Whether you’re a first-time manager or a seasoned pro, dealing with your team members can make you feel like you’re a detective trying to solve a mystery. One moment, you may think that you fully understand your team’s needs, and the next moment you might feel like you said the wrong thing and you can’t figure out why one person was okay with what you said while the other is at a standstill.

Sound familiar? In any situation, life or business, it takes a sharp eye for knowing how to best communicate to motivate and coach your team, and delegate for maximum results. You are like a detective on a quest to solve the mystery of communicating with others.

As most detectives can tell you...follow the clues. People are complex beings, yet they provide clues which can give insights on how to best manage a person. If you learn to pick up on the subtle nuances of behavior, you will quickly see that you can begin to solve the mystery of communicating with others.

If you were to analyze your team, you would likely see a clear distinction between who is extroverted and who is introverted. These clues are pretty obvious. Extroverts generally are fast-paced, energetic, rushed, driven, involved in multiple activities, and optimistic. You can usually tell when extroverts have walked into a room because they know practically everyone and if they don't, by the time the meeting is over, they will likely create new friendships with those they just met. As you read this article, I’m sure you can readily identify these people on your team.

On the other hand, introverts are quiet, can appear shy, move at a slower pace, seem resistant to change, are involved in one task or project at a time, and can ask several questions to help them process their conclusions. Introverts are the ones that can sneak into a room without anyone noticing that they arrived. They can sometimes be found behind the scenes.

The clue to identify here is that people are naturally drawn to being outgoing or reserved. When managing your team, it is important to build on people’s strengths. If someone is introverted and you want to put them on a project that requires high visibility and heavy interaction with others, you may have to spend more time coaching this person or you can decide to work with the person who is a natural fit for the project.

The second clue to help you communicate better with your team is to look at their personality inclination. Find out if you are working with someone who is task-oriented or people-oriented. This will help you have the right players in place in order to maximize performance at work. What’s the difference between tasks and people? The best way I can describe this is to tell you about my husband and me. If you were to ask him which he prefers—staying at home doing things, working on his to-do list, or planning stuff vs. going out to a party to socialize; he would undoubtedly take the first option. No questions asked. He thrives on tasks. I, on the other hand, much prefer to interact with people, to create deeper connections with others to understand how they feel, and build strong relationships from the interaction. Polar opposites!

This doesn’t mean that people-oriented team members can’t get the job done. It means that they primarily focus on the relationship as the strong point to accomplishing results. The task-oriented person thrives on checking things off the to-do list and is an excellent driver for leading projects. However, sometimes this person can forget to stop and check in with others along the way. Consequently, this can result in others feeling isolated or undervalued because of the lack of interaction.

The important clue here is to understand that the majority of people tend to value relationships as the predominant motivating factor to performance as opposed to straight tasks.

Other clues to take into consideration as you communicate with others are to look for factors pointing to the specific personality styles of your teammates.

You may find some people are naturally drawn to leadership positions. Some may like authority, power, and decisiveness. The best way to communicate with these team members is to do the following: challenge them to deliver a deadline, stress how their leadership will contribute to big picture goals, give quick, bottom line answers, and stay on task with the business at hand.

Other team members prefer to inspire, ignite projects, and influence others. You can communicate best with them by socializing, recognizing their achievements, and giving them time to speak their ideas. Also, you will want to establish a creative, fun atmosphere for their success. Both of these team members are outgoing.

On the other hand, you may find introverted team members who are shy, supportive of others, and prefer not to have change in their environment. Here's how to best interact with them: show appreciation for their contributions, tell them you are there to support them, and be clear about how they can best contribute to the team for the overall good of the company. If you are someone who is task-driven, be careful not to come across as too pushy or insensitive. These team members need to feel they are part of something greater.

Lastly, you can have a co-worker who is extremely cautious, questions everything, and can competently handle details. How do you communicate with this person? You will want to give time to process the details, be as thorough as possible when explaining a task, and praise them for their excellence in quality work.

Either way, all personality styles are valuable to the team. Each person has a blend of characteristics. Depending on the projects you have to work with, you will want to tune into the clues provided by your co-workers.

Once you figure out the clues, you will be well on your way to solving the mystery of communicating with others. You will be more effective in motivating others, coaching your team, and your delegation efforts will yield positive results. You will earn your Management Detective badge.

Copyright 2006, Christina M. Santiago

You may use this article for electronic distribution if you will include all contact information with live links back to the author. Notification of use is not required, but is greatly appreciated. Please contact the author prior to use in printed media.

About the Author:

Christina M. Santiago is president and founder of Rising Above—an executive coaching, training and consulting firm. She is a professional speaker, coach and certified human behavior consultant in association with Personality Insights. She helps entrepreneurs, business managers, and executives build trust, reduce conflict, and strengthen team performance. Christina is multi-lingual and has been noted by clients for her intuition and pinpoint accuracy in assessing needs and creating solutions. Her background is in communications, human resources, marketing, and wellness. She has worked with industries such as healthcare, finance, aviation and technology. In her spare time, Christina is pursuing her life’s passion of flying by becoming a pilot.

To learn more about how Christina can help you exceed performance goals, visit http://www.christinamsantiago.com

Customized coaching and consulting services are available.

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Most managers today understand the importance of effective training. Rapid changes in technology, competitive pressures forcing increased need for efficiency, and a shortage of labor necessitate a well trained workforce. As such, organizations are spending countless dollars to educate and train their workforce. Yet, the questions remain, “Are you getting your money’s worth?” “Is all this training making a difference in your organization?”

To ensure success from your training effort, organizations must use their training investments strategically. They should re-examine their training methods and move away from the “feel-good” approach to one that focuses on changing behaviors.

So how do you ensure that your training is effective? How can you be sure that the programs you offer meet your strategic goals? Managers should follow a few basic steps when reviewing their current training programs.

1. Training must be relevant. Theoretical approaches often miss their mark. Trainees should understand the “whys” and the theories behind the training, but more importantly, they need to understand the “how to.” How are they going to apply what they just learned? When are they going to apply it? And, when they try it, what can they expect the results to be? If it isn’t “real”, it won’t be used.

2. Training should be linked to organizational strategies and day-to-day behavior. This gets back to the issue of relevance. Learning for the sake of learning is good, but more importantly, will it help the trainee do his or her job better today and tomorrow and will it benefit the organization today and tomorrow? What is learned in the classroom must be relevant and immediately applicable. If the trainee can’t use the information right away, studies show that it will be forgotten.

3. Training must be followed up with on-the-job coaching and support. If managers do not reinforce what is learned in the classroom, the learned behaviors will be extinguished. Trainees often leave the classroom motivated and eager to “try out” what they just learned. However, without on-going support and reinforcement, trainees will often revert back to their comfort zone and “do things the way we always have.”

4. Senior managers must actively support the training efforts, and in most cases, should attend the training. If trainees believe it is not important enough for “their boss” to be there, it probably is not important at all.

5. Performance appraisals should be utilized to hold managers and trainees accountable for applying the principles learned in the sessions. If your not going to incorporate what you’ve learned in the training session, why attend the training? By holding managers and trainees accountable, there will be a greater likelihood of application.

6. Training must build around organizational objectives. This makes training more relevant and shows trainees the importance of their new skills.

Training programs can only be effective when they are linked to the organization’s strategic plan, are supported by top management, and when trainees can immediately apply their new skills.

