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Archive for November, 2009

Wordless Wednesday: Turkey PR

Wednesday, November 25th, 2009

turkey-ham Now click to see what to avoid tomorrow

Image credit: richcianci on flickr

Wordless Wednesday: How NOT to Spend Thanksgiving

Wednesday, November 25th, 2009

fight(And a special link to stories of Thanksgivings past, so you’ll know it’s not just your family or to light a candle that yours is different:)

And click to see some great turkey PR

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Image credit: law_keven on flickr

Ducks In A Row: What is Fairness?

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

ducks_in_a_rowYesterday I told you how monkeys lose productivity when treated unfairly.

Unlike the managers I described in that post, good managers know that unequal pay, but they also know that it’s not just a matter of title/grade.

Not everyone with the same title deserves the same compensation—in fact, to do so would be extremely unfair!

Most companies establish a range for each job and some guidelines within each range, but the guides frequently fall short of what’s needed in the real world.

How do you draw the lines to achieve fairness?

You might think that ‘fair’ is some kind of universal one-size-fits-all yardstick, but all the people I’ve talked with over the years define ‘fair’ relative to themselves and those around them.

Developers working in a small local company didn’t compare their salaries to the developers in IBM, nor to their bosses. They compared them to their peers, i.e., similar job, experience, background, company, industry, location and, lastly, title.

Workers are well aware that every position has a salary range; what they want is for their level within that range to make sense.

The problems arise when the person they sit next to gets X more dollars or a promotion for reasons such as those mentioned yesterday, reasons having nothing to do with skill, experience, attitude or actual work.

This is the critical knowledge that helps you develop working guidelines for your company’s ranges.

Let’s say that ABC Corporation uses a three-level structure in engineering: engineer I, engineer II, and senior engineer and that there’s a $20K range within each level. They currently have five people who are Engineer II. The salary range is $60K – $80K. Of the current people:

  • Judy was recently promoted and is at $62K;
  • Jim, $68K, and Craig, $72K, both have been working for six years. Although Jim has an MBA, he started in sales engineering while Craig had three years’ experience in a specifically needed skill when he was hired.
  • Tracy is making mid-seventies with five years of direct experience; and
  • Kim, at $80K and due for promotion, has a Masters’ and 17 years of experience, 5 of them in ABC’s field.

Although they’re all Engineer II, because the salary differences are based on factual points, not charm, politics, or managerial whim, the group is satisfied that they’re being treated fairly.

As usual, it’s not rocket science, it’s common sense—but I’m starting to think that common sense is rocket science these days.

But fairness is about more than just pay; please join me next Monday for further discussion.

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Image credit:  ZedBee|Zoë Power on flickr

A Matter of Trust

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

manure-pileMy buddy Phil Gerbyshak over at The Management Expert wrote about trust and offered up some great quotes; one by Billy Wilder reminded me of something a manager told me years ago and it’s as true today as it was then.

Billy Wilder said, “Trust your own instinct. Your mistakes might as well be your own, instead of someone else’s.”

The manager said, “I don’t mind shoveling my own, but I hate having to shovel somebody else’s.”

Over the last two years we have seen an enormous amount of it hit the fan and we find ourselves shoveling more and more messes not of our own making.

Americans have short memories, even for something as major as the so-called Great Recession, so I have a quote to offer up that may benefit you in the future.

“Just because you trust your teammates/financial manager/whoever doesn’t mean you should take your eye off the ball.”

Image credit: NIOSH on flickr

Fairness is Monkey Business

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

capuchin-monkeyAs you may know, I coach with a focus on MAP—it’s effects, uses and how to enhance/change it—so I tend to collect articles and information that will help illustrate and/or drive home a critical point.

MAP is both timely and timeless with the same topics arising in successive generations of managers, so the past articles are often of just as much use now as when they were written.

Obvious as it may seem, fair treatment of employees is one of those things to which managers constantly make exceptions citing all sorts of ‘reasons’.

Years ago I read an article about a study by Sarah Brosnan.

Briefly, what Sarah did using capuchin monkeys working in pairs was to start by rewarding them equally with a slice of cucumber for performing a specific task, then rewarding one of the working pair with a grape instead (capuchins eat cucumbers, but love grapes). The results? The performance went from 95% success to 60%, but at least they still did the same amount of work. However, when one received the grape for doing less work, i.e., not performing the task at all, the success level dropped like a stone—all the way down to 20% for the cucumber crowd.

