Guest Article: Extinct by Jay Kuhns, SPHR

"The death of [leadership] is not likely to be an assassination from ambush. It will be a slow extinction from apathy, indifference, and undernourishment."

- respect to Robert M. Hutchins for my edit

In Plain Sight
Take a moment and think about the leaders you work with who are failing. You know who they are. It's no surprise to you...or all of the others watching them flail about the conference rooms and hallways of your organization.

Their struggle is obvious to everyone...

...except them.

Yet we watch as if their failings are some sort of carnival side show. Entertainment for those of us who are so much better than they are.

Right?

Hard Conversations and Politics
In a perfect world we would pull these well intended yet embarrassingly off-base leaders aside and set them straight. We would ask questions so as not to insult them, but rather to help them see the harmful impact of their behavior on the workplace.

With no consequences.

But, alas...the world of work is rife with consequences. It's as if common sense is optional at work, yet posturing and grabbing as much power and control as possible is almost acceptable.

Almost.

How About You
Who do you work with that desperately needs a candid feedback session about their odd-ball behavior? Is it safe for you to do so? For most of you, I'm guessing your corporate environment is anything but safe.

Right?

I'd love to hear from you.

No Excuses.

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Article source:Jay Kuhns, SPHR - Extinct»

Check out more of Jay Kuhns' work at No Excuses HR

Guest Article: How Will the Continuing Evolution of Social Media Impact the Workplace? by Jennifer Miller

I’m a sponsored blog partner with Spherion (a staffing and recruiting organization) and am participating in the release of findings from Spherion’s Emerging Workforce® Study.  All opinions are mine.

Social media touches every element of the workplace. Whether it’s a customer service employee who tracks his company’s Facebook feed for disgruntled customers, or job seekers scanning Pinterest for job openings, social media continues to shape the way job candidates, employees and employers interact. Spherion’s latest research from their annual Emerging Workforce Study (EWS) uncovered several interesting trends related to organizations’ use of social media. Even though social media went mainstream several years ago, not all companies have it figured out. According to the EWS, 50% of the employers surveyed in 2015 say they struggle with how to address social media polices or practices with their workforce. I reviewed the EWS research; here’s my take on how social media intersects with key elements of the employment life cycle:

Recruitment. Job seekers do pay attention to those company social media accounts. Half of the workers surveyed say that a company’s presence on social media outlets “at least somewhat” influences their view of a company they might consider working for. So, it’s important to keep your social media accounts fresh. Nothing is a bigger turn-off to job seekers than seeing stale content. Better to focus on one social media outlet and do it well than spread your company’s resources too thin.

Interactions with Human Resources. This much is clear: employees expectations have soared because of their tech-friendly experiences as consumers. HR departments are struggling to keep pace with these expectations.  My colleagues who consult in HR practices say that very few HR departments are getting it right when it comes to connecting with prospective employees.  Job seekers want a simple user experience when they apply online. And when they come to work, they expect a similarly easy-to-use onboarding experience. Nearly half of the employees surveyed during the EWS expect their user experience with HR post-hire to be seamless as well.

Employee productivity. Not only do employees demand social-friendly recruiting and onboarding processes, they also view social media and mobile apps as key productivity tools once they’re on the job. 39% of employees surveyed believe that social media sites and tools will help them do their job better. Yet only 24% of their HR departments provide mobile applications for work-related processes. Interestingly, one of the biggest concerns cited by HR professionals regarding social media—decreased productivity due to employee distraction—isn’t really an issue. Over one-third of employees surveyed said they used less than one hour a day online with social media to help them get their jobs done.

The Emerging Workforce Study results indicate both employees and employers are adopting social media as a key communication tool. To be sure, there have been missteps from both employers and employees. Luckily, many employers’ dire predictions for the use of social tools at work haven’t come true. Social media, like all technology, continues to evolve. Employers should view social media as ever-changing. In doing so, they can capitalize whatever new technology comes down the path.

 

About the Emerging Workforce Study: For more than 18 years, Spherion has examined the issues and trends impacting employment and the workforce. This year, Spherion’s “Emerging Workforce Study” was conducted between March and April of 2015 by Harris Poll, a Nielsen company. The study polled over 2,000 workers and 225 human resource managers on their opinions and attitudes regarding important workplace topics such as employee engagement, job satisfaction, generational differences and work/life balance. One of the study’s goals was to look for indicators for what the workplace will become. As the perspectives and attitudes of the workforce evolve, employers must better understand employees for greater business success.

