| Being Chief Topics, Other Chiefs In Action |

Zappos’ Holacracy—A Brilliant New Idea or Not Necessary?

Did you see the news that Zappos announced it is abolishing bosses? Zappos refers to their “new” approach as holacracy, and it’s already being heralded as tech’s latest new management craze. In summary, holacracy is management by committee with an emphasis on innovation—even the CEO formally relinquishes authority by agreeing to a constitution and reorganizing everyone into decentralized teams that choose their own roles and goals.

The objective of holacracy is to unleash the potential of every employee to behave like a Chief. While I am a huge fan of Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh, in my view this organization design is not new, nor is it required to unlock employee potential. Here’s why.

Holacracy is Not New

I recall a sales review I did almost 20 years ago as a Regional Vice President at Unisys Corporation. During a forecasting session, a sales representative told me he had no idea when a computer sale would close because his customer made all decisions by committee. That’s when I first learned about a company named W.L. Gore.

The sales rep told me that founders Bill and Vieve Gore started W. L. Gore & Associates in 1958. The company initially served the electronic products market. The company’s 1969 discovery of a versatile new polymer led to the development of many new applications in medical, fabric, and industrial markets.

What distinguished Gore from its start in 1958 was its innovative management structure. Specifically, it has never utilized traditional managers, titles, or budgets, and it has always been very wary about economies of scale. Amazingly, their CEO has never been appointed by the board, but instead has been chosen by peers. The Gore culture expects every associate to act as a Chief. As a result, what has Gore accomplished?

Today, Gore is one of the 200 largest privately held U.S. companies with 10,000 employees (called associates) and more than $3 billion in revenue. In 2014, Gore retained its position as a member of the U.S. “100 Best Companies to Work For” list, as one of the few earning this distinction every year since the ranking was initiated in 1984. Gore has been granted more than 2,000 patents worldwide in a wide range of fields, including electronics and polymer processing, and has had more than 35 million of its medical devices implanted, saving and improving the quality of lives worldwide.

If it’s so successful, should every company move to holacracy?

Holacracy is Not Necessary

In my experience, neither Zappos’ holacracy nor Gore’s committee structure is required to enable companies to create a culture of Chiefs, in which individual potential is unlocked. I have personally worked in a wide range of companies and company structures that delivered great results with cultures that enabled every associate to act as a Chief. For example, an internet startup facing a market crash grew revenue from $1M to $11M in just a year, and a multinational tripled its revenue growth rate from 5 to 15%, growing to $5B while facing intense market competition. In each case, both employee and customer satisfaction reached new levels.

The keys to success can be found in Jim Heskett’s and John Kotter’s book Corporate Culture and Performance. First published more than 20 years ago, it provides great insights on how any leader in any company can build a culture of Chiefs.

Heskett and Kotter offer specific, research-based advice on how to create performance-enhancing, change-adaptive cultures where Chiefs lead at all levels. They focus on actions (discipline, support, and creativity) and attributes (insight and values) that unlock employee potential, drive innovation, and lead to sustained success:

10 Specific Ways to Build a Culture of Chiefs in Any Company

  • Establish a vision for the organization that emphasizes consistent tactical adjustments
  • Communicate consistently and broadly
  • Display an “outsiders” propensity to embrace change and new ideas
  • Reinforce the importance of innovation
  • Build and maintain an “insiders” credibility
  • Establish leadership or the ability to produce change as an important focus at all levels
  • Decentralize decision making where possible
  • Promote carefully, and demote when necessary
  • Operate as a servant leader

The bottom line: success comes from an engaged employee group in which individuals at every level are empowered to act as Chiefs. This culture can be created in any organization with the right attention and intention.

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

A New Measure of Business Success

We are currently facing some of the most difficult global challenges in a generation: inclusion, recession, and depletion.

Inclusion: nearly three billion people will enter the global middle class in the next 20 years.
Recession: the global economy is still feeling the effects of the 2008 financial meltdown.
Depletion: the climate is warming, which is straining our resources and depleting nearly two-thirds of our ecosystems (e.g. soil, fish and forests).

But there is good news.

While these problems are escalating worldwide, there has been a growing movement in the business community toward “triple bottom line” solutions—those that focus on people, profit, and the planet. Triple bottom line solutions actually enable companies to solve customer problems while driving increased profitably and improving society.

Sound too good to be true?

There is an increasing body of research to support this claim. For example, R. Paul Herman’s Human Impact + Profit (HIP) methodology tracks, rates, and ranks companies’ quantifiable impact on society, connecting “doing well” with “doing good.” The research from Paul’s 8-year old company shows consistent improvements in results with triple bottom-line strategies. While Paul’s ground-breaking book The HIP Investor is targeted at current or prospective business owners, the HIP Scorecard is also a management system that shows how business leaders can benefit from doing the right thing, the right way.

Simplification is almost always a good idea, particularly when you are attempting to focus a large group to act on complex global challenges. Since research supports exponential returns with this approach, I offer this equation as the new measure of business success:

Responsibility3 = people + profit + planet

Want even better news?