Rick Dacri is an organizational development consultant, coach and featured speaker at regional and national conferences. Since 1995 his firm, Dacri & Associates (http://www.dacri.com) has focused on improving the performance of individuals and organizations. Rick publishes a monthly newsletter, the Dacri Report (http://www.dacri.com/enewsletter.htm) with the intent to provide clients and friends critical information on issues that impact them, their organization and their employees. Rick can be reached at 1-800-892-9828, or [email protected].

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“Mary is still out with a back injury and I don’t know when she will be returning. I got a note from her doctor and it said she will be out indefinitely. Frankly, I can’t believe she was hurt that bad.”

This is often a typical exchange about a work related injury and the beginning of an out of control and costly workers’ compensation claim.

When the supervisor was asked about whether he had spoken to Mary or to Mary’s doctor, the response was “No, I don’t want to seem like I’m harassing her and I don’t think I have the right to speak to the doctor.” Unfortunately, this is the farthest thing from the truth.

No matter how good an organization’s safety program is, work related injuries will still occur. Employers must, therefore, develop a positive “post-injury response” system which is designed to care for their injured employee, to help them get the employee back to work quickly, and to minimize their workers’ compensation costs.

So what should employers do when an injury occurs? What should their post-injury response system look like? An effective multi-component system should include the following steps:

Take care of the injured employee: When someone becomes injured, this is your priority. Whether it is providing first aid or escorting the person to the hospital, the tone of the case will be established in the first few minutes after the injury. Employees are most vulnerable immediately after the injury. Questions are flowing through their head: “Will I be OK?” “Will I lose my job over this? “How will I be able to pay the mortgage if I’m out of work without a paycheck?” The employer needs to step in to reassure the employee that they will be OK and that they will have a job. There will be plenty of time later to fill out those insurance forms. The priority now is taking care of the injured employee.

Establish a medical provider relationship: If an injured employee needs medical treatment, a relationship with doctors, medical specialists and a hospital or clinic are key. You want to be able to get employees immediate medical treatment. You do not want them spending hours in an emergency room. Finally, physicians should know and understand your workplace so that they can work with the employee and the organization to provide quality care and to help the employee to return to work when they are medically fit.

Establish a modified or light duty program: This is the key to reducing your workers’ compensation costs. Studies show that when employees return to work, under proper medical supervision, they heal quicker, feel better about themselves and are able to remain productive.

Analyze all accidents: The true cause of all accidents must be determined so that it can be prevented in the future. What kind of message is sent to an injured employee who returns to work and sees the same situation exists that caused his or her accident? Analysis and correction form the basis of your safety program and sends a powerful message to all employees that safety is important.

Develop a relationship with the insurer: As your partner, they can be key to the early, successful resolution of this claim. Without their help, claims can linger indefinitely.

Reducing your workers’ compensation cost requires a comprehensive program where employers partner with their employees, medical providers and the insurer. Its key, however, is simple: if you take care of your injured employee, ensure that they get the best medical treatment, and provide an atmosphere of caring and trust, you will find that your workers’ compensation costs will drop and equally important, your employees will be happier, more productive, and have less work related injuries.

Rick Dacri is an organizational development consultant, coach and featured speaker at regional and national conferences. Since 1995 his firm, Dacri & Associates (http://www.dacri.com) has focused on improving the performance of individuals and organizations. Rick publishes a monthly newsletter, the Dacri Report (http://www.dacri.com/enewsletter.htm) with the intent to provide clients and friends critical information on issues that impact them, their organization and their employees. Rick can be reached at 1-800-892-9828, or [email protected].

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An organized enterprise does not exist in a vacuum. Rather, it is dependent on its external environment. It is a part of larger systems such as the industry it belongs to, the economic system and society. Thus, the enterprise receives inputs, transforms them and exports the outputs to the environment. Clearly, an open-system model that includes interactions between the enterprise and its external environment describes any business or organization.

The inputs from the external environment may include people, capital and managerial skills, as well as technical knowledge and skills. In addition, various groups of people will make demands on the enterprise. For example, employees want higher pay, more benefits and job security. On the other hand, consumers demand safe and reliable products at reasonable prices. Suppliers want assurance that their products will be bought. Stockholders not only want a high return on their investment but also security for their money.

It is the task of managers to transform the inputs, in an effective and efficient manner, into outputs. Of course, the transformation process can be viewed from different perspectives. Thus, one can focus on such diverse enterprise functions as finance, production, personnel and marketing.

Communication is essential to all phases of the managerial process for two reasons. First, it integrates the managerial functions. For example, the objectives set in planning are communicated so that the appropriate organization structure can be devised. The second purpose of the communication system is to link the enterprise with its external environment, where many of the claimants are. For example, one should never forget that the customer, who is the reason for the existence of virtually all businesses, is outside a company. It is through the communication system that the needs of the customer are identified, and this knowledge enables the firm to provide products and services at a profit.

Business Process Management provides detailed information on Business Process Management, Business Process Management Software, Business Process Management Systems, Business Process Management Solutions and more. Business Process Management is affiliated with Corporate Performance Management Solutions.

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Although organizations have much in common with one another, they differ in many ways. Some organizations are large, and some are small. Some operate in one product area, while others operate in many diversified areas. Some operate in a small geographical area, whereas others do business in many countries of the world. That’s where the role of workforce management systems comes into the fore. To cope with these varied objectives, strategies and situations, managers adopt different workforce management systems.

Departmentation is the process of dividing the organization into manageable subunits. The subunits are often referred to as departments, divisions or sections. Functional departmentation is the process of dividing the organization into units on the basis of the firm’s major activities. It involves grouping employees according to the broad tasks they perform. Normally, separate departments are created in workforce management systems for all the key activities of the business.

If the organization or given department is large, or as the organization grows, major departments can be subdivided. These sub-divisions are called derivative departments. The essential idea is to take advantage of specialization. As organizations are not static, they grow in size either by broadening its product line or by expanding geographically.

Further, as the size of the organization increases, some of the disadvantages become more apparent. The organization is forced to look for other systems in tune with the requirements. In such situations, managements will opt for various other types of departments, in focusing on the product or market. One of the most common ways in which businesses grow is by increasing the number of products they make and sell. If the organization is successful, several product lines may attain such high sales that they require a separate division.

Workforce Management provides detailed information on Workforce Management, Workforce Management Software, Workforce Management Solutions, Workforce Management Systems and more. Workforce Management is affiliated with Workflow Management.

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ne of the most important things a manager can do to set healthy boundaries in the office is to define a dress code. It's more critical today than ever before. Young men today show up for job interviews wearing shorts and muscle shirts. Others look like they just crawled out of bed wearing baggy jeans pulled down to reveal their boxer shorts, baseball cap turned sideways and three-day stubble. Young women show up wearing mini skirts as if they just came from a nightclub. Others wear low-rise jeans, flip flops, and spaghetti strap tops with their bellies hanging out.

Managers ask me where it will stop. It will stop where you make it stop. Your values differ from those of other generations, and you must decide what's appropriate. Organizations struggle with this nationwide. Churches have relaxed dress codes to allow people to wear jeans and shorts. Most four-star restaurants no longer require coats and ties for men. While churches and restaurants are loosening their dress codes, other establishments are tightening theirs. A Burger King in Kentucky makes their employees remove all facial piercings when they clock in. Prohibiting facial piercings is a black and white proposition, but dress code becomes a murkier issue when trying to specify wardrobe do's and don'ts. Defining "business casual" for women is a nightmare. Fiserv Solutions in Jacksonville, Florida, offered the best solution I've seen. They went through dozens of magazines and clipped out pictures of women's fashion styles. They then pasted the photos on poster boards which they displayed in their break room. One board is labeled "No" and the other is labeled "Yes".

