I was reading something yesterday that once again made me sit up and take notice -- it asked, how much do you complain every day? I felt like I had been exposed and I had to ask myself rhetorically, was the author talkin' to me? Hummm....I have to admit that I do complain maybe just a wee bit too much sometimes. Therefore, I decided to take the challenge -- to become aware of my complaining and to stop it -- at least for one whole day (is that even possible?) Then I decided that I would incorporate that notion of no complaints into my next blogs.
So starting today, and for the foreseeable future, I will do things a bit differently. I will put on my Human Resources/Admin Director Hat and write a series about organizations -- a how to, if you will. How to built a good organization; how to hire good, talented and honest employees; how to set a positive tone and build trust within an organization; how to teach and train employees; how to get employees laughing and working together as a team; and how to reward employees for a job well done.
In the current environment, it may sound impossible -- but I guarantee you -- it is not...it takes work and careful thought and consideration -- egos need to be left at the door -- but it can happen. I know -- I lived and worked in an organization just like that for over 20 years.
So for the next several weeks, I promise no whining; only insightful thoughts and observations on building and maintaining thriving organizations.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Friday, September 16, 2011
#28 Nothing Speaks Excellence Like a Good Buzz Word
Orchard Hardware Supply used that phrase for a springtime commercial. They were spoofing all of the current buzz words used to describe how our businesses are so open and honest, etc....or are they? The more we hear these words, the more I think we have to question what it is organizations really do or how they are doing it. Jargon and double speak are cheap these days, but honesty seems to come at a premium.
Organizations profess to have "core values"; they create mission statements informing people what they think they are supposed to be doing. They talk about win-win solutions; getting down to the granular level, getting away from silos, etc. But my favorite is the word transparency. Everything is about transparency today -- but when you try and pin someone down about numbers or business practices, or why someone is not getting their paycheck on time -- there are excuses -- without any real answers or transparency. And now we know the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been systematically destroying records for the last 17 years -- how's that for transparency? What is it that they did not want anyone to find?
It seems to me, the more organizations talk about all of these things, the less they actually live by these words -- they "doth protest too much, methinks." While we have never had a perfect world or society, we could at least trust some of the information that was provided to us. And now with the information highway, nearly everything can be verified, but yet leaders lie and mislead us daily. When we did not use jargon and double speak, we actually did real work, with real outcomes, and relied on real numbers to balance our budgets and produce profit and loss statements. Most institutions and companies had integrity and ethics.
As a case in point, the misspeak was so bad at Monday night's Republican debate, that Dana Milbank of the Washington Post Writer Group stated that a candidate when pushed "resorted to the time honored tradition of making up stuff". He further stated that the same candidate when nailed by another candidate, "licked his lips...looked at the ceiling...and blinked so rapidly his eyes could have been sending a coded S.O.S. signal".
That's funny, but this is not funny stuff. Our state institutions and country are in trouble -- which means that all of us are in trouble. We need to be told the truth -- by someone. We need to bring honesty and integrity back to our government and our corporations. We need to pay attention to the lies and doublespeak -- our future is too important to be left to those of both political parties that constantly lie, all the while doing something else entirely behind the scenes.
It is time to demand honesty and integrity from our leaders and get our institutions functioning effectively again. I think we did create win-win solutions long before those buzz words were used. We lived by them every day. As Orchard Hardware Supply said at the end of their commercial, "We've been using best practices since 1931." Enough said.
Organizations profess to have "core values"; they create mission statements informing people what they think they are supposed to be doing. They talk about win-win solutions; getting down to the granular level, getting away from silos, etc. But my favorite is the word transparency. Everything is about transparency today -- but when you try and pin someone down about numbers or business practices, or why someone is not getting their paycheck on time -- there are excuses -- without any real answers or transparency. And now we know the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been systematically destroying records for the last 17 years -- how's that for transparency? What is it that they did not want anyone to find?
It seems to me, the more organizations talk about all of these things, the less they actually live by these words -- they "doth protest too much, methinks." While we have never had a perfect world or society, we could at least trust some of the information that was provided to us. And now with the information highway, nearly everything can be verified, but yet leaders lie and mislead us daily. When we did not use jargon and double speak, we actually did real work, with real outcomes, and relied on real numbers to balance our budgets and produce profit and loss statements. Most institutions and companies had integrity and ethics.
As a case in point, the misspeak was so bad at Monday night's Republican debate, that Dana Milbank of the Washington Post Writer Group stated that a candidate when pushed "resorted to the time honored tradition of making up stuff". He further stated that the same candidate when nailed by another candidate, "licked his lips...looked at the ceiling...and blinked so rapidly his eyes could have been sending a coded S.O.S. signal".
That's funny, but this is not funny stuff. Our state institutions and country are in trouble -- which means that all of us are in trouble. We need to be told the truth -- by someone. We need to bring honesty and integrity back to our government and our corporations. We need to pay attention to the lies and doublespeak -- our future is too important to be left to those of both political parties that constantly lie, all the while doing something else entirely behind the scenes.
