Maximizing the Human Potential

First Impressions

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andrew shaffer consulting first impressions

When new employees are hired, many companies go out of their way to make sure the employee’s first day is a pleasant experience. I’ve been talking a lot recently about the need to retain and attract high performing employees. As I’ve been having these discussions, I was reminded of a true story of an engineer’s alarming experience on his first day at a new job. This week I wanted to share that story with you as a cautionary tale about who is making your first impressions. The employee names and companies are changed.

First Impressions

Eric is an engineer that I know, who just relocated his family for a new job. To take this job Eric had to uproot his family to relocate to another part of the country and start all over. Eric and his wife had a young child, and were both working. So, this was a sacrifice of a pretty high level for Eric’s career.

Eric flew out to the company for an interview. The interview went well, the management team he met was friendly, and he was even able to meet some of his future colleagues at lunch. After receiving a job offer, Eric and his wife decided this was the right opportunity. Eric relocated with his family leaving their support network behind them to start fresh someplace new.

The First Day

When Eric showed up for work on his first day, he went through the typical indoctrination and onboarding. This was pretty much as you’d expect. However immediately after the onboarding things started to shift rapidly. When he reported to his direct manager, they didn’t seem ready for him.  Eric was given a temporary desk, secluded from anyone else, with a pile of paperwork to complete. Occasionally his boss would check on him, but for the most part he spent the first few days secluded filling out paperwork.

After those initial few days Eric was finally introduced to a fellow engineer and assigned some tasks. This was temporary work, because the project he was hired to do, once again wasn’t ready for him. So, Eric was given a temporary cube to do some work. And, by a temporary cube, he was told he could sit at someone’s desk while they were on vacation. Eric still wasn’t able to have a place to call “home.”

To add insult to injury, the employee in the cube next to Eric spent pretty much the entire day talking on the phone complaining about the company. She complained about EVERYTHING.

The Result

Now imagine you are Eric. You relocated your family to move to a new part of the country. You left a support network, your wife left her job, all for the promise of a brighter future.  When you finally arrive at work, you feel like they didn’t know you were coming, and all you hear is complaints from the people you will be working with.  What kind of impact would that have on your new employees? How do you think Eric felt about his decision to accept the job?

Eric no longer works at that company.

This Week’s Challenge

Your corporate culture has a dramatic impact on your ability to attract and retain talent in your organization. It is important that your company maintains a culture that is leadership and people focused. Take time with your leadership and review your onboarding processes.

What is your company doing to attract and retain talented professionals in your organization? Once you think you understand it, seek outside validation. You might think everything is OK in our business, only to later find out that your best employee just left for your competition. Can you afford that?

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Staying Productive in the Summer

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andrew shaffer staying productive in the summer

My wife and I like to take advantage of the kids being out of school to do some activities with the kids. When we start planning our activities and our summer is busy! By the time we schedule camping trips, vacations, weekends at the beach, camps for the kids, and time with friends, the summer just flies by! On top of all that I’m still expected to work!  And, everyone I work with is juggling the same crazy summer schedules! How is anyone expected to stay productive?

Staying Productive in the Summer

Do you find it harder to stay productive in the summer months? I know I do. People that take family vacations. And, they use vacation time to take off Fridays to make long weekends for beach trips or camping weekends.

I have heard many times that people just like to ride out the summer and expect to get busy again in September, once the kids are back in school. While the summer months are more difficult, it doesn’t have to be a slow time. This week I am sharing some tips for staying productive through the summer months, while still being able to enjoy yourself!

Plan for it

We know we are taking vacations and we must plan for it. Most of us have a last-minute push before we go on vacation. We create a list of things we must do before we leave. We do this so we don’t leave any loose strings while we are gone. But do we plan for what needs to be done before we get back? Planning for work to get done while you are away, will benefit you in many ways. First, when you get back you won’t have as many unfinished tasks to attend to. Second, there will be less impact on those that are still at work.

We know our colleagues are taking vacations. We have a last-minute push to get our tasks done before we leave, and maybe even some tasks that need to get done while we are away. But how often do we consider our colleagues vacation schedules. Have you ever been in the situation where you needed input from a colleague on a project, only to find out they are on vacation? Then, you must wait until they get back to get your answer! Perhaps you could have prioritized your tasks differently so you could get what you needed from the colleague BEFORE they went on vacation!

It takes a little coordination and up-front effort but knowing when you and your colleagues will be out of the office, and planning for it ahead of time, can help your productivity this summer.

Ask for help

Planning can help, but it isn’t perfect.  There are tasks that need your input when you are out of the office. It is a good idea to ask for help from a colleague, while you are out of the office. Delegate your authority to someone while you are out of the office.  The key here isn’t just to list a point of contact. For example, “If you need immediate assistance contact Jim.” If I call Jim and all he can do is take a message and let me know when you’ll be back in the office, Jim isn’t really a delegate is he?

