@Consulting | Strategy – BIZCATALYST 360°: Recent Episodes
BIZCATALYST 360
"Arrogance is actually having excessive pride over one’s or a particular group’s accomplishment to an extent wherein we believe that our abilities are superior compared to others and that success would have come sooner if we had done it alone." ...
Aircraft purchase is costly for financially-constrained companies. Also, not all airlines can afford the cash needed for a whole fleet. Aircraft leasing enables such airlines to get into a legal agreement with a leasing company (lessor) for a specific period in exchange for lease payments or rentals. These payments may be made full-time, meaning all […]
"Success happens when both parties take responsibility for making it work. Success happens when best practices are in place and so on and so forth." ...
"Bosses who exhibit bad people skills or who fail at problem-solving do not deserve the title of “leader”. They might be the owner, founder, or boss, but Leader? No way." ...
Redundancy in industrial plants plays a crucial role in ensuring reliability and continuity of operations. This strategy involves the duplication of critical components, enabling the system to operate even in the event of failure. Sectors such as energy, chemicals, and aviation benefit from this practice, as it ensures human safety and operational resilience. The benefits of redundancy include increased safety through risk reduction, business continuity during failures, overall reliability, and ease of maintenance. Ultimately, redundancy in systems is a fundamental approach to minimising disruptions, preserving safety, and ensuring the stability of industrial operations.
In the complex symphony of life, the human body emerges as a masterpiece of biological design. Every aspect of human anatomy and physiology appears to be carefully orchestrated to ensure survival and optimal functioning.
One of the fundamental principles that emerges from this evolved design is redundancy, a concept that shares remarkable similarities with the engineering strategies adopted to ensure the reliability of artificial systems.
Biological redundancy manifests itself in a number of ways within the human body. For example, the circulatory system, the heart in particular, is an eloquent example of this characteristic. With its four chambers and synchronised valves, the heart has a double pump that can continue to ensure effective blood circulation even if one part of the system is damaged. This dual structure ensures that the body can continue to supply vital oxygen and nutrients to the tissues even in adverse circumstances.
Another obvious example of redundancy is the nervous system. The brain is the body’s command centre, sending signals through complex neural networks. The presence of multiple neural pathways allows the brain to maintain communication even if some pathways are compromised by injury or disease. This multiple network ensures that crucial functions, such as muscle control and sensory perception, can continue smoothly.
Nature does not neglect vital organs either. The human body houses dual vital organs, such as the kidneys and lungs, which can perform their functions even if one of them is affected. This redundant approach provides a backup mechanism that helps preserve the survival and well-being of the individual.
Biological redundancy goes beyond mere structural duplication. It involves complex interactions between genes, proteins, and metabolic pathways, creating a resilient and flexible system capable of adapting to environmental challenges and stresses. This intelligent design, shaped by evolution over millions of years, demonstrates how nature itself embraces the concept of redundancy to ensure the survival of life.
In artificial intelligence (AI), redundancy comes in different forms. Redundant data include various sources of information to improve learning. Ensembles combine models for more reliable decisions. Deep neural networks with multiple layers act as redundant architectures. Physical AI systems have multiple safeties. Human interaction adds backup security. In critical situations, contingency plans maintain stability. Redundancy in AI aims to guarantee accuracy, security, and resilience.
In conclusion, redundancy in the human body is an eloquent witness to evolutionary ingenuity. This biological principle, which aims to ensure survival and optimal functioning, shares remarkable similarities with the engineering strategies adopted to ensure the reliability of artificial systems.
The human body is a model of how intelligent duplication and flexibility can work together to preserve integrity and functionality, offering a fascinating perspective on the interplay between nature and design.
Can the same logic of redundancy that makes the human body so reliable inspire and guide the engineering solutions that keep our industrial world functioning? How might we better apply this biological wisdom to address increasingly complex technological challenges?
"The world of work must include young people who are the best wealth that a country possesses, if only because they have the necessary initiative to blaze new trails." ...
"We’re leading people, and how we do it ultimately determines how effectively we perform as leaders. It also means we need to become exceptionally self-aware of our weaknesses." ...
"The implications for leadership, especially at a time when we suffer from a leadership deficit at all levels of society, are far-reaching." ...
"A great leader is one who creates an atmosphere of openness in his team because this is what maximizes cooperation and the exchange of information and skills. Leadership becomes simple and fun in this area." ...
"Being present with your team is essential to building trust and psychological safety, developing relationships, dealing with challenges before they become problems, and driving innovation and creativity." ...
"Imagining ourselves into alternate futures and evaluating them as a way to make decisions and guide present action is unique." ...
"Virtual meetings are more efficient for reporting operational items like compliance updates. But they lack the robust human social interactions provided by face-to-face meetings." ...
"Building relationships with customers, clients, peers, and mentors who become your advocates is something Dortha highly recommends." ...
"A need to be authentic with our teams and create an environment of total transparency can lead to oversharing, but how do we know if we’ve gone too far in being authentic and transparent?" ...
"While some view failure as a final roadblock, the journey's end, they perceive it as a temporary detour, a stepping stone leading them one step closer to their goals." ...
"There is no leadership possible without care for people, without this underlying sensitivity that is necessary to govern complexity, to relate to individuals, even before employees, roles, and functions." ...
"As projects are delivered in all types of work situations, the need for project management professionals to be skilled and future-compliant in ML-oriented advancement is much more pronounced than ever before." ...
"In the world of work, values are too often considered in the background or not even taken into consideration." ...
"What if we were to raise good employees by being the kind of bosses that allow employees to grow into who they are supposed to be and then encourage them to be precisely that?" ...
"Have you ever felt excluded both personally and professionally? I am sure most of us have faced this uncomfortable feeling, whether as children or as adults." ...
Solving issues in group dynamics takes courage to lift the lid and start talking and sharing more deeply.
"You know how important it is to have a team that works well together. But did you know that emotional intelligence could be the key to unlocking your team’s full potential?" ...
Around six out of 10 businesses have moved their work to the cloud, and experts only expect this trend to continue in the next few years. Of the organizations that used the cloud, 90% made use of a multi-cloud strategy that included Amazon AWS and other service providers. Even if you only look at it […]
"Almost half of the world’s potential entrepreneurs have been handicapped, and are still being held back from adding value to the quality of people’s lives and making the difference they want to, and can make in the world." ...
"You cannot effectively teach soft leadership skills in a vacuum; devoid of their associated hard skills." ...
"It’s time to rethink and restructure the meaning of grief and the time you need to grieve." ...
"My question is – “Should I intend to launch a company based on evolution or revolution? Which is more beneficial to me and society?" ...
"Don’t expect perfection in your first set of business measurements. It is just today’s version. You’ll find some things that are too difficult to measure, others will be relatively unimportant, still, others will rise to the surface. Creating and implementing a measurement system is a continuously evolving project." ...
"Even if good leadership is based on defined skills, it is very important to remember that, in the day-to-day functioning of a company, the mere possession of these skills is not enough to help everyone move in the right direction." ...
"Promoting someone to a new manager without sufficient training is a set-up for everyone involved but it doesn’t have to be." ...
"Paradoxes are not new to leaders, but they are becoming have become increasingly important for leaders to navigate." ...
"Ask, inquire, be curious, and don't stop at the surface. Many times whoever has the problem also has the solution: listening to what he says because will often it be a source of improvement, in solving the problem as well." ...
"Having worked in media for over 20 years and as a producer, I know what makes a good interview. And it’s a lot more than just a spot. What does it mean? What do you need beyond the actual spot?" ...
"How do they never get defeated? Or when they do, where does that strength come from to get up, dust off, and move forward again?" ...
"Challenging our worldview and being conscious in shifting our perspective is so important in ensuring we move towards higher quality communication, greater inclusivity, and unity." ...
"If you are thinking of holding a meeting, your very first question should always be, do we really need a meeting? Ask yourself, can the topic be resolved through a phone call, email, or other method?" ...
"Practice isn’t the thing you do once you’re good. It’s the thing you do that makes you good." ...
"It takes courage to engage in a sometimes messy process of leading and motivating people to do hard things." ...
"While strengths undoubtedly contribute to your success, it is essential to recognize their limitations." ...
"By establishing clear goals and objectives, leaders can align their efforts and lead their organizations to greater heights." ...
It amazes me how nature law applies to organizations and people. One example is hypothermia. A human body that exposes to very low temperatures soon loses its body energy. This may affect the brain and its ability to make wise decisions.
The same applies to studying organizations. I share my friend’s story to explain.
My friend was in a bad mood. He had a good job and happily engaged in his work. A rich businessperson tempted him to work for him for a much better salary. He resigned and joined the rich man’s organization. The man initially treated my friend so well until he finished an important project. Suddenly, the man moved him to a tiny office. He ordered his staff not to talk to him. He moved him from hot water to a chilling one.
My friend felt that he started to fall off balance. The man hired him to complete an assignment but then he had no need for him. He suffered virtually from hypothermia. His brain stopped functioning. He resigned with a broken heart.
We hear terms such as the manager froze an employee. Those managers cause much harm to humanity. These managers do this for a variety of reasons. These include not favoring their suggestions, excelling and the fear a manager the employee would replace him and grudge against certain nationalities.
The same hypothermic effect applies to celebrities who suffered from poverty to richness of money.
Social media has served many unknown singers and actors to become very famous in no time. These unknown singers and actors move from the chilling waters of poverty in money and fame to become rich in both. These artists suffer from “Sudden Wealth Syndrome”. This syndrome coupled with hypothermia makes these people act in an unacceptable way.
The fear of losing fame and money and as fast as they earned them make them live in fear. Soon their minds lose the ability to make good decisions. They lose old friends; spend money to focus the light on them on showy things like buying the most expensive cars.
It is amazing how fast they can change their behavior because they started by changing their words. These sudden rich people remind me of the wisdom of Mahatma Gandhi:
My partner and I decided we needed to learn, understand, and implement a marketing and promotion program to create and execute campaigns to give our books and those of our clients the best opportunity to become a #1 bestselling new release and/or #1 best seller.
Why did we do this? After writing books that did not achieve what we hoped, we invested time, effort, and money to first understand the publishing/distribution/marketing business and second to develop a sustainable and repeatable program. We interviewed authors who had experienced success and disappointment. We learned how to identify and overcome the landmines, myths, and obstacles that negatively impact authors.
We tested the program on ourselves before offering it to clients. We now have multiple bestselling books. In May of 2021, our Trust the Process – Book Marketing Program was offered to clients. How has that worked?
In the 22-month window from May 2021 to March 2023, our campaigns have produced 11 consecutive Amazon #1 bestselling new releases in multiple categories and two award-winning books.
Our message to authorsSo, you want to write a book. As hard as that is marketing/promoting and selling your book is even harder. The average for book sales is 250 copies. The author makes on average $500. Did you pour your heart and soul into writing a book for this? Don’t you want more? What are you doing to make your book stand out? Do you have a marketing/promotion plan BEFORE your book is finished? The sad fact is most authors do not have any type of marketing/promotion plan.
Let’s look at the facts:* 200 million Americans say they want to publish a book. * Somewhere between 600,000 and 1,000,000 books are published every year in the US alone. That is at least 11,500 books published each week.
Let’s look at the myths:As stated above, the sad fact is that most authors do not have any type of marketing/promotion plan. They mistakenly assume the publisher or editor or illustrator or writing coach will do the marketing. Publishers publish. Their job is to get the book finished and ready to be released. They do not run marketing campaigns. It is up to the author to market their book. Most do not have the expertise or the time to create and execute a comprehensive marketing and promotion campaign.
Most authors do not understand all the steps for a book to go from an idea to a finished product. Initially, I didn’t understand the process and was misled or completely misunderstood the marketing & promotion process. Here are the eight common steps to get a book from idea to a product. Note: none of the eight include marketing and promotion of the book.
- Write the book: Start with an idea or a concept. It is best to start with something you know. Try to visualize how you see the book flowing. Write your thoughts and arrange them in the order according to the flow in your mind. This is the creative part of the process. Most authors think this is the hardest part. It’s not. This is just step one.
- Edit the book: The author makes their best effort to edit the book, but as we all know editing what you wrote does not usually go well. Authors tend to see what they intended to write not what is on the page or computer screen. This is where a publisher usually comes into play. Most books will need a line edit and copy edit.
- Line Editing is focused on the content, style, and language used within the manuscript. A professional line editor may point out sections that can be improved, parts where the style is inconsistent, issues with pacing, or overuse of certain words or phrases throughout the manuscript.
- Copy Editing is focused on making sure a piece of writing is accurate, clear, and correct. For example: checking the facts; checking the math; ensuring that the writing is free from libel, plagiarism and conforms to the ethical standards of the publication and the profession.
- Proofreading: Review the manuscript for corrections. This may require two or more rounds of editing for a manuscript of 60,000 words.
- Final Proofreading: Review the entire manuscript plus interior formatting review and confirm proof. Final edits are made as needed.
- Manuscript Review: Author approval or comments and corrections. This may occur two or more times.
- Book Design and Cover: Design of front and back cover with author’s approval
- Publishing the book: Self-publish or contract publishing
- Distribution of the book: This is order fulfillment not marketing or promotion. The author can do it themselves. Contract with a publisher or use Amazon for order fulfillment.
The publisher will market the book myth:We just went through the eight common steps in the publishing process. None of them include marketing and promotion. The publisher may write a press release or social media post. The burden of marketing a book falls directly on the author, not the publisher. Publishers publish they do not market or promote. We do.
In Penguin Random House/S&S antitrust trial it was revealed that out of 58,000 trade titles published per year, half of those sell fewer than one dozen books. LESS THAN 12 BOOKS!!!
I will post to my social media myth:Large social media alone is not enough. While becoming a published author is a major ego boost, very few receive income or effectively leverage their book to expand their brand and business. Far too many authors equate likes, followers, and social media connections with increased revenue. Nothing is further from the truth. Never confuse activity with results.
“The pop star Billie Eilish, who now has 102 million Instagram followers and 6.7 million on Twitter, sold just 64,000 copies of her self-titled memoir from May 2021 to December, according to the New York Times. Justin Timberlake, who now has 64.5 million followers on Instagram, only managed to sell 100,000 copies of his autobiographical collection of observations, Hindsight, in the first three years. And the media personality Piers Morgan, who has 7.9 million Twitter followers and 1.8 million on Instagram, managed to move just 5,650 U.S. copies of his book, Wake Up: Why the World Has Gone Nuts, from September to December.”
“If being a celebrity with millions of followers does not guarantee high book sales, what does? Is there any hope for the rest of us?”
~ The Enigma of Book Sales May 9, 2022, By Alesha Brown
Trust the Process – Book Marketing ProgramWhile no campaign can guarantee a #1 bestseller, our campaigns dramatically improve the odds. They are a proven layered multi-step process to build a brand that will significantly increase exposure, awareness, authority, credibility and ultimately create multiple streams of revenue.
Consistency and frequency of the message matter. One post, email, letter, or Facebook live is not effective. For example, everyone knows Coca-Cola and Mcdonald’s, yet every day we see ads, commercials, etc. for these products. Our campaigns keep your message in front of the target market.
The key is to surround yourself with people who have been where you want to go. Keep in mind, many people, friends, family, colleagues, associates, etc. will offer their opinions and ideas on how the author should release and or promote their book. Most have never created and executed such campaigns. The secret to walking on water is to know where the rocks are! We will show you where the rocks are!
Executing a successful marketing/promotion strategy requires the cooperation of all parties including but not limited to; the author, writing coach, adviser, and publisher, who must agree to follow the steps listed in the Trust the Process Statement of Work and take subsequent instructions from.
When does a campaign startWe start our campaigns before the book is finished. The best campaigns build a groundswell of demand before the book is released.
Three stage campaignOur base-level campaigns have three stages.
- “Priming the pump” in anticipation of the book(s) launch.
- Launch campaign
- Post-launch follow-up
The investment will vary depending on the level of depth.
Are you ready to take control of your marketing/promotion? Let’s see.* Why are you writing this book? * Have you written a book before? If yes, What were the results? Did it achieve #1 bestselling status in any category? * Are you looking to leverage the book to create multiple revenue streams? * Are you willing to invest in your marketing, and promotion campaign? * Are you willing to be coached? * What genre is your book? * Are you willing and able to commit to and follow the campaign – prelaunch, launch, post-launch – potential multiple-month contract? * Are you willing to invest in your book’s success? * Will you put in the time and effort to do the tasks assigned to the author? * Do you have an email list and an email program (MailChimp, Constant Contact, etc.)? * What organizations do you belong to as a member, adviser, volunteer, etc.? * Who is your publisher? They must be willing to follow our plan (post the book where and when per the plan). We can suggest a publisher if needed. * Do you need someone to assist you with the writing, formatting, and editing?
As you move through the decision process to write a book, you will hear many stories and claims from publishers, editors, illustrators, friends, and associates. Ask yourself this question, who has created and executed marketing and promotional campaigns that have achieved 11 consecutive #1 bestselling titles and two award-winning books in 22 months?
Magic happens when people Trust the Process. Message Melissa Van Oss or Frank Zaccari on LinkedIn. Let’s talk.
Like millions of others globally, I watched with fascination, the sensational and striking spectacle of the ceremony, significant symbolism, spectacular artifacts, and rituals at the recent King of England’s majestic coronation. At the same time, I allowed my mind to wander and wondered how this visually stunning and unrivaled British ceremony would impact the nations and realms’ culture and leadership, today and in the future, wondering if, indeed, it is at a cultural tipping point.
Where it is believed, by some, that the coronation made “two statements of great importance for today’s world about the place of religion in public life and the importance and meaning of the nation”. Acknowledging that such a monumental and marvellous event is indicative of a cultural tipping point, not only for the people it embraces but also for organisations, nations, and realms as a whole, to search for what is meaningful and valued by its people.
Making the connectionMy mind wandered and made some obvious connections between the core and common elements that embody both organisational, and national cultural realms – the values, beliefs, assumptions, and mindsets that drive key behaviours and deliver the common implicit messages. As well as the disciplined systems and processes that deliver the results, the rituals that are enacted, and finally, the artifacts whose symbols represent what the culture values.
Maintaining relevance and engagementLike the monarchy, what do organisations need to do to maintain relevance and engagement to thrive in unstable and uncertain times, especially when their existence and legacies are being questioned and evaluated by the people they serve?
At a pivotal time when new sets of global, societal, and organisational demands are being made, largely as a result of the fourth industrial revolution, encompassing the convergence of exponential technologies impacting all of us globally. At the same time, we are all still affected by the consequences of the global pandemic-induced lockdowns, impacting every fabric of our social and civic structures in our world today.
A case study for leveraging cultural tipping points differentlyThe coronation of King Charles III provides us with a great case study of an outstanding and remarkable display of English cultural attributes. This enables us to ask some serious questions about how national and organisational cultures and leadership in times of exponential change, like today, might thrive with uncertainty and co-create solutions to some of the most complex global challenges, by leveraging the range of cultural tipping points differently.
A range of cultural tipping pointsWe are in effect, experiencing globally a range of cultural tipping points:
- At the macro level, according to a recent article here in Australia, where King Charles still resides as our head of state, the local SMH states that this realm is in a state of flux:
“The King is head of state in 15 countries. More than half of the so-called “realm states” are in the Caribbean and most of them are bailing out. Barbados two years ago, Jamaica probably next year. Belize, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines are planning their exit as well”.
- At the micro level, according to Mc Kinsey & Co, in a recent article “New Leadership for a new era of thriving organisations” stated that organisations and leadership are also in a state of flux:
“Organizations such as Allianz, Haier, Microsoft, and Nucor are transforming their industries with a new organizational approach that seeks to be open, fluid, and adaptable; unleashes the collective energy, passion, and capabilities of its people; reimagines strategy; and focuses on delivering greater value to all stakeholders”.
“Their cultures support a more open, collaborative, and emergent way of working. And the shift to this new kind of model changes the way businesspeople must lead”.
Going back to culture and leadership fundamentalsBecause culture and leadership are, according to Edgar H. Schein “two sides of the same coin and cannot understand one without the other” we have to be in charge and focussed to intentionally, constructively, and creatively manage their interdependence. He also states that culture matters because it is a “powerful, tacit and often unconscious set of forces that determine both our individual and collective behaviours, ways of perceiving, thought patterns, and values”.
If we do not intentionally and strategically take charge, focus, and leverage these forces, we will simply always be at the effect of them, as they take us down the path of least resistance, remain implicit, and will not deliver the results we want and need in a disruptive world.
Making the coronation linksMy mind wandered and considered what might be the range of core values at play on the weekend and landed on a range of seldom-used words including – power, sovereignty, continuity, divinity, tradition, wealth, accession, diversity, responsibility, pride, and loyalty, supported by the key values of Christianity and a belief in divine right and the crucial role of righteousness.
The ceremony was jam-packed full of amazing seldom-seen rituals, including public prayer, polite bows, serious vows, anointment, and elaborate crowning, to name just a few.
The variety and assortment of symbols were mesmerising, including priceless golden carriages, bejewelled coronation swords, golden scepters, the solo glove and silver spoon, beautifully crafted and jewelled orbs and elaborate crowns. Plus a selection of artifacts included religious items and a variety of civic and military seriously gold braided red, black and white regalia.
Delivered by a set of carefully planned processes and an orchestrated set of scheduled events, including flybys, a range of powerful military processions and parades, serious police presence and awesome security all enacted with mighty precision.
Sharing the key messagesMy mind then wandered and considered what might be the key messages being communicated by this incredible series of marvellous events, and wondered how relevant and engaging they might be to people today:
- A coronation signals the conferment of God’s grace upon a ruler,
- A coronation appoints the king as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England,
- A coronation is a joyous and celebratory event.
Back to the SMH “The people got what they wanted. The cheers in the Mall, the boulevard built for the adoration of royalty, were real, even if the masses were down on those for the Queen’s Jubilee.”
Impacting the futureIt remains to be seen if this powerful, majestic, memorable, and significant once-in-a-lifetime ceremonial event will ultimately help unify or divide the English realm. Which it seems, is facing its own range of unique challenges and a controversial cultural tipping point, ultimately and seriously impacting its future viability.
Back to the SMH “But Charles’s big show might be his last great day. The last dance of a wheeling, brilliant circus that has entertained and beguiled but which soon enough, in its distant realms, will stutter and shrink and reel no more.”
Why does this matter?This matters today because we are individually, and collectively at a range of social, civic, and organisational cultural tipping points. Where we organisation and leaders are also dancing many of our “last dances”, and “stutter and shrink and reel nor more” because, according to some, we are not strategically focussed on leveraging the culture and leadership basics:
- Implicitly clarifying values that focus on delivering value that improves the quality of people’s lives that they appreciate and cherish and explicitly making them an active part of corporate life.
- Ensuring that leaders role model and enact behaviours that demonstrate the values in action, where people are accountable and rewarded by rigorous systems and supportive disciplined, and agile processes.
- Co-creating powerful sets of rituals, symbols, and artifacts, aligned to the values, that deliver the “new architectures” to create permission, safety, and trust that drive collaboration, experimentation, innovation, inclusion, and sustainability.
- Communicating engaging and inclusive messages that resonate creativity, respect, and appreciation for people, profit, and the planet.
Shifting the cultural tipping pointsIt’s time to transform leadership to transform organisations, in ways that are self-aware and inspiring, meaningful and purposeful, equitable and sustainable, with increasing speed, resilience, and efficiency to guide organisational cultures and leadership that:
- Helps people navigate and balance in-person and remote work, be mentally healthy and well, and make the way for both applied AI and human skills development.
- Develops new rules for attracting and retaining people, close the capability chasm and walk the talent tightropes to better equip, empower and harness people’s harness collective intelligence to make both the organisation and the world better places.
- Creates, invents, and innovates new ways of thinking, and acting that ultimately shift the range of cultural tipping points to meet new sets of global, societal, and organisational demands and challenges emerging in the 21st century, and lets go of what is no longer relevant to better serve humanity as a whole.
Can you sense the pull toward more and more group work? The word collaboration is used frequently in organisational life but isn’t well understood or practised in reality…and yet somewhere within us, we know that working across boundaries and overcoming the isolation of long-held silo thinking will be one of the keys to elevating the impact of our work in its many forms.
The silos sit at so many levels – roles, departments, directorates, companies, organisations, institutions, nations and so on. There’s push and pull of getting our own ‘part’ working well and protecting it alongside deep knowing that in fact, true success relies on a higher level of interplay between ‘us’ and ‘others’.
On the global level we are seeing the challenges and the pull of group working in so many aspects of the Pandemic as, in some cases, we seek to work out how we work as a single Humanity rather than with separatist tendencies. Simultaneously we can see the undercurrent and indeed stark evidence of ‘me first’ or ‘protectionist’ behaviour. So too in organisations we can see this play out as we become immersed in our own priorities and agendas – not necessarily fuelled by political or personal gain but because we find it too difficult to lift our heads up and look outward.
Thinking and acting as a ‘group’ demands that we set or can connect to a higher collective purpose or focus. It needs an emotional maturity from everyone as we act from generosity and a higher point of service to the purpose rather than our own egos. That said, we know that in organisations so many of the performance reward mechanisms are geared toward the individual rather than collective performance. This will need to change for us to really harness the power of group working.
A group mindset has within its core a deep sense of unity and oneness…a bringing together of the unique talents and gifts of each entity – person, function, nation – and harnessing these in service of something bigger and which cannot be achieved alone.
This is the future and opening ourselves more deeply to the potential of group working will reveal many new opportunities for making it live. The question is how long will this take us given how pressing the need is now in our world?
Episode SummaryTony Douglas has made a remarkable career out of dealing with complexity and creating inspired communities of people who are able to work together and deal with that complexity as a unit. From engineers to pilots, customer service people to administrators, all from around the globe, Tony’s brought the best out of diverse teams for some of the world’s most respected organizations. This week, we get his amazing perspective.
Episode NotesLeading Through Complexity, Creating a Community (ft. Tony Douglas). Tony Douglas on managing complexity in high-stakes environments
OPENING QUOTE:“It’s about people. There are no organizations without people. Simple as that.”
-Tony Douglas
GUEST BIO:Tony Douglas is CEO of Etihad Aviation Group with over 30 years of international leadership experience in aerospace, transportation, infrastructure, and government sectors. He joined Etihad in 2018, after being the CEO of the UK’s Ministry of Defense Procurement Arm, supplying all the services and equipment for the British Armed Forces valued at over $20 billion pounds a year. Tony has previously held senior leadership positions in the UAE, such as CEO of Abu Dhabi Ports, and in UK, his roles included the Managing Director of the Heathrow Terminal Five Construction Project, CEO of Heathrow Airport, and COO and Group Chief Executive Designate of Laing O’Rourke, a massive global construction company.
CORE TOPICS + DETAILS:[10:53] – We All Have a Part to Play
Junior, senior, everybody in-between
While managing production lines of 4,000 or more people, all heavily unionized, Tony quickly learned that engaging with their community would send productivity through the roof— and failing to engage would be catastrophic. “We’ve all got a part to play,” he says. “Some parts are bigger than others, but unless they all play together, you’ll never get the potential that is clearly there.”
[26:06] – Embracing Diversity from the Ground Up
The difference between success and failure
In his role at Etihad, Tony works with people of 112 different nationalities and an average age of just over 30. He’s learned that diversity must become something that you embrace without a second thought, or you and your teams will fail. Tony even speaks to finding joy in the complexity of navigating diversity, knowing that it ultimately leads to more diverse perspectives and greater success.
[37:47] – Clarity of Purpose in an Organization
Translate what’s required and deliver it
Tony speaks to the importance of clarity and purpose at an organization from the top down. When that clarity is present, everyone within the organization can interpret it and deliver results built around an organization’s purpose.
[48:36] – The Power of Ramesh
Being brand ambassadors— and recognizing great ambassadors for your brand
Tony shares a story of an Australian family who stops at the same hotel in Abu Dhabi every time they have a stopover there en route to the UK. Why? Their children have connected so much with an excellent hotel employee named Mr. Ramesh. But the hotel managers not only had no idea what an impact Mr. Ramesh has had for their brand, but didn’t even know who he was.
Imagine if management had realized the power that Ramesh was having for their brand and capitalized on it, instead of being unaware of his impact?
RESOURCES:* [0:47] About Etihad Aviation Group * [28:14] About Jack Jarvis
Follow Tony Douglas
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Please stop for a moment to consider your deepest desire before paying attention to our blog question, ‘What do clients truthfully want?’ Most people want to believe that their thoughts matter and desire acceptance in social and business settings. Most people relent that their ideas are not understood, others ridicule them, and often they feel very much alone to wonder if their effort is worthwhile. And then the idea of quitting comes to mind, although it isn’t their heartfelt desire deep down.
NOTE: Treat your prospects and clientele as humans.
My StoryWhether we encounter people personally or professionally, we each want to feel a warm welcome and a sense of appreciation as we communicate our thoughts. Similarly, clients quickly evade attempts by salespeople who only have the sale in mind, not the person or the company in front of them.
Take the ChallengeThe best first step for most is to imagine being the client as an impostor mirrors your behaviors. Observe the impostor’s behaviors and patterns as they speak to you about the fantastic products and services they expect you to purchase.
The burning question becomes, would you purchase or quickly ask the impostor to leave the premises and never return? In all seriousness, it is a burning question because if the clients do not desire our return, we burn a hole in our potential income and potentially run the risk of the job and career. It’s a serious matter as during my sales career, I witnessed a hefty ongoing turnover at all companies I worked for. Seeing their egos at the sales office confirmed that their nonstop talking took over on sales calls.
Embrace Q, L, C: Question, Listen, ClarifyGaining a sound footing with a new prospect, it is best, to begin with questions to encourage the other person to start talking and gradually open up. For starters, inquire why they made time to see you and what caught their interest.
Although people are unique, commonalities among many appear as to what caught one person’s interest. Listening to answers is essential for building one’s sales repertoire. Not only will you soon realize the valid interest points, but it also opens doors wide for upper management. By sharing attention-getting insights in team meetings, the company’s executives will realize better strategies for advertisements and marketing.
