No Bull Business Blog

Succession planning: You can't afford NOT to do it

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Succession Planning – How Small to Mid-sized Businesses Can Do It, Too.

Succession planning had always been something big companies did to prepare for when the CEO left.

Not any more.

Due mostly to a mobile and rapidly changing workforce, companies of all sizes are realizing the importance of mapping out a plan for the eventual replacement of key managers and key employees at all levels.

What can a good succession plan accomplish?

It’ll strengthen your talent pool. The process of identifying high (and low) performers and possible gaps in your employees’ skillsets gives companies an opportunity to make adjustments before they’re left in the lurch when a key team member departs.

You’ll make better use of the talent you’ve got. By definition, succession planning includes an employee development component. That means companies can allow workers to stretch their skills, increase their earning power and likely strengthen their commitment to sticking around.

No fat to tide you over

Why has succession planning become so essential?

Years ago, many companies had an extra layer of fat at the managerial level, so bosses had more time to train and coach. Employees planned on sticking around – perhaps their entire careers.

There was a greater familiarity between the rank-and-file and management, and the work being done. Managers observed employees grow and develop over the years. When positions opened, they were more familiar with which employees were ready to step in.

Today is an era of job hopping, staff consolidation and downsizing. Organizations are lean.

It’s a lot tougher for managers to give individuals much-needed personal coaching – first, they have a lot less time, and second, you never know if people will stick around long enough to make it worthwhile.

Since most compensation structures are now based on production, a lot of supervisors see themselves more and more as project managers and less and less as people managers.

The end result: Not all managers really know what their employees might be capable of achieving, they only know what they’re capable of doing right now.

DIGGING DEEPER
Every company needs to do succession planning. But where do you start? To find out, read the Executive Report: Succession Planning – How Small to Mid-sized Businesses Can Do It, Too.

3 job applicants worth taking a second look at

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Attracting Top Talent When You Can’t Spend Big Bucks

If you're a smaller organization, how do you beat out the big companies for talent?

You can flourish by focusing on what the big guys tend to overlook.

Take a harder look at three groups of job candidates that often get dismissed by other companies. And let's dispel the myths.

"Former fast-food workers are (a) disengaged and (b) 'the bottom of the barrel.'"
Consider the numbers from a recent survey: About 12% of Americans have worked at a fast-food outlet at some time in their lives. That alone should tell you that the industry is a training ground for workers, most of whom have learned how to work face-to-face with all types of customers and all types of co-workers. On top of that, fast-food workers learn procedures, multi-tasking and the importance of deadlines and schedules.

"Single mothers are too distracted to be dedicated to their jobs."
Does anyone really believe that most single mothers can afford to not be dedicated? As a group, single mothers have shown themselves to have the ability to juggle a lot of balls, solve problems that would befuddle Solomon and take on responsibilities immediately and without much preparation. If those traits don't make a good employee, what does? Certainly, few successful, modern employers would reject an applicant just because she's a woman with children. But many employers factor in "family responsibilities" - maybe even subconsciously - when selecting candidates for jobs that require a high degree of responsibility and dedication.

"Ex-military are too rigid."
While veterans certainly understand rules and the concept of chain of command, they also understand the concepts of accepting personal responsibility and adapting to changing situations. And don't forget that one of the key links in the chain of command is leadership.

You may not subscribe to any of those myths, and maybe you'd be thrilled to hire someone in one of those categories. The point is that almost everyone has ideas about what makes a perfect candidate. Successful recruiters will look more deeply than the common ideas.

DIGGING DEEPER
Not everyone wants to work at a big company. There are a lot of talented people who will do better in smaller environment. Find out how to recruit those people in the Executive Report: Attracting Top Talent When You Can’t Spend Big Bucks

 

Interviewing job candidates: Picking up on cues

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Interviewing - Weed Out Slackers, Stupid People and Bad Fits

If interviews were just about questions and answers, we could just write down the questions and ask job candidates to respond in writing.

Of course interviews are about much more than just questions and answers. A lot of what you get from candidates lies in how they answer - their language, mannerisms and expressions, for instance. Or in what you might call the parenthetical statements they make.