OK, back to the managers. Frequently, when I ask managers about a discrepancy in treatment, compensation, promotion, etc., what I often hear is along the lines of, “X and Y are equal with similar experience attitude, and duties, but…” and they finish the sentence with comments such as:

  • “X should earn more because he’s supporting a family.”
  • “X needs the promotion because her husband walked out on her.”
  • “X just moved here and the housing is expensive!”
  • “X is too short to be a manager.”
  • “X and I went to the same school.”
  • “X is cute.”
  • “X reminds me of _________ so I will/won’t…”
  • “I don’t like X.”

Enough! This list could go on all day, and it just gets sillier.

However, what never ceases to amaze me is that these managers see nothing wrong (let alone illegal) in their actions and expect either no repercussions or maybe some minor grumbling—or they just don’t care.

What they never seem to expect are significant drops in productivity, high levels of turnover (no matter the economy) and the occasional lawsuit.

In fact, most of them are shocked when something does happen, and harbor serious doubts as to whether the inequities actually have anything to do with it.

Of course, the most hilarious justification I hear is that “nobody will find out.

You would not believe just how many line managers at all levels, not to mention HR people, actually believe that people don’t discuss their compensation/stock packages.

Some companies even have rules stating discussing it is not allowed and can be “cause for dismissal.” These aren’t old-line, dark ages managers I’m talking about, but enlightened, 21st century, believe-in-empowerment types.

When will managers learn that secret compensation is right up there on the reality scale with Santa and the Tooth Fairy?

Being treated fairly has always been at or very near the top of people’s wish list. The only real change in the last thousand-or-so years is that it’s moving from the wish list to the demand list.

Since I first read the article I’ve shared it with managers who don’t have a clue; I’ve even emailed it to some of them, but it doesn’t always work.

In fact, the result can be hilarious. Once, when I was at my wit’s end, I sat down with the densest manager I ever worked with and we went through it together.

After discussing it in detail looked at me like I was nuts and said, “So what? I hire people, not monkeys.”

I kid you not!

Please join me tomorrow for a look at what ‘fair’ really means.

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Image credit: Ivan Mlinaric on flickr

If You Want to Be Heard…

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

be-heardThe other day I was asked, “When do you lead/manage rationally vs. emotionally?”

First, let’s define the terms so there’s no confusion in how they’re being used.

Rationally refers to communicating and appealing to those who are more cerebral, while emotionally means focusing more on feelings—kind of a left brain/right brain—not that one type is cold and the other overwrought.

People hear in different ways and it’s the responsibility of a speaker to communicate so that all can hear.

Over the years, I’ve been told many times by people in managerial roles that having to constantly alter how they present information is hard work and they believe that it’s up to the listener to understand what they’re saying.

As you might guess, I have little tolerance for this kind of thinking, especially when it persists after significant educational efforts. What these people never seem to get is that if “they” can’t hear you “they” certainly won’t do what you want.

It’s not just a choice of rational vs. emotional, it’s understanding your audience and then speaking appropriately.

For instance, if you’re presenting plans for a new building to investors, business, the community and the media you might be inclined to concentrate on relative costs and ROI, since you want to win over the money crowd, but that doesn’t mean you should ignore the esthetics and ambiance.

First, you need to think about the different viewpoints and craft your presentation to include both types of information, even when it’s stuff about which you don’t care, because that way you have it all at your fingertips.

During the presentation a money person suggests that construction costs could be lower by using smaller windows and lower ceilings, but you know that won’t fly with the community and business interests, since they’re concerned more with how the building will look and feel.

If you’ve done your homework, you can show that higher ceilings and larger windows have been proven to increase worker productivity and the improved ambiance means higher rents.

Each group will focus on the information addressing their primary interest with the rest being relegated to backup position, but the important thing is that each heard something positive that directly addressed their concerns.

Doing this is a habit you can cultivate and the fastest way to do so is to make yourself hyper aware of anything that that brings the thought “who cares,” since that’s the information/viewpoint you’re most likely to skip.

None of this is rocket science. It only requires self-awareness that’s backed by a passion to be heard. It’s also not a guarantee that people will agree, but they will hear you and that’s where you need to start.

Image credit: roland

Quotable Quotes: Lies

Sunday, November 22nd, 2009

lie-with-statisticsLies. These days it seems that everybody lies. Politicians, but that’s not new; corporate honchos, way more than previously; religious leaders, in the name of CYA; parents, for their kids own good; kids, because they’re kids; and on and one.

Richard Bach believes that the worst lies are the lies we tell ourselves, while Mark Twain believes there are three types of lies, there are lies, damned lies and statistics. I like that; I’ve always thought that statistics are like the Bible, you can spin them to support any view.

