The first day of autumn is right around the corner.  For me, this season change is my favorite.  I love observing how visible change is and I am always in awe of nature’s beauty.

As an Organizational Development consultant, the topic of change is typically on the agenda with leadership groups.  We all know, intellectually, that change is constant and necessary for growth and development.

Last week I spent the day with a team of executives facilitating a workshop on how to give an engaging presentation.  This leadership competency is core to effectiveness in communication at this level of leadership.

As the group worked through the planning steps of a presentation with current topics, change was on the agenda.  Like other organizations, their industry and thus their company was experiencing rapid and sometimes overwhelming change.  They knew that if they were effective in engaging employees in the change, that the transition through the change would be much smoother.

After the workshop, the feedback from participants showed definite patterns in what the group found most valuable in terms of strategies to engage employees.  Here are a few of their insights.

1.       Understand your audience.  Different levels of employees have different needs in terms of information and what they need for support to implement change.  Objections and/or resistance to change can be simply viewed as an unmet need.  Understand the needs, the questions, the fears, the excitement, and the challenges of your audience and you will find the answers to how to engage them.

2.       Communicate clearly.  During times of change it is just as important to talk about what is not changing as much as talking about what is changing.  Focusing on strengths, mission, productive processes and engrained skills will help individuals feel less overwhelmed with change.  Clearly defining the action items important to progress the change will help individuals stay focused and productive through change.

3.       Facilitate dialogue.  Adults learn best in collaborative environments.  They are naturally problem centered in their learning.  Taking time with teams to discuss different aspects of change and allowing them to collaborate on solutions will engage them.

Warm Regards,

Georgine

The tag line for our business is “Serious Business Made Fun” and we like to make our work fun.  We like to encourage our clients to make work fun too.  Keeping employees engaged remains a tough proposition.  And, there are lots of strategies for doing so.  It’s important to remember and include “having fun” as one of the key strategies for keeping employees engaged.

When we lead one of our Values Discovery Sessions and participants select the values that are most important to them at work, it’s common for one or more people to include “fun” as a core value.  When people are having fun, they’re more productive and light-hearted.  Lots of great results come about when fun is part of the mix.

One of my favorite companies, Zappos.com has made fun an integral part of their culture.  In his book, Delivering Happiness, Zappos CEO talks about how important having fun is to creating productivity, loyalty and outstanding results.  At Zappos, they have cubicle decorating contests, theme parties, celebrations for hitting sales goals, and regularly scheduled pot-lucks and happy hours for everyone to socialize together.  They have an incredibly loyal staff, and as you may know, an unbelievably loyal customer base who makes Zappos a very profitable company.

Building fun into the workplace is simple, but it’s not always easy.  There are lots of reasons to be really serious about process, people, systems and results.  I would argue, however, that it’s important to look beyond the everyday seriousness and seek to inject everyday fun.  The key is to make sure that “fun” is defined in a way that is in alignment with the organization’s vision, mission and values.  That way, “fun” becomes a way to strengthen culture and keep employees focused on the desired outcomes.  Here are some things to consider:

1.      Invite employees to help define the “fun” activities that will fit with the culture.

2.      Build “fun” into the annual strategic planning and budgeting process so it doesn’t get overlooked.

3.      If possible, include customers in the “fun” to deepen their loyalty to the organization.

4.      Document “fun” events and share them organization-wide to reinforce that having fun is valued.

5.      Make sure senior leadership participates in all the “fun”.  It’s incredibly motivating for employees to see their leaders enjoying themselves.

Lynae

I attended a meeting the other day where the organizational leader told the famous Indian legend of the six blind men and the elephant.  It goes like this.

Six blind men went to see an elephant to learn about what it was like.  The first man felt the broad side of the elephant and said it was like a wall.  The second man felt the tusk and said it was like a spear.  The third man felt the elephant’s tail and said it was like a rope.  The forth man felt the trunk and said an elephant is like a snake.  The fifth man felt the knee and said it was like a tree.  The sixth man felt the elephant’s ear and said it was like a fan.

The moral of story is that everyone was right – each man had an accurate perspective from his vantage point.