Let's not make the mistake of believing we can use mannerisms as a crystal ball to tell, for instance, if a candidate is lying. We can't. Still, we can study some typical traits and what they generally reveal about a candidate. For example:

• Complaints about current job or boss.  That's a sign the candidate thinks "it's everyone else's fault," and an indicator of questionable loyalty.
• Speaking quickly before processing a question, or cutting off your question. If the answer's on-target, maybe that's fine. You might have a quick thinker in front of you. Otherwise, though, the person may be a careless worker who lacks preparation.
• Pretending to know all about your organization. Someone who studies the company beforehand is a candidate worth considering. But you'll know when the person crosses the line and professes to know more than you do. That's a danger sign of conceit.
• Criticizing, lacking respect for or poking fun at junior staff, support people or others in lesser positions. You're probably dealing with an inconsiderate bully.
• Showing poor manners. Smart candidates pick up the expected manners and culture of a prospective employer. Ignoring the manners and culture is a sign that someone's oblivious to what's appropriate and what's inappropriate.

DIGGING DEEPER
The interview is full of opportunities for misinterpretation, misunderstanding and just plain missing the mark. How can you be sure your next interviews lead to a successful hire? Read the executive report: Interviewing - Weed Out Slackers, Stupid People and Bad Fits

Gossip: Treat it as a viral infection

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Managing Gossip: What You Need to Know to Keep the Rumor Mill in Check.

Gossip and rumors spread much like any sort of disease - from one person to another.

But just like a viral or bacterial infection, some people are more susceptible to the invading germs, and others are more active in spreading them. It's important for managers to identify these individuals so the spread of gossip and rumors can be contained.

An experienced manager will be able to spot a gossipmonger or rumor mill feeder more easily than  will a new boss. But any manager can learn to identify the telltale traits of these folks.

To prevent or stop office gossip, a manager must first understand the personality profile of an employee who spreads information about others.

Very often, the person who is a gossip monger is also a person with an unsatisfied ego. The need to feel important or the need for power, coupled with a weak value system, can add up to the kind of person who uses gossip as a way to ingratiate himself or herself with others. By offering up valuable information, this person feels needed, valuable and indispensible to others.

Most gossipers are flat-out attention seekers. They want to draw attention to themselves to feel connected and powerful within an organization.

If knowledge is power, displaying that knowledge will demonstrate the gossiper's powerful profile.

DIGGING DEEPER
You can't keep employees from gossiping, but you can keep it from getting out of control and even use it to benefit your organization. Find out more in the Executive Report: Managing Gossip: What You Need to Know to Keep the Rumor Mill in Check.

Management and leadership are not the same thing

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Taking Leadership to the Next Level.

Leadership and management go hand in hand, but they aren't the same.

Warren Bennis, one of the nation's foremost authorities on leadership, described the difference between management and leadership best with the following definitions:

• "To manage means to bring about, to accomplish, to have charge of or responsibility for, to conduct."
  
• "Leading is influencing, guiding in a direction, course, action, opinion. The distinction is crucial."
  

Yes, managers have some leadership qualities, and leaders need management skills. But leaders see the big picture and keep an eye on the horizon. Managers focus on what needs to get done at that time with an eye on the bottom line.

Stephen Covey, who has published extensively on leadership, used a ladder scenario to demonstrate the difference between leadership and management in his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

"Management is concerned with getting up a ladder in the most effective and most efficient manner. Leadership is making certain the ladder is on the right wall."

To be successful, management and leadership must go hand in hand.

DIGGING DEEPER
Leadership makes the difference in every successful organization. The myth says leaders are born. That's simply not true. Find out more about what it takes to be a great leader in the Executive Report: Taking Leadership to the Next Level.  

New hires: The No. 1 red flag

Excerpted from the Executive report: Turn New Hires Into Great Employees - The Challenge of Those First 90 Days.

Some new hires are bad fits. Some exaggerate their experience and qualifications. Some just don't like the new position or the organization.

Mistakes happen. Spotting mistakes early saves time and money.

What's the No. 1 red flag?

