Do employers really know the person that they are hiring? Have they done multiple interviews, and thorough reference checks; have they searched Facebook and other sources to find out information regarding potential hires -- in other words have they done their "due diligence" regarding their new hire? For most employers I believe the answer is no. Yet that is one of the most important questions that employers need to answer -- who am I hiring.
When hiring an employee, managers and hopefully a well trained human resources staff person will be fully vetting a potential hire. They will be establishing that the person has the abilities, traits, values, interests and motivations to do the job. In addition, they will also be assessing if the person has the knowledge, skills and experience to do the work that is required.
It is easier to develop skill sets in employees than it is to change their behavior. By the time a person arrives at a prospective employer's door step, they have an established personality and behavior pattern. Even though the candidate may have the requisite skill sets, if they have behavior problems, the manager and the organization will be in for a very bumpy ride. That is why doing a through review of an prospective employee is so essential.
Multiple interviews are strongly advised. All well run companies, like Google, mandate at least three or four hiring interviews. The employer needs to get a good "read" on the person to try and determine something about the person -- are they telling the truth; are they honest; basically trying to determine the character of the candidate. According to Michael Gladwell in his book "Blink", it is possible to determine a lot about a person in only 30 seconds -- in the blink of the eye -- if one understands what they are seeing and can spot inconsistencies. FBI profilers and psychologists believe that individuals can be trained to read others and they also believe that a certain percentage of individuals have the innate ability to read others.
Studies show that only 8 percent of verbal communication is the actual words that are spoken. The other 92 percent is the body language-- including eye contract, diverted eyes, blinking eyes, and differences in tone and intonation. That is why it is so important to have the "elevator talk" with the candidate about nothing special first, which then leads up to more specific questions. If interviewers are comfortable then subsequent interviews are scheduled hopefully with a variety of others. That way it can be determined that the behavior, including words and actions are consistent throughout all interviews.
If HR and managers are satisfied, then references need to be checked (perhaps to include a background check). If former employers pause while answering a reference question regarding a former employee, it is important for the person asking the questions to acknowledge the pause and ask what is causing them to pause. It is not enough to just ask rote questions and assign a score of between 1-10. Probative questions and descriptive words are necessary.
While this process is not accomplished in the blink of an eye, it usually leads to employers making good hiring decisions -- they feel fairly certain that they know who they are bringing in to their workplace. They are Hiring Hard, and Managing Easy.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
#32 How to Build an Organization
When a new organization is being conceptualized, either an individual or individuals have to decide how it is going to be structured. They must consider all of the functions that are necessary to make the organization viable. Then they have to decide how to structure each of of those functions (departments).
Decision makers would need to decide what kind of organization they want -- one that operates as a hierarchical top down, command and control organization or a more egalitarian organization -- where all employees can tribute. They then need to determine a proposed budget for the organization including overhead and the cost of personnel. In most governmental institutions the personnel cost, along with benefits and other worker's compensation costs, is usually the largest percentage of their budget.
With that in mind, leaders need to decide what kind of expertise is needed to perform various functions within the defined departments. They also need to know about the labor market in their geographical area in order to determine what a fair salary would be for an employee with the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities.
Oftentimes if the "word on the street" is that the organization has a open, entrepreneurial approach to managing employees the "best and the brightest" will want to join the team. That is a big help in recruiting, but in any case a plan for recruiting needs to be formulated in order to attract the best talent for the money. Hiring the right employees can be one of the biggest problems that organizations face. They can make very hasty decisions, based on some very wrong assumptions. Time after time, I have seen that happen. When it does they instantly call human resources and want human resources to fix their problem. Sometimes that is not a simple as it may seem.
Once upon a time in State Government there was a yearly conference just for human resources and labor relations personnel. It covered the full gamet of issues regarding employees. Over the 16-17 years of this very valuable conference, only once did they present a session called Hiring Hard, Managing Easy.
I was very fortunate because where I worked I had already been following this basic principal for a long time. And in my mind, it is the only way -- hiring a new employee is not a decision to be made quickly or lightly. Once you hire them they are yours, unless you spend the time and energy to take some action to reject them.
If you don't hire honest, talented employees, at all levels, your organization will always have problems and not function as efficiently as it could. How do you go about Hiring Hard and Managing Easy?
That will be the topic for next time -- stay tuned.