There is a dramatic increase in the number of business leaders who are working together and taking a Responsibility3 focus. Networks of these enlightened leaders are quickly growing around the world, and they include small to medium sized companies (the American Sustainable Business Council has over 200,000 members) as well as some of the world’s largest companies (the World Business Council for Sustainable Development has over 170 multinational members). These networks also include more established groups that are adding Responsibility3 to their existing charters (the Young Presidents’ Organization has over 21,000 members worldwide). These groups are all focused on exponential vs. incremental change.

Building on this momentum, several of these powerful networks recently chose to align. As a result, the Business Alliance for the Future was formed. And while work is underway to determine how best to measure progress in all three areas, this alliance of networks has chosen as its motto: “The future of business is making the future its business.”

The bottom line: Business is increasingly taking responsibility for a truly sustainable future.

That’s really good news.

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Business Growth from the Inside Out with Mindfulness

Employee engagement is a constant struggle that seems to be getting worse. The New York Times described the problem, yet again, just last month in an opinion article on employee burnout. The article reports that Harvard Medical School psychiatrist and assistant clinical professor Srinivasan S. Pillay surveyed a random sample of 72 senior leaders and found that almost every one reported some signs of burnout. As workers worldwide are reporting that they “lack a fulfilling workplace,” companies have an opportunity to get a better return for their investment in human capital and drive growth.

As it turns out, employees are more satisfied and productive when four of their core needs are met: physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. According to the Times article, the more effectively leaders support employees in meeting these needs, the more likely employees will be to engage, be loyal and satisfied, and exhibit positive energy, increased productivity, and less stress at work.

The answer is right in front of you. Or more specifically, within you. When you take a mindful approach to business—that is, when you engage in mindfulness meditation practices that develop your ability to remain attentive to the present moment—your performance at work improves. Mindfulness is a state of active, open attention to the present. It involves observing current experiences without judgment. Mindfulness allows you to more fully participate in the moment in which you find yourself. When you are in a mindful state, you are ready for anything. You respond rather than react. And you create more space in your mind for insight—where your best ideas come from.

Although mindfulness is a hot topic these days, it’s hardly new. Harvard Business School professor Bill George reports that the company he led as Chief (Medtronic) had a meditation room almost forty years ago, thanks to the vision of founder Earl Bakken. A major proponent of mindfulness meditation, George has been meditating himself since 1975. Two years ago we learned about the wildly successful Search Inside Yourself (S.I.Y.) mindfulness meditation course held at Google and taught by Chade-Meng Tan, Google’s 107th employee. Tan teaches emotional intelligence via a practical, real-world meditation that can be used anywhere. This practice encourages participants to be aware of feelings without acting on them as a way to more accurately understand one’s circumstances. Google clearly sees this investment as a valuable part of their growth strategy.

Jon Kabat-Zinn is responsible for much of the popularization of the secular practice of mindfulness through his mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program initiated in 1979. MBSR is the most widely studied mindfulness practice, although some would point even farther back to the groundbreaking work of Norman Vincent Peale, who wrote The Power of Positive Thinking back in 1952. Since that time, clinical studies have documented the physical and mental health benefits of mindfulness in general, and MBSR in particular. Programs based on MBSR and similar models have been widely adapted in schools, prisons, hospitals, veterans’ centers, and other environments. As relates to business, mindfulness meditation practices have been found to increase productivity and creativity as well as reduce burnout and increase growth.

In short, more businesses need to support mindfulness practices by employees. I view it as an effective investment in human capital that consistently delivers great returns. Chiefs at every level stand to benefit from this simple, yet profound practice.

For more information, you might enjoy:
Mindfulness is Spreading, But Here’s What’s Missing, Real Leaders
The Mindful Revolution, TIME magazine
Thrive, a book by Arianna Huffington

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Building Trust from the Inside Out

Building trust is central to building a great business. For companies to grow they need to earn the trust of their clients, partners, and the community at large. Unfortunately, many companies are failing to earn that trust, and confidence in business integrity is at an all time low. In fact, recent reports calculate that fewer than 26 percent of individuals have trust in the financial systems at the foundation of business.

Despite the downward trend in building and maintaining trust in business, there are plenty of examples of how to get it right. Warren Buffett made news recently when he and Charlie Munger revealed hiring trustworthy leaders is a central component of their growth strategy at Berkshire Hathaway (BH). Given the collective size, diversity, and success of their portfolio of companies, BH offers many company leaders a path worth following.

Buffett and Munger clearly understand the simple and powerful truth—trust is built from the inside out.

BH companies build a culture of trust among their employees who then extend that culture to clients, owners, and the community. Once hired, BH steps back and lets these trustworthy managers do their job. Working from the inside out, this approach is in stark contrast to many companies that “double-down” on centralized compliance measures that slow decision making and increase costs. All too often, centralized compliance strategies fail to produce cultures of trust and integrity. The lack of trust eventually extends to customers and the community at large.

On a daily basis, we see examples of ethics issues in business. Recently, the public learned that Snap Chat was dishonest to their customers about images saved on their servers. This latest example joins the growing number of ethics violations by financial companies, who now are paying record fines for illegal activity.