When a new hire doesn't ask questions. Not asking questions when he or she should be asking questions can mean the new hire:

• doesn't understand the job
• doesn't know who to ask
• may not care if the task is done well
• fears asking a question some might perceive as "dumb"
• doesn't communicate well
• prefers to solve problems alone, or
• thinks his or her way is better than the established way.

New hires should be encouraged to ask lots of questions during those first 90 days. Some days the new hire may be buried in training and won't have the opportunity to ask questions. But by and large, a supervisor should expect, welcome and encourage regular questions.

Asking questions means a new hire:

• is thinking about the job or a specific task
  
• wants to do things right
  
• respects the supervisor's knowledge base
  
• is naturally inquisitive, or
  
• wants to increase confidence in his or her own judgment.  
  

DIGGING DEEPER
The first 90 days on the job are key for the success of a new hire. Do it wrong and you'll likely be sifting through resumes in short order. To guide you through that period, read the Executive report: Turn New Hires Into Great Employees - The Challenge of Those First 90 Days.

Coaching: Leading them to the right choices

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Coaching Skills for Managers and Supervisors

One of the better coaching techniques is to let people make their own choices, rather than dictating choices to them.

Still, even if you encourage people to make choices, there are ways to lead them to make the right choices.

One approach is known as "Simplicity sells."

It's based on research from Stanford University indicating that the more choices you give people, the less likely it is they'll make good choices.

When faced with a wide range of choices, people tend to shut down and make no choice at all, or just say, "Oh, anything's fine."

The fix: Limit the choices to a low number - that is, emphasize quality over quantity.

Then, let people choose from that manageable number. It's sure to get better results.

DIGGING DEEPER
Coaching employees to be more effective, productive and motivated is challenging for even the most experienced managers, but it can be done. For help, read the Executive Report: Coaching Skills for Managers and Supervisors

What employers don't want to see on Facebook

Excerpted from the Executive Report: The HR Guide to Recruiting with Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Even though most job seekers are warned to clean up their social networking profiles so they'll make an attractive impression, many don't - or just don't seem to care.

So what do hiring managers find that reflects badly on a candidate?

A CareerBuilder study found that 35% of managers reported finding content that turned them off. The top examples cited:

• Candidate posted provocative or inappropriate photographs or information - 53%
  
• Candidate posted content about them drinking or using drugs - 44%
  
• Candidate bad-mouthed their previous employer, co-workers or clients - 35%
  
• Candidate showed poor communication skills - 29%
  
• Candidate made discriminatory comments - 26%
  
• Candidate lied about qualifications - 24%
• Candidate shared confidential information from previous employer - 20%
  

Just using a "smiley face" or emoticon prompted some managers (14% at least) to disqualify a candidate. Another 16% dismissed a candidate for using text language such as GR8 (great) in an e-mail or job application.  

DIGGING DEEPER
Social media has made a lot of information available about job candidates. But what can an potential employer do with it? Find out in the Executive Report: The HR Guide to Recruiting with Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter

Hold employees to expectations

Excerpted from the Executive Report: 6 Dumb Ways to Kill Employee Morale - And What You Can Do to Fix It

Most people want to do well on the job, regardless of their intrinsic nature and their different behavioral traits. People rarely go into a job with ideas of failing and/or sabotaging the works. As long as they know clearly what's expected of them, they'll try hard to meet those expectations.

Setting clear expectations as to what's expected within a certain timeframe also helps a manager reach a decision quickly to fire when it's not working. One of the worst things an organization can do is to continue to write a paycheck to somebody who everybody else in the organization already knows should not be working there. Whatever managers can do to shorten that decision cycle will be a positive step, for the organization as a whole and for the morale and the productivity of all remaining employees.

Holding on to a bad hire too long is one of the most common dumb mistakes companies and their managers do to kill productivity and morale. It's almost always better to bite the bullet and get through a difficult transition period with the help of all concerned than to leave the underperformer in place until a replacement can be found. The greatest tool managers need to make those decisions quickly is the yardstick of clear expectations by defined time frames.

