You’re about to launch a major new initiative. Yet you’re dreading the inevitable … the cynics who declare defeat before the initiative even gets off the ground. What do you do?

You’re tempted to sell them on the benefits, to make a special effort to get them on board. Big mistake. The time you spend trying to get these people on board is better spent supporting those at the front end of the curve, who seriously want the initiative to succeed. Don’t neglect them!

Trying to sell the initiative to the cynics only empowers them. Because their power lies in denying you what you want – their support. Unless they’re proactively spreading poison – which requires immediate and definitive confrontation – then don’t give them any special attention.

Support your strongest proponents, trumpet the quick wins, and create the “pull” for those in the middle of the curve to join the movement. And the cynics? They become isolated. Now they have a choice: join everyone else or leave.

Sounds harsh? How important is the initiative? How committed are you to success?

Your thoughts?

Michael

Our understanding of what makes a great place to work has finally evolved. It’s not simply the things that companies provide; it’s the environment in which employees interact and work, and the relationships that environment fosters. Fortune Magazine, in their recent edition of “The 100 Best Companies to Work For” shines a blinding light on this:

Perks don’t make a great workplace. The real key is interpersonal relationships. Employees are more engaged where relationships thrive.

Here’s the simple secret of every great place to work: It’s personal – not perk-onal. It’s relationship-based, not transaction-based.

Not employee benefits, not time off, but the building of high-quality relationships in the workplace. And in case there are still one or two of you who think this is all just HR hooey:

Companies will continue to gain a competitive advantage by attracting and keeping the most valuable workers, which is reason enough to become a great workplace.

… the 100 Best really do outperform other companies as investments … 3.5% annually over 25 years (!) …

And when professionals are evaluating a new employer, the most important factor they consider, by a margin of almost 3-to-1 … is whether the company is a great place to work.

Being a great place to work. Creating the right environment. It’s a strategic imperative.

Your thoughts?

Michael

So I’ve got some extra time at the Calgary airport. I had just delivered a daylong workshop on Effective Leadership to 50 members of a trade association. I decide to get my shoes shined.

Franklin, the affable shoeshine guy, quickly engages me in a conversation and asks what brought me to Calgary. I tell him.

He immediately asserts, “Let me tell you something about leadership, my friend.”

Oh, maybe I should have attended his workshop.

“I manage four people. Soon, I’ll be opening another location here at the airport. And I will tell you that the most important thing about leadership, it doesn’t matter what business you are in … is respect. Always be respectful of your people.”

Well. Exactly right.

Maybe next time the trade association doesn’t need to hire me. They could hire Franklin.

Your thoughts?

Michael

Just in case you’ve any doubt at all about the importance of employee engagement (or you’ve just emerged from a time capsule), let me boil it down for you.

The Gallup organization studied almost 50,000 work units with over 1.3 million employees. How did units with top-quartile engagement compare to those in the bottom-quartile?

Profitability +22%
Productivity +21%
Customer ratings +10%
Theft -28%
Absenteeism -37%
Quality defects -41%
Safety incidents -48%
Employee turnover -25% to -65%*

(* depending on whether an organization was classified as “high turnover” or “low turnover”)

The debate is over, the issue is decided, the case is closed.

Engage your people!

Communicate purpose, vision and expectations. Demonstrate respect, trust and caring. Provide coaching and support. Acknowledge, recognize and celebrate.

It’s the winning formula.

Your thoughts?

Michael

Ray Kurzweil has been described as the “ultimate thinking machine” (Forbes).

He has a list of inventions and innovations to his credit that any hundred of us collectively would be proud to have. As the principal inventor of the first flatbed scanner, omni-font optical character recognition, print-to-speech reading machine for the blind, text-to-speech synthesizer, and music synthesizer capable of recreating the grand piano and other orchestral instruments (to name a few), it is little surprise that Inc. magazine called him “the rightful heir to Thomas Edison.”

So how does he think? What is his process? How has he been so successful at innovation?

Involve the people who will be using a technology in the creation of the technology, not just in the testing of it. They know the nuances and they have the motivation to get it right.

It’s not just being smart. It’s not just getting input. Or feedback. Or testing. It’s involving those who will be using a technology in the creation of it. Yet how often do we try to innovate in a vacuum or, at best, with the mere input of those who will be affected?

If someone as smart as Kurzweil insists on involving users to create, why wouldn’t we?

Your thoughts?

Michael

Last week I touched on how to create a positive work environment when setting goals, discussing ideas, and motivating people. This week:

Responding to Outcomes
1)     Celebrate more than you think you should. Don‚Äôt wait for the year-end holiday party to recognize people. Punctuate all their hard work and effort throughout the year with brief celebrations for legitimate progress and success.
2)     Find a positive in the negative. For every negative outcome there is something positive to take away, even it‚Äôs simply a painful lesson. Starting with the positives gives people hope.
3)     Promote learning, not judgment. Always ask two questions in the wake of a negative outcome: What have we learned? What would we do differently next time?
4)     Improvement starts in the mirror. The need to improve is non-negotiable. Start by rigorously assessing what you should do to better focus, equip and support your people to succeed in the future.
5)     Cut off a finger to save a hand. Inevitably, there will come a time when an employee is simply unable to perform at the standard required. The most positive thing you can do for your team is to take decisive action and remove that person from the work environment.