As people speak, questions generally arise. Most people are embarrassed to either say they need help understanding or are too busy to make the sale. Either way, they miss opportunities for further business growth. The idea of asking for clarification demonstrates that you are honest and will likely be accommodating upon working together. Taking it one step further, sometimes an answer is cloudy or will raise more uncertainty. It is best to ask all related questions until no more come to mind.
The QLC routine signifies the following:– Humility is within you, and potentially integrity, too.
– You stand out from the competition and could be a friendly easy-to-work-with provider.
– You care about delivering your best.
Your Story: What Do Clients Truthfully Want?An excellent habit is to review our best and worst experiences to compare the results. Of the better experiences, recall similarities in approach, conversation, and each outcome to know what to continue doing and potentially maximize. Underlying the effort is to realize which habits are distracting to discard. Upon making it a routine practice, efficiencies will encompass the overall strategy for more robust results. You will answer, ‘What do clients truthfully want?’
Toward the end of a sales career, you can pass the knowledge in action on to younger people via your products and services. The community spirit will enable you to accomplish more than you thought early in your career to find fulfillment in a satisfying journey.
In Conclusion: What Do Clients Truthfully Want?Prospective clients seek out amicable relationships whereby they are comfortable trusting the representative. Even better, they look forward to future meetings that include tasteful laughter. The professionally friendly style of doing business relaxes almost everyone. Better yet, the process turns into a returning and referring clientele known as The Smooth Sale!
We often hear these terms – unconscious bias and implicit bias – as synonyms, but there is tremendous value in distinguishing between the two. In DEI work, I see companies using terms without having a common understanding of their meaning, leading both to the illusion of agreement and the illusion of disagreement based on slightly different understandings of the same word (think “Diversity”, “Equity”, “Inclusion” as obvious examples). I see this happen with unconscious and implicit bias frequently. Even though they are often used interchangeably, understanding the difference leads to better mitigation strategies and better organizational performance as a result.
Let’s unpack these two terms further.
What is Unconscious Bias?Unconscious bias is exclusively the realm of the brain. These biases are the default settings of your brain in order to reduce cognitive load and to make things easier–after all, your brain is working hard all the time. Unconscious biases are a byproduct of how our brains naturally process information. Unconscious cognitive biases are difficult, if not impossible, to stop before they happen, but the impact of these biases can be mitigated. There are more than 200 named cognitive biases, and while they do in fact help the brain function more easily, they can also lead to unintended mistakes and flaws in judgment.
What is Implicit Bias?Implicit bias includes all of the above and extends beyond your brain’s automatic decision-making, referring to biases that people hold unconsciously but can be revealed through their behavior or actions. (If you have not seen it before, take a look at this Implicit Bias Test). Implicit bias is baked into a behavior, a process, or an action, moving it a step beyond the unconscious realm of the mind. Implicit bias is used more often when speaking of the wide range of social constructs (race, gender, culture, age, orientation, religion, politics, media, etc). Because of this, implicit bias is typically more harmful because the bias impacts others and has widespread implications. The origin (unconscious bias) matters less than the impact (implicit bias) of the expression, action, or behavior. Furthermore, when these expressions, actions, and behaviors persist over time, bias becomes institutionalized and is “the way we do things here”. For a more detailed look at this cycle, see the bias ecosystem.
Mitigating Both Unconscious and Implicit BiasWe sit at the intersection of two truths: that cognitive biases are inevitable and that they lead to unintended mistakes and flaws in judgment. This paradox is a fundamental lesson for any leader who identifies as “inclusive” and seeks to realize the benefits of a diverse workplace. Mitigating both unconscious and implicit bias leads to a higher-functioning organization, greater productivity, and increased revenues.
When designing a bias mitigation plan, it is best to use language that will clearly identify what type of bias you are disrupting because the strategy will be different depending on the circumstances and the context. Sometimes actions are needed to change perceptions. Sometimes awareness can facilitate a different behavior. On other occasions, you may need to rewrite policies that will force a change in perception and behaviors. There are usually several layers to human interactions and the exchange of ideas. Both unconscious and implicit bias are likely baked into each layer. Businesses spend an inordinate amount of time on the who, what, where, when, and why. Bias mitigation is all about examining and reflecting on the how. When we neglect the how of a situation, we allow an environment where it would be easy for bias to impact behavior of all kinds and to limit performance.
Having an awareness that nearly every decision or action is impacted by unconscious bias can lead to a practice of reflection and questioning what we do and how we do it. It allows us to name what is happening, to surround ourselves with people who can make us aware of a bias that we are unable to see ourselves and to redefine processes to mitigate the negative impact of biases. Bias is universal. If you have a brain, you have bias® is the trademark that The Percipio Company builds upon. By framing bias as a by-product of how the brain functions, we eliminate the cycle of justifying, arguing, defending, and explaining (JADE), which can be an obstacle to organizational development and growth.
Understanding the difference between unconscious and implicit bias can help businesses establish a common understanding that everyone operates with unconscious bias and no one is more or less prone to it.
This commonality opens up deeper conversations around the implicit biases that show up in interactions, behaviors, or processes. A huge mistake is treating these conversations as transactional or one-time training events. Because bias mitigation is about examining, reflecting, and changing processes and behavior, it is continual, iterative, and ongoing. It requires generating awareness, process changes, and widespread behavioral adoption to truly impact the way companies operate. The work empowers organizations to create new ways of proceeding, ways that acknowledge bias mitigation as an integral part of the “way we do things here” and integrate it into their workplace culture.
Today, more than ever, it is essential to set rules for engagement before accepting any business, especially with a need to promote another. Otherwise, the next step could be to seek legal advice. We want to avoid getting caught up in a scam or helping another with a project that is not as initially projected. Before accepting any offer that may intrigue us, we must research before agreeing to a partnership.
My StoryRoutinely offers to buy a business, promote the work of another entity, or collaborate with new people come to my attention. Most offers are easy to decline as they do not meet my goals and will only eliminate the time necessary for achieving them. In other cases, I either need to gain the knowledge required to succeed with the offer or desire to consider the opportunity. In these cases, it is easy to decline the requests.
My first step is to schedule a conversation to learn more. When someone approaches whose demeanor almost matches mine in an approach, the behavior catches my attention. However, I forewarn the person that I have many questions that require answering.
Upfront, I may be excited about the proposition, but it’s best to begin by gaining insights from those already established in the industry. I lay out the opportunity before me and ask if they know the people and the company they represent. The primary concerns are:
- The business in question aligns with my priorities and goals.
- The company has a solid reputation.
- Our principles for conducting business match those of one another.
Detective Work UpfrontI will thoroughly research a website to gain further insights before speaking with someone about the possibility of partnering. Typically, the About Us page will indicate the team members, insight into their experiences, and what they hold essential overall. Next, I do a Google search to learn more about their work and if the company is legitimate. Should they partner with other firms, I will research those too. Although I may want to participate without hesitation, I know better and proceed to do detective work before making any agreement.
Most importantly, before the conversation, I will ask those I know well and are well-known in the same field as the company in question if they know the business. The people I confer with have a wealth of experience in their expertise. Accordingly, if a company name is unfamiliar, that lessens the enthusiasm. And when another company is in the startup phase, given today’s news, caution sides with the idea to wait until it proves itself successful and familiar before proceeding. I check for agreement on whether that will work for the other party.
Detective Work for SalesDetective work also applies to dealing with prospective clients. The salesperson is responsible for becoming familiar with as many aspects of their work as possible. Upon analyzing a conversation after the fact, I would frequently call my prospect the following day. My opening line was to say, ‘I was thinking about you to realize I have one more question,’ and then ask permission to proceed. My teammates would refer to me as the Columbo detective of sales.
Your Story: Set Rules for EngagementIf you know the feeling of being sorry about an agreement with another that seemed to enter a sinkhole, then you are the first to realize the need to set engagement rules. Values and priorities come first. But next, the research on many levels requires time and thought about whether the necessary effort to make it a success is likely a good decision.
Reviews can be ‘iffy’ depending on whether an opposing reviewer is honest or doesn’t want a competitor as good as the one in question. Therefore, asking those you know in a similar field their thoughts upfront is best. Then research the industry and the competitors of the business making the request. Note the similarities and differences to determine whether you admire the company.
An effective collaborative effort is frequently the differentiator for being successful. On the other hand, not being selective can lead to a downhill slope, only to regret ever saying yes. Consider the suggestions above to realize where you may improve your approach the next time an exciting offer comes. The point is to ensure it’s exciting and will prove successful.
In Conclusion: Set Rules for EngagementToday, more than ever, it is essential to set rules for engagement before accepting any business, especially with a need to promote another. Otherwise, the next step could be to seek legal advice. We want to avoid getting caught up in a scam or helping another with a project that is not as initially projected. Before accepting any offer that may intrigue us, we must research before agreeing to a partnership.
What if leadership at work wasn’t for a select few, but rather shared among many? Management consultant Gitte Frederiksen gives us the recipe for “distributed leadership” — dynamic, multidimensional networks of leaders that tap into everyone’s knowledge and creativity — and shows how it allows teams to do more and do it better.
What is hell? Hell is oneself. Hell is alone, the other figures in it merely projections. There is nothing to escape from. And nothing to escape to. One is always alone.
~ T.S. Eliot in The Cocktail Party
Leadership is built on relationships, the very foundation of human flourishing. So there is an obvious correlation between the global leadership deficit and the relationship dysfunction that characterises western society today. Social isolation, or loneliness, is the real pandemic in the Third Millennium, and it lies at the root of most of our social maladies.
Leadership is first learned in the family, where the virtues essential to all relationships – honesty, trust, faithfulness, compassion, forgiveness, and a natural sense of obligation to others – are best nurtured. Where those virtues are sincerely held, there can be no loneliness, and relationships will flourish. And that provides the ideal context and conditions for community and leadership.
Where those virtues are absent, family, friendship, and community break down, and social dysfunction ensues. The reality is that our mental and physical health actually depend heavily on the quality of our relationships. Studies around the globe have shown that:
- Social isolation is a one of the most common causes of clinical depression
- It impacts artery erosion, blood pressure, heart disease, hypertension, and stroke risk
- Chronic loneliness is a significant factor in many cases of alcoholism
- It is closely linked with anti-social and self-destructive behaviour
- It has a negative effect on learning and memory
- It can affect sleep patterns, promoting a wide range of attendant problems
- It actually increases an individual’s mortality risk more than smoking does
- Up to 80% of people who fail at work do so because of poor relationship skills
- Emotional support has been shown to be a significant factor in healing generally.
Why are there so many lonely people? Why is it so hard to form real relationships when that is what everybody both needs and wants? Well, if the family is where the virtues essential to all relationships are best developed, then dysfunctional families and the widespread loss of family life must inevitably give rise to a dysfunctional society in which relationships generally fail to flourish.
And this is, of course, precisely what has happened. A psychiatrist friend recently told me that over the past 20 years, some 80 percent of her patients have come from families broken by divorce; the burgeoning mental health crisis didn’t spring from nowhere. So if the loneliness pandemic is a result of family breakdown, what is the cause of the collapse of family life?
The root cause of this social cataclysm is, of course, the modern rejection of classical virtue ethics in favour of the personal choice of the autonomous individual, and the moral confusion that has accompanied it. But the “Who are you to tell me what is right and wrong?” mindset has been puffed up to planetary proportions by the removal of restraints on humanity’s most unruly appetite.
Science and common sense agree that promiscuity, prostitution, and pornography are inevitably destructive of family life, and relationships generally. Yet the Sexual Revolution of the past half-century continues to be driven relentlessly forward, not only by the many who profit so richly from it, but also by its many victims who refuse to admit their folly. Hence the increasingly dysfunctional culture of lonely, wounded people, incapable of meaningful commitments and self-sacrifice, and the insidious and intensifying mental health crisis.
Social science clearly shows that children in fatherless families are more likely to suffer emotional and behavioral issues, physical and psychological abuse, poverty, health problems, academic failure, relationship dysfunction, and susceptibility to criminal activity. Moreover, opinion polls over the past sixty years have recorded a steady decline in female happiness. The reality is that the Sexual Revolution has been a disaster for women and children, exposing them to ever-greater social and economic insecurity and unrelenting loneliness. More than sixty million abortions in the US since 1973 are a gruesome reminder of the horrifying tragedy visited upon women and children in the Western democracies under the influence of the Sexual Revolution. And, of course, the debilitating loneliness sooner of later catches up with the men involved.
Proponents of the permissive society misguidedly argue that lust and promiscuity are natural urges, but while they might be natural urges in animals, they can be naturally directed by rational animals. The power of reason enables human beings to know what is good for us and what is bad for us, so what is natural in us is the ability of the intellect to control the chaos of our carnal desires.
Most people associate the Sexual Revolution with a predictable loosening of moral standards that accompanied the decline of Christian belief in the 20th century, but the full story is somewhat more disturbing. If we are sincere in seeking an end to the endemic social dysfunction assailing the Western democracies, we will take account of this story, which is very well documented.
At a time when women are being subjected to absurd and wholly unwarranted threats to their dignity, comfort, and safety, the establishment’s response to a growing number of men embracing a measure of sexual restraint is curious to say the least. The men are accused of fascist tendencies. In an illuminating article, Was the sexual revolution a government psy-op?, philosopher Matthew Crawford retraces the genealogy of the Left’s association of sexual self-regulation with fascism. It is a tale of cynical social engineering that started long before the “sexual liberation” of the ‘60s.
Far from being a simple organic cultural development, the Sexual Revolution was the design of psychotherapists who emerged from the cataclysm of World War II with the aim of pre-empting a flowering of fascism in the US. Government complicity in this program is a documented fact. The movement started in the early1930s when the psychoanalyst Wilhelm Reich split with Freud, and, calling himself a Freudo-Marxist, set about using psychoanalysis for revolutionary purposes. Society was not merely unjust, but also mentally ill as a result of the superego, that “sham social surface”, repressing natural instincts (read sexual desires) that the psychoanalysts considered wholesome and morally unproblematic.
Reich and other intellectuals saw fascism as a consequence of bourgeois society and sexual repression and called for the destruction of the family and fatherhood, as well as authority and morality itself. The end of the war provided the opportunity. In 1946, President Truman declared a mental health crisis in the US, indicating that the way Western governments viewed democracy and the people they governed was somewhat less than charitable.
A study commissioned by the War Department to investigate psychiatric disorders in returning soldiers was conducted by emigre psychoanalysts from central Europe who focussed on repressed anger and sexuality in family life instead of the traumatic wartime experiences. They concluded that small-town America was a breeding ground for fascist attitudes, and their remedy was to “change the inner structure of the human being” to make people docile supporters of a particular political order. The National Mental Health Act of 1946 deployed hundreds of psychiatrists across the US in “Psychological Guidance Centres” to reshape the way people thought and behaved.
In 1948 Alfred Kinsey published the first of his now-discredited reports on sexual practices in the US, and his bogus science claimed to link the “authoritarian personality” to people who adhered to traditional sexual morality. Kinsey saw his work as furthering the “mass psychotherapeutic function” of eradicating the sense of shame in society. The manipulation of the moral judgment of ordinary people by psychology, which had been going on since the beginning of the century was set to shift into a higher gear with Playboy and Lady Chatterley just around the corner.
Crawford’s discourse echoes a shorter article by Italian academic, Carlo Lancellotti, who has provided excellent English translations of the works of Italian philosopher, Augusto Del Noce, an early critic of the Sexual Revolution. Del Noce analysed Freudo-Marxism and the cultural links between political progressivism and the Sexual Revolution. He pointed out that both regarded human reason as incapable of attaining metaphysical truths, a stance typical of the self-refuting scientistic mindset that views empirical science as the sole source of truth. The facile reduction of reason to science is of a piece with reducing freedom to the satisfaction of desires, and such a mindset naturally regards politics as the means to eradicate not only “repression”, but virtue and tradition as well. Del Noce stressed that scientism is inherently totalitarian, seeking to silence all other forms of knowledge.
Lancellotti sees Del Noce as original in studying the sexual revolution as a philosophical phenomenon that reflected a new worldview and not just new social circumstances. And he is convinced that, “…a failure to fully grasp this worldview is the reason why today many intelligent people seem genuinely surprised that movements putatively seeking tolerance for marginalized minorities should be so intolerant of dissent.”
Crawford’s essay also tallies with a well-researched three-part essay by Professor Patrick Deneen, “The Crisis of Democracy”, inspired by a 1973 book by Edward A. Purcell Jr. entitled: The Crisis of Democratic Theory: Scientific Naturalism and the Problem of Value. Purcell traced the history of the social sciences – psychology, sociology, politics, economics, and anthropology – that have today become the blindly followed authorities on the human condition. The tragic irony is, of course, that the allegedly indisputable claims of those disciplines are undergirded by hidden metaphysical assumptions that are suspect to say the least.
Deneen shows that the social sciences in the early 20th century boldly set about dismantling “democracy” in the name of efficiency and expertise. Leading social scientists confidently, but unscientifically claimed to identify cognitive and moral inequalities in different ethnic groups, and their bogus “scientific naturalism” gave encouragement to class, race, and sex discrimination. Many Western intellectuals at the time flirted with totalitarianism, either Marxist, Nazi, or Fascist.
Opposed to “scientific naturalism” were proponents of the classical natural law tradition, significantly including many Catholic intellectuals, who affirmed the equal dignity of all human beings, objective moral standards regardless of culture, and democratic societies committed to the Common Good.
After World War II, when social scientists found their flirtation with totalitarianism an embarrassment because of gas chambers, gulags, and other barbarous violations of human dignity, they deflected attention from their inhumanity by switching the narrative. They loudly proclaimed that the totalitarian mindset was linked to a belief in objective morality, traditional family virtues, and sexual restraint, all of which were labelled as impediments to the self-fulfilment of the individual. So the social engineers disguised themselves as defenders of democracy and accused the real defenders of human dignity of totalitarian repression. And great swathes of Westerners, seduced by the Sexual Revolution, have unthinkingly bought the lie. The loneliness pandemic currently exploited by an oligarchic establishment is the result.
It is dismaying for people in a civilisation built on the foundation of reason, who naturally take it for granted that dissent, dialogue, and disagreement are healthy and necessary to civil society, to be confronted by angry zealots who present themselves as defenders of absolute human rights that may not be called into question. The radicals smear opponents as bigots and haters and stop at nothing to silence their dissent.
Acceptance of the insidious philosophical fraud of the Sexual Revolution means most people do not want to address the root cause of the culture of loneliness. They simply assume that since “science” insists that humanity can achieve “happiness” by eliminating all forms of “repression,” religion and traditional ethical standards must not be permitted to stand in the way.
When our appetites are not controlled by our rational minds, they enslave us, sex being the most tyrannical of all. And with individuals rejecting moral restraints, egalitarian societies slide into Hobbes’ “war of everyone against everyone”, which opens the door to the abuse of power. Tyranny and sexual profligacy go hand in hand, and the egalitarian attitude typically ushers in totalitarianism.
Some two decades ago, I recall reading about a woman who was deeply saddened by the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal and then discovered that her own husband was having an affair. Her psychotherapist counselled her to accept the break-up of her marriage, and her pastor echoed the advice. In the space of a week, she lost her husband, her president, her psychotherapist, and her pastor, and was consigned to the ranks of the socially isolated. The story is emblematic of a society engineered to self-destruct.
What is a leader to do? Leadership means service, not status. It is about promoting the common good and not self-aggrandisement, in the home, school, workplace, or community. That demands honesty, trust, faithfulness, compassion, forgiveness, and a natural sense of obligation to others, all of which entail the eradication of sexual profligacy as the first step to restoring healthy culture, relationships, and community, the criteria by which leadership is measured.
A big ask? Of course, it is, but as Solzhenitsyn told us, “Let the lie come into the world, but not through me.” And it is the lie that unleashed the deluge of lust, and the desolation of loneliness that followed. Tragically, many people in positions of leadership will dismiss the call to action as too idealistic, too difficult, or simply contrary to their own concupiscence. Yet many others are increasingly aghast at the ugly absurdities defiling contemporary Western society, and new leaders are emerging far more rapidly than the complicit mainstream media would have us know.
The Latin phrase “divide et impera”, divide and rule, expresses a political ruse as old as civilisation itself. So where a leader unites and inspires for the common good, a misleader divides and rules for self-interest. The lonely society serves the misleaders. Solzhenitsyn saw it: “People have learned from their own misfortunes that revolutions demolish the organic structures of society, disrupt the natural flow of life, destroy the best elements of the population, and give free rein to the worst.”
Being a consistent sponsor or guest on traditional, mainstream, or Web TV to reach and engage with audiences that equate to your ideal customers may seem like a low-priority expense today when compared to advertising, marketing, and promotion via Facebook ads, Instagram posts, TikTok videos, and Social Media Trends. But when it’s done right, TV can provide immense benefits—helping your business engage, inform, and entertain.
Brilliant ValueWhatever your marketing budget, TV sponsorship/advertising and guest appearances give you three bags full. Did you know that TV is almost half the average price per 30 seconds of YouTube? And 17 times cheaper than other online video advertising? These other forms of video cost advertisers more because of their cost-per-start trading model and the ease with which users can avoid the ads.
And this is before you consider all the other environmental and quality factors that distinguish TV – its high ad completion rates, full-screen viewing, high-quality and brand-safe content, the fact that it is watched so much with other people, all of which influence what matters most: effectiveness.
Makes You KNOWNTraditional, mainstream, or Web TV turns brands into household names, making you shine in the spotlight and twinkle like a big star. Why is this important? Because being KNOWN is important in advertising. Marketing effectiveness researchers Les Binet and Peter Field have repeatedly shown that campaigns with notoriety at the core of their strategy are easily the most effective at creating large business effects like sales and profit. In fact, they are 50% more likely to create these effects.
TV’s scale and reach are unbeatable. You can’t become KNOWN if no one has heard of you. And brands on TV are making a very public promise, which, as Ogilvy chair Rory Sutherland points out, is powerful in itself: “Public promises carry more weight,” he says, “hence why the words ‘as seen on TV’ are more convincing than ‘as seen on a post on Facebook’.”
The fact that both traditional, mainstream, and online TV is a shared experience also contributes to its BE KNOWN-making power. Viewing TV and its advertisements creates opportunities for personal recommendations, generates conversation, increases memory, and intensifies emotions. Everything you want associated with your brand and business to stay top-of-mind in your customer’s minds.
Signals SuccessIn all forms of publicity, promotion, and advertising, it’s not just what you say that counts, it’s where and how you say it. In all its forms, TV is proven to be heads, shoulders, knees, and toes above others at driving the strongest fitness, social, popularity and success signals, and to outperform other media at suggesting brand quality, self-confidence, and strength.
The Lowest RiskEvery business and brand worries about the economy. They want visibility & exposure, and reassurance that their media/marketing dollars will deliver results. During the best of times, rolling the dice might be an option. In these times, we choose the safest bets possible on our investments.
While this is difficult to predict and even guarantee, recent research by Gain Theory, MediaCom, Wavemaker, and Mindshare found that the variability of returns differs significantly across different forms of promotion.
On & offline TV emerges as the safest bet: broadcaster video-on-demand (BVOD) is the least risky of all video channels, delivering just 20% of variance compared with the median return, followed by linear TV with a variability of 24%.
It’s for EveryoneButchers, bakers, candlestick makers…TV’s reach is extended to everyone: every sponsor/advertiser, every interviewee/guest, every marketing budget, every audience.
In 2022, linear TV and BVOD combined reached 90.3% of the adult population each week. BVOD, in particular, is vital to younger audiences, accounting for 26% of their broadcaster viewing (more than double that of the average viewer).
More and more brands are turning to traditional, mainstream, and online TV to share their messages and reach their ideal customers.
Nielsen Ad Intel reports that, in 2022, 1,286 advertisers used TV for the first time, or returned after five or more years away. This followed 1,243 new sponsors/advertisers in 2021.
Between 2015-2019, the yearly average was significantly lower at 841. This dramatic recent increase (up 50%) demonstrates the increasing appeal of TV to businesses of all shapes and sizes.
It’s also important to note that these aren’t just huge businesses with huge budgets. In 2021, 31% of TV’s sponsors/advertisers spent under $50,000 on TV, and 54% spent below $250,000. Only 29% of all TV advertisers spent more than $1m and only 5% spent above $10m.
With its ability to reach vast audiences, its amazing value, its fame-making power, the opportunity to spread your message, the body language it gives brands and its reliability of return – traditional, mainstream, and online TV helps brands of all shapes and sizes reach the top of the line.
The success of any project depends on the satisfaction of its stakeholders. Therefore, stakeholder management is a crucial element of project management that cannot be ignored. Stakeholder management is the process of identifying, analyzing, and engaging with individuals, groups, and organizations that can affect or be affected by the project’s objectives. In this article, we will explore the importance of stakeholder management in project success.
Ensures Alignment with Objectives
Stakeholder management ensures that the project’s objectives are aligned with the expectations of its stakeholders. Stakeholders have different interests, and their requirements may change as the project progresses. Therefore, it is essential to communicate with them regularly to identify their needs and align the project’s objectives accordingly. By doing so, project managers can avoid conflicts and ensure that the project delivers the desired outcomes.
Enhances Communication
Effective communication is a critical aspect of stakeholder management. Project managers need to communicate the project’s progress, risks, and opportunities to the stakeholders regularly. By doing so, they can keep the stakeholders informed and ensure that they are engaged in the project. Effective communication also helps in managing expectations, resolving conflicts, and maintaining trust with the stakeholders. Therefore, project managers need to develop a communication plan that outlines the stakeholders’ communication requirements and the frequency of communication.
Identifies Risks and Opportunities
Stakeholder management helps project managers identify potential risks and opportunities that can affect the project’s success. Stakeholders can provide valuable insights into the project’s environment, competition, and market trends. By analyzing this information, project managers can identify risks and opportunities and take appropriate measures to mitigate risks and exploit opportunities. Stakeholder management also helps in identifying potential project roadblocks, such as lack of resources, funding, or support. By identifying these roadblocks early, project managers can develop mitigation strategies and avoid delays.
Builds Trust and Credibility
Stakeholder management is critical for building trust and credibility with the stakeholders. Trust is essential for effective communication, collaboration, and conflict resolution. By engaging with the stakeholders regularly and addressing their concerns, project managers can build trust and credibility with them. This, in turn, can help in securing the stakeholders’ support and commitment to the project. Stakeholder management also helps in creating a positive image of the project and the organization, which can have long-term benefits.
Improves Decision Making
Stakeholder management helps in making informed decisions that are aligned with the project’s objectives and the stakeholders’ expectations. By involving the stakeholders in decision-making processes, project managers can gather diverse perspectives, ideas, and feedback. This can help in identifying the best possible solutions and making well-informed decisions. The use of stakeholder software is highly recommended. In addition, involving stakeholders in decision-making processes can also increase their ownership and commitment to the project.
Enhances Resource Management
Stakeholder management helps in identifying and securing the necessary resources required for the project’s success. Stakeholders can provide valuable resources such as funding, expertise, and support. By engaging with the stakeholders regularly and building positive relationships with them, project managers can secure the necessary resources and avoid resource constraints. This can help in ensuring that the project is completed on time, within budget, and to the desired quality.
Facilitates Change Management
Stakeholder management is essential for effective change management. Projects can bring significant changes to the stakeholders’ environment, such as changes in processes, systems, or roles. By engaging with the stakeholders and communicating the changes effectively, project managers can mitigate resistance and facilitate a smooth transition. Stakeholder management can also help in identifying potential change-related risks and opportunities and taking appropriate measures to manage them.
In conclusion, stakeholder management is a critical element of project management that cannot be ignored if a project is to be successful. Effective stakeholder management ensures alignment with objectives, enhances communication, identifies risks and opportunities, builds trust and credibility, improves decision-making, enhances resource management, and facilitates change management. Therefore, project managers need to develop a stakeholder management plan that outlines the stakeholders’ requirements, the communication plan, the stakeholder engagement plan, and the stakeholder analysis plan. By doing so, project managers can ensure that the project’s objectives are aligned with the stakeholders’ expectations, the stakeholders are engaged in the project, and the project is completed on time, within budget, and to the desired quality. In summary, stakeholder management is critical for project success and should be given due attention throughout the project’s lifecycle.
Entry screening solutions are critical for ensuring the security and safety of people and property in various settings, including airports, seaports, government buildings, schools, and private businesses. These solutions range from simple metal detectors to sophisticated scanning systems that can detect explosives, weapons, and other prohibited items. However, not all entry screening solutions are created equal, and it’s essential to compare the pros and cons of different options to choose the most effective and efficient solution for your needs.
In this article, we will focus on the pros of various entry screening solutions, with a particular emphasis on security. We will compare the following options:
- Metal Detectors
Metal detectors are a common and relatively inexpensive option for screening people and bags for metallic objects. They are widely used in airports, courthouses, and other public places. Metal detectors are effective at detecting firearms, knives, and other metal objects, but they may not detect non-metallic items such as explosives or plastic weapons. The main advantage of metal detectors is their low cost and ease of use, but they may not be sufficient for high-security environments.
- X-ray Scanners
X-ray scanners are more advanced than metal detectors and can detect non-metallic objects, such as explosives and drugs, as well as metallic objects. X-ray scanners can provide detailed images of bags and parcels, allowing screeners to identify suspicious items easily. The main advantage of X-ray scanners is their accuracy and ability to detect a wide range of threats. However, they are more expensive than metal detectors and require more training to use effectively.
- AI Security Screening
AI security screening is a rapidly advancing technology that uses machine learning algorithms to analyze data and identify potential security threats. AI security screening can analyze various data types, including video footage, facial recognition, and biometric data, to detect anomalies or patterns that may indicate suspicious behavior or activities. AI screening is especially used in Casino security letting personnel focus on more important areas. The main advantage of AI security screening is its ability to analyze vast amounts of data quickly and accurately, enabling security personnel to detect threats in real-time. Additionally, AI security screening can adapt to changing security threats and continuously improve its accuracy over time. However, there are also concerns about the ethical and privacy implications of using AI in security screening, and it’s important to ensure that these technologies are used ethically and transparently. As AI security screening continues to advance, it has the potential to transform the way we approach security screening and enhance our ability to prevent and detect security threats.
