Lose The Cookie Cutter
23 JanA conversation today with a client raised this question– Is employee engagement look and feel the same in every company? Another way that question could be asked is: can we take our cookie cutter and apply success across lots of employers?
We all are looking for “best practices” from other employers, particularly those that have been successful in creating a great workplace. But I hope we can all agree that how certain engagement practices are embraced and used in one setting may be very different from another.
Just last month I had the pleasure of talking with the CEO of a company that is known for their outstanding culture and engaged employee group, which over the last ten years has accounted for, in his view, a great deal of their success. Being a technology company with a younger employee population, there are some efforts they’ve found successful that may not work well in another environment.
Let’s make sure we keep our wits about us when it comes to taking what might be a great idea in one comopan and making implementing it in our place of work.
- Does the practice feel right for us?
- How would the practice fit with our history, management style and culture?
- Are the elements of the practice that might work, while other elements should be ignored?
“Good Enough” Isn’t Good Enough Anymore
22 JanFive years ago I was working with a client, reviewing their employee survey results. The data indicated that many employees were unfavorable to the employee benefits offerings. In discussing what should be done the CEO said to me: “I wish our benefits could be better, but I think they’re good enough. I know it might be a thorn for some of our staff, but I don’t think people are disengaging and leaving over this.”
At that time, this CEO could have been right. Our studies then indicated that benefits were a moderate driver of engagement. Fast forwarding five years to today I can tell you employee perceptions about benefits have risen much higher as a driver. In fact, we now see it as one of the six most important drivers that an employer must address.
- Are your benefits “just good enough”?
- What could you do to help employees know that you genuinely care about their well being, now that we know it is a more significant driver?
- What low cost, or no cost, actions can be taken, given our current economic challenges?
When Perception Trumps Reality
21 JanIn a consultation about a year ago with a company about their employee survey results, the CEO voiced to me concerns about employee perceptions of company benefits, particularly their 401(k). He complained: “We have a great plan, but many of our staff came from a company we closely partner with that has a pension. We don’t have a pension, so they think they’re losing out even though their overall net retirement benefit is much better.”
We concluded that the company needed to do a better job of helping employees get clear about the benefits of their current plan. They launched a communication iniative they called “Do you want a pension or do you want a retirement?” In this initiative they presented models that showed employees how much better their retirement would be under the 401(k) plan.
I’m pleased to report that a year later those survey results are much higher– changing perceptions helped change the reality for those employees.
- What perceptions do you need to address regarding benefits, or anything else for that matter?
- Would this communication be even more important right now with our current economic situation likely making our staff even more nervous about these “security” issues?
The Defintion of Insanity…
20 JanIn an earlier post I mentioned that my colleague Leigh Branham and I are now seeing that health and well-being is a significant driver of employee engagement, taking on far more importance now than five years ago. Why has it risen in the priority ranking in terms of differentiating between low and high levels of employee engagement?
One answer may lie in a study reported in the January, 2009 edition of HR Focus. The study indicates that although wages have increased 14.5% from 2000 to 2007, family health care coverage rose 78.3%, a average increase 5.4 times faster than the medium wage– yikes!
In a focus group interview I recently conducted on behalf of a client this concern came through loud and clear. Several employees said: “The good news is I was very productive last year and got a nice raise. The bad news is I gave it all back in increased health care premiums!”
Is this the experience at your place of work? Many employers keep the same approach to health care, and don’t get any better results… insanity, right? Over the coming weeks I’ll be discussing some ideas we’ve found that may work to stem this tide– would love to get your thoughts…
No Needle, No Haystack
20 JanAnother lunch last week produced this conversation: A good friend was working with a company that was having difficulty hiring for a certain role, a challenge that had plagued them for years. They asked my friend to think about ways they could expand their talent pool for this particular job.
It became clear to him that the company was looking for people with a unique set of qualifications that didn’t really exist, at least not in the quantity this company needed to sustain their growth. Rather than help them expand their talent pool for this role he helped them re-scope the job! By taking away some responsibilities that could be done by others and increasing the span of control of the position, they actually expanded the pool of potential candidates for the redesigned role.
Are you looking for a needle in a haystack? What roles in your company are you having difficulty sourcing, and would a job redesign increase your chances of finding the right talent?
The Silver Lining, Part 1
19 JanI had lunch last week with an executive at a company that, not unlike the rest of us, is having some challenges conducting business in the current economic conditions. Although typical business indicators are running in the red, he did note one opportunity:
“I’ve had a job posting running for a few weeks, and I’m getting more quality candidates that I could have ever imagined– certainly more than I would have had six months ago. I told my boss this may be the silver lining in this economic crisis– our ability to secure talent that we would not have otherwise.”
Indeed, you may have some opportunities like this.
- Are you ready to take advantage of those opportunities to upgrade your talent?
- Can you make a strong argument why that talent should join you?
- If you’re not ready, what can you do in the next five business days to strengthen your brand so that those talented candidates choose you?
How To Destroy Someone
18 JanMy former boss and mentor Don Clifton frequently told audiences that one way you could destroy a person was to repeatedly ask them to do something for which they have no adequate response in terms of their abilities. That sounds pretty dramatic, but by not putting people into roles that fit their strengths we often do this in the workplace. This fate has sadly befallen me twice in my career, and although I wasn’t destroyed I certainly suffered. One miscast employee laments:
My talents are a mismatch with my job but I cannot change jobs right now. I would be more positive about our company if I could do something here more in line with my abilities.
Consider:
- How many employees do you have that are in the wrong job, a “square peg in a round hole”, so to speak?
- More importantly, how much is the productivity of your company suffering because good people are in jobs that are a poor fit for them?
Engagement and the Economic Crisis
17 JanMy thanks to several news organizations, including Reuters http://blog.recruiternewsline.com/?p=118 and CNBC http://www.cnbc.com/id/28647983 in helping present our research into employee engagement in our current economic crisis.
When Engagement Leads To Gratitude
17 Jan
Is employee development an essential part of your employment brand? In this current economy we still are finding employers who are making that investment, one we know will help them weather this storm. Here’s a comment from an employer known for their high levels of engagement. It’s a testament to their efforts and, more importantly, a common remark for them. You can immediately sense the gratitude this employee is expressing:
(The company) is not afraid of taking chances on individuals, and that personally has allowed me to be promoted and move into my current job. When employees may not always have the usually expected experience for a position, the firm provides the means necessary to get that knowledge and experience.
Consider:
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Is this how you feel about your job? If not, perhaps you need to seek out an employer who, in thick and thin, can make this happen.
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If you’re a manager, is this how your employees feel?
Mark Hirschfeld 