So what can business leaders do to build a culture of trust? In addition to hiring trustworthy people, leaders can take the following steps:

  • Set clear expectations and regularly reinforce integrity as the basis of all activities
  • Ensure proper and adequate training
  • Have zero tolerance for any activity “close to the line” on ethics
  • Include values in performance management tools
  • Align compensation plans with values

I believe Buffett and Munger’s success stems as much from who they are as what they do. Specifically, I believe they have developed a deep level of self-understanding that enables both leaders to build trusted relationships and set the tone that fosters trust in their companies.

In the book Building Trust, authors Robert Solomon and Fernando Flores offer an insightful view on what they call authentic trust. They assert that the ultimate question is not who to trust, but how to trust. They contend that the ability to trust comes from inside an individual.

To Solomon and Flores, trust is “an emotional skill, an active part of our lives that we can build and sustain with our commitments, emotions and integrity.” The key to building the capacity to trust, they say, comes with self-understanding.

So how can business leaders develop self-understanding to build a culture of trust? In my experience, this insight comes when we make five choices:

  • Be present and focused on the here and now
  • Be generous with others
  • Be grateful for the opportunities in front of you
  • Be accepting of the reality of what is
  • Be still and learn to listen to your own voice

Creating a culture of individual accountability—through the development of insight—is the key to rebuilding trust. When individuals throughout an organization are hired, recognized, trained, compensated to act ethically, and trusted with authority to make decisions that are connected to their values and who they are, they operate with an elevated level of intensity and commitment where speed and quality are the byproducts and growth is the result.

A culture of trust is the key to building a great business and it must be built from the inside out.

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Where to Look for Role Model Chiefs?

Where can Millennials look for role model leaders in business?

Last week CNBC released yet another list of top business influentials. Their list, the “First 25,” includes many Chiefs judged to have had the most profound impact on business and finance in the last 25 years. The top three positions on the list were held by Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and the executive team at Google. You might think this list would be a great place to look for role model Chiefs.

Ironically, at the very same time last week, many media outlets reported on a settlement between employees and Apple, Google, and two other Silicon Valley technology firms for the illegal restriction of movement of engineers between the firms. Emails directly linked Jobs and then Google CEO Eric Schmidt to the case. Clearly, the settlement will lessen the publicity that Apple, Google, and the two other firms would have received had the litigation gone to trial. Reports of ethics violations among companies viewed as today’s most admired are not the type of visibility that these companies want, but they can teach us something.

It strikes me how much the media influences our collective view of “good” and “bad” Chiefs and how very little we really know about the people who make headlines. We rely on others for information to build impressions and views about people based on what little we read. At a time when confidence in business to do the right thing is low, particularly on Wall Street, we need to Millennials to help reestablish the trust that has been lost. Business schools are increasing their focus on ethics, but Millennials still need role models to follow.

For example, while I do not know Bill Gates personally, there is no doubt his success at Microsoft and his subsequent philanthropic focus with his foundation cause me to believe he is a true role model. But his life and choices may be difficult to follow for most people.

The question remains: where can Millennials look for role model leaders in business? The answer is closer than you may think.

In my experience, the best role models are people I live and work with on a daily basis. They are the people I encounter who are disciplined, supportive, creative, and insightful. Their values shine through their actions and words. These real Chiefs teach me to act with honesty and integrity, and to work hard to connect what I do to who I am. They teach me to serve others and create fully while always using my values as my best compass. They may not have Chief titles, but they are every bit Chiefs by my definition.

Millennials need not look too far for the right role models. Often, the most influential people in our lives are the ones we truly know and not the ones we think we know based on what we’ve read or what we’ve heard.

Lists are fun, but when it comes down to it, there is so much we don’t know about the people we find in these lists. Given this limitation, we must be thoughtful about whom we choose to emulate. Admiration might best be saved for those we truly know. Perhaps we can turn our focus to the real Chiefs among us common folk. Who are the Chiefs in your life, and when was the last time you let them know it?

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Companies without HR—A Big Mistake

Recently the Wall Street Journal ran an article titled “Is It a Dream or a Drag? Companies without HR.” Authors Lauren Weber and Rachel Feintzeig describe companies that attempted to operate without traditional human resource departments under the assumption that good people management should be everyone’s job. They conclude the idea is a big mistake.

The article highlights the experiences of consulting firm LRN Corp., landscaping company Ruppert Landscape Inc., Outback Steakhouse, and marketing agency Klick Health. For different reasons, after attempting to go HR-less, three of the four highlighted companies added back employees to focus on people issues. I was not surprised.

In my view, a good HR department is a critical asset in any organization because its sole focus is on human capital—the number one issue CEOs face around the world, according to a recent survey released by The Conference Board. An investment in human capital (as opposed to financial capital) often yields the best return for an organization.

I have consistently witnessed million and billion dollar organizations triple their growth rates by focusing on critical HR issues like recruiting, performance management, compensation, recognition, and communication. In one case, by placing much of our attention on these areas, I had the opportunity to work with a team who tripled the growth rate of a $3B organization, growing from 5% to 15% and holding that growth rate for three years. I can tell you first hand, strong HR departments are critical to growth.