Find someone competent that you TRUST. Then, delegate full authority to them in your absence for any decisions or input needed on your behalf. The key here is to trust your delegate and allow them to make decisions. This might mean you have to brief them on project status or objectives before leaving. And, you’ll have to live with any decisions make on your behalf. Delegating authority can help others remain productive while you are away and relieve some of the stress when you get back!

This Week’s Challenge

Taking a vacation over the summer is important. Spending time with family and friends this summer can help you recharge your batteries and stay fresh and focused. Too many times our vacations are interrupted by work. Or, you dread of all the things you must do when you get back. Before your next vacation, take some time to plan for getting your projects done while out of the office, and delegating someone you trust to fill in while you are away. Now go enjoy the summer!

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Effective Communication

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andrew shaffer consulting effective communication

How well are you able to communicate your ideas to another person? Think about it. How many times have you argued with a spouse or significant other because of a communication problem, or lack of communication? What about your children? Have you ever asked a colleague or a member of your team to do something only to be totally disappointed because they did something completely different? The whole “bring me a rock” exercise. Most of the time ineffective communication is the cause of our disagreements and disappointments. This week I am going to share some takeaways from a recent workshop I participated in to learn effective communication.

Effective Communication

I recently had the opportunity to sit in a two-day workshop on communication. I am always willing to explore options for improving myself, and I understand the benefits of being a more effective communicator. However, as you can imagine, two full days seemed like a lot. I have participated in communication training, and by extension leadership communication training before.  Usually they were hours upon hours of hypothetical examples and role playing for scenarios that never actually happen.

To my surprise my expectations were completely wrong! We didn’t participate in role playing with over the top, unrealistic hypotheticals. Instead, during the two days we broke down and explored the causes of miscommunication, and how our own uniqueness contributes to it. It amazed me that just after day one, the workshop participants were sharing how they were taking what they learned and applied it at home that night! I cannot recreate the same impact in a blog that the workshop had over the two days, but I’d like to share some of the takeaways that might impact how you communicate.

How We Communicate

In today’s world there are almost an infinite number of ways to communicate with one another. We have email, text messaging, instant messaging, social media feeds, phones, video calls, pre-recorded videos, and good old-fashioned face to face conversation. Those are just the mediums we use for communication, that doesn’t even consider the message we are actually trying to convey!

When it comes to messaging it gets even more complicated. Have you ever said something (in any of the mediums above) and someone took offense, and you immediately had to clarify because your intent wasn’t understood? Yeah, me too.

Body language, tone of voice and other contextual clues add meaning to the words you’re saying. Most of us don’t put much thought and effort into the messaging and how we are communicating with others. We make assumptions based on our beliefs, what we think is commons sense, and our understanding of specific words. We have mental pictures or conclusions in our mind, and we assume others will have the same. This is far from the case.

When we communicate with others, we all need to be careful to make sure we are clear on what we are trying to communicate, and that our approach (message and medium) are appropriate and can be clearly understood by our audience.

 Language

“The United States and Great Britain are two countries separated by a common language.” – George Bernard Shaw

Did you know there are 645 meanings to the word run? I was surprised too, so I googled it. It’s no wonder why non-native English speakers say that English is the hardest language to learn! In this workshop we played a word association game. The facilitator gave us a word and we each wrote down the next ten things that came to mind. It was a relatively common word, and we all knew the definition of it, but in the entire group we didn’t have one word in common.

The language we use while communicating can, and likely will, conjure different understandings in different people. In the workshop, we had the opportunity to do some group work. We had to answer some simple questions individually then meet as a group and find common meanings. Even with these simple questions, we all interpreted them slightly differently and answered them differently. The questions were about communication, but many people would have different answers if they applied the question to work situations or personal situations. The questions didn’t specify, and we interpreted it based on our experiences.

Clarity

We don’t ask enough questions. I have read Jeffrey Gitomer’s Little Red Book of Selling probably close to a dozen times. In this book he dedicates a whole chapter on asking questions? Why? Because asking questions (he says smart questions) is the only way to get information. I once listened to a talk on successful interviewing. One of the most common mistakes interviewees have is they don’t ask questions. Ironically this was more common in men than women. Why? I suspect we believe by asking questions we admit we might not have all the answers. If we don’t have all the answers the other person might think we’re not qualified.

On the contrary, we must ask questions. Asking questions shows curiosity and a desire for understanding. I’ll never know what you are thinking, how I can help you, or who you are without asking questions. Earlier I alluded to the bring me a rock exercise. You know when your boss asks for a rock, you bring a rock only to find out it was the wrong rock. We’ve all been there I am sure. What would have happened if you took a few minutes to find out what rock your boss wanted in the first place? Would it have been time better invested than to have to go find another rock? I bet it would. Asking questions is an investment in getting the job done right the first time.