- Millimeter Wave Scanners
Millimeter wave scanners are a type of full-body scanner that uses radio waves to create a three-dimensional image of a person’s body. These scanners are effective at detecting both metallic and non-metallic objects, including weapons, explosives, and drugs. Millimeter wave scanners are less invasive than pat-downs or strip searches and are therefore more acceptable to passengers. The main advantage of millimeter wave scanners is their accuracy and efficiency, but they are the most expensive option.
- Explosives Trace Detection (ETD)
ETD is a type of screening that uses swabs or air samplers to collect trace amounts of explosives or other chemicals from bags, surfaces, or people. These samples are then analyzed in a laboratory to detect the presence of dangerous substances. ETD is effective at detecting minute amounts of explosives or drugs, making it a valuable addition to other screening methods. The main advantage of ETD is its sensitivity and specificity, but it can be time-consuming and may require additional equipment and personnel.
In conclusion, entry screening solutions are essential for enhancing security and preventing threats in various settings. Metal detectors, X-ray scanners, AI screening, millimeter wave scanners, and ETD are all effective solutions, each with its advantages and limitations. Choosing the right solution depends on factors such as the level of security needed, the budget, and the training and resources available. By comparing the pros and cons of different options, you can select the best entry screening solution for your needs and ensure the safety of your premises and people.
Work that’s dictated by a fixed schedule, place, and job description doesn’t make sense anymore, says leadership expert Debbie Lovich. In light of the cultural shift towards remote work sparked by the pandemic, Lovich gives three essential tips to leaders so employees can keep their autonomy (while remaining productive), companies can let go of rigid bureaucracy and we can all reshape work to better fit our lives.
We often encounter people who invariably make assumptions and are usually incorrect. Worse is the fact that inaccurate assumptions halt our advancement for business. Irritating a prospective client makes no sense, so it’s best to eliminate one common practice to improve results.
Someone likely made an inaccurate assumption about you at some point. If so, you know it can be very irritating and memorable. Now imagine doing the same to a prospective client; it will likely kill the possibility of a new sale.
Elvis’ song, ‘Walk A Mile In My Shoes,’ comes to mind regarding today’s blog topic.
“Walk a mile in my shoes
Just walk a mile in my shoes
Yeah, before you abuse, criticize, and accuse
Just walk a mile in my shoes….”
My Story
For an initial conversation to be successful, it is, to begin with, an open-ended question such as, ‘What caught your interest to see me today?’ or for an entrepreneur, ‘What motivated you to begin your business?’ Each question will motivate a more profound answer that will likely develop into a conversation worthy of everyone’s time.
- For salespeople trained to use scripts, the process is a slippery slope. The difficulty mix includes:
- The lack of authenticity on the salesperson’s end as they use the words of another
- Not fully listening to the prospective client for asking unique and insightful questions that will provide a more profound meaning
- Inability to respond to anything off-script in a meaningful way
My sales training enforced that I would be me, unusual in the day. Why and how did that happen? I wasn’t permitted training because, as a woman, management assumed that I would fail anyway. Therefore training would be a wasted expense. To everyone’s astonishment, including mine, sales were a breeze for me because of the following traits:
A. I was myself using my unique vocabulary.
B. My clientele was encouraged to speak first so that I would know how to respond.
C. The conversations were joyful with my prospective clientele.
Asking relatable questions is a practical business development strategy one can utilize well. By doing so, you draw the other person into a conversation. They may be cautious upfront, but once they recognize you are genuine and available to serve them well, the other person relaxes and will provide everything you want to know.
Your Story: Practice to Improve Results
It is possible readers are assuming right now that the advice is not valid and that it’s best to memorize the critical aspects of the script. Should this be the case for you, I suggest trying an A-B Test. Do what’s normal for you, and then test the natural conversation method by beginning with an open-ended question. And then compare the results.
Consider the following:
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Are you happy with your results, or do you believe you can do better?
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Are your conversations boring or free-flowing so everyone can feel positive energy?
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Do you see a correlation between the higher energy conversations and additional business?
Should your answer be ‘Yes,’ to the last question, you may want to expand upon more free-flowing conversations to stimulate further insight and growth. Now consider the person or company that is your favorite and the possible contributing factors. Our favorites are often due to a natural connection and flow of conversation that eliminates assumptions.
The one consistency for conversations is to uncover:
- Why the time is free for a meeting
- Issues that need resolving
- How you may assist with future planning and new tactical and strategic implementation
The open conversation and being you contribute best to business growth. One essential step to improve results, particularly when you don’t quite understand something, is to ask for further explanation. Others will recognize your honesty and integrity and, most often, will accommodate all of your questions with sound reasons.
In Conclusion:
Upon moving forward in developing relationships with clientele, it’s essential to remember that nothing is static, including people, business, or technology. Change is the one constant. Therefore, assumptions will quickly be out of date and potentially embarrassing. It is best to eliminate the one common practice to improve results.
Python time sleep function serves in adding delay in the execution of a program.I find that humans have this function as well. They sleep on taking actions when they do things in gradual steps. The problem with a gradual approach is that not only we do not see the progress soon but also we hardly notice the damage we may cause as well.
The slow progress might gloom us from seeing the bright spots of improvement. Watch the video and you shall understand exactly what I mean.
You learn a new skill and you make slow progress. For patient people, they shall see the seeds of their bamboo-like efforts suddenly shooting up.
The same applies to damaging acts. One great example is environmental pollution. Dumping did not make much harm initially, but over the years, the roots of such vicious acts are producing the greatest harm to us.
Sleeping on actions only delays their impact. However, when the impact comes it is substantial.
If we forget or neglect time does not.
Consistency is perhaps the only known path to serendipity
The relentless generation, dissemination, and repurposing of information on an ongoing basis has made people dependent on technologies that can help them find relevant information in the minimum amount of time possible. Therefore, the important role search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing play in retrieving and presenting the most relevant information (terms such as googling or googlization are often used to describe such activities) is undeniable.
The growing advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and its sub-fields of deep learning (DL) and natural language processing (NLP) are making it possible for search engines to produce the best results for the search query in a tick. Given the vast amount of available information, humans will never be able to find information as efficiently as a search and query bot does anyway.
As such, in hindsight, information retrieved through search and query bots (SnQ bots) can play a significant role in knowledge creation, repurposing, and management. The increased sophistication of generative AI-based applications (e.g., ChatGPT; read more: https://www.academiasolution.com/ChatGPT) is further contributing to the use of intelligent machines to provide the best information (within the limits of algorithm design and learning acquired by the machine through training), resulting in the availability of a lot of information. Therefore, it is safe to say that the level and amount of available information that we are coping with are simply unprecedented.
Unsurprisingly, a huge amount of knowledge on project management is available online too. A simple Google search for the term “project management” yielded over 3.5 billion results and over 130 million results in the Yahoo and Bing search engines.
It raises the question of whether it is possible to use the information resources (project- and non-project-based) made available by SnQ bots in any way possible, and if so, what could be some of the ways in which it can be done?
Some research has looked at these questions by exploring the role of search volume generated by SnQ bots (e.g., Google search volume) for user queries and its impacts on issues such as the prediction of COVID-19, return on stock, investor trading, obesity patterns, and so forth. It indicates that the information identified by SnQ bots is regarded as useful and worthy of understanding issues and building corresponding solutions. In hindsight, it also underlines the possibility of leveraging these vast resources of information in a coordinated manner for assorted purposes, including teaching and learning.
However, interestingly, not much has been done to understand the impacts of search yield for project management-focused search results. That is despite the fact that searching for a common term like ‘project management’ yields 3.5 billion records. It shows the breadth of knowledge available that could be tapped and tactically used for assorted purposes to grow the knowledge boundaries of professions. Not every link that is found by SnQ bots is relevant to the search, but surely one can still find useful information. So it makes one consider how this vast resource of information on project management can be used.
With that in mind, we have looked at some of the possible uses of search volume generated by SnQ bots as well as possible ways in which it can be done. Surely, examining potential uses and solutions is not easy, but at least this brief discussion will build initial thought, and that has been done below.
Possible uses of search volume generated by SnQ bots
- For research
Just like the prior studies, research can be carried out to investigate the relationship between search volume for different key terms (e.g., project management, project delivery, and project management certification) and the growth, expansion, or obsoletion of a project management niche (e.g., agile project management).
Such research will be very useful for trend analysis and making predictions for the future. It will then help project management bodies and other stakeholders plan their activities for the short, medium, and long term. There are other areas to explore as well. For example, which certification and accreditation (offered by a certain body) should be continued, and which should be discontinued, and what innovations are needed in knowledge management education, training, and certification? What kinds of innovations are needed for improving the effectiveness of project management knowledge or modernizing project management? How can project management programs offered in universities be made more effective in providing cutting-edge, relevant learning?
- For learning
Searching the internet is ‘digital breathing.’ In hindsight, it is something that we cannot afford or want to live without. Given the technological advancements in creating workaholic SnQ bots, we often take for granted the usefulness and worthiness of the information made available to us in a tick. Have we ever paused for a sec and thought, ‘Oh, how sweat! these unseen creatures are so kind in making our lives easy by enabling access to information that we didn’t even know it ever existed.
So, one potential use is to go beyond the use of search engines for information retrieval to make it a learning and exploration platform for assorted purposes, such as corporate trainings, school (all levels from primary to the highest level possible) learners’ learning, and exploration, and the advancement of knowledge sharing in a coordinated way.
An example could be the formation of volunteer “Fav-Share” (i.e., crowd-sharing-based) groups. As we normally save or tag sites and good online resources as favorites in our fav folders, this simple tendency can be utilized for a much more useful and larger purpose. That is, people in these purposefully created groups can keep saving favorites on an ongoing basis, just like we all do, and after a while, they can share their saved favorite sites with people within the group. It can be done for dedicated keywords. So, a routine thing can become very useful for learning and exploration. It will help learners critically analyze their choices and discuss why they thought a piece of content (e.g., text, image) was useful.
And the advantages of this extremely simple thing are multitudes, such as (but not limited to):
1) These crowd-sharing types of groups are free and don’t require any additional resources or access than they are likely to have in their day-to-day lives,
2) People in these groups don’t do any extra work or make an extra effort, as they will only tag a link when they come across a useful link,
3) Group members’ search activities will help SnQ bots learn and get better at generating search outputs. So, it will help create the common good.
4) Anyone can form these types of groups at any level for private or official purposes as suits their learning and knowledge-seeking purpose and needs without any limitations whatsoever, and above all,
5) Sharing is caring (or perhaps fav-sharing is digital-caring).
In this way, free information is transformed into free, useful information. One small addition of word, one giant purpose of netizen served, so to speak (Thanks to famous words of Niel Armstrong).
- For case studies
Given the wide-ranging aspects (e.g., social, technological, environmental, and regulatory) involved in the search and retrieval of information using SnQ bots, they make a good platform for studying them as case studies. For instance, one can look at the case of search engine A vs. search engine B output for different keywords, and so on and so forth. So, the possibilities of creating case studies are enormous, given the volume and variety of content shared on these platforms.
Concluding remarks
Information is the most vital asset for progress. Transforming information availability into purposeful information availability is what we really need, given the deep oceans of available information resources. Obviously, it is a positive thing that requires consideration and finding ways and means to leverage it for assorted uses. Just like other disciplines, a significantly large pool of information is also available on project management. It deserves some attention.
As such, we have discussed a few possibilities of use and some possible ways in which information produced by SnQ bots can be used for more directed and dedicated purposes. Needless to say, the possibilities are endless. The ones discussed here are just the tip of the iceberg to stimulate some thoughts. This is analogous to standing on the beach and contemplating the vastness and depth of the ocean, as well as the unknowns associated with it. But hopefully, the discussion presented in this article will help people consider developing some coordinated efforts to use this freely available and dynamically updated information in some way.
Note: This article was previously published on: https://www.academiasolution.com/Googling
The role of the CEO entails a remarkable formal power, exercisable in different ways. But power, authority, expertise, and even results are often not enough to truly guarantee success.
Effective CEOs must try to combine formal power and authority with the legitimation they gain when people believe in them as people and as leaders. But they have to earn it, in many different ways, as demonstrated, for example, that they have also values, ethics, fairness, and an altruistic commitment towards the company and its collaborators.
Legitimation gives rise to a motivation that goes far beyond the issuing of orders and can produce extraordinary organizational performance.
Time is probably the most important of the resources (scarce by definition) with which the CEO must constantly deal. CEO time allocation is not just about meetings or decision-making, but about the whole range of ways in which he/she relates to the organization and its members.
The challenges are not few because the CEO, in general, represents the executive and decision-making body of the company, the subject responsible for the company’s strategy, and responsible for providing the members of the organization with the guidelines to implement it.
The life of the CEO of a large company is not easy. Leading a large company today means learning to manage decisions between complex scenarios, ambitious and short-term goals, and coming to terms with an ever shorter working life expectancy. And while it is undeniable that managers have a great deal of resources and support on their side, it is they, more than anyone else, who have to deal with the chronic shortage of time.
Compared to even the recent past, the new, more complex reality emerges in all its relevance: if CEOs want to be such, and be so for a long time, they are faced with a large number of interlocutors and must always keep them in mind. The term stakeholder is now commonly used, and since that day we have known that they are all those who have a significant relationship with the company. Usually, we say “stakeholders”, but now the term must be read more broadly because we aren’t talking only about employees, customers, and shareholders, but we are also talking about suppliers, surrounding communities, and the environment.
The CEO, who today has a shorter professional “life expectancy” than the previous generation of leaders, has much more articulated and complex objectives.
The first objective remains that of achieving economic and competitive results such as placing and maintaining the company on the market and keeping it well and successful. But the climate of strong pressure has increased because the community looks at you and public opinion scrutinizes you thanks to technologies digital that make companies glass boxes, the media shoot you at the slightest mistake, and every defaillance remains forever on record in the borderless world of the web.
And, let us remember, the CEO is a multiplier of corporate reputation!!
And all this trying not to be crushed by the weight of the many and growing responsibilities and, perhaps, even trying to have a happy and persistent personal and family life.
We can say that the CEO is the key to creating an organizational ecosystem that encourages new ideas and changes, whose behaviors and attitudes are directly reflected in his relationships, influencing his collaborators and, consequently, the development of his business.
Here, to return to the most important resource I mentioned at the beginning, the most successful people consider it crucial to manage the time they have available.
The matter is very simple: we all have time in the same way. The difference between those who are successful and those who are not is that those who are successful “invest” their time (and therefore have a return) while those who are unsuccessful just waste it.
I look forward to any comments.
In our previous two blogs, we outlined the need, in our chaotic world of unknowns, to reclaim our focus and attention and take charge of our own minds. By reclaiming these, and enhancing self-awareness we have a deeper understanding of the sources of our anxiety and distractions. How to self-manage and self-regulate them through developing deliberate calm. To effectively create consciousness, and a safe space that potentially transforms the power of our minds and hearts to connect with others, cultivate well-being, harness people’s collective genius, and generate our resilience, through thinking about creativity differently.
Transforming fear and alarmThis mobilises the energy our fears, anxiety, and alarm provide to transform the power of our minds and develop physical and psychological well-being. We can then apply proven neuroscience principles and coaching practices to cultivate resilience and think about creativity differently.
Transforming our fears and alarm in this way increases our resilience in responding to events in real-time, anticipating future events, and processing learning’s post events. It also enhances our well-being and creativity to enable us to be courageous and compassionate when inventing and innovating in an uncertain and constantly changing environment.
The potential outcomes include people experiencing more positive emotions, increased engagement at work, increased development of positive relationships, and more meaningful and purposeful work. These help us be adaptive, and transform the power of our hearts and minds to be creative, accomplish, learn, adapt, grow, and innovate through disruption.
Well-being is in crisisIn the latest report, by Udemy on “Workplace Learning Trends” they compare data collected from Australian workers (human capital) in early September 2022 with previous surveys in November 2019, August 2020, and May 2021.
They discovered three surprising truths about well-being, including:
- Workers’ resilience levels are waning. More than two-thirds of workers (68.5%) felt like they were burning out at work. This is impacting workers’ levels of performance, job satisfaction, and commitment.
- There is a crisis for meaningful work Only 39.1% of workers said their work was valuable and worthwhile, versus 47% in 2021, and 52.9% in 2020.
- Many workplaces are wasting their well-being Workplaces have too much invested in EAP services (which are proving only slightly more effective than doing nothing) and not enough in more effective tools that workers are more comfortable accessing like Wellbeing Artificial Intelligence Bots, Wellbeing Apps, Wellbeing Workshops and Wellbeing Coaching.
This reinforces the need to think and act differently when we approach cultivating well-being, resilience, and creativity to better realise our human potential and human skills in times when they are our most valuable assets and needed the most and are crucial to future success!
Developing deliberate calm“Deliberate calm” involves developing a practice of adaptive, intentional choices that anyone can develop by embracing what was once regarded as “soft” stuff: self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and mindfulness to learn proactively and lead dynamically amid the most uncertain circumstances, where according to Aaron De Smet, the co-author of “Deliberate Calm: How to Learn and Lead in a Volatile World”:
“Why do we say “deliberate”? Because if you’re not deliberate about it you will probably freak out. I need to be very deliberate in knowing that I’m in a chaotic situation, knowing the stakes are high, knowing there’s a lot of uncertainty, and then deliberately calming myself down and taking stock”.
Deliberate calm looks at the inner world, the outer world, the context, and the dynamic between those and starts by slowing down to create a safe space for people to enjoy the benefits of deliberate calm. This helps activate, focus, and unleash our creative brains and facilitates thinking about creativity differently.
Hitting our pause buttonsCreating deliberate calm is one of the most critically urgent human skill sets to develop.
It involves creating for ourselves and co-creating, with others, more normalised states of equilibrium and calmness. This enables us to cultivate our physical and psychological well-being, develop resilience and unleash creativity differently by accessing our collective intelligence, skills, and experience through applying proven neuroscience principles and coaching practices.
It starts with initiating a habit of pausing long enough to take deep breaths, retreat, reflect, and access these inner parts of ourselves; including noticing our emotions, identifying our triggers, observing our physical reactions to normalise our equilibrium, coherence, and calmness, and focusing on thinking about creativity differently.
Re-appraising our situationWe can then reappraise what is really going on, by identifying what our emotions are telling us, sustaining the most resourceful emotions and letting negative ones go, and finally, by identifying the key options for taking positive actions. Ultimately take smarter risks, make smarter decisions, and take more intelligent actions that cultivate our well-being, develop our resilience, unleash creativity differently, and satisfy our desire for meaning, purpose, and accomplishment.
As evidenced by our global coaching practice, this personally empowering and energising activity focuses our attention, minds, and hearts on what really matters, and on what we can truly influence and control in a world of unknowns, and engages people deeply in doing the value-adding, productive and meaningful work that delivers it.
Three new deliberate calming practices to access and unleash our creative brains Being grounded:* involves being fully embodied, whole, centred, and balanced in ourselves and our relationships, we are in complete control of our mental, physical, and emotional selves, and are not easily influenced or shaken by other ideas or individuals. * Our unconscious mind, through our brains’ default mode network (DMN), is freed to wander, and be spontaneous in emerging and generating novel and surprising ideas and patterns.
This is usually achieved by regularly practicing a range of very simple activities that help us get centred, including removing any distractions (mobile phones), deep breathing (box breathing), and slow grounding repetitive exercises such as Feldenkrais.
- Being mindful: involves focusing our conscious attention on the present moment, our physical sensations, thoughts, and emotions in an accepting, nonjudgmental, and discerning way. It involves training our unconscious minds to notice, focus and pay deep attention to what is really going on, for ourselves, for others, and in the system, we are operating within.
- Our conscious minds are now provided with the focus necessary for guided problem-solving and for identifying the actions required to deliver the desired outcomes.
This is usually achieved by simple activities, by directing your focus when walking during the day (in nature without headsets), yoga, swimming, golf, tennis, listening to music, cooking, or by simple mindful meditation practices.
- Being conscious: involves being in the present moment, or fully in the “here and now,” and means that we are grounded, fully aware, and mindful of what is happening at every moment because we are now consciously aware and able to shift our minds and generate creative thinking strategies.
- Our conscious minds are able to exploit possibilities and make sense of the ideas that surface in the mind-wandering phase, by accessing the salience network, which then recruits the executive control networks, in our brains to refine and develop an idea. We can then exploit the range of creative ideas to make unexpected connections and to emerge, diverge and converge novel ideas for thinking about creativity differently, as well as for smart risk-taking, decision-making, and innovative problem-solving.
Empowering people to envision and transform
Creating a safe space, to transform the power of our minds and hearts to connect with others cultivates our well-being, harnesses peoples’ collective genius, generates resilience, and unleashes creativity by thinking about creativity differently.
This manifests as an opportunity to empower people to plan and make the nudges necessary to kickstart change, envision and plan for the future of unknowns.
Rather than unintentionally colluding with their unconscious panicking and retreating from the fears, anxiety, and risks currently emerging in an uncertain world full of disruption and crises.
Probably everyone has heard the phrase “employee engagement”, but for many who have, unless they are in HR, few will know exactly what it is, why it’s important and that every leader needs to make it happen to so they, their team, and organisation more successful.
As a leader, it is your route to success. HR can support you but, in the end, it’s about what you do, no one else. In a wider context, all employers, and senior leaders in particular, need to pay more attention to organisational and team engagement. Each year if possible conduct employee engagement surveys to make sure employees are having a great employee experience. Because if they aren’t they won’t be performing well and may be thinking of leaving.
Engaging your people is how you maximise your potential to achieve real success for any organisation set against any important factors you care to mention, from customer experience to risk management and high performance to innovation.
This isn’t some soft fluffy idea about being nice to people this is a proven evidence-based organisational strategy for success and maximised return on investment.
Having an employee engagement strategy will enhance employee experience, boost employee satisfaction and thus build an engaged workforce. That is one of the best ways to minimise employee turnover, increase the quality of work and boost morale across the entire organization. But also a great way to grow positive core values and company culture which then enhances the organisation’s success long term.
Certainly, anyone in senior leadership roles needs to understand in detail what employee engagement is and how to optimise it within their area of responsibility.
At C suite employee engagement is not just a responsibility of HR, it’s the strategic responsibility of everybody at the senior level to role model it and to support it. In particular, the CFO, as will maximise the return on investment from human capital.
What is employee engagement?There are numerous technical definitions of employee engagement but to keep it simple and practical you can say that “engaged” employees are people who are genuinely giving their best at work. Thus when you see a figure for employee engagement in an employee engagement survey this is the percentage of employees in the organisation who are doing that. Employee engagement is the process by which organisations seek to get more of their employees engaged and thus giving their best.
It is worth mentioning “discretionary effort” here. This is effectively the amount of effort an individual can withhold but it is unlikely to be identified that they are doing so via performance management. In other words, they will be rated as performing satisfactorily but yet there could be up to 30% extra effort they could give if they were engaged. It is this the additional effort employee engagement is seeking to gain to maximise organisational performance.
Why do all leaders need to know about employee engagement?Just reflect on the potential impact of a significant proportion of an organisation’s employees giving 30% more effort. Better employee engagement will enable any organisation doing anything anywhere to be more effective and successful. But it is individual leaders above all who have to make it happen. Simply because the vast majority of factors that influence how engaged people are relate directly to the behaviour of their boss.
In the final analysis no matter what senior leaders are doing, no matter what HR is doing, if the employee’s own boss is not taking day-to-day action to engage them then it just won’t happen.
The Corporate Executive Board in a study of over 30,000 employees across the world found that of the top 20 drivers of employee effort 17 were actions that individuals’ bosses needed to take and the other three of which were not, in terms of importance, ranked less important than 15th. (Refer to page 13). This is why it is vital every leader understands employee engagement and how to make it happen.
Those actions which increase our engagement do so not because of the job that we do but because we are human. So, for example, my report for the King’s Fund on developing leadership in the NHS to enhance patient care submitted to the UK government enhancing employee engagement proposed the same core strategy and actions just as much as when I proposed them as a key element in enabling better financial performance at UBS and transformation at London Underground during restructuring. I’ve also helped deliver them in construction, not-for-profit, and other sectors. They work everywhere. They work not because of our job or the organisation but because we are human.
Why employee engagement? The return on investmentThere is a vast resource of data based on studies of all types from organisations, professional bodies, consultancies, academic institutions, and other sources which show that high employee engagement improves performance in many areas. This vast resource of data confirms that when employees are engaged, and therefore giving their best, the positive impacts are not restricted to their own performance but apply to everything from customer service to cost efficiency and operational risk management.
Simple day-to-day employee engagement actions by their boss can significantly boost the effort that individuals give. For example, if your boss does these things versus a boss who can’t be bothered then this is the potential extra effort uplift from individuals:
When you multiply up the impact of all leaders taking these actions at a strategic level it has a significant effect. The UK Government Report, Engage for Success, for which I was part of the Expert Panel, has many examples and evidence of return on investment from employee engagement. One of the most important is that if every leader in the organisation starts to engage their people effectively you could potentially get 30% more effort, the discretionary effort, from 60% of people.
Depending on business model, margins and other factors that could deliver up to 10% on the bottom line for free. In anybody’s book, in particular a CFOs book, that’s not a bad return on investment.
Here are a few others:
- Companies with high engagement are 71% more likely to outperform their peers in the sector.
- Can produce Earnings per share 2.6 times higher than competitors with low engagement (Gallup)
- Could increase revenue by up to 43% (Hay)
- Bank branches with high employee engagement achieved 16% high-profit margin growth than those with lower scores (Standard Chartered)
- Engagement can halve days lost through sickness (CBI)
Once, after I spoke on this to a group of CEOs and CFOs on why they need to significantly increase their efforts on employee engagement, the CFO of a major telecoms company came to me and said “Chris why has nobody told me about this before? This is a no brainer! It’s a license to print money if we get it right!”. It is indeed !
How are we doing on employee engagement?Could be much better. The latest data from Gallup would suggest that most European countries have employee engagement rates on average lower than 25%. In addition potentially with employees who are “not engaged” around 50 to 55% with another approximately 20% “disengaged”. The UK data is even worse. Low employee engagement is simply a long-term block to future success.
The fact that these figures are to some degree so dismal should make every leader reading this ask why, given how simple it is to improve employee engagement, are we languishing at these levels? But the flip side is that it’s a great opportunity for you to take action and get some great easy wins. Clearly, these are country or region-wide figures and lack the accuracy of survey results from an in-house employee survey which is run on a regular basis but they are a useful indicator.
Organizations “in play” are adaptable, inclusive, innovative, engaged, and productive. Want to know what organizations fear? That when we are “in play” we are not “working”. We are afraid that play means silly, and unproductive, and makes us feel unprofessional and uncomfortable. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Play is that thing you do that you enjoy so much you get lost in. When you are doing it you don’t know where the time went. Play is personal. What do you do at work that you really love to do? Why do you go back to work every day? In there lies “the play”. And it is voluntary…no one can make you do it. If the ping pong tables and cupcake socials are not your play, then they are doing nothing to increase your productivity or potential.
However, When we are “in play” we are utilizing our whole self, revealing our potential, physically, cognitively, socially, and emotionally. It is scientifically proven that the brain “in play” drives motivation, and imagination, and is most open to new ideas and concepts. Play is where we are most capable of and open to creative and dynamic thinking — it is also when we are most open to considering multiple perspectives and new ideas and we are most inclusive
Work and play are not separate-when you do the work you love, and you were meant to do, the two constructs are seamless. You won’t know where one starts and the other begins. “In play” are creative solutions for innovation, inclusion, productivity, and profit.
It is now known even to the layman that leadership is a very relevant issue, in every area, not just in the world of work. At the same time, we note that the positive vision is one of the great themes of our age. Perhaps because we are now convinced of how beneficial it can be, how much it stimulates and activates positive emotions, and therefore better results in terms of personal performance and the involvement of others.
We can now define optimism as a real skill.
There is no doubt, in fact, that especially in a moment made so intense and difficult by the profound and sudden cultural, economic, technological, and social transformations, it makes sense that optimism assumes a fundamental value; it comes to everyone as a boost of possibility, of hope, of encouragement and a good leader must bear witness to this in organizations.
Yet, when it comes to leadership, we tend too often to heaviness and seriousness, as if we were subjected to constant pressures that do not allow us to remain detached, serene, and capable of interacting in humanly sustainable ways.
And instead, precisely because this present is very eventful, sometimes tiring and restless but, at the same time, the bearer of great growth, progress, innovation, and cultural development, there is an ever greater need for human leadership.
It is therefore good to reflect on certain “nuances” of leadership, on the need to strengthen a leadership that intercepts new feelings, new customs, new ways of interacting, and new thought patterns.
So, no to a leader forced into a role where he struggles to find the deep roots of his true self, with apparent imperturbability, bleak impersonality, and absence of any movement of the soul.
Yes instead to a leader capable of self-irony who breaks any residual element of rigidity and “humanizes” it.
Self-irony is a precious virtue for everyone, even more so for leaders
The levity that self-irony entails is entirely healthy and has nothing to do with superficiality.
Self-irony is capable of creating a relaxed dialogue between people, mutual ease, and even more intimacy.
Faced with someone capable of making fun of their limits, we are actually led to do the same: to reveal our defects and to tell our experiences with the intention of sharing in the life of others.
Distances are shortened, therefore, and not only. A confrontation more marked by mutual esteem is established.
Proving to be imperfect, it allows our interlocutor to “let his guard down” and trust more. You smooth out the criticisms of others and, above all, you are able to interpret them as observations to be listened to and accepted in order to be able to improve.
The desire for leaders with whom to identify, not light years away from our individual microcosm, popular, whose authority does not derive only from classic skills and excellent soft skills but also from that extra gear which is self-irony, is growing stronger. Which makes them question and connect more easily to the group.