The WSJ authors highlight another big reason why eliminating HR departments is a bad idea. Subject matter expert Steve Miranda sums it up by saying, “Whenever you consider eliminating portions of HR you have to think of the financial risk, [and] the strategic risk.” There is no doubt companies increase risk when traditional HR support for employees is cut. Examples cited in the article include exposure to lawsuits, inability to attract employees with needed skill sets, mediating employee disputes, and increasing the cost of effectively handling a workforce.

Companies want to cut costs, and they want their leaders to be more involved with their people—I get that. Both of these opportunities can be addressed while maintaining an HR presence. Tactical HR functions like benefits and payroll administration might very well be outsourced, but strategic HR functions must be retained.

HR can also be held accountable for key leading indicator metrics around recruiting and productivity. The business of business is measured by numbers—a successful HR department will need to be measured. In his book The New Human Capital Strategy, author Bradley Hall describes the award winning metrics based approach we implemented at AT&T in 1999.

Finally, I must admit my own bias. My Dad chose a career in personnel, a precursor to human resources and organizational development (OD).

At the kitchen table growing up I heard stories of how his group provided invaluable services to a mid-size machine tool manufacturer, bridging the needs of management and the workforce. Beyond ensuring a safe environment, Dad’s group enabled success by bringing skills in recruiting, training, performance management, recognition, comp and benefits, and employee development.

Companies without HR are making a mistake. Doubling down on a well-funded and strategic HR department is the way to go. That’s what Dad taught me.

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Unconventional Values

“It’s just business” is a phrase I have heard many people use in my professional career. For me, this phrase has become a red flag. In my experience, more often than not the individual using this phrase is signaling their choice to separate personal and professional values, a practice I believe has a broad and negative impact.

The good news is that there is a seemingly endless list of positive values that individuals demonstrate most comfortably in their personal lives. These include, but are certainly not limited to, authenticity, compassion, honesty, kindness, service, and trust. When asked, most people will say they live their values outside the confines of familiar territory. The bad news is that too often human behavior tells another story.

Too many of us make very different choices when in unfamiliar surroundings or when dealing with unfamiliar people. To maintain self-esteem, we become good at rationalization. One bad decision leads to another and soon we find that our actions contradict our values. I do not believe that the majority of bad decisions start with people who wanted to do evil, as the growing number of white-collar crimes might suggest. Instead, I believe many of these individuals merely started down the slippery slope of believing “it’s just business.”

We need more among us to act in a clear and consistent manner so that our values are never in question because they are apparent in all that we do. When our values are what get us out of bed in the morning and what help us sleep at night, everything about what we do, the people we connect to, and our relationship with ourselves will change. I have worked with many clients who have chosen to let their values lead their actions, and their results show it. To accomplish this level of alignment, there are several choices we must make.

First, we need to take time to consciously reflect on and become clear about the values that hold the most importance to us.

Second, we need to become far more comfortable talking about and displaying our values so they are clear to others. I recommend actively talking to others about our values—as opposed to keeping them to ourselves—as a way of reinforcing the important foundation our values play in all that we do. The unconventional practice of beginning each task, project, conversation, or transaction by first checking in with our values will continually raise the bar at all the right times.

Many notable and successful organizations have made the visibility of their values a top priority. Whole Foods prominently posts their values in each store. Zappos displays them on delivery packages. In business, we need to be sure that our values are not only prominently displayed on the wall, but that they are also included on the agenda—every single day.

Third, we need to practice carrying out our values in our day-to-day lives and to reinforce that behavior in others when we see it.

Our values must form the foundation of everything that we do in order for us to be effective and successful both personally and in business. When we are strongly rooted in our values, and when we make that commitment apparent to others, our positive impact in the world multiplies. When it becomes conventional for businesses and individuals to both more visibly talk the talk and walk the walk when it comes to their values, we’ll all be better off.

This is the fifth of a series of five blogs about the All-In Roadmap elements:

Unconventional Discipline
Unconventional Support
Unconventional Creativity
Unconventional Insight

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Unconventional Insight

It seems as if every media outlet these days is offering an article, blog, book, or talk on happiness. Virtually everyone has a view on the formula for bliss. Most provide conventional advice for what you can do to increase the probability of true contentment and success. Fewer emphasize the critical connection between what you do and who you choose to be. Very few offer a roadmap to help you on the important life journey of self-knowing, or insight. Respectfully, I offer the view that both individuals and groups will be happier when this form of unconventional insight becomes the norm.

In my experience, there are five powerful ways for you to increase your insight.

Be present – When you are totally aware and conscious, you can use all of your senses to learn the most possible in the current moment. Try to maintain your total focus on the tasks at hand and enjoy the quality of experience that results when you are not thinking about the past nor focused on the future. Your ability to be totally attentive and in the moment energizes any activity you choose to focus on, including building your self-awareness.

Be accepting – When you choose to accept people and circumstances for who and what they are, you can escape the frustration of trying to change people and/or change the past. When you accept the past, as well as remain open to circumstances and people, you open yourself to the possibilities of learning from all situations and from every individual.