This Week’s Challenge

Today’s article isn’t going to make you a better communicator all by itself. I wanted to share with you some of the takeaways that I took from this workshop. You may already know and understand these things. For this week’s challenge, I recommend you look at how you communicate and find ways to be more effective. A small investment in becoming a more effective communicator can help your productivity.

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Recruiting Talent

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andrew shaffer consulting recruiting talent

Last week I talked about the need for having “ball players” or superstars in your organization. What if you don’t have any ball players? What if you have some, how can you stop them from leaving to work at your competition? This week I am going to share with you three differentiators that will help you in recruiting talent and retaining superstars in your organization. Spoiler alert… it’s not money!

Recruiting Talent

Identifying and retaining talent these days is difficult. In today’s work force highly skilled individuals are in high demand, and can often pick and choose where they want to work. When recruiting top talent, you don’t always have to be the highest bidder (i.e. pay the most) although you do have to be competitive. Today’s employees are looking for more than a paycheck, they are looking at what the company offers above and beyond the pay. College level athletics recruit talent all the time, and are unable to use pay as a differentiator. Let’s look at some of the strategies used by top athletic programs for recruiting and how that applies to your business.

Be a Winner

Everyone likes to win. I know we tell our kids things like; it doesn’t matter if you win or lose, it’s how you play the game, just do your best. But honestly, if you do your best and play fair it still hurts to lose. Right?

When colleges are recruiting athletes, they will boast their winning records. If they cannot boast about a winning record, they’ll talk about a history and a plan to start winning. We’ve hired new coaches, we recruited new players etc. When talented athletes have a choice of where to go to school, they will want to play for a winning team.

The same is true when recruiting talent to your company. They will want to see you have a winning organization, or at least the potential to be a winning organization. Boast about the growth you’ve seen recently, new large contracts or expansion. Let potential employees know about any awards you may have received, and company history. These things will send a message to your prospects that when they come work for you they will be joining a winning team.

Culture

Everyone wants to fit in. We are tribal by nature, and we want to be surrounded by people with the same values and motivations. Have ever worked at a company, or joined an organization, where you just didn’t fit in? How hard was it to make friends? Did you feel comfortable? Even if you did, did you really enjoy yourself? Probably not.

Again, it isn’t uncommon for college recruiters to have prospects visit for a day or more. Typically, they’ll shadow someone from the team and see what it’s like to be part of the program. The idea here is to get the prospect a “feel” for what it’s like to be part of the team. The coach, and the player will want to know if they will fit in, if they can be part of the culture or if they’ll be an outsider. Those that fit in can thrive, outsiders tend to hold back.

The same is true in your work place. Although it’s not typical for a company to invite a prospect to shadow another employee during a job interview, but there are other ways that prospects can learn about culture. When you bring in a prospect for an interview, how are they received? Websites like indeed.com or glassdoor.com often have employee reviews so candidates can get an idea what it’s like to work at your company. What do prospects see when they look you up online?

Development

Prospective athletes understand that they are investing time to play at the college level, and in return want to know that they will become better during that process. In college sports, this is an easy discussion. Coaches can talk about the number of players that went on to play professional sports. If that isn’t an option, they will talk about graduation rates, and successes that former athletes have had in professional careers.

Your prospective employees will have similar questions:

  • If I work for you, what will the future look like for me?
  • Do I have career advancement opportunities, or will I be stuck doing the same thing for my entire career?

Top performers didn’t get to be top performers by accepting the status quo. Top performers achieved success by learning, developing and growing. Having a proven employee development system will help you attract and retain high performers and high potential employees.

This Week’s Challenge

I know there are still some employees that will go to the company that pays the most. Most of the time it’s best to let them work somewhere else. Eventually someone else will offer them more money and they’ll leave. Save yourself the headache and cost of losing talent. Create an environment that attracts and retains talent. Develop a strategy for:

  • Competing and winning at a high level
  • A welcoming and inclusive culture
  • A proven effective employee development system

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Evaluating Talent

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andrew shaffer consulting evaluating employees

I was coaching my 7 year old’s baseball game last week when one of the kids asked me if I was a “real” coach. When I asked him what a “real” coach was, he said someone that coaches Major League Baseball. For the record I am not a MLB level coach, but I was flattered that he thought so highly of my skills. It did get me to think about how many different seasons I have been coaching. This week I am going to share with you some of the things I’ve learned about evaluating players, their impact on the team, and how this relates to your business.