Self-irony is humility and courage, both qualities of particular appeal and particular utility. Those with self-irony normally express great empathy and generate a further aspect of appreciable positivity: relaxation.
Naturally, this behavior can only be accepted and valued if the organization is based on a corporate culture that puts people at the center, and encourages their spontaneity, creating a serene work environment that aims to always keep everyone’s morale high.
I hope these reflections resonate with someone. Any comment can animate a discussion.
Leadership is a matter of having people look at you and gain confidence, seeing how you react. If you’re in control, they’re in control.
–Tom Landry
The wintry afternoon walk in the field out behind our house with my older sister started out like any other. I was about 10 years old. The field was a great place to play. There were plenty of trails to walk and ride our bikes. We built forts, shot our Daisy BB guns, and caught fireflies in Mason jars. This day, however, would be different.
As my sister and I exited the field before heading inside, I did something I’d done many times before with no thought. I pulled a tall weed out of the ground. But this time the weed didn’t budge. When the force of my pull met the resistance of the weed, it slit my finger open and laid the skin back.
As we approached the backyard my blue coat was already soaked in blood. I went to the water faucet and began rinsing my finger. “Don’t tell mom!” I shouted to my sister as I saw her run inside with no intention of following my command.
Once I went inside, my mother was already in a panic. She walked me up to the kitchen sink and told me to stand still. “I’ll be right back!” she exclaimed. Moments later she returned with a bottle of rubbing alcohol. “Hold your finger still”, she said. I was under the impression that she would perhaps pour just a little on the cut. I was wrong.
With the best intentions that a loving mother could conjure up at that moment, she emptied the entire contents of that bottle of rubbing alcohol onto my finger as I screamed. Which was just prior to my fainting on the kitchen floor.
My mother – God rest of her sweet, loving soul up in heaven, meant well. And in my moment of crisis, she did the best she knew how.
As a leader, there are two things you can be certain of – 1) You will face moments of crisis, and 2) Your people will be looking to you for confidence. So what do you do in a crisis?
Here are a few practical ideas.Stay calm
Remember, in times of crisis, your people will take their cues from you. From you, they need to see steadiness, resolve, and confidence. They don’t need to see you running for the doors. Or reaching for the alcohol.
Assess the situation
In times of crisis, you want to gather as much information as you can as quickly as you can. Gather your key people, ascertain what you know, separate fact from fiction, and start developing your action steps.
Communicate clearly
A good plan poorly communicated will only make matters worse. Make sure everyone knows the plan and everyone knows their role. Don’t assume anything.
Empower your people
Your people will gain confidence when you place your confidence in them. You can inspire your team by empowering your team. A time of crisis is not the time for a one
If the tide of opportunity flows for a prolonged period in a direction you did not find appealing.. it is time to repurpose your talents and thoughts to flow in rhythm with the tide.
The launch of ChatGPT has created a buzz and a sense of interest among various sections of society with heightened curiosity about its utility and implications. It can be used for a wide range of purposes including (but not limited to) customer experience journey improvements, sales cycle improvements, and content creation and management. Hence, expectations are that the applications of ChatGPT will be diverse and for all sorts of things. Not surprisingly, there was a report that a Colombian judge consulted ChatGPT for preparing a ruling in a case.
It opens up opportunities to explore the utility of ChatGPT for project management as well. Some of the potential avenues are knowledge augmentation, problem resolutions (where possible by gaining clarity and answers to some questions), sparking creative thoughts, and learning from human-machine interaction for developing this relationship further to improve project efficiencies.
What is more exciting is the fact that the developments in ChatGPT have brought the spotlight on the use of Natural Language Processing (NLP), one of the most widely used applications of artificial intelligence (AI). To put things in perspective, NLP is defined as “any computer-based algorithm that handles, augments, and transforms natural language so that it can be represented for computation“ (Niimi, 2021, p.2150). NLP is used for applications in healthcare, education, and banking, just to name a few. NLP solutions come in various forms such as chatbots, callbots, and smart assistants.
The growing dependence on NLP and AI-based solutions (e.g., customer experience improvements) for day-to-day business and organisational management (including project management) shows the promise and role that such solutions could and will play in the future. Specifically, in relation to project management, it is predicted that by 2030, “80% of project management tasks will be run by AI, powered by big data, machine learning (ML), and natural language processing” (Nieto-Rodrigue & Vargas, 2023). If these predictions are to come true, this sounds staggering and deserves careful consideration.
There is no doubt that technology will play a significant role and shape the future. One may like it or not, but that is what it is. This raises the question of how NLP and AI are being used and can be used for project management. Or, in other words, what are the current uses of NLP and AI in project management and how can NLP and AI be used to improve project efficiency? To answer the question, below we have looked at some of the current uses as well as potential areas of NLP use for project management.
Current Uses of NLP and AI for project-based workNLP can process and recognise the spoken words (language), grammar of language (syntactic analysis), meaning of words (semantic analysis), and context of utterance (pragmatics), which can be very useful for project-based work as project management is used in every context and culture. As such, NLP and AI-driven solutions are being used for a variety of purposes in project management. These include, planning and forecasting, task automation, risk management, monitoring and control, and coordination (Yang, 2019).
For project-based task automation, such as organising standup meetings during agile project delivery, Geekbot and Standuply are some of the examples of AI-driven solutions. Yang, (2019) also highlights the application of NLP and AI for scanning historical data to predict project completion times and expected budget estimates for the projects. Other applications include JIRA for tracking work completion, Aptage to provide action insights for project delivery, and a project management digital assistant (Schmelzer, 2019; https://www.oracle.com/corporate/pressrelease/oracle-adds-ai-smarts-031919.html). These few examples are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the variety and breadth of use of NLP and AI-driven solutions for project management. It leads to the question, “What’s in the store?” which we discuss below.
Future and possible uses of NLP and AI in PMCertainly, the future is bright for the use of NLP and AI-driven solutions for project-based work. For sure, a large number of thoughts and predictions exist on this strand. Nieto-Rodriguez and Vargas, (2023) highlight six areas that will be affected the most due to the use of NLP and AI-driven solutions for project-based work. These are:
- better selection and prioritization (for identifying and selecting the best projects and establishing a balanced portfolio);
- support for the project management office (for capability development, monitoring, and compliance)
- improved, faster project definition, planning, and reporting (for scoping, risk management, etc.)
- virtual project assistants (for helping users become more efficient in their work performance)
- advanced testing systems and software (for defect identification and deploying self-correcting processes)
- a new role for the project manager (teaching project professionals, including project managers and educators, how to use AI)
In addition, NLP and AI will also be very helpful in human performance modelling to model project staff cognition and behaviours to suggest improvements in their performance and overall efficiency, reduce human errors, and improve overall satisfaction for the client. Schmelzer, (2019) argued the role of predictive analytics in enhancing project efficiencies, which is also highlighted in the six areas of impact discussed above. Predictive analytics appears to be a game changer for understanding anomalies and predicting patterns in order to make informed decisions. Given the high rates of project failures, the above-limited discussion points to the utility of AI to reduce such failures, and this could be just the beginning of what NLP and AI could offer.
Conclusion:Despite the fast-growing evolution of project management concept (see more at: https://www.academiasolution.com/PM-concept), there is no doubt that the current knowledge on the use of NLP and AI in project management is focused on “low-hanging fruits” (i.e., to highlight the positive outlook). It requires further exploration of the potentially negative consequences of the use of NLP and AI for project planning and delivery. What it means is that to further develop understanding and leverage NLP and AI for project management, we must focus on both the beneficence and nonmaleficence contexts of their use. Only then will we be able to strike a reasonable balance.
However, as a starter, it is critical to capitalise on the positives and work to correct the negative consequences. With that in mind, we have looked at the potential of NLP and AI for project work. Needless to say, the discussion focused on highlighting the significant opportunities and the future outlook is intended to stimulate thought and is not conclusive or exhaustive, but with the hope of advancing further work in this domain.
Note: This article was previously published on https://www.academiasolution.com/ChatGPT
References
- Nieto-Rodriguez, A. & Vargas, R.V. (2023). How AI Will Transform Project Management, https://hbr.org/2023/02/how-ai-will-transform-project-management
- Niimi, A. (2021). Natural language processing: a promising research tool of chronic cough for the big data era. Chest, 159(6), 2149-2150.
- Schmelzer, R. (2019). AI In Project Management, https://www.forbes.com/sites/cognitiveworld/2019/07/30/ai-in-project-management/?sh=214dae93b4a0
- Yang, C. (2019). AI And Project Management: Artificial Or The Real Deal? https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2019/07/26/ai-and-project-management-artificial-or-the-real-deal/?sh=15ce127b3208
Prachi Gala, Kennesaw State University
The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.
The big ideaCorporate chief executive officers who have a high degree of integrity – that is, a commitment to act by a morally justified set of principles and values – tend to be less creative, more risk-averse, and less likely to take initiative than other CEOs, according to new research I co-authored. Past research suggests that as a result, their companies are likely to be less competitive and less profitable.
Having a lot of integrity has traditionally been considered one of the most important qualities of a business leader. Research has shown that a high level of CEO integrity is a key trait in determining employee loyalty as well as preventing problems like fraud.
My colleague Saim Kashmiri and I wondered, however, if there are any downsides to being a top boss with lots of integrity. So we analyzed financial and other information on 213 companies listed in the Forbes 500 from 2014 to 2017. We only included companies where CEOs had been hired from 2011 to 2013 and stayed with the company until at least 2018.
We determined a CEO’s level of integrity by analyzing their annual letters to shareholders for key words. Specifically, past research has shown that people who use a lot of “causation words” – such as “because,” “hence” and “therefore” – tend to have a low degree of integrity because such words are often used to rationalize ethically questionable actions.
We scored CEOs who used few of these causation words in their letters as having a high level of integrity. We tested the validity of this method in several ways, including by looking at companies ranked as the most ethical by independent observers like Forbes. We found a high correlation between our measure of integrity and these companies.
Similarly, to gauge how innovative, proactive, and likely to take risks these CEOs were, we analyzed the shareholder letters for keywords that existing research has identified as being highly correlated with those traits. We then conducted a regression analysis, a statistical technique that identifies associations between two variables along with the magnitude of that association, as well as the significance of whether the association is by chance.
Our analysis found that CEOs who scored the highest in terms of integrity also scored the lowest on our measures of innovation, proactiveness, and risk-taking – traits often associated with entrepreneurial behavior.
The correlation was stronger among CEOs who were also chairs of their boards of directors – giving them considerably more power over the company – or who we determined to be very overconfident.
The correlation was weaker among CEOs in charge of more consumer-oriented companies, such as retailers, and CEOs who received more of their compensation with company stock – which tends to reward higher performance.
Why it mattersCompanies led by CEOs who take more risks, act more proactively, and are innovative tend to outperform their competitors financially in part because they are active in finding fresh market opportunities, which strengthens the business’s competitive position. Such companies also tend to be stronger at marketing.
We are not suggesting companies should avoid hiring leaders with high levels of integrity. In fact, research has shown that integrity is a predictor of good leadership and fundamental to fostering commitment and loyalty among employees.
However, corporate boards are duty-bound to choose chief executives who will increase shareholder value. So they should be aware of these tendencies and help their high-integrity CEOs counterbalance the negatives, such as by offering more incentive-based compensation and establishing processes and structures that stimulate innovation.
What’s nextWhile this study analyzed word choices to rate CEO integrity, we are now studying how a CEO’s language may affect those around him or her in ways that could have a good or bad impact on a company’s bottom line – such as improving creativity or causing employees to leave their jobs. We are currently gathering data on reactions to leaders’ language choices via employee and manager surveys to learn more.
Prachi Gala, Assistant Professor of Marketing, Kennesaw State University
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
In our February blog, we explored how our focus and attention have been stolen, and how our ability to pay attention is collapsing and described why we need to be intentional in reclaiming it. Yet, many of us are constantly challenged by very short attention spans, where we can often be found sitting at our desks, dealing with a range of very urgent deadlines with a distracted, and unfocussed mind. Despite being intrinsically motivated to meet our deadlines, and being self-aware of needing to focus on completing the tasks in front of us, many of us often still struggle to disrupt and stop our thoughts from wandering randomly and haphazardly. Because, we are no longer being in charge of our minds, our time, or of our cognitive capacities and abilities that help us self-regulate, concentrate and focus our attention, kickstart change, innovate and become resilient.
A recent article in Psychology Today “The war for your Attention” reinforces this problem by stating:
“We live in a time when attention has become our most valuable asset, one for which multiple stakeholders are competing. Political parties, media outlets, companies, and individuals want a share of it, and if they can have it, they want it all. As a result, remaining in charge of our minds has become a daily challenge. Our attention defines our experience, which sets the mindset of our minds”.
Become resilient
Because we don’t know if companies will ever return to their pre-pandemic-like worlds, and what new technologies will emerge, we need to become resilient to be future-fit, in this new world of unknowns. This requires people to unlearn some of their less resourceful “bad pre and post-pandemic habits” to be:
- Open towards relearning and reskilling in how to focus, concentrate and observe, and how to manage, direct and expand our attention spans.
- Intentional, outcome focussed, and therefore, effective, agile, adaptive, and resilient in an uncertain world full of disruption and crises.
This is reinforced by a recent article “Seizing the momentum to build resilience for a future of sustainable inclusive growth” by McKinsey & Co:
“In the past year, leaders have been confronted with a lifetime’s worth of disruption and crises: global conflict, energy uncertainty, food shortages, accelerating inflation, and severe climate events. Natural and human-made disruptions will only persist. To enable long-term, sustainable, and inclusive growth, today’s business leaders and policymakers must strengthen resilience beyond a survival capacity”.
- From surviving to thriving
The nature and speed of change are not going to slow down, at the same time, our uncertain world full of disruption and crises is having a harsh psychological toll on everyone, impacting negatively on people’s states of emotional and physical health.
If we want people to thrive, we have to start helping people to live better than we ever have. Taking the first baby steps requires people to confidently and courageously be, think and act differently.
Starting with empowering and enabling people to take charge of their hearts and minds, and commit to focussing their attention on building their resilience.
The switch-cost effect
In his best-selling book Johann Hari – Stolen Focus, describes how Professor Earl Miller, a specialist in neuroscience, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, states that “our brains can only produce one or two thoughts” in our conscious minds at once.
Because “we are very, very single-minded” and have “very limited cognitive capacity.”
- Multi-tasking is an illusion
The delusion that we can multitask, or juggle a number of thoughts and activities at the same time, is revealed, through robust research, as actually “switching, back and forth.”
He states that we don’t notice the switching because:
“Our brain sort of papers it over to give a seamless experience of consciousness, but what they’re actually doing is switching and reconfiguring their brain moment-to-moment, task-to-task – which comes with a cost.”
- Losing time to refocus
This is described as the “switch-cost effect” and means that every time we switch tasks while trying to work, we are actually losing a huge amount of time required to concentrate and manage our attention spans to refocus afterward.
“For example, one study at Carnegie Mellon University’s human-computer interaction lab took 136 students and got them to sit a test. Some of them had to have their phones switched off, and others had their phones on and received intermittent text messages. The students who received messages performed, on average, 20% worse. It seems to me that almost all of us are currently losing that 20% of our brainpower, almost all the time. Miller told me that as a result we now live in “a perfect storm of cognitive degradation”.
Reducing cognitive degradation
There are a number of simple and obvious ways to reduce our cognitive degradation and heal our unconscious “attention deficit syndromes”, and cognitively reappraise to be in charge of our minds, concentrate and effectively manage our attention spans. It is also the first step we need to take to empower and enable ourselves and others, in taking charge of our hearts and minds and demonstrating our commitment to focussing our attention and becoming initially resilient.
These simple actions require us to be self-disciplined, methodical, and rigorous and open to re-learning how to concentrate and self-regulated our attention spans by habitually:
- Stripping out distractions,
- Ceasing to multi-task,
- Getting more quality sleep,
- Taking regular short breaks,
- Doing brain exercises,
- Doing physical exercises,
- Listening to music,
- Setting priorities,
- Using a timer.
How to be in charge of our own minds
- Intention transforms
If we want to cultivate a calmer, coherent, and resourceful psychological state, to achieve the outcomes we want to have in our lives, then focus and place our attention on both what we want to manifest (our intention), and on what we want to your attention away from, to cease.
- Attention activates
When choosing to consciously slow down, hit our pause buttons, and retreat into stillness and silence, opens the sacred space, that allows us to reflect, focus and pay deeper attention to the impact of our emotions and beliefs on our thoughts. We can then also attend to, and break down any unresourceful beliefs, emotions, and cognitive distortions about what we can really and truly influence and control to:
- Create a more normalised state of equilibrium and calm, get grounded and fully present and manage our attention spans to concentrate on what really matters to us, in ways that are self-compassionate and optimistic about the future.
- Support ourselves by believing that we can succeed in handling our situations, responsibly, creatively, and effectively.
- Become resilient by knowing how to respond to events in real-time, anticipate events and problems that may occur in the future, and bounce from adversity whilst processing the insights and learnings gained by conquering key challenges.
Developing resilience
We can then be in charge of our minds, become resilient, and create a safe space and generosity for others to fully show up and connect with us, open our eyes, minds, and hearts to all options, unleash possibilities and opportunities, make smart change choices, and innovate, rather than panicking and retreating from the risks emerging in an uncertain world full of disruption and crises.
The opportunityOver $750 billion a year is spent by organisations globally on advertising trying to boost their brands, products, and services. Marketing and branding functions spend vast amounts of time and money working with agencies on trying to find the best way to resonate both with their current customers and attract potential customers.
Employee brand ambassadors will support this objective and can have a significant positive impact whilst costing very little. However, in my view, the use of employee brand ambassadors rarely reaches the potential it truly has. This would seem to be a “no-brainer” but for some reason, it just doesn’t seem to be on the strategic agenda and, even if it is, it’s not done effectively, often because of a misunderstanding of what has to be put in place to make it work.
To identify and appoint a number of employees as brand ambassadors to work both inside and outside the organisation does have benefits but I believe there is much more that could be done quickly, simply, and relatively easily. Not by just these few employees promoting the organisation, especially if it is part of their job in either sales marketing or associated teams, but that every single employee in the organisation proactively inside and outside work promotes the brand of the organisation to their family, their networks, on social media in their blog posts and to people they meet.
From a branding and marketing perspective, you might say this cannot possibly have the reach that, for example, a television advertising campaign might have, that might be so, but every employee who expresses their genuine belief in what their organisation does is likely to have much more resonance with other people than a TV advert or corporate social media post. A corporate social media presence is not the same as speaking to someone, or seeing a post on their own social media. Also, you are more likely to mention such an interaction to other people. That’s because it’s real people and that’s the potential power of an employee brand ambassador program – the power of real people in support of the organisations brand.
Great organisations realise the power of employee brand ambassadors and leverage it but overall few are leveraging the power of their people effectively.
What is really interesting is that turning everyone into a proactive employee brand ambassador through an employee ambassador program not only has a positive impact on the presentation of the brand but also has a significant impact on the corporate culture, creating a common purpose and boosting the performance of the organisation which then further strengthens brand value and ensures the delivery of brand promises to customers more effectively.
It truly unleashes the power of employees. They become the embodiment of your brand, showing your business in a positive light, using word of mouth to say positive things from their unique perspective and real-life personal experience which can reach a wider audience of consumers and others.
The challengeIt’s fair to say that in most organisations, other than those in branding and marketing or C suite, the vast majority of employees have no clue what the brand promises are that the organisation presents to customers. In fact, most of them are also pretty unclear on vision, values, purpose and the wider big picture into which they fit. This not only causes problems around understanding what the brand is about it also has a significant impact on employee engagement, ie employees giving their best. In addition, this lack of understanding also reduces the ability of employees to ensure that operational activity is aligned with strategic objectives. Even if they don’t know the brand promises at least aligning their work to strategic objectives has them heading in the right direction.
All the data on employee engagement shows that employees can potentially withhold significant effort, called discretionary effort, and still meet satisfactory performance standards. In other words, if the environment isn’t right they will withhold this effort but it will not be possible to tell that they are doing so, or indeed who is and who isn’t. This additional effort which is being withheld could amount to an extra 30% of effort from up to 60% of people within the organisation. Imagine how much impact getting that extra effort could make, and how it could be applied to brand ambassadorship.
Worryingly there are indications that post-COVID this figure could now have risen to somewhere in the region of 70 to 80% of people withholding effort due to higher expectations that employees have of their leaders and organisations not being met post-pandemic.
This is the crux of the challenge of how to start the journey to create brand ambassadors – how to create an environment where no one, or as few people as possible, are withholding effort. That’s quite simply because if they were holding effort they certainly won’t be a brand ambassador Why? Because if they’re withholding effort they just don’t care.
This challenge might seem complex and something which has to be done at strategic level. Certainly if planned and coordinated at that level it will have maximum impact and benefit but there is no reason why individual leaders should not encourage their team members to all be brand ambassadors even if the rest of the organisation isn’t. The impact on team engagement and performance is going to be just as beneficial. Any leader can achieve this through the simple steps set out here, as can the whole organisation if C suite sets an example and supports.
Does it work?In a word yes. I’ve seen a significant positive impact in a number of organisations when implementing employee ambassador programs. From personal involvement during the creation of UBS, the global bank, effectively the result of 6 mergers and acquisitions over a short period of time brand ambassadorship delivered significant impact.
This is now a Harvard Case study “Towards the Integrated Firm”. As Global Head of Leadership, it was clear that creating belief in the new organisation was a key element to successfully bring together the constituent parts to operate as one, as we clearly promoted it “One UBS”. That One UBS had to have one brand identity. This started with the executive team acting in an authentic way to set an example to build a strong company culture and show the essential role that the banks values played in what it did everyday, reflected in the brand promises.
During the early stages of this transformation bringing together the people, processes, and brands into a single entity it became clear to us that alignment on the new brand was key for the optimization of sustainable profitability. But also what was critical was that the brand had to be all-encompassing – equally valid internally with employees as well as externally with customers and the market.
Why both? Because many of us had seen the negative impact of an organisations internal brand being different from the external brand, a perception that customers were treated well but employees not so much. We had the potential to create over 70,000 proactive brand ambassadors across the world, something that could have a significant impact both internally and externally.
It worked because of a clear business case set out by the CEO, picked up by senior leaders, cascaded, and led by example down through the whole organisation. In addition this was reinforced working with the external agency to develop the new a brand line. The result was short and simple “UBS you and Us”, which would apply equally to customers, employees, and indeed other stakeholders.
The application of this was highly flexible and effective and was maintained as the key message both internally and externally for over 6 years. Its external impact was widely credited with contributing to the rapid growth of the bank at that time but what is less widely appreciated is the significant role it played internally in creating willing brand ambassadors at all levels of the organisation, enabled by a culture where everyone gave their best because they cared about the success of themselves, their colleagues and UBS .
This employee advocacy built momentum internally, growing from early adopters inspiring others to join and take it to the next level. The result? 51% increase in brand value and becoming a top global brand in 3 just years, together with higher than peer profitability, and numerous people and business awards.
But the world moves onThe success of this creation of employee brand ambassadors was clear from so many measures. But the world moves on, and encouraging and enabling employee brand ambassadors has to be an ongoing effort, to make it work it never ends, either at strategic or team level. It needs constant momentum building and adaptation. This initial success at UBS was before the financial crisis and that event significantly changed the business environment and employee attitudes. As a result to recover the power of brand ambassadorship UBS had to proactively re-engage at all levels to be successful again, through another concerted campaign.
What is interesting is that to follow on from “UBS – You and Us” which engaged both customers and employees the new line was “For some of life’s questions, you’re not alone. Together we can find an answer.” – again which engaged both customers and employees and subsequently UBS again won a number of preferred employer awards. Note the focus on “working together” in both with common purpose, a theme shared by great brand building and great leadership.
Building the brand inside outMy conversations with marketing and branding professionals about this often reveal that they have not realised the full potential of employee brand ambassadors and their strategic impact. To some degree that’s not unreasonable as it is their brief to focus on the external customer. But I have seen marketing and branding departments frantically trying to create a positive quality brand for the organisation’s customers whilst the perception of employees within the organisation is that it’s not high quality internally due to less than great culture and leadership. I would take the view that employees are the organisations first customers and therefore you need to build the brand inside out.
Any fundamental disconnect between the external brand and the internal brand just isn’t sustainable. Disengaged and unhappy employees will not perform well, will not want to be brand ambassadors and this will, without doubt, eventually feed through reducing the quality of customer service and so damaging the external brand. They just won’t care.
Building the brand inside out is not just about the strategic level brand, it’s also about the organisations operational level brand as reflected by employees’ individual leaders. Thus every leader is a brand ambassador to their people and their example and action can either inspire or destroy the likelihood of employees being proactive brand ambassadors, irrespective of how great the strategic level brand is.
But with the right mindset and a simple action plan, there is a significant opportunity here if marketing and branding professionals work with all leaders and HR to create an environment where a great internal brand provides the opportunity to grow brand ambassadors and which, if done effectively, will be willingly taken up by every employee. Essentially by just spreading best practices to build brand awareness within an environment where people care because simply they have a great boss.
SummaryThere’s a lot of talk about why organizations need to have a purpose beyond a mere marketing tagline: why they do what they do on behalf of those they seek to serve. What’s equally challenging to get at is how an organization defines its why, how they get staff buy-in — or better yet, staff input — and then has the discipline to choose activities that work towards fulfilling it.
I’m never saying that the lack of a real purpose is the only problem that causes organizational dysfunction. But it is one of the most foundational ones because people are looking to contribute with their roles.
— Brooke Erol
My guestMy guest to help walk us through this topic is Brooke Erol. Brooke is a corporate dropout who pursued her dream of having more meaningful work for herself and others where we are not only seeking money but also contributing to a bigger cause. All her life is spent on writing, speaking, coaching, and consulting on this topic of having a life of fulfilling and purposeful work. She works both with individuals- YourBestLife and organizations – Purposeful Business, Inc.
Takeaways√ Many businesses focus on profits over purpose instead of figuring out how to do both.
√ An organization’s pain point is not necessarily an expressed lack of purpose, but lack of purpose is often the driver below the surface.
√ Leaders at the highest point of an organization — founder, and CEO — must have a deep consciousness to understand the imperative of having and living a purpose fully.
√ Companies often face a litmus test as to whether they are going to honor their purpose in their decision-making,
√ Customers and job seekers should monitor a company over time to see if it adheres to its purpose.
√ The number one reason for the purpose to stick is the 100% commitment of the CEO or the founder.
√ Instead of trying to save the whole world, find one area where you can have an impact, and let that be your purpose.
Last time, we discussed opportunities for weaving intentional gratitude into our professional environments, and we looked at the possibility of adding gratitude to your formal organizational values, encouraging gratitude as a daily practice, and making that gratitude easily and abundantly visible to the people who make up your company.
ENJOY ALL PRIOR PARTS BELOW︎
Gratitude at Work – Tapping into The Power of Appreciation in Your Organization
Today we’re going to focus on ways you can incorporate gratitude into your external-facing spaces. Prospective new employees are checking out your culture, as much as can be seen from outside your organization anyway. To attract top talent, make it easy for them to get a sense of who you are and what matters from a culture perspective. Also, helping your current and future customers and vendors see that gratitude is important to your company can help build stronger relationships, leading to more positive outcomes with them, too. Here are two ideas for making gratitude part of your external-facing landscape.
Recommendation #4: Make intentional gratitude visible externally. Leaning into the intentional practice of gratitude can help your organization differentiate and amplify your company culture as a way to attract top talent. When I’ve worked with companies both in my research and as a consultant, employees frequently share that they appreciate working for an organization where gratitude is already seen being practiced by senior leadership and colleagues. And it doesn’t take long to find complaints on sites like GlassDoor, from everyone from job applicants to long-time employees to former staff when appreciation is simply not there. Even if this is a new addition to your organization’s strategic cultural initiatives, emphasizing your efforts can help reframe your company in a more positive light, no matter where you are starting in that journey.
Leadership may want to consider adding a section to the company website focused on the commitment to gratitude as an organizational driver, to enhance the company’s existing mission and vision statements. Regular blog entries or social media content showcasing recent gratitude messages are also excellent ways to showcase how gratitude is interwoven into your culture. These could be employee testimonials, press releases announcing quarterly gratitude award winners, or simply sentiments shared by your employees that continuously reinforce how gratitude is expressed. One client I worked with had video screens in customer waiting lounges, and they streamed comments like “Sumetra D says, “Thanks to my team for covering my shift while I was out taking care of my mom. It really makes me feel like I matter!” What a great way to elevate that message!
Recommendation #5: Encourage clients to engage in intentional gratitude. Studies show a positive impact from receiving expressions of gratitude from customers and clients, including an increase in both job satisfaction on confidence not only in that assignment but when considering upcoming or potential assignments. Account managers and client-facing employees may want to consider encouraging active gratitude as part of the regular interactions with clients, and certainly as part of any final project documentation. Again, consider including these appreciative comments as part of your portfolio of testimonials to further enhance your brand image to current and prospective clients.
As we’ve mentioned previously, gratitude is simply not a common practice in most workplaces, so for your employees and your clients to feel comfortable expressing and receiving appreciation, intentional, strategic opportunities for gratitude to be part of the conversation are important for employees and clients alike to experience the benefits.
Encourage or even incentivize positive feedback from your clients. We all know people don’t hesitate to complain – so encourage them to tell you when things are going WELL, too. For example, a hotel chain we used to frequent made it known that they actually gave a cash bonus to staff when they received a positive comment that identified that person by name. Given what we know about gratitude in the workplace, expressing gratitude intentionally may not be a routine part of the professional experience for your clients or vendors, either, so make it easy for them, and they’re more likely to share their positive feedback with you. Talk about a win-win!
Conclusion
There is no indication that one form of gratitude is superior to another. Individuals have different communication and learning styles, and cultural and generational differences may make one style more comfortable than the other. Further, individual preferences as to which form of gratitude is more beneficial for them may change depending on the circumstances in which the individual finds themselves, the mood they are in, and so on. Fundamentally, I believe (and the research so far backs me up) that any gratitude practice is better than none, as long as we’re doing so in authentic, meaningful ways.