The leader that told the story used it to initiate a discussion about the importance of seeing the big picture in project planning, decision making and problem solving.  Every department in an organization, like each individual, has an important perspective to share that leads to goal accomplishment and organizational success.  It is only when we honor the collective and sometimes diverse perspectives that we can see clearly the best solution or plan.

Sometimes we forget to honor and celebrate our diversity.  Most of us are more comfortable working with people who are similar to us.  Our similarities make it easier for us to trust each other’s judgment because we understand it. At the same time, we could be prone to judge different ideas negatively and miss out on the benefits and contributions of honoring diverse perspectives.

In our flagship program, respectFULL teams™, we explore our individual and unique perspectives and how they came to be a part of us and how we view the world. We lead discussions around how to take full advantage of the rich backgrounds and abilities of everyone on the team and how to value differences, seek inclusiveness, and honor differing points of view.

Here are a few of the tips we offer for honoring diversity.

1.    Ask questions and develop a curiosity to seek out diverse ideas and opinions.  The more you learn about others’ perspectives, the broader your own perspective becomes.

2.   Share your perspective. The best way to find commonalities is to share your ideas with others and get their feedback. You may be surprised to find that you have more in common that you think.

3.   Honor the values and beliefs of others.  Everyone has a set of values and beliefs that guide the way they live and interact with others. Showing respect for others is the single most important thing we can do to build harmony amidst differences.

Uniquely yours, Georgine

My blog for this week is inspired by a “quote of the week” that I received in my mailbox.  The quote is by Doug King and reads, “Learn to pause…or nothing worthwhile will catch up to you”.

Effective leaders are often recognized as having good people skills. But the person they are most skilled at handling is themselves. They start from the inside and work out.

Emotional Intelligence is an inside-out job. It starts with oneself. The more skilled a leader is at emotional self-awareness and emotional self-regulation, the more effective they are in leadership.

Research in the area of emotional intelligence has shown that when people are aware of their emotions and reactions, they are better able to self-regulate and choose how they want to respond.

Emotional self-regulation is the ability to step back in an emotionally charged situation and “hit the pause button” before responding. When you do this, you can make better decisions about what to say or do (or not say or do) in that situation.

When situations trigger a negative response, we are more likely to act in ways that are defensive, disrespectful and unproductive.  When leaders form a habit of “hitting the pause button” they are better able to recognize how to respond in ways that would be helpful to change, effective communication and resolution.

Here is a simple exercise to help you experience the benefit of “hitting the pause button”.

1.       Describe a situation that typically triggers a negative reaction for you.

2.       “Hit the pause button” – step back and ask yourself:

• What is my self-talk around the situation that is making me feel negative?  And, how can I coach myself to stay calm and focused?
• What do I want the outcome of this situation to be? And, how can I respond to best lead toward this outcome?

3.       Choose the response that is most respectful and productive.

Warm Regards, Georgine

Every organization has a unique personality.  And, every organization has aspects of their culture that really work for them – things that have helped them be successful, developed their reputation and engaged their employees.

I’ve been working recently with a client organization on the development of a leadership curriculum that will help sustain the strengths of its culture.  I have been inspired each day I have the opportunity to work with them.  And, especially inspired when observing how the value of innovation is alive and thriving in their organization.

Innovation can have different interpretations or meanings for different people and organizations.  In this organization, innovation is a noun of action.  Innovation is about putting people’s ideas into action and it requires patience with process and trust in relationships.

In this organization, the state of the economy has a direct and immediate impact on their bottom line and budgets.  And, like any other organization they need to continually develop and make sure that their employees have the tools and equipment to do their jobs.  So, they have been challenged over the last decade to maintain their momentum of progress in organizational development.

How do they do it?  What’s the evidence that innovation is alive in their culture?

I think that evidence was best explained by one of the leaders in the organization.  Here is what he told me.  “It’s easy to find solutions when you only think about adding resources or staff.  It requires innovation to drive progress when resources are scarce. We are very resourceful as an organization. We can find 9 ways to do things where as in another organization they may simply say, we can’t do it.  We have the fortitude and persistence to figure it out. We can do so much with so little. I think that we’ve created a culture where it’s kind of fun for people to try to figure out how to get it done. I remember a workshop that we did recently where we brainstormed cost savings and revenue generating ideas.  We literally ran out of wall space and paper!”

