Menu

Upgrade Your Work

Why Management Hasn’t Changed and What To Do About It

, , 0

High Diver

A few days ago John Stepper wrote If you’re trying to change how your company works, you probably won’t.  In it he argues that although we want to, there has been so little change that we can’t say the change is happening.  And I agree.

He says,

It’s not because they’ve misread the potential for change or because the technology isn’t good enough or anything like that. It’s because it’s still early. Because, collectively, we still don’t know enough about how to change these complex organizations, their people, and their deep-rutted ways of working. Because the corporate antibodies come out in force to attack anything that threatens the status quo.

True, but let me give another explanation of why so little movement is happening.  There are five reasons.

1) We don’t know where we are going.  This is very different from We don’t know what we are doing.  It is just that we don’t know what the end product looks like yet.  But we know it is there.  In talking with Gary Hamel, he even admitted that he doesn’t completely know what all of this looks like yet.  But, he points out, we can create it together.

2) Where are the benefits?  So if we don’t know where we are going and can’t present a clear image of what the end product is, why would others follow?  Why would they take the chance?  Yes, it is risky.  Yes, people need to be bold.  And yes, it is a big change.  But if there is not an end product that we can say, “This is what it looks like and functions like and these are the proven benefits,” then very few people will follow.  If they can’t see the clear benefits they will dismiss it.

But herein is another problem.  The benefits are there – there are even case studies. But it disrupts the current model with all its own benefits that it isn’t seen as an advantage.  Thus…

3) Current management has dug it’s own hole.  It is so fixed on proving, ROI, rules, policies and it’s own (too often) inept culture that the rigidity it has created for increased output sake has created the inability to be adaptable.  So while it is doing great in one direction, the world is going in a different direction.

Why do companies exist?  Off the top of my head I see two major reasons: To supply capital and coordination.  With access to tools which are increasingly cheaper and less sophisticated and tools for global communication at an all time ease-factor, the need for the typical company as we know it is becoming less and less needed.  There are other ways.  Will it be in “company” form?  Probably, but the “company” will look and work and feel VERY different.

4) We can’t try it on for size.  (At least that is what they think.)  Just about everything has a return policy these days.  But there are too many perceived barriers for a trial.  If we change one thing is has repercussions in another area.  And since we are so P.C., we have this insane desire to make it “fair” for everyone.  Because that is too big of a job, they decide it is not worth it.  Done deal – it dies.

5) It is seen as too complex.  The unknown always seems so.  What we are talking about is a systemic change that is so overwhelming for so many that they can’t take it all in.  It is too overwhelming.   So start today with something small.  In fact, many small things, and test and try and learn and grow them.  You don’t have to go from a 3000 person company with 500 VPs (which exist) to a flat org in one bound.

The MIX is a great example of doing this.  Start small, test, try, adjust and grow.

So how do we change it?

My answer lies in emotion.  We are targeting this change toward companies that don’t have the human characteristics of passion, love, hate, empathy – they don’t have emotion.  They are driven by other factors.

Instead, focus on emotions – that means people.  Change the people and the people will change the company.  Simplistic in theory?  Yes.  Complex in execution.  But it does set (what I believe to be) a more correct direction.

“Flat Army” Review – It is Time to Engage Your Employees

, 0

Flat Army: Dan PontefractWhere is the world of corporate leadership going?  It is anyone’s guess, but if I had to bet, it would be in the direction of the “Flat Army.”  Written by my friend, Dan Pontefract, this book gives us not only a model of how we could better run our companies, but also how to get there.

Everyone is asking, “Why are our employees so disengaged?”  Dan tells you straight up why.  He takes a bold approach:  Why are your employees so disconnected?  Why are they not engaged?  Then he tells you why, without pulling any punches.  I was amazed at the research he put into this book.  Not only are there stats from a ton of studies, but he also pulls out quotes from many books and adds in examples of his own that kept me reading.  His stories are top notch examples – for good or bad – of the principles he discusses.  I found myself attracted to the next story and point he would make, and then loathing to put down the book for an interruption.

This book gives you the WHY behind where we are today – the hierarchical and command/control nightmare – and then gives you a way to escape from the dark side.

