What to do when you are staring down the barrel of staffing challenges and this is just one of your starting points?

In a previous article I looked at What Staff Want. It gives some interesting insights, but how do you figure out how to deliver the things they want or need and get to that point effectively.

Let’s go for the easy option, Brainstorm…

If you already know what they want and or need to do their job effectively, then facilitating a session with them will assist them to at least understand you want to assist them, and give  you an idea of if they want to be assisted.

The real aim is to use the “Collective Intelligence” to get information happening and ideas explored.

You could start out with the list of what people want, then jot down some ideas in advance  of things you believe might match to the job, tasks, attitudes and beliefs. Then you have a chance of connecting with them when the discussion starts and they are scrambling to find ideas. You would probably use your information to enhance their thinking processes if they get stuck, you might add in a pointer relating to an obvious task to spur them on.

Brainstorming can be easy – Set some guidelines and go from there.

• All ideas are good ideas – We can focus on the good ideas later
• Feel free to share – Let people freely add in and occasionally encourage the stragglers to also put in. Invite them to help make things better
• Our aim – To explore ideas on improving this business unit – “We have challenges what will improve things?”
• Work to a time frame so they don’t just lounge about for ages, aim to get ideas on to paper fast.
• Pose some questions to be answered – Perhaps this is the initial brainstorming, getting the issues out as THEY see them, then getting them to provide ideas to answer them
• Write fast, and prod for more ideas – Actively explore concepts as they arise
• Consider a mind map – Do an internet search on the basics of this, it can be a very visual way of getting the thought processes working.
• Collate the main ideas and share them once they are typed up – This can then lead to a plan of action or an attitude shift to some degree.

A brainstorming session should be positive and free flowing. The team should not feel like they are working under duress to come up with ideas. Hopefully after doing this session you will be able to find some excellent starting points to work from. Chances are the team had all the ideas and answers and you were able to positively, openly and honestly listen to them work through the challenges.

Now notice how all of this leads to you being the coach… working with people to get the best from them, without having to hit them over the head and force them to do things. Trust me it’s better that way. Want to be a better workplace coach, try this…

Keeping people happy is one part of the whole business matrix… customers or staff, the common denominator is that they are all people.

To keep one person happy you might find their definition is built on getting a reasonable amount of work done in a standard working day, churning through mountains of meaningless paperwork. Meanwhile the next person is kept happy by having variety and not just being stuck in an office.

So what are the core things they want and how can you provide these for them?

Here’s my list.

• A sense of belonging – Being valued by others, even in minor ways can help to build and maintain their workplace sense of esteem
• A sense of achievement – Some will want to work their way up the corporate ladder, set goals and achieve them
• Contributing and adding value – Beyond their basic agreement, work targets etc, they feel as though they have contributed to the whole business machine
• A sense of purpose – It’s not a meaningless job, it has a role to play and they can clearly sense that
• Organisational integrity – It’s about security, if they know the organisation has integrity they then have a foundation they can believe in and stand by. No integrity, the foundation can give way at anytime this leads to insecurity and can be a reason for staff turnover
• Control – For some this can mean the security that comes from having some measure of control over their situation, it might be minor. For others they want the chance to take control of a department, or a division depending on their level of drive or motivation
• They like be challenged – In ways which suit them, not you. For some it will be big challenges for others it will be meeting a small quota. It comes down to brain stimulus
• They have a suitable work environment – Where it can be controlled, think about it you spend 8 or so hours a day in the business, do you want to spend 8 hours in a hovel or 8 hours in paradise… The choice is a no brainer right? So what’s your environment like? Sure paradise is a BIG step but making it better might only take a few tweaks and a small amount of cash. For those out on the road for instance in a company vehicle, is it clean neat and tidy, new, old, in good repair or a rust bucket. Oh and the Lunch room, a place to relax and unwind, or a stinking cesspool of yuck… (broken chairs etc.)
• They have the right tools – Newish computer – Quiet keyboard – Suitable work chair – Effective other tools

Are there others? Probably, it’s up to you to find out. But armed with this as your starting point you can soon see the sorts of core things staff want. Go and chat with your staff and find out what their wants are.

Now you know what staff what, here’s an article on how you might explore this further.