Are you interested in making gratitude part of your organization’s cultural landscape? I’d love to hear about what you’re doing currently, or the challenges and barriers you’ve faced trying to build more gratefulness into your working hours. And sincerely, thank you for taking the time to consider gratitude as an intentional professional practice. Even normalizing the possibility helps bring this topic into more people’s awareness, and I am deeply grateful for your contribution to changing the professional paradigm.
It should come as no surprise according to the recently released 2023 Edelman Trust Barometer “A lack of faith in societal institutions triggered by economic anxiety, disinformation, mass-class divide and a failure of leadership has brought us to where we are today – deeply and dangerously polarized.” That said it’s more important than ever for leaders to establish themselves as trustworthy entities.
A trustworthy leader establishes strong relationships with their followers and team members. It’s no secret trust encourages collaboration and inspires commitment to shared goals. Not to mention working in an environment which creates trust develops a positive environment where people feel valued, respected, and supported – are less likely to quietly quit.
Trust paves the way for the creation of stronger relationships, better communication, increased productivity, and better decision-making. Not to mention reduces stress.
That said, it’s so easy to lose confidence in a leader who fails to show us they are reliable, and possess integrity and honesty. A trustworthy leader encourages others to be vulnerable enough to place their confidence (faith) in another’s ability to act in their best interest – without the need for constant monitoring or control.
Building trust is important for a variety of other reasons as well:
Aside from developing solid relationships: It allows for open and honest communication; something we are in desperate need of now. When you trust someone, you’re more likely to speak openly and honestly with them without fear of being judged, criticized or laid off. This can lead to better understanding and stronger relationships – when ‘buy-in’ is required of a team to effectively complete the job.
Increased productivity: Trust can increase productivity in the workplace. When employees trust supervisors and managers, they’re more likely to be engaged, motivated, and committed to their work. This can lead to increased productivity and better performance.
Better decision-making: Trust can also lead to better decision-making. When you trust someone, you’re more likely to seek their input and take their advice into consideration when making decisions. This can lead to better outcomes and a more effective decision-making process plus reduced stress – something we’re sorely in need of in today’s changed world.
6 Leadership Skills Which Build Trust:1. Open Communication: Transparent leaders communicate in a way which shows they are open to feedback – sharing their vision, goals and challenges with the team and actively listening to and discussing input received. 2. Empathy: Being empathetic and understanding regarding the needs and concerns of team members is critical to building trust. 3. Accountability: Leaders who hold themselves accountable and take responsibility for their actions build trust with their team – including admitting mistakes, commitment follow through; holding others accountable. 4. Consistency: Leaders who consistently demonstrate their values and principles build trust. Consistency in communication, decision-making and behavior establishes a sense of predictability and reliability essential for building trust. 5. Competence: Leaders who are knowledgeable and skilled in their field build trust. Demonstrating expertise, providing guidance, and solving problems competently shows the leader is credible and capable. 6. Integrity: Leaders who are honest, ethical, and uphold their values build trust. Their actions match their words and they prioritize doing what is right over personal gain.
Leaders who communicate openly, show empathy, hold themselves accountable, demonstrate consistency, exhibit competence, and operate with integrity can build trust with their team members.
Bottom line – Trust can take different forms and built over time through consistent actions and behaviors that demonstrate reliability and honesty. Conversely, it can be broken or lost through actions or behaviors which violate expectations or standards of honesty, reliability, or integrity.
Being someone who sometimes (ok well maybe often) misses the moment to stop and celebrate the joy, success, achievement of a given moment because I have my eye firmly planted on the future and what’s still to be ‘done’, I have been reminded over recent weeks of the power of taking a moment to celebrate and to share joy and enjoyment with others.
In the organisation world, one of the things that comes up so often in the work we do with Executive groups is the need to ‘celebrate success’ as they spontaneously recognise for themselves that they are too focused on ‘what next’.
Celebration is an important aspect of life – it can be a witnessing of achievements, it can be a moment to spread joy amongst a group, it can be an opportunity to honour oneself or a group. What strikes me even more deeply though is that celebration can have a deeply unifying effect…it helps to build connection, bonds, positive shared experiences, and a sense of well-being. When done alone, it can be nurturing and empowering, when done with others it can be contagious and amplified.
Celebration tunes us into gratitude and gratitude has immensely positive effects, psychologically – that is both mentally and emotionally.
We start to notice the smaller things that we take for granted – in ourselves, in others, in our world, and in our life as a whole. The more we celebrate and connect with gratitude the more powerful our radiance will be. When we radiate we strengthen our well-being – a wonderful virtuous circle.
So, it’s worth asking ourselves regularly, what can I celebrate today? What and/or whom am I grateful for in my life? How will I make time to celebrate alone and with others? As leaders, these are important questions if we want to build a culture of appreciation, possibility, and powerful contribution.
Unlike a lot of employee engagement initiatives (incidentally on which companies are spending billions each year, with no real improvement in engagement scores or turnover), gratitude is FREE. However, to really capture the benefits offered by having more gratitude in our professional worlds, it’s not quite as simple as encouraging your people to say thanks to each other, although that’s certainly not a bad idea, either.
ENJOY ALL PRIOR PARTS HERE︎
Gratitude at Work – The Results are In… Spoiler, it’s REAL GOOD!
In the next two installments, we’ll look at five different ways your company could incorporate gratitude as a regular business practice. Depending on your sphere of influence or control and the current vibe in your company when it comes to unconventional culture innovations, see if any of these sound like good starting points for your organization. And if you love the concept but would like to kick around ways to actually get it off the ground, let me know. I’m happy to brainstorm or help you build the business case!
Recommendation #1: Frame gratitude as a formal company value. Maybe informal gratitude is already tacitly part of how some of your people interact with each other, so your employees already recognize that leadership currently endorses gratitude to some degree. If this sounds like your current culture, consider making intentional gratitude practices part of your formal way of working. Many organizations dip their toe into the gratitude pool by kicking off a gratitude challenge as part of their employee well-being portfolio (or around Thanksgiving… pet peeve of mine!). Or maybe gratitude is a completely novel opportunity. Wherever you are on the journey, I encourage you to frame gratitude as a company value rather than a well-being initiative.
Employees need to have the psychological safety and trust to engage in well-being initiatives, and even if you’ve already got strong levels of both those, when schedules are already full it can be difficult to try to incorporate a new practice or make time for gratitude.
Some companies do encourage employees to make time for well-being initiatives such as mindfulness programs or other initiatives, so you may feel like the opportunities are already there for people. However, many people, whether they’re already approaching burn-out or are just experiencing normal levels of competing priorities feel frustrated trying to balance self-care opportunities alongside intense workloads.
And when you’re trying to shift mindsets, executive sponsorship of culture initiatives is crucial for success. Have your leadership team really spend some time with the concept of gratitude in the workplace and how it can positively impact both the employee experience and the resulting organizational outcomes that are impacted when your employees are more engaged and more excited to be part of your teams. Get your most recent employee engagement and turnover data and keep that front of mind as you focus on this opportunity to make meaningful improvements.
Just a reminder of some of the value propositions for gratitude we discussed earlier in this series:
- 70% of employees would feel better about themselves if their boss was more grateful
- 81% would work harder if their boss was more grateful
- 95% of employees agree that a grateful boss is more likely to be successful.
- Employees who experience more gratitude at work report fewer depressive symptoms and stress. Lack of gratitude is a major factor in driving job dissatisfaction, turnover, absenteeism, and burnout.
- In recent surveys, half of the people said they regularly said thank you to their family members, but only 15% say thank you at work, and 35% of people say their managers NEVER thank them.
- In research cited by the Wall Street Journal, the workplace ranked last of places where people express gratitude, with just 10% of people saying thank you to their colleagues and only 7% saying thank you to their supervisor.
Recommendation #2: Encourage gratitude as a daily practice for everyone. Reframe gratitude as a valued daily practice and incentivize participation. Many of the people I worked with in my study already valued gratitude as a personal practice, it may not be as common of a belief in general for individuals to practice in their professional environments. Some may suggest that it is not necessary to say thank you. Given the depressing statistics about how rare gratitude is in most workplaces, you may have to help your people (and yourself) unlearn some bad habits around gratitude in the workplace, especially if you or they spent any of your life in environments that actively – and destructively – dismissed gratitude as frivolous, unnecessary, or even unprofessional.
Encourage employees to add time for gratitude to meeting agendas and to their daily schedule.
To combat this mindset, employees may need more than permission to actively engage in gratitude, especially outside of the usual timeframe of October/November, when gratitude gets more attention due to the Thanksgiving holiday. To do this, have your people leaders lean into gratitude by modeling it as a daily practice. Providing the business case for more gratitude in the workplace may help shift employee perspective from a place where gratitude is seen as a soft skill and reshape it as a business differentiator. Encourage employees to add time for gratitude to meeting agendas and to their daily schedule. Offer suggestions for different ways people might engage with the practice to accommodate a diverse set of personal preferences, information processing styles, and schedules. Positive psychologist Shawn Achor talks about his daily practice of sending thank-you emails to people who have positively impacted his life. I’ve had clients flip this around and pencil in 10 minutes at the end of their shift to wrap the day on a high note by sending a thank you note or email before signing off, so they end their day on a positive note. Leaders might start meetings with a positive reflection founded in gratitude or share kudos with their team.
In addition, if you are lucky enough to work for an organization that has formal supervisor or manager training programs, consider including a module on the business implications of gratitude as well as training on how to actively express gratitude authentically. Many of the people I’ve worked with specifically referenced how being thanked by their supervisors made them feel more valued, acknowledged, and appreciated for the work they do. Several also said they specifically felt it improved the quality of their relationship with their supervisor and their team, and that it had a direct, positive impact on their job satisfaction. Good relationships are a key performance indicator, especially if you’re trying to avoid or reverse significant retention issues, or if you are trying to go from good to great.
Recommendation #3: Make intentional gratitude visible to your employees. While the COVID-19 pandemic forced many organizations to take their work fully remote, and it may be preferable to maintain at least a hybrid environment for employees for the foreseeable future, it is still possible to provide opportunities for employees to see gratitude in practice. Some companies use software such as Harkn, described as, “an employee listening and wellbeing platform”, to allow employees to express their thoughts anonymously while creating a social media-like feed accessible to all employees as well as providing real-time analytics on the general emotional landscape of the organization.
If your team works in the same physical location, consider a “Kudos Wall” or gratitude jar where people can share their positive experiences. Another option would be a virtual gratitude wall included on the company’s intranet, perhaps as a channel on Slack, Microsoft Teams, or Google Spaces for either the whole organization or for individual working groups. A couple of my clients run the text from their team’s dedicated gratitude channel through a word cloud generator each month and include that in the monthly newsletter as an opportunity to remind individuals that gratitude is important and valued on the team.
The organization might also encourage participation by creating a traveling award or conducting a drawing for gift cards or other prizes for those who are recognized through public gratitude channels. In a world where gratitude is not the norm, these approaches keep intentional gratitude visible to all employees and reinforce the practice as one that leadership sees as having value to the organization.
Stay tuned for our final article in this series where we offer ways you can highlight a focus on gratitude for your teams and build stronger connections while improving performance!
Quiet quitting is a description for people who are unhappy in their job but, for whatever reason, don’t feel able to leave.What does it mean to be a quiet quitter?
Quiet quitting is a description for people who are unhappy in their job but, for whatever reason, don’t feel able to leave. As a result, they reduce the effort that they are putting into their job, doing the minimum and nothing beyond. Quiet quitting as a term took off in the summer of 2022 after a US TikTokker posted a video that went viral saying “work is not your life”, as reported here on BBC News. This resonated with the post-Covid feelings of millions of employees.
But it’s a significant threat to both short- and long-term organisational performance. And it’s something that all company executives and leaders should be concerned about and take action to address. It eats away at all aspects of the effective operation of the organisation; its ability to deliver strategic objectives and achieve its vision.
Employees who are quiet quitting are a real drain on team performance and can negatively affect workplace culture.
What’s caused quiet quitting?Quiet quitting has always been with us but the Covid-19 pandemic massively increased the potential for it. It’s caused by the same drivers which gave us the ‘Great Resignation’. So, what caused the Great Resignation? One simple phrase explains both quiet quitting and is the impetus for the Great Resignation – our experiences create our perceptions. These then determine our behaviour at work in response to different situations.
As the Great Resignation, or indeed also the great ‘I’m not even going back’, started all of us had come through two years of being locked in and locked down. We all saw serious illness on a scale that none of us had ever experienced. Some of us also suffered a personal tragedy. It brought home to each of us how precious and short life could be. As a result of this potentially traumatic life experience for all of us, lots of people reprioritised what was important in life. For most, this meant that the importance of work significantly dropped compared to the importance of family, free time, quality of life, and well-being. It was probably the greatest reality check many of us have ever experienced.
It was those changed perceptions that raised the benchmarks by which we measured what we wanted and expected from work, especially from our leaders.
What drives quiet quitting or resigning?People are no longer prepared to tolerate poor leadership, overwork and antisocial hours, unfair rules, not being treated with respect, having our private lives undervalued, and not being able to grow and develop as a person or see a positive future ahead. So the benchmark against which people measured their leaders and organisations was raised. Leaders who were tolerated before the pandemic were now seen in a new light and seen as unacceptable – so people left. Analytics firm Gallup reports that this is reflected in falls in employee engagement in many countries.
The reasons for which people left organisations are likely to be very similar to the reasons which trigger quiet quitting, so it’s worth looking at the headline reasons for departure as reported by management consulting firm McKinsey & Company.
These include:
- Uncaring leaders: not feeling valued by the boss or the organisation
- No sense of belonging
- Lack of flexible working
- Lack of visible potential advancement
- Unmanageable workload
- Lack of engagement
- Poor work-life balance
However, how many of us are in a secure enough financial position to leave our jobs without one to go to? Not many. Not everyone can leave when they want, despite a rise in those prepared to do so even without a job to go to.
With a leader who doesn’t meet their standards, people who can’t leave will stay as ‘quiet quitters’ until they can. Just doing enough to get by. In particular Generation Z – that’s those born after 1995 – have a very different view of the priority between work and personal time, and what they expect from their leaders and organisations. They view the reasons listed in the infographic more negatively than other groups and expect a greater focus on well-being in the workplace.
It’s also worth noting that many employers don’t often recognise or admit the key drivers for resignations, they say it’s other things which they cannot control like employees leaving through sickness or being poached by competitors to absolve themselves of any responsibility for the departure.
Why is quiet quitting so dangerous?Quiet quitting is more dangerous precisely because you’re not resigning. It can have a greater negative impact on organisations than if people just left. If somebody leaves, they are gone and can be replaced by somebody prepared to give maximum effort – often coming in as an enthusiastic new employee. If they stay, their negative impact could linger for months if not years, and attitudes impact their colleagues.
Despite the damage they are potentially causing, identifying quiet quitters and trying to re-engage them can be extremely difficult for a leader. Those who quiet quit could be underperforming by 30% on their potential performance. Not only that but if their behaviour starts to have a negative impact on others in the team – they become disengaged and damaging. It’s reported by Gallup that you need to have four engaged employees to counter the negative impact of every one disengaged quiet quitter.
Daily examples of quiet quittingIt might be useful to give a few practical examples of what the difference is in terms of day-to-day behaviour between those who are engaged – giving their best – and those who are quiet quitting, by definition not engaged or even disengaged. Here we illustrate the significant negative impact which this can have.
How widespread is the problem of quiet quitting?The figures for the number of people leaving jobs have increased but there is an additional and worrying dynamic. Before the pandemic, most people wouldn’t leave a job unless they had a new one, but now the number who will has significantly increased. Potentially up to 60 to 70% of people are now prepared to leave without a job if they feel they need to, say McKinsey & Company. Global media company Forbes also reports that this is particularly affecting the Gen Z group, where 77% are already thinking of leaving, a precursor to quiet quitting and potentially departure.
This single change in perception vastly increases the ease and speed at which people can leave. No longer does there have to be a long and sustained period of dissatisfaction with your boss or research into potential new jobs. If you don’t care about having another job, your departure decision can be very swiftly implemented and it could be triggered by just one incident which has pushed you too far.
The data on how many people leave organisations versus those who are potentially quiet quitting is dramatic. Standard organisational turnover could be between 10 to 15%, but in annual surveys, the number of people who say they might consider leaving organisations if they could find a better job is around 40%, rising to 54% for Gen Z. So we can potentially make the judgement that for every person who leaves an organisation there may be 3 or 4 staff members considering it. So a significant number of people could be quiet quitting to some degree. Therefore organisations potentially have a quiet quitting iceberg – the danger hidden under the surface and almost impossible to assess.
How do you measure quiet quitting and the wider problem?While I say that getting evidence of individual quiet quitting is very difficult at a strategic level, an aggregate picture with reasonable accuracy can be obtained using employee engagement data. This data groups employees into three populations:
- The engaged – people who are giving their best.
- The not engaged – people doing enough to get by or sometimes giving their best depending on how they feel.
- The disengaged – people actively avoiding contributing to the organisation.
It’s unlikely that your engaged people will want to leave because, to be classified as engaged, they will have given feedback confirming they are having a positive experience, and their work is consistently good. Your quiet quitters are within the ‘not engaged’ or potentially even the ‘disengaged’ groups depending on how disaffected they are. The ‘disengaged’ are much easier to spot than the ‘not engaged’ because there are often weak elements within their performance. Whereas the ‘not engaged’ can be performing satisfactorily but just not giving their best – withholding their ‘discretionary effort’.
Quiet quitters are embedded in these ‘not engaged’ and ‘disengaged’ groups – and potentially in large numbers. Data from Gallup’s workplace engagement survey 2022 shows levels of employee engagement. This is the percentage of employees giving their best. In most European countries it’s under 25%, with the UK at a dismal 9%. In the USA and Canada, employee engagement levels are a more respectable 33%. The differential between the US and Canada, Europe in general, and the UK are significant – why this is happening is a bigger question for another article.
This means that in the UK, on average, 91% of employees are either ‘not engaged’ or ‘disengaged’ so not giving their best and therefore could be quiet quitters – this is horrifying! But even in the US and Canada, with a 33% engagement rate, it still means a potential quiet quitter population of up to 67%.
Have you ever come to a solution right after you stopped thinking about it? Walked out of a planning meeting where no one seemed to have the answer and BOOM.. you are on the elevator and it comes to you? That is because the mind works best without the weight of external pressure. Many times the answer is there, but can’t be revealed until we stop, and play.
I believe we can build and rebuild our strengths in play at any age, but we need to start by removing the stigma of play as unproductive or frivolous.
Play is a place where we conquer our fears and open ourselves up to our full potential. Play can change our social interactions, our physical and mental health, our innovative and creative potential, and our drive to take risks, fall, and get up again.
Play answers the question, “What do we do when no one has the answer?”
The creative confidence to develop solutions to insurmountable issues comes from confidence, motivation, trust, and innovation. Watch children turn trees into tree houses, and puddles into oceans, jump from rock to rock, miss a step, and get back up.
Now consider what you experience when someone loves the work they do. What do you feel like in their space? What do you see, hear, and say after encountering people who love and are good at what they do? They are “in play” physically, cognitively, and emotionally; they are invested. What if we could build or rebuild the place where we are most open to learning, least self-conscious, and our most authentic self?
We are only brushing the surface of some of our most difficult societal challenges because we try to overcome them without exploring our full potential. Play gives us perspective and experience. However, play is hard work for many people, as they have to climb over a mountain of guilt, judgment, shame, and long-held beliefs about productivity and the seriousness of work to even imagine it as a driver for change. What if we changed the way we think about play.
What if we said that play is the catalyst to igniting and developing the “soft skills” that drive innovation, productivity, and passion, and focused on developing and growing them?
Play can be the catalyst for conversations that might never have happened, revealing others’ strengths, fears, abilities, and concerns that might never have been discovered otherwise. Play allows us to unravel prejudice, bias, expectation, judgment, and self-consciousness. It creates a reduced physiological stress response and an openness to authentic conversation. But it cannot do that without the foundations of trust, respect, connection, and belonging; that’s where rebuilding happens.
Play disrupts our standardized way of looking at the world — it invites us to change without shaming.
The myth of emotional detachment has been debunked by modern neurosciences, which demonstrates how emotions are one of the most powerful forms of communication, especially in the context of decision-making processes and human capital management.
Being a leader means mastering the art of persuasion, an element in which emotions play a leading role.
The emotional well-being and effectiveness of a working group depend on the ability to provide constructive feedback, capable of highlighting and welcoming critical issues and directing attention to the crucial aspects that need to be improved.
As all know, the task of a leader is, mainly, to be able to inspire and guide a specific group of people, in such a way as to best channel everyone’s skills in favor of their business.
Someone said that the leader is like a man alone in command, an expression that can probably represent the working situation of many people: entrepreneurs, managers, women, and men who have the responsibility of leading a group but who often have to act independently.
And also we are well aware that in recent decades numerous studies have highlighted the key role that emotions play, in the workplace, not only in terms of psychophysical well-being but also in terms of effectiveness and productivity.
As with every evolutionary leap, made by human civilization, religious, social, political, economic, and technological innovations appear, in the same way, new organizational models also appear. And the more time seems to depersonalize and commodify relationships, the more it is necessary to create emotionally intelligent environments, capable of hosting sincere relationships, made up of emotions and feelings.
In particular, it has been considered that even “the man or woman alone in command” experience emotions and feelings: they get angry, they rejoice, they feel envious, they worry, they are afraid, and so on.
Furthermore, the best leaders are precisely those who have been able to find effective methods to understand and develop their way of managing emotions, their own and those of others. Not only that, but the successful leader is aware that the mood of the team is largely influenced by their own emotions, because “everyone’s eyes are on the boss”.
In fact, every emotion, from the most negative to the most positive, if correctly interpreted and understood, can turn into an opportunity for growth for everyone, from the leader to colleagues who work in the same team.
In summary, a good leader must be able to manage all situations with “high emotional potential”. He must be able to direct emotions in the right direction, otherwise, everything he has undertaken up to that moment, whether it is fine strategies or brilliant monetary investments, will inevitably be affected.
Ultimately, we can agree that the leader’s emotions affect the group and that, therefore, it becomes essential for those who hold leadership roles to reserve part of their energies also for improving their own capacity for emotional self-regulation.
I believe that this can happen starting from an awareness, from a change of mentality that requires commitment and willingness to get involved as individuals, rather than as professionals. Also because the leader is the person who, more than anyone else, has an influence on individuals and their ability to give their best: the perception that people have of the corporate climate depends above all on the leader.
And precisely because many responsibilities weigh on leaders that can distract them from focusing on this aspect, it is necessary to be aware that their emotional state and, consequently, their actions have a weight on their collaborators and influence their performance.
The ability to manage one’s own mood and that of others is not a private matter, but becomes an indispensable soft skill for being good leaders. It is one of the capabilities that have an influence on profits and can therefore lead the company to success. Simply because everyone focuses their eyes on the boss, who, precisely because of the role he plays, has a greater influence on those around him. The leader has a great role in determining the emotional standard of the group: it is known that propagating positive moods has direct implications on professional results, while negative emotions constitute a factor of disturbance on a personal and professional level, since they hijack the attention away from work and, consequently, decrease productivity.
Incidentally, it should be remembered that within a group it is also possible that not only the “role” leaders are at the center of attention, but there may be inside the team, emotional “potential” leaders, able to handle the situation, above all if the role leader has little credibility.
Apart from this, there is no doubt that a leader who aspires to govern his team of collaborators effectively must acquire self-awareness and rethink his role also from an emotional point of view. Being able, in this way, even more easily to get closer to the emotions of the team members.
All of the above is what is commonly referred to as emotional intelligence.
However, being endowed with emotional intelligence does not mean showing off one’s feelings without any kind of filter, exposing them in a crude way and guided by the momentum, but rather it means controlling them, so as to express them appropriately and constructively, thus allowing a serene and effective collaboration.
We can therefore understand that emotional intelligence is a skill that is acquired and that improves as we gain experience in the social field, thus acquiring the necessary awareness, the ability to recognize one’s emotions, to understand how these could affect others and use this knowledge to guide one’s decision-making processes, as well as social skills, i.e. being able to better “read” the different scenarios and the different social situations in which one is immersed, managing to interact constructively with team members, persuade them, avoid disputes and guide them towards common goals.
It is always a good practice to test options regularly. However, when mishaps occur, it becomes essential to do so. Four errors recently occurred via vendors, but one can potentially affect business having my attention. Rather than lamenting the problem, I am testing what may and may not work today as it may affect future work. The goal is to enjoy, hopefully, a better tomorrow.
My StoryOver time, I learned that agonizing over a troubling situation accomplishes little except extra stress. On the positive side, unexpected issues often lead to better solutions and outcomes. When we allow ourselves to ride the wave of uncertainty, we often find ourselves on a new shore of opportunity.
The word options used in the title can refer to trading via the markets, but that was not my intent. However, a relatable story occurred yesterday. A friend was lamenting that the stock market was headed way down and doomed to crash. Although not a financial advisor, my reply was that the stock market has a history of highs and lows, only to return to its starting point and then surpass that momentary high point. I used the Great Depression as an example.
Hopefully, we won’t be heading toward anything similar, but we are to prepare for the highs and lows of life in all regards. For that reason alone, it is best to regularly test options before us to ensure we can move forward the way we desire. Doing so affects business as well as our everyday life.
Testing aligns with learning. Testing ideas, technology advancements, and strategies are essential to remain ahead of the curve and not stagnate.
The bonus in turning to test options is that our enthusiasm begins to return, and the stress fades away. We know that something good will come out of the situation to become a learning moment in time. Accordingly, the knowledge can and will increase confidence to continue moving forward.
Social media is an outstanding resource for reviewing the thought of others, reading credible articles, and collaborating with people worldwide. We can siphon the best of what we hear and read when we realize various views. By not allowing incidents to pull us back or accept everything, we strengthen our resolve to figure out our next moves. We are then on the path to test options regularly. The bonus is in learning to work with our endeavors cohesively. For this reason alone, diversity and inclusion are essential elements for success.
Your Story: Do You Test Options Regularly?First and foremost, it’s a good idea to realize how you deal with setbacks and if a new method will be beneficial. The common thread is to fret, allow a situation to hold you back, and then scramble to catch up once ready to begin again. The typical scenario doesn’t do well for anyone and it’s best to find a better way forward. Consider the idea to test options regularly.
Those who are motivated will see closing one door as the opportunity to open a new one with greater possibilities ahead. It’s best to remember that life is not stagnant and that the success factor includes being resilient. In other words, whether we have a setback or worse, taking a deep dive by holding the belief that we can not only return to where we were but achieve greater heights will be the motivating force to do so.
While having a keen sense of motivation is great, we must validate our next moves and test options regularly. Not everything works to our expectations. Accordingly, we need to be specific and intentional with the new strategy. It is the only way to realize whether the approach works well or not factually. When you regularly test options, you will have the facts and are more likely to enjoy the success you desire.
In Conclusion:While having a keen sense of motivation is great, we must regularly validate our next moves and test options. Not everything works to our expectations. Accordingly, we need to be specific and intentional with the new strategy. It is the only way to realize whether the approach works well or not factually. When you regularly test options, you will have the facts and are more likely to enjoy the success you desire.
If you sit in an executive seat whether CEO, owner or manager, are YOU bubble-wrapped? What is a bubble -wrapped leader?For starters, they are not very good leaders. Bubble-wrapping insulates from all the things going on around us. I’ve seen key executives isolate themselves by layers of policy, procedure, and occasionally people.
There is one company I’ve worked with that is so traditional in their hierarchy that various levels are not encouraged to talk more than one level up without being accompanied by someone from the level in between. In an age of fast-moving decisions demanding such a structure creates huge roadblocks and inefficiency.
However, there are more subtle ways we find ourselves bubble wrapped as leaders. Here are a few to think about.
The IntentionalFirst, the very intentional. Like the antiquated hierarchy I mentioned above, some leaders consciously choose to build walls to keep others away. If you’re in sales you know about the “gatekeepers” who defend the castle around the big boss/decision-maker. While this kind of defense might make sense from outside the company, why should you allow it inside?
The CerebralNext, there are the more cerebral ways to get bubble wrapped.
Tangling yourself in technical jargon and complexity can bubblewrap you and isolate you from others. I’ve worked with some pretty smart people in my day. Being truly the smartest guy in the room can have the effect of separating you from others around you.
The PolicyThen there is the leader who immerses him or herself in dogmatic policy, practice or tradition. As soon as someone brings an idea that runs counter to the main way of thinking, the leader quickly rejects the person and the idea. I see this often with companies that have long-standing legacies. If the company is more than 20 years old, likely you will find practices and traditions that insulate the leader’s thinking. In companies like this, I frequently hear emerging managers complain that their chief instruction when taking on new duties was “don’t screw it up.”
The FixHave you created any of the above situations that insulate and isolate your thinking, like bubble wrap protects delicate packages?
Leaders need fresh ideas to compete and stay relevant in changing markets. In addition, changing trends in workforce management require constant vigil for workable new ideas.
The best way to avoid isolation is to actively encourage discussion within your team. Surrounding yourself with talented people is great, but you need to be sure the right things are being discussed. Walking around the floor, shop, or workroom helps too. Engaging with employees at all levels keeps your sensitivity to the real truth of what is going on sharp and tuned in.
Lastly, you might want to check your attitude. One of the biggest hurdles the average entrepreneur faces is pride. If your little idea takes flight and becomes something successful you might deserve to feel good about it.
There is, however, a big difference between a healthy appreciation for what you have and a huge ego.
I’ve seen far too many owners get themselves in big trouble by living behind their ego.
Project management is a well-architected, deliberate approach with well-defined moves and routines to accomplish the set objectives (at least, that is the predominant view of how project management is conceptualized). The idea is to simplify things, make work visible to people assigned to the project, and provide a sense of direction to get the job done efficiently. In hindsight, as such, project management is expected to promote order and certainty (as much as is practically feasible).