Of more particular note to me, he brings in examples of what “management” was intended to be, from people like Taylor and Fayol and shows us just how crazy that mind set is in today’s world.  He also shows us how to help employees “learn at the speed of need.”flat

Dan’s personal story of using a cell phone in a grocery store is one I will always remember.  He saw a sign for the employees that told them that the use of cell phones was prohibited while at work and that breaking the rule could mean they are fired.  Then he asked an employee to help him find out if a product was gluten free or not.  The employee, knowing the consequences, hesitantly  but willingly, took out his cell phone and looked up the information.  Dan later wrote to the manager thanking him for such great customer service.  Later, the sign disappeared.

To me it was an incredible story of corporate rules prohibiting the ability for employees to be empowered (and thus engaged) in their work and servicing the customer to the best of their ability.  Basically, he points out that too often the company gets in the way of the employee doing the right and best thing for the customer.

There are few books that tackle this issue head on.  Thank you, Dan, for not only being bold, but showing all businesses how to create an engaged organization.

The world needs more Dans.  And more Flat Armies.

The Secret to Innovation and Collaboration

, , 4

Buzzwords

Past and current buzzwords / buzzphrases include

  • Globalization
  • Leverage
  • Think outside the box
  • Streamline
  • Sustainability
  • Synergy
  • BKM (Best Known Method, similar to Best Practices)
  • Communities of practice
  • Entitlement
  • Organic Growth
  • Social media

The words “innovation” and “collaboration” are buzzwords right now. And this is dangerous.  Why?

When a word or term becomes a buzzword, organizations want to jump on them and make them a part of their operations.  If they don’t, they will be seen as out of touch.  But they rarely dive far enough into what the buzzword is or how to make it work within their organization.  Typically, they appoint one or a few people to figure out best practices and come back to a management team and report on them and implementation suggestions.  (I just was this AGAIN last week.)  A few of the suggestions are attempted, yet usually fail.

If the barriers to the actual application of the buzzword were a large pane of glass, most organizations throw pebbles, hoping to break it.  When their efforts fail, management 1) effectively gives up but 2) they will keep using the buzzword because not including it in their strategic goals and literature would seem out of touch.  Then they say, “Well, at least we tried.  What’s the new buzzword?”

These pebbles include fully implemented programs and trainings meant to embrace the word/term.  Yet in effect they have very little final result (if any).  Why?  To embrace the buzzword enough to allow it to create substantial results would mean that the organization would need to significantly change the way it works.  This has far reaching effects beyond the implementation of the buzzword that dip into other areas that are often deemed as sacred to the organization.

If you think about it, “management” is a term used to describe the act of managing and controlling an organization to accomplish (what they hope will be) the optimum output.  Inherent in the controlling mechanism are failsafe measures to push out anything that will disrupt what is seen as a threat to “business as usual.”  These are often seen in the form of strict policies, guidelines, and rules.  When this buzzword starts to disrupt the normal course of business (even though it is agreed that it is a positive thing), the management mechanism automatically kicks in, usually in the form of culture, and pushes out any real reform because it is a threat to the perceived control one/many people/organizations have.

Another reason they fail is because management will use the term, but the employees can’t (or are not given the tools to) understand how to use the buzzword to make a difference on the tactical level.  Philosophically, “innovation” and “collaboration” are great.  But the challenge is to integrate them into everyday work and discussion.

 

Laws that Govern Collaboration

Within most organizations an employee is responsible to their boss.  Who does their yearly reviews?  Their boss.  Who gives them a raise (if available)?  Their boss.  Who tells them what they need to do?  Yes, their boss.  So, who is it that they need to impress?  Their boss.  For this, the typical employee will take orders from their boss, try to look as if their efforts are stellar and others have slacked when a project or task fails, and take credit where credit is not due.  This lopsided feeling of responsibility to the boss inhibits the employee from truly collaborating with others across the organization.  (When I talk about true collaboration, it is much deeper than holding cross-departmental meetings, participating on a project with other groups or creating products/services with a project team).

For true collaboration to work, there must be a responsibility felt at a peer level and across the organization.  Modern management, however, usually removes that piece and focuses the power up, not out.  The degree to which employee responsibility (and even accountability) is felt “out” rather than “up” is the degree that collaboration will succeed.  There is no escaping this law.