If you would like to turn ideas into actions in your organization here is some advice from one organization that does it well.

·    Focus your vision on your customer driven purpose
·    Generate ideas with the people who do the work
·    Develop the best ideas with an interdependent team
·    Educate and advocate for your ideas; this builds trust
·    Practice the discipline of patience and perseverance

Respectfully yours, Georgine

I’ve always been amazed with the 3-D artwork of Julian Beever.  I choose one of his pavement chalk drawings to accompany my blog this week because I wanted to write about perception.  And, his artwork is the perfect illustration that things are not always as they seem.

Our perceptions motivate our reactions to other people and situations, how we proceed with projects at work, the choices we make, the attitudes we express, etc.

One of my favorite perception stories is told in the book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen Covey and it goes like this.

A store manager heard one of his salespeople say to a customer, “No, we haven’t had any for some weeks now, and it doesn’t look as if we’ll be getting any soon.”  He then observed the customer turn and head for the door.  The manager was shocked to hear these words and rushed to the customer as she was walking out the door.  “That isn’t true,” he said, but the customer just gave him an odd look and walked out the door.  He confronted the salesperson and said, “Never, ever say that we don’t have something.  If we don’t have it, say we’ve ordered it and it’s on its way.  Now what did that customer want?  “Rain,” said the salesperson.

How often have you made an assumption or jumped to a conclusion, responded accordingly and then found out that the “miss” was in your perception?  I have, plenty of times!  It’s easy to do.

This story reminds me that everyone has a unique perspective because of their frame of reference.  And, this story reminds me to stay curious and observant in life, to ask questions to understand diverse perspectives, and to gather information about a situation before I form an opinion.

Respectfully yours, Georgine

“Our paradigms, correct or incorrect, are the sources of our attitudes and behaviors, and ultimately our relationships with others.”  Stephen Covey

I’m always struck by the power of my beliefs on how the way I act.  Often, my beliefs are based on old patterns or habits that I’ve formed from past experiences.  Perhaps you can relate.  What’s important to keep in mind is that when we act out of old patterns, it keeps us from being “in the moment” and present to the needs of those around us.

Here are some commonly-held beliefs that influence our choices (and not always in a positive way):

·    In order for me to win, someone has to lose.
·    If I’m the leader (or boss), I have to know all the answers.
·    If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.
·    No pain, no gain.
·    Big boys don’t cry.
·    If you want something done right, do it yourself.
·    Take care of #1.

Beliefs impact our behavior, and if we hold beliefs that have negative connotation, our actions will likely have negative results.  For example, if I held the belief that “in order for me to win, someone has to lose”, it’s likely I would create a sense of competition at work and end up alienating my team mates.

So, here’s another take on the beliefs listed above that are more likely to keep you (and me) in the present moment:

·    In order for me to win, others have to win as well.
·    If I’m the leader (or boss), I don’t have to know all the answers, I just need to know how to involve those who do.
·    If you can’t say something nice, there’s probably a conflict you need to solve.
·    No pain, is a good thing for everyone.
·    Every human feels pain and expresses it in his or her own way.
·    If you want something done right, give people the tools to succeed.
·    Take care of yourself so you can be available to take care of others.

I would love to hear some of your old patterns and beliefs that no longer serve you.  And, then, I’d like to hear how you can change them up to help you be more present to yourself and those around you.

Lynae

A client recently shared a book with me called Soup: A Recipe to Nourish your Team and Culture by Jon Gordon.

I found this book, written as a fun business fable, to be quite delightful.  Gordon’s analogy around “soup” is based upon “who is stirring the pot” or leading the organization and what ingredients are going into the pot or organizational culture.

Gordon explains that in the past, managers were focused on the numbers, and the numbers were good. So morale was up and everyone was happy. But then the recession hit and the numbers went down. Well, when you’re focused on numbers and they’re going down, morale also goes down. So does engagement, and so does performance.

