Profiles International - Victoria eNewsletter Dec 2008
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On behalf of the team @ Profiles, we would like to thank our clients for their support in 2008 and we wish all of our clients & newsletter readers a happy and safe Xmas/New Year. How to Fly Safely Through Turbulence
CEOs these days must feel as if they are piloting a plane upside down and backwards through the perfect storm, where all things that can go wrong, do. Following the storm, comes a brief period of misleading calm before the chaos begins again. Everyone on board gets a wild, somersaulting ride and fears what lies ahead. For some organisations, holding on for dear life is all they can do to survive. In today’s economy, surviving the storm has become an organisation’s main priority. The uncertainty that makes quick changes necessary means organisations must rely on their well-trained employees to carry them through. Strong workers who come to work each day with enthusiasm, focus and creativity make for trusty copilots during times of economic turbulence. They can help navigate above, below or around obstacles while offering solutions that no one else has thought of to help calm everyone aboard.
But, as leaders prevail upon key players to do more with less manpower and fewer resources, we cannot just distribute assignments and walk away hoping they will figure out what to do. Keeping the company steady through tough times requires commitment from the top to stay on course. Now is not the time to abandon goals, ignore the problems, or adopt an “every person for himself” attitude.
Remember, nothing is more crucial than hiring competent people and helping them develop the skills necessary to help pilot the plane. Making sure your employees have the talent, skill and knowledge to make it through the storm is more important than ever. Here are some key things to do– in good times and bad. -
If you are not operating under a hiring freeze, count your blessings. Then treat every new hire as if he or she might be your last. Be sure managers take the important steps of recruiting potential candidates that fit the position and your company. Insist on tools that help recruiters ask the right questions during the job interview and help them make decisions based on science instead of guesswork. -
Train new workers well, and do not neglect the old guard – the stalwarts who choose to stay with you even when the going gets rough. Even in a good economy, everyone needs training. Specific training and everyday coaching helps retain workers and make sure they are ready for current and future challenges. In a down economy, some might covet the training budget with an eye toward making the bottom line look healthier. Repeat this mantra: short-term gain, long-term pain. - Do not assume anything about your employees. Know them better than they know themselves. New tools are available to tell you exactly who is working for you – their competencies, their weaknesses and their goals. Do not decide that you can apply the same management style to everyone and get the same results. A multitude of different faces greet you when you walk into the department. They are likely to include four different generations, both genders, and different races and ethnicities. In the global marketplace, you will find variations even within identifiable groups. It is imperative that you learn what skills your employees have, the skills they are capable of acquiring and what it takes to keep them motivated.
- Check the pulse of your key leaders. Are they engaged? A recent study reveals that more than half of senior executives possess “less than ideal emotional connection and alignment” to their organizations. Are any of these your co-pilots? If so, re-coaching, and moving around employees is likely in your future, if you want to be assured of a future.
- Have a plan and use it. Do not fear adjusting it as necessary. Traveling through turbulence is much smoother and less alarming if you carefully map out your flight plan before you proceed, tweak the course as needed, and make sure you have a team of willing and able employees to make the necessary in-flight changes.
Now, buckle your seatbelts and prepare for takeoff. We may have a bumpy ride ahead.
FROM JIM SIRBASKU’S DESK
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QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge about Workday Attitudes Employers, how much do you know about your employees? Test your knowledge here. Circle an answer for each question. Answers appear below each set of questions: 1. What is the most important factor keeping your employees in their jobs right now?
a. Pay and health insurance
b. Satisfaction with work
c. Job security
d. Satisfaction with co-workers 2. What do employees want most from their jobs?
a. Feeling valued
b. Less stress
c. Being part of a team
d. Shared vision and values 3. What percentage of employees say they plan to stay in their job for the next year?
a. 50 percent
b. 20 percent
c. 80 percent
d. 60 percent 4. Half of employees are satisfied with the number of hours they work.
True
False 5. More than half of employees believe this is a good time to take on extra work on the job.
True
False ANSWERS courtesy of Randstad's World of Work Survey 2008
1. c; 2. a, 3. d 4. True; 5. True (in fact, 68 percent of employees believe this) Employees, how well do you know your manager? Test your knowledge here. Circle an answer for each question: 1. What percentage of employers plan to stay in their jobs the next 12 months?
a. 65 percent
b. 75 percent
c. 60 percent
d. 45 percent 2. Which one of these things are employers most satisfied with at work?
a. Compensation
b. Flexible hours
c. Amount of work
d. Opportunity to learn new things 3. Employers believe fair compensation of employees is more important to employees than surveys indicate.