Now, I have seen some organizations say that they have a lot of outward responsibility.  Reality, however, shows that most employees want others to have responsibility outward because it is a good idea (one they may even be trying to implement on a personal or team level), but they want others to take the first step.  In reality they are scared to put their neck out there.

In response to the culture, they hord valuable information, they give the hierarchy power because they feel more comfortable with one person assessing them rather than having to try to impress many people, or, too often, they want to hold on to some bureaucracy just in case something goes wrong.  But if outward responsibility were a reality, collaboration would not only be a result, it would be a cultural requirement.

The more trust employees feel, the more they are willing to collaborate and the more they will be satisfied with their work.  All employees want to be happy at work!

 

Laws that Govern Innovation

Innovation assumes great ideas are generated.  We know that great, actionable ideas are one in one hundred (figuratively speaking).  Not that the 99 are not great ideas, but for one reason or another they may not be actionable because of timing, place, or other constraints.  We also know that for innovation to thrive there must be experimentation.  Mathematically what does this mean?

(100 ideas) X (experimental time and resources) = 1 actionable idea that makes a big difference.

This is a law of innovation.  In it, are sub-laws.  For example, this assumes that 99 have “failed” (or their time is not yet).  In turn this means that the organization must not only embrace failure, they must encourage it.  Another sub-law assumes that employees have the time, resources and authority, at their own discretion to experiment.  Another is that the employees must want to innovate. Not that there needs to be a monetary reward each time, but often barriers to experimenting (usually cultural) must be removed.  “If you are not comfortable with risk, you will never be comfortable with innovation.”

Another sub-law is that ideas need to flow always in all circumstances, not just for a fleeting initiative.  To do this, employees need to be taught how to be innovative.  Innovation needs to become part of their work DNA.  It needs to be as free flowing and as natural as it is for them to send off an email.  When employees are taught how to be innovative, there are two main focuses, 1) How to be innovative (this one is more of a reminder, as most people will be able to pick up on this pretty quickly); 2) How to be innovative as a part of their every day (even every minute) of work.  THIS is the most difficult part.

(See HBR’s Nine Rules for Stifling Innovation.)

Implementing Innovation and Collaboration

To be able to actually see the results that all CEOs hope for from either innovation or collaboration initiatives, there must be a change (actually, several).  And the change needs to be large in breadth and depth – spanning across the organization as well as up to the top executive (“Executive commitment helped 3M quadruple the innovation output from 2005-2012.“) and down the to individual contributor.  The organization must actually change the way it fundamentally works and manages its people and resources.

Think of the most innovative companies: Google (1 manager for every 60 people (average company is 1:10), 20% time, 70/20/10 principle, strategy created by the employees) , W.L. Gore (no formal titles, teams no larger than 20 people, 9K employees and over 1000 products, 50 years old and have never had a loss), Morning Star (no hierarchy, while industry grows at 1% a year, they have grown at double-digits for 20 years), Semco SA (No HQ, CEO switches every six months, no HR department, employees set their own salaries & work times, salaries are available for all employees to see).

What do they do? They manage their companies based on different principles that allow them to be innovative and collaborative; principles which derive their power and discipline not from strict rules created by the few, but instead through agreed upon practices set, accepted and governed by the collective.

I could continue on this path, but I need to stop somewhere.  So here is a summation:

For organizations to be truly innovative or collaborative, they need to fundamentally change the way they manage their companies because the standard way to manage a company actually discourages innovation and collaboration.  (That is, unless of course there is a crisis and then suddenly an organization is forced to work differently and become very innovative and collaborative – if only for a short season.  But who wants to be in that situation?)

My challenge to you is to, on a small scale with your team, create the environment and practices that will allow you to be collaborative and innovative.  Start small and your efforts can have a big impact.

Warning: You May Have Contracted The Worst Working Disease

, , , , , 4

This is a story I hope you never find yourself in the middle of.

The other day I was driving home from a project I was working on.  In my mind I anticipated my wife asking, “How was your day” as she always lovingly does.