DIGGING DEEPER
The last thing a good employee wants to do is work next to a bad employee. Taking action early is good management. For help, read the Executive Report: 6 Dumb Ways to Kill Employee Morale - And What You Can Do to Fix It

Warning: Don't let Generation Y get bored

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Managing Millenials - 9 Ways to Get the Most Out of the Internet Generation

The fact is, Generation Y, Millenials, the Internet Generation (or whatever you call them) bore easily.And while it's not your job to entertain them, if you want them to produce great work and retain them as workers, it's best to make sure they're not stuck in work ruts.

They crave newness and want to be challenged. So give them the chance to learn from new projects, people and challenges, and they'll thrive. It's an easy way to keep them engaged in their work - and keep them from jumping ship.

Example: Have Millennials try a new task at least once every two months. Whether it's a new assignment, team or group, switching their job up - even just a little bit - will increase their job engagement.

Another option? Cross-train them. Once they've nailed down their job, let them work in another department for a day or two. It'll keep them interested in the job and it'll benefit the company by uncovering new ways for departments to work together.  

DIGGING DEEPER
It doesn't matter whether your older workers think Millenials are a bunch of spoiled brats. This group will become a dominant force in the workplace as the Boomers retire. How do you deal with them? Read the Executive Report: Managing Millenials - 9 Ways to Get the Most Out of the Internet Generation

Dealing with a 'bad attitude'

Excerpted from the Executive Report: The Supervisors Guide to Managing and Motivating Difficult Employees. 

 

Identifying and correcting behavior often can be more difficult than dealing with performance.

 

Difficult employees are often characterized as having a "bad attitude." Identifying employees that way is a bad starting point for implementing change. What's a "bad attitude"? How is it measured? What standards will you use to determine if it has changed?

 

In short, "attitude" shouldn't be in your supervisor's vocabulary, but "behavior" should. Here's why: You can make behavior a part of performance - with the same types of standards you use for performance.

 

Suppose an employee refuses to cooperate with others or won't follow instructions or argues with customers, or all of the above.

 

That type of employee commonly fends off criticism by saying, "But I do my job."

 

Your answer: "Behavior is a crucial part of your job. So if you can't cooperate, in fact you're not doing your job."

 

To complete the loop, you can make cooperation (with you, other employees, customers, etc) a crucial component of the employee's job description.  Here's a typical statement used in a job description or as a standard laid out during a performance evaluation:

 

Maintain a positive work atmosphere by acting and communicating in a manner so that you get along with customers, co-workers and managers.

 

The greater the importance behavior is to the job, the greater the percentage this standard will apply to the job - whether it's 10%, 25% or 50%. You make the call on it and make sure the employee understands the percentage and the standard.

 

What you'll have done is take the vague "attitude" problem and turn it into something defined and measured. And it gives you a rebuttal to the person who says, "But I do my job."

 

Usually, the person who says that is doing the job at some minimum standard - while driving everyone else crazy. The answer: Raise the standard, to include behavior. Then your response is: "No, you're not doing your job."

 

DIGGING DEEPER

It doesn't require the greatest skills to manage good employees. They have initiative, jump in where needed and don't need someone looking over their shoulder. The people who are a drain on the workplace are the difficult employees. To get help with them, read the Executive Report: The Supervisors Guide to Managing and Motivating Difficult Employees.

Time to fire? Don't wait

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Terminating Without Fear – What Employers Need to Know

Sometimes managers fear pulling the trigger on a termination out of fear that other employees might "think I'm a bad person." It's a common sentiment, and a misplaced one, too.

Remember: Good employees know who the bad ones are. Good people are looking to management to do something about it.

If an employee's not performing up to standards, his or her co-workers know it. They're probably wondering why the person's still around, and they're likely growing resentful that they're fulfilling their duties while the other worker isn't.

The longer managers wait before proceeding to the actual termination, the more respect they can lose in the eyes of their other workers.

Employees prefer to work for supervisors who enforce high standards evenly, uniformly and fairly.

DIGGING DEEPER
Firing an employee isn’t fun. But to keep a bad employee is a huge mistake. Need help? Read the Executive Report: Terminating Without Fear – What Employers Need to Know

How many writing mistakes can you find?