Gordon encourages leaders to take a new focus – culture.  A focus on culture is centered on purpose, value-based behaviors, morale and engaged relationships.  Leaders that use these ingredients build winning teams and nourishing cultures.

Engaged relationships are interactive, collaborative, and meaningful.  They are also essential to outcomes in any organization.

Here are some of Gordon’s insights that I thought were spot on!

• When you are driving through life at 100 miles per hour you can become so focused on creating success that you don’t make the time to develop the relationships that lead to your success. What our employees need the most, we’re delivering the least.

• Where there’s a void in communication, negativity fills it. The number one thing a manager can do during times of uncertainty is to communicate. Tell the truth, give them a plan, and help them believe. Optimism is a competitive advantage right now, and you need to convey it in all you say and do.

• The main question every employee in every organization wants to know is, “Do you care about me; can I trust you?” Employees who feel cared for, honored and nourished are more engaged in what they’re doing and will work at their highest potential.

With Respect,
Georgine

One of the reasons I love what I do is because of the fascinating people I have the opportunity to meet every day.  The highly social aspect of my personality is always curious about others; their “stories” and deepening relationships by just getting to know them.

One of the exercises that Madd-Steiny often facilitates in our learning modules around the topic of honoring diversity has participants answer the simple question: ‘What makes you unique?’

We hear that life experiences in diverse cultures and communities, family systems, education, life events, and work experiences create each of our unique stories.  Invariably, this discussion always creates a curiosity to hear more about the unique and individual stories.

We believe that in order to embrace a culture of respect and inclusion every individual needs to be honored for their uniqueness.  This can be advanced in any organization when individuals and groups take time to create a forum where dialogue and listening can take place.

One of my all time favorite authors, Margaret Wheatley, said it best in her book Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future.

“Great healing is available to us when we listen to each other.  No matter what we have experienced in life, if we can tell our story to someone who listens, we find it easier to deal with our circumstances.  Listening is such a simple act.  It requires us to be present (and that takes practice!) and willing to just sit there and listen with the intent to understand.  Why is being heard so healing?  It has something to do with the fact that listening creates a relationship.

We know from science that nothing in the universe exists in isolation.  Everything takes form from relationships.  Our natural state is to be together.  Though we keep moving away from each other, we never lose the need to be in relationship.  Not listening creates fragmentation.  Listening moves us closer to becoming more whole.”

Here are some questions that you might consider asking others to learn about what makes them unique:

·    What is your favorite thing about this time of year?
·    What traditions do you practice in your family that has a legacy?
·    What was an experience in your life that was a “defining moment” for you and shaped who you are today?

Enjoy and honor the stories you’ll hear!

Sincerely, Georgine

One of our favorite clients is a hospital with whom we’ve been working for more than three years.  We feel privileged that they have implemented a customized version of our respectFULL teams™ program.  Recently, they spoke to us about developing a learning plan for an initiative they’ve undertaken to build a “patient family centered” culture.  Patient family centered care is the practice of building and sustaining mutually-beneficial partnerships among patients, their families, and health care providers.  At its core, patient family centered care requires that patients and their families are treated with dignity and respect.  (We love that part!)  One aspect of this best practice requires the interpersonal competence to be able to connect and communicate with people in a way that is meaningful for them and meets their individual needs.  In many cases, this is a paradigm shift for hospital personnel because patients and families must be viewed as equal and important members of the health care team.  For health care, this is a revolution.  And, it can be a revolution for all other industries as well.

What do you think it would be like if all organizations treated their customers – all the time – with dignity and respect?  There are some core principles of patient family centered care that translate well to any industry and all customers.  Here are some of the guidelines for making an organization more customer-centered.  What improvement ideas and/or challenges come to mind for you as you read them?

·    Service is customized according to the customer’s needs and values.
·    The customer is the source of control.
·    Knowledge is shared and information flows freely.
·    Decision making is evidence-based.
·    Transparency is necessary.
·    Needs are anticipated.
·    Waste is continuously decreased.
·    Cooperation among service providers is a priority.

Lynae