Organizational Courage

What's your "Theory in Use"?

I just love this: Chris Argyris has written about something called 'theory in use' as differentiated from 'espoused theories'. In other words, he has outlined in a Harvard Business Review article some of the reasons that people's actions don't line up with their words. Among those reasons are wanting to keep control and avoid negativity.

I recently blogged about the values of Web 2.0. Among others: Meritocracy. Open information. Open platforms. Speed over perfection. User-generated content. Collaboration.

Whoa. Lots of room for negativity and lack of control there. Threatening to some? You bet.

But consider this: if there's negativity out there, chances are folks are feeling and saying it whether a web 2.0 platform is available or not. They're telling their neighbors or friends or co-workers. Depending on how irate they are, they're telling anyone who will listen.

It's tough to open up and hear what's really being said. Web 2.0 creates that hearing aid. It takes a true leader to slap on the hearing aid and align "espoused theories" of open-door policies and "people are our greatest asset" with "theories in use" including communication forums for listening.

EPS pay attention! Employee Engagement impacts Financials

Chief Learning Officer magazine recently ran a great article on the new Towers Perrin Global Workforce Study. Surveying 90,000 people worldwide the study outlines various levels of employee engagement and the impact of engagement on financial performance. CLO's article provides a terrific synopsis, so I won't reiterate. However, the most exciting part of the study to me was the quantitative link between engagement and financial performance. Companies with the higher numbers of engaged employees had an average 19% increase in operating income and 28% increase in earnings per share, contrasted with a 33% average drop in operating income and 11% drop in earnings per share where employees were not engaged or less engaged.

So often in organization development and human resources there's a lack of financial data backing up 'the soft stuff'. Hats off to Towers Perrin for their comprehensive and fascinating study!

Divorce or Promotion?

According to a recent survey by global human resource consulting firm DDI managers ranked promotions (19%) as more highly stressful than either coping with a bereavement (14.8%) or divorce (11.4%). Health issues (8.1%), moving (9.9%) and becoming a parent (7.5%) were also cited as stressors.

Of course this invites all sorts of jokes about the marriages of those surveyed (which included 385 U.S. managers and 400 global managers), but the gist of the managers' feedback indicated that their significant promotion stress stemmed from new ambiguity and organizational politics.

As a leader, you've got to wonder if your own organization is offering newly promoted managers the skills and support required to at least make a promotion as appealing as, say, having health issues. Mentoring, training, focused performance coaching all can go a long way toward supporting leaders in their new jobs. Cost of turnover and 'talent wars' aside, it's just the right thing to do.

Some questions to ask yourself:

• how clear is the new role?
• what three skills will be most critical in this new role, and how does the new manager stack up against those skills? what can be done to support her / him?
• what support is available to this new manager: mentoring, training, coaching? is the new manager aware of this support? does the organization's culture support taking advantage of these resources?
• what early warning signals are in place to flag that the new manager needs help?

Of course there are many more in-depth questions and assessments. But if you start with and cover the basics, you're half way to creating success.

"I am a human being as well as a human resource"

as quoted from the Dutch publication "slow management", a movement aimed at slowing down in life (eating, work, etc.) in order to create a saner, more sustainable pace. Which - to me - begs the question "where's the balance?"

I admit it: I'm a crackberry victim. I love getting my email instantaneously. I just bought the latest global version so I can be wired no matter where I travel. (And no, I have no firm international travel plans. But if I did....) There is something energetic, enjoyable, just plain old FUN about being connected.

The "slow movement" aims to balance that off with intention and pacing. Slowing economic growth, getting people to enjoy their food instead of gulping it, pushing financial returns focus past this upcoming quarter. All good things.

For me it's a question of intention. When am I racing along, sometimes literally running from meeting to meeting, without control or intention? When am I simply reacting to my own life rather than living it? And what does that cost me? And my family? And society? If I set a more sustainable pace for myself, am I creating permission for others?

It's Friday, so this is definitely something to think about over the weekend.

FAST meetings

Loved this tip from Wired Magazine's August issue: in addition to the usual suggestions for accelerating meetings (have a clear agenda, start on time, get rid of the chairs so everyone stands, set a stop watch) they suggested 'early bird incentives' such as yummy snacks for only 75% of the attendees, or letting people speak in the order they arrived.

What's your suggestion for a great, efficient, productive meeting?