It is time to demand honesty and integrity from our leaders and get our institutions functioning effectively again. I think we did create win-win solutions long before those buzz words were used. We lived by them every day. As Orchard Hardware Supply said at the end of their commercial, "We've been using best practices since 1931." Enough said.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
#27 9/11 Ten Years Later
Have we forgotten who we are? Both individually and as a nation? Watching footage of this terrible day brings back so many strong feelings and makes them fresh all over again. Remember ordinary citizens doing extraordinary things to help one another? Remember their bravery and selflessness? How people helped people -- coworkers, friends and strangers alike.
This country was united. We all supported one another in our shock and grief, but moreover we felt a collective determination as a country. The nation came together -- out of such tragedy came such great resolve and strength. It was a shared experience that reshaped us, we thought for the better.
Why have we forgotten who we are in the past decade? It is because of the two wars; Hurricane Katrina; the "mortgage meltdown" and ensuing near financial ruin of this country; or is it the persistent lies and blame that get tossed around daily in our workplaces, in our political arenas -- local, state and national. Leaders would rather see people and their country fail rather than work together with respect. Are we all emotionally shut down because we feel so helpless?. Where is our collective resolve now?
Let is use this day as an opportunity to remember who we are --
A good example is the CEO from the financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, Howard Lutnick. On 9/11 he arrived late to work because he was taking his son to his first day of kindergarten. He arrived after the first plane hit and was there to watch the towers fall. Of his 960 employees, 658 were killed -- every employee in the World Trade Center -- including his brother and his best friend.
He and the rest of the workers could have just given up. But because of his resolve and that of the other remaining employees, it was decided the "company would survive", they would not let what they had worked so hard for crumble. Moreover they would honor those that they had lost. Those remaining employees pulled together and worked through their grief and got the company back up and running within a few days.
At that point CEO Lutnik's goal "was to take care of the families of the people we lost and that was the most important thing". It was decided that 25 percent of Cantor's profits for the next five years were to be set aside to be distributed to families of the deceased -- which turned out to be $180 million dollars; in addition, families health care costs were also covered for 10 years.
All Cantor employees were committed and Lutnick said, "It changed our outlook about what was important about business". "It also created sort of that bang of what type of human being are you right here, right now". "I didn't think that there was a choice. Either we take care of our friends' families or I'm not a human being".
The company is bigger and stronger today because of all of their collective hard work -- and perhaps because they had a greater purpose than just making money. CEO Lutnick said, "The best way to show someone you love them is to care for the people they love."
Let us begin anew this day our determination and resolve, individually and collectively and not forget who we are as Americans -- we care and we take care of each other -- or who are we are human beings?
This country was united. We all supported one another in our shock and grief, but moreover we felt a collective determination as a country. The nation came together -- out of such tragedy came such great resolve and strength. It was a shared experience that reshaped us, we thought for the better.
Why have we forgotten who we are in the past decade? It is because of the two wars; Hurricane Katrina; the "mortgage meltdown" and ensuing near financial ruin of this country; or is it the persistent lies and blame that get tossed around daily in our workplaces, in our political arenas -- local, state and national. Leaders would rather see people and their country fail rather than work together with respect. Are we all emotionally shut down because we feel so helpless?. Where is our collective resolve now?
Let is use this day as an opportunity to remember who we are --
A good example is the CEO from the financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, Howard Lutnick. On 9/11 he arrived late to work because he was taking his son to his first day of kindergarten. He arrived after the first plane hit and was there to watch the towers fall. Of his 960 employees, 658 were killed -- every employee in the World Trade Center -- including his brother and his best friend.
He and the rest of the workers could have just given up. But because of his resolve and that of the other remaining employees, it was decided the "company would survive", they would not let what they had worked so hard for crumble. Moreover they would honor those that they had lost. Those remaining employees pulled together and worked through their grief and got the company back up and running within a few days.
At that point CEO Lutnik's goal "was to take care of the families of the people we lost and that was the most important thing". It was decided that 25 percent of Cantor's profits for the next five years were to be set aside to be distributed to families of the deceased -- which turned out to be $180 million dollars; in addition, families health care costs were also covered for 10 years.
All Cantor employees were committed and Lutnick said, "It changed our outlook about what was important about business". "It also created sort of that bang of what type of human being are you right here, right now". "I didn't think that there was a choice. Either we take care of our friends' families or I'm not a human being".
The company is bigger and stronger today because of all of their collective hard work -- and perhaps because they had a greater purpose than just making money. CEO Lutnick said, "The best way to show someone you love them is to care for the people they love."
Let us begin anew this day our determination and resolve, individually and collectively and not forget who we are as Americans -- we care and we take care of each other -- or who are we are human beings?
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