Decision makers would need to decide what kind of organization they want -- one that operates as a hierarchical top down, command and control organization or a more egalitarian organization -- where all employees can tribute. They then need to determine a proposed budget for the organization including overhead and the cost of personnel. In most governmental institutions the personnel cost, along with benefits and other worker's compensation costs, is usually the largest percentage of their budget.
With that in mind, leaders need to decide what kind of expertise is needed to perform various functions within the defined departments. They also need to know about the labor market in their geographical area in order to determine what a fair salary would be for an employee with the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities.
Oftentimes if the "word on the street" is that the organization has a open, entrepreneurial approach to managing employees the "best and the brightest" will want to join the team. That is a big help in recruiting, but in any case a plan for recruiting needs to be formulated in order to attract the best talent for the money. Hiring the right employees can be one of the biggest problems that organizations face. They can make very hasty decisions, based on some very wrong assumptions. Time after time, I have seen that happen. When it does they instantly call human resources and want human resources to fix their problem. Sometimes that is not a simple as it may seem.
Once upon a time in State Government there was a yearly conference just for human resources and labor relations personnel. It covered the full gamet of issues regarding employees. Over the 16-17 years of this very valuable conference, only once did they present a session called Hiring Hard, Managing Easy.
If you don't hire honest, talented employees, at all levels, your organization will always have problems and not function as efficiently as it could. How do you go about Hiring Hard and Managing Easy?
That will be the topic for next time -- stay tuned.
Monday, October 10, 2011
#31 What We Can Learn from Steve Jobs
As we all know, Steve Jobs changed our lives forever with his Mac, I-phone and other I-devices. But what many may not know is his philosophy on how to run a business. When the company Apple was created, it was set up in a non-corporate style without a top down management style.
In a 1996 interview with NPR's Terry Gross, he stated that Apple "hired truly great people and gave them the room to do great work." Because employees were not told what to do (as is more typical in the corporate world), Apple created a corporate culture that was "much more collegial than hierarchical." This culture brought a "liberal arts perspective" to the organization. That was because he wanted to bring "a liberal arts audience to...geeky technology." He wanted everyone at Apple, regardless of level, to participate. Steve Jobs felt that computing should be designed for everyone and everyone could and should be able master the computer, not just "5 percent of the population." It was this philosophy that allowed for bringing "beautiful photographs, or pictures or artwork, to people to help them communicate." And so he did.
He also shared more of his philosophy at a commencement speech at Stanford University in 2006. Jobs readily admitted that he had never graduated from college, but he had a passion for learning and creating. He further explained that he had dropped out of college but took a calligraphy class instead. That class proved to be serendipitous, as what he had learned 10 years earlier led to the "beautiful topography" that was built into the Mac. His advice was to trust yourself -- your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Even if you do not know exactly where you are going in life, trusting in yourself will eventually get you there.
Jobs further counseled everyone to find what they love. He stated, "Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to go great work is to love what you do." Additionally he talked of death so he counseled students not to "waste time living someone else's life." He cautioned, to not be "trapped by dogma-- which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important have the courage to follow your heart and intuition."
He concluded his speech with the words printed on the last issue of The Whole Earth Catalog (a sort of hippie bible of the 1960's). On the last page of the Catalog was a picture of a back country road -- peaceful yet implying perhaps a great adventure ahead -- under the picture were the words -- Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.
Too bad our governmental institutions don't take those words to heart -- encouraging employees to always be alive to the possibilities and the creativity of the collective minds that they have assembled. Even though it is not encouraged at work, I encourage you in all walks of your life to Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. It's a pretty darn good philosophy -- and it makes you feel pretty darn good too.
In a 1996 interview with NPR's Terry Gross, he stated that Apple "hired truly great people and gave them the room to do great work." Because employees were not told what to do (as is more typical in the corporate world), Apple created a corporate culture that was "much more collegial than hierarchical." This culture brought a "liberal arts perspective" to the organization. That was because he wanted to bring "a liberal arts audience to...geeky technology." He wanted everyone at Apple, regardless of level, to participate. Steve Jobs felt that computing should be designed for everyone and everyone could and should be able master the computer, not just "5 percent of the population." It was this philosophy that allowed for bringing "beautiful photographs, or pictures or artwork, to people to help them communicate." And so he did.