You can also follow Spherion on Twitter (hashtag #EWS2014) or join them on Facebook.

 

Disclosure: Spherion partnered with bloggers (like yours truly) for their Emerging Workforce Study program. As part of this program, I received compensation for my time. I was free to form my own opinions about the data supplied by Spherion and all opinions are my own. Spherion’s policies align with WOMMA Ethics Code, FTC guidelines and social media engagement recommendations.

 

image credit: 123rf.com Copyright : rawpixel

 

Article source:Jennifer Miller - How Will the Continuing Evolution of Social Media Impact the Workplace?»

Guest Article: Being subservient: demoralising and credibility-destroying by Ross Clennett

It's often been said that elite sport is primarily played between the ears. I don't know what research there is on the topic but for anecdotal evidence, you only have to read Open, Andre Agassi's entertaining and revealing autobiography in which mid-career coach, Brad Gilbert, played a pivotal role in changing Agassi's mental approach, relaunching his singles rankings from 110 in 1997 to number
Article source:Ross Clennett - Being subservient: demoralising and credibility-destroying»

Check out more of Ross Clennett's work at hisblog

Guest Article: Simple Questions Leaders Can Use to Improve Peer Relationships by Jennifer Miller

Engagement isn’t just for leaders and the people they lead. It’s also important for leaders to engage with their peers, write authors Bob Anderson and Bill Adams of the recently released book Mastering Leadership: An Integrated Framework for Breakthrough Performance and Extraordinary Business Results. I did a riff on Anderson’s and Adams’ quote, “Leadership teams must work deliberately and unflaggingly on the quality of their own engagement” for this month’s column in Smartblog on Leadership titled, 10 questions to create better engagement with your leadership teams. Go on over and check it out to learn how you can:

• Find out if you’re doing your best to shape interactions with your peers
• Help your colleagues learn and grow
• Step up to resolve conflicts and facilitate communication

Enjoy!

 

Article source:Jennifer Miller - Simple Questions Leaders Can Use to Improve Peer Relationships»

SURVIVOR: The Game of One Foot in Front of the Other During December

During Christmas, it is not uncommon to experience financial pressures from debts, gifts and celebrations; family pressures due to hosting or attending gatherings (or a lack thereof). To add to the mounting social pressures, work pressures accumulate as New Year deadlines approach.

Protecting your mental health (and general wellbeing) is vital to your employer to ensure you are able to contribute creatively and productively; and, to ensure that you have the resources to get through the difficult times where your efforts and output (and let’s not forget satisfaction) may suffer.

Here are 3 tips to motivate you and safeguard your general mental health at this time of year:

1. Keep an eye out for red flags

While it is normal to experience a degree of pressure and frustration at this time of year, it’s important to note when this may become a larger problem. If you or a colleague feels sleep deprived, easily angered, anti-social, or generally and uncharacteristically negative, this may be a sign that the stress is becoming overwhelming. If people are reacting to you as if you are acting out of character, seek support and look for resources around you that you can use to your advantage. It’s normal to feel the need to seek support at these times so don’t hesitate in speaking up and finding help where you can if you feel overwhelmed.

2. Review workloads

Stress occurs when our demands exceed our resources. Quite simply, you may not have enough time or the resources to get the job done. Pay close attention to whether your efforts are sloppy or are being completed late, as this may occur due to under-staffing and over-loading rather than a lack of enthusiasm or your competence levels. Communicate these concerns with the team and where necessary, give clients advance notice that deadlines may alter during a resource-restricted period.

3. Seek feedback 

Seeking feedback is a great way to establish how you are performing. Even if you are sure that things are going well, it never hurts to ask and hear it from your managers. A simple word of appreciation can motivate and encourage anyone and, even constructive feedback can be positive for clarifying your role and tasks that are important. You don’t need to organise a long, formal feedback session, even just asking how you went on a project or task that you have just completed is enough. Feel free to talk with your employer about your concerns and inform then that their candid feedback and support could really help.

While Christmas is a stressful time of year for many, effective management through communicating with and supporting those around you can have a snowball effective to put the peace, love and joy (and put your productivity and satisfaction) back into the festive season!

Guest Article: As I Lay Dying by Jay Kuhns, SPHR

Have you every felt completely stuck in your work? You know the feeling...projects are not on track the way they should be...leaders are doing lots of talking but very little leading...and it looks like deadlines are going to be missed.