You started to see the clues that a staff member was not quite in line with your expected range of behaviours – their efforts are slow, below quality, they resist some tasks etc. In general they become a pain to deal with and you really hope they just vanish one day and the problem is over.

However the reality is somewhat different, they hang around and keep on plodding hoping to keep on getting away with doing what they do, It’s almost as if no one notices them doing what they don’t do.

Your task is to now figure out what to do about it and do it fast so they don’t start to infect others with their attitude.

Your first step is probably underway, that is rewarding the behaviours you want “Well done with the x project…” but if things have slipped out of your grasp a little then the following should be of value.

Here’s how things generally go

• They get annoyed with something
• They develop some form of resistance as a result of their annoyance (ignore commands, put things off etc)
• Things escalate because they believe nothing is going to change back to how it was or get better (they were comfortable with how things were) now you have resentment starting to build
• Finally things build retaliation stage, the issue that has resulted in things getting to this stage spills over into them taking negative action, in extreme cases this can get VERY nasty (read workplace shooting…) On the lesser scale they will do tasks slowly, to a poor standard or avoid tasks and probably blame others

The first step is to evaluate the situation – What specifically do they do that is causing difficulties? Make a list and make it evidence based but avoid implicating others (it can get VERY messy if you do!)

Secondly – You need to figure out what may be causing this, here are some possibilities, note all of these can lead a person to be annoyed with the job or the company and therefore their attitude and efforts have strayed.

• Their job changed at some stage and they did not like the change but may not have said so, or if they did say something their plea fell on deaf ears
• They have been told off for not doing a good job, in a way which has annoyed them. The upshot is they have resented it and have now become resistant and are starting to retaliate
• They see the system as being so slack they figure they can get away with anything so they push the boundaries
• They are being bullied or harassed in some way (I hope it’s not by you…)
• They feel they are undervalued
• They have some personal issues – physical – emotional – psychological, which is impacting on their work
• The work has become too challenging for them
• The work is no longer challenging for them
• Things change too often for them, the computer system, they type of work, etc
• The work may not have altered but now they have to travel further to complete works now they become annoyed
• The list can go on.

Time to do something…

Let’s face it something needs to happen to “stop the rot setting in”. If you have built a great relationship with your team, you will be intervening early, perhaps at the annoyance or resistance stage. If not you may have a harder task to handle.

Let’s work on this in my next article on this issue.

The aim is to have a staff member who is relaxed about you chatting with them, so you can keep them onside and willing to discuss issues rather than some adversarial situation they can get annoyed about.

Here are a few points to consider;

• You are aiming to make an assessment not a judgement – There is a difference, assessing the situation means researching and working the facts, judging may well mean you could start off on an accusatory footing. Aim to get solid facts first.
• Avoid cornering or accusing them – They may deny anything, then you will be in a harder place trying to get information as they withdraw and may start to lay blame or justify their position – Think about if you would like to be cornered and how you might respond
• Keep things open and honest – You want them to feel as though they can readily and easily relate the information you want with no pressure, lies or any form of creative avoidance
• Ask “Is it okay if we have a chat about work…” – This way you will have a good chance of getting their permission to chat about the issue/s. Avoid asking “So how’s work going” this can set them up to say “Ok… why” and then be on the defensive
• Try the research method – “I’m chatting to a range of staff about things to do with the business, ideas for improvements, how people are going, that sort of thing. Can I do some research with you?” – This can give you permission to ask questions about the business and related info
• Spend some time with them – This may not be suitable in every situation, but perhaps you can spend some time with them “on the road”, meet them on site, or perhaps sit with them for a while in their workspace (maybe chatting about a specific task to begin with.)
• Make it happen fast – Once you have suggested you want to catch up, make sure you avoid dragging things on, this can cause unnecessary worry all round.
• Take good notes – Leaving this part until later can be a trail fraught with danger, collect facts, not hearsay and allegations. Feel free to read back the details and see if they agree with what you jotted down. Consider asking them if they want a copy.

Now that you have set up the chance to have a chat, what will you say? Well it’s going to depend a bit on the angle you take I guess, personally I favour the research method.