This could mean that the basic role of project management is to reduce disorder or uncertainty within the system, in this case, a project organization. Or, in other words, reducing entropy within the project organization. From a socio-economic systems perspective, entropy is defined as the degree of disorder or chaotic state of a system (Markyna & Dyachkov, 2014).
Given the above, we can redefine project management as a soft skills-based approach that aims to reduce uncertainties and maintain order with an expectation to help reduce the entropy of the system (in this case, a project organization) and keep the free energy or exergy of the system available as much as possible. The availability of free energy is critical for the performance of useful work in a project-based or non-project-based context. Reducing uncertainties and disorder (as much as possible) is important for enhancing work efficiency, as it will help people use free energy to perform work rather than deal with the disorder.
In a similar vein, we can define the entropy of a project system as the degree of uncertainty or disorder present within the project organization that has the potential to impair the project organization’s efficiency and output.
The above discussion points to the value that project management knowledge is expected to bring to a project when it is used for the management of projects. However, the good news seems to just end there.
It is no secret that projects fail (often miserably) and face all sorts of problems. This is despite the fact that extensive guidelines and knowledge about how to manage projects efficiently and successfully are available. Even if we don’t look at the plethora of statistics available on project failure rates on the internet, we can find many real-life examples all around us that illustrate the failures and problems that projects face.
The situation raises many questions.
- Do projects fail or face problems because people don’t have the right skills, knowledge, and capabilities?
- Do projects fail because the environment in which they are being executed is not conducive to a successful outcome?
- Do projects fail because guidelines and standards are not compatible with the way projects are executed across different environments and cultural variations?
But the most important of all: do projects fail because project management as a holistic approach is unable to reduce or control the entropy of the system?
While it is safe to say that multiple factors and actors play a role in the success or failure of a project, it is worth examining project management as a domain (taking a holistic view) to see how much it has been able to reduce the entropy of a project system. Or, conversely, what is causing it to not be able to lessen or eliminate the potential entropy of the system? In hindsight, such introspection is vital for the evolution of project management as a discipline and building knowledge in a way that potentially enhances project success rates.
In relation to the questions listed above, finding answers requires significant effort, and this article does not aim to achieve that. However, the goal here is to highlight the importance of investigating the utility and role of project management in reducing entropy, as well as to highlight some of the areas that aid in achieving such goals. So, what could be some of the areas that could help reduce entropy through the use of project management? While there is no fixed answer, paying attention to the following areas could help.
- People
One way to help reduce entropy is to provide people with skills and training. If people are well versed in the work that they need to perform and have the right capabilities, it is likely that they will be able to carry out that work efficiently both in certain and uncertain times. It will help reduce disorder caused by people themselves and hence reduce the potential for entropy within the project system.
- Time management
While a lot of planning is done to accomplish project work, it is often the case that projects face time delays and schedule overrun issues. The occurrence of such issues often results in disorder within the system, and entropy sets in. Therefore, planning time management and carefully following through are critical to reducing entropy.
Project management provides a number of tools and processes to manage time. They can be used to manage time more effectively. However, either people don’t follow the plans or they lack skills in time management, which then result in project delays. Therefore, an introspection on the cause could help in finding the source of the problem, which could help in reducing potential entropy.
- Process management
Process management is another area that could help reduce entropy. Processes that are too strict or too lax may be counterproductive. People may find it difficult to follow too stringent processes and may become disoriented if they follow too loose processes. Either of the two could result in uncertainty and disorder. Therefore, to help reduce entropy, project organizations need to take a balanced approach to process governance so that they help maintain order rather than generating disorder within the project system.
Conclusion:Given the structured nature of project-based work, it is expected that the use of project management will help maintain order within the system. However, the alarming rate at which projects fail and face all sorts of problems raises the question of whether project management is able to build order within the project system.
Answering the question requires a thorough investigation. But, in hindsight, it seems that a lot more needs to be done to help project management build order. In this regard, we have looked at three potential areas of attention with the expectation that focusing on these areas will help maintain order and reduce entropy within the project system. Needless to mention, the discussion in this article on the role of project management in entropy is of a preliminary nature and is only meant to spur some thought.
References
Markyna, I., & Dyachkov, D. (2014). Entropy model management of organization. World Applied Sciences Journal, 30(30), 159-164.
Note: This article was previously published on: https://www.academiasolution.com/Entropy
In Parts 1 & 2 (below), we looked at why organizations should consider ensuring gratitude is a part of their normal business practices, and some of the immediate results when one company did just that. In today’s segment, we’re going to dive a little deeper into some of the feedback from people who experienced gratitude as an active, intentional practice.
Gratitude at Work – One Company’s Story
Connections and team culture. Study participants repeatedly emphasized the impact of gratitude on the quality of their connections with their supervisors, colleagues, clients, and their relationship with their employer. They also pointed to an increase in trust, alignment, and psychological safety in their working teams. These are all strong drivers for performance as well as reducing turnover. Recruiting top talent is positively impacted by healthy workplace culture, and people want to stay when they feel good about their experience as a team member.
Study participants who were in supervisory roles also indicated that gratitude as a formal leadership practice improved their sense of connection with their direct report and felt a positive impact on the overall culture of the team as a result of the shift in tone resulting in gratitude being a regular part of the workplace experience. One participant shared the impact for newer employees who were not part of the study, noting, “I would literally have the new consultants say, Is this normal? Is this normal to appreciate and recognize people?”, and further commented that it felt validating to be able to say that this was something the company actively endorsed.
Job satisfaction. The literature highlights job satisfaction as a key driver of employee engagement. In this study, all participants noted that gratitude had a positive impact on their job satisfaction, and several participants reiterated multiple times that experiencing gratitude from the people around them, including supervisors, coworkers, and clients, had an immediate impact on their job satisfaction. However, it is crucial that gratitude be experienced as an authentic expression and not a forced group activity. Inauthentic expressions of gratitude have the potential to damage the employee experience. If you decide to make gratitude a more regular player in your workplace culture, leadership will want to be very intentional in framing gratitude as a positive practice that must be founded on genuine appreciation for a specific activity or experience to realize the benefits.
Role confidence. Gratitude was highlighted as a contributing factor in role confidence for both experienced employees and those newer to their roles. Participants who were in supervisory roles at the time of this study noted that gratitude allowed them to connect with their direct reports in a positive way, improving those relationships and strengthening the team dynamics, improving their confidence not only in their own work but in the ability of their team to meet business objectives. Supervisors also noted that they had previously believed that gratitude was an important piece of their personal leadership style, and that their participation in this trial validated that belief.
From the individual contributors who participated in this study, several noted that the company culture was a key reason they had joined the company, and their experience as study participants reinforced for them that the company actually takes positive culture seriously, which helped them feel more secure in their role.
Further, participants highlighted the challenges inherent in often being on a smaller working group or the only consultant working on a project and felt that gratitude positively impacted their confidence in those situations. This was noted both in terms of current projects, as it provided positive informal feedback that they were meeting expectations. This also resulted in an increased sense of capability for the individual, which translated to greater confidence when looking forward to upcoming projects to which they already had some visibility as well as a more generalized sense of confidence. As one participant stated, “I feel like I’m walking into this new project with the confidence I didn’t have prior.”
Workplace stress and well-being. The strong response from study participants relating to the impact of their gratitude activities and its influence on their wellbeing and stress as not initially part of the study design, but this theme very prominently and quickly emerged from the data. Participants noted that they felt supported by the company by being allowed to pause periodically to engage in gratitude, and that it reinforced their decision to be part of the organization. They also reflected on how it gave them an opportunity to connect with others, both within and outside of the organization, and that the daily practice created a positive impact on the rest of their workday. Several also commented that they found the practice spilling into their relationships with friends and family members as well, helping bolster those connections.
While this study focused on the workplace, it would be remiss to suggest that stress can be compartmentalized into specific parts of one’s day. Several participants also mentioned that taking time to focus on gratitude for even a few minutes each day provided balance, and an opportunity to reframe their experience as being more positive than they might have been feeling previously. This has strong implications for considering how this practice might be embedded in other well-being initiatives sponsored by the organization or individual employee resource groups.
So how can organizations tap into intentional gratitude to improve outcomes for their teams? We’ll explore some recommendations in the next installment in this series on Gratitude as a lever for improving the employee experience and organizational outcomes.
We know that physical balance is important in life – it enables us to move with confidence in the world without a sensation of dizziness, instability, or indeed actually falling over. Some of us even consciously work on this physical stability by strengthening our core muscles and providing our bodies with a strong base.
We have the same work to do with our inner balance, that part of us that enables us to move in the world with emotional stability, clarity of thought, and even a higher sense of awareness and insight. These capabilities are vital at any point, especially when everything is, or appears to be, in turmoil and uncertainty.
As leaders, our ability to provide a true sense of clarity, calm, and insight comes from how we show up if not more so than what we say or do.
Steadying our inner balance is a deep process that demands awareness, vigilance, and perseverance. Noticing when we are becoming hooked in the outer dramas of life and consciously removing ourselves into a place of objective perspective which we might liken to dis-identifying – that is taking our personal identification with the drama out of the equation. Really ensuring we don’t over personalise without becoming sterile or devoid of connection. Clearly as leaders, this objective stance and perspective is a core requirement and one we cultivate over time. Do we, though, pay enough attention to the things that hook us?
Another aspect of steadying the inner balance is the space we give ourselves for silence and genuine reflection…a deeper level of thought that goes beyond the more task-based focus and one which enables new insights to emerge – as Einstein said, “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
That new thinking isn’t just the obvious bringing in of different people and perspectives, it’s also about allowing a new alchemy to take place within us, so that we see the challenges from a whole new perspective. This requires a steady inner core.
So as we do those ‘crunchies’ for our abdominals let’s also consider the space and time for our inner workout to strengthen our inner balance.
As Valentine’s Day approaches, love is in the air. And while this whole topic is highly charged in today’s workplace, there’s a brand of ‘love’ that’s not only appropriate but also necessary in our contemporary business environment—one that can drive engagement, job satisfaction, and bottom-line results.
Leaders who want to make a positive impact on their employees and their organizations will benefit from showing their love through these four strategies.
Loop others in. Information is the lifeblood of productivity and achievement. And connections with others nourish employees, contributing to qualitative outcomes like happiness and quantitative outcomes like loyalty, retention and even customer satisfaction. So, find ways to loop others into what’s happening and facilitate relationships that deepen connections and commitment.
Offer the resources and support required for success. There is little that’s more demoralizing than trying to do good work and being thwarted by not having what’s necessary to make it happen. Ensure that people have the equipment and materials they need to succeed. Make training available so they have the necessary skills and knowledge. Remove roadblocks—systems, processes, rules, and limitations—that undermine employees’ ability to do their best work. Offer what’s necessary and then step back and see results follow.
Vary responsibilities. Variety is the spice of life… at work too. When possible and desirable on the part of employees, mix things up a bit. Allow people to explore different tasks, learn different skills, play in different sandboxes. The expanded perspective that becomes available as a result of these opportunities enriches one’s current role, opens doors to possible new roles, and keeps everyone fresh, engaged and growing.
Earn respect. Employees crave inspirational leadership. In research I conducted last year, people indicated that one of the things they want most at work is a supervisor who they can trust and respect. Be the leader your people need and want. Earn trust and respect through your day-to-day behavior, interactions, and decisions.
Want to capture the hearts and minds of those who work for you? Ditch the chocolates and offer this kind of authentic, genuine attention that individuals crave and need to perform optimally. Want to drive remarkable results? All you need is this kind of LOVE.
In our last blog, we described why innovation is transformational, and why, at this moment in time, it is more important than ever to innovate, to take advantage of living in a globalised world, interconnected through technologies and values and within an interrelated structure of reality. We stated that innovation-led growth is absolutely critical and that people need to be enabled and equipped to adapt, connect and collaborate in new ways to kickstart change in agile, constructive, equitable, and sustainable ways to innovate in uncertain times.
Yet, our research and experience at ImagineNation over the past 10 years has revealed that many governments, communities, organisations, teams, and leaders, feel somewhat – but not very – confident in their readiness, competence, and capacity to change and innovate in a world of unknowns.
Six strategies to kickstart change and innovate in uncertain times
To help build this confidence we have identified six key strategies and the key first steps to focus your attention, kickstart change, and drive and execute your change and innovation initiatives, to survive, thrive, and flourish in uncertain times.
- Strategy #1
Build change readiness and receptivity to survive and thrive in an uncertain world by:
- Acknowledging the vital need to give people permission and safety that allows them to accept and acknowledge the range of emotional reactions, physical consequences, and work-life imbalances as a result of the imposed WFH environment.
- Building the capacity to acknowledge how people are feeling helps them better re-balance, adapt, and become resilient by supporting them to develop a work-life balance to better connect with others, tolerate uncertainty to change, and innovate in uncertain times.
- Challenging people’s habitual default patterns of remaining in the safety of their comfort zones, breaking habitual “business as usual” habits, inertia, and complacency.
- Being empathic and compassionate with people’s anxieties, confusion, insecurity, and uncertainties about their futures at work, and supporting people through their personal conflicts.
- Strategy #2
Allow, accept and ack knowledge people’s fears and struggles about change, help manage their anxiety, improve their productivity and attune them to the possibilities and potential opportunities in the current business environment by:
- Providing individual and collective support to enable people to refocus their attention, self-manage anxiety, and become grounded, mindful, and fully present, with self and with others, to effectively flow with the paradox of both transformation and disruption.
- Investing in time and money to enable people to unlearn, learn and relearn how to be change ready and change-receptive, and become adaptive to effectively facilitate successful business and digital transformation initiatives.
- Helping people get familiar with the brain’s basic cognitive functions, build the foundations necessary for connecting, managing, and harnessing them for productive good, to help get work done by regulating emotions, suppressing biases, switching tasks, solving complex problems, and thinking creatively.
- Developing 21st-century skills to shift old mindsets, develop new behaviours and the reasoning, problem-solving, planning, and execution skills to initiate and sustain business, cultural and digital transformation initiatives to embed the desired changes and to innovate in uncertain times.
- Developing the fundamental foresight and energising vision to perceive innovation strategically and systemically, adopting an approach that is holistic, human and technology centred, that aligns, enables, and equips people to adapt and grow and to change and innovate in uncertain times.
- Strategy #3
Make sense of innovation, and develop a common understanding and language as to what innovation means in a unique context by:
- Developing an awareness that innovation is, in itself, a change process, and paradoxically requires rigorous and disciplined change management processes and a chaotic creative and collaborative interchange of ideas.
- Clarifying an energising and compelling “why” innovation is important to an overall “cause” developing a passionate purpose and a sense of urgency towards leveraging innovation to achieve long-term success, competitiveness, and growth.
- Knowing how to both make connections and distinguish and leverage the differences between creativity, invention, and innovation.
- Building the safety, permission, and trust that helps facilitate, educate and coach people to deal with the emotional consequences of failure, to reframe it as opportunities to encourage a culture of taking small bets to learn quickly.
- Taking a disciplined and methodical approach to risk planning and management, that allows and encourages a culture of smart risk-taking to reduce risk adversity.
- Creating a consistent and common understanding as to what innovation means in their unique government, community, social, organisational, leadership, or team context and creating an engaging and compelling narrative around it.
- Strategy #4
Optimise the notion that innovation is transformational and leverage it as an overall energising strategic and systemic alignment mechanism and set of processes to kickstart change by:
- Improving engagement, energising and maximizing people’s potential and intentionally cultivating their collective genius to learn how to execute and deliver deep change and innovate in uncertain times.
- Aligning technological, processes and adopting a human-centred structure for change management to deliver business breakthroughs and digital transformation initiatives.
- Breaking down silos and supporting people to collaborate; re-connect, re-energise and re-invent themselves in a disrupted world.
- Maximising differences and diversity that exist between people’s demographics, cultures, values, perspectives, knowledge, experiences, and skillsets to deliver their desired outcomes.
- Learning and coaching people to adapt to survive and thrive by solving complex problems, uncertainty, instability, and trends that are constantly emerging.
- Improving both customer centricity and the customers’ experience.
- Building accountable, equitable, and sustainable business enterprises that people value, appreciate, and cherish.
- Strategy #5
Challenge the status quo and conventional ways of perceiving innovation to unleash the possibilities and the opportunities and kickstart change that true innovation offers by:
- Taking a strategic perspective in the longer term and the need for investment in innovation, rather than being reactive, and short-term profit-focused.
- Developing an understanding of the different types of innovation and how they can be applied, including incremental, breakthrough, sustaining, and disruptive, depending on their strategic imperative and motivation for change, and not just focussing on making continuous and process improvements.
- Improving trust in organisational boards and leadership decisions, reducing self-interest and eliminating corruption, and focussing on being in integrity to successfully empower people in change and innovate in uncertain times.
- Strategy #6
Explore opportunities for measuring, benchmarking, and contextualising the impact of innovation on business performance, leadership, executive team, and organisational ability to adapt, innovate and grow by:
- Embracing new business models, developing leadership capabilities and collaborative competencies, capacities, and building people’s confidence to perceive their worlds differently, and with fresh eyes.
- Letting go of “old” 20th century methods of diagnosing and assessing culture, based solely on the “nice to haves” rather than exploring the emerging “must haves” to enable people to survive and thrive by experimenting with new assessment tools like the OGI® and the GLI® to quantify and qualify current and potential strengths and weaknesses.
- Using data to know what new mindsets, behaviours, and skills to embody and enact, differently to become future-fit and succeed in the 21st century, and accepting that some of these are “not nice”.
- Cultivating an innovation culture to embed deep change, provide learning and coaching to evoke, provoke and create mindset shifts, behaviour and systems changes, and radically new sets of artifacts and symbols through communicating new and different messages that unleash people’s potential to kickstart change and innovate in uncertain times.
Taking the first steps to change and innovate in 2023
Embracing a range of new and different strategic and systemic approaches governments, communities, organisations, teams, and leader organisations can successfully kickstart change and innovate in uncertain times.
By using this moment in time to choose to refuse to walk backward and sleepwalk through life, by simply committing to take the first baby steps in allowing and enabling people to pause, retreat, reflect and:
- Recover from the effects of working mostly alone, from home, and online.
- Re-balance work and home lives through reconnection and resolving loneliness and rebuilding a sense of belonging.
- Know how to tolerate uncertainty and become resilient and adaptive.
- Reimagine and refocus a more energising, compelling, and sustainable future.
- Reinvent themselves, their professions, business practices, and teams in meaningful and purposeful ways.
We can then confidently, meaningfully, and purposefully energetically engage and enroll people, mobilise and harness their collective genius, to innovate in uncertain times in ways that add value to the quality of people’s lives in ways they appreciate and cherish.
To kickstart changes that contribute effectively to global stability, security, connectedness, and sustainability in the current decade of transformation and disruption.
An unwritten rule for nonprofit board membership is that it is best to “go along to get along.” But sometimes a nonprofit director’s “no” vote to an action that has had inadequate discussion can allow him/h to avoid tax penalties that have been levied on other board members for lack of due care.
Stanford University research results indicate that groups with a lone minority dissenter outperform other groups where all members agree. In addition, these groups…”are more successful than (groups) in which all members disagree and fall prey to escalated emotional, difficult-to resolve (group) brawls “ *
The key to success, according to these data, is to,” … have a devil’s advocate (DA) on the nonprofit board. … This is a person or a small board minority that “has the sensitivity to see the differences, perceives them as conflict, and then communicates about the differences in non-confrontational ways.” **
At least one board member with, “high emotional intelligence is needed to play the devil’s advocate role.” *** Other desirable characteristics of a DA are:
- A person(s) with an emotional attachment to the mission generated from personal experience, e.g., a parent whose child has early onset diabetes and has DA attributes described above.
- A person(s) who can be involved with board conflict and not be personally overwhelmed by it.
- A person(s) who does not owe allegiance to friends, family or colleagues also serving on he board.
- A person(s) who has acted as a change agent with other for-profit or nonprofit boards.
- A person(s) with sufficient time to positively drive change.
Can/Should Nonprofits Seek Board Candidates Who Might Become DAs?On the surface, seeking such person might be a waste of time. Most nonprofits seek board members whom they can acculturate to the board norms, not those who might promote board disruptions or conflicts.
Most of the characteristics described above are hard to assess because they are qualitative in character and require the nominations committee to have some unusual sophistication in the interviewing process. For example, the person needs to be visionary to see beyond the current “box” in which the organization finds itself, a difficult trait to perceive in an interview or from records. He/s also needs some modicum of culture intelligence (CQ) to understand the strengths and limitations being addressed for change. It may be that the nonprofit’s culture is strong, but it faces significant headwinds to which the culture is oblivious. Example: Many nonprofit counseling agencies ignored the increased used of prescription medicines that significantly impacted their client counts.
What Can A DA Contribute To A Nonprofit?* Help develop an enhanced vision that allows the organization to avoid the impact of disruptions by technology for social changes. * Help reduce the conflict that will inevitably take place between legacy minded board members and those who want organization modification or reform. * Help set the tone for change. * Celebrate the “health and welfare” of what has been accomplished in the past. * Demonstrate the importance of independent thinking and how it may impact the future of the organization. * Help interest board candidates and potential senior managers to join the nonprofit.
While the need for a nonprofit board DA will be situational, every board needs to occasionally ask itself if a new one will add to its productivity. If the answer is “yes,” then the challenging task is seeking one. Often an independent thinking DA can have productive visions that an acculturated majority on the board needs to consider. In these cases, a DA can be a significant asset.
https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/do-you-have-contrarian-your-team
Ibid.
** Ibid
Most people do not regularly experience gratitude at work, either as recipients or as an active intentional practice of their own. And yet we know that just generally, when we feel appreciated, we feel and do better. What would happen if we purposefully made gratitude a regular part of the “ways of working”? This question had been nagging me since I first started down the path of focusing on employee experience, and now I had the great fortune to partner with an organization that had already dabbled in a gratitude challenge for their employees, and they were interested in seeing what impact a more robust trial might have.
ENJOY PART 1 BELOW ▼
Hey, Thanks! or, the Power of Gratitude in the Workplace
It was unknown how gratitude practices would influence job satisfaction or role confidence for the company I was working with. Their leadership was keenly interested in employee engagement and understanding the levers and mechanisms which drive this core metric. Further, with an eye to considering future opportunities for product offerings, the client organization wanted to gain an understanding of how gratitude might be positioned as part of a product offering in an employee wellness portfolio of services, specifically with an understanding of the return on energy investment for the individuals in an organization.
Current engagement scores have averaged in the 57-65% range over the last three years, with their 2020 survey reporting an average engagement of 70%. Although this represents some improvement, leadership was aiming for engagement scores in the 80-85% range. This desired engagement level was targeted in terms of both creating a culture that is attractive for prospective new talent—a key consideration in innovation companies—as well as retaining talent in an industry where success relies on technical competence, and turnover was a significant risk to both.
The desired outcome of this study was to gain insight into the potential for gratitude to favorably impact individual employee job satisfaction and role confidence and to identify any appreciable differences in that impact on engagement scores that might be observed when comparing the result of internal and external gratitude practices to allow further longitudinal research on the impact of gratitude on employee engagement when practiced over long periods of time or by a larger percentage of employees at all levels of the organization. In short, the organization wanted to learn if gratitude could create a competitive advantage, and this study was the first step in the process.
For my research-happy peeps, for this work, I opted for a qualitative case study design to explore how intentional gratitude practices could impact job satisfaction and how those practices could be improved to allow the partner organization to realize greater performance outcomes. There isn’t an easy way to quantify gratitude (or job satisfaction, actually…. I wish somebody would discover a cheek swab that was reliable for this stuff!) This study also aimed to fill a gap in existing research by extending knowledge on the impact of intentional gratitude practices in the workplace.
The conceptual framework for this study was built upon the theory that employee engagement is seen as an intersection of two forces: employee assessment of personal job satisfaction, and organizational artifacts which support well-being. Job satisfaction tends to increase when employees believe that the work they do has specific value or the results are seen as being worthwhile in some aspect, and when they have high-quality relationships with the people with whom they work. You may have recently seen an influx of articles about belongingness or the importance of relationships at work, which are based on the same foundational work.
Gratitude in personal practices has been shown to improve life satisfaction and to strengthen relationships. Would it have a similar impact at work?
That’s what we were hoping to learn, through the lens of two research questions:
RQ1: How do intentional gratitude practices influence job satisfaction?
RQ2: How can intentional gratitude practices be improved to increase job satisfaction?
The first question explored how intentional gratitude practices impacted job satisfaction for employees, and we identified several ways in which gratitude, both intrinsic and extrinsic, had a positive impact on not only job satisfaction but also employee confidence, well-being, and stress. Study participants in both groups noted that gratitude had a wide variety of positive impacts on their relationships with clients, supervisors, colleagues, and their perception of the organization.
Participants noted the increase in trust and team alignment, including with group members they knew were not part of this study. Several participants also commented that they noticed a “ripple effect” with gratitude, where one person would express gratitude for a specific action or experience, and the recipient would often reciprocate with an expression of gratitude themselves, creating a positive feedback loop that improved team morale and culture. This was also credited with having a mitigating effect on workplace stress, both in terms of work-related stress as well as more generalized stress based on current global and societal issues, such as working remote due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other political and economic issues.
Another prevalent theme was that having the anchor of a daily gratitude practice helped both focus attention on what was going well, but also over time they noted themes emerging, which reinforced existing positive perspectives or mitigated stressful situations such as complex project challenges or the complications caused by working in a remote environment.
The second question explored ways that intentional gratitude practices could be improved to allow for the organization to continue to realize these benefits or even increase the impact of these practices for employees and the organization as a whole. All participants noted, sometimes multiple times, that it was helpful to have organizational support for taking time to pause and experience gratitude intentionally, noting that it can be difficult to prioritize non-billable activities such as self-care or gratitude, and they appreciated the company’s overt support for this activity.
Another common theme was the belief that gratitude should be considered a core leadership value not only at the executive level but also cascading through the tiers of the organization. Two participants mentioned that they felt it could be a positive addition to leadership development for newer people leaders within the organization, with multiple references to how receiving gratitude from one’s supervisor had an immediate and lasting positive impact for the recipient both in terms of job satisfaction and confidence.
Additional findings were that participants in supervisory roles noted the belief that gratitude as an intentional workplace practice could have a positive impact on employee turnover rates, as well being a beneficial opportunity to connect with and reinforce the supervisor-direct report relationship. This included the supervisor’s own observations and experiences, as well as having the opportunity to share positive client feedback with team members. This reinforces individual contributor sentiments that positive client feedback was beneficial, especially for those working on very small teams with limited interaction with others.
Table 1
Key Findings for Research Questions
(Source, Ratekin, S.A, “Gratitude as an Organizational Performance Lever”, Proquest, 2021)Next time we’ll look at some feedback from the people who actively experienced gratitude in their workplace during this study. How about you? Have you expressed or received gratitude at work lately? How did that impact you? I’d love to hear about your experiences!
Consider this pattern in your personal and professional world, you are having a conversation and you start to say “something” and you stop. Something inside you hears, knows, has heard, or believes that you may be saying something that is incorrect, insensitive, or “wrong”. And you stop speaking.
It gets hidden. When you add up all the hidden conversations we are not having out of fear or shame, lack of knowledge or understanding you will know why many diversity and inclusion initiatives are failing. People STOP speaking instead of learning to communicate, be curious, ask, say it wrong, fall down and get back up.
Shame shuts down learning.
If our goal IS learning, knowledge, and understanding then we need to build bridges, not barricades to conversations that create real change.
We are all practicing – it is how we learn to do anything, here are some tips for practice:
- Notice – when you have that feeling or you decide not to say anything – ask yourself what is making me hesitate?
- Curiosity instead of shame: how can I have my thought or question with curious kindness, not apology and shame, lead with “I’m still learning…” vs “I’m so sorry I don’t know…” the brain actually tells our bodies it’s safe to proceed. THIS is where learning happens.
- Open the space – if someone is struggling, using language, tone or knowledge that you do not find acceptable, open a discussion not a demolition. I am not writing this from an ivory tower or textbook, I’m writing from experience on both sides. In the world of diversity and inclusion, people often assume I have all the “right words” and all the knowledge, knowing that I don’t makes me human and kind. I have been called out and shamed for not using the “right” words, and every time it made me think – I am not a good person, and that is not the truth…like everyone, I am learning. I am grateful to those who continue to build bridges for my learning, there is NO finish line on inclusion.
Walking with curious kindness. “Creating organizations where people want to be”
Leadership includes sharing what you learn so that others may follow and surpass your efforts. Why surpass? Because where one may be today marks a unique point in time, the one factor we can all count on is societal change. As we embrace the best advice, we can add it to our repertoire and enhance it as we move forward. Even better is when more people willingly share their best strategies with those on similar paths. The sign of leadership excellence is in the appreciation one receives.
The sign of leadership excellence is in the appreciation one receives. Below you will find what I believe to be top-notch business advice from leaders in the field.
My StoryOne traditional way to share information is through publishing articles and books. Early in my career, Dale Carnegie’s book, ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ put me on a better footing for sales success. The secret is not to sell so much, but instead, listen, be professionally personal while sharing stories, and find commonalities between you. Upon developing the relationship, trust builds, and sales are born.
The next book that empowered my sales effort was S.P.I.N. Selling by Neil Rackham. It was the opposite of traditional telling-selling, which spoke to me as I always grasp ‘the opposite’ of tradition. Remembering questions in specific vocabulary is not for me. However, four letters that portray the questions to ask, in my own words, are easy to remember. SPIN stands for ‘Situation, Problem(s), Implied problem(s), and Need. My sales effort greatly improved upon applying Neil Rackham’s suggestions.
An old television and movie quote comes to mind that indicates perhaps there is an even better way to do business, ‘There is a new sheriff in town.’ Focusing solely on sales, marketing, technology, or any other business discipline will not create the results you may seek in today’s environment. Accordingly, it is up to each of us to seek out top-notch business advice from leaders in the field.
