| Hello from Rising Sun Consultants. Welcome to our February issue of Rise & Shine - your leadership solution and resource newsletter!
New Horizons (Meetings/Events):
Public Seminars:
- April 18, 2006 – “The 3C’s: A Model of Positive Productivity™” 8:30 am – 4:30 pm. Harrisburg PA. (Sponsored by Adecco of Harrisburg)
Radio Interviews:
- March 4, 2006 – “Employee Engagement” WHP Radio – 580 AM, 7:30 – 8:00 am.
- April 29, 2006 – “Change and Transition” WHP Radio – 580 AM, 7:30 – 8:00 am.
Bright Lights (Tips/Solutions):
This month’s Solution will focus on Productivity Strategies.
Historically, organizations have teamed individual employees to increase collaboration in order to produce products or deliverables. Although this process may result in mutual accountability, this traditional model often inhibits creativity, participation, and places greater restraints on the productivity level for the organization.
Self-managed work groups (also referred to as “self-directed,” “self-regulating,” and/or “semi-autonomous”) differ from the traditional team approach by involving employees in the process from beginning to end. Employees are encouraged to speak openly, think outside of the box, tap into their creative energy, and apply their expertise. If established correctly, the work group functions without fear of retribution by management or other group members, and a sense of ownership by the employees prevails.
For employees to be effective work-group members, they must be “engaged” in the organization. Employees that are “disengaged” do not contribute beyond what they are required to do and have little interest in self-managing. The question must then be asked, “How does management assist employees in becoming engaged?”
One approach would be for the organization to promote change by implementing four strategic practices:
- Values and Goals – Establish and support values and goals that serve as a guide in times of confusion and conflict. These must be supported by all levels of the organization and communicated clearly.
- Ideas, Opinions, and Perspectives – All opinions are valued, regardless of the level of hierarchy. Employees are encouraged to generate ideas.
- People – Respect is given to all employees. Adequate resources are given to do their job well. Trust becomes the expectation.
- Authority – Employees are encouraged to appropriately question those in authority and organizational policies with the intent to offer new insight.
(Treahearne & Oman, 2005)
A large number of factors, both positive and negative, must be considered when selecting members for the work group. For instance, it may not be beneficial to select a member that is easily intimidated or has difficulty in taking on a leadership role. Since work groups are “self-managed”, participation is key to their success. Having some knowledge of the individual team member’s personalities, strengths, and expertise is crucial in the selection process.
Effective work groups need to discover their team's problem-solving, communication, and conflict management styles, as well as how to help their team work together to achieve extraordinary results. More and more executives are beginning to realize the value of utilizing formal assessments, reports, and support tools to help their teams deal more effectively with clashes between co-workers, communication breakdowns, and power struggles. (See this month’s featured product or visit our web site for more information on individual and group assessments.)
Shining Stars (Best Practices):
This month’s Organization of Excellence is Coldwell Banker HomeSale Realty Services Group, Inc. in Lancaster, PA. This company – the #1 Coldwell Banker firm in Pennsylvania - provides all the realty services one might need: real estate, mortgage, settlement and insurance services. With quality customer service threaded throughout its Core Values, Coldwell Banker HomeSale Realty Services Group earned no less than 12 awards in 2005. The awards list includes both industry specific and overall business achievement recognition. Here are just a few of the strategies that are in place that have helped garner these well-deserved honors…
- Six Core Values that provide the framework for decisions. Employees and managers strive to live these Core Values every day.
- A recently developed Strategic Plan that was developed with the employees’ involvement and connects individual contributions to the overarching goals of the organization.
- A workforce that is empowered to make decisions toward the achievement of the Strategic Plan.
- Leaders who are accessible to employees and who “walk the talk” of the company’s values.
- A team-focused philosophy in an industry that is competitive by nature (i.e., the real estate agents).
- Investment in employee development. One of the Core Values is, “We believe the quickest way to grow our organization is to grow our people.”
- Intense dialogue between all areas of the company about programs and strategies. Diverse opinions and creativity are encouraged in the effort toward continual improvement.
This company is an excellent example of how thoughtful leadership can develop a positive culture through massive changes such as mergers and executive turnover. We thank Mark Korman (Managing Director) and Wally Otto (COO) for meeting with us to discuss the best practices of their organization. More information about Coldwell Banker HomeSale Realty Services Group, Inc. can be found at their website: www.cbhomesale.com.
World Views (In the News):
Have You Ever Dozed-Off During a Meeting?
In a recent study by MCI, 91 percent of employees claimed to have daydreamed during business meetings and 39 percent claimed to have dozed off at least once.
Corporate meetings have developed a reputation for being a waste of time due to of poor planning on the part of meeting leaders/facilitators. All too often, meeting leaders/facilitators conduct meetings:
- without having a preplanned agenda,
- without establishing clear ground rules/boundaries,
- by allowing staff to engage in open discussions, or
- by relying on one-way speeches to achieve their goals.
However, in the hands of a well trained/competent meeting leader/facilitator, business meetings can help orientate and motivate a tram, group, and/or task force.
As suggested above, a good meeting strategy is to set and distribute an agenda at least one day prior to the meeting so that people know what to expect and can provide feedback when necessary/appropriate. Here are some helpful hints:
- ensure participants understand the purpose or goal for the meeting,
- establish clear ground rules/guideline for group discussions,
- encourage appropriate levels of staff participation and decision making, and
- establish a reasonable timeline for the meeting, and stick to it.
According to Inner Circle President Paul Riecks, setting an agenda and sticking to it within a timeline can produce satisfaction in participants all by itself.
(Original Article in Baltimore Sun 12/28/05)
Rays of Hope (Stories/Parables):
Stealing a Bell with One's Ears Plugged
(A Story of Faulty Logic)
During the last days of State of Fan (Chu Dynasty), there was a thief who came upon a bell. He wanted to steal it, but it was too heavy to cart away. So he decided to break the bell into pieces. When he hit the bell with the hammer, the bell rang loudly.
Not wanting others to hear the noises, he covered up his ears.
By logic, not wanting others to hear the noises is understandable. To accomplish this by covering one's own ears, so one cannot hear himself, is absurd.
-LuShi ChunQiu
The moral of this story…
You can not protect others from learning your secrets if you hide your head in the sand and deny that they exist! |
Thank You:
As always, on behalf of ourselves and our associates, we want to thank all of you reviewing our Rise & Shine Newsletter and for providing us with your insights, feedback and suggestions. We invite you to visit our website (www.risingsunconsultants.com), to enjoy our latest book review and white paper.
Until next month: Always Keep Your Eyes on the New Horizon! |