• Give them the chance to say nothing! – Somewhere in the opening questions if you can throw this in it can be very useful, “Feel free not to say anything if you wish, it’s up to you” this takes the pressure off straight away and allows them the option to avoid things, chances are they will actually switch on internally and answer practically any question you pose to them.
• Begin with some easy things – “if they have a new vehicle, “So how’s the new vehicle going, one of the other guys is not sure about his…” or “This last six months has been really busy/quiet   how has that been for you?”
• Look for lead ins – They answer one question and it leads on to another that fits well to you finding out more, or causing them to open up more.
• Stack questions – Putting together a bunch of questions in one hit can cause the person to start talking and not stop for a long while – basically you set their brain firing on a range of questions and they just start to respond. It could start like this…”We have been busy this past month don’t you think, It has been for me, and then the summer kicked in and we had those orders come from the retailers, do  you think the upgrade to the computer helped with at or was it just me that thought it struggled, anyway… That’s not what I wanted to ask really… any how, what’s been happening in your area?” – With practice you can stack questions with ease and sit back for a while and get more than just yes’s or no’s to your key question/s
• Work from their viewpoint – How do you see things… how do things feel for you… what do you believe is happening… Do things sound ok from your end? This works from an old American Indian saying of “Walk for a while in the other person’s Moccassions” this can then allow you to get their perspective and may lead you into more of the right questions and or give you some empathy for their viewpoint. It may also give you the real reason they are doing what they do, rather than some smoke screen cover up.
• Small talk can be useful but… – For some people using small talk to lead in to a conversation is normal, easy and very useful, for others however it can be a slippery slide to disaster, with the other person smelling a rat very fast, putting them on the defensive. Know your people, so you can craft your approach to fit to their needs and situation, use small talk for those that do and avoid it for those that don’t use it.
• What’s your biggest challenge and why? – Sit and listen carefully after you ask this one, and ask it only when you are sure you have a measure of trust with them. If they ask for clarification about the question “Personal or professional challenges?” then you are getting closer to the real question, it can get more specific after that as well and perhaps you can use that to your advantage to clarify more questions with details.
• Feed it back to them – Sometimes you can read info back to people to clarify what was said, any points they disagree with you can modify to suit. This is the best time to clarify things while things are still fresh in both parties heads.
• Ask them for answers – “Our chat has identified a bunch of things, if you could solve these challenges, what would you do?” Then sit and listen carefully, you may get some great answers to some big issues, but let them have the chance to respond. Often people will start out by saying “I don’t know…” Then launch into “Well what I would do is…” then take great notes as they unload.

Now you have some solid starting points for  your intervention, hopefully you will get some great information to work with, their views, their reasons why or why not and the chance to provide some answers, hopefully all of which was done with minimal hassle and discomfort. Your next step will probably be to act on your findings, that could raise a whole bunch of other issues for us to explore another time.

Has all of this caught your interest? Well it should and to really get a handle on things consider this, what do your staff really want? find out in the next article, what staff want.

There’s lots of other talk too, less Entrepreneurs entering the market place with big ideas. Then there’s people losing jobs left right and centre as businesses close up and walk away, or go offshore to chase cheaper ways to manufacture.

With all this I can sense bitterness in the air, people in business cursing those that don’t buy, (or by online…) cursing the idea of having to set up a business in a down economy, cursing the thought of having to think creatively to overcome challenges and create anew. The list goes on.

Things change, get used to that.

It’s up to you what you end up doing about it, in business there are options, generally the more cash you have the more options you have.

But wait the “bootstrap-ocracy” will tell us you don’t need money, you need ideas, followed by a great pitch to the right people and before you know it a business has emerged from nothing.

I heard a conversation the other day that suggested all business ideas are bootstrapped, even if you put a few Million into the start up phase you then have to pay that back at some stage so  you are possibly worse off than if you started with zero $$ it just seems easier.

What will make a business thrive through 2012 and on into the future. Lots of things, the ability to handle change, be creative with their ideas and explore ways to make those ideas become reality so the zero start up can become a heroic organism which can stride forward with confidence. In a word nimble.

Go on get nimble, get creative and make hay before the weather changes and the hay goes sour. The wider community is waiting for the right people to do the right things and keep things moving. “Tag… you’re it!”

On the one side we have Drivers (have to do a task) – on the other there are Motivators (want to do a task).

Clearly if someone is motivated to do something they want to do it and that probably means they will do the task with interest and enthusiasm. On the other hand if someone HAS to do a task, they could try to put it off to the last minute and have to be driven to do it (no choice, must be done not matter what).