The key to making a dress code work is to keep it updated. Both private and government sectors are forced to constantly update their policies to keep up with social and technical trends. The Marine Corps updated its uniform regulations in 1996 to prohibit tattoos on the neck and head. The Army updated its policies in 2002 to authorize the wearing of pagers and cell phones for official Army business. The Air Force updated its policy on body piercing in 2003 to prohibit "body mutilation" such as split tongues. The Navy updated its policy on pagers in 2004 to allow sailors to wear personal digital assistants and cell phones for official Navy business. The new policy also allows female sailors to wear pants for official duty or even formal events. All branches of the military now have policies which require members to remove objectionable tattoos at their own expense. Failure to do so may result in punishment up to involuntary separation. The Walt Disney Company in Orlando, Florida, loosened its dress code in 2000 to allow moustaches. They loosened it again in 2003 to allow women to wear hoop earrings as long as they are no larger than a dime. They allow only one ring per ear, which must be worn at the bottom of the ear. Post earrings are allowed as long as they are no larger than a quarter. Women may wear open-toe and open-heel shoes, but hosiery is required. Men are allowed to wear braids in their hair as long as they are above the collar. Men are not allowed to wear Oxford style shirts.

Different generations in the workforce make dress code even more important. Generation X is highly independent and known for being non-conformist. They came of age when flannel and earthiness was trendy. They may show up with body parts fully covered, but with wet hair and no makeup. They believe the au natural look is wholesome. Generation Y, also known as the Millenials and Echo Boomers, values conformity, but their fashion trends can be so outrageous that many don't know how to dress appropriately for work. Seminar attendees constantly ask me about young women with their "jelly bellies" hanging out for the world to see. This is a result of Generation Y being raised to include everyone and accept everything, so they let it all hang out - literally. They haven't learned that they have to accommodate the employer, not the other way around. They're accustomed to society, including over-indulgent parents, accommodating them. By defining a dress code, you're bringing uniformity to as many as four generations who all have to adapt to the same standard long enough to earn a paycheck. This also sends the message that you're the boss.

Glenn Shepard is an internationally recognized expert on management and leadership. This article is excerpted from his book How to Manage Problem Employees: A Step-by-Step Guide for Turning Difficult Employees into High Performers.Get his free mini-course "Moving from Management to Leadership" now at http://www.Free-Minicourses.com.

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As an author and professional speaker, I often meet audience members or readers who point out something so insanely obvious; I wonder how in the heck I missed it.

Ah, the wisdom of curbside observers.

Switzerland. Summer of ’05. I was hosting a workshop at a youth leadership conference. We’d just started our program, so I was only beginning to tell the teenagers about the various reactions I observed in the first few years of wearing my nametag 24-7.

Suddenly, the hand of an enthusiastic staff member shot up.

“Yes sir,” I said.

“Well, it’s not really a question, but more of a comment,” the man explained.

Forty highschoolers turned their heads towards the back of the room as he said, “You know why I like this whole nametag idea? Because it’s like you’re giving people PERMISSION to talk to you.”

The room fell silent.

Wow. Five years I’d been wearing a nametag 24-7, and that word never occurred to me. Permission. I liked it! And in the next few days, I realized why the word PERMISSION was so essential to approachability and communication.

Problems Escalate without Permission
Some people would rather jump off a cliff than talk to a stranger. They’re shy, introverted, scared, uncertain, don’t know what to say and have a fear of being judged by others. So, this means they will not approach you, or feel comfortable being approached by you, unless permission is granted.

The easiest way to give permission is to smile. It’s the simplest front porch known to man. According to Irving Goffman, the father of social psychology, “a smile is the number one indicator that conversation is desirable.” And it might sound incredibly obvious, but you’d be amazed how many people don’t understand the value of smiling as it pertains to giving permission.

Like my old boss, David, the Front of the House Manager at a hotel where I used to work. He was one of those ex-military types that stared people down with his eerie green eyes until they ultimately averted their gaze and allowed him to take control of the conversation. And I swear to God, he never smiled. You could crack the funniest joke in the world, and, NOTHING!

I’m not even sure if he had teeth.

Anyway, because David didn’t smile, he wasn’t giving his staff permission to talk to him. Because he wasn’t giving permission, he wasn’t approachable. And as a result, our team lacked open, effective communication. For example, I once had a problem with my hours, namely that I was working 54 of them in one week as a part time employee! But I never felt comfortable coming to David with my problem because he was just THAT unapproachable. My thought was: I’d rather suck it up and work overtime than have a conversation with this jerk. That’s how unapproachable he was.

But that only made things worse. And as the problem remained hidden from my immediate manager, it escalated. I ended up working eight out of the next nine days in a row (remember, I was a part timer!) and ultimately became so upset that I just lost it. That ultimately resulted in my resignation from the position.

Because he never gave me permission to approach him.

Signals of Permission
Here are some other ways to give the people around you permission to approach you:

*Make eye contact and greet everybody, even the people you don’t know *Use adequate pauses in your conversation so people feel comfortable chiming in
*As you exit conversations or meeting, remind people that they can still come to you at any time in the future with related questions or ideas
*Keep your office door open to make yourself physically available, or if not, post your schedule outside the door
*Even if you’re freezing your butt off, don’t cross your arms
*Use the word “permission” in conversations to deliberately remind people that they can feel comfortable approaching you

Ultimately, these interactions are about opportunity: opportunity to hear what’s really going on with your staff; opportunity to really get to know someone; opportunity to show your people that you’re really willing to listen to their ideas and problems. So, think about ways you can grant permission to the people around you. Because if you want your staff to feel comfortable and confident stepping onto your front porch, you’ve got to give them permission to talk to you.

© 2006 All Rights Reserved.
Scott Ginsberg is a professional speaker and the author of HELLO my name is Scott, The Power of Approachability and How To Be That Guy. He helps people MAXIMIZE their personal and professional approachability - one conversation at a time. To book Scott for your next association meeting, conference or corporate event, contact Front Porch Productions at 314/256-1800 or http://www.hellomynameisscott.com.

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The short answer to this question is, "Everything". Information provided by the costing system determines how the business is managed, what product opportunities are pursued, what price is charged and so forth. What if the information paints a misleading picture? It simply means wrong decisions will be made, wrong behaviours will be rewarded, and in time the business will decline. Just how real is this possibility?

Distortions of the Traditional Cost World:

Surveys of organisations worldwide show that over 50% employ standard costing while close to 40% use marginal costing in their internal accounting. Standard costing - the more widely used method - possesses well known shortcomings that can drive wrong behaviours. Specifically, by incorporating fixed costs into product costs on a volume, direct labour or machine hour basis, it encourages high inventories (since high production volumes lead to an over-absorption of fixed costs and high inventory valuation, which causes cost of sales to seem low and thus leads to high reported paper profits).

However, it is simple common sense (lately emphasised by proponents of lean and TOC methods) that the company only actually makes money when the products are purchased and paid for, not when they sit in finished goods stores.

Lean Accounting:

Lean focuses on increasing speed and reducing waste, both of which have the effect of reducing inventories. Indeed the ideal in the lean world is continuous flow. Goods are produced just in time, and thus minimal inventories are held. TOC relaxes the no inventory rule by allowing some protective buffer inventories for the constrained resource and at the finished goods end. Even so, emphasis is on low inventories.