My mind automatically said, “It was good” as I reviewed my day, thinking of the activities, meetings and tasks I had accomplished.

Then, something struck me.  And it hit me hard.

All the activities, meetings and tasks were, to be sure, good.  They were productive; I did or led them well. Going toward the goal at hand, one could say I had a successful day.

And in that narrow of a view – the view of a day – I had been successful.  If I wanted, I could celebrate a happy, successful, non-irritating day!  Good for me!

Most people might leave it at that and go on with their life and be happy that they had another good day.  But my mind would not let it stay there.

I then had a realization hit me and my spirit was suddenly down, then it turned to determined, excited and then enlightened.

And this was the thought that came to my mind…

“But what is your ultimate purpose?”  It was there that I confronted the reality that, in this task, my goal is empty, hollow.  In the long run would it make a difference?  No. Would it make lives much better?  No.

It was a mediocre purpose. It was a self-sustaining purpose, not one to make that part of the world better.  This is where I was suddenly down.

I was working on something that, in the end, didn’t mean much.

Immediately after this thought, however, my mind suddenly became determined.  “I don’t ever want to work on the mundane, the mediocre.  And you know what?  There is no reason I need to!”  Looking forward to the projects I have coming up, I realized that, yes, they are worth my time and effort.  With that, came an emotion of excitedness!

Then, a little meta-cognition kicked in and said to me, “Self, I want you to realize how you feel now compared to 30 seconds ago.  Notice the difference?  Notice how you feel you have a real purpose, something to be excited and determined about?  Notice how your energy level suddenly jumped and how you feel you can conquer the world?  When you are working toward purposes that have real meaning, you can feel like this all the time.”

And then this still, small voice said to me,

“A good day spent on a mediocre purpose is worse than a bad day spent on a great and noble purpose.”

This is a disease that affects (dare I say) most men and women in the workforce.  It is a slow moving cancer that is very destructive and is difficult to detect.

This is the worst type to have because most people live with it and have NO IDEA how debilitating it is.  It easily sucks out the life of any working human being.

So ask yourself, “Have I been infected?”

Well, let’s see.  I’m sure you want to improve things at work right?  Do you want to improve them to the level that Larry Page does?

These are the first paragraphs in a recent Wired article by Steven Levy.

Larry Page lives by the gospel of 10x. Most companies would be happy to improve a product by 10 percent. Not the CEO and cofounder of Google. The way Page sees it, a 10 percent improvement means that you’re basically doing the same thing as everybody else. You probably won’t fail spectacularly, but you are guaranteed not to succeed wildly.

That’s why Page expects his employees to create products and services that are 10 times better than the competition. That means he isn’t satisfied with discovering a couple of hidden efficiencies or tweaking code to achieve modest gains. Thousand-percent improvement requires rethinking problems entirely, exploring the edges of what’s technically possible, and having a lot more fun in the process.

Anyone can work to maintain.  But that is not my purpose in life.  Nor should it be anyone’s purpose who reads this blog.  I feel we have what it takes to make a real difference and change the world for the better.  If you have the capacity (and I know you do), it is time to stop being lulled by the ease of the way.

Working in a mediocre job for mediocre purposes won’t scratch that itch.  You must do something radical.

Umair Haque asked it quite well in a recent HBR article.

…do you want to have a year that matters — or do you want to spend another year starring-slash-wallowing in the lowest-common-denominator reality show-slash-whiny soap opera of your own inescapable mediocrity-slash-self-imposed tragedy?

…Why are you here? Do you want this to be another year that flies by, half-hearted, arid, rootless, barely remembered, dull with dim glimpses of what might have been? Or do you want this to be a year that you savor, for the rest of your surprisingly short time on Planet Earth, as the year you started, finally, irreversibly, uncompromisingly, to explosively unfurl a life that felt fully worth living?

The choice is yours. And it always has been.

So let me ask you.  If you are not in a place that you absolutely love and where you can make a big difference (and grow an immense amount yourself), why are you there?  Why are you doing that? Why are you in that job?

We were not put on this earth to be OK, but we were given the capacity to make the lives of others drastically better.

