Everybody who writes about corporate culture, leadership, managing, etc. loves SAS. I’ve been following SAS since it was a segment on 60 minutes nearly 10 years ago and recently wrote about it here. The latest accolade comes from Scott McArthur in the UK, citing an article in The Economist.

Scott comments, ‘Such is the success of SAS that Google have been recent visitors to the campus. Just goes to show that you are never so good that you can’t learn from others.’ So true.

I love Goodnight’s comment regarding the difference between subsidizing food vs. furnishing it free.

When Google’s human-resources people visited SAS to get ideas for the Googleplex, they found much worth copying—though the internet giant has gone one step further with food, which is free to staff. Mr Goodnight considers that unwise, for tax reasons: “I keep telling Larry and Sergey you shouldn’t give away food—the IRS will come in.”

The article ends with The Economist saying, ‘…provided that the industry’s big beasts do not get the better of him. His philosophy of “managing for creativity”, Mr Goodnight reckons, will keep SAS in front. But the real test for his approach will come if the going gets tough.’

Gets tough? Seems to me that there’s been plenty of tough since SAS started in1976—competition, globalization, not to mention a few recessions—and they’ve survived them all.

What do you think? Is SAS’ ‘managing for creativity’ enough to mitigate its business risk?

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I’ve written on and off about the importance of, and how to do, performance reviews and it’s that time of year again.So in yet another effort to convince you doubters out there that honesty is the best policy and your people really don’t want to hear feel-good fudging, prevarications or outright lies, especially around Christmas.

Social psychologist William B. Swann in a new study published in the Academy of Management Journal… People don’t like to be treated positively if they know it is not heartfelt. If people are coming across as inauthentic and forcing you to come across as inauthentic in return, that can be enormously stressful… His work has centered on an idea known as self-verification theory. All people carry around an image of themselves that tells them who they are, whether they are good-looking or average-looking, for example, or clever at math, or kind and thoughtful or largely self-centered. Inasmuch as people want to be recognized for the things they are good at, Swann’s work suggests many people also want honest acknowledgments of their flaws, and that when these flaws are minimized or wished away, people end up feeling worse rather than better.

Just remember, honest and authentic don’t mean abusive or destructive. Offering recognition of what the person does well and being candid about areas that need improvement are two hallmarks of a good review.

The third is no surprises, which means that you’ve been giving candid feedback throughout the year.

What kind of reviews do you give? Receive?

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Change is speeding up around the globe, but oft times it seems as if it’s affecting the wrong things.Take India. Its rising economic power, driven by outsourcing, is resulting in improved living standards for many, while producing many Western health woes.

Call centers and other outsourced businesses such as software writing, medical transcription and back-office work employ more than 1.6 million young men and women in India, mostly in their 20s and 30s, who make much more than their contemporaries in most other professions.

They are, however, facing sleep disorders, heart disease, depression and family discord, according to doctors and several industry surveys…

Heart disease, strokes and diabetes cost India an estimated $9 billion in lost productivity in 2005. But the losses could grow to a staggering $200 billion over the next 10 years if corrective action is not taken quickly, said a study by New Delhi-based Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations.

The problems aren’t limited to outsourcing, although that industry will be hardest hit if the projections hold true.

A recent survey by Dataquest magazine and technology consulting company IDC showed sleep disorders topped health complaints among outsourcing industry workers. About 32 percent of respondents complained of sleep disorders; 25 percent had digestive troubles; and 20 percent reported eyesight problems, said the survey, which covered 1,749 employees at 19 outsourcing companies.

One out of 10 persons aged 35 or older are prone to heart attacks.

Heart disease is projected to account for 35 percent of deaths among India’s working age population between 2000 and 2030, Kasliwal said, citing a World Health Organization study. That number is about 12 percent for the United States, 22 percent for China and 25 percent for Russia.

Is this what every emerging country should expect? Are these illnesses the natural price paid for climbing on the economic express?

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I wish you a Christmas alive with love and laughter

and may 2008 be filled to the brim with

health, happiness, wealth and satisfaction!!!

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We hear all the time about the nightly drinking requirements in Japanese corporate culture, but the image most of us have of British business is one of dark suits and furled umbrellas.

The traditional British office party offers up a vastly different image—definitely not a role model.

Dixie Dean, an emergency care specialist with the London Ambulance Service, compared the Christmas season in Britain to New Year’s Eve in New York — except that here, the binges run nightly for two solid weeks leading up to Dec. 25… Gill said American companies based in England are a bit “more concerned about litigation” arising from boozing at late-night Christmas celebrations and typically shut down their parties at 9 p.m…

This month, Prime Minister Gordon Brown convened a summit meeting on binge drinking at his office.