It was obvious to the originators of lean (Toyota) and TOC (Eliyahu Goldratt) that traditional accounting could not support or drive their process based systems. Alternatives were needed.

Learning Your ABCs:

Activity Based Costing was invented in the 70s and 80s and offers a more accurate method of allocating indirect costs on the basis of cost drivers. These drivers are activities carried out in the course of producing the good or service. Each product is allocated costs to the extent that it consumes the relevant driving activity.

By allocating costs on a more accurate basis, ABC mitigates some of the shortcomings of traditional accounting. In particular, it helps in the proper assignment of the cost of complexity. Complex to make products or services bear their full cost of production and so the business can price them properly in the market or discontinue them. There is an incentive to eliminate product and service complexities that are not visible to or valued by the customer.

Put Yourself through the Throughput World:

Throughput accounting arose directly from the Theory of Constraints. It recognises that the constrained resource is what determines how quickly the product moves through the value chain from the suppliers through internal processes to the customers or the rate at which money comes into the business in exchange for goods or services. The relevant variables in throughput accounting are throughput (T), inventory (I) and operating expense. Inventory represents money spent on things intended for conversion to throughput, while operating expense (OE) is the amount required to convert inventory to throughput.

The aims of this system, in order of importance, are to provide management with information that enables the maximisation of throughput (T), while reducing inventory (I) and operating expense (OE). Decisions are evaluated on the basis of their impact on the following system wide metrics:

Net profit (NP) = T-OE
Return on Investment (ROI) = NP/I
Productivity = T/OE
Investment turns = T/I

Conlusion:

Adoption of business process thinking requires information systems that support actions leading to high throughput, low waste and low inventories. Traditional accounting systems with their focus on local (rather than system wide) efficiencies, and cost minimisation often lead to decisions at variance with lean and throughput thinking, and can delay the potential gains obtainable from their adoption.

Samuel Okoro is the CEO of Leapfrog Alliance Ltd, a management training and consulting firm that helps organisations to reduce costs and improve quality through better business processes. His personal passion is to help move Third World business to world-class levels. For further details please visit http://leapfrogalliance.com/resources.html

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The question asked by executives and managers – “How can I motivate my employees?” – is sometimes difficult to answer. Since each employee is motivated by a variety of difficult incentives, you need to find out what is of value for each person. Research shows that people often leave an employer because they haven't received the recognition they want, or feedback on how they are doing. With this in mind, designing a positive, employee-driven motivation program works with some of your employees, but then what do you do for the others?

Leaders continue to look for ways to boost morale. Many organizations feel that if you want innovative and unique ways to boost your employee’s morale, just ask them. Of course, employees may not want to tell employers face-to-face what they want and what they are thinking. So the employer can conduct an anonymous “morale audit,” giving employees a survey to fill out. This is only one method.

Since many employers don’t have the time to write the specific questions and survey their employees, don’t know what specific questions to ask, or don’t want to take the time to write, conduct, and evaluate a survey, here are seven ways I believe you can more easily boost your employees’ morale:

1. Get Your Employees Involved: Typically, your employees want to get involved in their jobs and be part of the success and progress of the company for which they work. Asking your employees to set their own job goals, as well as having them suggest more efficient ways to do their jobs, is an excellent way to find out how they can manage their own jobs.

With this in mind, you may want to consider forming an Employee Advisory Group within your organization. This group would include both employees and managers, and also someone from the executive staff to oversee and report back to the company executives. This is where employees can express their thoughts and feelings, and also talk about ideas of the work they do and how to better and more efficiently get things done. Through this group, employees can feel that they are making a contribution to the company decisions, especially when they see their suggestions implemented by the company.

2. Communication: Effective employee communication can have a positive impact with pride affecting the company’s productivity. Make sure your employees are included in all communications, especially in policy decisions and any changes taking place.

Also, any communication that takes place with your employees requires that you listen to them. If your employees feel that they are not being listened to, negative effects will result and will impact on productivity. Listening to your employees shows that you have an interest in them.

3. Job Satisfaction: According to The Wall Street Journal-Career Journal.com (July 13, 2005), nearly eight of 10 employees are satisfied with their jobs. Beyond achievements and getting recognition for accomplishments, three factors that contribute to employee longevity are (1) being challenged in the work they are given, (2) given increased responsibilities for the work they do, and (3) getting training in new skills to help them complete their tasks more efficiently and give them room for promotion.

Satisfaction on the job is just as important as getting the recognition for completing the tasks assigned. Otherwise, boredom sets in and your employees will do the minimal effort just to get by. Allow your employees to get creative in how they complete the work. You will find that this will also help on a company-wide basis.

4. Tools to Get the Job Done: In order to get work done, and done right, you as the leader need to give your employees the skills and tools for them to complete their tasks. This includes giving them the support and the training they need. Then your employees will stay motivated.

5. Independency/Empowerment: Sometimes knowing when to step back and let you employees do their work is what they need. Employees want to feel that they are trusted to get their work done. They do not need to be micromanaged in everything they do. As a leader, when you delegate or assign a task to your employees, tell them what your expectations are and them let them do the work. You will find that your employees will take pride in their work when they are allowed to make some decisions on their own. They feel that they own it, especially if the decision of how to best do their job is from them.

6. Rewards: Your employees need to be motivated to do a great job. For this to be consistent, give your employees praise and appreciation. This should be done in front of others. Whether you give a personalized written note, a positive compliment, or other type of incentive, you need to give these to all employees to keep their motivation going. At your company staff meetings, your employees can be given the chance through a company drawing for a prize such as gift certificates to a local store or even an “Employee of the Month” special parking space. If you have weekly meetings, do this type of reward once a month. If you do not have staff meetings, consider implementing them as a way of communicating (see point #2).

For some employees, depending on the events that take place, the incentive of giving a bonus or even a promotion is a significant boost. People like to see their name in print, so put the employees’ significant contributions in the company newsletter with their name and their picture. This typically makes people feel really good about themselves. Over the years, it has been found that employees sometimes would prefer something different. Some employers have given gift cards to the grocery store, book store, or even for the employee to relax going out to a restaurant or to a movie.

Make sure all of your employees are valued and recognized for the contributions they make to your company. Remember, not all employees respond to the same incentives as others. Some companies have a company softball, baseball, or bowling team. These things boost morale for many employees. Having a consistent employee rewards program in place is a good way to retain employees. Your company’s reputation also does not hurt.

7. Care About Your People: Beyond the point of assigning work tasks and providing the tools needed to complete the tasks, leaders need to look at further educating and training their talented employees. If your employees believe that their boss does not care about either the task or them, then they will not care either. The company then suffers for that.

There are some companies who have built their reputations as companies where people want to work. This is translated into “employers of choice.” Leaders knowing about motivation are able to be more effective in meeting their organizational goals through delegating and knowing that the work will get done by their employees. High employee morale increases productivity, as well as reduces employee turnover rates, decreases employee complaints, and improves job satisfaction. Company leaders need to provide the leadership to create and maintain the morale of your organization. Your impact as an executive or manager is immeasurable when it comes to motivating your employees.

In implementing these specific keys to your company’s benefits, you will find a significant positive impact throughout your organization. These benefits to the organization include a more creative work environment for productivity to increase, which will result in higher employee performance, and an increase in employee retention. On top of this, you will find that for your employees to be satisfied in their work, they will have better internal and external relationships with customers, as well as company profits would increase all at the same time. The more of these keys you implement, the greater the organizational reward because you will find motivational incentives for a greater number of employees.