Be still – Contrary to many Western cultural norms, perhaps your most important choice is to develop the deeper understanding and truth that come with the inner balance of being still. With all the noise that surrounds you regularly, you have the wonderful opportunity to find a quiet place to listen to the voice that matters most—your own. Your ability to develop trust and confidence in your own voice will offer the greatest potential to learn who you truly are.

Be generous – When you choose to be charitable with your possessions, your money, and your time, you will experience a powerful inner peace. By achieving the important balance between giving and receiving, you eliminate much of the possibility of arrogance, and you will remain genuinely and truly humble. Humility will help you remain open to a greater understanding of who you are.

Be grateful – It is easy to be grateful when things are going well. It takes inner strength and composure to remain grateful when facing one of life’s difficult periods. You have the choice to remain appreciative of the opportunity to learn lessons from the challenges you are asked to face. By doing so, your experience can be transformed and you will learn more about your true self, which will bring about happiness.

What is perhaps most unconventional about this approach to insight is the progressive combination of these individually important attributes, each of which is a choice you can make. By choosing to be increasingly more present, accepting, still, generous, and grateful on a regular basis, you will heighten your understanding of yourself and tap into a deeper meaning of happiness that is unshakable.

This is the fourth of a series of five blogs about the All-In Roadmap elements:

Unconventional Discipline
Unconventional Support
Unconventional Creativity
Unconventional Values

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Unconventional Creativity

The concept of creativity is often connected to innovation and imagination, or the ability to construct a new form or mental picture. This gift of creativity is bestowed on a limited few. And while businesses benefit greatly from the talents of those extraordinary individuals who consistently demonstrate an ability to think of new things, companies also benefit greatly when a more unconventional type of creativity is practiced. The good news is, this powerful form of creativity can be learned.

Unconventional creativity is actually based on the root word create and is defined as the ability to manifest the future. Unconventional creativity offers every individual in your organization a powerful tool to dramatically increase the probability of your company’s success.

Creativity can be internal and/or external. Internal creativity occurs when an individual thinks and feels. External creativity occurs when a person speaks, writes or acts. Here is more on these four powerful ways to practice unconventional creativity:

Inside out – Feelings provide a great window into your unique and personal truth. Your feelings are expressed through an accurate personal barometer—your body. Your body does not mislead you. When you choose to trust your instincts, intuition, and “gut feelings,” you learn that you are perceptive. When you choose to listen to your sixth sense, you align the creative process with your personal truth. Decision making is an everyday occurrence in business, and often involves a precise and measured method. But failing to take into account your gut feeling on decisions—especially big ones—is a mistake.

Also part of inside-out creativity, active thinking is the conscious awareness of the creative process. You can choose to manage your thoughts. You have the ability to change negative patterns when you first become aware of them. Train yourself to use optimistic future scenarios, while focusing on the positive nature of what is happening now, to build energy that can help you create your future and the future of your organization.

Speak your mind – Spoken words have inspired and incited. Speeches have always been an effective tool to influence people. Relationships can be strengthened or weakened based on the care used with the spoken word. Choose to select your words carefully, acknowledging the energy behind the important practice of verbal communication and the impact words have on the future you are creating.

Power of the pen – People have long understood the power of the pen as a creative force to influence others. The energy created by the written word to influence others, and its impact on life, is indisputable. Examples include the Tao Te Ching, the Koran, and the Bible. Your written word, whether email, memo, or a formal report, has the power to determine the direction of your future. Less well understood is the power of the written word to positively influence your own behavior and to create your own future. When you write your goals, you increase the probability of reaching those goals with the energy created by writing them. Similarly, when you write your fears and concerns, you release the hold those negative emotions can have.

Fake it ‘til you make it – How you act offers the most visible form of creation. Conscious action often builds on the feelings, thoughts, speech, and written energy that precede it. You are held accountable for your actions more than you are for the other forms of your ability to create. Action is powerful. When you are having trouble creating the future you want, you can choose to simply act the part and the feelings, thoughts, and words will follow. Do you know people who seem to have “tailwinds” that help move them along in everything they do? When you act in a fashion synchronized with who you truly are, you will find that things seem to happen more easily for you, too.

Author Frank Outlaw offers a reminder of the interconnectedness of these powerful creativity tools with a powerful poem:

Watch your thoughts they become your words,
Watch your words they become your actions,
Watch your actions they become your habits,
Watch your habits they become your character,
Watch your character it will become your destiny.

In summary, you are a Chief when you use your thoughts, feelings, words, and actions—each in alignment with the others—to create a new path forward, which will be recognized by others for its congruence and its vision. As a Chief with this kind of vision, you will be a true leader. The power in this type of nonconventional creativity cannot be understated. Every person in your organization can use this type of creativity to manifest a better future for your company.