So many issues hitting all at once.

The Cycle of Doubt
I would be lying if I told you I didn't suffer from a cycle of doubt every once in a while. First comes a series of challenges that are quickly followed by the pressure and frustration of the work not being executed the way it should.

I hate that.

Next is that sense of desperation as the pieces seem to be spilling out everywhere without any coordinated plan that is actually being managed. Many leaders tout their own skill set, but very few actually execute effectively. 

Titles do not equal skills. Ever.

The Cycle of Success
Hitting a low point every once in while does have it's advantages, although I would prefer never to get there myself.

Renewed Focus
Sometimes we need to simply change the way we frame our desperate situation. Consider the low point you're feeling as the laser focus you needed to drive forward. The issues are clear...now focus exclusively on those issues. As you begin to resolve them one by one you will feel not only a sense of satisfaction, but a sense of real control.

Energy
Have you ever noticed that when things start to go well you feel even more enthusiastic about the work you're doing? Progress brings with it a new infusion of energy. Embrace that adrenaline rush and keep pushing.

Work
Now it's time to leverage your focus and energy and build a reasonable plan...and for God's sake execute that plan.

Results
As your hard work pays off be sure to recognize the results you and your team are achieving. Part of every plan should be a few moments to formally acknowledge the successes along the way.

How About You
You're not laying there dying. You are a beast. Get the hell up, dust yourself off, and go kick ass.

Now.

I'd love to hear from you.

No Excuses.

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Article source:Jay Kuhns, SPHR - As I Lay Dying»

Check out more of Jay Kuhns' work at No Excuses HR

Guest Article: Split Testing Your HR Approach for Improved Results by Ben

One of the things that I have grown to appreciate over the past few years is marketing. One of the first things I wrote on the topic was actually around what Chief Marketing Officers can teach Chief HR Officers. There is quite a bit of activity that goes on in the marketing department that we should all appreciate. From tailoring your approach to your audience to relentlessly testing your campaigns, there are some great insights in how they operate. Today we’re going to specifically talk about split testing.

The easiest way to explain split testing is this:

Let’s say I walk up to you and hold out a piece of cake wordlessly. When the next person comes by, I hold out the same type of cake in the same way, but I smile and say, “Hello!” cheerfully.

That’s a split test, or A/B test. The point is to make every element of the scenario the same except for a single item that you’re explicitly testing—in this case, the greeting. Over the course of multiple tests (dozens or more, not just two or three apiece) you learn how that item affects the outcome of the experiment. Then you do it again but with another element being the item tested.

The HR Impact

But what does this have to do with HR? Well, I read a case study last year about a company implementing an HR program, and they did what is called a multivariate test. It’s basically a split test but with multiple possibilities being tested at the same time. As I read the story it made me stop and think about the times that we have assumptions that make us skip over these opportunities to learn more and make our practices better.

In the case study, the organization was trying to see if the quality of the training simulation/game had an effect on the outcome. In addition, they were also testing to see if a charitable donation would impact the outcome in any measurable way. Here’s how they set up the experimental groups:

• Group 1: High-Fidelity Simulation with a donation to a charitable cause
• Group 2: High-Fidelity Simulation without a donation to a charitable cause
• Group 3: Low-Fidelity Simulation with a donation to a charitable cause
• Group 4: Low-Fidelity Simulation without a donation to a charitable cause

In the end, the company found that the low-fidelity simulation received the same amount of attention as the high-fidelity, though it cost much less to develop. Also, as far as the charitable donation was concerned, there was no specific impact whether the company did it or not.

Think about your own role. What can you test in your day to day? Here are a few examples of how I’ve incorporated testing in the past to improve my results and response rate.

1. Sending out normal/mundane “communications” emails to all staff. I would send a “normal” one and the next week I would send one with funny title, text, or something else within the body. I quickly learned that adding something funny or interesting would get more reads than the standard, even if the information was identical.
2. Working on open enrollment communications, I would send out slightly different text to different groups of employees locally to communicate the same concepts and news. I would get feedback from the employee groups on what they liked or didn’t like, and then I would use that information to tweak the messages to the rest of the organization’s employees.

These are based on the many communications we send on a daily basis, but you can see how just a little bit of testing can help to improve your effectiveness. Have you ever used A/B testing in your HR practices, whether formally or informally? I’d love to hear about it.

Article source:Ben - Split Testing Your HR Approach for Improved Results»

Check out more of Ben Uebanks' work at Upstart HR