Building morale in your organization is not as hard as you might think. The key to motivating your employees is having them feel valued and appreciated by their boss and within the company.

Neal Burgis, Ph.D. is the founder and CEO of Burgis Successful Solutions, an executive coaching firm. Neal has 18 years of experience helping people with their goals and performance. He specializes in executive coaching on work balance issues of performance, leadership development, and improving skills, as well as being a sounding board. Dr. Burgis is a National Certified Psychologist and a Certified Executive Coach. He is available to help with your coaching needs either in person or through telephone coach consultations at your convenience. For more information, you can visit his website at http://www.successful-solutions.com or contact Neal at 602-405-2540 or [email protected].

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Neal_Burgis,_Ph.D.

As a consulting firm, your company should strive for perfection on every project that you engage in. Your purpose and intent should be to provide real value to your clients. Your position on providing value should never be compromised. However, striving for perfection does have its limitations and can be directly proportional to cost effectiveness on both sides of the equation. Cost effectiveness in relationship to your client’s price point and cost effectiveness in relationship to your time investment individually compared to the time actually billed. Think of the fill rate scenario. It is easy to go from a 97% fill rate to a 99% fill rate. All you have to do is increase inventory by ten fold.

We all have different strengths, different methodologies and different experience in the world of wholesale distribution. These differences will impact your individual approach to any task or project. This can become an area of risk for some of you. You must be conscious of your own unique style. This is especially true when it comes to client management.

Academically speaking, if as an individual you fall into the thinker classification, your strengths include accuracy, dependability, independence, clarification and testing skills, follow-through, and organization. As a Thinker you often focus on expectations (e.g., policies, practices, and procedures) and outcomes. You want to know how things work so you can evaluate how correctly they function. I picture a fox as an appropriate symbol for Thinkers--cagey, resourceful, and careful. Because they need to be right, 100%, they prefer checking processes themselves. They often put much more effort and time into a project or task than may be necessary. This may be related to their individual confidence ratio based on their perceived value of their own experience and competencies.

This tendency toward perfectionism, taken to an extreme, can result in "paralysis by over analysis", excessive time commitments and over-billing the client. These overly cautious traits may result in worry that the process isn't progressing right, which further promotes their tendency to behave in a more critical, detached way. This directly relates to an over investment of time. Sometimes this is even true in the simplest of tasks. It can result in poor client management by doing too much hand holding and work that is the responsibility of the client.

This can become very frustrating from a time management standpoint and an equitable ROI standpoint not to mention lost sales due to uncompetitive bids. However, the fox alone is in control of this scenario and should look into the mirror when considering cause and effect.

I am not suggesting any one of you have every one of the characteristics of the Fox. But I am suggesting that we all should reflect upon this when we are building our project plans, doing our work and even when our frustrations make us whine a little.

Just some food for thought; we can’t afford to operate any of our practices like a fox. We need to become Wolves, Hungry Wolves that can provide maximum value to our clients without overcharging for individual time and talent.

Which one do you want to be? It’s your choice.

http://www.ceostrategist.com Dr. Rick Johnson ([email protected]) is the founder of CEO Strategist LLC. an experienced based firm specializing in leadership, strategic planning and the creation of competitive advantage in wholesale distribution. CEO Strategist LLC. works in an advisory capacity with distributor executives in board representation, executive coaching, team coaching and education and training to make the changes necessary to create or maintain competitive advantage. You can contact them by calling 352-750-0868, or visit http://www.ceostrategist.com for more information. CEO Strategist – experts in Strategic Leadership in Wholesale Distribution. Sign up for Rick’s monthly news letter – “The Howl” email [email protected].

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rick_Johnson

Universally, hiring in wholesale distribution has become one of the biggest challenges we face in today’s business environment. It doesn’t seem to matter what kind of resources we employ, what type of pre-employment testing we use or even which recruiting firm we choose, it is still quite a gamble. The odds end up being 50-50 regardless. I know that there are a lot of Human Resource professionals out there whose hair is going to stand up on the back of their necks as they read this. I look forward to their feedback.

Let’s face it. What tools have we come to use that can really predict reliably how successful a person will be on the job? By the way, I personally believe you can spend $1000 on personality profiling or less than $100 and get about the same odds on success. I am not saying that personality profile testing is worthless. It’s just another one of those tools we have learned to use in wholesale distribution when making a hiring decision. I believe it should just be considered one small piece of the puzzle. Candidates should not be confirmed or rejected simply on the basis of these tests.

Unemployment Rate

Unemployment today is less than 5%. That means we are in a very tough hiring market. Personally, except for a limited number of applicants that may be in a career transition, I believe that people that are unemployed when we have a 4.6% unemployment rate just don’t want to work. That means what is left to hire is the “Cream of the Crud”.

Generally speaking, the people you want to hire already have a job. They are currently employed by someone else. Does that mean we need to hire a recruiting firm every time we have a job opening? Maybe, maybe not, it depends on the position and the timeline for replacement. However, it is more dependant on how effective your company has become at recruitment strategy, recruitment networking and creating a reputation for being an employer of choice.

Recruitment

Recruitment isn‘t something you do as soon as you have a job opening. Recruitment is a never ending process. Management team members should be recruiting all the time. It is not just the responsibility of the Human Resource manager. Every management team should have a bank of potential new employees based on contacts they have made over the course of several years. Just because you are recruiting doesn’t mean you have to have an immediate job opening. Remember, you are looking for people that are already employed. Challenge your HR director to develop a recruiting strategy that includes the entire management team and holds them accountable. Perhaps an incentive can be attached to the strategy.

I know of one President of a medium sized company that carries a second business card that has the following printed on the back of it.

“You seem to be the kind of person that would fit in well at our company. We are always interested in talking to individuals like you. If you are interested in a career change, Please contact Joe @ 111-111-1111. Please reference my name when you call.”

How many times do you run into aggressive, inspiring, and hard working people on a day to day basis that would fit in well at your company? Waiters, waitresses, sales people, clerks at hotels, the list could go on. This could be a major contributor to your bank of potential new employees. Of course, you can’t overlook or ignore all the traditional recruitment methods. Your HR manager can outline those in your strategy.

The Hiring Process

Let’s start with the resume. First, how many of you have ever seen a resume that doesn’t say good things about the applicant? Most resumes are written very well. People take classes, buy software and even hire employment consultants that make sure these resumes present the candidate in the most favorable light. Don’t believe for a minute that all resumes are 100% truthful. Don’t believe for a minute that most resumes don’t contain exaggeration and enhancement.

How about references? How many of you think that anyone would be foolish enough to list somebody as a reference that is not going to say wonderful things about the applicant? Give me a break! Today, most companies instruct their managers not to give out any information beyond basic date of hire and verification of employment. You do check references don’t you? If you don’t you should even though you are likely to get only positive responses or no information at all. Sometimes if the reference is a talker and you are a skilled interviewer, you can get some good information about the candidate. Try this technique the next time you are checking references. Find out the department the applicant worked in. Get names of peers if possible. Call someone in the department that the employee worked in other than the reference listed. Ask them about the applicant. You are likely to get a more honest, unbiased assessment of the candidate. Of course if the applicant is still employed at the company this is not recommended.

