. But often people see low hanging fruit in all the wrong places. These may include tidying up loose ends, finishing projects already started, jumping on an exciting new idea, tackling the easy stuff first, and generally getting the house in order.
What are the 3 things you need to start moving on right now to ensure a great 2009? Choose and then act. To act, determine next steps and schedule them right along with all your other MOST important tasks. It is your future and you have far more control than you think! Make it happen!
How do you feel about the deadlines in your job? Some of you have no deadlines, just scheduled failures. You have my sympathy. Some of you have forgiving, floating, feel-good fancies. But no drop dead pressure. You are either the boss, self-employed, or overlooked. Some of you are lucky. You have deadlines that spur you to new heights. You have challenges that energize. You are neither buried, nor left to sleep in. You get to play in the pasture of proud productivity. Enjoy it!
You’ve got a decision to make. Actually, unless you live in a totally different world than I do, you have tons of decisions to make! Decisions can be difficult and time consuming, and all the more so if you are also wondering who should make the decision or if you are involving too many people in the decision process. When does a unilateral decision make sense? When should a decision be delegated? When is a group decision a better approach? These are not easy questions and the answer depends on two factors: INPUT: Where can you find the knowledge, skill and talent needed to make the decision? PROCESS: Which approach, from unilateral to group, gives you the right combination of individual development, commitment, decision quality, and speed?
Are your weaknesses controlling your course like rocks in a channel? Do your most energetic employees set the direction of your company with their energy alone? Or perhaps you tend to scurry after your competition or are propelled by the whims and ambitions of your biggest customer. Is the latest customer crisis or financial disappointment readily discernable in your list of key initiatives? Government regulations, rising energy costs, and many other external factors may be pushing you in various directions as well. Like tortuous rapids, these formidable forces can send you down a shute you never intended to navigate.