He also shared more of his philosophy at a commencement speech at Stanford University in 2006. Jobs readily admitted that he had never graduated from college, but he had a passion for learning and creating. He further explained that he had dropped out of college but took a calligraphy class instead. That class proved to be serendipitous, as what he had learned 10 years earlier led to the "beautiful topography" that was built into the Mac. His advice was to trust yourself -- your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Even if you do not know exactly where you are going in life, trusting in yourself will eventually get you there.
Jobs further counseled everyone to find what they love. He stated, "Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to go great work is to love what you do." Additionally he talked of death so he counseled students not to "waste time living someone else's life." He cautioned, to not be "trapped by dogma-- which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important have the courage to follow your heart and intuition."
He concluded his speech with the words printed on the last issue of The Whole Earth Catalog (a sort of hippie bible of the 1960's). On the last page of the Catalog was a picture of a back country road -- peaceful yet implying perhaps a great adventure ahead -- under the picture were the words -- Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.
Too bad our governmental institutions don't take those words to heart -- encouraging employees to always be alive to the possibilities and the creativity of the collective minds that they have assembled. Even though it is not encouraged at work, I encourage you in all walks of your life to Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. It's a pretty darn good philosophy -- and it makes you feel pretty darn good too.
Monday, October 3, 2011
#30 What is an Organization?
An organization is defined as a social unit of people, structured and managed to meet a need or pursue collective goals. The word organization itself comes from the Greek word "organ" -- which means a compartment for a particular job. Thus an organization is made up of people, divided into divisions (compartments) to do a particular job which contributes to the collective goals of that entity.
Each organization takes on an energy of its own. That energy comes from the leadership and the vitality of the individuals that make up each one of those divisions. If employees are engaged in their work, and if they are allowed to speak up and contribute, they show up awake and alive each day. They are vested in new ideas and outcomes -- this energy makes an organization a living, breathing entity -- it becomes alive. It has a "soul" and it takes on a a creed -- words and actions that all those working for the organization recognize and live by. But for this to happen, each department must be fully functional and pulling its share of the load. If there is a weak link in the system, the entity suffers.
Wow, doesn't this sound similar to our human body? We have many vital organs that are all working to support our entire body. Each organ has a distinct function and role, but all are interdependent upon one another. Organs all must be working in perfect harmony, and receive good nutrition, exercise and positive thoughts in order to remain healthy. If this does not happen, one organ may begin to fail and thus the whole body becomes unhealthy.
The same applies to an organization. If leaders tell lies and only provide support and nourishment (recognition or compensation) to a particular division or person(s), the rest of the organization starts to become dysfunctional -- divisions are no longer working in sync. When that happens, employees become disheartened, the energy and enthusiasm is lost -- its "soul" and creed begin to crumble. The organization is in trouble and begins to fail.
Our governmental organizations are failing -- they are not working in harmony toward collective goals. All of us are paying their salaries and must insist through our words, actions and votes that honest leaders and talented employees are hired to revitalize our important governmental functions. This issue is too important to ignore!
Each organization takes on an energy of its own. That energy comes from the leadership and the vitality of the individuals that make up each one of those divisions. If employees are engaged in their work, and if they are allowed to speak up and contribute, they show up awake and alive each day. They are vested in new ideas and outcomes -- this energy makes an organization a living, breathing entity -- it becomes alive. It has a "soul" and it takes on a a creed -- words and actions that all those working for the organization recognize and live by. But for this to happen, each department must be fully functional and pulling its share of the load. If there is a weak link in the system, the entity suffers.
Wow, doesn't this sound similar to our human body? We have many vital organs that are all working to support our entire body. Each organ has a distinct function and role, but all are interdependent upon one another. Organs all must be working in perfect harmony, and receive good nutrition, exercise and positive thoughts in order to remain healthy. If this does not happen, one organ may begin to fail and thus the whole body becomes unhealthy.
The same applies to an organization. If leaders tell lies and only provide support and nourishment (recognition or compensation) to a particular division or person(s), the rest of the organization starts to become dysfunctional -- divisions are no longer working in sync. When that happens, employees become disheartened, the energy and enthusiasm is lost -- its "soul" and creed begin to crumble. The organization is in trouble and begins to fail.
Our governmental organizations are failing -- they are not working in harmony toward collective goals. All of us are paying their salaries and must insist through our words, actions and votes that honest leaders and talented employees are hired to revitalize our important governmental functions. This issue is too important to ignore!
Sunday, September 25, 2011
#29 No Complaints for a Day
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.
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.
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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