This is the third of a series of five blogs about the All-In Roadmap elements:

Unconventional Discipline
Unconventional Support
Unconventional Insight
Unconventional Values

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Unconventional Support

Support can increase the probability that an individual will contribute to the success of a group at her/his full potential. Webster’s Dictionary defines support as, “the act of showing that you approve by doing something; or to give help or assistance to.” Over my career, I have had the opportunity to work for and observe companies that took their role of supporting employees very seriously, and others that seemingly ignored all but basic support. It was no surprise that the results produced by these organizations seemed to be directly tied to their approach to support—the better the support the stronger the results. The key question now is whether those companies that offer traditional support are doing enough to meet today’s challenges? I believe the answer is no.

Traditionally, companies would offer employees a wide range of support beyond simple compensation. These included health insurance, retirement programs, savings programs, life insurance, vacation, and many forms of family support. In addition, many companies would provide support for employees to expand their skill sets both with company-sponsored training and tuition assistance for outside education.

In light of today’s dynamic business pressures, many companies are cutting back on support in the belief that belt tightening is in the organization’s best interest. Beyond questioning the failed logic of this assumption, I suggest four best practices of unconventional support that have been proven to help organizations succeed.

Meet the market – Companies that will succeed in the future are those that maintain a focus on market-based pay information as seriously as they focus on market shifts with customers—and pay at market rates. Your business success will be linked to the quality of your people. You can’t hide talent. With increased market transparency, you can bet that if you aren’t paying at market, your best employees will know about it.

Set people up – Encourage managers to take a more aggressive position in setting people up for success. In larger organizations, recognize managers who consistently enable members of their team to get promoted. Encourage co-creation of development plans that will ensure your employees have the skills they need to succeed. Remove obstacles that inhibit performance. Listen to your workforce—you’ll learn valuable information.

Supersize recognition – You can’t do enough, formally and informally, to recognize those people who excel. People feed off recognition. Both formal programs that publicly recognize performance (and, likewise, programs that recognize lack of performance) and informal efforts to recognize the day-to-day efforts of your team members will go a long way to building a cohesive and responsive team.

Create a retention problem – Announce that you co-own the challenge of increasing the value of each employee in your company. Tell people that your goal is to work with them to increase their marketability, and that you are willing to step up to create such a great environment that it will be undesirable for them to leave.

Unlocking employee potential is the biggest challenge facing companies today. Proper support is the key enabler. I’ve given you a starter set of nonconventional ideas to implement support, but there are many more practices that can help move this ball forward. Please share any ideas you have about support success strategies.

Thanks!

This is the second of a series of five blogs about the All-In Roadmap elements:

Unconventional Discipline
Unconventional Creativity
Unconventional Insight
Unconventional Values

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Unconventional Discipline

Discipline can increase the probability of a desired outcome. Webster’s Dictionary defines discipline as, “the practice or methods of teaching and enforcing acceptable patterns of behavior.” In the past, many organizations divided discipline into two elements—planning the work and working the plan. And while few topics have received more attention as critical components to effective business management, the key question now is whether traditional discipline is sufficient to match today’s challenges. I believe the answer is no.

Traditionally, senior leaders would start to plan the work for a coming year with a structured and disciplined approach. These leaders would envision the next phase of an organization’s growth and strategize how best to deploy their assets to reach their goals. Depending on the organization, others might develop detailed action planning steps in support of the strategy along with dashboards of leading and lagging metrics to gauge and control. Typically, groups would spend considerable energy teaching everyone in an organization about the plan via clear, consistent, compelling, and one-way communication. Leaders on the front line would be charged with working the plan, focused on implementing and measuring to enforce compliance.

In light of today’s dynamic business conditions, I suggest three unconventional best practices that have been proven to help disciplined organizations succeed.

First, increase the diversity of input when building your plans. Successful companies today are disciplined at engaging a far greater number of people in the strategizing and planning phases than ever before.  Organizations benefit from including a far greater diversity of views and experience from all workers, particularly from the talented group of millennials, whose perspective is vastly different from that of previous generations. Receiving such varied input allows for a more complete view of the plan, often accounting for circumstances and factors that might have been missed had the planning phase merely maintained the status quo. Business as we know it is changing, but we can be ready for it by asking for input from the right people.

Second, shorten the time between your planning cycles. Nimble organizations are moving away in a disciplined way from traditional annual planning cycles and substituting a much more streamlined, semi-annual or quarterly process to adjust plans and or resources to take advantage of changing markets and customer dynamics. Month-to-month is the new year-to-year. While change has always been a constant, the rate of change is steadily increasing. To keep up in an ever-evolving business environment, how we plan must also change.

Third, build a culture that anticipates changes and excels at mid-course adjustments. Successful companies today use discipline and process to make sure all employees feel empowered to question plans any time they believe market conditions or assumptions used to form the plans have changed. These groups also build a capacity and skill sets needed for constant change. Each element of my All-In Roadmap—discipline being one element—is interconnected with the others. In this case, discipline requires support, another All-In Roadmap element. A team that masters the art of adjustment will require support from above to feel comfortable voicing concerns with the current plan.

Despite being a loaded word, discipline is a good thing. A company is stronger when discipline contains the assumption that opportunities to teach come at any time and from anyone in the organization (acting as a Chief). When discipline comes with the assumption that a company can enforce a plan with appropriate flexibility, that company is far more likely to prosper.