Evaluating Talent

In the more than fifteen seasons I’ve coached various sports (some as head coach others as an assistant) I have noticed there are three types of kids that play sports. We have the kids that are there because their parents want them to. These kids go through the motions of playing, but don’t really enjoy it. There are those that are there to play. These are the ones that show up to practice, do the drills, contribute in the games.

Good players only think about the sport when they are practicing or during a game. Then there are what I call the ball players. Ball players are the first ones there, last to leave. They always give it there best, and they practice between practices. They play ball outside, not on a video game. These players give any team a competitive advantage.

Businesses have the same three levels of employees.

  • Paycheck Collectors: Paycheck collectors show up just for a paycheck. They do the bare minimum, and complain about doing that.
  • Work Horses: Then there are your work horses. Work horses come in, do the work needed. They do solid work, but rarely go above and beyond.
  • Superstars: Then there are your superstars. These are the people that are there early, stay late, and get the job done no matter what.

If your company has people there just to collect a paycheck, you might want to consider why you are still employing them. This article will talk about the difference between your work horses and superstars and why developing superstars impacts your bottom line.

Level of Competition

My boys play sports, and there are basically two levels of sports. There are the recreational (rec) leagues and there are the competitive leagues (or travel teams). The rec leagues are filled with kids that play ball, and occasionally a player that is there because their parents want them to play. In rec league we can have some intense games, and decent players, but we don’t really play at a high level. Occasionally a team will have a ball player (we’ll call him/her a ringer). This is a person we consider that should be playing at a higher level of competition.

Ball players play at a higher level of competition. These players are the ones that are on travel team, all-star teams, or play in the little league world series. Ball players elevate the level of performance for the entire team, and when surrounded by other ball players, the team competes at a whole different level.

Your employee base is filled with those that play ball (work horses) or ball players (superstars). Identifying potential ball players on your staff, and developing them to their highest potential will give you a competitive advantage. Even if you are not the business owner, and work for someone else, learning to become a ball player, and elevating your level of play will take your career to the next level.

Retention

In most little league organizations, the older the kids get the less kids that actually come out and play. For example, in my local organization, when my oldest started there were eight teams in his age group. Today there are three teams. That means roughly 60% of the kids that played a few years ago have stopped playing. Now, the competitive teams, the travel teams, are generally still intact. They might lose a player here and there, but they don’t have the 60% turnover that the rec leagues experience.

Employee retention is expensive for companies. Studies show that to replace talented employees can cost 150% of their salary. Not to mention the impacts of lost production and morale on your team. Developing your talent to ball player status, and creating a company that plays competitive ball, will help you improve retention and avoid unnecessary costs associated with losing good people.

Productivity

When a rec team has a ball player on the roster, the other teams take notice, and quickly. Why? Because they are more productive than anyone else on the field/court. This is the basketball player that scores more than your entire team combined or the baseball player that always hits the ball to the fence and pitches harder than anyone in the league. This is the kid that is faster and kicks harder than any other soccer player. They give you a competitive advantage because they produce more.

I read a statistic the other day that high performers produce 400% more than their mediocre counterparts. Wow! That means if that person left your company, it would take four people just to get the same level of production that you were getting for one! Let me ask you, how would your company benefit from having someone that was that productive? Maybe two or three people like that? These are your ball players. They come to work and produce. They are engaged, motivated, and energetic about their work.

This Week’s Challenge

Take a look at your company and the competitive landscape. Are you playing rec league, or are you playing competitive? Do you have employees that are there to play ball, or even worse employees that are collecting a paycheck, or does your team develop and attract ball players?

If you want to get real results, you must be playing competitive ball, AND must identify and develop your talent to maximize their potential.  Next week, I’ll talk about how to retain and attract ball players to your company, and it’s more than just a hefty salary!

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Team Building Ideas and Misconceptions

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team buliding andrew shaffer consultingDuring a conversation over coffee with my friend Steve Morris, founder of Catylator, we had an interesting discussion on some common techniques for team building and why they fall short of the goal. One thing we both agreed on was that some techniques for team building, while fun, don’t actually achieve any objectives of team building. Steve has a unique, interesting and effective method for team building and problem solving. If you think you could use his help or want to learn more, I encourage you to check out his website. This week I am going to share some ideas and misconceptions of team building.

Team Building

Most of us agree that working on a cohesive team improves productivity, engagement, and business outcomes. The terms “team” and “teamwork” are ramped in job descriptions and prospects inevitably boast about being team player or team leader. Many organizations I know will attempt team building through some social activity as a way to get to know each other outside of work. They might invite teams to a happy hour, lunch outing, or bowling. Is this the best way to build a team?

While these activities are fun, and can help build friendships, they don’t always build teams. I mean think about it, how is bowling or a beer going to help you be more productive at work? Personally, I prefer to have a beer or go bowling (actually golfing) AFTER I’ve established a relationship with someone.