Powerhouse Business GrowthToday’s success differentiator is to embrace and combine all the varying disciplines for powerhouse business growth. To my amazement, what typically would be kept secret is openly spelled out in the brand-new book, Reinventing Virtual Events, published by Wiley, and authored by Julia Nimchinski and Justin Michael. The content spells out top-notch business advice from leaders in the field.
Reinvention is Essential for GrowthAlthough planning a virtual event may be outside your plan, the concepts and facts behind the title are bound to help businesses of all types. The theme is to cross-train the skills of staff and oneself. It’s only the beginning to have an excellent skillset in one field, but imagine how and what a cross-over to other disciplines will do for your career or business.
Long ago, a coach advised me to continue adding streams to my core expertise of sales for a more robust output. He then spoke of the ‘Power of 10.’ When we possess one skill, we reach one audience. But the results can be exponential when we expand upon our skills and services, to ten offerings, as an example. Mathematically, when we multiply 10 x 9 x 8 down to 1, the powerhouse business growth number is 3,628,800.
It may sound unimaginable to dedicate oneself to learning the skillset of ten different careers. However, when we undertake to learn the essentials of a couple of other disciplines, we are well on our way. Cross-training oneself plus employees will guide you to the results you desire that may have been previously unimaginable.
HYPCCCYCL is the creation of Julia and Justin, featuring top B2B revenue leaders cross-training their GTM (go-to-market) skills with VCs. The content of Reinventing Virtual Events provides excellent insights to enable you and your teams to achieve more than you may currently believe to be possible. Watching the games in action is remarkable, an ideal learning vehicle, and viewers often participate in future rounds. The book sets the stage for our new business model, and we invite you to join the performance, literally.
If you have any lingering doubts or are consumed with intrigue, you may find more information about Julia Nimchinski and Justin Michael on their LinkedIn profiles.
Office Environment and Entrepreneurial SpiritToday’s theme is not only about learning and combining varying skill sets but also embraces the theme of an inclusive environment. Each person on one team possesses experience and knowledge. Above, we speak about exponential results. Imagine what the cross-over of training between disciplines utilizing everyone’s experience can do for the overall business growth outcome. Moreover, the diversity of teams adds to a greater depth of knowledge that may convert to intriguing a far more robust audience.
In Conclusion: Top-Notch Business Advice from Leaders In The FieldThe choice is always ours to either dismiss the business advice from leaders or pay serious attention to do our due diligence by researching what they have to say. Feeling secure with your current knowledge becomes the right time to heed top-notch business advice from leaders in the field who are making a difference in society.
Many C-suites and business commentators seem to believe that the Great Resignation is a short-term, post-Covid blip which will fizzle out as the global recession hits consumers. However, this superficial analysis ignores the underlying drivers behind the Great Resignation, as well as sweeping changes globally in people’s attitudes towards what they want from their jobs and work-life balance together with the developing demographics of the global workforce.
We’re at an inflection point when it comes to how organisations move forward. The Great Resignation offers a window into why companies are failing as well as opportunities for those who learn its lessons to change, develop and improve performance. Those that deal in denial will almost certainly waste these opportunities.
Organisations were put to the test by COVID, given its speed and depth of impact. Chronic pre-existing problems related to leadership, culture, empowerment, agility, and effective decision-making were highlighted and exacerbated. These were long-standing issues which should have been properly addressed but never were It also highlighted new possibilities to improve performance and wellbeing.
Hybrid working, for example, had never been fully utilised despite it having been a very real possibility for many organisations for years.
Only by acknowledging the truth that our experiences shape our views, which subsequently influence our behaviour in response to various circumstances can we hope to understand and learn from what we have been through.
Keeping this in mind helps us make sense of what we are seeing now and what we need to do next.
The COVID LessonsEveryone’s experience of COVID varied widely, depending at least in part on their proximity to the risk of infection. Based on this, McKinsey divided the working population into four distinct groups:
- 20% – continued to work – low risk roles, e.g. outdoor & construction
- 30% – furloughed / unemployed – e.g. hospitality and retail
- 30% – remote work – e.g., office-based staff
- 20% – essential workers – high risk but continued to work, e.g., healthcare and transport
How different groups experienced COVIDImpact varied across different groups too.The most affected were women, minority groups, younger adults and lower-paid workers. Those industries that essentially closed down during the pandemic had higher proportions of employees in these groups.
In terms of organisations there was a significant difference between different individual organisations and sectors. Some failed, some thrived. Few leaders are aware of the vast differences in events and outcomes. That’s because business leaders only know what happened where they were and do not have clear insights into what happened elsewhere.
The reality was that organisations which survived well if not thrived had a positive culture, trust, empowerment, and where leadership adapted more successfully. Their teams were able to work together more effectively and were more agile in reacting to the rapidly changing circumstances created by the pandemic.
COVID required executives to create the right environment for their organisation’s continued success set against unprecedented demands. They needed to step up their game, but many did not. Speaking to many of these executives post-COVID about their experiences, I was struck by one consistent theme: “COVID showed us who the leaders really were in our organisation.”
Remote WorkingThere is often an assumption that almost everybody has ended up working remotely. But, in practice, remote working is not consistently applicable.
Overall, only 30% of workers were able to do so. Only 5% of those earning under £20k pa were able to remote compared to 95% of those earning £50k pa. Furthermore, 55% of jobs in London were “remotable”, whereas in northeast England, the figure was only 35%.
Is working from home here to stay?The experiences from pandemic-induced remote working teaches us valuable lessons about how to make hybrid working effective in the future. What were they? Simply that, if set up and implemented correctly, remote working works well. It delivers improvements in work performance over office-based work, especially in individual activities that require creativity or focused work. It also enhanced wellbeing even during the pandemic, which itself negatively impacted wellbeing globally. Within this, the overall experience of remote working gives us an excellent roadmap to make hybrid working highly successful, if we learn the lessons. One of those lessons is that, in cases where remote working was not set up effectively, the cause could be traced to insufficient support from leadership. Here’s how this impacted the results:
- 30% found difficulty adjusting to the remote environment.
- 30% felt lonely and disconnected from their organisation.
- 15% felt their mental health suffered.
These are leadership problems rather than technology issues.
Key issues in remote working
Shipping services are an essential part of any business, but the costs can quickly add up. Indeed, high shipping costs can be an obstacle to growth,k preventing your business from reaching out to a broad audience market or from financing its expansion.
When it comes to shipping costs for businesses, proper logistics planning is essential. Without a well-thought-out logistics strategy, businesses can find themselves with higher than necessary costs for their shipping services. With the right planning and execution, however, companies can save considerable amounts on their shipping services.
Inadequate logistics planning can result in inefficient routes, poor supplier management, and an inability to take advantage of discounts. Companies may also find themselves paying for services that are not needed or paying more for services than necessary due to a lack of information. Furthermore, companies may be running up unnecessary expenses without careful consideration of things like fuel costs, vehicle maintenance, and scheduling.
Having a comprehensive logistics plan in place helps to identify the most cost-effective strategies for the business’s shipping needs. Below, we review the most common challenges in logistics planning.
Bulky Packaging
Packaging plays an important role in shipping costs. Many businesses unknowingly use bulky packaging that increases their shipping costs. Not only does bulky packaging take up a lot of space, but it also adds extra weight that may require additional shipping fees or charges. When it comes to packing your products for shipment, consider the size and weight of the item and make sure you’re using the appropriate sized box and packing materials. Indeed, one of the first considerations of logistics planning is to define the exact size of your shipping. Understandably, large shipping will increase transport costs, using more truck space and, consequently, more trucks. Yet, switching to adequate wholesale packaging supplies that better meet your size requirements could save costs in more than one way:
- Businesses can load more items into the same truck
- Businesses can deliver more items simultaneously
- From a logistics point of view, it is easier to schedule shipping when there are fewer trucks to coordinate
This will not only reduce your shipping costs, but it can also help to ensure that items are securely packaged and protected during the journey. Cardboard boxes that are too large can contribute to damage during transport.
Not Finding the Right Shipping Partner
Finding the right shipping partner is a crucial step in reducing costs and ensuring goods reach their destination safely and on time. Working with a partner who’s experienced in handling similar shipping to the same region(s) can help you avoid costly mishaps, as well as help keep shipping costs low.
When looking for a shipping partner, there are several key factors to consider. First, you need to find a partner knowledgeable about the particular type of shipping you’re dealing with, whether domestic or international, road freight or air freight. You should also ensure the partner has an established network of reliable carriers and customs clearance services.
You should also consider the capabilities of the shipping partner in terms of size and weight limitations, transit times, and tracking capabilities. Additionally, ensure that the shipping partner can accommodate any special requirements for your shipment, such as hazardous goods or temperature-controlled items.
Finding the right shipping partner also involves researching their customer service record. Make sure they have a good reputation for providing quality customer service and responding promptly to any issues. In addition, look into their pricing structure and ask them if they offer discounts or incentives for certain types of shipping.
By taking the time to research different shipping partners, businesses can greatly reduce their shipping costs while improving service quality.
Aiming for a Market That’s Too Big for You
Understandably, businesses want to maximize their profits by expanding their market reach. However, many businesses need to recognize the unique shipping challenges that come with aiming for an international market. As such, they are often faced with costly problems when getting their products to overseas customers.
First, international shipping can be very expensive and time-consuming, as you have to navigate different customs regulations, international taxes, and tariffs. You will also need to consider the costs of making sure your shipments are compliant with all necessary regulations and laws. Additionally, transportation times can vary greatly due to distance, weather, and other factors.
Second, it can be difficult to tailor shipping to meet the needs of each individual country. For example, certain countries may require special packaging materials or labeling to ensure products meet health and safety standards.
Essentially, international customers are likely to look for competitor alternatives when a business fails to:
- Match as much as possible shipping times between local and international shoppers
- Keep international shipping costs low
- Prepare for custom taxes
Lack of Security on Trucks
Without proper security solutions in place, your fleet is vulnerable to theft and loss of goods while in transit. This can be a huge financial and reputationally setback for any business. Fortunately, there are fleet security solutions available that can prevent thefts and loss.
For example, dashcams are a great way to ensure your shipments are safe and secure. Dashcams record the driver’s journey and provide an extra layer of protection against break-ins.
Another important aspect of using a dashcam in your fleet is to protect your fleet from unfair claims. For example, when a customer requests a refund for an item that was damaged during transit, you can use the dashcam footage to show that transit was uneventful and even record the state of the shipping on arrival. False claims can be expensive for businesses.
Additionally, you can use item GPS tracking to monitor shipments in real time. Item tracking allows businesses to monitor the progress of their shipments, meaning any theft or loss can be detected quickly.
Lack of Fleet Data Tracking
Fleet data tracking is essential for businesses looking to reduce their shipping costs. By tracking the performance of their fleets, companies can optimize routes and schedules to save on fuel costs, maintenance, and labor. The ability to analyze historical data helps businesses to identify areas of inefficiency, allowing them to plan better for the future.
Tracking vehicle performance also helps to spot any potential problems before they become serious. The right fleet data tracking system will provide detailed speed, location, and driver performance reports. Companies can then use this data to monitor and reward drivers while giving them a clear set of goals to work towards.
Using fleet data tracking can also help businesses increase their customer service, as it allows for better predictions of when orders will arrive. This can be instrumental in ensuring that customers receive their orders on time, which can, in turn, build trust and loyalty.
Overall, fleet data tracking plays an essential role in reducing shipping costs for businesses. By keeping track of vehicle performance, companies can optimize routes and schedules and provide better customer service. With the right system in place, businesses can save money and ensure that their customers are satisfied with their service.
Poor Fleet Management
What does it mean to manage your fleet efficiently? Poor fleet management can significantly increase the costs associated with shipping goods for businesses.
Regular and planned truck maintenance helps keep your vehicles in top condition, which can reduce breakdowns and potential delays that can incur extra costs. Frequent servicing and inspection should be done to ensure that the trucks are running as they should, that they meet safety requirements, and that they are efficient in their use of fuel and other resources. Yet, the biggest challenge when it comes to logistics planning is to be able to determine not only when trucks need servicing and repairs, but also how to best schedule it without affecting shipping schedule. That’s precisely where data tracking can highlight wear and tear risks and optimize planning around essential maintenance tasks.
Additionally, driver training is essential for many reasons. Training can encourage drivers to take better care of their vehicles while in transit. It can also include topics such as driving techniques in a variety of challenging road conditions, which can ultimately lead to cost savings.
Inadequate Driver Rota
Creating an effective driver rota is one of the most important parts of logistics planning. It helps ensure that shipments are delivered on time, to the right locations, and in the most cost-effective way possible.
However, if the driver rota is not properly planned and managed, it can lead to a number of problems that can increase shipping costs. For example, an inadequate driver rota may cause delays due to drivers being overworked or under-utilized, which can affect the quality of their driving. Shipping delays can often be traced back to ineffective rota scheduling.
In addition, an inadequate driver rota may also lead to increased safety risks due to fatigue. This could result in more accidents and damages, which would add to the costs of shipping. Therefore, it is essential for businesses to plan their driver rotas carefully, taking into consideration the needs of both drivers and customers.
By creating an effective driver rota and ensuring that it is well managed, businesses can significantly reduce shipping costs. Indeed, planning routes effectively to play to individual drivers’ experience, ensuring that drivers are well rested, and making sure that all customer orders are met on time will save money on fuel, labor, and stress.
In conclusion, the increasing complexity of logistics planning for shipping services can hold business growth hostage. Saving costs and protecting your business reputation through effective shipping begins with a strong logistics strategy that encompasses customers’, drivers’, and fleet needs.
There is no shortage of ways to grow your business, but doing it in the most profitable way possible is more challenging. If you want to lead your business to greater success, you need to implement management techniques that have proven to be effective.
Managing your business correctly should be your top priority. When deciding on a management strategy, you must look not only at its profit potential but also its suitability to your company and its needs.
How successful companies manage their businessesHere is a look at five crucial components for managing your company and increasing profits.
Setting goals
Goals are integral to success in any business. Setting goals helps you stay on track and achieve what you want in any facet of life. To set successful goals, it is important to follow these four steps:
- Define your goal.
- Choose a timeframe.
- Create an action plan.
- Write down the goal and post it in a place where you will see it often.
Make sure that your goals are realistic and achievable. Once you have done this, you can move on to determining what resources will be needed for the company to meet these goals and objectives. You may also want to take into account any risks or threats that could affect your company.
Planning
Businesses need to plan ahead. Planning is the process of making decisions about what will happen in the future and how you will accomplish your goals. It is important for businesses to plan because it helps them make better decisions and saves time in the long run.
Planning is an essential activity for any business as it helps them make better decisions and save time. To be more efficient, businesses need to plan ahead by anticipating what they might need or want in the future while also considering their current needs and wants.
These plans can help them decide what to do with their current inventory or how to prepare for potential changes in the market that they are not able to foresee. A business needs to be proactive in planning and consider many different factors during the planning stage.
For example, a factory might need to plan ahead if it is considering expanding its business or buying more equipment. In this situation, the owner needs to think about what type of equipment they could buy, where they would install it, what training employees would need to operate and maintain it, and what business value it would bring.
You can learn more about planning through relevant education, such as earning a master’s in business management online. If you already have a degree and are looking to expand your business management skills, this online program from Aston University gives you the flexibility to stay in your current job and earn your degree online.
Budgeting
Budgeting is a vital aspect of running a business. Without it, you won’t know how much money you have to spend on your business and what areas need more investment. A budget is simply an estimate of income and expenses over a set period.
There are two types of budgets: short-term and long-term. A short-term budget is usually for the next year, while a long-term budget can be for five years or longer. The budget should be tailored to fit both your current situation and your long-term vision for your business.
The budget should be based on your forecasted income and expenses over a specific period. The revenue generated during that time is then divided evenly between expenses, meaning that every dollar you spend will have to bring in an equal amount of money or make up for the deficit in other ways.
Execution
Execution is the process of bringing an idea to life. It is about doing the work and getting things done. Execution also means taking action on your ideas and making them happen.
There are many ways to execute in business, whether you are following a plan or simply moving forward instinctively. You can execute in a linear way or an iterative way. You can do this using one set of resources, you can depend on several sets of resources. You can execute by yourself, or you can get help from others.
It is important to we learn how to do this well because execution is what makes your ideas matter in the world
Maintaining internal and external relations
Maintaining internal and external relations is one of the most important aspects of any business. Internal relations are those that exist between the staff members of a company, while external relations are those that exist with customers, suppliers, partners and other stakeholders.
The success of a business depends on its ability to maintain both internal and external relations. A company will not be able to grow without establishing good relationships with its stakeholders.
It is important to make sure that your employees are happy overall and satisfied with their work. This will result in higher productivity, less turnover, and a more positive team environment.
The best way to make sure that employees are satisfied is by listening to them, understanding their needs and making changes accordingly. This will also help you maintain external relations because you will be able to provide the best service possible for your customers.
The importance of well-developed skills in your daily role as a leader
Business management techniques are skills that can help you grow your business in a sustainable way. They can help you organize your tasks and make sure everything is running smoothly. There are many benefits to learning and implementing new business management techniques, from a well-organized and productive workday to better customer service and increased productivity.
If you want to have a business that is likely to do well and which you can probably enjoy running, then you might want to look into the possibility of running a logistics company. This is one of those company types that are pretty much always going to be a good bet, and which you will therefore want to really consider as a potential means of running your own business. In this post, we are going to take a look at just what it takes to success in the world of logistics.
Remember It’s About SalesOne of the things that people often forget about in logistics is that it is actually more to do with sales than many other factors. So as long as you are aware of that and you remember that, you should find that you are going to be able to keep yourself aware of the means by which you actually find success in logistics. That means utilizing your sales skills to really make a huge success of the process. You’ll then be able to start up a unishippers franchise or similar whenever you want and make it truly successful.
Planning Is EssentialThe ability to plan well is something else that you are going to need to think about here, because otherwise you might struggle to make your logistics work out as they should. Good planning means that you are going to have the ability to see what’s going to happen, and that is more or less a working definition of good logistics. As such, it’s something that you really need to make sure that you are thinking about. You might be surprised at just how effective it can be and how much it can make a difference to your business.
The Supply ChainIn a sense, logistics is all about the supply chain, making sure that you keep it happy and that you are doing whatever you can to use the right partners in the right way and at the right time. So as long as you are aware of how to do that, it’s likely going to mean that you have much more in the way of success going on with your logistics business, and it’s amazing how true that can actually turn out to be. Make sure that you never forget the wide supply chain issues that you need to keep in mind.
Analysis & ChangeAt all times, you need to be paying attention to what is going on in your logistics business and make sure that you are analyzing it and seeing what might need to change. Just doing that is going to mean that you are much more likely to succeed, because you will be diverting attention to where it needs to be at all times. So that is something that you are going to want to think about here for sure, and which could really help you to build up a business that you are happy with and proud of.
Top ten tips to reset and prosper as a leader and communications practitionerChristmas can feel like the light at the end of the tunnel, after a long slog through cold mornings and gloomy afternoons. The end-of-year weariness is temporarily offset by office parties, champagne, and high spirits. And with it comes the blessed relief that for the only time in the year, email in-boxes will grind to a halt– or at least, can be ignored guilt free… if only for a few days.
But festive cheer can be laced with an underlying sense of doom. We know what follows party season: the dreaded January return. The work put on hold will not disappear, fires yet to be put out still smoulder.
We’ve all been there– senior communications professionals are no exception. This is the time great numbers of us ask whether our company truly values us, or if there might be a better fit elsewhere– even if it means branching out alone into consultancy.
Perhaps you’re updating your CV or flicking through the job pages on LinkedIn. You could be thinking about how to refresh your technical skills, and finally trying to get your head around the new rules of digital PR and marketing.
Whatever your dilemma as a senior comms pro, whether you do decide to jump ship or not, there are some immediate steps you can take to get your mojo back and take control of 2023.
Take this time to reflect
If you’re experiencing overwhelm and low motivation, or your confidence has taken a hit, fear not: you are not alone. Many of us take a mental pause this time of year. The thoughts repressed all year by the relentless treadmill of the day-to-day can start to emerge; existential questions about career and life choices bubble up.
Am I where I thought I would be this time last year? Am I succeeding? What will be my focus for the new year? What are my goals and how can I reach them? Am I healthy… Am I happy?!
For some, this is a time of possibility. Perhaps you have big plans and your mind is whirring with ideas of how to achieve them. Maybe you know where your growth areas are and you’re looking for opportunities to upskill.
Or, maybe the time spent with your family this festive season is a reminder that the balance is not quite right. Your relationships are strained and something’s got to give.
Take stock of how to become the leader that you want to be for ‘23
Here’s how:
- Recognise your own agency. You are where you are as a result of your own choices, and you can choose to do things differently. Whether that is a complete change of career or a simple shift in mindset, try to look at your situation with fresh eyes.
- Assess your support network. Do you have friends and colleagues that you can rely on? A mentor and/or coach that can help you to see new paths or perspectives, and help you to plan the way ahead?
- Get back to basics. When did you last consider your values? What success looks like? What makes you happy? Make some time over the holidays to dig deep and work out what it is you really want.
- Visualise your future. Imagine you’ve had the most amazing 2023. You’re sitting down with a friend and telling them all about your successes and achievements. What were they? What were the steps that helped you to achieve them? What was the game-changing moment/decision/action?
- Decide now, that you will make time for your future, and invest in yourself. This will mean different things to different people. It could mean carving out time for self-care, signing up to a course, committing to finding a new job in the next 3 months, or engaging a coach to keep you on track. What’s important is that you decide.
Together with assessing where you are in your career, this is also a good time to take stock of your knowledge and understanding of communications in the digital era. Are you and the team you lead seizing the new opportunities available to have an impact, or could your approach to communications benefit from a refresh?
Step up as a communications practitioner
As a communications leader, you know the ‘game’ has changed dramatically from when you first started out in your career. Traditional print and broadcast media are not as trusted as they once were.
So why focus so much effort on communicating via intermediaries your audience either distrusts or, in increasing numbers, has tuned out? It makes no sense, especially in a crowded media landscape in which audiences have a seemingly infinite number of choices on where to receive their information.
You’ve probably spent a fair chunk of 2022 trying different approaches on social media, dipping your toes into the podcast pool, and even some good old-fashioned press releases and media pitches… and everything in between! But it doesn’t seem to move the needle.
You need your organisation to gain more profile, but it is increasingly hard not to get drowned out by competitors. So how do you gain more visibility with the audiences that are important to you?
Start by making sure you focus on thought leadership and community building. Stop chasing your audience but instead create the platforms to bring them to you.
Become a (better) communications guru in ‘23
Here’s how:
- Build better platforms: review your organisation’s purpose, vision, value, and mission so you can align all communications programmes around what is most important.
- Prime your audience: check that you have segmented your audiences, understand them and try to think like them– so you can fix their problems.
- Market positioning: try to identify your organisation’s place in the industry, what you mean to accomplish, how you will do so, and when.
- Content audit: review your content strategy, communications strategy, marketing strategy, assets, content calendar, target audience, and process workflow.
- Thought leadership & community building: Create a content programme to enable your organisation to be a more influential voice for your industry. Cultivate your own industry community so that your business becomes the industry’s ‘watering hole.’
COAUTHOR: Nick O’Hara has more than 20 years’ experience in strategic communications, public affairs, and PR, having worked in senior roles for a number of highly respected organisations in both the public and private sectors. He is a former UK civil servant with intimate knowledge of Westminster and Whitehall, who has advised cabinet ministers and permanent secretaries. Throughout his career, he has specialised in designing and implementing external communications strategies, advising senior executives on political, policy and communications issues. In 2022 he co-founded Renovata—a global strategic communications and thought leadership consultancy—because he wanted to empower visionaries to make their communities, their industry, and the world better. He now focuses on working with leaders in the private, public and non-profit sectors to develop their purpose and improve how they communicate it.
Are you considering moving your business overseas? If so, there are a few things you should do to prepare. In this post, we’ll discuss four key areas of preparation: defining your goals, doing your research, financial planning, and creating a support network.
When it comes to moving your business overseas, it’s important to have a clear understanding of why you’re doing it and what you hope to achieve. What are your long-term goals for the business? Are you looking for new markets or opportunities? Answering these questions will help you create a roadmap for success.
We’re going to explore these issues and more today. By the time you’ve finished reading this guide, you should have a fair better idea of how to go about moving your business overseas, so read on now and find out more.
Define your goalsThe motivations for moving a business overseas can vary, but typically fall into one or more of the following categories:
To tap into new markets: Moving to a new country can open up your business to an entirely new customer base. This can be especially helpful if your current market is saturated or growth has stagnated. It’s very often the case that there are more opportunities for business in other locations, and you can take advantage of that.
To access new talent: In some cases, businesses move overseas in order to gain access to a larger pool of potential employees. This is often the case in industries that require highly skilled workers, such as technology and engineering. If you feel that you can’t access the specialized and skilled labor you need or you can’t afford to do so in your current location, moving to a new location might make sense.
To lower costs: Doing business in another country can sometimes be cheaper than maintaining operations domestically. This may be due to lower labor costs, cheaper raw materials, or more favorable tax rates. Costs matter when it comes to running any kind of business, and you can’t afford to run things in an unprofitable way for too long. It’s not sustainable to do so.
What are your long-term goals for your business?Before making the decision to move your business overseas, it’s important to have a clear understanding of your long-term goals. Are you looking to expand your customer base? Grow revenue? Enter into new markets? Once you know what you hope to achieve, you can start developing a plan for how best to make the move.
Start by defining what success looks like for your business. This will help you identify specific, measurable goals to work towards. What success looks like moving forward for your business in its new location might look quite different to what success looked like before when you were based in your previous location.
Once you’ve created some goals, create a timeline for your goals and break them down into smaller, short-term goals and actionable steps. This will help you stay organized and on track. And try to involve your team in the goal-setting process. This will help ensure that everyone is on the same page and working towards the same objectives.
Do your researchIf you’re moving your business to a new country, it’s important to research the business and cultural norms in that country. What types of businesses are common there? What is the work culture like? Are there any special considerations you need to be aware of when doing business in that country? These things matter more than you might imagine when running a business.
What is the market potential for your product or service?Before you move your business overseas, it’s important to assess the market potential for your product or service. Is there a demand for your product or service in the target country? Are there any competitors already operating in that market? What is the potential for growth?
Stay up to date on industry trends and developments, and consider how they might impact the potential for your product or service, especially within the context of the location you’ve just relocated to.
What are the regulatory environment and legal considerations?When moving your business overseas, you need to be aware of the regulatory environment and any legal considerations that may apply. What licensing or permits do you need to operate in your target country? Are there any restrictions on foreign ownership of businesses? What employment laws exist in that country?
The last thing you want is for your business to immediately land itself in hot water as a result of regulatory issues. If you know how to do business in your new location in a safe, legal and careful way, you’ll have one less thing to worry about later on, freeing you up to focus on other things.
How will you physically make the move?Finally, when moving your business overseas, you need to consider how you will physically make the move. Do you need to ship equipment or inventory? Will you be relocating employees? How long will it take to get everything set up and running smoothly in your new location?
Moving an entire new business to a new country is not always easy, and it’s something that you’ll have to take the time to plan out. If you fail to do so, you’ll be dealing with lots of problems and frustration later. Moving abroad is a lot easier if you have the right support from professional moving companies that know how to organize overseas moves.
Plan your financesHow will you finance the move?
There are a few ways to finance a move overseas. One is to use personal savings. This can be a good option if you have enough money saved up and you’re confident in your ability to make the transition successfully. Another option is to take out a loan. This can be more risky, but it can also give you the flexibility to invest more in your new venture. Finally, you could look for investors or partners who are willing to help finance your move. What’s most important here is that you finance the move in a financially responsible way and in a way that won’t put the business at risk.
What are the tax implications of moving your business?
There are a few things to consider when it comes to taxes and moving your business overseas. First, you’ll need to research the tax laws of the country you’re moving to. This will help you determine what kind of tax burden you’ll be facing and how best to structure your business to minimize your taxes. You may also want to speak with a tax advisor or accountant before making the move, just to be sure you understand all the implications. Tax is not something you should take lightly, especially when setting up your business in a new location.
What are the potential risks and rewards of moving your business?
As with any major decision, there are both risks and rewards associated with moving your business overseas. Some of the potential risks include cultural misunderstandings, difficulty adapting to new regulations, and language barriers. But there can also be some great rewards, like access to new markets, opportunities for growth, and a chance to build an international brand. It’s important to weigh both the risks and rewards carefully before making a decision.
Create a support networkWhen making the decision to move your business overseas, it is important to create a support network of advisors and mentors who can help you navigate the process. These individuals should be familiar with the business and cultural norms in your target country, as well as the regulatory environment and legal considerations. Additionally, they should have experience in physically making the move.
The more support you have around you, the easier it is for you to make good decisions and set your business up in a new location in a way that makes sense and a way that’s going to work in its favor in the long term. Without informed and trustworthy support, it’s very easy to make avoidable mistakes and missteps.
Some questions to consider when selecting your advisors and mentors:
- Who has experience in moving a business overseas?
- Who has knowledge of the business and cultural norms in your target country?
- Who understands the regulatory environment and legal considerations?
- Who can provide advice on how to physically make the move?
Once you have selected your advisors and mentors, it is important to keep them updated on your progress and seek their input regularly. This will ensure that you are making the best decisions for your business and that you have a smooth transition to your new location.
When moving your business overseas, it is important to first define your goals, do your research, plan your finances, and create a support network. By taking these steps, you can be prepared for the challenges and opportunities that come with expanding your business into a new market.
In my daily work, I speak with, and write for an audience that is very familiar, and -I hope- convinced of the value that partnerships bring to the table. However, in the larger context, it is very common to see references to getting rid of “the middleman” and “going directly to the manufacturer”. These messages predicate price savings that rarely materialize, on the basis that the layers in a value chain between the manufacturer and the consumer add no value whatsoever, and all they do is add up to the cost, collecting some type of an underserved fee. This article is from the point of view of someone who has worked for years for companies that have leveraged external partners to make it possible for their businesses to reach new heights, and offer a better experience for their customers.