[embedplusvideo height=”365″ width=”600″ standard=”http://www.youtube.com/v/siu6JYqOZ0g?fs=1&hd=1″ vars=”ytid=siu6JYqOZ0g&width=600&height=365&start=&stop=&rs=w&hd=1&autoplay=0&react=0&chapters=&notes=” id=”ep1482″ /]

If it isn’t something you absolutely LOVE, why are you there?

If the environment doesn’t instill in you the excitement you know you can have, and that you have had at moments in your life, then what environment does?

Remember those times?  Good.  Now go find them and make them a permanent part of your life.

Maybe the answer for you is this. (No, really.  Click the link and read this letter.  It is VERY worth it.)

Here is the litmus test:  When was the last time you woke up in the morning very excited to do what you are about to during that day?  Or when you were headed home and you couldn’t wait to get back and keep working?  If that was more than a month ago, I would say you have some serious contemplating to do.

So, my challenge to you (and, honestly to me) is to do what excites you and something that matters. Anything less will bring on a profound sense of regret.

(I have to say that the anticipation of writing this post was THAT exciting for me.  I hope it will help make a difference in your life for the better.)

9 Valuable Social Business Insights From My Visit to Lowe’s HQ

, , 9

Usually when I go to a company I give a keynote, participate in a panel, give a workshop or coach one or more people.  Yes, I learn from them, but usually I am the one doing the teaching and trying to energize them for the changes that are happening (or they want to happen) in their company.

Last week I spent two days at the Lowe’s HQ in North Carolina (the campus is beautiful, BTW!) and did all the same things.  This time I came away more energized by being with them.  It was a wonderful experience!

They brought in everyone on the “social” team, plus people from around the company – people who worked on the floor of a store, cashiers, people from HQ, those with managerial or regional responsibilities around the US – those who they felt were at the front of using collaborative technologies.  They also brought a few of us in to give them more ideas.  It was also a “Thanks!” to all those people as well.

I gained some great insights that couldn’t sit dormant.  THEY MUST BE SHARED!

1. Don’t Forget to Energize & Recognize

Whether it is full time or just part of your job, trying to work in a more open way using collaborative technologies is exhausting.  You WILL get beat up.  You often feel as if you are not making that much progress. Much of that is because you see all that can be done and how far away you are!

But, you don’t give up.  You fight the fight, wishing that it wasn’t a fight.

This group was brought together and learned that they were not alone!  They were validated and learn that they share the same struggles as others.  Then, they learned of ways to overcome those stuggles.  What a breath of fresh air!

Just to know you are not crazy is one thing, but there was almost a sense of relief.  In addition, there was a bit of Rocky motivation – you can do this!

2. Play is Good

At work?  Yes, at work.

I see that it does two things.  It helps everyone remember that they are humans with creativity, originality and feelings, not just cogs in the corporate machine.  THAT, in and of itself, is liberating!

But does that help the business?  Absolutely!  In this case, Lowe’s allowed a Zombie community.  If I remember correctly, it is one of the most popular communities.

Many would scoff and say, “No way!  That type of discussion wastes so much time!”  That is one way to look at it.

Another way would be to look at the discussion itself.  If you did you would find that it discussed ways to prepare for the Zombie Apocalypse!  More waste of time?  No, not when it focused on preparations using materials you can find at Lowe’s.

Suddenly, you have side conversations saying, “Wait, I didn’t know we carried that!  How do I get that in my store?” or “You can do that with XXXX?  Really?!”  They were sharing and learning product knowledge from each other – information they would never have never learned through basic training.

3. Unadoption

I gave a workshop on the Adoption Index I created from the book Diffusion of Innovation by Everett Rogers.  We were talking about forcing adoption and Bryan Burleson mentioned “unadoption,” how we not only try to get them to do the new, but stop them from doing the old.

It is difficult to get groups to do something new, but getting them to quit the old, out dated habit might even be harder. Thus, “unadoption” becomes important as well.  Thanks, Bryan!

4. Botox Your Personality

When Victoria Labalme mentioned this, I thought about how this is something I do.  I want to fit the part, instead of being me.

Really, we need do both, but I err on the side of what others expect.

In fact, when packing for this trip I forgot to put in my belt.  I was all set to go on after Victoria and button up my jacket so no one noticed my faux pax.