Common Purpose

For a team to be highly functioning, they have to have a common purpose. Sports is the best and simplest example of this. The common purpose of any sports team, at least the good ones, is to win a game or championship. That’s it. Everyone in the organization from the owner, to the GM to the rookie that just signed this morning, all have the same goal. To win games.

In the business world, the common purpose could be a project completion, customer satisfaction score, or sales goals. The best teams I’ve ever worked with was when we were ALL focused on the same goal. The team was diligently working to complete a task. The team leaders were actively removing obstacles that impeded progress. Everyone knew what success looked like, everyone was keeping score, and everyone participated in achieving results. I’m actually getting excited just remembering these successes!

Belonging

Being part of a team, is more than just having a role to fill. Being part of a team was a sense of belonging. I’ve been coaching little league baseball for several years now. One of the most exciting days for the boys are when I hand out the uniforms. Actually, from the first day of practice I generally have someone asking when we’ll be getting uniforms. Why? Because when we all have our uniforms on, we feel like we’re part of something. I make sure the coaching staff is always dressed like part of the team as well. Again, we ALL belong and it makes a difference.

When someone belongs to something, they recognize they are part of something bigger. Being part of something bigger tends to help us be less concerned about “me” as we are about “we”. When we’re concerned about “we” then we can help each other and the team improve.

Trust

Trust is a foundational aspect of any team. I need to trust that the other members of my team will be there when I need them. Going to back to my hobby of coaching little league. Sometimes my pitchers get focused on getting a strike out, and will get frustrated when players get a hit. When this happens, I’ll remind them that it’s OK, and there are 8 other players on the field that are there to make a play. Actually, the other players are hoping the batter hits the ball so they have something to do!

Trust is essential to everything in business and in life. My kids trust that someone will pick them up from school each day. My wife and I trust each other to uphold our responsibilities in the family. I trust my employees to do the jobs they say they are going to do. When the trust breaks down, the team breaks down and sooner or later you stop winning. Once trust is broken it is very hard to repair.

This Week’s Challenge

I want you to think about what you do to build a team at your company. Does it help you work towards a common goal? Does it foster a sense of belonging? And, does it help build trust?

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Connecting with Employees

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andrew shaffer consulting connecting with employees

Last week I had the privilege of giving a presentation to the Small Business Council at the Central Maryland Chamber of Commerce. I discussed how an employee development system impacts the bottom line. We discussed how an employee development system impacts productivity and retention, as well as a few other benefits. During the talk, I also shared a winning strategy for employee development, which lead to a hearty dialogue. This week I am going to share some of the takeaways from that discussion about connecting with employees.

If you our your business would like to understand how employee development can impact YOUR bottom line, please contact me, and I’ll be happy to meet with your business.

Connecting with Employees

First and foremost, there is no one size fits all employee development plan. Everyone is unique with their interests, ambitions and motivations. Therefore, an employee development system should be able to produce a development plan unique to the individual.

How do you know what your employees need in a development system? Well, you have to be able to connect with them on an individual level. You must create a bond beyond the manager/employee relationship. In other words, you really need to know who your employees are as humans.

Many companies, including ASC, can help you with assessments to understand personality types, behavior profiles, and motivations. However, when you compliment these assessments with genuine human interaction you will amplify your results! Here are three techniques I have successfully used to supercharge my employee development systems over my careers.

Monthly 1:1 Meetings

I advise all leaders to have 1:1 meeting , typically for 30 minutes, with their direct reports every month. This time should be set aside each month and shouldn’t be moved. The meeting should have some structure to it, and still allow for a conversation. I recommend covering these topics:

  • Any progress on development plans. If no progress why and how do you catch up?
  • Challenges faced since last meeting. How did you overcome them? How can you prevent them next time?
  • Anticipated challenges in the next month? Plan to deal with them?
  • Any help needed? (be sure to follow through)
  • Ask the employee what’s on their mind, anything they need to discuss?

Many times, people get “busy” and when they are trying to squeeze an extra 30 minutes in to their week, and these meetings are the first to get moved or cancelled. Resist the that temptation. Remember that developing the talent on your team is a primary function of a good leader.

Development Plans

Create a development plan for each individual employee. Determine a specific goal with action steps to get there. To be “better” at my job isn’t a development goal. To create an effective employee development plan you should set goals, one or two at the most, geared at mastering current Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) or developing skills towards the next job promotion. What is most important, is your development plan should have measurable goals and actions steps.

Depending on the size of your organization, employees might have an option of several career paths in front of them, or you might be a small business with just a handful of employees. Either way developing the talent on you staff with employee development plans will help your team contribute to the success of the company (your success) with each team members unique skills. You may find some hidden talent or skill on your team that could give your business the edge over your competition!