But, despite the warnings, many in Britain are standing up for parties with an almost patriotic vigor. As one enthusiastic commentator on “Comment is free,” the popular forum on the Guardian Unlimited Web site, recently noted, “Projectile vomiting is our birthright.”

Fewer companies seem to be holding parties at the office, going along with a recommendation by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, which has noted a number of Christmas party injuries related to office furniture and machinery.

“Meeting room tables were designed for weighty documents, not overweight executives dancing,” said Jo Stagg, a society spokeswoman.

She noted that partygoers seem to find great amusement in photocopying intimate body parts. Stagg recalled one incident in which a man at his Christmas party sat on the copy machine, broke the glass and ended up in the emergency room with shards of glass in his bottom.

What’s the wildest thing that you’ve seen/done at an office party?

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Speaking yesterday about the fight over Web 2.0, it’s often perceived as a generational fight, but I think that’s too simple a view.

Fred Allen said “The old believe everything; the middle aged suspect everything; the young know everything.”

The first two are still true, except that age in the Twenty-first Century is defined by MAP (mindset, attitude, philosophyâ„¢), rather than chronology—in other words, it’s not the calendar, but the way you think that counts.

The third, however, hasn’t changed since caveman days.

What ‘age’ are you? How well do the people you know fit their calendar age?

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There’s a lot of talk about integrating Web 2.0 technology into corporate culture, since the integration often involves substantial cultural upheaval.

Jane McConnell quotes Stephan Schillerwein, from Schillerwein Net Consulting,

“Social media in the corporate context: lessons learnt at BT” Richard Dennison, Internal Programme Manager at British Telecom presented the impressive transition BT has made towards becoming an Enterprise full case is available on Richard’s blog, here are some major points: 2.0. While the

how to get people out of their routine and into acting and thinking in new (social) ways? As changing the corporate culture in such a big company is nothing short of impossible, the benefits of the new ways (and tools) have to be so evident and convincing that people start using them out of self interest and thus adapt step by little step (think evolution, not revolution). But also the demonstrated will of the company to re-invent itself was an important factor at BT.

Yes, BT was a willing partner, but it’s vested self-interest that really makes it happen!

What do you think? Are you more flexible or willing when you benefit?

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And you thought that ‘think fast’ was what you did if you got caught doing something you shouldn’t.

Turns out it’s a little mental trick you can use to change a mild case of the blues into a rainbow of colors.

If you’re in a mild holiday funk, try writing down all your gripes in 60 seconds. Or read aloud Dr. Seuss’ “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” [the rest of the year try Green Eggs and Ham or Cat in the Hat] as quickly as possible.

You’ll feel better, say a team of psychologists who found that fast thinking doesn’t just get you out of a jam; it actually can make you happier, more energetic, more creative, more powerful and more self-assured.

Fast thinking has been linked to mood in clinical cases of mania. So Princeton University’s Emily Pronin and Daniel Wegener of Harvard studied what might be called “mania light”: the racing thoughts that all healthy people experience at some point by doing things such as brainstorming or learning about a new and exciting concept.

Using the equivalent of a streaming news “crawl,” the text that scrolls by at the bottom of the television screen, the researchers found that people felt better when the statements were read at a faster pace, regardless of content. Even thinking sad thoughts at a rapid pace made people relatively happy, according to the article published in Psychological Science.

Thought-speed manipulations might be useful if you’re feeling tired or downcast and also might help treat depression, which is characterized by slow thinking, the researchers said.

To do it at your desk, think quickly, but pick topics that aren’t too challenging. Solve an easy crossword. List as many cities as you can think of in 60 seconds. Or brainstorm names for that restaurant you want to open.

If that fails, sprint down the hallway or drop to the floor and do 10 push-ups. Exercise is a terrific mood enhancer.

How cool is that?

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Some of the most brilliant quotes I see are from the ancient Chinese and I just ran into a great one from Confucius—

Choose a job you love, and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.

Ain’t that the truth! And it’s especially true for people who choose to manage.

I say choose because not all people should manage, it’s not their skill, and it often results in perfect proof that the Peter Principle is still alive and well.

But people doing good work deserve promotions, so what can you do?

Create a duel-career ladder in whatever business or department you run. It’s simply a way to receive recognition and compensation without becoming a manager.

In engineering it looks something like this

Do you have something similar in your company?

Would you like to?

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