All of that is okay, but I got stuck, in the middle part, where I could not decide if I wanted to do a task or if I was driven to do a task, it was a ‘no mans land’. And yes I was seriously STUCK, things that I should do but was neither motivated nor driven to do. I floated, wondering what will drive me to do the task, or motivate me.

For a long while I was perplexed and on the odd occasions people would suggest ‘Just do it’ but being a thinking person, I was too busy considering “how come I’m not motivated or driven?”

Finally I got to the “Just do it” stance, and then it hit me. Just do it is in the middle, and I see it as a pendulum moving a bit either side, perhaps there would be times when I would just do things and have moments of feeling motivated or driven. Nice distinction me thinks…

The main thing, if a task needs doing, ‘Just do it’. Who knows, the ‘just done thing’ may lead us to explore the task from a more motivated or driven position, the possibilities from there might be endless.

Here are some ways to give it.

• Make things to go smoothly – If there are hassles things can go bad fast.
• Give them timely responses (not waiting) – Make sure you connect with them as fast as possible, they will appreciate it and you will stand out from the crowd.
• Show great courtesy (the best service wins) – Manners matter.
• Respect, their views values and ideals – That does not mean you have to change yours to meet theirs just respect them.
• Give them clear explanations in their language style – Speak at their pace using their tone etc.
• Keep them informed – We have ordered that for you, we will call when it comes in…
• Acknowledge them – Hello – Someone will be with you soon.
• Listen to them – Active listening means you pay full attention to what they are saying, be there (in the moment as they say) so they feel as though you are focused on them

If your organisation is doing this part of customer service  right, then you have a chance to impress people and provide them with what they want, solutions to their needs and wants. Now that’s another story…

Therefore make your site work on a mobile, as MILLIONS are now using their phones to browse, and the figure is building daily.

What you need is a way to test your site, the good people over at Google have come up with a fairly elegant solution… http://www.howtogomo.com/

A simple yet highly effective way to test your webpage/s to see if you can cut through when you need to! Now call your web people and make changes.

• Team exercises – Most people hate the ‘team building’ exercises, then they get into it and like it and then realise there was low ongoing value, but they had a break from work, they just tell the boss it was ok.
• We are a team already – if there are challenges, forcing us to do something about it might just annoy us further. Perhaps HR should have hired decent new team members in the first place! It’s their fault. – Sometimes the way to change things is easier than having people out on a team building exercise, perhaps a series of chats from their ‘coach’ or team leader (same thing) is enough to find an elegant solution or raise awareness of issues.
• Take me away – Taking me away for the weekend to a conference, seminar might seem nice and a big commitment from the company to show it cares, but if it’s my family time, forget it, I will probably just resent it for the first part of the event if not all of the event – Doing it in work time may look like I am getting out of work, but Most will figure that the work does not go away and it might just create more stress.
• Spend the training $$ – I put down we need to do some team building exercises, because usually they are fun, and hey you’re the one allocating the training $$ and if we don’t spend it we lose it. If they are going to do training they want to have a good time and hey, if push comes to shove they might be able to justify it.
• What team issues? – What else in the organisation might be causing the supposed ‘team issue’? Could it be a lack of Leadership, direction, adherence to Co guidelines etc… – There is an old saying that says “Resistance builds first, followed by resentment and finally retaliation” when things start to go astray start asking what’s causing people to become resistant to things in the first place? Then work on that, well before resentment leads to retaliation!
• As a team leader, someone from ‘above’ says we need to do this, why wasn’t I consulted… – see resistance, resentment, and retaliation!
• Does it pay? - A program scheduled over a number of sessions takes people out of a productive work environment and the $$ invested better come back in increased productivity fast. Chances are the $$ return will take a while no matter what the program time frame, even then there are no guarantees, so any benefit may fade over time, just in time for the next team building exercise!
• Programs that create tight knit teams seem to adversely effect the productivity, what gives with that! – Simply put if people get on really well together they start to care on a deep level, before long they are a closely connected group, they worry together, laugh together, share lots of things together, how on earth do they find time to work!

Please understand I see training as a vital part of successful business operations, just that it needs to be relevant, useful and valued in general. If it annoys people and they can’t appreciate the value readily, you might do better to direct the training $$ into other areas.