But when I heard that, I thought, “Who cares!”  I went down on stage and left the jacket unbuttoned.  And do you know what it did?  It helped me be me – more comfortable on stage, rather than worrying about my belt (which wasn’t a big deal in the long run).  Thanks, Victoria!

5. Invite Royalty

As I mentioned, they invited those most active in the community – and they treated them (and us) like royalty.  I kept hearing, “We never get this treatment!  This is nice!”

What it did was show appreciation for something these employees didn’t NEED to do.  For most of them it is not in their job description, but they are putting the in effort.  How nice it was to be recognized!

I know it went a LONG way to energizing the group.  It also showed how much Lowe’s is dedicated to social business.

6. A Caring CEO

They had their CEO, Robert Niblock, come speak to them.  As busy as he is with a 200K+ employee company, he took the time to formally welcome them and tell the group how important this is to him and the company as a whole.

Then, although most did not know this, he was following up to see how the symposium was going.  He really cared about it and he showed it.

By the way, Robert is very active in their internal community.  He regularly blogs and comments.

One story I heard was that they had to close 20 stores.  Instead of hiding behind PR releases & an internal memo, he went on the internal community with the COO and talked about what was happening.  Not only a post, but commenting to the comments that were being made and interacting with the employees.

Instead of an internal nightmare, the response was overwhelmingly positive.  It shows what a caring CEO and true communication (not just informing) can do.

7. Guilty over Lack of Email

Kim Loeun, on the social business team, told me that as she used their internal tool, fewer emails came through.  Then a curious thing happened.

She felt GUILTY!

Why? In our corporate cultures, too many times the number of emails one receives is directly linked to how successful we feel!  She felt as if she was not being as productive because there were not as many emails coming through.  Then she realized that – hey – that’s a good thing!

Productivity is redefined!

She is right.  Too often we feel our sense of worth is based on our email – because that’s how we get work done, right?

Just because that is right, doesn’t mean it is right (catch my drift)?

8. Radical Ideas Scare People

OK, they are not all my original idea by any means.  But they are ideas that, surprisingly, few know about.  And they do scare many people.

In my keynote I challenged them to “think outside the bun.”  Ask questions about topics we take for granted.

For example, I asked the question, “Why do we have vacation and sick leave?  What would happen if we got rid of it and focused more on the actual work that needs to get done?”  That seemed to create a little stir immediately.

One person went back and asked other managers what they thought of the idea.  In her words…

“…it was…unsettling, to say the least.  The first reaction is concern about people “abusing” the system…taking a month of vacation or something along those lines.  My response was “who cares?” because the focus should be on the work that’s produced, not how much time someone’s taking.  If they aren’t doing their work, address it.  They couldn’t grasp the concept and towards the end of the conversation there was something very close to panic in their voices.  I mean, they PANICKED just thinking about someone taking more vacation time then what they thought was appropriate.  I almost felt bad for them.  Almost.”

Since then, she has been asking similar questions and watching the reaction – and it has been very enlightening (as well as fun to watch)!

What IF we didn’t work the way we are working now?  What if there was a better way?

Well, there is.  But that will have to wait until another post (actually, it is many future posts).

9. It’s About the People

Not that I didn’t know this, but the Lowe’s symposium once again drove it home.

Business is about people.

We get lost thinking it is about products, processes, competition, vendors, and the list goes on.  Sure, but what is at the base?  People.

And Lowe’s gets it.

Well done, Lowe’s.  If nothing else, you just created another loyal customer.

 

Disney’s Magic In The Way You Work

2

This last week I spend a magical vacation at DisneyWorld with the family.  What made it magical was spending that much time with my wife and kids.  And, of course, Disney added that extra something special.

But while we were walking around, I started seeing so many correlations to the work we do inside of our companies.  No, it wasn’t the castle, or the rides or the Mickey Mouse ears.  And yet, it was.

Disney very intentionally created a specific environment.

He knew how he wanted his customers to feel so he created an environment that made it easy to feel that way.

It was in the big things, like the visual layout of Main Street, the inability to see outside of the park while in it, and the way guests are entertained while in line for an hour.