This is the first of a series of five blogs about the All-In Roadmap elements:

Unconventional Support
Unconventional Creativity
Unconventional Insight
Unconventional Values

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Find Your Future Chief (But Why Wait?)

“Find Your Future Chief” was the headline in an ad by Dow Jones currently being used to attract companies to advertise in the Wall Street Journal’s Career Opportunities pages. I like the headline, but I think it is directed at the wrong audience. Instead of prompting potential interviewers to find their future Chief, I’d much rather encourage the interviewees to find their own ability to be Chief. Being Chief right now is more important than waiting for someone else to decide it’s time for a title.

I believe being Chief has nothing to do with level or title, and everything to do with your choices. In fact, here are five things you can do to be Chief now, whether or not you have a job and independent of your level or title if you do:

Develop discipline. By establishing your own sense of discipline and being accountable for planning the work and working the plan, you will be more effective at how you go about your day, how you plan the weeks and months ahead, and how you strategize your overall goals. Like a muscle, discipline is developed and honed over time, but it can also be part of every day. Begin to notice the areas of your life that could use more discipline. Then figure out what you need to do and how you need to do it. Next, implement your plan and measure your progress. Finally, you will need to make adjustments depending on the success of your strategy.

Be a supporter. While it might seem a role reversal, a great Chief must be a supporter for others. When you behave in ways that are consistently supportive of others, you will be better able to connect to people. When you align how you talk with how you feel, think, write, and act, your authenticity will be apparent. When you inspire others by doing the right things, the right way, they will see a great leader. When you enable those around you to grow, and when you encourage even the most basic positive attributes in people, you will develop stronger relationships, both personal and professional.

Discover your creativity. I define creativity as the ability to manifest, or create, the future. You have the ability to create your future every time you feel, think, speak, write, and act. When you connect each of these, one to the other, you are at your creative best. When you are having trouble creating the future you want, you can choose to simply “act the part” and feelings, thoughts, and words will follow. Do you know people who seem to have “tailwinds” that help them in everything they do? When you act in a fashion synchronized with who you truly are, you will find that things seem to happen more easily for you, too.

Cultivate insight. Insight is the understanding that comes from self-awareness. And confidence comes from the insight of understanding who you truly are. This powerful insight can be challenging to discover in a world that appears to move faster and faster each day and is filled with challenges, opportunities, and seemingly endless to-do lists. Your ability to be present—totally attentive and in the moment—energizes any activity you focus on and any reality you choose to create. Perhaps your most important choice is to develop the deeper understanding and truth that comes when you are still. In addition, by cultivating acceptance, generosity, and gratitude, you will develop the insight required to be Chief.

Define your values. Finally, a strong set of values will be the foundation of your relationships. I don’t assume to know what values are most important to you, but I encourage you to find them for yourself. I can offer a set of values—the four universal value principles—that I learned from my wife to guide your choices in life: truth, service, equality, and connection. Please take some time to discern what values are most essential to your well-being, and bring them to the forefront of your interactions.

Each of these elements can be implemented today. Being Chief now, no matter your level or title, will increase your productivity, make you happier, and help potential interviewees. The choice is yours.

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Being Chief When You are Not (Always) In Charge

Being Chief is not about level or title—instead, it’s about choices. But the simple truth is, we live and work in a world with people of many different levels and titles, and where everyone has a boss. From the entry-level trainee, who seemingly reports to everyone, all the way up to the CEO (who reports to the board), everyone answers to someone. We don’t always have the ability to unilaterally choose what we want in the workplace. So, how can you succeed at being Chief when you are not in charge?

We’ve all been faced with situations that, despite our best efforts, involved decisions made against what we, ourselves, would have chosen. During these times, the best we can do is to remember the prayer first offered by American theologian Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr: God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference. For the truly enlightened few, this may be enough.

For those interested a little more guidance, however, here are some tips that have worked for me as I learned to increase the impact I could have beyond the scope of a particular assignment:

Envision broadly – See the opportunity from beyond just your part of the organization.
Plan inclusively – Incorporate support groups in any strategy session.
Measure outside the lines – Keep track of support-group key measures and performance.
Shamelessly adopt – Find the best practices from peer groups. Adopt them, and recognize the originators.
Communicate consistently and consciously – Use words to connect.
Own it – See yourself as a Chief with responsibility across organization lines.
Live it – Make your values visible, in particular with regard to teamwork.
Assume the position – Always put yourself in your boss’s seat before

Signs type. Complete does cialis work 2 such product so fish cialis dosage when greaser.

you bring an issue or decision “up.” Bring the person in charge multiple options with pros and cons before you offer your recommendation.
Be empathic – Remember that you may be working for someone who is also not in charge, in that their word is not final. Have some empathy for your boss, too.

The good news is, more and more organizations realize that to stay competitive they need to decentralize decision making so those with the most first-hand knowledge are in charge on a particular issue.

Now I’d like to hear from you: How much would your team say they are in charge of?

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

Greed on Wall Street—Time for Chiefs to Step Up!