Interviewing the candidate--- At the risk of getting more stinging feedback, I can’t help but state that the majority of managers in wholesale distribution do a very poor job of interviewing potential new employees. First of all, most managers have never been trained on the interview process. It requires excellent communication skills which includes the ability to really listen. Many times, we are thinking of our next question while the candidate is answering our first question. That is reason enough to always have two people involved in the interview. The second problem most managers encounter is the fact that they don’t prepare well. They don’t do their homework. Sure, they look over the resume, but that’s usually the extent of it. Remember, the candidate, if she/he is smart, has prepared for this interview. The candidate has practiced, thought up potential questions and done research on your company. The question then becomes, why you haven’t done the same. Review the resume and jot down a list of questions that immediately come to mind. Research the companies the candidate has worked for using the internet. Ask pertinent questions about each company to determine just how engaged and informed the candidate really is.

If you want to spend a little money, there are firms that will dig up information on almost anybody. In today’s environment, ethics, character, integrity, honesty and trustworthiness are even more important in the hiring decision. The next time you have an interview scheduled; challenge yourself to spend as much time preparing for the interview as you intend to spend in the interview itself. You might find that your interviews get longer and you won’t make the most common mistake made in hiring process today. What is that mistake you ask? Research indicates that over 60% of the hiring decisions made are made in the first 5 minutes of the interview.

The Generational Challenge

In closing, we are facing a challenge today that is difficult for those of us that are “Baby Boomers” to understand. It used to be called the generation gap. It is often referred to as generational diversity in the workplace but that is an entirely different subject for another article.

Let’s focus on the generation Xer’s and the Nexter’s and how they relate to hiring success.

Some Definitions:

# Baby boomers – born 1943-1964

# Generation Xers – born 1965 – 1980

# Generation veterans – born 1922 – 1942

# Boomers – Xers are greedy, lazy and have poor work ethics

# Xers – Boomers are obsessive, dictatorial and lack understanding. They “live to work” and we “work to live”

# Veterans – considered a pain in the back side for action oriented boomers and technology crazed Xers

# Nexters - born between 1981 - 2000

# Young teens just entering the work force

# Fast food

# Technology

# Web page builders

# Willing to work and learn

# Seen by Generation Xers as self-absorbed, spoiled brats

Xers and Nexters change jobs much more frequently than we Baby Boomers are accustom to. The most recent statistic I read about employees changing jobs is that an average employee coming out of college in 2003 expects to change jobs at least five/seven times. That statistic may be conservative today. Some college professors argue that changing jobs is a good thing. It can be an actual career strategy. Changing jobs increase your income, status and responsibility. “If your industry is on the move, you should be too.” I actually witnessed that quote personally.

There are avid proponents of a career advancement strategy that encourages changing jobs as a routine strategic move. This strategy encompasses carefully planning your job change to be in alignment with your long term goals. If you intend to be the president of a company, speed and coordination is critical.

Independent, unscientific surveys have been part of my resources during my six years as a consultant. These surveys support the fact that Generation X’ers and Nexter’s are a much more mobile work force than what we Boomers are used to. Maybe that’s why you often hear the tongue in cheek quotation in wholesale distribution, --- “If you want Loyalty --- Buy a Dog.”

For example, one survey of 275 distributors reported:

• Seven out of ten employees have less than ten years with their current employer

• Baby Boomers work for the same employer three times longer than GenXers and this ratio will probably be higher for Nexter’s.

It’s no wonder that recruitment and retention are often listed in wholesale distribution surveys as the number one challenge facing management today. This is all the more reason to take the recruitment and hiring process seriously. Track your turn-over rates, develop a documented recruitment strategy, get every manager involved and hold them accountable. Once you hire them, you have to keep them. Take the following reality test to see if you can qualify as an employer of choice.

Do your employees receive career counseling?

Is there a recently updated wage and salary plan in place?

Do performance incentives exist across the board?

Do your employees receive regularly scheduled training and education?

Do they receive monthly performance updates and recognition beyond a once a year performance review?

Does customer feedback on peer reviews play a role in their evaluations?

Are suggestions reviewed and awarded?

Is there both a formal and informal communication channel?

Are employees treated with respect?

Does empowerment exist throughout the organization?

Does the company have a strategic plan that is owned by the employees?

Does that plan include a human resource strategy?

One last thought, remember, recruitment isn’t just an external exercise. Look at your existing employees; invest in them; provide training, education and other development activities. Take succession planning at all management levels seriously.

http://www.ceostrategist.com Dr. Rick Johnson ([email protected]) is the founder of CEO Strategist LLC. an experienced based firm specializing in leadership, strategic planning and the creation of competitive advantage in wholesale distribution. CEO Strategist LLC. works in an advisory capacity with distributor executives in board representation, executive coaching, team coaching and education and training to make the changes necessary to create or maintain competitive advantage. You can contact them by calling 352-750-0868, or visit http://www.ceostrategist.com for more information. CEO Strategist – experts in Strategic Leadership in Wholesale Distribution. Sign up for Rick’s monthly news letter – “The Howl” email [email protected]

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rick_Johnson

The question asked by executives and managers – “How can I motivate my employees?” – is sometimes difficult to answer. Since each employee is motivated by a variety of difficult incentives, you need to find out what is of value for each person. Research shows that people often leave an employer because they haven't received the recognition they want, or feedback on how they are doing. With this in mind, designing a positive, employee-driven motivation program works with some of your employees, but then what do you do for the others?

Leaders continue to look for ways to boost morale. Many organizations feel that if you want innovative and unique ways to boost your employee’s morale, just ask them. Of course, employees may not want to tell employers face-to-face what they want and what they are thinking. So the employer can conduct an anonymous “morale audit,” giving employees a survey to fill out. This is only one method.

Since many employers don’t have the time to write the specific questions and survey their employees, don’t know what specific questions to ask, or don’t want to take the time to write, conduct, and evaluate a survey, here are seven ways I believe you can more easily boost your employees’ morale:

1. Get Your Employees Involved: Typically, your employees want to get involved in their jobs and be part of the success and progress of the company for which they work. Asking your employees to set their own job goals, as well as having them suggest more efficient ways to do their jobs, is an excellent way to find out how they can manage their own jobs.

With this in mind, you may want to consider forming an Employee Advisory Group within your organization. This group would include both employees and managers, and also someone from the executive staff to oversee and report back to the company executives. This is where employees can express their thoughts and feelings, and also talk about ideas of the work they do and how to better and more efficiently get things done. Through this group, employees can feel that they are making a contribution to the company decisions, especially when they see their suggestions implemented by the company.

2. Communication: Effective employee communication can have a positive impact with pride affecting the company’s productivity. Make sure your employees are included in all communications, especially in policy decisions and any changes taking place.

Also, any communication that takes place with your employees requires that you listen to them. If your employees feel that they are not being listened to, negative effects will result and will impact on productivity. Listening to your employees shows that you have an interest in them.

3. Job Satisfaction: According to The Wall Street Journal-Career Journal.com (July 13, 2005), nearly eight of 10 employees are satisfied with their jobs. Beyond achievements and getting recognition for accomplishments, three factors that contribute to employee longevity are (1) being challenged in the work they are given, (2) given increased responsibilities for the work they do, and (3) getting training in new skills to help them complete their tasks more efficiently and give them room for promotion.

Satisfaction on the job is just as important as getting the recognition for completing the tasks assigned. Otherwise, boredom sets in and your employees will do the minimal effort just to get by. Allow your employees to get creative in how they complete the work. You will find that this will also help on a company-wide basis.

4. Tools to Get the Job Done: In order to get work done, and done right, you as the leader need to give your employees the skills and tools for them to complete their tasks. This includes giving them the support and the training they need. Then your employees will stay motivated.