WHEN THINGS WORK, COMPLEXITIES ARE IGNOREDThis indicates that about 70% of the global economy flows indirectly, and for good reason. Each one of the participants adds value. But how is value added? Why do we need these intermediaries?
In today’s complex business environment, there is almost no product or service that is made or delivered end-to-end, by one single company. There is always an intricate network of supply-chain elements and partnerships of sometimes completely independent companies involved. With the exception of the few of us who are deeply wading in the waters of partner ecosystems, these complexities tend to be ignored.
To make things worse, not even in some partner-friendly companies is everyone adequately acquainted with their own delivery models. More than a few times, I have found myself briefing an executive about the differences between their own Value Added Resellers and Agents.
Very often, these relationships are also, more than simplified, dumbed down. They are sometimes wrongly classified like a “supplier” or even worse, called “the middle man”, as if for some inherited privilege they have earned the right to collect some type of tax that they don’t really deserve.
THE MIDDLEMAN IS THERE FOR A REASONIn reality, many companies rely on partnerships to deliver their products to the market, and their partners are an integral part of their Go-To-Market strategy. In today’s world, it is a rare find a company that is capable to deliver its product or services all the way from the source, to the hands of the customer. Along this journey, several companies -or “partners”- may perform services, attach other products, etc. adding value to the final product that lands at the customer. It is from this journey and the several steps of value-add that the concept of the value chain stems from, and the product or service that is delivered to the customer is experienced through its Joint Value Proposition.
While these concepts are omnipresent in the tech industry, they are all over our economy as well. Two of the most noticeable ones are the Distribution Channel and the Service Delivery Partners. As for the first one, we see it everywhere, from the grocery store, the car dealership, or our trusted IT gal. For example, it is impossible -or not cost-effective- for car manufacturers to set up showrooms in every town, so they rely on entrepreneurs who are willing to enter in this business. In a similar way, growers and other foodstuff producers cannot afford to go to every town to sell their goods, so they engage in the distribution network that brings those goods to your local grocery store.
We must recognize the value that each of these partners offers for the consumer. Yes, they take a portion of the profits as compensation for their services, but they also add value to the product or service. For example, the local dealership makes it easy to get there, they offer financing (they bring together the automobile, and a financial product, the loan), and they can also service your car. In the case of the grocery store, besides making it really convenient to buy, with extended business hours, refrigeration, and now even home delivery, they are also an “aggregator”, allowing us to buy apples, milk, and honey, without having to visit the orchard, the dairy farmer, and the beekeeper.
A Service Delivery Partner can be a key player in the value chain, especially if the product or service requires installation, servicing, or any form of customization. They can be as simple as the independent contractor that may install the carpets that you bought at the big home-improvement store, or as complex as Microsoft’s partner network, where partners specialize in specific technologies. There is a huge difference in value between the carpet just delivered to your house in a roll, vs. actually being able to step on it. How much more value does that have in terms of your ability to enjoy the product?
IS A PARTNER RELATIONSHIP RIGHT FOR YOU?The way we experience a product or service is the result of all the value transactions that occur throughout the value chain, before they reach us. Some of these value transactions and the players involved, have evolved over time, filling a need. Others have been created intentionally, by design. This is where some companies have the opportunity to differentiate themselves from others by designing value chains that complement each other, delivering value to their customers. Across the board, some of the benefits of working with partners, instead of building every single aspect of the business, are:
Let a specialist deal with getting your product to the customer, the way the customer wants it. Partners have been doing what they do, for years. This makes them experts at it, and they can guarantee quality in a consistent manner.
Reduce the overall cost for the customer. Because of the specialization that partners may have developed, they are also in the position to perform the services required at a fraction of the cost that you would be able to do them in-house. (Yes! Partners can actually make things cheaper!).
Limit your exposure, adjust to sales volumes. Partnerships generally operate on a variable cost basis. This means that during times when business is slow, you will not have to pay them that much.
Be agile to scale. In the opposite scenario to the above and in the same way that a partner can scale down when business is slow, they can also quickly ramp up their services when business is booming.
CHOOSE PARTNERS WITH THE RIGHT CAPABILITIESWhen considering the way your product or service should be experienced, your differentiated value proposition. What does it look like? Can you make it happen? From the source to the end? What are you missing?
Instead of creating all the necessary parts to build your ideal differentiated value proposition, one option may be to partner with the right company, to complete your vision, and in this case, create a Joint Value Proposition. What kind of partner would you need to complement the value that you create?
Conversely, Is your business in the channel? Are you a reseller? An affiliates seller? A retailer? It is just as important in this scenario to do the exercise and be able to articulate what value you add. Do you make the customer experience better? Do you provide delivery? Help with selection? Install? Do you provide some kind of support afterwards?
PARTNERSHIPS ARE FOR THE LONG RUN, MAKE THE RIGHT PROMISESPartnership relationships can be complex though, and they require a lot of forethought. Companies partnering remain independent and is important to align incentives in order to make the partnership sail smoother and put in place a contractual framework that supports the partnership. Talking to a specialist in this area can pay off many times over the years.
As someone in business, instead of “cutting the middleman”, it may be wiser to seek it out and have someone to lean on.
At ImagineNation we are celebrating 10 years as a global innovation consultancy, learning, and coaching company. During this time, we’ve identified some of the common patterns that people demonstrate as a result of feeling uncomfortable, frozen, inert, stubborn, and resistant to innovation. Resulting in many organisations, teams, and leaders appearing to walk backward as if they are sleepwalking through this time in their lives. At the same time, we know why innovation is transformational, and why, at this time, it is more important than ever to innovate. As well as to be resilient and adaptive to grow and flow in today’s chaotic BANI environment. We also know exactly what transformative innovation involves, and how to enable and equip people to connect and collaborate in new ways to effect constructive and sustainable change in a world of unknowns.
Shaping the next normal
According to a recent article by McKinsey and Co “The future is not what it used to be: Thoughts on the shape of the next normal” the coronavirus crisis is a “world-changing event” which is forcing both the pace and scale of workplace innovation.
Stating that businesses are forced to do more with less and that many are finding better, simpler, less expensive, and faster ways to operate. Describing how innovative health systems, through necessity, constraints, and adversity have exploited this moment in time, to innovate:
“The urgency of addressing COVID-19 has also led to innovations in biotech, vaccine development, and the regulatory regimes that govern drug development so that treatments can be approved and tried faster. In many countries, health systems have been hard to reform; this crisis has made the difficulty much easier to achieve. The result should be a more resilient, responsive, and effective health system”.
We all know that it is impossible to know what will happen in the future and that it is possible to consider the lessons of the past, both distant and recent. On that basis, take time out, be hopeful and think optimistically about the future. To be proactive and innovate to shape the kind of future we all wish to have, through making constructive and sustainable changes, that contribute to the common good.
Strategically deciding to innovate
Strategically deciding to innovate, is the first, mandatory, powerful, and impactful lever organisations, teams, leaders, and individuals can pull to effect, embed, and sustain constructive and sustainable change that delivers real benefits:
- Deal with, and find solutions to a world full of complex and competing social, civic, and political problems that are hard to solve and aren’t going away.
- Better adapt, respond to, and be agile in fast-changing circumstances, uncertainty, instability, and to random and unexpected Black Swan events, like the global Covid-19 Pandemic.
- Become both human-centric to help people manage their transition through the challenges of the global pandemic and enable them to exploit the range of accelerating technological advances in the digital age.
- Develop corporate responsibility, sustainability, diversity, and inclusion strategies that are practical and can work and really deliver on their promises.
- Compete by applying and experimenting with lean and agile start-up methodologies and take advantage of the opportunities and possibilities of the global entrepreneurship movement’s new models for leadership, collaboration, and experimentation.
- Align to the range of changing workplace dynamics and trends, resulting from the pandemic, including WFH, the “soft resignation” and the demands of a hybrid workplace.
- Shift individual, group, and collective consciousness towards collaboration and experimentation in ways that rebuild the trust that has been lost through incompetence, corruption, greed, and dishonesty.
- Respond creatively to meet the increasingly diverse range of customer expectations and choices being made around value.
Important to innovate – three elements
To take advantage of living in a globalised world, where we are interconnected through technologies and values and where we have an interrelated structure of reality, we can:
- Accept that innovation-led growth is absolutely critical, and have targets and a willingness to invest in new scalable business models, fast and effective development, and launch processes to reflect these.
- Invest in a coherent, time-risk balanced portfolio of initiatives and provide the resources to deliver them, at scale, strategically, to innovate to the right market, at the right price, at the right time, and through the most effective channels.
- Adopt an ecosystem approach to adapt and grow by creating and capitalizing on both internal and external networks, and stakeholder management through developing workforce ecosystems – a structure that consists of interdependent actors, from within the organisation and beyond, working to pursue both individual and collective goals.
Problem-solving, cultural change, and improving people’s lives
It is more important than ever to make innovation transformational, so that it delivers constructive and sustainable change, by building on three critical successful abilities:
- Seeing and sensing the problem or opportunity:
- What problem are we solving? And is there a customer who wants to pay to have that problem solved?
- What problem are we solving for the customer? Who needs this?
- What are the possibilities and opportunities available to us? And is there a customer who wants to pay to have this opportunity realised?
- What are some of our strengths? What are some of the things we are doing well that we can build upon or exploit?
- Shifting the culture:
- Where are we today? Where do we want to be in the future?
- What are our prevailing mindsets? How can we measure and contextualise their impact? What mindsets might we embrace to adapt and grow in an uncertain world?
- How ready and receptive are we to really embrace change?
- What do we need to unlearn and relearn to ensure our people are open-minded, hearted, and willed to embody and enact the desired change?
- How engaged and passionate are our people in problem-solving?
- How might we harness our people’s collective intelligence to solve problems and realise opportunities?
- Aligning technologies, processes, artifacts and behaviours as a holistic system:
- What is our appetite for risk? How do we define risk in our context?
- What type of innovation do we strategically want to plan for and engage in?
- What old legacy technologies no longer serve your needs? What new technologies might you be willing to invest in for the future?
- What disciplines are in place to ensure that people have a common understanding of the key processes and comply with managing them?
- How are we ensuring that everyone is motivated and skilled to innovate?
- How are we ensuring that people are acknowledged, rewarded, and organised to repeatedly innovate?
- What are the key mindsets and behaviours that enable and equip people to embody and embrace repeatedly innovate and design solutions with the end customer in mind?
Become a resilient difference maker
As many of us are aware, Toys R Us and Blockbuster were huge companies, that enjoyed massive success; however, this was all brought to an end due to their failure to innovate.
We can all avoid this fate by choosing to innovate and create constructive and sustainable change through:
- Accepting and acknowledging that to survive and thrive in a BANI world, where necessity is still the mother of all invention, and the urgency to do this is more important than ever.
- Identifying, understanding, and dealing with our own resistance to innovation, safely and proactively, and transforming resistance into resilience, to safely innovate.
- Understanding where we are today and then assessing the gap to what we want to be in the future, and mitigating the risks of both closing the gap and leaving the gap wide open.
- Enabling leaders, teams, and individuals to connect, explore, discover and navigate new ways of approaching and delivering commercially viable, value-adding, constructive and sustainable change, and outcomes.
- Leveraging innovation to transform an organisation, a business, the way people lead and team, to improve the quality of people’s lives in ways they appreciate and cherish.
“In order to transcend mere adequacy and make a mark of creative transcendence on the world, organizations need to stop walking backward, following a trail that has already been blazed. The motto of the British Special Air Service is, “Who dares, wins.” It is time for businesses to be bold, inspired, and look to the horizon. The next great innovation is out there. Will you have the guts to create it?”
Will you make a fundamental choice to innovate?
According to McKinsey and Co “The point is that where the world lands is a matter of choice – of countless decisions to be made by individuals, companies, governments, and institutions”.
Will you make a fundamental choice to use the current crisis to lead to a burst of innovation, productivity, resilience, and exploration in a connected world to create the constructive and sustainable changes we all want to have?
Or will you continue walking backward and sleepwalking through life, and fail to take advantage of this moment in time, to innovate, and continue life with the same thinking that is causing the current range of results, that many of us don’t want to have?
Find out more about our work at ImagineNation
Find out about our collective, learning products and tools, including The Coach for Innovators, Leaders, and Teams Certified Program, presented by Janet Sernack, is a collaborative, intimate, and deeply personalized innovation coaching and learning program, supported by a global group of peers over 9-weeks, starting Tuesday, February 7, 2023. It is a blended and transformational change and learning program that will give you a deep understanding of the language, principles, and applications of an ecosystem focus, human-centric approach, and emergent structure (Theory U) to innovation, and upskill people and teams and develop their future fitness, within your unique innovation context. Find out more about our products and tools.
Running a business is hard work, and it can be especially difficult to keep everything organized and running smoothly. So if you’re feeling overwhelmed, don’t worry – you’re not alone! This blog post will give you six tips on optimizing your logistics department. By following these tips, you’ll be able to streamline your operations and make your business run more efficiently.
1) Utilize TechnologyIn today’s world, technology is more critical than ever. If you want to optimize your logistics department, it’s essential that you utilize the latest technological solutions. This could involve using software such as a warehouse management system or a transportation management system to keep track of inventory and transportation costs. Additionally, it would be best if you considered investing in robotic systems and automation tools to help streamline operations.
2) Develop A Draft PlanThe best way to ensure success is to have a plan in place before implementing any changes. Take the time to develop a draft plan for how you will optimize your logistics department. Consider factors like staff requirements, production schedules, storage facilities, and transport solutions. By having a detailed plan drafted, you will have a starting point to work from and can make changes as needed.
3) Review Your ProcessesIt’s important to take the time to review your current processes and identify any areas that could be optimized. This could involve changing delivery times or streamlining production processes. Alternatively, you might want to consider outsourcing certain operations, such as shipping and receiving, in order to free up resources. By conducting regular reviews of your current processes, you can easily determine which areas need improvement and how best to go about it.
4) Invest In TrainingHaving well-trained staff is essential for running an efficient logistics department. Investing in training programs ensures that your employees are able to carry out their tasks effectively and efficiently. Additionally, investing in training can help to reduce costs associated with errors and mistakes.
5) Create A Culture of Continuous ImprovementThe key to optimizing your logistics department is to create a culture of continuous improvement. Encourage feedback from staff and customers, use data-driven insights to inform decisions, and invest in new systems or technologies when necessary. By creating an environment where improvements are actively sought out, you will be able to ensure that your business remains competitive.
6) Hire a truck accident lawyerWhen accidents happen, hiring a truck accident lawyer should be the first step. A good lawyer like Berger and Green can help you navigate the legal system and make sure that your rights are protected after an accident. They will also provide invaluable guidance on how to avoid similar incidents in the future.
Following these five tips should give you a good starting point for optimizing your logistics department. Utilize technology, develop a draft plan, review processes, invest in training, and create a culture of continuous improvement – these steps will ensure that your operations run as smoothly as possible. With the right foundations in place, you will be well on your way to optimizing your logistics department and ensuring that your business continues to succeed.
Belonging encompasses the feeling that you have value in a home or a place in which you are fully accepted. When it comes to the workplace and inclusive leadership, creating a culture of belonging means more now than it ever has, especially in the wake of the Great Resignation. Seeking to understand your people goes beyond who they are once they walk through the door. It’s a deeper level of recognizing their intricacies that extend beyond the workplace. Everything they go through plays a huge part in who they show up as each and every day. Welcoming your employees’ voices and input helps them feel safe and cared for.
A Deeper UnderstandingYou know the saying, “walk a mile in their shoes?” One of the biggest mistakes leaders continually display is making assumptions about people.
Assumptions lead to microaggressions, misunderstandings, and otherwise harmful behaviors.
Start to understand your employees better by practicing active listening and including everyone’s voices in the conversation. The deeper your understanding of your people goes, the better suited you will be to find the perfect fit for them within your organization.
It’s equally as important to foster relationships among your team as a whole. When you introduce a new team member, make it personal. Keep the dialog flowing and always make an effort to ask questions about how they are and truly listen to what they have to say. Make it a habit to check back in with them, especially if they have shared a hardship with you. Listening is one of the biggest skills you can hone in on within leadership, and this is a great time for it to stand out.
Learning to TrustSeek out your teams’ strengths and let them shine. Always get their input and make sure to include everyone on your team when it comes to meetings, gathering opinions, and be sure to always genuinely value their feedback. Ask them where they think they do best and where their biggest area for improvement is. Ask them which part of their job is their favorite; we tend to enjoy doing what we’re good at! If you have already spent time connecting with and getting to know your team better, it won’t be too challenging to discover their unique talents.
On the flip side, learn to let go and not micromanage. Delegating tasks from your to-do list shows that you trust your team to get the job done and can foster collaboration. Accompany these new behaviors with recognition and positive feedback, even if the result is a failure. Commend your employees for trying and testing their limits and show respect by fully engaging in whatever your people have to say.
InclusionYou can begin this process of inclusion by sharing your own stories first and leading by example to show how powerful the desire to belong really is. Ironically, one of the biggest steps to creating a sense of belonging is, in fact, inclusion. You will only feel that you truly belong somewhere if you are welcomed to the table. Trust is the foundation for any safe space to be possible, but there needs to be an explicit and implicit invitation to your employees to speak openly and honestly. Give them your full attention by making eye contact and eliminating distractions. Let them know by your physical actions that when they speak, you are ready to listen.
ReflectionMentorship and professional relationships can make or break a career. You can take small steps to improve your inclusive leadership and help someone by sharing your own journey and listening to theirs. You’ll get a chance to share your successes and failures and you’ll hear another person’s diversity of experience. When it comes to creating belonging at work, it isn’t just about creating psychological safety, though of course that is extremely important. But you’re building and optimizing the connection of your community and your people. Embrace a culture of belonging, and you will see your people grow and collaborate even more, which will produce all the positive business results for which you are aiming to achieve.
I was reflecting on the ritual of the inauguration of the 46th President of the USA and whilst the inauguration ceremony wasn’t what we have seen before it retained key anchor points of ritual and ceremony. The presence of former Presidents, the swearing-in on the ‘family’ bible, the singing of the National Anthem by a national treasure, and the inclusion of a poem by a celebrated poet. It contained all of those along with row upon row of flags symbolising the public unable to attend because of the COVID lockdown and previous unrest at the Capitol.
In our lives, we have many ceremonies and rituals – birth, marriage, death, key milestones, sporting achievement, academic achievement and so much more. Ceremony and ritual matter because they offer an opportunity to come together to witness and reinforce key values and truths.
Whether it be the hope of a better democracy, or the joy of new life, or the potential embodied in a loving union…in every significant ritual, we can see the underpinning of hope, truth, love, freedom, justice, joy…the fundamentals of life.
When we look at our organisations it’s equally important that we have in place, and value, our own rituals and ceremonies and consider their meaning and the messages we are seeking to convey. Whether it be the annual conference or the way we mark success, the way we say thank you or showcase loyalty. Each of these can seem like things we just need to tick off – we must have a long service award programme, we must have a sales bonus and reward programme and so on – but what attention do we pay to their impact and messaging of values and truths about the organisation? A local handing over of a letter and a trinket for 25 years of service can feel somewhat ‘underwhelming’?
And what about the transfer of the baton between senior leaders such as when a new CEO starts or there is a reorganisation. Opportunities exist for us to apply a little more thought to the ritual and ceremony surrounding these events. I’m not suggesting a huge pomp and circumstance affair, but I am suggesting that we shouldn’t treat them as ‘shadowy’, under-the-radar events either. These events have an impact on people and their sense of connection and motivation – or at least they should if they’ve been done for good reason, and they deserve more than just an all-points bulletin.
Transferring the baton is an opportunity to recognise and reinforce the core values underpinning an organisation and its community. It’s an opportunity for celebration and hope as a community. It’s an opportunity for broader messaging that feels credible and connected – weaving together the fundamentals that guide an organisation beyond any one individual.
Ritual and ceremony help us connect to that deeper part of ourselves where we touch into belief – the belief in something bigger, something more fundamental – love, hope, truth, connection, goodness, oneness…let’s ensure we afford them due respect.
In our second blog in the Reconnect and Reset series, we stated that it is not a time to panic. Nor is it a time to languish from change fatigue, pain, and emotional lethargy. It is a significant moment in time to focus, rehabilitate, rebuild, repair, regrow and reset to increase our connectedness through linking human touchpoints that increase people-power in the fourth industrial revolution.
In the current environment, where chaos and order are constantly polarising, its crucial to touch people with empathy, reignite their social skills, and enable them to become healthily self-compassionate and more self-caring to:
- Patiently support, lead, manage, mentor, and coach them towards finding their own balance to flow with mitigating the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution.
- Take advantage of new technologies, networks, and ecosystems to re-engage and collaborate with others and with civil society in positive ways that contribute to the whole.
- Do the good work that creates a more compelling, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable future, that serves the common good.
The landscape has changed and so have the solutions
As the fourth industrial revolution continues to implode, we need to zoom out and consider the bigger picture. Where a recent Harvard Review article What Will Management Look Like in the Next 100 Years? states that we are entering an era, which is fundamentally transforming the way we operate. Which is defined by the disruptive growth in blockchain technology, robotics, artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, and other core digital capabilities.
All of which, in some way, are dependent on linking the key human touchpoints that increase people-power and our connectedness.
- An era of empathy
In the same article, management scholar Rita Gunther McGrath argued that management practices based on command and control and expertise would ultimately make way for one of empathy.
Where work is centred around value creation conducted through networks and collaboration, that rely on increasing the connectedness between machines and humans rather than through rigid structures and relationships to thrive through increasing people-power in the fourth industrial revolution.
- Capable of better
The Qualtrics 2022 Employee Experience Trends Report also states that the landscape has changed. Where people are choosing to work flexibly, to work in the places that work best for them, and to take time for their own well-being, families, and friends.
Where people are demanding change because they care, about their leaders and their organisations, and want to be capable of developing better ideas; better innovations; and delivering better performances.
The report outlines the four things your people need you to know:
- There will be an exodus of leaders – and women will be the first out the door.
- People will demand better physical and digital workspaces.
- The lack of progress in diversity, inclusion, and belonging won’t be accepted.
People don’t want to become irrelevant, nor do they want their managers, leaders, and organisations to become irrelevant. People know that they can’t, and won’t go back to the old ways of doing things.
People also know that they are already living in the new normal and that they need to start working there, too and to do that, we need to increase our connectedness.
Which is especially important for building people-power and mitigating the challenges emerging in the fourth industrial revolution.
- A transformative moment for employees and employers
Businessolver’s Eighth Annual Report on the State of Workplace Empathy describes how the pandemic has impacted on employees’ personal lives, the labour market, and the economy, and states that “we are living through a renegotiation of the social contract between employees and employers”.
Their data shows that amid the return to the office, fewer employees view their organisations as empathetic, and that workplace empathy has clear implications for employee well-being, talent retention, business results, and increases people-power:
- About 70% of employees and HR professionals believe that empathetic organisations drive higher employee motivation.
- While 94% of employees value flexible work hours as empathetic, the option is only offered in 38% of organisations.
- 92% of CEOs say their response to returning to in-person work is satisfactory, compared to 78% of employees.
- 82% of employees say their managers are empathetic, compared to 69% who say the same about their organisation’s chief executive.
Yet, there seems to be a true lack of understanding, especially in the corporate sector, of what it means to be empathetic, and a shortage of time and energy to develop the mindsets, behaviours, and skills to practice it and make it a habit.
It is also a fundamental way of being to increase our connectedness and building peoples-power.
Make a fundamental choice to increase our connectedness
Even though each person is a distinct physical being, we are all connected to each other and to nature, not only through our language but also by having a deeper sense of being.
Human connectedness is a powerful human need that occurs when an individual is aware and actively engaged with another person, activity, object or environment, group, team, organisation, or natural environment.
It results in a sense of well-being.
The concept is applied in psychology as a sensation or perception where a person does not operate as a single entity – we are all formed together to make another, individual unit, which is often described as wholeness.
Which is especially important for our well-being and people-power in the face of the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution.
Strategies for developing quality connections
- Be grounded, mindful and conscious
Being grounded and mindful enables people to become fully present to both themselves and to others. It is a generous gift to unconditionally bestow on others. Especially at this moment in time, where the pandemic-induced social isolation, has caused many people to become unconsciously and unintentionally self-absorbed.
There is an opening to become aware of, and to cultivate our attending and observing skillsets, to sense and see the signals people are sending, at the moment they are sending them. To help people identify the source of their issues to re-establish a sense of influence and control that reduces their autonomic nervous system reactions and help them restore their calmness.
This is the basis to increase our connectedness, by attuning and becoming empathetic as to what thoughts and feelings lay behind their behaviours and actions, with detachment, allowing, and acceptance.
- Be open-hearted and open-minded
Being curious about what others are feeling and thinking, without evaluating, judging, and opposing what they are saying. By knowing how to listen deeply for openings and doorways that allow possibilities and opportunities to emerge, to generate great questions that clarify and confirm what is being both said and unsaid.
To support people by creating a safe and collective holding space, that reduces their automatic unconscious defensive responses. To defuse situations by being empathic and humble and increase our connectedness by asking how you might help or support them, and gaining their permission and trust to do so.
Increase our connectedness through being vulnerable in offering options so they make the best choice for themselves, to reduce their dependence, help them identify and activate their circles of influence and control and sustain their autonomy.
- Help people regenerate
Now is the moment in time to focus on building workforce capabilities and shifting mindsets for generating a successful culture or digital transformation initiative by harnessing, igniting, and mobilising people’s motivation and collective intelligence and build people-power.
It is crucial to acknowledge and leverage the impact of technology through increasing people-power by developing new mindsets, behaviours, skills, and new roles, which are already emerging as fast as other roles change.
Be willing to invest in the deep learning challenges that build people’s readiness and receptivity to change, so they can embrace rather than resist it, be willing to unlearn, and relearn, differently, by collaborating with other people, leaders, teams, and organisations across the world.
Ultimately, it all depends on being daring and willing to increase our connectedness, through adapting, innovating, and collectively co-creating strategies, systems, structures that serve the common good, and contribute to the well-being of people, deliver profits and nurture a sustainable planet.
Find out more about our work at ImagineNation
Find out about our collective, learning products and tools, including The Coach for Innovators, Leaders, and Teams Certified Program, a collaborative, intimate, and deeply personalized innovation coaching and learning program, supported by a global group of peers over 9-weeks, starting Tuesday, October 18, 2022. It is a blended and transformational change and learning program that will give you a deep understanding of the language, principles, and applications of an ecosystem focus, human-centric approach, and emergent structure (Theory U) to innovation, and increase people-power, upskill people and teams and develop their future fitness, within your unique context. Find out more about our products and tools.
This is the final in a series of three blogs on the theme of reconnecting and resetting, to create, invent and innovate in an increasingly chaotic world. You can also check out the recording of our 45-minute masterclass, to discover new ways of re-connecting through the complexity and chaos of dis-connection to create, invent and innovate in the future! Find out more.
If you’ve ever watched a building project, the laying of the foundation is critical. It is the foundation that sets the long-term stability of the structure. The way the foundation is dug in, reinforced, and poured or built is so important.
The same can be said for your ability to become a strong leader. The foundation you build will support your leadership structure, framework, and long-term success. Let’s look at the parallels.
First the PreparationGood construction of a foundation starts with an analysis of the ground underneath. Soil conditions, the level of the nearby water tables, and other elements are checked and evaluated. Foundations being placed in locations with sandy soil, like beachfront lots or lakeside locations usually have to drive pilings deep into the ground to reach bedrock for stability. On the other hand, locations with rocky terrain might not even allow the first footing to penetrate the surface, thus making for bad foundational conditions.
Being able to set the foundational structure into firm ground is the first step in building a solid foundation. Otherwise, the foundation will be likely to shift and ‘float’ once it is built. Movement like that causes weakness in the structures above.
Preparing to be a Leader requires similar searching for solid ground. Learning and knowing your core values is like the bedrock you need. If you don’t spend time digging into the primary motives, values, and principles you want to follow as a leader will be like building your reputation on a sandy beach. It can wash away with the tide.
Next the SubstanceReal foundations come in different forms. Many include poured concrete. Yet some are pier and beam structures. Regardless of the technique used, having the right materials configured and constructed the right way is key.
In the case of concrete, simply pouring a big mass of concrete won’t last long. If reinforcing steel is not placed crisscrossing the structure, the concrete alone can crack, warp and break down in time.
Great leadership is made up of a mix of many different attributes. One size does not fit all. However, having the right mix, properly aligned can serve you well. The blend of skills attributes, and abilities are often shaped over time. Experience can provide good insight into ways you might need to adjust your leadership.
Trying to establish yourself as a leader without first assembling a patchwork of skills, abilities, and values can be futile. The right mix of the right substance can set you on a course for success as a leader.
Making AdjustmentsAs time goes on, foundations may need further work to lift, adjust, and reinforce them. I live near the gulf coast of Texas. Our soil has a tendency to float on a very shallow water table. That may be more technical than you care to know. But it means we have to have foundation work done sometimes. After 30 years of solid performance, my home started to show signs of shifting and settling. SHeetrock cracked and doors stuck. The foundation repair company was called.
We had to dig 15 piers across the front of my house. Once the piers were set, the jacks were installed and the ‘lift’ happened. Within minutes, all the cracks and door jams were once again square. My foundation had started settling across the front. Getting it lifted just fractions of an inch helped return the structure to ‘square’.
Your approach to leadership can likewise settle or shift in time. You form habits. Maybe you get complacent about certain things. Or you let a few bad experiences warp your view of values and principles. You need to perform your own valuation and review of your leadership.
Get feedback from peers or your direct reports. Be open to honest feedback. Determine whether adjustments need to be made to get your leadership foundation back on square.
Gettbricking the Right Help to Build Your FoundationAs with any construction, hiring the right contractor to build the foundation is important. If you are just now starting out on your leadership journey, consider hiring a coach to help you put together the right foundation solution to best serve your needs.
Friends can help you shape some ideas, but someone with proven experience in more senior leadership roles can do more to help you put together the best foundation for your use as a leader.
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