Can you find all of the mistakes in the paragraph below? Note: We're not trying to trick you. Every error below is a common mistake by businesspeople every day.

Nothing is more embarassing than making a writing mistake. Of course, we all think its funny when we spot a mispelled word in magazine ads or on billboards. If one of your employee’s are making the the mistakes, it can be disasterous. And if you have a typo in a memo to the boss, how do you think they will view your professionalism? These kind of mistakes can be prevented, irregardless of the persons job title. The people that make the mistakes can seriously effect how other’s view you’re company. That can cost any organization money and hurt it’s profits. 

Okay, how did you do? If you found all 16, then you're brilliant.

To see the answers to this quiz, go to the PBP Executive Reports site.

10 mistakes new rookie managers make

Excerpted from the Executive Report - Motivating Employees: What Every Manager Needs to Know

Managing is hard work – motivation is even more difficult.

Many managers and supervisors were promoted into their jobs simply because they were the best at performing a set of specific tasks among a team of people.

However, becoming a manager requires different skills, skills that the recently promoted employee may never have been trained to do.

No wonder so many mistakes are made.

Here are 10 typical mistakes made by first-time supervisors:

1. They persist in still doing their old jobs, rather than their new ones. As a result, they don’t delegate; they burn themselves out while the people who report to them can’t grow and thus feel unmotivated.
2. Out of a sense of insecurity, they sometimes view smart new people as competition, rather than assets. As a result, this de-motivates the people who could well represent their best hope for making the team a success.
3. They can be so afraid of making a mistake that they make no decision at all. By their indecisiveness, they lose the respect of their people – and with the loss of respect comes the loss of any chance to motivate people.
4. They fail to consider the consequences of their promotion on their former relationships with teammates. You can’t be best friend with a subordinate.
5. As a result of these factors, new managers play favorites based on former friendships. That destroys the morale and motivation of everyone else.
6. They see themselves as crusaders. They represent their people against the company, which is bound to end in disaster – or the other way around, which is guaranteed to turn everyone into an enemy unmotivated to perform.
7. When pressured to act unethically, they’re afraid to take a stand and do the right thing. Loss of integrity in the eyes of the workers will inevitably result in de-motivation.
8. They fail to adequately communicate laterally other managers, as well as up to their bosses and down to their own team. To be properly motivated, people can’t be kept in the dark like mushrooms.
9. They fail to reach out for help, thinking they have to be all-knowing. Admitting one doesn’t have all the answers can be an important factor in gaining respect.
10. They’re either too direct or too indirect in their dealings with their subordinates. They have a hard time finding a middle ground.

DIGGING DEEPER
Getting the most from your staff is critical. It's hard to achieve high productivity if employees aren't motivated. To find out what you can do, you invited to check out the Executive Report - Motivating Employees: What Every Manager Needs to Know.

No one ever changed the oil in a rented car

Excerpted from the Executive Report: Leadership Skills: the 7 Essential Steps to Delegating

You don't always have the power, authority or means to reward people the way you'd like or give them the growth they desire. Now what?

Realize that there's almost always something you can do to provide an incentive. It may not be a pay raise, but it might be:

• a small bonus
• more time off to spend with the family
• training and learning opportunities, or
• an incentive tied to the company's financial performance.

And you can modify and adjust incentives based on your knowledge of the employee involved.

Just as some people like opera while others like baseball, so can incentives be adjusted to target an employee's likes.

So, while your authority to award incentives is limited, your imagination is not.

Another incentive for successful delegation is to give the subordinate a sense of ownership of the task - a reason to be invested in its success. As the adage goes, "No one ever changed the oil in a rented car."

If you don't own a project, why would you care?

The sense of ownership ties in with other incentives - a bonus, a chance to move up, more independence. There's a difference, however:

While you might offer an incentive for taking on the delegated task, you might also offer an incentive for any successes that result from the person's taking it on.

Again, what you offer may be limited by your budget and authority. Still, almost all of us can come up with a reward for success.

DIGGING DEEPER
The ability to delegate is what turns good managers into great managers. Learn how to do it the right way by reading the Executive Report: Leadership Skills: the 7 Essential Steps to Delegating