MBWA

MBWA is simply Management By Walking Around. In my discussion last week, this received the most attention. MBWA is simple. When I was doing it, I’d literally get up from my desk, walk to where my people were working (cubes, offices, labs, shop floor, wherever) and see what they were doing. I would ask about what they did, how they were doing it. I didn’t start doing this to get status on a project, or to tell them how to do their job. Then, I went to learn about them, and how they approached their jobs.

Then, I used other forums such as the 1:1 discussion or the development plans to offer advice on job improvements. Over a relatively short period of time, my team began to trust me. When I showed up, they didn’t think I was there to look over their shoulder to critique them, and they would begin to tell me about issues and problems they were having then. They’d ask for help then. Often times they actually would be glad to see me.

MBWA Reactions

When I talk to leaders about MBWA, I typically get three common reactions. Let me briefly share them with you now:

  • What do I talk about? Ask what they are doing, and how it’s going. Ask about their day, or their favorite sports team. The idea is to build trust. Once you have that trust, your team will open up and share more.
  • How do I do this without looking like I am micromanaging? Simple, DON’T MICROMANAGE. Don’t jump in unless they are doing something unsafe, unethical, or otherwise damaging to the company. If they ask for help, help. Once the rapport and trust is there, then you can use this time to coach. If you’re new to MBWA and you start out with coaching, your employee will see you and think your there just to tell them what they are doing wrong. That is counterproductive.
  • My employees don’t work directly with me, I can’t physically go see them. Personal communication is what MBWA is trying to accomplish. Call them, or better yet, video call them. Ask how they are doing, and build the rapport that way.

Building a connection through MBWA opened me an my teams up to a whole new level of communication. I was able to learn about issues when they were happening, and get help before they became problems.

This Week’s Challenge

Incorporate a system for connecting with your employees. If you already have one in place, great! Ask yourself, what improvements can be made to that system. Your efforts will be well worth the time you invest.

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

The Importance of Maintaining Curiousity

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maintaining curiousity andrew shaffer consultingThe other day my son asked me a question. “Dad, if you could have one superpower what would it be?” Great question, I mean I could choose anything! What would I choose? What would you choose? My kids will often ask me questions like this. “Dad, what would happen if I …” or the never ending “Why?” They ask these questions because they are curious. They want to learn something they don’t already know. It’s part of their development. For some reason, most adults stop being curious. Is it because we have to admit we don’t have all the answers? I’m not going to get into the psychological aspects here, but I am going to discuss the importance of maintaining curiosity throughout your life.

Importance of Maintaining Curiosity

As the story goes, Sir Isaac Newton was sitting under an apple tree and was hit on the head with a falling apple. This piqued his curiosity and lead to the discovery of the law of gravity. Apples had been falling off trees since the beginning of time (so I assume I am not that old!), why hadn’t anyone else discovered the law of gravity. No one else was curious. No one else asked, why apples always fell to the ground. Sir Isaac Newton’s curiosity, and pursuit of truth lead him to this discovery.

Curiosity doesn’t have to be limited to the field of physics; it can take your business to the next level. Curiosity breeds innovation, growth and discovery of new and more efficient processes and products. Curiosity helps establish your competitive edge and dominate the market share. Without curiosity you are doomed to complacency until you are obsolete and out of business.

Innovation

Do you want to eliminate complacency in your business? Create an atmosphere of curiosity. I don’t have to tell you that complacency kills your businesses, if not immediately it will over time. You have to be at least as innovative and creative as your competition or risk losing customers. Curiosity drives innovation. Innovation brings new products, better service, and higher profits.

Your employees should always be asking themselves:

  • What happens if I…?
  • Why do we do it this way?
  • Is there a better way?

Answering these questions will spark curiosity and help you become an industry leader.

Leadership

Just the other day I was reading something on the differences between millennials and baby boomers in the work place. I read it because I was curious about the comparisons, and I had a few minutes to kill. You don’t need a PhD in sociology to know that there is a huge difference between the way these generations approach work.

Leaders need to maintain their curiosity. There has been a ton of research done, books and articles written about how to become a more effective leader. In most work places, leadership has evolved from the old command and control model to a more empowering and engaging model. (If you are still in the command and control model, please contact me!). Leaders need to be curious about new ways to improve productivity, engagement, profits, and employee effectiveness.

As the work place changes with new technology, and a new generation of workers, leaders need to evolve as well. Being curious about how to improve your skills will help you become better equipped to stay on the leading edge and maintain your competitive advantage.