An excellent article recently published in the New York Times outlined alarming news. Specifically, the law firm of Labaton Sucharow sent a questionnaire to 250 Wall Street industry insiders from dozens of financial companies. Respondents included traders, portfolio managers, investment bankers, hedge fund professionals, financial analysts, and investment advisers among others. While not claiming scientific survey status, the questionnaire results are telling. Highlights include:

  • 24% of respondents would engage in insider trading to make $10 million if they could get away with it.
  • 38% of those with less than 10 years’ experience would commit insider trading for $10 million if they wouldn’t be caught.
  • 15% doubted that their leadership, upon learning of a top performer’s crime, would report it to the authorities.

The article also references several studies to offer a potential explanation as to what led to these sobering results. According to one controversial study titled “Economics Education and Greed” published in 2011 by professors at Harvard and Northwestern, an education in economics surprisingly may be making the problem worse. “The results show that economics education is consistently associated with positive attitudes towards greed,” the authors wrote.

In order to reverse this trend of Wall Street community members seemingly more willing to engage in unethical behavior, Chiefs at all levels must be ready, willing, and able to step up! While the New York Times article references the whistleblower fund of taxpayer money set up to encourage reporting of known violations, I propose another way.

I believe Chiefs inside Wall Street institutions can wield sledgehammers, so to speak, and solve a lot of these issues from the inside. The large majority of Wall Street Chiefs are hard-working, ethical, and trustworthy individuals who need to increase their focus on eliminating this blemish on their collective reputation. They must demonstrate consistent actions to ensure that a culture of ethical behavior is the most visible attribute in an organization.

In addition to good hiring and strong internal audit practices, robust training programs and constant reinforcement can help companies of all sizes support good choices. From a cost/benefit perspective, focusing on ethical behavior may be the only area where it makes sense to “kill a flea with a sledgehammer.”

I believe regulation is necessary because with the amount of money involved, human beings are open to human frailties, but it’s time for Wall Street Chiefs at all levels to step up to self-policing. Bring out the sledgehammers.

Leave a comment →

| Being Chief Topics |

BEING CHIEF Beyond Business—per Reverend Taylor

The following is a review of my upcoming book, BEING CHIEF, by Reverend Dr. Donald F. Taylor, Sr.:

START_QUOTE_30t_smIt has been my pleasure to read the book, BEING CHIEF, by Rick Miller. In my estimation, it is one of the very best that I have read. The theme of the book includes several very important points that will keep the reader involved and interested in the development of the concept being put forth.

Miller shares his All-In Leadership approach to deal with a very challenging topic—how can we be our best and help others do the same? He has come upon a very unique way of integrating sound principles of leadership with a thorough review of our own personality, motives, and desired outcomes. Among other recommendations, he proposes integration, rather than separation, of our personal and professional lives based upon a “common set of values.”

Miller states that his successful All-In Leadership and All-In Living concepts require that leaders make “… good choices involving families, communities, governments, social agencies, and educational institutions, as well as business.” I could not help but reflect on how pertinent his advice is to those leaders who also have responsibility in the religious realm. In fact, I would go so far as to say that this book might be on the required reading list for those who anticipate a life of service connected very directly with the cleric.

This book truly transcends culture. Among the books of this nature to which I have been exposed, I consider BEING CHIEF a classic. The book is about more than how to reach a leadership position in an organization; rather, it shows how everyone profits when sound leadership practices are put into place. It follows so very closely the dictum, “a rising tide lifts all boats.” To follow the All-In Roadmap outlined in the book is a win-win situation for everyone.

I am also impressed with BEING CHIEF because of the subliminal implications for minorities, women, and the unconnected talent in our society. These groups often find that encouragement and “normal” pathways are muted or non-existent.

I read the book with the presumption that it probably didn’t refer too much to me or to folk like me. However, before I got too far into the document, I began to feel that the document was, indeed, speaking to me.

The All-In Roadmap is based on five important questions and choices designed to “… help you create an adaptive culture in your group or company, where people will excel and growth will be the result.” This approach presents five basic choices that include in-depth discussion on discipline, the development of insight, demonstration of support, the use of creativity, and a call to actually visibly live our values.

Miller does not presume to preach but instead believes that a “roadmap” can help you and your team get from wherever you are today to wherever you want to go. All along the way, you are given choices. Your driving preferences, he states, may change along the way and his roadmap will lay out alternative routes in response. Sometimes the most direct way may not be the best way for you to go. At times you may want to slow down, speed up, or travel in a different direction in order to reach your destination. There are times you may need to make certain stops along the way. Rick provides discussions on these alternatives.

Probably the most remarkable thing about the book that Miller so elegantly writes about and teaches is that he knows how to think humanely. During this time of great transition our nation is experiencing, when so many are searching for ways to be more meaningful professionally and to reap the benefits of advancement for themselves and others, such a book is sorely needed.

I unequivocally endorse BEING CHIEF by Rick Miller. It is a powerful book.

END_QUOTE_30t_sm

 

 

—Reverend Dr. Donald F. Taylor, Sr.

Leave a comment →