So who are you listening to specifically?

I guess it depends on what is being said and who is saying it. If a general staff member is saying there is an OHS issue then you will probably be listening intently, but if it’s another issue which could waiver in direction how would you listen, intently, vaguely or other. If it had a positive impact on your bottom line you might listen closely, but if it looked like the opposite you might discard it, but what if it was the sort of thing which could have a long term positive effect but it was not obvious at the time.

If it is the latter then you might ll9isten intently if the person telling you is somehow influential and you take action at everything they say. however if the person isn’t influential a great idea might go by the wayside fast.

Then the trick comes down to your self evaluation of what’s being discussed, may I suggest you listen to everything as if it’s being told to you by a person who’s view you respect (or you are influenced by) and evaluate it from that view (do your due diligence).

You might be surprised at the information you get and the value of it if you do listen carefully as if everything matters. Chances are it will matter, it’s just a question of when.

How connected are you to your team?
How connected are the individuals in the team…

Does it matter, yes… and here’s why.

Your people are your biggest asset, they do the things required to cause customers to pay for the products and or services you provide. No connection, means no communication, no communication no sale. Here’s the issue, its all about having a ‘suitable’ depth of communication.

The same thing applies to the internal customer communications, no communication, no connection, therefore there is probably a low care factor. (seems obvious now I spelt that out huh…)
Change it, discuss it, explore it, push it, use the term “Care Factor” and raise it to a suitable level (too much can push things over the edge).

Now take a look at your “Care Factor” for ALL your team. Here’s some pointers to consider.

• How much do you know about your people?
• Ask them about their day, weekend, issues, thoughts, perspectives etc.
• Chat about their hobbies and interests.
• Discuss work issues face to face every now and then (not just by email or a brief chat as you pass in the hall way).
• Invite them (not literally) to ask you about your interests etc…

Some of you will find this easy, others will struggle and have probably stopped reading for fear of connecting with their staff! Think about all of this carefully, because at the end of the day no connection means no sales, and business needs sales! (one way or the other).Your next questions should be how do I/we connect better!

Four interesting findings about innovation emerged from his workshop.

1. Most large organizations have or have had innovation processes in the form of idea programmes in place. They work to varying degrees, none appear highly successful.
2. Most organizational innovation produces isolated successes, yet does not sustain organizationally over long periods. I used a case study with a 6 year life cycle and that represented a lengthy period according to the participants.
3. None of the innovation programmes discussed had benchmarking or on-going measurement associated with them enabling decision makers to value organizational innovation. Once the innovation had been implemented, it was regarded simply as a part of the business regardless of its impact. As a result, it appears decision makers in organizations are not able to meaningfully assess over time the value of innovation programmes or processes.
4. Whilst innovation programmes might be considered part of an organization’s core values. if they don’t have senior leadership driving them in a coherent and disciplined manner, they have little chance of being considered truly strategic and are likely to die if there is a change in leadership.

Dr.Ralph Kerle

Let’s start with what innovation is, it’s either a quantum leap or incremental process, either way it’s about finding ways forward to produce an organisation which can function more effectively.

The big thing, it’s often about using creative thinking processes to spark the change, however most business processes follow logic and are not often linked to creativity even though they look to innovation for a “way forward”.

There’s the challenge, to take a logical organism (business) and marry it with creative thinking (ideas and processes which may have only a few logical processes as part of them). Especially if there are few examples of creativity making big inroads into business development. (Some would argue market leaders like apple computers fly against this).