Lack of Curiosity

A lack of curiosity will doom you to mediocrity or run you out of business completely. I used to frequently comment that Monday is my favorite day of the week, and Friday was always the worse. Why? Well, because on Monday I was excited about all the things I could do in the coming week, and on Friday I was upset because I didn’t get anything new accomplished. This is classic complacency.

Clearly when I’d get in this rut, it was because I lacked curiosity and imagination to be innovative. When I’d recognize this rut, I knew it was time for a change. Sometimes it was that I needed to find a new job so I could grow, or I had to find a new way to do my job and improve effectiveness. Either way I had seen so many talented people get stuck in the rut, and lacked the curiosity to even wonder if there was a better way. A lack of curiosity will kill businesses, leaders, and careers.

This Week’s Challenge

How curious is your organization? Are you challenging yourself to grow, innovate and dominate your competition? Innovation will help you maximize productivity, reduce turnover, and increase market share. Maintaining curiosity in your business is key to helping your business grow, compete and be the best.

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Continuous Improvement

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continuous improvement andrew shaffer consultingBecause it is Spring, and most of my “free time” is spent with my boys and their various sports, I find myself finding many lessons in watching them play. Just last week, I was coaching my eldest’s baseball team and we just decisively won the previous two games. I was watching the boys play, and I had been coaching a some of them for a few seasons, and have observed others as they played on other teams. I commented to my wife, how fun it was to be able to watch these kids grow over the last four or five years.

As coaches we are continuously trying to improve the performance of our players, through coaching, instructing, and sometimes even motivating. All this with the purpose of changing behavior. The irony here is in the business world, we don’t often use the same approach. Today, I will talk about continuous improvement in the work place, and ways to be more successful as you make necessary changes to be a winner today and in the future.

Continuous Improvement

At every company I have ever worked for, there was always a push for continuous improvement. Companies spent time and money looking for process improvements or new software that could streamline a process. How do we do it faster, cheaper, better? Great question! Who doesn’t want to do more with less?

The trouble with new processes or software is they don’t always improve efficiency. They don’t take into account the people actually needed to make the change. People are creatures of habit. To understand this, we need to understand what a habit is. A habit is an automatic response to a trigger, which is anything that causes us to take action. Let’s explore how improvements are often implemented in companies.

Changing the Response… The Hard Way

Companies spend a lot of money working on infrastructure updates, new tools, systems and processes, in order to achieve more efficiency. Then when a new system is in place, they spend even MORE money training employees to learn the new system. Then, after all this money is spent, they don’t see the efficiencies they had hoped to see! WHY!?!

In the work place we are still humans, and still creatures of habit. We receive an email (trigger), we respond (response). And on it goes. When there is a change to a process, or a new piece of software is added to the mix, people are being asked to respond differently to the same trigger. This creates confusion and disrupts their habits. It makes people uncomfortable. It is essentially the same as setting your alarm clock when it is time to go to sleep! You wouldn’t expect someone to have a completely different reaction to the sound of an alarm clock! Why expect them to change responses to the same trigger in the work place?

People will naturally resist this kind of change, complain about the new software or process.  It may take longer to accept the change, or people may go back to doing it the old way.   That is more comfortable, and after all, it’s worked for so long already!

But Process Improvements are Necessary

I know what you are thinking, process improvements are necessary. The new software is needed because the old stuff isn’t sustainable anymore. How do I get people to adopt to new processes?

Changing the Trigger… The Better Way

Just like any change in habit, change the trigger. At one point in a former career, I was being reassigned.  It was requested that I train my replacement during a transition period. The reasoning behind this was that I could smoothly transition my tasks to my replacement. This caused some issues with the team, and the confusion slowed the transition.

As long as I was there, the team would look to me for answers and direction. This was what they had done since the project started. The team looked to me to run the staff meetings and a whole host of things I normally did. In this case, my presence was the trigger. They came to me with status and problems as the response. It wasn’t until I removed the trigger (stopped attending meetings) that the team started relying on my replacement and made the transition.

Accept that Failure is Possible

Process improvements can’t be about changing responses. That is ineffective and it just doesn’t work. If you really want to maximize the benefits of improved systems and processes the key is to identify and change the triggers. Replace an existing trigger with a new trigger, and then you’ll get people to have a different response without the struggle of changing habits.

This Week’s Challenge

Find one area where you know you can be more efficient. Identify the trigger to change the response, and see your efficiency improve! This type of continuous improvement is essential to your business success.

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.

Continuous Improvement

 

Employee Development and the Bottom Line

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andrew shaffer consulting employee development

I appreciate all the positive feedback from last week’s blog post.  It was supposed to help you think about the message you send, by the words you choose. Last week, I attended an event featuring Gerry Sandusky (voice of the Ravens), and in his talk he also highlighted the fact that people like to win. When trying to attract and retain talent, always keep in mind that people want to be part of a winning team. Develop a winning team, and watch your success skyrocket! Today, I’m talking about how employee development can help your business grow.