5. Independency/Empowerment: Sometimes knowing when to step back and let you employees do their work is what they need. Employees want to feel that they are trusted to get their work done. They do not need to be micromanaged in everything they do. As a leader, when you delegate or assign a task to your employees, tell them what your expectations are and them let them do the work. You will find that your employees will take pride in their work when they are allowed to make some decisions on their own. They feel that they own it, especially if the decision of how to best do their job is from them.

6. Rewards: Your employees need to be motivated to do a great job. For this to be consistent, give your employees praise and appreciation. This should be done in front of others. Whether you give a personalized written note, a positive compliment, or other type of incentive, you need to give these to all employees to keep their motivation going. At your company staff meetings, your employees can be given the chance through a company drawing for a prize such as gift certificates to a local store or even an “Employee of the Month” special parking space. If you have weekly meetings, do this type of reward once a month. If you do not have staff meetings, consider implementing them as a way of communicating (see point #2).

For some employees, depending on the events that take place, the incentive of giving a bonus or even a promotion is a significant boost. People like to see their name in print, so put the employees’ significant contributions in the company newsletter with their name and their picture. This typically makes people feel really good about themselves. Over the years, it has been found that employees sometimes would prefer something different. Some employers have given gift cards to the grocery store, book store, or even for the employee to relax going out to a restaurant or to a movie.

Make sure all of your employees are valued and recognized for the contributions they make to your company. Remember, not all employees respond to the same incentives as others. Some companies have a company softball, baseball, or bowling team. These things boost morale for many employees. Having a consistent employee rewards program in place is a good way to retain employees. Your company’s reputation also does not hurt.

7. Care About Your People: Beyond the point of assigning work tasks and providing the tools needed to complete the tasks, leaders need to look at further educating and training their talented employees. If your employees believe that their boss does not care about either the task or them, then they will not care either. The company then suffers for that.

There are some companies who have built their reputations as companies where people want to work. This is translated into “employers of choice.” Leaders knowing about motivation are able to be more effective in meeting their organizational goals through delegating and knowing that the work will get done by their employees. High employee morale increases productivity, as well as reduces employee turnover rates, decreases employee complaints, and improves job satisfaction. Company leaders need to provide the leadership to create and maintain the morale of your organization. Your impact as an executive or manager is immeasurable when it comes to motivating your employees.

In implementing these specific keys to your company’s benefits, you will find a significant positive impact throughout your organization. These benefits to the organization include a more creative work environment for productivity to increase, which will result in higher employee performance, and an increase in employee retention. On top of this, you will find that for your employees to be satisfied in their work, they will have better internal and external relationships with customers, as well as company profits would increase all at the same time. The more of these keys you implement, the greater the organizational reward because you will find motivational incentives for a greater number of employees.

Building morale in your organization is not as hard as you might think. The key to motivating your employees is having them feel valued and appreciated by their boss and within the company.

Neal Burgis, Ph.D. is the founder and CEO of Burgis Successful Solutions, an executive coaching firm. Neal has 18 years of experience helping people with their goals and performance. He specializes in executive coaching on work balance issues of performance, leadership development, and improving skills, as well as being a sounding board. Dr. Burgis is a National Certified Psychologist and a Certified Executive Coach. He is available to help with your coaching needs either in person or through telephone coach consultations at your convenience. For more information, you can visit his website at http://www.successful-solutions.com or contact Neal at 602-405-2540 or [email protected].

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Neal_Burgis,_Ph.D.

As a consulting firm, your company should strive for perfection on every project that you engage in. Your purpose and intent should be to provide real value to your clients. Your position on providing value should never be compromised. However, striving for perfection does have its limitations and can be directly proportional to cost effectiveness on both sides of the equation. Cost effectiveness in relationship to your client’s price point and cost effectiveness in relationship to your time investment individually compared to the time actually billed. Think of the fill rate scenario. It is easy to go from a 97% fill rate to a 99% fill rate. All you have to do is increase inventory by ten fold.

We all have different strengths, different methodologies and different experience in the world of wholesale distribution. These differences will impact your individual approach to any task or project. This can become an area of risk for some of you. You must be conscious of your own unique style. This is especially true when it comes to client management.

Academically speaking, if as an individual you fall into the thinker classification, your strengths include accuracy, dependability, independence, clarification and testing skills, follow-through, and organization. As a Thinker you often focus on expectations (e.g., policies, practices, and procedures) and outcomes. You want to know how things work so you can evaluate how correctly they function. I picture a fox as an appropriate symbol for Thinkers--cagey, resourceful, and careful. Because they need to be right, 100%, they prefer checking processes themselves. They often put much more effort and time into a project or task than may be necessary. This may be related to their individual confidence ratio based on their perceived value of their own experience and competencies.

This tendency toward perfectionism, taken to an extreme, can result in "paralysis by over analysis", excessive time commitments and over-billing the client. These overly cautious traits may result in worry that the process isn't progressing right, which further promotes their tendency to behave in a more critical, detached way. This directly relates to an over investment of time. Sometimes this is even true in the simplest of tasks. It can result in poor client management by doing too much hand holding and work that is the responsibility of the client.

This can become very frustrating from a time management standpoint and an equitable ROI standpoint not to mention lost sales due to uncompetitive bids. However, the fox alone is in control of this scenario and should look into the mirror when considering cause and effect.

I am not suggesting any one of you have every one of the characteristics of the Fox. But I am suggesting that we all should reflect upon this when we are building our project plans, doing our work and even when our frustrations make us whine a little.

Just some food for thought; we can’t afford to operate any of our practices like a fox. We need to become Wolves, Hungry Wolves that can provide maximum value to our clients without overcharging for individual time and talent.

Which one do you want to be? It’s your choice.

http://www.ceostrategist.com Dr. Rick Johnson ([email protected]) is the founder of CEO Strategist LLC. an experienced based firm specializing in leadership, strategic planning and the creation of competitive advantage in wholesale distribution. CEO Strategist LLC. works in an advisory capacity with distributor executives in board representation, executive coaching, team coaching and education and training to make the changes necessary to create or maintain competitive advantage. You can contact them by calling 352-750-0868, or visit http://www.ceostrategist.com for more information. CEO Strategist – experts in Strategic Leadership in Wholesale Distribution. Sign up for Rick’s monthly news letter – “The Howl” email [email protected].

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rick_Johnson

Universally, hiring in wholesale distribution has become one of the biggest challenges we face in today’s business environment. It doesn’t seem to matter what kind of resources we employ, what type of pre-employment testing we use or even which recruiting firm we choose, it is still quite a gamble. The odds end up being 50-50 regardless. I know that there are a lot of Human Resource professionals out there whose hair is going to stand up on the back of their necks as they read this. I look forward to their feedback.

Let’s face it. What tools have we come to use that can really predict reliably how successful a person will be on the job? By the way, I personally believe you can spend $1000 on personality profiling or less than $100 and get about the same odds on success. I am not saying that personality profile testing is worthless. It’s just another one of those tools we have learned to use in wholesale distribution when making a hiring decision. I believe it should just be considered one small piece of the puzzle. Candidates should not be confirmed or rejected simply on the basis of these tests.

Unemployment Rate

Unemployment today is less than 5%. That means we are in a very tough hiring market. Personally, except for a limited number of applicants that may be in a career transition, I believe that people that are unemployed when we have a 4.6% unemployment rate just don’t want to work. That means what is left to hire is the “Cream of the Crud”.