True
False 4. Employees and employers are equally satisfied with the number of hours they work.
True
False ANSWERS for 1, 2 and 4, courtesy of Randstad's World of Work Survey 2008; answers for 3, courtesy of salary.com
1. a; 2 d. 3. True; 4. True
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PRODUCT FOCUS
Ending a Vicious Cycle, Reaching Nirvana with Profiles WorkForce Compatibility™
"By working faithfully eight hours a day you may eventually get to be boss and work twelve hours a day."
-- Robert Frost The eloquent American poet's words have a ring of truth to them – but they provide only one view of the boss's job. There are perspectives aplenty, and one in particular does not rely on the chief spending 12 or more hours every day toiling at work. It is this: The boss's goal instead is to develop employees so that everyone enjoys a productive, enjoyable and fulfilling workplace. Let's pay a visit to an imaginary workplace. We will call it The Nirvana Company. Imagine a boss at Nirvana focusing energy and expertise on the quality of his or her relationships with employees. This boss would know, for example, whether an employee's decision-making style matched her own fast-paced method, or whether the worker preferred to ponder situations a while before making decisions. The boss would learn how best to manage that worker to get his very best decisions and the highest productivity. There's more – the boss would do this for every employee in the organisation. Does this scenario seem too good to be true? It doesn't have to be. In fact, Profiles offers an assessment that not only helps the boss work on relationships – it helps employees do the same thing. Workplaces do exist in which supervisors and their direct reports know each other's work styles and use that knowledge to their own and the organisation's advantage. And studies show that such managers and employees are highly productive and engaged. The reverse is also true: Managers who are out of step with employees often cause low productivity, low morale and high turnover. In fact, more people leave bosses than they do jobs. The Profiles assessment that takes on this issue is Profiles WorkForce Compatibility™, and it combines insight into the characteristics that effect the boss-employee relationship with information on how unique individuals can best work together. The strength of Profiles WorkForce Compatibility™ lies in two key areas: What it measures and what it provides as a result of its measurements. First, the measurements: Profiles WorkForce Compatibility™ examines seven important characteristics that define the relationship between an employee and the manager: self-assurance, self-reliance, conformity, optimism, decisiveness, objectivity and approach to learning. Once these are measured and analyzed for both boss and worker, each receives a report. The manager's report provides a detailed description of the differences between the two on each characteristic, as well as a "best-practice" working style for both the manager and the employee. A "Working Together" section gives ideas for managing this unique employee and a "Next Steps" section offers detailed instructions on how to proceed. The Employee Report shows the worker his or her similarities to and differences from the boss, with ideas for making the work relationship smoother. In short, Profiles WorkForce Compatibility™ helps both manager and employee to: - Communicate better
- Spot conflicts before they occur
- Successfully resolve problems that pop up
This assessment is neither magic nor a fairy tale – nor does it support the view of Robert Frost expressed above. It does require hard work and a commitment to rely more on facts than assumptions. But its strength is in its personalization of management strategy. The one-size-fits-all approach to management is out the window – good riddance.
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IN THIS ISSUE How to Fly Safely Through Turbulence Test Your Knowledge about Workday Attitudes Product Focus:
Ending a Vicious Cycle, Reaching Nirvana with Profiles WorkForce Compatibility™
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WHAT'S ON AT PROFILES Partner Training:
Wed 17th Dec
2pm - 4pm Seminar:
There is no seminar scheduled for December.
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QUOTES OF THE MONTH Nothing so conclusively proves a man's ability to lead others as what he does from day to day to lead himself.
--Thomas J. Watson The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.
--Aristotle “The relationship with your boss is a partnership. It takes effort to build the relationship and nurture it. You have to communicate well, avoid confrontations and resolve differences in a positive way.” – Jane Boucher, consultant “Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you will help them become what they are capable of becoming.” – Goethe, poet, playwright, philosopher Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do" – John Wooden, coach “Nothing so conclusively proves a man’s ability to lead others as what he does from day to day to lead himself.” – Thomas J. Watson, scientist “A company is only as good as the people it keeps.” – Mary Kay Ash, cosmetics giant
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CONTACT US For Further Information Please Contact: Profiles International -Victoria 277 Moray St,
South Melbourne VIC 3205 T: (03) 9673 9888
F: (03) 9673 9898 . Email Us
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