It was also in the small things, like the use of specific words by “cast members” (calling my daughters “princesses”), the lamp in the firehouse window, the bottle floating in the water during the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.  Very few people notice these small details, but they all add up to a more authentic experience.

As I started to pay attention to the details, I was amazed.  In this video, they show a little of what they do.  One person says, “The things that we do are so complex.  And yet, our goal is to make them look like magic to our guests.”

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAE_OgMrkaQ’]

Change that around a little.

“The things we do to make our company run are very complex.  And yet our goal is to make them disappear to allow our employees to focus on what they do best.”

More time needs to be spent in creating a work environment that will clear out the complex and allow employees focus on that which we hired them for.  If we could clear out the complexity, the mundane which pulls them away from getting real work done, then they can, dare we say, have magical moments at work.

We know how our employees want to work.  Let’s create an environment that made it easy for them to do so.

 

The Consumerization of the Workforce

, , 2

In just over a week I will be giving another keynote to a group of business leaders on the Consumerization of IT.  It is a popular topic many businesses (especially their IT departments) are looking at and trying to understand.

Where does it come from?

Although not meant to be an exhaustive explanation, there are two main drivers for this movement.

  1. The experience the employee has in their personal life with IT tools trumps what their employer is willing to provide.  Thus, they are pushing the company to provide the same or similar.
  2. Tools have evolved to a degree that many can be created by someone with only minimal technical skills.  Much of what they create can rival what the company provides.

The Consumerization of the Workforce

But the ramifications don’t stop there.  It is not only a technical issue, but also a life/work issue.  We see just about all departments and even the structure of the modern business radically changing because of the attitudes and beliefs of the employee.

Actually, I lie.  

What we really see is the increasing pressure from the employee to change and the resistance from the organization to make those changes.

I lie again.

Because the business is made up of people, so who are the ones resisting change?  While it is different in each organization, it can be typically traced to those who perceive that they will lose something – usually power and/or status – for which they have worked so hard to achieve – even if it might be a better solution overall.

So, really, there are the few that are willing and bold enough to buck the trends, look past the ineffective ways of governing a business, and lobby for change.

What Change?

It is true – these are just principles.  But the actions that come from these are varied and plentiful in example.  From the employee who works when and where she wants and is judged on her output, to the employee who is given the authority to make decisions in situations that would make most companies squirm.  More and more the employee is willing to hack the business to get work done better, faster, smarter, cheaper.

We will see more and more of the consumerization of the workforce happen over the coming years.

So the real questions are: How will new employee attitudes, beliefs and values change your work?  And will you be willing to explore those changes?

How To Create Radical Change at Your Company – Now

, , , , 0

Your company, like every company, has flaws.  There isn’t anything new there – it can even be healthy.  But you are feeling that YOUR company really has some growing up to do.

Innovation isn’t happening. People don’t trust each other.  Communication between management and employees is stale.  Coordination between silos is almost non-existant.  Old processes are being followed to your detriment.  Employees are working to check the box, not because they have a passion for what they do.  Fear is driving employee behavior.

Here is the danger: Too often we don’t realize that we are in a slump.  We might see the difficulties, but not realize how bad it is until something jolts us awake.  Then we suddenly say, “Wow.  How did we get this far off the path?!”

This happened to me this week.  I went to one management team meeting where they all agreed, “We need to be more collaborative.  We aren’t doing a very good job of that right now.”  This was the consensus and it was obvious that they believed it.

The next meeting I went to was lead by a different member of the management team with his employees.  In it he unnecessarily clamped down control on his employees.  When asked why the action was being taken, the answer was hollow, fake and disingenuous.  And the employees felt it and knew it.  They walked out of the meeting feeling beat up.

For me the two extremes gave me a jolt and helped me realize just what the problem was: They say they want it (collaboration, innovation, openness, transparency, accountability) but they are not willing to change the way they work to match it.

What can be done?

With much of human behavior, sometimes the best thing to do is to give a shock to the system.  Something that will be radical enough, sticky enough that it helps wake up people from their slumber.

Over the last six months or so I was involved in the Management 2.0 Hackathon.