Adolf Hitler said, Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it. He understood what Eric Hoffer meant when he said, “Those in possession of absolute power can not only prophesy and make their prophecies come true, but they can also lie and make their lies come true,” and he almost did it.

Fox Mulder blithely says, “I would never lie. I willfully participate in a campaign of misinformation.” Wow, he could have a second career on Wall Street.

Lies are corrosive; they destroy the teller and damage the tellee.

I agree with Ann Landers, who said, “The naked truth is always better than the best dressed lie;” and with Baltasar Gracian, who said, “A single lie destroys a whole reputation for integrity.”

I learned early on that I’m a superlative liar, but I don’t bother for two reasons, one prosaic and the other meaningful.

Prosaically, when you lie you need to remember every one of them or they will trip you in the future.

The more profound reason was best stated by George Bernard Shaw when he said, “The liar’s punishment is not in the least that he is not believed, but that he cannot believe anyone else.” And that’s just not how I wanted to live my life.

We’ll end today with a bit of political levity from Adlai Stevenson, “I have been thinking that I would make a proposition to my Republican friends… that if they will stop telling lies about the Democrats, we will stop telling the truth about them.” Too bad they didn’t take him up on that!

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Image credit: semaphoria on flickr

mY generation: Paycheck (a true story)

Sunday, November 22nd, 2009

See all mY generation posts here.

paycheck

Seize Your Leadership Day: Bad Leadership

Saturday, November 21st, 2009

seize_your_dayThere is a dangerous assumption out there that ‘leaders’ are chuck full of positive traits and on the side of the angels, but I’m here to tell you that it ain’t necessarily so. Just as leaders come in all shapes, colors and sizes they come with a wide variety of traits, not all of them positive. But it seems as if succession is tough all over.

Italian police have caught the Sicilian Mafia’s number two, the latest in a string of top-level arrests that has given the crime group that once terrified Italy problems with rebuilding its leadership.

The hero CEO who will save the company easily morphs into the imperial CEO. An intelligent, thoughtful opinion piece by Ho Kwon Ping in Singapore considers the dangers of this happening and assumes it will continue in the US—and it probably will.

The leadership of any company is critical to the success of its mission — but no one individual is mission-critical.

Yesterday I wrote Real Leaders are Fair, which means applying rules equally, but that rarely happens, especially when a government is involved and ours is no different. Consider the non-application of a federal law backed by a presidential proclamation that prohibits corrupt foreign officials and their families from receiving American visas. But business interests always seem to trump fairness.

“Of course it’s because of oil,” said John Bennett, the United States ambassador to Equatorial Guinea from 1991 to 1994, adding that Washington has turned a blind eye to the Obiangs’ corruption and repression because of its dependence on the country for natural resources. He noted that officials of Zimbabwe are barred from the United States.

Finally, on a lighter note, I found the answer given by Ask the Coach to this question to be classic.

Q: I am having a difficult time leading my team. The team members will not follow my instructions, which I am sure would make our project much more successful. What am I doing wrong?

A: What you’re doing wrong is very simple: you have simply forgotten that your team is more critical to the success of your project than you are.

Take a moment and read the whole post, I guarantee you’ll like what you learn.

And if you want more of my picks you’ll find them here.

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Image credit: nono farahshila on flickr

Saturday Odd Bits Roundup: Hard to Believe

Saturday, November 21st, 2009

glassesThursday I wrote Too Busy to Manage, on the idiocy of eliminating not only bonuses, but also positive feedback, and I have more excellent incentive information for you today.

First is a forward-looking article from Wharton about how and why—shocking thought—incentives should focus on the long-term. Wow, I didn’t even know anybody in the US could spell long-term.

Another wild idea from WSJ Online suggests that “the best way to keep them from leaving is to prepare them to do just that.” Check them out, you may be surprised.

Speaking of the long term, check out this overview of how Southwest Air Line has kept its industry lead. If you’re a long-term reader you won’t be surprised that the key has been insane customer focus and a fun culture.

More surprising news courtesy of Steve Roesler. “Men may be more willing than women to sacrifice achievement goals for a romantic relationship. This according to a new study by Catherine Mosher of Duke Medical Center and Sharon Danoff-Burg from the University of Albany.” Actually, ‘surprising’ is a gross understatement.

My last pick was chosen to add some levity to your day. Would you write an advice columnist if your openly part-time hooker co-worker was turning tricks on company time and then brought her other job to the office. “What really got me upset was when my co-worker was having sex with a client in our public restroom.” Read the whole story and tell me if you think it’s for real.

Image credit:  MykReeve on flickr

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