Generally speaking, the people you want to hire already have a job. They are currently employed by someone else. Does that mean we need to hire a recruiting firm every time we have a job opening? Maybe, maybe not, it depends on the position and the timeline for replacement. However, it is more dependant on how effective your company has become at recruitment strategy, recruitment networking and creating a reputation for being an employer of choice.

Recruitment

Recruitment isn‘t something you do as soon as you have a job opening. Recruitment is a never ending process. Management team members should be recruiting all the time. It is not just the responsibility of the Human Resource manager. Every management team should have a bank of potential new employees based on contacts they have made over the course of several years. Just because you are recruiting doesn’t mean you have to have an immediate job opening. Remember, you are looking for people that are already employed. Challenge your HR director to develop a recruiting strategy that includes the entire management team and holds them accountable. Perhaps an incentive can be attached to the strategy.

I know of one President of a medium sized company that carries a second business card that has the following printed on the back of it.

“You seem to be the kind of person that would fit in well at our company. We are always interested in talking to individuals like you. If you are interested in a career change, Please contact Joe @ 111-111-1111. Please reference my name when you call.”

How many times do you run into aggressive, inspiring, and hard working people on a day to day basis that would fit in well at your company? Waiters, waitresses, sales people, clerks at hotels, the list could go on. This could be a major contributor to your bank of potential new employees. Of course, you can’t overlook or ignore all the traditional recruitment methods. Your HR manager can outline those in your strategy.

The Hiring Process

Let’s start with the resume. First, how many of you have ever seen a resume that doesn’t say good things about the applicant? Most resumes are written very well. People take classes, buy software and even hire employment consultants that make sure these resumes present the candidate in the most favorable light. Don’t believe for a minute that all resumes are 100% truthful. Don’t believe for a minute that most resumes don’t contain exaggeration and enhancement.

How about references? How many of you think that anyone would be foolish enough to list somebody as a reference that is not going to say wonderful things about the applicant? Give me a break! Today, most companies instruct their managers not to give out any information beyond basic date of hire and verification of employment. You do check references don’t you? If you don’t you should even though you are likely to get only positive responses or no information at all. Sometimes if the reference is a talker and you are a skilled interviewer, you can get some good information about the candidate. Try this technique the next time you are checking references. Find out the department the applicant worked in. Get names of peers if possible. Call someone in the department that the employee worked in other than the reference listed. Ask them about the applicant. You are likely to get a more honest, unbiased assessment of the candidate. Of course if the applicant is still employed at the company this is not recommended.

Interviewing the candidate--- At the risk of getting more stinging feedback, I can’t help but state that the majority of managers in wholesale distribution do a very poor job of interviewing potential new employees. First of all, most managers have never been trained on the interview process. It requires excellent communication skills which includes the ability to really listen. Many times, we are thinking of our next question while the candidate is answering our first question. That is reason enough to always have two people involved in the interview. The second problem most managers encounter is the fact that they don’t prepare well. They don’t do their homework. Sure, they look over the resume, but that’s usually the extent of it. Remember, the candidate, if she/he is smart, has prepared for this interview. The candidate has practiced, thought up potential questions and done research on your company. The question then becomes, why you haven’t done the same. Review the resume and jot down a list of questions that immediately come to mind. Research the companies the candidate has worked for using the internet. Ask pertinent questions about each company to determine just how engaged and informed the candidate really is.

If you want to spend a little money, there are firms that will dig up information on almost anybody. In today’s environment, ethics, character, integrity, honesty and trustworthiness are even more important in the hiring decision. The next time you have an interview scheduled; challenge yourself to spend as much time preparing for the interview as you intend to spend in the interview itself. You might find that your interviews get longer and you won’t make the most common mistake made in hiring process today. What is that mistake you ask? Research indicates that over 60% of the hiring decisions made are made in the first 5 minutes of the interview.

The Generational Challenge

In closing, we are facing a challenge today that is difficult for those of us that are “Baby Boomers” to understand. It used to be called the generation gap. It is often referred to as generational diversity in the workplace but that is an entirely different subject for another article.

Let’s focus on the generation Xer’s and the Nexter’s and how they relate to hiring success.

Some Definitions:

# Baby boomers – born 1943-1964

# Generation Xers – born 1965 – 1980

# Generation veterans – born 1922 – 1942

# Boomers – Xers are greedy, lazy and have poor work ethics

# Xers – Boomers are obsessive, dictatorial and lack understanding. They “live to work” and we “work to live”

# Veterans – considered a pain in the back side for action oriented boomers and technology crazed Xers

# Nexters - born between 1981 - 2000

# Young teens just entering the work force

# Fast food

# Technology

# Web page builders

# Willing to work and learn

# Seen by Generation Xers as self-absorbed, spoiled brats

Xers and Nexters change jobs much more frequently than we Baby Boomers are accustom to. The most recent statistic I read about employees changing jobs is that an average employee coming out of college in 2003 expects to change jobs at least five/seven times. That statistic may be conservative today. Some college professors argue that changing jobs is a good thing. It can be an actual career strategy. Changing jobs increase your income, status and responsibility. “If your industry is on the move, you should be too.” I actually witnessed that quote personally.

There are avid proponents of a career advancement strategy that encourages changing jobs as a routine strategic move. This strategy encompasses carefully planning your job change to be in alignment with your long term goals. If you intend to be the president of a company, speed and coordination is critical.

Independent, unscientific surveys have been part of my resources during my six years as a consultant. These surveys support the fact that Generation X’ers and Nexter’s are a much more mobile work force than what we Boomers are used to. Maybe that’s why you often hear the tongue in cheek quotation in wholesale distribution, --- “If you want Loyalty --- Buy a Dog.”

For example, one survey of 275 distributors reported:

• Seven out of ten employees have less than ten years with their current employer

• Baby Boomers work for the same employer three times longer than GenXers and this ratio will probably be higher for Nexter’s.

It’s no wonder that recruitment and retention are often listed in wholesale distribution surveys as the number one challenge facing management today. This is all the more reason to take the recruitment and hiring process seriously. Track your turn-over rates, develop a documented recruitment strategy, get every manager involved and hold them accountable. Once you hire them, you have to keep them. Take the following reality test to see if you can qualify as an employer of choice.

Do your employees receive career counseling?

Is there a recently updated wage and salary plan in place?

Do performance incentives exist across the board?

Do your employees receive regularly scheduled training and education?

Do they receive monthly performance updates and recognition beyond a once a year performance review?

Does customer feedback on peer reviews play a role in their evaluations?

Are suggestions reviewed and awarded?

Is there both a formal and informal communication channel?

Are employees treated with respect?

Does empowerment exist throughout the organization?

Does the company have a strategic plan that is owned by the employees?

Does that plan include a human resource strategy?

One last thought, remember, recruitment isn’t just an external exercise. Look at your existing employees; invest in them; provide training, education and other development activities. Take succession planning at all management levels seriously.

http://www.ceostrategist.com Dr. Rick Johnson ([email protected]) is the founder of CEO Strategist LLC. an experienced based firm specializing in leadership, strategic planning and the creation of competitive advantage in wholesale distribution. CEO Strategist LLC. works in an advisory capacity with distributor executives in board representation, executive coaching, team coaching and education and training to make the changes necessary to create or maintain competitive advantage. You can contact them by calling 352-750-0868, or visit http://www.ceostrategist.com for more information. CEO Strategist – experts in Strategic Leadership in Wholesale Distribution. Sign up for Rick’s monthly news letter – “The Howl” email [email protected]

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