The Management 2.0 Hackathon was designed to deeply explore a simple idea: How can we apply the principles of the Web—which is already adaptable, innovative, and inspiring—and use them to reinvent management for the future?

I was a part of a team that put together a “management hack.”  These hacks, when employed, give us that jolt that we sometimes need.

Now here is the beautiful part of the whole thing.

Some of the hacks must take management to implement.  Some don’t.  Some can be done on the down-low by employees and create real change.

The Management 2.0 Hackathon report is required reading.  It lists the best hacks and gives links to them for more details.

Your assignment…

…is to pick a hack and implement it.  If nothing else, as an experiment.  But always with the intent to learn and create a culture of openness, of trust.

Business Practices That Refuse To Die: Email Trees (Video)

, , , , , , 4

Why do we regularly torture ourselves with endless email trees that are branched off, creating 14 separate discussions and CC: everyone and their dog? It drives us mad yet we find ourselves being sucked these holes each week. We contort ourselves to fit this time-wasting model of communication and despise it every time it happens.

We can end the madness by using collaborative technologies and work in a way that works for us, not us for it. We can save time, confusion and frustration.

Those of us who have been using collaborative technologies understand  this.  But it is not an easy concept to teach other in a way that it has a lasting effect – so they change the way they work.  The real challenge is how do we explain this to other people?

I hope this video helps you explain how we can work so much better and really upgrade the way we work.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIqA_YKeboc’]

As I was making this video I thought of other business practices that I wish would die.  Do you have ideas, too?  If so, let me know in the comments and I will put them in my bucket list of videos to make in the near future.  Thanks!

Ten Dangerous Employee Mindsets

, , , , , , , , , , , 1

Inspired by Jessica Hagey’s excellent post on Forbes.com, Nine Dangerous Things You Were Taught In School (but without the great graphics),  I present to you,

Ten Dangerous Employee Mindsets

(These are dangerous not only for the employee, but for the company as well.)

1. I can’t do anything that will jeopardize my job.

Yes you can.  In fact you should.  Not that you should try to get fired by any means, but you need to get out of your confort zone.  In fact, according to Richard Collin (with whom I agree) you should, “Come to work each day willing to be fired.” (slide 26)

 

2. My managers are right and I shouldn’t question their decisions.

View your boss as your partner.  You work as a team.  Always be willing to come up with solutions you think are better.

 

3. Work and play are totally different activities.

In an internal blog post I once told a company that my work is like play – it is fun for me.  Many were offended by this, thinking that meant I surf the Internet and generally goof off at work. Obviously, they had this mentality.  The more you enjoy what you are doing, the better you will be at it.  Why torture yourself for ten hours a day with something you dread?

 

4. I don’t like my job, but I don’t have much of a choice.

Wrong.  You are not a slave.  You always have a choice. The slave mentality is crippling.  If you hate your job (or are even just enduring it), find (or create) another one.

 

5. Your career advancement ends when you leave the office.

If you love what you do your work will be a part of your life, not just a workday activity.  You will read books and posts about it at other times.  You will study the principles behind your work because you love it so much.  Then you will realize the career advancement is not just confined to your current position.

 

6. The path to success is clear: work your way into management.

Management isn’t the only path to success.  In fact, sometimes, it is a step backwards.  I know plenty of people who step out of management for a better life.

 

7. Don’t rock the boat.  Keep’er steady.

If you don’t rock the boat, someone else will rock your boat and throw you off.  Time to start rock’n.  Be bold (but not toxic).

 

8. Your salary & job title determine your worth.

It is easy to fall into this trap even if you know this deep down inside.  In fact, it is natural.  But you must resist the urge.  Find what gives you your worth and never let that go.

 

9. Days at work are a pain. Days off are a relief. Live for the weekend.

Sure, some days might be a pain.  But if you are not waking up excited to get to work at least some of the days, you are doing something wrong and it is time for change.

 

10. The purpose of working is… Wait.  What is the purpose?

That’s right.  Find your purpose.  Make it a REAL purpose.  Not just “get to retirement.”  Change the world, or a part of it.

 

Work is something not to endure until retirement but should be an endeavor to improve upon the world in some small or big way – and you should enjoy it.  If you’re not, something needs to change.

Load More