Some thoughts

• Use innovation
• Value innovation
• Push to innovate
• Explore it!
• The board should be creative junkies
• The board should be implementing it at every level
• The team don’t get it because they are following the lead (fail on creativity guys)
• Forget JUST innovation go for creativity and see what happens (does it lead to innovation, usually yes).
• Measurement, take a look at the bottom line, are there more dollars, is there greater retention of staff (therefore some reduced costs), are staff happier? You get the idea make a big list and see if the creative invasion has made a difference
• Ask your team to brainstorm the difference innovation and creative approaches might make, then measure that
• Does your organisation have a culture which can handle creative approaches, if not why not and how might you alter that?
• How does the main team get to value creativity and innovation?
• Do your team say “Oh no another silly thingy we have to deal with from ‘upstairs’” or do they look on with interest.
• Plan do check act – try – do check act plan…
• Improvise adapt overcome – try – adapt overcome improvise…
• Replace “They won’t go for that” with “Go for that it might just make a BIG difference”
• Replace “do it now” thinking with “do it yesterday?”
• Think save the world with our actions because we can, via innovation
• Think… explore… create… and or ANY combination of those
• Ask, is the ball rolling effectively or are there any obstacles in it’s way? Now innovate that for results. BIG results
• Pose creative questions at all levels, all the time
• Ask for creative responses to challenges (you shouldn’t have to after a while)
• Ask, what creative process do I not know about that we can use now…
• Hire for creativity first skills, passion and abilities second…
• Hire based strongly on “What creative or innovative thing propelled you in your last role?” (even if they are applying for a menial role)

Enough, either see the road blocks or create the road ahead, make it a golden one with all the trimmings thanks.

For smaller organisations there is often a reluctance to write them out, fiddle with them etc, as they see it as an unnecessary thing to do. (basically a waste of time) until something happens and then they wish they had a list of them to fall back on as a support, to provide guidance.

Here is a bunch of values an organisation chasing the aims and ideals of excellence might list and utilise. I will expand on these and offer a few examples to give some ideas and options for their use.

• Leadership: The courage to shape a better future by positive actions – The ability to motivate people to explore excellence – Lead by example “see something, do something”
• Respect: For each other, the people we serve and the environment – From the way we communicate to the way we act on all levels
• Tolerance: Of others, their views, beliefs and values
• Collaboration: Leverage collective genius – work cooperatively with others – Comply with all legal and statutory authorities – Explore ways to develop profitable business relationships
• Integrity: Consistency of honest working principles and beliefs – Build trust through our positive actions – Build our structural integrity to ensure sustained growth through a solid foundation – We build with a culture of mutual respect for all – Aim to be ecologically sustainable
• Accountability: If it is to be, it’s up to me – See something, Do something, take action to make things right – Think globally, act locally – Hold true to a high level duty of care
• Passion: Committed in heart and mind to get great results we can all be proud of
• Quality: What we do, we do well – We openly explore ways to improve at all levels – A commitment to personal and professional excellence – A commitment to great service at all levels – Aiming to be a highly professional team
• Adaptable: We are able to take initiative and embrace projects and challenges with the guideline of “Improvise – Adapt – Overcome”

These cover most areas of human interaction, and at any time an issue arises they can be called upon to offer guidance as to which direction things might go.

I figure these are vital to a contemporary organisation and offer a wide range of options for future development. Want to move forward, check there is a value or two you might want to follow and use it to  your advantage. A wise guiding hand in times of need is one which offers flexibility and direction, Look no further folks, here is the start to being guided by wisdom.

What do you want them to…

• Think – The message the marketing in front of the person either makes you think or not. The depth and length of that thinking is probably quite important, I figure as long as it leads to the next step then it works…
• Feel – Does this follow thinking? How do you feel now that I challenged you to contemplate that… (deep huh) but the marketing message (image and or text) probably pushed a few internal buttons to get  you to feel a certain way once you thought about the message
• Do – Action follows feeling as they say… therefore do you want them to sign up – phone – drop in – scan a qr code – read more – follow a link or…
• Believe – The did what you asked (action) do they now believe even stronger that what they did was the right thing to do, I sure hope so.
• Value – At some stage (probably after they have received whatever it was they get from taking the initial action) they will make an assessment about what they have received, if it fits to or exceeds their beliefs about it, and feel good about it then they will value it positively, if not bad news for you!

Get the message/s right so people value what you provide. That will then squeeze out the competition and give your business the edge, and what better place to start than with their  initial contact with your marketing message.

Naturally enough it’s one thing to have a starting point, another to be able to make it happen at other customer contact levels within your business.

I have a question however, what will they do with it?

Suggestion, for a whole bunch of people who can’t afford to buy the solar panels on their roofs use the $$ to give low income earners a way to reduce their utility costs, this will then mean less coal gets dug up as well. Makes sense to me. However I won’t be holding my breathe waiting for things to happen.

In your business are there similar opportunities? Are you missing out because of lack of thinking, risk taking etc… look closer you might find some powerful opportunities right under your noses.