Employee Development and the Bottom Line

I grew up in Illinois, and I was a HUGE Chicago Bulls fan. HUGE! When I say a Bulls fan, it was probably more of a Michael Jordan fan. I wanted to be like Mike. Why? Well, because Jordan was the best of his time (and maybe all time). Having Jordan on the court was a game changer, he gave the Bulls a competitive advantage. Need proof? Michael Jordan led the Bulls to a championship in ’91,’92 and ’93, after a brief retirement and an unsuccessful pursuit at a baseball career. He came back to basketball and lead the Bulls to another threepeat in ’96, ’97 and ’98. Fun fact: I was in the United Center in Chicago when the Bulls won in 1998.

Almost everyone I knew wanted to be like Jordan. Jordan was more than a winner; he was a game changer. Every athlete I know dreamed of being the player that was given the shot with the game on the line as the clock is ticking down and comes through with the clutch shot, or play or whatever is necessary to win. Nobody dreams about being the guy that passed Jordan the ball.

Athletes at that level have a tremendous work ethic. However, we all know people with extraordinary work ethics that get ordinary results. Perhaps you have people in our company like this. Perhaps your company is like this. To achieve greatness, you need to combine that work ethic with a useful employee development tool. You may not have a championship trophy to show for it, but you will see the impact on your bottom line as you leave your competition behind.

Retention

I have talked with team leaders, and executives that have lost a top performer from their team. The story is almost always the same. I didn’t see it coming, and I wish I’d have known so I could have done something. These leaders struggle, often in vein, to find a direct replacement. In fact, most of the time they end up needing two people to get the same productivity.

Even if you didn’t have to hire multiple people, the replacement costs can exceed 1.5 times the salary of the person that left. Not to mention the impact to morale and team cohesion. And now your best employee, the one that gave you a competitive advantage, might be giving your competition that advantage you just lost. Wow!

Retention has an indirect, but real impact on your bottom line. Let’s keep this in perspective. As your company grows you run the risk of higher attrition numbers. Now not all attrition can be avoided, but if you could reduce turnover by 3-5%, how much money could you put back into your business. Where would you rather invest your hard-earned capital?

Productivity

Having an employee development system will improve the productivity of your team. We’ve all heard the 80/20 rule, where 80% of the work is done by 20% of the employees. There is a natural tendency in business where teams typically have about 20% that are exceptional. Roughly another 60% that are solid performers, and the remaining employees just don’t fit. What if you could tap into the underutilized productivity in the 60% of your solid performers and improve productivity by just a few percent. What you’ll see is dramatic increases in productivity.

For illustration purposes. Suppose you had about 50 employees in your organization. Increasing productivity by just 3% will yield an additional 3000 hours of work over the course of a year. That is like having another 1.5 people on your staff without all the overhead of having employees. And an additional 3% isn’t really all that much. It comes out to ~15 minutes a day/employee. Think of it this way: 5 minutes first thing in the morning, 5 minutes after lunch, and 5 minutes at the end of the day. How does this happen? Just being more deliberate, and focused.

Employee Development System

An employee development system is not an annual performance assessment. It is not long drawn out conversations about why someone needs to improve. I have 2 boys that play sports. I do my best to coach them both. When a player strikes out, as he’s walking back to the dug-out I often give him a quick piece of advice. Adjust your hands so you can get the bat around, or shift your balance so you can get a more level swing. Something quick and immediate. I didn’t wait until the end of the season (like an annual review). We try to make corrections now so we can see improvements at his next at bat.

To continue with the coaching analogy, there is one coach, one piece of advice, and one conversation. I don’t overload the ball player with three for four pieces of advice. It’ll clutter his head, and he’ll certainly fail again next time. We don’t have every coach giving advice at the same time (I do see this at times). Again, keep it simple, direct and understandable. Normally the change doesn’t come immediate in a game, and that is OK. But at our next practice I remind the player what we needed to work on, then we practice it until we get it right.

As a coach I develop my players on a game by game, day by day system. I work to elevate performance, so at the end of the season we are better ball players. Hopefully at the end of each practice we are a little better. When creating an employee development system, these same fundamentals apply. A quick, simple, timely  process for feedback, with the intent of elevating talent, will improve productivity, lower retention, and drive profits that you will see in your financial statements.

This Week’s Challenge

Do you have an employee development system in place that is designed for continuous improvement? Do you have a system in place that elevates the talent on your team on a continuous basis? Are you creating a system that gives you a competitive edge?

If you would like to discuss more ways to help your business grow or if you feel you have a specific problem that needs to be addressed, please reach out to me.