There are countless things you as a leader can do to create a positive work environment. Implementing those I’ve spotlighted over the past two weeks is a solid start.

Your thoughts?

Michael

Each of us is energized in a positive work environment. So how can you as a leader create and sustain such an environment? This week and next I’ll spotlight ten ways.

Setting Goals
1)     Set challenging, achievable goals, not big, hairy, audacious goals. People are more likely to believe in them and more likely to reach them. They won‚Äôt feel set up to fail.

Discussing Ideas
2)     Ask before you judge. Don‚Äôt reflexively shoot down ideas. Ask explanatory questions starting with ‚ÄòWhy?‚Äô and ‚ÄòHow?‚Äô It shows respect, and you just might learn something.
3)     Disagree with the idea, respect the person. If you do disagree, be sure to do it as respectfully as possible. As a result you‚Äôll be less likely to create a battle of wills.
4)     Change your views enthusiastically, not begrudgingly. It sends a powerful message that it‚Äôs okay to change one‚Äôs views and that ego should not stand in the way of learning.

Motivating People
5)     Remove the de-motivators. Doing things to motivate people has little impact unless you first identify and remove the things that irritate and de-motivate them. The inconsistencies. The mixed messages.

Next week: Creating a positive environment by how you respond to outcomes.

Your thoughts?

Michael

It amazes me that some managers still question the benefits of promoting employee engagement. That, “How will this improve the bottom line?” is still being asked.

So in case you’re one of the remaining few who thinks all of this engagement stuff is just a bunch of fluffy pop-psychology that distracts from the real business, consider this:

A 2013 report by Gartner, the I.T. research and advisory firm, summarized studies from Gallup, Hay Group, and Towers Watson showing that employee engagement has a quantifiable impact on business performance:

Companies with top-quartile engagement scores grew revenues at 2.5 times the rate of bottom-quartile companies

A one-year study showed high-engagement companies grew operating income by 19% and earnings per share by 28%, compared to -32% and -11% for low-engagement companies

Those with engagement scores in the top-quartile showed 12% higher customer advocacy, 18% higher productivity and 12% higher profitability

Of course you can always find counter-examples. Company A treats it’s employees well but performs poorly; Company B treats its employees poorly but performs well. There are many critical factors that drive business results. Yet the correlation between employee engagement and financial performance is (rationally) undeniable.

Can we finally move on?

Your thoughts?

Michael

I recently had the opportunity to speak to a number of executive groups in London and Belfast. Given that most of my consulting and speaking is in North America, I was interested in learning what cultural differences there might be regarding how they engage people at work.

Instead, what stood out was strikingly similar. Namely, that when people feel they are respected, trusted and cared about as individuals, they are more connected to their coworkers, their managers and their work. As a result, they give discretionary effort. And they perform better.

My experience is this is equally true of desert guides in Jordan, hotel staff in Peru, mountain porters in Pakistan, and personal drivers in Zimbabwe. This may be as close as it comes to a universal truth in business:

Connect with the heart, and the head will follow.

Your thoughts?

Michael

Meetings often get a bad rap and, in many cases, justifiably so. Yet well-structured meetings can be an effective way to share information, get input, challenge assumptions, and promote collaboration.

Here’s a technique I find keeps people alert and actively engaged in meetings: At the start of a meeting I tell everyone I have one expectation of each person. That you make us stronger. So for every agenda topic each person is expected, if called upon, to provide their one best question or one best comment that will make us stronger. You might reinforce an idea that was presented. Or challenge it. Or provide an alternative. Or a caution.

I may call upon you only one time during a meeting. But when I do, you need to give us your best.

One expectation. Each person. Make us stronger.

Your thoughts?

Michael

To design compelling products and create a great user experience, Apple must have the best designers, right?

Not according to Mark Kawano, former user-experience evangelist and long-term designer with Apple. The secret lies in how the organization is “structured to appreciate and support design”, and the culture that results. Design is what people think about, focus on and value. Designers don’t have to fight to be heard. They aren’t at the low end of the status ladder. Design is core to the fabric of the company.

Sure, Apple has very good people. Like Google, they have a rigorous process to make sure they hire people who are a strong fit with the desired culture. But those people flourish because of the systemic support.

The reality of Apple is the reality of every successful business. It takes the right people with the right focus in the right environment. All three.

Your thoughts?

Michael

The reason to go on an adventure is of course for the adventure. Yet when you’re exploring, exerting, and taking in the wonder of everything, there is one other thing that can greatly amplify or diminish your experience.

The food.

We recently did the 5-day Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu. Starting from a high plain, up and over a mountain pass at 15,200 feet, then down into the jungle … the pace at which we passed through distinct ecosystems was almost surreal. A great trek.

And fortunately we had Herbert. Our first clue that he was special came on night one when he quickly prepared a delicious four-course meal for us. I stared at the meat dish trying to determine what it … good God, it’s chicken cordon bleu!

On day two he somehow baked us a cake.  On day three he made us the most delectable mushroom ceviche framed with sweet potato spears. Not for a second did I pine for seafood ceviche!

And so it went. Great food reinvigorated the spirit of our team at each meal.

So here’s a question: What simple things can you do to reinvigorate the spirit of your team? To bump morale? To enhance their experience?

Your thoughts?

Michael